Song bird of the genus Sialia. Merriment and attainment.

 

Related to the crow, the blue jay has also been a representation of the goddess aspect, Gaia. Blue Jay also represents being a "jack of all trades and the master of none", or coming into realization that all those trades belong to one whole, imparting different wisdoms from different places that slowly come together like pieces of a puzzle. Perhaps then meaning "and the master of one". Blue Jays are protective guardians, particularly of their young and have an understanding of teamwork and union. When a baby jay falls from a nest all the jays in the whole neighborhood will congregate to that chic and make a racket, trying to ward away any cats or other predators. This also attracts other birds who will join in protecting fallen chicks or the presence of an owl caught before sunset. Such as crow, mocking bird and cardinals will come together against cats and owls.

 

Twelve.

Red Bird is in the finch family and among such as the Cherokee or Tsalagi, it is a most sacred animal, the Daughter of the Sun in the form of her rebirth from dying. For this reason Red Bird is a keeper of the realm between the waking world and the realm of the ghosts of the dead. Among Voodooists Red Bird protects the home and brings it good spirit, they may also believe the same thing about Red Bird, I'm not sure. In Christianity Red Bird represents the blood of Christ and got his name Cardinal, after the bright red robes of the Catholic cardinal.

 

Because of the black band masking across the male Red Bird's eyes they can also be regarded as among the shapeshifters and pertain to the mask self in very good ways. Red Bird's voice is also a mystical, delightful tune that is easy to learn how to whistle.

 

 

Hen: Best represnts femunine fertility.

Rooster: Best represents masculine virility.

 

Patience, absolute stillness. Arrow straight. Perception. Crane is also represented in the Medicine Wheel of the Sault Chippewa http://www.ewebtribe.com/NACulture/sacred.htm

 

Crow is considered a trixter like Coyote. They are very clever, puzzle solving and very adaptive to anywhere and eat anything. They can mock the tunes of other birds and even occasionally learn words of the human language when they've been kept as pets, their warning cry sounds uncannily like human laughter. Crow has many allies among many other animals, they understand things about sharing, being resourceful, being crafty and learning from example. Raven and Crow have long been symbols of the feminine aspect, the void and the matter of realm between life and death.

 

Nobility. Honor. Grace. Father Sky. Eagle is a very sacred animal among many Native American nations and represents the East of the Medicine Wheel. They fly the highest in the sky and represent connection between man and Father Creator, able to bring one's prayers to Creator. The feathers of Eagle themselves are sacred and powerful symbols and is used or given to others for different special reasons and meanings. Most people who truely have the animal spirit of Eagle are very talkative.

 

Seeing over all the lands. Mate for life. Duality. Spiritual connection. Strength, empowerment, healing ability. Awakenings. Life and Death.

 

Observation, awareness, messenger. A smaller version of Eagle.

 

 

The kingfisher has a very mystical song that permiates the forest. They like to say high in the trees and then swoop down into a dive to catch fish, returning to the same perch with it. The sight and sound of them is rather awe inspiring. Kingfisher can be found here and there in folktales involving the quest for land when the world has flooded, to bring back some evidence or report that it is not far away.

 

Mockingbirds are territorial guardians with a mean streak. They'll do things like pull the tail feathers right off of a grackle and go as far as land right on the front porch to get their vex in at the pet cat. Mockingbirds get their name from their ability to gather the songs of other birds and make long songs out of all of them. They mostly hunt for insects by briefly spreading out their wings so that the motions or shadow will scare them up from the grass. Mockingbird will usually be the first one after the insects when someone is mowing their lawn.

 

Wisdom, adaptation. Owl is also known as the night hawk. They are nocturnal, mostly living in the hollows of trees but will also live in the lofts of barns and garages. They are specialized for hunting at night, able to see into the dark and fly on absolutely silent wings. They have an uncanny art for turning their heads completely around to look behind them and also kind of bob their heads in little circles when they zero in on something of interest. Their eyes also appear very human and are expressive. Some regard them as omens of death in the family to be near while others regard them as protectors and guardians, able to see all truth and hidden things. Owl is largely regarded as a grandfather or grandmother, holding of these wisdoms that elders impart. Owl is also particularly a dream guardian.

 

One thing Owl taught me as a totem is the ability to remain centered in the face of social adversity. When I had moved from a nightshift job to a day shift job into a completely different town the transition was very difficult. Like the owl that had come the people at my job were like all the day shift birds that were trying to harass and pester owl for being caught out in the oak tree before sunset, but owl never let this bother him. He wasn't one to change his truth or feel like an outsider just because the neighborhood day shift birds didn't like it.

 

Through Owl I could see they were assuming him the worst in protection of their nests and that too helped me understand the position and perspective of the people at my job. They were assuming all kinds of things and acting on those because I was coming from outside the environment they understood. Since then I have seen the same look that must have been on my face in people who come from one thing into another like a single black coming into a work force that is all white or vise versa and in different instances besides race like from religions to social orders. I notice it before, especially in high school, but never with Owl's eyes.

 

Giving, generosity, sharing. Some Native American nations regard Turkey as a ground version of Eagle.

 

Cleansing