Communicating With the Hidden Folk

Many of us have made a commitment or set the intention to start a purposeful co-creative relationship with Nature Spirits or Hidden Folk. Once set, we need to follow through and start the conversations, as they are quite attuned to that and are listening. I use the term Hidden Folk to describe Faeries, Sidhe, Elementals, Devas and other nature beings that share the earth with us, but are of a frequency behind the veil of most humans’ every day perception.

When we reach out and communicate, it does not go unnoticed. We can communicate by speaking, singing or creating. We can meet them in natural places like forests, gardens, and parks but also in our houses, in dreams and in shamanic journey. 

Faeries are especially appreciative when people want to connect with them.  There are a few forest trails in my area where people have created very small faerie houses in hollow logs and under bushes with bits of twigs, and tiny toys and furnishings.  They have even painted little signs for them. I know someone who did that with her kids in a nearby forest, and it was such a beautiful creative project for them, the neighborhood, and the faeries. In some places they have even left little painted faerie dolls perched on fallen logs or on tree branches. When I step into these spaces, I have found the energy of the area feels different. It is not only playful, but vibrant and mystical, and I catch colors and movement of the Hidden folk out of the corners of my eye. It is as if the trees, bushes and moss covered stones speak with their presence, saying, “Here the veil is thin. Here step carefully, there are faerie folk about.”

I find that I am talking to the Hidden folk and nature spirits more and more as my practice deepens. I do this in different ways depending on the situation and my mindfulness. Because I am a big clumsy unaware human a lot of the time, I have accidentally intruded into their space and gotten some stings and bruises as they expected me to be more mindful! Now I make it a point to greet them, “Hello grass, trees, faeries…I respect you and mean you no harm. May my relationship with you be peaceful as I pass by.” 

Offering prayers and blessings is a good way to express gratitude. It expands our heart field and creates instant simple ceremony. One blessing I say often in the forest is, “Beautiful ancient tree spirit, thank you so much for all you do for the world, for your anchoring energy, your oxygen, your nurturing so much life. Blessings to you.” 
I have discovered that the Elementals can be quite shy and very wary of humans. When we want to engage with them, asking for permission is very polite and helps start our relationship in a good way. We might ask,“May I see the Undines in the stream?” or  “May I hear the Sylph’s song in the breeze today?” 

And if we are cultivating these kinds of relationships, we need to communicate whenever we are about to take action that affects them. This kind of communication is key when working with plants or gardens. When we ask if now is a good time to prune or harvest a plant, and then listen for the answer, it creates much goodwill. And if the answer is yes, we ask the plant spirit to withdraw their energy into the roots or below the shears. It is also respectful to let the Gnomes (the earth elementals) in the ground know when we’d like to dig a hole, or plant seeds.  Even in something as mundane as cleaning the kitchen we can give a respectful warning to the undines and sylphs if we have to use any harsh cleaners that will go down the drain or have fumes. Of course eco-friendly cleaners are best, but sometimes they may also have unintended effects.

Our communication can also take the form of an action like leaving offerings or creating ceremony.  When my daughter was little someone gave her a tiny china tea set. One day a plate and cup from the set found their way to our family altar. We would put offerings of tea or wine in the cup and a berry or a chocolate chip on the plate. “For the faeries.”, we would say. That tiny cup and plate are gone and my daughter is grown, but I still leave offerings regularly on my house altar. I have a friend who takes a jar of milk and honey out with her when she wildcrafts herbs to pour out for the faeries in gratitude of the harvest.

All these ways of connecting and communicating strengthen the webwork of goodwill and mutual respect between all beings. We will find that we conduct ourselves this way as a default not only to Spirits and the Hidden Folk, but to friends, neighbors, and strangers we meet. This openness and kindness can be a powerful way of creating the change we want to see in the world.

"like a little faery house" by annapolis_rose is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.