Valencia on the east coast of Spain is an attractive and inspiring tourist destination. With a laid back atmosphere, clement year-round weather and awe-inspiring medieval architecture, it is a pleasure to explore the maze of urban back streets of the historical centre.
Throughout the city, you will find drinking fountains from which you can quench your thirst gratis of the city. The ornate fountains are identified with a delightful sculpture of two intertwining fish, which to the untrained eye look somewhat innocuous.
But look closely and you will notice the adept fish sculptures have a dual design which is extremely rich in alchemical symbolism; the fish and the serpent.
Fish are associated with water, thus in symbolic terms also relate to water, one of the four elements which are commonly known to govern emotion and intuition. Because of water’s ability to flow and adapt to its surroundings, it represents your ability to adapt to any given situation in your day to day life.
Water is also associated with creation. All life is said to come from water and therefore has a connection with fertility and birth. It, therefore, has a prime symbolic meaning of creation which we can see throughout the symbolism on the drinking fountains in Valencia.
However, the deeper meaning of water, or more accurately, a body of water such as a lake or sea, is the unconscious. Just as all life comes from water, all human experience is born from consciousness.
The familiar sea god Poseidon of Greek legends (Neptune in Roman myth) is connected with the subconscious and the gravitational pull of the moon, of course, affects the tides of the ocean.
The murky depths of the ocean which are yet to be explored and understood is equal to the infinite wisdom of our emotions and subconscious mind which mysteriously mingle in ways we often struggle to understand.
But what we can get to grips with is how to use water symbolism to help us create what we want in life and adapt to all and any circumstances we find ourselves in.
Unsurprisingly the symbolic meaning of fish is an extension of their relationship to water. If water is the unconscious mind, then fish are the contents that spring forward from the unconscious – what Carl Jung calls archetypes.
“The contents of the personal unconscious are chiefly the feeling-toned complexes, as they are called; they constitute the personal and private side of psychic life. The contents of the collective unconscious, on the other hand, are known as archetypes.” ~ Carl Jung: The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious
In Hindu mythology, and later in Greco-Roman myth, the fish is associated with transformation and creation.
We also find the power of the female deity reflected by fish thus it has a strong connection with fertility. And fish never appear alone, but as a pair, often with interlocking tails.
Let’s take Greek mythology. When the demon Typhon attacks Mount Olympus, Aphrodite and her son Eros transform into fish and make their escape. They interlock their tails so as not to lose one another.
Aphrodite is the personification of emotion and her son, Eros is the god of love. By taking the form of fish, they resemble the strongest of generative powers. The same expression is found in the Vesica Pisces, the fish symbol of Jesus, which is formed by overlapping two circles.
In Pythagorean mystery schools, the Vesica Pisces also represents the male and female aspects of our personality and the interlocking of the physical world with the spiritual world (conscious mind and subconscious mind).
Do you see how all this is tying together?
The twin fish of the Vesica Pisces, as we find in the constellation of Pisces, signifies the structure of intuition and emotional thoughts which shift from the spiritual realms to manifest on the physical plane. Thus we see the deeper symbolic meaning of fish are also thoughts that arise from the Collective Unconscious or Akashic Records.
The serpent has many meanings in esoteric symbolism, but in the water fountains of Valencia, two intertwined snakes are indicative of the kundalini energy which promotes wisdom and health. It is the Ida and Pingala energies that travel up the Sushumna along the spine.
Kundalini energy is the creative life force which when awakened can wash away unwanted impurities from the body. Once risen to the third eye and crown chakras, it will dispel misunderstandings and eliminate false beliefs.
In eastern philosophy, kundalini energy is said to pass through three primary channels, Ida, Pingala and Sushumna which start at the base of the spine and end in the brain.
The energy passes through the seven chakras which once activated leads to balance and harmony. The more often you come to moments of self-realisation the stronger the kundalini becomes.
As you expand this conscious state, your perception of reality alters. The veil of delusion begins to lift and you start to see more truth in situations. Positive emotions also come naturally and you experience more love and compassion. You do not feel fear.
We find this same serpent symbolism in the staff of the Greek God Hermes (Mercury in Roman myth). There are two myths that involve Hermes and snakes. In one the young God sees two serpents fighting. To stop the fight, he placed a staff in between the reptiles and they both climbed around the pole.
In the other myth, Hermes is presented the caduceus by the God Apollo who represents light. Hermes is the God of wisdom. The caduceus, therefore, represents Kundalini energy that brings light and wisdom.
