Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
The Horses of Neptune, illustration by Walter Crane, 1893.. Horse symbolism is the study of the representation of the horse in mythology, religion, folklore, art, literature and psychoanalysis as a symbol, in its capacity to designate, to signify an abstract concept, beyond the physical reality of the quadruped animal.
Lions are known in many cultures as the king of animals, which can be traced to the Babylonian Talmud, [27] and to the classical book Physiologus. In his fables, the famed Greek story teller Aesop used the lion's symbolism of power and strength in The Lion and the Mouse and Lion's Share. [citation needed]
The anthropologist Lynne Isbell has argued that, as primates, the serpent as a symbol of death is built into our unconscious minds because of our evolutionary history.. Isbell argues that for millions of years snakes were the only significant predators of primates, and that this explains why fear of snakes is one of the most common phobias worldwide and why the symbol of the serpent is so ...
Sea turtles are a charismatic megafauna and are used as symbols of the marine environment and environmentalism. [3] As a result of its role as a slow, peaceful creature in culture, the turtle can be misconceived as a sedentary animal; however, many types of turtle, especially sea turtles, frequently migrate over large distances in oceans. [6]
According to legend, the xiezhi, was a single-horned sheep or goat [b] which had power to divine the guilt or innocence of a person. Gao Yao, the minister of justice for the legendary Emperor Shun employed the beast during criminal proceedings, and he would command the sheep to ram (head-butt) the accused.
Animal symbolicum ("symbol-making" or "symbolizing animal") is a definition for humans proposed by the German neo-Kantian philosopher Ernst Cassirer. The tradition since Aristotle has defined a human being as animal rationale (a rational animal ).
The Tiwah festival involves the sacrifice of animals such as chickens as offerings to the Supreme God. [citation needed] Miao (i.e. Hmong) are animists, shamanists, and ancestor worshipers with beliefs influenced by Taoism, Buddhism and Christianity. At the Miao New Year, there may be domestic animal sacrifices or cockfights. [27]
The Four Symbols are mythological creatures appearing among the Chinese constellations along the ecliptic, and viewed as the guardians of the four cardinal directions. These four creatures are also referred to by a variety of other names, including " Four Guardians ", " Four Gods ", and " Four Auspicious Beasts ".