Should America Tax Church Commercial Property like Italy?

here is a small list of pagan religious symbols

Ankh


The Ankh was, for the ancient Egyptians, the symbol (the actual Hieroglyphic sign) of life but it is an enduring icon that remains with us even today as a Christian cross. The Ankh is possibly one of the most widely recognized symbols other than the cross, sacred to the ancient Egyptians, and often used as an amulet, this symbol is basically the T or Tau cross supporting a circular shape. Giving the appearance of the shape of a key, in Egyptian hieroglyphics this symbol stands for life or living, and forms part of the Egyptian words such as 'health' and 'happiness'. Linked with Egyptian gods and goddesses, such as Isis (eternal mother and High Priestess) and Osiris, most gods would appear to have possessed the ankh, to symbolize life, sexual union, and immortality. It is thus often referred to as the Key of Life, or even the cross of life, because of its creative power. The loop of the ankh is considered to be the feminine, whilst the T shape is considered to be the masculine staff. Together, these symbols reflect a continued existence.


The Spiral


The Spiral is and ancient symbol of evolution, one of the oldest pagan symbols in existence. It represents the cycle of the seasons and the cycles of Life, growth and change. Although each loop of the spiral brings us back to the same place, it takes us to a higher and more evolved level at each turn.


The Pentacle



The Pentacle or the Pentagram is a 5 pointed star, often, but not always, encircled with the circle of Unity. It represents the domination of Spirit or Divine Will over base matter, and the elements of Spirit, Earth, Water, Fire, and Air. The pentacle has been a symbol of protection and spiritual growth for millennia. At its points are the stages of Life: birth, initiation, consummation, repose, and death, with the circle bringing us back to birth in the cycle of reincarnation. Representing the element of Earth in the Tarot, the pentacle is also associated with prosperity and abundance and groundedness. The pentacle is often confused with the pentagram. The pentagram is the mathematical design itself, while a the pentacle is an object in the shape of a pentagram. The paten is a dish for holding cakes and other offerings or for charging material items and often has a pentacle or pentagram inscribed upon it




Septagram

The Septagram or Faery Star is a 7-pointed star used instead of or in addition to the pentagram by many Faery and Celtic-based traditions. The seven points represent the Sun, the Forest, the Sea, Magick, the Moon, the Wind and Spirit or Connection.



Tree

Trees From the apple trees of Avalon to the Yggdrasil - the World Tree of the Norse -- to the Tree of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden, trees are a universal symbol of stability and the central pillar of Life which provides connection between humans and the Divine. The druids held their rites in sacred groves and devised a tree-based divinatory and shamanic spiritual system based on trees, the Ogham.



Triangle

The Triangle represents the active principle and is often used as a symbol of fire. It's energy is dynamic and it creates change, moves forcibly and with power.


Triple Moon

The Triple Moon is symbolic of the triple Goddess in her 3 phases of Maiden, Mother and Crone. Glowing with reflected light, the Moon represents light within the darkness, and is associated with the female divine energy. Lunar energy offers us the ability to connect with the flowing powers of magick and mystery and our powers of psychic perception and intuition. As it waxes and wanes and is reborn anew, the Moon brings us the potential to connect with our own ability to rejuvenate our lives.



Triquetra



The Triquetra The triquetra is a triangular Celtic knot design which symbolizes all trinities and especially the realms of Air, Earth and Sea - thus all the world



Triskle

The Triskele is an ancient Celtic symbol representing all trinities. Three is seen as a magickal number by many ancient cultures, especially the Celts. Many of their gods appeared in triple-form. One belief is that doing something thrice makes it so. In numerology, three represents creative power and gheshtalt (when two things become more than the sum of their parts).



Octagram


The 8-Pointed Star or Octagram corresoponds to the Wheel of the Year and the 8 Sabbats of Wiccan and Pagan traditions. It is representative of the cycle of time and the power of regeneration and return. 8 is also the number of harvest, allowing you to reap the seeds you have sown in the past and gain from your projects and learning.


