Reptiles Throughout Mythology

Reptiles vary in size. Some are carnivorous and others are vegetarians. Some are dangerous and others are harmless. Yet the traits of reptiles and their habits have been utilized in the creativity and mythology of humans.

"Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble - fillet of fennel, snake, toad, adder's fork, lizard's leg..."

As the witches of Macbeth stirred the magical potion in the large kettle, superstitions, symbols and myths on reptiles had already been stirring for ages. The various myths reveal the association of certain sacred reptiles with the supernatural and with so-called magical powers. These themes are encountered among civilizations millennia in the past to our own present culture.

Take the snake and serpents, for example:

There is no creature more widely found in the mythologies of the world than snakes. Mythical legends frequently occur in lands where there are no snakes - such as with the Eskimos who live in the ice bound Arctic. Saint Patrick may have driven the reptile out of Ireland, but his efforts could not cleanse the country of snake legends.

The Bible does not narrate favorably about the reptile; the "Good Book" compared everything evil to the venomous snake.

 

Their venom is cruel and can kill you. (Deut 32:33).

God cursed the snake "above every beast of the field" and commanded that "upon your belly you shall crawl, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life." (Gen 3:14)

..."and deprived the reptile of its feet after tempting Eve in the Garden of Eden..."

The Bible further writes about the snake that corrupt judges are "like the poison of a serpent," (Psalms 58:4-5). People whose words offend are said to have "tongues full of deadly poison," (James 3:8) and so on and on it goes. In the New Testament sinners are regarded as a "generation of vipers," (Matt 3:7, 12:34, 23:33, Luke 3:7). Even today there are many traces of myths that result from ignorance and the deep-rooted fear of snakes. It is believed that "Their tongues are like a serpent. Adder's poison is under their lips," (Ps. 140:3). Many well educated people in many areas around the world still regard the tongue of a snake to be poisonous, disregarding the fact that the poison is injected through hollow fangs in specific varieties of snakes.

Israel's neighbors associated the serpent (snake) with an Earth Mother and played and the snake played a beneficial role in fertility cults. In Israel, a bronze snake, dated from the 15th Century BCE has been found at Gezer, demonstrating that the ancient Canaanites worshipped snakes. An iron serpent from the Israelite period was found by archaeologists in the Ayalon Valley, suggesting another snake cult.

In ancient Egypt, RE was primary among the god-head and was identified by the snake. The Pharoes are frequently represented with this snake on their crown. For a long time the Egyptian cobra, Naja Haje, has been the stock-and-trade for the conjurer and side-show snake charmers. Cobras are well known for their ability to expand their upper neck into a disc shape by spreading its ribs. The cobra, then, symbolized immortality and was regarded as a protected deity, being frequently illustrated on ancient Egyptian monuments.

In Christian lore, the good snake is seen in iconography as rising from the chalice of Saint John. The serpent is depicted as wound around a cross and is sometimes portrayed with the icon of a woman's head to symbolize lust and temptation. The snake at the foot of the cross is evil, and in that position symbolizes the triumph over evil and the removal of the powers of "darkness." ([ Marie-Louise von Franz - Civilizations need a Living Myth.webm Christian myth deficiency: not including enough feminine, catholicism include only purified feminine - is not the dark feminine, excluding matter and treating matter as dead and realm of the devil, not facing the problems of the opposites of evil ])

Snake worship is still widespread in Asia and Africa. In India the reptile is considered by Hindu myth to be semi-divine with serpent bodies reverently called "Nagas." Today, in America, there is new evidence of snake worship in the Kentucky and Tennessee hill country - adding to the collection of known sites throughout the North American continent.

An interesting observation is that, as pointed out by naturalists, several species of snake, including young cobras, will play dead when threatened. Other species can be temporarily paralyzed by pinching the snake on the neck or merely turning it on its back. There is the story of Aaron's rod that turned into a serpent and swallowed the serpents of the Pharoe's sorcerers... Many snakes and crocodiles are cannibalistic and, if sufficiently hungry, will eat their own species. Thus, if Aaron's rod were actually a paralyzed snake or crocodile this phenomenon could have some possibility.

This Norse brooch of the 600s shows Jormungand, the serpent that encircles the world in Norse mythology. In one story, the god Thor tries to drain the ocean and remove the World Serpent.

