Faeries Oracle

Card 61 - G. Hobyah

He refuses to tell me what the G in his name stands for because, he says, the more we know about him, the less power he has and the harder it is to do his job. This tells you a lot about him. His powers lie in our imaginations and fears, not in the real world, not in any of the real worlds. This is the wicked thing in the closet who keeps frightened children awake at night with eerie snuffling, whuffling sounds - but when you turn on the light and open the door, he isn't there.

Brian wrote, "He exists only through the collection of our fears. The Hobyah thrives on fears, getting stronger and stronger until we face him. He is a sham - a tiny fear blown all out of proportion - and the smallest positive thought will banish him. All of Faeryland knows this and none is afraid of him."

G. Hobyah's job is to wave our imaginary fears in front of us, making them look as alive and real as he can. He's pretty good at this. The challenge he offers us is to see that certain fears of ours are imaginary and to distinguish them from things we actually need to be cautious about. In this way he tries to teach us to look past the fear and see real-i-o trul-i-o truth, whatever that truth is.

It is a difficult job, and G. Hobyah, the Pook, Gawtcha, the Fee Lion, and a few other hardworking faeries get together twice a week for otherworld nectar, hazelnuts, cheese, and apple sauce - and to grumble about humans and to support each other. The work they do, hard as it is, is merely an apprenticeship for the much harder work for which they get to wear a starry crown, like Epona's Wild Daughter (Card 54) and Lys of the Shadows (Card 44). It takes a lot of practice and skill in dealing with human flaws to get promoted to that level.

If you could hear the stories they tell . . .

Starter Reading

It is time to look for the truth behind our fears, to distinguish between what is real and what is just our projection of old traumas and fears into our imaginary future. By delving into our old patterns, we can see past them to a more liberating life. Only by facing these fears honestly and seeing them for what they are do we gain greater ability to open our hearts to the Singer of Courage (Card 8) and gain in strength to face the really difficult challenges in our lives. Each false fear confronted and resolved makes us much stronger.

Reversed

On the other hand, perhaps there is a wicked thing in the closet, waiting for the lights to be turned out. Check things out carefully - sometimes our fears are justified. It is important for us to learn to distinguish between the imaginary and the real.

The Faery Challengers