Oak


Sacred to the druids and the Greeks, the oak is a tree of strength, protection and durability. It represents inner fire, courage and nobility of spirit. At the Greek oracle of Dodoni, the god Zeus speaks by rustling the leaves of the sacred oak. Many Germanic and Celtic tribes made truce and administered justice under the oak, and the Yule log is traditionally of oak as well. As it both attracts lightning and yet seems resilient to it, the oak is sacred to many storm and wind gods, and its power to stand to lightning's transformative power may have something to do with its meaning in the Ogham, where it is Dur, "door" an Ogham of transformation, the ability to step through the door and create change. Dur is the turning point in the Oghamic calendar, falling at summer solstice, with Tinne (holly) in the next month, representing the transition from the oak to the holly king. The acorn symbolizes the huge potential in small things.




Nonagram

The Nonagram or 9 - pointed star represents kundalini power and the 9 chakras (7 bodily chakras plus the Earth-star and Soul-star). It further represents the power of 3 - times - 3. In the Qaballah, the nonagram symbolizes Yesod, the Earth, and also the Moon and the power of imagination.




Moon


Glowing with reflected light, the Moon represents light within the darkness, and is associated with the female divine energy. Lunar energy offers us the ability to connect with the flowing powers of magick and mystery and our powers of psychic perception and intuition. As it waxes and wanes and is reborn anew, the Moon brings us the potential to connect with our own ability to rejuvenate our lives. The phases of the Moon are associated with the Triple Goddess. In my path the Moon correlates with 4 phases of the Goddess - Maiden (first crescent to 1st quarter), Mother (1st quarter to full) ; Matron (Warrior Woman) ( full to 3rd quarter) and Crone (3rd quarter to dark). Many female deities have some lunar connection, but these Goddesses and Gods are especially lunar: Selene, Artemis, Diana, Isis, Thoth, Hecate.


The Mano Cornuto


or Horned Hand is an ancient symbol used to protect against the evil eye. In Italian, mano means "hand" and corno means "horn". This symbol also represents the Horned God of the Witches, and is especially sacred to the Strega.


Mandala


Mandalas are symbolic images, used in the process of invocation and meditation to call in a spiritual force within the contemplator. Mandalas ususally take the form of a Yantra, a geometrical design, generally with a "bindu" spot at the center. This spot represents the essence of essence, the spark or soul that the essence of all things. Meditation with a Mandala or Yantra allows the conscious mind to quiet so that the unconscious can offer information and wisdom.



Labrys


The Labrys is an ancient Goddess symbol used by the Minoan peoples of Crete, and now used to represent feminine power. Some believe that these crescent moon shaped axes were the weapons of the Amazons, but whether or not they truly existed as more than legend is yet unknown.


The Eye of Horus


The eye of Horus or the "Utchat" or "Udjat" (sound eye) is a powerful symbol which was believed to offer protection against the "Evil Eye". Horus's right eye is the "Eye of Re" (the sun god) and his left eye is the "Eye of Horus" (and symbolic of the moon). In a battle to avenge Horus's father, Osiris, the god Set plucked out Horus' eye. It was later restored and made whole by Thoth. The udjat was painted on ships and. other items needing protection. Jeweled Eyes of Horus were set into sarcophagi to promote vitality in the afterlife. It was also worn to promote health and vitality. The pharmacist's symbol for prescription, "Rx," is derived from this design.


Zoomorphic Knotwork


The Celtic spirit is one of change and adaptability, not easily harnessed by outside doctrines. The zoomorphic designs best portray this aspect of the Celts. During their travels and transformations in the physical and spiritual sense, they identified the metamorphic changes of nature, such as caterpillar to moth, with the profound stages of evolution. "Oneness" with nature is a belief shared by all ancient people. For the Celts, it meant a recognition of form not being a precise structure but having the possibility to transform on all levels of existence. Their zoomorphic designs portray this belief clearly and also reveal an ancient wisdom and understanding beyond other cultures. Part of their religious belief was in the progressive incarnations of souls or metempsychosis - the transmigration of souls into another physical body. Zoomorphic designs feature animals, which represent deities and therefore symbolize their powers in life.


BaGua


The Bagua is central to Feng Shui, the art of placement, and creating sacred space. The bagua is an 8 sided diagram derived from eight trigrams which form the root of the hexagrams of the I-Ching, (the Chinese "Book of Changes") a powerful tool for divination and growth. Centered in the bagua is the Yin/Yang symbol. This powerful symbol is used in creating flow and harmony in your life.


