Spirits: Feldgeister

Humans have always sought a connection to the land. Animistic shrines and sacred drawings reveal a knowledge of and tie to the elemental forces and nature spirits in cultures the world over. Whether we are exploring the wilds or tilling the soil in our yards, connection with the earth is a basic human need.

As we evolved as a species, so too would the nature spirits around us. No energy remains the same, everything changes. As humans evolved from the hunter gathering nomadic tribes to an agricultural civilization, the nature spirits evolved with the new plants grown, and the change in their natural cycles brought about by human settlements.

Feldgeister, or Field Spirits, are a group of nature spirits who are either malevolent or benevolent, rarely both. There are so many feldgeister, listing them all would take the remaining space in this post!

Feldgeister are literally, the spirits found in the fields. Each type of crop had it's community of feldgeister. For example, spirits of a rye field would usually have the prefix of “Roggen”. Spirits of a corn field are prefixed with “korn”, so we have kornkind (corn child), Kornmann (corn man), Kornwyf (corn mother) among others. Other prefixes are: Weizen (wheat), Gersten (barley), Flachs (flax), Erbesen (pea), Erntemutter (harvest).

Within the feldgeister we see a distinct set of “spirit types”. We see the domestic animals, such as the Kornhund and Kleesau (corn hound and clover sow). We see the wild animals such as the Erbsenbar and Roggenwolf (pea bear and rye wolf). We also see a host of anthropomorphic/human shape shifting spirits. Each female of a family unit seems to be represented. Aunt, mother, maiden, bride, grandmother each have their own separate feldgeister within a crop or field family. Men are represented as, well, men. There is one mention of a bridegroom, the Hafebrautigam (oat bridegroom).

In addition to the family unit, certain “roles” are also found in the anthropomorphic category. Leadership figures can be found in the Haferkonig and Haferkonigin (oat king and oat queen). Another name tied to these is Maigraf (may earl), leading one to think this is an offshoot of the concept of the May king and queen. Witches also find representation, albeit of a negative nature. The Bilwis, who is a male or female corn spirit dressed in white linen, appears as a whirlwind to steal grain. The Windsbraut (wind's bride) is another whirlwind, set to steal the hard work of the farmers. Both spirits can be thwarted by throwing a knife into the whirlwind. Both spirits were considered at times demons, other times sorcerers/esses.

Most tales of feldgeister can be reduced down to an attempt to keep adventurous children from roaming too far, or from partaking of the fields before the adults had a chance to harvest it. Almost all the feldgeister have mention of eating or beating small children who misbehave. The Roggenmuhme (Rye Aunt) is known to steal children, leaving changelings in their place. When they are not busy terrorizing children, the feldgeister concerns themselves with tricking the farmers. While the Roggenmuhme is clearly not fond of little children running around unsupervised, she is a frequent haunter of the fields herself. It was taken as a sign of a good harvest if one was spotted.

In terms of witchcraft in our age, the feldgeister are not linked to farms alone. They are the spirits of fields, not just farms. Most of us simply do not have regular access to or space for a large enough garden to call it a field or farm. This does not mean the feldgeister cannot be incorporated into your path and workings. Rather they are spirits that will require you to take an honest look at the landscape around you. If you live in a concrete jungle, I'd be doubtful you would encounter any Hafermann (oat man). There are several feldgeister you might see in suburbia, these being:

• Graswolf (Grass Wolf)
• Wetterkatze (Weather Cat)
• Windkatze (Wind Cat)
• Kleesau (Clover Sow)
• Austbock (Harvest Buck)
• Saathahn (Seed Rooster)

As with most cross cultural things, taking Germanic themes and applying them in another cultural area means you are largely on your own in terms of what these spirits will or won't do, and how to interact with them. Asking directly is the best way to work it all out. Another is to see what local deities and spirits from the culture of the land you live on resemble most closely the feldgeister. Another way to incorporate them is to see them as archetypes. The Wetterkatze is most definitely a cat where I live. The weather does what it wants, when it wants, regardless of what the weather man tells us, and in direct spite of being told “sunny all day”.

It is interesting to note that, while in most cultures iron is the bane of fairies and nature spirits, both the Roggenmuhme (Rye Aunt) and the Hafermann (Oat Man) are noted for their use of iron. The Hafermann throws an iron shillelagh, while the Roggenmuhme is known for her iron nipples and iron butter churn, both of which are used for the torture of children.

Thwarting the feldgeister was a relatively simple procedure. Tossing a blade into the air (or into the feldgeister) was thought to lodge it into the spirit, which then required them to seek out a human to help remove it. In some cases it is specified the blade bear three crosses, though description of those crosses or what metal the blade is to be made from are left out. If you are looking to cross paths with an angry feldgeister, iron or steel does not seem to be the best choice. It is after all what the spirits themselves are carrying. Juniper is mentioned as a punishing tool for the bilwis, and certainly Juniper is a herb of cleansing and heavy purging in a number of witchcraft traditions. A wand of juniper would work best as protection.

Feldgeister are a continual part of our culture, who evolve, adapt and thrive in the new world. From farmyard to backyard, feldgeister can keep us in touch with the land we live on and the rhythm of the earth cycles.