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Content uploaded by Enrico Facco
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Enrico Facco on Aug 04, 2021
Content may be subject to copyright.
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! !
Advances)in)Social)Sciences)Research)Journal)–)Vol.)8,)No.)7)
Publication)Date:!July!25,!2021!
DOI:10.14738/assrj.87.10541.!
Facco, E., & Tagliagambe, S. (2021). Learning From the Past: From Incubation in Ancient Egypt and Greece to Modern Hypnosis.
Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 8(7). 268-285.
!"#$%&"'()*#(!&%"+&"(,+-(.-/&,0%*+(1(2+%0"-(3%+4-*5!
!
!
!!
Learning!From!the!Past:!From!Incubation!in!Ancient!Egypt!and!
Greece!to!Modern!Hypnosis!
!
Enrico)Facco)
Studium!Patavinum!-!Dept.!of!Neurosciences!
University!of!Padova,!Italy!
Inst.!F.!Granone!-!Italian!Center!of!Clinical!and!Experimental!!
Hypnosis!(CIICS),!Torino!(Italy)!
)
Silvano)Tagliagambe)
Professor!emeritus!of!Philosophy!of!Sciences,!University!of!Sassari,!Italy!
!
ABSTRACT'
The'origin' of' hypnosis'can'be' dated' back'to' ancient'philosophies'and'medicines.'
Incubation'had'been'used'in'ancient'Egypt'and'Greece'for'some'three'millennia'with'
the'same'indications'of'modern'hypnosis'and'was'well-known'by'both'Hippocrates'
and'Parmenides.'Then,'it'was'dismantled'by'Christian'hagiographic'propaganda'in'
4-5th'century'AC'and'buried'to'the'oblivion.'Again,'the'birth'of'the'new'sciences'in'
17th'century'was'the'result'of'a'compromise'with'Church,'forcing'them'to'limit'their'
field' of' interest' in' the' Cartesian' res$ extensa'only,' leading' to' consciousness' and'
mind-body' relationship' being' neglected'for' political-religious' will,' rather' than'
scientific' grounds,'and' to' Hippocrates’' teaching' being' betrayed.' As' a' result,' the'
history' of' hypnosis' was'marked' by' its' outstanding' results' paralleled' by'
misunderstanding' and' prejudicial'refusal,' a' fact' endowed' with' deep'
epistemological'implications.'
!
INTRODUCTION)
The!origin!of!hypnosis!is!commonly!attributed!to!Franz!Anton!Mesmer!in!late18th!century,!but!
its! origin! dates! back! much! farther! and! is! mixed! up! with! the! heart! of! healing,! as! well! as! all!
disciplines!devoted!to!grasp!information!form!the!unknown,!including!shamanism,!philosophy!
and!religion.!Ancient!Egyptian!and!Greek!medicine!was!intimately!connected!with!the!religion!
and!the!sacred!and!used!incubation!as!healing!technique,!a!view!also!held!by!Hippocrates!-!the!
great!father!of!modern!medicine,!whose!oath!is!still! at! the! base!of! !medical! profession!-!and!
perfectly!compatible!with!his!rationality!and!wisdom.!There!is!a!close!connection!between!all!
of!these! age-old! disciplines!and! Non-Ordinary! Mental! Expressions! (NOMEs)!-!a!term!
introduced!to!overcome!the!questionable!concept!of!altered!state!of!consciousness!and!!gather!
all! non-pathological,! ostensibly! odd! but! meaningful! experiences,! including!hypnosis! and!
meditation[1,2].!Here,! the! practice!of!incubation!in!ancient! Egypt!and!Greece! will! be!shortly!
outlined!wondering!whether! it!may! be!considered! as!the! first!form! of!clinical! hypnosis;!the!
reasons!of!its!disappearance!from!the!history!of!Western!medicine!until!its!reintroduction!by!
Mesmer!in!late!18th!century!will!be!also!outlined.!!
!
The!topic!calls!for!taking!a!look!at!the!origin!and!development!of!philosophy!and!medicine!and!
their!close!relationship!with!religion!from!prehistory!to!the!medicine!in!the!Middle!Ages,!up!to!
!
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Facco, E., & Tagliagambe, S. (2021). Learning From the Past: From Incubation in Ancient Egypt and Greece to Modern Hypnosis. Advances in Social
Sciences Research Journal, 8(7). 268-285.
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the! academic! teaching! of! medicine! and! the! birth! of! modern! sciences! in! 17th!century.! This!
excursus!may!allow!to!better!understand!the!relevance!of!hypnosis!in!medicine!as!well!as!its!
misunderstanding!and!prejudicial!refusal!in!the!past!two!centuries,!a!topic!endowed!with!deep!
epistemological!implications.!
!
ORIGIN)OF)PHILOSOPHY)AND)MEDICINE)
The!prehistoric!pan-Asiatic! shamanism! can!be!considered!as!the! source! of!both!Eastern!and!
Western! philosophies! and! medicines! [3–5].! Shamans! (the! term! shaman! means! man! of!
knowledge)! were! the! first! physician-healers,! who! investigated! diseases! and! their! treatment!
with! a! holistic! approach! merging! body,! mind! and! environment! in! a! whole! as! inseparable!
components! of! a! single! world,! including! both!the! visible! and! the! invisible.! Besides! the!
administration! of! plants!(including! psychotropic! agents),! surgical! procedures!and! other!
remedies,! their! healing! procedures! and! rites! included! NOMEs! in! order! to! exploit! the!
potentialities!of!the!soul!of!both!the! shaman! (e.g.,!shamanic!journeys)!and!the! patient! in!the!
process!of!healing.!Figure!1!schematically!shows!the!origin!and!development!of!both!Eastern!
and!Western!philosophies!and!medicines!from!the!prehistory!up!to!the!birth!of!Western!!"#$%&'
()*+"&' !&%),-+.&-&!(the! Salerno! Medical! School)! and! first! universities! with! their! medical!
schools.!!
!
!
Fig.'1:'Origin'of'Eastern'and'Western'philosophies'from'pan-Asiatic'prehistoric'shamanism'and'
the'birth'of'medicines'from'them,'including'the'use'of'incubation'and'meditation'(modified'
from'Facco'&'Tagliagambe'[26]).'
!
Both! Greek! and! Egyptian! medicines! underwent! a! great! development! in! ancient! times.! The!
temples!of!Imhotep!in!Egypt!and!Asclepius!in! Greece! were! temple-hospitals! where! both! soul!
and!body!were!cured!with!a!holistic!approach,!and!where!the!sacred,!religious!aspect!was!fully!
compatible! with! the! naturalistic,! technical! one.! /012345678! ()-9$:;)<+<,! incubation)! was!an!
essential! practice! of! ancient! medicine! with! a! thousand-year! old! tradition,! starting! at! the!
boundaries!of!prehistory!and!lasting!until!the!Dark!Ages.!!
!
Eastern!philosophies!also!had!their!medicines.!Traditional!Chinese!Medicine!and!acupuncture!
stemmed!from!Taoism!and!adopted!its!paradigm,!while!=>?,@)*&!medicine!(the!term!=>?,@)*&!
!
!
270!
D*E;(AF(G''/"(?F(H/EIJK=K<!
L-$,+&"'(%+(!*&%,E(!&%"+&"'(M"'",#&6(H*/#+,E(NL!!MHO!
