This is a story from the Vedas, retold in the book “The Dynamics of the Unconscious” by Howard Sasportas and Liz Greene—leading authors in the psychological branch of astrology.
“There was once a serpent that struck terror into a village. It bit and killed people. A sage arrived there, preaching his philosophy of love and spiritual understanding. The serpent happened to hear one of the sage’s lectures and was so moved that it decided to put his teachings into practice. During the night, it experienced a ‘sudden enlightenment’ and vowed to stop biting people and to no longer be nasty.
For about a month, the transformed serpent behaved like a saint. In the meantime, the sage went to another village. Finally, he returned to the serpent’s village. He met it again, but the once-mighty serpent was in a wretched state—tormented, beaten, kicked, and used. The serpent spoke to the sage and said: ‘I want my money back. I tried your philosophy of love and spirituality, and look where it got me. I’m supposed to be enlightened now, but look at me—I’m half-dead.’ The sage answered briefly: ‘I never told you not to hiss.'”
This is the story of the serpent as retold by Sasportas. And here is his commentary:
“Some of you probably think that being spiritual, enlightened, or mystical means never getting infuriated: ‘I meditate twice a day; therefore, I shouldn’t be an angry person.’ But remember, you can still hiss. It is healthy to do so if something violates your boundaries or hinders your unfolding or progress. Otherwise, you may end up like the beaten serpent.”
Since the topic of anger and aggression is very important—both in the emergence of many mental health issues and on the path to our spiritual growth—I will write more on this topic later. Now, with this shared story, I would just like to remind you: “If necessary—it is healthy to hiss!” Otherwise, you will end up like the beaten serpent.
Kameliya Hadzhiyska
