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In ancient Greece, many were divided over what they believed to be the cause of the illness that a patient faced. According to James Longrigg in his book Greek Medicine From the Heroic to the Hellenistic Age, [1] many believed that mental illness was a direct response from the angry gods. According to Longrigg, the only way to fight this ...
Apulian pottery depicting Lycrugus of Thrace, an ancient Greek king driven mad by Dionysus [1]. Mental illness in ancient Rome was recognized in law as an issue of mental competence, and was diagnosed and treated in terms of ancient medical knowledge and philosophy, primarily Greek in origin, while at the same time popularly thought to have been caused by divine punishment, demonic spirits, or ...
The four temperaments clockwise from top left (sanguine; phlegmatic; melancholic; choleric) according to an ancient theory of mental states. In ancient Greece, disease was thought due to an imbalance in the four basic bodily fluids, or humors. Personality types were similarly thought to be determined by the dominant humor in a particular person.
Mental illnesses were well known in ancient Mesopotamia, [6] where diseases and mental disorders were believed to be caused by specific deities. [7] Because hands symbolized control over a person, mental illnesses were known as "hands" of certain deities. [7] One psychological illness was known as Qāt Ištar, meaning "Hand of Ishtar". [7]
Hippocrates and other ancient physicians described melancholia as a distinct disease with mental and physical symptoms, including persistent fears and despondencies, poor appetite, abulia, sleeplessness, irritability, and agitation. [4] [5] Later, fixed delusions were added by Galen and other physicians to the list of symptoms.
Early on the ancient Greeks believed that illnesses were "divine punishments" and that healing was a "gift from the Gods". [1] As trials continued wherein theories were tested against symptoms and results, the pure spiritual beliefs regarding "punishments" and "gifts" were replaced with a foundation based in the physical, i.e., cause and effect.
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In Ancient Greece, being a man of high morals went hand in hand with being a morally just physician. [3] A famous maxim (Epidemics I.11) advises: "As to diseases, make a habit of two things—to help, or at least to do no harm." [44] The most famous work in the Hippocratic Corpus is the Hippocratic Oath, a landmark declaration of medical ethics.