Medicine and philosophy - Classical Homeopathy Online

78 Hippocratic Corpus and Diocles of Carystushave the same powers, are mistaken; for it can be shown that from[substances] that are similar in these respects, many dissimilar [effects]result; (6) and indeed, one should also not suppose that every [substance]that is laxative or promotes urine or has some other power is like that forthe reason that it is hot or cold or salt, seeing that not all [substances] thatare sweet or pungent or salt or those having any other [quality] of thiskind have the same powers; (7) rather must one think that the wholenature is the cause of whatever normally results from each of them; forin this way one will least fail to hit the truth.(8) Those who believe that with every single [substance] one shouldstate a cause why each one of such [substances] is nutritious or laxative orpromotes urine or has some other similar power, apparently do not know,first, that for the use [of these substances] something like that is not oftennecessary, and further, that many of the [things] that are [the case] insome way look like some sort of starting-points by [their] nature, so thatthey do not admit of the [kind of] account that deals with [their] cause.(9) In addition, they sometimes make mistakes when, while accepting[things] that are not known or are disputed or implausible, they thinkthat they state the cause sufficiently. (10) Therefore, one should not payattention to those who state causes in this way or to those who believethat one should state a cause for all [things]; rather, one should givecredence to the [things] that have been well grasped on the basis ofexperience over a long time. (11) One should look for a cause [only] ofthe [things] admitting one, whenever it is by this that what is said turnsout to be better known or more reliable.’(12) These are the words of Diocles, who believes that the powers containedin foodstuffs are known on the basis of experience only and not on thebasis of an indication according to mixture or an indication according tohumours. (13) There is still another [form of indication], namely the oneaccording to the parts of plants, but he did not mention this. (14) Byindication according to the parts of plants I mean the one used in additionto the others by Mnesitheus in his demonstration that powers in the rootsof plants are different from those in the stems, just as those in the leavesare different, and those in the fruits, and those in the seeds.It is important to note that both in the introduction to the fragmentand immediately after the verbatim quotation Diocles’ view is presentedby Galen as advancing an exclusively empirical approach to the question ofthe powers of foodstuffs (section 2: ‘through experience only’, ; section 12: ‘on the basis of experience only’, ). Ishall return to Galen’s association of Diocles with Empiricism, and the