Types of Spirit Guides and Their Importance
In our day-to-day lives, we have any number of helpers that we may or may not be able to consciously interact with. These can include friends or loved ones who have died before us that are here keeping an eye on us, to spirit guides, and our animal totems.SPIRIT GUIDES
Spirit Guides are different than our passed loved ones in that we’re not usually related to them in any way. We have spirit Guides from the time we’re born. Guides generally meet the following criteria:- They lived at least one incarnation on earth;
- they’re quite old, ancient in most cases; and,
- they lived their life, died, and went through a specific process (which they chose) to become a type of teacher.
We usually get our first spirit Guide at birth. They act mostly as caretakers and work to keep us safe. They also work in conjunction with our parents’ Guides to help raise us. We seem to know them from “before” we’re born; almost like we recruited them before we were born to be here with us for parts of our journey.
We have different Guides at different times of our lives and for different circumstances. They all stay with us in essence, but usually only one or two are active with us at any given time depending on what’s happening in our lives. When we’re struggling or hurting, it’s safe to assume that more than one is there helping to prop us up and internalize the lessons we’re trying to learn.
ANIMAL GUIDES
Animal Guides are very similar to Spirit Guides though they usually meet the following criteria:- They’ve never lived life as a human and they may never have lived a life, even as an animal, in physical form, but can have very human characteristics.
- They’re also ancient.
Animal Guides help in a more subtle and indirect way than Spirit Guides, though they are a type of Spirit Guide. They are also quite specific to very specific things. For instance, if you lack confidence, you would need (or already have) an animal Guide whose specialty is confidence (think Lion; if you have difficulty with finding clarity, you’d have Owl, if you’re a protector or in need of protection, Bear might be your guide, etc.). Each animal can be multifaceted, and it’s rather easy to see straightaway which characteristics that animal might have. Ox for strength; Fox for cunning, and so on. But they are also far more complex than just their outright characteristics.
Spirit Animals are also different than other Guides in that they choose us; not the other way around. Our first spirit animal generally makes itself known in childhood as the animal we’re most drawn to. Ask any child who is old enough to talk, and they will wax poetic about a specific animal, usually no more than one or two, that they LOVE. That’s generally the first Power Animal or Totem. The totem has chosen the child, and the child feels drawn to it and wants to learn everything they can about it. These can also be insects, birds, fish, and even mythical animals. They are also not bound by ‘reality’ as the Universe is complex and owes us no explanation; just because an animal might not exist in ordinary reality, does not mean it can’t exist in nonordinary reality, the space in which the spirits live.
We can sometimes lose our animals. This is a relationship between us and them, and sometimes we get disconnected from Spirit and therefore disconnected from our spirit guides. The retrieval of Spirit Animals is part of shamanic work and is generally done for a person who feels they are lacking. It’s performed in a specific meditation in which the shaman sits and waits for an animal to approach her on behalf of the healer’s client, and must pass a series of two tests before it is deemed that the animal has chosen the person for whom he is requested to be retrieved. It is then “caught” and brought to the person in need of this animal. Sometimes the animal makes itself known to its new partner and will share a name, though this is very rare; they are usually only known by their animal type: Lion. Owl. Etc. It then becomes the person’s responsibility to maintain a relationship with their Spirit Animal.
Just like any other relationship, this requires a bit of attention. Spirit Animals don’t generally have the level of consciousness of which Spirit Guides are capable, in the same way that your pet doesn’t have the same capability of relationship as your partner or children have. That doesn’t mean though that you don’t have a very real and fulfilling relationship! A way to honor your Spirit Animal is to keep a small picture of it with you; a small carving of the animal on your desk or nightstand; a keychain with a reminder that you’ll see every day…just something that keeps this Guide in your thoughts and mind. It’s also important to regularly thank them. You can leave offerings of tobacco outdoors, or gifts of birdseed for the birds, cornmeal, anything that the earth can renew and that might benefit animals in general, or your animal specifically (though I’d not recommend a gift of raw meat just because of the gross factor).
Both types of Guides are necessary for a healthy Spirit. Lack of a spirit animal creates imbalance, not just in Spirit but also in health, though it isn’t unusual to go for periods of time without a specific Spirit Animal. Like Spirit Guides, our animals stay with us for a time and then move on. But they’re always a part of us and can be called upon at any time and hear us when we need them.
Badger as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The badger is the giant of the weasel family. Those with this totem should study the weasel as well. The badger is gray, black, and buff, with a white stripe from the nose to the back of its head. This in itself is very symbolic of how open it is, the keep of much light and knowledge of other animals and the Earth.
The badger may look fat, but it is muscular and powerful. Its outer skin is loose, so it is difficult for bites from other animals to injure it. Its own jaws are exceedingly strong. The jaws are the symbols of powerful expression. This ties the badger to the mysteries of the “word” – particularly the magic of storytelling.
“I would ask you to remember only this one thing,” said Badger. “The stories people tell have a way of taking care of them. If stories come to you, care for them. And learn to give them away where they are needed. Sometimes a person needs a story more than food to stay alive. This is why we put these stories in each other’s memory. This is how people care for themselves.”
The badger is a remarkable digger. Fast and quick, it can dig beneath surfaces easily. It can out dig a gopher or a mole, moving rapidly through the Earth. This ties them to all earth spirits and gnomes of lore. It also hints at the ability to see beneath the surface of all things and people. It lives in an underground complex of burrows that are called “earths”. It has several living chambers, along with latrine and storage chambers. These earths hint at the stories beneath the outer, the inner places, and homes of the outer world.
[The Badger] is basically an unsociable animal. It does not “relate” well with others – even its own kind. This might be why stories are its symbolic means of communication. It is often easier for those with badger medicine to relate through stories than to have to do it directly.
The young badgers, usually two to three, are born in May or June. The family always separates in the fall when the young and the father move to find their own homes. Sometimes, the father will help with the raising of the young, but as a whole, the badgers are loners and solitary. They are comfortable within themselves and are very self-reliant. They can teach this or help those with this totem to teach it to others.
The dachshund (badger dog) was bred specifically to hunt and dig after the badgers and to chase them out of the burrows. Dachshund owners probably have some badger medicine or can easily connect to it.
Because it is such a powerful digger, the badger has knowledge of things beneath the earth. This includes minerals, roots, and other plants and herbs. This makes the badger also a dynamic healer. Sometimes the badger healer is overly aggressive, but the technique is usually effective. Badger can teach the long forgotten knowledge of roots and their mystical and healing powers.
The badger is bold and ferocious, and it never surrenders. If a badger has come into your life, you should do some examination. Are you of those around you not digging deep enough? It may indicate a need to get beneath the surface. It may reflect a time of greater connection to the earth and its animal spirits. It may be telling you to draw upon the stories that intrigued you and held you fast during childhood. They may be symbolic of things going on or about to go on in your current life. Whenever badger shows up, there will be opportunities to develop your self-expression and reliance. It speaks of a time to begin to tell a new story about yourself and your life.
Bear As Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The bear is a powerful symbol and image in both myth and lore. Stories abound of individuals turned into bears, bears into humans, and bears as gods. It has stirred imagination so much that even a constellation was name d for it – Ursus Major, The Great Bear. Seven stars of this constellation are probably the most easily recognized in the northern hemisphere. These seven stars form the Big Dipper, and they have links to the seven great rays of light of the Divine.
The bear has lunar symbology, as well, giving it ties to the subconscious and even unconscious mind. It was an animal associated with the goddess Diana, a goddess of the moon. It is also a symbol of alchemy, the nigredo of prime matter. It relates to all initial stages and primal instincts.
Like birds, the bear is often considered among Native American peoples as kin to humans because, like birds, it can stand and walk upon two legs. For many, the bear and the wolf are the last true symbols of the primal, natural world, and many ecologists believe that how humans respond and protect their lands and their future will be the most honest depiction of how serious humanity is about preservation of our environment and the natural resources within it.
Contrary to popular belief, bears do not truly hibernate. They do live to a great degree on their stored-up fat. The body temperature will drop a little (around 13 degrees) and the breathing rate can be cut in half. The depth of their sleep depends greatly upon the amount of fat stored. This reflects the bears ability to teach those with it as a totem how to go within the find the resources necessary for survival. The bear can teach you to draw upon all of your inner stores of energy and essence even those which have never been tapped or accessed. Mediating and working with Bear will help you to go within your soul’s den, your inner sanctum – to find your answers.
During the winter sleep, the black bear’s kidneys shut down completely and scientists are studying this activity hoping it will provide clues to more successful kidney transplants. Physicians would love to find a way to duplicate this in humans so that diseased kidneys would have time to heal. This is part of what bear medicine is about.
The kidneys serve a vital function in the body, excreting urine, and also filtering the blood plasma. Metaphysically, the kidneys are symbols of discernment and discrimination. If bear has shown up in your life, ask yourself some important questions. Is your judgement off? How about those around you? Are you not recognizing what is beneficial in your life? Are you not seeing the core of good deep within all situations? Are you being too critical of yourself or others? Are you wearing rose-colored glasses? Bear medicine can teach you to go deep within so that you can make your choices and decisions from a position of power.
For those with a bear as a totem, it is important not to hide away and try to hibernate all year ‘round. You must come out of the den. This is even reflected in the birthing process of bears. Female bears give birth during their heavy sleep, semi-hibernation stages. Usually two cubs are born, sometimes three. They are born helpless and semi-conscious. The cubs nurse in the safety and warmth of the den throughout the winter.
As spring approaches, the mother and her cubs will emerge. The cubs will have become strong enough to follow their mother. This is tremendously significant for those working with a bear totem. It often reflects a need to go deep within yourself, to have periods in your life when you can be more reclusive. During these times, you will be able to go within yourself and even give birth to two or three ideas or projects. They can be nursed through the winter, and then as spring approaches, emerge with your babies to help them grow.
Those who have bear as totem will find this cycle of semi-hibernation and reclusiveness during the winter very natural. They will also find that with the spring will come opportunities to act more assertively in regard to that which has been nursed through the winter months. Bear people should be patient though, as the cubs will usually stay with the mother for up to two years. This can reflect that those projects you nursed may not come to full fruition until the second year of the cycle.
Although distantly related to the dog, the bear is a closer relative to the raccoon. There are a variety of bears. The most common bear is the black bear This is a kind of misnomer as not all black bears are black. They can be brown, cinnamon, and various combinations. They are very playful, both as adults and as young cubs. This is a reminder for those with this bear as a totem.
All bears have a great fondness for honey. Honey is the natural sweetness of life. It is usually find in the hives, located in trees, again reflecting a connection between bears and trees. It is a reminder for those with this totem to go within to awaken the power, but only by bringing it out into the open and applying it will the honey of life be tasted.
Probably no animal or insect has come to represent the process of transformation and shapeshifting more than that of the butterfly. For those with this totem, the process of metamorphosis should be studied closely. With butterflies and moths, there are always four distinct stages of change, as outlined in the previous chapter (the cocoon is only spun by the moth, and not by a true butterfly, for the chrysalis stage).
Buffalo as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The American buffalo is actually a bison. Buffalo is a name that applies to the animals of Asia and Africa. To the plains Indians, it was a symbol of sacred life and abundance.
Once a beautiful woman dressed in white buffalo fur appeared. She brought to the Lakota the sacred
pipe which showed how all things were connected. She taught the men and the women many mysteries of the earth, and she taught them how to pray and follow the proper path upon the earth. She showed them how to pray for and bring forth abundance. As she left, she rolled upon the earth and became a white buffalo calf and then disappeared over the horizon. No sooner had she disappeared, and the great herds of buffalo were seen all around the Indian camps.
The bison or American buffalo is a symbol of abundance and the manifestation. Part of what White Buffalo Woman taught to the Lakota is that they did not have to struggle to survive if the right action was joined with the right prayer. By uniting the mundane and the divine appropriately, all that would be needed would be available. This same idea is embodied even within Biblical scripture: “The Lord helps those who help themselves.”
The bison I s a large animal and can weigh up to a ton and a half. It has a massive head, humped shoulders, and an almost exaggerated appearance because of its’ shaggy fur. Humps are often symbolic of stored forces – reservoirs that can be tapped. In the case of the bison, it reflects the abundance that is available if we know how to tap it. The fact that the hump occurs at the shoulder level implies that we must incorporate our own efforts. Shoulders are symbols of the ability to embrace and hold life. Upon shoulders are carried either our burdens or our rewards. The humped area on the shoulders implies the need for our won efforts.
The massive head also implies the need to combine our efforts with the Divine. The head is the upper region. It is a symbol of the heavens and the divine, the higher faculties. In the case of the bison, both aspects are amplified. Both the mundane and the spiritual are necessary for manifesting what we are seeking.
The bison is very unpredictable and can be dangerous. This can serve as warning about not keeping yourself well grounded as you begin to work toward greater abundance in some area of your life. It is a four-footed animal and thus implies groundedness.
The bison also usually follows the easiest path. When we join the right action with the right prayers, the path is not difficult. We do not have to bull our way through. The path opens and flows easily. The bison will use its head to bowl and pus with on occasion, but it is usually during the winter. Its massive head is used to clear patches of snow so that it can feed upon the grasses beneath.
If a bison has shown up for you, it may indicate opportunities to manifest or move toward manifesting abundance in some area of your life. This has hidden within it several cautionary notes, though. This is not a time to push or force. Follow the easiest path.
The appearance of buffalo also implies that the law of synchronicity is operating within your life at the moment. Things will happen in the time, manner, and means that Is best for us if we allow it. This doesn’t mean we should sit back and do nothing, but rather that we should do what we have to do and then let events take their natural course.
It’s nice to get from point A to point B, and there are ways of forcing it. If you force it though, you may end up at the destination at a time when there is nothing to be gained. If you allow the natural flow to take you, you still end up at your destination, at an advantageous time, and you usually get some nice side trips along the way. Bison teaches us how to work with that natural rhythm,.
If bison has shown up in your life, look for opportunities for abundance and increase. Also ask yourself some important questions. Are you honoring that which you seek? Are you remembering that the divine is essential to all things in the physical? Are you giving honor to yourself and to the efforts of others within your life? Do you show gratitude for what you already have? The quickest way to stop the flow of abundance is by failing to honor that which has already come to you.
Butterfly as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
Probably no animal or insect has come to represent the process of transformation and shapeshifting more than that of the butterfly. For those with this totem, the process of metamorphosis should be studied closely. With butterflies and moths, there are always four distinct stages of change, as outlined in the previous chapter (the cocoon is only spun by the moth, and not by a true butterfly, for the chrysalis stage).
When butterfly shows up, make note of the most important issues confronting you at the moment. This is probably why butterfly has shown up. What stage of change are you at in regard to them? To determine that, you may have to examine and determine what you wish the outcome to be., and how best to accomplish it.
The butterfly is a powerful symbol in myth and religion. In early Christianity, it was a symbol of the soul. IN China, it was used as a symbol of conjugal bliss and joy. In the Hopi tradition, unmarried girls of the butterfly clan wore their hair in the shape of butterfly wings. In Indian lore are stories of how butterflies come when called by children of the Nez Perce tribe.
To Native Americans, the butterfly is a symbol of change, joy, and color. The colors of the butterfly should be examined for its significance and to help you understand its role within your life. Prior to a workshop on fairies and elves recently in Florida, I was performing a meditation at a nearby nature center in preparation for the workshop. When I opened my eyes, I was surrounded by approximately a dozen black and yellow butterflies (Zebra Heliconius). There were even several on my lap.
First, there has long been an association in folklore of a relationship between those of the Faerie Realm and butterflies. The black and yellow was even more significant. In traditional angelology, these are colors often associated with the archangel Auriel in her guise of overseeing the activities of the nature spirits. It was a wonderful indication of the energy that would accompany me to my workshop.
Butterflies appear to dance as they light upon flowers and such. They remind us not to take things quite so seriously within our lives. They awaken a sense of lightness and joy. They remind us that life is a dance, and dance, though powerful, is also a great pleasure. Butterflies can be reminders to get up and move, for if you can move, you can dance. Dance brings the sweetness of life back. This is further exemplified by the fact that butterflies actually have taste receptacles on their front legs. They taste flowers by walking upon them.
Butterflies bring color and joy with them. When butterflies come into your life, look at how much or how little joy is within your life. Lighten up. Look for change. Don’t forget that all change is good. Butterfly medicine reminds us to make changes when the opportunities present themselves. Transformation is inevitable, but butterfly will help teach you that growth and change does not have to be traumatic. It will teach you that it can occur as gently, as sweetly, and as joyfully as we wish.
