Elemental Beings / "Elementals"
The elemental beings named in the table above — sylphs, salamanders, undines, gnomes — are not simply decorative mythological flavor-text attached to each element; they represent a specific, datable occult concept with real intellectual history. The concept is generally traced to the European Renaissance, roughly the 16th century, and is specifically associated with the physician and alchemist Paracelsus, who is credited with systematizing the idea of a distinct elemental spirit-being corresponding to each of the four classical elements. This dating matters because it means the elemental-beings layer of the system is, relative to the broader tradition, a comparatively late addition — younger than the classical four-elements theory itself (which goes back to ancient Greek natural philosophy), though still centuries older than modern Wicca.
Each elemental being is described, consistently across both Kellerman's and Paula's material, as an unseen "spirit" of its element, perceptible only "in the mind's eye" — glimpsed in the movement of flame, the surface of water, drifting smoke, or freshly-turned earth, rather than encountered as a solid, externally visible entity. And critically, both sources are consistent in describing these beings as harmless observational phenomena, not something to fear: seeing (or sensing) a sylph in a wisp of smoke is not, on its own, dangerous or significant beyond being an indication that Air energy is present and active in that moment.
The four beings each get a brief individual sketch: Sylphs (Air) are winged, fairy- or angel-like in appearance. Salamanders (Fire) are seen as small red movements within glowing coals — and the material draws a further, more specific distinction within Fire itself between salamanders proper and "fireflies," which refer specifically to the sparking flame-tips rather than the coal-movement. Undines (Water), sometimes spelled Ondines, are mermaid- or water-nymph-like. Gnomes (Earth) are described as small and earth-toned, with a distinctive behavioral note not given for the other three: they are generally described as short-tempered if disturbed, and are specifically associated with major earth-moving, construction, or gardening activity — with sightings most often reported very early in the morning, before or at first light.
The beginner caution against summoning elementals
This is one of the more operationally significant warnings in the entire elemental-theory section, and it draws a sharp line that's easy to blur if you aren't paying close attention: there is a real difference between calling elemental Air for its general energy (described as safe, and indeed a completely routine part of ordinary quarter-calling in ritual) and calling an actual sylph, salamander, undine, or gnome into your ritual as a summoned, individual entity.
The specific danger named is not releasing the summoned entity properly, which can result in that entity becoming bound to a person or a physical property — a phenomenon the sources label "malignant magic." This isn't a hypothetical or purely theoretical warning; it's illustrated with a specific cited example: a family whose home suffered repeated fires and floods after an untrained relative had "played" at conjuring without proper training or technique, requiring an experienced, trained practitioner to eventually locate and correctly release the bound elementals from the property.
This caution connects to two other pieces of the outline worth cross-referencing. First, it's the elemental-specific instance of a more general principle that any working drawing on energy or entities external to the practitioner's own self carries meaningfully higher risk and requires more careful technique than workings that stay within the practitioner's own generated energy. Second, it explains why the standard, composite ritual sequence consistently describes "calling the quarters/elements" in the generalized, energy-invocation sense rather than as a literal summoning of the four named beings — the ordinary, standard version of quarter-calling is specifically designed to stay on the safe side of this exact line.