The rain arrived earlier than forecast, in the middle of the night. We awakened to a world lush with wet green, dove-gray clouds hanging heavy over the land.
It’s a bit early for the spirits of summer, but then, everything is early this year, most of all the monsoonal weather patterns that usually arrive in August, not April. The birds have settled into their mid-year routines of home and family, and the hummingbirds and honeybees have long since begun their own warm-weather tasks.
So perhaps it’s not too soon to highlight one of their fellow spirits of the air, one that is also at home in the waters: Dragonfly.
We would not normally expect to him for several weeks yet; after all, we haven’t even begun our first round of irrigation, so the pond remains empty of pooled water, if not exactly bone-dry. The dragonflies and their smaller damselfly cousins typically appear after at least one round, when the pond has filled sufficiently to permit the laid eggs to hatch into naiads, or aquatic nymphs. But last year, the first ones put in their initial appearance in late May and stayed through the summer — an unusually long visit for these tiny, fragile beings. Since our weather patterns this year are tracking those of last year — indeed, if anything, they’re even earlier — I cannot say that I would be surprised to walk outside tomorrow to find one or more busily pollinating the flowers.
They are such beautifully delicate creatures, and they perform such essential tasks in maintaining a healthy ecosystem here. It’s difficult to fathom tat something so tiny, aloft on wings thinner than the finest gossamer, could reasonably be charged with spreading life itself, and yet, that is what they do every day of their brief airborne existence.
It’s no wonder they’re messengers of the spirits.
Wings has created dragonflies for years, in a host of shapes and styles. By far his most stunning (and perhaps most true-to-life, in some ways) is this one. No, it’s not a literal representation; for one thing, it would need to be a fraction of the size. But this one captures the bejeweled appearance of Dragonfly’s colorful body and the lacy effect of his wings like none other. From its description in the Necklaces Gallery here on the site:
Messenger of Dawn Necklace
Sometimes, a piece of art transcends its intended purpose, becoming so much more than its basic function and the sum of its parts that it qualifies as a masterwork, a perfect melding of symbol and spirit. So it is with this necklace, a manifestation of Dragonfly: water spirit, protector, symbol of love, messenger of the spirits. Handcrafted of finely stamped sterling silver half-round wire, his shimmery wings textured by countless strikes of a tiny jeweler’s hammer, he arrives dressed in the colors of the Pueblo dawn. His body is formed from delicate rose quartz cabochons: seven of them, a number sacred to many peoples, and stones that some other traditions regard as the mineral embodiment of the qualities of peace and universal love. His amber eyes blaze with the fiery glow of the rising sun; he carries a glowing copper serpent on his back, traversing his wings (image shown below). He hangs from a hand-strung necklace of square-cut leopard-skin jasper beads in warm shades of rose and brick red and taupe and gray, tying all the hues together. The strand is backed by a series of copper-colored trade-style beads and terminating in a small series of old natural green turquoise “doughnut” beads with their own copper matrix. The dragonfly pendant is 2-5/8″ long from antennae to base and 2-7/16″ wide across the wingspan; the strand of beads is 17″ (dimensions approximate).
Sterling silver; rose quartz; amber; copper;leopard-skin jasper beads; trade-style beads; green turquoise beads
$1,500 + shipping, handling, and insurance
As I noted last year when we first introduced this piece, in some of our cultures, Dragonfly is sometimes a symbol of romantic love. Part of the symbolism is likely attributable to one feature specific to dragonflies and damselflies: When mating, they link in a union of bodies that forms a heart shape. And while I hesitate to pronounce it universal, the heart as metaphor for the place where romantic love resides is certainly one found across numerous cultures.
But more than that, Dragonfly is, for many peoples, a symbol of Spirit’s love for us, As I noted then:
At a deeper level yet, Dragonfly performs an important spiritual function: He’s a messenger.
For some peoples, he’s a messenger of the spirits, or sometimes the Spirit, the Creator, the Universal. For those whose traditions meld with those of the Native American Church, he’s (perhaps also, rather than instead of) a messenger to the Vortex.
Again, the associations with water no doubt play a significant role, but I think it’s also likely that his unique physical qualities provide the major link. Remember our discussion in yesterday’s post of Dragonfly’s singular flight abilities? He can fly, under his own power, in six separate directions: forward, backward, upward, downward, sideward to the left, sideward to the right. This is not, as is forced upon us mammals, an example of backpedaling or sidestepping; it’s an ability to fly straight and directly in those directions. And the fast and powerful beating of his wings permit him, like his cousin Hummingbird (also a messenger), to hover.
Who better to receive and carry Spirit’s messages to the people — and carry back their prayers and thanks in return — than a fast and powerful being who can hover in one place long enough to receive and deliver the message?
In cultures for whom life is a circle, a sacred hoop in which the elemental spirits of the sacred directions all have their roles to play in influencing our lives, a being able to ride effortlessly on the winds between them is, almost by definition, one of great power and importance. For peoples who communicate with the spirits of other worlds via prayers sent on tendrils of smoke and fast-beating wings, Dragonfly is the perfect emissary.
Sometimes, we all need the reminder that Spirit is always within reach, the mere distance of a beat of the dragonfly’s wings.
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2015; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.
