Birds> White Barn Owl

Image: The White Barn Owl
Image copyright: Tanya Munshi

The White Barn Owl
Text by: Tanya Munshi

Last evening, after I returned home from a walk as I was unlocking the door, I felt I was being watched. For the last couple of days, the lights on the common area of our floor had not been working as a result it was dark. That was the first time too, I forgot to switch on my porch light.

I looked to my left and saw a beautiful large White Barn Owl perched on my window and looking at me. He blinked a couple of times and so did I. For a moment I was slightly taken aback as I had never expected to see a White Barn Owl perched right next to me. As a matter of fact, this is third White Barn Owl that I have spotted in the last two years that too in different places all across India.

I like to believe, that an owl is a good omen. The Goddess Lakshmi, the Indian Goddess of Wealth is known to ride a White Barn Owl. As a result, in Bengali households, one never drives away an owl, especially the White Barn Owl, as it symbolises good fortune and wealth. This is a kind of totem that helps save and preserve such rare species of birds. According to Bengalis, the White Barn Owl is also considered as a Brahmin (an upper caste amongst the Hindus) and is worshipped as the vahan or the vehicle of Goddess Lakshmi.

I was the happiest to spot this beautiful bird. I grabbed my digital camera, which is always kept handy in my study. I came out of my house and he was still perched in the same spot. I took a picture and captured this beautiful bird's image. I was tempted to take more pictures, but I did not want to disturb him.

I personally feel, that as humans we should be interested in nature, but we should know where to draw the line. Especially, in case of privacy. If you ever spot a rare animal or bird, and have a camera take one or two good pictures and leave it at that. It is not fair to disturb the animal or bird. Remember, it is us who are exploring in their territory and not the other way round.

In Sociology, we had studied Totemism. Usually, most tribal communities have a totem, like a plant, an animal or a bird and one can identify a clan or tribe on the basis of their totem. According to Wikipedia, "The totem is usually an animal or other naturalistic figure that spiritually represents a group of related people such as a clan."

Believe it or not, usually such plants/ animals/ birds are endangered species, which the tribals (who are closest to nature, than the urban populace), mark it as a totem and worship it. In that process, harming or killing the plant/ animal/ bird is considered sacrilege. For example, the Black Buck in Rajasthan is a protected species by the villagers and tribals as a totem. Similarly, by making the White Barn Owl a symbol of good luck we signify it as a totem.

A few days back I had read in the newspaper that a certain group of people sacrificed white barn owls to please the gods to obtain more wealth. This is blind faith and highly unpardonable. We must understand that the White Barn Owl is by far one of the most rare species of birds and needs to be protected.

So the next time you spot an owl or the majestic White Barn Owl, know that good luck is soon to step into your life and hope that no one ever harms the beautiful creation of God.