Birds of a feather......

[samantha]

I'm wandering if anyone on the forum has ever used birds (patterns , numbers , direction of flight ?) for divination purposes.
I know its possible , because I remember someone (Zorya ? )
mentioning it , but I forget the name it is given ....so haven't been able to track it down on the net. I'm fascinated by the idea , and recently have really begun to watch out for them !! ("Why is that woman looking up at the sky mummy?".......)

Today (well , in a ten minute slot ) they all seemed to be grouped
into threes .....at least 5 groups ......and this got me thinking of how this information would be interpreted ? Using numerology ?
or some other devise ?

 

[firemaiden]

One day recently, I was having a similar thought, I think it was Umbrae who brought it up.

I like to read the shapes in clouds, the shapes in knots, the shapes in hair on the shower wall, but so far I had never tried birds.

I needed a sign.

I looked up.

The birds were in a V.

I thought, HEY!! Yeah! V for Victory

Then I thought. Stupid, birds always fly in a V.

 

[zorya]

it was me . divination using birds is called augury... using bird calls is ornithomancy.

yes numerology can be used. kind of bird is very important. if the bird is flying or sitting. if it sings or is silent. how it flies; high, low, over head, toward you or away from you, from left to right or right to left all have meaning.

 

[DarkElectric]

usually the way I use ornithomancy is...if I go outside, and a bird drops a "package" onto me somewhere, the rest of the day might not go so great either...

No, in all seriousness~ (serious, ME? Ever??????)

I get along really well with crows.

When I see large numbers of them, I take that as a really good omen, and my luck will be changing for the better. If I only see one or two, but they are cawing at me voiciferously, I take that to mean pay extra attention out there. They haven't been wrong yet.

 

[RAVENAL]

bird and nature divination

Ted Andrews book "Animal Speak" talks about this...great book...I use many natural signs from animals...clouds...water...fire...tree branches...etc...the more I ask myself what these patterns mean to me the more I am able to read them with accuracy...this is my rational side...and the almost daydream like state of consiousness when connecting to these energies allows my intuitive side to gather even more information...the instinctive reptillion brain connects in a way I cannot really describe but it's as if I am the animal or plant or element I am watching...they all work together and not necessarily in any certain order...but I spend allot of time in nature and always have found it to be my best teacher...enjoy...

 

[Pollux]

MY best teachers are blakbirds instead... they are too funny!!! *LOL*
And crows as well, of course.

Augury is very old. There were two classes of diviners in roman times, like... official oracles to be involved when important things were being planned or worked out.
Augurs and Aruspices both worked with animals, and while the former used birds, flocks and the way they flew (shapes, directions and so on), the latter observed guts moving (big UGH!).

I have been relaying on this practice more and more.
Everyday I walk to classes there's always a small bunch (especially blackbirds) popping up, out of the blue, and sometimes they scare me!!! They are so funny though, and there's always a subtle message.
Yesterday one of them went from the sidewalk into a bush, and then squatted with closed eyes. It was telling me... Well I know what he was telling mE! *LOL*

 

[coldsuns]

There is a sorts of deck know as Paradise of Birds. That actually crow is the ancestor of all birdies instead of Phoenix? Hm..hope to know more about birdies! And what kind of bird is Big Bird in Seasame Street?

 

[HudsonGray]

I'd run across a reference to feather divination a long while back but could never pinpoint how to do it. Nobody else seemed to have heard of it before... oh well.

Basically you take a candle & a feather, close your eyes & run the feather over the flame (hopefully not catching it on fire--do it outside because of the potential smell too), then you look at the char marks & 'read' those. One feather per reading I think. A wing feather would probably be best as they're stiffer & wouldn't bend downward into the flame.

If anyone can try it & get results, let us know.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Law of Ferret Motion - That which is in motion, tends to stay in motion, despite the end of the bed.

 

[samantha]

Aaarghh! Information overload.....

Thanks for everybody's thoughts.

The net has given me more info. then I could ever hope to process on the subject !! My mind , let alone the birds , is wheeling from the latinate forms.........

Ravenal : Do you remember the Publishers name ? The book shop
can't track it down . Might it be out of print ?

One thought occurs to me.......many people seem to think direction of flight is important. BUT surely this can be explained, sometimes , by the topography of the area ? I'm down at the coast at the moment , and the majority of the gulls are flying towards the harbour , where I guess the food is ........ Do you build this into the equation , or just ignore it ?!

I'm feeling more drawn towards the way they form patterns in the sky , and the numbers .....especially the numbers .
Again today they (gulls and rooks )were travelling in groups of 3.

 

[RAVENAL]

birds and divination

Hi Samantha

the publisher... Llewellyn...ISBN...0-87542-028-1...copyright 1993...did you try used book stores...did you look Ted Andrews up on the web...he is so very Knowledgable and writes well...this book is a treasure...hope you can find it...as someone who uses this and teaches he is a master...and this book is a wealth of information...there is much symbology/mythology and folklore

I too am visually dominant and will work first with pattern...color...number...and yes even direction they fly...I pay more attention to the flight patterns in relation to me...are they on my left...my female/receptive side...on the right...male/dominant...I have even given these positions a correspondance to timing...such as past or present or future... flying toward or away from me...fast or slow...why they are flying is important...the looking for food flight is different than the escaping from predators flight and the lazy joyous it's wonderful to be alive flight is different again...time of day has meaning and season...as well as any difference from normal routine and behavior...I will let my eyes focus on whatever takes precedance and ask what that means for me...

it developes into a more personalized meaning and interpretation as you use it...a codebook you design around nature and your place within and link to it...follow your intuition and you will access the deeper meanings within yourself...consider everything you are drawn to and don't negate anything that comes up...trust yourself to know what the meaning is...

I can sometimes tune into them and commune...try it and you may be surprised...if you have difficulty try some flower or mineral or animal essecces...using these helped me to tune into the great whales...when I was having trouble connecting with them...try feathers...I wore them for awhile for a different purpose but their energy may help you to connect...any feathers will do is what Ted Andrews teaches and within this book he has alot of information on how to use them...he suggests ways that have been successful for him and others...but reccommends you then go forward to develope your own to resonate more closely with you...