The Logos: The Meletic Testament (Chapter 12 The Healing Of The Soul)
đź“ś Chapter 12: The Healing Of The Soul
1. The soul, unlike the flesh, does not bleed, yet it suffers when we do not care for it or nourish it. It cannot sustain itself without the recognition of its presence.
2. Asterion taught us with his philosophy that the pain of the soul is not soothed by prayer, but by its understanding. The soul does not yearn to be divine; it yearns to be heard.
3. He healed not like the Nazarene with mere touch, nor with divine breath, but with reason and clarity of ultimate fate and mortality that all men and women must embrace.
4. He taught us that the body is a vessel of decay. The soul, a flame that must be tended, but the Ousia remains as the vestige of our true essence of existence.
5. In the agora, he spoke not of gods or a messiah, but of causes and effects. Not of miracles, but of the realisation of life and death. He taught us how to live and how to face death.
6. He saw men crippled by grief, not in limb, but in thought. Burdened more by the soul than by the body. On several occasions, I would witness his act of healing the soul.
7. And to them he offered no genuine promise of a supernatural paradise or physical healing, only the dignity of self-knowledge and above all self-acceptance.
8. He said to one of these persons whose soul he healed—You are not broken, only misaligned with nature. Life is a teacher to us all, but death teaches us also.
9. He told us that the soul errs when it forgets its place in the natural order of the Logos. It is easy to ignore the soul, when one thinks only of the body.
10. It errs not outside the body, but within it, where it dwells as the breath of nature. The self is the guardian of the soul, and the soul is the conscience of the self.
11. He did not speak of original sin, for he saw no stain upon birth that any poor child merited in life. This was more of a Christian concept than a Meletic one.
12. Only ignorance of the truth, which may be washed away not with water, but with wisdom. A wisdom that should reflect the influence of one's character.
13. Asterion’s healing began one day with the questions of the soul, not with the answers of prayers. His type of healing was not divine nor was it supernatural.
14. He would say to a person—Verily, what do you fear the most about your soul? And why? This I must know.
15. He taught us that fear is the shadow of misunderstanding, and the truth would set us free, if we were prepared to embrace it for what it represented.
16. And that courage that men expressed is not divine in its nature, but cultivated by man's virtues. It was completely the opposite of the healing of the Christians who relied on divine intervention.
17. He healed the soul by restoring its presence in man—by removing the veils of sheer illusion that made man believe that the body was more important than the soul.
18. He did not promise eternity, but clarity in his words. This was evident in his deeds demonstrated. Asterion was a humble man who understood his limits as a mortal man.
19. He did not condemn desire because he knew it was human, but he taught it must be tempered by reason. Man could entertain desire, if it was natural in its expression.
20. For the soul of man he said is not a condemned prisoner of the body, but its guidance.
21. Asterion did not speak of salvation in the way the Christians spoke of their salvation, for he saw no fall from grace. He accepted his fate and mortality.
22. He spoke instead of misalignment—of the soul straying from its natural course in life, and how it should be treated with the respect it deserved.
23. He likened the soul to a lyre: when tuned, it sings; when neglected, it only wails afterwards, missing the awareness of the self.
24. He did not rebuke sorrow, but examined it, as one studies a wound that gradually heals with time, sensing that it is a part of human emotions revealed.
25. Do not flee your pain or suffering, for it is the tutor of wisdom—he often said to us.
26. He taught us that suffering is not divine punishment, but the natural effect of the body or its yearning to be heard like the soul. To understand the body, one had to understand first the soul.
27. And that healing begins, when one ceases to resist fate and death. One does not embrace death as one embraces a companion, one merely assumes it will come.
28. He did not offer comfort through sheer illusion, but through the way of the truth, however bold it was in thinking. Asterion was a practical man, and one who identified with people, through their suffering.
29. To the grieving ones in life, he gave not any hope of reunion, but of peace in acceptance. The acceptance of death and the liberation of the soul after it.
