The Ghost of a Flea – Symbolism and Messages to Embody this Mighty Shadow Totem

This is a great miniature painting by William Blake titled “The Ghost of a Flea” that demonstrates its collective shadow aspect (discussed below) in the magnification of the Flea as a monstrous, bloodthirsty creature

 

It’s been an interesting and full several days since Thursday night, and in general upon arriving back home from Alaska.

I spent the majority of yesterday – just over 6 hours – in Jury Duty, which was a fascinating experience of observation. Between that and a rendezvous with TSA for finger-printing to assist expedited travel (resulting in the confirmation of my mutant humanness with unnatural, never-seen human patterning, as was put to me), unexpected vet appointments, and flea infestation, it’s been a 3D check-in of realities that are so foreign to me. And, definitely such a contrast from the bridge-between-worlds of Alaska’s heavenly, untouched nature – which activated deeper natural frequency alignment in me.

I love how we dance with realities, as integrative check-ins when we are in process of major shifts. When a bunch of stuff shows up that seems opposite to you, it’s not a negative thing to react to or worry about, but actually a good indicator of the changes you have made.

I’ve also noticed increased psychic connection and telepathy recently, not to mention experiencing tremendous changes all around that happen very quickly.

Due to so much in flux and needing to honor what is showing up now, even Sunday’s Crystal Workshop had to be postponed and combined with October 11th’s and our BC Horse and Reiki Retreat is in process of rescheduling for Spring – “luckily” 😉 all of these changes worked out for everyone involved and people that were registered were also in tune with the shifts.

A lot has energetically changed since my journey away and I do not feel the same as even just a couple of weeks ago, let alone yesterday.

Since arriving home I have felt increasingly like the observer – evermore compassionately detached and yet in that detachment, even more connected. I’ve felt more foreign to the place I call home and finding things to energetically feel more off, but in the most subtle yet noticeable ways. I’m seeing it as reminders of what is natural to me and what is not. But it also increases the innate essence connection that resides in my cosmic soul to a bigger and divine picture, providing even greater understanding.

These are all things I’ve noticed and noted before, but now the finest fluctuations of energy out of alignment with what feels natural, are softly blaring their existence to me like a middle child who yearns for attention.

There have even been eerie reminders of times long ago and the demise that resulted – all to catapult me into the new with greater fortitude and embrace.

But, I’m getting a bit into too many realms here, so I’ll dial it back to the original thought that triggered this share, which is a lot of interesting experiences have been happening, both inwardly and outwardly, since I returned home.

And one of those, as mentioned, includes a flea infestation that I finally pinpointed on Thursday night.

The fleas brought up mixed emotions, including being challenged with not feeling resentment toward the situation and sadness. This all resulting from my “protective mom” qualities that watch over and care for Joy, my rabbit, like a mother Bear with her cubs.

Joy is such a precious and fragile little one (at least in the physical, although her soul is powerful) that she brings out the most vulnerable and tender in me. And to see her invaded with fleas and with chunks of hair loss, was heart-breaking for mom, especially since she has never been subjected to anything before like this and I take grave care with caring for her from learning with my departed Nestor.

Joy also represents me and aspects of my vulnerability and strength, so of course, anything that happens to her is a personal reflection for me to integrate.

Because I look at the layers of things and feel the importance of integrating those shadow aspects that emerge for a reason, having those kinds of feelings crop up immediately had me exploring them more and going straight into the wider perspective than what my narrow human emotions and ego would be capable of if left to run amuck.

On the surface I saw Joy as an innocent bystander of the flea attack, as she is protected indoors and it was fleas brought in by the cats who have a play pen outside, that this resulted from.

THAT was the limited perspective from ego emotions.

However, there is always a bigger picture story to all of this I feel, and that all of the players involved are creating the perfect learning curve experience for the greater evolutionary good.

THAT is the wider perspective.

Also, I didn’t like how while I understand the bigger picture, that a part of me still gets bothered by things like mosquitos and fleas attacking me and loved ones, as they also have their own meaning and purpose. Being a magnet for these biting creatures and with an allergic reaction from my strong immune system that severely attacks foreigners, it can be very uncomfortable. And yet, that discomfort also has its place and lesson. So when I, too, found ankle and foot bitten effects of this infestation, it was something I wanted to explore more deeply.

It may seem like a silly thing, but I was also bothered by the fact that there is a general “negative” factor for creatures such as mosquitoes and fleas that pervades humanity, including most of, if not all of the vegan friends and acquaintances that I have, which would seem to be inconsistent with compassionate views. I think everyone is always working on consistently practicing and spreading that spectrum of compassion to all of life, as it can tend to be limited to chosen ones (speciesism) to the exclusion of others, sometimes including other fellow humans.

