[One Thousand Characters a Day] The World Seen Through Symbols<1> - A Snake Inside an Ambulance

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Starting today, we will introduce the popular educational book in five installments, which easily unravels the symbolic stories contained in everyday objects around us. This book includes the meanings symbolized by various everyday subjects such as animals and plants, nature, numbers, colors, and household items, along with religion, mythology, philosophy, and world history. Dr. Kim Nang-ye (Humanitas College, Kyung Hee University), the author, says, "When you learn about a culture, your understanding of people raised in that culture deepens, enabling meaningful communication." In today's world, where the globe feels closer than ever, symbols will help us see the world more clearly and understand others better. Word count: 1178 characters.

The snake and staff depicted on ambulances belong to Asclepius, the son of Apollo, the sun god in Greek mythology, and the god of medicine. Asclepius was a renowned physician who could even bring the dead back to life and was an educator who founded a school to teach medicine. Hippocrates, famous for the 'Hippocratic Oath,' the ethical code for doctors, was also a graduate of Asclepius's medical school.

Asclepius's school was both a hospital and a temple. The priests who served Asclepius there reportedly kept snakes. Why snakes? Because they regarded snakes as messengers of Asclepius. Observing snakes moving both underground and above ground, ancient Greeks believed snakes mediated between the earth and the underworld, that is, between the heavens and the earth. Therefore, statues of Asclepius usually depict him holding a single staff around which a snake is coiled. The snake, mediating between heaven and earth, and the god of medicine who governs life and death, make a fitting pair. The symbol of a snake coiled around a staff is also used in the emblem of the World Health Organization today. This is how Asclepius's symbol expanded to represent medicine worldwide.

In December 2021, when COVID-19 was spreading worldwide, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), held a press conference at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. The WHO logo visible in the background features a snake coiled around a staff. [Image source=Yonhap News]

There is also a staff entwined by two snakes. This is the Caduceus, known as the staff of Hermes, the messenger god in Greek mythology. The wings attached to the staff symbolize Hermes's role in swiftly delivering messages from the gods, while the two snakes coiled around the staff represent opposing forces such as healing and poison, health and disease. Hermes used this staff to put people to sleep and quietly guide the dead to the underworld, as well as to heal the sick. (Omitted)

In the past, when traveling rural roads, one could often see snakes or their shed skins, but with urbanization, it has become rare to see snakes directly. However, the symbolism of snakes remains embedded in mythology, religion, and even ambulances. Although not mentioned earlier, the snake biting its own tail, the Ouroboros, symbolizes infinity and is used in tattoos and accessory designs.

From now on, when you see an ambulance, you might think of the staff of Asclepius and the snake as symbols of healing and regeneration. Considering the diverse symbolic meanings of snakes?from symbols of evil that tempted the first humans to fall from grace, to symbols of death that could turn people to stone just by looking?will make the world appear much more colorful.

- Kim Nang-ye, , Changbi Education, 15,000 KRW