The Caduceus also resembles the Staff of Asclepius, a forward-thinking Greek physician who through myth became the Greek God of healing. But the caduceus also resembles the DNA codex we find in modern medicine. The discovery of DNA has been pivotal in finding breakthrough cures for patients with previously incurable diseases.
In its entirety then, the water fountains of Valencia teach us to control our emotions and bring our body into balance in order to transmute energy and have good mental and physical health.
You should also drink plenty of water.
How you think determines whether you purify your mind and subsequently what you transform into. If you do not purify your mind, the things you manifest in life will not change.
Thus the saying “double-edged sword” simplifies the complex nature of the mind and ultimately of what we manifest in our lives.
Positive thoughts lead to positive actions lead to positive results. And vice-versa.
In alchemical symbolism, the symbolic meaning of swords is associated with air which rules the matters of mind and navigation of thought. The ancient sages that developed esoteric symbolism likened thoughts to the air we breathe…
…as we inhale, air fills our lungs. Then we exhale and empty our lungs. The air disappears. Thoughts come into our minds and leave in the same way.
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The human mind is an extremely complex weapon. We use our brains to solve complex issues, analyse concepts, create and form otherworldly ideas. We can even surprise ourselves with the wonderful thoughts we have sometimes.
But the mind is also highly destructive and can drive us to self-sabotage, moments of craziness and acts of stupidity. At times the mind can be difficult to control.
What we have to learn about the power of our mind is told in an ancient Zen proverb:
To gain mastery over the mind, you need to carefully watch your thoughts and try not to let them stray. The ability to concentrate on constructive thoughts that serve you will bring about the transformation you desire.
However, this is not easy to achieve and the crossed swords are an indication of the battle you must face to conquer your thoughts. In Celtic mythology, King Nuada carried a “sword of light” into battle with him.
The swords crossed in fighting represent the most highly concentrated mind. The symmetrical X-shape they create symbolises the balance of male and female energies; analytical thinking with emotional values, and creative thinking with reason.
This concept is described in Buddhism and Hinduism as cutting through the ignorance of illusion. To free yourself from the bondage of the suppressed mind, you must purify your mind and strive to achieve a higher level of understanding.
Meditation helps to achieve this, but so too does intense levels of thinking. This in itself is meditation. After all, meditation is not merely sitting crossed legged and chanting as the practice has become, it is concentrating the mind on one single focus of thought.
Increasing your powers of concentration involves consciously training the mind to wield its power. So, by all means, sit cross-legged. Otherwise, sit in a chair and stare at the wall.
It does not matter what form of practice you take to fine-tune your powers of concentration. But once you master your thoughts and learn how to receive answers, you will solve many problems and face fewer challenges.
The crossed swords form the letter X – or as we also know it, a cross, often used to denote something which is wrong. And the symbol of the crossed swords does have dual meanings; positive and negative.
The cross represents the male and female energies which are essentially the crux of creation. The X has long been used in ancient symbolism to simplify the concept of spiritual – or psychological – transformation.
The X symbol was used as early as ancient Babylon. It is the symbol for Nimrod, the cursed descendant of Abraham. He represents the demonic nature of mankind who is enslaved to his subconscious mind.
X is still assigned to products of man’s animal instincts today. X-rated movies appeal to our sexual desires. The flag of Amsterdam where prostitution is openly touted has three XXX’s.
You could also consider The X Factor – a so-called ‘talent show’ viewers are addicted to despite it being utter shite (only my opinion of course.)
In Masonic circles, the X represents Lucifer. Although Christianity denounces Lucifer as evil, the translation from Latin means the “bringer of light.”
This concept again illustrates the dual nature of the mind; the ability to understand through higher consciousness and the tendency to self-destruct by being enslaved by the basic instincts of our animal nature.
Like every symbol, the X has a positive as well as negative meaning. In Egypt, the Sun God Osiris was also denoted with the tumbling X. Osiris is the personification of enlightened men and bears a direct resemblance to Jesus.
The X therefore – and thus the cross swords – symbolises illumination and the ability to master the mind.
Through the purification of thought, we are able to transform ourselves from the animal instincts of our base consciousness and gain a more profound understanding of ourselves by tapping into the higher conscious mind.
To do this, we must free ourselves from the entrapment of the subconscious mind and realise we live in an illusion generated by our perception.
When the crossed swords are drawn to your attention on several occasions, it is your subconscious reminding you of the dual nature of your mind. Bear in mind that the symbolic meaning of swords could be a warning to be mindful of how you think and act.
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