"At the end of the Phaedo, Socrates implements this very lesson, putting into practice the view he has just espoused. He lived by practicing death—that is, by focusing on his soul rather than his body—and he dies as he lived. In addition, he does so with a good bit of humor. When the friends' discussion about immortality ends, the time comes for Socrates to drink the state-administered hemlock. He does so calmly, and as the poison takes its effect, numbing his body from his feet upward, he lies down. As the numbness begins to reach his heart, he covers his face with a cloth. But then he takes it off and, in his last recorded words, instructs one of his companions, Crito, to "offer a cock to Asclepius; see to it, and don't forget" (Phaedo 118).
Asclepius was the Greek god of healing. Sacrificing a cock meant thanking him for bringing recovery from an illness. This was Socrates's way of expressing thanks that he now had finally been "healed." He had done what is right to the very end, and had either entered into an eternal dreamless sleep or escaped his body to enjoy everlasting life[…]"
Excerpt From: Bart D. Ehrman;. "Heaven and Hell." Apple Books.
