Post by Marcus on Apr 5, 2006 11:52:41 GMT -5
Animal Symbolism Page
Animal Symbolism – A combination of cultures
Many animals appear on all lists - meanings may be similar or different. You may use the
meanings given or come up with your own personal meanings. Accuracy of these lists
has not been verified.
Alligator - Aggression, survival, adaptability. Cunning, deceptive.
Ant - Group minded, perseverance, self-discipline, group effort, teamwork, industriousness, orderliness,
virtue. Strength, stamina, honor.
Antelope - Lunar animal, associated with the Mother. Grace, beauty.
Ape/Monkey - Mischief, mimicry, cunning, benevolence. Humanity, nurture.
Baboon - Hailer of the dawn.
Badger - Supernatural power, mischief, playful. Other world, wisdom, caring.
Bat - Guardian of the night, cleaner, obscurity, messenger, double nature, happiness, good luck, longevity, peace;
also - hypocrisy, melancholy, revenge, wisdom.
Bee - Immortality, rebirth, industry, order, purity, soul, chastity, messengers between worlds, secret
wisdom, Mother and priestesses. Community.
Birds - The soul, transcendence, spirits of air, ascent, communication, freedom, sight.
Bear - Primal power, mother, cunning, healer, gentle strength, dreaming, sovereignty, intuition married
with instinct. Nurturing, protective.
Bear Paw - Power, direction, connection to creator.
Beaver - Builder, gatherer.
Blackbird - Enchantment, the Gateway, the inner call. Guide, illumination.
Boar - The warrior spirit, leadership, direction, lust, gluttony, fertility, prophecy, magic, protection,
hospitality.
Buffalo - Sacredness, life builder. The buffalo provides all good things for living, and bestows great curing
powers.
Bull - Wealth, potency, beneficence, generative force, male procreative strength, kingship, taming of the
masculine and animal nature. Destructive force.
Butterfly - Metamorphosis, carefree, transformer, immortality, rebirth, resurrection. Grace, light, soul.
Cat - Guardianship, detachment, sensuality, stealth, desire, liberty, pleasure, magic, lust, pride, vanity.
Cock - Solar, courage, vigilance, supremacy, passion, pride, the underworld.
Cougar - Leadership, courage, power, swiftness and balance.
Cow - Nourishment, motherhood, power of Earth, plenty, procreation, gentleness, nurturing.
Coyote - Prankster, insight, playful. The coyote symbolizes duality and the ability to present both sides of
an issue. Clowning and humor, perhaps sarcastic.
Crane - Solitude, independence, messenger, communion, higher state of consciousness, wisdom,
knowledge.
Crocodile - Devourer, liberation, guardian, dual nature, conscious and unconscious, fertility, brutality,
viciousness, deceit, treachery.
Crow - Messenger, death, wisdom, communication, the underworld.
Deer - Love, gentleness, kindness, gracefulness, sensitivity, purity of purpose, walking in the light, swift,
nimble, meek, gentle, meditation, love, longevity, wealth.
Dog - Guidance, protection, loyalty, fidelity, faithfulness, watchfulness, the Hunt.
Dolphin - Kindness, play, savior, guide, sea power, swift, intelligence, communication, breath control,
awareness of tone.
Donkey - Humility, patience, peace, stupidity, stubbornness, lewdness.
Dragon - Power of Earth, combining bird and serpent as matter and spirit, breath of life, supernatural
power, magic, strength, wisdom, knowledge, guardian.
Dragonfly - Flighty, carefree, swift, activity, shamanistic, supernatural powers.
Eagle - Divine spirit, air, the sun, power in battle, protection from evil, clear vision, success, prosperity,
wealth, intelligence, renewal, courage.
Elephant - Strength, fidelity, memory, patience, wisdom, intelligence, power.
Elk - Strength, agility, freedom, power, nobility.
Fox - Cunning, provider, intelligence, feminine magic, diplomacy, wildness.
Frog - Power of water, sensitivity, medicine, hidden beauty, power.
Goat - Vitality, fertility, creativity, virility, abundance, lust.
Goose - Guardian, watchful, wind, the sun, war, inspiration, swift, happiness, providence.
Grizzly Bear - Mother, nature's pharmacist
Hare - rebirth, rejuvenation, resurrection, intuition, balance, fertility, fire, madness, transformation.
Hawk - Nobility, recollection, cleansing, messenger, observer, Solar, clarity, discrimination, inspiration,
the soul.
Heron - Vigilance, quiet, power of water, the underworld, tact, delicacy, renewal, life, transformation.
Horse - Stamina, mobility, strength and power, coping under difficult circumstances, love, devotion,
loyalty, the land, travel. Life and death symbol, intellect, wisdom, power, nobility, energy, freedom,
wildness, divination, prophecy, fertility.
