Twinn Swan

The snake is a recurring and repetitive motif in all spiritual traditions around the world. Sometimes, it is depicted as the evil tempter and at other times as a creative force. In some cultures, they are considered benevolent and in other cultures they are considered malevolent.

Dreams of snakes are not uncommon. Many people have them. Snakes frighten many people and rightly so. While some of them are, indeed, harmless, many of them are venomous; and even if they don’t kill you, their venom can still cause you a great deal of pain.

When it comes to their spiritual symbolism, snakes have generally been vilified, especially in the context of Western symbolism. In Eastern traditions, they are generally regarded positively.

I’m not here to discuss this cultural difference. I mostly want to dive into some of the insights I’ve received whenever this symbol has come up.

Healing

The snake is almost always used as a symbol for the medical profession, even in Western traditions. So there is a positive ‘use’ for the snake symbol outside of theology. When the snake appears, it can mean that there is some healing that is set to take place: either physically, mentally or emotionally. A long standing illness or wound could be suddenly resolved or the right antidote will, at long last, be provided to you.

Carrying on from that, snake symbolism can also foretell that a healer of some sort will come into your life. This could be a doctor, a psychologist, a counsellor or even an intimate partner who knows how to help you to heal.

Sometimes, we have an ailment but we may not even be aware of its existence. When the snake comes into your life, you may become aware of an issue in your life that is in dire need of healing.

Death and Rebirth

I have always associated snakes with the adolescent phase in one’s life. It is when we are no longer children and begin to start making our own decisions: for better or for worse! Sometimes, we’ve made a wrong decision–and it was one that we were even advised against–but for some reason, we chose to go down that path.

Was it a good idea? Should we have listened to those who’ve lived longer and who know better? The snake can often come up when we are listening to incorrect advise. For some reason, we have chosen to listen to the wrong people and this, in turn, has led us down the wrong path. It could be your peer group, it could be your parents and it could even be your significant other. It could even be your own inner voice that is pushing you to do something that is not for your highest good.

The problem is not so much the incorrect advise that we’ve been given. The problem is actually heeding it. In this case, it would be wise to heed one’s own inner counsel (see Hermit).

Rebellion

The snake can appear, and indeed often tends to, when we choose to rebel. Like I said earlier, I often associate the snake with adolescence. For some reason, we have chosen a certain course of action and God forbid that someone try to stop us, no matter how well-meaning they may be.

Or are they actually even well-meaning? Perhaps they have known us to be a certain way and it is they that do not want us to change? Ask yourself a simple question: as you started to change, did the people around you support this change and transition or did they hold you back? Most of them will naturally gravitate towards the latter.

In line with that, the snake represents a certain level of cunning and risk-taking. We may not always choose to show our true intentions because we know that our views, our thoughts and our ideas will not be welcome by ‘the authority figures’ who’ve become accustomed to our obedience. They will not want their authority challenged and will fight us, ostracise us and exclude us when we stand our ground.

All in all, the snake can appear to let us know that change is on the horizon.

Evil

Evil undoubtedly exists in the world. But are snakes evil?

Well, it really all depends on who you ask. In either case, it would be wiser to fear a snake than to disturb it.

At the end of the day, the snake is a cold-blooded animal. That we’ve projected a ton of stories and myths onto it is a reflection of the capacity of the human mind…