Discovering the Language of Nature - Traditional Herbal Energetics in Humoral Medicine
Four sessions class series
Wednesdays 6-8pm, 10/30, 11/6, 11/13, 11/20
$120 for the course. Early bird discount - $100 if register by October 10th
Class will take place online via Zoom.
An invitation to connect with nature
There is a way to relate to plant medicine through our intuition and our senses. When we taste ginger we feel it's gentle warmth. When we smell roses we feel them comfort our hearts and uplift our spirits. When we see the bright yellow flowers of St. John's Wort we can't help but smile with it's sunny energy.
Traditional herbalism has a way of telling the story of plants with a language that reflects the poetry of nature. These traditional ways of understanding plants help us to not just know the herbs intellectually but to understand them deeply in our body, mind and spirit.
Throughout history, indigenous medicine traditions throughout the world have reflected this holistic and embodied approach to the practice of medicine. Additionally, comprehensive "energetic" systems such as Taditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda have developed over millennia and remain in practice today. A similar system that is less well-known in the US. is humoral medicine.
What is Humoral Medicine?
For over 2,500 years "humoral medicine" has existed as a holistic philosophy of medicine that has influenced traditional medicine practices across large portions of Asia, Africa and Europe. By "philosophy" of medicine, what is meant here is a view or a model of reality upon which medicine practice is built. Just like how Traditional Chinese Medicine is built upon concepts of meridians and qi, Ayurveda on doshas, or modern medicine on scientific materialism, humoral medicine is a holistic philosophy of medicine based on the four humors.
This philosophy has developed and evolved over such a large area that its name and definition has been different in different times and places. Its origins are often attributed to Ancient Greece, but the reality is that the Greeks adopted much of what they learned from the Egyptians and the whole system was highly refined during the Islamic Golden Age before its wider spread and eventual evolution into modern-day medicine.
Throughout history, it's mostly just been called "medicine" in various languages since it was as ubiquitous in many areas as modern day "medicine". Contemporary names that seek to describe the historical origins include "Greco-Arab" medicine or "Greco-Islamic" medicine.
Today, Unani Medicine (Urdu for "Greek Medicine") is still in widespread practice in much of Southern and Southwest Asia. It retains the core philosophy and worldview that defines humoral medicine.
Most of the historical English-language herbal literature from the 1700's and earlier, such as the works of herbalist Nicholas Culpeper, are best understood in the context of this traditional system.
For further background on the deep and complex history, see here: https://applications.emro.who.int/imemrf/Hamdard_Med/Hamdard_Med_2015_58_4_5_90.pdf
Why study humoral medicine?
Herbs are complex and work much differently from pharmaceutical drugs. Yet many people seek to use herbs in the same way drugs are used. The problem with this approach is that on the one hand herbs may not work effectively, or even worse they could exacerbate the problem. For example, if someone learns ginger helps heartburn they may consider ginger equivalent to an anti-acid, when in reality for many people its pungent, spicy nature would make heartburn worse. What's needed instead is to understand the "energetics" of the individual to find out which of the possible herbs that help heartburn would be best.
Many herbalists in the U.S. learn about herbal "energetics" as a concepts synthesized from various sources, usually including Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda, or perhaps also 19th century vitalism, which had European influences as well as likely indigenous and African-American influences that were unnamed.
There are some limitations with this approach. One is that it lacks a certain depth because modern sources including both written material as well as teachers are relatively few. Another is that it lacks a degree of coherence because concepts from various systems are at times are contradictory (i.e. the "elements" are not defined the same by all).
On other hand, humoral medicine is a deep and coherent system, with countless written sources to learn from, and which is still in widespread practice today in many countries.
Because it developed over such a large, diverse area, it has many local variations, even while retaining its unifying, underlying philosophy. The many local variations mean that herbs from as far distant places as Northwestern Europe and Southeast Asia have been classified and utilized within this system using similar terms.
By learning this system, people interested in practicing herbalism can do a few things:
Though modern medicine has reduced humoral theory to the dustbin of history, the loss of this system has meant a loss of holism and connection to nature. Certainly at times and in places humoral theory has led to treatments which looking back were clearly harmful, but far more than those bad example there is a rich and poetic history of herbal medicine that has an incredible potential to enhance modern herbalism.
What you'll learn
We'll explore how to begin to understand this way of relating to plants through an exploration of the traditional "Severn Natural Things" which provide the basic philosophical framework of the system. Through understanding each of these seven things, a language for describing what we feel through our senses and intuition can be learned.