Serpents and snakes play a role in many of the world's myths and legends. Sometimes these mythic beasts appear as ordinary snakes. At other times, they take on magical or monstrous forms. Serpents and snakes have long been associated with good as well as with evil, representing both life and death, creation and destruction.

Serpents and Snakes as Symbols. In religion, mythology, and literature, serpents and snakes often stand for fertility or a creative life force—partly because the creatures can be seen as symbols of the male sex organ. They have also been associated with water and earth because many kinds of snakes live in the water or in holes in the ground. The ancient Chinese connected serpents with life-giving rain. Traditional beliefs in Australia, India, North America, and Africa have linked snakes with rainbows, which in turn are often related to rain and fertility.

As snakes grow, many of them shed their skin at various times, revealing a shiny new skin underneath. For this reason snakes have become symbols of rebirth, transformation, immortality, and healing. The ancient Greeks considered snakes sacred to Asclepius, the god of medicine. He carried a caduceus, a staff with one or two serpents wrapped around it, which has become the symbol of modern physicians.

For both the Greeks and the Egyptians, the snake represented eternity. Ouroboros, the Greek symbol of eternity, consisted of a snake curled into a circle or hoop, biting its own tail. The Ouroboros grew out of the belief that serpents eat themselves and are reborn from themselves in an endless cycle of destruction and creation.

Living on and in the ground, serpents came to be seen in some religions and mythologies as guardians of the underworld. In this role they could represent hidden wisdom or sacred mysteries, but they also had other, more sinister meanings. The use of serpents

Snakes appear in the myths and legends of the Aborigines of Australia. This wall painting located near the town of Kuranda, Queensland, shows a snake among many different animals.

as symbols of death, evil, or treachery may be related to the fact that some of them are poisonous and dangerous. Satan and other devils have frequently been portrayed as snakes, as in the biblical story of Eden where a sly serpent tempts Eve and Adam into disobeying God. Some Christian saints are said to have driven away snakes as a sign of miraculous powers given to them by God. According to legend, St. Patrick cleared Ireland of snakes.

The Nagas of Hindu and Buddhist mythology show how serpents can symbolize both good and evil, hopes and fears. Although these snake gods could take any shape, including a fully human one, they often appeared as human heads on serpent bodies. The Nagas lived in underwater or underground kingdoms. They controlled rainfall and interacted with deities and humans in a variety of ways. Some were good, such as Muchalinda, the snake king who shielded Buddha from a storm. Others could be cruel and vengeful.

 

Serpents and Snakes in Myths. Many mythical creatures, such as dragons, combine snakelike qualities with features of humans or animals. In Greek mythology, Echidna was a half-woman, half-serpent monster whose offspring included several dragons. Cecrops had a man's head and chest on a snake's body and was a culture hero to the Athenians. In Toltec and Aztec mythology, Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent, held an important place. In medieval Europe, people told tales of the basilisk, a serpent with a dragon's body that could kill merely by looking at or breathing on its victims. Melusina, another figure in European folklore, was part woman, part fish and snake and had to spend one day each week in water.

Myths that emphasized the frightening or evil aspects of serpents and snakes often portrayed them as the enemies of deities and humans. The Greek hero Perseus rescued Andromeda, who was chained to a rock, by slaying a sea monster that threatened to eat her. In Norse* mythology, a monster called the Midgard serpent—also known as Jormungand—was wrapped around the earth, biting its tail. Thor* battled the serpent, which lived in the sea, where its movements caused storms around the world. Another Norse monster, the Nidhogg or dread biter, was an evil serpent coiled around one of the roots of Yggdrasill, the World Tree. It was forever trying to destroy the tree by biting or squeezing it.

* See Names and Places at the end of this volume for further information.

In the mythology of ancient Egypt, Apopis was a demon of chaos who appeared in the form of a serpent. Each night he attacked Ra*, the sun god. But Mehen, another huge serpent, coiled himself around Ra's sun boat to protect the god from Apopis—a perfect illustration of how snakes can be symbols of both good and evil in mythology.

Mythological snakes that act as forces of good have various roles, such as creating the world, protecting it, or helping humans. Stories of the Fon people of West Africa tell of Da, a serpent whose 3,500 coils support the cosmic ocean in which the earth floats. Another 3,500 of its coils support the sky. Humans occasionally catch a glimpse of many-colored Da in a rainbow or in light reflected on the surface of water.

