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by Tess Whitehurst

(Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal.)

Unicorns are not what they seem.

On the surface level, in mainstream modern culture, unicorns are all but synonymous with fluffiness and frivolity, in the form of fancy birthday cakes, festive makeup tutorials, and fussy nail art. But, dig just a tiny bit deeper, and you will discover ancient spiritual traditions from both east and west, steeped in spiritual significance that is venerable, varied, and vast.

Here are seven of the most pronounced mystical meanings of this wise and elusive creature who has managed to remain prominent in human consciousness in multiple cultures and continents for thousands of years.

1. Wonder
   It's difficult to imagine a clearer and more obvious symbol of wonder than the unicorn. The very thought of them can transport so many of us to the realm of child-like delight and awe at the relentlessly unknowable nature of time and existence. And as jaded as mainstream culture implies we should be, the fact remains that jadedness is in no way a rational response to the exquisite beauty of life: such as the beauty we witness when we feel love in our hearts, gaze at a bright blue sky, or catch the glimmer of sunlight sparkling on waves.
2. Alchemy
   Like the phoenix and the butterfly, with whom the unicorn's symbolism is traditionally wed, the unicorn represents the transformation that occurs within us when we open ourselves up to spiritual wisdom and power. Just as sunlight and rain combine to create the harmoniously balanced spectrum of color we call a rainbow, unicorns are highly attuned to the kaleidoscopic, intricate interactions of seen and unseen, known and unknown, day and night, yang and yin, the five elements, and the three realms of earth, sky, and sea. By the same token, within our consciousness, the unicorn dissolves the illusory appearance of the mundane world and reassembles it into the truer and more authentic experience of magic.
3. Purity
   It is said that only those who are pure of heart can see unicorns: they will only appear to those with the noblest of intentions. It has also been traditionally believed that a unicorn horn can transform anything toxic—even an entire swamp—into water that is sweet, crystal clear, and perfectly pure. Another legend states that as long as there is one single living human with the passionate desire to love and serve all of life, somewhere deep in the forest there is a unicorn who runs wild and free. Clearly, there is a reason the unicorn is appealing to so many of us at this time in history, when world peace is so desperately desired and purity of our oceans, forests, and air is of such dire importance to the survival of our species and planet. And on the personal level, when you close your eyes, call up the inner vision of a unicorn, and breathe deeply, you will likely feel your personal energy become purer, cleaner, and brighter.
4. Healing
   Considering the three specialties of the unicorn we have already discussed, unicorns are clearly aligned with healing: not only of mind, body, and spirit, but also of earth, ocean, and air. When we are drawn to the unicorn, it's likely a natural response to being in need of some form of healing. For example, in Treasures of the Unicorn, Ted Andrews writes, "At a recent conference, I was approached by a social worker who had spent great amounts of time in homes serving as a court representative for abused children. She mentioned finding paintings and figurines of unicorns in many of the homes...Since the unicorn is the most gentle, loving, and healing of all creatures, maybe its essence is required to restore such a loss of innocence and to stimulate a new birth." In mythology of both east and west, the unicorn was considered a master healer. The popularity of unicorns at this time coincides with a collective need to heal trauma on both personal and planetary levels.
5. Natural Power
   You might say the fairy realm is the conscious presence and aliveness of the natural world. And the unicorns are among the rarest, most magical, and most sophisticated denizens of this realm. They are traditionally aligned with the forest, as well as the healing power and wisdom inherent in crystals, herbs, flowers, trees, and animals. When the unicorn calls to you, you can inwardly connect with unicorn consciousness in order to gain mastery in working with the gifts of nature to create positive change in your life. Some of the crystals particularly associated with unicorns include amethyst, apophyllite, moonstone, and spirit quartz. Unicorns are especially aligned with certain herbs and plants, such as cinnamon, lilac, apple, water lily, holly, and clover. There are also a number of animals who have a special affinity for the unicorn, like bluebirds, deer, dragonflies, hummingbirds, and swans.
6. Courage
   Everyone knows unicorns are sweet, pure, and filled with light. But they are not doormats! In fact, they can be quite fierce and fearsome when the situation calls for it. After all, as sparkly as they may be, unicorn horns are not merely for decoration: they are sharp weapons that can be used to defend all that is loving, peaceful, and pure of heart. Again, this mirrors the need at this time in human history to channel our loving desire for peace and the planet into bold and decisive action. Indeed, when we truly connect with unicorn energy, we become inspired to move out of our comfort zone in order to help our fellow earthlings and environment.
7. Freedom
   It is said that while unicorns can occasionally be killed, they can never captured. They far prefer death to imprisonment. This makes them powerful symbols of freedom. Admittedly, traps sometimes exist purely in our minds. But, like unicorns themselves, this doesn't make them any less real. For example, when a thought pattern ties us to a negative self-image, that is a trap. So is a habit of criticizing yourself, or an expectation that you will fail. But just as you contribute to holding these traps in place, you also hold the key to liberation. Aligning with the unicorn archetype helps us to liberate ourselves from limitations and traps of all varieties. We can call upon their image and energy to break old bonds, bust through old blocks, and generally establish a sense of freedom in every area of life.

