Konrad and Alexandra (pdf) - Rolf Gross

Dahl's Examination of Alexandra
Munich 1913
Robert Dahl had no finished manuscript to show. After listening to Claudia’s reports
about Alexandra’s healing experiments, he had discarded much of his previous work and
decided that Alexandra’s experiences and insights would form the nucleus of their publication.
"Claudia described to me the healing sessions you two undertook together." Dahl told
Alexandra. "I have every reason to believe that you observed true medical effects in your
patients. Have you had any new successes since then? I would, of course, like to know the
statistical rate of success you have experienced, that is, is your healing reproducible or
sporadic?"
She told him of the skin cancer remission, which had now held for more than a year.
Dahl leaned back in surprise. "This is a totally new class of diseases distinctly different
from the arthritis cases."
He explained that he wanted to explore primarily the psychological phenomena
connected with the interaction between the healer and the healed. Questions such as, how
does she do it, and what does the patient experience or contribute to the process? The
question of what physiologically occurred in the patient, he was sure, was beyond normal
medical explanations.
Alexandra ventured to contradict him and offered her immunological explanation. But
she added that this was a working hypothesis, which, because of the profession’s ignorance of
the immune system, could not be proven one way or the other.
"But I have strong reasons to believe that psychological moments play a role in those
cases which I have been able to treat successfully. In other words, I believe that the arthritis
and the cancer, which I was able to cure, were of emotional origin."
Dahl leaned back in his chair with a skeptical face. "This idea has not occurred to me.
To verify such an explanation would require an exhaustive collection of psychological data
about the patients and their illness."
He returned to his two original questions. Alexandra assured him that her patients did
not contribute anything to the healing process. What the patient did was entirely irrelevant, as
long as he remained quiet.
Dahl took off his reading glasses and looked at her inquisitively. "Does it matter whether
the patient believes in your healing powers? The healers I investigated are without exception
‘faith’ healers, who make Christ responsible for their healings. They are known as religious
healers in the community and are consequently being consulted by religious patients. Both
parties, the healer and the patients, emphasize that their Christian faith plays a decisive role in
the process."
Alexandra tilted her head. "In my cases I can show that the patient’s belief in me or my
abilities plays no role. I have exclusively healed people who had no knowledge of my healing
powers. With the simple trick of threatening a relapse if anybody heard of their having been
healed, I have been able to keep fame at arm’s length. I can say decisively that the patient
does not contribute to the healing, either physically or spiritually."
Dahl put the ear of his glasses between his lips and nodded satisfied. "And what
326