JustAnotherBeing (Sarah Eben)
Sacred Eagle Feather
The Eagle feather, which represents duality, tells the story of life. It tells of the many duality's that exist in life, such as light and dark, male and female, substance and shadow, summer and winter, peace and war, life and death. It reminds us of the teachings that Opposites are extensions of themselves like two opposing hands of the same body. Native American traditionalists look upon the Eagle feather as a sacred symbol of the balance necessary for the Circle of life to continue. J. T. Garrett, as a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee, describes how:
The Eagle feather teaches us about the Rule of Opposites, about everything being divided into two ways. The more one is caught up in the physical, or the West, then the more one has to go in the opposite direction, the East, or the spiritual, to get balance. And it works the other way, too- you can't just focus on the spiritual to the exclusion of the physical.
You need harmony in all Four Directions.
The Lesson of Opposites is that of choice. Any two Opposites are often part of the same truth. If we consider the Eagle feather with its light and dark colors, we could argue that "the dark colors are far more beautiful and, therefore, naturally more valuable," or vice versa. Regardless of which colors are said to be more beautiful, or necessary, or valuable, the truth is the bottom line: Both colors come from the same feather, both are true, they are connected, and it takes both to fly.
Sacred Eagle Feather
The Eagle feather, which represents duality, tells the story of life. It tells of the many duality's that exist in life, such as light and dark, male and female, substance and shadow, summer and winter, peace and war, life and death. It reminds us of the teachings that Opposites are extensions of themselves like two opposing hands of the same body. Native American traditionalists look upon the Eagle feather as a sacred symbol of the balance necessary for the Circle of life to continue. J. T. Garrett, as a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee, describes how:
The Eagle feather teaches us about the Rule of Opposites, about everything being divided into two ways. The more one is caught up in the physical, or the West, then the more one has to go in the opposite direction, the East, or the spiritual, to get balance. And it works the other way, too- you can't just focus on the spiritual to the exclusion of the physical.
You need harmony in all Four Directions.
The Lesson of Opposites is that of choice. Any two Opposites are often part of the same truth. If we consider the Eagle feather with its light and dark colors, we could argue that "the dark colors are far more beautiful and, therefore, naturally more valuable," or vice versa. Regardless of which colors are said to be more beautiful, or necessary, or valuable, the truth is the bottom line: Both colors come from the same feather, both are true, they are connected, and it takes both to fly.