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A Treatise on the Health
of the Human Body and Related Discourses
By
Uester Rael
Delivered to bring further glory to the name of Tempus the Foehammer, so
that those who follow his wisdom shall enjoy health and shall be able to raise
up their arms in combat against those who bring displeasure to the Lord of
Battles. Being an account of the experiences of a physician relating to the
treatment of slight injures and ailments with which it is dangerous folly to
concern the Gods.
Of the Parts of the Body and their
Treatment
A man is both an whole thing, being a living thing which exists, and an
composite, being made of both limbs and a head and other parts. This being
evident it is the case that treatments and cures which are appropriate for one
of the parts of the body may not be appropriate for another – as clothes fit
only the parts for which they are made. And also there are treatments which do
not affect one part, but all that whole thing. So we may make the distinction
between medicine of the parts, which is delivered externally, and medicine of
the whole, which is delivered internally. And this distinction is important
because treatment to a specific part does not affect parts which are not
treated, but treatment which is internal cannot be so separated from the parts
because it affects the whole. And it is the case that what is good for one part
may be deadly poison to another.
Of the Treatment of the Head and its
Afflictions
Treatment of the head must be most careful. For the head is not like the
arms or the legs which can be removed and the man may not die. But should the
head be injured the whole man is impaired, so it is that the most severe
injures of the head, should the whole survive, may still result in injury to
the limbs which make them go in ways which the whole does not intend. So we
must make the distinction between the uncontrolledness which is caused by the
injury to the head and the madness which is an evil curse laid upon the whole.
Of the Treatment of Sleeplessness
Sleeplessness, as is evident, is an affliction of the head and not the
whole, for the heart can be heard to beat even in sleep. So it must be that the
heart does not sleep. And examination of the sleeper will show that the arms
and legs do not sleep either, but may move in sleep. It is only the head which
can sleep, and so treatment of sleeplessness must restrict itself to the head,
lest the other parts of the body be injured by a sleep they were not meant to
have. So from previous discourse we know that treatment of sleeplessness must
thus be external.
To treat sleeplessness the following mixture must be prepared. Three
parts of opium and equal amounts of the seeds of henbane. Combine this with two
parts of the juice of hemlock and a like amount of the mandrake plant,
containing both the flowers and the root. Add to this mixture a measure of musk
so that the smell may rise more easily. Gather these things together into a
ball as large as a man’s hand may hold and being smelled often it will induce a
deep and restful sleep. It is no secret among physicians that the plants
involved in this, taken internally will cause sleep, but neither is it a secret
that they also cause death. This is because they are good for head, but are
poison for the other parts of the whole.
Of the Treatment of Bad Dreams which
Disturb Sleep
As sleeplessness is a sickness of the head, so disruption of sleep is also
a sickness of the head and must be treated externally. The boughs of the poplar
are most potent in the treatment of bad dreams, likewise the oil of the poplar.
Smelling either of these things prior to sleep will give peaceful dreams.
Of
the Treatment of the Eyes
It is only by the blessing of Gods that sight can be returned to one in
a state of blindness. But minor afflictions and sorenesses and bloodshot eyes
can be cured by use of the following potion. Take two bottles of rich red wine
and half a pint of rosewater add to this two ounces of celandine, also known as
the swallow-wart and a like amount of fennel, rue and eyebright. Add half an
ounce of cloves, bruised, one eighth of an ounce of sugared roses, half as much
camphire and a like amount of aloes. Take all of these things into a pot and
boil them for not more than an hour then strain the contents into through fine
linen. The resultant oil must be bottled and aged for a period of not less than
thirty days. Once this is done it may be applied, two or three drops at a time
directly to the eyes, three times a day. This will relieve all minor
afflictions within two days.
Of the Treatment and Correct Care of the
Teeth and Gums
The teeth, being of a specific part of the body, must be treated
externally. Prepare a mixture of three handfuls sage, nettles, rosemary,
mallows and of walnut root and shell. Wash these things with clean water then
beat them. Take also the same amount of the flowers of sage, rosemary, olive
and leaves of the plantain, then two handfuls of hypocistis, horehound and the
tops of the bramble. Further required is one pound of the flowers of myrtle and
half as much in its seeds, two handfuls of rosebuds with their stalks, one
quarter ounce of sanders, a like amount of coriander and citron pill. Next
needed is three eighths of one ounce of cinnamon, ten cypress nuts, five green
pinecones, one quarter of one ounce of bole-armenick and the same in mastick.
Powder all of this and mix it with a sharp black wine and let this macerate for
three days. Boil the mixture in an alembic, taking the distilled water and then
boil it again, adding two ounces of aloe, until the aloe is dissolved. Keep the
liquid in a close stopped vessel and to use it, suck some up into your mouth.
Stir this liquid up and down your mouth until it turns to froth, then clean the
teeth with a linen cloth. This should be done at least once per day and will
keep the teeth clean, the gums healthy and prevent the breath becoming rancid.
If, though this method has been followed or not, a swelling on the gums
is found, this may be treated through the application of this method. Take the
roots and the leaves of the plantain and bruise them so they release their
liquids. Place these against the gums when you sleep and in the morning the
swelling will be less.
Of the Treatment of the Sorenesses of the
Head
The head, being a definite part of the body, must be treated externally.
A soreness of the head may be removed, or at least mollified by use of rose
oil. Simply mix one ounce of rose oil to one pint of cold water and soak a
strip of cloth in it. Place that strip across the forehead and adopt a state of
repose. When the cloth becomes dry, re-soak it in the mixture and repeat until
the pain is gone.
Of the Treatment of Chapped Lips
For chapped lips, make a cone of paper or some other substance through
which smoke may not easily pass. Then toss a handful of the seeds of henbane
upon hot coals and breath the fumes through the cone for as long as you are
able. The pain will ease and the lips will soon heal.
Of the Mollification of Twinges and Aches
The body is prone to many aches which are minor, but whose discomfort
need not be endured. A general cure-all for minor pains is this one. Take two
pounds of fresh beeswax, four ounces of linseed, two ounces of rosemary
flowers, and the same amount in berries from the bay and from the betony. Three
ounces of chamomile oil and half as much of both cinnamon and St John’s Wart.
Dry all the flowers and pass them through a sieve. Melt the wax and add the
oils, then the powders and boil this mixture until it becomes thick and like a
paste. This paste has a warming effect on the skin and will cure all minor
aches caused by cold, it will assist in the healing of wounds, it will mollify
gout and when taken with wine it will relieve sciatica. Its other uses are too
many to detail here.
Of
the Prevention of Pox
Such men as would lie with unclean women would do well to know how to best prevent contraction of this maddening disease. Take one eighth of one ounce of hartwort and gentian, the same of sanders and aloes, one sixteenth of an ounce of powdered coral and the same of spodium and burned hart’s horn, a handful each of sowthistle, scordium, betony, scabious and half as much mercury precipitate. Mix all of this with a pint of wine and leave to soak for an entire day. Then boil until only half that amount remains. Strain this and keep the liquid. Lay a linen cloth in this and let it soak for a night, then dry it in the shade the next day and repeat this twice more. Then after copulation, wash your yard in the liquid and place the linen over it, keeping it close, and wear this for a full day.
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