Awakening of the Serpent: Giwate, ragana, smyx per wałena

As a child, I was afraid of snakes. Even when I saw the snake on the TV screen, I got my feet up on the couch. Why did I feel fear of the snake but not of the bird or fish? After all, this fear of snakes is often more innate. And not so long ago in our culture, the relationship with the snakes was so close.

Our ancestors were fascinated by the image of an immortal serpent and it was the snake that came out of the skin, the slough of an old body that brought respect to this creature. Perhaps when this relationship diminished, only associations with eternal life remained in the subconscious, which can really cause horror in modern culture. Maybe when I saw the snake as a child, I was scared of that eternal life, because living in eternity requires a constant transition through death. And as children, we still remember this process well, because recently we have been going through it. After all, getting out of the skin is not such an easy process, it means running all over yourself, which often hurts. But trees are acting the same every year, plants that dry up when their seeds mature, do the same. And the serpent reminds us of this bridge of death that we will each cross.

The picture shows the serpent wake-up call in the spring time. “ Giwate, ragana, smyx per wałena ” was an old spell for snake charmers to wake them up. In doing so, the ancestors invited nature to wake up. Because if nature does not wake up, it will not give food, so we will not wake up either, eternity will stop.

Then the snake is followed by the woman of the earth. Perhaps it is the Žemyna… Its body position is reminiscent of the Sun symbol, it brings new life, fruit as a light and a promise, it refreshes the fertility of the earth.

Embracing nature in mythology, ancestors described the reality of our earthly experience. Only by realizing our reality and our nature we can create and stand firm on the eternal path.