Faeries ~ Truth and Legends of the Fairy Folk

Faeries ~ Truth and Legends of the Fairy Folk





Tuatha De Dannan

Legends of faeries have been around for thousands of years... but what exactly are they? The word itself is a combination of Middle English and French spelling, however there are other cultures who have legends of these creatures under different names. In Ancient Rome, they were called "fata", meaning one of the Fates of Roman mythology. In Greek mythology, they were part of the Moirai, which was essentially the same thing. These creatures decided the fate of people. In Ireland, legends speak of another race... the Tuatha De Dannan, which were thought to be the "people of the gods".

In English, it became the word "faie" and had the suffix "erie" or "ry" added to it... and came to mean otherworldly creatures who performed specific tasks. It has diversified meanings, anything from being extremely helpful (such as the "brownie" or the "sprite" which would come into homes and clean or otherwise assist while the residents were asleep) or having evil connotations, mainly from Christian propaganda. They are represented in many forms, from child-like winged creatures, to imposing, larger than life elementals of nature.

The four elements of earth, air, water and fire are thought by some to be where faeries originate. By this belief, they are not only creatures meant to help... they are essential to the balance of these elements. This type of faeries have made appearances in literature... such as the Lady of the Lake giving King Arthur the Sword of Excalibur, and the many renderings of winged sylphs that we have become familiar with. These creatures live in harmony with these elements. Fire faeries (or salamanders) are often thought to be mischievous and destructive in nature.


Red Cap Goblin

Another belief, taken from Persian mythology, is that faeries are creatures that were once angels. In this legend, when Lucifer and some of the angels revolted against God and were cast out... there were some that got "caught in the doorway" so to speak. It is thought that they were strongly persecuted by demons, as they lacked the strength to stand up and take one side or the other in their war against God.


Korrigan the Celtic Forest Elf

Nothing did more to seal the negative connotation of faeries than the advent of the Puritan movement. The brownies, sprites, and hobgoblins of yesteryear went from being helpful spirits that were welcomed to evil demons out to destroy souls. The faeries of legend fell to the way of anything that was considered "witchcraft" or "wizardry". Anyone thought to be encouraging their presence was dealt with in the same manner by religious authorities as "witches" or "sorcerers" were. While this severe form of control did not last into modern times... its effects are felt to this day.

Beliefs in faeries as otherworldly creatures has been around for centuries. They have appeared in paintings and in literature, mainly as the winged creatures of children's stories we have all enjoyed. In Gaelic folklore however, they are very powerful beings, descended from gods and goddesses. They are known as the Aos Si, or the "people of the mounds". The mounds where they are thought to exist are called "sidhe". These beings were thought to be tall and incredibly imposing. The people of the villages would refer to them as the "Fair Folk" or the "good Folk" (smiling all the time in hopes that their positive affirmations would keep them in good standing!).

A collection of writings known as the Lebor Gabala Erenn speaks of the legends of Ireland and these people (known also as Tuatha De Danaan). According to Irish mythology, they were one of the earliest groups of people to settle there. The legends say that the battles and invasions of other races wore them down and they retreated to the many hidden mounds (known as the sidhe)... and some believe they never left. Many of these mounds have been discovered to be ancient graves... which to some gives even further credence to their souls remaining there.

Many Scottish legends classify faeries as two types... both are powerful, but the Seelies are known for mischief and tomfoolery, while the Unseelies are more dangerous and malevolent. One of the most disturbing legends of faeries that shows up in many different folk tales is that of the changeling. The changeling was when it was believed a human baby was traded for a fairy child. Depending on the tale, the human child either lived happily in their new environment or was miserable, longing for the life of a human being.


Cottingly Fairy

With all of the legends circulating about these mysteriouscreatures, it begs the question... is there any grain of truth to it all? Supposed documentation of faeries came about in the early 1900's with the Cottingly case. Two cousins claimed to have caught several photographs of themselves with almost storybook-like images of what appeared to be faeries in Cottingly, England. They even captured the interest of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the famous Sherlock Holmes stories. Technology and the later confession of Frances Griffiths, one of the cousins in 1983 indicated the photos are clever fakes.

Many legends and myths have some basis in history... it is thought that what are believed to have been gods and goddesses of ancient times may have actually been great leaders deified as such. Are the ancient mounds in the sprawling countryside of Ireland actually where the Aoi Si were forced underground after so many invasions? It is thought that when they went to live within the confines of the mounds that they entered a dimension outside of our own... a dimension running parallel with ours. If not immortal, maybe these mound dwellers lived there underground until they perished.

Or maybe... their descendants exist there today!

