The image of the owl is contradictory.

It is a symbol of wisdom, knowledge, sensitivity, a prophetic gift, moderation, and melancholy.

However, being a night bird, it represents threat, misery, and it is a bad omen. In ancient China, Egypt, India and America, the owl was a messenger of death and was associated with the forces of evil. The Celts called it "a dead bird", the reincarnation of the witch peering at night. In Egypt it was identified with death, life after death and the kingdom of eternal sleep. The Chinese believed that the owl, while learning to fly, scratched out the eyes of its parents, so the owl for them represented ungrateful children, crime, horror and death.

The owl is a symbol of the Hindu god Yama, the Lord of the dead, who judges the soul after death, and it was also an attribute of the goddess Durga, Shiva’s wife, whose worship dates back to the cult of the Great Goddess.

The Jews have portrayed Lilith, the female demon, flanked by two owls, to emphasize her nocturnal nature, deceit, malignity, sexuality and darkness.The oldest picture of the Sumerian goddess Lilith, who, in the legend, is known as the first wife of Adam, is represented with two owls, a sacred bird of divinity. In Christianity, the owl was considered the embodiment of Satan. Some people believed that the owl attracted other birds into a net. Similarly, the Christians identified it with the devil, who seduces innocent souls, carrying them on the path of sin.

There is a very intense match of the owl with loneliness and isolation. However, at the beginning of Christianity, the owl was also related to wisdom, and sometimes you can see the image of the owl next to the crucifix. After all, Jesus sought to enlighten his wisdom "sitting in the darkness and in the shadow of death."The Slavs imagine the embodiment of the dark forces in the owl. The Poles, for example, believe that the owl dies during the day and lives only at night. Its presence near a house is interpreted as an omen of death. However, the owl is sometimes useful, warning the hunter about impending danger.

The owl and lycanthropy

It is a popular belief that the possessor of magical power could even turn into an owl, because he is a man who has something evil.

The owl of the Indians of Latin America

The Indians of Latin America worshiped it a lot, and often referred to the symbolism of the owl, which for them represented the change, the wisdom of changing a disadvantage into an advantage. The Aztecs believed that the owl was a demonic creature, and brought bad luck. The Mexican Indians worshiped the goddess of rain in the guise of an owl.

READ ALSO:

The peacock - In Indian mythology, to draw its wings, reminiscent of many eyes, represents the image of a starry sky.

The spider - In ancient Indian tradition Brahma, the creator of all things, was allegorically called the spider that was spinning the web of the world.

The dove - In China, a dove is a symbol of longevity and filial piety. In the East, the dove is a symbol of love and marriage.

The tiger - The tiger is a symbol of power, strength and success, but at the same time it is a symbol of destruction, because the energy can be both creative and destructive.

The lion - In the symbolism of the elements associated with the fire, the lion represents courage, supreme power, nobility and pride.

The jaguar - Aztecs and Maya  believed that four jaguars represent the guardians of the road to peace.

The elephant - represents many qualities including: strength, royal power, dignity, patience, wisdom, longevity and happiness, as well as being a symbol of good luck.

The butterfly - is a symbol of a soul,  the fragility, the shortness of life, happiness and non-permanence.

The toad - In Vietnam, the toad is associated with rain, fertility, wealth, and sexuality. In Egypt, frogs were considered sacred animals.

The bear - The bear is a symbol of good will, heroic strength and clumsiness but also of malice, brutality and greed.