Dreams on Feathered Wings

For the last several months, my dreams have featured owls, in some sort of way. In my most vivid one, I was walking through deep woods, along an old boardwalk. Earlier in the dream, I had acquired a raven companion on my left shoulder, who acted as my eyes, guiding me through the mist, telling me what was ahead. A water-snake, coiled around my left wrist, helped guide me by telling me what was beneath my feet. At some point, I let a copperhead loosely coil around my right wrist. The others warned me to be wary, for he was treacherous. I kept my distance from his fangs, and sensed his intent to strike at be an instant before he did. But as he whipped around at me, a magnificent owl with a black, upwards-facing crescent moon on her brow dove through the mist, taking the copperhead into her talons. She flew away into the deep forest, and I followed her with the help of the raven and good snake. She guided me through winding paths that I could barely see, until we reached a clearing, where I briefly saw her land on a tree next to an equally magnificent white stag. In other dreams, I've been in the center of a whirling cloud of owls, and I think they were somehow carrying me through the air, in flight with them. I've met women who have turned into owls, and I have myself become an owl.

With this recurring appearance of Owl in my dream, I decided to do research on what it might mean. In many cultures, Owl is, of course, associated with wisdom. Not always of wisdom possessed, but of wisdom one needs to search for. Owl is a symbol of clairvoyance, the ability to see through deceit, either from an external force or from your own mind putting up internal barriers, keeping you from seeing clearly. The appearance of Owl is also often associated with death. However, Owl is actually a harbinger of change, not necessarily death. It just so happens that death is the greatest change, and so often associated with the appearance of Owl. If Owl appears to one frequently, it may mean that one needs to search out wisdom, and see through the proverbial mists to find truth. It may also mean that a great change is to come about, or that one needs to change something in his or her life. I am also very spiritual, although not in the sense most may recognize. One may see a pentacle daily hanging from my throat or wrist. In the religion I claim as mine, Owl is often featured in tales, as is the white stag from the dream I described. I won’t bore (or possibly offend) the readers of this post with the religious meanings the Owl and Stag have for one such as me, but suffice it to say, it was quite significant to me. I deeply feel that this dream resonated with meaning, especially paired with some of the other Owl dreams I've had.

Accompanying these dreams was (and is) a turbulent time in my life. I felt and feel the need for guidance and clairvoyance. These dreams, although perhaps just fragments of my subconscious briefly showing its face, brought this need to my conscious attention. They helped me guide myself through trying times full of change. All I had to do was heed Owl’s call.