Canadian Society of Questers

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Picture from Wild Horses of Alberta Society

When I was born, my Dad was still using horses to pull the hay rake, haul the rack of bales to the barn, and to haul feed to the cattle, especially in the winter. Horses – black, brown, and pinto have been part of my life from Day One. I may go for a long time without seeing or riding or even speaking with horses. Yet, when I need that extra strength, or when travel calls, Horse shows up.

Many people have a passion for horses. Psychologists and psychiatrists link it to the need for male sexuality or for male energy. I think this is a 20th Century concept. Horses have been around since the earliest dinosaurs, and the people had a passion for the Horse then – or they would not draw it on cave walls or create horse symbols to wear around their necks.

Horses are about freedom! The earliest myths and legends talk about flying horses, Horses that spoke with and travelled with Gods. Since Man is not able to do that, then possibly Horses were more spiritual than man. We worshiped them! In Norse, Greek, Roman, Hindu, and North American Aboriginal stories, the Horse plays a key role. When Horse befriended our ancestors, man was able to travel farther and faster. The horsepower allowed man to do more work and encouraged settlement and stabilization of tribes.

There are many legends about wild horses all over the world. It is the spirit and zest for life that draws man to the horse. And, it is that same spirit that fires man’s more brutal nature to tame the horse and beat the spirit out of it. Some men believe that the Horse should not be nobler than man. So those people who have Horse as a guide are very much like the horse – they are fiercely independent. They are intolerant of restrictions on freedom. They are hard on their partners in relationships because the person with Horse spirit needs to be free. Horse appearing may be notice that you need to travel to new territory, either geographically or in spirit. Horse does not stay where the pasture is depleted.

Horse has a strict sense of status, based on leadership abilities and survival skills. There is always a dominant stallion and a dominant mare. The Mares call the shots about grazing, water, and moving, and most often settle disputes. The Stallion is the protector and the lookout. He will often be on high ground where he may easily see what is coming up around the herd.

All horses are protective of the young and the wounded or sick. Many who are healers have Horse Medicine as horses are natural healers. It is this healing ability that has led to the creation of so many healing – riding programs. Horse is one that likes to touch. The Healer may have the gift of healing in their touch. Horse will also gather the herd together to circle the wounded one. Horse probably taught our ancestors about “healing circles”, a gathering which is quite common in spiritual communities today.

Horse communicates with the herd via a shared consciousness or the “herd mind”. If you have been experiencing difficulties in communication with your family and friends and in work relationships, Horse may be telling you to use your other senses to discern what is going on, and to “see” with a bigger picture in mind. This will make your words more win-win oriented, and less inclined to sound selfish.

Enjoy your time with Horse as your guiding Spirit Animal, and may you travel to new places!

Walk in peace.

AUTHOR – Judith Hirst has been writing spiritual and technical blogs for the last thirteen years. She is a non-traditional shaman who has studied with shaman teachers from different lineages. As well, she has studied and uses Dowsing, Body Talk, EFT, Reiki, Quantum Touch, Hypnotherapy, Angel Karma Techniques, Angel Therapy, and has taught Star Talker Training classes. She is a seer and medium. Judith joined Questers in 2007, and now serves on the Board as secretary and blog master.

Tagged Spirit Animal

Around the world, the Eagle is revered for its majesty, size, fierce look, and for its ability to soar so high. A sports team adopts it as a team name. Countries use it as their symbol. Shaman and warriors have worn its wings and claws to represent their power. In the Inca Tradition, the Eagle/Condor represents the Winds of the East. The prayer for the East goes,

To the winds of the East. Great eagle, condor Come to us from the place of the rising Sun Keep us under your wing. Show us the mountains we only dare to dream of. Teach us to fly wing to wing with the Great Spirit. – Alberto Villoldo, PhD. published in his book – Mending the Past and Healing The Future With Soul Retrieval…

The words linking Eagle to Great Spirit give one the sense of the majesty of Eagle, and why our Ancestors believed that Eagle was a traveler between worlds. Stories are told that one may watch Eagle soar up into the sky until she disappears. At that point, she walks with Creator and the Ancestors that have gone before.

Eagle has only ever killed for need, never for greed! If Eagle appears to you, then perhaps she has a message that someone around you is using you to satisfy their greed by using you and what you know. Eagle is known for her swiftness. She counsels that what ever you need to do, you must do it swiftly. However, before striking, Eagle rides the wind up high, and scans the land to see the “big picture”. She does not ever get caught in details. Eagle is a shining example that one must look at the consequences of all actions to see how it affects a much larger plan – Great Spirit’s plan. Often humans only have thoughts for themselves and not for others.

May you live your life with the grace of Eagle!