Cauldron


The cauldron is drawn from ancient Celtic mythology. The Celts used cauldrons for food and for ritual use, where it symbolized abundance, and divine inspiration. It represents the womb, the elements of Spirit and Water, wisdom, and the transformation cycle of birth-death-rebirth. It is the symbol of the Celtic goddess Cerridwen.
As a ritual tool, it is mostly symbolic. Often used to represent the fire or water elements, it is also used for scrying, for mixing herbs, for consecration, or to hold the ingredients for a spell. It is generally held to be a feminine symbol.


Cat



Cats Mischevious, playful, alluring, intuitive, cats embody the essence of magick and mystery. As totems and spirit guides they offer protection, independence, psychic power, sensuality and self confidence. They are associated with the Moon, the Night and the element of Fire. Traditionally seen as the archetypical witch's familiar, cats are a magnificent aid to grounding, and just stroking their fur can bring calm, healing and a sense of peace. With their mysterious airs, it is no wonder that cats have been revered, mythologized and sometimes even feared since ancient times. During the Burning Times, cats were firmly entrenched in our mythology as the familiar animal of witches, and often murdered along with their owners. The lack of cats to kill rats allowed the Black Death to spread swiftly across Europe. In sharp contrast, the Egyptians treated them as gods and kings and even mummified them after their deaths, and killing a cat (even by accident) was punishable by death. The Egyptian goddess Bast, protectress of the Pharoah and of women, was seen as a cat or a cat-headed woman. Because of the cat's penchant for freedom, the Romans depicted the goddess of Liberty as having a cat at her feet. Freya, the Norse goddess of passion and fertility was associated with cats, and Shosti, the childbirth goddess of the Hindu mythos rides a cat. In Celtic lore, heroes were often seen battling giant cats rather than dragons.

Athame

The Magick Knife (Athame, Seax, Yag-dirk, or witch's dagger) is the tool of the element Air (sometimes Fire). The blade is most often double edged, and in many traditions, black hilted. The athame represents utilization of the will force, and the double-edged power of freedom and responsibility.
The athame is a witches primary tool for rituals and circle magic. It is the instrument used to direct energy, draw magical circles and other diagrams, in the midst of which many spells are cast and stands for intellect, right thinking, and calculation. It is seldom used to invoke or call upon the Deities for it is an instrument of commanding and power manipulation. We'd rather invoke the Goddess and God. Highly coveted, once consecrated, this tool is extremely precious to Wiccan/Pagan folk!



Broom

In Ireland, the besom, or witches broomstick, was sometimes called a "Faery's Horse." Today, "jumping the broom" has become an important aspect of Wiccan Handfastings, symbolizing the transition from the Maiden phase of life to that of the Mother. They are also used to sweep the circle (or any area) free of unwanted energies, so that the desired energy can fill the space. The broomstick is a phallic symbol used by female witches in fertility rites, and it is from this idea that the witches of Halloween ride broomsticks. The sweeping end was traditionally made of the broom herb, a feminine herb with a phallus-like knob beneath the straws.


Braided Strand

While many of the ancient designs certainly had some spiritually significant meaning, these have been lost to the ages. The continual looping of the designs suggests themes of eternity and interconnectedness, and knots may have been made at one time to foil evil spirits. Interwoven figures of people and animals may have represented the interdependent nature of life-two or more knots laced together symbolize lovers, hunters and their prey, God and man, etc. Some knots were used as magical talismans for protection.


Boline

The Boline or Bolline is a small, sickle shaped knife used to gather herbs used in rituals and spells. The sickle shaped knife can be traced to Druid mistletoe customs, and is a lunar tool.

The Boline, is the traditional witch's knife for cutting herbs, harvesting plants and doing other magickal chores for which they don't use the athame. By tradition it is white-hilted.


Bee



The bee-hive is an important symbol in the third degree, and it is extensively mentioned in the lecture where it is depicted as a symbol of industry, hence the work of the Lodge, so that Masons should continue to learn in all stages of life. Bees are able to accomplish large tasks because they cooperate in force, a single bee can do very little. This is in parallel to Masonry, where strength is gained by the active participation of all its members. The bee is also the emblem of several Greco-Roman and Indian gods, including Cupid and Kama, both gods of love.
The Egyptians believed that bees were born from the tears of the Sun-god, Ra. Bees are also depicted on many ancient tombs, as symbols of the afterlife and resurrection. This probably came from the fact that bees do not leave their hive during the three month hibernation period, only to reappear later. Some compared this to Christ’s resurrection, whereby his body vanished for three days, only to reappear after the resurrection. Furthermore, bees’ honey and sting are also associated with Christ and Judgment Day.
In Ireland bees were legally protected, for they produce honey which in turn produces mead, the drink of immortality that flows in the Otherworld. In Christian allegory a queen bee sometimes represents the Virgin Mary, the hive symbolizing the Church. The coat of arms of Pope Urban VIII and Napoleon I, for example, depicts several bees
This symbol is used also in Mormonism disclosing their Masonic connection.



