Mystical Angels

Can the caduceus be considered a religious symbol?

OK I'm just a bit curious a want to know about this. It looks mystical but it has been used for many health foundations over the years. So ... is it a religious symbol?

Public Comments

1. The Caduceus is actually a mythical symbol in ancient Greece used as a symbol for commerce. The caduceus is sometimes used as a symbol of medicine and/or medical practice, especially in North America, due to widespread confusion with the traditional medical symbol, the rod of Asclepius, which has only a single snake and no wings. This erroneous use of the caduceus became established in the United States in the late 19th century as a result of mistakes and misunderstandings which have been well-documented. The rod of Asclepius is similar to the symbol Nehushtan which is mentioned in the bible as being a copper snake on a pole, but thats as close to religion as I could trace it.
2. A caduceus is the wand or staff of a herald. A herald is a person who carries or proclaims important news; a messenger. Hermes is the messenger of the Gods in greek mythology. You could therefore look at it as a religious symbol. The caduceus was adopted as a symbol of physicians because of its similarity to the staff of Asclepius.Asclepius was the patron of medicine in greek mythology.He not only cured the sick, but recalled the dead to come back to life.
3. Yes, it is a religious symbol, but not a Christian one. It was originally the sign of Asclepius, a Greek demigod who could heal any ailment and could even raise the dead. The famous ancient physician Hippocrates (for whom the Hippocratic Oath was named) was said to be a descendant of Asclepius. You can find more about him at http://www.pantheon.org/articles/a/asclepius.html
4. It is related to the god Hermes and to alchemy with all its mystical/religious symbolism.
5. It was origionally the healing symbol of the priests in the mystery temples of egypt. Moses used only one serpent, showing the law of similars, what makes you sick can heal you. Also the son of man being lifted up, he is only one, not two serpents that heal. A true healer is shamanistic and heals the spirit. Physicians and Doctors are under a false oath to a false God and dont do what they are supposed to anyway and refuse to treat the "undesireable patinets" this is why the Poor slave hebrews left egypt. Two serpents is a false god an oath based on money. One serpent is a spiritual shamanistic type healer like Merlin or Medicine Men who base healing on love and respect for all. However you need a combination of both types of healers and they cannot function unless they work together. However if its based on money it will crumble in on itself like Cain in the bible.