The Aboriginal people of northern Australia tell how the Great Rainbow Snake Julunggul shaped the world. When human blood dropped into a waterhole, Julunggul grew angry. He sent a wave of water washing across the earth, and he swallowed people, plants, and animals. Julunggul reared up toward heaven, but an ant spirit bit him and made him vomit up what he had swallowed. This happened again and again until Julunggul departed from the earth, leaving people, plants, and animals in all parts of it.

According to a story of the Diegueño Indians of California, humans obtained many of the secrets of civilization from a huge serpent named Umai-hulhlya-wit. This serpent lived in the ocean until people performed a ceremony and called him onto the land. They built an enclosure for him, but it was too small to hold him. After Umai-hulhlya-wit had squeezed as much of himself as possible into the enclosure, the people set him on fire. Soon the serpent's body exploded, showering the earth with the knowledge, secrets, songs, and other cultural treasures he had contained.

Sea Serpents

Mysterious serpents occur not just in ancient myths but in more modern legends as well. For centuries, people have reported seeing huge snakes or snakelike monsters at sea or in lakes. Although many marine scientists admit that creatures yet unknown may inhabit the depths, no one has produced reliable evidence of an entirely new kind of sea serpent. Most likely the mysterious creatures seen swimming on the water's surface are masses of seaweed, floating logs, rows of porpoises leaping into the air, giant squid, or just common sharks or sea lions.

chaos great disorder or confusion

cosmic large or universal in scale; having to do with the universe

Hindu myths contain many tales of serpents. Kaliya was a five-headed serpent king who poisoned water and land until the god Krishna defeated him in battle. Kaliya then worshiped Krishna, who spared his life. Kadru was a snake goddess who bore 1,000 children. Legend says that they still live today as snakes in human form. One of Kadru's children was the world snake Shesha that the gods used to turn a mountain and stir up the ocean, just as people churn milk into butter by using a rope coiled around a stick or paddle. As the gods churned the ocean with the snake, many precious things arose from it, including the moon, a magical tree, and the Amrita, or water of life.

Chameleons are another story:

Chameleons are widely regarded with unreasoning fear, especially in West Africa, where various beliefs associate the reptile with the Sun. In Dahomey, the chameleons are said to fetch fire from the Sun. In early Christianity, the chameleon was used to symbolize Satan who, like the chameleon, could change his appearance to deceive mankind. Other deep-rooted belief that persist are that chameleons are "nourished by the air," and hence do not eat. They do have huge lung sacks that, when fully expanded, become almost transparent. Nevertheless, chameleons do eat food.

The eyes of the chameleon are unique. The lids are fused over each eye ball, leaving only a small aperture, and each eye can see and move independently. Seen close-up, this random movement can be quite un-nerving. A belief arose as far back as the time of Pliny (1st Century AD) that a chameleon talisman restored sight to the blind.

Best known for its ability to change its skin color to blend with its background, the chameleon has been referred in Sufi (Pantheistic Muslim mysticism) parables relating to an inconsistent person. "So as the chameleon changes his skin, an unwise one changes the color of his being..." The thought is still believed among modern men.

The Lizard:

The behavioral pattern of the lizard has inspired various beliefs, myths and legends associated with the Sun. In Egypt, it is said that in spring the lizards will climb an eastward facing wall and look to the east. When the Sun rises, the lizard's sight and the sight of some blinded person, will is returned. Lizards have been associated with extreme heat in the Near East and in Australia, the aboriginal believed that the sky would fall if you killed one.

In ancient Egypt and Greek symbolism the lizard represented divine wisdom and good fortune. This was especially true of the reverence for Serapes and Hermes. In Roman mythology, lizards supposedly sleep through the winter and so symbolize both death and resurrection. Early Christianity associated the lizard with the devil and with evil. While on the Pacific islands of Polynesia and Maoris lizards are revered as a "heaven god."

