I was attacked by an owl in September 2017.
One week later, I was catalyzed into a major healing initiation, supported by Owl medicine.
In Shamanic tradition, attacks, stings, bites or significant encounters with animals are sometimes recognized as initiations into their medicine. The same is true for plants: stings, scratches, poisoning, reaction or significant encounters are sometimes, but not always, initiations.
I had just moved into a new home, and the first thing I do whenever I move to a new place is to walk the area and get to know the land and local nature spirits. I walked through a patch of forest behind my neighborhood and had just come out the other side when something slammed into the back of my head.
I whipped around in stunned confusion, and saw an owl flying away. It landed on a nearby tree branch and regarded me with piercing eyes. We stared at each other for a moment, and it launched itself at me again, flying right towards my face. I reflexively raised my arms and yelled something, and it flew back to the branch. I walked away, looking over my shoulder. By the time I walked a shaky lap to calm down, it had gone. I had to go back through the forest to get home, but I did not see the owl again that evening.
The following day, I returned to the patch of forest and saw several snags (standing dead trees) with holes that looked ideal for owl roosts. I made an offering to Owl at one of the snags and asked for their consent to share this land with them.
The big bump on my head remained for about a week, right at the site of my back body Third Eye. During that time, I reflected on Owl energy. I was unsure if this had merely been an introduction to a local nature spirit, or if it was an initiation into their medicine to form a deep allyship. The answer soon became obvious.
The following week, I decided to invoke my spirit team for a healing session, for what I thought was a completely unrelated issue. Something regarding my ancestral lineages had been bothering me in the back of my mind for a while, and I wanted to give it some attention to see what would emerge.
As I dove in, I saw big, black eyes rushing toward me through the darkness, and I felt a jolt of energy as I recognized the owl’s eyes. I remembered thinking at the time of the attack, “I understand why some cultures are afraid of owls.” They are silent, ghostly predators who come alive in the shadow. There are some species of owls who have bright yellow irises and their eyes look more “cute” and friendly to our human perception, but the kind of owl that attacked me has eyes that look completely black. (It was a Barred Owl. Go ahead, look up a picture and imagine it flying at your face. It was intimidating.)
As the black eyes filled my inner vision, I was surrounded in soft darkness. I felt my awareness heighten, my senses sharpened and everything seemed to go still. I heard the words, “It is safe to see.” The darkness seemed to ease, but I realized it was my perception that had changed, not the light.
And then Owl showed me a puzzle piece that I had never seen in 30 years of knowing my family history, and I felt the collective grief and pain of my ancestors come crashing down.
I ended up on the floor of my healing room, sobbing as I channeled the words and the grief of my ancestors. But even though I felt their heartbreak moving through me like a river, I felt myself held in the soft embrace of Owl wings, and I saw the black eyes reminding me that it was safe to see in the darkness.
When Owl spirit sent one of its children to strike me in the back of the head, it was not merely an introduction to the local land guardians. It was an infusion of Owl medicine directly into my Third Eye. Owl was preparing me to serve the healing of some deep, multigenerational grief in my own lineage, and also to help others navigate their darkness with more peace and comfort. Owl is one of my primary spirit allies when I support my clients in deep shadow work. When I took up painting a few years ago, my first project was an Owl portrait that now hangs in the stairwell leading up to the healing room.
I have continued to study with Owl since my initiation. I regularly see owls in that same patch of forest, but have never been attacked again. I now live on different land and there are owl guardians here as well: Barred Owls, and tiny Western Screech Owls that are not shy about flitting close to me and Athena, and could fit in the palm of my hand.
Not every encounter with a nature spirit is an initiation into their medicine. Sometimes they appear as a message or an invitation, sometimes they show up just to hang out, or sometimes they are simply living their lives as sovereign beings in our vicinity.
Here are some indicators that a nature spirit is showing up not just as an encounter, but a medicine initiation:
A nature spirit ally is more likely to appear at a threshold moment in your life. Big shifts make space for new energy, and as you enter new life chapters and phases, you will grow with new allyships.
Nature spirit initiations are not always dramatic. They often appear as repeat encounters, both in their embodied form and in other areas. (Maybe you start seeing rabbits in your neighborhood, and then you see rabbit stickers, toys or artwork everywhere you turn. Follow the White Rabbit!) Repeat encounters gradually introduce you to the medicine of this nature spirit and open you to receive their teachings.
Sometimes initiations are dramatic or intense encounters, but not every dramatic encounter is an initiation. During a dramatic encounter such as an attack, there is a code transmission that integrates over a longer period of time.
If you say yes to this ally and invite them in, they will start to show up in your life, appear in your meditations, etc. You can support this relationship by making offerings, observing them in a respectful way, and communicating with them in your personal practice.
Do you want to…
…receive teachings and initiations from the original wisdom keepers: plants, animals, stones and nature herself?
…create functionally purposeful allyships with local nature spirits to support your spiritual practice?
…build lifelong partnerships with powerful natural allies and receive deep initiations into their mysteries?
…confidently invoke the nature spirits during your meditation or ceremonial practice?
…receive guidance and support as you establish powerful partnerships with new spirit allies?
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