One or more snakes are rendered non-hostile, rearing up and swaying to and fro but not attacking.
The spell affects snakes whose total Hit Dice do not exceed the cleric's level. For example, a 7th level cleric can affect 7 HD of snakes, which can equal seven 1 HD snakes, or two 3 HD snakes and one 1 HD snake, or any other combination.
When cast on snakes that are already attacking, the spell lasts for 1d4+1 rounds. Otherwise, it lasts for 1d4+1 turns.