Cat Spirit Animal: What Does a Cat Symbolize?
Some people are not so keen on cats, but to people who understand them, they are cute, loveable, loving and loyal friends, and life without a cat in the house would be almost inconceivable.
Cats are widely known to be powerfully spiritual creatures too, and in this post, we go into detail about the cat spirit animal to help you decide if this could be the right spirit guide and companion for you.
Cat Symbolism
Let’s start by looking at the characteristics of cats and what they symbolize.
1. Independence
Although cats have coexisted with humans for thousands of years, unlike dogs, they have never been fully domesticated – their behavior, instincts and morphology are still very similar to those of their wild ancestors and of other modern species of wild cat.
As a result, they retain a high degree of autonomy, and to people who don’t understand them, they can seem cold, aloof and indifferent – although cat people know how friendly and loyal they really are.
For these reasons, one of the first things cats represent is independence since although they choose to live with us – or allow us to live in their homes, as some people would put it – they would be just as comfortable on their own in the wild.
2. Curiosity
Everyone knows the expression “curiosity killed the cat”, and this comes from cats’ insatiably inquisitive nature.
Cats always want to know what’s going on and will always investigate anything new that arrives in their home – something that makes them a symbol of curiosity.
3. Balance
Cats are famous for their balance, and most people will have seen videos of falling cats righting themselves in mid-air before landing on their feet.
They are also comfortable walking on narrow precipices high in the air with not a hint of vertigo, and this makes them symbolic of balance.
4. Luck
As the old folk belief goes, cats have nine lives, which makes them a symbol of being lucky and having the ability to escape from danger when the odds are against you.
5. Stealth
Cats are graceful and stealthy hunters, and this makes them a symbol of stealth and being able to remain hidden until the moment comes to pounce.
6. Playfulness
Cats, and especially kittens, are well-known for enjoying playtime. They are a delight to watch at play, which is why they are a symbol of playfulness and enjoying the lighter moments in life.
7. The home
Although they are independent animals that love to roam, they always return home to make themselves comfortable where they are loved most.
For many people, their pet cat is almost like a part of the furniture – as well as being a beloved member of the family – and for all these reasons, cats are symbolic of the home.
8. Rest
For many people, when they think of a cat, they imagine one curled up asleep on the couch. Cats spend many hours each day simply lounging around or sleeping, and as such, they are also an obvious symbol of rest.
Cat Spiritual Meaning
Now let’s think about what cats represent in spiritual terms.
1. Mental calm
Although people who know cats understand the deep bonds they can create with their owners, cats often seem inscrutable and imperturbable, rarely showing their emotions.
In spiritual terms, this represents achieving a state of inner peace and mental calm through spiritual practices such as meditation and self-exploration.
To achieve such a state, you can also turn to the cat, invoking your inner cat or making cats the focus of your meditative practice.
2. Spiritual purity
Cats famously bury their poop and urine and are also meticulous in their personal hygiene, spending much time each day grooming and cleaning themselves.
This can be seen as a metaphor for spiritual hygiene and taking the time to ensure you remain spiritually pure and clean.
During our daily lives, it’s easy for negativity and negative emotions to stick to us like dirt, so we need to take the time to clean ourselves of such spiritual pollution just as we bathe to wash away physical grime.
You can do this through meditation or spiritual rituals that allow you to release negative emotions such as anger, jealousy or resentment, returning you to a state of spiritual purity.
3. Mystery and the spirit world
We all know instinctively that cats have something inarguably magical or spiritual about them, and this is something that shows up in many cultures – cats are the object of folk tales and superstitions according to many traditions around the world.
They are closely connected to spirituality, mysticism and magic, and they also represent a close link to the spirit world.
4. Feminine energy
Cats contain powerful feminine energy, and they can also help us connect with our own.
We all contain both masculine and feminine energy, regardless of our gender, and by seeking to balance them and learning how to harness both, we can turn them to our advantage – and this is something cats can help us learn.
5. Spiritual curiosity
We’ve already mentioned that cats are highly curious creatures, and they are also representative of spiritual curiosity.
Cats can inspire us to always keep seeking, never giving up on our path towards spiritual awakening and enlightenment.
How Do You Know if the Cat Is Your Spirit Animal
Having looked at cat symbolism and what cats mean spiritually, now we can think about how you can tell if the cat is the right spirit animal for you.
1. You value your independence and freedom
People with the cat as their spirit animal tend to share the cat’s need for freedom and independence, and they don’t react well when their freedoms are curtailed.
If you are a highly independent person, the cat spirit animal is likely to be a good match for you – and by choosing the cat as your spirit animal, you will also find the courage and determination to assert your independence when you feel it is being compromised.
