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Fairy Gold

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What Is Fairy Gold?

Fairy Gold’s Definition
in Myth, Fairy Tales, and Other Lore

Lore, myth, and Fairy tales warn,
“Beware of Faerie gold.”
Lore, myth, and Fairy tales insist,
“Fairy gold is a trick,
a cruel deception.
Fairy gold will turn to leaves in your pocket.”

The warnings are the cruel deceptions:
They are pseudo-spirituality,
biased scholarship
meant to stop you from
trusting your Fey kin,
using magic,
and honoring your Goddess-given desire
for prosperity and good luck.

Lies about Fairy Gold and the Fair Folk

I wrote this essay because lies about the Fey Folk make me heartsick. (I will explain why momentarily.) I saw no one countering the lies, let alone offering alternatives. So this essay is comprised of some of my own.

Though the essay focuses on lies about Fairy gold, it also rectifies other lies about the Fair Folk. So mote it be!

Fairy Gold Is Not Fake
It is Real Wealth

Fairy gold turns to leaves in my pocket? How lovely!
How blessed!
How wealthy
to have a pocketful of leaves!
How fortunate.

They are herbs that heal my body.
They are greens for a salad.
They are fodder for a cow,
so its meat can nourish mine.

Not all lore and myth is gold.
Often they have been stolen, tossed aside,
and replaced with false ore.

Fairy Gold Is Real Treasure

Fairy gold does not always turn to leaves.
It might stay gold. I can buy herbs, salad greens,
fodder for cows, cows, meat from the grocers,
a home that shelters and pleases me,
and all other necessities,
including what will nurture my
joy and usefulness to others.

Fairies, Deception, Whimsy, Love

Deceptive tales insist that Fey folk
are nasty,
hate humans,
play cruel tricks,
and whimsically cause human tragedy.

Fairies and other mythical beings
have taken care of me lovingly
since my birth.

More about Fairies, Deception, Whimsy, Love

The Fairy Folk are playing a trick when they offer gold.
Not a cruel deception, but creative whimsy.
It is a loving surprise: When you return from Fairy realms,
examine your pockets’ contents.
Find their worth.
Is it what you asked for?

It is what you need.
So mote it be!

Fairies Love Humans:
Fairies, a Ruling Class, and Propaganda

This essay counters lies by pointing them out and providing alternatives. Everything in the essay was learned through personal experiences:

I have spent 76 years traveling with the Fey. These remarkable companions saved my life, giving me an abundance of magic, love, and wonder, to say the least.

I have adventured through Fairy realms and come back to the mundane world better equipped to create a wonderful material and spiritual life.

For decades, I have noticed the deceptive ruling class’s lies about magic and Fairies.

The ruling class tries to stop anyone—except themselves— from having power. So they lied about Fairies. This made most people forget humankind’s long-standing beneficial alliance with the Fair Folk. Old stories were twisted. Forgetting the history of their ancestors, people stopped turning to Fairies.

This meant most people lost the help Fairies can give for everything from creativity to abundance. The Fair Folk have always helped humans fight oppression and lifted up the oppressed.

Slander that is the exact opposite of the truth about the kind and beautiful Fey makes me heartsick. It makes me heartsick that a ruling class would lie to stop humankind from turning to the Fey for help to be prosperous, grow healthy crops, be inspired in their art, and more. It makes me heartsick that deception keeps people from the beautiful, happy companionship that the Fey give me.

Let’s address the etymology of Fairy gold. That will create a foundation for further explanation of how lies about Fairies entered myth, folktales, and other lore.

Origin of Fairy Gold (Etymology)

The idea of Fairy gold comes from oral tradition. Oral tradition is the oral transmission of a culture’s values, morals, and other aspects, through stories, live music, chants, and more modes.

But ancient stories, music, phrases, and other communications can be twisted to suppress and oppress. Disguised as wise advice, intentionally corrupted forms are meant to sever us from our Goddess-given wisdom or otherwise diminish us. This diminishment includes alienating us from otherworldly allies.

Along with the ones previously mentioned, there are two other sources for this essay. They are my past life memories and common sense. I remember a time before certain ancient wisdoms were warped in both oral tradition and lore. Common sense insists there must’ve been such a time.

I will give examples of the corrupted forms used for propaganda. First, let’s do a spell. That otherworldly moment will build a foundation for those examples.

To cast the spell, simply read the next section. If you don’t consciously experience magic, no problem. Magic is happening. The otherworldly foundation for examples is built:

The Original Meaning of Fairy Gold
The Original Knowledge

Think back,
let your cells think back …
cells travel back … cells feel back …
to before Fairy tales were written down.
Now your atoms feel the original oral tradition.
The original knowledge
tells you the truth about Fairy gold.

The primordial Fairy gold.

