Faery magick is not to be taken lightly.  The realm of the Tuatha de Dannan, the Sidhe, and the Fae is to be approached with respect, courtesy and caution.  Do a little research and be specific before you go banging on the doorway to the Faery realm

Why?  Because you are dealing with a whole different realm.  Faeries are considered by some to be from the kingdom of the elementals.  Others consider them a separate race, known as the Tuatha de Dannan.  There are tales that faeries are actually angels who refused to choose sides when Lucifer was rebelling, and so in punishment they were sent forever to the Earth.  You will have to decide for yourself who and what you believe them to be.

If you are interested in working with these enegies, your best bet would be the garden-friendly gnomes, brownies and slyphs.  They help create plant colors and facilitate the growth of flowers and trees.  Gnomes are often perceived to be gnarled, diminutive old men.

Brownies are household fairies.  They are said to appear as small, brown and furry like men.  They protect the home, guard your property and look out for your children and animals.  Brownies will also help keep your house clean...if you show them kindness.

The sylphs, air elementals, have their own energies and powers.  They represent the creative force of the air elmeent:  inspiration, intuition and knowledge.  Sylphs appear to us as a classic storybook type of faery or angel.  There are some gently sylphs and even plant spirits that could pass as a Tinkerbell type of faery--you know, the ones that you've pictured as little air sprites, fluttering about with gossamer wings.  Those are the safe sort you'd like to have working with you in the garden.  I like to think of them as flower faeries.

Rarely physically seen, these flower faeries make their presence known by walking through your hair or making the leaves on the plants bounce and the petals on the flowers quiver for no apparent reason.  They help care for the garden and also enjoy families, pets and children.

But we must remember that Nature is an entity unto herself.  She has many faces, some gently and others not.  The spring breeze that refreshes you can turn into damaging winds during severe thunderstorms.  The same creek that babbles by your backyard may domonstrous damage in a flash flood situation.  Nature is a paradox.  So, too, is the faery realm.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

The Tuatha de Dannan once were treated as gods in pagan Ireland.  For instance, these old gods of the earth were at one time so feared it was forbidden to say the word "faery."  They were referred to instead as the Gentry or the Good People.  The Irish faery beliefs are the most detailed and generally held, and include many types and varieties of faeries.  Some are grotesque and almost all are formidable, but what strieks me most of all are the tales of the great beauty of most of the faeries.  Over and over we hear legends about their love of music and poetry, faery feasts and rides and the beauty of faery women and the faery horses.  The Welsh tale of Rhiannon should be a prime example.

Rhiannon's story goes like this.  A prince named Pwyll decided to challenge himself by sitting on a hill (faery mound) and tempting fate.  Legend stated that any man who sat upon this hill would either receive a "great blow" or see something amaxing.

What Pwyll saw was Rhiannon:  a beautiful woman in gold, slowly trotting around the hill on a whwite horse.  Captivated, the prince called for his fastest rider to go and fetch the fair maiden, but no matter how fast he went, she was always just ahead and out of reach.  Pwyll tried it himself, wearing himself and his horse almost to the point of exhaustion.  Still rhiannon's pace never changed and she remained just ahead of the prince.

Finally, in frustration, the prince called out to Rhiannon and asked the lady to please stop.  She did so immediately, and turned to look at Pwyll with amusement.  She then told the prince that it would have been better for the horse if he would have but asked her earlier.

For Pwyll it was love at first sight, and he asked Rhiannon to marry him.  Rhiannon accepted.

There is thought to be a connection between the realm of the Faery and the dead, but the grandeur of faeries seems to derive form their godlike qualities.  IN Ireland, more than anywhere else, the faeries are often thought to be shadows of the old gods of the country.  In other magickal places, such as Scotland, beliefs are different.

Here the emphasis is placed on the good and the bad among the faeries.  Sometimes you will see this referred to as the Seelie and Unseelie courts.  Caution is suggested.  There are many monsters in Scottish faery legend, the kind that come slithering or crawling out of the mist--not to mention the Cailleach Bheur.  An aspect of the Crone goddess, the Cailleach is the personifcation of the typical hunchbacked old crone stirringthe smoking cauldron.  What does she look like?  The Halloween-type, hook-nosed old witch--wise, all-seeing and a little frightening...be careful, or she just might get you too!  Some modern authors have described her as being blue-faced and sporting fangs.  Now that's creepy.

The Cailleach is from the Highlands, and she is a more elemental and imposing faery character.  The key word here is elemental.  It is fascinating how the Cailleach ties into the faery mythology.  This is a goddess of the land; the Highlands, to be precise.  Today, the Cailleach is a powerful representation of the Crone.  Sure, she may be a little scary, but if you approach her wisely and cautiously, you just might learn something.

You need to acknowledge and understand just who and what you are dealing with.  The faeries are considered to be good-hearted and merry.  They are also fickle, easily offended, obstinate and quick to anger.  The old beliefs abut the dangers surrounding the shifting glamour of Faeryland are ones to take into consideration.

Yes, there are many tales of elven heroism and faery beauty.  These fantastic beings are often imagined as suitable for a child's bedtime story, with the traditional tales of enchanting music and their love of sports and revelry.  There are also just as many dark legends as well.  In reality, try thinking  of the Faery Kingdom as the good, the bad and the urgly.  You better believe they can still make their presence felt and known.

The poet W. B. Yeats was fascinated by the faery realm, but he was warned by an Irish medium to be careful, and not to seek to know too much about the Fae.  That's good advice.

Some people make the mistake of working with the faeries without realizing exactly what they are getting into.  Be very particular.  If you call them, they will come.