Thursday, January 31, 2013

Spirit of the Forest - The White Stag












The white stag in Celtic myth is a sign that the other world is near.
As my brother Steve and myself would say a white stag or Buffalo
is "BIG MEDICINE"

To the early Christians the white stag symbolized
Christ because of its whiteness and purity. It is also associated with
the sun in early christian icons the sun appears between its antlers.
In Celtic mythology, the stag is a magical creature that can move
between the worlds. As in Ireland many tales have humans transformed
into deer. For example St. Patrick was said to have transformed himself
and his companions into deer in order to escape a trap laid by a pagan king.

In the Welsh tale of Culhwch and Olwen, the stag is one of the
oldest animals in the world, along with the blackbird, the owl, and
the eagle and salmon. The antlers on the white stag are compared to
tree-branches and thus may represent fertility, since they are shed and
re-grown year after year. Antlers also symbolize rejuvenation and rebirth.
Cernunnos, the Celtic horned god, was depicted with the antlers of a stag;
and said to be the god of fertility and plenty and was claimed to be the
lord of the beasts
.
I have only seen a white deer once in my life locally.
Unfortunately I heard about it's fate as some people cannot resist to
take the life of something that is different and unique in this world.