Are you looking for your spirit animal? Sometimes, you will deeply connect with a specific animal in the animal kingdom. Or sometimes, their character trait could be a profound representation of you. But in the spiritual world, spirit animals are more than just animals you share characteristics with.
Did you know your spirit animal’s power could help you navigate life more easily? The spirit animal concept traces its background in Indigenous Native American spiritual traditions and cultures. In these cultures, spirit animals represent totems and sacred guides embodied in the form of animals. It is believed that you don’t choose your spirit animal, rather they choose you.
Finding out what your spirit animal is can make your spiritual journey more straightforward and worthwhile. It also provides clear guidance and understanding of your true nature.
If you would like to know what your spirit animal is, this article is for you.
How to Find Your Spirit Animal?
There are many quizzes online trying to help people find their spirit animals. This is usually the most straightforward way. However, these quizzes still leave many people in doubt. Take one quiz today, and you will find your spirit animal is a bear. You take another tomorrow, and the result shows you are a snake.
Here are a few techniques you can use to find your spirit animal.
#1: Look at what your culture says
Different animals represent different things in different cultures. As much as the spirit animal concept originates from Native American cultures, you can still use your culture to find an animal that represents you.
For instance, a snake may represent rebirth in some cultures, thanks to the skin shedding they typically undergo. They are also sacred in some cultures and sometimes even worshiped. However, the exact opposite is true in other cultures.
Therefore, to find what animal represents you, you must look at what the animal signifies in your culture.
#2: Think about the animals you have connected with
Was there an animal that you connected with as a child? What was your favorite pet? Which animal brought you more peace to be around? What animal excited you to watch on Nat Geo?
If you can think of an animal you connected with well in your past life, it could be your spirit animal trying to manifest itself to you.
#3: Take note of animals that appear in your dreams
Your dreams are connected to your real life. Every time you dream of something, there is an intimate connection between it and your waking life. Every time an animal appears in your dreams, take note of it. If a specific animal keeps appearing, it could be your spirit animal.
#4: Take a quiz
We often recommend taking a quiz if you cannot find an animal that resonates with you. There are a lot of online quizzes that could give you an answer. However, it is common for you to find different animals from different quizzes. Every time you find a different animal, note it down.
Start journaling about those animals and note what you can learn from them. After some days, look at the traits and the lessons you have noted. The animal that resonates the best with you is most likely your spirit animal.
Examples of Common Spirit Animals & What They Symbolize
Butterfly
A butterfly symbolizes development, personal growth, metamorphosis, and transformation. If you embrace change gracefully, your spirit animal could be a butterfly.
The butterfly also symbolizes your hidden potential. Before the caterpillar turns into a butterfly, it needs to grow and go through its journey of development. Similarly, in order for us to experience spiritual awakening, we need to go through our own journey, do our shadow work, and re-discover our divine nature. Only then can we reveal our hidden potential.
Deer
This is a susceptible animal. It is also graceful and tender yet very confident. The deer symbolizes our intuition and instincts. This spirit animal is connected to our inner child and heart chakra. It reminds us of our playfulness and innocence. The deer teaches us how to be determined, kind, gentle, and loving.
Squirrel
The squirrel spirit animal represents the power of thought and manifesting things into physical reality. It also symbolizes positive energy, renewal, rebirth, hard work, and balance. The squirrel reminds us that in order to create the desired reality, we not only need to visualize the positive outcome and have faith but also put time, effort, and hard work into what we desire to accomplish.
Bear
The bear has a strong connection with the earth and provides grounding. If you adore outdoor spaces, you could be a bear deep down. In some cultures, the polar bear is a known protector of the vulnerable. This is why many strong activists and lawyers recognize the polar bear as their spirit animal.
The bear also symbolizes courage, fearlessness, and personal power. It teaches us to go through life challenges with our heads up.
Cat
A cat is an independent yet inquisitive animal. It is also adventurous and patient. The cat spirit animal symbolizes the balance between the opposites and acts as a conductor between the physical and spiritual worlds.
If you are a medium, like to explore the unknown or the unconscious, value your independence and freedom, and don’t like to be controlled, the can could be your spirit animal.
Dolphin
Dolphins symbolize intelligence hidden under friendliness and playfulness. They are also great communicators. The dolphin spiritual animal invites us to dive deep into the waters of Higher consciousness and focus on emotional healing. It teaches us self-acceptance and self-love.
Elephant
Elephants are typically gentle giants. They also embody strength, spiritual understanding, wisdom, patience, loyalty, and strong familial bonds. Often the elephant represents the Divine Feminine energy. It guides us toward a deeper understanding and reconnecting with such feminine archetypes as Maiden, Mother, and Crone. The elephant also helps to heal sexual trauma and reconnect with your sensuality and Divine sexuality.
Lion
Just like it is considered the king of the jungle, a lion embodies power, authority, and leadership. It is, in most cases, the spirit animal of daring and courageous people. The lion helps us to find inner courage and power to overcome difficulties in life. Its energy helps to reclaim a leadership role in life. If you are a natural leader, the lion could be your spirit animal.
