Oh WOW! How does a Religious Icon that defines an entire country, while also being heavily celebrated on March 17th in so many places around the world, wind up battling Aliens? “Ah Hello……” I know it’s been a while since I published something on this website, but this is still Zulu Delta 45; Observations of an Un-observing World! So as I often say……read on!

So there I was; sitting in the Sky Cave. This is like a man cave at home but on the second floor, complete with “smart house technology.” I was looking for something to watch on TV. I just wasn’t in the mood for any “action, violence, something loud, or anything spoken at a fast pace (you know I love Gilmore Girls right?)”. I began to search for something educational, or something close to it. I had been speaking to one of my brothers who had recently visited a Mayan historical site in Central America. He was very excited and impressed. In the midst of our conversation somewhere, he was also telling me how he had just watched the recent season of the History Channel series, “Ancient Aliens.” I began watching a similar show called “Ancient Alien Origins.” For those not familiar; “Ancient Aliens” is a series that compares, contrasts, discusses, analyzes, and explains subjects mostly concerning ancient Civilizations, and Architecture. “Who built the pyramids, where was Babylon, who were the Mayans, what is Stonehenge?” Often, the series will attempt to link the above mentioned subjects with the possibility of extraterrestrial assistance and association. Because the episodes often start and end with a vague question, nothing is ever definitive, but any concrete subject matter that is laid out, is always interesting and educational. Besides, if you take one of the History Channels popular memes and add the comedic voice and inflection of comedian Gilbert Gottfried, it’s even more funny!

Moving on………..The episode begins with the premise that Extraterrestrial Beings came down to Earth in Space Ships to not only advance the intelligence level of the human race but also inter-breed with them. Oh yeah, and get this; the alien race were serpents, yes space snakes.

Why did I continue to watch? Why do people continue to watch the Kardashians or “Real Housewives Of Terre Haute, Indiana?” Who knows. Oddly enough, something did begin to come clear, and it wasn’t necessarily my belief that serpents came down from outer space and engaged in “Intergalactic Kissy-Face” with the natives, but how prevalent serpents, flying serpents (dragons), and snakes are still intertwined in human religion, mythology, pop culture and actual representation here on this planet.

A quick step forward.

Let’s start with the very popular Irish tale of Saint Patrick. The “legend” says that after being attacked by snakes sometime in the Fifth Century, when he came over from England, Patrick drove all the snakes out of Ireland. They slithered into the sea and were never seen again. By driving the snakes out, Patrick cleansed the island of evil. Why? Because snakes and serpents represent the Devil in certain Christian Bibles. Hmmmm? I always wondered about this. Ireland, a rock outcropping left over from the Ice Age, surrounded mostly by the Atlantic Ocean, never had any history of snakes; in the past or the present. The Irish Sea being frozen over during the Ice Age, was too cold for snakes to cross and when melted, too far and wet for snakes to transfer over from England. The fact that Patrick battled the aliens with only a “magic staff” and not a “Ray Gun”, would be consistent with his contemporaries of the past; Moses, the Norse God Odin, and what the hell, let’s throw in something even more questionable, Gandalf, the Good Wizard from the “Lord of the Rings.”

So what was Ol’ Paddy Boy up to? Well, when organized religion is concerned, “one” can never be sure what is true, written, or faith based, and what is flat out dogma. In fact the former may actually be the exact same as the later. Some documents suggest that the snake story is a metaphor of Patrick putting an end to wide-spread Pagan beliefs and thereby “paving the way” for Christianity. “Out with the old; in with the new.” As with numerous Pagan to Christianity legends, certain symbols were transformed from Paganism to Christianity; Poseidon’s Triton from ancient Greek Mythology, becomes the pitchfork of the Devil. The Winter Solstice became “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” and “it’s been said” that the traditional Irish Cross is a crucifix on top of serpents. That would explain all the curvy, crisscrossed carvings on so many grave tombs (see the picture above). Such a concept would represent the transition from Pagan to Patrick; a snake that sheds its skin represents “rebirth.”

Not all religions or cultures believed snakes were strictly bad or evil. In Gnosticism, the biblical serpent in the Garden of Eden was praised and thanked for bringing knowledge (gnosis) to Adam and Eve. The Hopi Indians or the American desert have a traditional “snake dance” asking the gods of the underworld (the Hopi Heaven) to provide rain. The serpent is a complex figure in Islamic thought, appearing as both a symbol of evil and a figure of wisdom. Folklore, history, legend, and religion are all being mixed, to make room for faith in the modern world.

The truth is, all of this would be far cooler in this blog post if I could show you proof that Saint Patrick had a Jedi Light-Saber, and used it to bust over the asses of some evil (or not) space-vaulting aliens! Sorry…….I don’t. Hell, it wasn’t long ago that Patrick was revered as a highly religious soul and was celebrated quietly on a Holy Day of Obligation. Now he is mostly remembered as that fool who gets drunk on green beer, on St. Patrick’s Day, and chases down the parade yelling “IRISH NUMBER ONE!!” This is best summed up in a Saturday Night Live skit with Nancy Kerrigan. Right Jeff?

To sum things up, what is massively evident on this Earth, removed from the History Channel’s TV Series, is all the symbology of snakes, serpents, and flying serpents in our everyday lives; be it TV, Literature, Pop Culture, Religion, or History. Here are a few examples that you may recognize;

The Ouroboros  is an ancient symbol of a serpent or dragon eating its own tail. The Ouroboros is a symbol of an everlasting cycle or a cycle of life, death, and rebirth. The Ouroboros symbolizes eternity or cyclicality. It is the sense of something constantly re-creating itself. (Thanks Wiki!) I learned about this on a TV show called “Forever.” Of course that episode was about a con man selling “Fountain of Youth” pills to rich people. Regardless, the old Pagan symbol was about eternity. The same “new” Christian symbol has a similar meaning; “The Alpha and the Omega…..the beginning and the end.”

Oddly, in the early stages of writing this blog post, I noticed a Halloween “decoration” across the street from me. It was a serpent who had swallowed their own tail.

Staff of Aesculapius is a serpent-entwined rod wielded by the Greek god Asclepius, a deity associated with healing and medicine. In modern times, it is the predominant symbol for medicine and health care, although it is sometimes confused with the similar caduceus, which has two snakes and a pair of wings.(Thanks Wiki!) This is sometimes seen at hospitals and on the side of EMT trucks.

The caduceus, a staff with two snakes coiled around it, is the official insignia of the United States Medical Corps, Navy Pharmacy Division, and the Public Health Service. The caduceus is also the magic wand carried by Hermes (the Romans knew him as Mercury), the messenger of the gods. (Thanks Wiki!)

The Gadsden flag is a historical American flag dating back to the American Revolution. It has a yellow field depicting a timber rattlesnake coiled and ready to strike. Beneath the rattlesnake are the words “Don’t Tread on Me.” This flag is seen constantly in the United States.

The Serpent or Chinese Dragon is everywhere you look; from Astrology to Restaurants.

I have another fictional TV show that I really like/liked; “Stargate.” For so many years, I never realized that the premise of the show had Aliens coming down to ancient Egypt, was based on some of the same concepts I just discussed, complete with the wacky theory that serpents bred with the indigenous people of this planet……..well, minus the whole Saint Patrick thing. After all, this initial serpent premise is a “little out there,” so there’s no sense in really pushing, or actually burning the envelope, and telling tales how an Irish Guy spills a pint of beer onto Ra, the ancient mythical Egyptian Sun God, looks up, smiles, and says “Top Of The Morning to ya Lad!”