In Germany, there was a center for breeding canaries and for training them to sing. Those involved were the people of Hartz Mountain. This is one of the most familiar brand names for many pet products today – especially bird supplies. This links the canaries and those with it as a totem to the ancient schools of the meistersingers. Minstrel brotherhoods existed in Europe during the Middle Ages. One was the Strasburg Brotherhood of the Crown, and another was formed by St. Nicholas of Vienna in 1288. In Germany, specifically, there existed a guild of meistersingers at Nuremburg. This schooling was to teach the power of sound, music, and voice – physical and spiritual. It was part of the bardic tradition as we now know it today.
Canary as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The canary is not native to America. It originally came from what we now call the Canary Islands
Insulae Canariae). It is a member of the finch family, and a study of the basic qualities of the finch family should be studied as well.
Originally, canaries were a dull olive green or greenish yellow streaked with black and yellow, but centuries of breeding have produced the completely yellow canary. This breeding also improved its singing voice.
In Germany, there was a center for breeding canaries and for training them to sing. Those involved were the people of Hartz Mountain. This is one of the most familiar brand names for many pet products today – especially bird supplies. This links the canaries and those with it as a totem to the ancient schools of the meistersingers. Minstrel brotherhoods existed in Europe during the Middle Ages. One was the Strasburg Brotherhood of the Crown, and another was formed by St. Nicholas of Vienna in 1288. In Germany, specifically, there existed a guild of meistersingers at Nuremburg. This schooling was to teach the power of sound, music, and voice – physical and spiritual. It was part of the bardic tradition as we now know it today.
Those who have a canary as a totem may have past-life connections to this guild. It can also reflect that you are going to learn more about the mysteries of sound, music, and voice to heal and bless your life and that of others.
The power of your own voice is going to be awakened. This doesn’t necessarily indicate musical training, Sound, whether spoken or sung, is one of the most powerful forces in the universe. With it you can heal, enlighten, excite, stimulate, awaken intuition, and manifest joy. When the canary shows up as a totem, it is time to ask yourself what song you have been singing. Are there sour notes echoing within your life? Where are they coming from? You may find that those t things you say more lovingly will be felt more lovingly. Those things you say more sharply will cut more deeply. What you say is going to have a much greater impact, as the canary awakens the power of sound, music, and voice in you.
Canaries usually reflect an awakening and stimulation of the throat and heart centers of the body. This gives increased ability to feel and to express feelings. Learning to use your voice to bring sunshine into the lives of others will be part of the process.
Canaries used to be taken into coal mines to detect gases. They were so sensitive that if there were gasses present, they would soon die. Again, this reflects connections to heightened sensitivity of the throat and heart centers or chakras of the body. It also can reflect that you will need to be careful as to the kind of atmosphere you create with your words, as well as what you expose yourself to in others.
Fresh air is essential to the song of the canary, and it will become increasingly so for you, as well. Observe the atmospheres you expose yourself to. With time and practice you will find your life begins to take on new tones, and the sour notes are eliminated.
general study of finches is beneficial for all those with this totem. Unlike many other birds, they are usually year-round residents, and their influence and the archetypal energies associated with them can be accessed all year long. They remind us that, regardless of the time of day or year, we always have opportunity to renew our own vitality and recognize the importance of our own life roles.
The cardinal has a loud and clear whistle. Whistles are often reminders to listen closely - to pay attention to what is blowing on the winds. In the case of the cardinal, the female joins in on the whistling which is unusual among birds. This reflects that we should be listening to the inner voice (the feminine) more closely for our own health and well-being. Since most female birds are usually quiet and camouflaged, a cardinal totem almost always reflects a need to assert the feminine aspects of creativity and intuition more strongly.
All cardinals are beneficial and friendly. They eat many weed seeds and injurious insects. The seventeen-year locust (cicada) is one of these. Cardinals can reflect a need to be more careful about your diet and what you are eating may be injurious to yourself and affecting your overall vitality.
Cardinals lay three to four eggs, and they hatch in about 12 days. This, along with it being a 12-month resident, reflects the rhythm of twelve that is going to become more prominent within your own life.
The male cardinal makes a good parent, and often shares with the female the task of egg incubation. The male, though, will always feed the female while she is in the nest, and the baby cardinals, as well. Although the male normally has the brighter color, when it shares the task of incubation, its’ colors remain much the same as the females, all for the sake of camouflage. This often reflects lessons associated with responsibility and the recognition of the importance of the task at hand.
The males unusually have a bright head, although their coloring will often be duller on the back and wings. The bright-colored crest is a warning to rivals, while the duller colors can help shield it.
These birds are named for the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church, with their bright red robes. If it is your totem, it may reflect past-life connections with the church, or even a reviving of more traditional religious beliefs, regardless of denomination.
Cardinals brighten the environment. They catch the eye and add color to our lives. When they appear as a totem, they do so to remind us to become like them. Add color to your life; and remember that everything you do is of importance.
In myth and lore, the cat predominates. In ancient Egypt, they held a position of special privilege. The goddess Bast was often depicted either as a cat or with a cat’s head. In Scandinavian lore, the cat was associated with the goddess of fertility, Freyja. In the Hindu tradition, Shasthi, the goddess of childbirth, is depicted riding upon a cat. Cats appear frequently in the talks of the Brothers Grimm and many other folk stories from around the world.
To cats have been attributed a wide variety of traits – often contradictory. Curiosity, nine lives, independence, cleverness, unpredictability, and healing are but a few. A witch’s pet cat was usually regarded as her familiar - a spirit in the form of a cat. It was often believed that witches could take the form of cats.
Cats are at home after dark, and yet most humans want them to be traditional pets during the day. When they do not respond in this manner, they are accredited with independence and unsociability. Because the dark is the home of fears and those things humans do not want to see and can’t see, the cat has come to be associated with magic and mystery. The truth is that cats have more rods in the retinas of their eyes, which enhances light perception. It enables them to see effectively in the dark. The traditional prey of a cat is the mouse, but it is by no means limited to it. Cats still effectively hunt birds and rabbits.
The traditional enemy of the cat is the dog, but this is not its only enemy. For anyone with a cat totem, the study of the qualities of the mouse and the dog will be beneficial for helping you to understand the magic and balance of energies with the cat.
Examine the colors, the character, the behaviors of your own cat. Everything about it will be significant. Many books exist on the lore and character of cats. Whether domesticated or wild, anytime a cat becomes predominant, look for magic and mystery to come alive.
My grandfather once told me that the crow was the smartest of all birds. What’s more, it even knew it was the smartest of birds and enjoyed it to the fullest. In fact, it was so smart that it chose to stay a crow, rather than move on to some other area of evolution. It has a unique ability to outwit most birds, animals, and even humans at times, and they make for themselves a wonderful living. It can be thought of as another being who felt it was better to rule in hell than serve in heaven. Crows seem to have mastered it well.
The fact that dolphins make their home in the sea is very significant. Many myths speak of how life began in the primordial waters of life. Water is the symbol of creation, passion, and even sexuality. It is the element of all life. It is a symbol of new dimensions and forces.
Dolphins can open new creation and dimensions to a great degree. Water is essential to life, but so is breath. Many techniques for breathing exist that teach how proper use of breath can be used to induce altered states and align oneself with new dimensions and life. Learning techniques of breathing can help you to become more passionate and sexual, and to heal the body, mind, and spirit. For example, tension and stress can be released by simply imitating the spouting breath that dolphin uses upon surfacing. People with lung and breathing problems can benefit greatly by aligning themselves with dolphin medicine.
Dolphin has a rhythm to its breathing and to its swimming. Learning to breathe like a dolphin can be beneficial. Breath control is the key to the power of the dolphin. When you can align yourself with dolphin through breathing, you can have dolphin take you to all the places and times that existed before the great seas covered most of the world. Dolphin can lead you to underground caverns and the primordial beginnings of yourself.
Dolphin also has a sonar ability. It uses a series of clicks and responds to the feedback of those clicks as the sound reverberates. Sound, breath, and water are all considered the sources of all life. Sound is the creative life force. Sound came forth out of the womb of silence and created all things. Learning to create inner sounds so that you can create outer manifestations is part of what dolphin can teach.
Sound requires breath, and water is the unformed creative element that we can shape into any
manifestation, if we know how to combine breath and sound. The sacredness of sound and breath has been taught in many societies. In the Babylonian cosmology, the gods formed by the goddess Tiamut in the waters of life did not come into being until she called them forth.
Dolphin can show you how to enter into the waters of life and then, with breath and sound, call forth from the waters what you most need or desire. There are breathing techniques and sounding techniques essential to manifestations. If we don’t use them properly, we find that our prayers are unanswered and our affirmations manifest in an obtuse manner. Dolphin can show us how to do it properly. (You may also wish to refer to my earlier work, Sacred Sounds, for further information on this).
The dove has a tremendous wealth of lore and legend surrounding it. Most of it centers around all of the traditional feminine and mother symbols. In the Greek tradition, Aphrodite was born from an egg
brooded by a dove. The Oracles of Dodona which Alexander sought, were founded by a dove. To the Slavs, the soul would become a dove at death. To the alchemist, it was a symbol of sublimation. To the Christians, it is a symbol of peace, while to early pagans it was a symbol of for the yoni or female sexual organs. It has been associated with female sexuality through such goddesses as Astarte and Isis. Because of its association with many goddesses, it was considered the embodiment of the maternal instinct.
To the Pueblo Indians, it was also honored. Its feathers were often worn and used in prayer sticks. The mournful song of the dove was considered an invocation to water and an indication to men where the water could be found. (Again, we have the ancient symbol for the maternal in the connection to water.) Its song would signify waterholes or springs to which the dove must return at dusk to drink.
The song of the dove speaks to all who hear it. Its mournful tones stir the emotions, the internal waters…The dove is actually a smaller copy of the now extinct passenger pigeon. A study of its qualities will help you in understanding the significance of the dove to your own life.
The dove is also a ground feeder, reflective of keeping contact with Mother Earth and the creative possibilities of the feminine energies on earth. Its diet is mostly seeds, but it will eat stones that accumulate in the gizzard to help with digestion. Those with a dove as a totem will find it beneficial that they eat bulk to aid their own digestive and creative processes.
The brood of the dove consists of two eggs. Two is a traditional number for the feminine and creative energies. A study of numerology, as applied to doves, will add even more insight for you.
The dove’s song is its most distinctive characteristic. The voice of the dove is the rain song. Out of its mourning, it invokes new waters of life. Its song should remind us that no matter what our life conditions, new waters and new life are still possible. The Earth is a female planet, and this should remind us that creation and new birth is available to all of us upon it. The mourning dove helps us to remember that.
Although its song is heard throughout the day, it seems more distinct at dawn and dusk. These are the “Between Times” – at time in which there is a thinning of the veils between the physical and the spiritual, the past and the future. The dove can help you to use these times to see the creation process active within your own life.
The song of this totem tells you to mourn what has passed, but awaken to the promise of the future. It is a bird of prophecy and can help you to see what you can give birth to in your life.
metamorphosis, they move to the realm of air. It is not unusual to find individuals with dragonfly totems to be very emotional and passionate in the early years, but as they get older, they learn to balance it with greater mental clarity and control. Sometimes, it can indicate that the emotions have gotten shut down because of emotional issues in the early life. Remember that the dragonfly...are always found around water. There must be expressions of the emotional and the mental together.
If Dragonfly has shown up in your life, you may need some fresh air in regard to something emotional. You may need to gain a new perspective or make a change. It may even indicate that you are neglecting your emotions. Are you being too rational about everything? Are you not keeping the color of emotions alive?
Dragonflies are very territorial. They will lay their eggs within their territory near the water. The egg eventually develops into the nymph stage of metamorphosis in this insect, and remains as a nymph for almost two years before it transforms into an adult dragonfly... This can reflect a number of possibilities for those with this totem. It can indicate that an approximate two-year period of change is about to reach its' culmination. It may reflect that you are coming into a two-year period of transformation. It may even reflect a need to institute changes that may culminate in the colorful transformations you desire within a two-year period. Only by examining your life and activities will you begin to understand its' specific role.
Just as light can bend and shift and be adapted in a variety of ways, so can the archetypal forces associated with th e dragonfly. It is one of the most adaptable of insects. It is why it has been able to survive for so long. Dragonflies have to pairs of wings, but if need be, they can fly with one. Their eyes are kept clean with special combs on their legs and by washing the eyes with water drops collected in the mouth."
" Although some have color pigments in their skin, for most , the colors are caused almost the same way rainbows form. Structures in their shell scatter and refract the light making them look iridescent green and blue. As they age, they may pass through several color changes. This ability to reflect and refract light and color has caused it to be associated with many forms of magic and mysticism - including color magic, illusion (causing others to only to see what you wish), and more. Dragonfly's magic is the power of light and all that has ever been associated with it.
Dragonflies...are often depicted in Japanese paintings representing new light and joy. To some Native Americans, they represent the souls of the dead. Some stories speak of the time in which they used to be real dragons. Often, we assume that dragons have to be gigantic beasts breathing fire, but the fantastic creatures of the Faerie Realm often come in many shapes and sizes. Dragonflies, because they are mythical relatives of the ancient dragons, are wonderful links to working with nature spirits."
The dragonfly....reflects and works with the sun and light. The light changes throughout the day. The dragonfly...undergoes their own transformations. If they have shown up, look for change to occur. Are you resisting change when you shouldn't? Dragonflies remind us that we are light and can reflect the light in powerful ways if we choose to do so. "Let there be light" is the divine prompting to use the creative imagination as a force within your life. This is part of what dragonflies...teach us."
Life is never quite the way it appears, but it is always filled with light and color. Dragonfly can help you to see through your illusions and thus allow your own light to shine forth. Dragonfly brings the brightness of transformation and the wonder of colorful new vision.
The duck is probably the most common waterfowl. Because of its connection to water, it is linked to the feminine energies, the astral plane, and to the emotional state of humans. Water is necessary for all life on earth. Nothing can live without it. Ducks can remind us to drink of the waters of life as well as to nurture our own emotional natures.
All breeds of duck swim. Some can dive as deep as 100 feet. Others eat by dipping under the water, reminding us we can find sustenance in our emotions. All ducks live near or on the water, except the wood duck. On land, they do not move as well. For those with a duck as a totem, it may reflect an inability to feel comfortable with most people in your life. It may reflect a need to find comfort in your own element and with those of like mind and spirit. Ducks can remind us that we are going to have such an opportunity.
Ducks have played important roles in other countries and cultures, and this may reflect past-life connections. The Egyptians were the first to domesticate ducks. The Chinese pioneered the art of duck raising. These are but two simple examples that could be explored.
The colors of the duck can help you in determining specifically the role it will play in your life. Most ducks are a variety of colors ranging from white to the rich blue-green iridescence of mallards and wood ducks.
The mallard is one of the most prolific ducks. It is probably good that it is so because it is also one of the most widely hunted. They can be very amiable and display a wide variety of emotions. They are also easily imprinted…They have a great ability to show affection, and they are very community oriented. They like having others around. They will also return to wherever they feel safe and comfortable. Ducks can sometimes remind us to return to those parts of ourselves or those activities that we feel safe and comfortable in, as well.
During the summer, most male mallards go through an “eclipse” Phase – a period in which they are
flightless. During this time, they wear the drab plumage of the female for extra protection in the rearing of the young. Even young take to the water easily, and it reminds us not to close off our emotional sides. We should be as willing to explore our emotions as every other aspect of our life.
The wood duck is also a colored wild duck. It has an iridescence to its feathers that reflects a kind of spirituality that will open up to you as you begin to come into your own element. Wood ducks all perch in trees to some extent, and they have toes on their webbed feet to help them in combing. The wood ducks nest in hollow branches and large woodpecker-type holes above and away from the water.
How the young get out of the nest and into the water is difficult to say, although it is generally accepted that ducklings can and do jump down from the trees alone. Wood ducks, in general, have many intriguing habits – more than can be covered in this work. As you study them, you will find ways of applying their habits to your own life.
All ducks have a grace upon water, and as a totem they can help you to handle your own emotions with greater grace and comfort. They serve to teach you how to maneuver through various waters of life. Many psychologist and therapists could do no better than to have a duck as a totem to assist them in helping others move through their emotional tangles.
