Mew's Muse

Mew shared some of his writing with me today, which I always enjoy, and has allowed me to post it here on anamnesis. So, without further adieu, this post is from Mew ;-)

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I was recently thinking about the nature of totems and guides, and it raised some questions I was hoping to muddle through. As a disclaimer, realize that I haven't been keeping up with my guides as well as I should be, so some of my ideas may be a bit off. What exactly are guides, are they a sort of part of our soul in this life, or are they an external presence come to help? If they're external, what exactly do they originate from? It seems as though many of the books written about Totems speak of them as archetypes. Are the books written to just be a general description of what the Totems entail, or are we truly guided by manifestations of archetypes? I've spoken to Coyote once or twice so far (definitely), and he had the general Coyote traits (even if I can hear him now saying, "hey!"). But is each Totem a separate, personable entity that may loosely follow the descriptions?

And if, after all, Totems are personable and individual, does that mean they also have flaws? This lends an interesting new perspective on the entire issue. It also creates an increasingly confusing outlook on the supernatural world as I know it. I was taught to be very respectful, and very meek (I love that word) when dealing with anything metaphysical. I feel that this is still a good approach, but are many of the spirits and entities we deal with immediately "worthy" of being so respected? If they are not infallible, that may mean other spirits and entities are not infallible - in that case, what is it that makes them to be grovelled before? Because they live on a higher plane? Are we, who live in that crude gateway between physical and spiritual, always the lowest on the totem pole (hah hah)? Is there a certain path of progression in which we are all universally aimed toward?

We are always to be respectful and attentive to our teachers, whether they be human, animal, or events in life. And yet, one can learn from everything. To me, this means that the Totems and Guides we have may be teaching us, and at the same time learning from us. It also means to me that they are not the untouchable divine beings some make them out to be. They sound a lot closer to us humans, and that makes me feel a lot better about them guiding me. I love my spiritual guardians/teachers, and feel that they return the feeling. I admit I don't contact them nearly as much as I should, even though it pains me to say so. It feels like this path is the right one for me, and will ultimately lead me to wherever I need to go... I just need to keep my ears perked and my eyes sharp.

Coyote, Wolf, and Cat, this one's for you. :-)