Symbol Dictionary Sp-Sw
Sri Yantra: See Hexagram.
Stable: This symbol represents the structure that Christ was born in, although the Bible does not say what kind of structure it is and it is unlikely that there would have been a stable in Palestine, as horses were few and far between according to Symbols Of Church Seasons And Days (1997), by John Bradner. Nonetheless, the stable has become the symbol for the humble structure that Christ was born into.
Stag: See Animals.
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Star: This symbol has many layers of meanings. It is a messianic symbol as well as a royal symbol, in addition to being a symbol of guidance. The Star of the East guided the Wise Men to Jesus and it is a long tradition for travelers to use the stars as a guide, According to Symbols Of Church Seasons And Days (1997), by John Bradner. |
Star of David: See Hexagram.
Stigmata: The stigma refers to the five wounds experienced by Christ at the passion. These include the four nail wounds on both of his hands and feet and the spear wounds on his side. According to Rowena and Rupert Shepherd in their book 1000 Symbols: What Shapes Mean In Art And Myth (2002), the stigmata “may be transferred to Christians, mostly women, as a symbol of mystical identification with Christ.” St. Francis was first to receive the stigmata in the 13th century.
Styx: Also called Alpha—“the beginning” or “birth,” and “daughter of Ocean”—a Great Goddess, the Styx was the Greek mythical river that the dead crossed to get to the underworld land of death and rebirth. Originating from a secret “yonic shrine” at a mountain near the city Clitor, the Styx represented the Goddess’s fertile menstrual blood. In mythology, Ocean married Pallas (representing the lingam) and after winding around 7 times in the underworld (representing the 7 months of gestation originally through necessary for birth), Ocean and Pallas “gave birth of Power, Force, and Dominance… This was a mythic expression of the magic power supposedly engendered by the combination of semen and menstrual blood,” according to Barbara Walker, in her book, The Woman’s Encyclopedia Of Myths And Secrets (1983). This is similar to the River of Blood, the pagan barrier to Fairyland, and the Jordan river that Jewish sages crossed. Many cultures held similar beliefs, including Greece and Ireland into the 17th century. The practice of burying the dead with money (often in their mouth) came from the belief in the need to “pay for the river crossing” (Walker, 1983).
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Sun: Dieties such as the Egyptian Gods Ra and Horus, and Oriental Goddess Omikami Amaterasu as well as others, have been associated with the sun. Man, Myth And Magic: The Illustrated Encyclopedia Of Mythology, Religion And The Unknown (1995), edited by Richard Cavendish, explains, “On the face of it, there is no more obvious recipient of divine honors than the sun: visible and yet mysterious, beneficent and yet thoroughly dangerous, it is the giver of life and yet the most potent of destructive forces.” To the left is the sun goddess symbol. The simple sun symbol is just the circle with the dot in the middle. Astrological sun/divinity symbol to the left (for the Freemasons, this sign represents the point from which a Master Mason cannot err according to Rowena and Rupert Shepherd in their book 1000 Symbols: What Shapes Mean In Art And Myth (2002).) |
Swastika: See Cross.
Swine: See Animals.
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Sword: As a symbol of the phallus, the sword was often paired with female symbols such as a pyramid of brushwood in Scythian tale of the war god Herodotus and the Norse pairing of the sword with the house, both symbolic of fertility. Man, Myth And Magic: The Illustrated Encyclopedia Of Mythology, Religion And The Unknown (1995), edited by Richard Cavendish, explains, “Regarded with mystical reverence in the Dark Ages, the sword was credited with a personality and power of its own; in dances of immensely ancient lineage it replaced the sticks and clubs of victory celebrations and seasonal fertility rites.” See Blade. |