Shortly after my dad died, I started encountering the most beautiful monarch butterfly — which was odd because my dad died in February, so butterflies were out of season. I spotted it everywhere, and each time I saw it, I thought of my dad. It gave me comfort and made me feel like some part of him was with me. It turns out I'm not alone. Many people associate butterflies with death and the souls of people who have died.
Butterflies & Death: Transformation & Resurrection
In many cultures, butterflies symbolize transformation and resurrection. After all, a caterpillar goes into a cocoon, basically turns itself into goo, and emerges a few weeks later as a stunningly beautiful butterfly. So, it makes total sense that a butterfly represents the transformation of death and the resurrection as something beautiful — a soul.
This imagery plays out in Christianity, as well, where the metamorphosis of a caterpillar into a butterfly is compared with the resurrection of Jesus after his crucifixion.
After-Death Communication Involving Butterflies
In their book Hello From Heaven, Bill and Judy Guggenheim explore the after-death communication (ADC) that people report having with butterflies. They tell stories about butterflies landing on them and staying on them while they move about. Others report a butterfly fluttering around them and encircling them several times. Each story reveals how the person felt a connection with their loved one through the butterfly.
Comfort in Grief
I know that the butterfly I saw after my dad's death gave me great comfort. It felt as if he was there with me, which helped as I processed my grief.
Those who feel they've had a direct sign and communication from their deceased loved ones through butterflies report the event happened soon after their loved one died, just like it did with my February monarch butterfly. When they received a visitation from the butterfly, they immediately felt relief, joy, and comfort — as though their loved one had reached out to them from beyond the veil.
Related: 14 Death Birds From Harbingers to Messages From Loved Ones
Different Meanings and Messages for Butterfly Colors
The different colors of butterflies have specific meanings to those in tune with spiritual meanings, signs, and omens. These range from simple messengers of death to specific messages of hope.
Black Butterfly
Black butterflies represent the cycle of life, from birth to death to rebirth. When you spot them, they remind you that everything has its season, and all states of being are temporary. What lives will die, what dies will be reborn — over and over without end. It's energy never being destroyed or created but just changing form.
White Butterfly
White butterflies are associated with angelic beings (think of the typical cultural view of an angel — wearing all white with white wings). They can also symbolize purity, so a white butterfly could symbolize an angelic being, a soul who is in heaven, or a spirit of a person who was pure of heart.
Brown Butterfly
A brown butterfly represents blessings sent from someone in the spirit world. It could be a blessing from a loved one who has died or a sign that blessings are headed your way.
Green Butterfly
The green butterfly is a symbol of love. Seeing a green butterfly soon after the death of a loved one is a message of love, hope, and joy.
Orange Butterfly
If you see an orange butterfly soon after your loved one passes, then you've just received a vital message of love. The orange butterfly is believed to carry the message that there is life after death and that death is a transformation and not an ending.
Yellow Butterfly
A yellow butterfly appears on the scene soon after a loved one has passed with a message of hope. With each fluttering of this happy sunshine-colored butterfly, the hope of reuniting in the afterlife is made.
Blue Butterfly
Blue represents communication, so a blue butterfly could indicate communication with the spirit of a loved one who has died.
Purple Butterfly
Purple is a spiritual color representing connection with a higher power and spiritual insight. When you spot a purple butterfly (yes, they exist!), it could be a message from someone who has died that helps provide you with some important spiritual insight or reminds you that although they have died, you remain connected through love.
Red Butterfly
The arrival of a red butterfly soon after the death of a loved one is often the messenger of someone who was very powerful and passionate in life. The message is one of happiness, love, and life continuing after death.
How Butterflies Are Messengers After Death
Butterflies seem so otherworldly with their vivid colors and the way they flutter on the breeze. When you encounter them, they could be communication from someone who has died, or they could come to bring you peace, comfort, and spiritual sustenance as you grieve the loss of a loved one.
