Anatomy of a Sound Temple
As we wound our way past stone walls and isolated columns, we found, tucked in the far Northwestern corner, a mysterious structure, an ancient sound temple archeologists call the Thymele.
The iconic amphitheater at Epidaurus is the first thing you are drawn to at the Sanctuary of Asclepius at Epidaurus. For many visitors standing on the stage and experiencing the remarkable acoustics is the one enduring memory they will take home from this remarkable place. It is understandable that a traveler intent on experiencing as much history as possible amid these beautiful Peloponnese hills would move on. Travel writer Rick Steves recommends 2 hours. We spent 3 days.
A path to the left of the magnificent amphitheater leads to the remains of the healing sanctuary. It is a profoundly peaceful place, nestled in a broad valley amid rolling hills, an expansive complex that must have teemed with visitors in its prime, 2500 years ago. The healing sanctuary once covered several acres, incorporating a large dining facility and sleeping quarters. The scattered walls and rock piles with the odd skeletal column are all that remain of the infrastructure of a major operation dedicated to healing. One can imagine this place humming with people, many of whom had exhausted the options of what the medicine of their time could offer. Some of these people were beyond hope, seeking new hope, and ancient records show evidence of success. The spirit of healing is palpable in this place. Long ago teams of anonymous healers facilitated this remarkable journey through the dream state into a more coherent and healthy reality.
“Within the Asclepia, dream therapy or divine sleep, later to be called incubation sleep by Christian practitioners, reached perfection as a healing tool. The diagnosis and healing took place during that special state of consciousness immediately prior to sleep, when images come forth automatically like frames of thought projected on a movie screen. (We now call this ‘hypnagogic sleep.’) “ — Imagery in Healing: Shamanism and Modern Medicine by Jeanne Achterberg
As we wound our way past stone walls and isolated columns, we found, tucked in the far Northwestern corner, a mysterious structure, an ancient sound temple archeologists call the Thymele. What remains intact of this once resplendent structure is a semicircle of columns cocooned in scaffolding. The infrastructure for a serious restoration project is in place, but rust on the hardware of cranes and scaffolds indicate that it has been put on hold, arresting the progression of decay, but frozen in time nonetheless.
This circular temple has been an archeological enigma since the rediscovery of the amphitheater and the healing sanctuary 200 years ago. Viewing the excavated ruin it is possible to see this structure was once elaborate and must have fulfilled an important function central to the ceremonial healing process. Its proximity to the structure that housed the incubation chambers where patients were placed in dream ‘pods’ would indicate that it served some preparatory function to facilitate the hypnagogic dream healing state. The structure was designed to initiate a shift in consciousness, the kind of non-ordinary state that opens the mind to a higher order. The circular ceremonial format is common to many cultures, from the Celtic Labyrinth to the Native American Medicine Wheel. It is recorded by Iamblichus that Pythagoras used a circular form during ‘medicine through music’ performances. Circular structures are particularly difficult to design and build. Given the central location and the unusual inclusion of a resonating chamber under the floor of the Thymele, evidence points to the temple itself being an elaborate instrument, albeit one that hasn’t been used in over 2,000 years. https://www.anasynthesis.co.uk/index.php/thymele/schultz-underground As archeologists have delved deeper, it has become apparent that the subterranean chamber was more than symbolic. It was calibrated harmonically.
The vortex shape under the floor could be tuned to control subtle perceptions of the sound and potentially enhance the immersive reverberation of choral singing.
“…the opening and or closing of the hole at the center of the thymele’s floor would have had a noticeable, if subtle, effect on music played within the building proper.” Adjusting the angle of the floor vent makes changes in the acoustics similar to subtle changes an audio engineer makes on a mixing desk. Such adjustments can affect brain states without being overtly obvious.
In modern times, sound engineers alter the perception of sound by filtering and boosting frequencies of a recorded sound event, such as music or spoken word. This process in modern recording is achieved using either an analog tone control via knobs and sliders or a software application.
2500 years ago people had never experienced sound reinforcement or intentional audio manipulation “…those in need of healing might have taken therapeutic benefit from listening to and even participating in performances within the Thymele. There is evidence that the Greeks employed musical therapies. One tradition about the philosopher Pythagoras, for instance, describes how he would position those with physical and emotional ailments in a circle, place a lyre player in their centre, and have them sing and dance to paeans to cure them. There are stories also of paeans healing those stricken by plague or madness.” - Bronwen Wickisser
Because we have so much empirical evidence available now and the ability to disseminate it globally, the sacred and somatic component of vibration has been relegated to mythology. Where science and mythology meet is in the human mind. With modern scanning equipment we can correlate the neural effects of music with the vibratory events that constitute melody, harmony and rhythm.
What the ancient Greeks knew about sound and music is rooted in a world view that was simultaneously mathematical and mythological. Where we have algorithms and computer simulations to reproduce the effects of reverent spaces, the ancients built those spaces, sometimes taking decades.
Tonal shifts affect perception, playing into subtle and sometimes subconscious harmonic artifacts of language. These subtle shifts convey meaning beyond words, emotion, irony, etc. The Ancient Greeks and other cultures used architecture to create sound effects that could alter consciousness and promote shifts in brainwave states. We now have precise imagining and studies that prove the effects of music and sound manipulation, but the ancients, even without the modern concept of sound waves were able to devise powerfully effective ways of using sound and music to influence human emotion and human consciousness.
The Ancient Greeks also had effective herbal tinctures and skills in bone setting and soft tissue mobilization, and there is even evidence of the use of surgery in some cases. However, they put care of the psyche ahead of care of the body, recognizing that mind and body are intrinsically linked and authentic healing could not happen without a shift in consciousness, a deepening of belief.
Epidaurus is a testament to the endurance of the human spirit and to the importance of healing the whole person. While medicines can make a physical change, authentic healing invites a more permanent shift in awareness and function.
“A lot of times a patient or client will say they are broken and you can tell them they are not and that their spirit or essence is never broken. It is beautiful and powerful. Our role as therapists and physicians is to chip away the outdated belief systems that our society has thrust upon us. We help with unresolved emotions and release the physical restrictions so that their inner beauty can emerge. This is true healing.” John F. Barnes PT, Founder of Myofascial Release
Resources:
https://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/2018/2018.11.13/ Classical Review of Shultz Wickkiser et al
https://www.anasynthesis.co.uk/index.php/thymele/wickkiser-s-words
