Forums · Superstitions/Legends About Owls
Here is a writing that I ran across that is about some beliefs/superstitions/legends, etc., regarding owls. It comes from various cultures, and the owl certainly seems to be memorable for many reasons to many people.
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Owls Superstitions
Their eerie-sounding cries can send shivers up otherwise steadfast spines. The ancient Romans detested them because they were thought to be harbingers of death. The Greeks, on the other hand, considered them a good omen. An owl flying over a Greek army at the dawn of battle insured victory. In England, though, it was believed that if a person looked into an owls nest, he would suffer depression for the rest of his life.
Like bats and superstitions, owls fly best by night. They feed on rodents and other small animals and are quite useful in pest control. But it is the owl's appearance that spooks people. The birds have large eyes that are unmovable, a round gargoyle-like face, and two tufts of head feathers that resemble horns. And because of this startling visage, our ancestors considered owls to be creatures of mystery. Superstition and folklore surround owls like cloaks.
The Celts told the story of a beautiful woman named Blodeuwedd who was fashioned out of flowers. She was created to marry a lonely man cursed to have no human wife. But Blodeuwedd fell in love with another man and she killed her husband. The victim was then brought back to life and, as vengeance, the faithless Blodeuwedd was turned into an owl.
Owls were magic. In "Macbeth", William Shakespeares three witches use an owlets wing as a charm. Witches in ancient Rome used a screech owls feather as part of a potion. And in Greece it was believed that if a child was given an owls egg, it would never become a drunkard.
Other than having magic properties, a owl was also thought to be the wisest of birds. The slave Aesop told the story of an owl who knew more than he was given credit for.
The wise old owl told the birds that when the acorn first began to sprout, to pull it all up out of the ground and not allow it to grow. He said acorns would produce mistletoe, from which bird-lime would be extracted, and they would be captured.
The owl next advised them pick up flax seed as it was a plant which would do them no good. Then the owl, seeing an archer approach, predicted that the man would invent darts armed with feathers which would fly faster than the birds. The birds gave no credit to these warnings. They thought the owl was crazy. But afterwards, finding his words were true, they were in awe of his knowledge and reckoned him to be the wisest of birds. So when the owl appeared the birds looked to him for advice, which he no longer gave. Instead he bemoaned their past folly.
The owl is the watchman of the night. By day it lives in the trees or in buildings. Sometimes the presence of an owl can make someone think a ghost is lurking nearby.
William F. Holt of San Angelo, Texas, told a WPA interviewer in the late 1930's, "At one time in my travels, I think it was in Mexico, I came to a village where the people were dying of a plague. The dead were left as they had died and others who were able were leaving their sick and dead and fleeing. I stayed in an old church at night, as the dark caught me there. As I lay on the floor I could hear a peculiar, ghostly noise somewhere in the building. The noise seemed to come from the belfry. I never believed in ghosts but with the thought of those dead and dying people all around, I began to wonder if I hadn't been mistaken about ghosts. Finally, I got up courage enough to climb up into the belfry and there sat a big owl. He looked at me with his big eyes as if to say 'Man, do you see what I see?' At the first peep of light, I was gone from that place.
There are a lot of superstitions associated with owls. Here are a few of them:
-- If an owl lands on the roof of your house, it is an omen of death. Constant hooting near your house also foretells death.
-- If an owl hoots at the moment of childbirth, the child will have an unhappy life.
-- The Irish believe that if an owl flies into a house it must be killed immediately. If it escapes, it will take the luck of the house with it.
-- If an owl nests in an abandoned house, then the dwelling must be haunted. An owl is the only creature who can abide a ghost.
-- By eating salted owl, a person can be cured of gout.
-- If an owl hoots during a burial service, the deceased is bound to rise from the grave and haunt the living.
-- An owl living in the attic of a house will cause a pregnant woman to miscarry.
-- If a pregnant woman hears the shriek of an owl, her child will be a girl.
Of course, owls are no longer considered harbingers of misfortune. Nor are they considered agents of witches or the devil. Still, even in these enlightened times, the eerie call of an owl in the stillness of the night can still make the skin crawl and bring back half-forgotten memories of the dark beliefs you heard in childhood. And whos to say these beliefs are not true -- at least, some of them?
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azspirit
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Owls Superstitions
Their eerie-sounding cries can send shivers up otherwise steadfast spines. The ancient Romans detested them because they were thought to be harbingers of death. The Greeks, on the other hand, considered them a good omen. An owl flying over a Greek army at the dawn of battle insured victory. In England, though, it was believed that if a person looked into an owls nest, he would suffer depression for the rest of his life.