!"#$%&"'()*#(!&%"+&"(,+-(.-/&,0%*+(1(2+%0"-(3%+4-*5!
means!knowledge!of!life)!belonged!to!Veda!tradition.!All!Eastern!philosophies!have!unvaryingly!
merged!theoretical!and!practical!philosophy!in!a!whole!adopting!a!non-dualist!perspective!and!
devoted!themselves!to!self-knowledge!and!the!way!for!emancipation!-!i.e.!the!liberation!from!
all! attachments,! conditioning,! up! to! the! level! of! wisdom,! sageness! and! enlightenment.!
Therefore,!all!of!them!included!meditation!as!an!essential!practice!aimed!to!get!rid!of!(=>=,!the!
mask! of! illusion! of! ordinary! consciousness;! this! goal! involved! the! development! of!
metacognition!and!resilience,!allowing!for!subject’s!empowerment!-!viz.!the!enhanced!control!
over!one’s!mind!and!body!on!the!way!to!enlightenment![6,7].!!
!
There!is!!a!close!link!between!modern!hypnosis!and!!Eastern!meditation!techniques![3,8–13],!a!
fact!leading!to! mindful!hypnosis!being!recently! introduced![14].!In!fact,! the!first!mesmerists!
were!strongly! interested! in!Eastern! philosophies!and!healing! practices!-!considered!akin! to!
their!discipline!-!and!claimed!that!Mesmer!had!only!given!them!a!scientific!aspect.!In!early!19th!
century! A#)' B$+<.,! a! journal! on! mesmerism,! published! several! articles! dealing! with! Indian!
practices,!compared!to!magnetic!steps!able!to!induce!a!trance.!Yogic!and!Buddhist!meditation!
(also!called!#+C),-&.+$-)!!as!well!as!Taoism!were!also!compared!to!mesmerism;!in!the!opinion!
of!Sandby! (1848),!the! Yogee!D+-*?")*' .#)' )"<.&.+"' $,' ()<;),+"' "$-*+.+$-”! through! deep!
meditation![9,12].!!
!
In!short,!the!origin!of!modern!hypnosis!can!arguably!be!traced!back!to!two!different!traditions:!!
the!ancient!Greek!and!Egyptian!medicines!with!their!practice!of!incubation!-!the!technique!of!
which!has!been!irremediably!lost!in!the!Dark!Ages!-!and!the!Eastern!meditation,!from!which!
the!first!mesmerists!drew!relevant!information.!Despite!there!is!no!direct!connection!between!
incubation!and!hypnosis,!the!former!was!a!long-lasting!practice!persisted!in!Western!medicine!
for! some! three! millennia,! regularly! used! with! the! same! medical! and! surgical! indications! of!
modern!hypnosis.!Both!of!them!can!be!conceived!as!mind-body!techniques,!based!on!doctor-
patient!relationship!and!subject’s!plastic!imagination!enhanced!by!a!guided!procedure.!The!lack!
of!connection!depends!on!incubation!having!been!canceled!out!in!the!first!centuries!AC!due!to!
Christian!hagiographic!propaganda.!
!
INCUBATION)
Imhotep!was!the!architect!of!the!Pharaoh!Djoser!who!built!the!pyramid!in!Saqqara;!he!was!also!
a!priest!of!Ra,!the!Egyptian!deity!of!the!sun,!and!so!great!a!physicians!as!to!be!deified!as!health!
protector!following! his! death.! His! worship! was! initially! in! Memphis! and! then! spread! to! the!
whole!Egypt.!It!is!not!clear!whether!the!Serapis’!worship!in!Saqqara!also!included!incubation!
for!healing!or!was!devoted!to!oneiromancy!only,!while!incubation!was!practiced!in!Alexandria!
and! Canopus,! especially! following! the! reign! of! Ptolemee! I! (367-282! b.C.)! and! Hellenization!
[15,16].!A!Serapeum!was!also!built!in!Rome!close!to!the!temple!of!Minerva!(the!Greek!Ἀθηνᾶ,!
Athena),!above!which!the!current!church!of!Santa!Maria!Sopra!Minerva!(St.!Mary!Over!Minerva,!
close!to!the!Pantheon)!was!built.!!
!
Egyptian!medicine!was!highly!developed!and!specialized.!Outstandingly,!the!Surgical!Papyrus!!
(discovered!by! Edwin!Smith! !in! 1862)!described! 48!cases! of!head! and! spinal! cord! ! injuries,!
including!tetraplegia,! aphasia,!hemiplegia! with! the!corresponding! brain!lesions,! and! already!
reported!the!cerebrospinal!fluid!in!2500-3000!BC![17–19].!It!is!worth!noting!that!in!the!West,!
!
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271!
Facco, E., & Tagliagambe, S. (2021). Learning From the Past: From Incubation in Ancient Egypt and Greece to Modern Hypnosis. Advances in Social
Sciences Research Journal, 8(7). 268-285.
URL:%6007899-:;-*%;*#49<=;<>?@A9,''#B;A?;<=C><!
it!was!described!first!by!Domenico!Cotugno!in!Naples!in!the!18th!century,!i.e.,!just!4,500!years!
later![20,21].!!
!
The!Edwin!Smith!papyrus!clearly!shows!that!the!medical!science!and!its!sacred!aspects!were!
fully! compatible,! and! the! same! was! for! Hippocrates.! Thus,! one! must! be! aware! that! their!
opposition!is! a! strong! bias! introduced! by! comparatively! recent! historical-political!
circumstances!-!i.e.,!the!exclusivist!ideology!and!temporal!power!of!the!Church!and!its!conflict!
with!the!nascent!sciences!in!17th!century!(see!below).!
!
Likewise! Egyptian! physicians,! the! caregivers! of! Greek! Asclepeions! -!including! Hippocrates,!
who!was!considered!as!a!direct!descendant!of!the!demigod!Asclepius!-!were!priests-physicians!
inseparably! merging! the! naturalistic! medicine! with! its!sacred! component.! The!enlightened!
Hippocrates’! rational! approach! (%$E#+<;F<)! was!wider! and! wiser! than! the! one! of! modern!
reductionist!approach! of! biomedicine.! Actually,! it! was!based! on! the! concept! of! GHIJ478'
(*K-&;+<L' M$N),O,! i.e.,! the! dynamic! interrelationship! of! the! mind-body-environment! as! an!
inseparable!whole.!This!concept!has!been!well!painted!by!Plato!in!few!words!in!the!P#&)*,?<'
(270b):!
Q!$",&.)<R'S$'>$?'.#+-9L'.#)-L'.#&.'+.'+<'M$<<+C%)'.$',)&"#'&'<),+$?<'?-*),<.&-*+-E'$T'
.#)'-&.?,)'$T'.#)'<$?%'N+.#$?.'?-*),<.&-*+-E'.#)'-&.?,)'$T'.#)'N$,%*'&<'&'N#$%)U'
QP#&)*,?<R'V)%%L'+T'N)W,)'.$'%+<.)-'.$'X+MM$",&.)<L'Y<"%)M+?<W'*)<")-*&-.L'N)'N$-W.'
