This Haunted World: You’re a Part of It, and You Have Been for Thousands of Years
Where do we come from? A normal life consists of being born into and then living within a world made up of material building blocks such as subatomic particles, atoms, protoplasm, flesh and blood. But to say we were born "into" a world implies there is an "outside." Although our five senses have evolved to help us cope with what we usually call "reality," is there a world outside reality that is more "real" than what we usually experience? And does that world cast a shadow that sometimes colors our very existence?
Millions of people for thousands of years have testified to the fact that we live in a haunted world. Ghosts, other-worldly encounters with spiritual entities from both earth and the cosmos, fairytales we read to our children, extra-sensory perception accounts, and UFO encounters all add to the mystery. Some studies indicate that as many as eight out of every ten people believe such a supernatural world really exists.
Many believe in supernatural realms (Public Domain)
Every world religion with the possible exception of Buddhism tells stories about supernatural beings. Get off the beaten path in famous "haunted" landscapes such as Cornwall, Wales and Ireland and you will invariably encounter people who will, after you have gained their trust by sharing a pint or two, tell you about local spirits. When you encounter such folks, you have entered the world of Faery.
Faery Versus Fairy
Notice the spelling I've employed. I'm talking about Faery, not fairy. The difference is important.
Fairies are about entertainment; they are Tinkerbell, Fairy Godmothers, the Good Fairy who places coins under the pillows of toothless children and the Sugar Plum fairies of Nutcracker fame. They have very little to do with the world of Faery we are about to discuss, so if any of these Disney-esq images come to mind, do your best to banish them.
The world of Faery is an old, old tradition. It goes back to the dim, dark, misty memories of the very earliest humans. It has haunted the dreams, legends, and myths of humanity ever since we were first able to think in metaphorical terms. Maybe even before that. It is not bothered by the fact that modern science has declared it doesn't exist. After all, modern science deals with material realities. Faery deals with energies—with non-material realities that lie beyond the reach of the scientific method. The world of Faery is the realm of elemental Earth energy—of individualized, local forces unencumbered with corporeal existence, and demonstrating all the evidence of intelligence.
This is a hard concept for a modern, educated, left-brained person to grasp. Nowadays we have been inundated with cultural baggage concerning fairies. It consists of the worst kind of prejudicial treatment and works by trivializing and dismissing the whole field by employing it only as a make-believe realm for children. It is important that we try very hard to shed this baggage. Our relationship with the earth may very well depend on our doing so. If you live in a town with lights, stores, paved streets and apartment buildings, you may find it almost impossible to do so.
- Caves and Portals: The Hidden World Beneath Us & Rites of Passage
- The Riddle of the Rock Piles—Effigies and Enigmas: A Southeastern Mystery Story – Part I
- Science Versus Religion on Our Ancient Origins: What if They’re Both Wrong?
Such was not the case when our earliest ancestors walked the earth for thousands of years before our generation stalked on to the stage. The ancients were in touch with their environment in a way we are not, and maybe can no longer be today. The mythology they bequeathed us indicates that they sensed not only a unity but an actual intelligence behind it. Isn't it only natural that they pictured it in human form and described it in human terms? How could they have done otherwise? There is no other way to think about it.
