Totem Tuesday: Eagle Medicine

Totem Tuesday:  Eagle Medicine

By Felina Lune Kavi

“Leaders are like eagles.  They don’t flock…you find them one at a time.” -Anonymous

Keywords:  clear vision, broadening perspective, insight, messenger between above and below, freedom, courage, power, ability to grasp details and opportunities, precision, awareness, connection to Spirit, solar energy, leadership, industry, rising above the material to see the spiritual, respect, healing, carrier of prayers, knowing beyond intellect

For those of us who live in the United States, Eagle holds national symbolism as an emblem of freedom, power, and leadership in our country.  And while many misuse this medicine, especially as used by government and corporations, it is really each individual person in this country who has the ability to reconnect with the whole of this medicine and use it for good.  Eagle sends us all on a vision quest here…one that most are not accustomed to, considering we have all but lost the significance of rites of passage.  The storm is here, and Eagle is showing us the way to fly above it and gain better perspective. 

Eagle is not just some mascot for team USA (Babylon, Egypt, and Rome have all used eagle imagery for their empires as well)…but there is good reason for this connection.  Indeed, for the whole country, its medicine is currently that of the shadow totem…medicine which we have inherently, but repress in various ways, and so we don’t work with it consciously (or even constructively, much of the time).  We tend to focus on the industry and the mental power…building the biggest nest, flying higher than others, sinking our talons into what we want, consuming as addicted opportunists…but have lost our perspective as a whole, as well as the proper use of power.  

Majestic as Eagles are, many who live and work on the Alaskan Harbor (where nearly half of our nation's bald eagles live) also know them as ‘Garbage Chickens’ or 'Trash Birds'.  This is because the eagles there, especially young males, find dumpsters an easier target for finding food than to sharpen the skills they are actually born with.  In a way, you can’t deny that this reflects the convenience-fed masses that have lost their way in this country. 

But there is much more to Eagle Medicine when we fly higher above the land.  Yes, the air element of these birds is connected to the mind…but also to the spiritual realms.  Many cultures understand Eagle as a sacred messenger between above and below.   

Eagle has also been featured in various religions around the world, such as Christianity and Islam, in ways that suggest it is “on the side of God”.  There are some similar threads between different cultures, such as Native Americans and Greek Mythology, that suggest a shape-shifting magic to this medicine.  Zeus, the chief God of the Greek Pantheon, was said to change into the form of the eagle in order to control the thunder and lighting.  Some Native Americans believed Eagle to symbolize the Thunderbird as well.  In Gaelic, Eagle was called “Suil-na-Greine”…or Eye of the Sun.  Throughout history, people all over the world have held eagles in high esteem as a bird that is very connected to Spirit. 

People with this totem medicine may also develop a close connection with Spirit…sometimes to the point of being able to hear messages and see visions with Eagle Eye precision.  They may even feel a strong energizing connection to thunderstorms.  Mostly they hold great wisdom, and people respect them as someone who gives a great deal of valuable insight and perspective on life.  They are strong communicators and can use that power to send healing to others, or to crush them like the Eagle’s powerful beak crushes prey.  Again, this medicine teaches proper use of power.

There are many different kinds of eagles, and while all of them have the medicine detailed above, some of them have specific medicine as well.  Their coloring, habitat, or predominant prey can tell you more about each of them.  For example, the Bald Eagle’s diet consists mostly of fish…which usually involves them diving to the water and catching them mid-flight.  This is symbolic of the intellect of the air element being able to peer into the vast ocean of the emotional and subconscious realms and grasp what it needs to integrate (digest) in any situation.

Eagle teaches how to rise up from the material world and see the spirit within all matter.  Those with this totem have that ability, and the ability to put their leadership skills to good use.  Eagle asks us to consider what type of leader we are, and if that path we’re leading others to is one that is ultimately constructive or destructive.  It’s not always in the mind that we come up with the right answers…there is wisdom in the heart as well.

If Eagle is one of your totems, these and many other lessons will be prevalent in your life.  Eagle will encourage you to refine your mastery of this medicine.  If you see an eagle, but it is not one of your totems, respect it as a messenger for that time.  You may need its medicine for what is happening then or what is coming up in the near future.  Eagle may be contacting you to help you gain some perspective on a situation by looking at it objectively…or it may be teaching you to be more aware of your surroundings.  However Eagle chooses to share its medicine, it means to empower you to soar to your highest potential.