)@)-'?-*),<.&-*'.#)'C$*>'+T'N)'*$-W.'T$%%$N'.#&.';).#$*Z'
Thus,!the!Hippocrates’!rationality!was!holistic!in!nature!and!warned!against!the!inclination!to!
arbitrarily! separate! what! in! nature! is! not,! a! fact! preventing! a! proper! comprehension! of! the!
reality.!The!Hippocratic!*K-&;+<!can!be!considered!as!an!outstanding!intuition!of!the!modern!
concept! of! complex! systems! -!a! topic! only! recently! appeared! in!biological! ! and! medical!
literature!-!the! ;$*?<' $M),&-*+!of! which! cannot! be! properly! explained! by! an! inflexible!
reductionist-determinist!perspective![22–25].! Actually,! a!complex! system! is!a! dynamic,! non-
deterministic!phenomenon!characterized!by!an!unceasing!exchange!of!information!between!its!
components,!where!any!effect!is!a!potential!cause!of!other!effects!in!an!integrated,!inseparable!
whole.!Thus,!it!evolves!over!time!and!is!able!to!change!its!response!to!the!same!stimuli,!thanks!
to!the!unceasing!exchange!of!information!between!its!parts.!The!current!COVID-19!outbreak!is!
the! most! recent! example! of! the! dynamic! interrelationship! and! coevolution! man-virus-
environment,! including! the! whole! of! seasonal! factors! and! social! behaviors,! virus! mutations,!
herd!immunity!and!vaccination.!This!concept!had!already!been!well!painted!by!Plato!(Phaedrus,!
270!d,e):!
Q!$",&.)<R' [$-<+*),L' .#)-L' N#&.' C$.#' X+MM$",&.)<' &-*' .,?)' &,E?;)-.' <&>' &C$?.'
-&.?,)Z'\<-W.'.#+<'.#)'N&>'.$'.#+-9'<><.);&.+"&%%>'&C$?.'.#)'-&.?,)'$T'&->.#+-EU']+,<.L'
N)';?<.'"$-<+*),'N#).#),'.#)'$C^)".',)E&,*+-E'N#+"#'N)'+-.)-*'.$'C)"$;)')_M),.<'
&-*'"&M&C%)'$T'.,&-<;+..+-E'$?,')_M),.+<)'+<'<+;M%)'$,'"$;M%)_Z'A#)-L'+T'+.'+<'<+;M%)L'
N)';?<.' +-@)<.+E&.)'+.<'M$N),`' V#&.'.#+-E<' *$)<'+.' #&@)' N#&.'-&.?,&%' M$N),'$T'
&".+-E'?M$-U'a>'N#&.'.#+-E<'*$)<'+.'#&@)'N#&.'-&.?,&%'*+<M$<+.+$-'.$'C)'&".)*'?M$-U'
\TL'$-'.#)'$.#),'#&-*L'+.'.&9)<';&->'T$,;<L'N)';?<.')-?;),&.)'.#);'&%%'&-*L'&<'N)'
*+*'+-'.#)'<+;M%)'"&<)L'+-@)<.+E&.)'#$N')&"#'+<'-&.?,&%%>'&C%)'.$'&".'?M$-'N#&.'&-*'
#$N'+.'#&<'&'-&.?,&%'*+<M$<+.+$-'.$'C)'&".)*'?M$-'C>'N#&.b'P,$"))*+-E'C>'&->'$.#),'
!
!
272!
D*E;(AF(G''/"(?F(H/EIJK=K<!
L-$,+&"'(%+(!*&%,E(!&%"+&"'(M"'",#&6(H*/#+,E(NL!!MHO!
!"#$%&"'()*#(!&%"+&"(,+-(.-/&,0%*+(1(2+%0"-(3%+4-*5!
;).#$*'N$?%*'C)'%+9)'N&%9+-E'N+.#'.#)'C%+-*Z'[$-@),<)%>L'N#$)@),'<.?*+)<'&->.#+-E'
$-'.#)'C&<+<'$T'&-'&,.';?<.'-)@),'C)'"$;M&,)*'.$'.#)'C%+-*'$,'.#)'*)&TZ''
The!Plato’s!argument!correctly!emphasizes!the!dynamic,!inseparable!relationship!between!the!
parts!of!complex!systems,!where!any!part!with!its!power!of!“acting!upon”!may!be!at!the!same!
time!the!“disposition!to!be!acted!upon”.!This!clearly!describes!the!system!as!a!dynamic!whole!
endowed! with! reciprocal! exchange! of! information! and! cause-effect! relationship! between! its!
parts,!a!system!of!which!no!part!can!be!arbitrarily!separated!unless!one!wants!to!proceed!like!
“the!blind!or! the! deaf”.!Instead,!the!reductionist! approach!of!modern!medicine! is!inclined! to!!
split! the! living! being! in! separate! and! at! least! partly! independent! parts! in! a! mechanist-
conceptual! fragmentation,! a! priori!neglecting! the! role! of! mind! in! both! health! and! disease!
[26,27].!The!concept!of!*K-&;+<!also!emphasizes!the!high!complexity!of!medicine!and!its!nature!
of!endless!work!in!progress,!open!to!any!possible!kind!of!change!and!evolution!and!making!any!
result!necessarily!provisional!in!an!ever-changing!complex!system.!!
!
To! summarize,! Hippocrates! has! introduced! a! wise! holistic! rationality,! emphasizing! the!
impossibility! to! understand! both! mind! and! body! when! split! from! each! other,! and! from! the!
whole.!Altough!the!concept!of!the!whole!(cd58'eH6fg8L'#F%h<'M#K<)i<)!is!not!clearly!defined,!it!
is!reasonable!interpreting! it!as!the!mind-body-environment!dynamic!interrelationship.!It! is!a!
topical!concept,!worth!being!taken!into!account,!given!that!the!positivist-materialist!stance!has!
led!to!unduly!neglect!the!role!of!subjectivity!and!consciousness.!!
!
It!is!worth!noting!that!the!Hippocrates’!teaching!also!meets!the!WHO’s!definition!of!health:!!
Health! is! a! state! of! complete! physical,! social! and! emotional! well-being,! and! not! merely! the!
absence!of!disease!or!infirmity![28].!!
!
This!definition,!adopting!the!concept!of!positive!health!(viz.,!living!well!rather!than!living!long!
only),! allows! one! to! appraise!the! relevance! of! psycho-existential! dimension! of! the! patient,!
rather!that!reducing!him/her!to!a!passive,!powerless!carrier!of!an!organic!disease![29].!This!is!
of!paramount!importance!in!palliative!care!too,!a!condition!endowed!with!deep!philosophical!
implications!where!hypnosis!may!play!!a!central!role!in!relieving!suffering![30].!According!to!
the! WHO’s! definition! of! health,! a! reductionist! medicine! limited! to! the! treatment! of! physical!
diseases!only!through! mechanical! interventions! on! the! body,! by! definition!is! not! enough! to!
ensure!health.!
!
The!early!stages!of!the!cult!of!Asclepius!and!its!medicine!started!in!the!pre-Homeric!period!and!
its!worship!persisted!until!the!4-5th!century!AC.!The!temples-hospitals!(e.g.,!see!the!Asclepius!
temples!in!Epidaurus)! were! sets!of!buildings! also! including!the!<.$&! (the! hostel!for!patients’!
admission),!a!theater!and!a!gymnasium,!all!to!be!considered!!as!inseparable!parts!of!a!whole,!
devoted!to!take!care!of! the! patient’s! body!and!soul.!In!fact,!Greek!tragedies!performed!in!the!
theater!allowed!patients!to!face!the!darkness!of!human!existence!and!its!profound!psychosocial!
problems!favoring!catharsis!and,!thus,!healing!from!psychological!suffering![31].!!
!
In! Asclepius’! temples! -! also! called! “sleep! temples”! -! the! patient! was! admitted! to! the!
j+-9$;).),+$-L!also!called!&C&.$-!(+;M)-).,&C%),!i.e.,!the!secluded!part!forbidden!to!people!not!
prepared!to!meet!Asclepius),!where!incubation!was!induced,!during!which!he/she!dreamed!the!
god! Asclepius! providing! instructions! for! healing.! The! temple! of! Epidaurus! was! built! in! two!
!
!
