Cheiron as a Mentor in Medicine to Achilles and Asclepius: the Pedagogical Mission of an Urban Centaur

Abstract

The article provides a historical and pedagogical analysis of the images of Chiron, a centaur who devoted a significant part of his life to teaching. Among the extensive list of knowledge, skills and abilities that Chiron possessed and passed on to his numerous students, there are three areas related to education: 1) how to fight and take a life, 2) how to heal and return life – the art of healing, the reverse of the military, 3) special skills, such as how to play musical instruments or recognize constellations. We have compared the textual and visual (images on ceramics of the 6th-5th centuries BC) traditions that represent the student paths of Achilles and Asclepius, for whom medical knowledge was an important part of the curriculum. Achilles and Asclepius were students who came to Chiron as infants and for whom Chiron became a mentor-nurse. Asclepius was an excellent student who made significant progress in medicine, but Achilles, nevertheless, was the most gifted student of the centaur and, probably, the closest to him, not only in kinship, but also in spirit. A comparison of stories about how Chiron trained and educated Achilles and Asclepius allows us to see that in the ancient tradition Chiron is depicted as an urban centaur. Unlike other centaurs, his dual nature is subject to humanity: unlike his relatives, he is wise, not aggressive, heals people and arranges their affairs, develops unique curricula for students and educates them outside the city, but for the city. That is why Chiron as a mentor is always depicted with a kind face and outdoors; he is half dressed in a tunic and his front legs do not end with hooves, these are human legs. His school on Mount Pelion is distinguished by its originality: education and upbringing close to nature is designed to prepare a student for life in the city and activities for the benefit of the city.