Bat

Bats A totem of the shaman, bat teaches us to go into the night of our inner darkness and emerge reborn, reminding us that eyes are but one way of seeing clearly. Bat hangs above, a silent guardian, observing all that goes on, and conveys the messages of Spirit. Oriental traditions considered bats to be good luck, bringers of peace and happiness.

A symbol of good fortune in the East, it represented demons and spirits in medieval Europe




Apples
Apples appear in many religious traditions. In some cultures, the apple is a symbol of immortality, love, or sexuality. The Greek hero Hercules had to find the Hesperides' golden apples as one of his Twelve Labours. Another Greek mythological figure, Paris, had to give a golden apple inscribed Kallisti "To the most beautiful one", (which had come from the goddess of discord, Eris) to the most beautiful goddess, thus indirectly causing the Trojan War. Atalanta, also of Greek mythology, was distracted during a race by three golden apples thrown for that purpose by a suitor, Hippomenes. In ancient Greece, throwing an apple at a person's bed was an invitation for sexual intercourse.

Another instance in Roman and Greek mythology is the story of the Pleiades.
In Norse mythology, Idun was the keeper of the 'apples of immortality' which kept the Gods young. The 'fruit-bearing tree' referred to by Tacitus in his description of Norse runic divination may have been the apple.

Celtic mythology includes a story about Conle who receives an apple, which feeds him for a year but also makes him irresistibly, desire fairyland.

Although the "forbidden fruit" in the book of Genesis is not identified, popular European Christian tradition has held that it was an apple that Eve incited Adam to share with her. This tradition was probably solidified by artistic renderings of the fall from Eden featuring an apple as the most readily available fruit to artists. The influence of the antiquity was still strong, and the pagan symbology was absorbed into the new religion. The larynx in the human throat has been called Adam's apple because of a notion that it was caused by the forbidden fruit sticking in the throat of Adam.


Yen Yang

Yin and Yang symbolize the forces of cosmic energy and cosmic balance. Yin is all that is "feminine" receptive and magnetic, dark. Yang is the "masculine" active and kinetic force, light. However as they flow together, each of these forces are shown to hold a small dot of the other within them. Bringing our own Yin and Yang energies into balance is essential to creating optimal health in our bodies, minds and spirits, and helps us to attune with our path as we walk in connection with the universe and the Tao. Some tools we can use to achieve this balance are meditation and prayer, tai chi and other martial arts, and the art of feng shui


Upright Cresent

The Upright Crescent Moon or Priestess Symbol usually with a pentacle or a full lunar disc at its center is a symbol of the priestess. Glowing with reflected light, the Moon represents light within the darkness, and is associated with the female divine energy. Lunar energy offers us the ability to connect with the flowing powers of magick and mystery and our powers of psychic perception and intuition. As it waxes and wanes and is reborn anew, the Moon brings us the potential to connect with our own ability to rejuvenate our lives. The phases of the Moon are associated with the Triple Goddess. In my path the Moon correlates with 4 phases of the Goddess - Maiden (first crescent to 1st quarter), Mother (1st quarter to full) ; Matron (Warrior Woman) ( full to 3rd quarter) and Crone (3rd quarter to dark). Many female deities have some lunar connection, but these Goddesses and Gods are especially lunar: Selene, Artemis, Diana, Isis, Thoth, Hecate.


Unicursal

The Unicursal Hexagram symbolizes the union of the man with the divine. As with the hexagram used in the Star of David, this six-pointed star represents "as above, so below," but because this symbol is formed of only one line, rather than 2, it further represents that above and below, human and divine are One. The Unicursal Hexagram is particularly used by those practicing Thelema and Golden Dawn. Alastair Crowley claimed to have been the originator of the symbol, though research shows that to be incorrect


Star of David

The Star of David Known also as the Jewish Star and the Magen (or Mogen) David, this intertwined hexagram (six-sided star) is formed of two intertwined triangles. The symbol predates Judaism, and symbolically means "as above, so below." It speaks of the macrocosm/microcosm; saying that what takes place on the material earth plane also takes place in the realm of Spirit. Representing the polarities of fire/water, masculine/feminine, active/passive, heaven/earth. It is a symbol of perfect peace and balance of the higher and lower selves. In yogic tradition it represents the heart chakra and the power of air. In runic workings it is the triple dagaz, and represents protected transformation. The number 6 is additionally connected to the goddess/planet Venus and the power to love. In the Quaballah it is Tiph-Ereth.