Usage of the Term Fairy Gold

Propaganda that feeds oppression replaced the truth about Fairy gold. Now the term Fairy gold appears as a device in folktales and literary stories that supposedly prove the following lies:

* Fairies are awful.

* We should fear them.

* Longing for bounty and happiness is not legitimate. It is greedy.

* Wanting worldly possessions is shallow. So you are superficial if you stand up for your rights to material wellbeing.

* You should scorn momentary happiness, as if being in the moment were not among the most spiritual traits.

* Momentary happiness is an illusion.

* There is no difference between a healthy pursuit of momentary happiness and a pursuit that is an addictive avoidance of feelings, responsibilities, and life itself.

Here is how I use the term:

A Fairy Witch Spell
for Wealth, Joy, and Freedom

A note on the following spell: Despite my lifelong, wonderful experiences with the Fey Folk, a lot of evil Fairies exist. They will play cruel jokes and deceive you to destroy your life. They rejoice in making people suffer.

For example, I said above that examining your pockets will reveal something you need. That is not true if a bad Fairy gave you a “gift.” When you reach into your pocket, its contents will bite you like a scorpion, even if the “gift” seems like your heart’s desire at first.

Acknowledging bad Fairies and the harm they do is vital. As is learning how to protect yourself from them. So I will address that in a moment. But rejecting all Fairies is like rejecting all humans because of the harmful ones. It would leave us isolated. Then good humans and Fairies cannot help protect us from the bad ones. Oppressors’ insistence that Fairies are inherently bad is a tactic to isolate you.

Bad Fairies often prey on humankind, usually without humans noticing.

My essay, Ethical (and Unethical) Fey Teachers, has more information about bad Fairies and their human pawns.

There is also more about how to deal with bad Fairies at the end of this essay, where I also discuss revisiting the essay while keeping in mind evil Fairies.

The following magical spell fosters an alliance with kind Fey. It also fosters the ability to tell the difference between good and bad Fey.

And with that, here is a spell that is one of my alternatives to Fairy gold being used in deceptive lore.

The spell consists of a series of affirmations. The affirmations are also informative. To perform the spell, simply say the series of affirmations, silently or aloud. There is no need to recite in a special way. Simple spells are sometimes the most effective ones.

I have kindly Fey kin.
The Fairy Queen and King are my kin.
My Fey kin honor my longing
for bounty and happiness as sacred.
They know that worldly possessions
and material wellbeing are important.
They help me stand up for my rights.
They celebrate my happiness.
They help me be in the moment
because they understand that being in the moment
is the greatest source of true happiness.

Fairy gold turns to dust.
Everything turns to dust. Even stars.
I am stardust.
Crumbling to dust is part of life. It does not invalidate life.
Dust is part of the circle of life.
I am constantly reborn,
letting a moment fade away
and being reborn in a new moment.

Fool’s gold is a synonym for Fairy gold.
I am gratefully a fool:
Belief in life’s goodness is
gorgeous, happy, sacred tomfoolery.

I will not be the fool open to every Fey.
I will be careful
and discerning.*
I ask my good Fey kin to guide and protect me.
I examine the situation—including my motives—
to know whether good or bad Fey have arrived.**

Fairy gold,
Fairy gold,
Fairy gold.
It is wealth.
It is the loving camaraderie of my Fey kin.
It is the moment.
Fairy gold.

I have spoken truth. So it is!

Notes:

* When assessing the morality of a Fairy, I suggest you reread this essay. While reading, keep in mind that my remarks about leaves in your pocket vs a scorpion ready to sting are not the only exceptions to my statements about the goodness of Fairies. This should help your evaluation of a Fairy.

It felt important to write the earlier parts of this essay in the manner that Italians call “taking a position.” That can mean, as was the case with the earlier parts of the essay, portraying a nuanced situation as black-and-white, to make a point. Lyrical composition was needed to bring the point and its magic home. Lyric could not have accomplished that without taking a position.

(My perfectionism is telling me: Doing the hard work of writing the lyric and this follow-up disclaimer will equip me to construct lyric that does not require taking a position. My perfectionism adds that I need to walk away from this essay for a year so my subconscious can process the writing I’ve already done, so I can rewrite it. Shhh. Though I often walk away from a piece for months if not years, until I know how to write it, that doesn’t feel necessary for this essay. Its points have been presented with depth and nuance, which has been quite an accomplishment. And no one else is making these points so it’s time to make them. Shhh, perfectionism, I am telling you the truth, shhhh.)

** If you need more help assessing the morals of a Fey being, make an an appointment for a psychic consultation. Often, situations are so individual that there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. Decades ago, I became the go-to person for individuals facing challenges with otherworldly matters. I was trained for this work from childhood and learned even more over the decades I have done it.

