Letter from the asclepion
Dear, friend
I am writing to you to share the greatest feeling, I ever had. As you may already for a long time I have been suffering from pains in my back. For a very long time I knew that this was the doing of Asclepuis the god of healing, giving me a punishment for the way I treated my slaves. So at the weekend, I decided to leave my wife and children and went away to Asclepuis at Epidarrus, to pray the great god, whom I hoped would forgive me and heal me by his power and help from his two daughters: Panacea and Hygenia.
An asclepion is a place of holy healing, so I knew that if I went there and slept there Asclepuis will eventually visit me and cure me. so I went to Epidarrus, a far away Asclepuis where there are large , clean communal baths which I enjoyed as soon as I got there; a gymnasium where I was offered massages and did some quality exercise , so that I was ready for Asclepuis’ visit. Before lunch I did a long walk and after that it was a pleasure to visit the library with so many great books. In the afternoon after a nice rest in the other temple I watch a match in the stadium, and then I ended my evening in the theatre where I watch a comical play.
when the evening came i got rubbed and massaged with oil so that i was relax to be visited by asclepuis , then i
fell asleep. in my dream it was the most magical experience i had ever felt. it was asclepuis and his daughter curing my pains. asclepuis first approached me then told me not to be afraid. he looked at my back and examine me , in his eyes i felt that he was a man of powerful knowledge and i knew that he was going to cure me. he told hygenia to wash my back and panacea to rub it with a magic potion. he said a few word and then two snakes appeared, i wanted to run away but my body was made frozen they got on my back and lick it, when they went off , i was awaken.
when i woke up i felt amazing. the way i felt was not just unbelievable it was fantastic. i was very thankful to asclepuis and his daughters so i gave a donation to the temple . when i got home i decided to give a fairer treatment to my slaves and tell everyone i know what as happened to me. i know my experience was real and others needed to be told the truth. i do not believe in those so call philosophers that believe that illness is not the work of spirits , because i know from fact and my back is evidence that asclepuis the god of healing as cured me, so is therefore responsible foe the causes of illnesses .
your dearest,
Adeipho
