Asclepius (/æsˈkliːpiəs/;Ancient Greek:ἈσκληπιόςAsklēpiós[asklɛːpiós];Latin:Aesculapius) is a hero and god ofmedicine in ancientGreek religion andmythology. He is the son ofApollo andCoronis, orArsinoe, or of Apollo alone. Asclepius represents the healing aspect of the medical arts; his daughters, the "Asclepiades", are:Hygieia ("Health, Healthiness"),Iaso (from ἴασις "healing, recovering, recuperation", the goddess of recuperation from illness),Aceso (from ἄκεσις "healing", the goddess of the healing process),Aegle (the goddess of good health) andPanacea (the goddess of universal remedy). He has several sons as well. He was associated with the Roman/Etruscan godVediovis and the EgyptianImhotep.[1] Therod of Asclepius, a snake-entwined staff similar to thecaduceus, remains a symbol of medicine today. Those physicians and attendants who served this god were known as theTherapeutae of Asclepius.
The etymology of the name is unknown. In his revised version ofFrisk'sGriechisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (Greek Etymological Dictionary),R. S. P. Beekes gives this summary of the different attempts:
"H. Grégoire (with R. Goossens and M. Mathieu) inAsklépios, Apollon Smintheus et Rudra 1949 (Mém. Acad. Roy. de Belgique. Cl. d. lettres. 2. sér. 45), explains the name as "the mole-hero", connectingσκάλοψ, ἀσπάλαξ 'mole' and refers to the resemblance of theTholos inEpidauros and thebuilding of a mole. (ThusPuhvel,Comp. Mythol. 1987, 135.) But the variants of Asklepios and those of the word for "mole" do not agree.
The name is typical for Pre-Greek words; apart from minor variations (β forπ,αλ(α) forλα) we findα/αι (a well known variation;Fur. 335–339) followed by-γλαπ- or-σκλαπ-/-σχλαπ/β-, i.e. avoiced velar (without-σ-) or avoiceless velar (or anaspirated one: we know that there was no distinction between the three in thesubstr. language) with a-σ-. I think that the-σ- renders an originalaffricate, which (prob. asδ) was lost before the-γ- (in Greek the group-σγ- is rare, and certainly before another consonant).
Szemerényi's etymology (JHS 94, 1974, 155) fromHitt.assula(a)- "well-being" andpiya- "give" cannot be correct, as it does not explain thevelar."[2]
Asclepius was the son of Apollo and, according to the earliest accounts, a mortal woman namedKoronis (Coronis), who was a princess ofTricca in Thessaly.[7][8] When she displayed infidelity by sleeping with a mortal namedIschys, Apollo found out with his prophetic powers and killed Ischys. Coronis was killed byArtemis for being unfaithful to Apollo and was laid out on a funeral pyre to be consumed, but Apollo rescued the child by cutting him from Coronis' womb.[9]
According to Delphian tradition, Asclepius was born in the temple of Apollo, withLachesis acting as a midwife and Apollo relieving the pains of Coronis. Apollo named the child after Coronis' nickname, Aegle.[10]
Phoenician tradition maintains that Asclepius was born of Apollo without any woman involved.[11]
According to the Roman version, Apollo, having learned about Coronis' betrayal with the mortal Ischys through his ravenLycius, killed her with his arrows. Before breathing her last, she revealed to Apollo that she was pregnant with his child. He repented his actions and unsuccessfully tried to save her. At last, he removed their son safely from her belly before she was consumed by the fire.[12]
In yet another version, Coronis who was already pregnant with Apollo's child, had to accompany her father toPeloponnesos. She had kept her pregnancy hidden from her father. InEpidaurus, she bore a son and exposed him on a mountain calledTittheion (from τίτθη "wet nurse", τιτθεύω "to suckle, breastfeed"). The child was given milk by one of the goats that pastured about the mountain, and was guarded by the watch-dog of the herd. Aresthanas, the owner of goats and the guard dogs found the child. As he came near, he saw lightning that flashed from the child, and thinking of it to be a sign of the divine, he left the child alone. Asclepius was later taken by Apollo.[13]
Apollo named the rescued baby "Asclepius" and reared him for a while and taught him many things about medicine.[16] However, like his half-brother,Aristaeus, Asclepius had his formal education under thecentaurChiron who instructed him in the art of medicine.[17]
It is said that in return for some kindness rendered by Asclepius, a snake licked Asclepius's ears clean and taught him secret knowledge (to the Greeks snakes were sacred beings of wisdom, healing, and resurrection). Asclepius bore a rod wreathed with a snake, which became associated with healing. Another version states that when Asclepius (or in another mythPolyidus) was commanded to restore the life ofGlaucus, he was confined in a secret prison. While pondering on what he should do, a snake crept near his staff. Lost in his thoughts, Asclepius unknowingly killed it by hitting it again and again with his staff. Later, another snake came there with an herb in its mouth, and placed it on the head of a dead snake, which soon came back to life. Seeing this, Asclepius used the same herb, which brought Glaucus back.[18] A species of non-venomous pan-Mediterranean serpent, theAesculapian snake (Zamenis longissimus) is named for the god.
