Folklore Friday - Butterflies.

Twig the Fairy

So - Spring has finally sprung here in the Mid-Atlantic. In fact we have had a few days that positively feel like summer is approaching! I, for one, relish Spring. Windows open to birdsong and breezes, enjoying sun on my face, flowers emerging... and all too soon it will be hot humid summer days. I still have flowers to plant, and dogs to walk. 

I have spent the last two weekends at Faerie Festivals, both attending and exhibiting. It seems natural to have wings on my mind...

Butterflies in folklore

The butterfly is a symbol of transformation across the globe. The results of the process from caterpillar to butterfly, wings unfurling, flying free - are radical indeed. The butterfly can be read as a symbol of faith as well - to keep faith during trials and changes. 

Butterflies are fragile and delicate, yet seem imbued with strength as well - to change, to be blown about and still right oneself. They can be seen as symbols of freedom as well - leaving the cocoon to escape and go where they choose. After the long period in the cocoon - butterflies can be a symbol of rebirth and/or resurrection. 

1 &4: Lesley at THEAtoo. 2: Jo at Daisychainextra. 3 & 6: Jenny at jdaviesreazor. 5: Melissa at MelismaticArthewelry.

Butterflies in mythology: 

• The ancient Greeks and Romans also held butterflies in metaphysical regard. The philosopher Aristotle named the butterfly Psyche, which is the Greek word that means “soul.” The myth of Psyche is one of love, trust, love lost, labors, love restored. (She was married to Cupid. Venus is a tough Mother in Law...)

• In ancient Rome, butterflies appeared ondenarii coins, to the left of the head of Juno, goddess of weddings and marriage.

• According to 
Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things, by Lafcadio Hearn, a butterfly was seen in Japan as the personification of a person's soul; whether they be living, dying, or already dead. One Japanese superstition says that if a butterfly enters your guestroom and perches behind the bamboo screen, the person whom you most love is coming to see you. However, large numbers of butterflies are viewed as bad omens.

• Irish folklore holds that the butterfly is related to the very soul of a human being. It’s considered bad luck to kill a white butterfly, because those hold the souls of deceased children. This association with butterflies as souls of the departed continues on to Cornwall as well. 

• The Russian word for "butterfly", бабочка (
bábochka), also means "bow tie". It is a diminutive of "baba" or "babka" (= "woman, grandmother, cake"), whence also "babushka" = "grandmother".

• Native American tribes had a number of legends concerning the butterfly. The Tohono O'odham tribe of the American Southwest believed that the butterfly would carry wishes and prayers to the Great Spirit. To do this, one must first catch a butterfly without harming it, and then whisper secrets to the butterfly. Because a butterfly cannot speak, the only one who will know the prayers that the butterfly carries will be the Great Spirit himself. According to folklore, a wish given to a butterfly is always granted, in exchange for setting the butterfly free.

• The Zuni people saw butterflies as indicators of weather to come. White butterflies meant the summer weather was about to begin - but if the first butterfly seen was dark, that meant a long stormy summer. Yellow butterflies, as you might suspect, hinted at a bright sunny summer season.

• Chinese culture regards the butterfly as a symbol of immortality, and conjugal bliss. When seen with a chrysanthemum, it symbolizes beauty in old age; and if seen with a plum, it symbolizes long life.

• In Taoism the butterfly has come to represent Zhuangzi, a Taoist philosopher. Zhuangzi once had a dream of being a butterfly flying without care about humanity, however when he woke up and realised it was just a dream, he thought to himself "Was I before a man who dreamt about being a butterfly, or am I now a butterfly who dreams about being a man?" Hence the butterfly is emblem of joy. It is also a symbol of summer.

Clockwise from top left:Slate Studios,  Skye Jewels, Marsha Neal Studio, Green Girl Studio, Silver Sage, Anne Gardanne

I hope this finds you enjoying the weather! I would love to hear if my folklore musings spark any ideas, if the Muse flits in on butterfly wings... 

Jenny

www.jdaviesreazor.com

Resources: 

• Insects.org
• The myth of Psyche
• Chinese cultural symbols