Owl Medicine

Many people connect Owl with knowledge and wisdom. Knowing satisfies us. In short, we are comfortable in the light.

Owls; however, are active at night. Their vision is sharp and their hearing, extraordinary. According to Medicine Cards, by Sams and Carson, Owl uncovers deception. Paradoxically, as we uncover what we are concealing in the dark, a light from within breaks through.

Owl-like people see through our facades. They notice exaggerated body language. Also, they hear hidden messages within the words we speak.

Though difficult to swallow, Owl’s medicine can be a life-changing gift. Why? Refusing to live authentically causes soul loss, which eventually leads to illness. Consider this:

“In all 310 cultures (except ours) in the Human Relations Area Files at Yale University, illness is believed to be caused by soul loss.”  Shaman Wisdom, Shaman Healing, by Michael Samuels, M.D. and Mary Rockwood Lane, Ph.D.

If you think you might have Owl’s medicine to offer, think about the following:

At times, owls gather in parliaments, but spend more time alone. How about you?

Being farsighted, owls can spot their prey as far as a mile away. Do you see how people’s poor decisions will play out in the future? 

You see things in other people before they do. On the rare occasion that calls for confrontation, no matter how timely or gentle, you evoke fear and anger in the other.

Do people thank you (later) for believing in them enough to tell them things that no one else would?

In the night, we want soft places to lie down and sleep. Even so, every now and again we need Owl’s talons to pierce our skin and pull us out of the ruts we’ve mistaken for home.

Ponder this. You could be wrong! Are you an Owl wannabe, a know-it-all? Or perhaps you have Owl’s medicine to give, but use it to hurt people instead. 

Many Native Americans see Owl as an omen of death. Spiritually speaking, there is death and then the awakening that follows. We can live in a fog, or break through.

Making Spirit Flesh*

We know how to skirt around issues, couch abusive words in humor, angrily confront, act out passive-aggressively and people please, but do we appreciate the art of confident, calm and honest communication?

Being true to ourselves and other people is the first step to bringing our souls back to wholeness.