The Raven: Balancing Man and Nature
by Cheryl Lynne Bradley

"He likes bright abalone shells, silver beads, endless vittles,
gossip and warm sleeps over the smoke hole. The Raven-ego is the
lover-to-be who wants "a sure thing." The Raven-ego is afraid
passion will end. He is afraid and tries to avoid the end of the
meal, the end of the fire, the end of the day, and an end to
pleasure. He becomes wily, and always to his detriment, for when he
forgets his soul, he loses his power."
"Women Who Run with the Wolves" by Clarissa Pinkola-Estes

The raven creates a strong emotional reaction in people based on its
historical perception as a harbinger of death. To dream of one is
usually a forecast of coming sadness though not necessarily of
grief. The raven is considered to be the most prophetic of all the
birds and to have knowledge of private and public misfortunes.
People born between September 23 and October 23 have the raven as
their animal totem.

General Information
Before we deal with all the wonderful lore, mystery and
superstitions about ravens, here is some basic information. The
common raven (Corvus corax) is a member of a family of birds known
as the Corvidae, which includes jays, crows, and magpies. The raven
is found throughout most of the Northern Hemisphere in a variety of
habitats. Ravens are abundant in Canada and the Rocky Mountains.
Favoured habitat is remote, heavily-forested wilderness, seacoasts
and wooded islands. The raven is a permanent resident in the Arctic,
withstanding temperatures of -80 degrees Celsius. The Migratory Bird
Treaty between the United States, Canada and Mexico was amended in
1972 to include the Corvids, thus giving federal protection to these
species.

The raven is the largest species of songbird and largest all-black
bird in the world. Ravens have large, stout bills, shaggy throat
feathers, and wedge-shaped tails. Ravens are 20-25 inches in length,
with a wingspread of about four feet. Their plumage is entirely
black, with green and purple iridescence. Both sexes the same
colour; males are generally larger than females. They will attack
hawks, owls and eagles who intrude on their territory.

Ravens are excellent aerial acrobats and can soar to great heights.
Ravens move quickly with seemingly slow wing beats. Their courtship
display flight is quite dramatic and the courtship process requires
the passing of many tests. Ravens first breed at 3 or 4 years of age
and mate for life. Once they have bonded, a pair will seek out an
isolated nesting spot, at least a mile away from other ravens. Nests
are often built on cliffs or in the tops of large trees. Ravens will
build a new nest on top of their previous nest.

Ravens begin courtship behavior in January, and by March adult pairs
are roosting near their nesting locations. The female lays from 3 to
7 oval eggs, which are greenish and covered with brown or olive
markings. Only the female incubates the eggs; she is tended by the
male while on the nest. Young ravens leave the nest by the first
week of June. Ravens consume a wide variety of both plant and animal
matter and are scavengers who also prey on small animals. Ravens
will hide or cache food supplies. They also have the habit of
regurgitating undigestible food in the form of a pellet. Ravens are
long-lived in the wild possibly up to 35 years; one captive bird
died of old age at 29 years.

Come, night! come, Romeo! come, thou day in night!
For thou wilt lie upon the wings of night,
Whiter than new snow on a raven's back.
Come, gentle night; come, loving, black-browed night,
Give me my Romeo: and, when he shall die,
Take him and cut him out in little stars,
And he will make the face of heaven so fine
That all the world will be in love with night,
And pay no worship to the garish sun.
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare(<WBR>1595) act 3, sc. 2, l. 17

There is no mistaking the raucous call of the raven; the deep,
resonant "kaw" is its trademark. The raven can produce more than 30
distinct vocalizations. They fly with their mouths open during hot
weather. Ravens are considered among the most intelligent of all
birds. They learn to imitate a variety of sounds, including the
human voice. Their calls include guttural croaks, gurgling noises,
and a sharp, metallic "tock." Ornithologist John Terres states that
corvids have "the highest degree of intelligence"<WBR>. Zoologist Bernd
Heinrich shares that the raven is "assumed to be the brains of the
bird world", while animal behaviorist Konrad Lorenz gives the
raven "the highest mental development"<WBR>. In a 1991 paper, Irene
Pepperberg of the University of Arizona attests they may share "the
cognitive capacities" of many primates.

