Pagan Journeys > Beginner's Chat

Giving a pet the name of a deity

<< < (2/5) > >>

earthmuffin:
This is an interesting question. I cringe when I heard a woman named her boy Osiris. I similarly cringe when I heard a girl on American Idol was named Symphony -- sheesh, what if she was tone deaf? My husband (who is a veterinarian) says there's no such thing as a jinx-- except naming your dog Lucky. Apparently every dog named Lucky that he has seen has serious problems. In my world, Murphy's Law will pretty much ensure your kid/dog ends up either befitting the name if the connotation is bad or ironically being the opposite if the name is something wished for like Symphony or Chastity. Intellectually I don't actually believe this but on a visceral level I do have a bit of superstitious fear.

I don't worship specific deities or study mythologies in depth so I don't think naming a pet or person after a deity is a form of invoking. But I do think words affect our perceptions of and feelings toward people and things as my confession above points out. It's not so much magical as psychological; a name can influence how a person is treated and who they become as a result of those experiences. You wouldn't think this would affect a pet so much, but I did see an episode of the Dog Whisperer in which a woman had name her Rottweiler Cujo and the dog was acting viciously and people feared it. Cesar Milan recommended they rename the dog something friendly because he felt that calling the dog Cujo was reinforcing fearfulness toward the dog by owners and the others. He may have had a point. How many people do you know who would name their kid Damian after The Omen came out?

If it's going to drive you crazy to call your sister's dog Loki or hear it being called Loki and you spend a lot of time around the dog, I would politely suggest some alternatives or ask if you can give the dog your own nickname. Or maybe you just need a more well-rounded understanding of Loki and should get more comfortable with Loki and his good aspects.


 

Crystal Dragon:
I agree with both Fox and ES.  But I have a question for you ... is your sister naming her pet with a deity's name the true reason you are concerned?

I noticed that twice in your post you make reference to what you perceive as negative qualities with regard to this specific deity.  I'm getting a sense that this may be more about you being uncomfortable with Loki and the fact that your sister possibly identifies with him.

There cannot be light without dark, order without chaos ... what humans perceive as "negative" is needed to balance things out.  I think that this is more about your discomfort with what you believe to be negative and that you be well served to meditate on why you see some aspects or personality traits as negative.

I agree with EM that spending some time learning about Loki and why he is considered a trickster would be beneficial. ;)

amber:
She's really in love with the sound of the name and not concerned with my perceived negative qualities, but then she's much more comfortable with the idea of change than I am! A nickname might cut it, but it looks as if I'll just have to adjust my own sensibilities here, and maybe give the name in general and maybe even the deity in particular, a second look. I'd hate to subconsciously influence the dog as in the Cujo example, because I do adore him and will spend a lot of time with him. Thanks for your input, I really appreciate it :D

amber:

--- Quote from: Crystal Dragon on February 11, 2011, 10:24:18 AM ---what you perceive as negative qualities with regard to this specific deity.  I'm getting a sense that this may be more about you being uncomfortable with Loki and the fact that your sister possibly identifies with him.
I agree with EM that spending some time learning about Loki and why he is considered a trickster would be beneficial. ;)

--- End quote ---
You are absolutely right. While I wouldn't name a pet directly in this way, I would have not had such a visceral reaction if she'd chosen Thor, for example. She did think about Tyr but there's the risk of people hearing it as "Tia" and assuming it's a girl - the girl dog already gets mistaken for a boy not for her name but because of how she looks being quite a big and boisterous animal. So she wanted to make sure it had a 'boy' name.
It's been a long time since I read the Norse myths, so maybe I do need to go back and re examine them. All deities have some traits that could be considerable undesirable by someone, after all. Thank you for your input. This is a really friendly and thoughtful community.

Ghost Wolf:
I wouldn't do it.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

[*] Previous page