Mothman & Owlman Symbolism & Meaning

Mothman and Owlman come from different cultures and reports of their sightings are relatively recent. Mothman sightings were reported on November 15, 1966 in Point Pleasant, Virginia, in the United States. A creature reported to have red glowing eyes and the stature of a man but large feathered Bird’s wings, was reported to have appeared to four individuals. The creature that would come to be known as Mothman, was also reported to have grey skin or grey appearance.

Mothman & Owlman Table of Contents

Mothman & Owlman Symbolism & Meaning

The sighting was reported to police and has captivated the interest of paranormal enthusiasts who later tried to search for the creature. In the ensuing days, others reported seeing a being matching the same description. Reports were challenged by wildlife biologist Robert L. Smith, who believed the creature in question was actually a Sandhill Crane, which is grey in color, has red markings around the eyes and a broad wingspan.

Exactly a year and a month after the original Mothman sighting, a nearby bridge collapsed resulting in almost fifty casualties. Some locals believed this calamity was related to the appearance of the mysterious creature and the association with the Mothman as an ominous being was born.

Contrast this creature’s modern mythological inception with a similar report about a decade later and in a different part of the world altogether. In Mawnan, the Cornish Owlman was first spotted in 1976. Reports of a large man with ten foot feathered wings hovering above the cars of onlookers prompted investigator Tony Shiel to circulate reports of the creature he would come to call “Owlman.”

Though first spotted near St. Stephen’s church in April of 1976, later sightings were reported by observers in the same area later that summer. This time, the account of the man with Bird’s wings also featured pincers and glowing red eyes. Numerous sightings were reported in 1978, 1979 and 1995. Also, similar to the Mothman sightings, skeptics attribute the Owlman sightings to the possible presence of a Eurasian Eagle-Owl.

Though sightings and reports of both Owlman and Mothman frightened the original observers, their legends have inspired the imagination of others. Comic books, movies and stories circulating based on the appearance of these creatures gave rise to those who are open to believing in the fantastic and paranormal.

While the connotations of both creatures have been negative, the symbolism of both Mothman and Owlman are reminders of the power of the imagination. Mothman and Owlman combine two different aspects of the Air Element. The human emphasis on rationality and logic. But the primal, intuitive nature of Air is another facet represented by Mothman and Owlman symbolism.

Both Owlman and Mothman reported as having glowing red eyes adds another layer of meaning. The color red is often thought of as an indicator of malice, yet it is the color of passion and power. The eyes represent wisdom, intuition and insight.

We are fascinated with Birds’ ability to fly and thus the feathers and wings of Mothman and Owlman, and the fear associated with these creatures, speaks to other facets of Air energy. Both freedom and movement but also the imagination. When you blend imagination with intellect, you can go on flights of fancy that result in creative breakthroughs, or tales of terror.

Their symbolism is also a reminder that the world is still filled with wonder and mystery. What’s more, we can also derive meaning from the relationship between humans and these creatures thus far. The willingness to correlate Mothman sightings with a tragic bridge collapse and ensuing deaths related to this event can symbolize the archetypal scapegoat.

Mothman can be symbolic of the interconnection of different events. Whether an actual Mothman creature truly caused the bridge collapse or not, belief is a powerful thing and the belief in this connection can be symbolic of a type of butterfly effect in which the Mothman sightings resulted in a chain reaction that in soem roundabout way may have led to the later calamity.

A later popular book and movie, the Mothman Prophecies, explored this concept further. In this film, Mothman is depicted as being a harbinger of disasters. Reports in Russia of a Mothman sighting in Moscow in the late 1990s is said to have been a precursor for a tragic apartment bombing in 1999.

The mystery involved in such sightings during the modern era is symbolic of mysteries, and also of the imagination and the Shadow side of our creativity. Mothman and Owlman are symbolic of our desire to make meaning.

Mothman is associated with the colors grey and red because of their physical descriptions. Their mysterious, erratic appearance and associations with unexpected tragic events can link these creatures with the archetypes of sudden, drastic change in the Tower card from Tarot as well as the planet Uranus and sign Aquarius.

Mothman & Owlman Spirit Animal

If you find that the Mothman or Owlman archetype are present in your life, you may want to delve deeper into the related energy of Owl and Moth. As Moth is associated with death, initiation and rebirth and Owl is associated with nocturnal power, lunar energies and the intellect, you may be on the verge of an unexpected breakthrough.

Is your powerful imagination playing tricks on you? Are you missing out on the real mysteries and wisdom because you’re letting your fears fill in the blanks for you? Mothman and Owlman can help you connect with the powers of the Air Element- freedom, change, intellect and creativity- even if you first have to process deeper fears or channel your Shadow side in creative and productive ways.

Both Mothman and Owlman have come to be associated with prophecy, so when these Spirit Animals are working with you, the lesson may be that of discerning your true powers of prophecy. Are you letting your fears take hold? Or are you truly trusting your intuition?

Mothman & Owlman Totem Animal

Those born with the energy of Mothman or Owlman archetypal energies are truth tellers who may seem as if they are on the fringes of society but who are also the first to sound the alarm when changes are on the horizon.

When this energy is out of balance, it can lead someone with Mothman or Owlman Totem energy to jump to conclusions or give in to fears and hysteria. However, when this energy is managed in a balanced way, bearers of Mothman and Owlman energy can be the vanguards.

Those with this Totem need to learn how to use their powers of discernment. When they do, they can be highly powerful both as prophets and as creative messengers.

Mothman & Owlman Power Animal

When you want to connect with Mothman and Owlman as archetypes, be sure you take the time to ground yourself and prepare to commune with the energy of breakthroughs and the unknown. Shadow issues may be triggered, and while healing these issues can empower you, you may want to be sure you’re ready before inviting these Power Animals.

Mothman and Owlman can be helpful to you if you need to remove blinders and see what you are currently missing. If you need a breakthrough or you’re ready to confront fears, you may want to work with Mothman and Owlman.

You may also want to connect with Mothman and Owlman if you are trying to embrace your creative and intellectual gifts and if you seek greater freedom. When you need help discerning truth from illusion, call on these archetypal Power Animals as well.

Mothman & Owlman Dreams

When you are visited by Mothman or Owlman in a dream, it can be a harbinger of breakthroughs and encounters that seem out of the ordinary or unexplainable. If your first reaction is fear, Mothman or Owlman may be helping you to confront your Shadow side and deal with subconscious fears.

Mothman & Owlman Symbolic Meanings Key

  • Breakthroughs
  • Drastic Change
  • Chance
  • Kismet
  • Imagination
  • Insight
  • Omens
  • Signs

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