The Raven & Crow: Death, Magic & Prophecy

BY NICOLE LAU

Black wings against a grey sky. A harsh caw that sounds like laughter—or warning. Eyes that see what you're trying to hide. The raven and crow have haunted human imagination since we first looked up and saw them circling battlefields, perched on gallows, feeding on the dead.

They are the birds of the in-between: life and death, this world and the next, the known and the unknowable. They are tricksters and prophets, messengers and magicians, companions of witches and gods alike.

To meet the raven's gaze is to glimpse the void—and to know that the void is looking back.

Raven vs. Crow: What's the Difference?

Ravens and crows are both corvids (family Corvidae), among the most intelligent birds on Earth. While they share much symbolism, there are distinctions:

Physical Differences

• Size: Ravens are larger (24-27 inches) with a 4-foot wingspan; crows are smaller (17-21 inches)
• Beak: Ravens have thicker, curved beaks; crows have straighter, smaller beaks
• Tail: Ravens have wedge-shaped tails; crows have fan-shaped tails
• Call: Ravens have a deep, croaking "gronk"; crows have a sharp "caw"
• Behavior: Ravens are often solitary or in pairs; crows gather in large groups (murders)

Symbolic Differences

• Raven: More associated with death, prophecy, the otherworld, solitary magic
• Crow: More associated with trickery, community, transformation, accessible magic

But in many traditions, they're used interchangeably. For this article, we'll honor both.

The Raven & Crow in World Mythology

🐦⬛ Norse Mythology: Odin's Ravens

Odin, the All-Father, has two ravens perched on his shoulders:

• Huginn ("Thought"): Represents the mind, intellect, memory
• Muninn ("Memory"): Represents remembrance, the past, wisdom

Each day, they fly across the nine worlds and return to whisper everything they've seen into Odin's ears. They are his eyes, his spies, his connection to all knowledge.

Odin himself is called the Raven God, and ravens were sacred to him—appearing on battlefields to feast on the slain, carrying the souls of warriors to Valhalla.

🐦⬛ Celtic Mythology: The Morrigan

The Morrigan, Irish goddess of war, fate, and death, often appears as a crow or raven. She is:

• The battle crow who flies over warriors, deciding who lives and dies
• The washer at the ford who cleans the armor of those about to die
• The triple goddess (Badb, Macha, Nemain) who shapeshifts into crow form
• The prophetess who foretells doom and victory

To see a crow before battle was an omen—but whether good or ill depended on the Morrigan's favor.

🐦⬛ Native American Traditions: Crow the Trickster

In many Native American cultures (particularly Pacific Northwest tribes), Crow or Raven is a trickster figure who:

• Stole the sun and brought light to the world
• Created humans (in some creation myths)
• Taught survival skills through clever tricks
• Shapeshifts to accomplish impossible tasks
• Breaks rules to bring necessary change

Raven is both creator and chaos-bringer, wise fool and divine messenger.

🐦⬛ Greek Mythology: Apollo's Messenger

The raven was originally white and sacred to Apollo. But when a raven brought Apollo news of his lover's infidelity, Apollo cursed the bird, turning its feathers black forever.

The raven became associated with:

• Prophecy and divination
• Bad news and ill omens
• The price of truth-telling

🐦⬛ Christianity: Noah's Raven

In the Biblical flood story, Noah first sends out a raven to find land. The raven doesn't return (unlike the dove), leading to interpretations of the raven as:

• Unreliable or disobedient
• A creature of the wild, not domesticated
• Associated with death and carrion (feeding on floating corpses)

Yet ravens also appear as God's provision: they fed the prophet Elijah in the wilderness.

🐦⬛ Japanese Mythology: Yatagarasu

The three-legged crow (Yatagarasu) is a divine messenger and guide, representing:

• The sun goddess Amaterasu
• Divine intervention and guidance
• The three virtues: heaven, earth, and humanity

The Raven & Crow as Symbols

Death and the Afterlife

Ravens and crows are psychopomps—guides of souls between worlds. They appear at:

• Battlefields (feeding on the dead, carrying souls)
• Gallows and execution sites
• Graveyards and burial grounds
• Liminal spaces (crossroads, thresholds, twilight)

They don't cause death—they witness it, honor it, and guide the transition.

