Falcons are inspirational creatures. They soar high above the clouds and are merely specks in the distance when we look up at them. Their aerial displays are something that we can marvel at while we are trapped on the ground, awes-struck by their motions.
Modern-day humans are not the only ones who have been struck by their beauty and magnificence. Our ancestors held falcons in great esteem. They saw them as the spiritual embodiment of gods, spirits, and even concepts we hold dear.
People use them as much as dogs in everyday life. Sometimes humas valued them above our four-legged companions when it came to usefulness. Even today, many cities employ falcons to aid in pest control in areas where people and other animals can’t reach.
The free-spiritedness and grace of a falcon in mid-flight is not the only reason to appreciate these intrepid birds.
When you look into the cloudy sky, watching the falcon glide along the wind, a mere speck in the distance, remember that this bird has always been a symbol that has influenced people and nations.
Women and men have been roused to fight, to explore, to dream. This upon seeing a falcon take flight and the wind soar underneath its wings.
Falcons have circled high above us for so long, that humanity has developed a fascination with the birds. We have attached meaning to their flights and their behaviors. Many of which are rooted deeply in cultural traditions and aid us in our lives.
Depending on where you live, depends on the attribute that you would be most familiar with. However, the four qualities universally pinned on to the falcon are leadership, passion, strategy, and willpower.
The falcon is a creature that to some is considered the king of birds. It is a bird that epitomizes a predatory bird. It flies the highest, it falls the fastest, and once committed it will not deviate from its target. The falcon is confident in its actions, taking charge of its actions. It never falters from its goal, making it a perfect leader for others to follow.
Yet not all battles will end in victories and not all hunts will end in a feast. Oft-times a hunt will end in a miserable failure and a falcon will go hungry. This doesn’t stop the falcon.
It takes enormous willpower to carry on after failures. But, the falcon does so with ease, picking itself back and trying again, being always focused on its goal. This willpower is a great trait to have and comes to the falcon naturally due to the life it leads.
Passion is the very life essence of the falcon, as it ceaselessly pursues what interests it throughout its days. Every action they take is done with flair, style, and all in the pursuit of their latest passion. Whether that be protecting their young or diving after fleeing pigeons. With a falcon’s passion driving them, they would not be as well known as they are today.
Although it sounds like a falcon is merely a bird of determination and grit. And that relies on the number of its hunts for success rather than skill, this could not be more wrong.
A falcon will fly high and observe its prey and its surroundings before making any moves. It will think and plan how it should attack and consider the different directions that its prey may scatter in.
Strategy is the core of a falcon’s battle plan. It never dives into the fray without some sense of what it is doing.
Falcon: Spirit Animal
The appearance of a falcon as spirit guide in your life is a boon to those who will take it. The falcon comes when favorable circumstances provide you with opportunity.
They will appear to offer guidance and make sure you have a strategy to act upon this chance. The falcon will constantly boost your confidence. It’s making sure you see the potential that it can see within you. But, it will always caution against arrogance and overconfidence. These can kill your chances of receiving the benefits of this opportunity.
The falcon may also come to you when you find it difficult to see what you should do. If you are too close to a situation or too emotionally invested, then a falcon may appear. It’ll try and guide you to a place where you can see things clearly.
It may ask you to step back and look at things from a falcon’s perspective. A perspective far away and unbiased, before taking action.
Those born under the sign of the falcon strategize and plan like no one else. You focus completely on your goals, either at work or at home. When coupled with the endless patience the falcon provides, your concentration on a task can put your co-workers to shame.
Sometimes you may need time away from work or projects. But, this is simply to recharge your batteries and plan your next move before actually doing it.
Falcon people tend to do things their own way. They follow what they believe is the best course of action, even if it is against the wishes of others. This may be a problem for others since falcons plan and consider their actions. But this rarely does this blow up in their faces.
The people of the falcon also are extremely energetic and pursue their plans endlessly. In work, they enjoy. They may be the first to arrive at the office and the last to leave. They’re constantly trying to move forward in the roles they have applied to themselves.
This makes them great travelers and adventurers as well. They never stop or look back, only progress constantly, their curiosity and passion taking them forward.
Falcon: Power Animal
The falcon is itself a powerful creature, though more because of its logistical planning than for its overall strength, however, this is a much more useful tool in general. Should you find yourself needing to carefully think out your next moves before acting, then the falcon is the perfect power animal for you.
It will show you broader perspectives and help you look at an action from every angle before you take it. Falcons set in motion plans that can take time to come to fruition, and it will show you how to as well, patience and wise action are a falcon’s mantra, and they will not make a move until the time is right.
You should not mistake the falcon’s caution for cowardice or laziness, as it is a creature that pursues relentlessly once its mind is set, and will aid you in pursuit of your goals with the same mentality. It’s just the falcon knows that relentless pursuit should never become reckless pursuit.
Of the falcons in the world, it is the peregrine that holds special significance to the people of North American, especially those of the Mississippian cultures of the southeast United States.
The peregrine falcon was viewed as having aerial power, which was roughly seen as the same as celestial power and a special kind of ferocity only associated with raptors.
As such, people of high status who were well respected were buried in costumes resembling the birds in reverence and respect of that person.
Although many birds were well respected in these cultures, it was definitely falcons that held the most significance to the people, and they often referenced falcon spirits in stories and folklore.
