Celtic Irish Fairy Faeries Nature Spirit Info.

Celtic Faeries Elves Leprechauns Sidhe Shining Ones

Celtic Faerie Tradition

Irish Leprechaun - Celtic faeries There are faery beings all over the world, but perhaps Celtic faeries have influenced Western tradition, spirituality, art, literature and everyday life more than any other.

Brigit, Guinevere, the Morrigan and Rhiannon, are among the names of Celtic faery beings that still pop up in modern literature, art and song.

The faery women of Avalon are woven into our beloved Arthurian legends, including Morgan le Fay and the mysterious Lady of the Lake, often equated with Nimue’. They frequently appear in modern movies and books, though usually in distorted ways.

The West has embraced these media versions of Celtic faeries in an unusual way. Once feared and respected, faeries have now morphed into humanized characters in films, at best, or cute little winged flower fairy cartoons and Christmas elves, at worst.

But who are they really?

Welsh myths, such as the Mabinogion, feature frequent faerie interactions that offer some insights. These faeries were recognized as powerful, magical, and mysterious beings. They often interacted with humans, but it seems that most humans have now lost the ability to perceive them – or maybe it is the faeries who have excluded us from their lives.

British, Germanic, Icelandic and Scandinavian, faeries are often called elves, as found in Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, and in Ireland they are called the Sidhe.

Faeries of Ireland

Ireland seems to have more than its fair share of faeries, but the truth may be that the Irish have simply been more open and intuitive when interacting with the faery realm.

Indeed, some Irish people today believe they carry the faery bloodlines of their Tuatha de Danaan ancestors. You might be one of them!

The Faery Queen The most often mentioned Irish faeries are said to be ancient cousins of humans.

They are called the Sidhe, the Good Neighbors or the Other crowd and they are said to live under earthen mounds (also called sidhe).

Irish creation myths describe these Celtic faeries, who are also called the Tuatha de Danaan (tribe of the goddess Danu). This tribe of Danu moved underground when humans took over the land and they are said to remain there still.

The Sidhe

The Sidhe are not nature spirits.

They are somewhat like humans, though more highly evolved and living in a less dense vibrational dimension. They seem to take a great interest in preserving the harmony of Nature, at least in the areas they inhabit.

These faeries remain a vital part of daily life in many parts of Ireland even today, though the forces of modernization are rapidly erasing their traces.

Brigid, one of the Tuatha de Danaan, has remained so popular that the Catholic church made her a saint to keep church members from remembering her as the faery goddess she really is.

“Faerie forts” are still respected by many Irish farmers who dare not disturb these natural faery habitations on their lands – even while they claim not to believe in faeries!

And of course we have all heard of the Irish Leprechaun (who may be a distortion of the god Lugh, another member of the Tuatha de Danaan).

World renowned writers and poets such as William Butler Yeats, Lady Charlotte Guest, William Sharp, Ella Young, and many others often wrote about faeries, and these tales were not intended for children!

What’s In a Name?

Because so many people now call nature spirits fairies, and faeries nature spirits, it can get pretty confusing.

And then there is the added confusion about Elves, Sidhe and Faeries that are not nature spirits. These beings are more like humans.

As I understand it, elves and faeries are just different names for the same beings, depending on the culture that is naming them. Tolkien chose to use the word “elves,” because at the time of his writing, gay men were being called fairies.

It seems like our language is evolving to lump them all together, yet there are many distinct and separate types of beings in the faery realms. Though they all inhabit what we call the Otherworlds and interact with each other, there are a lot of differences.

This video by Morgan Daimler does a great job of explaining the difference.

Nature Spirits Are Everywhere

In recent times, the distinction between faeries and nature spirits has become blurred.

No matter where you happen to live, there are nature spirits working to help the trees grow, to push up the flowers in the spring, break down the rotting leaves into compost (faery gold), orchestrate weather patterns and the flowing of streams and rivers, enliven the animals and heal the oceans.

They are called by many different names in different parts of the world, but they are all part of what we call the faery realm, which can be experienced through our inner shamanic journeys to the Otherworlds – and sometimes in our external lives.

Celtic Faeries - Faery testimonials Celtic faeries can include both nature spirits and the Sidhe, depending on who is defining them.

All of these are powerful beings who care more for the welfare of their own kind than for that of individual humans. Yet we can form working friendships with them for our mutual benefit.

This sort of cooperative co-creation may be the saving grace of humanity.

Humans have created a serious imbalance in the world, and our technologies threaten the harmony of life on Earth. Nature spirits often resent us for the damage we have done. It may take time and effort to restore their trust, at least in us as individuals if not in humanity as a whole.

How Can We Help?

It is time that people of the world take a lesson from the ancient Celts:

Leave offerings for the faeries – food, drink, pretty natural things (chocolate, but not anywhere animals could get it)
Respect natural habitats and leave some places wild for the nature spirits
Honor the living beings active in all aspects of nature
Ask plants for permission before picking them
Respect the welfare of animals
Choose a plant diet to lower your environmental impact
Learn to listen to the voices of nature
Share live acoustic music and dance out in nature
Believe in magic!

If you are specifically interested in Celtic Faery Magic,
visit CelticMysterySchool.com

Please send links to your favorite Sources of Fairy/Faerie products and information. Quality websites focusing on Nature Spirits, the Sidhe, and Devas of Nature are welcome to link here.