Written by Angela Sangster, Copyright 2010 TrueGhostTales.com
http://www.trueghosttales.com/elves-fairies/faeries-truths-legends.php

Very interesting post I thought you may all like my dear friends and followers

Much love to you dear friends ✿✽¸•♥•.¸✽❤✿ღ

Posted by Cynthia

Celebrating one year Aniversery

Today is one year anniversary since the birth of Fairies and Me. Come celebrate with me my dear friends and follower

I wish to thank you very much for your contributions to this blog, I still have much to share.

Wwith light and love I do send to you

Cyn

Dragon''s some of the oldest Mythological Creatures

Dragon''s some of the oldest Mythological Creatures

Dragons are some of the oldest of mythological creatures, they appear in the cultures of almost all ancient societies. In the earliest times, they were shown with the Great Mother or the water god or the warrior sun god. They had the power to be either bad or good and were considered to be the most powerful creatures in the world.

Tales from many cultures, have created these great beasts giving them many different attributes. The images that we see from history, are made up of different parts of many animals. Most seem to have a lot of alligator and snakelike characteristics. Most have a lion's head plus maybe lion's front legs and eagle's feet. Some have wings and can breath fire.

Chinese Dragons occupy a very important position in Chinese mythology. These Ancient China Creatures show up in arts, literature, poetry, architecture, and many other aspects of the Chinese conscience.

Medieval Dragons images from the Middle Ages history, tend to date the mythical creature from a later period than the ancient China dragons. Unlike the Chinese dragons, these dragon images show this creature to be destructive and evil. Also, dragon artwork from this time almost always show evil dragons. (See Picture)

Dragon Images from this time period seem to have a lot of alligator and snakelike characteristics. Most have an alligator's head plus maybe lion's front legs and eagle's feet. Some have wings and can breath fire. (See Dragon Definitions)

These Ancient Dragons are sometimes known as European dragons or Draco. They are portrayed as evil, and fierce man-eating reptiles that have a tail and wings. They have the magical ability to fly and breath fire. These characteristics tend to be very dangerous and can literally destroy many of the Middle Age villages.

According to Western folk tales from the renaissance, these dragons have some strong magical abilities. They collect treasure and gem stones from the villages they sack and guard it very ferociously usually in a cave.

A lot of the dragon fables and dragon tales are about Knights finding the draconian lair and slaying the dragon so as to take its treasure. There are also a lot of dragon fables about rescuing a princess or fair maiden from the dragons lair.

From the ancient most sacred writings of the Hebrews, the dragon represented evil and death. Early Christianity adopted this belief which shows up in many parts of the Bible. Christian art often depicts the dragon as representing sin. Within this art you will find the dragon being destroyed by saints and martyrs to demonstrate winning the battle between Christianity and the Pagans.(See Picture on left.)

Posted by Cynthia

The Thunder Spirit Garden

The Thunder Spirit Garden 

The Fairy Realm and its Inhabitants

The fairies live in the same world as human beings but in a different dimension, which is known as the Lower Realms; the Lower Realms contain 3 realms, and the different fairy societies live in the first of the 3 realms. The fairy tribes that I work with (or are around me) are the following: elves, gnomes, dwarfs, blue angels, trolls, sylphs, nymphs, flame dancers, salamanders, leprechauns, flower fairies, tree fairies, garden fairies, hobgoblins, brownies, unicorns, fauns and satyrs.

All of the above listed consider themselves to be fairies; the word fairy is to them what we humans describe ourselves as, human beings. Amongst humans are different races and amongst fairies there are different races.

Some of the societies are ruled by a higher court while other are ruled by a king and a queen, for example some of the elf societies listen to a higher court while other elf societies are governed by a king and a queen, or put in other words, each of the many fairy societies has its own court or king/queen.

How to Attract Fairies

Let me share the bad news first: There are many ways to try to attract fairies but making the effort does not mean that they will come to you. I have come across countless websites and books where the authors have long lists of how to attract fairies by performing intricate rituals, casting spells, baking special cookies etc. Unfortunately none of this will work if they do not find you honorable; there is nothing you can do or say to make them come to you if they do not find you worthy.

Fairies choose the humans they want to associate with and if they do not show up there is not much you can do to change that no matter how hard you try. All the rituals or spells in the world will not attract them if they are not comfortable around you. Fairies are able to see what we are all about; they know our true character. I does not matter what we show on the outside because they are able to see and read our energy field and that never lies. Worst case scenario for anyone who tries to invoke the fairy people over and over will be that you make it very comfortable for the dark fairies to move in and then you will have a big mess on your hands because the dark ones create havoc where ever they get an opportunity.

Dark Fairies and Parallel Realms

Before sharing the good news about how to attract the fairy people, I think I should explain some history about the dark fairies. A very long time ago humans and the various fairy societies walked the earth together. They never lived together, rather you could say that the two races (humans and fairies) lived in separate communities and the fairy people allowed humans to visit from time to time. Amongst other things, the fairy people taught humans how to survive by sharing their expertise on earth medicine and how to make use of minerals and metals for use in technology so that we could progress as a race. There came a time when humans thought of themselves as superior to the fairy people and went to war against them to have control over the world and all people. (Not much has change since those days in this regard.) Humans took everything that the fairy people had taught them and turned it against them.

