by Last Updated on February 10, 2023 by Avia
If you know anything about me or my website, then you know I’ve devoted a ton of time to identifying animal totems and written a slew of articles about animal signs and symbolism. As a result, I get a lot of questions, like, “What is my spirit animal?” or, “How do I connect with my totem animal?” While I do have ideas or potential solutions that answer these questions, the curiosity around our animal connections still remains. Therefore, I’m writing this to provide insights and tips for connecting with your power animal.
Table of Contents
What is a Power Animal?
I call them totem animals, but the term “power animal” is synonymous. A power animal is your guide, your kin, your kind. It is a creature of any kind (feather, fur, scales, etc) that resonates with you. This is a critter that speaks to you and helps you navigate through life. If you feel a deep connection with an animal of any sort, it begs your attention, and is likely a power animal in your life.
How Do Power Animals Manifest in Our Lives?
There are loads of reasons a power animal can drift into your life. When I say these creatures “drift” into our lives, that’s a bit elusive. In truth, (I believe) we are born with certain animals as we carry them in our souls – they are protective, informative, and help sculpt who we are (when we give care to heed their advice). But our core animal clans reveal themselves in different ways. Here are a few examples of how power animals manifest in our lives:
Born This Way
You may identify with a power animal because you can pull that thread of animal life within you from the moment you were born. Sound outlandish? It’s not. Those of us who are attuned to early memories (maybe even past lives) can perceive a bond with animals that come through to us from the time we are born.
The Paws in Our Stars
Every culture that has ever endeavored to establish a system of astrology has recruited animals to represent each sign. It doesn’t matter if the astrology system is based on classic or esoteric, solar or lunar, eastern or western – the date of your birth is bound to be tied to some sort of animal. For example, in Celtic animal astrology, your zodiac power animal might be a hawk, hound, horse or some other creature according to your astrology sign.
If you look at your Native American birth animal, you might be affiliated with a fox, stag, eagled or another creature depending upon your birth. If you’re unsure about your power animal, you can always look at your zodiacal data (birth date) from various cultures to gain more insight.
Attention Retention
If you continuously and consistently encounter animals that draw on your attention – that’s your sign. It means that there is a reason you should retain knowledge of this animal. If you consider that all energy is connected, you’ll realize that repetitive sightings of animals are a signal of connection with your power animal.
Common Misconceptions When Connecting With Your Power Animals
Now that we’ve skimmed the surface of how various creatures might come into our lives, and potential insights into how they may enrich our lives, let’s take a look at the opposite side of animal totems.
I’m not tooting my own horn here, but I’ve been interacting with animal communication for 20+ years, and I’ve been exposed to different perceptions or ideas about melding with our animal kin. Some ideas have been utterly ridiculous, while others have some credence. Here are a few misconceptions many people have that I’ve noticed along my path with power animals.
It’s Not Slot Machine Logic
When people ask me, “What is my power animal?” I tend to cringe. Why? Because I call this “slot machine logic” – putting a question into some unknown mailbox, or pay some stranger to identify your power animal is like putting money in a slot machine. Sometimes you might get a jackpot. Most of the time you get lemons. To really connect with your power animal requires investigation on your part – it’s not a “one size fits all” thing, and no one can slap a quickie assessment on you by saying “Poof, your power animal is such-and-such.”
Perceived Limitations on How Power Animals Connect
If you consider the tremendous diversity in our world and universe, then it should be clear that the ways and means in bonding with our power animals is just as infinite as all life that exists. Let me give you a comparison. If you expect your best friend to only contact you by phone, then you are limiting the ways he or she can connect with you. They could snail mail you, or send you energetic messages, or DM you on a social network. You get the idea.
Never limit your power animal to communicate with you in one way only. Sure – you can have a ceremony to connect with your power animal. It might be successful. But don’t be disappointed if fireworks don’t go off. Your power animal might find its way to you through a song, a vision, during meditation, through dreams, from a TV show, through a conversation with a loved one. There are endless ways your animal totem could reach out to you – be aware of that.
Believing That Others Know Better Than You
Only you and your power animal are best equipped to understand the ties that bind you together. Getting someone else to tell you what your power animal is, tends to squash a bit out of the union. It crushes that wild, organic unfolding of a relationship with your animal guide. Therefore, be wary of hitching your wagon exclusively on what someone else says might be your prime creature. There is nothing wrong with seeking advice from experienced shamans or totemic professionals. However, please remember that at the end of the day – the partnership you forge with your animal totem is a deeply personal journey.
The Last Word on Power Animals
In the final analysis, your marriage with your power animal should be two-sided, communicative, open, honest and profound. Here are a few take-away points:
- Identifying “first contact” with your power animal can come in many forms.
- As mentioned, you might start with your zodiac animal as identified through various cultural astrological ideals (such as Native American, Hindu, Chinese zodiac, or whatever). This might give you a thread to tug on. If that doesn’t reap fruit for you, then start exploring on your own.
- Again, it’s cool to seek advice from people you trust – but don’t be too willing to believe everything you’re being told about your animal guide.
- Ultimately, the union is between you and your power animal. That means you’ve got to invest in the relationship – very much the same way you would invest in finding a soul mate or human companion.
As always, thank you for reading, and I hope these tips for connecting with your power animal are helpful on your path.
Mighty brightly,
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