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Examining the Caduceus: The Symbol of Greed and Profit in Modern Medicine

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

(NaturalNews) All symbols originate with an idea. They are a system of

invoking a thought in the viewer of the symbol. The glyphs that make up the

words y

ou are reading are symbols which loosely equate to sounds made in speech.

The giant golden M that is so familiar at nearly every busy intersection in the

United States is also a symbol, easily recognized and familiar. Even the

symbol that shows which restroom should be used by which person is understood

to

mean what it represents.

 

Most people never stop to consider the origins of symbols, but due to

familiarity come to understand what they mean.

 

The symbol used to represent medicine is no exception. The vast majority of

us have seen the winged staff encircled by two snakes. While many of us don't

know what it is called, we still associate it with hospitals and medicine.

 

The name of this symbol is the caduceus (ca-DOO-see-us). The caduceus, like

most of the classical symbols with which we are familiar, comes from Greek

and Roman mythology. It is supposed to be the staff of the miraculous healer

and demi-god, Aesculapius also spelled Esculapius (Es-qu-LA-pi-us). The problem

with this assumption is that there is another, more familiar, god from this

pantheon who also carried a staff encircled by serpents.

 

While not a mythology lesson, a dose of mythology will be necessary to

understand the ultimate point of this article.

 

Esculapius was a fairly important figure in the Greek pantheon. He was the

son of Apollo and Coronis, and was taught healing by Chiron, the centaur, when

he was young. He got so good at healing, he was able to restore life to the

dead. His symbol was and remains a single snake, entwined around a eucalyptus

branch. Seems fitting that his symbol should become that of the medical

profession, doesn't it? Read on...

 

Mercury, as many are aware, is the messenger god of the Olympians. Like most

Olympic gods, however, he carried several attributes. In addition to

delivering messages, he was also associated with trickery, greed, wealth and on

occasion, death. He was also known as the protector of thieves. His staff

became

one of his symbols. Mercury, fleet of foot, and swift, is far more commonly

known by the winged foot than the winged staff encircled by two vipers.

 

The vipers are a symbol of trickery, deceit, stealth and death. This in

contrast to common grass (or non-venomous) snakes, which were the symbol of

everything from throwing off the past to live again (as a snake shedding its

skin), to wisdom, health and vitality.

 

This begs the question, why would the modern medical community use the

symbol that means deceit, trickery, greed and death instead of the one that

means

healing and wisdom?

 

Even the names of the gods of the Greeks and Romans have meaning today. The

name of Mercury is where we get the words " mercenary, " " mercantile " and

" mercurial. "

 

Mercenary, while most often associated with soldiers for hire, simply means,

for sale to the highest bidder, and implies an evil nature. Mercantile deals

with trade for profit. While not necessarily evil, the connotation is profit

over service. Mercurial, while not popularly used these days, means unstable

or fickle.

 

It would be difficult to believe that the controlling interests in " Merck "

are not aware of the origins of the name they chose. Throwing a " k " on the end

of a word does little to change its meaning.

 

Knowledge of the symbols, while not answering any questions about the

medical establishment, certainly begs a few. Are they aware of their faux pas?

Does

the caduceus expose the industry's true intentions, or are they simply

living up to the personality represented by the symbol they've adopted?

 

One thing is certain. Removing the shroud of mystery from a symbol stands to

make one wonder what else he may not understand about familiar symbols and

their origins. Failure to understand symbols could lead to an embarrassing

situation when using a restroom. It could also lead to a life threatening

situation when seeking health care.

 

About the author

Aaron Nye is a freelance writer who's work revolves around intelligent

research and " connecting the dots. " He is a tireless supporter and volunteer for

the Ron Paul campaign. He is an experienced computer programmer with a passion

for health and holistic medicine. He has been a vegetarian since a member of

his family was diagnosed with colon cancer in 1999. He speaks Vietnamese and

Gaelic, and is working to learn the ancient language of Akkadian.

 

 

 

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