Totem Guide?

Ok, I wasn't sure were to put this question, so I put it in the off-topic to be safe. I've seen the term totem guide used on here and I was curious to what exactly that is. I know what a spirit guide and I know what an animal guide is, but I've never heard of a totem guide until now.

A totem is essentially an animal spirit guide (how's that for making it confusing <!-- s --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_razz.gif" alt=":P" title="Razz" /><!-- s -->). The terms that are used most often are just spirit guide and totem...a spirit guide being a non-corporeal entity or human spirit that guides the individual and a totem being an animal spirit that does the same. Totems can and will induce what are termed "cameo shifts" that is to say phantom, mental, etc. shifts that are not that of the person's kintype, but the totem animal. Some people, like with spirit guides, have different ones, for some people they change, some have the same one all their lives.

I don't have a clue. Perhaps its a term someone is using by someone who sees totems as being the same as spirit guides.

Course in my belief system they are not the same thing, as I see totems as being archetypical entities over a specific species almost like a deity over that species. While I see spirit guides as being actual spirits who help and guide them. Two completely different things in my belief system but of course others do not see a difference in their own belief system.

- Earth Listener

Seraphyna Wrote:A totem is essentially an animal spirit guide (how's that for making it confusing <!-- s --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_razz.gif" alt=":P" title="Razz" /><!-- s -->). The terms that are used most often are just spirit guide and totem...a spirit guide being a non-corporeal entity or human spirit that guides the individual and a totem being an animal spirit that does the same. Totems can and will induce what are termed "cameo shifts" that is to say phantom, mental, etc. shifts that are not that of the person's kintype, but the totem animal. Some people, like with spirit guides, have different ones, for some people they change, some have the same one all their lives.

That's what I figured a totem guide was. Because, the term is new to me. My fiance and I have a spiritual group that meets once a week and we have discussed animal guides and spirit guides, but no one has used that term so I wasn't really sure if a totem guide was the same as a animal guide.

Chimera Wrote:I don't have a clue. Perhaps its a term someone is using by someone who sees totems as being the same as spirit guides.

Course in my belief system they are not the same thing, as I see totems as being archetypical entities over a specific species almost like a deity over that species. While I see spirit guides as being actual spirits who help and guide them. Two completely different things in my belief system but of course others do not see a difference in their own belief system.

- Earth Listener

That make's sense. considering that a totem pole has one animal on top of another to show representation of rankings. And I agree with you when you say that totem/animal guides and spirit guides are two different things, because I have both. My spirit guide is the soul of a human being that has passed and my animal guides are astral beings of animals that travel with me in the astral plain. I see them as two entirely different things.

Thank you both for the responses. <!-- s --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_e_biggrin.gif" alt=":D" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s -->