Dreaming recently brought these creatures to me. It's not the first time, but this time since they were walking on me, I decided to listen more closely to what they might be telling me:
In ancient Egypt Crocodiles were venerated as gods. At shrines in Kom-Ombo in Upper-Egypt and in Crocodilopolis (Fayum) they were even hung with jewelry and gold bracelets and mumified after their deaths. Crocodiles were believed to bring the rains which overflowed the Nile and left potent mud to fertilize the lands. At the same time, they were feared for their destructive power.
This alliance with the processes of Birth and Death and Rebirth, gives crocodilian people a Plutonian energy of transition and transformation. Their life's lessons often center around the many small deaths they go through as they grow and change. Like the ebb and flow of the Nile, the crocodilian must learn to release the past and bring in the new, but without drowning and destroying all in their wake. They have great creative power, given by the fertile mud in which they bask. Yet they must learn gentleness, so that they do not crush their own children within their jaws.
The association with water, and the fact that their eyes can peer above it, gives crocodilians the power to see above emotion (water) and to find the logical (air) answers. They may be seen as "cold-blooded" by others. In actuallity, they are creatures of emotion, which they often hide from others beneath their thick and gnarled skins.
As slow as they might be to act upon their own emotions, crocodilians will guard their nests with ferocity. Threatening the "children" (whether a loved one or a creative project) of a crocodilian will bring a swift and drastic response.
The myth of Crocodile Tears is also an important one for Crocodillan people. Often one of their lessons is to learn to be truthful with themselves and others about their emotions. There may be a need to cry and release. Or the person may reflect one emotion to others, while feeling another.
crocodilian people can be masters of "ready stillness". Often they seem to be drifting aimlessly. They have found that it is best to wait and drift up on a problem or situation, carefully timing the attack. Once the answer is within their grasp, they lunge forward and hang on until the problem is wrestled into submission.
If a Crocodile or Alligator lunges too soon, their prey may escape. Until they learn this lesson, crocodilian people may thrash against the need for stillness and inaction. It is imperative that they learn the "zen of right timing" -- that all things occur in the time which is best and proper.
Alligators and Crocodiles may have been part of the genesis of legends of Dragons. Like Dragons, crocodilians are often the guardians of great and powerful treasures of knowledge and wisdom. Yet it is imperative to treat the wisdom gained with great respect lest it swallow you whole.
Connecting with Alligator and Crocodlie
To bring crocodilian energy into your life, try some of these exercises:
Water (Emotional):
Write poetry or draw pictures of crocodilians
Hang pictures of crocodiles and alligators around your house or work area.
Wear crocodilian jewelry. See our Alligator and Crocodile belts, rings and bracelets.
If you feel the need to snap at someone, take a moment and breathe.
Take a boat trip into the swamp. Allow yourself to just drift and relax.
Play in the mud.
Allow yourself to cry.
Air (Mental):
Read books about crocodillains. (see our Bookstore)
Analyze your emotions. See where you are not being truthful with yourself or others. See where you need to develop a thicker hide or where you need to stop snapping at yourself or others.
Practice seeing each emotion, and each of life's deaths and births as a growing process. Look for the treasure that lurks within.
Utilize the vast creative powers of your mind. If you wish to make a change in your life, you have many options. What are they?
Fire (Dynamic):
Practice stillness and waiting.
Wait until the moment is right, then strike & hang on!
Practice "right timing." Know that things will happen when they are supposed to. "Waiting is."
Earth (Physical):
Utilize your creative powers. Plant a garden. Or make somthing.
Wear aventurine and malachite, and other fertility stones.
Wear jet, obsidian and onyx and other releasing stones. (For more info on stones, see our page on the Magickal Properties of Gemstones).
Spirit
Let go of something that has been holding you back -- a past hurt, a fear, anything unhealthy. Try this exercise: Go to a lake, swamp, the ocean or other body of water. Pick up a stone and visualize the thing holding you back. Project that idea into the stone. With all your strength, fling the stone out into the water. Let the thing holding you back go with it.
Allow yourself to give birth to something you desire. You have the power to create what you wish.
If you need an answer, meditate, blank your mind, and allow the answer to bob to the surface -- it will.
