Early human societies share a symbiotic relationship with the natural world. The sky provides life-giving warmth and the rain nourishes crops. The earth provides edible vegetation; animals are hunted for food. The land gives humans the tools and resources that eventually birth civilizations. Naturally, many cultures conceive of a "universal Mistress" of the earth, a provider from whom all food and tools "are considered gifts"(Eason vii).
Bird Worship in Myths and Legends
The creatures co-habiting the earth captivate early societies. They are aware of the relationship shared by all living things. In the myth "The Raven and the First Men", the Haida are "the children of the wild coast"(New 21) vying with the ocean for "a rich livelihood"(21). They live in "beautiful homes" embellished with "heraldic carvings"(21) that tell of "great families", heroes, and heroines. The carvings attest to "gallant beasts and monsters"(New 21) that shape the "world" and human destiny.
To early people, "who [have witnessed] human and animal life cycles"(Eason 2), propitiating the earth deity become a way of life. Animals and birds are "accorded great respect"(vii). Bird and animal symbols, such as those of the Haida, portray the desirable "strengths and qualities"(Eason viii) of living creatures. An animal or bird becomes a "psychological power icon"(Eason ix). For the Haida, Raven is a living god. He "[steals] the light from...old man" to "[spatter] the night with stars"(New 19) and forms "the bright shining"(19) sun.
The Haida creation myth speaks of a universal reciprocity between humanity and the divine. To create better humans, Raven tricks the first human males into impregnating chiltons. But having "played their roles"(New 21), these men promptly "disappear" from "the story of humankind"(21). In a sacrificial sense, the first men surrender their lives to their apathetic creator. Their sacrifice is intended to help Raven conceive of a smarter, stronger human being. It is also symbolic of the death-rebirth theme. As each generation dies, it replenishes the earth that bore it.
Raven as Trickster God
Raven is an enigma, a dubious creator at best. The Haida creation myth describes him as full of "lust, curiosity, and the unquenchable itch to meddle and provoke things, to play tricks on the world and its creatures"(New 19). Childlike, he lives only to satisfy his cravings. Unable to find food, he toys with the "little creatures"(19) of the clam shell who cower before "his enormous shadow"(19). Raven calls to the men with a "seductive, bell-like croon"(New 20) and coaxes them out of the shell.
For the humans, god-like Raven is a benefactor. He teaches the first men "some clever tricks, at which they [prove] remarkably adept"(20). He watches them go exploring, sometimes helping one another "in their new discoveries" or squabbling over novelties. But Raven is no loving god and his patience is finite. He soon 'tires' of "his small companions" and nearly tosses them back into the shell. But Raven has a "libidinous, devious mind"; he seeks "female creatures" to "make [his] game more interesting"(New 20).
Tricksters, like Raven, embody the "sacredness and the sinfulness" of the "human character"(Erdoes and Ortiz xiv). He teaches humans how to live, but he also represents the forces in the universe that influence human survival or destruction. Raven is a paradoxical Prometheus. He brings "fire and daylight"(Erdoes and Ortiz xiv) to the people but he also brings misery and suffering. His selfish motivation for creating women is mainly to begin his "greatest game"(New 21) at humanity's expense. Raven fulfils a role as Satanic as it is divine.
Bird Symbolism in Early Societies
Bird symbolism is way of representing cultural philosophies. Crows and ravens, the "main carrion-eating species"(Eason 54) of Europe, are easily vilified. Such birds represent "darkness, destructiveness, and evil"(Black n.pag). The birds become death symbols and "both witches and devils [are]...able to take the shape of a raven"(Black n.pag). In Greek Myth, Athene punishes Crow when it reports that the box containing Erichthonious is opened. Athene "[changes Crow's] colour from white to black"(Graves 99) as punishment for bearing bad news.
In the Scottish ballad, "The Twa Corbies", the crows represent both the timeless forces of the universe and its inherent duality. When one asks where shall they "gang and dine the-day?"(line 4), the other replies, "In ahint yon auld fail dyke, / I wot there lies a new slain knight"(lines 5-6). The crows are demonic predators taking delight in the consumption of the human body. One notes the sinister tone when the corbie reveals that no one "ken that [the man] lies there" except for the knight's so-called "lady fair".
The crows embody the malicious power of death and Satan. Revelling in human sin, they are amused when the so-called lady fair takes "anither mate", implying she has murdered her first lover and left his corpse to rot. But, ironically, the crows also embody the destruction awaiting the good and the evil. The corbies will "pike oot" the man's eye and use his hair to "theek" their bare "nest". In a final howl of Satanic triumph, the Corbie declares, "Oer his whate banes", the wind "shall blaw for evermair"(lines 19-20).
Birds like Crow and Raven become cultural tools used to reflect upon human nature and the nature of human existence. Some bird images reflect the divine qualities in humankind while others do not. With crow and raven, understanding is a matter of perspective.
Works Cited
Black, Susa Morgan. "Raven." Druidry. 7 July 2009.
Eason, Cassandra. Fabulous Creatures, Mythical Monsters, and Animal Power Symbols: A Handbook. Westport, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2008.
Erdoes, Richard, and Alfonso Ortiz, eds. American Indian Trickster Tales. New York: Viking, 1998.
Graves, Robert. The Greek Myths. London: Folio Society, 2000.
New, W.H, ed. Canadian Short Fiction. 2nd ed. Scarborough: Prentice Hall Canada Inc, 1997.
The Twa Corbies. Ed. David Watson Hood. 7/9/ 2009. Two Crows.
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