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
Hawks are one of the most intriguing and mystical of the birds of prey. They are the messengers, the protectors, and the visionaries of the air. Hawks and owls have the keenest eyes of all raptors.
Hawks vary in size, appearance, and environments. There are so many different species that it is sometimes difficult to tell them apart. There are marsh hawks, forest hawks, sea hawks, and prairie hawks. The environment in which your hawk is found will tell you much about how its energies are likely to manifest within your life.
We do not have the space to explore all the characteristics of every hawk, but we will examine one species more closely. That species is the most numerous member of the hawk family, the red-tailed. It is named for the distinctive coloring on its tail feathers. Only the mature red-tails have this coloring. The immature also have lighter colored eyes, distinguishing them from their more mature relatives.
Hawks are occasionally harassed and attacked by smaller birds. This is very significant for those of you who have a hawk as totem. It indicates that there are likely to be attacks by people who won’t understand you or the varied and different uses of your creative energy. They may attack your ability to soar.
The red-tailed hawk is usually a permanent resident in an area, although occasionally it may migrate. This permanency reflects that as a totem, this hawk will be with your permanently once it shows up. [Hawks] can live up to 14 years in the wild.
This “14” is significant. The 14th card in the tarot deck is the card for Temperance. This is the card that represents the teaching of higher expressions of psychism and vision. It can be used in the development of astral projection – new flights out of the body. It has ties to the activation of your vital energies (kundalini), and the bold expression of it. It is tied to the archetypal forces that teach beauty and harmony in moderation. It holds the keys to higher levels of consciousness.
Rising to a higher level can bring a rapid development of the psychic energies. The reed-tailed haw helps us in balancing and using those senses appropriately. It teaches the balance necessary to discover our true purpose in life. If you have a red-tailed hawk as a totem, meditation on the 15th tarot card will help you to see how this hawk will lead you to use your creative energy in manifesting your soul purpose.
The red of the red-tail reflects a greater intensity of energy at play within your life. It reflects an intensity of physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual forces. This bird is the catalyst, stimulating hope and new ideas. It reflects a need to be open to the new or shows you ways that you many help teach others to be open to the new.
To the Pueblo, the red-tailed hawk was known as red eagle. Its feathers and energies were used in healing ceremonies and for bringing the rains and waters necessary for life. To the Ojibwa, the red-tailed hawk represented leadership, deliberation, and foresight. “Hawk is akin to Mercury, the messenger of the gods. Haw medicine teaches you to be observant…Life is sending you signals.9” The red-tail can spread its wings to great width, and it can teach you to use your creative energies in the same way. It can extend the vision of your life.
Because of the strong energy (the intensified life-force) activated by this totem, an individual with it must be careful in how they express themselves.
There will unfold within you the ability to tear off the heads of any snakes in your life, or anyone or anything seen as an enemy. Your comments and actions will be like the hawk’s beak and talons - strong and powerful, but with a capability to tear and/or kill.
…The red-tail and its color phases also help us to guard against blazing so brightly and intensely that we get burnt out.
The sky is the realm of the hawk. Through it s flight, it communicates with humans and with the greater creator spirit. It awakens our vision and inspires us to a creative life purpose.
9 Repreinted from Medicine Cards by Jamie Sams and David Carson, copyright 1988, Bear and Company, Inc., P.O. Drawer 2860, Santa Fe, NN 87504.
The lion has been symbolic of a variety of energies through the years. It is a symbol of the sun and of gold. It was a symbol for the sun-god Mithra. The Egyptians believed that the lion presided over the annual floods of the Nile. Early Christians believed it to be the earthly opponent of the eagle. The medieval alchemists associated it with the fixed element of Sulphur, and a young lion was often the symbol of the rising sun and all that is implied by it.
The lion is unusual among members of the cat family in that it will live in groups called prides. If a lion has shown up as a totem, you can expect lessons and issues dealing with community and groups to surface. There may be a need to examine your own role in the group.
Within the pride, the females are the best hunters. Although most lions are clumsy hunters by themselves, they have developed n excellent cooperative hunting technique. The females, though, do most of the hunting and the rearing of the cubs. The lion cubs lead a relatively care-free existence. Their parents are patient and affectionate with the cubs, and most individuals with lions as totems will find those same qualities developing within themselves.
The males are most noticeable by their large mane. They do very little work. They can be passionate and excessively jealous of the lionesses. They protect the pride against predators. When hunting, they use their roar to scare prey toward the waiting lioness. If a male lion has shown up as your totem, you may need to examine your usefulness within some group or community in your life. Do you need to do more than you are? Do you need to be more protective? Do you need to cooperate more?
The lion does not fight for the sake of fighting. It avoids confrontations, and will leave the scene of danger if possible. This is a tactic to keep in mind if the lion is your totem. Lions also hunt primarily by stealth, and the most common method of killing it is by strangulation. This technique is something for those with this totem to practice developing when pursuing new endeavors and objectives in any area of life. Be stealthy for the greatest success.
The idea of the young lion being associated with the rising sun is most significant. Since the females of the pride do most of the work, it actually reflects the idea of the rising of the feminine energies. The sun has not always been a masculine symbol. It does give birth to new days, and it nurtures and warms life. Thus, it is not stretching the correlation to see the lion as the assertion of feminine energies to bring forth birth and new power.
When a lion has shown up, there will be opportunity to awaken to a new sun. Trust your feminine energies - creativity, intuition, and imagination. There will add new sunshine to your life. Don’t be afraid to roar if you feel threatened or intruded upon.
The owl is a symbol of the feminine, the moon, and the night. It has been called a cat with wings. It has been worshiped as an idol and hated as the reincarnation of the devil. It has been believed to have great healing powers, both in North American and on other continents. Because of its association with the moon, it has ties to fertility and seduction, for the moon is the arouser of men and owls. The owl is the bird of magic and darkness, of prophecy and wisdom.
To the ancient Greeks, the owl was associated with the goddess Athena, and it was a symbol of higher wisdom. It was the guardian of the Acropolis. To the early Christian Gnostics, it is associated with Lilith, the first wife of Adam, who refused to be submissive to him. To the Pawnee, it was a symbol of protection. To the Ojibwa, it was a Symbol of evil and death. To the Pueblo, it was associated with the Skeleton Man, the god of death, but who was also a spirit of fertility. “Owl medicine is symbolically associated with clairvoyance, astral projection, and magic, both black and white.
Many superstitions and beliefs have come to be associated with it. Owls have been thought of as the reincarnation o the dead. In Wales, the owl has come to be associated with fertility. If heard near a pregnant girl, it indicates an easy birth. The most predominant is that of the owl being able to extract secrets. It was believed in ancient Rome that to place a feather or part of an owl on a sleeping person would enable you to discover his/her secrets. This is all tied to one of its keynotes, especially when we look at its acute vision and hearing.
The owl is a bird of the night, and the night has long been a symbol of the darkness within – the place in which humans hide their secrets. The owl has great vision and hearing. They can adjust in an instant from telescopic to microscopic focus. The pupils respond in a fraction of a second to very minute changes in light intensity. The owl’s eyes are specially adapted to detect subtle movements. They also have extra light-sensitive cones and rods in the retina to help with this. The yellow coloring of the eyes is very symbolic. It makes the eyes much more expressive, but it hints of the light of the sun, alive in the dark of the night. The sun lives through the owl at night. Meditation on this alone will reveal much about the magic of the owl within your life. Contrary to popular belief, the owl can see very well during the daylight. It is just more effective and more accurate at night.
One who works with Owl medicine will be able to see and hear what others try to hide. You will hear what is not being said, and you will see what is hidden or in the shadows. You can detect and pinpoint the subtleties. This can make others uncomfortable because they will not be able to deceive you about their motives or actions. Owl people have a unique ability to see into the darkness of others’ souls and life. This is very scary to most people. This vision and hearing capabilities has metaphysical links to the gifts of clairvoyance and clairaudience as well.
The owl, as a bird of the night, can teach all of the secrets of the night. The secrets involve everything that transpires when the Sun is gone. Owls are the eyes of the night, and they see what is not in the open. They have secret knowledge that they can share. Their medicine can extract secrets.
Like humans, they blink by closing the upper eyelids, giving them a human expression which has added to the mysticism of howls. Unlike humans though, their eyes cannot move. Their neck is flexible, giving them a wide range of peripheral vision. They cannot turn their heads completely around, but they do move it so quickly that it gives that appearance. The symbolism of the neck and its flexibility should be medicated upon for those with owl medicine. If your neck is stiff and inflexible, you are hindering your perceptions to a great degree.
The owl, like hawks and other birds of prey, has a third eyelid. This nictating eyelid moves from side to side. It cleanses the eye, clearing its vision. Again, this symbolizes so much about new vision opening to you. It often reflects that you were born very perceptive – with vision of others that you may or may not have recognized or acknowledged. Often those with an owl as power totem have a unique ability for seeing into the eyes and souls of others. Often, these perceptions are discarded as wild imaginings or with such phrases as, “Why in the world would I think that about this person?” These kinds of imaginings, positive and negative, should be trusted.
The pigeon has a long history associated with the home and with fertility. The real name of Christopher Columbus was “Colombo” which is the Italian word for “pigeon”. Columbus helped discover a new home. The pigeon also has an extraordinary homing sense. It knows how to find its way back home, no matter how far it has gone.
Opossum teaches us how to use appearances. Sometimes it is necessary to “play dead”. Sometimes it is necessary to put up a particular front to succeed most easily and effectively. This is what the medicine of opossum can teach. It also can show you when others are putting up false fronts and deceptions. Opossum has an archetypal energy that helps us to use appearances to our greatest benefit and that helps us to recognize when others are creating false impressions. Opossum can help us learn to divert attention or to get attention any way we need.
In China, it is one of the twelve astrological signs. It was considered a most fortunate sign, giving those born under it the ability to possess the powers of the moon. Hare individuals are considered sensitive and artistic. The hare is imbued with ambition, finesses, and virtue, along with living on the moon.
The two most common rabbis are the cotton tail and the jackrabbit. The ears of the cottontail are shorter than the jackrabbit, and its coat stays the same all year round. The fur of the jackrabbit will lighten or even turn white in the winter. Both animals can leap and hop. Those with rabbit totems will see movement occur in their life in varying degrees of leaps and hops. It won’t be a steady step-by-step movement. The leaps and hops do not usually take more than the cycle of one moon (28 days) to occur.
The name raccoon is believed by some to come from the Algonquin Indian word “arckunem”, meaning “hand scratcher”. The paws are very dexterous. Raccoons have the reputation for thievery – of being able to get into things they are not supposed to. It would not be surprising to find that individuals who are thieves and burglars have raccoon medicine, even though it is not being used positively.
Raccoons are fascinated by water. They like to slosh their hands and their food in it. This has given rise to the belief they never eat anything without washing it first. Actually, water increases the sensitivity of the raccoon’s hands, and they can feel their food better.
The raccoon will eat almost anything available. It will captured small prey, but it usually eats mostly vegetables and fruit. This is something that those with this totem should also keep in mind.
Raccoons are extremely curious, which is partly why they often get into things they shouldn’t. They love to explore. Their nocturnal excursions can be likened to mini-adventures. They can be very curious about new realms, and will examine anything that fascinates them.
One of the most striking features of the raccoon is the mask that it wears. Although some associate this with thievery, it actually gives the raccoon a very powerful mystical symbolism. The use of masks to achieve altered states and for other healing and ritual purposes has been a part of every society. Mask making is an ancient art employed all over the world for ceremony, celebration, and in magical practices.
Concealed behind a mask, people could become something or someone else. We can become whatever we want by wearing masks. Masks are invested with mystery. They are tools for transformation. The hidden aspect, the secrecy, helps promote the transformation. It helps us to change what we are to what we want to be giving us magic.
Just as there is with the raccoon, with masks there is ambiguity and equivocation. When we wear a mask, we are no longer who we thought. We make ourselves one with some other force. We create a doorway in the mind and ion the physical world, a threshold that we can cross to new dimensions and new being-ness.
This is the magic of raccoon. It is an expert at disguise and secrecy. It knows how to wear masks for a variety of purposes. It can teach you how to mask and disguise and transform yourself. Each must develop the relationship with the raccoon in their own unique way, but raccoon medicine can teach you how to become dexterous in the masks you wear. It can show you how to wear a healing mask, or show you the face you shall become. The raccoon holds the knowledge of how to change our faces.
In the near East, the raven was considered unclean – because it is a scavenger. It is one of the foods listed as forbidden in the Bible. The raven is one of the birds that Noah sent out after the floods, but it did not return to the ark. On the other hand, also in Biblical lore is the tale of how a raven fed the prophet Elijah when hiding from King Ahab.
All tigers are known for their ferocity and their power. They are also excellent swimmers, unlike other large cats. This gives them ties to all the energies and mystical qualities so often associate with the element of water. All tigers also display great motherly devotion with their offspring. The mother raises the young and teaches them to hunt. Most tigers are solitary, and they come together usually only to mate. They also have immense territories.
A great deal of mythology exists in regard to the turtle. In the Far East, the shell was a symbol of heaven, and the square underside was a symbol of earth. The turtle was an animal whose magic could help you unite heaven and earth within your own life. A symbol of the turtle was an invitation for the blessings of both heaven and earth.
The whale is the world’s largest mammal. Whales form part of a large group of warm-blooded mammals adapted to life in the sea. Many myths speak of how all life upon the planet, especially human, sprang from the seas. Because of this and other reasons we will discuss, the whale is an ancient symbol for creation – be it of the body or our world.
The people of the Arctic are often considered the most careful observers of Nature, for only this would enable them to survive the most unforgiving o climates. The Inuit (Inpriaq) had a special relationship with the bowhead whale, and one of their legends tells how it was the most magnificent creation that the Great Spirit had made.
There are ninety or so different species of cetaceans or whales including dolphins and porpoises. There are sperm wales, killer whales, pilot whales, narwhals, humpback whales, and the largest mammals on the planet, blue whales. All whales have blowholes by which they exhale. Imitating the spouting breath of whales can aid in freeing your own creative energies. All whales have blubber which serves to insulate and store energy for the whales. The whale can help teach you how to insulate yourself and use your own creative energies more conservatively. All whales also conserve oxygen under water by decreasing the blood flow to areas of the body where it is non-essential. Whales have an ancient knowledge of how to use the creative force of breath for a variety of purposes.
Most whales are divided into one of two groups, toothed and baleen. Toothed whales have sharp teeth by which they catch and eat fish and other marine animals. This group includes sperm whales, pilot whales, dolphins, and such. Most eat fish, squid, and other marine animals. They usually are found in herds of pods. Toothed whales have demonstrated great reasoning capabilities and even creative thinking at times. They can stimulate this in those with them as a totem.
Baleen whales do not have teeth. Their mouths are lines with bony plates made of hardened keratin. They strain sea water through these plates feeding on the plankton or sea life within it. The baleen whales are the largest. Humpback whales are baleen whales.
The humpback member of the baleen family is most noted for its wonderful song. The beautiful
sounds are sung by the males, and each breeding season brings with it corresponding song changes. This reflects the ability of the whale to teach us how to create through sound and song, adjusting it to the time and place and individual. By drawing upon your own creative instincts, you can sing forth your own song.
Whales also have a form of sonar or echo-location. This sensitivity to sound again links the whale to the primal creative sounds of life. Sound is the creative force of life. Directing it and responding to its feedback is part of what the whale teaches. This can be used to tap hidden levels of your own mind or even to accelerate the manifestation of goals.
Whales at one time were also symbols of containment, concealment, and even resurrection. The Biblical story of Jonah and the whale is the prime example. For three days, Jonah lived within the belly of the whale before he came forth. He was given a second birth. He was resurrected. When we learn to go deep within ourselves, the creativity that we awaken can resurrect our lives - if we bring it out and apply it.
Whales will occasionally breach – coming completely out of the water. Whale people are very creative, but they have to come out of those creative waters. They must stay in contact with the real world. Are you becoming lost in your own creative imagination? Are you not taking it and using it in your outer life? Are you keeping everything inside and afraid to let it out? If so, it’s time to breach. Show the magnificence and power of your own creativity. Do not hold back.
If whales are showing up in your life, you should examine your use - or lack of use – of your own creativity. Are you not simply mimicking what others have done or are you building upon it in new and dynamic ways? Are you applying your won creative intuition to old processes and life formulas? This and this alone is what imbues them with power and magic.
