Swan: Grace

One of the best-known children's tales, The Ugly Duckling, tells of an little "duckling" who doesn't look lilke the others, who are all very surprised when he grows up to become that most elegant of birds, the swan.

On one level, this fable illustrates the deceptive nature of first appearances and teaches us that true beauty grows from within. Swan, in teaching us that we all have inner grace and beauty, teaches self-esteem.

Swan symbolizes grace and beauty on many levels. It is associated with love, music, and poetry. In Roman mythology Swan was sacred to Venus, the goddess of love. In Greek tradition, this bird was often pictured singing to a lyre.

The cloaks of the Irish bards, who were both poets and musicians, were made of swan feathers, and in the Irish saga, the Children of Lir, when turned into swans, sang so sweetly that all who heard them, were calmed and slept peacefully.

This and other Celtic legends of the transformation of humans into swans illustrate the deepest meaning of Swan medicine. Grace is not simply the ability to live harmoniously on the physical plane. It is the gift of of being to be at home in many planes of reality, to recognize that we are more than we appear to be, that we are simultaneously physical and spiritual beings.

In the Celtic tradition Swan symbolizes Soul, that aspect of all beings which is eternal. Viewed from this perspective, the Ugly Duckling story tells us that regardless of the appearance of our physical vehicles we possess an inner radiance which cannot be dimmed.

Swan is one of the Wild Earth Animal Essences. Swan images are available in power stones.