Page 5 - Jan-Mar 2019

VOL. 16 No. 1
Snake Worship

Other than the expansive references and symbolism in Hinduism, snake
depictions can also be found in other religions and religious beliefs.

JAiniSM

• The Tirthankara Parshvnath is always shown
with hooded snakes over his head.

• In the Jain community, the game of snakes
BuddHiSM and ladders is considered as an important

• Snakes are considered to be wise game of Heaven and Hell.
and benevolent. Mucalinda is a ishita Jain, Vii b, Delhi Public school, Mathura road, Delhi
snake that protected Buddha
from a storm after he attained
enlightenment and was still in a
meditative state.
cHriStiAnitY
• There is a reference to an • In the images of Virgin Mary, she
incident that Buddha after learning the eternal truth, is shown to be crushing a dragon,
shared it first with the snakes as the humans were or often a snake, as a symbolic
not prepared for that knowledge. It was Nagarjuna reference to the defeat of Satan.
who brought the truth to humans.
• In the Bible, Moses, who went to
• Lord Buddha once said “Just as the snake sheds its Egypt to convince the Pharaoh to
skin, we must shed our past over and over again.” release the Hebrew slaves, turned

P.s. Naren Narayanan, Viii a, sri sankara Vidyashramam Mat. hr. sec. his staff (walking stick) into a snake
school, Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai to prove God’s power.
s. Kanishka, iV b, revoor Padmanabha Chetty’s Mat. hr. sec.
school, Chennai; s.K. Kavisha, iX b, DaV Public school, sec-14,
Faridabad

ActiVitY: ArOund tHe WOrLd
In ancient Mesopotamia, Nirah, the messenger
of Istaran (their local deity) was shown as a
serpent. Aborigines in Australia believed that
a giant rainbow serpent created life. In Greek
mythology, there is a monster called Medusa.

Find out and write about any one such
interesting story.

animesh Nayak, Vii F, summer Fields school, Kailash Colony,
New Delhi; s.K. Kavisha, iX b, DaV Public school, sec-14,
Faridabad

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