He was originally called Hepius but received his popular name of Asclepius after he cured Ascles, ruler of Epidaurus who suffered an incurable ailment in his eyes.[19] Asclepius became so proficient as a healer that he surpassed both Chiron and his father, Apollo. Asclepius was therefore able to evade death and to bring others back to life from the brink of death and beyond. This caused an excessive abundance of human beings, and Zeus resorted to killing him to maintain balance in the numbers of the human population.
At some point, Asclepius was among those who took part in theCalydonian Boar hunt. Also, he was one of theArgonauts.
Roman coin from Odessos showing Asclepius with Hygieia on one side and Gordian III's portrait on the other side (35mm, 28g)
Asclepius once started bringing back to life the dead people likeTyndareus,Capaneus,Glaucus,Hymenaeus,Lycurgus and others.[22] Others say he broughtHippolytus back from the dead on Artemis's request, and accepted gold for it,[23] or maybe he did it for love.[24] It is the only mention of Asclepius resurrecting the dead.[clarification needed] In all other accounts he is said to use his skills simply as a physician.
However, Hades accused Asclepius of stealing his subjects and complained to his brotherZeus about it.[25] According to others, Zeus was afraid that Asclepius would teach the art of resurrection to other humans as well.[26] Concerning the fate of Asclepius,Ovid writes that "the youth [Asclepius] blasted by ancestral bolts [of Zeus] soars from earth [rising as the constellation Ophiuchus] and flings his hands coiled with double snakes."[27] Later accounts read "The Serpent-Holder. Many astronomers have imagined that he is Aesculapius [Asclepius], whom Jupiter [Zeus], for the sake of Apollo, put among the stars."[28] Asclepius was killed by Zeus, and byApollo's request, was subsequently immortalized as a star.[29][30][31]
Asclepius (center) arrives inKos and is greeted byHippocrates (left) and a citizen (right),mosaic, 2nd–3rd century AD
The most ancient and the most prominentasclepeion (or healing temple) according to the geographer of the 1st century BC, Strabo, was situated inTrikala.[32] The 1st century ADPool of Bethesda, described in theGospel of John, chapter 5, was found by archaeologists in 1964 to be part of an asclepeion.[33][34] One of the most famous temples of Asclepius was atEpidaurus in north-easternPeloponnese, dated to the fourth century BC.[35] Another famous asclepeion was built approximately a century later on the island ofKos,[35] whereHippocrates, the legendary "father of medicine", may have begun his career. Other asclepieia were situated inGortys (in Arcadia), andPergamum inAsia.
Votive relief of Asclepius, Epione and Hygieia. Mid-4th cent. BC,Acropolis Museum,Athens.
