Simba and The Girls!
I know, I know. We like to think of animal spirit guides, totem animals, and the avian messengers of Spirit to always be the majestic, ephemeral, and powerful creatures such as wolves or dolphins or butterflies or hawks. But, sometimes common animals have messages for us too. Spirit works in infinite ways.
A couple of weeks ago Aggie from the blog Isis Farms (check them out – there’s even a chicken love story!) asked me if I had written an Animal Spirits post on chickens yet. I had not and said if chickens came up more I would. Then I wrote a couple of posts about my Simba and Lion Spirits. And what does that have to do with chickens? Well, in my old home where I had a little “farm” I used to have chickens, The Girls as I called them, who laid green and blue-green eggs, and Simba was my partner in raising, caring for, and protecting the girls. Needless to say, chickens kept coming up in my mind.
“Teenaged” Daphne, Clio, Calliope, and Phoebe
Chickens, the hen (female) and the rooster (male), are domesticated birds. From my experience they are proud, very intelligent, and have distinct personalities. Mine even knew their names! Hens symbolize nurturing and mothering. Hence, we have the term “mother hen.” Roosters, or cocks, are more cocky and flamboyant. They are protectors of the coop, the hens, and the chicks or eggs. Their loud cock-a-doodle-doo in the morning to welcome the Sun and the day, also makes them solar creatures and time-keepers. In Chinese astrology the rooster, who sometimes is called the Phoenix, is a symbol of good luck, fidelity and honesty, and protectiveness or bossiness.
The Chicken symbolizes:
- Community and family protection, growth, and nurturing
- Pride, courage, and arrogance/flamboyance
- Watchfulness and being in tune with Time and the Sun
- Wake-up calls and hearing your Inner Voice
- The power of voice and language
Here’s a little picture tribute to Simba and The Girls:
Through the Peacock's Eyes 
Such a beautiful post. The pictures of the babies at the end are just wonderful. I enjoyed tis so very much. Thank you.
Thank you! Happy Easter!
How sweet!
Reblogged this on hocuspocus13.
Thanks!
your welcome
enjoy your full moon evening
jinxx
Great post Julie! Love this series as it reminds me that all life forms bring messages to us. You do a fine job of giving your visitors such a personal flair.
Namaste,
Linda
Thanks Linda! Hope your week is going well!
The wake-up calls of the inner voice help keep us from being too cooped up with the ego!
Nicely put! Namaste _/l\_
Simba looks so peaceful with your girls! Sadly our two Cocker Spaniels are bred to bring birds back and we have to keep them well and truly separated 😦
Simba loved The Girls. They were really his chickies. 🙂
Great picture of Simba and the girls, I have a few chickens and roosters, they lay the green, blue, pink eggs too.
Wooohoooooo for Americanas and Auracanas! 😀
I love all the little pictures of the chicks, and the whole way you wrote about everyone. Precious! ❤
Thanks!
What a lovely and informative share about chickens! I love it. Thank you. 🙂 Gina
Thanks Gina!
Unfortunately here in Miami the Haitian voodoo and Spanish Santeria are very monstrous in their handling of chicken spirits and other animals as well.
Very sad.
How lovely! Thank you, Julianne!
What a lovely thing that Simba took such great care of the girls. Both my sons are Roosters (and they most certainly ARE!). That’s what happens when you wait for twelve years for your next child. 😉 I have a strong spirit animal, the badger… I’m on my tablet or I’d see if you’ve done a post on a badger. I’ll read your dragonfly one since he is one as well. Thanks for this series!
You’re welcome! No badger post yet. 🙂
Thanks, Julie. I enjoyed seeing photos of your girls, and especially the video of your garden. No wonder you miss it!
I have been musing about what the chickens have symbolized in our lives. I will get back to you when I can verbalize.
Hi Aggie! Thanks for clicking to the video!
Yes, their community is a great strength. They want to be together. They cooperate, especially when they suspect danger. Yet there is room for individuality and minor squabbles… Yes, they can be said to be lunar in the unwavering rhythm of their sleep cycle, which is tied to the sun… They are industrious. There is time for sunbathing on nice days, but mostly they are working steadily, scratching and pecking… Their focus is narrow – when we move their coop, we have to show them where it is at the end of the day… If I had to populate a production facility with workers, I think I would enjoy chickens. They would work productively, cooperatively, and contentedly, and yet I could enjoy their individual personalities and pride in self.
Love it! This reminded me that chickens like to dust bathe. Do your chickens have a sandy dirt spot where they can do this? They’d love it! 🙂
Yes. They use the box that we made them, and they especially love digging their own around the big trees. 🙂
Loved that you kept chickens and so enjoyed reading.. We hope to sort out a space on our allotments soon for housing some Chickens, This was like one of those ‘Signs’ to remind us to get cracking with clearing the space!…. 🙂 Thank you xox Sue
You’re welcome Sue! Yay! Bring in the chickens! 🙂
Totem animals have been playing an interesting and ever – growing role in my life so I am so happy to see your post this morning. It seems squirrels are joining me for 2014!! Have you ever written about them? I also have dragonfly ( 2 years) and zebra ( 10+ years). Blessings to you and wishing you a wonderful week ahead.
No squirrels yet, but I did do the dragonfly already. Have a beautiful week too! 🙂
How interesting, I just did a tarot spread for a friend and the first card that came up had chickens on it!
Awesome! 😀