Shadow Snake is a powerful adversary as she guards and protects either her clutch of eggs or her territory.  If she is of the Rattlesnake clan, the intruder will at least receive the forewarning of her rattle tapping out a no trespassing call, yet if she is amongst the Boa or other silent members of the Snake family, the trespasser will be struck down without the benefit of a preliminary warning.

For one who has Snake as his/her Shadow Totem, there is a strong protective urge that may manifest as sudden and swift verbal attacks against any and all who are perceived as threatening their loved ones.

These can be verbal competitors that deal their blows with a precision and venom that can leave the offending or trespassing party dazed.  The deadliness of the attacks are often all the more unexpected as these Shadow Snake souls will often be quite calm and serene on the outside, though there is the sense of coiled power brewing within.

Sometimes this ability to deal lethal blows with well timed, scathing words will boil over into everyday life or situations in which the strikes are not clearly provoked.

This can manifest as a scornful view taken of Others who may not approach or live life in the same style and manner in which Shadow Snake does.  At those times when there is the desire or impulse to strike out thus unprovoked, it is the wise Snake individual that will gain detachment and question his/her own motives prior to lashing out in scorn or judgment.

When Shadow Snake is able to gain such detached perspective, their ability to understand the intricate beauty and mystery of Life transmutes the more primal instincts into the higher octave of acceptance and equality, for All have a role on the sacred Hoop of Life, and this is a Truth that lies very close to the heart of the Snake Totem soul.

Then, the Snake individual understands that there is a time and a place, a season and a reason for everything we experience in this Earthwalk, as well as the recognition that there will be times when it will be necessary to be confrontational, and circumstances when it is best to simply leave Others to their own devices.  And as his/her Animal Ally sheds the old skin to reveal fresh skin beneath, so does the two-legged shed the chains of the past to stand in the present moment joyful and appreciative of all that the Great Mystery has created.