In ancient Greece, those suffering from physical, mental, or spiritual diseases could visit a temple of the healing god Asklepios. There they incubated their dreams in a special sanctuary. Trained priests then interpreted them, giving advice that would help them put their lives back into balance. Edward Tick, a psychotherapist who has led nine healing journeys to Greece, believes that the techniques of Asklepios lie behind modern medicine and psychotherapy.
In this erudite and multileveled work, the author, who is currently director of Sanctuary: A Center for Mentoring the Soul in Albany, New York, presents a mythic history of Asklepios and accounts of his pilgrimages through Greece with individuals open to healing and dreams. Although the cult of the healing god ended in the fifth century, Tick is convinced that this ancient practice has great relevance to the spiritual hungers rampant in our culture.
He salutes the soul-based worldview of Asklepian medicine and its intertwining of the mind and body. "Dreams are living experiences of the soul," he writes; they are a vital storehouse of energies and images. Tick makes it clear that this medical approach could "restore the primacy of the imagination to the processes of healing." This book makes a persuasive argument for including this ancient form of healing in today's holistic health programs.