Octopus Spirit Animal Symbolism and Dreams

Are you interested in Octopus Spirit Animal? Then this guide is for you!

The octopus spirit animal teaches you the importance of being subtle. This spirit guide swims into your life to warn you of the dangers of blowing your own trumpet.

You don’t have to shout about your accomplishments from the rooftops. Rather, let the results speak for themselves.

Also, this spirit guide counsels you not to expose your plans and goals to every Tom, Dick, and Harry.

Some things are best done in silence. You should be wise enough to camouflage your intentions from your enemies.

The octopus spirit animal teaches you the subtle tricks of operating under your enemies’ radar.

You should make your intentions and actions inconspicuous, especially as you work on your more sensitive projects.

This spirit guide tells you that you should not fear showing your extroverted side if this will help you to achieve your goals and dreams.

Sometimes you have to put yourself out there to scale the heights of success. You should be ready to move out of your comfort zone to discover what the Universe has prepared for you.

The octopus also tells you that at times, you need to withdraw and allow yourself to grow inside – away from the prying eyes of your distracters.

What’s the Symbolic Meaning of Octopus Animal Totem?

Symbol of Focus and Multi-tasking

The many arms of the octopus symbolize your ability to carry out many tasks at the same time. If you find yourself engulfed by too many tasks to carry out, look to the octopus spirit guide for inspiration.

This animal totem will help you to effectively pay equal attention to all the tasks at hand. It will teach you how to create balance, order, and good organization.

Symbol of Intuition, Creativity, and Shadow Work

The octopus is a keen explorer. And he knows the ocean floor like the back of his hand, so to speak.

This animal is not afraid of shadow work. He goes to the darkest, unexplored depths of the ocean in search of a better life.

This should teach you something about your life. Don’t be afraid to understand every aspect of your life.

Bring up your deepest, darkest emotions to the surface so that you can deal with them. Whenever you feel doubtful, listen to your intuition.

Symbol of Changeability and Adaptability

The octopus spirit animal teaches you to be responsive to the needs of your environment. This animal can change its shape to fit in extremely tight spaces.

You can call on this spirit guide when you face uphill tasks. This totem animal will teach you to be flexible to get solutions to your problems.

Symbol of Wealth, Abundance, and Prosperity

The octopus has 8 arms – the spiritual symbol for wealth and prosperity. The number 8 is known as the infinity symbol.

Your octopus spirit animal wants you to understand that you have everything it takes to attract unending goodness into your life.

You just need to believe in your skills and talents.

Symbol of Protection

The octopus is a master in the art of camouflage. You’ll be unable to spot it on the ocean floor if it doesn’t want to be spotted.

It changes its color, texture, and spots to mirror its environment. When it spots an enemy approaching, the octopus injects black ink into the water to scare the predator away.

This ink creates confusion, and the octopus quickly slips away in the commotion. This spirit guide teaches you to defend yourself when you need to.

You should not make yourself an easy target for your foes and distractors.

Symbolic Meaning of Octopus Totem Animal in Various Cultures

Symbolism of the Octopus in Christian Culture

The octopus, like all sea creatures, has symbolic meaning in Christianity. The Bible records that Jesus Christ is the ‘fishers of men’.

Fish – octopus included – are seen as an integral part of the culture of ancient Palestine and early Christians.

Fish is a source of nourishment and good health. It is therefore understandable that in the Bible, fish symbolizes the Source of Life – Jesus Christ.

Legends in Christian literature indicate that the octopus, the mythical Kraken, and the squid had the powers to heal the sick from spiritual maladies.

It was believed that by eating these sea creatures, you would get redemption and healing – especially if you were possessed by demons or other malevolent spiritual beings.

Some Christian stories equate the octopus to the cosmic fish of antiquity. It is believed that this animal was there from the very beginning, and would be there to witness the end of the world.

The octopus spirit animal also features widely in Christian art. Drawings and paintings of this creature stand for unpredictability, flexibility, knowledge, and intellect.

Christian myth has it that the octopus is responsible for changing tides and the waxing of the moon.

Symbolism of the Octopus in African Culture

In African culture, images of the octopus were used in art to indicate purpose, perseverance, and focus.

According to African mythologies, the octopus is a representation of the sun in the seas and oceans.

This stems from the fact that this animal is circular (like the sun), and has eight appendages pointing in three directions.

In some West African cultures, the octopus was worshipped as the giver of life in the ocean. As such, eating this animal was frowned upon.

In Southern and Eastern Africa, the octopus represented oppression, racism, colonialism, and other forms of discrimination.

