Fairy Tradition

The subject of fairies in Celtic cultures is a complex one that seems to endlessly intrigue people. What exactly are fairies? What can they do? How can we interact with them? Answering these questions becomes even harder in a world that is disconnected from the traditional folklore and flooded with modern sources that are often vastly at odds with the older beliefs.

Fairy tales are not just fairy tales: they are records of historical phenomena, telling us something about how Western civilisation was formed. In The Fairy-Tellers, award-winning travel-writer Nick Jubber explores their secret history of fairy tales: the people who told them, the landscapes that forged them and the cultures that formed them.

Explore the enchanting world of Welsh fairy tradition as this guide unveils the enduring presence of these magical beings in Celtic myth and folklore. Join Welsh native Mhara Starling as she shares authentic Welsh beliefs, delves into the connection between magical practitioners and the fair family (Tylwyth Teg), and helps you incorporate these mystical entities into your own spiritual practice if you so choose.

A beloved legend of all time, Pyle's The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood tells the compelling tale of the brave, good-humored outlaw and his cohorts Friar Tuck, Little John, and Will Scarlet, as they cavort about Sherwood Forest.

With material gleamed on that trip and from the tradition of African tellers in North America, Bobby Norfolk electrifies audiences with energized retellings of Anansi the wise, Anansi the resourceful, and Anansi the mythic underdog figure who is never undone or outdone.

The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns & Fairies is an extraordinary journey into the hidden folklore and mysticism of Scotland’s magical realms. Written by Reverend Robert Kirk in the late 17th century, this classic text dives into the secret lives of supernatural beings said to inhabit the Highlands—elves, fauns, fairies, and other mysterious entities that coexisted with humanity just beyond the visible world. Kirk’s observations capture the beliefs, sightings, and stories of these entities, revealing a world rich with wonder, superstition, and spiritual insights.

We think of fairies as little winged people with magic wands, but Irish fairies were flesh-and-blood extraterrestrials who towered over humans. We knew them as angels, demons, phantoms, mermaids, fairies, gods and not-gods, and the Gentry. Giant, chalk-white humanoids with piercing blue eyes, and flaming red or golden-yellow hair cascading in curls over their shoulders, that’s the true appearance of the ancient fairies of Ireland who came down from the cosmos thousands of years ago.

Delve into the mystical worlds of Celtic enchantment, the heroic sagas of Bulfinch's lore, the enigmatic tales of Slavic spirits, the celestial dances of Japanese deities, the profound fables of Turkish origins, the creation epics of Sumerian and Mesopotamian civilizations, the rich tapestry of Native American heritage, and the captivating chronicles from the Filipino archipelago.

Together, these books offer a fascinating glimpse into the world of Slavic mythology, with its unique blend of fantasy, folklore, and ancient wisdom. Whether you're a mythology enthusiast, a lover of fairy tales, or simply looking for an immersive story, this collection is sure to delight.

Gaze at that sparkling light, dancing in the sky! It’s a fairy, one of nature’s greatest treasures. Have you ever wondered where fairies live? What she eats and how she uses her magic? Wonder no more! Embark on a magical journey to learn all about fairies.

Discover fascinating ancient Japanese fairy tales as well as the folk tales of the Ainu/Aino. The first book in this collection, titled Japanese Fairy Tales, was written by Iwaya Sazanami and translated by Yei Theodora Ozaki, a 20th-century translator of Japanese short stories and fairy tales. The second book in this collection is a rare one that is not usually available in audio format: Aino Folk-Tales by Basil Chamberlain, one of the most prominent British Japanologists active in Japan during the latter half of the 19th century.

Whether you're a lover of mythology, a student of Korean culture, or simply in search of a mesmerizing listen, this collection offers a treasure trove of stories that have withstood the test of time. Delve into this book and let the magic of Korean mythology enchant you.

Captured centaurs and satyrs, incompetent seers, people who suddenly change sex, a woman who remembers too much, a man who cannot laugh—these are just some of the colorful characters who feature in the unforgettable stories that ancient Greeks and Romans told in their daily lives. Together they created an incredibly rich body of popular oral stories that include, but range well beyond, mythology—from heroic legends, fairy tales, and fables to ghost stories, urban legends, and jokes. This unique anthology presents the largest collection of these tales ever assembled.

Fairies have long been a part of witchcraft traditions, especially Celtic and Norse witchcraft, paganism, and other traditions deeply tied to the earth. But these fairies aren’t the harmless creatures you’ve read about in children’s tales: They are magical creatures with their own culture and rules that you need to know before venturing into their territory. Now you can explore the world of the fairies and how their magic relates to your own witchcraft practice with The Modern Witchcraft Book of Fairies.

In this study, Fromm argues that man needs to analyze his unconscious thoughts, his dreams, and his conscious fantasies, as they reflect a universal and symbolic representation of himself.

With this collection of classic tales from India, you will learn about the playful, loyal, strong, loving, and wise gods, goddesses, and heroes of India. You will discover how the deity Ganesh, the remover of obstacles, got his elephant head; how the goddess Parvati won the heart of the great god Shiva; and how the goddess Ganga came to Earth from Heaven in the form of the holy Ganges River. You will discover how Krishna’s childhood as superhero and mischievous boy prepared him to fulfill his destiny as an avatar of the god Vishnu.

This audiobook explores the historical rise of the literary fairy tale as a genre in the late 17th century. In his examinations of key classical fairy tales, Zipes traces their unique metamorphoses in history with stunning discoveries that reveal their ideological relationships to domination and oppression. Tales such as Beauty and the Beast, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, and Rumplestiltskin have become part of our everyday culture and shapers of our identities.

Tales of the Elders of Ireland (Acallam na Senórach) represents the largest literary text surviving from 12th-century Ireland, the most comprehensive early collection of Fenian stories and poetry. Three parallel worlds interact: the contemporary Christian world of Saint Patrick with his scribes, clerics, occasional angels, and souls rescued from Hell; the earlier pagan world of the ancient, giant Fenians and an array of Irish kings; and the timeless Otherworld, peopled by ever-young shape-shifting fairies.

This revised, expanded, and updated edition of the 1979 landmark Breaking the Magic Spell examines the enduring power of fairy tales and the ways they invade our subjective world. In seven provocative essays, Zipes discusses the importance of investigating oral folk tales in their socio-political context and traces their evolution into literary fairy tales, a metamorphosis that often diminished the ideology of the original narrative.

One of Joseph Campbell’s most popular, most quoted works, A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living is a treasure trove of insight and inspiration, thought-provoking in its depth, poetic in its scope. Drawn from a month-long workshop at the world-famous Esalen Institute, the Joseph Campbell Companion captures Campbell at his best: wise, funny, intelligent, and inspiring.