An auspicious Symbol for my first entry and for personal reasons (the anniversary of the death of my father 16 years ago) I have chosen The Dog.
The dog has been an important symbol across many cultures worldwide. It has, and does, symbolize many different things to many different cultures.
One of its most important mythic roles has been as a Guide to the underworld (Otherwise known as the 'Psychopomp').
Not only have they been considered to frequently descend to the Underworld, carrying messages between the living & the dead, but dogs are more often than not regarded as the Guardians of the Underworld.
There have been many well known Canine Psychopomps known to many cultures: Being a lover of the ancient Egyptian culture, one of my favourites is Anubis , the ancient Egyptian deity, who was the conductor of the dead, a son of Osiris, identified by the Greeks with Hermes. Other notables associated with death are Cerberus, Xolotl, Garm, & Thoth.
Personally I couldn't imagine a better creature to guide me through the supposed darkness of the valley of death, than my trusty pooch, Jolly.