2. You are not easily flustered
Cat people are not easily flustered and are able to react to unexpected situations or unpleasant surprises with calm and equanimity.
It’s often not useful to react to events with emotion – and it’s certainly not helpful to panic.
Instead, the cat spirit animal will help you keep a cool head, using logic and reason to resolve things rather than rash or spontaneous action.
3. You always seem to manage to escape from sticky situations
The cat spirit animal can also give you “nine lives”, allowing you to escape danger and difficulty with unusual good luck.
However, you shouldn’t rely on this too much – because once your nine lives have been used up, you won’t get a tenth.
4. You can seem aloof but are a faithful friend
People with the cat spirit animal, like cats themselves, are not always the warmest or most open individuals when you first meet them, and it can take time for them to accept you.
However, once you penetrate the barriers and aloofness, they can be dedicated and loyal friends.
This is a trait that people with the cat spirit animal often share – they might be difficult to reach at first, but they are warm and loving once you get below the surface.
5. You like to make time for fun
Cat people are playful when the time is right, but they often have a dry sense of humor.
They will tell you a joke with a perfectly straight face, and you can only tell they’re not serious by a slight twinkling in their eyes.
They always know how to make time for fun though, even though they can seem serious – and when it’s time to party, cat people are some of the best people to have around.
Cat Totem
Cats have lots to teach us, and here are some of the lessons the cat totem can help you learn.
1. Always keep learning
Cats are curious animals, and people born with the cat totem are often the same.
The cat totem will push you to always want to know more, learning about the world we live in and always seeking to grow and develop in spiritual terms too.
2. Keep the right balance between material and spiritual needs
With their poise and balance as well as their closeness to the world of the spirits, cats represent finding the right balance between the needs of both the physical and the spiritual realms.
The cat totem can help you achieve this balance, encouraging you always to find enough time in your busy schedule for spiritual pursuits and not just focus on the stresses and responsibilities of your daily life.
3. Get in touch with your feminine energy
The cat totem can help you get in touch with your feminine side and channel your feminine energy.
This will help you know when to use traditional feminine strengths such as emotional intelligence, communication or measured thought rather than traditional male responses such as aggressiveness, conflict or spontaneous action.
4. Pay attention to spiritual hygiene
With the cat totem at your back, you should remember to pay attention to your spiritual hygiene, avoiding people with negative auras, protecting yourself against their negativity when you can’t and undergoing spiritual purification to rid yourself of negative emotions.
Cat Omens
Finally, let’s look at what it could mean if cats start appearing to you, either in your waking life or in your dreams.
1. You need to assert your independence
Cats are highly symbolic of independence, and if you see a cat in an unexpected place or you start dreaming about cats, it could be related to this.
For example, it could be that you are in a controlling relationship, and your partner won’t let you do the things you like.
If you then start seeing cats, it should encourage you to stop and think about your situation and how to improve it.
Do you need to speak to your partner about their controlling behavior and lay down your boundaries? Or is it perhaps time to consider asserting your independence more fully and leaving the relationship entirely?
2. You need to get in touch with your spiritual side
Sometimes cats may appear to you as a reminder of the unseen world, telling you that you have been neglecting your spirituality of late and need to devote more time to spiritual practices.
We all need to find the right balance if we want to live healthy, happy and fulfilled lives, but by becoming too engrossed in the daily grind, it can become easy to forget about your spiritual development.
This means if cats start appearing to you, it might be a good idea to consider whether you are making enough time for spirituality – and if you aren’t, it’s probably a good idea to reevaluate your priorities.
3. Keep your cards close to your chest
Cats don’t often let you know exactly what they’re thinking, keeping their own counsel and maintaining an inscrutable gaze, and cats may begin appearing to you to encourage you to do the same.
Sometimes in life, it isn’t wise to be too open, so perhaps you should think about keeping your cards a little closer to your chest and not being quite so ingenuous and easy to read.
4. Don’t forget to relax and enjoy the lighter moments in life
When you are under stress or are rushed off your feet at work, cats may also appear to you to remind you to slow down, find time to relax and enjoy the fun times too.
Of course, when we have lots to do, sometimes we just have to get our heads down and do it.
But you should also promise yourself some time off at the end of it all as a kind of reward, and you should also make sure you make time for happy moments with the people you love because, in the end, there’s nothing more important in life than this.
Magical and powerfully spiritual animals
As is well known, cats are animals with magical and spiritual properties, and for many people, they are also an obvious spirit animal to choose.
The cat spirit animal can help you get in touch with your spiritual side and aid you in delving into the mysteries of the universe.
She can also help you express your freedom and independence while remaining a faithful and loving friend – and she can also help you find time for rest and relaxation as well as reminding you to enjoy the fun times when you can too.
