If indeed they inhabit the same realm, is it any wonder they are sometimes seen together? It has already been noted that many goddesses who are also Faery queens rule over both Faery and the dead, but it is not implied that they are the same. It makes sense that if a queen is ruling a realm, she will rule all the inhabitants of that realm, even if their natures are different. As R. J. Stewart, the respected teacher of Faery tradition, notes, “There is a crossover between the idea of the dead and the faery beings, but they really are quite distinct—the key thing being that the faery beings have never been human…”
Another notable difference is that generally once a spirit has passed over, they will not return to the land of the living, whereas Faery beings have the ability to pass between worlds as they wish. Most instances of “ghosts” are either energetic recordings imprinted on the atmosphere or restless dead who have not passed over for some reason. Spiritual contact via mediums with those who have passed over can be compared to shamanic work, with the medium being literally that: a mediator between the worlds. Considering the nature of Faery and how we perceive energetically through a number of filters, including memory, preconceived ideas, and other impressions from around us, it seems very possible that we might, for instance, see trooping faeries appear as soldiers in period uniform if a battle took place where there is also faery activity. This may well add to the confusion between the two!
It is an accepted part of Faery lore that human souls may be taken into Faery after death (or sometimes physically whilst still alive), so we may well encounter human spirits acting as guides or envoys in our dealings with Faery. This is often the case if someone has had a strong interest and connection with Faery in life, as with the Reverend Robert Kirk, who was famously taken into Faery in 1692 and has been seen in vision and meditation by many since as an otherworldly envoy. It is also a considerable possibility, therefore, that Faery beings may take the journey in the other direction and be born into human bodies.
These are all mysteries from which we may receive insights, fleeting visions, and flashes of inspiration, but the ultimate knowledge remains obscured. Our astral selves may pay a fleeting visit to the otherworld in journey, meditation, or dreams, but we will never truly experience it until we ourselves fully pass over, as those who walk between the worlds must always keep one foot on solid ground. However, through the contact that we do have, we can easily ascertain that though there is indeed a strong connection, there is much more to Faery beings than simply the departed souls of humans and our ancestors.
Aliens
A very modern theory about the origin of Faery beings is that they are actually visitors from another world (as opposed to the otherworld). Advocates of this theory propose that before the days of science fiction, moon landings, and television, the only explanation people could think of for strange lights in the sky and strange-looking people with unusual clothing is that they were a race of magickal beings, i.e., faeries.
There are many intriguing parallels. Crop circles are associated with both faeries dancing and with UFOs landing, though whether either of these is actually responsible is difficult to say. Descriptions of alien sightings often fit exactly with certain kinds of Faery beings, from slender, delicate, and almond-eyed to extremely large and hairy! Also, there is the frequently reported “loss of time” phenomenon, a well-known symptom of Faery contact, and, of course, abduction, which is a huge part of both ancient Faery folklore and the modern folklore of alien visitation. Interestingly, many sightings of UFOs report that they originated not in the sky but from under the ground or the sea.
In fact, this theory is of much more interest when looked at the other way around. Although in this vast and unknowable universe it is not impossible that we would be visited by sentient beings from another world, from what we already know of Faery we can easily see that many modern sightings of aliens and UFOs could, in fact, be Faery experiences. Since Faery beings often take their appearance from the human mind, in addition to the filters within the mind that influence how one perceives energy beings, it is highly possible that in these times of technology and popular science fiction, a Faery being could be interpreted as an alien visitation.
Perhaps both explanations have some truth in them. Who is to say we are not perhaps sometimes visited by the astral forms of Faery beings from other worlds? Or, indeed, that the many instances of similar occurrences may all have different origins and explanations? There are many mysteries in this world.
There are a number of respected authors who claim that ancient civilisations were visited by ancient astronauts, who brought with them knowledge of stellar cartography. The Dogon people of Mali, which is in Western Africa, claim to have been visited in ancient times by tribes from among the stars, who taught them much about mathematics and the movements of the stars and planets. Early accounts of the Tuatha de Danann’s arrival in Ireland talk of them arriving in flying ships or great clouds, so if you believe in alien visitation, it is not such a wild theory. Certainly the idea that the Faery race that dwells