Falcon: African Symbolism
In Ancient Egypt, the falcon was likened to the sun god Ra. Ra was one of the most important gods in the Ancient Egyptian pantheon, being the deity of the sun and the ruler of all areas of the created world: the earth, the sky, and the underworld.
The sun god, Ra, was portrayed with a human body, but having the head of a peregrine falcon, and as such, the birds were closely associated with divinity.
Ra was not only the sun god, but the god of order, of kings, and of the sky, meaning that his will was linked to that of the pharaoh, the rulers of Ancient Egypt, and they received divine mandates and protection from Ra.
Strangely, Ancient Egyptians also worshiped a god named Horus, who was the god of the sky and equally had a head that was that of a falcon.
He was a god of great significance as well and performed a few of the same functions as Ra – being a god of kingship and the sky – yet these were not the same god, though at times they could be mistaken as such.
Still, these gods with falcons as symbols both had the same aesthetic, that of regality and order.
In far eastern cultures, the falcon has a similar connection to nobility and power as the culture of Ancient Egypt.
For Chinese people, this is about ambition and nobility, with the falcon being seen as having the perfect attributes for leadership in the Confucian society of the time.
This was because the falcon hunted for their own and their family’s food throughout difficult weather and unexpected troubles, something that nobles were expected to do for their people.
In Japanese culture, the falcon was a sign of protection, power, and status, as falconry had been about since the 4th century CE and many courtiers, emperors, and daimyo engaged with the activity, for fun, and for status.
Falcon: Dreams
Falcons appearing in people’s dreams are normally there to be a liberating force unto the person. They have long been viewed as symbols of freedom, especially as they soar high above us and when they appear before you in a dream, they are acting as such.
Whatever restraints or shackles are holding you back from achieving what you want are there to be broken by the falcon, and it will help you with your ambition. No matter the negative comments or snide remarks made by others, you should ignore them and press on, for the falcon appears only to those who have a chance to succeed in their endeavor.
Falcons also appear to those that are out of synch with the world around them, those who are burning out under the pressure. They are there to teach us how to manage ourselves and be mindful of our minds and bodies’ needs.
You should never give up but pushing yourself until you are mentally and physically fatigued is never good either, remember to take time for yourself.
Falcon: Tattoo Meaning
The falcon tattoo is one that exudes power and confidence. Many people from military backgrounds or physically challenging professions get the falcon tattoo, due to its fearsome reputation and cool designs you draw with the bird.
It is a bird that symbolizes determination, valor, and strength, something that people in hard professions want to be able to embody while they are working or on duty.
The variety of falcons around the world and the different poses you can place the falcon in mean that there can be a lot of individuality in these designs as well.
You could have a falcon in mid-flight, have it dive-bombing, or simply perched while observing its surroundings, and it will still convey the same grit and steel that you would want to show from a falcon tattoo.
Falcon: Spiritual Meaning
The aura of the falcon is one of authority and leadership. Unlike other animals, it does not wait to react to a situation, it instead proactively takes charge and commits to an action.
Whether this be observing their surroundings or engaging in a line of attack on a hunt is up to them, but once they have started, the falcon will commit to an action and see it through.
Their willpower is incredible, and they will not be swayed from their course by anything less than a solid argument, however should they lose or be stopped from their chosen path, they will be humbled but undeterred, coming back time and again with a new plan.
This determination and authority belie an impressive passion that defines their entire being. Without their passion, a falcon would simply be a bird, not the figure that stands at the top of others when it comes to many cultures’ reverence of animals.
They would not provide the aerial spectacles we know them so well for, instead simply existing as one of many species of predatory birds.
Even though many of these attributes seem emotional, the falcon is a logical bird and lets their various plans come to fruition under a watchful eye and strategizes every move they make before moving at all.
The falcon is a member of the Native American zodiac, and people born between March 21st to April 19th are under this zodiac’s wings.
People born under the falcon are constantly trying to be self-aware and care most about being true to themselves and their morals. These people are commonly adventurers, who set out on the path in front of them and seek to lead people along it as well.
This authority also comes with a certain amount of bravery, with many falcon people being fearless in the face of uncertainty, attempting to employ revolutionary ideas or go in directions that no one has taken before.
Sometimes people may not take a falcon’s ideas on board or follow them as they would like, and this can upset falcon people, and they can see it as a personal slight.
Falcon people can also have a hard time recognizing that people have different opinions and needs without it annoying them, so accepting these differences is a hard lesson for those of the falcon zodiac, but a necessary one.
Falcon: Symbolic Meanings
Leadership and authority.
Willpower and determination.
Passion and drive.
Strategy and planning.
Nobility and divinity.
Freedom and liberation.
Final Thoughts
The falcon is a wonderful bird that has so much to teach about where to go in life. It does not dawdle or fret, instead, it takes charge and moves in the best way it sees fit.
The anxieties of humanity are meaningless to a bird that spends a lot of its time either hunting prey in aerial assaults or soaring thousands of miles above the ground.
So, when you next see that speck in the sky and wonder about its freedom compared to yours, try to use the lessons the falcon can teach, you may find the things you are looking for.
Diane has always been interested in spirituality and self-improvement. She is a happy and outgoing person. She started her spiritual journey with Chandra while looking for tools to bring positivity to their lives. She boosts her mind with self-care and affirmations. However, she also knows what crystals to wear based on her feelings. She also practices the law of attraction.
