Witchvox Article

Author: Lady Pandora
Posted: September 3rd. 2004
Times Viewed: 3,785

Air:

When I think of air, I think of two things: the wind and scents. First I will talk about the wind. The soothing aspect of the wind is when a nice gentle breeze blows in my hair; when it is hot and a cool breeze from off the ocean comes my way. The wind can be soothing as well as destructive. The destructive force of wind comes in the force of windstorms and tornados. The wind can be harsh and destructive. At its best it can rip cement and concrete off the roadways, lift houses out of their foundations and turn a city to rubble in mere minutes.

Air also brings scents my way - everything from a passerby with a fresh cup of coffee to rotting garbage on the street. It brings me someone's floral perfume, to someone eating a chicken sandwich. These scents cannot be seen yet they are carried on the wind just the same. When the wind brings them to me, I often remember something that particular scent has in connection with my life.

I am most connected to air in the autumn season when I am by myself. I can feel the air; I can enjoy the scents it brings my way. When I am in a crowd, somehow that all gets muffled and the wind feels shared and no longer my own. I am apart of the air on a very windy day. And at times I feel as if I can lift my arms up and fly with the air surrounding me.

Air is my breath - it is in my lungs and in my body. Air is a part of me and it gives me life as well as sustains my life. I am air.

Fire:

When I look outside for fire I first think of the Sun. A big ball of flame in the sky, millions of miles away yet it warms me on a daily basis. I can feel the Sun on my skin, warming me when I am cold. To me the Sun is male and powerful. Fire can be seen in smaller and less harmful dosages. Just walking down the block, for instance, one can see tiny flames of fire when a match is lit or when a lighter for a cigarette is flicked. Fire can heal, warm and even destroy. It can take lives away, it can take homes away and yet it can warm up a cold person or cook our food so that is consumable.

Of all the elements I think fire is the most feared. Its power to destroy is first thought of. When one hears about fire, one thinks of its destructive force such as a burning building, someone being burned, flames destroying a home or the continuous battle of a burning forest.

But we as humans have fire within us. The term "fire in the belly" comes to mind when someone is determined. The term "flames of desire" pops up when people wish to communicate a deep passion for someone. The term "raging fire in her/his eyes" is spoken when hate and deep-rooted anger are being expressed. Our blood is red, the color of fire. When we are sick with a fever, we feel as if our blood or even our body is boiling and the term "I am burning up" is often spoken. We at that point can actually FEEL the fire within us making its presence known.

I am most connected to fire in the winter months. I need to be warm, surrounded by heat and fire. Fire is important as it keeps us alive in many ways. I am fire.

Water:

I always loved to take bubble baths and thus submerge my head under the water. I recently had my CD player on and when my head went under the water, I heard the muffled sounds of the music. Trying to hone my senses, I listened to a song or two under the water to hear how the sound traveled and how the water changed the sound.

When it rains, I always want to go outside and let it pour on me. To feel the weight of the drops: are they heavy, are they light? Is it a warm rain or is it a cold rain? As humans we are connected to the Earth by water. The Earth is seventy percent water and our bodies are the same: we are seventy percent water. When the Moon pulls the tides, the earthly waters shift. The Moon can also pull the tides within us. It affects some people more than others. This is where the term "lunatic" came from. It was named after the effect of the Moon on the water in our bodies.

Water can be destructive just as it is soothing. Tidal waves, tsunamis, flooding and droughts are all examples of how water, or lack thereof, can be destructive. Too much water, as in flooding and tsunamis, will destroy and wash away all in its path. Too little of it, such as a drought, will destroy life around that area. All life needs water, be it plant or animal.

I feel mostly connected to water in the summer months. When the Sun is hot and water is most sacred and appreciated. When my body can dehydrate and lose its water just like the land drying up. It is at this time that I feel the connection and need for water most and must replenish the water within. I am water.

Earth:

The Earth to me is eternally female. I see her in her primal force, in nature, in animals and in people. From the lioness who provides a gazelle for her cubs to the destructive earthquakes and volcanic eruptions from beneath the ground. When I think of Earth, I think of the variety of the land we have and how it relates to the four major seasons, winter, spring, summer and autumn. They are the hard cold lands of the artic, the fertile and supple soil of farmlands, the hot dry sands of a desert and the wetlands of the rainforests. The Earth is our land. She comes to us in many forms and in many conditions. We as the Earth's children have learned to survive off her many and various forms. We have learned to exist in every aspect of what she has given us, what she has to offer.

The Earth can be quite destructive as well. With volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tremors and shifts in the core's crusts, we cannot ignore it when she is moving. She has created islands with her volcanic eruptions and destroyed cities with her earthquakes.

I am most connected to the Earth in the spring. I feel the best connection when new life is around me and when the change of the hard infertile ground now turns to life blooming from her green grasses. Birds are chirping in their tree nests and the planting season before the harvest begins. As humans, we have flesh and bone. We have meat and substance to ourselves; we are thirty percent solid mass. The Earth is thirty percent landmass. That is how I see the connection of Earth within us all. I am Earth.

Spirit:

But the element we most often ignore is Spirit, which is often the MOST important element. Our Spirit has the ability to destroy or to heal. If we lose touch with the Spirit within, we in essence lose ourselves. Our Spirit is comprised of all the other elements that we are made of.

The Air Spirit is that which can travel on the astral; it can float on the wind and teach us how to breath, meditate and relax. But if we are not careful we can lose ourselves this way, become lost on the winds that seek to drift us away from who we are.

The Fire Spirit is full of passion and determination. We gather most of our strength from the Fire Spirit to continue on with situations we find most difficult or challenging. But we can also use it in anger and hate. If we turn to the Fire Spirit this way, we can lose ourselves and burn ourselves from the inside out.

