The more familiar native Nations of this region include: Tlingit and Haida. Perhaps the most breath-taking specimen of the Thunderbird symbol is atop traditional Totem Poles of the Pacific Northwest Coast (Alaska, Oregon and Washington in the USA and the NW coast of Canada known as the British Columbian province). The eagle is often considered a Native American symbol that stands in for the Thunderbird In this way shape-shifting/animism/shamanic journeying is facilitated. I’ve heard more stories of various Native clans of the Great Lakes regions using Eagle feathers in headdresses and ritual dances as a personification of the great Thunderbird. So, the Eagle is often a Native American symbol that represents the Thunderbird. In this light, the Thunderbird is a savior symbol, rescuing humankind from the negative influences of its nemesis, the serpent. The battles between the Eagle (Thunderbird) and the Serpent results in raging waters and brewing storms. The Thunderbird meaning dives into the waters, seeking out the serpent to vanquish it from the Great Lakes in order to protect humans. This horned Serpent is said to be quite nefarious and bodes ill-will against humankind. The story depicts the eagle waging constant war with a massive water Serpent. I’ve been told stories of Thunderbird meaning in the form of an Eagle.

Countless ceremonies are conducted in honor of the great rain-bringer as a way to ensure continued food supply. This is where we see a connection to rain as the Thunderbird is the bringer of life-giving waters (so agriculture may thrive and provide to the tribe). In this perspective, Thunderbird meaning deals with the Creator, Destroyer and Controller of Nature and must be honored and appeased at all costs. Moreover, in Northwestern tribes the Thunderbird is known as the Skyamsen, and is the dominating force of all natural activity. Its eyes were said to be made from the sun, and upon waking in the morning, the Thunderbird issued the dawning day. Alternatively, when Thunderbird retired at night, its sleepily closing eyes marked the solar dusk.Īnother Native tale indicates lightning jetting out of the eyes of the Thunderbird when angered (during storms), and deafening cracks of thunder were produced when it flapped its mighty wings.Īs a Native American symbol of creation, the Thunderbird marks the separation between the heavens and the earth. Other, more peace-keeping tribes viewed Thunderbird meaning as a supreme Nature Spirit and a solar animal. The effects of the smoke would lift Native souls to the heavens where braves would encounter the Thunderbird in spirit-journeying further bolstering the warrior’s heart and insuring triumph against foe. Tobacco (also sacred to the Thunderbird) would be smoked in intricate ceremonial order.

More About the Thunderbird Native American Symbol Meaning of the Native American Thunderbird Symbol War dances by the Iroquois and Shawnee must be performed to exact precision in order to appease the rousted Thunderbird and insure victory in battle. These huts were always made with the wood of the cedar tree, sacred to the Thunderbird. When the cry of the Thunderbird was heard (in the form of thunder in the skies) war huts were constructed to begin ceremonial processions.

This was also a foretelling of victory for tribal wars fought on the ground – particularly when ritual ceremonies and dances were reverently adhered to. When quaking peals of thunder rattle the heavens, it’s a sign the spirits are warring in the skies. Some tribes view the Thunderbird as an omen of war. There are several variations in Native traditions about the Thunderbird. Almost universally, the Thunderbird as a Native American symbol conveys concepts such as… Symbolic Thunderbird Meanings This page discusses the Thunderbird symbol as viewed by the sacred eye of the beholder: The prime people of North America who held a vision of glory and power concerning this Spirit Bird. The meaning of the Thunderbird as a Native American symbol varies according to the tribe (geographic location).

Thunder in the vicinity meaning