« The Life Cycle of a Butterfly | Home | My Favourite Butterflies »
The Culture of the Butterfly
By Mary | March 8, 2010
The image of the butterfly can be seen everywhere in contemporary culture – on fabric prints and in rug designs, in posters and canvas wall prints, in brand logos, on china plates and tea services, in jewellery, in television adverts, as children’s toys – everywhere really. For the most part in contemporary culture, the use of the butterfly image has very little symbolism attached to it. It is simply seen as a pretty, mainly feminine, motif. However in history the butterfly image has been used as a symbol to convey profound ideas or themes.
Obvious parallels with the observed life cycle of the butterfly lead to the most obvious symbolism. Both the ancient Egyptians and the Greeks are known to have placed golden butterflies in their tombs, associating the emergence of a butterfly from its chrysalis as a symbol of the soul and its resurrection, rebirth and immortality.
In Christian doctrines too, parallels have been drawn with the ever hungry caterpillar stage associated with man’s time on earth pursuing earthly pleasures and needs; the chrysalis here is a symbol of death and entombment whilst the butterfly stage represents the soul being reborn in heaven, no longer trapped by earthly concerns. This has been shown by the marking of a butterfly on ancient Christian tombs, and in some Christian art.
In oriental culture too, the butterfly is seen to represent the soul, but also and interestingly the butterfly is a symbol of love. As one Japanese superstition goes, if a butterfly comes into your guestroom and perches behind the bamboo, screen you will be visited by the person you love the most; and in Chinese culture when two butterflies are seen flying together they are said to be a symbol of love.
Perhaps this link between the immortal soul and love is not so unusual; indeed, in ancient Greek mythology the goddess Psyche who represents the “soul” is often depicted as a butterfly, and she is eternally linked to the god of love Eros in a never-ending passionate union.
Perhaps also this union of the soul and love in the butterfly makes sense in light of the ultimate symbolic attribute of the butterfly, which is faith. In the butterfly’s life cycle we can see an unshakeable, graceful and elegant certainty – that despite these seemingly different and difficult transitions in life, the butterfly emerges transformed – completely changed and much more beautiful for it.
Topics: Butterfly Symbolism | No Comments »