What is the Elven Path? For that matter, who were the Elves?
The following is a portion that comes from our "Statement of Beliefs" - ENJOY!
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(A) word needs to be said about the term “Elves”. When we use that word here, we mean the Quendi—the beings described in the Legendarium. We do not mean fairies or other elementals, though those beings certainly exist in our experience; still less the images portrayed in popular culture, such as the “Drow”, and so forth (in particular, the Quendi did not have ‘pointy-ears’). Tolkien himself was at pains to distance the Quendi from more recent folklore:
“I now deeply regret having used ‘Elves’, though this is a word in ancestry and original meaning suitable enough. But the disastrous debasement of this word, in which Shakespeare played an unforgiveable part, has really overloaded it with regrettable tones, which are too much to overcome….My difficulty has been that, since I have tried to present a kind of legendary [sic] and history of a 'forgotten epoch', all the specific terms were in a foreign language, and no precise equivalents exist in English...” – From Letter #151
If the Quendi could speak to us today, they might say something like this:
We are the Firstborn. We are the People of the Stars. We are a constant presence upon Arda guiding and nurturing the Earth, the Sea, and the Sky. Through cycles we come, and make our presence known to the Secondborn (Mankind) to turn them from the tainted courses of the Dark One—and then the Fading begins again. We are the students of the Valar and Maiar. We are the teachers of these same wisdoms to Man.
Long ago we faded when the last lieutenant of the Enemy (cursed be its name) was thrown down from its tower, and Mankind was given the inherited chance to guide the Earth on their own. They lost the wisdom, and we have returned like the Istari to reveal hope in despair, and light in darkness. Until the World fails we are bound to return, thus we are ever-renewing and our spirits immortal.
We are the Eldalië and this—this is our Tië (Path).
Aiya! Welcome to Tië eldaliéva!
{Most text written in 2007 by Aikanar, Lomelindo and Llefyn. The “Charge of Tië eldaliéva” (above) was devised in 2006 by Lomion. We gratefully acknowledge the input of the other Founders and Friends in the production of this Statement.}