Try this for insults web sites won't TOUCH you for!

[Ragnar]

HOW did a thread on Elizabethan insults get onto an indepth discussion on Totemism?

[Kitsune]

I have no idea, but it is vastly more interesting...

Personally, I seem to have two totems, but I'm afraid they're very cliche...

Owl and Fox.

I'd also like to throw in that I always forget Man is a totem as well... Mainly since I have such trouble connecting with my fellow humans. One day, me and Man will have to have a few words, I imagine.

Strange, In nature I can't get away from the spirits, and even in the city, I can find the spirit of an old car that has gained a life of it's own or connect to the spirit of our neighborhood, but when I look for it in people, I find that spark less and less...

Does anybody here actually have the totem Man? I'd love to hear more about Man's perspective and what he teaches... from a personal perspective, of course.

[Ragnar]

I have no idea, but it is vastly more interesting....

Oh. Well thank you.

[Ragnar]

I can find the spirit of an old car that has gained a life of it's own .

Silver spider. When you open the fridge, does the light come on?

[Crazy Healer Lady]

Man as a totem... A few years ago, I connected in to this character. The impressions I got were that of ingenuity and things rather akin to Monkey, which is not suprising, but with a huge determination of building. Sort of a cross between a monkey and a beaver, I guess, in energy, but with something sad there. Now, that may have been my own shadow cast upon it. Now, when I connect in, I feel an excitement. Actually, it's really strange connecting into the collective spirit of Man. A lot of history there. Very empowering, though. Ooooooooo. OK your turn! (I a strong feeling many people are actually never connecting to this force, the Collective Man. A denial of our species. Wait, maybe that's just my lesson. He's a powerful spirit.)

[Kitsune]

I can find the spirit of an old car that has gained a life of it's own .

Silver spider. When you open the fridge, does the light come on?

Not simply the electricity... I mean an actual spirit of the car.

The car I felt it most seriously with was a 1977 Dodge Aspen that we owned. This car would complain when it got wet or cold... not by refusing to start or by having "hiccups" or such, it would actually complain the same way a spirit would of being kept in an enviroment that it didn't like.

I do find that these spirits "wake up" more frequently when the car belongs to those who are willing to use energy to help it though. If you "charge" something often enough, it starts getting a mind of it's own eventually.

As for your statement Crazy, I'm probally one of those people who simply don't connect to him... I'm quite proud of the fact that most of my fellow people mean less to me (and feel less to me) than the animals that I prefer. But then, neither of my totems generally have a strong sympathetic side, so perhaps that's partially why?

[Ragnar]

Wild Boar, Wild dog, wild cat, wild rabbit, wild man.

Good meditation.

[Dark Waters]

To be honest, I really have never done a totem search.

I do find though I am sympathetic with certain animals which reoccur in my thoughts.

Most often I think of the Bat, though the particular species varies.
When in and around water, the Dolphin or the Whale resonate.
Occasionally, I think of the Bear, though I guess "Wild Man" may also apply to the feelings from those times.

[Crazy Healer Lady]

A great book for the beginnings of working with totems and power animals is Animal-Speak by Ted Andrews. I am still always referring to it, over a decade after it was first gifted to me. He has a few great exercises to play with, along with a "dictionary" of common and uncommon power animals. This is a great way to start before they sort of take hold and start teaching you themselves. Build the relationship. While it's certainly true that your allies choose you, often times we already know when there's a knock at our door.

I was just laughing the other day. Whenever I look up common themes for all of my power animals, there is a recurring theme: "If you have this animal as a totem, watch out! Because they are not going to let you rest, and are going to hold you to your word and kick your butt into gear when you fall off your path! We can be nice, or we can tear you to shreds. Your choice." Which is why I love them so. The one I really try to listen close to and not **ss off is my dear Heyokah bird, because those be some painful lessons.

Depending on how you play, Dark Waters, they may be gentle with you or rough.