serpiente

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The serpent, or snake, is one of the oldest and most widespread mythological symbols. The word is derived from Latin serpens, a crawling animal or snake. Snakes have been associated with some of the oldest rituals known to humankind. They represent dual expression of good and evil. The historian of religions Mircea Eliade observed in The Myth of the Eternal Return that "the serpent symbolizes chaos, the formless and nonmanifested". In The Symbolism of the Cross, Traditionalist René Guénon contended that "the serpent will depict the series of the cycles of universal manifestation", "the indefinitude of universal Existence," and "the being's attachment to the indefinite series of cycles of manifestation." Recent academic book-length treatments of serpent symbolism include James H. Charlesworth's The Good and Evil Serpent (2010) and Charles William Dailey's The Serpent Symbol in Tradition (2022). Across cultures, the serpent has been revered and feared as a symbol of duality, transformation, and the eternal cycle. In Hindu and Buddhist traditions, serpents appear as nāgas—guardians of treasures and waters—and are linked to kundalini energy, the spiritual force coiled at the base of the spine. In Mesoamerican mythology, the feathered serpent Quetzalcoatl symbolizes renewal, wisdom, and the union of earth and sky. The African Vodun tradition reveres the rainbow serpent Dan as a cosmic balancer, while Aboriginal Australian mythology sees the Rainbow Serpent as a creator being central to Dreamtime stories. In psychology, Carl Jung interpreted the serpent as an archetype of the unconscious and personal transformation. The alchemical symbol of the ouroboros—a serpent eating its own tail—represents eternal return, unity of opposites, and the cyclic nature of the cosmos. These representations reflect the serpent's enduring presence in religious, mystical, and philosophical thought as a symbol of power, rebirth, and the unknown.