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The genus Vanessa includes butterflies known as the "Ladies" (Painted Lady, American Lady, Western Lady) and the Red Admiral (the Red Admiral should not be confused with admiral butterflies from other families). This subfamily is distributed worldwide, as is the Red Admiral itself.
Red admirals and their subfamily (Nymphalinae) belong to the family Nymphalidae (brush‑footed butterflies). The Red Admirals show various individual colour patterns and
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Origin of the name:
Vanessa, the name of the genus, probably refers to a girl's name; some people also link it to the god Phanes from Greek mythology, the mysterious primal god of procreation and the origin of new life. (The subgenera of the other three species of this subfamily are called Cynthia / thistle butterfly.) The name of the Red Admiral seems rather odd within this ladies' genus. Some believe the name originated in England as "Red Admirable" (red splendour) and later degenerated into "Red Admiral".
The trituration:
The trituration was carried out by three female homeopaths in Buffalo, New York, on 22 May 2010. We had not planned it; it just happened; we met, and I arrived with two different insect specimens that I had placed in milk sugar the day before. The three of us triturated the substance with milk sugar and potentised it to C4.
The participants were three white women, two aged 55 and one 39. The substance was known to us, and two knew that it was an insect. (At the time I still thought the sample was another butterfly from the same subfamily.) Naturally, the small size and homogeneity of our proving group, and the fact that I knew something about the substance to be tested, meant that our proving procedure was by no means perfect. Nevertheless, clear themes emerged that suggest an effective remedy.
Themes:
Fathers going to war; child's grief after the father's death:
It is well documented in homeopathy that the family of butterfly remedies has a lot to do with abandoned children and the feeling of being a defenseless child. The remedy showed these themes, and above all the theme "loss of the father" is very strong. Because the Red Admiral is the only military title among this genus of "ladies", themes of war and the military are also present.
This theme was the strongest and appeared immediately after the trituration. There was deep sorrow about fathers and also more generally about men who had to go to war. It was very striking what heavy grief the provers experienced.
Sentimental thoughts about the father, identification with the suffering father:
Alongside grief about the father there was much sentimentality and closeness, almost bordering on the incestuous. The song "Butterfly Kisses" played a central role in the trituration and kept recurring (see proving).
Longing for the past:
Together with the sentimental feelings about the father there was a general longing for past times.
Pain, suffering, senseless / purposeful:
This theme related to war and struggle and especially concerned what our fathers who had served in the military had to endure: “the fucking wars, the pain they cause…”
Butterflies:
Symbolic images of butterflies appeared in the proving, and also a reference to the song "Butterfly Kisses".
Clothing:
During the proving there was discussion about clothing, especially clothing from earlier times.
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