III
The fairy tale ‘Eglė – Queen of Serpents’ deals with the common, natural hatred felt toward one who is different, a feeling with which everyone is familiar. Hatred felt toward one who is strange, unseen and wiser. Or perhaps one with greater powers. The fairy tale, which is not placed in a historical context, is eternal – like hatred towards Christ, as well as other saints and martyrs who hoped for a different, better world that is fairer and more kind.
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One could suspect that the origins of this story (like of many other gruesome Lithuanian tales, such as ‘Sigutė’ and others) lie in a desire to take off rose-tinted glasses and see the world from a sceptic’s or pessimist’s gloomy perspective. Unfortunately, the reality is that, upon a change in historical circumstances and loss of control, even the closest person (for example, a brother) can betray you, kill your husband or wife and torture your children. And even children must be aware of that evil world and it has to be open to them so that they don’t get caught up in a dream of living only happily ever after. Children who have read this tale will be better mentally prepared for shocks than those who grew up admiring only flowers and Teletubbies. Such texts gain particular importance in times of war, hunger, epidemics and other global hardships. Maybe they were created in, and for, times like these.
IV
In order to grasp the essence of the tale, it is necessary to try to figure out what Žilvinas, a serpent, represents for us (individually or for our society, our nation).
In the old religions, the serpent is a supernatural creature – a deity that shall not be killed.
As recorded in chronicles, after coming to Lithuania a missionary named Jerome killed serpents and burned them publicly, demolishing altars and cutting down oaks, trees worshiped by our ancestors. Then a group of weeping women went to see the Grand Duke Vytautas and complained that the gods had been deprived of their gathering place where they would get rain and good weather. Now they didn’t know where to look for a god that had no gathering place. Vytautas was told that people would rather flee their homeland and neglect their homes than renounce their old faith. The distraught duke ordered Jerome to leave the country.
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Our ancestors believed that serpents were the rulers of the underground and animal healers. Perhaps because of that belief, people used to keep serpents at their homes, feeding them as well as sacrificing roosters and chickens to them. The singular and sleek appearance of the grass snake, its dreadful look and the fact that it sheds skin commanded particular respect.
V
The name ‘Žilvinas’ is also fascinating: the most similar consonance of sounds and letters to our ear would be that of the word ‘milžinas’ (giant). One who is bigger than we are and superior to us – in other words, a god. Moreover, our Žilvinas is omnipresent: he can live both in the sea and on the ground and he can change forms, dropping his cover of a serpent and becoming a human.
Thus, we have a myth of a god of our ancestors who sacrificed himself (was sacrificed by people) so that others would learn about paradise, about eternity (the Amber castle) and its principles of love and respect.
In comparison to the Christian belief in the Resurrection of the tortured Son of God on Easter Sunday, the story of Žilvinas manifestly lacks just this one last link - Hope. Resurrection.
Our sad tale sort of ends on Good Friday, when Christ was crucified and suffering.
One more question arises: is the hopeless ending of the tale deliberate? What is the meaning behind it? Perhaps we have/will have to resurrect on our own, in order to resurrect the sleeping, cut-up Žilvinas within ourselves. No one will resurrect for us and wait until Easter Sunday.
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VI
If I were an influencer, I would think that the tale of Žilvinas and Eglė remains relevant today, as brothers with bloody scythes are still ready to execute their relatives. History goes on but we keep failing to learn its lessons. After all, anyone can become a modern-day Žilvinas – an educated person, society leader, social outsider or someone of a different ethnicity (like once were the Lithuanian Jews, who suffered a mass destruction). Also, a person of different sexual orientation. And any one of us.
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P. S.
Myths about civilizations that previously existed mention Atlanteans, whose home was the sunken Atlantis.
According to the writings, the Atlanteans were creatures much bigger than us (giants) who lived both in water and on land.
Perhaps our tale dates back to those mythical times when two civilizations coexisted – that obsolescent one of giants and the emerging one of no-giants. Later, the giants died out.
We remained.
As this civilization comes to an end, we wonder what will come after us. Will we resurrect and grow bigger – or will we shrink even more?
Vytautas V. Landsbergis
Illustrated by Virginijus Malčius
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