Elves, Fairies, and things like that...
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Did it ever happen to you , while walking in the woods, in the countryside or in another place where the noise of the city doesn’t disturb the perfect and harmonious equilibrium of nature, to hear some strange voices and giggles or to feel movements behind your back ?
The answer could be the wind and some small animals, but why don’ t we give space to imagination and think about magic creatures ?
NORDIC MYTHOLOGY
We can divide two main groups, to whom the Gods gave form and superhuman intelligence:
-THE DARK ELVES; DWARFS,TROLLS; GNOMES; KOBOLDS:
dark, treacherous and cunning by nature, banished to Svart-alfa-heim, underground; they were never allowed to come out during the day, under penalty of being turned to stone.They spent their time in exploring the secret recesses of the earth. They collected gold, silver, and precious stones.
-FAIRIES; LIGHT ELVES
: They were fair, good and useful, and they populated the airy realm of Alf-heim, between heaven and earth, whence they could flit downward whenever they pleased, to attend to the plants and flowers, sport with the birds and butterflies, or dance in the silvery moonlight on the green.
DARK ELVES
(Trolls, Brownies, Goblins, Pucks)
"You are the grey, grey Troll,
with the great green eyes,
but I love you, grey grey Troll,
You are so wise!!!"
(from the legend of the little fay)
These creatures, invisible thanks to their magic red cap, use to hide behind rocks and repeat the last words of conversation heard. The cap was called TARNKAPPE, and without it the dwarfs don’t dare to appear above the surface
The dwarfs were ruled by a king, Oberon. He owned, among his great treasures a magic ring, an invincible sward and a belt of strenght.
The dwarfs were very good at manufacturing weapons or jewels, and fashioned a lot of marvellous objects for men (es. the point of Odin’s spear Gungnir, the hammer Miolnir).
They were generally kind and helpful, but if ill-treated they would forsake the house they used to help in different tasks.
When the old gods ceased to be worshipped in the Northlands, the dwarfs left the country forever.
We can find a Testimony of the passage of the Trolls, for example in Norway, where The PEAKS of the Trolls are supposed to be a scene of the conflict between two bands of Trolls, who omitted, while fighting,to notice the approach of sunrise, and were transformed into rocks that stand up upon the crests of the mountains.
THE LIGHT ELVES
They are small, pure and lovely,and often glided down to earth on a moonbeam.They love dancing,and taking care of flowers birds and butterflies. During their dances they form fairy rings which you can see by the deeper green of the grass which their feet have pressed.
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"Merry elves, their morrice pacing
to aerial minstrelsy,
emerald rings on brown heath tracing,
trip it deft and merrily."
If any mortal stands in the middle of one of these fairy rings he can see the fairies and enjoy their favour.
The elf-dance is irresistible that everyone who hears it can’t stop from dancing.
The fairies were ruled as well as the dwarfs,by Oberon,who governed fairyland with his queen Titania.On Midsummer night all the fairies congregated around him and danced.
"Every elf and fairy sprite
hop as light as bird from brier:
and this ditty after me
sing,and dance it trippingly."
(Shakespeare,Midsummer-night’s Dream)
The elves could do mischiefs to human beings,like knotting horses’manes and tails.
Many of the elves were supposed to die with the trees and plants which they tended.
(Info taken from the beautiful book THE NORSEMEN,by H.A.Guerber)
