Finding Angel's Feathers

I was wondering if anybody else has heard or witnessed this phenomenon before.

The other day I was over at my relative's house, and one of my relatives whose mother recently died started telling me about the fact that she had started to find feathers everywhere since her mother's death.

Some of them could be easily ruled out, like finding a feather on your car. But there are more unexplainable ones, like a feather showing up on a shelf in the back of a store she works at, or in her house on top of her wallet while she is home alone with the doors locked. She says she always finds the feathers when she is thinking about her mother/'needs her the most'.

I didn't get to see the feathers as she didn't bring them with her or anything, but she says they are at least a foot long and pure white. So far she has found 5 feathers and kept 2 of them. I suggested that she gets them DNA tested to see if they match any known bird species, but unfortunately she more-or-less laughed the idea off.

She wasn't at all a spiritual/religious person and she wouldn't have believed this until it happened to her.

[edit on 2-5-2006 by Yarcofin]

That's an interesting story, Yarcofin. I have no explanation. But I am curious as to where people get the idea that angel wings are feathered.

I haven't ever heard of this before, however I believe it may be a communication. I read somewhere that spirits may leave things behind, although the object in the book was a "penny."

Will try to find book..

Originally posted by darkelf
That's an interesting story, Yarcofin. I have no explanation. But I am curious as to where people get the idea that angel wings are feathered.

EVERY movie that has ever had an angel in it portrayed its wings as feathered.

I don't know about world-wide but I think at least in America feathered wings on an angel is probably a general archetype of the belief.

Originally posted by firebat

Originally posted by darkelf
That's an interesting story, Yarcofin. I have no explanation. But I am curious as to where people get the idea that angel wings are feathered.

EVERY movie that has ever had an angel in it portrayed its wings as feathered.

But can you show me a place in the Bible where it says angels have wings? The few descriptions I remember show them looking just like us.

I've done some searching since I posted this topic, and it seems to be more common than I thought. There are even people that claim you can ask an angel to prove itself and leave a feather for you to find, and it will. I wouldn't hold my breath on that one though.

Personally I am undecided on the angel issue, leaning more towards the no. I especially don't think it's a physical being flying around that can actually leave real feathers. But nonetheless, I trust this relative I was talking to and I don't think they were making it up, so I don't know what to make of all this.

As for angels with wings, I found the following Bible passages:

Isaiah 6:2: "Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.

Revelations 4:8: "And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not dayand night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord Gof Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

Ezekiel 1:5: "Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatres. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man. And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings.

Ezekiel 10:19: "And the cherubims lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight.

Although I'm not religous any more, I would have to conclude that according to the Bible, Seraphim, Cherubim, and Thrones have wings. The other types of angels are debatable as to whether they have wings or not.

If you believe that angels exist, it is safe to assume that at least 3 of the 9 rankings of them have wings. The ones with wings all fall into the highest triad of the angel hierarchy.

[edit on 2-5-2006 by Yarcofin]

Cerubim, seraphim, creatures and beast qualify as angelic. But their duty is to glorify God. The angels (messengers) sent to earth that mankind encountered appeared as normal men. Only the righteous knew that they were angels. Either way, I still don't see anything about feathers. That is based on lore and hollywood.

True. There is no actual reference to "angel feathers" in the Bible that I could find at a quick glance. The Koran may add some light onto the angel issue, but I'm not as adept in that.

What other options do they have besides feathers (if they exist)? About the only other option would be a bat-like wing comprised of skin stretched between bone. Doesn't seem very angelic.

Whether the other 2/3s of the angel rankings have wings or not is debatable. But is there anything that says higher rankings of angels can't take time out to come and leave signs to loved ones? Messenger angels tend to appear more to random people who have no connection with them. It makes more sense for an angel that is related to you to come deliver a message, regardless of it's rank. I think it's safe to assume that angels are not bound by the rules of space and time. So Seraphim are ruled out because they appear to do nothing but worship God 24/7, but the other two rankings remain plausible unless more quotes are brought forward that say otherwise.

By the way, some mod might want to move this to faith and spirituality now. It's delving more into that area than the paranormal .

Maybe the Lack of mentioning of feathers means they could of been Light Wings,

i mean these are beings that arent of human form, which as far as i know yer energy then without a vessel to manifest with.

honestly amuk i havent been able to recall anywhere about feather being wings besides Created accounts..(Tv, Movies, Books)

good call......as for the story

the feathers might not of been related to wings but to a special personal moment between mother an daughter...

Originally posted by Yarcofin
What other options do they have besides feathers (if they exist)? About the only other option would be a bat-like wing comprised of skin stretched between bone. Doesn't seem very angelic.

Scales made of jewels or precious metals perhaps? Or some skin that gave off light? Just an alternative opinion since the Bible doesn't really describe what angelic wings actually look like.

Originally posted by Yarcofin
It makes more sense for an angel that is related to you to come deliver a message, regardless of it's rank.

I have not seen anything in the Bible that would suggest that we are related to angels. In fact, the Apostle Paul said that we are a little above the angels in rank. Unless you believe that people become angels when they go to heaven, I'm not sure where you get the idea that they can be realted to us.

Originally posted by Tranceopticalinclined
the feathers might not of been related to wings but to a special personal moment between mother an daughter...

