A Gift of Knives?

[seidkonacat]

Hello everyone!

I recently received a rather odd gift from a rural-living self-described-redneck cousin of mine; a pair of small hunting knives with eagles on the handle. I'm rather at a loss of what to do with them. I don't hunt, and they are too sharp, delicate, and intricate to be of use as the utilitarian knives I use while hiking, gathering, and exploring.

M question is, can I use them in ritual? What does the eagle symbolize?

I guess I'm just a little uncertain about this gift. For one thing, I don't think the giver (my cousin) likes me very much. We've never gotten along though. He likes my company, I don't like his. It makes me a little uncomfortable.

For another, they are HUNTING knives. I don't hunt, and he knows full well I don't. What do I need two razor-sharp 14-inch knives that are harshly serrated at the handle for?

It's a little unnerving, and I'm not sure whether to box them away or give them a renewed purpose. Ideas?

[BabyBear]

well here is some symbolism that the eagles bring
http://www.universeofsymbolism.com/eagle-symbolism.html

so maybe you think on what the eagle means then pair that with a god or goddess
it might be that the eagel itself is an animal associated with the god
i never look at gifts given to me in situations like yours was given without thinking about how it might be a message from the gods or a clue as to something that your missing

and another thing since your focused on the fact that they are hunting knives mabye look into hunting gods that connect to egals

[seidkonacat]

well here is some symbolism that the eagles bring
http://www.universeofsymbolism.com/eagle-symbolism.html

so maybe you think on what the eagle means then pair that with a god or goddess
it might be that the eagel itself is an animal associated with the god
i never look at gifts given to me in situations like yours was given without thinking about how it might be a message from the gods or a clue as to something that your missing

and another thing since your focused on the fact that they are hunting knives mabye look into hunting gods that connect to egals

I'll do that! I guess I'm still just a little uncomfortable with the gift itself. The only eagle-god I can think of is Odin and he is (with the utmost respect) an uncertain, unpredictable God. I guess I may be a little worried about that.

[Sakura Blossom]

Well, something that comes to mind, seidonacat, about your knives is the Eagle on which Veðrfölnir is perched. As I've said, my memory is terrible but as I'm sure you know being of Norse tradition, I THINK the eagle represents knowledge and would fly down to the other worlds to retrieve it... I think that was the story with it.

ANYWAYS, you could possibly use the knives in some kind of ritual with that, not aimed towards Odin, but perhaps empowering them with the ideas of gathering knowledge? It's just a thought. (:

[loona wynd]

This is a tough question. I have had knives given to me as a gift before and used them ritually. None of them razor sharp though. If the sharpness is to much maybe find a way to dull the blade with out damaging it? Or you could use them for gathering plants and other things in nature.

If you are uncomfortable with them at this moment than perhaps you should put them aside carefully and let the Gods and spirits answer your question about using them.

If you dont use them in ritual maybe you could use them decoratively.

[Holdasown]

This may sound dumb but are then like Bald Eagles or could they pass for hawks?

[Echo_of_shadows]

My thought on this subject is that if there is something that makes you uncomfortable, don't do it. I think a lot of people would walk away from their practices if they were stuck doing something that made them uncomfortable. Imagine it like wearing a straight jacket during ritual. If you do this a couple times, you may get tired of sitting in the dark since you wouldn't have your hands free to light candles, to flip through a Book of Shadows, or to eat yummy cakes and ale.
If you can't find a way to comfortably use them in any aspect of your life, you might want to consider giving them to someone you know would love them.
If you would feel guilty about giving away a gift from a family member, or you expect your cousin to visit later and inquire about them, keep them put up (out of sight, out of mind), then just bring them out whenever you think your cousin might drop by.
Perhaps after a bit of cleansing and recharging, you can sort of remove their association with hunting and give the knives a new association with something that is more comfortable and meaningful to you.

[Xiao Rong]

Seidkona, when you wrote the original post I started thinking about the way you described the knives' serrated edge and how it relates to the character of the knives. I've had a hard time finding an athame personally because, even though my brother gifts me a lot of knives (he's a knife collector), a lot of them feel really wrong in my hands for magical work because they're tactical and warlike, meant for maiming and killing (in theory, anyways). So if you don't like the character of the knives (like you said, ornamental but perhaps a little vicious-looking), that's a feeling I'd pay attention to -- especially if your cousin's energy is wrapped up in the knives, which probably doesn't help.

[seidkonacat]

This may sound dumb but are then like Bald Eagles or could they pass for hawks?

Not dumb at all. They are definitely birds of prey (I assumed bald eagles because my cousin has a patriotic streak ten miles wide). They could be hawks, I suppose.

[Holdasown]

This may sound dumb but are then like Bald Eagles or could they pass for hawks?

Not dumb at all. They are definitely birds of prey (I assumed bald eagles because my cousin has a patriotic streak ten miles wide). They could be hawks, I suppose.

Hawks and falcons are a bit more neutral as far as Norse myths. Freya has a falcon cloak and a hawks sits on the beak of the eagle on Yggdrasil. Falconry is pretty old you could use them when you want to find something (hunt) something lost. They could also represent clear vision from far away like divination or focus but if you can't get past them being uncomfortable no reason you have to use them for anything.

[Hollerdoller]

Hello Thought I would put in my two sence. Eagles of all kinds are considers very good omens in First Nations/Native American culture. They bring luck, and protection, and also have many good qualities that include, awesome parenting, and fantasic hunting skills. this is why eagle feathers are considered holy items. If it feels right to you, my sugestion would be to use them in protection and luck rituals, but to symbolize the positive aspects of the birds themselves, not any god or goddess.

If you don't know much about eagles and want to learn I would highly recomend David Attenborough's Eagle: Master of the Skies documentry. its on netflix under David Attenborough Wild Life Specials.

have a great day

[Lillady]

If you are not comfortable with your cousins energy that is in the knives I would of course cleanse them to be rid of his energy and this way you can put your own into them. With the fact you two have never really gotten along, I find it odd myself for him to give you such a gift that could be considered a weapon versus a tool. Especially if he knows you do not hunt, which I am sure he probably has the notion you do not. Please be careful if you decide to use them, not only removing his energy but I would also suggest a protection spell for the tools as well just in case. Sometimes you can never be too safe.

Some wonderful info about the Symbolism of the Eagle you can find is here:

http://www.shamanicjourney.com/article/ ... d-strength

[Mashiigwe]

I used to hunt quite a bit as a matter of feeding myself during lean times. Free organic meat, and since I'm not a vegetarian, I felt I should witness the killing first hand rather than seeing meat as a neatly package "thing" detached from the reality of where it came from. Also made my own bows, arrows, points... That said, What you described, many people like myself wouldn't regard them as hunting knives any more than a bowie knife would be. They are more like the things the camo clad "survival dudes" on youtube like to flash. I guess my point is, The intent of the big serrated things you describe is more to show that "mine is bigger than yours". I've found that for skinning and cleaning, a really useful knife would be an ulu, a flint blade, or a much smaller drop point blade. I can't guess at his intentions, but what he gave you sounds more like something Rambo would use or the goofy knives you'd find in a catalog next to survival food. A side note to this is, I have had 3 enlistments: I started off in field artillery, then as a fuel truck driver attached to a mechanized infantry unit, and my third was in armor on an Abrahms tank. If I showed up carrying a knife like you described in any of these units, I would have been laughed at.