Dove
Doves symbolize unity, peace, and new beginnings. It represents optimistic people. If you are gentle and generous, have affectionate nature and a calm outlook towards life, bring happiness and joy everywhere you go, and value peace and tranquility, then the dove could be your spirit animal. The shadow side of the dove spiritual animal is the tendency to choose peace and harmony even when people cross the line and try to take advantage of you. If this is your case, you need to learn how to set healthy boundaries and say ‘no’ when it’s necessary.
Hawk
The perspective of a hawk goes beyond and above average. It analyzes all the possible outcomes before taking a move. The hawk could be your spirit animal if you only take calculated risks. It, however, depicts empathy and compassion.
Also, the hawk is very intuitive and has a clear vision. It has increased spiritual awareness and can see a situation from a higher perspective.
If you have visions or vivid dreams, the hawk could be your spirit animal.
Fox
A fox is the epitome of camouflage. Thanks to its detachment and adapting skills, it feels at home in any environment. If you have the ability to find your way around and to be swift in tricky situations, then your spirit animal could be the fox. Other traits of the fox spirit animal are an analytical mind, alertness, responsiveness, increased awareness, the ability to see through deception, and aptitude for dream work.
Wolf
A wolf’s priority is its primal instincts. Some of its known traits include freedom, strong instincts, good intuition, a sharp mind, a desire for freedom, and loyalty. If you are a free spirit who tends to rely on intuition when making decisions, then the wolf could be your spirit animal. Having the wolf as your spirit animal tells a lot about your loyalty and the ability to hold deep emotional bonds with others.
Frog
The frog aids in healing both emotional and physical wounds. It embodies self-check-up to determine the progress of a self-healing journey. The frog symbolizes transformation, transition, major life changes, healing, and rebirth.
If you are a good listener and advice-giver, know how to relate to others, and know exactly what to say to comfort others, your spirit animal could be the frog.
Tiger
This is an animal that incredibly follows instincts, even if it means revenge. A tiger appears tough on the surface, but deep down, it has raw feelings and emotions. It symbolizes spiritual growth, deep awareness, discipline, and energy. People with the tiger as a spirit animal are confident and authentic. They have brave souls, curiosity for life, and unshakable willpower.
Horse
A horse is one goal-oriented and determined animal. It will go out of its way to achieve its goals. It is also powerful and highly productive. The horse could be your spirit animal if you are very social, friendly, competitive, and deeply passionate about your work. Those with the horse spirit animal have a strong desire for freedom and independence and have a strong connection with the Angelic realm.
Peacock
A peacock will pick itself up after the biggest of storms. It represents beauty, intelligence, integrity, honor, self-love, and reinvention. In Native American culture, a peacock is a symbol of self-esteem, self-confidence, sexuality, dignity, and refinement. People with the peacock spirit animal have a strong desire to make the world a better place. They love improving the environment around them and have the gift of seeing beauty in even the simplest things.
Turtle
In Native American culture, a turtle represents the Divine Feminine and the ability to live in harmony with the Earth. If you are keen on your spiritual journey, a turtle could be your spirit animal. This animal is embodied with peace, wisdom, and a lot of understanding, all of which contribute largely to spirituality. It teaches us how to slow down, express our deepest emotions, and reclaim our serenity.
Praying mantis
They are said to be highly connected with divinity. They teach us how to be spiritual and connect with higher beings. If you are interested in mysticism, paranormal activity, mediumship, meditation, or geomancy, then your spirit animal could be the praying mantis. You appreciate a quiet lifestyle, peaceful environment, and stress-free life. A big city life with a lot of chaos and flurrying is not for you.
Eagle
In Native American culture, the eagle is associated with wisdom, strength, and clear vision. Those connected to the eagle spirit animal are usually good healers and have the ability to see things from a higher perspective. If the eagle is your spirit animal, you have a solid and clear vision of life and the things going on around you. You also have healing power and soar high to achieve your goals.
Owl
The owl spirit animal represents wisdom, intuitive knowledge, supernatural powers, vision, independence, and freedom. The owl goes for deeper meanings of things in life; it does not just depend on the surface meaning. This makes it discover some hidden treasures of life. If the owl is your spirit animal, you can see beyond the masks that people wear and recognize their true motives. It’s almost impossible to trick you because you can see what others can’t.
Mouse
If you do not overlook the small things in life, the mouse could be your spirit animal. A keen eye for detail is one of the significant traits. You are a natural caretaker and are sensitive to the needs of others. Whatever environment you are in, you always make people around you feel loved and happy. Also, you have a survivor’s instinct and can survive the toughest situations and life challenges. Your strength makes others feel secure and protected next to you.
Cheetah
This is a swift, strong and agile animal. It is also known for its camouflage process. If you are goal-oriented, patient, and independent, then the cheetah could be your spirit animal. People with the cheetah as their spirit animal, trust their instincts and move around obstacles with grace. They know how to hunt out the right path. Also, they don’t like loud noises and highly value their private time.
Getting In Touch With Your Spirit Animal
You can easily tap into the energy of your spirit animal once you recognize it. For example, if your spirit animal is a dove, you can get in touch with the dove energy through photos or meditation. Start noticing when your spirit animal appears in your life. It could appear in your dreams, in real life, on TV, on a poster in the street, or in online pictures. Take note of your feelings when you see your spirit animal. Think about what message it’s trying to deliver and what the symbolic meaning of its appearance is.
Getting in contact and spiritually connecting to your spirit animal is a great way to tap into its energy and receive clear guidance for your life path.