"We saw a raven very high above us. It called out, and the dome of
the sky seemed to echo the sound. It called again and again as it
flew onwards, and the mountains gave back the sound, seeming as if
from their centre; a musical bell-like answering to the bird's
hoarse voice."
Dorothy Wordsworth

Myths, Stories and Legends
The raven has played important roles in cultures, myths and
literature. Ravens disobeyed Noah by failing to return to the ark
after being sent to search for land. The raven was used as an emblem
by raiding Viking warriors. In Norse mythology, the god Odin used
two ravens named Thought and Memory, to fly the world each day in
order to inform him of what was happening. Ravens are also
associated with many deities from different cultures: Apollo, the
Greek God of the Arts, healing and light; Athena, the Greek Goddess
of Wisdom, learning and war; Hera, the Greek Goddess of Childbirth,
home and marriage and The Valkyries, the Norse Goddesses who
selected those who would die in battle. Freyja, the wife of Odin and
Goddess of Leadership, led The Valkyries and was able to take the
form of a bird. It was said that she sent the trance state from
which knowledge and wisdom emerged. The Roman College of Augurs
revealed secrets told to them by ravens.

The story of Elijah the Tishbite, the prophet, being fed by the
ravens is told in 1 Kings, Chapter 17. God commanded Elijah to tell
King Ahab, the husband of Jezebel, that God was angered with him for
allowing Jezebel to worship, and encourage others to worship, Baal,
the Storm God The God of the Old Testament was a harsh God who
demanded repression and denial of other faiths - One God above all
Gods. God's punishment for Ahab and his people was drought that
would last until God allowed rain again. God commanded Elijah to
hide by a brook and that ravens would come and feed him every day
while the drought took its toll. After the slaughter of the prophets
of Baal on Mount Carmel, God sent rain, thereby usurping the
authority of Baal.
Verse 4: "And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I
have commanded the ravens to feed thee there."
Verse 6: "And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning,
and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook."

The spiritual importance of the raven to Native peoples is still
recognized. Many view the raven as the creator of the world and
bringer of daylight. The myths of the raven are a strong social and
religious element of their culture. In many myths, Raven is a wise
guy, trickster and practical joker who instilled his greedy,
mischievious spirit in everything he touched. He likes pleasure only
and dislikes uncertainty. He is both cautious and greedy. Patience
is not a strong point. The Raven in these myths was no ordinary
bird. He had remarkable powers and could change into whatever form
he wished. He could change from a bird to a man, could fly and walk,
and swim underwater as fast as any fish. Ravens themselves are
thought of as birds of balance between man and nature.

Almost every tribe has a legend about how Raven got his black . The
Haida say that once, when Raven was white, he would go out at night
and fly as high as he could in the midnight sky. One night when
Raven was flying he didn't notice how high he was until he was lost.
The further he flew the more lost he became. One day he finally saw
the earth again and he returned. No one recognized him. Raven saw
his friend the Rabbit but Rabbit didn't know him either. He told him
he was Raven. Rabbit said that it couldn't be, as Raven was white.
Rabbit encouraged him to look at his reflection in the stream and
Raven saw that he was as black as the midnight sky. Raven knew he
had stayed too long in the night sky and had become the same colour.
That is how Raven got his black.

In Greenland the story is slightly different. The raven and the
diver were once white birds. They were not happy and thought it was
very dull to be white. They agreed to help each other by painting
designs on each other. They took black lamp soot and the raven
painted a nice black design on the diver. The diver was pleased and
started to paint the raven black with white round patches. When the
raven looked at the result he found a patch he thought was not good
enough. He started to fix it himself, but it got worse and the raven
got angry. In his anger, the raven ended up completely black as he
covered himself with soot all over. Since then the raven still flies
around, angry and black, shouting out loud.

In Cornish legend, King Arthur became a raven after his death - the
bird associated with the Celtic War Goddesses. In the Welsh legend
The Dream of Rhonahwy written in about 1200 AD, Rhonawy, a warrior,
fell into a deep sleep while waiting to go to battle the Anglo
Saxons at Mount Badon, and was transported into the dreamworld. In
his dream, Owein (Yvain) was playing a game with King Arthur.

