The occultist New Zealander Geoffrey Hodson without doubt it was one of the most^[122] who explored this theme. Very akin to Mellie Uyldert’s reports, he speaks about his extraordinary experiences and goes further. His writing classifies all kind of ethereal beings making an ample categorization ranging from elemental beings until the highest hierarchy. For him the ethereal Devas would be powerful nature-spirits responsible for taking care of vast landscaping, like a river, a lake, a mountain and other functions to help the nature. Beyond devas he observes mahadevas responsible for planets and the universe. He fuses the eastern conceit of devas and mahadevas with angels andarcangels from western tradition and makes a direct relation with kabbalistic Sephirot, the tree of life. Finally the whole path of his work is outlined by his dedication toTheosophic philosophy.^[84][123]

Following the theosophic field, the Dutch-born Dora van Gelder^[124][125] professes see ethereal beings since was a child and holds them as maintainers and promoters of vital energies of the world. Inside a monumental quantity of these creatures, as explained by her there is a scale of beings where those of highest power and intelligence are called devas or angels. With the hierarchy exists a functional structure guided by devas who delegate attributions to inferior beings. The lesser beings, elementals and fairies speaking generically, are natured in four basic categories: earth, fire, water and air. Gelder also alleges the existence of an enigmatic creature living in extreme elevated altitudes, never coming down, and remembering a huge Chinese dragon. Colorful, it has big eyes, scales and slowly crosses the sky like a cow grazing in a meadow.

Although the devic realm may be seen as benevolent on the other hand, according to many folk tales, an invasion of the Fairy ringis usually fatal for men.^[126] Fairy Rings byRichard Doyle, 1875.

Some of those lesser entities, claims Gelder, are born through the magic intent by devas for assisting them. They are composed of heterogeneous ether, so they have different densities in their bodies. Devas have thinner consistency than fairies, thereby the difficulty is to see them larger. Also they have some basic internal organs where a master one is the heart whose purpose is pump power to the body and align with the pace of other livings creatures for energetically interacting. A fairy or deva, like humans, have emotions and their beat heart change according to them. Moreover their bodies are literally made of emotions. Usually they are happy creatures but can have negative emotions with short term.^[125][127]

According to Gelder, every one of four elements performs an activity associated with that element. Thus earth beings (such asfairies and gnomes) can handle energy to vitalize plants and to all above or under the ground like rocks or minerals. Water fairies (such as ondines) suck the sunlight and spread into the water. Fire beings (salamanders) promote bonfires, feed themselves on magma energy and regulate the distribution of interior energy of planet to the surface. Air fairies (sylphs) manipulate clouds, winds and storms, which are very intelligent, look like and are the closest to angels (devas). Regarding devas, every one has a zone of influence. In the center of that region resides an energy vortex where dwells the angel’s awareness. When manifesting to humans the angel assumes a beautiful human form. Devas interact each other and despite having respect and being altruistic, may also be afraid of someone of upper rank. They plan and decide all what is going to happen in the natural world, including when lives must be taken.^[125][127]

Gelder still observes that when she started to study these beings, those of earth class used to be more interested in relating to humans while water or air beings were more indifferent and fire fairies could be even hostile. Nonetheless her last observations, after several years, witnessed fear and very little interesting in humans. Also she noted much less number of entities, sometimes none could be found where before used to exist.^[125][128]

Charles Webster Leadbeater fundamentally described and incorporated his comprehension of intangible beings for Theosophy. Along with him there are various elusive planes intertwined with the quotidian human world and all inhabited by multitudes of these entities. Each plane is purported as composed of discrete density of astral or ethereal matter and frequently the denizens of a plane have no discernment of other ones. In his view the terrestrial arrangements of nature have not been designed exclusively to advantage of human specie.

Virūpākṣa, deva Guardian of the West, one of the Four Guardian Kings. Picture from 13th century.

Leadbeater grasps all life as sacred, and that without universal empathy there is no true progress to mankind. Manifold evolution is a widespread feature, and comparatively small place humanity fills in the universe.^[10] Good or evil elemental, it is an entity created artificially because the nature-spirits from elemental kingdoms do not admit such conceptions. There is, however, permeating their realm a tendency that operates to render them rather hostile than friendly towards man. It is a bias resulted of that only blindly receives and reflects what humanity project upon it.

The nature-spirits are classified in earth, water, air or fire types and neither have been, nor ever will be, part of humanity; their lineage of evolution is another, and their link with man is present in the transitory habitation of the same planet. These entities indeed are the elementals of a higher evolution. Under ordinary circumstances they are invisible to physical sight, but are able of making perceptible themselves when they desire to be seen. They assume any guise at will most frequently human in shape and undersized, but have definite forms of their own. They differ in intelligence and the life-periods vary to the highest degree, some being brief while others much longer than human lifetime.

Leadbeater still regards devas as one of several divisions among these beings, for him devas are the highest system of evolution connected with Earth but though associated with the Earth, devas are not restricted to it.

Four devic kings, the Devarajas, rule over the elements earth, water, air, and fire with their indwelling nature-spirits. They are the regents of the Earth, angels of the four cardinal points east, south, west and north that respectively correspond the colors white, blue, red and gold. According to Leadbeater these sovereigns correspond to the creatures assigned in the episode of the Ezekiel’s vision in the Bible and are, in a straight line, deeply involved in the destiny and paths of man.^[10]