Ever since this betrayal many of the fairy people have shied away from humans; masters in magic and controlling energy as they were (and still are) they moved out of sight from humans to a higher level of vibration, to a different realm of existence. This vibration level has always existed, like a first home, but when humans went against them they decided to move back to this realm and they have stayed there ever since.

While the majority of the fairy people never gave up hope of human and did eventually forgive us, they never have forgotten and still grieve humans’ ignorance and malevolent behavior. Unfortunately there are some fairies (what we call the dark fairies) that have never forgiven us for the way we treated them and they are out for revenge. The dark ones do not care if you are pure at heart and wish nothing but good, all they can see is that you are of that race that once betrayed them.

So what do you do if you suspect that dark fairies have moved in? More bad news: You need help from an expert to get rid of them because putting salt around your home and/or iron and flint stones (traditional things that often are listed as ‘antidotes’ against unwelcome beings) will not help. It is true, however, that any human is more powerful than any negative entity and by a simple command as, “I demand you to leave”, will force them to leave. But by the time that you are aware that dark fairies have moved in, it is very likely that the damage has already been done, that they have accomplished their destructive mission.

The very nature of the fairies – as of humans – is energy, so you can only fight back with energy; you have to find someone who has knowledge of how to connect to a higher level of vibration and from here direct the dark fairies to leave. Shamans are in particular masters of this, and when the Shaman enters into this higher frequency he or she will be aided by the friendly fairy people because they cannot stand hate and anger and they will fight against negativity of this kind. (Side note: “Fight back” may be a wrong term to use because when we ‘fight back’ we usually engage ourselves with anger and hatred which are energies that give the dark ones more power. A more correct way to phrase this is blocking their energy or neutralizing negativity, which Shamans are experts in. Keep in mind also that dark entities are very pleased when they can put fear into humans; they feed off of fear which thus gives them more power.)

Friendly Fairies and Humans

And now the good news: The fairy people (of the Light) do fall in love with humans but not in romantic or sexual ways as we humans put in context with love. Rather ‘fairy love’ is extremely pure and deep. They live and breathe love; they are the most loving spirit beings. Anger, hate, greed, jealousy and so forth are concepts that they will not tolerate or take part in. They operate from love.

For fairies, when they love you they also help protect you against dark fairies. As I mentioned above, the dark fairies wish nothing good to happen to humans. These fairies have not been able to let go of the destructive ways that humans have shown through history, and they seek revenge. But when you are surrounded with the fairies of the Light, you are also protected from the dark ones; the friendly fairy people guard and protect you against them.

When the fairies of the Light fall in love with humans, although it is rare, it is forever and they will never part from you; they will stay with you during many life times – but know that they can turn their back at you temporarily: They detest anger and hate, and they will not be around you if you are angry and/or hateful towards someone or something. Thus there are conditions involved. They will not part ways with you if you keep working on negativity in yourself and in your life. They will forgive occasional ‘slip-ups’, but they demonstrate their dislike by leaving you alone when you feel and/or express extreme negativity. Being upset is a different story: This does not entail extreme negative emotions and they will do their best to cheer you up. After all, they understand that ‘we are only humans’ and they will not part ways with the ones they have chosen to be around.

My husband and I are so very fortunate to work closely with different fairy groups, and the love we share for one another is totally beyond what we usually put in context with ‘human love’. When the fairies fall in love they do not hesitate to share their abundant knowledge, wisdom and insights; they share information on all kinds of mysteries of life; they share information about other realms and about this planet. They educate us in everything from how we can better ourselves and this planet, to how to use botanicals for medicinal purposes. (Their main concern as the guardian spirits of the nature is of course Mother Earth.) But while educating us, they also show their love through tremendous playfulness (they love practical jokes); they will travel with you if you go on vacation; they will cheer you up if you are down by moving small objects around in your house and/or give you something nice that they found somewhere, and they will empower you in different areas of your life.

I remember the time my mentor Keinna was visiting us from Canada. Keinna is of an ancient Shaman lineage and I think a perfect way to describe her vast knowledge is: “What Keinna does not know is not worth knowing”. Or put in other words, nothing is new to her and nothing surprises her. Anyhow, my husband and I were sharing some stories about how we find pennies around the house from time to time that the fairies leave. She got this impish twinkle in her eyes and commented, “If the fairies really love us they would leave silver instead of copper, after all how much can you buy with a penny?” Of course this was all said as a joke. Later that evening she was in our bathroom washing her face. She came out of the bathroom laughing. She opened her hand and showed us a dime. She told us that as she was turning the water on to rinse her face and “someone” threw a dime on her. All she could do was laugh and say, “Well I told them to leave silver!” This is very typical example of the fairies playing around.

