1.Trepanation—Drilling Holes in the Skull to Release Evil Spirits
Imagine having a splitting headache and someone suggesting, with utmost seriousness, that the cure is to drill a hole in your skull. As bizarre as it sounds today, trepanation—one of the oldest known surgical procedures—was practiced across continents for thousands of years, often with surprising consistency. Archaeological evidence shows that trepanation dates back as far as 10,000 BCE, with skulls bearing carefully carved holes discovered in regions ranging from Neolithic Europe to pre-Columbian Peru and ancient China.
The reasons for this cranial intervention varied, but a common thread across cultures was the belief that mental and physical ailments were caused by malevolent spirits trapped inside the skull. Trepanation, then, was a spiritual exorcism masquerading as medicine. In Mesoamerican and Andean societies, particularly among the Inca, the practice evolved into a more pragmatic form of trauma surgery. Inca surgeons used obsidian or bronze tools to relieve pressure from head injuries sustained in battle. Remarkably, some patients survived these procedures, as evidenced by bone regrowth around the openings—suggesting not only survival but post-operative healing.
The survival rate, while variable, wasn’t as grim as one might expect. In some Incan populations, estimates suggest up to 70% of trepanned individuals lived long enough for significant healing—an impressive feat considering the absence of anesthesia or antiseptics. Tools ranged from sharpened flint to metal scrapers, and techniques included scraping, drilling, and cutting intersecting lines to remove circular sections of bone. While modern neurosurgeons no longer aim to release demons, they do perform a modern version of trepanation—known as craniotomy—to relieve intracranial pressure caused by trauma, tumors, or hemorrhage. So, strange as it may seem, this ancient “cure” wasn’t entirely off the mark—it just needed a few thousand years of refinement.
2.Eating Crushed Gemstones to Treat Illnesses
In the ancient world, healing often glittered—literally—with the promise of crushed gemstones. From the courts of pharaohs to medieval monasteries, powdered emeralds, sapphires, and pearls were swallowed not for show, but for salvation. The logic? If a stone was rare and radiant, surely it held divine or curative power. Ancient Egyptian medical texts like the Ebers Papyrus (c. 1550 BCE) prescribed lapis lazuli and hematite for various ailments, while Indian Ayurvedic practitioners developed “bhasmas”—mineral-based powders including gemstones—to treat everything from fevers to epilepsy. Even jade powder was prized in early Chinese medicine for its supposed ability to fortify the body and prolong life.
These gemstone remedies weren’t just spiritual fluff. They were deeply embedded in elite medical traditions. In medieval Europe, lithotherapy (stone medicine) was common among apothecaries, who claimed emeralds could stop bleeding and rubies could calm the heart. The wealthy, ever eager to flaunt their status, literally ingested their wealth—sometimes to deadly effect. Diamonds and other hard stones were notoriously difficult to process safely, and many carried toxic elements. As seen in the fatal case of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, who consumed mercury-laced elixirs in pursuit of immortality, the line between medicine and poison was perilously thin. In retrospect, these sparkling cures reveal more about ancient beliefs in cosmic order and material power than they do about effective healing. But they also remind us: the history of medicine is as much about hope and hubris as it is about science.
3.Using Animal Dung as Medicine and Wound Treatment
In the long and often bewildering history of medicine, few remedies are as eyebrow-raising as the use of animal dung. And yet, across ancient Egypt, medieval Europe, and even parts of Africa, excrement wasn’t just waste—it was medicine. Ancient Egyptian healers, for instance, applied animal feces directly to wounds, believing it had the power to ward off infections and evil spirits alike. Crocodile dung, in particular, was prized—not as fertilizer, but as a rather unorthodox contraceptive. Women would insert dried pellets into the vagina, trusting that the dung’s texture and supposed magical properties would prevent pregnancy. Unsurprisingly, modern science has not confirmed its effectiveness.