Celts loved quarrelling and infighting, if they had no enemy to
fight they were quite content to fight with each other. As Arthur
and Owein played their game, their two armies started to quarrel.
Owein's army was made up of 300 ravens - some versions say his
warriors shapeshifted into ravens. Arthur's men started harrassing
the ravens, when Owein protested, Arthur said "Your move." A second
report met with the same response. The third time Owein allowed the
ravens to fight back. Arthur's men started to complain , Owein
said "Play on." The last messenger came reporting that if any more
of Arthur's men were killed he would be unable to defend Britain
from the Anglo-Saxons. Owein called off his birds. The game was
ended and so was the Battle of Badon, the foes had agreed to
postpone the battle for one month. When Rhonawy awoke he had been
asleep for three days and three nights and the battle had been
postponed for one month.

Owein (Yvain) was the son of Morgan Le Fay who was born of the Irish
Morrigan. The Morrigan is the most prominent of the Irish Mother
Goddesses and is closely associated with sexual potency, war and
death. She decided the fates of warriors in battles. The Morrigan
was able to metamorphose into a raven or a crow and was said to
hover over battlefields as fighting raged below. She often appears
as The Washer at the Ford, the war Goddess who waited by rivers and
streams,sometimes as a woman and sometimes as a raven, and
determined the fate of each warrior as they passed by.

In the Mabinogion, we learn the story of Bendigeidfran or "Bran the
Blessed" .He was a giant with superhuman strength associated with
the Celtic cult of the head. He ended up being beheaded and his
head, according to legend, still continues to speak. His head is
buried under "White Mount" in London, which is assumed to be the
Tower of London, and acts as an amulet of protection for the island
of Britain. Bran means "raven" and his story is the possible source
of the superstition that the kingdom would be safe as long as ravens
are kept at the Tower. If they become lost or fly away the Royal
Family would die and Britain would fall.

The sad tale of Deirdre of the Sorrows is contained in a manuscript
from the 9th century. There were disputes between the Kingdom of
Ulster and Queen Maeve of Connacht and her allies. Fergus, who had
been King of Ulster, supported Connacht rather than his native
Ulster during the raid. Fergus had desired to marry his brother's
widow, Nessa. She would only agree if he allowed her son, Conchobar,
to be King for one year. Deirdre was the daughter of the chief
storyteller of Conchobar. The druid Cathbad, the new King's chief
advisor, predicted her great beauty and that many Ulster warriors
would die because of her. The men of Ulster wanted to kill her but
Conchobar hid her under the care of a nurse as he intended to marry
her.

One winter when she was old enough to marry, Deirdre saw a raven
drinking the blood of a freshly slaughtered calf. "I could love a
man with hair like the raven, cheeks like blood and skin like snow."
and her nurse told her there was such a man. His name was Naoise,
son of Usna. Deirdre and Naoise met and eloped to Scotland with his
two brothers. Conchobar was furious but dispatched an offer of
peace. They agreed to all return if Fergus accompanied them for
safety. Conchobar had Fergus delayed and them all murdered with the
exception of Deirdre. Fergus's son was travelling with them and he
was also murdered. Fergus left Ulster and offered his services to
Queen Maeve. Deirdre lived with Conchobar for a year but she never
overcame her grief and killed herself by jumping from a chariot.

The Romany admire ravens for their loyalty to their tribe. The
ravens are said to hold tribal councils and will gather in large
groups, or murders, much the way crows do. If a raven goes against
the laws of their tribe, they will commit suicide by diving into the
ground from a high place.

Superstitions
There are a great many superstitions surrounding ravens. To some
Native tribes they are a good omen but to others they are not. Some
Native Americans view them as the "Messenger of Death" and this is a
common theme among cultures. If one is heard croaking over a house
it portends a death or an illness before long. If the bird actually
flies around the chimney then the persons fate is sealed. Some
theorize that this is because they have such an acute sense of smell
they can sense decay from a remarkable distance. If ravens are seen
flying towards each other, it is an omen of war to come. Scottish
deerhunters view them as a sign of a good hunt. If they face in the
direction of the clouded sun it is a prediction of hot weather on
its way. If they are busy preening themselves it is a good
indication of rainy weather.

In closing...
Ravens continue to awe, inspire and intrigue us as they balance
between sky and earth; man and nature; knowledge and wisdom. Their
tenacity, determination, intelligence, teamwork and extraordinary
endurance are lessons in survival for us all in an increasingly
uncertain world. They are certainly the stuff legends are made of.
Now I must go, it's midnight and I think I hear someone gently
rapping ....

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe, 1845