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levels:!patients!prepared!themselves!to!incubation!in!the!upper!floor,!purifying!themselves!with!
water!and!reading!the!narrations!of!wonderful!healing,!while!incubation!was!performed!in!the!
ground-floor!(figure!2).!!
!
Actually,! the! ritual! of! preparation! was! rather! complex! and! structured! in! different! phases!
starting!before!entering!the!temple:!a)!purification!rites!(including!diet,!bath,!three-day!sexual!
abstinence);!b)!a!detachment!from!both!birth!and!death,!at!least!in!the!late!Roman!period!(i.e.,!
not!visiting!a!new!mother!and/or!her!son,!seeing!a!corpse!or!take!part!in!a!funeral);!c)!sacrifices!
of!animals!or,!as!an!alternative,!sweets!and!honey!offering;!d)!wearing!a!proper!gown!(a!white!
gown!was!use!by!priests!and!also!indicated!the!intention!to!be!incubated).!A!fee!()M&,"#))!was!
also! required! in! most! temples.! On! psychological! standpoint,! purification! meant! having! holy!
intentions!and!a!righteous!mind,!not!clouded!by!thoughts!and!interests.!As!Porphyry!reported!
(k-'YC<.+-)-.+&'T,$;'Y-+;&%']$$*,!2,!19).!
!
In!Epidaurus,!therefore,!there!was!the!following!inscription!on!the!doors!of!the!temple:!
\-.$'&-'$*$,$?<'.);M%)L'#)'N#$'E$)<'
!#$?%*'M?,)'&-*'#$%>'C)l'C?.'.$'C)'N+<)'
\-'N#&.'.$'<&-".+.>'M),.&+-<L'+<'.$'C)'M?,)Z'
!
!
!
Figure'2:'Abaton'of'Asclepius'temple'in'Epidaurus'(Greece):'upper'level'(top)'and'ground-floor'
(bottom).'
!
!
274!
D*E;(AF(G''/"(?F(H/EIJK=K<!
L-$,+&"'(%+(!*&%,E(!&%"+&"'(M"'",#&6(H*/#+,E(NL!!MHO!
!"#$%&"'()*#(!&%"+&"(,+-(.-/&,0%*+(1(2+%0"-(3%+4-*5!
This!is!akin!to!the!warning!γνwθι!σεαυτόν!(E-m.#+'<)&?.F-L'know!yourselfO!in!the!Apollo!temple!
in! Delphi,!an! essential! precondition! to! access! oracles! with! a! sound!and!neutral! mind,! a!
prerequisite!to!correctly!interpret!them.!
!
A! wealth! of! data! is! available!on! incubation![26,32–36],! but! the! details! on! the! procedure! of!
induction! and! deepening! are! lacking.! In! early! period! incubation! included! simple,! directive!
suggestions!of! recovery;! then,!it! was! implemented!over! time! with!therapeutic!suggestions! -!
e.g.,!advises! about! proper! behavior,! dietary! regimen! and! physical! activity,! according! to! the!
development!of! medical!knowledge.! In! many!cases! the!god! Asclepius!personally! treated! the!
patient!as!well;! this! especially! occurred! when!surgery! was!performed! during!incubation.! In!!
k-+,$",+.+"&!(V,!61),!Artemidorus!reports!on!a!patient!with!an!abdominal!abscess!who,!brought!
to!the!temple,!dreamed!Asclepius!operating!him!on!and!!then,!waked!up!healed!(Edelstein!&!
Edelstein,!1998,!p.!235):!
Y'"),.&+-';&-'*,)&;)*'.#&.L'<.,?"9'+-'.#)'C)%%>'C>'Y<"%)M+?<'N+.#'&'<N$,*L'#)'*+)*l'
.#+<';&-L'C>';)&-<'$T'&-'+-"+<+$-L'#)&%)*' .#)'&C<")<<'N#+"#'#&*'*)@)%$M)*'+-'#+<'
C)%%>Z'
The!incubation!was!usually!depicted!with!the!patient!laying!in!the!9%+-&+!(bed)!and!the!priest-
physician!inducing!incubation!behind!him/her.!Indeed,!they!can!be!considered!as!a!sort!of!four-
dimensional!pictures!merging!in!a!whole!both!the!in!the!three-dimensional!!physical!reality!of!
the!YC&.$-!and!the!imagined!realm!of!the!patients!being!cured!by!Asclepius,!as!shown!in!figure!
4a.!The!same!is!for!a!small!fresco!found!in!the!house!of!Sirico!in!Pompeii,!depicting!the!surgeon!
Iaspi!drawing!an!arrow!from!Aeneas’!thigh!(figure!4b).!The!right!part!of!the!fresco!shows!the!
intervention,! while! in! the! left! part! his! mother! Aphrodite! is! assisting! him,! with! a! structure!
similar!to!that!of!figure!4a.!What!is! peculiar!here!is!the!calm!expression!of!Aeneas’!face!in!an!
upright!position!-an!unlikely!!one!for!surgery!-!with!the!gaze!upwards,!a!position!similar!to!the!
one!used!in!the!induction!of!!
!
!
Fig.'4:'Incubation'in'the'Asclepeion'of'Epidaurus'(a):'The'right'part'of'the'figure'depicts'the'
incubated'patient’s'with'the'snake'sacred'to'Asclepius'resting'on'his'right'shoulder,'while'the'
left'one'shows'the'imagined'god'curing'it'(4th'century'BC;'first'stela,'A.C.'IG'IV2'1,'no.'121).'(b)'a'
small'fresco'from'Pompeii,'depicting'the'surgeon'Iaspi'drawing'an'arrow'from'Aeneas’'thigh;'
the'intervention'is'depicted'in'the'right'part'of'the'figure,'the'left'part'shows'his'mother'
Aphrodite'assisting'him'(Archeological'Museum,'Naples,'Italy).'
!
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tantra!meditation![37,38],!and!also!recalling!the!eye!roll!in!the!Hypnotic!induction!profile![39].!
This!hints! to! an! intervention! performed!in! incubation,!where! Aeneas! gaze! and! his! vision! of!
Aphrodite!may!be!its!clues![26].!
!
As!a!whole,!the!available!data!suggest!the!hypothesis!of!incubation!as!the!first!form!of!clinical!
hypnosis,!based!upon!plastic!monoideism!and!used!as!a!psychosomatic!procedure!for!healing!
as!well!as! a! sedative-analgesic!for!surgery.!In!fact,! ancient! medicine!considered!illness!as!an!
imbalance! of! the! mind-body!unit,! where! mind! could! be! a! relevant! factor! for! recovery.!
Accordingly,!healing!was!!achieved!through!an!experience!at!the!limit!between!life!and!death!-!
with!the!body!still!like!a!hibernating!animal!-!a!procedure!showing!interesting!links!with!the!
ritual!of!initiation!in!Eleusinian!Mysteries,!shamanic!journeys!and!other!non-ordinary!mental!
expressions!like!near-death!experiences,!these!last!also!showing!a!link!with!hypnosis![40,41].!
It!is!worth!mentioning!that!incubation!was!also!practiced!by!Native!American!Indians,!for!both!
healing!and!rites!of!passage![42].!!
!
