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The names Hugin and Munin (Norse Mythology) come from the words for thought (hug) and memory 'Thoughtful' or 'Bold' and 'Mindful' or 'Desirous'. The raven is associated with bad luck. But there are examples of the
opposite(see the section about folklore).
In Swedish "Steal like a raven" is an expression.
Maybe ravens are more thievish than other birds, hard to tell. |
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The raven is the king of the Corvidae birds, weight 3 pounds. It is black and has a strong beak, wing span 4 feet, length 2 feet plus, The raven can reach an age of 30-50 years. The oldest only in captivity. The raven is omnivore. The nest is built in trees, on cliffs and on power-line poles usually 15 - 30 m above the ground. They use twigs and sticks, the lining is made of animal hairs -especially from elk (moose)- Juniper bast and grass. The eggs are 4 -8 light blue and spotted. Both parents feed the nestlings who stay in the nest until they are almost full fledged when they start to walk around in the tree top. Pairs live in lifelong "marriages" and annually return to the same nests. The raven can be found in Europe, Asia and Northern America where it is common. The ravens don't move south in the vinter, they move around in wide areas to find food. The raven is a very skilful flyer, diving, flying upside down, turns somersaults and other tricks. Imitating other animal sounds, the sound of the wind and human speech are other skils. The raven is believed to be intelligent and regarded as the king of Corvidae family. More facts: "The raven has like no other bird impressed me by Tage Wahlberg Kunskapen
om fåglar |
Raven sounds and pictures click here
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| Raven facts | The Raven in myths | The raven in languages | Folklore | To Hugin´s & Munin´s nest |
| Ravens appear in myths all over the world. Often they are advisers or tricksters. |
Norse mythology:In Norse mythology the ravens Hugin and Munin are scouts for the most high god Odin. They fly all over the world and ask questions to both the living and the dead and return with news for Odin. |
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From the Edda:
Two ravens sit on his shoulders and speak in his ears all the
tidings they see or hear. They are named Hugin and Munin. He sends
them out at dawn to fly over all the world and at breakfast they
come back, and thereby he comes to understand many tidings. Therefore
men call him the Raven-god, as it says here:
The whole earth over,
Huginn og Muninn Grimnismál |
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The BeginningIn the beginning there was nothing. Only water, darkness and The Raven.He flew through the darkness with a bag that hung around his neck. He had been flying for a long time, and was starting to get tired. So while he flew, he removed a rock from his bag and threw it into the sea. This rock became the first land. He sat down upon this land to rest, while resting he took other rocks from his sack and threw them into the water. Thus The Raven made the land. Rested, The Raven picked up his bag and continued to fly. After a while he became tired, so he sat on a rock and took more items from his bag. He removed the fir, the pine, the spruce, the redwood and all the trees of the world. He also removed the huckleberry bush, the wild strawberry, the grass and all of the plants of the world, including the plants of the sea. These things he scattered across the land and the water, so that they may grow. Again The Raven took his pouch around his neck and flew through the darkness. And again The Raven became tired so that he sat upon a rock. This time he removed all the animals of the world. The wolf, the eagle, the salmon, the bear, the dear, and all the animals of the land and of the sea. The Raven looked around him at the world he had made, it was a good world, every one was peaceful and happy. But before he flew off he looked into his pouch and saw that there was one thing left. So he removed man from the bag and placed him upon the earth. |
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Quikinna'qu (The Great Raven) A creator Spirit who brought the world into being. He is at one and the same time a Deity and the First Human and original Shaman. In the beginning of times, in The Great Raven's time, transformation of animals and dead things to people was a common phenomenon. At this time mankind could also transform himself. When one put on a fell or the exterior shape of an object, that one became the actual animal or the object. The Great Raven and Eme'mqut were transformed to ravens after they had put on raven shapes. Kilu', The Great Raven's niece, put on herself a bear fell and became a bear. Eme'mqut laid a dog skin on his sister, and immediately she became a dog. Once a long time ago, the Korjak legends tell, The Great Raven had caught a whale and could not manage to get the whale back to the sea where it belonged. He was incapable of lifting the straw bag with food up to the whale. The Great Raven asked Existence for help and the divinity then said to him: "Go to a plain at the sea. There you will find white stalks with spotted hats. They are wa'paq-spirits. Eat a little of them, it will help". The Great Raven went to the sea. Then The Highest Being spat on earth and out of the spit came the fly agaric. The Great Raven found the mushroom, ate it and at once he felt easy at mind. He began to dance. The fly agaric said to him: "Why is it that you who are so strong cannot lift the bag?" "That is correct", said The Great Raven, "I am a strong man. I'll go and lift the bag." He went, lifted the bag at once and sent the whale home .Then the fly agaric showed him how the whale swam at sea and returned to its friends. Then The Great Raven said: "Let The fly agaric stay on the earth and let my children get to see what it wants to show them." |
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Myths from the natives of Northern America:Raven Mythology |
Raven art: Raven Gallery |
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Norse mythology: Pictures..... The Edda |
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Myths from the natives of Australia:Myths and Legends |
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The logo of The Raven DancersUsed with their permissionMore links |
Ravens in the Bible
Deuteronomy 14:14 The prophet Elia is hiding in the wilderness and the ravens provide food for him:
1 Kings 17:4 1 Kings 17:6 Noah sends out a raven after the Flood:
Genesis 8:7 Luke 12:24 And praising the lord: Proverbs 30:17 At last a beautiful passage in Songs of Solomon where Songs of Solomon 5:11
In the list of what is forbidden to eat you will find the raven.
