By Cara Mulcahey
Why This Myth?
I chose the myth of Asclepius because he was the Greek god of medicine. I’m interested in studying medicine one day, so I was drawn to this myth. Additionally, I briefly covered Asclepius in my History Fellowship paper, and I wanted to learn more about him.
Summary
Asclepius was the son of Apollo and Coronis. However, after the conception of Asclepius, Coronis had an affair, and Apollo killed her. But, he felt bad for his unborn son and saved him with what is thought to be the first C-section ever, which is just an interesting tie to medicine.
Then, Asclepius was raised by Chiron, a centaur known to be skilled in medicine. As Asclepius grew up, he became known for his healing skills using surgery, drugs, incantations, and aphrodisiacs. Additionally, Athena gave him gorgon blood, which could bring someone back from the dead.
Unfortunately, due to his reputation of curing deadly diseases and bringing people back from the dead, Zeus killed him with a thunderbolt. Zeus and Hades did not like Ascelpius reviving the dead and making people immortal. Zeus thought Asclepius was disrupting the natural order of things, and Hades believed that all dead souls belonged to him. However, after his death, Zeus felt remorse and turned him into a constellation.
Asclepius was considered as a god after his death. People started his cult, as they thought he could cure them still. They built the Asclepion as a temple for him. This is where people went to for cures or to learn medicine (Hippocrates even studied there). These physicians, like Hippocrates, made significant contributions to modern medicine, displaying Asclepius’ significance to the modern world.
Also, Socrates' last words were about Asclepius. They were :“Crito, we owe a cock to Asklepios - Pay it and do not neglect it”. People believe that Socrates mentioned Asclepius in his final moments because Asclepius was known to be a “good physician” and could even revive the dead. Additionally, The cock symbolizes rebirth and afterlife - most people gave a cock as an offering to Asclepius.
Image
The snake wrapped around the rod has two main significant meanings. First, it symbolizes a snake bite, which was one of the deadliest injuries someone in ancient Greece could obtain; however, Asclepius was known to be able to heal it. Additionally, the Elaphe longissima longissima (the snake of Asclepius) had a reputation of being a healer. In both cases, the snake symbolizes physicians and healing.
Relevance
The Greek text I used was from the opening line of the classical Hippocratic Oath:
“ὄμνυμι Ἀπόλλωνα ἰητρὸν καὶ Ἀσκληπιὸν καὶ Ὑγείαν καὶ Πανάκειαν καὶ θεοὺς πάντας τε καὶ πάσας, ἵστορας ποιεύμενος, ἐπιτελέα ποιήσειν κατὰ δύναμιν καὶ κρίσιν ἐμὴν ὅρκον τόνδε καὶ συγγραφὴν τήνδε:”
Translation:
"I swear by Apollo the physician, and Asclepius, and Hygieia and Panacea and all the gods and goddesses as my witnesses, that, according to my ability and judgement, I will keep this Oath and this contract:"
The fact that Asclepius is mentioned by name in the opening line of the Hippocratic Oath displays his significance to the Greek’s idea of healing. The Hippocratic Oath is a pledge that physicians take to do no harm to patients both by only providing beneficial treatments and protecting patients from personal and social injustice. Since all ancient Greek physicians who took the Oath had to swear to Ascelpius, it means they held him in high esteem. Additionally, the Hippocratic Oath is still taken by physicians today, and although his name is not used in the modern version of the oath, he is still regarded as a respected physician who made great contributions to medicine.
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