Totem Black Panther
Cats and especially the big cats, are powerful. Cats have always attracted me. I was also a bit fearful of cats because I was told they would scratch and bite me. In 2010, I was telling my aunt when the grandparents died, all I wished for was a Tiger painting. I last saw it in 1980 on a visit to see them in Arizona.
When growing up, my family would visit my grandparents’ home in Arizona. I would sit in the hallway and stare at a silk painting my uncle brought back to my grandmother from his service in Europe during WWII, I would stare for long-period of times. It was a Tiger crouching as an Eagle had its cub in its claws. I would imagine the fierce, mother cat, pouncing to rescue her cub. The Eagle, in my child-mind, was an enemy. My aunt said the painting is in her garage because her husband received it back. She didn’t like the painting and she and my uncle would love to see me take it. So, in the year I turned 55, this painting made its way back to me after not seeing it for almost 40 years.
Did you know the Black Panther are both from Panthera species? If you look closely, you will see the Leopard/Jaguar markings in the black.
People who relate to the Black Panther are also not always what they seem. They have hidden depths and powers not seen at first glance.
The Panther is about reclaiming your power. The Black Panther is connected to the Moon. A nighttime celestial body. She is sometimes seen in the early-morning hours, as vision is restored for most people. Although people not born with this power, can develop a vision into the hidden, people with this totem are born with this vision. Many times, they do not understand why others cannot see what they do, until they realize this is a gift. I told my mother when I was around 4 that when I look a certain way at the nighttime lights, I can see colors all around them. I asked her if she thought they were beautiful. Her response was not to do that, so I quit for a long time. If you have vision others do not, trust it and strengthen it. Many people seek this vision that you already have.
Many people are fearful of the darkness. Darkness is not evil. Darkness is a cause of not seeing and this frightens people who cannot see what is before their eyes; this is the absence of vision. Some of us can see into it just as well as in the brightness of the day. In Animal Speak, Mr. Andrews explains, “All cats have binocular vision. Each eye can work singly, providing greater depth of vision, magnifying images, and facilitating judgment of distances (p 295)”. Think about this. If you have this magnificent animal as a totem, you are learning and strengthening this vision into the hidden. I would puzzle when others didn’t seem to see what I could en-vision.
Panther is ferocity, valor, aggressiveness, and power. Think of these attributes as connected. She has control and ability to move over 500 muscles at will. You can choose to move at will physical, mental, spiritual, and/or psychic strength.
The Panther chooses to journey and live solitary. You too can learn to be alone without being lonely. Your actions can be stealth. You can learn to be comfortable while sitting with your own company silently to plan your path. Success will be yours as you envision and pursue your goals. You do not need the approval or even understanding of others. In fact, they probably will not have the vision into the hidden, as you do.
Another super-power of this totem is the keen sense of hearing whether audible or not, knowledge from within and without. A hearing intelligence can be learned but those with this totem have an uncanny ‘hearing’. It is important to take heed to what you hear and to no dismiss it.
Instead of dulling the senses with substances, learn to understand what you are feeling. The Panther has a fine sense of touch to the face especially. A person with this totem should ‘feel’ with their face. Hold the object to your face and feel the vibration and energy.
A Panther is short-distance sprinter. For any long-distance journeys, you must pace yourself. You will be at your most successful when you take the breaks you need and then hit it hard. Pace yourself.
You may find that the nighttime or a portion of the nighttime is a more energetic time for you and the light and sun brings a time of powerful sleep and dreams/vision for you. How do we Panther people confront people who need confronting? They plan the attack through sweet breath and when the time is right, they are complete and go for the throat. They don’t attack to attack, they attack when they need to protect their young or for food (resources). Don’t mess with those young. A Panther Totem needs to learn their power, or they will unintentionally hurt others.
A Panther after she births her cubs will raise them on her own without interference from others. If you choose to stay with a mate, you will be dominate in raising your young as well. Many will choose to live and raise their children alone. Don’t go to victimhood because you are a single parent. You are strong and you know what your children need to be independent. You are fulfilled in this endeavor.
It is often people with water signs, Cancerian, Scorpio, & Pisces, who have this totem. For the Black Panther is a Northern Cat with Winter as the most powerful time and water its element. It is feminism in all its forms as well. Don’t get me wrong, she has plenty of Yang/masculine energy when in her protective or goal mode as well. She is Crone, Mother, Maiden, Nurture, Water as it flows through the Earth and is driven by the wind/air. She can extinguish fire.
The Panther is stealth with main element water. There is an innate knowledge to use all the elements to navigate this journey. There is an ancestral memory that needs to be healed. This is part of the journey to be re-born into the power that was meant to be you. Once this is triggered, you will be ready to turn this ability to cleanse and heal into the outer world. This will be done in seclusion and hidden from most others who cannot see brokenness or the need. They may think everything is just fine. This is a time of awakening.
The Panther brings with it a time of returning. As T.S. Eliot said in the Four Quartets, “And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started
and know the place for the first time.” You demonstrate the awakening the Panther promises. This does not mean it will be easy. In fact, this journey is not for the faint of heart or victim. This is for the hero in his journey. What story have you ever heard where a person is named ‘hero’ who has not had to suffer and push on? Exactly. Take up the mantel, no matter difficulty of the journey. Do not let the journey turn you to victim hood and woe is me. Use it to “Man or Woman” up. Put on whichever armor has been provided with fear, trembling which is a place for courage to arise. It isn’t courageous unless it is done through the fear and trembling or despite it. Courage is pressing forward despite not knowing if you will succeed in reaching the goal or end. Otherwise, anybody would do it. If this is your journey, you have an opportunity to show what you are made of better than most humans. Thoreau said most men [his pronoun] live lives of quiet desperation. You, my fellow human, have the strength to go this alone. Another wise person said, that which doesn’t kill us, makes us stronger. Which do you want to have lived at the end of the human vessel?
There exists in your life right now a teacher of sorts. This may be a person, but it just as likely be an experience, observation, or situation you find yourself in. The Panther is always aware of its surroundings. You are learning to strengthen this awareness. This awareness to know situations and people to avoid, and to have awareness when to give help to people or in situations through the vision we spoke of earlier. You will know which is which.
In closing, know that there are other animals, birds, insects etc. that will appear which may also be a totem. Thus, the totem pole. It is okay to think elephants are amazing, but that doesn’t make it a totem. A totem will show up in odd ways, or act in odd ways. i.e., a scorpion showing up indoors without raising its tail at you. When I told the universe how a panther will show up in an odd way in Central Oregon. They have cougars, but no Panthers. The next day, a lady was standing in front of me and had on a long, expensive coat. On the back was embroidered, as large as life, a Black Panther head. Later that month, I was swimming on my back at a public pool and looked up to see a huge poster on the wall advertising a swim team with Black Panthers on each side of the poster. I laughed. I may not hear or see Panther energy for years and then there it is again. Time to work on this some more. Okay, Okay I get it. At the zoo, where I expect to get a glimpse of one, I was sitting on a bench near their home. I was by myself and didn’t see any of the big cats. All of a sudden it came walking out of the brushy field and walked as in a prey move, it walked right at me staring me in the eyes and started growling. It came within 10 yards of me without breaking eye contact and then leaped up on the rocky structure and left. I was breathless. I looked around to see if anybody else had seen as my grandkids came running up, but they had missed it. I took this encounter as a warning or precaution. Well…the story went on to learn why. I can tell other stories as well.
If you have another totem making its self-known to you. Seek out everything you can to learn what areas of your life you need to pay attention to or learn.
You might be curious where I learned this. It is my inner-knowing.
Blessings.
