ASCLEPIUS

A great example of supernatural healing methods can be seen in the practices of the ancient Greeks. They had several healing gods, but the main one was Aesculapius.It is thought that he was born in the thirteenth century B.C. According to Homer, he was a chieftain from Thessaly and a physician, who had two sons that also engaged in the practice of healing.

Epidaurus, known as the birthplace of Aesculapius, became the most famous health spa in ancient Greece. It also turned into a school where students learned to be both priests and doctors.

In ancient Greece, he was seen as the main god of healing. He was also referred to as the Catholic god, the Roman god, and a tribal hero. He had a legendary family with many sons and daughters, including two daughters named Panacea and Hygeia. Both of these daughters, like Aesculapius, were worshipped as gods. Hygeia became the saint of preventive medicine, while Panacea was known for her ability to cure all illnesses.

Back in the day, people practiced divination through a method called incubation sleep. They thought that when someone slept, their soul would leave their body and connect with divine beings in the spirit world. Dreams during this sleep were seen as messages from the gods, and Aesculapius was thought to have the ability to send these dreams. It was believed that snakes would crawl around the sleeping patients and whisper messages from Aesculapius to them.

Incubation was a technique used to create dreams while sleeping. In the temples of Aesculapius, this method included several steps that tapped into strong emotions. 

The steps were: 

• Preparatory period
• Prayer
• Getting ready for sleep
• Dreaming
• Treatment

Initially, there was a tough and challenging journey filled with hope and effort. After arriving at the temple, the preparation took a long time, lasting over a week. The person seeking help had to go through a thorough cleansing process that included bathing and applying oils; sometimes, they had to follow a strict diet.

The attendants and other patients shared stories about the cult and described its mysterious symbol. Eventually, the patient was taken to an image of the god Aesculapius. There, the patient fervently prayed for assistance and relief. After that, preparations were made for sleep; prayers were recited, sacrifices were made, and the lamps were turned off.

During the quiet of the night, the priest and doctors were present, and snakes were permitted to slither around the patients. Because of this, the patients dreamed about their sickness and how to heal it, and when they woke up, they shared their dreams with the priest-doctors, who then explained what the dreams meant.

Patients received treatment using natural methods that were popular at the time. Aesculpius used water in many ways, including hot and cold baths, douches, and compresses. One of his students, a freed slave named Antonius Musa, is known in ancient Roman history as a water doctor who became famous for curing Emperor Augustus of chronic cataracts with cold baths. As a reward, a statue of him was commissioned to be placed in the temple of Aesculapius.