Clearly, unicorns are good medicine, and there is a reason why they're so prominent in our cultural consciousness at this time. Feeling drawn to unicorns indicates a natural desire to heal both ourselves and our world, and to restore our beloved planet to its natural state of wholeness, harmony, and well-being.

Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal. Copyright Llewellyn Worldwide, 2019. All rights reserved.

Back in my high school days, I saw a black male shadow in my room, sitting beside the window. This experience left me horrified for a long time. I always have goose bumps for no apparent reason. A few months ago, I decided to practice meditation for relaxation. At that time, I started to hear a high pitched sound, then later on, very soft, faraway voices that I couldn't comprehend. I also saw pictures and images with my eyes closed and once with my eyes open. These frightening experiences led me to ask the universe to stop all these things at once since I couldn't take it anymore. Suddenly everything was back to normal. A year ago, a reputable local psychic told me that I'm also psychic. I have always been interested in psychic stories and experiences. What I want to develop is precognitive ability. Can I just choose to develop this particular ability and none other? Thank you for your help and guidance.

Marissa

Susyn:

It's not unusual to be frightened when first encountering psychic experiences; in fact, that's one of the reasons people often try to repress or ignore such events. Because they have no one to talk with about these experiences and no way to control them, people naturally feel uncertain about them.

Everyone is psychic on some level. With the proper direction, we encourage our gifts to grow. You are free to focus on the powers you want to develop, but you must accept that by doing so, other abilities will awaken as well. It's said that information is power, so your best recourse is to study with an individual or group to learn how to control these events and protect yourself.

When I began to develop my psychic gifts, I too was scared of some of the things that were happening. While I loved expanding my knowledge of tarot and astrology, I sometimes found myself channeling, which frightened me. When I tried to ignore or repress it, I began to develop some physical problems.

After a few years of immersing myself in the world of metaphysics, I sought out other channelers to learn how to control these events and use them to help others. Once I realized that this gift would help my clients and that I could be just a transmitter instead of being influenced by these spirits myself, it was easier to embrace these gifts.

You have the ability to see and hear spirits as evidenced by your seeing the shadow of a man beside your window and hearing faraway voices. This is a gift you can develop and use to help other people. Whether you need to warn them about something or relay important messages, surrounding yourself with light and protection will keep these events from affecting you personally.

Initially, I recommend you keep your focus on the gifts you want to develop and explore the many divination techniques employed by psychics to see which ones you are drawn to. Becoming part of a group of evolving metaphysicians or training with a professional whose talents you respect will create a safe environment for you. Once you are under the guidance of an advanced metaphysician, you will be able to explore any aspects of psychic practices you find intriguing.

