Serpent lore and symbols of deity

—cent in themselves are regarded as criminal, for "the strength of sin is the law" 1 Corinthians 15:56.

In the Gigantomachy, Zeus calls Hercules to his aid. The task of overpowering the earthbound serpent race was, of course, well-suited to the Sun God referring here to the solar aspect of the heroic deity, who is said to have destroyed two serpents while still in his cradle. He is also credited with driving snakes out of the island of Crete, a task that St. Patrick is supposedly famous for performing in Ireland. The expulsion of the reptile was, in both cases, merely symbolic and signified the suppression of snake worship and the destruction of its monuments.

In Holy Scripture, we find a reference to this religious revolution. In the Book of Revelation, it is written that "there was war in Heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the Dragon, and the Great Dragon was cast out, that old serpent called the Devil." Huge serpent mounds are found in many parts of the world. Near the head of each is a "high place" consecrated to St. Michael. The legend claims that these mounds were once living snakes that turned to stone. In reality, these monuments were undoubtedly erected to celebrate the victory of a new creed over the Ophites a Gnostic sect that worshipped the serpent, or snake worshippers.

The fact that the serpent was eventually adopted by the Sun God is responsible for some confusion in symbolism. At Delphi, the python was worshipped; nevertheless, Apollo is represented as slaying it with his arrows. Athena, who took part in the conflict with the serpent tribe, wears the serpent on her aegis a shield or breastplate and is attended by her sacred serpent, who fights for her against its own kind.

This crossover between earthly and heavenly symbols regarding the serpent is also seen in one of the four cardinal signs of the Zodiac. These are Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and Aquarius. However, in the corresponding four principal banners of the Royal Arch a degree in Freemasonry, Scorpio—which in Egypt was equivalent to the snake—is depicted as an eagle. The four beasts in the Book of Revelation are a lion, a calf, a man, and an eagle. Among the four Evangelists, St. Matthew is symbolized by a man, St. Mark by a lion, St. Luke by an ox, and St. John by an eagle; however, a serpent can be seen emerging from the chalice held by St. John, the "beloved disciple." Thus, the serpent on earth and the eagle in the sky, although opposites, have become associated with one another.

The struggle between serpents and eagles is a favorite theme in poetry and art. In Shelley’s The Revolt of Islam, a struggle for mastery between an eagle and a serpent is powerfully portrayed, and the respective realms these symbols represent are vividly contrasted. There is a Buddhist drama dating from the seventh century titled Nagananda (or "The Joy of the Snake-World"), which deals with the feud between the Nagas (snake tribes) and "Garuda, king of the birds and mortal foe of the Nagas." The antagonism between Heaven and Earth and their respective emblems represents the dualism that appears to pervade creation to the ordinary mind. In the "mysteries" ancient secret religious rites, these apparently antagonistic but really complementary—