30. All things in life must pass, but the soul may pass wisely, if we are virtuous until the end. This is how he explained the natural sequence of the soul.
31. He rejected the notion of divine favour for the healing of the body like the Christians professed; for nature to him did not choose to heal or not in life.
32. He revealed that the cosmos is indifferent to our suffering, and therein lies its fairness. It is we humans that seek the supernatural when all is natural in its function.
33. Asterion healed by restoring proportion in the soul—by reminding the soul of its unique journey. It was not something that could be treated as being incurable like an illness.
34. He urged men to abandon grandeur and embrace modesty as a virtue to fulfil than to neglect, because in the end life was about being virtuous than grand.
35. He told them that they are not the centre of life, but they are part of the whole that is attested with the Logos and the Nous. Thus, this is how he unveil the illusion of impermanence.
36. He saw pride as a fever of the soul that men occupied, and humility as its cooling draught. He emphasised that men must recognise the self, before bowing to the ego.
37. He did not preach total renunciation of the body, but balance of it with the soul. He told us that the body cannot live without the soul. Without the soul, the body would be empty of virtue.
38. He taught us that human desire, when governed by human reason, becomes purpose that defines our guidance towards moral or ethical behaviour.
39. And that purpose when aligned with nature, becomes awareness and realisation that embody the essence of our human nature.
40. He healed not by removing pain from the body, but by transforming it into understanding. The understanding that the suffering of the body though transparent should not ignore the suffering of the soul.
41. He did not speak of angels who hovered above one, but of atoms that composed our bodies that dwelt inside of us, along with the breath of the soul and the Ousia.
42. Not of a hallowed heaven that was only found in the acts of faith, but of a genuine harmony that awaited one after death, when the body ceased its mortality.
43. He saw the soul as a reflection of the self, not as a burden that would doom the self. In healing the soul, he would allow the self to grow in strength.
44. And burdens he said, may be uplifted or released. It is man who must them release them, when the soul is finally rid of their dominance or control.
45. He emphasised that the soul is not eternal in its true essence, but it is well-lived and perceived by the body and mind. It is within the union of the mind, body and soul that one understands its relevance.
46. He urged manifold men to seek not immortality in the form of an afterlife, but in integrity instead. Why chase the whims of immortality, when we have the presence of life?
47. For what is lasting is not the breath or the flesh and bones of the body, but the bearing itself. As long as we understood that the soul was not immortal, then we could capture its essence.
48. Asterion healed by teaching men to live as if watched not by gods, but by our conscience. It was the conscience that the soul awakened into awareness.
49. He did not condemn pleasure because he understood it was human, but warned against its tyranny when it was unnecessary. Much like desire, pleasure was also tempting to the self.
50. To him, the freedom of one lies not in the acts of mere indulgence, but in the mastery of the self to be able to distinguish what is natural from unnatural.
51. He saw the soul of one as a garden to tend to, and philosophy as its gardener in life. Nature was special to him; for he often said to us that it was the reflection of life.
52. He taught us that the weeds of confusion must be uprooted with wisdom and virtue, if we were to overcome the lingering doubts that existed in our minds.
53. And that the fruits of wisdom ripen slowly, but nourish deeply in the act of our virtues. The fruits of wisdom was something that few people could ever taste completely, because they struggled to achieve lasting wisdom.
54. He did not demand blind faith, but enquiry that leads one to seek the way of the truth. The soul must be the inspiration to the self, and the self must build our qualities that are transmitted to our virtues.
55. He welcomed doubt or uncertainty, for he said that it was the beginning of one's clarity of life. How can anyone claim certainty of something, without first asking questions?
56. Thus, he healed by guiding the soul afterwards, not by commanding it to be healed. This was important in how he treated the soul with respect and understanding.
57. He spoke not of divine commandments that would make one rise to their feet, but of philosophical principles that would keep one standing in their commitment.
