| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from An Old Maid by Honore de Balzac: Mademoiselle Cormon disdained anonymous letters; but she wrote to
Suzanne herself, on the ground of enlightening the Maternity Society.
Suzanne, who had no doubt heard of du Bousquier's proposed marriage,
acknowledged her trick, sent a thousand francs to the society, and did
all the harm she could to the old purveyor. Mademoiselle Cormon
convoked the Maternity Society, which held a special meeting at which
it was voted that the association would not in future assist any
misfortunes about to happen, but solely those that had happened.
In spite of all these various events which kept the town in the
choicest gossip, the banns were published in the churches and at the
mayor's office. Athanase prepared the deeds. As a matter of propriety
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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 Enchanted Island of Yew by L. Frank Baum: Curiously enough, they had both forgotten from what direction they had
approached the castle; for, whereas they had at that time noticed but
one marble roadway leading to the entrance, they now saw that there were
several of these, each one connecting with a path through the mountains.
"It really doesn't matter which way we go, so long as we get away from
the Kingdom of Spor," said Prince Marvel; so he selected a path by
chance, and soon they were riding through a mountain pass.
The pleased, expectant look on Nerle's face had gradually turned to
one of gloom.
"I hoped we should have a fight to get away," he said, sadly; "and in
that case I might have suffered considerable injury and pain. But no
The Enchanted Island of Yew |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from King James Bible: years.
JDG 16:1 Then went Samson to Gaza, and saw there an harlot, and went in
unto her.
JDG 16:2 And it was told the Gazites, saying, Samson is come hither.
And they compassed him in, and laid wait for him all night in the gate
of the city, and were quiet all the night, saying, In the morning, when
it is day, we shall kill him.
JDG 16:3 And Samson lay till midnight, and arose at midnight, and took
the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and went away with
them, bar and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up
to the top of an hill that is before Hebron.
King James Bible |
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 Glaucus/The Wonders of the Shore by Charles Kingsley: inorganic conditions of life,' - if this, I say, were proved to be
true, ought God's care and God's providence to seem less or more
magnificent in our eyes? Of old it was said by Him without whom
nothing is made - 'My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.' Shall
we quarrel with physical science, if she gives us evidence that
those words are true?"
And - understand it well - the grand passage I have just quoted
need not be accused of substituting "natural selection for God."
In any case natural selection would be only the means or law by
which God works, as He does by other natural laws. We do not
substitute gravitation for God, when we say that the planets are
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