A journey into understanding and exploring the meaning of the snake through Daoist eyes takes us on a literary journey of the spiritual, physical and metaphysical beliefs surrounding this heralded symbol of creation, healing, destruction, wisdom, and protection.
Death, rebirth and the eternal cycle of life, known as the Ouroboros symbol depicted as the snake eating its own tail, the snake represents the eternal in world mythologies.
When we look at the year of the snake and working with the energy as a way to reform our own lives, we have to understand the completion of the cycle represented by the snake. The totality of reality is encompassed within a variety of different never-ending circumstances all encapsulated by the I-Ching, the most important text within Daoism. It is only through this never ending cycle of life we see the truth of the snake clearly. Endings can be complex, so the snake represents our ability to achieve a loving and succinct form of rebirth and all of this can be achieved without a physical death. Many things in life make us weaker. Our physical vitality can be harmed by grave illness, our mental health can be harmed by trauma, and so on but the snake gives us a unique chance to shed all the past horrific traumas to begin anew. This is where we can start to shed light on the concept of the snake that eats its own tail and how to apply these themes into our own way of life.
If we look at it through a higher vantage point, we can begin to see that only through diligent self-renewal can we become spiritually immortal. We may go through many, many different lives and incarnations
within the universe. Our souls can travel to the far reaches of creation but ultimately we are still trying to reunite with our soul seed in the sky. So even though we transition through various different obstacles
and hardships within this reality, it is ultimately showing us a path to complete self-renewal. It is guiding us towards a place where we are energetically self-sufficient within the universe; no longer a drain on the universe's life force but instead a contribution.
So like the God Nüwa gave her life force to create humanity, we do too. We can be the snake eating its own tail, never perishing. And through incarnation we transmute all good and bad events to become self sustaining within the universe itself.
So wherever on your journey this book finds you, use this as an aid for knowledge and universal truths to regrow any parts of yourself lost. Like the snake shedding its own skin, be reborn from profound power and practices of the Daoist qigong and ideals with this guidebook for your personal spiritual quest.
