Rite of Asklepios

You, my reader, are in for a special treat.

I have been asked to do someone a favor. This comes from one of my readers who made a deal with Asclepius, the legendary healer of Ancient Greece. My reader asked Asclepius to heal a much beloved pet. Asclepius consented with provisions.

Some time ago, this very same person faced the imminent death of a loved one.  The doctors were very pessimistic and just as baffled. This person managed to perform this ritual, within his relative's hospital room with the other participants scattered throughout the country. Within forty-eight hours, the person in question turned the corner and is now happy, healthy and doing just great. The doctors are still scratching their collective heads.

Part of the provisions to the pet healing was that this ritual be published anonymously. I can personally vouch for the effectiveness of this ritual and the result. For those of you with eyes to see and talent to work, enjoy and put it to good use.

Do not make the mistake of believing this ritual is mine. It is not.

This post is going on a special permanent tab on this site. My reader, if you link to this, post about it or use this, I'd really appreciate being told about it but please don't take that to mean that you have to such a thing.

BACKGROUND

The overall framework for this ritual is based upon a healing temple path working from Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki’s Servants of the Light, supplied to me by a fellow magician who had modified it for ritual healing work back in the ‘80s.  I modified the ritual further still with various bits of ceremonial magick technique and historical invocations culled from my friends’ suggestions as well as bits and pieces from my own ingenium.  It is, needless to say, a bit eclectic; but (I hope) in the best sense of the word.

The core of this ritual relies on a priest (HP) and priestess (HPS) acting as conduits for healing energy sent from a large number of healers.   The magician who supplied the outline version assured me that it had been effectively performed “remotely”; i.e. with the HP and HPS present with the subject of the ritual and people who care (in particular good healers) visualizing the scene and sending healing energy to the HP/HPS team who stand at the head and feet of the subject.  

TIMING

Ideally done when Luna is waxing in the constellation of Ophiuchus (The Serpent[1]) on the day and hour of the Sun[2].  Obviously this must be altered to circumstance.  I managed one of the three: the correct planetary hour.

SETUP

This rite takes place in an Astral replica of the Asclepieion, which is a healing temple located at Epidaurus in Greece.  All participants who will be remotely sending energy should be provided with a picture of the subject and the Asclepieion.  Just prior to the established time, these “Senders” should set up their personal circle (LBRP, BRH, etc) and raise energy using the Middle Pillar or similar technique. 

At the established time, the “Senders” should use the images as a meditative focus and visualize themselves sitting in the Asclepieion and the HP and HPS on the stage, standing at the head and foot, respectively, of the subject of the ritual. The Aesclepieion will be full, not just with those who are incarnate who are adding to the energy but also those healers who have passed beyond the Veil but still turn back to help and heal the living.  Torchbearers at regular intervals help guide people to their seats.

A low, relaxing tone fills the Aesclepieion.  The Senders should now project their raised energy from their Tiphareth center as a beam of golden light to the HP/HPS team.[3] The tone rises and falls. As the tone rises, the energy flows from the healers to the HPS.  As it drops, the energy flows out of the HPS, through the body of the patient, to the HP. The HP takes the energy in and purifies any negativity.[4]  As the tone rises again, the energy from the HP flows back into the subject as the energy flows in again from the healers.

The pulses of energy become almost hypnotic for the HP and HPS - waves of love and healing, washing away that which is negative, ill at ease, or diseased.  The energy builds in the back and forth movement again and again.[5] Back and forth like a tide.  

Time loses meaning during the rite.  So the remote Senders should stop at a pre-determined time through use of some form of alarm clock. When the ending alarms go off with the incarnate participants, they stop sending energy, the torchbearers dim their torches (except those on the stage) and the healers quietly leave.  Exit the visualization, banish, and ground.

THE RITUAL

The HP/HPS visualize themselves going into an ancient bathhouse in Epidaurus. As they walk to the room where there is a healing bath, they pass imagery of healers from all times and places in the rooms they pass.  Before entering the room with the subject:

HP: PROCUL PROCUL ESTAI PROFANI

Both stand at the foot of the subject.  The following is a variation of the LBRP[6] to be performed by either the HP or HPS as the circumstances and skills of the operators dictate[7]:

AB IGNE CAELESTI

AD AQUOSUM PROFUNDUM

VIA TERRENA

VIA ARIA

SEMPER IN MEDIO MANENS

FIAT!

