Introduction
“The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.” – Genesis 3:14 (NIV)
From the biblical account of Genesis, the serpent tempted Eve, the founder of mankind, to eat the fruit of the tree of the separation of good and evil, which led to the expulsion of mankind from the Garden of Eden. As a result, the serpent was stripped of its reptilian features – its crawling feet – and could only walk on its belly for the rest of its life.
However, apart from the more negative image, the snake is also given a positive image in medical practice. Traces of snakes can be found on the markings of most medical institutions. The snake’s cunning, ingenuity and mysterious nature have contributed to its diverse appearance in the human world.
The Serpent in the Bible
In the historical records, the earliest mention of a serpent is found in the Bible, which portrays it as the one who tempted the first human Eve. In addition, in the book of Exodus, when Moses led the people through the wilderness of Egypt and they complained about the difficult journey and harsh conditions, God sent fiery serpents that bit and killed many of them.
Afterwards, God commanded Moses to make a bronze serpent and put it on a pole. Whoever was bitten by the serpents and looked at the bronze serpent would live. So Moses made a bronze serpent and put it on a pole, and when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze serpent, they lived. Therefore, the serpent also acquired a new symbolic meaning of “healing”. (NIV version of the Bible was used for the quoted passage)
The mythical snake
Snakes are also used in medicine. The “snake staff” is a symbol that is often used in medicine. There are two types of snake staffs that are widely used today: the single snake staff and the double snake staff. There are many different opinions on the origin of the “snake staff”, so here is a brief introduction.
First, we have to start with Greek mythology. Homer, the bard, first mentioned the role of Asclepius in the Elysium.
Asclepius was the god of healing in ancient Greek mythology. Legend has it that once, when the young son of the Cretan king Minos, Glaucus, drowned, Asclepius was troubled about how to save him when a snake suddenly appeared in the grass. At that moment, another snake crawled out of the bush and placed a herb on the mouth of the dead snake. The dead snake miraculously swallowed the herb and came back to life. When Asclepius saw this scene, he took the herb and saved Glaucus. Because of the healing power of the snake’s herbs, the staff that Asclepius had wrapped around the snake’s body became the symbol of the god of healing.
Snakes in Medicine
But why is there a double snake staff? Strictly speaking, it is the result of a beautiful misunderstanding. In the 19th century, a London-based publisher who specialized in medical books designed a logo for the company’s medical publications. The publisher added another snake to the staff of the god of medicine, with one representing “medicine” and the other representing “literature.”
However, when the logo was brought to the United States, the military medical corps began using the symbol without knowing its origin. Gradually, it was adopted by medical institutions in North America, and from then on, the double snake symbol became closely associated with medicine.
Conclusion
Although the general public is often repulsed by snakes, and some are even more fearful, many fears come from a lack of understanding of them, which has led to many misconceptions, rumors and fears. I hope this article will help readers unravel the mystery of snakes and give them new insight and ideas.
Read more
In addition to literature and medicine, science has also researched some cold knowledge about snakes. The following is an article prepared by the Executive Committee on Agriculture for those who are interested.
How to live in peace with snakes – 16 snake knowledge you must not know(Chinese)
For those who are interested in the medical contributions of reptiles, see also:
References:
1. The Creation Chapter 3(Chinese) 🔗 2. Jehovah's Witnesses - Bronze Serpent(Chinese) 🔗 3. The Legend of the Serpent - The Symbolic Meaning of the Image of the Serpent in the Ancient Near East and in the Bible(Chinese) 🔗 4. Britannica-Asclepius 🔗 5. Theoi.com-ASKLEPIOS 🔗 6. Images taken from pixabay
