| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Chouans by Honore de Balzac: Fougeres.
Like fires lit at night as signals of liberty, a few gleams, faintly
crimsoned, began to show upon the summits, while the bases of the
mountains still retained the bluish tints which contrasted with the
rosy clouds that were floating in the valley. Soon a ruby disk rose
slowly on the horizon and the skies greeted it; the varied landscape,
the bell-tower of Saint-Leonard, the rocks, the meadows buried in
shadow, all insensibly reappeared, and the trees on the summits were
defined against the skies in the rising glow. The sun freed itself
with a graceful spring from the ribbons of flame and ochre and
sapphire. Its vivid light took level lines from hill to hill and
The Chouans |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Soul of a Bishop by H. G. Wells: expression in quite the same way, and when he left her he felt
that now he was capable of stating his case in a coherent and
acceptable form to almost any intelligent hearer. He had a point
of view now that was no longer embarrassed by the immediate
golden presence of God; he was no longer dazzled nor ecstatic;
his problem had diminished to the scale of any other great human
problem, to the scale of political problems and problems of
integrity and moral principle, problems about which there is no
such urgency as there is about a house on fire, for example.
And now the desire for expression was running strong. He wanted
to state his situation; if he did not state he would have to act;
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| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Travels with a Donkey in the Cevenne by Robert Louis Stevenson: with these knolls of foliage, or to see a clan of old unconquerable
chestnuts cluster 'like herded elephants' upon the spur of a
mountain, is to rise to higher thoughts of the powers that are in
Nature.
Between Modestine's laggard humour and the beauty of the scene, we
made little progress all that afternoon; and at last finding the
sun, although still far from setting, was already beginning to
desert the narrow valley of the Tarn, I began to cast about for a
place to camp in. This was not easy to find; the terraces were too
narrow, and the ground, where it was unterraced, was usually too
steep for a man to lie upon. I should have slipped all night, and
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The fourth excerpt represents the element of Earth. It speaks of physical influences and the impact of the unseen on the visible world, and is drawn from King James Bible: again of the mountains.
EZE 7:8 Now will I shortly pour out my fury upon thee, and accomplish
mine anger upon thee: and I will judge thee according to thy ways, and
will recompense thee for all thine abominations.
EZE 7:9 And mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: I will
recompense thee according to thy ways and thine abominations that are in
the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I am the LORD that smiteth.
EZE 7:10 Behold the day, behold, it is come: the morning is gone forth;
the rod hath blossomed, pride hath budded.
EZE 7:11 Violence is risen up into a rod of wickedness: none of them
shall remain, nor of their multitude, nor of any of their's: neither
King James Bible |