Native American Lizard Mythology

Lizards play positive roles in the folklore of many Native American tribes. In Plains Indian tribes, lizards are associated with healing and survival, and also with masculinity. In some Plains tribes, a newborn boy's umbilical cord was sewn into an amulet in the shape of a lizard to ensure his health and strength. Today, many Cheyenne people still consider it bad luck to kill a lizard. In the mythology of some California Indian tribes, such as the Pomo, Lizard was one of the major figures of creation, who made humans partially in his image. In Southwestern tribes, horned lizards (sometimes called "horny-toads" in English) are considered sacred medicine animals; Gila Monster (a type of large poisonous desert lizard) features as a powerful hero in Navajo and other Southwestern legends. In other tribes, lizards are associated with protection (especially of children), prosperity, renewal, and good luck. Lizards are also used as clan animals in some Native American cultures. Tribes with Lizard Clans include the Hopi (whose Lizard Clan is named Kuukutsngyam or Kukuts-wungwa) and the Pueblo tribes of New Mexico.

Turtles and Tortoises:

The turtle in classic mythology was revered for its longevity and chided for its slowness and lubricity. The tortoise was frequently depicted as supporting the entire world at the beginning of creation. The tortoise has appeared frequently in association with water, the Moon and Earth Mother, time, immortality, etc. People in ancient China believed these reptiles to have oracle powers.

The turtle in ancient Egypt was synonymous for draught, the enemy of the Sun god, while a pair of tortoise would be depicted with a scale, representing the ebb and flow of the Nile's floodwaters. The tortoise was a fertility symbol in Greek and Roman times, and an attribute of Aphrodite/Venus who supposedly ascended from the sea.

Native American Turtle Mythology

Turtles play positive roles in the folklore of many Native American tribes. In the creation myths of some East Coast tribes (such as the Iroquois and Lenape), the Great Spirit created their homeland by placing earth on the back of a giant turtle. This is why some contemporary Native Americans refer to North America by the name "Turtle Island." Turtles are a symbol of the earth in many different Native cultures. To Plains Indians, turtles are associated with long life, protection, and fertility. In some Plains tribes, a newborn girl's umbilical cord was sewn into a figure in the shape of a turtle to ensure her health and safety. In other tribes, turtles are often associated with healing, wisdom, and spirituality.

Turtles are also used as clan animals in some Native American cultures. Tribes with Turtle Clans include the Chippewa (whose Turtle Clan and its totem are called Mikinaak,) the Menominee (whose Mud Turtle Clan is named Maehkaenah,) the Huron-Wyandot (who at one point had four different turtle clans: mud turtle, water turtle, striped turtle, and great turtle,) and the Abenaki, Shawnee, and Iroquois tribes. The turtle was also the special tribal emblem of the Lenape Delawares, who have a Turtle Dance among their tribal dance traditions. On the Northwest Coast, the sea turtle is sometimes used as a totem pole crest.

 

 

 

 

 

Crocodiles

As we near the end of this list of reptiles in mythology and symbolism we cannot omit the crocodile , considered to be one of the most base, malignant, treacherous and evil-hearted vertebrates.

The crocodile was, to the people on the ancient Near East, a familiar character in many of their common texts. In Egypt the reptile was equated with the crocodile-headed "Sebek" who symbolized viscous passions, deceit, treachery and hypocrisy.

In various districts in the Land of Egypt the crocodile was venerated as a symbol of sunrise and the rising waters of the Nile.

It was written that, "Having swallowed the moon (i.e. conquered the night)... he wept (causing the waters to rise)," ... hence our common reference to someone shedding "crocodile tears."

At Thebes, a young crocodile was reared in the temple and decorated with jewels of all kinds. At Ombi, the crocodile was worshipped and its mummified remains have been found in numerous surrounding catacombs.

According to Pliny, the people of Rome revered the crocodile for its silence and stealth. They believed the reptile was tongueless. The Greeks saw in the crocodile the dual nature of man, represented by the reptile's ability to live in both water and on land. In ancient Israel, the populace bestowed the name "Taninim" (Leviathan), the sea monster on the crocodile. They were reminded of the reference in Genesis (Gen 1-2) in which, "God then created the great sea monster..." The first Christians called the crocodile "the devourer" and believed that being swallowed by a crocodile was a sure guarantee of a quick descent into hell. In the colony of Zanzibar, in Africa, being bitten by a crocodile requires that the crocodile be made to appear in court to face charges (anyone up to that job?).

We have tasted the "witches brew" and can now hopefully see the myriad of myths and superstitions that spread throughout time and geography. It's a curious stigma that is attached to all reptiles.

