The Mystery of Fairy Circles

You may be familiar with the mysterious phenomenon of fairy rings and crop circles, but have you ever encountered the wonders of fairy circles? This is the name given to circular patches of barren land, varying between a few to several meters in diameter, often bordered by a ring of densely growing grass. They appear in some of the most inhospitable and arid terrains in the world. Viewed from the air, millions of fairy circles form a remarkable polka-dot spatial pattern stretching across vast areas of the Namib Desert in Southern Africa, and parts of the Pilbara region in Western Australia. In recent years, artificial intelligence-based models using satellite images have detected fairy circle-like patterns in hundreds of new dryland locations around the planet.

“There are different types of rings in the world, but to be a true fairy circle, they have to meet three criteria: One, they’re empty gaps in grassland without a central insect-nest structure. Two, they have the ability to form spatially periodic patterns. And three, they’re confined to a narrow arid climatic envelope.”

Dr. Getzin’s research posits that fairy circles are arranged in a hexagonal formation, with one circle serving as a focal point, positioned at the center of six others, each equidistant from one another. This naturally occurring, uniform design, known as a “Turing pattern,” is believed to arise in nature to help stabilize ecosystems, enhancing an area’s resilience to extreme drought. “There must be very strongly ordering forces behind the creation of these patterns because otherwise it would be much more noisy, much less order,” said Dr. Getzin. Plants are capable of developing intelligent spatial patterns to cope with water stress. Their sophisticated design is an enigma, and beyond comprehension – perhaps ascribing to the “work of fairies and gods” might not be an exaggeration, after all.

On August 9, 2015, during a gathering with disciples in France, Supreme Master Ching Hai (vegan) lovingly reminded everyone to be thankful to the fairies, spirits and the elements for their special spiritual role in the natural world. “You have to always give thanks. There are different fairies, spirits and elements. They’re helping with your plantation, with your trees, everything, everything. We owe everything to everything. It’s not easy, it’s not like we are alone, it’s not like that. But of course, you don’t see them. They don’t always manifest themselves for you to see, only when necessary.”