58. He taught us that the soul must be taught to be healed, not to be tamed by prayer or supplication, because the soul he believed was not divine in its essence.
59. He saw no practical worth in sacred texts or scrolls to heal the soul, only the truth that bore our ultimate fate that awaited every person after death.
60. And he urged men and women to seek not salvation of the body, but for illumination of the soul. He emphasised that man never forget that one must enlighten the mind as well as the self.
61. Asterion taught us that the soul must be exercised, as the body is trained since birth. This meant that to neglect the soul is our conscience that is the soul's expression.
62. It must be exercised, not with mere rituals performed, but with reflection revealed by the mind. The soul he said to us is what animates the mind.
63. He urged daily dialogue with oneself, as one might converse with a friend out of habit, in order to see the yearning in the soul. One had to understand the soul to be able to heal it.
64. He said one day—The soul grows not by silence, but by the honest admission of one's suffering.
65. He healed the souls by encouraging men to confront the depth of their fears of death. He explained to people who asked what was the difference between the healing of the body and the soul, and he replied—There is no difference, if one sees the suffering of each.
66. He saw hypocrisy, as a fracture of the soul. Much like the fracture of the present world. And attachment to the body, as its binding slave who refused to accept its mortality.
67. He once said to me—A man's body can suffer a thousand times and be seen by the world, but the soul can suffer a thousand times and not be noticed. It is easier to hear the voice of the body than the voice of the soul.
68. He did not speak of original sin as a reflection of the soul. Instead, it was more of ignorance that concealed the true plight of the soul.
69. And he taught that ignorance is curable through effort and knowledge that eventually becomes wisdom. He did warn me that to use ignorance as a profit was something that only cheapened wisdom.
70. He did not offer absolution of the body, but the understanding of human suffering, which was at the core of his belief. The body, like the mind and soul must be treated equally.
71. Guilt when examined, becomes guidance when one realises what it truly signifies in life. And the shame that manifold men hide, when faced, loses its regret. Man must learn to accept death.
72. To believe that the body is superior than the soul is to only see from is external and not internal. Our Ousia which is our true essence is what unites the body, mind and soul.
73. Asterion would heal by restoring the soul’s dignity then, from the abyss of suffering. Not by elevating it above others who suffered more, but by returning it to itself naturally.
74. His method of healing the soul was not supernatural. Instead, it was purely natural. There was no secret; there was only the realisation of one's unawareness to the suffering of the soul.
75. He once said to me—Know thyself—not as a spirit, but as matter. It is the matter that will fade when the body becomes dust. When you have understood that, then you will hear the voice of the soul.
76. The soul is shaped by our virtues demonstrated—not by the worth of our fortune amassed. Virtues are the soul's expression, but they are not obtained by profit.
77. And that each virtue sought in life is chiselled upon the sculpture of our character, where the self thereafter is reflected in life.
78. He did not speak of divine will, but of human agency that men neglect or ignore. He often spoke of the empowerment of the self, and how it sheltered the soul.
79. He saw the soul not as a divine spark from a heaven above, but as a natural flame kindled by thought and preserved by the diligence of our wisdom.
80. He taught that the mind should be fed with the truth, lest it starves on sheer illusion alone. It must have a lasting foundation to grasp and an understanding to apply. This is where the soul accompanies the body and mind.
81. He healed by removing falsehoods in people, layer by layer, as if he was peeling the body itself. He spoke to the people through no divine presence, only that of his own wisdom.
82. His words were—The soul is not sick from the act of sin, but from the confusion of the self. It must be healed, not forsaken.
83. Clarity is not the saviour of life, but it is truly the beginning of its understanding. To any man or woman who heard Asterion speak of healing, they knew that he was not a healer that would eradicate suffering. He was something more than that. He made people aware of their suffering and why they suffered. Suffering was a part of human life.
84. Asterion did not fear the arrival of death, nor teach others to fear it. It was not because he was vain or ignorant. It was because, he accepted his ultimate fate.