I was on a mission to find more about flea symbolism, aside from the more obvious things and messages (most of them having a negative twinge) I have known and what one could surmise about them showing up. I wanted to see what dots I could connect and reflections I could learn from and integrate.

So, I did start researching and this is what I was led to discover.

http://www.animalspirits.com shares Flea Wisdom to include:

Metamorphosis, ability to alter time within the life cycle, sensitivity to light, ability to trigger a birth process by the use of light, vibration or the various components of air.

Interesting, as yes definitely a very large “metamorphosis” feels at hand for me, which is like a rebirthing that is about a new vibrational alignment I feel to be activating. Time to turn over a whole new leaf (there sure seem to be a lot of them in my life LOL) and a new lifestyle, which IS actually in the works as we speak too. And this has all been altering “time” and dimensions in my experience.

Okay. These were also in a “positive” light, which was what I was looking for. What else might I find?

Well, of course there’s what I knew – that they also symbolize irritations and aggravations, which will increase until you make the necessary changes.

Okay. That doesn’t have to be seen as “negative” however, as in fact this is a positive nudge to assist in taking those steps, making a choice, and moving forward.

For me those steps increase over time and are never small. Now, is one of those “huge steps” time period that my soul existence depends upon.

I could see this playing out, as I’ve been inundated with so much that I’ve had a postponement on things I was creating…and had just told myself on my trip in Alaska, and after it, that that was it. Time to do it no matter what is around in life to handle, as I really won’t thrive or be fulfilling my purpose until I up my personal creative output to a much higher level. I’m not a baby-stepper, so leaping I knew was in store.

Flea friends were literally leaping around mirroring my conclusions.

Then I found the more “negative” information about fleas symbolizing needing to clear and clean out everything, including self, aura, energy, as these “blood suckers” are about something or someone living off or sucking your life force energy or blood – energetic vampires, as some information shares. This can mean energy vampires sucking from you because you give away your energy to easily, or your own dependent vampirism that is taking energy from others you care about without even realizing it – both resulting in unhealthy and imbalanced relationships with others.

Well, that could be the case for some people, although let’s look at it in a positive light again and that it simply would mean to nurture yourself, your needs, and know and stand by your boundaries. Letting others be responsible for themselves and you take responsibility of you. Fortify yourself inside and out and pay attention to how you give in to victimization, take on the martyr role, or forego your desires and dreams to support others that either don’t want the help, or you’d be far better off helping by helping yourself. It also speaks to simplifying your life, getting rid of things completely rather than fixing or cleaning them up, and re-evaluating things so that you are vibrating from your authenticity. This could be fears and self-limiting beliefs that are holding you back and sucking you dry of having the ability to freely be you and looking after yourself.

Boundaries are something I’ve definitely been on a life-long mission to create, as that has been a toughy for this Pisces. Definitely can see some small tweaking still in order there, but nothing large in way of anyone sucking from me, nor me of them. I am, however, in process of “cleaning out” and simplifying on a daily basis though. So a good reflection I’m on path here and to continue the momentum.

Dependency, accumulative damage, running away from problems, hurting the ones you love, and sensitivity to your environment are included in some of the flea symbolism. They can also come into your life to remind you to look after yourself and your environment with extreme vigilance.

Fleas have multiple stages of metamorphosis and so that would indicate also the many shifts and transformations you will go through in your life, as life is about change and growth. – Yep, that’s me.

They also have a sense organ on their bodies that is very sensitive to vibration and air currents, so for me that indicates this increased subtle vibrational frequency I’m detecting as well.

Fleas need darkness and so they speak to sensitives of light, or are heralding a period of personal retreat, taking stock of your life, sensitivity to your environment, and feeling overwhelmed with over-stimulation. So time in seclusion may be very healing for you, as a result.

Well, interestingly, I will be entering a #9/Hermit year come my next birthday in February and I’ve been feeling the effects of that early, as I always do, so this makes sense. I’m feeling that incubation time for personal retreat to work on things important to ME. And, there is that increased over-stimulation and sensitivity to things around me that feel very misaligned and foreign to my natural state. All I crave is the stillness of harmony I feel within when I’m in alignment with my personal frequency.

They can also represent accumulative damage, which means that if you don’t handle the small things, they can turn into large things later. So heed the warnings and address what is coming up so they don’t get to a state of feeling completely out of control.

What I noticed is that Fleas sure do run and squirm away lightning fast! And this seems to speak to potentially you running away from your problems/challenges or that you need to remove yourself quickly from potentially damaging situations, like now! No delaying.

I do feel an increased “now” kick in the butt that feels an impending need to act upon, but nothing to run away from or that I am running away from…more, for me, it’s about running to the next aspect of myself and quickly!

Then there’s “blood wisdom” that Fleas hold, which includes memories and secrets of ancestry, knowledge, wisdom, and energy held within it. Interesting, as I’ve been delving into cosmic soul ancestry – Earth and Beyond – and activating latent parts of myself and DNA – all part of the new I’ve been focused on.

