CONCLUSION
When India can be called a land of snakes, Australia can be called as the home of the most venomous snakes. They both play the major roles not only as home for snakes but also as the followers of their ancestral footsteps in understanding the stories about the mythical creatures and their manifestations. Generally the purpose of myths is to drive home some moral to the society. These myths have become a part of the basic beliefs that guide human beings to take a better way in leading their lives.
Other than these beliefs, there are certain superstitious beliefs that gradually destroy the inborn beliefs of the ancestors. Such superstitions have to be avoided without harming the basic beliefs and must accept the basic facts about snakes to protect them. The ancestors of both India and Australia had lived a life close to nature. The Australian Aboriginal people had been close to nature showing the power of their land and their respect for animals, treating them as their own kith and kin. But soon after colonisation, their power had been destroyed completely. Their great powers – land and nature had been taken away from them. Yet their beliefs prevail.
Indians basically being traditional, have the same kind of beliefs which have shaped their lives to follow good ways and do good deeds. They had a practice of worshipping snakes as deities who serve people as both life givers and life takers. Thus, some are forced to allow the unbelievable myths about snakes. Most of the people consider these creatures to be sacred for the fear of loss of snakes. They are destroyed for the use of their skins and some countries eat them for their taste. Theodore Baskaran points out that many specialists and scientists fear that the number of snakes is reduced day by day either by killing it for food or for its skin and mainly out of fear. For this reason it has to be accepted that the belief of worshipping them as deities will make them honourable and be spared from death.
Though these two countries express certain differences, Indians being mythological and the Australians being legendary, yet they both show a positive approach regarding snakes. They encourage people to protct nature and other cosurviving beings. This continuity of killing this species would make them disappear like that of Dinasarous. The number of snakes killed for human purpose has to be controlled. At the same time awareness programmes can be organised for the people to understand the facts about snakes to come out of their superstitions. TO GET RID OF THESE absurd or unethical myths WOULD RESULT IN SAFEEGUARDING ONE OF THE BEAUTIFUL, VARIOUS COLURED SPECIES FROM THEIR HORRIBLE DEATH.
Thus, the writers convey the above mentioned ideas and views through their writings. These views have to be taken into account to educate people about the importance of the ‘farmer’s friend’ that are destroyed due to certain fallacies. Jonathan W. Stanley in his “Snakes: Objects of Religion, Fear and Myth”, has pointed out that overcoming the fear of snakes will develop a positive attitude towards the environment and a concern for the inhabitants by educating the people about these reptiles.
The same idea has been put forth to the researchers by Brian Bush who emphasises on educating the people and to develop the image of snakes among them. Thus, the research ‘Representing Belief in Indian and Aboriginal Cultures’ has explored the various manifestations of snakes that help in leading a moralistic and an ethcal life. These people from two different cultures have been created by the ancestors for several reasons. These stories have been developed into certain disbeliefs that lead to further representation of snakes.
As per certain researchers’ suggestions, educating people alone will be a partial success in improving the attitude towards snakes. But realisation of an individual about his culture and his ancestors’ beliefs will pave way for a person to understand the disbeliefs and act accordingly. Hence, it depends on an individual either to accept the prevailing myths or to argue against them. Thus, this thesis will be helpful to the readers to have a mythological view on snakes of two fifferent cultures and will lead to a further reading.