The! physician-priests! of! Asclepius! increasingly! used! medications! and! surgery! over! time!
according!to!the!development!of!naturalistic!medicine,!the!Hippocratic!School!provided!a!huge!
amount! of! knowledge! to.! In! its! late! period,! Asclepius! medicine! used! a! sophisticated! set! of!
surgical!tools,! including!a!drill! to!perform! burr! holes,!almost! identical! to!the! trephine!today!
used! in! neurosurgery! (figure!3).! Anyway,! it! remained! inseparably! united! to! the! sacred! in! a!
holistic,!psychosomatic!approach,!according!to!the!concept!of!*K-&;+<Z!In!this!regard,!it!is!worth!
emphasizing!that!philosophy,!science!and!religion!were!not!split!in!ancient!time.!Parmenides!-!
the!great!philosopher!of!the!Being!and!Nihil,!named!by!Plato!“Venerable!and!Awesome”!in!the!
A#)&).).?<!(183e)!-!was!not!a!philosopher!in!the!modern!sense!of!the!term.!He!was!a!priest!of!
Apollo!Oulios!-!the!ambivalent!god!of!health!and!disease,!destroyer-healer,!father!of!Asclepius.!
He!was! also! +&.,$<!(physician),! +&.,$;&-.+s! (healer),! M#m%&,"#$<! (lord! of! borrows!-!viz.,! the!
borrows!of!snakes!sacred!to!Apollo!-!a!term!indicating!his!expertise!in!incubation),!as!well!as!
founder!of! the! medical! Eleatic! school! (Facco! &!Tagliagambe,! 2020;!Kingsley,! 1999;!Vecchio,!
2004).! Thus,! Parmenides! can! be! considered! as! a! philosopher-priest-physician!and!senior!
colleague!of!Hippocrates,!who!in!turn!shared!the!Parmenides’!concepts!of!Being!and!Whole,!as!
reported!in!S)'S+&).&!(I,!4,!9):!!
n)+.#),'&'.#+-E';&>'C)"$;)'-$.#+-E'-$,'&->.#+-E'-$.'M,)@+$?<%>'C)+-E'C)';&>'<.&,.'
.$'C)L'C?.')@),>.#+-E'"#&-E)<'T$,';+_+-E'&-*'<)M&,&.+$-b\.'+<'-$.'M$<<+C%)'.#&.'N#&.'
+<'-$.';&>'<.&,.'.$'C)Z'
! !
!
!
276!
D*E;(AF(G''/"(?F(H/EIJK=K<!
L-$,+&"'(%+(!*&%,E(!&%"+&"'(M"'",#&6(H*/#+,E(NL!!MHO!
!"#$%&"'()*#(!&%"+&"(,+-(.-/&,0%*+(1(2+%0"-(3%+4-*5!
!
!
Fig.'3:'Drill'for'trepanation'of'the'skull'performed'by'Hippocratic'physicians'found'in'Kos''(left;'
International'Hippocratic'Foundation,'Kos,'Greece)'and'a'current'trephine'used'today'in'
neurosurgery'(right).'
!
BURYING)INCUBATION)TO)OBLIVION)
The!practice!of!incubation!persisted!for!some!fifteen!centuries!in!Greece,!from!the!pre-Homeric!
period!to!the!4-5th!century!AC.!At!the!beginning!of!Christianity!incubation!was!still!compatible!
with! the! medicine! of! early! physician-martyrs,! like! Cosmas! and! Damian;! for! example,! it! was!
practiced!in!the!shrine!of!the!Egyptian!saints!Cirus!and!John!close!to!Canopus!as!a!syncretistic!
remnant!of!Greek-Egyptian!tradition!initially!survived!in!early!Christendom!(P&.,$%$E+&'o,&)"&,!
87,! 3424! “!$M#,$-++'($-&"#+' !$M#+<.&)Z' n&,,&.+$'(+,&"?%$,?;' !!`'[>,+' ).' p$&--+<'!&M+)-.+?;'
Y-&,E>,$,?;”;[43]).!
!
At!the!same!time,!the!great!theocratic!design!of!the!(&E-&'j""%)<+&!(Great!Church)!-!pursued!
by!the!Catholic!Church!following!its!formalization!as!the!state!church!of!the!Roman!Empire!in!
380!AC!-!started!the!Christian!hagiographic!propaganda!aimed!to!bury!paganism!to!oblivion.!
This!goal! was! achieved! by! building! Christian! churches! over! previous! pagan! temples! and!
superimposing! Christian! rituals! and! celebrations! on! previous! pagan! ones.! For! example,!
Christmas!was!superimposed!to!the!cults!of!the!Persian!Mithra!and!Roman!Helios,!solar!deities!
antagonist! of! darkness! and! evil,! whose! celebration! ! fell! just! after! the! winter! solstice!-!i.e.,!
December!25,!called!in!Rome!“S+)<'n&.&%+<'!$%+'\-@+".+”!(a+,.#*&>'$T'q-"$-r?),)*'!?-).!Likewise,!
Egyptians!celebrated!the!sun!birth!as!a!child!born!of!the!Celestial!Virgin!on!January!6![44].!Thus,!
current!Christian!celebrations!of!Christmas!and!Epiphany!coincide!with!the!ancient!Mithra!and!
Helios!celebrations!and! share!the!common!archetypical!aspect!of!the!birth!of!light!-!physical!
and!spiritual!at!the!same!time.!!
!
Since!its!foundation,!the!Church!considered!the!care!of!the!sick!a!valuable!charitable!work!and!
Christ!himself!was!defined!as!healer!of!both!body!and!soul,!especially!of!the!body!as!a!function!
of!the!soul.!This!!led!to!the!birth!of!the!first!Christian!physicians-martyrs!and!!the!!conversion!
of!pagan!treatment!centers!into!Christian!hospitals,!where!Christian!physicians!were!&-s,E>,$+!
(i.e.,! they! provided! free! treatments)! [45].! At! the! same! time,! the! Christian! hagiographic!
propaganda!used! all! means! to! dismantle! Asclepius! medicine! [26];! for! example,! Clemente! of!
Alexandria!in!P,$,tM.+"$<!!accused!Asclepiads!to!be!stingy!(a!fee!was!required!in!their!temple-
hospitals)! and! the! statues! of! Greek! gods! only! valueless! dead! matter,! on! which! birds! could!
disrespectfully!leave! their!droppings.! Likewise,! Origen!railed! against!Asclepius,! defined!as! a!
false!god!since!he!had!been!struck!by!Zeus,!warning!that!even!miracles!may!be!ambiguous!since!
marvels!may!also!come!from!demons!([$-.,&'[)%<+?;!3,!22-24).!
!
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Thus,! incubation! was! buried! to! the! oblivion! forever,! together! with! Asclepius! and! Apollo!
medicine.!!However,!some!elements!of!incubation!persisted!as!a!syncretic!aspect!in!the!Middle!
Ages,!but!the!name!incubation!was!lost.!In!9-10th!century!AC!several!Aslepiad-like!healings!were!
reported! spending! the! night! in! Christian! shrines! close! to! the! tombs! of! saints! (e.g.,! (+,&"?%&'
!&-".+' YE-)%%+!and! !&-".+' YE,+MM+-+,! reported! by!Mallardo! [46]).! Interestingly,! miraculous!
recoveries!were!reported!in!a!condition!of!<$;-?;L'<)*'"%&,)'@+E+%&-.)<!!(<%))M+-EL'C?.'"%)&,%>'
&N&,))!begging!for!recovery!in!the!sanctuaries!![26,46–48].!This!locution!replaced!the!lost!term!
incubation;!at!any!rate,!it!hinted!to!an!altered!stated!of!consciousness!(or,!better,!a!NOME!on!
authors’! opinion)! at! that! time! defined! as! an! intermediate! condition! between! ordinary!
consciousness!and!sleep:!this!remained!the!essential!prerequisite!for!healing.!!
!