When inscribing pentagrams vibrate the letters of the word SALUS associating one letter with each line.  Divine names in the traditional LBRP are replaced as follows:

East    - ZEUS

South - HESTIA

West   - POSEIDON

North - DEMETER

The Invocation of the Archangels in the traditional LBRP are replaced as follows:

ANTE, APOLLO

POST, ARTEMIS

DEXTRA, ATHENA

SINISTRA, PAN

Annoint the forehead and feet of the subject with a damp cloth to symbolically wash them.[8] Now visualize them on a litter, which acolytes carry into the Aesclepieion.

HPS

"I begin to sing of Asklepios, son of Apollo and healer of sicknesses. In the Dotian plain fair Coronis, daughter of King Phlegyas, bare him, a great joy to men, a soother of cruel pangs.  And so hail to you, lord: in my song I make my prayer to thee!"[9]

HP

Oh, blessed Asklepios, God of Healing, it is thanks to thy skill that [name] hopes to be relieved from [condition], to no longer [describe condition], but to [describe healed state] as thou hast decreed.[10]

HPS

Be gracious, blessed Paion, you who fashioned the remedy, whether the Triccaean ridges hold you, O demigod, or Rhodes, or Cos and Epidaurus on the sea; be gracious, send your always gracious daughter, Hygeia[11], to [N], who will propitiate you with pure sacrifices for the everlasting freedom from pain which you can grant.[12]

HPS assumes godform of Hygeia.

HP

I [NN] call, therefore, with my vows to hear me each one of all the gods, who anywhere in the world provide present and prompt help for men; who anywhere give their aid and show their power in dreams or mysteries, or healing, or oracles; and I place myself according to the nature of each vow in that spot where the god who is invested with that power may the more readily hear.[13]

HP assumes godform of Asklepios.

HPS

“Great Asklepios, skilled to heal mankind,

all-ruling Paian, and physician kind;

whose arts medicinal can alone assuage

diseases dire, and stop their dreadful rage.

Strong, lenient God, regard my suppliant prayer,

bring gentle health, adorned with lovely hair;

convey the means of mitigating pain,

and raging deadly pestilence restrain.

O power all-flourishing, abundant, bright,

Apollo’s honoured offspring, God of light;

father of Hygeia, the constant foe

of dread disease, the minister of woe:

come, blessed saviour, human health defend,

and to mortal life afford a prosperous end."[14]

Manipulate energies as described in setup section.   At agreed upon end time HP and HPS continue to roll energy back and forth until it dissipates.  Seal it with the symbol of the Staff of Asclepios on the subject’s forehead and feet using healing balm, spagyric tincture, or blessed water.  Exit godform.  Do NOT banish.

  

ADDITIONAL/ALTERNATE TECHNIQUE NOTES

“As the energy builds, I've seen a single snake appear entwined around the

patient, as though they were the Staff of Asklepios. I've seen it transform

into a DNA strand where there have been a number of shamanic healers taking

part.”

You can also visualize the energy 'sticking' in the area of problem, shining

a spotlight on it so that the doctors can find out exactly what is wrong.

Like a PET scan, it lights up the problem so the doctors say, "why didn't we

think of that before?"

Visualize yourself pulling a live snake across the subject’s chest and stomach area. Hold the snake first by the tail with the snake's head at the subject’s throat area.  Draw it vertically down their body. Then hold it by its head and draw

it vertically up their body towards their head.

The Rod of Asclepius is a direct representation of ancient traditional treatment of Dracunculus medinensis, the winding worm of death. This parasite peeks out of ulcerous blisters to lay eggs, primarily when the wound is placed in water to cool and soothe it. The practitioner would pull the worm out slowly by winding it around a stick.[15]  There may be a useful somatic ritual component inherent here.

In a fuller implementation of this ritual it may be possible to utilize Asclepios’ children (who are aspects of Him) to fine-tune the effect of the rite.  Note: When the Athenians invoked Asklepios, they called him “sire” and his offspring, “blest”.