85. Death is not the enemy men dread to confront every day, but a boundary to be passed. And that the soul must learn to live within its limits, as it must pass that boundary one day.
86. To live without the recognition of the soul is to not only abandon it to ignorance, but to be ignorant of the self. On some occasions Asterion would meet people, who did not even know that they had a soul within them alive.
87. Asterion healed by teaching men to die wisely. It was not indifferent of him to tell men the truth. He sympathised with the suffering and dying, but knew that the body was not immortal.
88. Not with dread, but with readiness he explained his words, as he slowly spoke about death. Many persons were fearful, but others listened attentively.
89. He said to them wisely—To live well is to die without regret. It is easier to imagine immortality than it is to accept mortality.
90. He did not promise reunion beyond the grave like the Christians, but spoke of an inner peace within before the moment of death. This was not frighten people. It was meant to enlighten them.
91. Life was to be cherished with every breath taken, not knowing when one's death would arrive. Asterion was convinced that many people put more worth in an afterlife than the life they had on earth. The fever of this afterlife was more noticeable in the Christians than the Pagans.
92. And that love, once given, does not vanish after death—it transforms with one's memory, as long as we hold on that memory with reverence and justice.
93. He healed the souls of people by teaching them to let go of the troublesome burdens of the body. Not of hope, but of clinging unto a false hope that only built the illusion of recovery.
94. He saw how presumed healers would in the name of their god or lord, cast out demons or ungodly influence. This to Asterion was nothing more than mysticism.
95. The soul must not be stifled, but naturally flow. We should not fear death, we should embrace fate. There is nothing worse than to make people believe in falsehoods.
96. He saw human grief as a river, and philosophy as its bridge from the body to the soul. He used philosophy as the foundation for his teachings on the healing of the soul.
97. Healing is not forgetting about one's suffering, but of understanding why it occurs in life in the first place. This was important to him; for he allowed him to connect with people who were suffering.
98. He did not attempt to erase their heavy sorrow with false aspirations, but gave their soul shape and meaning in their lives.
99. He healed by turning pain into wisdom, and confusion into clarity. As if he suffered too. He would speak of the times when he failed to listen to the suffering of his soul in need.
100. Thus, the soul once fractured, began to mend—not by miracle, but by the human mind. The mind was something that he taught that we should be its guardian.
101. One day in the grove where Asterion often visited, an old man named Strophios who was dying came to him to be healed of his illness. —Teacher, I come to you to be healed of the body.
102. Asterion told him—Go to the Christians first, and ask them to heal your body. I can only help you heal your soul. That which is of the body, belongs not to me, but to the earth, nature and To Ena, the One. Just as my body is born, it too must eventually die. Old man, you have lived more years than many on this earth, who live only half of a lifetime. The body is not immortal.
103. How, can you heal my soul?—Asked the old man with confusion expressed in his gesture.
104. —By releasing the burden of the body, only then will you restore the soul in you. Let not your soul be a hostage for the body. The soul is full of life. Learn to fill the soul with inner peace than to attempt to resurrect the body, before you die.
105. —But I fear death. It haunts me daily. How can I overcome the thought of death in my mind?
106. Fear not death. As the shadow of darkness approaches you, and the hour of death is nigh, look into your soul to guide you unto the path towards To Ena, the One. Only then, will the body rest in peace—Asterion told the old man.
107. The old man wept, not from pain or suffering he felt, but from the weight of understanding and his conscience was revealed.
108. Asterion did not comfort him with promises to heal his aging body, but with the presence of the truth. He showed compassion towards the old man. He too was old and ailing.
109. He sat beside him, as one sits beside a fire—not to command it, but to feel its warmth as it waits to be extinguished. Asterion saw in this old man, his own eventual death.
110. —You have feared death I know, because you have misunderstood the meaning of life and death. It is a cycle that comes and go and repeats itself, like the sunlight, the twilight or the moonlight.
