THE SNAKE:Snakes or serpents were very early symbols of the Great Mother Goddesses. The Egyptian Isis sometimes carried or was accompaniedby snakes. Thoth, like the Greek Hermes, could change into a serpent; a serpent was said to guard the hidden Book of Thoth. Apep was pictured as a huge snake that lived deep in the Nile. He was called the Great Serpent of Tuat (the Underworld). A benevolent serpent which protected the Sun god Ra was the huge speckled snake called Kheti, also known as the Spitting Serpent. Egypt has a small desert snake with a horny knob above each eye which was said to ward off the evil eye. The Greeks called this reptile the "cerastes". The Babylonian goddess Kadi of Der, who was a serpent with a woman'a head and breasts, may have been the same deity as Kadru of India. When associated with Greek Underworld deities, the serpent represented the spirits of the dead. Snakes were pictured on the chariot wheels of the goddess Persephone. A caged serpent, representing wisdom, guarded Athene's temple at Athens. The goddess Gaea founded the Delphic Oracle long before Apollo took it over. There she was called Gaea Pelope, the female serpent. The priestesses who served her and this temple, even later under Apollo, were given the title of Pythonesses, which means serpent-priestesses. The caduceus, which was a staff or wand intertwined with two snakes, was carried by deities, physicians, and messengers (such as Hermes). The two snakes symbolized opposites: healing and poison, binding and loosing, sleep and awakening, good and evil, peace and upset. The Nagas were very important in Hindu mythology. They were portrayed either as human-headed snakes or as cobras. They lived in beautiful Underworld palaces filled with flowers and gems. Among the Celtic clans the goddess Brigit had a snake as her emblem even though there were no snakes in Ireland. Stone carvings of the Picts in Scotland show a Snake Goddess with snake-legs and hair. Native Americans believed that all snakes had great power; however, the ones with a deadly bite were the most powerful. SuperstitionsPeople in North Lincolnshire say that if you wear a snakeskin around your head you can cure a headache.A ring made in the shape of a snake is said to bring long life and good health to its owner. Central Europeans believed that if a woman pulled out one of her hairs at a certain Moon sign she could turn it into a snake by placing it into the water. Another similar belief is that if a horse hair is dropped into water it will become a snake. If a snake swallows the spit of someone who has fasted, it will die. Magickal AttributesPsychic energy, creative power, immortality.Transmute your life into higher levels. Wisdom, understanding, connection with spirit. Facing your fears of spiritual initiations and life problems; moving on to higher goals. ChantCoiling, turning, deep knowledge burning,Sacred serpent, lead me on To the initiate's fire on planes much higher. I yearn to grow, O Goddess-one. |