Pear

Pears are sacred to Venus, the Roman goddess of love. An aphrodesiac, they enhance lust and passion by stimulating the Sacral Chakra. In many parts of Europe a tree is planted for a newborn child - a pear tree for a girl, and apple for a boy, as it was thought that these trees would protect against evil spirits. The Circassians plant pear trees to protect their cattle, and sometimes keep one in the house as a deity figure. In the Middle Ages, it was believed eating a pear would immediately induce sexual arousal. Pears were unknown in most ancient cultures, and it was not until the Romans that they were cultivated. In Boeotia, Athene was worshipped as Once, the Pear Tree. Perdix "partridge" was one of her sacred kings, who was thrown into the sea from a tower and carried to the heavens by Athena in the form of a bird. His name originally meant "the Lost One," and he was a form of Vishnu-Narayana, called Lord of the Pear Trees in his holy city of Badrinath in the Himalayas (from badri, "pear tree"). It is from him that we get the partridge in a pear tree of old English carols. Pears were also sacred to Hera. Her oldest image at Heraeum in Mycenae was made of pear wood.




Male

The Male Symbol Borrowed from the astrological sigil of the planet Mars, this symbol represents men and masculine energy. It is composed of the circle of unity and the arrow of action.
Masculine energy is seen as yang - kinetic, active, expanding.


Female

Borrowed from the astrological sigil of the planet Venus, this symbol represents women and feminine energy, and in recent decades has been used to symbolize feminism and woman power. It is composed of the circle of unity and the cross of earth. Feminine energy is seen as yin - receptive and magnetic.


Heart

Hearts represent love in all its many aspects, from romantic love to friendship to agape, or love of our fellow humans. They are also seen as symbolizing "having heart" the power of courage and will that allows heroes and other courageous humans to stand up and face their battles. To the ancient Egyptians and some other cultures, it was the heart, rather than the brain, which was seen as the organ that held the person's mind and soul. The heart is the only chakra center which is given two colors, green and pink. In love magick, the heart can also be associated with the color red. In astrology, the heart is seen as relating to the Sun (as the center of being) and the sign of Leo, while Venus rules the love aspect.


Infinity

The Infinity Symbol or Lemniscate looks like the number 8 lying on its side. The lemniscate represents the cycles of infinity and creation, as one universe grows into and becomes another. It is past, present and future, all in one, and represents being in the eternal Now.



Lightning

The lightning represents an "enlightenment" or "illumination" that is intense The Greeks believed a person struck by lightning was in possession of magical powers, and in tribal cultures throughout the world lightning shamans are venerated and feared as mighty shamans. Lightning shamans who manifested superhuman powers given to them by the "Thunder Beings."

Lightning is symbolic of the flash of enlightenment, sudden transformation and sometimes of punishment. It is always a wake-up call. Lightning is more than likely responsible for our ancient ancestor's discovery of fire. Many Sky/Father deities are associated with lighting. Some deities to whom lightning is especially important or sacred are Zeus, Arges, Thor, and Thunderbird.


Claddagh

Steeped in the legends of Galway, claddaughs express enduring love and friendship. Though there are many legends, a likely one is of Robert Joyce who was captured by pirates and sold as a slave to a Moorish goldsmith. There he crafted a ring for the woman of his heart back in the tiny fishing village of Claddagh. Years he was released. The Moorish goldsmith offered him his daughter in marriage and half his wealth if he would stay. Instead he returned home to find that his beloved had never married. The symbolism of the claddagh is that "love and friendship will rein supreme. The heart represents love, the hands friendship, and the crown symbolizes fidelity. The claddaugh is often used as a wedding or handfasting symbol.