Like bats and superstitions, owls fly best by night. They feed on rodents and other small animals and are quite useful in pest control. But it is the owl's appearance that spooks people. The birds have large eyes that are unmovable, a round gargoyle-like face, and two tufts of head feathers that resemble horns. And because of this startling visage, our ancestors considered owls to be creatures of mystery. Superstition and folklore surround owls like cloaks.
The Celts told the story of a beautiful woman named Blodeuwedd who was fashioned out of flowers. She was created to marry a lonely man cursed to have no human wife. But Blodeuwedd fell in love with another man and she killed her husband. The victim was then brought back to life and, as vengeance, the faithless Blodeuwedd was turned into an owl.
Owls were magic. In "Macbeth", William Shakespeares three witches use an owlets wing as a charm. Witches in ancient Rome used a screech owls feather as part of a potion. And in Greece it was believed that if a child was given an owls egg, it would never become a drunkard.
Other than having magic properties, a owl was also thought to be the wisest of birds. The slave Aesop told the story of an owl who knew more than he was given credit for.
The wise old owl told the birds that when the acorn first began to sprout, to pull it all up out of the ground and not allow it to grow. He said acorns would produce mistletoe, from which bird-lime would be extracted, and they would be captured.
The owl next advised them pick up flax seed as it was a plant which would do them no good. Then the owl, seeing an archer approach, predicted that the man would invent darts armed with feathers which would fly faster than the birds. The birds gave no credit to these warnings. They thought the owl was crazy. But afterwards, finding his words were true, they were in awe of his knowledge and reckoned him to be the wisest of birds. So when the owl appeared the birds looked to him for advice, which he no longer gave. Instead he bemoaned their past folly.
The owl is the watchman of the night. By day it lives in the trees or in buildings. Sometimes the presence of an owl can make someone think a ghost is lurking nearby.
William F. Holt of San Angelo, Texas, told a WPA interviewer in the late 1930's, "At one time in my travels, I think it was in Mexico, I came to a village where the people were dying of a plague. The dead were left as they had died and others who were able were leaving their sick and dead and fleeing. I stayed in an old church at night, as the dark caught me there. As I lay on the floor I could hear a peculiar, ghostly noise somewhere in the building. The noise seemed to come from the belfry. I never believed in ghosts but with the thought of those dead and dying people all around, I began to wonder if I hadn't been mistaken about ghosts. Finally, I got up courage enough to climb up into the belfry and there sat a big owl. He looked at me with his big eyes as if to say 'Man, do you see what I see?' At the first peep of light, I was gone from that place.
There are a lot of superstitions associated with owls. Here are a few of them:
-- If an owl lands on the roof of your house, it is an omen of death. Constant hooting near your house also foretells death.
-- If an owl hoots at the moment of childbirth, the child will have an unhappy life.
-- The Irish believe that if an owl flies into a house it must be killed immediately. If it escapes, it will take the luck of the house with it.
-- If an owl nests in an abandoned house, then the dwelling must be haunted. An owl is the only creature who can abide a ghost.
-- By eating salted owl, a person can be cured of gout.
-- If an owl hoots during a burial service, the deceased is bound to rise from the grave and haunt the living.
-- An owl living in the attic of a house will cause a pregnant woman to miscarry.
-- If a pregnant woman hears the shriek of an owl, her child will be a girl.
Of course, owls are no longer considered harbingers of misfortune. Nor are they considered agents of witches or the devil. Still, even in these enlightened times, the eerie call of an owl in the stillness of the night can still make the skin crawl and bring back half-forgotten memories of the dark beliefs you heard in childhood. And whos to say these beliefs are not true -- at least, some of them?
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azspirit
I too attribute things to owls. =)
When you see an owl while walking in a forest, it means good fortune because the forest is healthy enough to support a top level predator.
I believe it means ill fortune to look into an owl's nest. Ill fortune for the owl. Because to look into one you would have to be somehow disturbing its nest or have found it disturbed. A bad sign.
I consider myself very fortunate to see an owl. It is not often I get to see one. So they must be good omens. =) =) =)
Not to pishaw anyones folklore of course. =)
When you see an owl while walking in a forest, it means good fortune because the forest is healthy enough to support a top level predator.
I believe it means ill fortune to look into an owl's nest. Ill fortune for the owl. Because to look into one you would have to be somehow disturbing its nest or have found it disturbed. A bad sign.
I consider myself very fortunate to see an owl. It is not often I get to see one. So they must be good omens. =) =) =)
Not to pishaw anyones folklore of course. =)
I had a dream the other night. I think I had it before.
