Sacred Lion Totem Wisdom
~ Symbol of the sun and of gold.
~ Courage, bravery and Strength.
~ Strong family bonds.
~ Brotherhood.
~ Gentleness in the Community.
~ Letting go of stress.
~ Strength of Heart (Lion-Hearted).
Lion's wisdom has been symbolic of both feminine and masculine attributes through time. In Greece and Rome, the Lion is associated with the masculine sun god, while in Egypt and the Middle East, lion was more often symbolic of feminine dieties with both nurturing and protective or war-like huntress qualities. The Egyptian Godess Bastet was often portrayed as a woman with the head of a lioness. Bastet is the Goddess of Protection and nurturing. In Biblical writings, the ArchAngel Ariel is known as the Lioness of God. Ariel is also the Angel of nature, Patron Angel of wild animals. She oversees the protection and healing of plants and animals, as well as the elements. ArchAngel Ariel, has also been portrayed as both feminine and masculine through time. Lion has long been know as the "King of Beasts," and universally this symbolically applies to traits of royalty, strength, protection and courage.
Regal Lion also teaches lessons of brotherhood and gentleness in the community. Lions are cooperative hunters; they share lessons of dealing with group issues and community interactions. Lions live in groups called prides. Within the pride the females do most of the hunting and cub rearing; they are patient and affectionate with the cubs. The males job in the pride is mostly strength and protection. They also help in the hunt by using their roar to startle prey towards the waiting lionesses. Lion teaches life lessons of living in commune with others and learning to work in a group, and learning to have respect for all group members. If Lion is your life path birth totem, you are born leader and often find yourself in leadership roles in the community and groups. Lion helps you lead with a "soft paw of compassion." (To Buddhists, the lion represents defending law and justice with compassion.) If Lion steps forward as a helper totem, he may be bringing lessons of learning your role within groups, either family or in the community.
Lions strive to avoid confrontation and they do not fight, just to fight. Lions will always try to flee from danger. Lion can teach you to change your attitude toward stress, as stress is not caused by issues and problems, it is caused by your attitude towards them. Lion shares lessons of relaxation and letting go of stress thru meditation. Lion can teach you to develop a relaxed state of mind.
If you feel you need help letting go of stress, Lion would be a good totem to invite as a helper totem. Another resource for letting go of stress is to start a gratitude journal. This journal's main goal is reflection and gratitude, focusing on the positive in your life and things you are thankful for. This will help create a shift in our thinking to the positive. I found a nice article by googling "Gratitude Journal".
If you have a Lion Birth Totem or Helper Totem and would like to honor your totem by displaying a Lion picture with Lion symbology printed on it, please check out: Sacred Lion Totem Wisdom Picture
Copy Right 2013 ~ Jeannie Vos, Animal Path Reiki Practitioner
~ Sweet Juba ~ (shown in above picture)
I recently had the honor of connecting with Juba the Lion in an animal communication session. Juba is a Lion who lives in an animal sanctuary in Sao Paulo, Brazil. I had met his caretakers on Facebook, and have been following Juba's story. He was a circus animal who was very neglected, and then he lived in 2 zoos and a government holding facility and was very neglected and abused. Juba at one point had lost his faith in humans and felt he was stripped of his life purpose. It was when he was finally rescued and taken to his new home in Sao Paulo...a home full of loving caretakers, that he realized, he had endured all of the neglect and torment to help spread the word about animals who are victims of animal shows and circuses. Juba says that these animals are not happy, and no matter what the humans say, the animals that are subjected to animal shows are suffering and struggling. Juba says to avoid these "shows" and do not pay to go see them, the money and greed of money is what drives these shows. Juba says there are better more dignified ways to learn about wild animals, and going to animal shows is not one of them. He was not very positive about zoos either, but he said they are the lesser of the 2 evils. Juba feels that putting animals in zoos is teaching a message that it is okay to hunt down and trap and enslave animals for the purpose of entertaining humans, this is definitely not the right message to teach our children. He says there are very appropriate ways of learning about wild animals and their natural habitat without the use of zoos or shows. Humans just need to work hard and find the right and moral way to do this. Juba was very positive about animal sanctuaries and rescues that strive to maintain the health, wellness and happiness of the rescued animals. He was so thankful for his wonderful helpers and caretakers, and to the people who rescued him. Juba also wanted me to add to the symbolism of Lions when I write about them. He told me to add the symbolism of "Strength of Heart (or Lion-Hearted). He said that those with a Lion birth totem are very strong-hearted people (or Lion Hearted) who can endure their life lessons, as they see the bigger picture and the gift of soul teaching they are receiving.
Copy Right 2013 ~ Jeannie Vos, Animal Path Reiki Practitioner
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