The Coiled Serpent
"I am the secret Serpent coiled about to spring: in my coiling there is joy. If
I lift up my head, I and my Nuit are one. If I droop down mine head, and shoot forth venom, then is rapture of the earth,
and I and the earth are one." Liber al vel Legis 2:26
The serpent is a powerful image in both occult and cult circles. That Hadit identifies himself as
the coiled serpent, secretly hidden within each star, speaks of the Kundalini.
The Christian and Hebrew myth identifies the serpent with the rebellious archangel Lucifer, cast from Heaven to Earth,
where he rules the powers of darkness under the name Satan.
Thus we have the serpent portrayed at extreme opposite poles; the negative and plus . . . good vs.
bad. Satan is considered the father of evil among the cult followers of the monotheistic belief systems. The Kundalini for
the esoteric believers is a coiled, untapped energy at the base of the spine. It is thought of as a rich source of psychic
or libidinous energy in the unconscious.
Since Hadit is the energy of the universe, and He is the light within each star, the Kundalini thus
becomes a perfect metaphor to use in describing His existence. "In my coiling there is joy."
The image of the serpent in this verse also portrays the phallus. Hadit uses this image to suggest
a sexual union with Nuit to bring about creation. "If I lift up my head, I and my Nuit are one."
"If I droop down mine head, and shoot forth venom, then is rapture of the earth,
and I and the earth are one." A suggestion here that Hadit also brings life through a sexual union with the Mother
Earth. And since the Earth, a sentient being, is part of Nuit's creation, there appears to be little difference.
It was not by accident that the false religious systems would portray the serpent as the epitome
of wickedness. This image is repugnant to the Christian and the Jew. Children are taught early to fear the snake. For many
women, there also is an implanted fear/loathing of the male penis. The word of restriction is sin.
Understanding the implant of fear, Hadit cleverly uses the image of the coiled serpent when he continues
on to issue the following warning in Verse 27: "There is great danger in me; for who doth not understand
these runes shall make a great miss. He shall fall down into the pit called Because, and there he shall perish with the dogs
of Reason."
There is danger, but it is not from the fang, but from misunderstanding the secret messages
within Hadit's words. The warning is that those who fail to understand him will "make a great miss."
The failure will have severe consequences.
What are the consequences? "He shall fall down into the pit called Because,
and there he shall perish with the dogs of Reason."
When I read this line I have images of Choronzon's Pit. Choronzon is a spirit of dissolution, physical,
mental and spiritual. Everything around this spirit falls into decay. Living beings are said to age and sicken. The demon
derails thought and even turns people insane. There is a story that Choronzon occupies a pit of reason and that anyone who
falls into it, remains trapped for eternity.
Hadit describes a similar pit called Because, where an unfortunate soul will perish with the dogs
of reason.
Anyone who has ever been confronted with a child's barrage of questions about why things are, has
been caught in this strange trap of "because." The word sometimes stands alone as the only conceivable answer to the question,
even though it answers nothing. Thus we have the ever-encircling dialogue of "why?" "because!" "why?" "because!"
But there is more to this verse. Hadit is attacking the snobs of the world who use education as
a way of explaining the universe as well as human existence. The more "educated" the individual, the more difficult it is
for him/her to understand the simplistic nature of Thelema.
They are, then, the dogs of reason. They are trapped in the pit called Because.
Copyright - James Donahue