Hummingbird - Messenger, stopper of time, optimism, sweetness.
Jackal - Guide of souls, associated with cemeteries.
Jaguar - Messenger, forest spirits, power.
Kingfisher - Beauty, dignity, speed, calmness, serenity.
Leopard - Ferocity, aggression, intrepid, Great Watcher, courage, activity, speed.
Lion - Solar, splendor, power, majesty, strength, courage, nobility.
Lizard - Conservation, agility, promotes dreaming.
Moose - Headstrong, unstoppable, longevity, value, integrity.
Octopus - The spiral, water, unconscious.
Otter - Laughter, curiosity, mischievous, feminine power, grace, empathy, joy, play, helpfulness.
Owl - Wisdom, truth, patience, darkness, a death messenger, divination, solitude, detachment, wisdom,
change, totem of clairvoyants and mystics.
Python - Darkness, feminine, power of Earth, wisdom.
Rabbit - Alertness, nurturing.
Ram - Sacrifice, breakthrough, achievement, virility, creativity, the Sun, solar power.
Raven - Trickster, teacher, hoarder, healing, initiation, protection, shaman's power, transformation,
change in consciousness, mark of a shape shifter.
Salmon - Instinct, persistence, determination, wisdom, inspiration, rejuvenation.
Seahorse - Confidence, grace.
Serpent - Life, rebirth, resurrection, wisdom, passion, healing, poison, preserver, destroyer, malice,
fertility.
Shark - Hunter, survival, adaptability.
Snake - Shrewdness, transformation, life, death and rebirth, rain, fertility.
Spider - Creative, pattern of life, connects the past with the future, creating possibilities.
Stag - Pride, independence, purification.
Swan - Grace, balance, innocence, faithfulness, solitude, retreat, poetry, sincerity.
Tiger - Creator, destroyer, strength, ferocity, power, anger, power of Earth.
Turtle - Self contained, creative source, Earth, informed decisions, planning, adaptability.
Unicorn - Chastity, purity, dreams, virtue, strength, integrity, magic, healing, freedom.
Whale - Power of Water, regeneration, death, rebirth.
Wolf - Loyalty, success, perseverance, stability, thought, pathfinder, teacher, intuition, learning, the
shadow.
Wolf Print - Tracking, movement.
Woodpecker - Prophecy, magic, power, guardian of trees, Heralds rain and storms.
Wren - Spirit, witchcraft, the Oak King.
www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/middle/animals2.htm
Animal Symbolism – A combination of cultures
Many animals appear on all lists - meanings may be similar or different. You may use the
meanings given or come up with your own personal meanings. Accuracy of these lists
has not been verified.
Alligator - Aggression, survival, adaptability. Cunning, deceptive.
Ant - Group minded, perseverance, self-discipline, group effort, teamwork, industriousness, orderliness,
virtue. Strength, stamina, honor.
Antelope - Lunar animal, associated with the Mother. Grace, beauty.
Ape/Monkey - Mischief, mimicry, cunning, benevolence. Humanity, nurture.
Baboon - Hailer of the dawn.
Badger - Supernatural power, mischief, playful. Other world, wisdom, caring.
Bat - Guardian of the night, cleaner, obscurity, messenger, double nature, happiness, good luck, longevity, peace;
also - hypocrisy, melancholy, revenge, wisdom.
Bee - Immortality, rebirth, industry, order, purity, soul, chastity, messengers between worlds, secret
wisdom, Mother and priestesses. Community.
Birds - The soul, transcendence, spirits of air, ascent, communication, freedom, sight.
Bear - Primal power, mother, cunning, healer, gentle strength, dreaming, sovereignty, intuition married
with instinct. Nurturing, protective.
Bear Paw - Power, direction, connection to creator.
Beaver - Builder, gatherer.
Blackbird - Enchantment, the Gateway, the inner call. Guide, illumination.
Boar - The warrior spirit, leadership, direction, lust, gluttony, fertility, prophecy, magic, protection,
hospitality.
Buffalo - Sacredness, life builder. The buffalo provides all good things for living, and bestows great curing
powers.
Bull - Wealth, potency, beneficence, generative force, male procreative strength, kingship, taming of the
masculine and animal nature. Destructive force.
Butterfly - Metamorphosis, carefree, transformer, immortality, rebirth, resurrection. Grace, light, soul.
Cat - Guardianship, detachment, sensuality, stealth, desire, liberty, pleasure, magic, lust, pride, vanity.
Cock - Solar, courage, vigilance, supremacy, passion, pride, the underworld.
Cougar - Leadership, courage, power, swiftness and balance.
Cow - Nourishment, motherhood, power of Earth, plenty, procreation, gentleness, nurturing.
Coyote - Prankster, insight, playful. The coyote symbolizes duality and the ability to present both sides of
an issue. Clowning and humor, perhaps sarcastic.
