The Message of the Dove and Pigeon

I took this photo during one of my travels. I was in Caesarea Israel enjoying the beach. Early in the morning, I photographed this dove peeking though the banana leaves and other foliage.

Seeing the bird stirred a question...Why are doves the symbol of peace and love...Well the subject has a long history and is fun to learn about, but not needed in this discussion. I will leave that study for you or maybe even write a post about it in future.

I have found that all the clues and answers are found in ancient language. I once heard "The answers lies within" What I mean is that in the most ancient languages "what it is, is in it". All things were named because of how it functioned or how it behaved.

A dove mates for life...therefore it loves and forgives for life, being a peace maker. This is a easy connection of it being the symbols for love and peace.

There are other creatures who also mate for life. In fact 33 creatures do this or possibly even more as they are discovered. But these same creatures are not known for being the symbols of love and peace like the dove. Why are they not the symbols of love and peace? Well if we take a look at a few of them maybe we will see some clues.

As a example the Beaver makes it on the list as a mate for life creature but it is best known for its home building abilities. So maybe the message here is, to create love and peace you need to build a strong home that is well protected.

The Wolf and Coyote mate for life and are known for being in packs and sticking together. Maybe the message for love and peace it to keep a strong family and community then be loyal with respect for the leaders. The leaders in the pack are in the position based on ability to lead and this creates genuine respect.

Swans also mate for life and develop long well established strong bonds from a young age long before mating. So long romantic dating is maybe a key to love and peacefulness, because Swans display love to each other in the most beautiful ways. Every movement is with grace and care.

Canadian Geese are very loyal and stay together as mates for life. They are big migratory birds flying North and South every year together. If one of the geese should be injured or dying its mate will defend and protect it from any danger, even staying behind when all the other geese begin to migrate. Adult geese work together to raise young and build a strong partnership. So maybe the message is doing things together, whether work or fun combined with a little vacation travel, builds lasting bonds that form loyal feelings.

Sandhill Cranes have an amazing ritual of dancing involving jumping and tossing sticks or branches into the air. They seem to play and entertain each other. They synchronize their calls and vocalize together. This dancing, singing and stick tossing practice goes on well after mating and they mate for life as well. So maybe the message for love and peace is to always play and have fun with those you love...Maybe some frequent kitchen dancing, singing and soft towel snaps while doing dishes together is the key.

Bald Eagles also mate for life and will separate for long periods of time, but will always go to the nest and mate when the breeding time comes. So maybe the message for love and peace is to love even when apart...as the Eagle seems to know "The heart grows fonder when apart".

Gibbons are really adorable and incredible singers. Both males and females are solo singers as juveniles but after mating will sing as a duet. They use this way to communicate and form very strong bonds for life. So the message for love and peace is connected to a good harmonized communication. That happens with similar thinking for beautiful harmony. Separated thoughts usually means discord.

Anyway I think you understand what I mean when I say " What it is, is in it". Everything has a language in its DNA, it just is, what it is.

Now back to Doves who usually come back to the same place to nest every year. This is also an even stronger characteristic of Pigeons. Now it is interesting, pigeons get this characteristic from doves who they are related to and come from genetically. This took place with selective breeding when the gene got even stronger for homing. Doves and pigeons are a related family.

The white doves that are commonly used as symbols of peace and love and released at weddings are actually white homing pigeons. Homing pigeons are very strong flyers and have a powerful homing instinct to return home.

When thinking about this, I think they have a message for us. The reason they are known for love, peace, and returning after they are sent out with a message is for us to learn the message they are carrying. The message is what you send out will return to you. So if I send out a positive message and encouraging words...Those same messages and vibrations will return. The more I do this the stronger the energy will become for sending out a greater and more positive energy. The reason is the same returning energy or greater will always return to the individual who sent it out.

Clearly we have the ability to create this positive energy to the level we desire...So send your message out, knowing it will always return home to you.