Creature Comforts

What do a Red Chinese Dragon, Hummingbird, Eagle-Owl, Bear, Toad, Butterfly, White Raven, Raccoon, Roe Deer, Flying Horse Pegasus, Hare, Snake, Wolf, and Heron have in common? They are all my Power Animals. These beings are best described as energy patterns in the shape of a specific animal. A Power Animal has certain abilities and qualities, its own mind-consciousness, that is separate from you, and it belongs to you. Strictly speaking, it is you—just on a deeper, subconscious level.

Everyone is born with at least one Power Animal. You may have more depending on what your current reincarnation calls for and what qualities need to be developed and exercised. People who work directly with others, especially in one-on-one healing professions, usually have multiple Power Animals. Our universe has a specific structure in which everyone has clear tasks. Power Animals are part of the default spiritual support system for human beings.

Power Animals know everything about your past, current, and future reincarnations. They will travel with you into the next reincarnation. They have no physical bodies and thus no fear. Their only agenda is to help you become more fully you and to get you where you need to be when you need to be there.

Since Power Animals have a separate mind-consciousness, if you are able to connect with them—consciously, visually, or even verbally—it feels like connecting to a real, wise, all-knowing friend who accepts you, loves you, and knows what you need to do and when you need to do it in order to become your fullest self. It’s possible to find your Power Animal through shamanic meditation with a drum and rattling, shamanic dancing meditation, Power Animal dancing meditation, or classic motionless meditation, as well as in a dream state or through lucid dreaming.

The ability to connect verbally or visually with a Power Animal depends on your extrasensory perceptions. Even if you are still in the process of developing your extrasensory perceptions or meditative skills, just knowing that Power Animals exist and understanding their role is extremely beneficial. I like to think of them as our life coaches, cheerleaders who give us subtle, kind nudges and are happy when we follow the direction that truly represents our authentic heart’s desire. On a deeper level, because Power Animals are us and we are them, when we connect with them consciously through any type of meditation, they become more pronounced in our daily lives. We will automatically have more energy, since Power Animals are energy patterns, and we will become more powerful, because that is what they give us—power. It is the power to overcome specific challenges.

Once you know your Power Animal, research and study the spiritual qualities of that animal and start consciously exercising those qualities every day when faced with challenging situations. This is not easy, to say the least, but it is what ultimately develops your spiritual strength and power in an almost playful way, and it happens much faster than without awareness of your Power Animal. When you are faced with a difficult situation, playfully ask yourself, What would a Red Chinese Dragon do in this situation? How would she behave? What would she say? Then do your best to follow those answers, not as the fearful, resistant version of yourself, but as the deeper Dragon version, which is noble, clear, and fearless.

When you are able to grasp your Power Animal presence in any way, shape, or form—for instance by engaging in Power Animal dancing meditation—it is a very special moment, as it shows you that there is more to yourself and different parts of yourself than you once thought. Connecting with your Power Animal reveals the interconnectedness of all life, filling you with joy and awe. You overcame our limited human perceptions, went deep inside yourself, and now know that there is more to life than what we see on the surface.

Our Power Animals are always there, whether you recognize them or not, but once you know them your spiritual development progresses faster. Power Animals can be fully awake, half-awake, or sleeping when you discover them. If a Power Animal is sleeping, you will be lethargic and possibly depressed. One of the roles of a shaman is to awaken these sleeping Power Animals. The more you follow the path of your truest self, the more your Power Animal will awaken.

In the words of my nonphysical Spiritual Teacher K, “The concept and knowledge of Power Animals helps greatly to understand the idea of being one with another, where you are that animal and he/she is you. Not sometimes, but always. At some point the question of a credit comes in, for example, who gets the credit for some amazing thing ‘you’ accomplished? It does wonders for the ego. It helps you accept another just the way they are. It helps you accept yourself just the way you are. Knowing that even though they are different, they are still you—a part of you—helps with the total acceptance of self and others.”