From the fifth century BC onwards,[36] the cult of Asclepius grew very popular and pilgrims flocked to his healing temples (Asclepieia) to be cured of their ills. Ritual purification would be followed by offerings or sacrifices to the god (according to means), and the supplicant would then spend the night in the holiest part of the sanctuary– the abaton (or adyton). Any dreams or visions would be reported to a priest who would prescribe the appropriate therapy by a process of interpretation.[37] Some healing temples also used sacred dogs to lick the wounds of sick petitioners.[38] In honor of Asclepius, a particular type of non-venomous snake was often used in healing rituals, and these snakes—theAesculapian Snakes—slithered around freely on the floor in dormitories where the sick and injured slept. These snakes were introduced at the founding of each new temple of Asclepius throughout the classical world.
The originalHippocratic Oath began with the invocation "I swear by Apollo the Physician and by Asclepius and by Hygieia and Panacea and by all the gods ...".[38]
Epidauria (τὰ Ἐπιδαύρια) was a festival at Athens in honour of Asclepius.[39]
Some later religious movements claimed links to Asclepius. In the 2nd century ADthe controversial miracle-worker Alexander claimed that his godGlycon, a snake with a "head of linen"[40] was an incarnation of Asclepius. The Greek languagerhetorician andsatiristLucian produced the workAlexander the False Prophet to denounce the swindler for future generations. He described Alexander as having a character "made up of lying, trickery, perjury, and malice; [it was] facile, audacious, venturesome, diligent in the execution of its schemes, plausible, convincing, masking as good, and wearing an appearance absolutely opposite to its purpose."[40] In Rome, theCollege of Aesculapius and Hygia was an association(collegium) that served as aburial society anddining club that also participated in theImperial cult.
The botanical genusAsclepias (commonly known as milkweed) is named after him and includes the medicinal plantA. tuberosa or "Pleurisy root".
Asclepius was depicted on thereverse of the Greek 10,000drachmas banknote of 1995–2001.[41]
At the city ofMiletus, archaeologists discovered a cave under the city's theatre which was associated with Asclepius cult.[42][43]
^abEdelstein, Ludwig and Emma Edelstein.Asclepius: a Collection and Interpretation of the Testimonies. Vol. 2. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1998. p. 243
^Wickkiser, Bronwen.Asklepios, Medicine, and the Politics of Healing in Fifth-century Greece: Between Craft and Cult. Johns Hopkins Press, 2008. p. 106
Pindar,The Odes of Pindar including the Principal Fragments with an Introduction and an English Translation by Sir John Sandys, Litt.D., FBA. Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1937.Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
Tzetzes, John,Book of Histories, Book IX-X translated by Jonathan Alexander from the original Greek of T. Kiessling's edition of 1826.Online version at theoi.com
Edelstein, Ludwig and Emma Edelstein.Asclepius: Collection and Interpretation of the Testimonies, Baltimore, The Johns Hopkins Press, 1945.
von Ehrenheim, Hedvig.Greek Incubation Rituals in Classical and Hellenistic Times. Kernos. Supplément, 29. Liège: Presses Universitaires de Liège, 2015.
Farnell, Lewis Richard.Greek Hero Cults and Ideas of Immortality, (Oxford Clarendon Press,1921).
Mitchell-Boyask, Robin,Plague and the Athenian Imagination: Drama, History and the Cult of Asclepius, Cambridge University Press, 2008,ISBN978-0-521-87345-1.
Oberhelman, Steven M. (ed.),Dreams, Healing, and Medicine in Greece: From Antiquity to the Present. Farnham; Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2013.
Renberg, Gil H. "Public and Private Places of Worship in the Cult of Asclepius at Rome".Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome, 51/52, 2006, pp. 87–172.
Riethmüller, Jürgen W.Asklepios : Heiligtümer und Kulte, Heidelberg, Verlag Archäologie und Geschichte, 2005,ISBN3-935289-30-8
Sigerist, Henry E. (1987).A History of Medicine Volume 2: Early Greek, Hindu, and Persian Medicine (1st ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-505079-0.
Wickkiser, Bronwen.Asklepios, Medicine, and the Politics of Healing in Fifth-century Greece: Between Craft and Cult. JHU Press, 2008.
