90/365 The day i fall in love with owls!

Particularly this gorgeous chocolate brown Eagle Owl, i WANT one!! Check out the look in his eye! who's gonna mess with him?? No one! *grin* We drove the Hardknott Pass today, which was as "hairy" as the sign predicted! We drove to the coast, Ravenglass and Eskdale and spent a great afternoon at Muncaster Castle, the most haunted castle in the UK (no i didn't feel a cold "presence" !) They had wheat free cake in the tea room (get IN!) and then we got to see lots of owls really close up, and I fell in love with them! 

Interesting (to me!) owl facts: A collection of owls is known as a parliament. The feathers around their eyes can be adjusted in order to sharply focus sounds that come from varying distances onto the owls' asymmetrically placed ear cavities. They have stereoscopic eyes which permit a greater sense of depth perception necessary for low-light hunting. Owls can rotate their heads and necks as much as 270 degrees in either direction. As owls are farsighted, they are unable to see clearly anything within a few centimeters of their eyes. The smallest owl, weighing as little as 31g and measuring some 13.5 cm, is the Elf Owl. The largest owls are two of the eagle owls which may reach a size of 60 cm long, and have a wingspan of almost 2 m and an average weight of nearly 4.5 kg. Most owls are nocturnal, actively hunting their prey only in darkness. Several types of owl, however, are crepuscular (how much do you love that word, go on, say it out loud!!) which means they are active during the twilight hours of dawn and dusk.

Owls are one of the few birds that have been found in prehistoric cave paintings, and have been both revered and feared throughout many civilizations from ancient to more recent times. Mythologically, in many cultures Owls are seen as harbingers of death and doom. The owl is often a guide to and through the Underworld. The owl is a symbol of the moon, the night and the feminine. The owl is sometimes called a cat with wings; in fact in China the owl is called the "cat-eared hawk". One of the magical key abilities of the owl is discovering truth through the illusion and external appearances.

Ancient Egyptian Queens and Princess used the owl as their emblem, the letter 'M' in heiroglyphics was an owl, linking Hathor, Isis, and Nephthys to the owl. The letter 'M' to the Egyptians means wisdom, secret Goddess knowledge, having and/or keeping a secret. In Hindu Mythology, the Goddess Lakshmi's (Goddess of Wealth) travels on a barn owl and thus it is considered lucky if an owl resides near your house.

In Greek mythology, the Goddess Athena, was associated with the owl, wisdom, the arts, and skills, as she had a companion owl on her shoulder, which revealed unseen truths to her. The owl had the ability to light up Athena's blind side, enabling her to speak the whole truth, as opposed to only a half-truth. This also links with the lunar, feminine aspect of Athena as "reflective light", the wisdom given to the world as opposed to the direct knowledge of solar illumination.The Welsh have a Goddess, Arianrhod who shapeshifts into a large Owl, and through the great owl-eyes, sees even into the darkness of the human subconscious and soul. She is said to move with strength and purpose through the night, her wings of comfort and healing spread to give solace to those who seek her.

In magical lore the owl has a dual symbolism of wisdom and darkness, they are symbolically associated with being psychic, occult matters, instincts, and clairvoyance, the true ability to see what is happening around you. The owl can see that which others cannot, which is the essence of true wisdom. Where others are deceived, the owl sees and knows what is there. The power of keen, silent observation to intuit a situation. The owl teaches us that it is safe to look at what we may consider to be the darkness of our own souls, and that in that darkness we may find much food for growth. Food for thought!