That's what I think. I have heard of departed loved ones leaving behind physical objects, and scents, and speaking audible words to let living loved ones know that they are still with them.

I also don't believe that Angels have physical wings that drop feathers everywhere. I believe that angels really have no form at all and will appear in whichever way the person they are appearing to will be comfortable seeing them.

That's just my belief though.

Yes definately they were left in certain places on purpose, not just haphazardly dropped. So they were purposefully put there as a sign. So I guess it doesn't really matter if angels have wings at all. But if they can just conjure random objects out of thin air, that's even more strange than just having feathered wings. Ah well... that's how the spirit world goes I suppose =).

I still would have liked to get one DNA tested just to see what the results say .

If the feathers bring her comfort in her time of grief, I see no harm. DNA test are very expensive. I'd leave it alone and let her have her comfort.

Originally posted by Yarcofin

I still would have liked to get one DNA tested just to see what the results say

.

Even if it did turn out to be a birds feather, that doesn't mean that a supernatural being didn't put it there.

Even if it did turn out to be a birds feather, that doesn't mean that a supernatural being didn't put it there.

That's what I was thinking, as the only white feather that big (that I can think of) would be a swan's feather, and they aren't exactly a common species.

[edit on 3-5-2006 by Xeros]

Angel Molting Season?

Angels with feathered wings are a relatively recent development. Some Torah/Old Testament descriptions include wings, but most don't, and the beings described in the examples Yarcofin cited above certainly don't fit the popular depiction of a humanoid with two wings.

This Wikipedia article covers angels in admirable detail, including their evolving changes in appearance: Angel

DNA tests are not required to identify feathers. Feathers are distinctive and most types can be readily identified by people who work with them, such as farmers, pet store workers, birdwatchers and hobbyists (some people use feathers in craft projects, for example).

A large white feather like that would have to come from a large bird (or hey, maybe an angel), and that narrows things down somewhat.

As already pointed out, if it turns out to be a turkey feather (my guess, because white turkeys are very common in commercial aviculture and are a plentiful source of large white feathers used by hobbyists) or some other mundane sort of feather, that doesn't preclude angelic agency, although it does suggest an earthly origin -- and a different kind of mystery.

I see no reason not to try to identify the feather, but if folks would rather not know, I suppose that's their business.

Not wanting to know, however, does make a statement, in its own way.

At least they are white feathers. If they were gray feathers, she might be the victim of a haibane infestation...

Are some turkey feathers naturally white? I found one when I went hunting with my uncle, and it's not pure white, as much as white with little flecks of brown all throughout it. Maybe craft stores bleach them white before they sell them *shrug*.

I was personally thinking maybe an extra-large seagull was the most likely culprit. Those are pretty common here, much like anywhere else. There are swans in the city but they are confined to an animal farm. Occasionally there are Canada Geese, but I don't know if they have long white feathers or not.

The biggest mystery to me is not the origin of the feather, but how it ended up inside her house when she was home alone with all the windows and doors closed up.

But like I said, she doesn't really want to pursue it. So unless an angel drops me a little clue of my own, I guess we'll never know. So I guess it's worth a shot. If any supernatural beings happen to be sitting around reading this thread, leave me a feather please

Like I said, when I Googled it there were quite a few similar stories though. So it does seem to be quite an odd phenomenon occuring to various people.

I like this one best:

"Last night before going to bed I asked with all seriousness for an Angel to send me a feather. Well, I woke up this morning covered in them I have two pillows on my bed and the seam had come apart on one and they were everywhere. The seam was not ripped, the thread was just gone and all the stuffing came out during the night. I have a ceiling fan, which picked them up and they were swirling through the air and landing on the furniture only to be picked up and swirled around again. It looked like a fluffy snowstorm. I had to turn off the fan and I spent about 30 minutes or so vacuuming up all the feathers. I will never again ask for an ANGEL feather. There is an old saying "Be careful what you ask for because you might get it" I got it all right."

Source: www.intouchmag.com...

[edit on 3-5-2006 by Yarcofin]

Originally posted by Yarcofin
She wasn't at all a spiritual/religious person and she wouldn't have believed this until it happened to her.

Sounds like stress and grief have her a little knocked off kilter. Rationality is a higher brain function, and it takes quite a beating in times of stress.

Yeah I considered that she was just completely off her rocker and making it all up. But she seemed pretty sane and logical, and even a bit embarrassed/afraid to be telling the story. It'd be pretty ballsy to make up lies and tell them to your siblings who have also just lost their mother. No history of psychotic episodes or anything that I know of. I don't think she would plant feathers for herself to find or make it up, but I guess stress/grief/shock is a factor that can't be ruled out.

[edit on 3-5-2006 by Yarcofin]

She actually beleives that they are angel feathers? That angels have feathers, and that they loose them, and they can be found? What was an angel doing behind her book shelf? Are there different types of feathers? Why would angels need feathers, do they have the same structure as bird flight feathers? Why won't she have them tested at all?


As an aside, the Yezidi, in northern Iraq, are a group of pagans that worship a 'god' called Malik taus, the name translates to "Peacock Angel" in some renderings, and he is represented with a peacock, thus, feathered.