And afterwards! May the legends and symbols of the men of old be lessons to ye people of our time. So that a man may see those things which befell others besides himself. Then he will honor and consider carefully the words and legends of past peoples." --The Book of 1000 Nights and One Night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Realm of the Numinous: Religious Imagery in Dreams and Psychotherapy

Posted on January 12, 2013 by Dr. Howlin

For psychotherapists who practice therapy in a way that fully takes into account the totality of the psyche, they will be exposed to their clients’ dreams and other unconscious imagery that is mythical, archetypal and even religious in nature. Religious imagery is often both highly spiritual and meaningful, as well as functional by nature. It has the potential to be transformative to our clients and patients. Neglecting this domain in dreams or in the practice of psychotherapy is neglecting one of the most numinous realms of human experience, and it is doing a great disservice to the clients and patients that seek our help with the alleviation of suffering and meaninglessness.

Consider what the great psychologist William James (1991) said about “the religious question,” in his classic text, The Varieties of Religious Experience. He wrote:

Although the religious question is primarily a question of life, or living or not living in higher union which opens itself to us as a gift, yet the spiritual excitement in which the gift appears a real one will often fail to be aroused in an individual until certain particular intellectual beliefs or ideas which, as we say, come home to him, are touched. These ideas will thus be essential….and that we should treat them with tenderness and tolerance so long as they are not intolerant themselves. (p. 388)

With these words, James seems to be suggesting that one must be “touched” by “the religious question,” or what he says is primarily a question of life. Throughout time, people have been touched by religion in many ways, including being “touched” by the gifts of numinous religious imagery presented during the night in our dreams.

The psychiatrist Carl Jung is perhaps the most well-known of the great theorists who often wrote about utilizing ideas of religion and religious imagery in his work with his patients. In fact, for Jung, working with the numinous experiences of our clients was essential for any deep psychotherapy and corresponding healing. Numinous experiences as described by Jung involve those human experiences that produce a sense of awe and inspire feelings of encounters with the divine.

This is how Jung (1976) put it when reflecting on the relationship between religion and psychology:

I have often been asked why I bother about religion, because people cannot understand how a neurosis could have to do with religion….Nowadays we have such a foolish conception of religion. One is a Catholic, or a Jew, or some other denomination, and people think that is religion, but that is only a specialization of a certain creed which has nothing to do with the religious attitude. The religious attitude is quite different and it is not conscious. You can profess whatever you like in your consciousness but your unconscious attitude is perhaps quite different… (p. 24)

Jung’s above point is a very important one. For the psychologist and psychotherapist, it is the unconscious religious attitude that falls more in the domain of the therapeutic treatment. It is from this place in the psyche that numinous religious imagery is produced. Unconscious religious imagery that may arise during the process of psychotherapy can be highly significant for the client, and if left untouched, it can be like a physician trying to treat and help a patient without the knowledge of or belief in physiology. The psychotherapist and/or client for that matter, do not necessarily need to have a religious faith (though it certainly can help), but it is vital for both that the unconscious religious attitude of the psyche is honored.

John Sanford (1987), an Episcopalian priest and Jungian analyst, referenced religious imagery when discussing his notion of “the Kingdom Within.” He wrote:

What the kingdom is in itself can be expressed only in symbols. It cannot be thought but can only be embraced, perhaps for a moment, in a mystical experience, for it far transcends personal consciousness and the limitations of the ego’s thinking. (p. 173)

A modern example of how the unconscious can weave religious imagery into a dream is from a 35 year old female who gave me permission to use her dream here. She dreamt:

I found a verse written by a prisoner regarding being locked in a prison cell. The written note said, ‘Matthew Chapter 4:10 to Matthew Chapter 4:10,’ and the note went on to say, ‘Now let me lick you to bend like a lizard in the wind.’

She looked up this Bible verse in the King James Version, and felt affirmed by the verse in its relationship to her dream and her life. Matthew, Chapter 4:10, reads, “Then saith Jesus unto him…for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”

The dreamer was raised Catholic, and so she was familiar with the Bible, but had not been formally practicing the Christian faith for many years. Because of these things, the dream both surprised her, stimulated her, and scared her all at the same time. She said about the dream, “It felt like God in a way was telling me that he was reinforcing me if I allow God to guide me, I will be on the right path. It was a reminder about what being on the right path means. I felt recognized. It’s like a call and a reassurance at the same time. Freedom from a prison cell meant following the path of God and seeking enlightenment.”

