http://therioshamanism.com/2007/09/27/so-about-them-thar-totems/ In the silence of the wild, we find the home we lost in the city. --John Muir Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:01:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ http://therioshamanism.com/2007/09/27/so-about-them-thar-totems/#comment-63 Wed, 07 Nov 2007 22:16:53 +0000 http://therioshamanism.com/2007/09/27/so-about-them-thar-totems/#comment-63 I think part of the issue is the semantics of the word “totem”. I use it generally as anthropologists have used it, primarily to refer to a group signifier in the form of an animal–totems are partly defined by the fact that they’re attached to groups, not individuals, in traditional societies. So I would categorize the fetch as more along the lines of individual spirit guide, or even as one’s double or animal-self, depending on whether you see it as independent from a person, or as a part of the person. The fylgia also resembles the nagual animal in MesoAmerican cultures. The nagual also differs from the animal totem.

]]> http://therioshamanism.com/2007/09/27/so-about-them-thar-totems/#comment-60 Tue, 06 Nov 2007 20:20:11 +0000 http://therioshamanism.com/2007/09/27/so-about-them-thar-totems/#comment-60 Keep in mind there are other cultures that had a view of “totem” animals more in line to the current neopagan one. Norse is a stellar example of this, and I highly recommend looking into material on the fetch/fylgia. In fact, if you don’t yet have it, you’d probably love the book “Witches Werewolves and Fairies” whose title is misleading as it’s a wonderful book about the Norse/Germanic concepts of the soul and would likely fit in well with your work.

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