Faerie Lore and Legends

Imbolc or Imbolg a.k.a. Candlemas, Groundhog Day, St.Brigid’s Day, L’ Fh’ill Br’ghde, L’ Fh’ile Bride, Feast Day of St. Brigid, Spring Festival.

Celebrated February 1st or 2nd annually in the northern hemisphere, and August 1st or 2nd in the southern hemisphere.

Cultures: Gaels, Irish, Scottish, Manx, Neo-Pagans, Celtic Reconstructionists, Neo-Druids, Wiccans, Druids, Pagans.

Represents hearth, home, lengthening days, early signs of Spring, the birthing of ewes, milking of Ewes, milk, first stirrings of Spring, St. Brigid, candles, and first feasts.

“I mbolg” is Irish for “in the belly” and refers to the pregnancy of ewes. It has also been referred to as Oimelc referring to “Ew’s milk”. Imbolc is a popular Pagan holiday celebrating the marking of the first stirrings of Spring. Most commonly taking place traditionally on February 1st or 2nd, can take place also as late as February 12th in the Northern Hemisphere, and by new European settlers in the southern hemisphere celebrated around August 1st.

It is a cross-quarter sabbat in modern Pagan faiths as a halfway mark between the Winter Solstice (Yule) and the Spring Equinox. The festival was first recorded to have been celebrated in the Middle Ages in Gaelic Ireland and was referred to as the “Tochmarc Emire of the Ulster Cycle” and was a cross-quarter day festival in Irish Mythology as one of four. The other four cross-quarter day festivals were Samhain, Beltane, and Lughnasad.

Many believe it first celebrated the Goddess Brigid and later turned to represent Saint Brigid. With the growth of the Neo-Pagan movement of Shamanism, Celtic Spirituality, Druidism, Wicca, and Witchcraft, especially in relation to Celtic reconstructionism, “Imbolc” was revitalized as a Neo-pagan religious festival. As it was followed by Candlemas on February 2nd, as the Irish “L Fh’ile Muire na gCoinneal” or “feast day of Mary of the Candles”, Welsh “G?yl Fair y Canhwyllau” the two festivals became blended together.

Because some Irish Neolithic monuments are aligned to this date, such as the Mound of the Hostages at Tara, it is believed the holiday was celebrated much earlier than the Middle Ages. It appears however for the first time from folklore collected during the 19th-20th century in Rural Ireland and Scotland. The holiday represents the hearth, home, lengthening days, early signs of Spring, the birthing of ewes, milking of Ewes, milk, first stirrings of Spring, St. Brigid, candles, and first feasts. It is celebrated with hearth fires, butter, milk, bannocks, divination, seeking of prophecy, omens, oracles, candles, bonfires, weather divination, Groundhogs, badgers, snakes, festivals of light, early Spring celebrations, celebrations of Fire, purification, the Goddess Brigid, or St Brigid.

The Annals of the Four Masters records Brigit to having died February 1st, 525 AD. Others believe this was the date of her birth. Because St. Brigid was believed to have died or born on February 1st, the date has been dedicated to her. The date also coincides with the Festival of St. Brigid of Kildare at this time. The association with Brigid / Brighid / Bride / Brigit / Brid, the festival is also related to holy wells, Brigid’s crosses, sacred flames, healing, poetry, smithcraft, and magic.

In Gaelic tradition, Imbolc also is the time of the “Hag” or the “Cailleach” who gathers her firewood for the rest of winter. If she desires a longer winter, she makes sure the weather on this date is bright and sunny so she can gather more wood. If she’s ready for it to be over, this date will be overcast, cold, or with foul weather. If the snakes come out of their holes, badgers come to the surface, or the groundhog sees its shadow, there will be more winter. If they do not come out, then they are asleep and winter is almost over.

The lighting of fires, candles, bonfires, and hearths represents the return of warmth and the growing power of the sun. As the Feast of St. Brigid, L’ Fh’ile Bride, and Li Feabhra – Candlemas and Imbolc is celebrated as the official first day of Spring. Craft-wise this is honored by the handcrafting of Brigid’s Bed when young unmarried girls would create a corn dolly representing Brigid called the Brideog (Little Brigid) adorned with ribbons, shells, and stones lying on a bed.

