Asclepius and Temple Medicine in Aelius Aristides’ Sacred Tales

Abstract

If the activities attributed to Asclepius in the tablets of Epidaurus are compared with Aelius Aristides' report of the god's miracle working upon him, the reader is struck by one considerable difference: in Epidaurus the god operates directly. He does surgery while the patient is dreaming; he heals without intermediaries. In Aelius Aristides' dreams, however, the god gives insight and advice, as well as a feeling of belonging to a therapeutic community. But he heals no less in Pergamum in the second century AD than he did in Epidaurus in the fourth century BC. A second difference seems to be related. Whereas in Epidaurus doctors are rarely mentioned--they seem to belong to a different domain and do not seem to practise within the temple precincts--in Aristides' Pergamum the god acts only indirectly, in dreams and visions, which consequently are interpreted with the help of skilled doctors and members of the temple staff. The god appears 'to have learned medicine', as Ludwig Edelstein called it. In this paper I intend to look for an answer to the question: what is the role of (Hippocratic) medicine in Aelius Aristides' Sacred Tales? How are the two rationales, of (Hippocratic) medicine and of the Asclepius cult, related? There are apparent inconsistencies and contradictions. How are they dealt with? Did the god acquire a medical education indeed? Is a balance ever struck between Hippocratic and temple medicine?