111. —You have clung to the body bravely, as if it were life itself, but it is only the garment you wear, not what lies beneath the garment.
112. He told the old man that the soul is the breath, the body the sandal. It wears, it breaks, but its essence remains, whether in pieces or whole. The soul must never be forsaken.
113. The old man asked—And what becomes of the soul when the sandal eventually breaks?
114. Asterion replied—It continues the path it knew no more—but it has walked. And you have walked more than most men will ever walk in their lives.
115. —The soul does not need eternity or immortality to be whole. It needs only the acceptance of the truth.
116. —And the truth will set your soul free. I only heal the soul, before it must join the body in death.
117. The old man trembled as he heard the words of Asterion, not from illness, but from his earnest revelation.
118. —Then I have lived wrongly in life. I have prayed for senseless miracles, not lasting meaning that would accompany me in life.
119. Asterion placed his hand upon the man’s shoulder. —You have lived. That is not wrong. You are human and it is natural that you do not wish to die, but miracles do not replace the natural order of life and death. We cannot postpone death, we can only attempt to postpone it for a while, but we are destined to its arrival.
120. He paused then continued—But now, you may live wisely with the self, even in your final breath upon this earth.
121. —Let go of the body’s demands. Let go of your fear. It cries, but it does not command.
122. —Let the soul speak for you, and you will find inner peace and the truth that awaits you. It will deafen the cries.
123. The old man closed his eyes, and for the first time, he did not resist the silence that entered his soul. He took a deep breath and for the first time, he valued that breath.
124. He did not beg for more time to be given to him, but asked for more clarity from Asterion, sensing that he found in him a genuine bond of brethren.
125. Asterion smiled and told him—Verily, you are now healing. Not in the flesh, but in the soul where it matters more.
126. —The soul, when freed from fear, becomes a radiant light that accompanies one to death.
127. —And that light which is not divine, but from To Ena through the Logos does not need a body to shine.
128. The old man smiled faintly as his listened—Then I shall walk no more, but I shall finally rest.
129. —And in rest, I shall know my soul and my self. I think I am beginning to understand you better.
130. Asterion nodded—That is the final lesson, which is the understanding of life and death.
131. —To know oneself, not as immortal, but as meaningful man is more than what other men can ever demonstrate.
132. —To Ena awaits not your body alone, but your balance, which includes your soul and Ousia as well.
133. —And balance is the soul’s final harmony, before passing into the embrace of nature. Let the soul guide you as embark your final journey.
134. The old man would pass then not in fear any longer, but in the realisation of what awaited him. When he finally died, we were told by his family that he died in peace, and that he mentioned before death that his soul was healed and his body could rest, at last.
135. I Heromenes, who met him afterwards and watched him fade into memory, understood the healing that had occurred in the soul. For a few minutes, I contemplated the nature of Asterion's influence on people.
136. It was not a miracle from any god. It was not divine. It was human in its display, and that was the one thing that he spoke with such humbleness seen in his eyes.
137. Asterion had not cured the illness of the old man, but had cured the unnecessary illusion that was hidden in him that disguised the suffering of his soul.
138. He had restored the soul to its rightful place—not above nature, but within it as it witnessed the old man's death. What the Christians failed to see was that nature was a part of our suffering too. The old's man body would return to nature, as it witnessed his birth.
139. And in that restoration of the soul, the old man found his inner peace and truth. He became one with the soul and body. His suffering no longer existed.
140. Thus, the healing of the soul is not the denial of death, but the acceptance of life. It is not the prolonging of breath, but the deepening of thought. A deepening that occurred naturally.
141. When I enquired about the meaning of the death of the old man Strophios to Asterion his reply—He is where he belongs—not in a heaven but in the natural order of the Logos.
142. Death is not sacred in its nature, but simple in its occurrence. It is we humans that create the illusion of eternal life. It is because we yearn to be immortal.
