Hand Crafted Animal Totem Jewelry

Animal Totem Stories

The Ungrateful Tiger

A Korean folktale in which the fearsome Tiger is outwitted by the wise Hare.

The Origin of the Tiger

Of the Nakhi tiger myths, The Origin of the Tiger is the most famous. It explains the tiger’s ancestry, its birth, and its appearance, origin, and power. “Nakhi” refers to one of the prominent Tibeto-Burmese language groups.

The Lion and the Mouse

One good turn deserves another...

Rabbits and Red Butte

“Surviving the high desert nights for the Northern Paiute people required that each member own a rabbit blanket to keep them warm….”

ANTHEM

Buck Ramsey, acclaimed cowboy poet, is considered to be the spiritual leader of the modern cowboy movement. Here he reads from his masterpiece “Anthem”, an ecology poem which describes the effect of overgrazing on the western prairie.

First Beaver / a Haida creation myth

One interesting thing I discovered while researching Beaver Mythology: there are a number of stories from the Northern countries about humans who burrow or tunnel into beaver lodges to find shelter and save themselves from hypothermia. Either they are caught in a blizzard or they are running away from some enemy. In some stories, they over-winter in the lodges and during the dark time of the year, turn into human/beaver animal/metamorphs.

GEEZ a werewolf poem

GEEZ.... a short but succinct poem about a werewolf, or possibly an old boyfriend.....
The moral? Don't let the werewolf in!

The Crow and the Pitcher from Aesop's fables

Crow and Raven are both corvids, birds with extra large brains. Ravens have been observed dropping pebbles into upright pipes, in order to raise the water level therein. Here is Aesop’s fable about a smart crow with a human-like ability to reason.

The Strawberry Roan

Some of the best animal stories come in the form of old folksongs…. like this one about an old rodeo horse, who was so mean and so ornery nobody could stick to him. If you like colorful cowboy slang, you’ll enjoy this old song.

Wolf Warrior Songs

The wolf totem has been a powerful hunting aid for the whole of human history. Here are two Sioux warrior songs which refer to the wolf totem.

Comments from Badger in "The Wind in the Willows"

What does Badger do better than all of the other animals? HE DIGS!
In the world of animal imagery, most of Badger’s totem qualities are related to the fact that he digs for his living….. In fact, a badger can dig faster than a man with a shovel! Badger lives in an underground world, making him a handy messenger from the underworld. In some of the creation myths, badger provides the other animals with passage to higher worlds, by literally digging his way up!
Because of his association with medicinal roots, Badger is often considered to be the doctor or the bringer-back-to-life…..In Europe and North America, badger fat was reputed to be a powerful cure-all for arthritis by farmers and trappers….
So here is some interesting Badger lore for you!

The Darby Ram

This is a very old story song indeed!
A great many of our American children’s folksongs started out in the old country, (Great Britain, Scotland, Ireland), as magical ritual songs.

Beaver makes New Land

Among many Native American peoples, Beaver is thought of as the Creator because of his unique ability to make new land! In this story, not only does Beaver help to create the earth; he also survives a world-wide flood aboard an Ark, of sorts!

Uncle Wolf

Remember Little Red Riding Hood? This old Italian folktale is similar in several respects: the little girl carries food to the wolf as a gift, there is a ritualized question and answer sequence, and the victim is devoured in the end.
(This story also contains elements of the old campfire favorite: The Man with the Golden Arm).

Salmon and Skunk Cabbage origin myth

Salmon and skunk cabbage are both inextricable parts of the Pacific Northwest Coast ecosystem. Here is the Salmon/ Skunk Cabbage origin myth from the Kathlamet Indian tribe, 1934.

The Grey Goose

I grew up listening to family and friends singing old songs about animals and their doings!
One of the funny things about these old songs is that they were often about SUPER animals; animals who had special powers…. Some of these animals especially could NEVER BE KILLED!

The Fenris Wolf

From ancient Norse mythology comes the legend of the Fenris Wolf, a gigantic god-like, ravenous Predator, so powerful he had to be restrained by magical means, or else devour the whole world!

War God's Horse Song

This is a segment of the Blessing Way, a Navajo healing ritual.

Derivation of the ancient root word "Bear"

While the familiar stem word for “bear” is ber or bar and the verb gebaren, there is an even deeper substrate of word roots for “bear” which may never actually have been spoken as a language. These root terms are somewhat like fossils…

How Spider Woman Stole the Sun

A Cherokee creation myth about Spider Woman bringing light to the world.

Old Bangum and the Boar

This old song was deliciously violent and gory to me as child of around 10 years old. It used to send shivers up and down my back, and still does!
Old Bangum is an archetypal hero, who has to kill a vicious boar in order to win the fair lady’s hand. Sounds kind of like St. George and the Dragon, doesn’t it?
This old boar is so mean, he has killed a thousand men!

Bellman, eulogy for an old hound

A touching farewell to a 19th century fox hound.

Coyote and Bluebird or How Coyote Got His Color

Coyote the Trickster is his own worst enemy, as usual….

The Badger in Native American Mythology

Badger as a healer: The badger’s aggressiveness is focused toward self-defense, so Badger is a good ally for those who are recovering from serious illness and coping with feelings of passivity and loss of control that often accompany illness. Badger refuses to be victimized…. So badger energy amplifies the body’s natural healing processes.

Badger in Japanese Mythology

In Japanese mythology, the badger takes on the role of malicious Trickster. He is a shape-shifter, often taking on the guise of another animal or of a priest, enticing people to do disgraceful things.

God Bless The Grass

Malvina Reynolds was an activist for the land.... and a sagewoman for the earth.

The Fox, the Wolf and the Bag of Butter

In this Mongolian folktale, the wily fox outwits the wolf.....

Werewolf Characteristics and Protections

In every country, there are stories about skin-changers or shape-shifters; humans who change into animal form under special magical circumstances. Wolf skin-changers are called werewolves.

Badger and the Bear

Here is a dignified Native American story collected by Barb Frederiksen. It’s a long one but well worth the reading. So go make yourself a cup of hot chocolate and settle down to a great story!

The Fox and the Crow

Beware the wily fox, a trickster at his best, or worse as the case may be!