Praying Mantis Symbolism: Our Guide To Their Spiritual Meaning | Simply Symbolism (2024)

If you observe a praying mantis for any length of time, you’ll see that it’s a very patient creature. It just sits very still, all the time watching for prey to come close enough. When this happens, the mantis will strike quickly and then resume its quiet vigil.

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When praying mantises appear to you, it’s a reminder to slow down and take some time to sit quietly and contemplate your life and your future. A mantis may appear in your life at a time when there’s a lot going on and you’ve been far too busy to take a step back and evaluate.

The praying mantis has appeared to remind you that getting in touch with your inner guidance is important and you should take some time to listen. When you see a mantis, it’s a good time to try some meditation and to think about where you want to be.

Therefore, you should emulate the patience and stillness of a mantis and forget about all the busyness of life, even if it’s only for a short time. This is especially important if you have a problem that you’re trying to solve. If you just sit quietly and enjoy your surroundings, quite often, the right answer will come to you.

Basic Symbolisms Of A Praying Mantis

Like other spirit animals, the praying mantis represents various symbolic meanings. These include:

• Calmness
• Patience
• Stillness
• Balance
• Mindfulness
• Intuition
• Awareness
• Creativity
• Trust
• Introspection

As you can see, there’s a definite pattern to these symbolic meanings. Therefore, if you are visited by a praying mantis, it’s a clear message that you need to embrace these attributes.

Perhaps you’ve been too busy in your day to day life, that you’ve forgotten to spend some quiet time just by yourself. We all need this time, both to recharge and to re-evaluate our direction in life.

A mantis could come and visit you at a time when you’re thinking about making a major change. The mantis is reminding you to go within and listen to your inner guidance to determine whether this change is going to have a positive outcome. You see, a praying mantis will not strike unless she knows that it’s positively the right thing to do.

Is A Praying Mantis A Sign Of Good Luck?

When you see a praying mantis, it’s definitely a sign of good luck. And, this luck could come to you in the most unexpected ways. You might be considering a promotion at work but instead you receive an offer of a much better position with a different company.

Alternatively, you might be considering selling your house and moving to an apartment but instead you win the lottery or receive an inheritance from a long lost relative.

So, when you see a praying mantis at a time like this, be patient and observe the opportunities that may be coming your way. Evaluate the current opportunities at hand but don’t rush into anything. There could be something far more beneficial just around the corner.

Remember though, that you shouldn’t sit and wait for ever. The right opportunity could already be before you, and the mantis could be confirming that this is the one you should take. The only way to know this is to listen to your inner guidance and see if it feels like the right thing to do.

This is why the praying mantis is associated with meditation. When we meditate, we often receive the answers that we’re looking for and with far less effort than when we constantly think about it.

Have you ever faced a problem that you just can’t seem to solve? But, when you walk away from it for a short period of time and focus on something else, all of a sudden, the answer pops into your mind. This is your spiritual guidance giving you the answer that you’re looking for.

However, sometimes we’re just so busy with life and there’s so much going on in our heads, that all this busyness drowns out the messages that we should be receiving. This is precisely why you may be visited by a praying mantis. It’s a firm reminder that you need to quieten your mind and listen.

Praying Mantis Symbolism In Different Cultures

Like most other symbolic animals, the praying mantis represents different meaning in cultures around the world. Here’s a rundown of what various cultures see as the main symbolism of the praying mantis.

Native American Symbolism

Native Americans believe that all insects are sacred. They believe that insects inhabited the Earth even before humans did. In fact, a lot of Native American art works display symbols that include insects such as the praying mantis.

Native Americans believed that a praying mantis was a sign of good fortune and wealth. They also believed that the mantis was a symbol of their Great Spirit due to the way the mantis folds its front legs in “prayer”.

In days gone past, certain tribes would use praying mantises to help predict the success of their harvests and also the weather. They also thought of these insects as being a symbol of rebirth and resurrection. This is why they would place a mantis into the mouth of a dying human to help the soul travel smoothly to the other side.

Eastern Symbolism

The Asmat tribes found in New Guinea considered the female mantis as a link to their ancestors and a symbol of headhunting. This may sound a little gruesome but consider that the female mantis will quite often bite off the head of the male after mating. She does this primarily to protect her offspring.

The Japanese, however, regard the praying mantis as a sign of bravery. Due to its appearance, both Japanese and Chinese cultures believe the mantis to be a symbol of courage, especially in relation to their military. They see the insect as only advancing and never retreating.