Remember that the whale was a gift of the Great Spirit to the Inuit people. It was what enabled them to survive. It was the most beautiful of all beasts, but it had practical uses, as well. Creativity for the sake of creativity is not what whale teaches. It awakens great depths of creative inspiration, but so it can add color and light to your outer life to make it more wondrous.
Cardinal as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
Most people have no trouble recognizing these redbirds. They are also part of the finch family and aThe cardinal has a loud and clear whistle. Whistles are often reminders to listen closely - to pay attention to what is blowing on the winds. In the case of the cardinal, the female joins in on the whistling which is unusual among birds. This reflects that we should be listening to the inner voice (the feminine) more closely for our own health and well-being. Since most female birds are usually quiet and camouflaged, a cardinal totem almost always reflects a need to assert the feminine aspects of creativity and intuition more strongly.
All cardinals are beneficial and friendly. They eat many weed seeds and injurious insects. The seventeen-year locust (cicada) is one of these. Cardinals can reflect a need to be more careful about your diet and what you are eating may be injurious to yourself and affecting your overall vitality.
Cardinals lay three to four eggs, and they hatch in about 12 days. This, along with it being a 12-month resident, reflects the rhythm of twelve that is going to become more prominent within your own life.
The male cardinal makes a good parent, and often shares with the female the task of egg incubation. The male, though, will always feed the female while she is in the nest, and the baby cardinals, as well. Although the male normally has the brighter color, when it shares the task of incubation, its’ colors remain much the same as the females, all for the sake of camouflage. This often reflects lessons associated with responsibility and the recognition of the importance of the task at hand.
The males unusually have a bright head, although their coloring will often be duller on the back and wings. The bright-colored crest is a warning to rivals, while the duller colors can help shield it.
These birds are named for the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church, with their bright red robes. If it is your totem, it may reflect past-life connections with the church, or even a reviving of more traditional religious beliefs, regardless of denomination.
Cardinals brighten the environment. They catch the eye and add color to our lives. When they appear as a totem, they do so to remind us to become like them. Add color to your life; and remember that everything you do is of importance.
Cat as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
Although a domesticated animal, it would be unjust not to at least touch upon the energies and essence of the cat as a totem. Many of the larger cats are examined in this dictionary separately, but cats in general – wild or domestic – have certain qualities in common.In myth and lore, the cat predominates. In ancient Egypt, they held a position of special privilege. The goddess Bast was often depicted either as a cat or with a cat’s head. In Scandinavian lore, the cat was associated with the goddess of fertility, Freyja. In the Hindu tradition, Shasthi, the goddess of childbirth, is depicted riding upon a cat. Cats appear frequently in the talks of the Brothers Grimm and many other folk stories from around the world.To cats have been attributed a wide variety of traits – often contradictory. Curiosity, nine lives, independence, cleverness, unpredictability, and healing are but a few. A witch’s pet cat was usually regarded as her familiar - a spirit in the form of a cat. It was often believed that witches could take the form of cats.
Cats are at home after dark, and yet most humans want them to be traditional pets during the day. When they do not respond in this manner, they are accredited with independence and unsociability. Because the dark is the home of fears and those things humans do not want to see and can’t see, the cat has come to be associated with magic and mystery. The truth is that cats have more rods in the retinas of their eyes, which enhances light perception. It enables them to see effectively in the dark. The traditional prey of a cat is the mouse, but it is by no means limited to it. Cats still effectively hunt birds and rabbits.
The traditional enemy of the cat is the dog, but this is not its only enemy. For anyone with a cat totem, the study of the qualities of the mouse and the dog will be beneficial for helping you to understand the magic and balance of energies with the cat.
Examine the colors, the character, the behaviors of your own cat. Everything about it will be significant. Many books exist on the lore and character of cats. Whether domesticated or wild, anytime a cat becomes predominant, look for magic and mystery to come alive.
Crow as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
My grandfather once told me that the crow was the smartest of all birds. What’s more, it even knew it was the smartest of birds and enjoyed it to the fullest. In fact, it was so smart that it chose to stay a crow, rather than move on to some other area of evolution. It has a unique ability to outwit most birds, animals, and even humans at times, and they make for themselves a wonderful living. It can be thought of as another being who felt it was better to rule in hell than serve in heaven. Crows seem to have mastered it well.
Crows intrigue us and they aggravate us. They and their other family member, the raven, have a great mysticism and mythology about them. There are actually five species of crows, one of which is the raven. Because they are the same family (the only real difference being in size) it would be beneficial for those with crow as a totem to also study the qualities and mystical aspects of the raven.
The first noticeable characteristic about this bird is it’s striking black color. Sometimes it will have hints of deep blue and purpose on the feathers as well. Black is the color of creation. It is the womb out of which the new is born. It is also the color of the night. Black is the maternal color and thus the black night gives birth to a new day. Although the crow is a diurnal or daytime bird, it reminds us that magic and creation are potentials very much alive during the day. The crow, because of its color, was a common symbol in medieval alchemy. It represented “nigredo”, the initial state of substance - unformed, but full
In Roman mythology raven and crows used to be as white as swans. In fact, a white crow watched over Apollo’s pregnant lover at Delphos. One day, the crow brought bad news to Apollo and was turned black.
This connect to watchfulness is still strong today. Crows always have a sentinel posted. They build their nests high in the treetops so that they can see the entire area in which they are living and feeding. Occasionally, crows have been seen attacking and killing one of their own. There arose an old belief that the crow being attacked was a sentinel who failed. It may also be a reminder of what can happen if we are not watching for magic and creation every day.
The crow has great intelligence. It is adaptable to its environment. It will eat almost anything. Part of their ability to survive is their being omnivorous. They have a unique ability to communicate with each other and to work together.
Crows have a great mythology about them. This can reflect not only past-life connections to those times and cultures, but it also reflects some of the archetypal forces that it can connect with us. As with many animals, crows also have been known to predict tornadoes, rain, and other changes in weather by the way they fly. Working with crows can help you to see how the winds are going to blow into your life and how to adjust your own life flights. Crows have long been considered magical, and my grandfather once told me how even finding a dead crow was a sign of good luck.
We have spoken of crows and their link to Greek/Roman mythology, but they have appeared in others as well. In China, a three-legged sun crow was worshiped. It was a symbol of solitude. To the Athabascan Indians of Alaska, a crow (in the form of a rave) was the creator of the world. To the Celts, the crow was also associated with creation. In Biblical lore, the prophet Elijah was fed by ravens and crows while hiding in the wilderness. In the Norse tradition, the god Odin and two ravens who were his messengers.
Wherever crows are, there is magic. They are symbols of creation and spiritual strength. They remind us to look for opportunities to create and manifest the magic of life. They are messengers calling to us about the creation and magic that is alive within our world every day and available to us.
Dog as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
Dogs
are domesticated canines. Their
descendants are coyotes and wolves, and thus t hey should be studied, as
well. Dogs are companions to humans,
providing faithful protection. Every dog
and every breed has its’ own unique qualities.
Many breeds were designed for specific purposes and functions. Studying the history of your breed will help
you define the kind of energy specific to this totem.
Different
dogs will mean different things. Herding
dogs were for protection and to assist in the labors of herding domesticated
farm animals. Some dogs were raised
specifically for sporting activities – hunting and retrieving. Thus, they may have qualities unique to them
– a love of water, a need to run, etc.
Some dogs are mixed, embodying qualities from a variety of breeds,
reminding us that we each are unique.
Examine
the qualities of your breed and the individual dog. It will reveal much about the energy
associated with it. Examine the
individual personality. How does it behave most of the time? What does this say about you? Earlier in the book, I gave an example of how
my four dogs are unique, and how I use their behavior as a message for myself. If my dog Cheyenne, who is usually
standoffish and a loner becomes very friendly and pesters me to play ball, it
usually indicates I need to take some time off and socialize and play a
little. Our animals can tell us so much.
Most
Native American tribes had dogs for protection and warnings, but dogs have
helped symbolic importance in other societies, as well. In India, the dog is a symbol of all caste
systems, reflecting the small becoming great.
In early Christianity, it was a symbol of guardianship (as in the sheepdog),
and it was even an allegory for the priest.
In Greece, it was a companion to and guardian of the place of the
dead. It has also been a symbol of
motherhood because dogs are very caring and nurturing parents.
It
takes a lot to break a dog’s spirit. Its
ability to love, even when abused, is tremendous. Its spirit and willingness to love and to be
a companion is great.
Study
your dog. This will tell you more than
what can be elaborated on here. If Dog
as come into your life as a totem, ask yourself some questions. What is this saying about your need for or
lack of companionship. Are you being
faithful? Are others around you? Are you showing unconditional love, or
receiving it? Do you need to be more
protective of your territory? Do you
need to play a little more? Are you
being faithful to yourself? Does your
spirit need bolstering? How about those
around you? Examine your
territories. Dog knows its home ground,
and if it has shown up, its energies and lessons will touch you personally.
Dolphin as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The dolphin is a mammal of the sea. Many people think of dolphins and whales as being fish, but they aren’t. They nurse and contain most of the qualities that separate mammals from other animal species. The largest member of the dolphin family is the killer whale which also embodies the quality of patience.The fact that dolphins make their home in the sea is very significant. Many myths speak of how life began in the primordial waters of life. Water is the symbol of creation, passion, and even sexuality. It is the element of all life. It is a symbol of new dimensions and forces.
Dolphins can open new creation and dimensions to a great degree. Water is essential to life, but so is breath. Many techniques for breathing exist that teach how proper use of breath can be used to induce altered states and align oneself with new dimensions and life. Learning techniques of breathing can help you to become more passionate and sexual, and to heal the body, mind, and spirit. For example, tension and stress can be released by simply imitating the spouting breath that dolphin uses upon surfacing. People with lung and breathing problems can benefit greatly by aligning themselves with dolphin medicine.Dolphin has a rhythm to its breathing and to its swimming. Learning to breathe like a dolphin can be beneficial. Breath control is the key to the power of the dolphin. When you can align yourself with dolphin through breathing, you can have dolphin take you to all the places and times that existed before the great seas covered most of the world. Dolphin can lead you to underground caverns and the primordial beginnings of yourself.
Dolphin also has a sonar ability. It uses a series of clicks and responds to the feedback of those clicks as the sound reverberates. Sound, breath, and water are all considered the sources of all life. Sound is the creative life force. Sound came forth out of the womb of silence and created all things. Learning to create inner sounds so that you can create outer manifestations is part of what dolphin can teach.
Sound requires breath, and water is the unformed creative element that we can shape into any
Dolphin can show you how to enter into the waters of life and then, with breath and sound, call forth from the waters what you most need or desire. There are breathing techniques and sounding techniques essential to manifestations. If we don’t use them properly, we find that our prayers are unanswered and our affirmations manifest in an obtuse manner. Dolphin can show us how to do it properly. (You may also wish to refer to my earlier work, Sacred Sounds, for further information on this).
Dove as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The dove has a tremendous wealth of lore and legend surrounding it. Most of it centers around all of the traditional feminine and mother symbols. In the Greek tradition, Aphrodite was born from an egg brooded by a dove. The Oracles of Dodona which Alexander sought, were founded by a dove. To the Slavs, the soul would become a dove at death. To the alchemist, it was a symbol of sublimation. To the Christians, it is a symbol of peace, while to early pagans it was a symbol of for the yoni or female sexual organs. It has been associated with female sexuality through such goddesses as Astarte and Isis. Because of its association with many goddesses, it was considered the embodiment of the maternal instinct.
To the Pueblo Indians, it was also honored. Its feathers were often worn and used in prayer sticks. The mournful song of the dove was considered an invocation to water and an indication to men where the water could be found. (Again, we have the ancient symbol for the maternal in the connection to water.) Its song would signify waterholes or springs to which the dove must return at dusk to drink.
The song of the dove speaks to all who hear it. Its mournful tones stir the emotions, the internal waters…The dove is actually a smaller copy of the now extinct passenger pigeon. A study of its qualities will help you in understanding the significance of the dove to your own life.
The dove is also a ground feeder, reflective of keeping contact with Mother Earth and the creative possibilities of the feminine energies on earth. Its diet is mostly seeds, but it will eat stones that accumulate in the gizzard to help with digestion. Those with a dove as a totem will find it beneficial that they eat bulk to aid their own digestive and creative processes.
The brood of the dove consists of two eggs. Two is a traditional number for the feminine and creative energies. A study of numerology, as applied to doves, will add even more insight for you.
The dove’s song is its most distinctive characteristic. The voice of the dove is the rain song. Out of its mourning, it invokes new waters of life. Its song should remind us that no matter what our life conditions, new waters and new life are still possible. The Earth is a female planet, and this should remind us that creation and new birth is available to all of us upon it. The mourning dove helps us to remember that.
Although its song is heard throughout the day, it seems more distinct at dawn and dusk. These are the “Between Times” – at time in which there is a thinning of the veils between the physical and the spiritual, the past and the future. The dove can help you to use these times to see the creation process active within your own life.
The song of this totem tells you to mourn what has passed, but awaken to the promise of the future. It is a bird of prophecy and can help you to see what you can give birth to in your life.
Dragonfly as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
"...Dragonflies...inhabit two reals - water and air. The significance of these should be examined. In their early life, as a nymph - they live within the water. As they mature and go through theirmetamorphosis, they move to the realm of air. It is not unusual to find individuals with dragonfly totems to be very emotional and passionate in the early years, but as they get older, they learn to balance it with greater mental clarity and control. Sometimes, it can indicate that the emotions have gotten shut down because of emotional issues in the early life. Remember that the dragonfly...are always found around water. There must be expressions of the emotional and the mental together.
If Dragonfly has shown up in your life, you may need some fresh air in regard to something emotional. You may need to gain a new perspective or make a change. It may even indicate that you are neglecting your emotions. Are you being too rational about everything? Are you not keeping the color of emotions alive?
Dragonflies are very territorial. They will lay their eggs within their territory near the water. The egg eventually develops into the nymph stage of metamorphosis in this insect, and remains as a nymph for almost two years before it transforms into an adult dragonfly... This can reflect a number of possibilities for those with this totem. It can indicate that an approximate two-year period of change is about to reach its' culmination. It may reflect that you are coming into a two-year period of transformation. It may even reflect a need to institute changes that may culminate in the colorful transformations you desire within a two-year period. Only by examining your life and activities will you begin to understand its' specific role.
Just as light can bend and shift and be adapted in a variety of ways, so can the archetypal forces associated with th e dragonfly. It is one of the most adaptable of insects. It is why it has been able to survive for so long. Dragonflies have to pairs of wings, but if need be, they can fly with one. Their eyes are kept clean with special combs on their legs and by washing the eyes with water drops collected in the mouth."
" Although some have color pigments in their skin, for most , the colors are caused almost the same way rainbows form. Structures in their shell scatter and refract the light making them look iridescent green and blue. As they age, they may pass through several color changes. This ability to reflect and refract light and color has caused it to be associated with many forms of magic and mysticism - including color magic, illusion (causing others to only to see what you wish), and more. Dragonfly's magic is the power of light and all that has ever been associated with it.
Dragonflies...are often depicted in Japanese paintings representing new light and joy. To some Native Americans, they represent the souls of the dead. Some stories speak of the time in which they used to be real dragons. Often, we assume that dragons have to be gigantic beasts breathing fire, but the fantastic creatures of the Faerie Realm often come in many shapes and sizes. Dragonflies, because they are mythical relatives of the ancient dragons, are wonderful links to working with nature spirits."
The dragonfly....reflects and works with the sun and light. The light changes throughout the day. The dragonfly...undergoes their own transformations. If they have shown up, look for change to occur. Are you resisting change when you shouldn't? Dragonflies remind us that we are light and can reflect the light in powerful ways if we choose to do so. "Let there be light" is the divine prompting to use the creative imagination as a force within your life. This is part of what dragonflies...teach us."
Life is never quite the way it appears, but it is always filled with light and color. Dragonfly can help you to see through your illusions and thus allow your own light to shine forth. Dragonfly brings the brightness of transformation and the wonder of colorful new vision.
Duck as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
All breeds of duck swim. Some can dive as deep as 100 feet. Others eat by dipping under the water, reminding us we can find sustenance in our emotions. All ducks live near or on the water, except the wood duck. On land, they do not move as well. For those with a duck as a totem, it may reflect an inability to feel comfortable with most people in your life. It may reflect a need to find comfort in your own element and with those of like mind and spirit. Ducks can remind us that we are going to have such an opportunity.
