By haythornthwaite.c Crows in Japan have long had a bad reputation, perhaps moreso than anywhere else. They are prevalent, noisy, and very commonplace but does that mean they should be regarded as vermin?  Colin Tyner, Japanese resident, does not think so. He writes, "The other day, I was looking out of my window and I spotted a large crow's nest

In this series, I explore a few ways in which Crows have been seen as fortune tellers, farseers, and omens. Be sure to read Part 1: Divination According to Medicine Men and Part 2: Divination According to the Druids As we have discussed, the practice of divining from bird calls, properly called auspicy in the English language, appears to actually

Photo by Vail Joy In this series, I explore a few ways in which Crows have been seen as fortune tellers, farseers, and omens. Be sure to read Part 1: Divination According to Medicine Men Divination According to the Druids Divination was an important part of pan-Celtic life. The Mediterranean accounts tell of extremely superstitious Celts studying the bloody, warm,

As discussed previously, Crows and Ravens (and sometimes magpies too) have been a consistent source of spiritual focus throughout history. Here, I wish to explore a few ways in which they have been seen as fortune tellers, farseers, and omens across Native American, Druid, and Tibetan culture.

In the middle of the 15th century, Hungary had bad luck hanging on to its foreign kings: Two of them died unexpectedly within seven years. They suffered amidst plague, treachery, and foreign encroachment and seemed all but doomed to lose their hold on bloodline and border.At this dark moment, the Hungarians looked to a 15 year old boy, Mátyás (or

One of the oldest symbols in Japanese mythology is the 3-Legged Bird, called Yatagarasu (八咫烏) in Japanese. This legendary bird was said to have led the Emperor Jimmu from Kumano no kuni (熊の国), which is present-day Wakyama Prefecture, to Yamato no kuni (大和国), which is present-day Nara Prefecture. The three-legged (or "tripedal") bird is a creature found in various mythologies

Bill Reid According to the Native American legend told by many Pacific Northwest tribes, including the Inuit, "In the beginning the world was in total darkness." This is a common beginning to most creation stories, but this one has a twist. The Raven, who had existed from the beginning of time, was tired of groping about and bumping into things

Ravens figure heavily in Celtic mythology and legend. They were linked to darkness and death - especially the death of warriors in battle. Celtic war goddesses often took the form of a raven. In "The Dream of Rhonabwy", the knight Owein battles King Arthur in a dream world assisted by ravens. Some tales suggest that the great King Arthur himself