Cupid Roman God of Love
Above and Below ... She is the Tree and Holds the Book
November 21, 2010 - Sun in Sagittarius
Happy Birthday to the Sagittarius readers.
Bows and arrows go back to ancient times. They were present in Egyptian culture since it's predynastic origins. The Nine Bows symbolize the various peoples that had been ruled over by the pharaoh since Egypt was united. The goddess Nekhbet symbolized the unity of the peoples under the pharaoh, her epitaph was 'She who binds nine bows'. The arrow itself was a symbol of divine power, which was personified by Neith, the goddess of war, whose cult was symbolized by two crossed arrows. Two crossed arrows could also represent the power of Hemsut, which was a female form of Ka.
Arrows could symbolize the sun's rays; Atum was the archer who fired sunbeams as though they were arrows. At the Ascension of the king, he would symbolically fire an arrow in each of the four cardinal directions; this symbolized his power over the Four Corners of the world.
Bows were originally made from antelope horns bound to a piece of wood in the centre; it is this form of bow, which is shown in the hieroglyph of a bow. This was around in prehistoric times and many flint arrowheads have been found. Later bows built from a single piece of wood replaced the earlier antelope horn bows. Usually these bows were made from Acacia wood and strung with animal fibre, the arrows were made from cane with flint, bone or bronze heads. When the Hyskos came into contact with the Egyptians they brought with them the composite bow which was far more powerful than its predecessors were. Bows often featured in burials, something that is connected to the goddess Neith's protective role.
Feathers are an archetype of flight and ascension, or any other word you associate with moving back to light and consciousness. Most of the important creation god are shown with wings and feathers - Thoth, Quetzalcoatl, Sumerian Gods, to name a few - all of whom seem linked to the alchemy of time and consciousness that created this reality.
Feathers as symbols move from lower to higher frequency based on color ... darker to white or shimmering light.
Feathers were worn by Native American Chiefs to symbolize their communication with Spirit, and to express their celestial wisdom. Also in the Native American Indian culture, feathers represented the power of the thunder gods, along with the power of air and wind. Native American Pueblo Indians would pay homage to the Feathered Sun which is a symbol of the cosmos and the center of existence. Another symbol meaning of feathers also revolves around prayer, and the Pueblo use feather sticks as they dance in prayer for rain during solstice rituals.
As a Celtic symbol meaning, the feather was worn by Druids in the form of ornate feathered robes. Celtic Druids donned these robes in ceremonies to invoke the sky gods and gain knowledge of the celestial realm. It was believed that the feathered cloak along with the presence of the sky gods would allow the Druid to transcend the earthly plane and enter the ethereal realm.
The Egyptians believed that feathers were symbolic of sky gods. Ma'at, the Egyptian goddess of justice, would weigh the hearts of the newly dead in the underworld against the weight of a feather to determine the worthiness of his or her soul.
In Christianity feathers represented virtues. An image of three feathers were made into signet rings - each feather symbolizing Charity, Hope, and Faith. These rings were worn as a symbol of a virtuous soul - they were also used as wax seals. The ring would be dipped in warm wax then pressed against documents to seal the closure. The recipient would know the documents came from a virtuous man by the indication of the three-feather symbol in the wax.
In dreams feathers mean travel or the ability to move more freely in life. White feathers in dreams indicate innocence or a fresh start in a spiritual sense.