But the Egyptians weren’t alone. In medieval Europe, goat dung was used in poultices to treat everything from scabies to tumors, while pigeon droppings were mixed into treatments for gout and headaches. Even mouse and pig feces had their place—mouse dung was sometimes ingested to break up kidney stones, while pig dung mixed with wine was believed to stop internal bleeding. In parts of Africa, cow dung was a traditional burn remedy, valued for its proteolytic enzymes that mimic the action of certain modern debriding agents—though with a far higher risk of infection.
These practices weren’t rooted in ignorance so much as empirical observation and desperation. In the absence of germ theory or antiseptics, ancient cultures experimented with what was available. Oddly enough, some of these dung-based treatments did demonstrate mild antimicrobial effects, though the risks often outweighed the benefits. Today, what seems like medical absurdity was once a serious attempt to heal—and a sobering reminder of how far we’ve come in understanding what actually works. For a deeper dive into these practices, Nirvanic Insights offers a detailed look at how excrement found its way into the ancient medical toolkit.
4.Bloodletting with Leeches to Balance the Body’s Humors
If you walked into a medieval physician’s office complaining of a fever, there’s a good chance you’d walk out a pint lighter—with a leech still clinging to your arm. For over two millennia, bloodletting was considered one of the most effective ways to cure illness, grounded in the influential Greek theory of the four humors: blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile. Illness, according to thinkers like Hippocrates and Galen, stemmed from an imbalance of these fluids, and blood was often the first to be drained in the name of healing.
Leeches, particularly Hirudo medicinalis, became the preferred tool for this task. These slippery little creatures weren’t just gross—they were precision instruments. Their saliva contains hirudin, a powerful anticoagulant that ensured blood kept flowing even after the leech dropped off. Ancient Roman and Byzantine doctors championed their use, and by the medieval period, leech therapy was so widespread that entire professions—called “leech collectors”—emerged to harvest them from ponds and swamps.
But here’s the kicker: while bloodletting was meant to restore balance, it often did the opposite. Excessive bleeding could weaken already fragile patients, and in many cases, the cure proved deadlier than the disease. During the Black Death, for instance, desperate physicians turned to bloodletting as their go-to remedy, despite its lack of efficacy and its potential to hasten death (source). Still, the practice endured well into the 19th century, until modern medicine finally unseated it with germ theory and antibiotics.
Ironically, leeches have made something of a comeback—not for balancing humors, but in reconstructive surgery. Today, doctors use them to improve blood circulation after limb reattachment or skin grafts, proving that even history’s strangest remedies can sometimes have a second act—just not the one their inventors imagined.
5.Sleeping in Sacred Temples to Receive Healing Dreams from the Gods
The idea that healing could come through sleep might sound like something out of a modern wellness retreat—but ancient civilizations were already there, thousands of years ago. In both ancient Egypt and Greece, people sought divine cures by literally sleeping on it. These weren’t just power naps in peaceful gardens; they were elaborate rituals in what were known as “sleep temples” or “dream temples,” sacred spaces where the sick would undergo a form of spiritual therapy known as incubation. The goal? To receive curative visions from the gods themselves.
In ancient Egypt, the roots of this practice trace back to the priest-physician Imhotep, later deified for his medical prowess. Egyptian sleep temples used fasting, chanting, and incense to induce trance states, believing that dreams could reveal the spiritual origin of disease and offer divine prescriptions. Across the Mediterranean, the Greeks elevated this concept into a full-blown medical-spiritual system through the Asclepieions—temples dedicated to Asclepius, the god of healing. Patients would purify themselves, make offerings, and sleep in sacred enclosures, hoping Asclepius would visit in a dream. Some even reported being physically touched—or licked—by non-venomous snakes, the god’s sacred symbol, during their slumber.
Upon waking, temple priests interpreted these dreams and prescribed treatments accordingly. These sanctuaries, located in places like Epidaurus and Kos, weren’t fringe oddities—they were central hubs of ancient medicine. And here’s the twist: modern techniques like guided imagery, hypnotherapy, and even cognitive behavioral therapy owe a surprising debt to these ancient dream clinics. As strange as it may seem, the ancients understood something we’re only now beginning to rediscover—the profound connection between mind, spirit, and body in the healing process.
