The Hidden Messages of Spiritual Symbolism

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hey everyone, on this week's episode of Whispers from the Mist, Conversations from the Spiritual Byway, we're talking about spiritual symbols, especially the personal ones. The symbols that show up in our lives, catch our attention, and sometimes stay with us without needing an explanation. We share stories, reflections, and what symbolism can look like when it's less about universal meaning and more about personal experience. If you've ever felt drawn to a symbol and wondered why, this conversation is for you. Let's begin. Hello, everyone, and welcome to Whispers from the Mist, Conversations from the Spiritual Byway. I am Michelle and I am here with Stacy, my friend, my Reiki master or my Reiki practitioner. I don't even remember where I'm at. I'm here with Stacy.

SPEAKER_01 0:56

Hello, everybody.

SPEAKER_00 0:58

How are you today? Oh, I'm good. How are you, Michelle? Doing pretty well. Just, you know, adjusting to all these changes, which, you know, they're gonna fall into their own rhythm. It's just gonna take a hot minute.

SPEAKER_01 1:11

They absolutely will. It's it's change is always hard, right? Like we we assume that we can just stay in the same space and doing the same things day in and day out. And then when change comes, we're like, wait, what do we do with this? And how do we process through it? I know. We don't want stagnation. We want growth. We want to keep going. And that's it. When we feel stagnated, it definitely has a negative impact on our lives.

SPEAKER_00 1:36

It sure does. Okay, so the other day I was on Instagram and this post came up and it struck me as a little bit weird and a little bit odd. As you know, there's a huge missing person case in the news, and a rather famous psychic medium posted, I've been invited by law enforcement to share my impressions of blank and her disappearance with them. Out of respect for her family, I will keep my impressions private. But why are you putting that on Instagram? That just doesn't feel right. And it just felt kind of yucky that she's like, I'm not gonna share them, but I'm telling you, blah, blah, blah, blah, I'm doing it. But yet, if you read the caption, I think it explains more why. So I I was just wondering what you thought on that.

SPEAKER_01 2:28

So my immediate thought is vague booking, as it were. So I'm gonna share something that I'm doing and it's amazing, but I'm not gonna give you any details so that you want to ask questions and you want to know more. So you're going to follow me so you can gather more information in the future. Like again, immediate, immediate feel is this is a marketing ploy. And it's it's the same thing as when we go through checkouts in the grocery store and we find little things when we're checking out that we want to buy because they're so cool and they're right there. Yeah, so easy. Yes. So you immediately follow this person wherever on whatever social media platform they are because you're going, I want more information. I want to see what they heard. They're going to share it eventually. They might not be able to now, but they were invited by law enforcement. So they must have some sort of following or they they've got the connection that we're looking for. And that just feels really gross to me.

SPEAKER_00 3:25

No, I've taken a lot of classes around like psychic investigations and things like that. And I just think privacy is so important. So why put that out there? Other than if you read the caption, it does say maybe keep your eyes out for these things. So I just I don't know. I just wanted to get your thoughts on that. Are you surprised by my thoughts? No, no, they're totally in line with my thoughts. So well, Stacy, I guess we should move on to our topic today. And you're the one that came up with it. So why don't you share with everybody what we're gonna be talking about?

SPEAKER_01 4:03

So when we were planning this episode, I know that you kind of threw a blank canvas to me and I said, let's talk about symbolism. Let's talk about the different things that we might see that mean something or that might come up that demonstrate that we're on path, off path, or we need to be paying attention.

SPEAKER_00 4:25

Exactly. And I sat down and I found a great definition for spiritual symbolism, which is it's a sign or image that carries meaning beyond its physical appearance. It represents beliefs, ideas, or concepts connected to spirituality and often points towards something unseen. Symbols often speak visually and intuitively before they make logical sense to us. Yes. Yes. And I love that because it is so true. We have things that across cultures, across barriers, they speak to everyone, such as a cross. A cross is a religious symbol that symbolizes so many things within the religion of Christianity. You have a half-crescent moon that is Islamic in nature and represents there too. So I mean, there's just all these symbols, like just not those two.

SPEAKER_01 5:26

There are so many, and and they can be something very personal too, to one person that means nothing to someone else. I know someone that when she sees a certain semi-truck in in our local area, she knows that she is on path. It's it's the strange, it's one very specific visual on this semi-truck, but if she sees it more than once in a week, she knows she's going in the right direction.

SPEAKER_00 5:50

I love that. It's all about really trusting your instinct and what speaks to you. Like for me, a symbol, and it might not be a symbol for everybody else, but is a dime. When I see a dime laying in a very weird place, I instantly step into the connection I have with my grandfather. And it just makes me smile. And nobody else is gonna understand it. Nobody else is gonna be like, oh, I'm thinking of Michelle's grandpa. It's just this symbol for me that he is watching over me. I am not alone.

