Читать книгу The Element Encyclopedia of the Psychic World: The Ultimate A–Z of Spirits, Mysteries and the Paranormal - Theresa Cheung, Theresa Cheung - Страница 293

Indo-European nature spirits or angels believed to be manifestations of the four elements - water (undines), air (sylphs), fire (salamanders) and earth (gnomes). In addition, there are two other groups of nature spirits inhabiting magical elements - dryads (vegetation) and fauns or satyrs (animal life).

In modern magical philosophy elementals are seen as conscious elements inhabiting the physical world. They have extensive powers over the elements they indwell and their powers are at the disposal of the magician who has mastered the elemental force within. Elementals are thought to be able to help bring desires or wishes into being and they are important in the practice of many magical traditions, such as druidry, alchemy and Wicca. In the latter they are called down during rituals to charge spells with the power of nature. In an occult sense it is thought that they can be created by an emotional thought form, and if suffused with enough energy by their creator they can cause problems through possession or as poltergeists. This is because as creatures of a single element they can have an unbalancing effect on the human psyche and too much contact with them can be upsetting and even dangerous.