I chose the hummingbird as a symbol of my ministry for many reasons. As a spirit animal it symbolizes the enjoyment of life and lightness of being. It seeks out the sweet nectar of life with beauty and grace. It is adaptable and resilient, and in all things, it has a playful and optimistic outlook. This fascinating bird is also capable of the most amazing feats, despite its small size, such as traveling great distances or being able to fly backwards.
On each page of my website, I highlight some of the amazing attributes of the hummingbird and the symbolic wisdom that may enrich our own lives. May you come to love this beautiful bird, as I have.
I was first introduced to the magical qualities of the hummingbird when I visited Machu Picchu in Peru. The mythology is very meaningful for me, and perhaps it may be for you as well.
MYTHOLOGY OF THE HUMMINGBIRD
In the time before memory, out of the nothingness, all was created – all the worlds and stars, all the rivers and rocks, every creature and every being.
The people were created without knowing what was beyond them. They longed to know, but the place of the All Knowing was in the upper world, and the people could not go there.
The ruling Inca King communicated with the God, the creator, through the great condor. The condor was the only living creature strong enough to fly to the Hanaq Pacha, the upper world, and speak with the Creator.
The Inca King gave the condor letters for the God in heaven, and acting as a messenger, the condor would return advice and answers to the Inca King, so that he could govern with wisdom and fairness. The condor also took the prayers of the people to the upper world. The condor was never allowed to look upon the face of God, however, so he would turn his head as he gave and received messages.
Now, the hummingbird was the tiniest of birds. Because she had tasted the sweet nectar of every flower, she knew many things. And because of all the things she knew, she had a great desire to know the face of God. Yet it was impossible for her to fly so far. She thought about it day and night, and then one day, out of her great desire, an idea took form.
That night, when every creature was asleep, with extraordinary effort, she flew to the condor’s nest high in the mountains where she found God’s messenger fast asleep. With great care, she nestled deep into his feathers in a place where he could neither see nor feel her. Before long, the Inca King called the condor to take questions and prayers to God. The condor took flight towards heaven, not knowing he had a stowaway.
As the condor flew higher and higher, the heavens opened for him. The hummingbird grasped on with her beak and nails for fear of falling into the void as the condor finally entered heaven. When the condor delivered his messages, the bold little hummingbird flew out from beneath his feathers and turned and saw the face of God.
The impact was so great that her plumage turned translucent gold, shining like a rainbow. She radiated the joy and ecstasy of so profound an experience! And the condor feel silent as the hummingbird had achieved what he was never allowed to do, set eyes on God.
Together the condor and the hummingbird returned to earth and since that day they have both been guides to the upper world; the condor for his strength and fortitude, and the hummingbird, for her daring, desire and passion.
The hummingbird has been immortalized as part of the Nazca lineage, representing the only living creature, who with ingenuity, creativity and desire, dared to see God.
For the Incas, the condor is the greatest animal that exists, but the hummingbird is the mystical one that leads us to spiritual enlightenment.