| Description: Animals as metaphors: The way of the Ram (action) |
 The power and strength of rams are often depicted in nature films where they are seen butting heads in duels of strength. The horns of the ram are weapons, a form of defense and a status symbol. They grow throughout the life of the animal, eventually forming a full curl or spiral. Young rams often play a form of king of the mountain, testing strength and new positions. This is most evident in the autumn, when challenges for the right to mate with the ewes become more likely. A ram can live to about 14 years of age, but life expectancy decreases with the size of horns because duels are more frequent. |
| Mythology |
| The ram by it fire, masculinity, strength and instinctive reactions symbolizes the procreative forces which arouse mankind and the world at large in the springtime of life and ensures that the cycle of life continues on its way again. Christ is known as a Good Shepherd; Christian artists depict shepherds carrying a lamb or a ram on their shoulders. From Gaul to Black Africa, from India to China there was the same joyful worship of the symbolic chain which linked creative fire to fertility and even, by the mediation of the principle of life itself, to immortality. In the Vedas, rams are related to Agni, lord of fire, and especially to sacrificial fire. The fleece (e.g., the Golden Fleece) and the horn (e.g., the Horn of Plenty) of the ram are considered symbolic properties. The Golden Fleece symbolizes attainment of what reason regards as the impossible. It brings two symbols together: innocence portrayed by the ram's fleece and that of glory, represented by the gold. It is a symbol of great force and power. "Battering rams" were used in many societies to knock down the gates of enemies. |
| Associations |
| The ram is associated with creative and decisive force. The spiral of the horn is a symbol of great creativity, a relationship given more emphasis because it is associated with the head in the case of the ram. So the ram signifies new stimulation of mental faculties, imagination, and inspiration--along with the energy to act upon it. The ram represents the power to penetrate, overcome, and achieve. It reflects the assertion of strength in creative ways to achieve a breakthrough. It is also associated with sacrifice. The ram serves as the icon for action, the fifth element of heroism. |
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| Animals as metaphors: [Lion][Owl][Dog][Fox][Bear][Ram]
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