I was moving into an old house. While going through the house, checking it out, I came to a door that opened onto the second story level of an unheated section of the house. Almost like a barn area. As soon as I opened the door I found an owl. No ordinary owl. This one was almost four feet tall. It spooked me as I spooked it.
I just stood there trying to decide if I wanted it gone. I really didn't want something leaving dead animal waste in part of my house. But I also sensed from the owl that it was also debating if it wanted to share the house with a human. The owl had just come to the house too.
I don't know why I dreamed of the owl but I think it represented part of myself because I knew what it was thinking. The domestic part of myself looking at the wild natural part of myself.
Curious.
I was moving into an old house. While going through the house, checking it out, I came to a door that opened onto the second story level of an unheated section of the house. Almost like a barn area. As soon as I opened the door I found an owl. No ordinary owl. This one was almost four feet tall. It spooked me as I spooked it.
I just stood there trying to decide if I wanted it gone. I really didn't want something leaving dead animal waste in part of my house. But I also sensed from the owl that it was also debating if it wanted to share the house with a human. The owl had just come to the house too.
I don't know why I dreamed of the owl but I think it represented part of myself because I knew what it was thinking. The domestic part of myself looking at the wild natural part of myself.
Curious.
Now, that's a BIG owl! There must be some sort of meaning behind his being so huge in your dream. Could this have been a big warning of some kind? This one is a mind boggler. If you come up with any interesting clues about him, I would be interested to know if you have any more ideas about the meaning of his appearance in your dream. It is almost as though he might be a shadow totem of some sort??? Maybe you have something that you must learn from owls. Hmmmm... can't say that I have any answers to this one, but it is truly food for thought.
azspirit
azspirit
That dream has 2 elements - an owl and a house - that I have mentioned in the notes I took from the a lady's dream lessons ( Stephanie ) .
" BIRDS : Compulsive thought patterns in 1) the deeper ( higher ) levels of consciousness , 2) the Subconscious or 3) Soul level. Traits or patterns developed in previous existances and stored in the soul as understandings - i.e. a dreamer's natural instinct to be generous , or a natural ability for healing or music. "
Now that's for birds in general - I think owls may ALSO be looked at as KellKell and Nakis herself said , ( after all - the final authority on your dreams is you . )
" House - buildings of any kind symbolize the Mind. Conscious , Subconscious and Superconscious Minds ~ and the goal is to arrange for these 3 levels to work in harmony and balance ... it is possible , when you learn that you can dream Lucid , and Conscious during dreams , to interpret your dreams while you are having them ! It is also said that when you learn to align these levels , then astral travel results. O.K. -Mark
=D
" BIRDS : Compulsive thought patterns in 1) the deeper ( higher ) levels of consciousness , 2) the Subconscious or 3) Soul level. Traits or patterns developed in previous existances and stored in the soul as understandings - i.e. a dreamer's natural instinct to be generous , or a natural ability for healing or music. "
Now that's for birds in general - I think owls may ALSO be looked at as KellKell and Nakis herself said , ( after all - the final authority on your dreams is you . )
" House - buildings of any kind symbolize the Mind. Conscious , Subconscious and Superconscious Minds ~ and the goal is to arrange for these 3 levels to work in harmony and balance ... it is possible , when you learn that you can dream Lucid , and Conscious during dreams , to interpret your dreams while you are having them ! It is also said that when you learn to align these levels , then astral travel results. O.K. -Mark
=D
Mark, you post some very interesting points...
Now, what you are referring to as 'astral' travel, I assume that you are speaking of the same thing as an OBE? I have always believed they were the same... but I was curious to know if you differentiate between them. I have had a number of what I would call OBE's.
BTW, Mark.... Nakis is a 'himself'.... ;-)
azspirit
[ May 15, 2002: Message edited by: azspirit ]
Now, what you are referring to as 'astral' travel, I assume that you are speaking of the same thing as an OBE? I have always believed they were the same... but I was curious to know if you differentiate between them. I have had a number of what I would call OBE's.
BTW, Mark.... Nakis is a 'himself'.... ;-)
azspirit
[ May 15, 2002: Message edited by: azspirit ]
I'm just putting down my first thoughts when I read about your dream (no interpreting here - just my first thoughts).
The owl being a predator and very protective of his territory, you buying your first home, and your assumption that the owl was part of you - leads me to believe that you've already become or are ready to be very protective of your territory.
The owl being a predator and very protective of his territory, you buying your first home, and your assumption that the owl was part of you - leads me to believe that you've already become or are ready to be very protective of your territory.