However, if you look into older teachings and folklore, which are the only real written sources we have at our disposal, we can see that there is a distinct race, or perhaps several races, of beings whose existence is clearly connected to, yet independent of, the land. Activities such as stealing babies and kidnapping midwives to look after them, or even stealing away young women for breeding purposes, speak of a dwindling race living out of time, who have, in the past, mixed their blood with ours to keep them from extinction. Are such stories simply propaganda on the part of a church wishing to keep the powers of the otherworld as something to be feared? It becomes very difficult to know for certain. The Faery race (or races) was always considered to be made up of powerful beings who were often to be feared, especially if crossed in any way. Throughout the old tales it is clear that they have lives and a culture that is distinct and comparable with our own, with marriages, births, and funerals. Though it has been suggested that these may be simple mockeries or reflections of our civilization, there seems to be more depth to it than that—some subtle and intrinsic connection with our own lives and events. Through my own otherworldly contacts, I have experienced events that reflect our own customs, but with a very distinct cultural identity of their own. Thus it may be inaccurate terminology to refer to the Faery race as nature spirits, yet they are inhabitants and guardians of the inner landscape of our world, just as we are of the outer landscape, no matter what poor a job we make of our guardianship.
Nature spirits are an extremely important part of Faery work. We may see them as a point of mutual interaction and responsibility between ourselves and the Faery race—and, through them, the world soul, a relationship in which we are currently out of balance. Nature spirits may be found in all traditions around the world, reflecting the nature of the varying landscapes that they inhabit. In the Hindu tradition they are known as Vidyeshvaras, the guardians of the living world. In ancient Greece the legends are full of nymphs, dryads, and satyrs, who often mix and interbreed both with humans and gods. Native cultures around the world have a close relationship with the spirits of their land and a deep awareness of the mutual need for that connection.
It is worth noting that the wilder and more inhospitable to human life the landscape is, the stronger and potentially more dangerous the spirits of that place will be. Hence in mountainous regions you will find great tall beings and races of giants, but in mostly domesticated and inhabited areas, the nature spirits can seem much gentler and smaller, unless there is an underlying power to the place that remains.
Even when experienced in connecting with the spirits of the land, it can take some adjustment when travelling—normally a few days spent in an unfamiliar or ancestrally alien landscape—to make the energetic shift necessary to perceive them, but they are always there. To connect with the living energies of the world around us, from the tiniest flower to the greatest continent, is to live in harmony with our Faery cousins and experience a deeper understanding of the world and its needs. Since the realm of Faery is so all-encompassing and fluid in its nature, it is difficult and confusing to dwell too much on terminology, but it is beneficial to reach the understanding that not all beings that we think of as being Faery have the same natures, powers, or origins. As with any experience of Faery, if we try to grasp it too tightly, our understanding may slip away. Certainly the closer you look, the more blurred any dividing lines become between faeries, nature spirits, elementals, spirits of place, and even the ancient gods.
Julia Jeffrey, “Queen of the Skies”
Ancient Gods
“The earlier Celtic Gods and Goddesses are better represented among the fairies. Morgan le Fay is generally considered to descend from Morrigan, the War Goddess. Aynia, who is the Fairy Queen in Tyrone, is one form of Anu…”
Katharine Briggs, The Fairies in Tradition and Literature
For anyone used to the modern-day disempowered image of the tiny, childlike, winged fairy that lives in a mushroom or shyly hides behind a flower, it would seem quite a leap to suggest that many Faery beings were, or indeed are, gods. However, you do not need to delve very deeply into ancient tradition to discover that most of what are considered to be Faery kings and queens have also been worshipped as gods, nor indeed do you need to take many steps into their world to understand the power that they hold. One of the best-known examples of a crossover between deities and Faery lore may be found in the ancient Celtic myths of the Tuatha de Danann, our best source for which is the famous Book of Invasions. Though the text dates back to the eleventh century, the original sources are widely believed to date back much further, incorporating material from as far back as the fourth century ce.
Through the ancient myths, we learn that the Tuatha de Danann (children of Danu) were a powerful race of magickal beings who inhabited Ireland before they were driven underground by the Milesians, a race
