Dr. Banks raises a fundamental question about the true origins of Western medical ethics and questions whether they can be attributed solely to the ancient Greeks. He asserts that Greece cannot serve as a teleologic source for modern medical ethics. Indeed, the Greeks did not create the ethic of medical service that is promoted through the myths of Asklepios. For the inspiration and ultimate source of these myths, we must look deeper. The Asklepian myths, however, provide one foundation for subsequent attempts to characterize ethical medical practice. Dr. Banks states that it is as absurd to study Greek thought as a way to understand principles of ethics as it is to study Newton's Principia to understand the laws of planetary motion. This assertion, however, is incongruous. Newton's work provides the foundations of calculus and mechanics in physics. Newton's Principia is not the "original source" for the principles it elucidates; it represents the first clear description of these principles. Similarly, the myths of Asklepios can yield important insights into the "inner laws" governing the relationships of physicians and patients. As Dr. Banks intimates, the Old and New Testaments of the Bible present another invaluable source for understanding the laws "written in [the] conscience" of the physician. Of note, both Jesus and Plato use parables or myths to best describe inner truths. To suggest, however, that neither Greek mythology nor Newton's Principia contributes to our ability to understand ourselves and the world is to question the worth of all literary and scientific endeavor.

I am indebted to Emma and Ludwig Edelstein, to whose work I would refer anyone seeking deeper understanding of Asklepian traditions [1]. The Edelsteins, like most modern commentators, refer to the deified hero of healing as Asclepius or Aesculapius, following the Latin or Roman spelling. I prefer Asklepios or Asclepios because it more closely transliterates the original Greek spelling of Aos.

I applaud the comments of Drs. Stolinsky and Ball, who point out that the caduceus, commonly attributed to Asklepios, belongs rightly to Hermes, the god of messengers, businessmen, and thieves. As Friedlander makes clear [2], the caduceus has most likely come to prominence in the United States through a series of mistakes. Symbols of Asklepios (the cock or the staff entwined by a single serpent) or the many Biblical figures and symbols of healing would more meaningfully serve the medical profession, provided that these figures are understood. Cassell [3] appropriately directs us to "The Patient-Physician Covenant" as "an affirmation of Asklepios" and an opportunity for the medical profession to "reaffirm the primacy of its obligation to the patient." In the era of managed care, as in all ages, physicians have a choice—they can align themselves under standards like those of the Asklepiads, whose first interest is the welfare of the patient, or they can choose the symbols of profiteers in the medical marketplace, whose first interest is the corporate bottom line.