Irish Thought for December 23...

Irish Folklore

The Will-O'-the-Wisps

Mysterious, eerie lights that flicker at night in marshes, bogs, and mountain forests are known as Will-O'-the-Wisps.  There is much debate over whether these fairy lights are beneficial or malevolent.  Some say that the Will-O'-the-Wisps are associated with spirits of the dead who could not enter above or below in the afterlife, so now the spirits lead travelers from the well-trodden paths into treacherous marshes.  Other accounts consider the Will-O'-the-Wisps to be peaceful and helpful, recounting tales of the lights appearing in the misty mountains to help locate someone lost.  Other stories suggest that seeing Will-O'-the-Wisps may foretell mortal danger coming for a relative.