Asclepios SIX daughters

1.    Hygieia – disease prevention

2.    Meditrina – longevity (later roman accretion)

3.    Panacea – cures, universal remedy

4.    Aceso - recovery

5.    Iaso - recuperation

6.    Aglaea – natural beauty, radiance (c

Asclepios FOUR sons

1.    Podaleirus – diagnostics

2.    Machaon – surgery

3.    Telesphoros (aka Enamerion ?) – “Accomplisher” or “Bringer of Completion” convalescence

4.    Aratus – “

There are a number of possibilities for elaboration here including planetary banishment/invocation through either a GD hexagram ritual or the Star Sapphire or possibly a composite ritual utilizing the unicursal and greek words of power.  I made several notes regarding the use of alchemical tie-ins that are probably worth exploring.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON ASKLEPIOS

Those whom the god cured of their disease offered a sacrifice to him, generally a cock[16] (Plat. Phacd. p. 118) or a goat (Paus. x. 32. § 8; Serv. ad Virg. Georg. ii. 380), and hung up in his temple a tablet recording the name of the sick, the disease, and the manner in which the cure had been effected.

Asklepios appears as a kindly, bearded man holding a serpent-entwined staff.  Sometimes also a boy is represented standing by his side, who is the genius of recovery, and is called Telesphorus, Euamerion, or Acesius.

Asclepius (pronounced /æsˈkliːpiəs/; Greek Ἀσκληπιός Asklēpiós [askliːpiós]; Latin Aesculapius) is the god of medicine and healing in ancient Greek religion. Asclepius represents the healing aspect of the medical arts; his daughters are Hygieia ("Hygiene"), Iaso ("Medicine"), Aceso ("Healing"), Aglæa/Ægle ("Healthy Glow"), and Panacea ("Universal Remedy"). The rod of Asclepius, a snake-entwined staff, remains a symbol of medicine today, although sometimes the caduceus, or staff with two snakes, is mistakenly used instead. He was associated with the Roman/Etruscan god Vediovis. He was one of Apollo's sons, sharing with Apollo the epithet Paean ("the Healer").

Asclepios was married to Epione, with whom he had six daughters: Hygieia, Meditrina (the serpent-bearer),[disambiguation needed] Panacea, Aceso, Iaso, and Aglaea,[7][8] and three sons: Machaon, Podaleirios and Telesphoros. He also sired a son, Aratus, with Aristodama. The names of his daughters each rather transparently reflect a certain subset of the overall theme of "good health".

---

[1] This constellation, between Scorpio and Saggitarius, is associated with Asklepios.

[2] Associated with healing and Apollo, the father of Asklepios.

[3] Again, this Solar symbology is consistent with both healing and the solar (Apollonic) paternity of Asklepios.

[4] Visualize it as the energy being muddied as it flows from the subject to the HP then being cleaned by the presence of the invoked Asklepios.

[5] Compare this to the optical amplification technique of a laser.

[6] Based on “RITUS OLYMPICUS PENTAGRAMMOU MINOR AD EXPELLENDUM”, (c) 1993, John Opsopaus

[7] The Star Ruby would, of course, be equally appropriate here.  I’ve used Opsopaus’ ritual for greek-themed work before on a number of occasions and opted to use it here out of expediency.

[8] Ideally this would be a spagyrically prepared tonic utilizing one of the plants of the Asclepias genus (i.e. milkweed)

[9] Homeric Hymn 16 to Asclepius (trans. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic ca 7th to 4th B.C.) :

[10] adapted from Pindar, Pythian Ode 3. 45 ff. - “Oh, blessed Asklepios, God of Healing, it is thanks to thy skill that Diophantes hopes to be relieved from his incurable and horrible gout, no longer to move like a crab, no longer to walk upon thorns, but to have sound feet as thou hast decreed”

[11] See notes on children of Asklepios in Additional/Alternate Techniques section.

[12] adapted from Galen

[13] Emma J. Edelstein and Ludwig Edelstien's, “Asclepius:  Collection and Interpretation of the Testimonies” (Johns Hopkins, 1998, reprint of 1945 original two volumes in one volume)

[14] Orphic Hymn 67 to Asclepius (trans. Taylor) (Greek hymns C3rd B.C. to 2nd A.D.)

[15] Blayney, Keith (Sept 2002). "The Caduceus vs. the Staff of Asclepius". Alternative Journal of Nursing July 2007, Issue 14, page 4.

[16] “Be prepared to offer a cock in sacrifice to Him afterwards.  Seriously.  I know animal sacrifice is not common these days but the Old Gods appreciate the table of offerings being rekindled from time to time.”