“To sum up: all nature-spirits are not the same as fairies; nor are all fairies nature-spirits. The same applies to the relationship of nature-spirits and the dead. But we may safely say that a large proportion of nature-spirits became fairies,… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“If we turn now to such vestiges of cult as are associated otherwise than with time and season, we discover a definite recognition of… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“As Mr. R. U. Sayee has well said: 'It should be clear a priori that fairy lore must have developed as a result of… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“But I find it necessary to repeat in this particular place that the division into classes, which is so salient a part of modern… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“But this is not to say that a highly specialized body of belief such as that associated with Faerie is not capable of subsidiary… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“As regards the prohibition on the utterance of the fairy name by mortals, either that of the species as a whole, or of individuals,… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“Here it is necessary briefly to consider the question of the cult of ancestors before venturing farther. The spirits of the departed are believed… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“At Bealltainn, or May Day, every effort was made to scare away the fairies, who were particularly dreaded at this season. In the West… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“In my view the study of fairy origins assumes a greater degree of importance than popular opinion is wont to concede to it. Indeed,… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“It must be understood that in some cases the process by which a god or goddess degenerates into a fairy may occupy centuries, and… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“All three of the English types I have mentioned can, I think, be accounted for as the results of the presence of different cultures,… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“Robert Kirk believed the fairies to be the doubles or, as he called them, the 'co-walkers' of men, which accompanied them through life, and… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“I should add, however, that, particularly on the occasion of Samhain, bonfires were lit with the express intention of scaring away the demonic forces… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“It must not be thought, however, that in pagan Ireland Fairyland was altogether conceived as a Hades or place of the dead. We have… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“To sum up: all nature-spirits are not the same as fairies; nor are all fairies nature-spirits. The same applies to the relationship of nature-spirits… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
“In all likelihood fairies of larger stature were ancient gods in a state of decay, while their diminutive congeners were the swarming spirits of… — Lewis Spence Copy Share Image
