The Irresistible Fascination of Medical Theories about Opposites

Authors

  • Luciana Rita Angeletti Department of Historical-Religious Studies, University of Rome "La Sapienza"
  • Luigi Frati Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome "La Sapienza"

Keywords:

Theurgical medicine, Opposites , Yin/yang, Antigen/antibody, cAMP/cGMP, oncogene/antioncogene

Abstract

Theurgical medicine was a part of the eternal fight between good and evil an health was reconciliation with the gods. This duality characterized ancient medicine, i.e. greek medicine after the homeric age or chinese traditional medicine. In the passage to medicine of observation due to the School of Cos duel between good and evil becames the substrate of new medicine and the balances between opposites represented by elements and qualities were the fundaments of the humoralism. Fascination of opposites continues for centuries up to now, both in western and far eastern medicine: yin/yang, antibody/ antigen, cAMP/cGMP, oncogene/antioncongene are examples of this attractive theory. Although fundaments of biological and medical observations are the basis of theories of opposites, the trend is to overcame reality and today represents, following idealism in the 19th century, an inconscious ancestral reminescence of theurgical philosophy and medicine.     

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Published

2018-12-17

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Articles