Deer: Walking the Path Of Gentleness and Love

When I lived in New York City one of my dreams was to live in a place where I could look out my window and see deer. This wish has been more than fulfilled, and the sight of a deer is as thrilling as it was in my early days of country life.

A special sight is that of the first fawns of the season emerging from the forest, following their tenderly protective mothers. A mother doe, even while grazing, is always watchful and fully aware of all which is around her. She travels through forest and field with deliberateness and clarity, mindful of the fragile creature she nurtures and protects.

There is a powerful lesson here for humans. Though we are born with an innate ability to be unconditionally loving, we are often born to parents whose life experiences have taught them to lose that ability to experience and give unconditional love.

Deer can teach us to walk the path of love with full consciousness and awareness, to know that love sometimes requires caring and protection, not only in how we love others, but in how we love ourselves.

We can also learn from the Celtic tradition regarding Deer, in which there are two aspects. The Hind (red female deer), called Eilid in the Gaelic language, represents subtlety, gracefulness, and femininity. The Hind is believed to call to us from the realm of Faery, inviting us to release the material trappings of so-called civilization and to go deep into the forest of magic, to explore the heart of our own magical and spiritual nature.

The theme of gentleness is also part of this tradition. There are many stories of hinds turning into women (often goddesses), to protect does from being hunted. The lesson here is that when we explore magic and spirituality it must be with the intention to harm none, but to enter the realm of the wild things in the spirit of love and communion.

The Stag (damh) also relates to the sacredness of the magical forest. Standing for independence, purification, and pride, it is known as the King of the Forest, and the protector of its creatures. From time unknown humans have sought to identify with the stag by ceremonially wearing antlered headdresses and imitating the deer's leaping grace.

Both Celtic and Native American hunters also prayed to the deer to give them a good hunt, and promised in return to take no more than was necessary for the survival of the tribe. This tradition reminds us that our spirit of gentleness and unconditional love should extend to all species, not only our own.

Perhaps the most effective way to summarize the lessons of these traditions is to say that only when we move through life in the spirit of love for all beings can we dissolve the barriers which separate us from others, from other life forms, and from the beautiful mystery which is our own magical and spiritual gifts.

Deer is one of the Wild Earth Animal Essences. Deer images are available in power stones.