There’s a story from the Lakota tribe which tells of how Iktomi (spider) came and spoke to an old Lakota spiritual leader who was on a high mountain and had a vision.
In his vision, Iktomi appeared in the form of a spider and spoke to him in a sacred language. As he spoke, the spider picked up the elder’s willow hoop, which had feathers, horsehair, beads and offerings on it, and began to spin a web.
He spoke to the elder about the cycles of life, how we begin our lives as infants, move on through childhood and on to adulthood. Finally, we go to old age where we must be taken care of as infants, completing the cycle.
In each lifetime, there are many forces, some good and some bad. If you listen to the good forces, they will steer you in the right direction. The forces you choose to listen to can help or interfere with the harmony of nature.
While the spider spoke, he continued to weave his web.
When Iktomi finished speaking, he gave the elder the web and said;
The web is a perfect circle with a hole in the center. Use the web to help your people reach their goals, making good use of their ideas, dreams and visions. If you believe in the Great Spirit, the web will filter your good ideas and the bad ones will be trapped and will not pass.
As I continued to research, I learned more about each of the elements of the dream catcher…
The weave of the dream catcher itself represents the web of the spider, which carries the animal medicine of destiny, creation, and the cycles of life; birth, death and re-birth.
The outermost circle, the frame of the dream catcher, represents Mother Earth and all of life that sustains us. Being a circle, it’s also symbolic of the continuous stream and flow of energy and life. There is no beginning, and there is no end.
The central place in the centre of the dream catcher is the heart, though which dreams and inspiration is received and filtered though the web, down through the sacred feathers and into manifested form.
The Dream Catcher is also a Medicine Wheel, and represents the 7 Directions.
- The South; birth, life force, childhood and the element of Earth.
- The West; death and re-birth, living with divinity, and the element of Water.
- The North; our ancestors, the past and the present, and the element of Air.
- The East: second adulthood, self-responsibility, teaching others what we have learned, and the element of Fire.
- Mother Earth and all of her children.
- Father Sky, Grandmother Moon, Grandfather Sun, The Star Nations and The Great Spirit.
- The Heart of all of creation, and our Personal Individual Heart. This is where we connect with and ground all the other directions into our personal heart, in silence. It’s where we filter our dreams and bring them to conscious awareness.
As I continued to learn more and more, it all made sense why I would connect with this symbol to remind me of God and all of Creation.
Hopefully, after reading this post, you have a deeper understanding and respect of the sovereignty of the dream catcher too.
May it help to filter your dreams so you can bring your hearts desires into manifested form.
Much love and soul wellness,
Article by Melissa Farrugia – Holistic Kinesiologist, writer, and teacher at Soul Wellness
Melissa Farrugia is the creator of Soul Wellness and a passionate holistic kinesiologist, writer and teacher based in Elwood, Melbourne, and globally via Skype. Combining her formal training with a keen sense of intuition and life experience, Mel supports self-responsible souls who are at a growth point in their life, desiring to shift from feeling mentally, emotionally and creatively stuck, to feeling deeply connected and alive in the life they’re living.
W: www.soulwellness.com.au
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