What’s Your Shamanic Zodiac Sign?
Categories: Excerpt Indigenous Cultures & Anthropology Spirituality & Religion
by Lucy Harmer
Want to know your shamanic zodiac sign? Check out the chart below from Shamanic Astrology by Lucy Harmer! If you keep reading, you’ll find out how you can use the medicine of each sign to improve your life, no matter when you were born.
Tags: Astrology Lucy Harmer Self-Improvement & Inspiration ShamanismMEDICINE
In shamanic terms, medicine is the result of an in-depth understanding of the universal laws; it encompasses the subtle energies of the different elements in the universe. The shaman doesn’t seek just to cure the symptoms of an illness, but to restore harmony to the body by treating the causes of the imbalance, using the strength, qualities, properties, and characteristics of an animal, a stone, or a plant.
Shamanic astrology is not just the study of the energy of the animal that corresponds to your birth date. For the Native Americans, the medicine wheel is a system of extremely complex interrelationships, which teaches us not only how to integrate energy at each period of our lives, but also how to understand the medicine of each spirit animal—its qualities, strengths, aptitudes, and vision.
If you come across obstacles or difficult situations in your life, you can use the medicine that best corresponds to one of the twelve spirit animals, even if it isn’t the one for your own sign. For example, if you are a Deer or Wolf person and you have difficulty in getting a challenging project off the ground, you can invoke Falcon medicine (the qualities of Falcon), representing the pioneer, the adventurer, and the entrepreneur. In order to use the medicine of the spirit animal of particular interest to you, you only need to invoke it.
To apply the medicine of a spirit animal to a particular situation, I suggest that you read the “Strengths and Weaknesses” and “Medicine” sections of Chapter Three first so as to understand the different qualities and gifts each spirit animal can offer. When you have chosen the most suitable medicine for your personal situation, send a silent prayer to the corresponding animal, asking it to come to your assistance. Don’t forget to make it an offering; you can do this by giving your time or money to a project or organization that helps the environment—helping to construct a nature reserve, for example—or you can promise the animal that you will involve yourself in an environmental activity (recycling, sorting trash, etc.). Physical offerings vary according to different shamanic traditions; the most common for the Native Americans is a pinch of tobacco tied in a scrap of cloth. This is then offered through thought to the relevant spirit animal and thrown into a fire to release its energy. Another form of offering consists of spending time in the company of the animal in its natural state. This is probably the most difficult to do in our modern, industrialized world, but you can spend time in thought with the spirit animal of your choice—for example, by watching documentaries, or reading books about it.
For the Native Americans, applying the medicine of a spirit animal to a particular situation means being able to look into the eyes of that animal and really absorb its unique strengths and gifts. By analyzing situations from a different perspective, it is often true that what was difficult becomes easy; by assimilating the medicine of an animal and applying it in your daily life you will often find that situations tend to resolve themselves. The Native Americans consider the medicine wheel to be a tool for spiritual development; if you manage to integrate the medicine of the twelve spirit animals and learn how to use their strengths, you will be able to raise your level of consciousness.
The Twelve Spirit Animals and Their Medicines
Falcon
Medicine: The capacity to see situations clearly, make rapid decisions, and bring projects to life
Uses: When undertaking new projects or relaunching existing onesBeaver
Medicine: The capacity to work hard, to appreciate the material things in life, and to achieve success by being methodical
Uses: When extra effort and concentration are neededDeer
Medicine: The capacity to love and to see inner beauty in everyone, and through this to create dialogue and communication
Uses: When compassion, love, friendship, and acceptance are lackingWoodpecker
Medicine: The capacity to listen to your intuition and to stay faithful to your principles, in whatever situation you find yourself
Uses: To reconnect with your inner voiceSalmon
Medicine: The capacity to express boundless enthusiasm and face up to any situation with great courage
Uses: In situations where guidance, direction, courage, and energy are neededBrown Bear
Medicine: The capacity to be determined and tenacious in everything you do, drawing on Brown Bear’s reserves of strength—both emotional and physical
Uses: In difficult situations where confidence and strength are neededRaven
Medicine: The capacity to appreciate the magic in simple things and to open your heart to the many possibilities life offers
Uses: When you’re bored with a routine and unrewarding sitauationSnake
Medicine: The capacity to accept change easily, to adapt, and to live each experience to the fullest
Uses: For letting go and welcoming change with joyOwl
Medicine: The capacity to seek out truth and justice in all circumstances
Uses: In ambiguous, unclear situations, to find the path to follow and to restore orderSnow Goose
Medicine: The capacity to wait for the right moment before taking action
Uses: In situations where patience is neededOtter
Medicine: The capacity to listen to your inner child and to enjoy life with passion and freedom
Uses: To create change and bring newness into your lifeWolf
Medicine: The capacity to follow your intuition and instinct to protect yourself and others
Uses: In any situation where you need to rely on your instinct
Excerpted from Shamanic Astrology by Lucy Harmer. © 2009, North Atlantic Books.
About the Author
Marina Snyder
Marina is the Marketing & Digital Programs Coordinator at North Atlantic Books. After living in New Orleans and Amsterdam, and exploring a couple of continents, she returned to the San Francisco Bay Area to work at NAB. She's passionate about astrology, nonfiction books, and sustainable living, as well as all things metaphysical.
