Undines or Sea-Faeries ~ Part I

John William Waterhouse, Hylas and the Nymphs, 1891

The long season of summer draws us closer to 'Water', to sooth us from the warm rays of the sun, to hydrate and nurture our bodies. Water is perhaps the most curious of the four elements because it is within our blood, it surrounds the world claiming two thirds of the earths surface. It reincarnates as cool rain in the summer and the frozen snow in the winter, falling down upon our highest peaks and then branching down mountains into rivers and tributaries, as if flowing through the very veins of the earth and then back into the blue ocean from whence it came. Anthropologically we are tied to the water, maintaining a history of myth and legend. Old myths of a great flood told about by the Grecian's, the Hindu and old Mesopotamia stand with the Old Testament documenting a time when the Ocean displayed it's great power.

Odin in an Icelandic illuminated manuscript (18th century)

Norse mythology placed great ancient powers within the very waters we see today. The old Nordic's believed that there were sacred faery wells in hidden places around the world. 'Wisdom was believed to reside in the water emanating at some points on the earth's surface. It was said that Odin, the supreme Norse god, in his relentless quest for knowledge, sacrificed one of his eyes for the privilege of drinking from such a rare well. The spring was hidden deep within the twisted roots of the cosmic tree from which the world had been formed, and was infused with magic so potent that a single draught of the cool, bubbling waters brought a flood of insight and understanding, accompanied by an undying thirst for more wisdom still.' (Water Spirits, Time-Life 1984)     

From 'The Secret Teachings of all Ages', Manly P. Hall, 1928

 
We look to the water with great curiosity and fear, there is an abundance of beauty in the fathoms below, but also much to wonder. A small five percent is what we have explored within our ocean. Every year new species of ocean life is discovered and myths shelved in antiquity emerge to startle our senses. Several decades ago the Giant Squid was only a legend attached to the likes of Jules Verne. Now science has begun to speculate what lies below the ocean trenches, what lies below where technology can not meander?

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2014

The legend of the mermaid, as modern culture calls her, has stood the test of time. Christopher Columbus himself documented sightings of various sea-creatures in 1493, sailing the coast of Hispaniola. He documented three "female forms" which "rose high out of the sea, but were not as beautiful as they are represented". He reported that they were ugly and fat.  Perhaps the creatures were that of Manatees, or sea-cows, whose big torsos might be mistaken in murky waters. Historically these creatures have continued to trick the eyes of sailors, but sailors have a tendency to lean towards superstition. Who can blame them? Long periods of time at sea, strange figures in the water, sometimes the eye is not swift enough to follow the quick athletic torsos. Eventually you wonder if your eyes are simply playing tricks.

'The Mermaid', Howard Pyle, 1910

As Celtic and European cultures blamed the fey folk and little people for devilish things, the sea Captains and sailors too had to blame something for the many unusual experiences on the ocean, sounds emanating in the distance, cries in the cold night, perhaps human, perhaps not. The famed pirate Blackbeard documented records of enchanted seas and areas of ocean that his crew needed to avoid, claiming that specific areas of charted waters were 'enchanted'. Pirates were deathly afraid of merfolk predominantly mermaids. Early superstitions claimed that the females were more dangerous than their male counterparts, the males dwell in a bit more secrecy and are known never to come to the surface of the water. The females are historically known to be more curious observed as beautiful, they can be related to the famed Sirens of the Greek Pantheon.

'A Mermaid', John William Waterhouse, 1900

 Know you the Nixes, gay and fair?
Their eyes are black, and green their hair--
They lurk in sedgy shores.

---Old German Text

Tales of water nymphs and nixes emerged out of German and European cultures, most likely inspired by Greek myths. Nixes were naked Nymphs similar to Sirens but discovered in or near springs and lakes usually around banks of still water and reeds. In most cases they are witnessed combing their hair and singing alluring songs, but a wanderer who comes across such a sight should heed the warning told about in antiquity. These creatures will most certainly be their demise. 'Only the foolhardy lay down near the banks of brooks and the borders of springs. Solitary nymphs guarded the waters, and the sleeper might awaken to the sight of beauty that would lure him to his doom.' (Water Spirits, Time-Life 1984)

 Nixes were kind enough to lead their victims to death by drowning, Undine's were not so quick, with their malevolence of torture. 'The golden-haired undines possess exquisite treasures of pearl and nacre but mortals who try and steal these wonders are in danger of remaining forever imprisoned in the nymphs' magnificent underwater palaces.' (Arthur Rackham, Jewels from the Deep.) 

Jewels from the Deep, Arthur Rackham 1909

Theorized by Swiss author Paracelsus, Undine defines a water spirit, the elemental of water. In turn Paracelsus is responsible for naming earth elementals gnomes, and air elementals sylphs.

 undine, also spelled Ondine,  mythological figure of European tradition, a water nymph who becomes human when she falls in love with a man but is doomed to die if he is unfaithful to her. Derived from the Greek figures known as Nereids, attendants of the sea god Poseidon.

---Encyclopedia Britanica

 New Latin undina, from Latin unda (meaning) wave

First Known Use: 1819

---Merriam Webster  

Classic wood engraving by George Heywood Maunoir Sumner

Source Material:

• Wikipedia.org
• Merriam-webster.com
•  abuddhistlibrary.com---Search: Elementals
• sacred-texts.com
•  norse-mythology.org
• oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/exploration.html (National Ocean Service)
• The Enchanted World Series, Water Spirits, Time-Life Books 1984
• An Encyclopedia of Fairies, Katherine Briggs, Pantheon Books 1976
• Faeries and Demons and other Magical Creatures, Edouard Brasey, Barnes and Noble Books 2003