Ducks have played important roles in other countries and cultures, and this may reflect past-life connections. The Egyptians were the first to domesticate ducks. The Chinese pioneered the art of duck raising. These are but two simple examples that could be explored.
The colors of the duck can help you in determining specifically the role it will play in your life. Most ducks are a variety of colors ranging from white to the rich blue-green iridescence of mallards and wood ducks.
The mallard is one of the most prolific ducks. It is probably good that it is so because it is also one of the most widely hunted. They can be very amiable and display a wide variety of emotions. They are also easily imprinted…They have a great ability to show affection, and they are very community oriented. They like having others around. They will also return to wherever they feel safe and comfortable. Ducks can sometimes remind us to return to those parts of ourselves or those activities that we feel safe and comfortable in, as well.
During the summer, most male mallards go through an “eclipse” Phase – a period in which they are
flightless. During this time, they wear the drab plumage of the female for extra protection in the rearing of the young. Even young take to the water easily, and it reminds us not to close off our emotional sides. We should be as willing to explore our emotions as every other aspect of our life.
The wood duck is also a colored wild duck. It has an iridescence to its feathers that reflects a kind of spirituality that will open up to you as you begin to come into your own element. Wood ducks all perch in trees to some extent, and they have toes on their webbed feet to help them in combing. The wood ducks nest in hollow branches and large woodpecker-type holes above and away from the water.How the young get out of the nest and into the water is difficult to say, although it is generally accepted that ducklings can and do jump down from the trees alone. Wood ducks, in general, have many intriguing habits – more than can be covered in this work. As you study them, you will find ways of applying their habits to your own life.
All ducks have a grace upon water, and as a totem they can help you to handle your own emotions with greater grace and comfort. They serve to teach you how to maneuver through various waters of life. Many psychologist and therapists could do no better than to have a duck as a totem to assist them in helping others move through their emotional tangles.
Elephant as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The elephant is the largest living land mammal. Although not native to this continent, I have included it because I have encountered a number of people to whom it has become a significant totem. It has an ancient ancestry in the mammoths. There are two types still in existence, the Indian and the African. The African is the larger and the shape of the ears differ.
The elephant has a tremendous amount of myth and lore surrounding it. Of all elephants, the white
elephant is considered the most sacred. This is similar to the sacredness often reflected in Native American traditions associated with the white buffalo. It is said that mothers of great teachers and masters will dream of white elephants. One story of Buddha’s mother tells how she dreamt a white elephant had entered her womb.
In India and southeast Asia, elephants are venerated and the symbolism of the elephant is multiple. It is a symbol of royalty and fertility. The Hindu god of wisdom and success, Ganesha, is usually depicted with an elephant’s head. The god Indra held several roles in which an elephant played a part. As the king of gods, the elephant was the royal mount. As the god of warriors, the elephant was Indra’s super weapon. As the god of rain, Indra used the gray elephant to bring forth the monsoons.
The elephant is both strange and terrifying to those unfamiliar with it. Much of what the average person believes about elephants is fallacy. Mice do not scare them. They respond to the sound, not the movement of a mouse. Although they do have good memories, the idea that an elephant never forgets is misunderstood. It actually refers to never forgetting someone who has caused injury. They have been known to seek revenge if the opportunity presented itself. There are also no elephant graveyards, special places where elephants go to die. These talks are very mystical and symbolic. Elephants do show interest in the dead and the dying, even going so far as to display sorrow.
The elephant has a most auspicious symbolism. They embody strength and power, especially power of the libido. Male elephants are more likely to rage out of control when in rut. Because of this, the elephant is seen as a symbol of great sexual power.
Because of their size, color, and shape, elephants and clouds have been linked together. They were seen as symbols of clouds, and many believed that elephants created the clouds. Those with an elephant totem should study the symbolism and significance of clouds. In general, they are symbols of the mist that separates the formed worlds from the unformed. They have been associated with Neptune, prophecy, fertility, and even family. Because they are always in a state of metamorphosis, they can reflect the same for those with the elephant totem.
One of the most outstanding features of the elephant is its trunk. Because the elephant has relatively poor eyesight, it relies heavily upon its sense of smell. It breathes smells in through the trunk and discerns from the smells. The sense of smell is a longtime symbol for higher forms of discrimination. Those with an elephant totem should pay attention to what smells good and what smells bad. Are you not discriminating as you should? Are others? Does something smell funny? Are you not responding, even though things don’t smell right?
For those with an elephant totem, working with incense and fragrant oils can be a powerful and effective tool. Aromatherapy should be studied and used. Oils and fragrances will enable you to shift your consciousness most effectively.
The sense of smell is also strongly connected to sexual drive. It is one of the most powerful stimulants. Smells may become an aphrodisiac for those with this totem. It can be a powerful means of seducing or being seduced. This further enhances the symbol of the elephant as a sexual symbol. …Again, it reflects that through the increased sensitivity of smell that the elephant stimulates, you can open to energies and worlds otherwise inaccessible.
The tusks are another important part of the elephant. Unfortunately, poachers kill an outrageous number of African elephants simply to cut off the tusks of ivory. For anyone with an elephant totem, the significance of ivory from a spiritual and metaphysical aspect should be examined. The tusks are used as weapons and tools for digging edible roots. This gives the elephant links to things beneath and above the earth – a knowledge of plants and roots.
The elephant society is divided by age and gender. Cows and calves live in all female herds led by a wise old cow. This reflects the ancient tradition of three forms of the feminine energies in life – the child, the mother, and the old wise woman. These three forms have been found in most societies in which mystery teachings of life and the universe exist.
Elephants show great affection and loyalty to each other. Older calve s will help younger siblings. Grown elephants will help sick or wounded comrades. In the elephant are the ideals of true societies.
Those who have the elephant as totem will usually find themselves in a position where the opportunity to reestablish powerful family and societal ideals will occur. Mutual care of the young, respect for the elderly and the sick, being strong in your own self – these are the foundations of a great person or a great society. If the elephant has come to you, you will have the opportunity to work toward establishing this within your own life or the lives of others. If elephant has come to you, prepare to draw upon the most ancient of wisdom and power. You will have an opportunity to either help yourself or others reclaim your most primordial royalty.
Elk as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The elk is one of the most regal animals of North America. It is powerful and strong. At one time it was found all across North America, but by the late 1800s it was wiped out in the eastern United States. Today it is protected, and the western mountains provide range and refuge for it.
The Shawnee Indians named this animal wapiti, which is probably a more appropriate name. White settlers gave it the name of elk, calling it after a European relative which actually more resembled the moose.
The elk is an animal of great strength, power and stamina. It can run at a fast trotting pace for extended periods of time.
One of its primary defenses is to outrun its predators. Elk can sustain a strong pace for great lengths of time. If an elk has come into your life it can mean that you are about to hit your stride. Elk may also have shown up to teach you how to pace yourself more effectively. Have you been overdoing? Have others around you? Have you given up or thought about giving up too soon? Are you not pursuing things enough? Are you trying for the quick and easy when the long and steady will be most effective for you right now? An elk takes four to five years to reach maturity. If you have started new projects or tasks recently, you may need to give them four to five years to see them reach the peak of success.
An elk is in its power time during the fall. This is its rutting season. Except during the season of rut, elks stay with their own gender-males with males, females with females. Sometimes elk will show up as a totem to remind us that we need to have the company of the opposite sex occasionally for balance. Have you been neglecting your need to relate to others of the opposite sex? Are you keeping company of just one gender-to the neglect of the other? Have you been spending too much time with the opposite sex and not enough with your own?
The neck of the male swells during the rutting season and its bugle call sounds throughout the area. It is a way of declaring territory and affirming the relationship with the cows of the species. The neck is a bridge area, a point of crossing over. We all need the company of the opposite gender. It does not have to be a sexual relationship but simply spending time with them helps in balancing and bridging our own energies to higher levels.
Few elk are ever loners or solitary. They congregate and live in herds, staying mostly with their own gender. If elk has shown up, it may reflect a need for companionship or group support in some fashion. Herds of elk usually have watchouts. These elk will sound alarms through long whistles (bugling) and through raising and revealing a large rump patch. There is always a group interaction occurring. Sometimes elk will show up to teach us how to live cooperatively in herds or groups. Are you trying to do everything by yourself? Are others? Do you feel as if you have the strength and energy to handle all tasks alone?
Elk even make use of babysitters. One or two will take charge of the young, while the others wander for food. If threatened, they will defend the young with sharp hoofs. It is the young that are most vulnerable, and elk and moose are both extremely protective. Parents with elk totems can be very protective and fierce in defense of any possible threat, imagined or real. The most common predators are the mountain lion and grizzly, although coyotes will often group hunt. As long as it is a healthy adult, the elk can usually outrun its predators. This is not so with the young and the sick, but this is how the herd stays strong. A study of the elk’s predators will provide further insight into the kind of energies likely to be manifesting within your life.
Elk eat mostly grasses and vegetation. They do not migrate much. Their fur is thick and heavy and they can withstand the severe cold. If the weather is extremely bad, with very heavy snows, they may spend the winter in the foothills where vegetation is more accessible.
Anyone working with elk medicine would do well to hold to a predominantly vegetarian diet. The energy levels will be stronger, the stress levels will be lessened and the stamina will increase. If you find yourself becoming sluggish, call upon elk medicine. Adjust your diet, and in just two to three days you will notice a considerable difference in your overall energy levels.
Frog as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The frog is our most recognizable amphibian. Though often confused with toads, there is a distinct difference. Frogs are associated with water, while toads are always found on dry land. Frogs have a smooth surface, and toads have a bumpy skin surface. Toads also have glands (parotoid) on the side of the head which make a thick mucous that is poisonous. Frogs do not.
Frogs have an ancient mythology about them. Being amphibians with links to the water and the land, they are often associated with the magic of both elements. This also links them to the lore of fairies and elves. Many shamanic societies – especially North and South American – link the frog with rain and control of the weather. Its voice is said to call forth the rains.
Because of its connection to water, it is also linked to lunar energies (the moon moves the tides of waters upon the planet) and those goddesses associate with the moon. The frog was an animal attributed to the Egyptian goddess Herit, who assisted Isis in her ritual for resurrecting Osiris.
Frogs have been known to be heralds of abundance and fertility, especially since in their polliwog stage, they resemble the male spermatozoa. This is also due to the fact that, after rains, a greater number of frogs come up to dry land and feed on insects and worms who have come out of the rain -soaked land. It is also associated with fertility, for rain makes things grow.
…If frog has hopped into your life, you may need to get in touch with the water element. It may reflect that there are new rains coming or that you need to call some new rains forth. Maybe the old waters are becoming dirty and stagnant. Frog can teach you how to clean them up.
Emotions are often associated with water. Individuals with frog totems are very sensitive to the emotional states of others, and seem to know instinctively how to act and what to say. They know how to be sincerely sympathetic.
Frog holds the knowledge of weather and how to control it. Frog medicine can bring rains for every purpose – to cleanse, to heal, to help things grow, to flood, to stir. Its energies can be used to bring light showers or downpours for most any purpose.
The call of the frog is the call of the waters. The spring and summer are the times when frog’s voice is strongest. These are its power times. Its call serves a variety of functions. It calls mates to it. It also serves as a release call for nonreceptive females. It defines its territory, and it warns of predators.
The frog it a totem of metamorphosis. It is a symbol of coming into one’s own creative power. It changes from an egg, to a polliwog, to a frog. Even after it becomes a frog, it lives close to and spends much time in the water. It always has contact with the creative force out of which it came. Usually frog people have strong ties to their own mothers.
This connection to water should also serve as a reminder to those with this totem. Are you becoming too mundane? Are you becoming mired in the mud of your day-to-day life? Are you needing to dive into some fresh creative water? Are those around you? Are you feeling waterlogged, becoming bogged down, or drowning in emotions?
Frogs are tuned keenly to sound. Over each ear canal is a round membrane, a tympanic organ, which enables them to recognize and respond to certain sounds and their locations. Science has known for a long time that water is one of the best conductors of sound. This sensitivity to sound should be developed by frog people. Their taste in music will probably not run mainstream, but they can learn to use their voice to stir the emotions and to call for the rains or change the climatic conditions of their own lives.
Giraffe as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The Giraffe is the tallest of all mammals. Although not a native of this continent, it is worth discussing as many people all over the world experience the giraffe as a totem. This tallness enables them to see great distances. This has ties to foreseeing events that are to come.
The most outstanding features of the giraffe are, of course, the long thin legs and the slender and long
necks. The neck is their most outstanding feature. As I have mentioned in regard to several other animals, the neck has great symbolism. It is the point of connection between the head and the trunk, the upper and the lower. It is the bridge. All bridges help us to cross over into new realms and new perceptions. The long neck, in combination with the giraffe’s exceptionally keen eyesight, makes it a powerful totem for farsightedness and for seeing what lies on the horizon for you.
The throat and neck are also associated with expression and communication. The giraffe makes no noise other than an occasional snort. It can moo and bleat, bust most of its communication occurs through body language. If the giraffe is your totem, are you saying things you shouldn’t? Are you not saying things that you should? Are you allowing others to speak inappropriately or allowing their words to affect yourself?
If a giraffe has come into your life, ask yourself some important questions. Are you seeing what lies ahead of you? Are you afraid to look ahead? Are you seeing other people’s perspective? Do you allow other’s refusal to see your own perspective affect your life? Are you seeing the consequences of your thoughts, words, and deeds? The giraffe can help you in answering these questions.
The long thin legs of the giraffe are symbolic as well. Legs enable us to move. They are symbols of balance and represent an ability to progress. With the giraffe, you have your legs and feet on the ground and your head in the sky.
Are you resisting moving into new areas you see for yourself? Are you resisting change? Are you afraid of the future? The giraffe can show you the future and how best to move toward it. When running, the legs and the neck of the giraffe work together, reminding us that it is not enough to see the future, but you must move toward it as well. The giraffe can teach how to do this most gracefully.
The giraffe has a dainty head which reflects a lot of its social character. Giraffes like each other’s company. The strongest ties among giraffes are between the mother and her baby. Giraffe people usually have strong family relationships and friendships, as well.
On the head of the giraffe are horns that are unlike any other animals. These blunt, long stubs are never shed, and they are covered with skin. As has been mentioned, horns and antlers are symbols of antennae for higher mental faculties and perceptions. With the giraffe, there are actually three horns. The third actually looks more like a lump under the skin, but it is located just above the eyes. This placement is very significant as this is the area of the body associated with the third or inner eye – the seat of higher intuition. This only serves to reinforce the farsighted perception that the giraffe and its energies can awaken within you.
Hawk as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
(Excerpt only)
Hawks are one of the most intriguing and mystical of the birds of prey. They are the messengers, the protectors, and the visionaries of the air. Hawks and owls have the keenest eyes of all raptors.
We do not have the space to explore all the characteristics of every hawk, but we will examine one species more closely. That species is the most numerous member of the hawk family, the red-tailed. It is named for the distinctive coloring on its tail feathers. Only the mature red-tails have this coloring. The immature also have lighter colored eyes, distinguishing them from their more mature relatives.
Hawks are occasionally harassed and attacked by smaller birds. This is very significant for those of you who have a hawk as totem. It indicates that there are likely to be attacks by people who won’t understand you or the varied and different uses of your creative energy. They may attack your ability to soar.
The red-tailed hawk is usually a permanent resident in an area, although occasionally it may migrate. This permanency reflects that as a totem, this hawk will be with your permanently once it shows up. [Hawks] can live up to 14 years in the wild.
This “14” is significant. The 14th card in the tarot deck is the card for Temperance. This is the card that represents the teaching of higher expressions of psychism and vision. It can be used in the development of astral projection – new flights out of the body. It has ties to the activation of your vital energies (kundalini), and the bold expression of it. It is tied to the archetypal forces that teach beauty and harmony in moderation. It holds the keys to higher levels of consciousness.
Rising to a higher level can bring a rapid development of the psychic energies. The reed-tailed haw helps us in balancing and using those senses appropriately. It teaches the balance necessary to discover our true purpose in life. If you have a red-tailed hawk as a totem, meditation on the 15th tarot card will help you to see how this hawk will lead you to use your creative energy in manifesting your soul purpose.
The red of the red-tail reflects a greater intensity of energy at play within your life. It reflects an intensity of physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual forces. This bird is the catalyst, stimulating hope and new ideas. It reflects a need to be open to the new or shows you ways that you many help teach others to be open to the new.