Let’s see what else shows up as I explore….

Well, I love this info about shadow aspects that I discovered, which I was specifically tuning into wanting to receive, as I know that Fleas definitely represent shadow totems for people since I don’t believe many would admit to “liking” them since they feel threatening to us and/or our animal companions. Perhaps this is because they remind us of our vulnerability and the ability to attract something unwanted that feels threatening, despite our vigilance.

But does that mean to stop living fully or to stop doing things you want because there is the potential of an unforeseen “danger”? No, of course not.

Wise discernment and conscious awareness to make intuitively guided choices is imperative, but to live a life in neurotic fear would simply mean not living in general. You can’t worry about every possible little thing that can happen, but you CAN see how to choose more wisely and that everything that does happen is not a “bad” thing. Everything is a growth opportunity and there is always something of value to take away.

If you find yourself “hating” something, like Fleas, perhaps you have a feeling of severe resentment and hatred towards people around you that are abusive in some form to you and/or others. However, having that kind of unhealthy hatred is a call out for deeper understanding and love.

The shadow within anything is representative of the things we fear and are our greatest teachers to confront and integrate. Hence, they challenge us into our greatness by teaching us the things we run away from wanting to learn and know about ourselves. Shadow totems are cryptic, but valuable teachers that are worthy of our developing a new relationship with. Rather than swatting away annoying insects, ask them what they have to share and then be still and listen. And try to avoid the expectations of “fast” results when working with these shadow totems, as the shadow parts of ourselves can sometimes require a consistent fortitude of effort to work with and process, but the results are worthy of the effort.

I watched on as the fleas have taken their sweet time to leave from little Joy, and with each passing day I’ve continued to ponder their message and while felt sad for little Joy to go through this, I also thought to myself, “how brave and ever-loving she is to accept this experience to help mom, along with whatever she personally was learning as well.”

Fleas are not maliciously out to get you. They simply have survival instincts themselves and are searching for the comfort of a warm and resonant home. So if they nestle into you or your animal companions, there is a strangely ironic reason, which involves the shadow parts of you seeking your comforting and warm embrace so that you can become a more empowered being.

But insects, especially Fleas, are of strong fortitude and are survivalists that easily adapt to change, so when you are going through transitions in your life (as I am), they are truly remarkable examples of what is available to each of us.

I love the powerful messages of Flea found in this short article from Paradise Found, titled “Power Animal for January 2012: Flea, by ‘Backyard Shaman’ Amy Katz, M.A.” :

The mighty flea…not Tiger, or Elephant or Whale, but Flea! Fleas are minuscule from where we are standing, so they may seem as inconsequential as stars flickering dimly in the night sky. Yet, this diminution comes from the perspective of an onlooker standing billion of miles, or light years, away: up close, stars become suns, those gargantuan infernos of explosive energy. Likewise, a flea is a powerhouse of life force and glowing determination.

The soul of a flea burns as brightly as a sun, but the little ones have the advantage of quick mobility (they can jump up to 200 times their body weight) and even invisibility, as their 1/16-1/8 inch small bodies are often undetectable to far-sighted predators. In Plato’s Apology, Socrates compared himself to a flea that buzzed in the ears of Athenians to prompt them out of their complacency and stand up for justice and truth. In Asian folklore, there are tales of monkeys that shape shift into the form of fleas to escape from demons or to elude detection. Flea teeth are as sharp as Chinese throwing stars; these tiny ninjas also have compressible bodies that make them “smush” and “scratch” resistant. Flea shows those of us who have felt victimized or powerless that we really do have tremendous influence, agility, self-preservation and protection abilities.

Flea reminds us of our resilience. The harsh criticism of others may scratch away at our self-esteem, but nothing can crush our spirits if we define ourselves from within. By seeing how big we are inside, instead of focusing on small-minded insults or transgressions from without, we harness our inner strength and can fly even without wings.

Cultivate your psychological faith and the door to your imagination will be open. Trust yourself and do not underestimate your own ability to bring about change or action. In the play Prometheus Bound by the Greek tragedian Aeschylus, the Goddess Hera changed the maiden Io into a cow for having an affair with her husband, Zeus, and then sent a gadfly to drive the creature all across the world. What issue or problem needs to be driven out of your psyche, your life, or your community this year? While others may swat at you, consider how your tenacious buzzing can move a whole stubborn herd of cattle; embody the mighty Flea!

These messages of Flea that Amy shares, speak most clearly and powerfully to me, personally, right now. I do intend to embody the “mighty” Flea.

If any animal spirit guide is contacting you, they themselves will be your own personal teacher and will speak to you directly as to what the message is. All of these things are merely helpful explorative ways to engage that process with yourself for greater personal understanding.