SPEAKER_01 6:23

And yeah, I'm on path. It would be really interesting if someone saw a dime and immediately thought, oh, Michelle's grandfather. Well, they're gonna now because we're talking about it. And and it's it's so personal too. And and I love that you brought in the symbols from the different like religions and everything like that, because symbols go so much more deep than I think we give them credit for. You know, I know when we talked about symbols previously, like I'm talking a couple of years ago, we talked a lot about tattoos. Tattoos are very symbolic for people and they mean different things to different people for different reasons. But so do numbers, so do angel numbers, or just maybe I've seen a seven somewhere, and that seven meant more to me than any anything else that I've seen all day. Or I saw a bird, or perhaps I've seen an animal that I don't get to see every day. You know, there there are there's so much there that is deeply personal when we talk about symbols.

SPEAKER_00 7:21

There are. And as you were stepping into it, there's different types of spiritual symbols. You have the nature-based symbols. The moon can speak volumes to someone, a butterfly, the tree of life, things like that. You have those symbols from nature. Also, sacred geometry is huge when you're talking about the flower of life, the cube, the spiral. And then also, you know, there are those religious symbols too that speak to us, like I said in the beginning. So I just think symbols are so big, as you said, so personal.

SPEAKER_01 7:57

So I'm gonna jump on what you just said because they are so personal that one of the things that I find invaluable with symbols is we put so much into the history of them. And a lot of people will find a symbol and latch on to it, and it it only means what it has historically meant rather than doing any sort of follow-up or research on their own, where if they step back every time they see, I'm gonna say random symbol, a bird that flies over their windshield while they're driving, but something happens right after they see this one symbol that they attach to it, which is an immediate like, oh, something's going to happen. It's very similar to, I know in um some, I'm gonna use the term witchcraft. I'm not sure if there's a better term for that, but if the if a broom falls, it means you're going to get company. Or if you knock over the salt, it's bad luck. So you have to throw it over our shoulder. You know, there is so much meaning behind some symbols that we can explore that, but it really becomes so deeply personal to each person that has those things happen to them or they see the different things.

SPEAKER_00 9:12

And they can come out of nowhere. They can come just living your everyday normal life. And as you said, something random can happen before something good happens. So in your mind, that becomes the precursor. When you see that, that goes in your book. When a broom falls, it means someone's coming to visit. Like I love that. And that's exactly how it happens and starts making personal sense to you, how it gets ingrained in your heart, your mind.

SPEAKER_01 9:44

So as long as we are not attaching so deeply to what they the symbols historically mean, it's like, you know, the person that I know that sees these semi-trucks, it's usually for her a very strong message. I am on path. I am making the right decisions, I am moving forward in the way that I'm supposed to. And she might not see them every day, but when she does, she notes it immediately because she is it, we bec we start to look for them, right? We start to look for these specific symbols that we are used to seeing that we've seen every time something significant happens in our lives.

SPEAKER_00 10:16

Yeah, one of the symbols that came to me, and I know every time I see this animal, it means I need to go back to the lesson. I need to stay on path and stay on the lesson and not change it and not try to make it fit a narrative that it's not meant to. And that is the symbol of a bat. And I learned that the hard way. I was doing tarot reading. I meditated before the image of a bat came in, and I'm like, surely that can't be a bat. I then decided not to share that piece of information. And then she mentioned, I have a connection with so-and-so, and I was really hoping a bat would come through. And how do you say at that point, oh, it did? And I just made the decision not to share, not to share it. I mean, it loses, it lost for her the truth behind the message. It was there. The bat showed up when I was meditating. So now whenever I see a bat, I'm like, go back and look at the lesson or just say what you have seen, felt. It's just a call to say trust.

SPEAKER_01 11:21

Trust the information that's coming through. Just say it. And if it does not mean anything to the person that you are reading for, it might mean something to you. And at that point in time, you might need it. And and I I think we all do this too, right? Like it's so easy to go, nah, that's nothing. It's that's for me. I don't need to share this. That's for me. And in reality, it's not just for you, it's for the person that you're reading for, or it it means something to the person that you're reading for, but it might be different than you realize.

SPEAKER_00 11:51

Exactly. Do you have a story like that in which something came to you in an out of the ordinary way, but really stuck with you? And you know when you see that it means this.