I am Lia, A.K.A. Neneah, Medell, Singing Thunder of the Thunderbird Clan

http://www.freewebs.com/thundermedicinebags/aboutme.htm

The Cunning Gypsy (Part 1 of a Fairy Tale)

The Cunning Gypsy (Part 1 of a Fairy Tale)

Once upon a time there was a noble Queen and a young Princess. They lived peacefully in the kingdom of Shayde until an evil King took the throne. He was kind and fair at first, allowing them to live in the castle. Yet as time went on, the King became cold and cruel toward the Queen and Princess. They were so scared that they never left each others side and slept in the same room with the door locked. Their fear became greater when they learned that the King was preparing to execute them by the end of the week.

One day, the Queen and the Princess went to the local market. Within minutes of being in the crowd, the Princess had gotten lost and was panicking. Every shadow held an agent of the evil King and she hurried to escape into the light. She nearly screamed when she turned a corner and bumped into a young, blue-haired woman in colorful skirts.

The young woman tumbled backwards and flipped up to her feet with a pretty smile. “That’s a rude greeting.”

“I am sorry, but you scared me,” the Princess replied. “I am in fear for my life because the King wishes to have my mother and I killed.”

“Then, you should run away,” the young woman stated.

“My mother and I would not know where to go,” the Princess admitted with tears growing in her eyes. “I am the Princess and she is the Queen. Neither of us has ever left the kingdom. The King would surely pursue and capture us.”

“In that case, you’re lucky,” the young woman declared. She bowed to the Princess until her long, blue hair covered the ground. “I’m Sari the gypsy. Escaping is my specialty and I would be happy to rescue you and your mother.”

The Princess was speechless as she looked that young woman. Sari was short and could not be much older than the Princess herself. Yet, the Princess had heard of the mysterious gypsies that wandered the land. They were considered thieves and tricksters by some and heroes and entertainers by others. One look at Sari and the Princess could tell that both stories were probably true.

“What would we owe you for helping us leave Shayde?” the Princess asked out of curiosity.

Sari gracefully spun on her toes as she thought and her hand stroked her chin. “I can get what I want whenever I want. I never find myself in need. Though, I might find something along the way. Promise me you’ll let me have what I want when I ask for it. I assure you that it won’t be steep.”

“You have my word,” the Princess said without waiting to think. “Can we escape the castle tonight?”

“Of course, but you must get me four things,” Sari said. Gently she led the Princess back to the crowd where the Queen fretted and fussed. “A sweet cake, a leg bone, a hook on some twine, and a whistle of wood. Those are all I need to save you and your mom.”

“I will buy those for you before I return to the castle,” the Princess agreed. She hurried to tell the Queen the good news and prepare for their freedom.

That night, the Queen and the Princess were excited and scared. They were dressed all in black and hid coins in their boots, wondering what waited for them beyond the kingdom of Shayde. It was midnight when a click came from the door and Sari wandered in with a smile on her face. The gypsy was still dressed in bright skirts and a cloak, which the Princess thought was odd for a late night escape.

“Why are you wearing that?” the Queen asked in dismay.

“Because these are my clothes,” Sari said with a grin. “May I have the sweet cake that you promised I’d get?”

The Princess politely handed the yellow cake to Sari, who split it in two. To the shock of the Queen, Sari gobbled one half down in the rudest way possible. Before the Queen could speak, Sari walked to the balcony and threw open the doors. She laid the cake on the railing and looked out to the stars.

“We cannot jump from here. We must go out the front door,” the Queen said with concern.

“The King is prepared to kill you at dawn. So tonight we must fly,” Sari happily claimed.

Sari breathed out and a mist left her lips as the magic of gypsies caught on a breeze. The mist disappeared beyond the far walls where a new form quickly came into view. Large wings of brown feathers and fur of gold could be seen in the moonlight as the griffin silently swooped onto the balcony. With a purring coo, the beast snatched up the remaining sweet cake and nuzzled Sari on the head.

“Lucy will take us to the forest’s edge,” Sari said as she hopped on the griffin.

The Queen and the Princess climbed up on the beast and hung on for dear life when it flew to the sky. Several shouts rang out as they saw guards run around the castle. The evil King saw them too and scowled in fury. He would chase them immediately upon his fastest horse, which would still be too slow for the fast flying griffin. Within minutes, the capital city was behind them and they were soaring among the clouds.

Posted on October 22, 2013 by Charles Yallowitz

http://legendsofwindemere.com/2013/10/22/the-cunning-gypsy-part-1-of-a-fairy-tale/