On St. Brigid’s Eve (January 31st) the girls would gather in a house for an all-nighter sleepover with the Brideog, only later to be visited by the single young men of the community to come to treat them and the corn dolly with tribute. As Brigid is believed to manifest of Imbolc Eve, another tradition is the leaving of a strip of cloth or clothing outside for Brigid to bless.

Fires that night when extinguished would have their ashes raked smooth, and in the morning, the fire caretakers would inspect the ash for any kinds of markings for a sign that Brigid came through the hearth. Cloth and clothing left out that night would be brought back into the house and believed to possess magical healing and protective energies. On Imbolc, the girls carry the Brideog through the community from house to house where offerings are given to her. The date is also celebrated by the weaving of Brigid’s Cross.

Neopagan celebrations of this festival vary from tradition to tradition, religion to religion. Much of the traditional rites associated with the practices today are based on reconstructionist theory in its beginnings evolving to new traditions today. As previously said, it is a time of purification, and therefore a time of initiations and new beginnings.

Bibliography/References:

• • Adler, Margot. 1979: “Drawing Down the Moon”. Boston: Beacon Press.

• • Bonewits, Isaac. 2006: “Essential Guide to Druidism”. New York: Kensington Publishing.

• • Carmichael, Alexander. 1992: “Carmina Gadelica: Hymns and Incantations”. Hudson: New York, Lindisfarne Press.

• • Chadwick, Nora. 1970: “The Celts”. London, Penguin books.

• • Cultural Heritage Ireland. “Festival of Imbolc and St. Brigit”. Website referenced March 2012. http://www.culturalheritageireland.ie/index.php/irish-history-from-the-annals/80-irish-history-from-the-annals/174-the-festival-of-imbolc-and-st-brigit

• • Danaher, Kevin. 1972: “The year in Ireland: Irish Calendar Customs”. Dublin, Mercier Books.

• • Hutton, Ronald. 1996: “The Stations of the Sun: A History of the Ritual Year in Britain”. New York: Oxford University Press.

• • MacKillop, James. 1998: “Dictionary of Celtic Mythology”. New York: Oxford University Press.

• Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. “Imbolc”. Website referenced March 2012. http://www.wikipedia.org.

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Burns’ Tam O’Shanter, 1792 (1855 illustrations) « Sexy Witch.

Burns’ Tam O’Shanter, 1792 (1855 illustrations)

“Tam O’Shanter” is a ghost story written in verse by the great Scottish poet Robert Burns. Burns persuaded his friend Francis Grose to include a drawing of Alloway Kirk, in his Antiquities of Scotland (1791), which Grose promised to do if Burns would supply him with a ghost story to go with it. Burns wrote a brief version of the story in prose before starting his 224 line poem. Both versions have been quoted in the following account (see here for the prose and here for the poem).
The poem concerns a farmer, Tam. After a night of drinking and story-telling, Tam must ride home to Carrick through a heavy storm. As Tam passes Alloway kirk-yard it is “the wizard hour, between night and morning”. He sees a bright light streaming from the ruined church and, on investigating, he is “surprised and entertained, thorough the ribs and arches of an old gothic window … to see a dance of witches merrily footing it round”. As the dance grows “fast and furious” the women cast aside their cloths and dance in their “sark” (undershirt). Alone among the many “wither’d beldams, auld and droll” (withered grandmothers, old and comical) Tam notices a “winsome wench” in a “cutty sark” (short shirt). After some time observing the young witch dancing, Tam unwisely cries out “Weel done, Cutty-sark!”; at which, the music stops, the lights go out and all the witches give chase. Tam makes for the bridge (since a witch can’t cross running water): “the pursuing, vengeful hags were so close at his heels, that one of them actually sprung to seize him: but it was too late; nothing was on her side of the stream but the horse’s tail, which immediately gave way to her infernal grip, as if blasted by a stroke of lightning.”
The poem was immediately, and immensely, popular: it has been illustrated many times. Artists have shown particular relish in depicting Nannie (the young witch) dancing, chasing Tam, and grasping the tail of Tam’s horse, Meg (or Maggie). The three illustrations below are by John Faed (and engraved by Lumb Stocks and James Stephenson for the 1855 edition). These are some of the best and most frequently reprinted or copied illustrations to Burns’ poem. I have accompanied each illustration (or detail) with a passage from the poem.  (Follow link above or below for the author’s article to continue …)

http://sexywitch.wordpress.com/2006/09/15/burns-tam-oshanter/

Haitian Zombification

A treatise in 1989 on “Haitian Zombies”. Exploring Wade Davis’ work in Haiti with the compound made from tetrodotoxin utilized by witch doctors in creating real-life zombies as slaves.