Thus,! today’s! sanctuaries!like! Lourdes! are! the! remnants! of! a! thousand-year! old! tradition!
starting!in!the!prehistory!and!technically!used!for!some!three!millennia!by!skilled!physicians-
priests! in! Egyptian! and! Greek! temples.! Following! its! deletion,! incubation! was! ! reduced! to! a!
matter!of! patient’s!hope!only,! deprived! of! the! technical! support! by! Christian!priests;! in!this!
context,!the!art!of!healing!and!its!procedure!were!irremediably!lost!and!reduced!to!a!matter!of!
patient’s! faith! and! God! omnipotence! only.! At! any! rate,! the! belief! in! miraculous! healing! has!
persisted!until! today!and!is!clearly!witnessed!in!many!churches! and!holy!places.!If!this!is!the!
case,!one!can! argue! that!it!reflects!an! insuppressible! need!(and!perhaps!a! faculty)!of!human!
kind,!unceasingly!persisting!from!prehistory!to!current!days;!perhaps,!it!is!not!a!plain!form!of!
superstition,! but! may! reflect! a! clinically! relevant! though! misunderstood! psychosomatic!
potential.!
)
EPISTEMOLOGICAL)IMPLICATIONS)
The! above-mentioned! practices!have! been! neglected! or! even! disparaged! as! expressions! of!
primitive! illusory! beliefs! by! the! modern! medicine,! stemming! from! materialist! monism! and!
adopting! a! mechanist-reductionist!perspective!-!anyway,! a! metaphysical! stance! based! on!
undemonstrated!axioms!and!theories.!!
!
The!!"#$%&'()*+"&'!&%),-+.&-&!was!born!in!Campania!Region!close!to!Velia!(the!Greek!Elea)!in!
the!early!Middle!Ages!and!became!the!most!important!European!school!of!medicine!at!that!time.!
Its! foundation! was! transcultural,! ! merging! in! a! whole! the! knowledge! of! Hebrew,! Egyptian,!
Arabian,!Latin!and!Greek!medicine!(arguably!including!the!Eleatic!medicine),!a!fact!narrated!as!
a!tale!in!the![#,$-+"&'X)%+-+,!a!text!of!late!Middle!Ages.!Then!it!underwent!a!slow!decline!after!
the!foundation!of!the!Universities!of!Bologna!and!Padua!in!1220!and!1222,!respectively!(the!
first!two!universities!in!the!world),!followed!by!Naples!in!1224.!Finally,!it!was!closed!by!Joachim!
Murat!in!1811!![26].!!
!
The!!"#$%&'()*+"&'!&%),-+.&-&!underwent!a!huge!development,!but!no!remnants!of!incubation!
can!be!found!in!it.!Its!pharmacopeia!included!over!500!remedies,!while!surgery!included!also!
major!interventions;!it!is!noteworthy!that!the!well-known!Trendelemburg!position!in!surgery!
(introduced!by!Friederich!Trendelemburg!in!late!19th!century)!as!a!matter!of!fact!had!already!
been!introduced!by!Ruggero! Frugardo!in!12th!century! in! his!treatise!u$E),+-&!or! P$<.' (?-*+'
]&C,+"&;![49].!The!further!development!of!scientific!medicine!in!universities!did!not!alter!the!
close!relationship!between!science!and!philosophy;!until!early!18th!century!medicine!belonged!!
to!human!sciences!and!the!degree!was!in!“Medicine!and!Philosophy”!(a!diploma!of!University!
of!Padova!dated!in!1698!has!been!reported!elsewhere![50]).!
!
!
278!
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L-$,+&"'(%+(!*&%,E(!&%"+&"'(M"'",#&6(H*/#+,E(NL!!MHO!
!"#$%&"'()*#(!&%"+&"(,+-(.-/&,0%*+(1(2+%0"-(3%+4-*5!
As!analyzed!in!detail!elsewhere![26,50,51],!the!birth!of!modern!sciences!in!17th!century!was!not!
based!on!a!sound!epistemological!reflection;!rather!it!was!the!result!of!a!political!friction!with!
the!Church,!claiming!the!exclusive!competence!on!the!soul!(consciousness).!This!resulted!into!
an! ill-founded! dualistic! split! between! the! sacred! and! the! secular,! the! material! and! the!
immaterial,!the!!soul!and!the!!body,!where!Descartes’!radical!dualism!was!a!loophole!aimed!to!
allow!for!a!compromise!with! the! Church!-!a! ! sort! of! metaphysical! guillotine! making!logically!
incompatible!what!is!undivided!+-'@+@$.!!
!
Since!then,!the!development!of!Galilean!sciences!moved!through!Enlightenment,!Empiricism,!
Positivism! and! materialist! monism,! increasingly! focusing! on! the! physical! reality! while!
neglecting!the!(forbidden)!world!of!subjectivity.!!The!conception!of!science!as!the!most!effective!
method!to!get!the!objective!knowledge!of!the!reality!reached!its!peak!with!the!Circle!of!Vienna!
and!Carnap’s!logic! positivism!in!early!20th!century,!claiming!that,!a)!any!trace!of!metaphysics!
should!be!removed!from!science!and,!b),!only!what!can!be!observed!and!verified!is!real![52].!On!
the! other! hand,! the! foundation! of! logic! positivism! and! physicalism! remains! metaphysical! in!
nature,! while! its! principle! of! verification! is! a! bad! one;! in! fact,! it! leads! to! what! cannot! be!
explained! by! the! adopted! axioms! and! theories! being! a! priori! rejected,! with! a! high!risk! of! a!
dogmatic! drift.! Therefore,! the! embarrassing! concept! of! verifier! underwent! a! progressive!
dampening!within!the!logic!positivism![53],!and!has!been!then!replaced!by!its!opposite,!i.e.,!the!
Popper’s!concept!of!falsifiability![54].!Furthermore,!the!claim!of!getting!rid!of!any!remnant!of!
metaphysics!is!self-contradictory,!i.e.,!it!is!a!metaphysical!concept!in!itself,!entailing!an!irruption!
of!metaphysics!in!science![55].!!
!
As!a!result,!the!ruling!positivist-objectivist!approach!of!medicine!has!a!priori!neglected!the!role!
of! consciousness! until! the! birth! of! quantum! physics;! this! also! led!to!hypnosis!being!
misunderstood,! for! its! paradigm! was! unsuitable! to! study! subjective! phenomena! (Facco,! in!
press;!Tagliagambe,!Fracas,!&!Facco,!2020)!
!
WHAT)WE)CAN)LEARN)FROM)THE)PAST)
Medicine!has!been!closely!linked!to!the!sacred!since!the!beginning!of!human!history,!holding!a!
holistic!approach!both!in!the!East!and!the!West;!Nature!was!contemplated!as!a!whole,!where!
human! beings! were! immersed! in! an! inseparable! relationship! mind-body-world.!The!
development! of! naturalistic! medicine! ! was!never! at! odds! with! philosophy! religion!until!!
comparatively!recent!times,!when!a!friction!stemming!from!politics!and!will!of!power,!rather!
than!philosophy,!occurred:!this!makes!its!results!epistemologically!inconsistent.!In!fact,!on!the!
one!hand!the!history!of!science!is!the!history!of!the!will!of!power![58,59];!on!the!other!hand,!
the!Church!has!always!claimed!the!exclusive!competence!on!the!soul.!The!political!compromise!
was! reached! in! 17th!century! at! the! unbearable! price! of! an! ontological!split! between!the!
Cartesian!!,)<'"$E+.&-<!and!,)<')_.)-<&,!in!order!to!let!the!former!being!assigned!to!the!Church!
and!the!latter!to!the!science:!at!any!rate,!a!political!compromise!not!a!truthful!thought.!