SPEAKER_01 12:03

So I think my my story that I have is very similar to what you just shared. Is I have been doing readings for so very long at this point in time that sometimes things come through that are very personal to me. And I think, okay, thank you, guide. Like I'm on path, I'm getting the information that I need. But the reality is sometimes it's not for me. And it's something that I need to share because it is a symbol that the person is going to be very connected to. And I tend to brush it off because I'm like, all right, you are giving me a skull, which is for me the death card. You're showing me a skull and you're showing me transition. That's beautiful. That that's very deeply connected for me, but we're talking about something completely different in the reading and that doesn't really fit. So I don't want to include it. And when I leave it out, that's when I lose some traction. Does that make sense? It does make sense. Yeah. So it kind of, like I said, same kind of sim similar story as yours, but it's because when I see things that are so deeply personal, I go, nope, that's not for them. That's for me.

SPEAKER_00 13:10

Yeah. And we just have to remember sometimes that's the way our guide can get information to us, especially if we're intuitives or impasse. Like if I see a very happy moment in childhood and I can step into the feeling of it, but it's coming through in a reading, that's the feeling they're conveying to me. That's how they can show that to me and I can I can share it.

SPEAKER_01 13:36

Right. Or, or symbolism can go the exact opposite way too. And I know for me, if there is something that's coming through that doesn't feel good that I don't really want to touch on because it's a topic that is very sensitive, I will often brush it under the rug and be like, oh, no, everything was great, everything turned out fine. We don't want to talk about unhappy things. But my guide is like, nope, this doesn't feel good for a reason. This symbol is sh is showing up, and it's showing up because you need to pay attention to it.

SPEAKER_00 14:07

Right. And symbols really do have a purpose in our lives. They can act as focal points if you're trying to meditate. And I know I'll just use an example. When I used to meditate, I always had to have my eye mask on. That was a symbol to me. It was time to relax into meditation. It became my focal point. It also, or symbols can also act as reminders about spiritual truths or your personal goals. Sometimes when I am running late and I'm afraid I'm gonna forget something, I look at an object and I'm like, I know I have to have this object. So next time I see this object, I am gonna remember. I need to grab that. It works sometimes, but I do try. So symbols have, you know, that reminder energy behind it.

SPEAKER_01 14:57

I was gonna say, you're making me think of historically a lot of bank tellers would put strings around their fingers when they were counting or because they had to remember things. So they would tie a string to remember a certain thing that they needed to do, gather, or number for the end of the day. Have you ever seen that? I haven't seen it, but that's brilliant. Yeah. It I I'm not sure it always worked the way they wanted to. But it's the same thing as writing like random letters on your hand to remember something that you need to do.

SPEAKER_00 15:28

They also can be protective in images. When you see a symbol, it can remind you that you are protected. Many people, that could be crystals. Again, it could be something as random as a penny. It just really depends on what that means to you. And they're also sources of inner guidance during your awakenings and transitioning.

SPEAKER_01 15:51

And what I like about that is the symbolism of protection. You know, I I don't want to dive too deeply into tattoos, but I have tattoos on my arms that are actual symbols of protection. I have two Hamzas on my arms, which are a natural piece of protection. And it is for me, it's because I do so much spiritual work that I need to, I needed to ensure myself that I was always protected and I can see them.

SPEAKER_00 16:18

Yes. And it there is a difference when you can see the placement of the tattoo. I have Tiara tattoo. It's on my side. I can't see it. I forget I have it, but it's still part of my story. And I'm so happy we're stepping into tattoos because I did take a minute to go through all my tattoos. And the thing I realized is it really is that personal story about in that moment what I was feeling and some of the spiritual components that came through. Do you want me to share them?

SPEAKER_01 16:48

I do.

SPEAKER_00 16:50

Okay. I have a dragonfly. Me too. You do? Oh, yeah, there it is. So dragonfly and butterfly both to me symbolize transformation or transition.

SPEAKER_01 17:02

Yep.

SPEAKER_00 17:03

Um, I have a rose in three stages. So that opening up, that was meant as a spiritual tattoo. I have the four elements, very traditional triangles pointed in directions, very traditional element tattoo. I also have, I'm trying to think of what else I have. Oh, I have a sword, Archangel Michael's sword, because it just reminds me I am protected, I am watched over. So it's kind of like your Hamza too. So there are a lot of things there that I have infinity sign, yeah. I just astrology sign, the moon, all of those on my body. But mine are pretty small, but I know they're there. And again, they're my personal story. And I know you people used to tease me and be like, when you're older, which I am now, and your skin is sagging, which in some places it is, they're gonna change. They're gonna look funny. Are you really gonna want that all over your body? And I'm like, yes, yes, I am. Something to me. I don't care what it looks like to you. Exactly. Oh, and the other tattoo I have that just makes my heart happy is I have the little boy from the Gibbing tree. Um, and he's surrounded, he's jumping up, grabbing leaves. Those leaves mark loved ones that I've lost. So it's a memorial tattoo. So I have that too.