Celtic Knotwork

The early Celts left behind an enduring legacy of intricately hypnotic knots, fierce beasts, and spirals. Some of these images were drawn so finely that they've been called "The Work of Angels". We know that the Celts believed strongly in the interconnectedness of all life, and that their interlaced patterns reflected this belief. We can glean a bit more information about their symbols and beliefs from the old Celtic myths and legends


Celtic Harp

The Celtic harp has three preferences:
"laughing, tears and sleep"

Legend tells that the first harp was built by Canola. Having a disagreement with her lover, she left to wander the night. She was drawn by a beautiful music which lulled her to sleep. By daylight she discovered that the music was made by the wind blowing through sinews of flesh clinging to the skeleton of a whale, and was inspired to make the first harp. The harp is sacred to the Daghda, or "Good God," the Celtic God of abundance and protection. His harp has the power to summon the seasons, and has three special melodies . . . The song of release, to make one weep, the song of joy to make one laugh, and the song of peace, which brings sleep. The music of the Celtic harp has the haunting power to take us to a place of magick and mystery



Celtic Cross

The Celtic Cross This distinct style of cross with a ring, dates from the early middle ages and is found in churchyards throughout Scotland. The design is derived from the older, equal armed solar cross. To the Celts, the Celtic Cross was a symbol of the four quarters, the North representing wisdom and stability, winter and death; the East knowledge, learning, youth and spring; the South vitality, passion, strength and summer; the West intuition, emotion, inner knowledge. The circle connecting the four arms of the cross symbolizes the unity and the eternal cycle of life and rebirth. The Solar Cross symbolizes masculine and active / kinetic energy and the Sun. This distinct style of cross with a ring, dates from the early middle ages and is found in churchyards throughout Scotland. As Christianity spread, the Celts were perhaps the most effective at mingling the old ways with the new religion.


Cauldron

The cauldron is drawn from ancient Celtic mythology. The Celts used cauldrons for food and for ritual use, where it symbolized abundance, and divine inspiration. It represents the womb, the elements of Spirit and Water, wisdom, and the transformation cycle of birth-death-rebirth. It is the symbol of the Celtic goddess Cerridwen.
As a ritual tool, it is mostly symbolic. Often used to represent the fire or water elements, it is also used for scrying, for mixing herbs, for consecration, or to hold the ingredients for a spell. It is generally held to be a feminine symbol



Candle

One of the simplest of magical arts which comes under the heading of natural magic is candle burning. It is simple because it employs little ritual and few ceremonial artifacts. The theatrical props of candle magick can be purchased at any department store and its rituals can be practiced in any sitting room or bedroom. Candles represent the power of illumination, bringing light to the darkness of our souls and our minds. Beckoning us forward, they shed light on our troubles and questions so that we may see the answers clearly. Candle Magic has been around for many, many years, being traced as far back as the Palaeolithic era. It is a very powerful form of sympathetic magic. Candle magick is versatile and is used by adepts to center and focus. Black, Red, and White are the primary candle colors, and you will find that Witches who have been working for many years will stick with these colors and don't worry about the others. Part of this is due to practicality and their excellent visualization skills, while still using the magickal colors of their ancestors.


Braided Strand

While many of the ancient designs certainly had some spiritually significant meaning, these have been lost to the ages. The continual looping of the designs suggests themes of eternity and interconnectedness, and knots may have been made at one time to foil evil spirits. Interwoven figures of people and animals may have represented the interdependent nature of life-two or more knots laced together symbolize lovers, hunters and their prey, God and man, etc. Some knots were used as magical talismans for protection.


Arrow
Readiness (for battle); if depicted with a cross, represents an affliction
Arrow Pointing Right .....Protection
Arrow Pointing Left .....Warding of Evil
Broken Arrow .....Peace

Arrows are symbolic of the ability to drive something home. They represent swiftness, skill, and the ability to fly to the heart of the matter. Arrows represent the Hunter or Horned One aspect of the god. In Egypt, the arrow was a symbol of divine power, personified by Neith, the goddess of war, whose cult was represented by two crossed arrows. Two crossed arrows could also represent the power of Hemsut, which was a female form of Ka - the soul.Symbolic also of the rays of the Sun, Atum was the archer who fired sunbeams as though they were arrows. At the king's Ascension, he would fire an arrow in each of the four cardinal directions; representing the king's power over the Four Corners of the world. In Greek and Roman legend the arrows of Eros or Cupid stirred love and desire in the hearts of men. He had two types of arrows - golden with dove feathers which aroused love, or leaden arrows which had owl feathers that created indifference. Arrows appear prominently in the legends of Robin Hood and William Tell as well as many other tales. Arrows were one of the symbols of Isten, Hungarian supreme god and the personification of light, as well as of the Tibetan goddess of love and wealth, Kurukulla. Breo Saighead, one aspect of the Celtic goddess Brigid means "Fiery Arrow or Power."

