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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803 |
God instructed Moses to make a snake out of bronze
Wait a minute! Was this before or after He told Moses not to make any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth?
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
Moses got the Ten Commandments in Exodus. The events of Numbers come later.
Let us not blaspheme by accusing the Lord of being inconsistent.
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enthusiast
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enthusiast
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 328 |
Wait a minute! Was this before or after He told Moses not to make any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth?
After. To quote the First Commandment: "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them..."
(My emphasis)
I think the point lies not in whether or not you make a representational sort of object, but in whether or not you worship said object. The Israelites clearly broke the commandment when, long after Moses made the snake, they began to reverence it as an idol/deity.
That said, the commandment does seem to imply that representational art is forbidden. I guess Moses was allowed to make the snake because he got special permission from God. But I'm certainly no theologian.
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,819 |
Clearly the works of Mondrian were destined to remain kosher.
On a side note, what is the name of the symbol that depicts a snake eating its own tail?
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
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Posts: 13,858 |
snake eating
its own tail, is called the Ouroboros
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Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065 |
In reply to:
I once saw a pair of snakes copulating in deep grass, and grabbed what I thought was just
behind the head of one
So, Dr. Bill Theiresias, who gets the most pleasure out of sex, men or women?
Bingley
Bingley
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
One night when I was switchboard operator after midnight, a saucy student nurse told
me the answer to that. She said:"Suppose your ear itches, and you gently insert your
little finger and rotate it, it feels good, doesn't it? But which feels the better, your
finger or your ear?"
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Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296 |
wwh:
Only you.
Honestly, I shouldn't encourage you at all, but sometimes your humor is to blessedly consistent that I laugh out loud in spite of myself!
How we've gone from the cadeuceus to Mercury to snakes to fingers in ears!
Ha! Best laugh all morning. Don't think I'll have one better.
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journeyman
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journeyman
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 77 |
Well, I haven't read the whole way through this thread, but I'm surprised that, as far as I got, there has been no mention of the possible relation of the caduceus with Hinduism, chakras and kundalini energy. The serpent rising up the staff is symbolic of chi rising upwards through the chakras. And just so we don't get to ethnocentric, the snake is a female symbol in many cultures, in this case one of robust wellness....
oh, and Happy Thanksgiving....
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Joined: Jan 2001
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
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Dear magi;maria:I am completely ignorant of Hindu symbolism. Interesting that snakes have
been such important symbols in many cultures. They hide from us, and we attribute magic
to them.
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