| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Two Noble Kinsmen by William Shakespeare: Extreamely lov'd him, infinitely lov'd him;
And yet he had a Cosen, faire as he too.
But in my heart was Palamon, and there,
Lord, what a coyle he keepes! To heare him
Sing in an evening, what a heaven it is!
And yet his Songs are sad ones. Fairer spoken
Was never Gentleman. When I come in
To bring him water in a morning, first
He bowes his noble body, then salutes me, thus:
'Faire, gentle Mayde, good morrow; may thy goodnes
Get thee a happy husband.' Once he kist me.
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Lysis by Plato: there are others who say that likeness is a cause of aversion, and
unlikeness of love and friendship; and they too adduce the authority of
poets and philosophers in support of their doctrines; for Hesiod says that
'potter is jealous of potter, bard of bard;' and subtle doctors tell us
that 'moist is the friend of dry, hot of cold,' and the like. But neither
can their doctrine be maintained; for then the just would be the friend of
the unjust, good of evil.
Thus we arrive at the conclusion that like is not the friend of like, nor
unlike of unlike; and therefore good is not the friend of good, nor evil of
evil, nor good of evil, nor evil of good. What remains but that the
indifferent, which is neither good nor evil, should be the friend (not of
Lysis |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Economist by Xenophon: moment; only you undertook to meet your foreign friends, and rather
than play them false you go on waiting.
[2] Lit. "beautiful and good."
Isch. Let me so far corect you, Socrates; in no case will the things
you speak of be neglected, since I have stewards and bailiffs[3] on
the farms.
[3] Cf. Becker, op. cit. p. 363.
Soc. And, pray, what is your system when you need a bailiff? Do you
search about, until you light on some one with a natural turn for
stewardship; and then try to purchase him?--as, I feel certain,
happens when you want a carpenter: first, you discover some one with a
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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 Phaedrus by Plato: for such enquiries; shall I tell you why? I must first know myself, as the
Delphian inscription says; to be curious about that which is not my
concern, while I am still in ignorance of my own self, would be ridiculous.
And therefore I bid farewell to all this; the common opinion is enough for
me. For, as I was saying, I want to know not about this, but about myself:
am I a monster more complicated and swollen with passion than the serpent
Typho, or a creature of a gentler and simpler sort, to whom Nature has
given a diviner and lowlier destiny? But let me ask you, friend: have we
not reached the plane-tree to which you were conducting us?
PHAEDRUS: Yes, this is the tree.
SOCRATES: By Here, a fair resting-place, full of summer sounds and scents.
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