Tagged Spirit Animal

Hooray for the activists and wildlife experts and environmentalists that have raised everyone’s awareness about the plight of animal kind. The Universe or Creator put animals (the two legged, the four legged, the finned, the furred, the feathered ones and the unseen) to balance the plant life and to create a beautiful garden. In addition to creating a marvelous ecosystem, each animal and plant works with mankind to provide humans with something that they need. It may be anything from food to medicine to information.

There are three aspects of animal that may be sent to guide us – the mythic (the physical aspect); the symbolic or archetype (the universal story that each animal carries to us); and finally, the energetic which is the spirit of the animal which speaks to our soul. To further set some language guidelines around the discussion of spirit animals, we need to talk about totem, power and spirit animals. Some writers and speakers use these words interchangeably. Setting some definitions around the words will help our discussion and create understanding.

When we hear the word “totem” we may tend to think of the totem pole. Well this would be a good starting point in understanding the totem animal. The totem animal usually represents a group of people such as a tribe or village or city. This animal has become a physical symbol for this group of people. Athletic groups use mascots and very often these mascots are animals. For example, the Calgary Stampeders use a horse as a symbol of the stampede. At each football game, the horse gallops or stampedes across the stadium whenever a touchdown occurs.

A huge number of schools and universities and even pro teams use the bear as their mascot or symbol. The bear represents size, intimidation. It is a force to be reckoned as one thinks about the physical image of the animal. (We are talking about a large bear – grizzly, Kodiak, big black.) This then is the totem for that team. The mythic level of the bear speaks to the size, strength, wisdom and protective nature of the animal. Bears protect their young ferociously, and are very maternal. This speaks to the nurturing within the team and the way they support each other, generally on and off the field. Hibernation equates to the teams on and then off season. Each team hibernates to prepare for the next season. The bear has been worshiped as a deity for eons. Cave drawings show it as one of the oldest clan animals. All the mythologies speak of one bear god or goddess. Astrology even recognizes the bear in the sky. Therefore, energetically, the bear transfers its strength, size and loyalty to the spirit and soul of the players on the team. “We are Bears!” becomes more than a chant. It becomes an identity.

So, is the bear a power animal as well? Yes. Understand that a power animal is the animal that comes to you as part of your journey, to lend you their strength and knowledge. The animal has chosen you, and you feel an affinity for it. You may even have some of its characteristics. It has chosen you, as part of its life journey to share its power with you. People who work with their power animal will find that at some level, they are bear, and they may dream or vision as if they were bear. If bear is your power animal, you may have a keen awareness of the seasons and be fond of honey or salmon or fish. You may have more than one power animal, and they may change through out your life. Generally though, we all have one animal that journeys with us all of our life.

How does the spirit animal fit into this? Regardless of the fact that you have a power animal or that the group you belong to has a totem animal, you may be visited by different animals physically, in dream time, or even through a series of coincidences. The coincidences might be that you see a picture of a bear. Several hours later, you hear a song about a bear (The Bear Came Over The Mountain, is a song that comes to mind). Shortly after the song, you may meet someone who has been nicknamed “Bear”. The spirit animal, then, is a message from the Universe (substitute God, Creator, Higher Self or your belief system if this makes you more comfortable). Looking at the characteristics and the mythology of the animal will help you determine what the message is. For example, if you are doing too much and are thinking about taking on some new challenge, the bear when it appears, depending on the season, may be telling you to be conscious of self care, family care, or stepping back and retreating into your “den”. The closer the animal comes to you physically, the more sure you can be that you are not “hearing” the animal’s message. The more the spirit animal is ignored, the more often it will appear, and it may be joined by animals similar to it. For example, the bear may be joined by the badger, the wolverine, or polar bear.

The appearance of a totem animal, power animal or spirit animal in one’s life is not accidental. As we make soul contracts with other souls who incarnate as humans, so too do we make contracts with animals. And since we humans live in separateness, it is the animal who remembers and honors the contract. Now take a look at what animals are around you in your home, at work, or in your casual life. What do they do to support you or to guide you? What are their traits? Are they like you? These are the types of questions that we will explore in upcoming blogs and stories.

(This article was written by Judith Hirst and first appeared in The Angels And Ancestors Magazine, February 28 2007 Volume 1 Issue 5. Reprinted by permission of the author.)

Go in peace.

Judith Hirst is a member of the Canadian Society of Questers, and one of the team on the Public Relations Committee. If you have any questions about this article, please send them to Judith at Judith-hirst@questers.ca. If you have an animal in your life and are not sure about what it is telling you, send us the question. We’d love to share this information with all our readers.

Tagged Power Animal Spirit Animal