The dream imagery also seems to be suggesting that she needs to be willing to be bent by the spirit or even “licked” or cleansed by God. Wind is often a symbol of the spirit or God. Jung (1976, p. 31) said, “You see everything that appertains to thought or spirit is air. Spirit is air. The very word spiritus means breath. Animus, mind, is wind. Pneuma in Greek is wind and spirit.”

Also from her dream was the phrase, “bend like a lizard in the wind.” While working with the imagery, our dreamer wondered how in the world would you literally know if a lizard was bending in the wind since they have no body parts like hair or a pliable tail that would move in the wind?  She took comfort in and thought that this imagery could be symbolically illustrating how God could be working in her life without her being aware of it. Interestingly, Caspari (2003, p. 163) said about lizards, “Because of its habit of basking in the sun, the lizard is connected to the symbolism of light, especially in Christian art, where it is associated with seekers of knowledge.”

Even if a person is not engaged in the practice of a particular religion, the unconscious religious attitude can present religious imagery nonetheless. The above dream with the Christian imagery was quite numinous for the dreamer and helped her to both re-evaluate her life process, as well as influence her decision making which subsequently brought more meaning into her life.

Taking into account the above dream’s Christian imagery, here is another intriguing comment by Jung (1976) related to Christianity and corresponding imagery. He wrote:

We must read the Bible or we shall not understand psychology. Our psychology, our whole lives, our language and imagery are built upon the Bible. Again and again one comes across it in the unconscious of people who know practically nothing of it; yet these metaphors are in their dreams because they are in our blood. (p. 156)

Looking at the religious dream imagery from the 35 year old woman and Jung’s thoughts, we can see how religious imagery is especially vital to appreciate if we want to understand the totality of our clients’ psychology. We do not serve clients fully if we neglect this important and often numinous realm of experience.

The numinous realm of religious imagery as illustrated in the above dream example, can generate for some of our clients’ their greatest moments of awe and experiences of the divine. Religious imagery can be transformative if worked with during psychotherapy, and it can serve as a gateway into a realm of the numinous.

Having discussed Christian imagery, it is an obvious fact that our clients are also Buddhist, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Wiccan, and more. All of the related imagery of these faiths and traditions should be honored in the consulting room. If our practice of psychotherapy goes at all deep, it is likely that there will be an opportunity to discuss and process religious imagery and its significance to our clients.

Sanford (1989), in an excellent book about how God still speaks to us in our dreams said:

In our dreams the whole host of the spiritual world lives on. The demons and angels, principalities and powers, dreams and visions that throng the pages of the New Testament bear testimony to the conviction of the early Christian that conscious life was immersed in a sea of spiritual reality. (p. 179)

It is a psychological truth, as Sanford put it, that, “In our dreams the whole host of the spiritual world lives on.” It is worthwhile to look to some of the great psychologists and theorists of the past for insights into religious imagery and this realm of the numinous. It is also important that as psychotherapists we have the courage to follow our clients into these religious realms. Sometimes, their very lives depend upon it.

 

Caspari, E. (2003). Animal Life in Nature, Myth and Dreams. Wilmette, Illinois: Chiron Publications

James, W. (1991). The Varieties of Religious Experience. New York, New York: Triumph Books.

Jung, C.G. (1976). The Visions Seminars (Book One).  Zurich, Switzerland: Spring Publications.

Sanford, John A. (1987). The Kingdom Within: The Inner Meaning of Jesus’ Sayings. (Revised Edition). San Francisco: HarperCollins.

Sanford, John A. (1989). Dreams: God’s Forgotten Language. San Francisco: HarperCollins.

 

Jung on Dreaming about Snakes

When analyzing a snake dream, it’s important to remember Jung’s perspective about the interpretation of the presence of this wild reptile during our sleep: “ What Nature wants us to do is to move with a snake-like motion. … The snake is the symbol of the great wisdom of Nature, for the too direct way is not the best way; the crooked way, the detour, is the shorter way.”

Jung says about dreaming of snakes: “ Snake dreams always indicate a discrepancy between the attitude of the conscious mind and instinct, the snake being a personification of the threatening aspect of that conflict”.

 

These passages make it clear that Jung regarded snakes both negatively and positively, both as “chthonic devils” (318) and as indispensable guides for the soul.