Class 1 - The elements + qualities
Many people are familiar with the concept of the four elements: earth, air, fire and water. They still permeate our modern culture through fictional stories and movies, but for those who study herbal medicine they provide a grounding framework for orienting ourselves to the patterns we see in our world.
Additionally, the four qualities of hot, cold, damp and dry are paired with the elements. These become foundational concepts for matching herbs with people and their concerns. For example, is someone's digestion cold and needs ginger? Or are things overheated and they would do better with peppermint? Here's how it's described in this system:
Class 2 - The four bodily fluids (humors) and the traditional understanding of the organs
The four humors of this system are similar to the "doshas" of Ayurveda. They can be understood in a sense as the four elements in a fluid form that make up the tissues and structures of the human body. They are:
The organs in this system are understood differently than in modern medicine where we reduce the organs to their physical forms. In this system, what are called organs have a loose correspondence to materiality, but they also signify broader physiological functions.
The four principal organs are:
Class 3 - The subtle aspects: spirits, faculties and actions
These aspects of the human body are a way of describing very subtle aspects of reality that traditionally are considered to be real things that cannot be directly perceived with ordinary senses.
The "spirits" are similar to the "qi" of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the "prana" of Ayurveda. They are essentially a subtle energy that drives physiological function.
The "faculties" are a way of describing the innate intelligences of the body which essentially govern or direct various physiological functions utilizing the energy of the spirits.
"Actions" are what we see as the result of the vapors and faculties, for example the activity of digestion itself, cognition, or the heart pumping blood.
These are associated with the principal organs:
Class 4 - Practical applications and learning more
This class will be devoted to exploring the practical applications of these topics. Nick will share practical applications that he has seen and experienced with himself and when working with others.
Additionally, we will invite participants to share practical questions to consider with the group, such as questions people may have about how to apply these concepts to themselves or with specific cases they are working on.
Lastly, we'll discuss the various resources available about this lineage of medicine and how we can learn more and stay connected. There are so many ways to continue learning, including classes, books, websites, journal articles, etc. and we'll seek to provide an introduction to these various learning avenues.
Who this class is for
This class is NOT for you if:
This class IS for you if:
Join us to dive deep into an ancient tradition
Herbal medicine has so much more to offer than just plants. Traditional systems of healing offer a way to re-connect to the Earth, to nature, and to ourselves.
Humoral medicine is just one of the great medicine traditions that have flourished throughout human history. It's particularly relevant for working with many of the herbs commonly available in the U.S., since many if not most of them originated in this tradition.
Join us to dive deep into history, deep into nature and deep into ourselves. The hope is that you'll gain a broader, richer understanding of health and healing that helps you to better understand herbalism and to better help yourself, your loved ones, your community and our world.
Teacher bio
Nick began studying herbalism in 2010 and completed the 3-year clinical herbalism training program at the Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism in 2016. He's been practicing as a clinical herbalist at Railyard Apothecary in Burlington since 2016. In the last few years he was drawn to learn more about the Greco-Arab lineage of medicine out of a desire to better understand the herbal medicine of his ancestors in Northern and Southern Europe. His studies in this area have included close reading of traditional texts by Galen, Nicholas Culpeper and Avicenna, as well as two intro-level courses in Unani Medicine through Al Balagh Academy online and one-on-one online mentorship with Unani Medicine physicians at Aligarh Muslim University in India. He has compiled resources about this system of medicine which can be found online here: https://publish.obsidian.md/traditionalherbalism/
Four sessions class series
Wednesdays 6-8pm, 10/30, 11/6, 11/13, 11/20
$120 for the course. Early bird discount - $100 if register by October 10th
Class will take place online via Zoom.
An invitation to connect with nature
There is a way to relate to plant medicine through our intuition and our senses. When we taste ginger we feel it's gentle warmth. When we smell roses we feel them comfort our hearts and uplift our spirits. When we see the bright yellow flowers of St. John's Wort we can't help but smile with it's sunny energy.
Traditional herbalism has a way of telling the story of plants with a language that reflects the poetry of nature. These traditional ways of understanding plants help us to not just know the herbs intellectually but to understand them deeply in our body, mind and spirit.
Throughout history, indigenous medicine traditions throughout the world have reflected this holistic and embodied approach to the practice of medicine. Additionally, comprehensive "energetic" systems such as Taditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda have developed over millennia and remain in practice today. A similar system that is less well-known in the US. is humoral medicine.
