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"The Asclepius" is one of two philosophical books ascribed to the legendary sage of Ancient Egypt, Hermes Trismegistus, who was believed in classical and renaissance times to have lived shortly after Moses. The Greek original, lost since classical times, is thought to date from the 2nd or 3rd century AD. However, a Latin version survived, of which this volume is a translation. Like its companion, the "Corpus Hermeticum" (also published by Duckworth as "The Way of Hermes"), the "Asclepius" describes the most profound philosophical questions in the form of a conversation about secrets: the nature of the One, the role of the gods, and the stature of the human being. Not only does this work offer spiritual guidance, but it is also a valuable insight into the minds and emotions of the Egyptians in ancient and classical times. Many of the views expressed also reflect Gnostic beliefs which passed into early Christianity.

The problems that taxed the minds of people during the Renaissance were much the same as those confronting us today. In their perplexity many deep-thinking people sought the advice of Marsilio Ficino, the leader of the Platonic Academy in Florence, and through his letters he advised them, encouraged them, and sometimes reproved them. Ficino was utterly fearless in expressing what he knew to be true. His letters cover the widest range of topics, mixing philosophy and humor, compassion and advice, and offering a profound glimpse into the soul of the Renaissance.This is the only accessible collection of Ficino's writings available in English.

The Asclepius is one of two philosophical books ascribed to the legendary sage of Ancient Egypt, Hermes Trismegistus, who was believed in classical and renaissance times to have lived shortly after Moses. The Greek original, lost since classical times, is thought to date from the 2nd or 3rd century AD. However, a Latin version survived, of which this volume is a translation. Like its companion, the Corpus Hermeticum (or The Way of Hermes), the Asclepius describes the most profound philosophical questions in the form of a conversation about secrets: the nature of the One, the role of the gods, and the stature of the human being. Not only does this work offer spiritual guidance, but it is also a valuable insight into the minds and emotions of the Egyptians in ancient and classical times. Many of the views expressed also reflect Gnostic beliefs which passed into early Christianity.

The Asclepius is one of two philosophical books ascribed to the legendary sage of Ancient Egypt, Hermes Trismegistus, who was believed in classical and renaissance times to have lived shortly after Moses. The Greek original, lost since classical times, is thought to date from the 2nd or 3rd century AD. However, a Latin version survived, of which this volume is a translation. Like its companion, the Corpus Hermeticum (or The Way of Hermes), the Asclepius describes the most profound philosophical questions in the form of a conversation about secrets: the nature of the One, the role of the gods, and the stature of the human being. Not only does this work offer spiritual guidance, but it is also a valuable insight into the minds and emotions of the Egyptians in ancient and classical times. Many of the views expressed also reflect Gnostic beliefs which passed into early Christianity.

Chronologically, this translation comprises the third book of Ficino's letters ("Liber III"), as published during his lifetime, and dates from August 1476 to May 1477. They follow volume 1 and are therefore published as volume 2. Both book two and three of Ficino's Letters were dedicated to King Matthias of Hungary whom Ficino regarded as a model of the philosopher king referred to in Plato's "Republic". Indeed, Matthias was no ordinary king. He became one of the very few Christian leaders to defeat the Ottoman Turks decisively during the period of their empire's almost continuous growth from the early 1300s to the death of Suleiman I in 1566. King Matthias was also a devotee of philosophy, keenly interested in the practical study of Plato. Members of Ficino's Academy dwelt at this court, and an invitation to visit his court was extended to Ficino himself. Ficino's Academy was consciously modelled on the philosophical schools of antiquity. It was not merely an institute of learning. The bond between Ficino and the other members of the Academy was their mutual love, based on the love of the Self in each, a love capable of expression in all fields of human activity.It was because such love was the basis of his School that Ficnio could write (letter 21) - "the desire of him, who strives for anything other than love, is often totally frustrated by the event. But he alone who loves nothing more than love itself, by desiring immediately attains, and in always attaining continues to desire." It is the principle of unity to which Ficnio repeatedly returns in this volume. He returns to it not just as a philosophical concept, but as an immediate perception. In his letter to Paul of Middelburg ("distinguished scientist and astronomer"), Ficino observes - "If any age can be called a golden one it is undoubtedly the one that produces minds of gold in abundance. And no one who considers the wonderful discoveries of our age will doubt that it is a golden one. For this golden age has restored to the light the liberal arts that were almost extinct: grammar, poetry, rhetoric, painting, sculpture, architecture, music and the ancient art of singing to the Orphic lyre."

Marsilio Ficino (1433-99) directed the Platonic Academy in Florence and it was the work of this Academy that gave the Renaissance in the 15th century its impulse and direction. During his childhood Ficino was selected by Cosimo de' Medici for an education in the humanities. Later Cosimo directed him to learn Greek and then to translate all the works of Plato into Latin. This enormous task he completed in about five years. He then wrote two important books, "The Platonic Theology" and "The Christian Religion", showing how the Christian religion and Platonic philosophy were proclaiming the same message. The extraordinary influence the Platonic Academy came to exercise over the age arose from the fact that its leading spirits were already seeking fresh inspiration from the ideals of the civilizations of Greece and Rome and especially from the literary and philosophical sources of those ideals. Florence was the cultural and artistic centre of Europe at the time and leading men in so many fields were drawn to the Academy: Lorenzo de' Medici (Florence's ruler), Alberti (the architect) and Poliziano (the poet).Moreover Ficino bound together an enormous circle of correspondents throughout Europe from the Pope in Rome to John Colet in London, from Reuchlin in Germany to de Ganay in France. Published during his lifetime, "The Letters" have not previously been translated into English. The letters in this volume cover the period from September 1477 to April 1478, months which culminated in the outcome of the Pazzi Conspiracy in which Guiliano de' Medici was assassinated in Florence Cathedral, and from which his brother Lorenzo only just escaped. Ficino, a non-political philosopher with no worldly amibions, yet found himself advising the two main factions struggling for political power in Florence. His appeal for respect for both human and divine law, and thus for a reawakening of spirituality was in marked contrast to the prevailing atmosphere of lawlessness and greed. It was symptomatic that those most involved in the Conspiracy included a pope, a cardinal, an archbishop and two priests. In his letter to the Venetian ambassador, Bernardo Bembo, Ficino commends him more than any of his correspondents for his humanity.Indeed, it is the Latin form of this word, humanitas, which Ficino uses to mean "the love of mankind", and speaks of its enormous power. Another aspect of the word humanity is that it is human beings alone who have this power, and the penalty for man is that if he does not set out to realize his "infinite nature", his lot is far worse than that of the beasts. In his letter to Lorenzo de' Medici (the younger), Ficino urges - "approach the task with good hope, free born Lorenzo: far greater than the heavens is He who made you; and you yourself will be greater than the heavens as soon as you resolve upon this task. For the celestial bodies are not to be sought by us outside in some other place; for the heavens in their entirety are within us, in whom the light of life and the origin of heaven dwell."