Fairies, Sprites, Elves and More 

One of the most surprising readings Edgar Cayce gave was to an oilman seeking help finding a new oil field. The man asked if he should seek the help of a person in New York City or another in London, to which Cayce replied,

"Rather had the entity best listen to the voices from within, that present themselves as the activities about the entity-or brownies."

Edgar Cayce reading 1265-2

Brownies? Yes, brownies! This had to be a shock to those listening to this instruction. In fact, they weren't sure if they understood him correctly, so they followed up with another reading the next day, asking: "What is meant by the term 'brownies' in the last answer of the Check Reading?" The sleeping Cayce replied, "The manner in which those of the elementals-entities who have not entered into materiality-have manifested and do at times manifest themselves to the entity. Apparently this man was being approached by brownies but was not listening to them! Cayce went on to explain,

"Brownies, pixies, fairies, gnomes are not elementals, but elements that are as definite entities as man materialized, see?"

Edgar Cayce reading 1265-3

Here we see Cayce parsing the details of elementals and entities, clarifying that fairies are of the elements but are in fact individuated entities like humans are as well. We'll have more on the elementals in Chapter 9. For now, we're focusing on the fairies and their variations, as well as other types of invisible little people.

To a young lady getting a reading, he said:

"Don't be afraid to acknowledge that you see fairies as ye study, for you will nurture these experiences. Don't be afraid to say that you see the gnomes which would hinder peoples at times."

Edgar Cayce reading 5359-1

To another person getting a past-life reading, he explained,

"Before this [incarnation] the entity was in the Scotch land. The entity began its activity as a prodigy, as one already versed in its associations with the unseen-or the elemental forces; the fairies and those of every form that do not give expression in a material way and are only seen by those who are attuned to the infinite."

Edgar Cayce reading 2547-1

A fascinating reading came when Cayce was asked how to put forth an argument to persuade a man to accept the deal that was being offered to him. Cayce explained that there were unseen forces preparing "proper connections and a proper set-up" that would ultimately affect the desired outcome, and if they were patient "the little brownies come along and tell him what to do!"

Edgar Cayce reading 257-87

Fairies, elves, and gnomes are beings affecting the world but remain mostly unseen. Brownies are actually of the family of fairies. Nymphs are female elves. Sprites are fairies of a particularly pleasant appearance and disposition. Pixies are mischievous fairies. Folklore describes them all as magical beings of diminutive human form. Gnomes are usually described as shriveled little old men that inhabit the interior of the Earth and act as guardians of its treasures.

It would seem that the young people today are closely "attuned to the infinite," as Cayce put it, and are therefore interested in books and movies about the normally unseen fairies, elves, and gnomes. Let's keep our eyes open, or as Jesus might have put it, whoever has eyes to see, let them see!

Unusual Beings in Legend and Lore 

Let's now explore the lore and legends of all the unusual beings that are often listed among the mystical little people. The list would look something like this: fairies, pixies, sprites, brownies, nixies, gnomes, nature spirits, kobolds, duendes, goblins, wee folk, elves, fauns, trolls, the Fates (Moirai, pronounced either moi-ruh or moy-rye), and so on.

Though certainly among ancient lore and legend are mermaids, mermen, centaurs, satyrs, sirens, harpies, and others of these kinds, they are not fairies and are not among the mystical beings. They are monstrosities that predominantly lived in the physical world among humans, like the Nephilim in Genesis 6. They are the result of the wayward sons of God breeding with animals! Many consider them to be the Fallen Angels branch of the sons of God. In fact, implied in their name is "fallen," from the Hebrew root n-ph-l. (There were no vowels in Hebrew, but for us to pronounce these words, vowels were added.) Even though some writers attempt to connect fairies to the Nephilim, there is no connection that can be truly made. The Nephilim are clearly the uncontrollable giants: "There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown." (Genesis 6:4) The word "renown" originally had a negative meaning something akin to "infamous," though today that connotation is lost. In the biblical book of Numbers 13:32-33, we find this account of the Nephilim: "… and all the people that we saw in it are of great height … the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them." A pre-Inca oral legend carried on by the Quechua natives of Peru tells of an unexpected landing of a remnant group of Nephilim on the shores of their lands. This legend describes the Nephilim as so gigantic that a good-size native warrior only stood as tall as the kneecap of a Nephil! This caused the people to move high up into the mountains. The legend says that these Nephilim were struggling to survive. They had no women among them and were hated by everyone. According to this ancient tale, the great Creator God cleanses the pre-Incan lands of these remnant giants in one single disastrous flood.