Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Pagan
Fairy Propaganda on TV and Learning the True Sight

Fairy Propaganda on TV and Learning the True Sight

Last updated on: February 23, 2020 at 3:00 am by John Beckett

Fairy Propaganda on TV and Learning the True Sight 2020-02-17T19:20:27-06:00 John Beckett

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

One of the recurring themes on this blog over the past four years or so has been that the Otherworld and various Otherworldly persons are becoming more active in this world.

At first, those who are more sensitive noticed that the Veil Between the Worlds was becoming thin year round, not just at Samhain and Beltane. Then we started having more frequent encounters with what I’ll generically call “folkloric beings.” More recently we’ve seen a huge mainstream interest in occult practices, as illustrated in this article Why Witchcraft Is on the Rise from The Atlantic.

While I believe this trend is partly a natural, cyclical thing, I’m also convinced that certain Otherworldly persons are aware of these cycles and they’re trying to use them to their advantage.

The next data point in this trend is this piece from Seo Helrune titled Story, Satanic Witches, and Hell(ier). It’s nominally about the TV shows The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and Hellier. Mainly, though, Seo Helrune uses some unlikely coincidences in storytelling to illustrate a key point:

Story doesn’t always come from humans, and sometimes there are non-human hands in the mix.

They go on to say:

What do ‘cave goblins’, Irish fairies, and a long-dead Icelandic völva spirit have in common?

If my sources are correct on this: they have all either historically been interested in modern communications technology and/or media, have already arguably exerted their influence, or have reportedly expressed an interest in doing so.

My own sources are saying much the same things.

Otherworldly persons are influencing the stories we write, tell, hear, and see. And in at least a few cases, they’re pretty much writing the scripts themselves.

Why might this be, and what does it mean?

Fairy propaganda

Morgan Daimler and Cliona Arract run a Facebook page titled Fae Propaganda Department. They share fairy lore and academic materials, but their main attraction is sharing memes made by naïve people who think fairies are twee: tiny, harmless, and inclined to help humans.

Our ancestors knew better. We have people saying things like “another Solstice has passed and no one has carried me off to Fairy” – as though being carried off to Fairy wouldn’t involve an eternity of servitude in the kitchens or stables.

Are all these memes made by naïve humans? Some of them seem more like traps laid for the unwary. Or as Daimler sometimes says “kelpies gotta eat too.”

And what of the mainstream interest in mermaids, especially among young girls? Of course the Disney marketing machine deserves much of the credit, motivated entirely by financial reasons. Some of it is mermaids as metaphors for the difficult and unfair expectations our society has for women.

Cliona Arract runs another Facebook page, this one called Malevolent Mermaids. It presents mermaids in their original form – as fairy beings who lure sailors to their deaths and then eat their hearts. The responses she gets from men proves we have learned nothing since the days when sailing ships would be dashed against the rocks and all aboard drowned.

As with so much in magical and Otherworldly experiences, what can be written off as coincidence once or twice gets harder to dismiss after multiple encounters.

Propaganda is a funny thing. Most people buy it, because it tells them something they want to hear, as in politics and advertising.

But others see through it.

Second Sight, First Sight, True Sight

When we talk about seeing the things of Fairy, we’re often talking about the “second sight” – the rare ability to see Otherworldly persons and things. But author Terry Pratchett (who packed a lot of truth into his fiction) talked about “first sight” – the ability to see what’s really there.

People with a strong first sight can separate facts from opinion and experiences from interpretations of those experiences. They can manage their emotions well enough to see that what’s enraging them is a lie. And if they’re really good, they can see that sometimes, what’s enraging them is the truth.

I was born with very little second sight but a very strong first sight. That first sight has enabled me to grow my second sight.

Except, I sometimes wonder if there really is such a thing as second sight or first sight. Perhaps there’s just true sight. Either you see things as they are – despite how you wish they were, or how others try to convince you they are – or you don’t.

And if you see things as they are, you’re left with a clear conclusion.

The Age of Men is ending

In The Lord of the Rings, Elrond says “the time of the Elves is over.” The next age would belong to Men.

Tolkien’s works are not scripture but they are myths of the highest order – they’re stories that teach timeless truths. And one truth is that there was a time when humans were simply one mostly-insignificant species among many others.

Then something changed. Perhaps it was when we developed the capacity for language. I tend to think it was much later, around the time Göbekli Tepe was first built, about 12,000 years ago. Humans began to dominate the planet, and in doing so we started crowding out other species… and other persons, of which the Fair Folk are one generic grouping.

Scientists call this post-ice-age period the Holocene, and many say that in our current era of climate change and other human-caused shifts, we’re now living in the Anthropocene – an epoch of humans. They’re not wrong – not at all.

But the very changes we’ve caused – combined with the very long cycles of nature and of magic – spell the end for the dominion of humans.

Let me be perfectly clear: I am not saying our species is going extinct, or that civilization is ending, or any of the other apocalyptic scenarios thrown around by people who should know better. Climate change will be bad enough without exaggerating its large-scale effects – it already is.

But our near-monopoly on the physical world and on our end of the spiritual world is coming to a sudden end. Various persons are battling for supremacy in this new world, and many of them are not human.

And they’re all trying to come out on top.

A time of strange bedfellows

The Otherworld is getting closer. Magic is getting stronger. The Age of Humans is declining. And propaganda from the Fair Folk and others is becoming more prevalent. What does all this mean?

For most people, nothing. If you have neither second sight nor first sight, it’s just a couple of interesting TV shows and a bunch of young women wearing black trying to be edgy. Go on about your business… but you might want to carry a little iron in your pocket.

But what’s propaganda for the masses is a bright flashing sign for the rest of us.

This is not the time to be a hermit. This is not the time to try to be “Switzerland.” Those who fancy themselves Switzerland without Switzerland’s mountains and riches soon find they’re closer to Belgium… and Switzerland has never been as neutral as they claim.

Seo Helrune advises “cleaving to … the relationships that have long sustained us” – our Gods and ancestors. That’s wise counsel at any time, and especially now.

But some of our allies have rather complicated extended relationships – the Morrigan and Odin and their “horse trading” are only one example. And some circumstances call for new relationships and new alliances. We may find ourselves working with – or even for – persons we’ve always been told to avoid.

Such are the times in which we live.

For now, keep working to develop the True Sight…

This post is written for a very narrow audience. If it doesn’t make sense to you, then it’s not for you and you shouldn’t comment on it. I’ll be very liberal with the delete button, and if necessary, the block button.

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

Previous Post

February 20, 2020

When You Really Are Born This Way

Next Post

February 25, 2020 9 Steps to Develop the True Sight

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Books Community CUUPS Druidry Foundations and Context Gods and Goddesses Magic Myth Nature Ritual Spiritual Practice Theology Travel Uncategorized Videos

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who said, "Here I am, send me!"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Peter Isaiah Elijah Moses