Some charming metaphysical ramblings I dug up just for you! ^_^ Awww...
Even numbers have significance. So let's start with those!
Three
Three is a magic number...Holy Trinity, power of three in terms of witchcraft(maiden, mother, crone as Discworld taught me)...
Four
Four is another one of those special numbers. There are four elements(fire, earth, air, water), four seasons, four suits in a deck of cards(regular and Tarot)
Like most Sailor Moon villains, our pals at the Dead Moon Circus are also named after shiney rocks.(well, except for the Amazon Quartet, but I don't count them as friends...)
Tiger's-eye
A brown semi-precious stone with vertical bands of a goldish-brown color. Also known as the crocidolite cat's-eye or African cat's-eye.
Myth, etc.: Tiger's-eyes are believed to promote creativity, wealth, courage, clear thinking and confidence. They also enhance psychic abilities and attract beauty and abundance.
Use with malachite and pearl for mental/emotional balance.
Hawk's-eye
A variant of tiger's-eyes, a hawk's-eye is a semi-precious stone with a blue grey or green color.
Myth, etc.: Hawk's-eyes are believed to promote serenity, peace, perspective, wealth, healing, and a love of nature.
Fish Eye
Still working on it...all I've found are types of camera lenses.
Zirconia
Often seen on the Home Shopping Network in "cubic" form. Remember, girls, if it's your engagement ring, your future husband doesn't love you enough.
Zircon
Comes in many colors, apparently...
Myth, etc.: Brown zircon inspires indenpendance.
Blue zircon promotes spirituality.
Red zircon is for purification.
Yellow zircon is for inspiration.
Green zircon is for friendliness.
Purple zircon enhances propserity and
Pink zircon helps us appreciate life more.
Amazonite
A pale, greenish blue stone.
Myth, etc.: Helps clarify and improve thinking. Also promotes truth, sincerity, eloquence, integrity, and clairvoyance. When held to the third eye, it unlocks psychic vision.
On to animals...
Tiger--cats of the smaller variety have been considered everything from god/desses to agents of the devil. Tigers specifically can be considered the true kings of the jungle(lions live in grasslands) There are not, nor have there ever been, tigers in the Amazon.
Like the majority of big cats, tigers cannot purr and have retractable claws(the exception to both of these things is the cheetah.)They're soliatary animals--the male does not stay with the female after mating. (Another fun fact about mating tigers is that they will mate continually for five days.)
Tigers hunt by ambush--their stripes provide camoflauge for stalking wild pigs, cattle, and deer through tall grass.
There is a Korean legend about a tiger and a bear who both want to become human. Hwan-Ung(son of the king of Heaven) hears of this and tells them that he will grant their wish if they spend 100 days in a cave, eating nothing but garlic and mugwort. The tiger grows restless and runs away(the bear is able to stick it out and eventually becomes human)
There are many legends about tigers(I think it's obvious why I chose to focus on this one...)and the depiction of this animal ranges from sacred and brave to greedy and slow witted.
Tiger legends from this site.
Hawk--Hawks are bird of prey known for their keen eyesight.
The hawk is believed to be the first living creature worshipped by the ancient Egyptians. Horus, the god with the head a of a hawk, was the son of Isis and Osiris(Of course, Horus was conceived after Osiris' enemy Set had chopped him into little bits.)
Fish--Well, "fish" encompasses a broad range of animals...generally speaking, they're cold blooded vertebrates with scales and gills that allow them to breathe under water.
The Babylonians, Syrians, and Philistines all worshipped water deities that were half human, half fish.(okay, yeah, so it's mermaids, but I'll try to come up with some decent fish facts soon) The Norweigian havfine(mermaids again...) were believed to have unpredictable tempers.
As for the Amazon Quartet, they're named after Greco-Roman Goddess.(PallaPalla is the only one who has a Greek name) These are short blurbs, mostly because entire books and webpages are devoted to mythology.
Juno
Greek name: Hera
Sacred animal(s): Peacock and cow
One of the 12 Olympians, Juno was the protector of marriage and married women. She herself was married to ultra-slut king of the gods Jupiter, so spends most of her time in mythology having fits of jealous rage.
Pallas--most likely Pallas Athena
Roman name: Minerva
Goddess of war and wisdom, grey eyed Athena was revered among the Greeks(they didn't care much for Ares, god of war, but they thought Athena rocked the house) Athena also invented the bridle and first tamed horses for mankind.
Sacred animal(s): Owl
Vesta
Greek name: Hestia
Another of the 12 Olympians, Vesta was also one of the three virgin goddesses(Athena/Minerva and Artemis/Diana being the other two.) Goddess of the hearth, she has no real personality or any part in the myths, but in Rome her fire was tended by 6 virgin priestesses called Vestals!
Ceres
Greek name: Demeter
Ceres was goddess of the harvest wreath. Her daughter, Persephone, was kidnapped by Hades/Pluto and taken to the Underworld. After Persephone's kidnapping, Ceres wandered the earth looking for her daughter and kept any plants from growing. Eventually it was arranged that Persephone would spend four months of the year in the underworld, and the rest of the time with her mother. When Persephone left, winter would begin, and when she returned, winter would fade into spring.