The tight stranglehold of the eight arms of the octopus painted a picture of the tyranny and persecution the people endured in the hands of their colonial masters.

In North Africa, this creature was seen as a sign of wealth and fertility. For example; in ancient Egypt, the image of the octopus was engraved in coins and vaults.

Egyptians were encouraged to eat this delicacy to improve their sexual drive.

Symbolism of the Octopus in Native American Culture

The octopus spirit animal is widely mentioned in Native American mythologies. This animal is used to teach children moral lessons and to instill communal values.

Stories about the octopus were also part of the narratives used for entertainment purposes.

The family elder would gather the children around a fire in the evening and narrate amusing stories of how this animal survived the most difficult circumstances.

In most of these narratives, the octopus took the character of a woman who would protect and fend for her young ones.

This woman had eight braids on her head, and was highly respected for her choice of clothing. She would change clothes whenever her mood changed.

This mirrors the octopus’ eight arms and ability to camouflage in his environment.

Native American artisans used to make beautiful bags that had 8 fringes at the bottom. Because of these fringes, these bags were referred to as the octopus’ bag.

This was a must-have fashion statement item for every Native American woman of worth.

Symbolism of the Octopus in Celtic Culture

The Celts widely employed the octopus symbol in their artwork and mythologies. The artwork done by Celts and Scandinavians featured straight-armed octopuses.

This version of the octopus’ symbol is associated with the Swastika used in some parts of Europe. It later became the symbol of choice for the Nazi party in Germany.

The Celts regarded the octopus as a sign of feminine power. Some Celtic artworks depicted the octopus as a representation of female reproductive organs.

People wore octopus’ amulets to increase their chances of having babies. This sign stands for virility, and sexual prowess.

The Celts served octopus meat as a delicacy to increase libido and improve marriage and love relationships.

The octopus spirit animal is closely linked to the astrological sign Cancer. This sign is correlated to the summer solstice and the depths of the ocean.

According to Celt legends, those with octopus spirit animal tend to be lucky. Their efforts are blessed, and they live long lives marked by peace and happiness.

Symbolism of the Octopus in Eastern Culture

The octopus is a treasured delicacy at Japanese dinner tables. An octopus menu would be offered to a valued visitor or client.

This fish is bought from fishmongers to be used in sushi and other Japanese delicacies.

According to Japanese mythology, the octopus is a good diet for improved sex drive.

Its eight tentacles signal that a man can win the hearts of up to eight maidens by appealing to the octopus for help.

Japanese folklore has it that the octopus would take human form to seduce the most beautiful women in the community.

This was meant to teach young maidens the importance of doing due diligence before jumping into amorous relationships.

In Japanese cultures, the image of the octopus was used to depict fun and excitement. This animal was captured with its arms tied up in knots and a puzzled look on its face.

The octopus symbol also stands for healing.

In some parts of Korea, Japan, and coastal China, sick people would be given medicine extracted from octopus to cure diseases of the chest and stomach.

What’s the Meaning of Octopus Dreams?

Having an octopus dream draws attention to the many tasks you have to accomplish. This dream asks you to put your skills and abilities to good use when you are faced with several urgent tasks.

You’ll discover that you have what it takes to multitask.

You can juggle all the things you are meant to accomplish. All the same, this dream reminds you to take care of your health.

This means that you need to prioritize your goals and dreams so that you don’t overwork yourself.

The eight arms of the octopus are often shown entangled, especially in works of art. Seeing an octopus with entangled arms in your dream is a sign that you need to tame your emotions.

You don’t want to be caught up in emotional drama, as this will waste the time you should be spending on the more important things in your life.

A dream of being attacked by an octopus means that you need to take up your responsibilities. Your unconscious is drawing attention to the many things you have left pending.

You need to tie them up before you embark on any new projects.

Having an octopus dream calls on you to be organized and focused. This will enable you to project your power and influence to the far-flung areas of your community.

Final Thoughts…

The octopus prefers to hug the ocean floor as they look for food and safety. They like moving with the shifting of the water as this enables them to save on energy.

This tells you that it’s more beneficial to work with change than to resist it. You’ll cover much ground by welcoming change into your life with open arms.

The octopus takes advantage of the water to create stability in its life. In the spiritual realm, water stands for our emotions.

Volatile emotions can be quite destabilizing.

The octopus symbol is giving you a cue to tame your emotions so that you can focus on your goals and dreams.

The octopus spirit animal teaches you to deal with the emotional baggage in your life. It’s time to purge anything that does not add value to your life.