Hug Your Cat Day

“The nature of the universe probably depends heavily on who is the actual protagonist. Lately I’ve been suspecting it’s one of my cats.” ― Wil McCarthy

June 4th  is Hug Your Cat Day

It’s also Adopt a Cat Month and Adopt a Shelter Cat Month – there are a lot of kittens out there who need homes.

If you are bereft of the love and companionship of a cat, think about bringing one of these remarkable companions home. If that is not a possibility, then I’m sure you’ll find someone who will let you hug their cat.

“Time spent with cats is never wasted.” – Sigmund Freud

When in Ireland if you say something funny, you may well hear. –

“It would make a cat laugh.”

Cait Sidhe (fairy cat) from Celtic Mythology is considered to be as large as a dog. I’m assuming since this is from Scottish and Irish Folklore that the dog is the size of a hunting hound and not a Chihuahua.

The Celts also gave us Grimalkin, a gray cat with magical powers. In Shakespeare’s MacBeth, Grimalkin is a familiar of the witches. Ceridwen, the Welsh goddess of wisdom, was attended by white cats.

Is it a coincidence that the Norse goddess Freya also had two cats? Her cats had fur that was white, gray or blue depending on the source cited.

A group of cats is called a clowder or a glaring of cats.

There’s a clowder of only about 220 million domestic cats in the world to keep over 7 billion people company.

An old Polish black cat named Ovinnik chased away evil-natured ghosts and mischievous fairies.

In Africa, cats not only protect people from rodents and snakes, but also drive demons away.

Also in Africa is Bastet worshipped as a protector cat-goddess by ancient Egyptians.

The Japanese Beckoning Cat, also known as a Fortune Cat, has been popularized in the west by the “Hello Kitty” brand.

In China, cats ward off evil spirits.

“You can keep a dog; but it is the cat who keeps people, because cats find humans useful domestic animals.”- George Mikes

I adore this Chinese story about cats.

Cats used to be in charge of the world. But the cats were lazy so they gave up talking and delegated all their tasks to humans. That’s why they look so superior when they watch us running around doing all the work.

“After scolding one’s cat one looks into its face and is seized by the ugly suspicion that it understood every word. And has filed it for reference.”- Charlotte Gray

In the Islamic world, cats are given the respect they think they deserve. The Prophet Mohammed’s cat Muezza once fell asleep on the sleeve of his master’s robe –instead of disturbing his beloved cat when he had to leave, Mohammed cut off the sleeve of his robe.

And that’s how it is our house – never disturb the cat.

~lisa

Pet Adoption How, Why & the Urgency therein: http://www.petfinder.com/pet-adoption/cat-adoption/june-is-adopt-a-shelter-cat-month/

Cats in Norse Mythology: http://felineforever.com/cat-mythology-norse.html
Celtic cats: http://celtopedia.druidcircle.net/index.php?title=Cat_Sidhe
Cats in Mythology and Folklore http://www.lifepaths360.com/index.php/cat-in-mythology-and-folklore-3292/

More Cat Myth since there is far more cat myth than could be covered if I only posted on cats every day of the year. Perhaps someday I will write my own book of cat mythology.

When Siamese kings died, their souls would pass on to a Siamese cat so he could be present at the coronation of his successor.

In old Bohemia the cat was a symbol of fertility.

Let us not forget the disappearing Cheshire Cat from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

The Pussy Willow plant got its name from an old Polish cat myth.

The Goddess Hecate assumed the form of a cat in order to escape the monster Typhon. Since that worked she made sure of special treatment of all cats thereafter.

Index of Famous cats, real and literary http://www.citizenlunchbox.com/famous/cats-A-D.html
Cats in Mythology http://domesticcatworld.com/cats-in-mythology
Cat Urban Legends http://cats.about.com/od/catloreurbanlegends/
Urban Legends about cats http://messybeast.com/urbancat.htm
Cherokee myth has the Wampus cat: http://www.monstropedia.org/index.php?title=Wampus_cat