Totemism today is becoming increasingly popular. Young people with tattoos of jaguars, ravens, wolves proudly flaunt images of animal spirits, claiming that they have comprehended nature and gained freedom. Appearing a long time ago, this style of worship and borrowing strong traits is a kind of attempt to build your personality, at least so say psychologists. "This is not a tattoo, but unity with a fellow animal kingdom," people who are not so far from the mystical beginnings claim this. The article presents material about what the totem of the fox represents, and also what is its significance in relation to the world around it.
Where does this hobby come from?
The ideas of animalism to one degree or another appeared with the birth of the first beliefs, prototypes of religions. So, for example, in Ancient Egypt, the gods were represented as anthropomorphic creatures with the head of a reptile, cat, bird, jackal. In addition, each of them was a kind of personification of a borrowed image of an animal.
There are such trends among the Slavs. Moreover, the Vikings, kneeling before Father Odin, went into battle in a bear's skins, representing a frightening bunch. All this was created for the sole purpose of making a person stronger, both psychologically and metaphysically. At the dawn of civilization, man was weak; alone, a man could hardly fight off a wild dog, not to mention a lion or a leopard. He wanted to become stronger, more cunning, to be more dexterous, and therefore "took" the character traits of this or that animal, trying on his image.
Decline and growth throughout world history
At the beginning of the Dark Ages, the decline of such currents begins. A person becomes more enlightened. In the fight against wildlife, he is helped by the "iron fang" and steel armor, forests are cut down and cultivated under the fields. Wild animals no longer seem so fierce and scary. Moreover, a person begins to protect nature from his own encroachment. At this stage, those beliefs that imply the pursuit of knowledge, the perfection of intelligence and spirit become dominant.
On the other hand, there is a return to our roots already in our time. At a time when the grip of technological progress squeezes a person harder, he decides to return to the roots, and therefore those who want to connect their "I" with the animal reappear. Thus, for example, a girl with a fox totem can become trickier, and a guy, having borrowed the agility of a jaguar, will gain wild grace. In some cases, this can even be called shamanism. However, the significance of the fox totem does not carry excessive negative energy, and the desire itself, by and large, is winning from a psychological point of view, therefore it is most often encouraged.
Native American Totemism
The first to use the term "totem" traveler J. Long in 1791, borrowing it from the vocabulary of the Ojibwa tribe. Thus, the Indians called the original coat of arms of the clan, its face and protector. Members of the tribe believed that the animal they worshiped could protect them from harm and endow them with their abilities. It was believed that the warrior who chose the path of a hawk or jaguar, is becoming faster. Leaders preferred more reasonable representatives of the natural world, for example, a crow or an owl. At the same time, the totem, for example, of a fox could be both tribal and personal. As a sign of belonging to a particular caste, the admirer carried with him a part of the animal, fur or feather. To get the skin or claws in battle was considered a brave thing, and therefore deserving of respect. However, the Indians lived in harmony with the wild and never took more than necessary for prosperity or survival.
What is known about foxes?
They are considered distant relatives of dogs, able to change the color of fur depending on the season, and are predators. The fox totem is similar to its natural personification. He gives the owner or fellow talent for secretive hunting, tricks, adaptability. The characteristic of the fox totem is the most extraordinary. To enter it into a clear framework will not work. The male fox is faithful and reverent towards the offspring, but the female, on the contrary, easily changes her location.
Is it worth shifting such traits to a person? Is it possible to say that the characteristic of the fox totem for a woman will be closest to the word "windy" or is it more appropriate to call her "independent"? This is the key problem of totemism. You can’t take only a part of the natural manifestation of an animal, make a matrix of it and transfer it to your own paradigm of behavior. However, this does not reduce the number of fans of such a cult.
In mythology and beyond
Kitsune is a werewolf girl who, by her cunning, lures the unlucky traveler into the arms. There he will find either a warm welcome or death. The fox totem is based on a mythological component. The image is rooted in Japanese mythology, there are a lot of such examples.
Almost always, the fox is the personification of cunning and deceit. For example, on the feast of the goddess Ceres, the Greeks, and later the Romans, chased a fox with a set fire to its tail, which symbolized their victory over the pest. In the entire history of the existence of mankind, foxes were not able to domesticate, and their craving for easy profit, theft did not play in favor of the animal. German Verfux, a werewolf, is not known as much as his fellow wolf, which indicates the secrecy and dexterity of this animal. The fox totem is fully consistent with this description.