SPEAKER_01 18:23

I love that.

SPEAKER_00 18:25

How about you? I know you have the Hamza hands, the you have tarot cards.

SPEAKER_01 18:29

So the Hamzas are on each of my arms. I have an ohm symbol on my arm. I have a bunch of elephants, which are both protection, luck, and family. I have two tarot cards on my back, the moon and the star, both kind of I I took the star and I overlaid the moon as a reminder that we are always starting anew. Each and every day is an opportunity for growth and change, but we have to step into it with vulnerability, but also trusting our gut because the moon comes in. And as any listener knows, if they've been listening to us for a minute, the moon is actually my least favorite tarot card. And it, and that is because usually when the moon comes into a reading, it means there are things at play that we don't know, that we have no control over, that we can't touch, that we can't change, that we can't do anything about, but something's going on underneath the surface. So it's my reminder to trust your gut, to know that, you know, you really do have to trust the universe because even those things that that are at play that we are not aware of may impact us in a really good way, too. So I have those on my back. I do have the death card on my foot, symbolizing growth and and forward movement. And again, for me, the death card is a major protective symbol, too, because it's a reminder that when something is done, it opens the door to something else. I do have a memorial tattoo for my great Dane. And I know there are more, but I'm I'm not thinking of any off the top of my head.

SPEAKER_00 20:08

I know. I mean, you sit there and you're trying to tell the story and it's all there. It's just hard to remember when you're recalling it on the spot.

SPEAKER_01 20:17

Like I just let's let's be honest. The the beautiful and sad thing about tattoos is sometimes we have them, but we can't always see them. Yes. For example, my back tattoo, I love it. I know it's beautiful, but I'll never see it.

SPEAKER_00 20:35

You know what this is making me think of? And I spend way too much time thinking about this. In my life, I'm gonna see so many things, but I am never gonna lay eyes on my actual face as people see it. I'm always gonna have to rely on a mirror image, and that freaking freaks me out.

SPEAKER_01 20:55

No joke, freaks me out. Well, it's a it's the same way. My my husband has head tattoos as well. And I and I have one on my head. I'll never see my head tattoo other than the reflection of. He will never see his head tattoo other than a reflection of, or pictures, or or anything along those lines. And it's bizarre because they all mean something.

SPEAKER_00 21:15

Exactly. And then I take it the next step further, like, well, I guess I'll see my face when I die and my spirit is thin, or I astral travel. And then what is that gonna feel like to actually see myself? Like looking down on myself. It would be so weird. I'm not trying to be morbid. I'm just trying to say, unless I can physically escape my body some way, I would prefer to be just momentary. I would I'll never see my face.

SPEAKER_01 21:42

No, it's I mean, it's true for everyone. We will only see reflections or pictures. It's crazy. It's it's not just crazy, but it's so creepy. And I didn't think about that until my back tattoo was almost done because my my tattooer Lee literally looked at me and said, You know, you're never gonna see this. You're gonna see pictures of it, but you're never gonna see what it actually looks like. And I was like, oh, oh man, why did I wait until the moment?

SPEAKER_00 22:12

Why did I do that? Yeah. I'm sorry I went down that road.

SPEAKER_01 22:16

I just no, it's so true. It's it's so, so true. And and I think that, you know, talking along the lines of symbolism, we put things on our bodies or we carry things with us for protection, for the meaning behind them without really putting much thought into am I actually going to take this out of my wallet? Am I actually going to hold it? Am I actually going to see it? Or is knowing it's there enough?

SPEAKER_00 22:45

I think knowing it's there enough, I think about all the times that I travel and I like to have a little bit of selenite with me, or maybe some pink quartz, maybe some black tourmaline, something for protection to have with me. I do sometimes pull it out of my bag, but sometimes it just stays in my purse and it's with me all the time. And just knowing it is there is enough.

SPEAKER_01 23:08

No, I I'm on board with that. And and I go so far as to think like if I want to recharge my crystals during the full moon, I trust that the full moon is going to hit them wherever they are. If they are in a shelf or tucked away in a drawer and I know it needs to be recharged, I imagine those moon beams hitting that piece through the door because it's energy. And so as long as your intention is there, I'm a firm believer that it goes symbolically to where it needs to go.

