THE NAGINI SERPENT QUEEN: Richard the Lionheart was said to be descended from the legendary Melusine, a half-woman half-serpent/dragon queen. She was directly associated with the Water Fey, supernatural beings connected with healing, fertility, hidden treasures, and magic. They often inhabited lakes, wells, rivers, the ocean, and caves, all places on the boundary between this world and otherworldly realms. Mélusine spent time in Avalon and was linked to the Lady of the Lake, before being transformed into a demon succubus by Medieval writers. 

Mélusine required her husband to vow not to look at her when bathing or at certain times of the week. Initially the promise was respected but eventually broken, resulting in her fleeing the kingdom never to be seen again. This legend is the inverse of the Swan King Lohengrin that cannot reveal his true identity to his partner. It is also the opposite of Merlin’s parentage, an incubus impregnating a virgin nun. Eleanor of Aquitaine was accused of being Melusine in disguise, a rumor that formed part of the Black Legend. 

The Naga and Nagini are half-human half-serpents that abound in South East Asian mythology. From the Temples of Angkor in Cambodia, to Borobudur in Indonesia, Thailand, India, Laos and Vietnam. Kings in Khmer culture are said to engage with the Nagini to legitimise their authority. 

Even the Grail Maiden can be seen to represent the Sovereignty Goddess of ancient Ireland. A king would have to engage with the Goddess in order for him to be declared ruler of the land, which was her land. This connects back to the Hieros Gamos or Sacred Marriage found in many Middle Eastern cultures. The king sleeping with a high priestess, the embodiment of the goddess to legitimize his rule, but even more importantly, to ensure the continued fertility and abundance of the earth. The Myths regarding Mary and Jesus being married can be traced to these religious practices. 

Many cultures believe their royal houses stem from such intermarriages. They feature prominently in both Hinduism and Buddhism, and the Buddha was protected by a Naga serpent directly after achieving enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree. They are also connected to the Kundalini serpent said to reside at the base of the spine. 

The serpent in the garden of Eden was often portrayed as a woman with a serpentine body as can be seen in Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.

Die Schone Melusine Julius Hubner 1844