You will drink from the brook,
and I have ordered
the ravens to feed you there.
The ravens brought him bread
and meat in the morning
and bread and meat in the evening,
and he drank from the brook.
and sent out a raven,
and it kept flying
back and forth until
the water had dried up
from the earth.
Consider the ravens:
They do not sow or reap,
they have no storeroom or barn;
yet God feeds them.
And how much more valuable
you are than birds!
Psalms 147:9
He provides food for the cattle
and for the young ravens
when they call.
The eye that mocks a father,
that scorns obedience to a mother,
will be pecked out
by the ravens of the valley,
will be eaten by the vultures.
the bride speaks about who intends to be her husband:
His head is purest gold;
his hair is wavy
and black as a raven.
| Raven facts | The Raven in myths | The raven in languages | Folklore | To Hugin´s & Munin´s nest |
Folklore
In folklore it is a bad omen if you hear a Ravens could also bring luck: ************************** Hunting If you killed magpies, crows or ravens you would get into trouble. All corvids had somewhat to do with the devil. If you shot one of these birds, there were always consequences. The hunter's cattle would die, he would become wounded or ill, ************************** The raven's feather (The Sami People, Scandinavia)
The raven has a [feather called] lævedolge by means
of which it finds meat and knows where the wolf goes at night.
The raven sleeps at night, indeed; but when he gets up early
in the morning he knows where the wolf has been in the night;
and then they go there all of them [i. e. the whole flock of ravens],
that feather leads them thither [i. e. to the carcass].
- And that feather is under the wing, and he who gets it can find
anything he wishes. He finds reindeer [who have gotten away from the herd]
or reindeer-carcasses [the Lapps keep track of the carcasses in order to
know what reindeer have been killed] or wolf's cubs [in order to kill them]. From Lappish Texts by Johan Turi and Per Turi (Copenhagen 1920)
************************** Legend There are nights when the moon shines so brightly From Sweden ************************** The ravens at the Tower of London is surrounded by old superstition.
raven croak from the left, especially early in the morning.
Make Prayers to the Raven.
Raven that is,
Raven that was,
Raven that always will be.
Make prayers to the Raven.
Raven, bring us luck.
From the Koyukon
and his gun would be corrupted.
But it [i e. the feather] is not easy to find. There certainly is an account
[of how to get possession of the feather]:
he who can get a raven half-dead must catch it; and if there happens to be
[in the neighborhood] water that flows slowly, such as is called a tranquil
stream, then you must pluck the feathers [of the raven which is still alive]
therein, and see if there is a feather that goes against the stream; then you
must take it and place it under the arm, in the hairs there, and bind firmly
around, so that it can stay there for three days and nights. Then it is not
dangerous any more [i. e. it will not be able to get away]. Then it must be
placed in the other armpit and be kept there for three days and nights. And
then it is placed in the lowermost hairs and kept there two days and nights -
and one day and night in the hairs of the head. And then you must let it go
in strong wind and say: "Come and be my guide when I need it!" And then that
person finds anything. - But if the raven reaches death [before you have got it
plucked and have thrown the feathers into the stream], then the feather flies
away, and then you will not get it.
and everything is ever so quiet.
Then Odin rides through the forest.
These are the raven nights.
When all the ravens are white and can speak,
and everyone can understand them
If the ravens would leave the Tower the crown will fall and the British
empire with it. To prevent this catastrophy the raven´s wings are clipped.More pictures of Tower of London ravens you can find at RavenBlack´s
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