The snake or winged serpent has been an esoteric symbol for the teachers of The Mystery throughout time immemorial. It represents the dual natured path of Divine Wisdom, or The Way.

When shown eating its own tail, the snake symbolizes eternity within the infinite, an analog for the unfolding precession of the serpent in the sky, revealing the whole of reality to be one cyclical, eternal return. Joseph Campbell called this, The Hero’s Journey. In the tradition of the Tarot, The Fool’s Journey.

In The NeverEnding Story, Auryn, the entangled twin snakes of silver and gold, represent the intertwined paths of the moon and the sun, darkness and light, weaving their influence into the realm of Fantasia. The design for the Auryn was inspired by countless iterations and variations of symbols in kind found throughout our ancient history, including our DNA.

Human life would not be possible without the precise, natural balance of the moon and the sun, providing our DNA with the perfect conditions for the continued renewal of life on planet earth. We witness this in the seasons every year, or with the birth of a child. As above, so below.

All over the world, humans have had the knowledge that the stars spin counter-clockwise overhead once every 25,920 years. This knowledge has been encoded within the DNA of the higher languages of myth and symbolism since antiquity. The cyclical order or cosmic balance is governed by the universal mono-mythic archetype of The Goddess, according to Campbell; The Empress, according to the Tarot.

In the film, Atreyu is given the Auryn on behalf of The Empress as protection from The Nothing, just as the gift of Divine Wisdom on behalf of The Goddess allows us to transcend the illusion of duality. Each moment is recognized as both a simultaneous shedding of skin and birthing of infinite possibility. 

Every Dark Age has its path to redemption from the all-consuming nature of The Nothing to the creative rebellion and harmonic balance of a sovereign Golden Age. This knowledge keeps initiates on the path of life from succumbing to the Swamps of Sadness in moments of grief.

In the words of Falkor, the Luck Dragon, “Never give up, and good luck will find you!”