An eagle fearlessly gazes straight into the Sun,
And into you, eternal brilliance, if your heart is pure.
Angelus Silesius
The king among birds, ruler of vast expanses of sky and untouchable mountain peaks, has become an omnipresent symbol in various ancient cultures and has remained a emblem of many rulers and peoples throughout history. Because of its sharp vision, which can penetrate far and encompass everything that happens, because of its bold flight and its gaze directed towards the Sun, it was believed to be close to God or to represent His embodiment. It often had the role of a winged divine messenger and executor of His will, moving swiftly through the winds and clouds between heaven and earth.
For the ancient Greeks, the eagle was associated with the supreme god, Zeus. They believed it sat next to Zeus or on his scepter, holding thunderbolts in its talons, ready to await God’s command.
Julius Caesar, in his Notes on the Civil War, testifies to the importance of the eagle as a symbol. In the battle against Pompey, an eagle-bearer from Caesar’s army was. He was severely wounded and losing consciousness, he turned to his fellow cavalrymen who surrounded him, saying: “For many years I have faithfully defended my eagle, and now, in dying, I return it to Caesar with the same loyalty! I beg you, do not allow yourselves to be disgraced, as it has never happened in Caesar’s army! Take the eagle in its entirety!”
The Persians considered the eagle to be a symbol of victory. Their beliefs also state that the eagle brings new souls into the earthly world, and the souls of those departing to the underworld.
In ancient Rome, it represented the supreme god Jupiter and was also depicted holding lightning bolts in its claws. It appeared on the empire’s main flag and at the top of a special spear carried by the eagle-bearing legionary.
Plutarch and Suetonius tell us how the ancient Romans bid farewell to their emperors. The deceased emperor would be taken to the Field of Mars adorned with all the honors and symbols of imperial authority, where he would be placed onto pyramid-shaped stakes. Valuable jewelry would then be thrown into the lit fire. And when the fire started to spread, the eagle would be released from the cage, evoking the ascent of the emperor’s soul towards God.
Celtic priests, the druids, revered the eagle as a symbol of the Almighty, observing the world from higher spiritual realms.
The Aztecs associated the eagle with a sign given to their wise men by their main deity, as they were a nomadic people searching for their new homeland. After years of arduous wandering, they finally spotted the sign on a small rocky island – a white eagle triumphing over a snake on a nopal cactus. The nopal cactus, with its spiky leaves and bright flowers, The symbol of the red heart-shaped fruits represents the true human center in which the only possible encounter is between the celestial forces represented by the eagle and the earthly forces symbolized by the snake.
Symbols of the eagle are also common in biblical texts and medieval art. The eagle is mentioned in the Psalms, where it is compared to the phoenix as a symbol of spiritual rebirth. According to the belief of Christian mystics, the apostle John is compared to the eagle because with his sharp eyesight, he could recognize the source of good in a person.
During the time of the Crusades, European kings and knights wore single-headed or double-headed eagles on their shields as symbols of their power. It is believed that this symbol was adopted from the Seljuk Turks, who inherited it from the Hittites and even older peoples of Asia Minor.
Have the strength of eagle wings,
The faith and courage
To soar to new heights
And the wisdom of the universe
That will guide you there.
Native American prayer
There are many other similar aspects in different spatial and temporal distances. Culture, and the importance they attributed to the symbolic characteristics of this powerful bird, connecting them to the sublime powers of man, are shared by everyone. Deep within us, spiritual wings are ready to fly through limitless expanses, and inner eyes open to a new light of day, simultaneously encompassing both the small and the large, the fraction and the whole, the moment and eternity. Above the pain and illusions of life, above death and fear, the sun bird of eternal spirit lifts us up.