When Loki the Trickster god lay with his first wife, Angrboda the Chieftess of the Iron Wood, they brought forth three children. The first was Hela, Goddess of Death. The second was Fenrir, God of Destruction. The third was a magical serpent who poured from Angrboda’s womb, with no name, no language of words, and neither male nor female – or perhaps both. The Serpent quickly grew to the point where it graduated from pond to lake. When Odin tried to seize Angrboda’s children in order to curtail their power, he threw the Serpent into the ocean and laid a spell on it. The Serpent circles Midgard forever, a living boundary of protection for the human inhabitants of that realm. It is known as the Midgard Serpent or World Serpent, which is the translation of its title Jormundgand.
Why honor the Serpent at all? Some claim that the Snake is an enemy of mankind, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Seems to have a lot to teach about liminality, being neither one thing nor the other but both. It also teaches about the ley lines, the energy lines in the Earth, and under the sea, and how to follow and use them. Some people have learned something vaguely like Kundalini from the Serpent as well. It is a mysterious spirit, and may have more to teach that we don’t know.
The Serpent does not seem to mind its destiny of becoming the living protective barrier around the world of humanity. As such, the Serpent can be called upon to protect a space, or a person. It can teach them boundaries while it protects them.