Purchase the 2025 E-Book version here:
Haitian Horror – PDF Edition

Experience the full text of Thomas Baurley’s classic 1989 research paper, now in a convenient PDF e-book. This edition presents Baurley’s in-depth study from Florida State University on zombies and zombification within Haitian Vodou, with focused discussion of Wade Davis’s primary research and the lasting impact of these stories and beliefs. Baurley traces the journey of the zombie figure, from early cultural accounts rooted in Haitian tradition through the modern fascination found in comics, books, and movies. Drawing on ethnobiological and cultural studies, this work connects scientific, spiritual, and social explanations for zombification, making it a valuable resource for both scholars and curious readers.

As someone who has spent years examining the intersections of folklore and science in the Caribbean, I recognize the rigor and balance Baurley brings. His paper treats both Haitian belief and Western interpretations with care, challenging stereotypes without losing sight of local meanings. This edition is well-suited for researchers, students, and anyone interested in how a single concept can bridge culture, science, and global storytelling.

Product Features

• Complete PDF e-book of Thomas Baurley’s original 1989 research
• Thorough analysis of Haitian zombies and Vodou practices
• Detailed discussion of Wade Davis’s work, including empirical and cultural findings
• Historical overview: From slave-era Haiti to modern media depictions
• References and citations for academic use
• Easy digital access and searchability
• Suitable for academic and general audiences

Pros and Cons

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• Delivers original academic insight not found in mainstream texts
• Balances ethnographic, scientific, and media perspectives
• Includes thorough documentation and references for further study
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Cons

• Focused mostly on research up to 1989, with limited coverage of newer developments
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Baurley’s “Haitian Horror” stands out for its careful research, direct tone, and honest respect for Haitian cultural realities. This document invites further discussion and collaboration, making it a strong addition to any collection on anthropology, folklore, or global pop culture. If you have questions, wish to share your own research, or wish to connect on related projects, please reach out via the provided contact links.

Download your copy and join a deeper exchange on the roots and reach of the Haitian zombie.

Interested in the Original?
Baurley, Thomas: 1989 Haitian Horror: Zombification as Myth or Reality?. Florida State University: 1989.

Saturday, October 16th

The Feri Tradition (Witchcraft/Wicca)

The Feri Tradition, Witchcraft/Wicca

Among the distinguishing features of the Faery tradition is the use of a Faery Power which characterizes the lineage. It is an ecstatic, rather than a fertility, tradition. Strong emphasis is placed on sensual experience and awareness, including sexual mysticism, which is not limited to heterosexual expression. In this, as in the general spirit of spiritual exploration, there is more risk-taking encouraged than in other Wiccan traditions which may have specific laws limiting behavior, and there is a certain amorality historically associated with the Tradition. We see ourselves, when enchanted, as “fey”–not black, not white, outside social definitions, on the road to Faeryland, either mad or poetical. We are aware that much of reality is unseen, or at least has uncertain boundaries. — The Faery Tradition, by Anna Korn – http://www.lilithslantern.com/Faery%20Trad.htm

Most of this data came from a discussion between Pagan folk about what the Feri tradition is. Important facts and details are shared here for definition purposes.

The Feri Tradition, a tradition of Wicca and subset classification of the Neo-Pagan type of Witchcraft, came about through the work of Gwydion Pendderwen, Victor and Cora Anderson. Originally found only on the West Coast of the United States, in recent years it has spread into several parts of North America, and even overseas. The Feri Tradition is adamantly polytheistic, recognizing many manifestations of the Divine from many different places and times. The tradition focalizes its rich lore and practices around specific Feri deities and guardians it honors within the tradition’s rituals and liturgies. These rituals/liturgies are heavily invocatory, to encourage possession, which relies mainly on psychic talent or sensitivity to occur. The term “Feri” has come to replace the term “Faerie” or “Faery” in order to separate it from the various Faerie traditions that exist within the Neo-Pagan religious boom of faiths, beliefs, and organizations seen on the uprise since the late 60’s.