!
To!summarize,!the!Church!strongly!affected!the!history!of!medicine,!by!depriving!it!of!the!soul!
and!related! healing! techniques!in! two! historical!periods:! incubation! first,! and! then!
consciousness.! This! led! to! incubation! being! lost!forever!and! medicine! being! focused!on!the!
Cartesian!)&,.#)-'C$*>';&"#+-)'only,!reifying!living!creatures!and!reducing! human! beings! to!
small!clocks!immersed!in!the!great!Newtonian!clock!of!the!universe.!Of!course,!the!design!of!the!
(&E-&'j""%)<+&!was!not!bad!in!itself,!aiming!to!disseminate!(but!also!impose)!the!Christian!ethic!
!
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(an! outstanding! revolution! in! the! Abrahamic! tradition).! Nevertheless,! Jesus! Christ! has! been!
stifled! by! the! imposing! ideological! superstructure! of! the! doctrine! developed! by! the! Church!
throughout!history,! that! has!strongly! risked!to!favor! the! form,!the!exteriority!and! the!social!
control!over!the!inner,!spiritual!development!at!the!core!of!Christ!teaching![60].!As!a!result,!the!
historical-political!circumstances!behaved!like!a!powerful!cultural!filter!preventing!the!secular!
knowledge!and! therapy!of! both! the! soul! and! the! suffering,! including! psychosomatic!
implications!of!diseases!and!functional!disorders.!Accordingly,!the!birth!of!modern!psychology!
was!postponed!to!the!latter!19th!century!and!the!science!of!consciousness!to!the!1980s![50].!!
!
If!the!above!discussion!is!correct,!the!time!is!ripe!to!reappraise!the!whole!topic!and!give!back!
to! consciousness!its! full-fledged! role!in! both! health! and! disease,! neglected!so! far!by! the!
positivist-objectivist!approach.! The! value! of! reductionism! is! not! in! discussion! here:! it! is! a!
valuable!and!powerful!method,!but!it!is!only!a!method!born!to!study!the!relationship!between!
physical!facts!pertaining!to!the!,)<')_.)-<&L!but!not!enough!to!comprehend!the!subjectivity!and!
its! dynamic! interplay! with! the! world.! In! other! words,! the! living! mind-body! unit! cannot! be!
reduced! to! a! simple! matter! of! logic! contradiction! based! on! metaphysical! unyielding!
assumptions.! Rather,! one! should! reexamine! their! foundation,! in! order! to!rediscover! the!
relevance!of!the!Hippocratic!concept!of!*K-&;+<!and!the!T+%',$?E)!linking!a!series!of!religious-
political!(nonscientific)!facts!leading! to!incubation! being! dismantled,! consciousness!
dispossessed!from!the!new!sciences,!and!!hypnosis!being!misunderstood.!!
!
Actually,!the!mainstream!medicine!is!inclined!to!cure!organic!diseases!rather!than!patients!and!
does!it!aggressively!in!advanced!and!preterminal!patients,!confounding!the!concepts!of!ill!and!
dying.! Furthermore,! it!unfairly! takes! patients!for! flat,! passive! carriers! of! disease,! neglecting!
their!active! role! in!the! process! of!both!recovery! and!worsening,!despite!a!wealth!of! data!on!
placebo!and!nocebo!has!clearly!!shown!their!relevance![61–65].!Placebo!is!not!a!“false”!therapy!
based!on!an!ill-defined!and!misunderstood!idea!of!suggestion!(actually,!in!the!absence!of!“true”!
effects,!the! placebo!branch! in!controlled! studies! would! be! meaningless);! instead,! it! is! a! real!
effect!favoring!the!process!of!healing!and!lasting!up!to!several!months,!as!previously!shown!in!
migraine![66].!!
!
The! opposite! is! for! nocebo! effect,! able! to!worsen! patient’s! conditions.! For! example,! dental!
anxiety! and! phobia! are! significantly!related! to! previous! bad! experiences! in! the! dental! and!
medical!settings!and!show!some!elements!of!post-traumatic!stress!disorder!yielded!by!doctors’!
bad!behavior![67,68].!!As!far!as!pharmacological!therapy!is!concerned,!the!nocebo!effects!may!
cause!adverse!events!in!30-80%!of!patients!in!the!placebo!group![69–74].!Likewise,!reading!the!
information!leaflets!may!cause!adverse!events!in!up!to!47%!of!cases![75].!If!this!is!the!case,!the!
high! rate! of!adverse! events! in! pharmacological! therapy! is! a! relevant! topic! that! cannot! be!
properly!understood! and! managed! without! taking! into! account!patients’! subjectivity:! here,!
hypnosis! may! paradoxically! help! improving! the! safety! of! pharmacological! therapy! by!
increasing!patients’!compliance!and!decreasing!adverse!events.!
!!
ABOUT)THE)SACRED)ASPECT)OF)MEDICINE)
At!the!end!of!this!article,!it!is!worth!shortly! outlining! the! meaning! of!religion! and! the!sacred!
from!a!secular,! anthropological!perspective,! given!their!inseparable!role!in! ancient!medicine!
and! their! withdrawal! from! modern! medicine! despite!their! potential!relevance.! Actually,!
spirituality!and!religion!and,!more!generally,!anything!with! the! flavor! of!transcendence! have!
!
!
280!
D*E;(AF(G''/"(?F(H/EIJK=K<!
L-$,+&"'(%+(!*&%,E(!&%"+&"'(M"'",#&6(H*/#+,E(NL!!MHO!
!"#$%&"'()*#(!&%"+&"(,+-(.-/&,0%*+(1(2+%0"-(3%+4-*5!
been!a!priori!rejected!by!the!materialist!stance!of!science;!nevertheless,!it!is!worth!reiterating!
that!the!foundation!of!both!positivism!and!materialism!is!metaphysical!in!nature.!
!
According! to! Frazer,! philosophy,! science! and! religion! share! the! same! reason! for! their! very!
existence,! i.e.! the! aspiration! for! knowledge! and! truth,! where! religions! represent! the! huge,!
super-human! effort! to! probe! the! great! unsolved! mysteries! of! life! and! death! in! a! mostly!
unknown!universe![44,!Ch.!37].!Therefore,!any!friction!between!them!does!not!depend!on!the!
quest! for! knowledge! and! truth!but,! rather,! on! the! will! of! power! and! related! imposition! of!
dogmas,!beliefs!and!social!rules.!!
!
On! psychological!standpoint,!religion! has! its! foundation! in! religiosity,! a! mind! faculty,!
etymologically!stemming!from!the!Latin!,)%+E&,)!(reunite,!bind!together);!not!surprisingly,!the!
meaning!of!the!term!Yoga,!stems!from!the!Sanskrit!term!>?^+,,!that!has!the!same!meaning![9,76].!
Here,!binding!together!indicates!the!reunion!of!mind!and!body,!inner!and! outer!worlds!-!i.e.,!
reestablishing!their! inseparable! interrelationship,! the! ordinary! consciousness!and! the! Ego!
(with!their!discriminant,!dualistic!stance!and!will!of!power)!have!inadvertently!split.!Religion,!
when!cleansed!of!dogmas!and!doctrinal!inflexibilities,!must!be!regarded!as!a!part!of!philosophy,!
a!valuable!matter!of!knowledge!of!highest!human!values![77,!Ch.!1].!Likewise,!the!spirit!is!a!still!
ill-defined!faculty!of!the!human!mind,!independent!of!any!denomination,!doctrine!or!theology.!