What is Humoral Medicine?
For over 2,500 years "humoral medicine" has existed as a holistic philosophy of medicine that has influenced traditional medicine practices across large portions of Asia, Africa and Europe. By "philosophy" of medicine, what is meant here is a view or a model of reality upon which medicine practice is built. Just like how Traditional Chinese Medicine is built upon concepts of meridians and qi, Ayurveda on doshas, or modern medicine on scientific materialism, humoral medicine is a holistic philosophy of medicine based on the four humors.
This philosophy has developed and evolved over such a large area that its name and definition has been different in different times and places. Its origins are often attributed to Ancient Greece, but the reality is that the Greeks adopted much of what they learned from the Egyptians and the whole system was highly refined during the Islamic Golden Age before its wider spread and eventual evolution into modern-day medicine.
Throughout history, it's mostly just been called "medicine" in various languages since it was as ubiquitous in many areas as modern day "medicine". Contemporary names that seek to describe the historical origins include "Greco-Arab" medicine or "Greco-Islamic" medicine.
Today, Unani Medicine (Urdu for "Greek Medicine") is still in widespread practice in much of Southern and Southwest Asia. It retains the core philosophy and worldview that defines humoral medicine.
Most of the historical English-language herbal literature from the 1700's and earlier, such as the works of herbalist Nicholas Culpeper, are best understood in the context of this traditional system.
For further background on the deep and complex history, see here: https://applications.emro.who.int/imemrf/Hamdard_Med/Hamdard_Med_2015_58_4_5_90.pdf
Why study humoral medicine?
Herbs are complex and work much differently from pharmaceutical drugs. Yet many people seek to use herbs in the same way drugs are used. The problem with this approach is that on the one hand herbs may not work effectively, or even worse they could exacerbate the problem. For example, if someone learns ginger helps heartburn they may consider ginger equivalent to an anti-acid, when in reality for many people its pungent, spicy nature would make heartburn worse. What's needed instead is to understand the "energetics" of the individual to find out which of the possible herbs that help heartburn would be best.
Many herbalists in the U.S. learn about herbal "energetics" as a concepts synthesized from various sources, usually including Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda, or perhaps also 19th century vitalism, which had European influences as well as likely indigenous and African-American influences that were unnamed.
There are some limitations with this approach. One is that it lacks a certain depth because modern sources including both written material as well as teachers are relatively few. Another is that it lacks a degree of coherence because concepts from various systems are at times are contradictory (i.e. the "elements" are not defined the same by all).
On other hand, humoral medicine is a deep and coherent system, with countless written sources to learn from, and which is still in widespread practice today in many countries.
Because it developed over such a large, diverse area, it has many local variations, even while retaining its unifying, underlying philosophy. The many local variations mean that herbs from as far distant places as Northwestern Europe and Southeast Asia have been classified and utilized within this system using similar terms.
By learning this system, people interested in practicing herbalism can do a few things:
- Accurately describe "energetic" patterns of health in an individual in terms of "hot," "cold," "damp" and "dry" and the four humors
- Match these patterns to plants classified in the same way
- Understand the subtlety that exists in these terms, for example by understanding the "degrees" of hot, cold, damp and dry
- Gain an additional understanding how subtle energy moves in the body through the concepts of spirits and faculties
Though modern medicine has reduced humoral theory to the dustbin of history, the loss of this system has meant a loss of holism and connection to nature. Certainly at times and in places humoral theory has led to treatments which looking back were clearly harmful, but far more than those bad example there is a rich and poetic history of herbal medicine that has an incredible potential to enhance modern herbalism.
What you'll learn
We'll explore how to begin to understand this way of relating to plants through an exploration of the traditional "Severn Natural Things" which provide the basic philosophical framework of the system. Through understanding each of these seven things, a language for describing what we feel through our senses and intuition can be learned.
Class 1 - The elements + qualities
Many people are familiar with the concept of the four elements: earth, air, fire and water. They still permeate our modern culture through fictional stories and movies, but for those who study herbal medicine they provide a grounding framework for orienting ourselves to the patterns we see in our world.
