| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Poems by Oscar Wilde: But the sough and swing of a mighty wing
The prison seemed to fill,
For the Lord of Death with icy breath
Had entered in to kill.
He did not pass in purple pomp,
Nor ride a moon-white steed.
Three yards of cord and a sliding board
Are all the gallows' need:
So with rope of shame the Herald came
To do the secret deed.
We were as men who through a fen
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Woodlanders by Thomas Hardy: reopened the door to a distance of a few inches, and saw at the
opposite window two figures in the act of stepping out--a man and
a woman--in whom he recognized the lady of the house and his son-
in-law. In a moment they had disappeared amid the gloom of the
lawn.
He returned into the hall, and let himself out by the carriage-
entrance door, coming round to the lawn front in time to see the
two figures parting at the railing which divided the precincts of
the house from the open park. Mrs. Charmond turned to hasten back
immediately that Fitzpiers had left her side, and he was speedily
absorbed into the duskiness of the trees.
The Woodlanders |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Aesop's Fables by Aesop: A slave named Androcles once escaped from his master and fled
to the forest. As he was wandering about there he came upon a
Lion lying down moaning and groaning. At first he turned to flee,
but finding that the Lion did not pursue him, he turned back and
went up to him. As he came near, the Lion put out his paw, which
was all swollen and bleeding, and Androcles found that a huge
thorn had got into it, and was causing all the pain. He pulled
out the thorn and bound up the paw of the Lion, who was soon able
to rise and lick the hand of Androcles like a dog. Then the Lion
took Androcles to his cave, and every day used to bring him meat
from which to live. But shortly afterwards both Androcles and the
Aesop's Fables |
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 A treatise on Good Works by Dr. Martin Luther: all that he can to prevent such prayer. Gleefully he lets us go
on building churches, endowing many monastic houses, making
music, reading, singing, observing many masses, and multiplying
ceremonies beyond all measure. This does not grieve him, nay, he
helps us do it, that we may consider such things the very best,
and think that thereby we have done our whole duty. But in that
meanwhile this common, effectual and fruitful prayer perishes and
its omission is unnoticed because of such display, in this he has
what he seeks. For when prayer languishes, no one will take
anything from him, and no one will withstand him. But if he
noticed that we wished to practise this prayer, even if it were
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