From a Jungian perspective, snake dreams offer people the dangerous possibility of connecting with the wisdom of the collective unconscious and drawing strength from its archetypal energies.

 

Snakes In a Dream! Meaning of Dreams About Snakes

By EsmeSanBona

The Meaning of Snakes in Dreams

Snake in the Grass

Source: Snakes as Dream Symbols

 

 

 

Dream Symbols - Snakes

Snakes are highly charged, evocative creatures and when they slither into dreams they are an indication that the dream is not only of high importance, but also one that the dream is offering a great growth opportunity.

All dream symbols' interpretations ultimately rest upon the dreamer's own personal associations and mythologies, with dream interpretation articles and encyclopedias providing only broad brush strokes to the symbol's general meaning. However, generalities are something snake do not abide--they are equally revered and reviled by various cultures as well as individuals.

Provided here are many ideas to help the dreamer find a starting point, positive or negative, about the snake dream symbol's meaning.

Kekule's Ouroborous Dream

Kekule's Ouroborous Dream

Source: Ouroborous

Dreams of Snake Bites

Dreams of being snake bit can symbolize that "snake in the grass" – those dangerous situations lying in wait, those things dreamers never see coming and bite when least expected.

These can be friends who betray, lovers who leave, or work or familial difficulties that appear to unexpectedly.

The Ouroboros and Snakes Shedding Skins

A famous alchemical symbol is that of the snake swallowing or eating its own tail, a symbol known as the ouroborous. The ouroborous makes an appearance in the annals of science as the organic chemist, Friedrich Kekule, credited a dream of one with his discovery of the structure of the benzene molecule.

C.G. Jung saw the ouroborous as a mandala, or an archetypal template for the law of endless return. In Jung's mind, the ouroborous revealed that rather than a linear, finite game played between rushing from birth's kickoff to death's goalpost, life is is rather a dynamic state of change, regeneration and endless transformation.

An ourboros dream, therefore, may indicate a time of change and transformation for the dreamer and the ouroborous need not show up as the one in the picture. Dreams of snakes shedding their skins are akin to the ourobouros symbol and can mean that the dreamer is sloughing off the trappings of an old life in favor of a new skin more appropriate to the dreamer's growth.

Snake Dreams Can Be Warnings

Snakes As Warning Symbols

Source: Snakes Warning

Warning and Fear

Since there is no denying that snakes can pose a danger to one's life, there is just reason to take them as warning symbols when they appear in dreams. This warning can be one to heed the signals coming from one's career or personal life.

However, snakes, like spiders, are oftentimes universally maligned--even those that pose no threat to humans.

If a snake dream evokes fear, it is a good practice to honestly evaluate that fear. Is it real, is there a significant threat to the dreamer and is the fear serving as an intuitive warning?

Or is the fear simply irrational anxiety? Is the fear simply and excuse to stay stuck in a life that one has outgrown for the sake of safety rather than sliding off that old skin in favor of the unknown?

Snakes as Deities and Wisdom Symbols

Snakes as Deities and Wisdom Symbols

Source: Winged Serpent

 

Snakes as Sexual Symbols

Due to the snakes physical expression--it's body shape, flicking tongue, etc., it is often a sexual symbol.

Apart from that obvious fact it is important to look at the snakes actions within the dream to see what kind of sexual information is being conveyed.

Snakes attempt to enter or overtake the dreamer's body can indicate a relationship that is solely rooted in sex.

Dreams of being suffocated by snakes can portend a smothering, obsessive, potentially dangerous stalking type situation.

However, if the dreamer is not sexually active and finds the snake dream tantalizing, it may be serving as a form of wish fulfillment, a desire for intimate contact with another person.

Dream Snakes as Symbols of Wisdom

Snakes are elusive and mysterious, seen only in zoos, on television, or in chance encounters in the wild that are often involve fearful circumstances. This elusiveness is what gives rise to much of the fear that is involved with snakes.

However, the snake's hidden qualities are precisely what gives it its status as a wisdom symbol for some cultures and individuals.

For example, Chinese astrologers consider those born under the sign of the snake as embodiments of wisdom, sensuality, and diplomacy.

The Mezoamerican deity Quetzalcoatl travelled between heaven and earth realms.

In Yoruban mythology it is the serpent Oshunmare who creates the rainbow.

