FAIRY LORE: INTRODUCTION
Good Fairies, Bad Fairies
Unlike
modern concepts of fairies as tiny, charming creatures flitting
from flower to flower gathering nectar, the Fay are not
necessarily pretty, small, nor kind. As representations
of natural forces, like nature itself, fairies may be dark
or light, gentle or violent, benevolent or cruel, beautiful
or grotesque. They may not only be any size, but may also
take any shape.
Fairies might arguably be thought of (along with the ancient
nature gods) as manifestations of our subconscious minds'
grapplings to make sense of the ineffable, bewildering,
and often capricious forces of nature -- to "put a
human face on" these.
Alternatively, there are those who believe that fairies
are in fact nature spirits, also known as elementals or
devas.
And then there is an old Christian belief regarding
the origins of fairies -- that when God banished the rebellious
angels from Heaven, some fell on the land and some on
the sea. The former are the fairies, and the latter the
selkies or mer-folk.
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2005 Copyright © C. Maria Plieger