There are more lies about Fairies than I covered here. If certain lore—or modern opinion—about Fairies seems wrong to you, and you would like me to address it, tell me in the comment field below. Even if you don’t know why the lore or opinion puts you off, I am happy to look at it and share my thoughts.

Africa—The Origin of Fairies

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Africa—The Origin of Fairies

Contents of Africa—The Origin of Fairies

Who Were the Original Fairies (Faeries) of Ancient Lore?

The Appropriation of African Fairy Culture and Magic

Goddess Tiamat—The Babylonian Origin of Mermaids

“It’s Not True to the Original Vision” Is a Racist Remark

Every Culture Has Wondrous Fairy Lore and Myth

Faerie Magic Isn’t a Commodity for Oppressors to Appropriate

Faerie Secrets & Sacred Mysteries Thrive Only in Shamanic Cultures

Honoring African Faery Faith Ancestors

Diversity, the Fairy Witch, Magic How-To Books and Classes

Here’s one of the most frequently asked questions about Fairies and the ancient Faery Faith:

Who Were the Original Fairies (Faeries) of Ancient Lore?

The original Fairies (Faeries / Faery / Fey …) were an ancient African tribe near the Dahomey coast. They were people of tiny stature and migrated throughout the world, teaching their enchantments.

That history was taught to me orally decades back (by someone who needs to remain anonymous) and still makes sense to me. Africa has been the birthplace of so much of the world’s culture that it likely had to be an initial source of magical culture. (Later, this post touches on how magic is not separate from culture.) Plus almost every ancient society has lore about a small, dark, magical people. One example is the Menehune—the Fey Folk of Hawaii.

Lore about the origins of Fairies differs. Some, at least on an overt level, are more mystical than what I’ve provided here. But I find none of the versions incongruent with the others.

For example, it is said Faeries descended from human women who mated with Gods. Ancient stories of Gods falling in love with human women were worldwide. Whether such lore is taken literally or not, myths in which humans and Deities couple are part of many cultures. These myths have deep roots in humankind’s psyche and echo a Fey origin that is fairly consistent outside of colonizer culture, even if we never know the actual events that underpin the myths. Not speaking necessarily literally here but, perhaps the aforementioned migratory individuals of Africa were the first descendants of women who dared to be adored by a God.

(For other lore about Fey origins, click here: Fairy, Faerie, Faery, Fey, Fay, …)

Note: I tend to use the following words interchangeably: Fairy, Faerie, Faery, Fey, Fay, Fae, … If you want to know why, click the link in the previous paragraph.

The Appropriation of African Fairy Culture and Magic

White writers almost never cite the tale of migrating Fey Africans. This lack exemplifies Africans and people of the African Diaspora originating something that is then credited elsewhere. In this case, it is the insistence that Fairies are innately a European construct.

Also, racists consistently turn BIPOC away from the very things their cultures helped create. If drawn to European shamanism, they are often treated condescendingly or excluded. When they dress up as Fairies for cosplay, they are often harassed in cosplay groups.

And lack of representation of BIPOC in modern fantasy art, literature, and film has been rampant.

Goddess Tiamat—The Babylonian Origin of Mermaids

At the time of this writing, there is tremendous backlash against Disney for selecting Halle Bailey, a black woman, to play Ariel. Ariel, the lead character in Disney’s live-action remake of The Little Mermaid, is a mermaid.

This brings to mind another erasure: Tiamat, an ancient Babylonian Goddess, was the forerunner of all mermaids. No way was She Anglo.

After examining a goodly number of online debates and articles about Disney’s casting choice, I have not seen one mention of Tiamat. It hurts my heart that Her erasure has been thorough enough that I saw no one bring up Tiamat to counter arguments that a white woman was the only appropriate person to play Ariel.

I hope mentioning Tiamat here helps a little in healing wounds from the racist comments that Halle Bailey should not have been cast in the role.

“It’s Not True to the Original Vision” Is a Racist Remark

The lack of diverse representation in modern fantasy art, literature, and film is starting to shift. But it’s a bare beginning in the face of the overwhelming colonizer culture that portrays whiteness as the norm.

(One of the exceptions to white-only fantasy movies before recent shifts is Hong Kong Cinema’s decades-long fantasy genre. Check it out if you like fantasy because it includes the most visually-stunning, pulse-racing, wildly-imaginative movies I’ve ever seen.)

One argument against Halle Bailey playing Ariel is “It’s not true to the original vision.” That’s a racist remark. For one thing, the original vision was Babylonian.

At this point, a racist will want to interject, “I was referring to staying true to the Hans Christian Andersen version from which Disney adapted their script.”

Sorry, no go. Hans Christian Andersen contributed a lot to the world, but his work also upholds racism. Disney’s cast selection is helping remedy that.

