Mythical Creatures [EDITING]

Ouroboros

  As one of the oldest mystical symbols in the world, the ouroboros has captured the attention of curious minds around the world. With so many cultures having their own version of the strange symbol, what could have possibly inspired the image? Though the symbol still retains some of its mystery, we now know the approximate origin of the ouroboros, and the thoughts that inspired it.

What is the Ouroboros?

The ouroboros is an ancient symbol that depicts a serpent eating its own tail. The earliest record of the ouroboros was found in the 1600 BC in ancient Egypt. The symbol was used to document the Egyptians understanding of the sun and was said to represent the travels of the sun disk. It is also thought to represent many other ideas and theories.

The ouroboros is a symbol that can be found in the "Enigmatic Book of the Netherworld." This book was a funerary text that was found in the tomb of the young King Tut in the 14th century BC.

The book mainly describes Ra and his partnership with Osiris in the underworld. The two serpents that appear in the text hold their tails in their mouths. It is possible that they are somehow also responsible for conveying the cyclic nature of life – with no clear beginning and no end.

The word 'ouroboros' itself, however, comes from the Greeks. It is a combination of 'oura' which means tail, and 'bora' which means food. Combined, they roughly translate to 'tail eater.'

The Many Uses of the Ouroboros

The Ouroboros has been interpreted in a plethora of ways and has been used by countless cultures to represent the most difficult questions in life. There are also connections between the ouroboros and the universe itself, signifying the importance of the strange image.

Gnosticism and the Ouroboros

Gnosticism is a system of ancient religious ideas that deal with knowledge and the spirit-realm, so it's no shock that they took up interest in the ouroboros. One of their main beliefs is that salvation can only be found by overcoming ignorance, and the ouroboros is a step in the right direction.

To the believers of Gnosticism, they cyclic nature of the serpent symbolizes the concept of eternity and the very essence of the world itself.

Alchemy and the Ouroboros

Alchemy also has several connections to the ouroboros. One of the most famous is the Chrysopoeia of Cleopatra.

The Chrysopoeia of Cleopatra is a famous alchemical text that was written by an Egyptian philosopher, author, and alchemist. The author's real name has been lost to history, but it is known that she is not the same person as Cleopatra VII – last ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt.

Cleopatra the Alchemist was known to have published the Chrysopoeia of Cleopatra and drawn the famous ouroboros that is associated with it. The drawing depicts a serpent eating its tail. The serpent is half white and half black. Additionally, it surrounds text that translates to 'the all is one.' This is symbolic for the interconnectedness that is evident in life. This depiction also makes some wonder if it is somehow connected to the yin-yang symbol.

The fact that the ouroboros was used in this text is not coincidental – nor is its relevance fleeting. In alchemy, a Chrysopoeia is a word that indicates that a base metal had undergone 'transmutation' into a noble metal like gold. This concept is directly connected to the pursuit of the philosopher's stone – a substance associated with immortality and rejuvenation. The alchemist's main pursuit was liberation from the limitations of the human body – a concept that was embodied by the ouroboros.

Sir Thomas Browne

Cleopatra wasn't the only alchemist to reference the ouroboros in her work. An alchemist and doctor by the name of Sir Thomas Browne also had great interest in the symbol. He wrote a medical treatise entitled, "A Letter to a Friend." In it, he reflected on the tiring cycle of life and death and the connection of these principles to the ouroboros.