Ouroboros |
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The Circle of the Dragon > History > Ouroboros
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What is Ouroboros? Ouroboros is a dragon that holds his or her tail in his or her mouth. At first glance, this dragon may appear simple, but the truth is this creature has appeared in several cultures. Its symbol is amazing.
For the most part, it is hard to describe Ouroboros' physical attribute because they are so varied. Most sources say the Ouroboros is from Eqypt1, but many other cultures have had the symbolic Ouroboros among their dragons.2 However, perhaps the earliest versions of Ouroboros come from Egypt, around 1600 B.C.E.3 What makes an Ouroboros an Ouroboros is its shape. These dragons are depicted with their tails in their mouths, hence the name Ouroboros, which means "devouring its tail" in Greek.4  The creature can be a symbol of eternity, for it is an unending circle. The circle, much like eternity, has no defined beginning nor end.5 However, the Ouroboros does have a head and tail, the only thing to note is that they are in the exact same area. Other symbols include the cycle-like nature of the universe. For instance, in the beginning, there is chaos. The head is biting the tail, thus symbolizing chaos.6 After a while, the chaos subsides and leaves peace. This is the middle of the dragon can be thought of as peace.7 Finally, the end comes and chaos is at hand again, thus symbolized by the tail, which has been bitten. And so on and so forth... Others have also compared Ouroboros to Yin Yang, for Ouroboros tends to be half dark and half light. For instance, the Alchemist Cleopatra used this creature to symbolize day and night, much like the Chinese's Yin Yang.8 The light side, of course, also shows the good things: heaven, goodness, and good forces; the dark side shows the opposites.9  Ouroboros has appeared in many, many cultures and is depicted in artwork often. You can find a few bits of artwork from just a few of these cultures, if you wish. Four of the continents of the world have had cultures that depicted this creature. In Asia, India and Japan both have had this creature appear.10 In Egypt, this creature appears, perhaps for the first time and is introduced to Greece.11 It is also interesting to see that Ouroboros was absorbed into Norse mythology as Jormungand, although this dragon does not hold the same symbolism as most Ourobori.12 However, the most noted use and origin of this dragon is alchemy; one of the most famous pictures of Ouroboros is from Cleopatra's Chrysopoeia, which means "Gold-making".13 While the creature appeared all over Europe, it is perhaps more interesting to note that this creature appeared in North and South America. The Aztecs, perhaps, had a variation as well as American Indians and South American peoples.14
For more information, see the Bibliography |
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