Racists are insisting that casting BIPOC in the current Lord of the Rings series goes against Tolkien’s original vision. Going against his vision is a good thing. His vision was racist.

Supposedly erudite arguments that putting BIPOC in Fairytales is inconsistent with the original tales are erroneous. Often, white people’s Fairytales are Anglicized bastardizations of BIPOC’s lore or myth.

“Upholding tradition” often means maintaining the tradition of systemic oppression.

Well-meaning white people who say, “We need to change representations of Fey legends to be more inclusive” might want to examine that sentence. It defines “we” as innately white. The global majority is not white.

Much of that majority population never viewed Fey creatures as only Scandinavian, Welsh, French, German, etc. Fairy Folk are part of most native cultures.

Every people has wondrous Fairy lore. This prevalence of beauty and power is something to celebrate, not deny.

Every Culture Has Wondrous Fairy Lore and Myth

Whether Fairy lore is Polynesian, Chinese, European, or stems from another place, it shows humankind has always had a relationship with Fairy magic. It is a human heritage that left its marks in all societies and belongs to all people.

For example, Witches centuries back in my Italian family lineage and in many ancient Mediterranean villages viewed the Goddess Diana as the Queen of Fairies.

Faerie Magic Isn’t a Commodity for Oppressors to Appropriate

Magic is not a commodity for oppressors to steal for their greedy purposes. Lore throughout the world tells of Fairy magic spells that free us from oppression. The Goddess Diana was known as the champion of the oppressed.

Magic is not an object like gold in the earth that someone can cleave from rock for selfish ends. Magic is not an object to be owned. Magic is a heritage. Magic is not separate from its environment. When stolen, the Fairy Queen’s magic spells become impotent. Here’s why:

Faerie Secrets & Sacred Mysteries Thrive Only in Shamanic Cultures

For me, Witch spirituality includes living in the understanding that everything is connected.

Faerie secrets have context. Mysteries abide in Shamanic cultures. (For brevity’s sake, I am not defining Shamanic culture here. If you need a definition, imagine what it might be. You’ll probably be close enough to understand the rest of what I’m saying.) Faerie secrets are stripped of magic when they are stolen, their cultural context dismissed.

No wonder many dishonorable culture-thieves who divide all of life up into components insist that magic doesn’t work.

Another reason they can’t find magic’s power:

Magic is the living presence of the old Gods’ loving care of Their human children. Cultural thievery breaks the link to the Gods and hence to magic. In other words, ripping magic from its culture disintegrates connection to source, which ultimately is Deity.

Honoring African Faery Faith Ancestors

The British Isles’ ancient Faery Faith is not a rigidly-defined entity, divorced from the rest of the globe. African spirituality and the Faerie Faith were never separate. The Faerie Faith originated in Africa.

Another thing Witch Spirituality means for me is that the Old Gods are my ancestors. This is more than a belief. It is also my experience.

I believe in greatness because I experience the Old Gods’ powers in me.

But no one can honor or stay connected to the Old Gods unless they honor their human ancestors. That includes humans to whom they are not related but who helped create their culture.

And all humans are related, so there we are.

As to more immediate ancestors—both cultural and biological—I’ll use myself as an example. Traditional African-based spirituality is strikingly similar to the ancient European Shamanic family lineage in which I was raised. Africans are among my Faery Faith ancestors in more than one generation. Many Africans lived in the ancient Mediterranean, intermarrying and influencing its spiritual culture. The same is true of other parts of Europe, though colonizer history denies it.

Dishonoring human sources distances one from the Old Gods.

Part of addressing ancestral trauma is healing trauma from cultural thievery that ancestors suffered. I hope attributing origins in this essay helps that healing some.

Diversity, the Fairy Witch, Magic How-To Books and Classes

I teach Goddess spirituality and Witchcraft as tools for transforming one’s inner and outer realities.

No one should be turned away from magic’s miraculous powers and joys.

Anyone who wants can be a Fairy Witch. Meditations with the Fairy Queen and other Fey rituals belong to everyone. Magna Mater—Great Mother Goddess, Creator of All—is known as the Queen of Fairies, in culture after culture. She is a loving Mother who welcomes all Her children to the empowering magic of the Fey.

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Francesca De Grandis, Fairy Witch and bestselling author of Be a Goddess!, offers long-distance classes, Shamanic counseling, and healings. Her Goddess spirituality embraces practical magic spells. Trained from birth in a Shamanic family tradition of Italian (La Vecchia Religione) and Celtic Witchcraft, she practices Witchcraft that is an ancient Faerie Shamanism. An Italian Witch is also called a Strega. Francesca equates Fairy Witchcraft with Faerie Shamanism. Nowadays, most people do not view European Witchcraft as a Shamanic practice, but traditionally it was for many practitioners.