Crane - Solitude, independence, messenger, communion, higher state of consciousness, wisdom,
knowledge.
Crocodile - Devourer, liberation, guardian, dual nature, conscious and unconscious, fertility, brutality,
viciousness, deceit, treachery.
Crow - Messenger, death, wisdom, communication, the underworld.
Deer - Love, gentleness, kindness, gracefulness, sensitivity, purity of purpose, walking in the light, swift,
nimble, meek, gentle, meditation, love, longevity, wealth.
Dog - Guidance, protection, loyalty, fidelity, faithfulness, watchfulness, the Hunt.
Dolphin - Kindness, play, savior, guide, sea power, swift, intelligence, communication, breath control,
awareness of tone.
Donkey - Humility, patience, peace, stupidity, stubbornness, lewdness.
Dragon - Power of Earth, combining bird and serpent as matter and spirit, breath of life, supernatural
power, magic, strength, wisdom, knowledge, guardian.
Dragonfly - Flighty, carefree, swift, activity, shamanistic, supernatural powers.
Eagle - Divine spirit, air, the sun, power in battle, protection from evil, clear vision, success, prosperity,
wealth, intelligence, renewal, courage.
Elephant - Strength, fidelity, memory, patience, wisdom, intelligence, power.
Elk - Strength, agility, freedom, power, nobility.
Fox - Cunning, provider, intelligence, feminine magic, diplomacy, wildness.
Frog - Power of water, sensitivity, medicine, hidden beauty, power.
Goat - Vitality, fertility, creativity, virility, abundance, lust.
Goose - Guardian, watchful, wind, the sun, war, inspiration, swift, happiness, providence.
Grizzly Bear - Mother, nature's pharmacist
Hare - rebirth, rejuvenation, resurrection, intuition, balance, fertility, fire, madness, transformation.
Hawk - Nobility, recollection, cleansing, messenger, observer, Solar, clarity, discrimination, inspiration,
the soul.
Heron - Vigilance, quiet, power of water, the underworld, tact, delicacy, renewal, life, transformation.
Horse - Stamina, mobility, strength and power, coping under difficult circumstances, love, devotion,
loyalty, the land, travel. Life and death symbol, intellect, wisdom, power, nobility, energy, freedom,
wildness, divination, prophecy, fertility.
Hummingbird - Messenger, stopper of time, optimism, sweetness.
Jackal - Guide of souls, associated with cemeteries.
Jaguar - Messenger, forest spirits, power.
Kingfisher - Beauty, dignity, speed, calmness, serenity.
Leopard - Ferocity, aggression, intrepid, Great Watcher, courage, activity, speed.
Lion - Solar, splendor, power, majesty, strength, courage, nobility.
Lizard - Conservation, agility, promotes dreaming.
Moose - Headstrong, unstoppable, longevity, value, integrity.
Octopus - The spiral, water, unconscious.
Otter - Laughter, curiosity, mischievous, feminine power, grace, empathy, joy, play, helpfulness.
Owl - Wisdom, truth, patience, darkness, a death messenger, divination, solitude, detachment, wisdom,
change, totem of clairvoyants and mystics.
Python - Darkness, feminine, power of Earth, wisdom.
Rabbit - Alertness, nurturing.
Ram - Sacrifice, breakthrough, achievement, virility, creativity, the Sun, solar power.
Raven - Trickster, teacher, hoarder, healing, initiation, protection, shaman's power, transformation,
change in consciousness, mark of a shape shifter.
Salmon - Instinct, persistence, determination, wisdom, inspiration, rejuvenation.
Seahorse - Confidence, grace.
Serpent - Life, rebirth, resurrection, wisdom, passion, healing, poison, preserver, destroyer, malice,
fertility.
Shark - Hunter, survival, adaptability.
Snake - Shrewdness, transformation, life, death and rebirth, rain, fertility.
Spider - Creative, pattern of life, connects the past with the future, creating possibilities.
Stag - Pride, independence, purification.
Swan - Grace, balance, innocence, faithfulness, solitude, retreat, poetry, sincerity.
Tiger - Creator, destroyer, strength, ferocity, power, anger, power of Earth.
Turtle - Self contained, creative source, Earth, informed decisions, planning, adaptability.
Unicorn - Chastity, purity, dreams, virtue, strength, integrity, magic, healing, freedom.
Whale - Power of Water, regeneration, death, rebirth.
Wolf - Loyalty, success, perseverance, stability, thought, pathfinder, teacher, intuition, learning, the
shadow.
Wolf Print - Tracking, movement.
Woodpecker - Prophecy, magic, power, guardian of trees, Heralds rain and storms.
Wren - Spirit, witchcraft, the Oak King.
www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/middle/animals2.htm