It!may! be!regarded!as! a!non-Ego-centered! component! of!the! human!unconscious,! latent! but!
potentially!accessible!by! consciousness!in! the!process!of! individuation! and!development!the!
Self!up!to!the!level!of!enlightenment![7],!leading!to!the!narrow,!illusory!egocentric!perspective!
being!overcome.!The!relevance!of!spirituality!and!religion!in!medicine!have!been!reappraised!
by!medicine!in!recent!years!and!both!WHO!and!World!Psychiatric!Association!have!recognized!
their!relevance!for!mental!health!and!quality!of!life![78].!!
!
The!concept!of!sacred!-!meaning!the!opposite!of!profane!-!does!not!call!for!any!theology!and!
denomination!as!well.!Its!core!meaning!indicates!all!what!deserves!respect!due!to!its!profound!
truth!and!is! too! important!to! be!altered!or! neglected.!If!this! is!the! case,! medicine!remains! a!
sacred!!profession:!in!fact,!disease,!suffering,!disability!and!death!are!sacred!aspect!of!life,!a!fact!
well!enshrined!in!the!Hippocratic!oath!and!opening!deep!philosophical!questions!in!palliative!
care![30].!!This!is!the!reason!why!ancient!Greek!medicine!included!procedures!for!purification,!
the!aim!of!which!was!to!get!an!integrity!not!diverted!by!interests!of!any!kind.!On!the!other!hand,!
modern! technical! medicine! has! clouded! this!sacred! aspect! and!inadvertently!betrayed!
Hippocrates’!teaching.! Actually,! it! has!led! to!patient!being!reified,! his/her!subjectivity!being!
neglected,! and!the! doctor-patient! relationship! being! contractualized.! At! the! same! time,! the!
disclosure!of!conflicts!of!interests!has!been!introduced!in!conferences!and!renowned!scientific!
journals!in!the!attempt!to!prevent!frauds:!anyway,!a!dreary!condition!for!science,!that!should!
aim! to! pure! knowledge! and! truth.! A! recent! very! bad! example! is! an! article! on! the! use! of!
chloroquine!in!Covid-19,!reporting!fake!data!in!order!to!claim!no!beneficial!effects!and!severe!
adverse!events!based!on!an!alleged!multinational!!registry!analysis!on!96,032!patients![79].!The!
Lancet,!following!an!independent!third-party!peer!review,!has!fortunately!retracted!the!article!
on!June!4.!
!
Perhaps,!there!is!no!rule!and!written!document!able!to!cancel!out!inappropriate!behaviors!and!
frauds!springing!from!human!foolishness.!The!problem!is!cultural!and!philosophical!in!nature!
and! calls! for! reappraising! and! implementing! the! founding! values! and! dignity! of! medical!
!
!
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Sciences Research Journal, 8(7). 268-285.
URL:%6007899-:;-*%;*#49<=;<>?@A9,''#B;A?;<=C><!
profession!-!well!established!since!the!antiquity!-!as!well!as!broadening!the!limits!of!the!ruling!
materialist!stance!of!mainstream!medicine!and!smoothing!the!will!of!power.!
!
CONCLUSIONS)
The!history!of!hypnosis!has!been!marked!by!its!effectiveness!paralleled!by!misunderstanding!
and!!prejudicial!refusal,!a!problem!endowed!with!huge!epistemological!implications![80,81].!Its!
ostensible!oddity!depended!on!the!B)+.E)+<.!(spirit!of!the!times),!dominated!by!the!!century-old!
rationalism!of!Western!thought!and!the!view!of!man!as!a!monolithic!creature!beloved!by!God!
and! endowed! with! a! rational!soul! [82].! This!naïve! belief!started! collapsing!in! 19th!century!
following!the!observation!of!multiple!personalities,!where!the!ostensibly!odd!phenomenology!
of!hypnosis!led!to!the!unconscious!life!and!its!processes!being!recognized.!
!
A!glance!to!the!whole!history!of!philosophy!and!medicine!lets!one!realize!that!the!split!between!
mind,!body!and! environment,!and!their!mechanistic! conceptual!fragmentation!is! a! relatively!
recent!phenomenon!yielded!by!questionable!historical-political-religious!circumstances,!rather!
than! sound! epistemological! reasons.!Then,! the! divorce! between! the! Church! and! the! new!
sciences! was! followed! by! the! separation! of! science! and! philosophy! in! 18th!century.! These!
circumstances!led!to!an!ill-founded!radical!dualism,!well!defined!by!Severino!as!the!cross!the!
Western!thought!is!hung!on![50,51,59].!!
!
If!the!above!discussion!is!correct,!the!whole!history!of!medicine!should!be!reappraised!in!order!
to!recognize!the!cultural!filters!and!flaws!introduced!and!never!again!put!under!scrutiny.!The!
great!value!of!current!medical!science!is!undeniable,!but!its!objectivist-reductionist!approach!
has!inadvertently!led!to!patient’s!subjectivity!being!neglected!and!Hippocrates’!teaching!being!
inadvertently!betrayed.!His!rational!approach!based!on!the!concept!of!*K-&;+<!is!surprisingly!
modern!and!allows!rejoining!what! in! the! modernity!has! been!unduly!split.!This!has!relevant!
implications!in! clinical!practice,! where!only! a!full-fledged! reintroduction!of!subjectivity! may!
allow!for!a!proper!understanding!and!wise!management!of!!patient’s!needs,!as!clearly!shown!
by!the!wealth!of!available!data!on!placebo!and!nocebo.!This!has!also!relevant!clinical!implication!
in!!the!management!of!so-called!Medical!Unexplained!Symptoms!-!including!a!heterogeneous!
group! of! functional! and! psychosomatic! disorders,! such! as! fibromyalgia,! multiple! chemical!
sensitivity,! chronic! fatigue! syndrome,! gulf! war! syndrome,! chronic! pelvic! pain,! non-bacterial!
cystitis,!burning!mouth!syndrome!etc.!-!with!their!high! ! prevalence,! chronic!course,!relevant!
disability!and!high!direct!and!indirect!costs![83–85].!!
!
Hypnosis!may!be!regarded!as!the!modern,!scientific!version!of!an!essential!healing!technique!
permeating! the! whole! history! of! medicine,! allowing! for! patient’s! empowerment! and! giving!
him/her! back! an! active! role!in! the! process! of!recovery!through! enhanced! resilience! and!
psychosomatic! control! [6,86][6,86].! It! may! be! as! effective! as! to! allow! for!full! analgesia! and!
improve! the! overall! outcome! of! surgery! [81,87–90].! The! same! goals!were!pursued! by!
incubation! for! over! three! thousand! years! in! ancient! Egypt! and! Greece;! then,! it! was!unduly!
deleted!and!red9uced!to!a!matter!of!miraculous!healing!void!of!any!technical!skill!by!the!(&E-&'
j""%)<+&’s!political-theocratic!will.!The!relevance!of!patient’s! subjectivity! in!medical!care!had!
already!been!wisely!defined!by!Hippocrates!in!his!famous!aphorism:!
\.'+<';$,)'+;M$,.&-.'.$'9-$N'N#&.'<$,.'$T'M),<$-'#&<'&'*+<)&<)'.#&-'.$'9-$N'N#&.'
<$,.'$T'*+<)&<)'&'M),<$-'#&<Z'
!
!
282!
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L-$,+&"'(%+(!*&%,E(!&%"+&"'(M"'",#&6(H*/#+,E(NL!!MHO!
!"#$%&"'()*#(!&%"+&"(,+-(.-/&,0%*+(1(2+%0"-(3%+4-*5!
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