Helper or pest?
For humans, the fox totem can be both a faithful helper and harm. But it does not depend on the spirit itself. The fox steals chickens, and therefore is considered a pest. But he simply follows his nature. Therefore, to be offended by a person who chose such a totem is an empty undertaking. He can be quirky, perspicacious and even deceitful. But this is already inherent in his nature, or at least he himself wanted to obtain such characteristics. For women, the fox totem means loyalty to the idea of freedom, sagacity, a sharp mind and a willingness to change, to adapt to external circumstances in order to achieve the goal. They are like water, gracefully fill any space.
For men
The fox totem for men is the desire to go through life's problems with its tail held high. They are independent, loving, but at the same time extremely faithful to their word and are unlikely to ever betray. Real careerists, fox totem owners from males will never take their height in a snap. Preferred dexterity, cunning, damn good charm and willingness to change, they will succeed in everything, because they easily betray hobbies. Their "den" and family are the only things that should be protected by the breast, and not run away in search of a different solution. It is for the sake of these values that the male fox is changing before his eyes and is able to become the most fierce adversary.
For women
In shamanism, the meaning of the fox totem is often one - deceit. The fate of the fate of those who crossed the road to such a woman. She is the embodiment of playfulness, dexterity, lust, but at the same time, she is furious like a fire storm, unpredictable, like a hurricane, easily adapts, like a brook that always finds a way out. It is impossible to explain their strong charisma with anything other than the intervention of higher forces. Such girls will not leave anyone indifferent. Love or hate, no third. However, under the bestial coat of a fiery red color, a caring mother can hide for her kids. She can temporarily get along with the male, but almost always remains true to her freedom, her ideals and will easily break all ties, if necessary.
Common traits
The owners of the fox totem have one thing in common - the desire to embody their ambitions. They can be faithful, like dogs, but if for the latter it all ends with fidelity to duty, then red-haired beasts easily throw obligations for another, higher, in their opinion, goal. It is precisely for the ambitiousness, pretense, deceit and insight of foxes that are most often punished. It is noteworthy that such a symbol easily found its embodiment in the Viking beliefs. The same Loki, who led to a series of conflicts among the gods of Valhalla, can easily be called the owner of the totem of Fox.
The symbol of this animal is not one of the strongest, but still it is quite popular. This is also due to the fact that in the minds of people, the fox often has intellect adjacent to cunning, this is reflected in folklore and fairy tales.
Representation of the Slavs and folk tales
What kind of fox is seen in folk tales? The cunning, who always turns out to be the winner in the dispute, regardless of who he started with. To defeat, or rather, to outwit the fox is not so simple, but if it succeeds, then the person becomes a real lucky person, he is considered very smart. Very rarely, the fox totem among the Slavs has a positive characteristic. It is not dark or evil in nature, but is considered dishonest. By choosing such a patron, a person becomes like a thief and can be considered a crook, unclean on hand.
In paganism, the fox acts as the constant companion of Makosh, the goddess of fertility and harvest. She is affectionately called a kumushka for her ability to pretend, adapt. Sometimes such an animal could come down to help a lost traveler, in which case it would be correct to call it a "sister." This animal was revered for its ingenuity, cunning, ability to easily find a way out of any situation. It is not without reason that the proverb says: "He who enters the rank as a fox will rule over a wolf." In fact, this totem means the prevalence of the mind over brute force and cruelty, and therefore is not unambiguously negative.
In the dry residue
The fox totem is rare, but when it is still selected, this clearly indicates that the owner is familiar with the basic characteristics of this animal. He is able to facilitate the life of his owner, but at the same time remains to serve his true goals.
It cannot be unequivocally stated whether such a cult has a significant impact on human life. But still, it helps to overcome psychological difficulties and begin building a new personality. If a person does not have enough secrecy, cunning, insight, it is characterized by frequent outbursts of anger, then perhaps you should think about such a patron. It is enough to convince yourself of its strength, carefully follow the chosen path and in the end it can come back a hundredfold. However, a fox tattoo can be just an original decoration, because it is not chosen so often.