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Keynote: Strength and Nobility Cycle of Power: Autumn The elk is on of the most regal animals of North America. It is powerful and strong. At one time it was found all across North America, but by the late 1800's it was wiped out in the eastern United States. Today it is protected, and the western mountains provide range and refuge for it. The Shawnee Indians named this animal wapiti, which is probably a more appropriate name. White settlers gave it the name of elk, calling it after an European relative which actually more resembled a moose. The elk is an animal of great strength, power, and stamina. It can run at a fast trotting pace for extended periods of time. One of its primary defenses is to outrun its predators. Elk can sustain a strong pace for great lengths of time. If an elk has come into your life it can mean that you are about to hit your stride. Elk may also have shown up to teach you how to pace yourself more effectively. Have you been overdoing? Have others around you? Have you give up or thought about giving up soon? Are you not pursuing things enough? Are you trying for the quick and easy when the long and steady will be most effective for you right now? An elk takes four to five years to reach maturity. If you have started new projects or tasks recently, you may need to give them four to five years to see them reach the peak of success. A elk is in its power time during the fall. This is its rutting season. Except during the season of rut, elks stay with their own gender~ males with males, females with females. Sometimes elk will show up as a totem to remind us that we need to have company of the opposite sex occasionally for balance. Have you been neglecting your need to relate to others of the opposite sex? Are you keeping company of just one gender~ to the neglect of the other? Have you been spending too much time with the opposite sex and not enough with your own? The neck of the male swells during the rutting season and its bugle call sounds throughout the area. It is a way of declaring territory and affirming the relationship with the cows of the species. The neck is a bridge area, a point of crossing over. We all need the company of the opposite gender. It does not have to be for a sexual relationship but simply spending time with them helps in balancing and bridging our own energies to higher levels. Few elk are ever loners or solitary. They congregate and live in herds, staying mostly with their own gender. If elk has shown up, it may reflect a need for companionship or group support in some fashion. Herds of elk usually have watch outs. These elk will sound alarms through long whistles (bugling) and through raising and revealing a large rump patch. There is always a group interaction occurring. Sometimes elk will show up to teach us how to live cooperatively in herds or groups. Are you trying to do everything by yourself? Are others? Do you feel as if you have the strength and energy to handle all tasks alone? Elk even make use of babysitters. One or two will take charge of the young, while the others wander for food. If threatened, they will defend the young with sharp hoofs. It is the young that are the most vulnerable, and elk and moose are both extremely protective. Parents with elk totems can be very protective and fierce in defense of any possible threat, imagined or real. The most common predators are the mountain lion and grizzly, although coyotes will often group hunt. As long as its a healthy adult, the elk can usually outrun its predators. This is not so with the young and sick, but this is how the herd stays strong. A study of the elk's predators will provide further insight into the kind of energies likely to be manifesting within your life. Elk eat mostly grasses and vegetation. They do not migrate much. Their fur is thick and heavy and they can withstand the severe cold. If the weather is extremely bad, with very heavy snows, they may spend the winter in the foothills where vegetation is more accessible. Anyone working with elk medicine would do well to hold a predominantly vegetarian diet. The energy levels will be stronger, the stress levels will be lessened and the stamina will increase. If you find yourself becoming sluggish, call upon elk medicine. Adjust your diet, and in just two or three days you will notice a considerable difference in your overall energies.
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