To open up and develop your psychic gifts, you simply have to spend time each day in study and practice. As you learn to trust your gifts and share them with the world in whatever way Spirit would like you to use them, you'll begin to relax and enjoy your journey. Good luck on your path to enlightenment!

*****

Mata Maya:

It is not possible to prevent the development of some senses and abilities while pursuing the development of related senses and abilities. This is like wanting to travel to Australia and see nothing but Koala Bears. When we go exploring in new territory, we can't control what we will encounter; to experience exciting new worlds, we must have courageous, adventurous hearts.

However, I am thinking that what you are really wanting is to be able to only have positive experiences - to not have anything happen that is frightening or upsetting to you ñ and this is far more doable. It is possible to have a very smooth, pleasant journey through psychic development. The way to achieve this is to first study, understand, and work with natural spiritual law.

If instead, you put developing psychic powers first, it's a bit like deciding to sail a boat from South America to Africa without first charting a course, learning how to sail, and studying how you might deal with some of the challenges that may arise.

The first things to know are that you are creating your own reality all the time, and like attracts like in the Universe. If you are fearful, you will tend to attract frightening experiences. Because many people are frightened when they first encounter strange phenomena, stories about scary experiences abound. If you are full of faith and expecting only the best, however, it will be natural for you to have a wonderful time.

It's common to be both intrigued by psychic experiences and drawn to them at the same time. At some point, your interest will grow stronger than your fear, and you will feel drawn forward into psychic territory. The faster you are able to lose your fear, the smoother and more positive this journey will be.

There are many things you can do to accelerate this process. Since it's normal to fear the unknown, the more you study psychic matters and grow familiar with this area of exploration, the more confident you will tend to feel. It can also be very helpful to study with someone who is highly knowledgeable and experienced in psychic and spiritual matters.

I can assure you that the only thing you have to fear is fear itself. With this in mind, there is no need or reason for you to limit how your psychic abilities manifest for you. Trust that you are always safe, remember that everything happens for a good reason, and allow your passion and curiosity to lead you to the information, lessons, teachers and experiences that are just right for you.

Astrea:

Many times in life we hear, "You will always have what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANT." Your spirit must have needed to experience the feeling of leaving your human body, and the suggestion in the next chapter of Sylvia Brown's book was all it took to get you there.

Even though you hadn't read it yet, your SOUL recognized the title of that chapter as something it had been seeking, and your soul, knowing that you had that reference to read after your experience, got with it and out you went!

While I don't usually recommend her books, Sylvia Brown has a wide reaching and powerful effect on lots of people. A Gemini like you would be able to relate easily to her writing and put it to good use. Synchronicity - you gotta love it!

I like your description of "getting caught." That's exactly what it feels like, isn't it? One minute you're free and hovering above the room, and the next minute, ZAP! back down into your corporeal form you go!

As a little kid, I loved that "feeling of return." With practice, most of the time we can control that event, but sometimes, when our physical ears hear a distracting noise or something else occurs to knock us back into reality, back we go. With practice you will be able to control your return better.

I find it interesting that you were visiting your mother-in-law and not someone in your own genetic family. Evidently, you and your husband got married for reasons that are even deeper than love. His family's interest in "psychic stuff" will nurture your children in such matters and help them to grow into their own abilities.

You'll never have to be concerned that when your daughter visits them, she'll be discouraged from exploring her own psychic life and power. My parents encouraged me to develop my psychic senses in a time when it wasn't nice to even discuss such things in public. Heck, it's STILL not considered a great topic at the dinner table in some families!

Your kids will get to talk about it ALL and ask questions and read and study. This is going to give them such an edge in life! Talk with your husband about how you want to present this to your kiddos, so that you are united in your approach and ready to tell them their experiences are all natural and okay.

A word or two of warning: Geminis often have difficulty staying grounded in REAL LIFE. Don't get so strung out on your ASTRAL life that you neglect what you're doing here on Earth.

You are at the beginning of a long journey to learn where your power really lies. Try to be patient with this process and take your time.