And cobras, in particular, seem to carry the connotation of wisdom.

As creatures of intuitive knowledge, snake dreams may ask the dreamer to tune into his or her intuitive side.

Snakes in dreams, even if unpleasant, may be warnings that intuitive information surrounds the dreamer, but the dreamer is ignoring it. That snake in the grass might not have been so unexpected had the dreamer heeded the warning signs coming from the intuition.

One may also gain wisdom by paying attention to any striking or specific words in a snake dream and by giving close attention to the prominent symbols the serpent is attached to within the dream.

Conclusion

Dreamers often want "the" answer to their dream's symbol and seek to find that answer.

However, for a symbol to have its full power, the only encyclopedia needed is the one inside the dreamer's mind as symbols' meanings are as unique as the individual minds dreaming them.

Since snakes have so many possible interpretations — wisdom, sex, transformation, and fear — dreams of them are perfect reminders of the truth of the previous statement.

 

 

 

In another account of the same case, Jung mentions "a young woman about 27 or 28" who informed him during her initial analytic session that she had a snake in her belly: "Her first words were when I had seated her, 'You know, doctor, I come to you because I have a snake in my abdomen.'" Jung exclaimed: "What?!" The woman replied: "'Yes, a snake, a black snake coiled up right in the bottom of my abdomen.'" According to Jung, "I must have made a rather bewildered face at her, for she said, 'You know, I don't mean it literally, but I should say it was a snake, a snake.'" In the middle of her analysis, "which lasted only for ten consultations," the woman told Jung that she had predicted how the analysis would conclude: "'I'll come ten times, and then it will be all right.'" How, Jung asked, did she know? "'Oh,'" she said, "'I've got a hunch.'" When the woman appeared for her fifth or sixth session, she said, 'Oh, doctor, I must tell you, the snake has risen, it is now about here'" (1977: 309). When she appeared for her tenth session, Jung inquired: "'Now this is our last consultation. Do you feel cured?'" (1977: 309-10). The woman said: "'You know, this morning it came up, it came out of my mouth, and the head was golden'" (1977: 310).

Jung amplifies the image of the snake in the abdomen by reference to the serpent in Kundalini Yoga. "I told you," Jung says, "the case of that intuitive girl who suddenly came out with the statement that she had a black snake in her belly." He situates the snake in the context of the collective unconscious. "Well now, that is a collective symbol," he says. "That is not an individual fantasy, it is a collective fantasy." The image of the snake in the abdomen, Jung says, "is well known in India." Although the woman "had nothing to do with India" and although the image "is entirely unknown to us," he says that "we have it too, for we are all similarly human." When the woman first told Jung about the snake in her belly, he wondered whether "perhaps she was crazy," but then he realized that "she was only highly intuitive." She had intuited a typical, or archetypal, image. "In India," Jung says, "the serpent is at the basis of a whole philosophical system, of Tantrism; it is Kundalini, the Kundalini serpent" (1977: 322). According to Jung, "This is something known only to a few specialists, generally it is not known that we have a serpent in the abdomen" (1977: 322-3).

The Kundalini serpent is coiled quiescently at the base of the spine. When this energy is aroused in the practice of Kundalini Yoga, it uncoils and rises up the spine through six successive chakras, or centers of consciousness. This is what John Woodroffe (also known as Arthur Avalon) calls the "serpent power" (1973). There is, Jung notes, "in Tantric Yoga or Kundalini Yoga an attempt to reach the condition where Shiva is in eternal union with Shakti." He says that Shiva "is encircled by the female principle, Shakti, in the form of a serpent" (CW 18: 120, par. 263).

In Amy Hardie’s recent documentary film,The Edge of Dreaming, she encounters a huge snake that devours her during a shamanic healing. Out of this experience, she recovered from what appeared to be a fatal lung disease. Why the snake?

Perhaps the commonest dream symbol of transcendence is the snake, as represented by the therapeutic symbol of the Roman god of medicine Aesclepius, which has survived to modern times as a sign of the medical profession. This was originally a nonpoisonous tree snake; as we see it, coiled around the staff of the healing god, it seems to embody a kind of mediation between earth and heaven.

Carl Jung, Man and His Symbols, page 153

The serpent is the age-old representative of the lower worlds, of the belly with its contents and the intestines