Top 14 Symbols of Calm With Meanings

Everything we encounter in our daily lives has a direct impact on how we feel. Each animal, color, flower, and plant has a deeper meaning that reflects upon human mentality.

Throughout history, people have adopted various symbols to represent feelings and ideas. Animals like oxen, manatees, and whales are symbols of calm.

When it comes to flowers, camomile, peace lilies, and white poppies are also some of the perfect representations of calmness.

In this article, I’ll walk you through the numerous symbols representing calm in many cultures around the world. So, keep reading to find out what they are.

Symbols of calm are: Chamomile, Peace Lily, White Poppy, Peony, Lotus, Hellebore, Lavender, Humpback Whale, Manatee, Ox, Color Blue, Color Pink, Sei Hei Ki, and the Anahata (Heart Chakra).

Flowers Symbolizing Calm

As humans, we can express each and every different sentiment with flowers. You can call that “the language of flowers.”

For example, the red Chrysanthemum flower expresses love, while the Clematis flower shows mental beauty. (1)

Below are seven of the flowers exhibiting calm.

1. Chamomile

I’d like to tell you more about Chamomile, not the well-known drink that has thousands of benefits, but the Chamomile flower itself.

This gorgeous flower that looks like a tiny daisy has deep symbolism and cultural significance behind its innocent looks.

Aside from carrying the meaning of poise, peace, and rest, the Chamomile flower also represents calmness.

In many cultures, the Chamomile flower is a sign of rebirth and renewal. That’s for its ability to withstand harsh conditions.

As a result of that, artists throughout history have portrayed this flower in abundance. (2)

2. Peace Lily

This is one of the world’s known flowers representing peace, calm, and tranquility. Peace Lilies are amazing tropical plants that have deep green foliage and gorgeous white blooms.

Having a Peace Lily in your home is more than enough to positively impact the ambiance and switch your overall mood.

Aside from symbolizing calmness, Peace Lilies can also be a sign of purity, hope, prosperity, and innocence.

For all those meanings and symbolism, Peace Lilies lie among the most popular houseplants. (3)

3. White Poppy

The white poppy isn’t as famous as its red cousin. It symbolizes peace, calmness, and renewal. Moreover, this magnificent flower has many medicinal properties.

In Greek mythology, they believed that Demeter, the goddess of agriculture, had created Poppies. That’s to help her with sleeping and ease the pain after losing her daughter.

Furthermore, you may have noticed that Hypnos, the personification of sleep in Greek mythology, often wore a poppy crown.

To this day, the white Poppy is one of the most iconic flowers. Additionally, people use it on many occasions to symbolize anti-war sentiments. (4)

4. Peony

In different places around the world, the Peony flower is notable and culturally significant. This mesmerizing flower is closely connected to prosperity and peace.

Aside from its fascinating looks, the Peony’s aroma is like no other. It helps calm down people and lighten up anyone’s mood. (5)

Other mythological and historical meanings for the Peony flower include:

• Romance
• Good fortune
• Riches
• Honor
• Happy marriages
• Compassion (6)

5. Lotus

Lotus is one of the most mesmerizing flowers. It’s so beautiful that it almost looks surreal. Growing on swamps and water surfaces, the Lotus represents calmness and positivity.

In many different cultures, people used the Lotus to express various ideas and symbolism. For example, in Eastern culture, this flower expresses purity and enlightenment.

Moreover, each color of this mesmerizing flower symbolizes many emotions and beliefs.

• White Lotus: Calm, purity, peace
• Red Lotus: Romance, care, love, affection
• Pink Lotus: Spiritual Enlightenment, inner peace
• Blue Lotus: Victory of spirit over knowledge and wisdom (7)

6. Hellebore

This flower is also known as the Christmas Rose. It has a strong presence in ancient mythology and folklore for representing tranquility and serenity.

In Greek mythology, for instance, they believed that Hellebore cures madness. Reportedly, a herder used a black Hellebore on the daughters of King Proteus to heal them.

The Christmas rose is also associated with Christianity. That’s because it appeared in an old legend after sprouting in the snow from a girl’s teardrop in Bethlehem.

That said, this flower has a bit of an evil side to it, as it may also represent stress, scandal, and anxiety. (8)

7. Lavender

The beautifully hypnotizing Lavender flower is a symbol of calmness as well as purity. With its amazing color variations, it also represents devotion, serenity, and silence.

As you may already know, purple speaks of royalty and luxury. Furthermore, it’s associated with the seventh primary chakra. This means that it’s directly connected to spiritual enlightenment.

