Stag

The word "deer" was originally broad in meaning, but became more specific over time.  In Middle English der meant a wild animal of any kind.  This was as opposed to cattle, which then meant any sort of domestic livestock that was easy to collect and remove from the land, from the idea of personal-property ownership.  Deer are ruminant mammals including white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, moose, reindeer, fallow deer and chital.  Most food for ancestors came off farms, but hunters provided meat from deer, elks, seals, birds and more. 

For most types of deer in modern English usage, the male is called a "buck" and the female is termed a "doe", but the terms vary with dialect, and especially according to the size of the species.  For many larger deer the male is termed a "stag", while for other larger deer the same words are used as for cattle: "bull" and "cow". 

Deer are represented in heraldry by the stag or hart, or less often, by the hind, and the brocket (a young stag up to two years). Stag's heads and antlers also appear as charges.  Several Norwegian municipalities have a stag or stag's head in their arms: Gjemnes, Hjartdal and Voss.

Deer have significant roles in the mythology of various peoples.  Cernunnos was a god in Celtic mythology that possessed two deer antlers on the top of his head.  The deer is considered by some Christians to be a symbol of Christ.  In Greek mythology, the deer is particularly associated with Artemis in her role as virginal huntress.  In Hindu mythology, the goddess Saraswati takes the form of a red deer called Rohit.  In Slavic fairytales, Golden-horned deer is a large deer with golden antlers. 

The deer serves as a bridge between the wild and the tame.  This is because the deer will often be seen on the edges of the wilderness it calls home.  Deer will also venture into our roadways and gardens.  Deer have acute senses, they are always on alert to keep themselves from harm's way.  Deer totems may appear when danger is lurking, it also serves as a reminder to be watchful and be family oriented. 

In some Pagan and Wiccan traditions, the deer is highly symbolic, and takes on many aspects of the God during the harvest season.  For many Wiccans, the antlers of the stag are associated directly with the fertility of the God. The Horned God, in his many incarnations, often appears wearing a headdress of antlers. In some depictions, the horns grow directly from his head. Early Paleolithic cave art shows men wearing antlers on their heads, so it would appear that the horn or antler has long been a symbol of worship in some form or another.  A popular Mabon chant to sing is entitled, Hoof and Horn.

In Norse mythology, four stags eat among the branches of the World Tree Yggdrasill.  Their names are given as Dáinn, Dvalinn, Duneyrr and Duraþrór.  Early suggestions for interpretations of the stags included connecting them with the four elements, the four seasons or the phases of the moon.  The stags biting the leaves of the tree, is also sometimes interpreted as winds tearing at clouds. The fact that Dáinn and Dvalinn are also dwarf names, is connected with dwarves having control of winds.

The Algiz x rune’s traditional meaning is 'elk'. It is the rune which comes between us and harms way in the physical world as well as the spiritual. This rune often also represents peace and interestingly, today’s ‘Peace’ sign/symbol is the Algiz rune, encircled.

 

Even a plant can cause harm
if used without caution;
danger lurks even in the safest place.

So may it be.

 

Animals

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