To the Pueblo, the red-tailed hawk was known as red eagle. Its feathers and energies were used in healing ceremonies and for bringing the rains and waters necessary for life. To the Ojibwa, the red-tailed hawk represented leadership, deliberation, and foresight. “Hawk is akin to Mercury, the messenger of the gods. Haw medicine teaches you to be observant…Life is sending you signals.9” The red-tail can spread its wings to great width, and it can teach you to use your creative energies in the same way. It can extend the vision of your life.
Because of the strong energy (the intensified life-force) activated by this totem, an individual with it must be careful in how they express themselves.
There will unfold within you the ability to tear off the heads of any snakes in your life, or anyone or anything seen as an enemy. Your comments and actions will be like the hawk’s beak and talons - strong and powerful, but with a capability to tear and/or kill.
…The red-tail and its color phases also help us to guard against blazing so brightly and intensely that we get burnt out.
The sky is the realm of the hawk. Through it s flight, it communicates with humans and with the greater creator spirit. It awakens our vision and inspires us to a creative life purpose.
9 Repreinted from Medicine Cards by Jamie Sams and David Carson, copyright 1988, Bear and Company, Inc., P.O. Drawer 2860, Santa Fe, NN 87504.
Lion as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The lion is the second largest member of the cat family. The traits of cats should be studied in general, for the lion embodies many of them. It makes its home on the savannas of Africa, and those with this totem would do well to study the significance of the savannas. The lion’s main prey is the antelope and this should be studied, as well.The lion is unusual among members of the cat family in that it will live in groups called prides. If a lion has shown up as a totem, you can expect lessons and issues dealing with community and groups to surface. There may be a need to examine your own role in the group.
Within the pride, the females are the best hunters. Although most lions are clumsy hunters by themselves, they have developed n excellent cooperative hunting technique. The females, though, do most of the hunting and the rearing of the cubs. The lion cubs lead a relatively care-free existence. Their parents are patient and affectionate with the cubs, and most individuals with lions as totems will find those same qualities developing within themselves.
The males are most noticeable by their large mane. They do very little work. They can be passionate and excessively jealous of the lionesses. They protect the pride against predators. When hunting, they use their roar to scare prey toward the waiting lioness. If a male lion has shown up as your totem, you may need to examine your usefulness within some group or community in your life. Do you need to do more than you are? Do you need to be more protective? Do you need to cooperate more?
The lion does not fight for the sake of fighting. It avoids confrontations, and will leave the scene of danger if possible. This is a tactic to keep in mind if the lion is your totem. Lions also hunt primarily by stealth, and the most common method of killing it is by strangulation. This technique is something for those with this totem to practice developing when pursuing new endeavors and objectives in any area of life. Be stealthy for the greatest success.
The idea of the young lion being associated with the rising sun is most significant. Since the females of the pride do most of the work, it actually reflects the idea of the rising of the feminine energies. The sun has not always been a masculine symbol. It does give birth to new days, and it nurtures and warms life. Thus, it is not stretching the correlation to see the lion as the assertion of feminine energies to bring forth birth and new power.
When a lion has shown up, there will be opportunity to awaken to a new sun. Trust your feminine energies - creativity, intuition, and imagination. There will add new sunshine to your life. Don’t be afraid to roar if you feel threatened or intruded upon.
Owl as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
No bird has as much myth and mystery surrounding it than the owl. Most perception of it are confused. It is not unusual to get contrary opinions of the owl. It has an ancient aura of mystery about it. Part of this is because it is a nocturnal bird and nighttime has always seemed mysterious to humans.
The owl is a symbol of the feminine, the moon, and the night. It has been called a cat with wings. It has been worshiped as an idol and hated as the reincarnation of the devil. It has been believed to have great healing powers, both in North American and on other continents. Because of its association with the moon, it has ties to fertility and seduction, for the moon is the arouser of men and owls. The owl is the bird of magic and darkness, of prophecy and wisdom. To the ancient Greeks, the owl was associated with the goddess Athena, and it was a symbol of higher wisdom. It was the guardian of the Acropolis. To the early Christian Gnostics, it is associated with Lilith, the first wife of Adam, who refused to be submissive to him. To the Pawnee, it was a symbol of protection. To the Ojibwa, it was a Symbol of evil and death. To the Pueblo, it was associated with the Skeleton Man, the god of death, but who was also a spirit of fertility. “Owl medicine is symbolically associated with clairvoyance, astral projection, and magic, both black and white.
Many superstitions and beliefs have come to be associated with it. Owls have been thought of as the reincarnation o the dead. In Wales, the owl has come to be associated with fertility. If heard near a pregnant girl, it indicates an easy birth. The most predominant is that of the owl being able to extract secrets. It was believed in ancient Rome that to place a feather or part of an owl on a sleeping person would enable you to discover his/her secrets. This is all tied to one of its keynotes, especially when we look at its acute vision and hearing.
The owl is a bird of the night, and the night has long been a symbol of the darkness within – the place in which humans hide their secrets. The owl has great vision and hearing. They can adjust in an instant from telescopic to microscopic focus. The pupils respond in a fraction of a second to very minute changes in light intensity. The owl’s eyes are specially adapted to detect subtle movements. They also have extra light-sensitive cones and rods in the retina to help with this. The yellow coloring of the eyes is very symbolic. It makes the eyes much more expressive, but it hints of the light of the sun, alive in the dark of the night. The sun lives through the owl at night. Meditation on this alone will reveal much about the magic of the owl within your life. Contrary to popular belief, the owl can see very well during the daylight. It is just more effective and more accurate at night.
One who works with Owl medicine will be able to see and hear what others try to hide. You will hear what is not being said, and you will see what is hidden or in the shadows. You can detect and pinpoint the subtleties. This can make others uncomfortable because they will not be able to deceive you about their motives or actions. Owl people have a unique ability to see into the darkness of others’ souls and life. This is very scary to most people. This vision and hearing capabilities has metaphysical links to the gifts of clairvoyance and clairaudience as well.
The owl, as a bird of the night, can teach all of the secrets of the night. The secrets involve everything that transpires when the Sun is gone. Owls are the eyes of the night, and they see what is not in the open. They have secret knowledge that they can share. Their medicine can extract secrets.
Like humans, they blink by closing the upper eyelids, giving them a human expression which has added to the mysticism of howls. Unlike humans though, their eyes cannot move. Their neck is flexible, giving them a wide range of peripheral vision. They cannot turn their heads completely around, but they do move it so quickly that it gives that appearance. The symbolism of the neck and its flexibility should be medicated upon for those with owl medicine. If your neck is stiff and inflexible, you are hindering your perceptions to a great degree.
The owl, like hawks and other birds of prey, has a third eyelid. This nictating eyelid moves from side to side. It cleanses the eye, clearing its vision. Again, this symbolizes so much about new vision opening to you. It often reflects that you were born very perceptive – with vision of others that you may or may not have recognized or acknowledged. Often those with an owl as power totem have a unique ability for seeing into the eyes and souls of others. Often, these perceptions are discarded as wild imaginings or with such phrases as, “Why in the world would I think that about this person?” These kinds of imaginings, positive and negative, should be trusted.
Pigeon as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The pigeon is an unusual bird. Although most people think of it as a pest in the city environment, it has very unique characteristics. It is also tied to very gentle and loving archetypal energies.
Today, the word “dove” and “pigeon” are used interchangeably. Although there is a difference, the two species are related. It would be wise for anyone with a pigeon as a totem to study the characteristics of the dove, as well.
The pigeon has a long history associated with the home and with fertility. The real name of Christopher Columbus was “Colombo” which is the Italian word for “pigeon”. Columbus helped discover a new home. The pigeon also has an extraordinary homing sense. It knows how to find its way back home, no matter how far it has gone.
It is because of this that they are often symbols for a time or need to return to the security of home. Pigeons can teach us how to find our way back when we are lost. They help us to remember and find the love of home and home life that we have either given up or lost. They are the only bird that can drink by sucking up water into their beaks. This reflects that ability to draw on the energies of home, no matter how distant.
They are reminders to us to remember that which has positively affected us from our early home life. Have we forgotten who we are? Are we falling into old patterns we vowed to remember and change? Have we forgotten our basic foundations, the heritage we have had passed on to us through home and family? This includes the morals, the behaviors, the attitudes, etc. Draw upon them and use them.
Because they breed rapidly, and publicly, pigeons came to be sacred symbols for fertility gods and goddesses. They reflect the fertility of home and family that can occur when they are around. Pigeons will huddle together during a storm. If there are storms in your life, huddle with your family – biological or otherwise. There will be safety and security in that activity. Remember that pigeons remind us of the possibilities, real and ideal, associated with home and family.
Possum as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
Opossum teaches us how to use appearances. Sometimes it is necessary to “play dead”. Sometimes it is necessary to put up a particular front to succeed most easily and effectively. This is what the medicine of opossum can teach. It also can show you when others are putting up false fronts and deceptions. Opossum has an archetypal energy that helps us to use appearances to our greatest benefit and that helps us to recognize when others are creating false impressions. Opossum can help us learn to divert attention or to get attention any way we need.
Sometimes it is necessary to behave or act in a strategic manner. We may need to appear fearful or fearless in spite of how we truly feel. We may need to show submission or aggression. We may need to be apathetic or extremely caring. Opossum is the supreme actor, and those in the acting field or that need to learn something of it can do no better than to work with the opossum.
The opossum is a nocturnal animal. It is the only marsupial on the North American continent. Marsupials are animals that raise their young in a pouch on the abdomen. When the young are born, they are blind, but they are still able to climb up into the pouch immediately after birth. There they stay for about one month.
During the spring, I often stop and check opossums hit and on the road. There may be young in the pouch if it is a female opossum. The young can life for a while in the pouch even after the mother has died, but only for a short while.
In the pouch are located the nipples. Most opossums have 13 nipples. In a litter, there can be many more than thirteen young, but only thirteen will be able to survive. This number is very symbolic. Although many associate it with bad luck, it is also a symbol for the one great sun around which the twelve signs of the zodiac revolve. It is a symbol of the sun within.
The pouch, especially in regard to the opossum’s defense of “Playing dead”, links it to the ability to help us draw from our own bag of tricks that which will most benefit us. It can show you which appearance to draw from the pouch to use for the greatest success. The milk of the mother is rich in calcium, as young opossums need high concentrations of it. Those with this totem should examine their own calcium levels.
The playing dead that the opossum is famous for is a self-induced state of shock. The pulse becomes minimal. The heartbeat slows. A musk scent of death is released, and for appearances, it will seem dead. The opossum can enter and leave this state abruptly – pretty much at will. This act serves to confuse many predators. The surprise distracts them, and the possum is able to make its escape. It is this kind of flexibility and ease of appearance that the opossum can teach to those with it as a totem.
When opossum shows up as a totem, ask yourself some important questions:
- Are you acting or about to act in an inappropriate manner?
- Do you need to strengthen your own appearance?
- Are others putting up false appearances in front of you?
- Do you need to divert attention away from some activity:
- Are others trying to divert your attention?
- Is it time to go into your bag of tricks and pull out some new strategy?
Learning to pretend and act in ways and with realism is the magic that opossum teaches.
Rabbit as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The rabbit is an animal whose essence and energy is a paradox. It is found in both myth and folklore and, depending upon the society, it was perceived in a variety of ways. In Greek mythology, it was associated with the goddess Hecate. In Egyptian hieroglyphics, it is associated with the concept of being. The ancient Hebrews considered it unclean because it was lascivious (Deuteronomy 14:7). “Among the Algonquin Indians, the Great Hare is the animal-demiurge”.
In China, it is one of the twelve astrological signs. It was considered a most fortunate sign, giving those born under it the ability to possess the powers of the moon. Hare individuals are considered sensitive and artistic. The hare is imbued with ambition, finesses, and virtue, along with living on the moon.
The rabbit is known for its ability to procreate, its fleetness, its ability to make great leaps and hops. It moves primarily by hops and leaps, and individuals with this totem find that their endeavors do so as well. All of these characteristics are significant for those with this totem.
The rabbit is found mostly in thickets and tall grasses. It is active both day and night, but is most visible at dawn and dusk. These are times long associated with the Faerie Realm of life, and because of this, the rabbit is often seen as an animal that can lead one unknowingly into the Faerie Realm. The most common example of this is found in Lewis Carroll’s story of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, in which Alice follows a white rabbit down a hole into a wondrous world of adventure.
Rabbits and mice are the two most common prey animals. Because of this, Nature compensates them with a tremendous fertility. Rabbits can have between two and five litters of young per year, usually with three to six young per litter. It is because of this that the rabbit has long been a symbol for sexuality and fertility.
The mother only feeds the young in the morning and in the evening. She spends the rest of the day away from the nest, feeding herself. This is a protective gesture for the young so as not to draw attention to them. Unfortunately, many people come across baby rabbits while the mother is away, and they assume they are abandoned. People then proceed to move the young.
Within one month, 28 days, the young are able to be out on their own. They can stay in the nest, but they can survive on their own. If a new litter arrives, the mother will kick the old litter out. This 28-day period again reinforces the lunar connection with the rabbit. Usually, if a rabbit totem shows up, you will begin to see a cycle of 28 days beginning to manifest in your life.
The two most common rabbis are the cotton tail and the jackrabbit. The ears of the cottontail are shorter than the jackrabbit, and its coat stays the same all year round. The fur of the jackrabbit will lighten or even turn white in the winter. Both animals can leap and hop. Those with rabbit totems will see movement occur in their life in varying degrees of leaps and hops. It won’t be a steady step-by-step movement. The leaps and hops do not usually take more than the cycle of one moon (28 days) to occur.
Although some associated fear with the rabbit, it has wonderful abilities for defense. Those with this totem would do well to apply them to their own life. Rabbits often create forms to use for hiding and resting. To create a form, the rabbit scratches a shallow bowl into the earth or grass that is open in front and in back to enable it to escape if necessary. Rabbit people should plan for possibilities. If a rabbit has shown up, it may indicate a need to do some more planning or check those you have already set in motion. You do not want to box yourself into a corner. Rabbits have a knack for avoiding being seen. They can freeze, holding perfectly still. They know that movement can be detected from great distances by many predators. If you are involved in competition – in work or in play – it will be important not to foreshadow your moves.
Rabbits are also clever at doubling back, making quick and rapid turns. If they need to flee, they can be extremely fast. Learning to shift from freezing to great speed is something all with this totem should learn. It will aid your success and enable you to take advantage of opportunities that may only present themselves for brief moments.
Rabbits are vegetarians. Those with this totem may need to examine the kinds of foods being consumed. For the greatest health and healing, a vegetarian diet, even if only temporary, will strengthen and heal.
Rabbit can show you how to recognize the signs around you. It can help you to attune to the lunar cycle and recognize the tides of movement within your life. This in turn will enable you to become even more fertile in your life.
Raccoon As Spirit Guide
Animal Speak - Ted Andrews
Raccoons are fascinating animals. They are distantly related to the bear, and thus it should be studied as well by anyone with this totem. The raccoon is one of the most adaptable animals and, in spite of encroachment on its’ natural habitat, it is even able to live within the city.
Raccoons are fascinated by water. They like to slosh their hands and their food in it. This has given rise to the belief they never eat anything without washing it first. Actually, water increases the sensitivity of the raccoon’s hands, and they can feel their food better.
The raccoon will eat almost anything available. It will captured small prey, but it usually eats mostly vegetables and fruit. This is something that those with this totem should also keep in mind.
Raccoons are extremely curious, which is partly why they often get into things they shouldn’t. They love to explore. Their nocturnal excursions can be likened to mini-adventures. They can be very curious about new realms, and will examine anything that fascinates them.
One of the most striking features of the raccoon is the mask that it wears. Although some associate this with thievery, it actually gives the raccoon a very powerful mystical symbolism. The use of masks to achieve altered states and for other healing and ritual purposes has been a part of every society. Mask making is an ancient art employed all over the world for ceremony, celebration, and in magical practices.
Concealed behind a mask, people could become something or someone else. We can become whatever we want by wearing masks. Masks are invested with mystery. They are tools for transformation. The hidden aspect, the secrecy, helps promote the transformation. It helps us to change what we are to what we want to be giving us magic.
Just as there is with the raccoon, with masks there is ambiguity and equivocation. When we wear a mask, we are no longer who we thought. We make ourselves one with some other force. We create a doorway in the mind and ion the physical world, a threshold that we can cross to new dimensions and new being-ness.