143. And in the simplicity of death, it is profound in the understanding that it is natural in its occurrence. Only then can we begin to embrace the eventuality of death.
144. Asterion taught not only the old man, but others that the soul must be understood to be healed. And once truly understood, it needed no saving from the natural occurrence of its passing.
145. This is why he emphasised reason over faith. Faith he said was more about yearning, and reason was more about understanding.
146. For the soul is not lost with the body—it returns like the body, to the place from which it originally came from. Like all existential things of the Logos.
147. Universal existence is above any fear of man, desire, or the divinity of illusion. The earth receives the body, the sky receives the breath, and the cosmos receives the silent flame that once animated both.
148. He healed the souls of people by unveiling their truth, not by intervening with a miracle or prayer. None rose from the dead, nor were healed from their blindness. Only the blindness of their unawareness of death.
149. He taught us that the soul is not a mystery or a labyrinth, but a mirror for the reflection of the self. When one looks into it closely without distortion, one sees clearly the Ousia.
150. It is the Ousia that is last essence of all human beings. When we die, it is leaves the body to join universal existence. Taking its place into the order of the Logos.
151. Asterion taught as well that the soul must be polished at times, not praised like the ego. One must not forget the soul. If one does, then it forsakes it.
152. The soul is not a jewel bestowed upon one's pleasures to exhibit, but a stone refined through wisdom. The defining moment of the soul is when it reveals itself to the self.
153. He told us to not worship the soul—but to understand it, and we shall learn to release the burden of the body. To the soul be the teacher to the body.
154. For worship blinds one so easily and foolishly, but understanding reveals the soul for what it truly is. He told us to not forget that the soul is a divine spirit.
155. He did not speak of resurrecting the soul like the Christians spoke of the body, but of natural light that permeates over the body with its presence.
156. The soul he taught us is born of nature, and must return to it one day, whether we accept that or not. Not for the sake of senseless glory, but because the soul is indeed the breath of nature.
157. When we reached the depth of the soul, we would then be enlightened with the truth. Not a truth that was beyond our comprehension, but one that was applicable to our knowledge.
158. To him, the soul was not a possession that one ignored, but a process that was breathed through life. The soul could never replace the self, nor the self replace the soul. They are mutually connected.
159. And healing the soul is not an actual moment to merely ponder, but a movement of the Logos. He taught me the lessons of the soul and how to be aware of its presence.
160. Asterion did not ask men to kneel before death, but to stand to confront it when it came. To face themselves thus with courage, before death, not before the gods or a god.
161. Asterion was a man who despite his ailing and aging, did not seek to avoid his death. He was conscious about its occurrence, and he taught others to accept it too.
162. He told them that death at times may be silent in its process, but their souls speak daily if they listen to them. He told to live in fear was worse than to live in suffering.
163. He taught us to listen to the soul—not with the ears, but with reason. Only then, would it make sense.
164. He healed by restoring dialogue between thought and feeling, which was not there before.
165. When they are estranged he told me, the soul suffers. It is a burden that the soul wishes never came. He was firm in that conviction espoused.
166. The soul must be neither ruled by only emotion nor stripped of it. It must be guided in life by wisdom and knowledge.
167. It was a guidance by the understanding of the soul and by the acknowledgement of the mind. Without this guidance, the soul would be led astray by our vices.
168. He saw the soul as the companion of the body. Just as the body was nourished, so too was the soul. This was more difficult for some people than for others to achieve in life.
169. The soul does not tell you where to go, but how to travel with its presence. Its path in life is whithersoever that path takes us, whether it be short or long in duration.
170. Asterion told us to walk with awareness, and we would not stray far from the body much. If we decided to ignore it, then we would be forsaking the body to an endless path.
171. Even if the path is uncertain, the soul may remain steady. Not because it does not suffer, but because it continues to exist within us. Every breath is the sign of the soul.
172. Asterion healed the souls of people by teaching men to walk inwards than to run away from death. A death that no man or woman could ever avoid in life.
