Customer Reviews

Encircled Serpent Pb

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A comprehensive study of serpent symbolism from the Nagas of India to the solar serpents of Mexico to Saint Patrick's routing of the serpents in Ireland to the story of the archangel Michael slaying the dragon. I like it. The underlying theme is that ancient peoples worshiped serpents but that Christianity wiped out serpent-worship.

For me, the chapter on the serpent gods of ancient Egypt held the most interest since it helped to explain the winged serpents painted in the tombs of the pharaohs in the Valley of the Kings, which became my quest as described in my book, Blessed: A Quest for Atlantis in Egypt Leads to Apparitions of the Virgin Mary. If you've ever studied images from King Tutankhamen's tomb or any of the other tombs, or the Book of the Dead, or if you've ever visited the tombs in the Valley of the Kings, you will have been amazed to see the preponderance of hieroglyphics using serpent images and also the number of painted illustrations in which the serpent is human headed, winged, or entwined around an image of what Egyptologists call a solar disc. This book offers an explanation for these images plus the corresponding fascination with serpents that many other ancient cultures displayed.

It was originally published in 1955 and so is somewhat dated in the use of words and opinions. However, I love that it is free of the modern new age need to twist serpent symbology into a connection with kundalini, chakras, spiritual centers, and vibrations traveling up the spine, etc. In other words, it explains what the ancient cultures believed or anyway what archeologists believe they believed, i.e. the author just says it like it is without getting flowery about serpents by loading the serpent symbolism with chakras and kundalini or even alien occupations.

Carole Chapman is the author Blessed and When We Were Gods.

even the title is hard to read without a grin -- really, EVERY culture?? the book is obviously dated, and the language is sometimes outright offensive in its treatment of non-european people and cultures, but that was the time in which it was written... ignoring that, the book provides much useful information for those interested in the snake and its cultural implications/symbols in world religions throughout history. i've not checked to see if there is a book updating the ideas he puts forth here, but admit it would be nice to see how a more modern writer would treat the information. although i cannot say it covers every culture in history, i can say that it offers a glimpse into many different ideas surrounding this animal. howey has also written a book about cats, and another about horses, which might be of interest to you. although his style is as dated as howey's, i prefer jack conrad's "the horn and the sword" (focus: bulls) because of the (for me) more logical format and sense of organization.