| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions by Edwin A. Abbot: it was the missing tablet.
I groaned with horror, doubting whether I was not out of my senses;
but the Stranger continued: "Surely you must now see
that my explanation, and no other, suits the phenomena. What you call
Solid things are really superficial; what you call Space is really
nothing but a great Plane. I am in Space, and look down upon
the insides of the things of which you only see the outsides.
You could leave this Plane yourself, if you could but summon up
the necessary volition. A slight upward or downward motion
would enable you to see all that I can see.
"The higher I mount, and the further I go from your Plane,
Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle: the foot of the stairs, however, she met this Lascar scoundrel of
whom I have spoken, who thrust her back and, aided by a Dane, who
acts as assistant there, pushed her out into the street. Filled
with the most maddening doubts and fears, she rushed down the
lane and, by rare good-fortune, met in Fresno Street a number of
constables with an inspector, all on their way to their beat. The
inspector and two men accompanied her back, and in spite of the
continued resistance of the proprietor, they made their way to
the room in which Mr. St. Clair had last been seen. There was no
sign of him there. In fact, in the whole of that floor there was
no one to be found save a crippled wretch of hideous aspect, who,
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Two Poets by Honore de Balzac: bask instead of putting it to a profitable use. With mistaken notions
as to the significance and the motive of social relations they imagine
that they shall always meet with deceptive smiles; and so at last the
moment comes for them when the world leaves them bald, stripped bare,
without fortune or worth, like an elderly coquette by the door of a
salon, or a stray rag in the gutter.
Eve herself had wished for the delay. She meant to establish the
little household on the most economical footing, and to buy only
strict necessaries; but what could two lovers refuse to a brother who
watched his sister at her work, and said in tones that came from the
heart, "How I wish I could sew!" The sober, observant David had shared
|
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 The Enchanted Island of Yew by L. Frank Baum: "The Ki-Ki shall be the rulers," answered the High Ki, "and we will
take the Ki with us."
"Then I will delay my departure until to-morrow morning," said the
prince, "in order that your Highnesses may have time to prepare for
the journey."
And then he went back to the palaces of the other rulers, where the Ki
expressed themselves greatly pleased at the idea of traveling, and the
new Ki-Ki were proud to learn they should rule for some time the Land
of Twi.
Wul-Takim also begged to join the party, and so also did King
Terribus, who had never before been outside of his own Kingdom of
The Enchanted Island of Yew |