This is the magic of raccoon. It is an expert at disguise and secrecy. It knows how to wear masks for a variety of purposes. It can teach you how to mask and disguise and transform yourself. Each must develop the relationship with the raccoon in their own unique way, but raccoon medicine can teach you how to become dexterous in the masks you wear. It can show you how to wear a healing mask, or show you the face you shall become. The raccoon holds the knowledge of how to change our faces.
Raven as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The raven is one of those birds that has a tremendous amount of lore and mythology surrounding it, and it is often contradictory. It is a bird of birth and death, and it is a bird of mysticism and magic.
In the near East, the raven was considered unclean – because it is a scavenger. It is one of the foods listed as forbidden in the Bible. The raven is one of the birds that Noah sent out after the floods, but it did not return to the ark. On the other hand, also in Biblical lore is the tale of how a raven fed the prophet Elijah when hiding from King Ahab.
In Scandinavian lore, the raven played a significant role. The Norse god Odin had a pair of ravens who were his messengers. Their names were Hugin (thought) and Munin (memory). Odin was known to shapeshift as a raven himself. This reflects the idea of raven being a messenger of the great spiritual realm.
The raven has a long history of being an omen. During the Middle Ages, the croak of the raven was believed to foretell a death for the outcome of a battle. It was even taught to the common fok in Christian communities that wicket priests became ravens when they died. Even today, some old timers tell how you can expect hot weather when a raven is seen facing a clouded sun.
The raven is a member of the corvid family, to which belong crows and magpies and other such birds. In truth, the only really significant difference between the crow and the raven is in size, the raven being much larger. It would be beneficial to study the information on the crow for anyone who has a raven as a totem. Much of the same information that applies to one, also applies to the other. It is simply a matter of degree. Rather than repeat that information here, I would like to give you some information not generally associated with the crow itself.
The raven has a wealth of myth and lore surrounding it. In many ways it is comparable to the coyote tales of the plains Indians, the Bushmen talks of the mantis, and other societies in which an animal plays both a significant and yet confusing role. The coyote was both trickster and wise being – fool and wise one. This was true of the mantis in the tales of the Kalahari Bushmen.
In the Pacific Northwest, the raven has the same aura about him. In the Pacific Northwest, the raven brought forth life and order. Raven stole the sunlight from one who would keep the world in darkness. Nothing could exist without raven. Raven is honored in art and on totem poles, reflecting the tales and mysticism that have developed around it.
With raven, human and animal spirits intermingle and becomes as one. This is reflected in its deep, rich shiny black. In blackness, everything mingles until drawn forth out into the light. Because of this, raven can help you shapeshift your life or your being. Raven has the knowledge of how to become other animals and how to speak their languages.
Ravens are great at vocalizations, and they can be taught to speak. They incorporate and mimic the calls of other species. IN the Northwest are tales of the Kwakiutl Indians who offered the afterbirth of male newborns to Raven so that when they grew up, they would understand their cries. Raven can teach you to understand the language of animals.
Ravens are playful and they are excellent tool users. They will use stones and anything else that is available to help them crack nuts and such. They are birds not intimidated by others, and they are very fast and wary. Because of this, they are not easy prey for other animals or birds. This implies the ability to teach you how to stir the magic of life without fear.
They are also known for their amorous behavior, reflecting the strong creative life force to which they have access.
This creative lie force can be used to work the magic of spiritual laws upon the physical plane. It can be used to go into the void and stir the energies to manifest that which you most need. All this and more is what raven teaches. If raven has come into your life, expect magic. Somewhere in your life, magic is at play. Raven activates the energy of magic, linking it with your will and intention.
Raven speaks of the opportunity to become the magician and/or enchantress of your life. Each of us has a magician within, and it is Raven which can show us how to bring that part of us out of the dark and into the light. Raven speaks of messages from the spirit realm that can shapeshift your life dramatically. Raven teaches how to take that which is unformed and give it the form you desire.
The winter solstice and winter season are the time of greatest power for those with the raven as a totem. The solstice is the shortest day of the year. The sun shines the least on this day, thus it is the darkest. From that day forth, the light shines a little more each day. This is symbolic of the influence of raven. It teaches how to go into the dark and bring forth the light. With each trip in, we develop the ability to bring more light out. This is creation.
Snake as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
Of all the reptiles – and maybe even all animals – the snake has been the subject of great controversy and paradox. Religious sources argue over whether it is the symbol of the higher or the lower. Sometimes seen as devil and sometimes as healer, it is an animal that truly has earned the mythical reputation.
In the Americas, the snake served as a prominent symbol in art and lore. To the Native Americans, the snake is a symbol of transformation and healing. Snake ceremonies involved learning to transmute the poisons within the body after being bitten multiple times. Survival of this would then enable the induvial to transmute all poisons – physical or otherwise. It activated the energy of kill or cure, ultimately leading to dramatic healings.
In the Meso-American societies, the serpent or snake was depicted as feathered and flying. It was a symbol of their greatest god and hero, Quetzalcoatl. Quetzalcoatl’s story is the myth of a dying god who would someday return. In many ways, he was the patron god of the Toltecs and it was said that the heavens and stars and all the motions of the universe were under his dominion. “He was the master of the winds and of the clouds and the protecting genius of his people.”
In Greece, the snake was also a symbol of alchemy and healing. The god Hermes carried a staff upon which were entwined two snakes. This caduceus symbol is the primary symbol of modern medicine and doctors. It is a symbol of wisdom expressed through healing.
In India, the goddess Vinata was the mother of snakes and a symbol of water and the underworld. Also in India, there were demigods, Nagas and their beautiful wives, Naginis, who were usually depicted as half cobra and half deity. The god Vishnu is often depicted sleeping on the serpent of eternity called Ananta. Shiva wears snakes for bracelets and necklaces, representing sexuality.
The serpent and snake have long been a symbol of the sexual / creative life force within humans as is taught in Eastern traditions. The kundalini or serpent fire lies coiled at the base of the spine. As we grow and develop, the primal energy is released, rising up the spine. This in turn activates energy centers in the body and the mind, opening new dimensions and levels of awareness, health, and creativity.
In Chinese astrology, one of every 12 years is named for the snake. Those born within that year are believed to have the qualities of compassion, clairvoyance, and charm. They usually need to learn lessons associated with forgiveness, superstitiousness, and passiveness as well. A study of Chinese astrology will help you with this.
In Egypt, the snake has also had mystical significance. The uraeus is a head band in the shape of the snake. The head of the snake rests and sticks out at the brow area. It was believed to represent a state of inner sight and control of the universe. It was a symbol worn by those who were initiated. Some believe it to be a variation of the eye of Horus, while others see it as the sacred eye of Ra. It represented a certain degree of wisdom and understanding.
Because it sheds its skin, the snake has long been a symbol of death and rebirth. It sheds its skin as it outgrows the old. This death and rebirth cycle is part of what snake represents. It has ties and significance to the ancient alchemists and their symbolic transmutation of lead into gold. This is associated with higher wisdom that comes with the passing of time. Th is cycle of death and rebirth is often symbolized by the ouroborus, the ancient image of a snake swallowing its own tail. It is the symbol of eternity.
Before the snake begins to shed its skin, its eyes will begin to cloud over. It gives the snake a trancelike appearance. To many mystics and shamans, this indicated the ability of the snake to move between the realms of the living and the dead, of crossing over from life to death and then back to life again. As the skin begins to shed, the eyes begin to clear as if they will see the world anew. For this reason, alchemists often believed that wisdom and new knowledge would lead to death and rebirth, enabling the individual to see the world from an entirely new perspective.
The snake has often been depicted, along with its relatives the serpent and dragon, as a guardian. It is found in myth and lore guarding treasures, the springs of life, or sacred places. The snake/serpent guarded the tree on which the golden fleece hung in the Greek tale of Jason and the Argonauts.
The snake is sinuous and fast. Although many people think of them as s limy, their skin is very dry. In fact, humans are slimier than snakes. If a human runs his or her hand on the floor, it will pick up dirt. A snake’s skin will not which is why it is able to slide and move in the manner it does.
A snake attacks quickly. It raises itself up and strikes quick, hard, and true to its mark. It is not unusual to find that those with this totem can respond the same way if need be. It is best not to anger snake people, although slow to lose their tempers, once lost, their bite is quick, sharp, and direct. They almost always hit their mark. They may end up swallowing you whole or just poisoning you in some way.
Any time a snake shows up as a totem, you can expect death and rebirth to occur in some area of your life. This rarely reflects an actual death, but rather a transition. Look for a change in conditions and a movement to new life. Examine what is going on around you. Are you needing to make changes but aren’t for some reason? Are you trying to force change too quickly? Are you striking out at people and shouldn’t? Are you not striking and should? Remember that a snake not only uses its venom and bite to overcome prey, but also for defense. What is needing to be healed? What new opportunities are surfacing that you need to strike out for and take advantage of?
It can also reflect that your own creative forces are awakening. The stimulation of the kundalini usually has physiological as well as spiritual consequences. Physiologically, it can activate the sexual drive, bring more energy, etc. Spiritually, it can stimulate greater perception of how to apply your insight and intuition. Your own vision and intuition will become more accurate.
To understand the specific role your snake totem will play within your life, first begin by examining the form it takes. This alone will tell you much. Every snake has a head, body, and tail, and there are a wide variety of snakes. Some are poisonous, almost all can bite, and some squeeze and strangle their prey by coiling around it. Examine your snakes markings, and the patterns of its scales. A diamond-back rattler is named for its pattern of scales. Examine the significance of geometric shapes. This will help you to define the role the snake will have in your life.
The rattlesnake, for example, moves around only during the cool hours of the night. Extreme heat is deadly to it. You may find for yourself that becoming more nocturnal would be of benefit. It has a sidewinding motion to its movement. It also has a special sense organ, a small pit in the head that reacts to heat put out by other creatures. This is how it senses its prey. On a symbolic level, this indicates for those with this totem an increasing sensitivity to the auras of others. You may start seeing them soon, but you will definitely start sensing them. Trust what you feel around others, no matter how strange it may seem.
Always examine some of the qualities and characteristics of the snake in general. Snakes are carnivorous. They swallow their prey whole. To be able to do this, their jaws will unhinge. The mouth is where we take in nutrition in the form of food. This unhinging ability of the snake reflects the increased ability for those with this totem to swallow and absorb greater amounts of nutrition for the head, i.e., knowledge. Learning opportunities, formal and informal, will surface frequently. Usually with a snake totem, there is little chance of overloading the brain circuits. You will be able to swallow and digest whatever you take in.
Some people have associated hypnotic qualities with the snake because of its stare. The unblinking stare occurs because the snake has no eyelids. Learning to use the eyes to mesmerize and look into the hearts and souls of others directly is part of what traditional snake medicine can teach. It may even indicate a need to look more closely into your own heart and soul.
Snakes have a keen sense of smell. They actually smell with their tongue, which is why it flicks in and out so much. Inside the mouth of the snake in the roof is an organ called the Jacobson’s organ. This organ enables the snake to assimilate the air around them. This organ helps them to taste the air and its odors, helping them to locate food sources.
The sense of smell is linked to higher forms of discrimination and spiritual idealism. Individuals with the snake totem will find themselves extremely sensitive to smells and fragrances. Aromatherapy may be a form of healing that is beneficial to explore. They should pay attention to what is going on around them. Do things really smell right around you? Make sure that you are very discriminating about what you say and to whom – and with what you involve yourself.
Snakes are symbols of change and healing. They have speed and agility, so those who have snakes come into their life will usually find the changes and shifts occur quickly and are soon recognized and defined. When snake comes into your life, you can look for a rebirth into new powers of creativity and wisdom.
Spider as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The spider has shown up in myth and lore throughout the world. Usually its symbolism has been very similar wherever it is used. In India, it was associated with Maya, the weaver of illusion. It has had connections to the Fates and Greek mythology and the Norns in Scandinavian lore – women who would weave, measure, and cut the threads of life. To the Native Americans, spider is grandmother, the link to the past and the future.
Unlike insects, spiders have a two-section body instead of three, often giving them a figure eight kind of appearance. This in conjunction with its eight legs (unlike an insects’ six) links it to all the mysticism associated with the geometric form of the figure eight. On its side, this is the symbol of infinity. It is the wheel of life, flowing from one circle to the next. The difficulty is learning to walk those circles or even hold your position within the middle between the two.
Spider teaches you to maintain a balance – between past and future, physical and spiritual, male and female. Spider teaches you that everything you now do is weaving what you will encounter in the future. In the tarot deck is a card – The Wheel of Fortune. This is a card that has to do with rhythms – the rise and fall, the low and flux. It is linked to the energies of rhythm of Nature. Meditation upon this card would be beneficial for anyone with the spider as totem.
The spider awakens creative sensibilities. It weaves a web of intricate and subtle fabric, as if to remind us that the past always subtly influences the present and the future. Often, the webs will take a spiral shape, the traditional form of creativity and development. The spider wound within the web reminds us that we are the center of our own world. The ancient mystery schools had one precept inscribed above their portals: “Know Thyself and Thou Shalt Know the Universe!” Spider reminds us that the world is woven around us. We are the keepers and the writers of our own destiny, weaving it like a web by our thoughts, feelings, and actions.
The spider, because of its characteristics, has come to be associated by mystics and in mythology with three predominant expressions of magic. The first is the magic and energy of creation. It is a symbol of creative power, reflected in its ability to spin a silken web. It is also associated with assertiveness of that creative force, of keeping the feminine energies of creation alive and strong. As will be discussed further, this has ties to the characteristics of some spiders, o.3., the female black widow, which will kill and eat the male after mating has exhausted it.
The third predominant magic of the spider is associated with its spiral energy, the links with the past and the future. The spiral of the web, converging at a central point, is something to be meditated upon by those with this totem. Are you moving towards a central goal, or are you scattered and going in multiple directions? Is everything staying focused? Are you becoming too involved and/or self-absorbed? Are you focusing on others’ accomplishments and not on your own? Are you developing resentment because of it – for yourself or them?
Spider is the guardian of the ancient languages and alphabets. Every society has had myths about how the different languages and alphabets were formed. The Chinese alphabet is attributed to Ts’ang Chien, the god with the dragon face and four eyes. He formed it from the patterns of the stars, the marks on the back o the turtle, and the footprints of birds in the sand. The Norse god Odin created the Runic alphabet after hanging upon the great tree of life for nine days and nights. After this time, the twigs fell off and spelled out certain formulas and words.
To many, there was an alphabet even more primordial. It was formed by the geometric patterns and angles found within spiders’ web. To many, this was the first true alphabet. This is why spider is considered the teacher of languages and the magic of writing. Those who weave magic with the written word probably have a spider totem.
The spider has long been associated with death and rebirth. Part of this may have to do with the fact that some female spiders will kill and eat the male after mating. This is often found in the insect world, the preying mantis being another such example. Because it is constantly building and weaving new webs, it has also been a lunar symbol, with ties to the waxing and waning of the moon. For those with this totem, this pattern is a reminder to maintain balance and polarity in all aspects of life. Spider teaches that through polarity and balance creativity is stimulated.
Books, movies, and television have had a tendency to promote a fear of spiders in the general public. Most spiders are poisonous. This is how they kill or stun their prey. They serve as vital unction in controlling insect populations.
The black widow probably has received the worst reputation undeservedly. It is found all over the United States. It is jet black, but has a red hour-glass shaped marking on the belly. It is a poisonous spider, but it is not fatal to humans as many assume. It is actually a very timid spider, and it is usually as much or more afraid of humans than they are of it.
Tarantulas are another common big spider that people are familiar with. The tarantella, a folk dance of Southern Italy, was named after the tarantula. They believed incorrectly that its bite caused convulsive movements in humans. The dance with its circular direction and quick foot movements was named for it.
The tarantula is one of the largest spiders, and it is hairy. Its mouth is underneath its body. Its bite is poisonous, as with most spiders, but it would not affect the average human any more than a bee sting. Tarantulas spin a thread, but they do not weave a web. They dig a burrow or a hole in the sand and hide in the bottom of it. As soon as they feel something walking around the opening, they will jump up, grab it, and pull it back in. That is how they catch their food.
Most spiders are actually very, very delicate. If you were holding a tarantula and dropped it, it would break and die. Spiders are a combination of gentleness and strength, and they have learned to combine both for successful survival. This is an important lesson for those with this totem.
