Welcome to Gaia! :: View User's Journal | Gaia Journals

Today we will look at the wise and sometimes spooky bird known as the owl.

In ancient Greece Athene , goddess of wisdom, was greatly impressed with the appearance of the owl. She made the bird her favorite feathered creature. It became a symbol of protection. If soldiers saw one flying over before a battle they saw it as a sign of victory.

In early Rome a hooting owl became a sign of death. They would be nailed to doors in order to advert the evil they were thought to cause. One Roman superstition said that witches would transform into owls and suck the blood of babies.

In English folklore owls were associated with death since they were creatures of the night. Many people believed the hoot of an owl as it flew past the window of a sick person was a sign of death. The sound of an owl could also be a sign of cold or bad weather. They were also nailed to doors to ward of evil and lightning.

One superstition says that owls are one of the only creatures that can live with ghosts. So having an owl live in a building was a sign that ghost were also there. If you dream of owls while traveling you might end up shipwrecked or robbed.

In some cultures the owls association with death was as a guardian of the underworld and a protector of the dead. Some native Americans associated the owl with wisdom, foresight, and being a keeper of sacred knowledge.