through history, the arrow has also symbolized war, power, swiftness, the rays of the sun, knowledge... as well as deities such as the Greek god Apollo and goddess Artemis (both hunters), the Hindu weather god, Rudra; and various gods of sexual attraction: Eros (Greek), Cupid (Roman), Kama (Hindu).... On ancient Roman coins, it represented the Zoroastrian god, Mithra. The native American Cheyenne warriors revered the "sacred medicine arrows" as symbols of male power. Arrows held by skeletons would point to disease or death. Today, they usually just point in the preferred direction.

Triple Horn of Odin

The Triple Horn of Odin is made of three interlocking drinking horns, and represents Odin, the father of Norse gods. The horns are significant in the Norse eddas, and feature prominently in elaborate toasting rituals. In some stories, the horns represent the three draughts of the Odhroerir, a magical mead.

According to the Gylfaginning, there was a god named Kvasir who was created from the saliva of all the other gods, which gave him great power indeed. He was murdered by a pair of dwarvse, who then mixed his blood with honey to create a magical brew, theOdhroerir. Anyone who drank this potion would impart Kvasir's wisdom, and other magical skills, particularly in poetry. The brew, or mead, was kept in a magical cave in a far-away mountain, guarded by a giant named Suttung, who wanted to keep it all for himself. Odin, however, learned of the mead, and immediately decided he had to have it. He disguised himself as a farmhand called Bolverk, and went to work plowing fields for Suttung's brother in exchange for a drink of the mead.

For three nights, Odin managed to take a drink of the magical brew Odhroerir, and the three horns in the symbol represent these three drinks. In the prose eddas of Snorri Sturlson, it is indicated that at some point, one of the dwarf brothers offered the mead to men, rather than to the gods. In many parts of the Germanic world, the triple horns are found in stone carving

While the horns themselves are certainly phallic in symbolism, the horns are interpreted as containers or cups, associating them with the feminine aspects of the Divine.

When I was 4, my family went camping on the Canadian side of Lake Onterio. We did a lot of fishing, and things like that. As my dad tells it, I wondered off, while everyone was focused on the big fish my uncle caught (we'll talk about their parenting skills another day) He says it took them about 20 minutes of shouting my name and looking all around the camp sight to find me, and when they did, a mother wolf was licking dirt off of my face and I was petting one of her cubs. When she saw my uncle Tim, she licked me one more time, took her cubs and left.
When I was 8, my dad had a friend who was full-blooded Cherokee, named Dallas. I'd never met him before, and as far as I know, he'd never heard the story about Canada; but when he shook my hand, he did a double-take and got down on my level to look at my eyes. He said "Don't let this freak you out, kid; but the spirit of the wolf is deep within you." I never really knew what he meant.
When I was 19, I was very depressed, for a number of reasons. After a genuine, but faied suicide attempt, I went to work the next day. I delivered furniture at that time. I knocked on the door of my delivery; and nobody answered. the ticket had said he might be a few minutes late, so I waited on his steps. As I sat down, his dog came out from under the steps. It surprised me, because I would have thought he'd come out before I got that far, but he didn't. Not knowing much about dogs at the time, I figured it was a big huskie, or a similar breed, and she imediately started licking my hand and rubbing her face against me. It was the first time in almost a year that I'd felt any kind of peace. When the man arrived a minute or two later, he told me how lucky I was that Nikita liked me, and that the ticket should have said something about staying in the truck until he arrived. He told me she was a full-blooded grey wolf. She was only about 8 months old, and was probably the runt of the litter, because he'd hit her with his truck a few months earlier, but the mother didn't stop to protect her. He picked her up and took her to the vet, and ended up keeping her.
At 23, It was a picture of a mother wolf, suckling two small boys, that sparked my love of Roman history, which has become a bit of an obsession. Again, it was at a time of great struggle in my life, that I saw that pic, and related to the boys, from my own experience as a little kid.

There have always been dreams too, but to have this particular animal play such a key role at such pivital points in my life, seems significant. Whether it be spiritual or just that I've developed a Pavlovian habit of looking for wolves when things are bad, like a lighthouse in a storm; I don't know. But it's fun to think about.