by Cinque Ogun Kinaya
In Richard Adams’ epic tale about rabbits ‘Watership Down’ the rabbits’ mythical hero El-Ahrairah was called “The Prince with a Thousand Enemies.” From my perspective El-Ahrairah symbolically represents the historical plight of Black men in predatory racist America. Practicing New Afrikan spirituality I have spiritually incorporated the Rabbit archetype energy in my life to become more attuned internally and externally.
Rabbits are highly sensitive to sense predators, their large ears are always swiveling around picking up the slightest sounds; their eyes are large too and placed on the sides of their heads so they can see virtually all the way around ‘360’ without even turning their heads; their noses are constantly twitching to catch scents in the air.
In traditional African spirituality there are 3 influential sources of our life: The CREATOR, Nature, and the Ancestors. The CREATOR’S knowledge and wisdom is expressed through Nature (Celestial and Terrestrial).
On the Terrestrial level ‘Animals’ have a vast store of knowledge and wisdom they can teach us. Animal attributes (Totems) lend us guidance on our sojourn through life and help us reach higher planes of spirituality and awareness about ourselves and the world around us.
One significant animal totem from Africa is the rabbit ‘Hare’, in ancient Kemit/Egypt the rabbit ‘Hare’ was the goddess ‘Wenet’ who represented fertility (renewal); her male counterpart was ‘Wenenu’. Wenet also represented swiftness of movement and keenness of senses in defending against being captured by the forces of darkness.
Our African Ancestors said Rabbits ‘Hares’ are spirit guides who often appear to those who are being ‘hunted’; teaching the hunted to be highly observant ‘vigilant’ of both opportunity and danger; to know when it’s appropriate to ‘freeze’ and listen; honing intuition to act quickly; and to be ready for all possibilities.
For our enslaved New African Ancestors the rabbit ‘Hare’ was a power animal. The rabbit ‘Hare’ in the wild can differentiate between toxic and non-toxic plants; they taught our Ancestors ‘runaway fugitives’ what vegetation was safe to eat in the wild. The rabbit was the symbol of Root Doctors (Herbalist) who were adherents of ‘Hoodoo’ a New Afrikan spirituality grounded on blended African retentions, they carried the rabbit’s foot as a talisman.
The rabbit ‘Hare’ taught our New African Ancestors who had to survive under predatory white supremacy enslavement the qualities of being attuned to their environment through deep perception, hearing, and sensing; the rabbit ‘Hare’ archetype’ attributes are:
*Clairvoyance - Clear seeing, attuned perception
*Clairaudient - Clear hearing, attuned listening
*Clairsentient - Clear sensing, attuned feelings, able to pick up subtle feelings.
Indeed, the rabbit ‘Hare’ was an animal spirit guide protector for our runaway freedom-seeking Ancestors showing them how not to be captured; Rabbits are terrific planners and escape artists that were a model for our Ancestors.
Rabbit energy challenged our Ancestors fears and sense of being eternally enslaved; challenged them to be free, problem solvers, and quick thinkers. New African runaway slaves carried the rabbit’s foot talisman to internalize the rabbit’s ability to ‘endure’ escaping from predators; the Hare taught the runaways escape techniques of zigzag’ running and ‘back-tracking’.
Rabbits live in a maze of underground tunnels linked together, including many different entrances and escape exits that’s crucial to their survival. Like the rabbit’s lair many Underground Railroad safe houses that aided runaways had various escape tunnels.
Though the rabbit ‘Hare’ has powerful attributes, it experiences a lot of stress due to its constant scanning of its environment for dangerous predators. Living in constant heightened alert makes rabbits easily over-stressed, similarly to Blacks suffering from chronic stress living under constant predatory white supremacy causing premature deaths from heart attacks and strokes.
One of the visible qualities when rabbits are in a still position is bringing their paws together often in front of their face similarly to prayer palms. This quality position reflects the rabbit’s ability to reduce stress, anxiety, and maintain focus even whilst all about is predators and chaos.
As New Afrikans internalizing the Rabbit totem archetype in our lives makes us adept at understanding the world as it is. Consequently, stressful situations do not intimidate you, as by applying this knowledge admirably in diverse circumstances you emerge freer.
When you see a Rabbit let it be a reminder for you to be self-determining or be open to opportunities that may be coming your way and act on it. When a Rabbit crosses your path let it be a reminder to be more vigilant, develop your intuition, and not to lose yourself to unrealistic views. When you see a dead Rabbit let it be a reminder to be more self-reflective; to examine your life base on the ‘New Arikan Creed’; and to take new necessary steps of development.
