| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Bucky O'Connor by William MacLeod Raine: There's a difference."
She rescued her hands from him and led the way to a bench that
served for a seat. "Sit down here, sir. There are one or two
things that I have to explain." She sat down beside him at the
farther end of the bench.
"This light is so dim, I can't see you away over there," he
pleaded, moving closer.
"You don't need to see me. You can hear me, can't you?"
"I reckon."
She seemed to find a difficulty in beginning, even though the
darkness helped her by making it impossible for him to see her
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe: This was very friendly in the governor; however, when it came to
the caravan, there was nobody knew anything of the matter; and as
for us that were guilty, we were least of all suspected. However,
the captain of the caravan for the time took the hint that the
governor gave us, and we travelled two days and two nights without
any considerable stop, and then we lay at a village called Plothus:
nor did we make any long stop here, but hastened on towards
Jarawena, another Muscovite colony, and where we expected we should
be safe. But upon the second day's march from Plothus, by the
clouds of dust behind us at a great distance, it was plain we were
pursued. We had entered a vast desert, and had passed by a great
Robinson Crusoe |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Mirror of the Sea by Joseph Conrad: It was good advice. But one cannot think of everything or foresee
contacts of things apparently as remote as stars and hop-poles.
XXXII.
The view of ships lying moored in some of the older docks of London
has always suggested to my mind the image of a flock of swans kept
in the flooded backyard of grim tenement houses. The flatness of
the walls surrounding the dark pool on which they float brings out
wonderfully the flowing grace of the lines on which a ship's hull
is built. The lightness of these forms, devised to meet the winds
and the seas, makes, by contrast with the great piles of bricks,
the chains and cables of their moorings appear very necessary, as
The Mirror of the Sea |
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 Tao Teh King by Lao-tze: without discerning any flavour; to consider what is small as great,
and a few as many; and to recompense injury with kindness.
2. (The master of it) anticipates things that are difficult while they
are easy, and does things that would become great while they are
small. All difficult things in the world are sure to arise from a
previous state in which they were easy, and all great things from one
in which they were small. Therefore the sage, while he never does
what is great, is able on that account to accomplish the greatest
things.
3. He who lightly promises is sure to keep but little faith; he who is
continually thinking things easy is sure to find them difficult.
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