Spirit Animal? What Is That?
All civilizations have revered and admired animals throughout history. Ancient warriors and tribespeople used to wear the hides or various body parts of a particular beast in order to absorb its “power.”
The very first astronomers gave animal names to constellations, and astrologers offered them mystical meanings. Individuals who follow Native American traditions and those who are Native Americans go on “vision quests” to see their animal spirit guardians.
The term “Familiar” refers to the “concept” of a Spirit Animal in Wiccan and Pagan traditions. And, based on who you ask, in shamanism, animal guides are either actual discarnate creatures that accompany a person throughout their whole life or they are ‘thought forms’ that take the place of the spirits of actual animals.
But what really is a spirit animal? For short, when your higher self or soul calls out for assistance, a spirit animal (an animal that has passed away and now exists in spirit form) comes to help.
