Time and Land - The Serpent of Despair

The Two Horizontal Forces

Time (represented by the Sea, the Serpent, Chaos):

• Constant change and flux
• Everything decays and dies
• Nothing lasts
• Uncertainty and instability
• The flowing current that dissolves all structures

Land (represented by the Tree, Dry Ground, Order):

• Stability and structure
• Things that endure
• Patterns that persist
• Certainty and foundation
• The solid ground where things can grow

We live in the tension between these two forces.

Time as the Great Serpent

In ancient imagery, time is often represented as a serpent - specifically the Ouroboros, the snake eating its own tail.

The serpent eating its tail represents:

• The eternal cycle with no escape
• Everything returning to nothing
• Self-consuming, going nowhere
• The loop that never ends
• Time devouring everything, even itself

This is the serpent's whisper: "Nothing matters. Everything ends. The cycle never stops. You can't escape."

Time Creates Despair

Think about what time does:

Time tells you:

• "Everything you build will decay"
• "Everyone you love will die"
• "All your efforts will be forgotten"
• "The universe doesn't care about you"
• "You're just a brief spark in an indifferent cosmos"
• "Heat death will erase everything eventually"

This creates existential despair. If time is ultimate, if the cycle is all there is, then why bother?

Time is the Sea (chaos) that swallows everything. Your work drowns in time's flood. Your relationships dissolve. Your accomplishments wash away. Nothing survives the current.

This is why many people struggle to get out of bed. Why work hard? Why love deeply? Why try? The Sea will swallow it all anyway.

The Viking Response - Noble Nihilism

In Norse mythology:

• Jormungandr (the World Serpent) encircles all of existence
• Even the gods will fall at Ragnarok
• Nothing lasts, everything ends in fire and ice
• The cycle repeats eternally

The Viking solution to the Serpent's despair: "Since nothing lasts forever, at least go out with a bang. Die gloriously in battle. Make your name remembered for a time, even though that too will eventually fade."

This is courage in the face of meaninglessness. It's admirable in a way - facing the void without flinching, choosing honor even in ultimate futility.

But it's still nihilism. The Serpent still wins. Time still devours everything. There's no true hope, only defiance.

The Modern Response - "Why Bother?"

Today's nihilism is often worse than the Vikings' defiant courage:

"Why should I care? Why get out of bed? Why work hard? Why love people? Why try to make things better? In the grand cosmic scheme, none of it matters. The heat death of the universe erases everything anyway."

This is the Sea (time/chaos) swallowing all motivation:

• Stay in bed (the grave, Sheol, the land of the dead)
• Scroll social media (the dream world, not real engagement)
• Consume entertainment (distract from meaninglessness)
• Never rise into purposeful life (why fight the current?)

The Serpent whispers: "Rest in the Sea. Don't struggle. Nothing you do matters. Just drift until you die."

The Serpent's Lie

Here's what the Serpent (Time as ultimate reality) wants you to believe:

"The cycle is all there is."

• Birth → Life → Death → Nothing
• Build → Decay → Destruction → Dust
• Hope → Disappointment → Despair → Repeat
• No escape, no transcendence, no meaning beyond the cycle

This is hell - not fire and brimstone, but endless meaningless repetition. The Ouroboros eating its own tail forever.

If this is true, the Serpent wins. Despair is rational. Nihilism is honest.

But what if the Serpent is lying? →