The Lavender plant has a variety of therapeutic uses as well. Dried lavender tea, for example, reduces stress and calms people down. The lavender essential oil has a calming effect too. (9)

Animals Symbolizing Calm

Let me tell you more about spirit animals. It’s the entity that shares certain characteristics with the person. This animal usually helps and guides you on your journey. (10)

Just like flowers, animals represent quite intriguing symbols, like strength, majesty, fertility, and even bad luck.

Here are three of the most well-recognized animals representing calmness.

8. Humpback Whale

Humpback whales are as mysterious as the oceans they live in. They often represent peace, calm, love, and compassion. (11)

You can hear them singing thousands of miles away. What’s even more fascinating is that, for each month, humpback whales sing a different song.

Additionally, they’re able to repeat the song they sang in the exact same location months apart. Impressively, these songs can help calm people down on many occasions. (12)

9. Manatee

This gracious animal is a symbol of kindness, gentleness, calm, vulnerability, and peace, especially in Native American culture.

That’s because when you see a Manatee in the water, you notice that they’re incredibly mellow. They float peacefully, eating sea plants and algae.

They’re the only herbivore sea mammal. That’s why people tend to associate them with peacefulness, as they don’t hunt.

If you notice that manatees have a close temperament to elephants, you’re correct. Genetically, elephants are the closest relative to manatees on land. (13)

10. Ox

Across the ages, the ox has had many different symbolic meanings all over the world. This animal is known to be gentle, strong, and persevering.

In France, the ox is a symbol of peaceful strength, calm, and kindness. However, in other cultures, the word ox sometimes expresses negative characteristics, like dumbness.

That said, in Korean culture, the ox represents patience, hard work, and honesty. According to their beliefs, the ox year brings happiness and peacefulness.

In Russian culture, on the other hand, the ox symbolizes power and stamina. However, they sometimes describe it as stubborn. (14)

Colors Symbolizing Calm

Colors have the ability to manipulate and shift human emotions. They have deep psychological effects on the way we perceive the world.

Some colors can be agitating, stimulating, or stress relieving. Here are three of the colors that have calming effects.

11. Blue

Blue is one of the most peaceful colors. It symbolizes calmness and tranquility. That’s why it helps with stress management. (15)

Moreover, it has a positive impact on the mind. Oftentimes, people tend to feel comfortable around the color blue. This is because it represents understanding and patience. (16)

12. Pink

A tranquil and soft color, pink induces calmness and balance. While many people associate this color with femininity and romance, it sometimes can be aggravating.

According to the shade you use, pink can be either a peaceful color or a bothersome one. Lighter shades of pink can have a calming effect, like the “drunk tank pink.” So much so that they sometimes use this color in prison cells to calm irritated inmates. (17)

Other Symbols of Calm

There are many other symbols representing calmness through different ancient and modern cultures. That’s because most people are always seeking peace in life and the afterlife.

Take a look at two of these symbols.

13. Sei Hei Ki

The actual meaning of the phrase “Sei Hei Ki” is” God and man become one.” Meditators use this symbol during the healing Reiki practices.

It basically targets mental and emotional well-being. Additionally, it helps create harmony between the conscious and subconscious mind.

The Sei Hei Ki practice aids people with traumatic experiences to open up, achieve emotional balance, and calm down. (18)

14. Anahata (Heart Chakra)

Anahata is the fourth chakra and it’s directly linked to feelings of love, compassion, and kindness towards others as well as yourself.

Aside from that, the heart chakra also controls how calm you are during any given moment. When it’s well balanced, you tend to feel serene and calm in your life. (19)

A Final Thought

People, throughout the years, have always associated many human characteristics with elements of nature.

Linking wisdom to owls and love to red roses are examples of this behavior, but how about symbols of calm?

Certain flowers, animals, or even colors can symbolize calmness. For instance, seeing things like a Lotus or a humpback whale, even thinking about them, can instantly make you feel calm.

Although the meanings behind a few of the mentioned symbols may vary around the world, most people would agree on them being symbols of calm.

References

1. Almanac.com
2. Petalrepublic.com
3. Smartgardenguide.com
4. Symbolsage.com
5. Perfumesociety.org
6. Ftd.com
7. Snapblooms.com
8. Petalrepublic.com
9. 1800flowers.com
10. psychologytoday.com
11. Worldbirds.com
12. Universeofsymbolism.com
13. Uniguide.com
14. Ai.glosskia.com
15. Moffitt.org
16. Color-meanings.com
17. Verywellmind.com
18. Symbolsage.com
19. color-meanings.com