The Feri tradition refers to a belief structure composed of “lore” consisting of teachings, names, stories, tools, specific poetry, liturgies, rituals, and practices. Practices consist of the wide variety of tools the Feri use in the practice of their tradition, such as the “Iron Pentacle”, the “Pentacle of Pearl” (meditation tools). The tradition is influenced by works and passionate beliefs of its founders Victor (such as Huna/Dahomean-Haitian), Cora (southern root and folk magic), Gwyddion (Radical Faeries, Shamanism, Wicca), Starhawk, and other influential members.
They claim, like most Neo-Pagan Wiccan/Witchcraft traditions to not have been influenced by Gardnerian or British Traditional Wicca, owning its own evolution. It claims the traditional secrecy that so many Neo-Pagan witchcraft traditions do, though you can always seem to attend a class on the tradition or be exposed to its works without much difficulty. (I Met Victor and Cora at the Gathering of Tribes in Atlanta, Georgia in 1991 – and they did a workshop on this ‘secret’ tradition offered to all attendings of this public gathering. ) But they do hold strong on the use of oaths and the public view of being a ‘secret tradition’.

The Feri tradition does claim to have a small number of members, and that appears to be true, as is many lesser-known Wiccan tradition do hold true. Every student and member can still trace their lineage of initiation and training back to Victor and Cora. The Reclaiming tradition, spearheaded by Starhawk, is believed to have evolved from the Feri tradition.

http://www.feritradition.org
http://www.witchvox.com/trads/trad_feri.html

The Elf Queen’s Daughters and the Silver Elves

[ This is an update, revision, and expansion of our late 1980’s/early 1990’s pages on the Silver Elves and the Elf Queen’s Daughters we once had published on Geocities, then Faeid.com, then Treeleaves.com, Treeleavesoracle.org, and finally Technogypsie.com. After a bunch of internet research, interviews, correspondence, and discussions, this is the history we have assembled together of all we know about the Silver Elves and the Elf Queen’s Daughters. In addition, those pages are no longer separate and now condensed to a single file since the Silver Elves are now the official representatives of the Elf Queen’s Daughters. The Silver Elves assisted with revisions of this article in February 2011 ]

According to Wikipedia, The “Elf Queen’s Daughters” (EQD) were a group of elves originally operating from the South Bay area of San Francisco, California that later branched off to groups in Seattle, Washington. They had published a newsletter that was themed on “Bringing together male and female elves in celebration of ritual, magic, and the understanding of Fae”. They were Goddess oriented and referred to all of their members as “sisters”. They also possessed similar ecologically-based Pagan beliefs that are common with the modern “otherkin” movement as well as the Church of All Worlds, holding the image of the Earth in like respect to the “Gaia Hypothesis” – as a woman with trees for her hair, rivers for her veins, etc. as their image of the Earth as a physical Goddess, a living breathing Earth. Zardoa, who created “The Silver Elves” was first awakened by the Elf Queen’s Daughters in 1975. The EQD taught Zardoa the casting of Astrological Charts, the I-Ching, and various spells of Enchantment. As an EQD Vortex, Zardoa founded the “Elves of the Southern Woodlands” in 1975 in Carbondale, Illinois soon after his visit to the Aurora Vortex. He was soon joined by Morning Moonstar. Later in 1978, Aeona Silversong also joined the Elves of the Southern Woodlands and Zardoa gifted her that name. A few months later in the summer of 1978, Zardoa awakened Silver Flame who became a part of that vortex before she moved to Gainesville, Fl. She was so much a part of the vortex that when the vortex relocated to Gainesville, Florida in 1979, the group did so to be near Silver Flame. Upon relocation, the Elves of the Southern Woodlands changed their name to the “Sylvan Elves” and in 1980 began publishing the Magical Elven Love Letters in order to share knowledge of the Elven Way to those interested. The “Sylvan Elves” relocated to California in 1981 and took on the title of the “Silver Elves” as they are known today. In 2008 they relocated to Hawaii and are working on volume 3 of the Magical Elven Love Letters, An Elfin Book of Dreams: An Oracle of Faerie, and the Elfin Book of Changes. They are founders and elders of the “Elven Way”.

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