Of all the wild chimeras which have in all ages haunted the minds of fantastic dreamers none has taken so great a hold on its votaries, as the search for the Elixir Vitae or means of prolonging human life beyond its allotted span.

So starts the introduction to the Hermippus Redivivus. An 1885 book written by the obscure German intellectual, John Henry Cohausen. Only 350 copies where privately printed in Edinburgh, one of which got sent to Harvard University and is now digitized and available to the world through Google books.

The work is edited by Edmund Goldsmith of who the above quote is attributed, and was penned with good reason given the obscure nature of the work.

Cohausen himself is drawing deep on obscure work to create his work. Digging all the way back to Roman times in which remains an inscription that tells of a man, L. Clodius Hermippus, who lived to the age of 115 years by breathing in the breath of young women. In this case, young can be taken to mean children, and whether or not it was purely women is contested...in case anyone decides to try this at home.

According to a review of the work written by Sabine Baring-Gould in his book Curiosities of Olden Times Cohausen covers in great detail of how much salubrious "young" air would be needed to prolong life, and how the myth might have been manufactured from the viewing of mouth to mouth resuscitation of an old woman by a young lady.

It should be noted that as the story goes with the Roman, Clodius Hermippus, he probably had no such intimate relations, but more just surrounded himself with children so as to breathe in their air.

Cohausen takes things a step further, suggesting the need for direct mouth to mouth resuscitation, and even suggesting the possibility of distilling a young woman's breath into a potent elixir of youth.

As charming and pleasingly logical the notion is, the idea today, alas, is considered as nothing more than hot air.

A beginning is the time for taking the most delicate care that the balances are correct.

Thus begins Frank Herbert's epic novel: Dune, the story of a hero rallying against an empire that has betrayed him. Set across multiple planets with advanced technology and characters that echo ancient Roman and Arab cultures, the story's main themes revolve around leadership, wisdom, courage, legend, purpose, extra-sensory powers, drug addiction, political struggle, social movements, eugenics, and zen buddhism.

Leadership, Wisdom, and Courage

I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.

The eye that looks ahead to the safe course is closed forever.

The theme of courage and stoicism pervade throughout the novel. Those who can calm their emotions and think logically for the most profitable solution prosper. Thus it is that threatening enemies are often kept alive to be used later, and for those found in life or death situations it is the cool headed which survive.

Even when Paul, the hero, is put in a complete losing situation he doesn't let fear and despair enter his life, he doesn't settle for mediocrity, for doing so would surely mean his doom.

Legend and Purpose

Do you wrestle with dreams?
Do you contend with shadows?
Do you move in a kind of sleep?
Time has slipped away.
Your life is stolen.
You tarried with trifles.
Victim of your folly.

As the story progresses we see the coming of age of a teenage boy into a leader, a chosen prophet who must fulfill his destiny. We see through the eyes of Paul how he was purposefully bred to this position, part of a plan by the Bene Gesserit who are seeking to breed a person which can see all pasts and futures, who can traverse time and be used for power. In this we see that Paul (Muad'Dib) must accept the responsibility of his fate, and regain control of his life for the greater good.

Think you of the fact that a deaf person cannot hear. Then, what deafness may we not all possess? What senses do we lack that we cannot see and cannot hear another world all around us?

As we learn of Paul's extra sensory powers it leads us to wonder what we don't perceive in our own lives. This idea is emphasized with the prevalence of drugs which heighten awareness and consciousness. Drugs also act as a source of power to those who can harvest and sell it. From this theme, also stems the theme of dependence. We see how the drugs create dependencies after being introduced into a user's life and how that user's life depends on continued use of the drug. This concept is even compared to air and water which give us the ability of consciousness in our own lives, and for which we could not live without. This thought could even be extended further to items like cars and internet, both of which we don't really need to live, but for which we find it extremely difficult to do without after they have been introduced into our lives.

Zen Buddhism

Deep in the human unconscious is a pervasive need for a logical universe that makes sense. But the real universe is always one step beyond logic.

The proper teaching is recognized with ease. You can know it without fail because it awakens within you that sensations which tells you this is something you've always known.

Dune also touches on themes of reincarnation and an underlying transcendental sense of purpose that can only be felt from our inherited memory. Paul is filled with memories he cannot explain, and the Reverend Mothers are bodies who contain the consciousness of more than one being, passed down through the generations. Besides strong ties to buddhist teaching the thought also provides interesting food for thought as to what memories we have in our own mind that we cannot account for. Maybe hunting on the plains, or sleeping in a cave?

Wisdom

How often it is that the angry man rages denial of what his inner self is telling him.

Muad'Dib learned rapidly because his first training was in how to learn. And the first lesson of all was the basic trust that he could learn. It's shocking to find how many people do not believe they can learn, and how many more believe learning to be difficult. Muad'Dib knew that every experience carries its lesson.

Frank Herbert saturated Dune with lines of appealing and thought provoking wisdom. It is the wisdom in each character's action that inspires the most admiration. Their own thoughts and insights are the best weapons they have, the best tools they can use to increase their chances for success. The wisdom in the book is what makes it an inspirational read, and a book worth reading again and again.

Any road followed precisely to its end leads precisely nowhere. Climb the mountain just a little bit to test that it's a mountain. From the top of the mountain, you cannot see the mountain.

Think of sight. You have eyes, yet cannot see without light. If you are on the floor of a valley, you cannot see beyond your valley. Just so, Muad'Dib could not always choose to look across the mysterious terrain. He tells us that a single obscure decision of prophecy, perhaps the choice of one word over another, could change the entire aspect of the future. He tells us "The vision of time is broad, but when you pass through it, time becomes a narrow door." And always, he fought the temptation to choose a clear, safe course, warning "That path leads ever down into stagnation."

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