In Richard Adams’ epic tale about rabbits ‘Watership Down’ the rabbits’ mythical hero El-Ahrairah was called “The Prince with a Thousand Enemies.” From my perspective El-Ahrairah symbolically represents the historical plight of Black men in predatory racist America. Practicing New Afrikan spirituality I have spiritually incorporated the Rabbit archetype energy in my life to become more attuned internally and externally.
Rabbits are highly sensitive to sense predators, their large ears are always swiveling around picking up the slightest sounds; their eyes are large too and placed on the sides of their heads so they can see virtually all the way around ‘360’ without even turning their heads; their noses are constantly twitching to catch scents in the air.
In traditional African spirituality there are 3 influential sources of our life: The CREATOR, Nature, and the Ancestors. The CREATOR’S knowledge and wisdom is expressed through Nature (Celestial and Terrestrial).
On the Terrestrial level ‘Animals’ have a vast store of knowledge and wisdom they can teach us. Animal attributes (Totems) lend us guidance on our sojourn through life and help us reach higher planes of spirituality and awareness about ourselves and the world around us.
One significant animal totem from Africa is the rabbit ‘Hare’, in ancient Kemit/Egypt the rabbit ‘Hare’ was the goddess ‘Wenet’ who represented fertility (renewal); her male counterpart was ‘Wenenu’. Wenet also represented swiftness of movement and keenness of senses in defending against being captured by the forces of darkness.
Our African Ancestors said Rabbits ‘Hares’ are spirit guides who often appear to those who are being ‘hunted’; teaching the hunted to be highly observant ‘vigilant’ of both opportunity and danger; to know when it’s appropriate to ‘freeze’ and listen; honing intuition to act quickly; and to be ready for all possibilities.
For our enslaved New African Ancestors the rabbit ‘Hare’ was a power animal. The rabbit ‘Hare’ in the wild can differentiate between toxic and non-toxic plants; they taught our Ancestors ‘runaway fugitives’ what vegetation was safe to eat in the wild. The rabbit was the symbol of Root Doctors (Herbalist) who were adherents of ‘Hoodoo’ a New Afrikan spirituality grounded on blended African retentions, they carried the rabbit’s foot as a talisman.
The rabbit ‘Hare’ taught our New African Ancestors who had to survive under predatory white supremacy enslavement the qualities of being attuned to their environment through deep perception, hearing, and sensing; the rabbit ‘Hare’ archetype’ attributes are:
*Clairvoyance - Clear seeing, attuned perception
*Clairaudient - Clear hearing, attuned listening
*Clairsentient - Clear sensing, attuned feelings, able to pick up subtle feelings.
Indeed, the rabbit ‘Hare’ was an animal spirit guide protector for our runaway freedom-seeking Ancestors showing them how not to be captured; Rabbits are terrific planners and escape artists that were a model for our Ancestors.
Rabbit energy challenged our Ancestors fears and sense of being eternally enslaved; challenged them to be free, problem solvers, and quick thinkers. New African runaway slaves carried the rabbit’s foot talisman to internalize the rabbit’s ability to ‘endure’ escaping from predators; the Hare taught the runaways escape techniques of zigzag’ running and ‘back-tracking’.
Rabbits live in a maze of underground tunnels linked together, including many different entrances and escape exits that’s crucial to their survival. Like the rabbit’s lair many Underground Railroad safe houses that aided runaways had various escape tunnels.
Though the rabbit ‘Hare’ has powerful attributes, it experiences a lot of stress due to its constant scanning of its environment for dangerous predators. Living in constant heightened alert makes rabbits easily over-stressed, similarly to Blacks suffering from chronic stress living under constant predatory white supremacy causing premature deaths from heart attacks and strokes.
One of the visible qualities when rabbits are in a still position is bringing their paws together often in front of their face similarly to prayer palms. This quality position reflects the rabbit’s ability to reduce stress, anxiety, and maintain focus even whilst all about is predators and chaos.
As New Afrikans internalizing the Rabbit totem archetype in our lives makes us adept at understanding the world as it is. Consequently, stressful situations do not intimidate you, as by applying this knowledge admirably in diverse circumstances you emerge freer.
When you see a Rabbit let it be a reminder for you to be self-determining or be open to opportunities that may be coming your way and act on it. When a Rabbit crosses your path let it be a reminder to be more vigilant, develop your intuition, and not to lose yourself to unrealistic views. When you see a dead Rabbit let it be a reminder to be more self-reflective; to examine your life base on the ‘New Arikan Creed’; and to take new necessary steps of development.