This term is used in homeopathy to describe an underlying pattern of energy. These patterns of energy are similar in nature to specific diseases. Thus, they are named after these diseases. There are many theories about miasms. Hahnemann originally described them as inherited tendencies passed down from generation to generation. For example, if a grandfather had Tuberculosis, the grandson might have asthma. Although asthma is a different “disease”, it would never the less be energetically connected to the grandfather's T.B.