Additionally, the four qualities of hot, cold, damp and dry are paired with the elements. These become foundational concepts for matching herbs with people and their concerns. For example, is someone's digestion cold and needs ginger? Or are things overheated and they would do better with peppermint? Here's how it's described in this system:
- Earth is the element of stability and is cold and dry
- Water is the element of fluidity and is cold and damp
- Fire is the element of transformation and is hot and dry
- Air is the element of movement and is hot and damp
Class 2 - The four bodily fluids (humors) and the traditional understanding of the organs
The four humors of this system are similar to the "doshas" of Ayurveda. They can be understood in a sense as the four elements in a fluid form that make up the tissues and structures of the human body. They are:
- Melancholic humor - earth
- Phlegmatic humor - water
- Choleric humor - fire
- Sanguine humor - air
The organs in this system are understood differently than in modern medicine where we reduce the organs to their physical forms. In this system, what are called organs have a loose correspondence to materiality, but they also signify broader physiological functions.
The four principal organs are:
- The Brain - essentially the actual brain, the nervous system, cognition, and general physiologic activity in the head including upper respiratory activity
- The Heart - essentially the actual heart, the cardiovascular system and the seat of emotional experience
- The Liver - essentially the actual liver but also digestive function and metabolism more broadly
- The Gonads - similar to modern understanding, but also signifying the genitalia and their functions more broadly
Class 3 - The subtle aspects: spirits, faculties and actions
These aspects of the human body are a way of describing very subtle aspects of reality that traditionally are considered to be real things that cannot be directly perceived with ordinary senses.
The "spirits" are similar to the "qi" of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the "prana" of Ayurveda. They are essentially a subtle energy that drives physiological function.
The "faculties" are a way of describing the innate intelligences of the body which essentially govern or direct various physiological functions utilizing the energy of the spirits.
"Actions" are what we see as the result of the vapors and faculties, for example the activity of digestion itself, cognition, or the heart pumping blood.
These are associated with the principal organs:
- The Aminal Spirit and Animal Faculty reside in the brain
- The Vital Spirit and Vital Faculty reside in the heart
- The Natural Spirit and Natural Faculty reside in the liver
- The Generative Faculty resides in the gonads
Class 4 - Practical applications and learning more
This class will be devoted to exploring the practical applications of these topics. Nick will share practical applications that he has seen and experienced with himself and when working with others.
Additionally, we will invite participants to share practical questions to consider with the group, such as questions people may have about how to apply these concepts to themselves or with specific cases they are working on.
Lastly, we'll discuss the various resources available about this lineage of medicine and how we can learn more and stay connected. There are so many ways to continue learning, including classes, books, websites, journal articles, etc. and we'll seek to provide an introduction to these various learning avenues.
Who this class is for
This class is NOT for you if:
- You want to learn about the science of herbal medicine right now. Though this system can be used alongside a more scientific understanding of herbalism, this won't be discussed in this class
- You're absolutely brand new to herbalism
- You mostly want to learn about plants
This class IS for you if:
- You're interested in the "energetic" aspect of herbalism that relates to our senses and intuition
- You're relatively new to herbalism, know some basics, but want to go deeper into applying herbs in a holistic, traditional way
- You're an experienced herbalist that is confused by the contradictions and confusions of combining disparate systems like TCM and Ayurveda and are looking for a more streamlined and unified approach to energetics
Join us to dive deep into an ancient tradition
Herbal medicine has so much more to offer than just plants. Traditional systems of healing offer a way to re-connect to the Earth, to nature, and to ourselves.
Humoral medicine is just one of the great medicine traditions that have flourished throughout human history. It's particularly relevant for working with many of the herbs commonly available in the U.S., since many if not most of them originated in this tradition.
Join us to dive deep into history, deep into nature and deep into ourselves. The hope is that you'll gain a broader, richer understanding of health and healing that helps you to better understand herbalism and to better help yourself, your loved ones, your community and our world.
Teacher bio
Nick began studying herbalism in 2010 and completed the 3-year clinical herbalism training program at the Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism in 2016. He's been practicing as a clinical herbalist at Railyard Apothecary in Burlington since 2016. In the last few years he was drawn to learn more about the Greco-Arab lineage of medicine out of a desire to better understand the herbal medicine of his ancestors in Northern and Southern Europe. His studies in this area have included close reading of traditional texts by Galen, Nicholas Culpeper and Avicenna, as well as two intro-level courses in Unani Medicine through Al Balagh Academy online and one-on-one online mentorship with Unani Medicine physicians at Aligarh Muslim University in India. He has compiled resources about this system of medicine which can be found online here: https://publish.obsidian.md/traditionalherbalism/
