Owl eyes are fixed, forcing the bird to look straight ahead. However, an owl’s neck has 14 vertebrae, which allows it to turn its head throughout a wide range of motions. In fact, owls can turn their head a full 270 degrees! Truly owls are an incredible display of God’s creative nature. But the owl is more than just a magnificent creature; at least that’s what the world of mythology and the occult would like you to believe.As birds of the night and birds of prey, the owl has been embraced as a symbol associated with psychic powers, the "angel of death," and the goddess of night. Greek, Roman, and Celtic mythology all employ owls as representatives of spiritual influence. Hinduism also uses the owl as a symbol of cosmic spirituality. Taking symbolism from the owl directly, it is noteworthy that it is a creature of the night. Nocturnal creatures are symbolic of inner-knowing, psychic ability, and intuition.
Ancient Athenians made the owl an emblem of wisdom and even emblazed the image of the owl on their coinage. To the ancient Greeks, the owl is a symbol of Athene who is goddess of foresight & knowledge.
In Africa the owl is associated with witchcraft and sorcery. To the Bantu the owl is the "familiar of wizards." In eastern Africa, the Swahili "believe that the owl brings illness to children." Zulus in southern Africa know the owl as a bird of sorcerers, and in the western part of the continent the bird is considered a messenger of wizards and witches. During medieval times in Europe, owls were believed to be witches and wizards, shapeshifters in disguise.
In the celtic tradition, the owl (cailleach-oidhche), represents wisdom, clairvoyance, stealth, initiation, change and detachment. Always aware of its surroundings, the owl uses intuition courageously, with insight into hidden truth, and a guide between earth creatures and Underworld deities.
