Epicurus, God-Man-Healer. A Study of the Cult of Asclepius and His Sanctuaries

This edition presents the works of Walter F. Otto and Carl Kerényi, close friends and like-minded individuals. Walter F. Otto's book "Epicurus" is not an academic monograph or an exhaustive study of Epicurus's philosophy. Rather, it is an inspired essay, a kind of philosophical proclamation addressed to the general public. Here, Otto combines two seemingly incompatible concepts: the purest form of materialism and absolute faith in the existence of gods—and shows Epicurus not as an atheist or hedonist, but as a thinker who proposed a unique, even ascetic path to freedom through likening oneself to the divine. In the book "God-Man-Healer," Carl Kerényi explores the archetypal significance of the image of Asclepius. For ancient physicians, Asclepius was not just a divine patron. He was the ideal, the prototype of their own existence—as healers. Kerényi meticulously examines the roots of the cult and demonstrates that the archetype of the "divine physician" lives on not only in history. He finds its reflection in modern psychology (referring to Jungian analytical psychology), where the image of the healer plays a crucial role in the process of individuation.