Greetings!
You Never Want to Cross an Elf is an intriguing investigation written by prolific, award-winning author, Brad Steiger, who is well-known for his intelligent reporting on unexplainable paranormal events from around the world.
But first, the following commentary provides a bit of a primer and thought-provoking segway into the paranormal.
SEEING THE UNSEEN: A BRAIN-WAVE STATE
Don't cut down that tree - it may be the home of an elf
The "wee folk", the "old ones", the elves, the nature spirits --- those mysterious other-worldly intelligences that live and lurk betwixt and between dimensional realities. We may not be lucky enough to see them, but that doesn't mean they don't exist.
It is precisely because we have "grown up" and have "put away childish things" that we have lost the ability to see or hear these wise -- sometimes tricky -- supernatural beings. Nonetheless, long forgotten memories often stir when something vaguely familiar catches our attention.
With all its fantastic characters of elves, fairies, wee hobbit folk, and spooky creatures, the beloved classic epic, Lord of the Rings, became a colossal box-office hit and a huge cult following was born. Why is that?
And why is it that the most beloved of childhood stories are about elves and fairies: stories that date back to ancient cultures yet are still valued today?
Could it be that we harbor collective subconscious memories of an era on earth when the "veil" that separates dimensions was thinner and the threshold to fantastic realities more easily crossed?
As cultural beliefs changed throughout the centuries and as the more intellectual, left hemisphere of the human brain became far more developed, all had a tremendous impact on our ability to access - or filter out - many realities that became remembered only as myth.
Many of you reading this saw and heard things as small children that others did not. But you soon forgot much of it, largely because you were invalidated and taught NOT to believe. And so a very significant door to other worlds was closed very early in life.
Access to other realities begins with brain wave states
I learned in hypnotherapy training that we have four basic electrical brain wave frequency states: beta, alpha, theta and delta.
We are in beta when we're fully awake and going about our daily routine - and it is also the brain wave state where anxiety, worry, tension and stress is produced ; we are in alpha when we're relaxed, reflective, meditative, just beginning to fall asleep ... or even when we're doing repetitive tasks like driving along a familiar road; we are in theta when we're highly creative, deep in day-dreaming, birthing a new idea, having a revelation, deep trance-channeling, having a religious/mystical experience or gaining inspired insights; we're in delta when we are in a deep state of both dreaming or dreamless sleep.
We experience all of these states at different times in various forms. Although we can tap into the highly creative state of theta, the vast majority of folks visit the theta state only briefly while drifting from alpha on the way down into deep-sleep delta ... and then again when we rise from delta on the way up to alpha to full wakefulness.
It is while we are in the theta state - a primarily right brained activity - where we achieve our fullest potential for high creativity and profound insights as well as spiritual/religious ecstasy ... AND where we can access other dimensional realities.
But why is such a powerful brain wave stage like theta experienced mostly in the sleep state? Isn't that a waste of a very good thing? Well ... it wasn't always this way for us.
The Gift of Childhood
When we were children, the theta state took the larger percentage of our waking state. In fact, from birth to around 6 or 7 children are in the theta state far more than any other brain-wave state. This makes sense because children are highly creative in their play and imagination: it's switched on all the time.
It is also during this time when children are likely to have invisible playmates or companions - which may include invisible animals (invisible to others that is!). Children also tend to see and hear many things that older kids and adults regularly dismiss as the over-active imagination of a child - simply because they themselves don't see or hear that which is very real to the child.
Unfortunately, small children also lack the ability to accurately describe their experiences which compounds the confusion or disbelief. In addition to that, until they learn the words, children may not even be aware that what they see or hear is not visible or audible to others ... they just accept it as another part of "their world" and may not significantly react.
The Test
When I am in the presence of infants and one or two year olds - whether standing in line at a public place or at a gathering - I often give them "the test" to see how aware they are. No one else knows I'm doing this ... but the child knows.
Once their gaze is on me, I create a strong mental image of a ball of light around my left or right shoulder. Then I move it around using my mind. I will change its color or split it up into many smaller balls of light. Most children will follow the light with their eyes wherever I have moved it. It's quite fascinating.
None of these children ever respond in a manner that indicates fear, surprise or concern simply because they do not see it as anything unusual ... and so they never make any motion to alert their parent who is cradling them or standing close by. They simply watch the movement that I'm creating with my mind. The whole experience goes unnoticed by mom or dad but the child is fully engaged in the experience of another realm of dimension.
Disbelief closes the door
When children are repeatedly laughed at, ignored or invalidated in regards to their experiences, it quickly sends a message to their vulnerable, fragile and developing character: that seeing or hearing certain things is not acceptable - and certainly not safe to talk about. And so children learn to turn off their awareness at a very early age.
As children become increasingly indoctrinated into the world of adults -- with its secular beliefs, stressful societal expectations and highly structured school systems that reward intellectual development and achievement over soul nourishment and creative genius -- the alpha and beta states continue to grow, expand and over rides the theta state. Theta continues to shrink and becomes less active.
Consequently, the door to a marvelous world is closed -- and may remain closed for the rest of one's life -- only to be briefly regained upon entering the last stages of dying.
Some adults are fortunate enough to rekindle that lost connection and have found ways to integrate it into their lives in a beneficial fashion; but only after they have dissolved a great deal of the intellectual conditioning and "adult" belief systems they were taught.