173. To explore not the heavens above as a form of divinity, but the self of one that is present and alive. The self does not only identify who we are as a person, it also reveals the soul.
174. He did not speak of ignoring death, but of achieving a serenity in the realisation of its presence. And serenity he told us is born of the mind to reach the innermost depth of the soul.
175. It was in that depth, where the soul was fully awakened and immersed in the breath of life.
176. He taught us that the soul must not be inflated with false hope, nor diminished with neglect, but held in balance with the world that surrounds it that witnesses the function of the body.
177. The body is the temple that was built for us, but without the soul it bears no conscience of the mind.
178. We are not the measure of all things that are existential, but we are part of the measure that belongs to the order of the Logos.
179. He told us to live not to conquer the body or soul, but to comprehend them, and why they exist for us?
180. And in our comprehension, we would find the healing of the soul. This is what defines our inner peace before death. A peace that was meant to liberate the soul.
181. Asterion did not promise that he could restore the body from affliction, but make one understand that one was mortal and to recognise the boundaries of the body.
182. It was not to restore the body beyond death, but within life. It is life that witnessed our birth, and it is death that will witness our return to To Ena.
183. He taught us that the soul must always be prepared not for eternity, but for honesty. This was a lesson he taught me to observe with my own soul.
184. Honesty is the soul’s true home. When we deceive ourselves in believing in the resurrection of the body, then we are attempting to deceive the soul.
185. Asterion would heal the soul by removing pretence and the veil of death before men's eyes. This was no act of divinity, but more an act of sincerity.
186. By stripping away the masks men wear before themselves to avoid the truth of their death. Death to many men was the shadow that they mostly feared in life.
187. The soul cannot be healed whilst it hides, believing that it will escape the clutch of death. It too must reach its finality. Like the body, it can be healed, but it is not immortal.
188. Asterion convinced with his wisdom all of his students to let the soul be transparent, and it will begin to mend gradually, once we had heard its voice.
189. I Heromenes saw many people come to Asterion—young, old, broken and proud in their character. Many who were even clueless of the suffering of their souls.
190. And all left lighter and wiser, although none were cured of the suffering of their flesh. It was more about accepting the cycle of life and death.
191. For the healing they received was deeper than the skin. It was the healing of the soul.
192. It was as well, the healing of thought, of fear and of falsehood that one creates to shuns the lingering shadow of death from appearing.
193. Asterion gave no actual blessings unto those people whose souls were healed with words of divinity, only questions for them to ask themselves thereafter.
194. And in those unique questions, the soul found its answers to move on to its final destination, where one could pass away in the embrace of silence and peace.
195. He never promised to heal the blind, the sick or the mad. Instead, he spoke of how the body could be healed, but it could never replace the healing of the soul.
196. The body was doomed from the beginning. It was never meant to be immortal or live forever. To believe that the body was permanent was to ignore the truth.
197. The Christians speak of the rising of the dead, but the dead do not awaken, and the body does not live but once. They speak of the rapture of a heaven, yet they fear death.
198. What they seek for the healing of the body, they ignore about the soul. They speak of the soul, yet they concern themselves more with the body. This is what distinguishes the Meletic and the Christian.
199. To a Meletic, healing is not given like a miracle unto someone—it is more like the companion of the soul, guiding it through its existential journey.
200. Lived through the act of reflection, through the act of humility, through the effort of one to be virtuous in one's character.
201. And once it has been truly understood, the soul knows that it must suffer too like the body. It is a part of our suffering.
202. For the healed soul does not seek to escape from the truth—it seeks understanding of it. When a man realises that the soul is never far away, then he can whisper to it that he not forgotten it.
203. And in that meaningful understanding, the soul finds its place in life, nature, in reason, and in To Ena.
204. Thus, was the teaching of the healing of the soul. Not by divine miracles, but by human comprehension. The soul is the existing breath of life, and its healing is the solace of the truth.
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