SPEAKER_00 23:39

Yeah, intention is such a big part of everything. It's a big part of symbolism. And the next episode we're gonna do is about divination tools. It's really big there too. What is the intention that you're using when you're working with these instruments? So I love that you brought up intention. I know there are a few things in my life that wouldn't be enough just to not see it and know it's with me. My dog, as I've shared, passed away recently, and I got some of her ashes put in this little keychain, which is with me all the time. And I actually have to pull that out and feel it in my hand because it's the shape of a paw, and I have to have contact with it. So yeah, I never thought of it that way either. Like, what do I do with these things that I have with me that symbolize protection and everything else?

SPEAKER_01 24:36

How do they have more meaning? And what do I do to give them the more meaning? You know, I I'm very similar. I have different crystals that I use regularly, and I have one specific Buddha that is very smooth, but it's the way it's designed, it's very good to hold in your hand and and rub because it's bumpy. So you get a lot of texture with this piece of quartz that I have. And I know when I'm holding that and I can feel that change in texture, it it's very grounding.

SPEAKER_00 25:09

Yeah. That's so cool. And it just brings to life your many different senses to touch it and to feel it and to visualize it. It helps grow imagination. And as you said, ground you, make making contact with the element of earth.

SPEAKER_01 25:27

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 25:28

Yeah, so symbols, you know, really do speak to the soul. They speak to your mind, they are a way to bridge to the divine, your connections to that which is past or that which is greater. And they're also a symbolic projection. So they a little object, a symbol can carry so much meaning and again, so personal to you.

SPEAKER_01 25:57

So personal. It can be a penny that was handed to you by a stranger in in, you know, being out in public when you were five. And that penny, for whatever reason, means more to you than anything else in the world because it was gifted to you. You know, it doesn't have to be anything grandiose. It can be something so simple that we carry it with us because it means that to us.

SPEAKER_00 26:21

Yes, and that instantly brought to my mind an experience that my husband and I had not too long ago. We had gone to lunch at Buffalo Wild Wings, and my husband was getting ready to go through some medical things. And he's very social and he can talk to any and everybody. It's a gift that he has that I wish I had, but that's overwhelming to me. And on this particular day, he was sitting next to two men who were getting ready to go to work for like a three-week period. And the younger gentleman listened to my husband's story, and he was wearing a cross. And he took that cross off and he gave it to my husband. He said, I feel you need this to protect you right now. And I'm giving this to you. And this was such a sweet kid. I mean, he was much younger than us. He just had a new baby, and I'm like, no, you can't do that. You can't give away your protection. He's like, no, I know it's going to the right person. And I'll tell you what, my husband hasn't taken that cross off since. It's a symbolism that you're gonna be all right, you are protected and watched over, and of the goodness of people.

SPEAKER_01 27:35

Yes. And not only that, I find that when protection is passed on like that, it's because the person passing it on knows they no longer need it. So they are choosing to pass it on to someone that is in need of that same kind of protection.

SPEAKER_00 27:52

I love this topic. Just remember that symbols will appear to you where they need to. As Stacy said in the very beginning, they can be synchronicities that lead to something else. They can be repeating patterns, their unexpected aha moments. You can see them in meditation too. You can see them in art. So they're all around you. So this conversation about symbols and how they appear to us really brings me to some closing questions I want to leave the listener with, something that they can take with and notice in their own world. And I have three of them. So these are the questions I'm posing to you. What symbol has been showing up to you lately? Second question, where in your life are you being invited to pause? And what might this symbol be reflecting back to you in this moment?

SPEAKER_01 28:52

I love those questions.

SPEAKER_00 28:54

Yeah. So sit with those three questions and journal. Write down how you feel, or just pause for a moment and think about those questions and see how symbols speak to you and what is speaking to you right now because you just have to notice. You have to notice what's going on around you and what really does speak to your heart and move you. And let us know if you want to, because we're interested as well. Yes, you can reach out to us at mist and byway at gmail.com. That's our email. And we also have Instagram right now. I've got to figure out TikTok. Not there yet. One thing at a time. Yeah, that's it. One thing at a time. Yeah. I need a symbol for that to remind me one day at a time. Well, with that, shall we close out this episode? Yeah. Stay curious. Trust what you notice, and we will meet you along the spiritual byway. Bye, everyone. Thank you so much for listening to the sweet episode of the conversation on the spiritual five. This show exists to make the paramount film a little more fun. To create a space for curiosity, connection, and the kinds of conversations we don't always know what to have. If you are enjoying this podcast, we truly appreciate it if you'd take a moment to leave a review or to share the show with someone who might need it. Your support helps this podcast reach others who are searching for the same sense of understanding and community. Thank you so much for taking the time to be here with us and for walking this stretch of the spiritual byway.