The Water Spirit is the emotional side we have. It holds our compassion, our tenderness, our deep-rooted love and our convictions. It also holds our darker emotional side such as depression, avoidance, self-neglect and regret. If we are not careful the Water Spirit can wash us way and we can lose ourselves to the darker tides of our Spirit.

Our Earth Spirit is what connects us to other people. We need to see, touch, talk and be around other people. Our Earth Spirit likes to connect with the Spirit of others. The Earth Spirit within is what we connect with when we look into someone's eyes and find that spark. When we look at a rescue animal and make the connection to that one above all others. The Earth Spirit is which we see in someone else. But if we ignore our Earth Spirit we can become distant and reclusive, avoiding others. We begin to lose our connection with people and thus ourselves.

Our Spirit is very important. We each must find the balance within us, the balance that keeps us going. We must not ignore our Spirit or its needs. We must tend to it like a gardener does the garden. When it calls, we must answer, when it is off balance, we must seek to balance it out. I have found that personally being on the right Spiritual path helps to balance out a lot in one's own life. If one is satisfied Spiritually, other aspects of ones life seem to fall into place. I am not saying it will be perfect, that you will not have to work hard at getting what you want, but things start to make sense again. I seek to keep my Spirit balanced, for I know I am Spirit.

I've spoken about the healing and destructive components of Air, Fire, Water, Earth and Spirit. They do not judge or condemn. They do not dispense justice or revenge. They are incredible forces of nature. They are powerful elements and they just ARE.

Liliths Cat

ABOUT...

Lady Pandora

Location: Staten Island, New York

Author's Profile: To learn more about Lady Pandora - Click HERE

Bio: Liliths Cat, a Craft member for over 15 years, lives in New York with her 5 rescue cats. In 1999 she started the first USA Manx Cat Rescue when she rescued her first Manx, Lunableu, from an abusive home. LC also runs a networking Pagan Community, called Voice of the Old Ways, for both seekers and elders. She is also a part of Ominimancy, a mage tradition that works towards energy raising and mind expansion. Besides her spiritual practice, she also enjoys: watching movies, writing, PS2, reading, sci-fi, computers and a good old-fashioned catnap.

Other Articles: Lady Pandora has posted 1 additional articles- View them?

Other Listings: To view ALL of my listings: Click HERE

Email Lady Pandora... (No, I have NOT opted to receive Pagan Invites! Please do NOT send me anonymous invites to groups, sales and events.)

Home - TWV Logos - Email US - Privacy

News and Information

Chapters: Pagan/Heathen Basics - Pagan BOOKS - Traditions, Paths & Religions - Popular Pagan Holidays - TV & Movies - Cats of the Craft - Festival Reviews - Festival Tips - White Pages (Resources) - Issues/Concerns - West Memphis 3 - Witch Hunts - Pagan Protection Tips - Healing Planet Earth

Your Voices: Adult Essays - Young Pagan Essays - Pagan Perspectives (On Hold) - WitchWars: Fire in the Craft - Gay Pagan - Pagan Parenting - Military - Pagan Passages

Pagan Music: Pagan Musicians - Bardic Circle at WitchVox - Free Music from TWV

Vox Central: About TWV - Wren: Words, Wrants and Wramblings - Guest Rants - Past Surveys - A Quest for Unity

Weekly Updates: Click HERE for an index of our weekly updates for the past 6 years

W.O.T.W. - World-Wide Networking

Your Town: A Link to YOUR Area Page (The largest listing of Witches, Pagans, Heathens and Wiccans on the Planet)

VoxLinks: The Pagan Web: 8,000 Listings

Your Witchvox Account: Log in Now - Create New Account - Request New Password - Log in Problems

Personal Listings: Pagan Clergy in Your Town - Adult Pagans - Young Pagans - Military Pagans

Events: Circles, Gatherings, Workshops & Festivals

Covens/Groups/Orgs: Local Groups Main Page

Other LOCAL Resources: Local Shops - Regional Sites - Local Notices - Global/National Notices - Local Skills & Services - Local Egroups - Political Freedom Fighters

Pagan Shopping: Online Shops Index - Original Crafters Sites - Auction Sites - Pagan Wholesalers - Pagan Local Shops

Web Site Content (including: text - graphics - html - look & feel)
Copyright 1997-2013 The Witches' Voice Inc. All rights reserved
Note: Authors & Artists retain the copyright for their work(s) on this website.
Unauthorized reproduction without prior permission is a violation of copyright laws.

Website structure, evolution and php coding by Fritz Jung on a Macintosh G5.

Any and all personal political opinions expressed in the public listing sections (including, but not restricted to, personals, events, groups, shops, Wren’s Nest, etc.) are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinion of The Witches’ Voice, Inc. TWV is a nonprofit, nonpartisan educational organization.

Sponsorship: Visit the Witches' Voice Sponsor Page for info on how you
can help support this Community Resource. Donations ARE Tax Deductible.
The Witches' Voice carries a 501(c)(3) certificate and a Federal Tax ID.

Mail Us: The Witches' Voice Inc., P.O. Box 341018, Tampa, Florida 33694-1018 U.S.A.

Witches, Pagans
of The World

Current Topic
Editorial Guide

NOTE: The essay on this page contains the writings and opinions of the listed author(s) and is not necessarily shared or endorsed by the Witches' Voice inc.

The Witches' Voice does not verify or attest to the historical accuracy contained in the content of this essay.

All WitchVox essays contain a valid email address, feel free to send your comments, thoughts or concerns directly to the listed author(s).