Christian Symbolism

Early Christians believed that the mantis was a symbol of God. You can see why when you observe the way a praying mantis sits. It folds its front legs together as if in prayer.

Because the praying mantis is not only a quiet and peaceful creature but can also be quite ferocious when it strikes, early Christian artists would used the insect as a dual symbol of both love and hate, and life and death.

The word mantis comes from the Greeks and it means soothsayer, prophet or diviner. The ancient Greeks and Egyptians also believed that the mantis would act as a guide to people who were lost.

South African Symbolism

South African tribes would pray whenever they saw a mantis. They believed that if they killed a mantis, even by accident, they would face bad fortune for the remainder of their lives.

Celtic Symbolism

The Celts associated the praying mantis with various different meanings. These included persistence, courage, voracity, cruelty and greed.

In European folklore, the mantis was associated with magic and the supernatural. It was believed that the mantis could divine by pointing its front legs. In fact, it was believed that a person who had lost their way could hold a mantis in his or her hand and then follow the direction that the insect’s front legs pointed in, to find their way home.

What Does It Mean If The Praying Mantis Is Your Spirit Animal

If you’ve discovered that the praying mantis is your spirit or totem animal, then you’re indeed fortunate. It means that you are formidable and have good defense mechanisms and instincts. And, you are not easily overcome by fear.

Having a mantis as your spirit animal also means that you’re on the path to strengthen your spirituality and that you’re realizing your purpose and achieving your goals. It means that your vibrations are increasing too. This is because the praying mantis is attracted to higher vibrations in its environment.

Positive Traits Associated With The Praying Mantis Spirit Animal

If your spirit animal is the praying mantis it means that you are peaceful, quiet, stable and meditative. Generally, you take your time to work through challenges and you never rush things.

You are one who carefully observes your surroundings and almost nothing fazes you. It’s easy for you to block out the stresses around you and you constantly are able to slow down your pace.

Ultimately, you’re not a talker and prefer to listen and observe. You gain better experiences through touch and feeling rather than verbalization.

This also means that you’re a planner and you take your time to plan the next steps you’re going to take. But, you aren’t hesitant to take action when it’s needed.

Negative Traits Associated With The Praying Mantis Spirit Animal

If the praying mantis is your spirit animal, you may have a tendency to walk away from challenges rather then facing them head on. This is because the mantis likes to wait before it makes a move to ensure its ultimate success. This could lead you to procrastinate much more than you should.

You could end up spending too much time in meditation and contemplation and never actually take the steps that you need to take to move forward on your spiritual path.

When Should You Call On Your Praying Mantis Spirit Animal?

The best time to call on your spirit animal is when you need some peace and quiet in your life. Especially if you’re feeling unbalanced.

This is especially important if your life is too busy and you’re spending too much time focusing on work and have forgotten to focus on your own needs. In these times, the mantis will help you to slow down your pace and to spend some time in quiet reflection.

You should also call on your spirit animal when you have a problem that you just can’t seem to find the answer to. The mantis will remind you that the best thing to do is to sit quietly, especially in nature, and to still your mind. When you do this, you’ll soon find that the right answer will come to you.

The praying mantis will also help you to decide which battles you should fight and which ones you should walk away from because they’re unwinnable.

Above all, the praying mantis symbolizes intuition and wisdom. Therefore, whenever you need some divine guidance, call on your spirit animal and you’ll be able to access its wisdom.

What About If You Dream Of A Praying Mantis

Remember, when we dream, our conscious mind is at rest and, therefore, we’re better able to receive spiritual messages. So, if a praying mantis comes to you in your dreams, it wants to give you a message.

More often, this is a sign of good luck and it could signify that there are some good opportunities coming your way.

On the other hand, if you are looking for an answer to a problem, the mantis may point you in the right direction. Take note of what the mantis is pointing to or in what direction it wants you to go.

Remember too, that the praying mantis can sense imminent danger and will easily camouflage itself. Therefore, a mantis making an appearance in your dreams could be a warning about a deception in your life. It’s telling you to be wary of what people close to you are telling you. There may be someone in your life who is not telling you the whole truth.

Final Thoughts

The praying mantis symbolizes peace, stillness, intuition and reflection. It sits quietly and patiently while waiting for its prey to come close.

When you see a praying mantis or one comes to visit you, it could be a message for you to slow down and escape from some of the pressures of life, even if for just a short while.

This will allow you to reconnect with your inner guide and evaluate whether your life is heading in the right direction.

Seeing a praying mantis may also mean that you’re about to experience some good luck and there may be new and exciting opportunities coming your way.

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