Magic and Witchcraft

The raven and crow are the witch's familiar, the magician's ally:

• Shapeshifting: Witches transform into crows to fly to sabbats
• Spell ingredients: Crow feathers, bones, and calls in magic
• Divination: Reading omens from crow behavior
• Trickster magic: Bending rules, finding loopholes, clever solutions

Prophecy and Foresight

Crows and ravens see what's coming:

• Augury: Ancient Roman practice of reading bird flight for omens
• Crow calls: Different caws mean different messages
• Behavior: Unusual crow activity signals change or danger
• Dreams: Crows in dreams often bring prophetic messages

Intelligence and Problem-Solving

Corvids are among the smartest animals on Earth:

• They use tools (bending wire to fish out food)
• They recognize human faces and hold grudges
• They understand cause and effect
• They play and have fun
• They mourn their dead
• They can count and plan for the future

This intelligence makes them symbols of:

• Cunning and strategy
• Adaptability
• Learning from experience
• Outsmarting opponents

The Medicine of Raven & Crow

If raven or crow is your spirit animal, you carry the medicine of:

Transformation Through Darkness

The crow doesn't fear the shadow—it lives there. It teaches:

• Embracing your shadow self
• Finding treasure in the darkness
• Transformation through death (of ego, identity, old patterns)
• The wisdom that comes from facing what you fear

Magic and Manifestation

Crow is the trickster magician who bends reality:

• Seeing through illusions
• Creating change through unconventional means
• Shapeshifting (changing your identity, role, or perspective)
• Manifesting through clever action, not just intention

Prophecy and Intuition

Raven sees what others miss:

• Trusting your gut feelings
• Reading signs and omens
• Knowing what's coming before it arrives
• Speaking uncomfortable truths

Community and Communication

Crows gather in "murders" and communicate complex information:

• Finding your tribe
• Sharing knowledge and warnings
• Collective intelligence and cooperation
• Protecting the group

Working with Raven & Crow Energy

When to Call on Crow/Raven

• You're facing a death or ending (literal or metaphorical)
• You need to see through deception
• You're doing shadow work or facing your darkness
• You need clever solutions to impossible problems
• You're developing psychic or prophetic abilities
• You're working with death magic or ancestor work

Crow/Raven Divination

Pay attention to crow behavior:

• One crow: Bad news or a warning
• Two crows: Good luck or a positive omen
• Three crows: A wedding or celebration
• Four crows: Birth or new beginnings
• Five crows: Illness or sorrow
• Six crows: Theft or loss
• Seven crows: A secret or mystery revealed

(This is from the old counting rhyme "One for Sorrow")

Crow Meditation

Visualize yourself as a crow. Feel your black wings. Fly up, up, up until you can see the landscape of your life from above. What patterns do you see? What's hidden from ground level but obvious from the sky?

Now dive down into the shadows, into the places you've been avoiding. What treasure is hidden there?

Offerings to Crow

Crows love:

• Shiny objects (coins, crystals, jewelry)
• Food (unsalted peanuts, hard-boiled eggs, meat scraps)
• Water (especially in dry areas)
• Respect and acknowledgment

Leave offerings outside. Crows remember kindness—and they'll bring you gifts in return (yes, really).

The Shadow of Crow/Raven

The crow's shadow includes:

• Trickery and manipulation: Using cleverness to deceive
• Morbid fascination: Obsession with death and darkness
• Isolation: Becoming the lone raven, cut off from community
• Stealing: Taking what isn't yours (crows are notorious thieves)
• Harsh truth-telling: Delivering bad news without compassion
• Chaos for chaos's sake: Trickster energy without purpose

If you're experiencing crow's shadow, ask: Am I using my intelligence to help or to harm? Am I speaking truth or just being cruel?

Crow in Literature and Pop Culture

• Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven": "Nevermore"—the raven as harbinger of grief and madness
• Game of Thrones: The Three-Eyed Raven as seer and guide
• The Crow (film): Resurrection and vengeance
• Tower of London ravens: Legend says if the ravens leave, the kingdom will fall

Final Thoughts

The raven and crow are not gentle guides. They don't offer comfort or easy answers. They offer truth, transformation, and the courage to look into the void.

They ask: Are you brave enough to see what's really there? Are you clever enough to survive the darkness? Are you willing to die to who you were so you can become who you're meant to be?

The crow caws. The raven watches. The message is clear:

It's time to fly into the unknown.

Ready to work with crow and raven energy? Explore our collection of raven jewelry, crow feather talismans, and divination tools to connect with these powerful messengers of magic and prophecy.