As delicate as they are, spiders are also very agile. They can maintain balance and walk the tiny silken threads with ease. To walk the threads of life and maintain balance has been one of the mysteries throughout the ages. Myth and lore often speak of individuals who have learned to walk the threads between life and death – walking and sleeping - between the physical and the spiritual. This is part of what spider medicine can teach, for spiders are the experts at walking threads.
Most people have little or no contact with the bigger spiders, but they will often see a wide variety around the house and home. Many of these serve vital functions, killing more harmful insects. Most of their movement occurs in the dark, and they move into inaccessible areas. This reflects much about how to express the creative energies. Don’t be afraid to employ it in seemingly inaccessible corners. Weave your creative threads in the dark and then when the sun hits them, they will glisten with intricate beauty.
If spider has come into your life, as yourself some important questions:
- Are you not weaving your dreams and imaginings into reality?
- Are you not using your creative e opportunities?
- Are you feeling closed in or stuck as if in a web?
- Do you need to pay attention to your balance and where you are walking in life?
- Are others out of balance around you?
- Do you need to write?
- Are you inspired to write or draw and not following through?
Remember that spider is the keeper of knowledge of the primordial alphabet. Spider can teach how to use the written language with power and creativity so that your words weave a web around those who would read them.
Tiger as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
Tigers are magnificent and stir a feeling of awe in all who see them. There are a number of varieties of tigers – Bengal, Siberian, etc. – and each should be examined for its’ own characteristics. The information on cats and panthers should also be studied as there is often an overlap.
All tigers are known for their ferocity and their power. They are also excellent swimmers, unlike other large cats. This gives them ties to all the energies and mystical qualities so often associate with the element of water. All tigers also display great motherly devotion with their offspring. The mother raises the young and teaches them to hunt. Most tigers are solitary, and they come together usually only to mate. They also have immense territories.
The Siberian tiger is considered by many to be the most magnificent and most experts agree that this species of tiger originated in the northern part of East Asia. It would later migrate and evolve to live in warmer areas. The Siberian tiger is an untiring traveler. It can cover great distances in a single day. Tigers prey upon all types of animals, but wild boar is a frequent victim.
Tigers are nocturnal hunters. Individuals with this totem will find their most effective work accomplished at night. The traditional black and gold/orange patterning links the tiger to the mysticism surrounding the new and full moons.
The sleek and powerful muscles and the soft thick coat of the tiger stimulates thoughts of sensuality. All cats stretch languorously and rub up against other cats and objects. For those with this totem, there will be awakened a new sensuality, a sensitivity to touch.
There has always been a great deal of mysticism and mythology centered around the tiger. A study of these associations will help you to identify its role within your own life and possibly even past-life links to other parts of the world.
In Korea, the tiger is the king of beasts. In the Hindu tradition, the tiger was sacred to the goddess Kali, the goddess of creation and dissolution, of sexuality and death. In Greece, it was associated with the mythic character Dionysus, the twice-born.
In China, the tiger is both a symbol of darkness and the new moon, as well as brightness and the full moon. There are five mythic tigers in Chinese lore. The red tiger is a symbol of the south, summer, and fire. The black tiger is a symbol of the north, winter, and water. The blue tiger is a symbol of the east, spring, and vegetation. The white tiger is a symbol of the west, autumn, and all metals. The yellow tiger is supreme among all five. It is the ruler of the Earth and all energies upon it.
If a tiger has entered your life, you can expect new adventures. It will awaken new passion and power within life. Expect it to begin within 6-8 weeks and last for at least a year and a half. Examine what is going on in your life. Do you need more passion for life? Are you expressing your life passion inappropriate? Has your energy been down? If tiger has shown up, there will begin to manifest new adventures and renewed devotion and passion for life.
Turtle As Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
As a group, turtles are more ancient than any other vertebrate animal. There are around 250 kinds, 48 of which are found in the United States. Turtles are usually distinguished from tortoises in that tortoises are landbound. Turtles live in and around the water.
A great deal of mythology exists in regard to the turtle. In the Far East, the shell was a symbol of heaven, and the square underside was a symbol of earth. The turtle was an animal whose magic could help you unite heaven and earth within your own life. A symbol of the turtle was an invitation for the blessings of both heaven and earth.
In Japan is a story, “The Tale of Urashima,” of a man who stops some boys from picking on a turtle. He chases the boys away and helps the turtle get to the water. Instead of swimming away, the turtle remains close and thanks the man. As a reward for his help, the turtle takes the man on his back deep beneath the ocean to the land of the King of the Ocean. He is honored and rewarded by the king, for the turtle was one of his favorite animals. He gives his daughter, a beautiful water sprite, to him in marriage. He finds true love for the first time.
The turtle is a shore creature, using the land and the water. All shore areas are associated with doorways to the Faerie Realm. The turtle is sometimes known as the keeper to the doors. Turtles thus were often seen as signs of fairy contact and the promise of fairy rewards.
In Nigeria, the turtle was a symbol of the female sex organs and sexuality. To the Native Americans, it was associated with the lunar cycle, menstruation, and the power of the female energies. The markings and sections on some turtles total thirteen. In the lunar calendar, there are either thirteen full moons or thirteen new moons alternating each year. Many believe this is where the association with the female energies originated. Turtle is the symbol of the primal mother.
Because of its great age and its slow metabolism, the turtle is also associated with longevity. Long life and grounded ness within life is part of what is associated with the turtle. It does not move fast. It is as if, on some level, turtle knows it has all the time in the world. Turtle medicine can teach new perceptions about time and our relationship with it.
Turtles have amazing survival skills and strategies. They hear well. Actually, they sense vibrations in the water through their skin and shell. Turtles are also able to distinguish some colors, and they do have a sense of smell. Turtle totems hold the mystery of awakening the senses-on both physical and spiritual levels. Turtle stimulates hearing and clairaudience. It can help with vision and clairvoyance. It heightens the sense of smell and higher discrimination.
If turtle has shown up, you may need to ask yourself some questions. Are you not seeing what you should? Are you not hearing what you should? Are you or those around you not using discrimination?
If at all possible, try to identify the individual turtle. Although there are many kinds, with a little effort this can be accomplished, often from the shell. Different turtles do have different kinds of shells. Every turtle has at least one characteristic that makes it stand out, and which usually has great symbolic significance. A snapping turtle may indicate the ability to grab and use the mouth and all associated with it (voice, sound, digestion) in new ways. A box turtle has hinge-like openings in the front and back that it can retreat into, and it can teach how to protect yourself more solidly. A painted turtle may be able to teach you the power and use of color. A sea turtle is fully aquatic, and the symbolism of water should be studied and reflected upon.
Turtles carry their home on their back. Contrary to depiction in cartoons and such, turtles can not leave their shells. The shell is actually the backbone and ribs of the turtle. It serves as home and shelter for it. Although some believe it impossible, if a turtle is flipped onto its back it can right itself. It uses its strong neck and head to flip itself over. For those with this totem, it is a reminder to use your own head and knowledge to right yourself when your world gets topsy turvy. Sometimes turtles show up as a totem to help us during such times.
Turtles are omnivorous. They eat insects, plants, fish, amphibians, and even small mammals on occasion. They are opportunistic. When turtle shows up in your life it is usually a reminder to pay attention or you will miss opportunities. To the Native Americans, the turtle was a symbol of Mother Earth and a reminder that she provides for all of our needs. Sometimes we can’t see the forest for the trees, and turtle can slow us down to help us see our opportunities. Turtles do have a slow metabolism, and this can be a strong reminder. Is our life becoming too hectic? Are we not taking time for ourselves? Are we so busy that we can’t really see what is going on? Are we going too slow and need to pick up the pace a little? Turtle can help you to decide.
Turtle is the favorite food of raccoons. Those with a turtle totem should also study the significance of the raccoon. It will help you to understand the interplay of energies manifesting within your life. It is believed that turtles use the sun to make vitamin D. Those with a turtle totem may need to check their own vitamin intake and adjust diet and vitamin supplements so that enough vitamin D is taken into the system.
All turtles must come ashore to lay their eggs, and they are usually buried. When the eggs hatch, the young are on their own. They in turn must make their way to the waters. This link between water and land, especially for the purpose of reproduction has great significance. It should be meditated upon by anyone with a turtle totem. The water is the great creative source that we can draw on and live in, but we also have to come out of it and apply that creativity within the physical world-on land. It also hints at needing to think things through carefully before acting upon them.
If turtle has shown up in your life, it is time to get connected to your most primal essence. Go within your shell and come out when your ideas are ready to be expressed. It is time to recognize that there is an abundance out there for you. It doesn’t have to be gotten quickly and immediately. Take your time and let the natural flow work for you.
Too much, too soon, can upset the balance. Turtle reminds us that all we need for all that we do is available to us, if we approach it in the right manner and time.
Turtles remind us that the way to heaven is through the earth. In Mother Earth is all that we need. She will care for us, protect us, and nurture us, as long as we do the same for her. For that to happen, we must slow down and heighten our sensibilities. We must see the connection to all things. Just as the turtle cannot separate itself from its shell, neither can we separate ourselves from what we do to the Earth.
Whale as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
The people of the Arctic are often considered the most careful observers of Nature, for only this would enable them to survive the most unforgiving o climates. The Inuit (Inpriaq) had a special relationship with the bowhead whale, and one of their legends tells how it was the most magnificent creation that the Great Spirit had made.
There are ninety or so different species of cetaceans or whales including dolphins and porpoises. There are sperm wales, killer whales, pilot whales, narwhals, humpback whales, and the largest mammals on the planet, blue whales. All whales have blowholes by which they exhale. Imitating the spouting breath of whales can aid in freeing your own creative energies. All whales have blubber which serves to insulate and store energy for the whales. The whale can help teach you how to insulate yourself and use your own creative energies more conservatively. All whales also conserve oxygen under water by decreasing the blood flow to areas of the body where it is non-essential. Whales have an ancient knowledge of how to use the creative force of breath for a variety of purposes.
Most whales are divided into one of two groups, toothed and baleen. Toothed whales have sharp teeth by which they catch and eat fish and other marine animals. This group includes sperm whales, pilot whales, dolphins, and such. Most eat fish, squid, and other marine animals. They usually are found in herds of pods. Toothed whales have demonstrated great reasoning capabilities and even creative thinking at times. They can stimulate this in those with them as a totem.
Baleen whales do not have teeth. Their mouths are lines with bony plates made of hardened keratin. They strain sea water through these plates feeding on the plankton or sea life within it. The baleen whales are the largest. Humpback whales are baleen whales.
The humpback member of the baleen family is most noted for its wonderful song. The beautiful sounds are sung by the males, and each breeding season brings with it corresponding song changes. This reflects the ability of the whale to teach us how to create through sound and song, adjusting it to the time and place and individual. By drawing upon your own creative instincts, you can sing forth your own song.
Whales also have a form of sonar or echo-location. This sensitivity to sound again links the whale to the primal creative sounds of life. Sound is the creative force of life. Directing it and responding to its feedback is part of what the whale teaches. This can be used to tap hidden levels of your own mind or even to accelerate the manifestation of goals.
Whales at one time were also symbols of containment, concealment, and even resurrection. The Biblical story of Jonah and the whale is the prime example. For three days, Jonah lived within the belly of the whale before he came forth. He was given a second birth. He was resurrected. When we learn to go deep within ourselves, the creativity that we awaken can resurrect our lives - if we bring it out and apply it.
Whales will occasionally breach – coming completely out of the water. Whale people are very creative, but they have to come out of those creative waters. They must stay in contact with the real world. Are you becoming lost in your own creative imagination? Are you not taking it and using it in your outer life? Are you keeping everything inside and afraid to let it out? If so, it’s time to breach. Show the magnificence and power of your own creativity. Do not hold back.
If whales are showing up in your life, you should examine your use - or lack of use – of your own creativity. Are you not simply mimicking what others have done or are you building upon it in new and dynamic ways? Are you applying your won creative intuition to old processes and life formulas? This and this alone is what imbues them with power and magic.
Remember that the whale was a gift of the Great Spirit to the Inuit people. It was what enabled them to survive. It was the most beautiful of all beasts, but it had practical uses, as well. Creativity for the sake of creativity is not what whale teaches. It awakens great depths of creative inspiration, but so it can add color and light to your outer life to make it more wondrous.
Wolf as Spirit Guide
Animal Speak – Ted Andrews
Wolves are probably the most misunderstood of the wild mammals. Tales of terror and their cold-bloodedness abound. Although many stories tell otherwise, there has never been any confirmed attack and killing of a human by a healthy wolf. In spite of the negative press, wolves are almost the exact opposite of how they are portrayed. They are friendly, social, and highly intelligent. Their sense of family is strong and loyal, and they live by carefully defined rules and rituals.
Wolves are the epitome of the wild spirit. Their positive characteristics are so numerous it is no wonder that Native Americans and others practically deified them. Many believe that the true test of America’s sincerity about protecting the environment will revolve around whether or not the wolf remains protected and is allowed to be reintroduced into areas of the country where it has heretofore been eliminated. The wolf is the true spirit of the free and unspoiled wilderness.
Probably the biggest misconception of wolves about their size. They are not nearly as large as most people imagine. Their thick fur gives an appearance of greater size, but they are usually no taller than a good-sized German Shepherd.
Wolves are very ritualistic – in as many ways as humans. They live by carefully defined rules. There are specific territories that are sacred. Their social behavior is based upon a hierarchical structure. Each has its place and function within the hierarchy. There is an “alpha” male and an “alpha” female.
Wolves do not fight unnecessarily. In fact, they will often go out of their way to avoid it. Though they are extremely strong and powerful, disagreements rarely end in serious fights. Often a glance, a posture, a growl is all that is necessary to determine dominance. They don’t have to demonstrate it, but they are capable if it comes down to it. This is part of what wolf medicine teaches. The wolf teaches you to know who you are and to develop strength, confidence, and surety in that so that you do not have to demonstrate and prove yourself to all.
Wolves have a complex communication system – using body language. The movement of the head, an erect tail, and direct eye contact – all have great meaning…Usually, those with wolf totems are very expressive with hands, posture, face, or in some other manner. If you have difficulty conveying your moods and ideas to others, meditate and study the wolf. It will teach you how to empower your verbal communications with appropriate body language.
Every member of the pack knows its position in relationship to everyone else within the pack. The ritualistic behaviors that establish the wolf ranks are part of its magic. Wolf packs are not entirely autocratic – under the supreme rule of the alpha member. Neither are they democratic. There are times when both occur, and it is this flexibility which adds to the success of the wolf government.
Wolf can teach the lesson of proper governorship – a balance between authority and democracy. Wolf can teach you how to use ritual to establish order and harmony within your own life. Wolf helps us to understand that true freedom requires discipline.
Wolves usually consume all that they capture, gorging themselves. For those with wolf totems, this can indicate a need to make use of all that is available to you. Sometimes wolves show up as a totem to remind us not to waste, as much as to remind us to keep our spirits alive.
The wolf has an extreme intelligence. It goes out of its way to avoid trouble or danger. Some believe that wolves even use ravens as aerial spots for possible food sources. The rave has a connection to the moose in Eskimo lore, and since moose can be a prey of wolves, rave is linked to them, as well. Ravens will often follow wolves. They will fly ahead, land in a tree and wait for the wolves to pass, and then fly on again. Wolf expert David Mech reported a playful behavioral relationship sometimes displayed between wolves and ravens. Raven should also be studied by those with wolf totems.
The wolf also has an excellent hearing sensitivity. Its hunting depends strongly upon its sense of smell and hearing. This would be a reminder to those with this totem to listen to their own inner thoughts and words. The intuition will be strong. This idea is even further emphasized by the thick coat of fur the wolf has. Fur and hair have long been symbols of psychic abilities. The wolf has both an inner coat and an outer, giving it the ability to reflect the archetypal forces associated with psychic insight.
The wolf has a capacity for making quick and firm emotional attachments. Learning to trust your own insights and to secure your attachments accordingly is part of what wolf medicine teaches. The wolf can help you to hear the inner and guard you from inappropriate actions. It will guard you as it teaches you – sometimes strongly, sometimes gently – but always with love. When Wolf shows up, it is time to breathe new life into your life rituals. Find a new pat, take a new journey, take control of your life. You are the governor of your life. You create it and direct it. Do so with harmony and discipline, and then you will know the true spirit of freedom.
The turtle totem inspires imagination, individuality and abundance - being resourceful and using what you have, wherever you are. It is said to be the embodiment of the goddess of energy and the perpetual, life-giving elixir, the mother earth.
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