Bear Animal Symbolism
If you were born between August 22 – September 22, the Bear is your Native American Birth Animal (or your Animal Totem). If you were born between February 19 – March 20th, the Bear is your Polarity Animal. Here are a few things you may not know about the bear and what you can learn from its characteristics and symbolism.
Bears Represent Healing and Medicine
Bears can be seriously injured and keep on fighting. They were considered to be “self-healing” by the Native Americans. Many Native American tribes viewed them as magical. Asians have long used bear secretions for medicinal purposes. In China, bears are actually farmed and their gall bladder bile is harvested through a permanent catheter. Bear Gall Bladders in South Korea are worth more than gold. One even sold at auction for $64,000!
If you have the Bear as your Animal Totem or Birth Animal, you may be interested in spiritual, emotional or physical healing. You may have a natural knack for self-healing or helping others heal.
Bears Are Considered Supernatural
Many believed that hibernating bears are going off to another spiritual dimension, and thus they are considered to have a connection to the spirit world. When they hibernate, bears’ hearts (which normally have a heart rate of 40 beats per minute) drop down to 8 beats per minute! Bears have a heightened sense of smell – about 100 times better than humans. Polar bears can track down an odor from 20 miles away. This heightened sensitivity also gives them a supernatural connotation.
The most common bear in the United States is the black bear. Black bears can be various colors – brown, cinnamon, black and even white. White bears, which are quite rare, were considered to possess supernatural powers by Native Americans.
“In some tribes, it was considered disrespectful and dangerous to insult bears, step on their scat, or even utter their names outside of certain ritual contexts.” (Source: Native-Languages.org)
People with a Bear Birth Animal, may like to go off by themselves for stretches – especially when they are stressed, sick or wounded. You may also have a sixth sense about things and have intuitive gifts and qualities.
Bear Symbolism – Strength and Power
Obviously, bears symbolize confidence and strength. Did you know they can run up to 40 miles per hour and catch a running horse? In Russia, they show up in fairy tales as a symbol of pride and power. Most Native Americans avoided killing a She-bear. They were considered deserving of respect for their bravery, protective, and nurturing qualities, and their willingness to sacrifice themselves for their young. She-bears also raise their cubs alone. The male bear doesn’t stick around after breeding. Who wouldn’t respect these powerful, nurturing and protective “single mothers?”
If you have Bear energy as your Birth Animal, you may be a very strong individual, powerful, and confident with nurturing and “Mama Bear” qualities.
Affirmations for Bear Animal Symbolism
- I am strong and powerful
- I am confident and believe in myself.
- I am intuitive and trust my instincts.
- I trust my body’s healing powers.
- I am connected to the Divine.
- I am always Divinely guided and protected.
- I am brave.
- I nurture myself and others.
- I take time for myself.
- I am playful and enjoy life.
- I am connected to my spirituality and trust my spiritual insights.
Characteristics to Avoid
If you have Bear Animal Symbolism in your birth energy, look out for stubbornness. And if you tend to go off to be alone for extended periods of time, be sure to communicate this need to your family and friends so they understand and don’t feel like you’ve abandoned them or written them off.
Polarity Animal: If Bear is your Birth Animal, then the Wolf is your polarity animal. If you have Wolf as your Birth Animal, then Bear is your polarity animal.
Featured Image Copyright: nialat / BigStockPhoto.com
