The Four Elements of Creation

The Great Mystery reveals itself as the powers of the four directions and these four powers provide the organizing principle for everything that exists in the world. There are four winds, four seasons, four phases of the moon, four stages to humanity's spiritual evolution, and four basic elements. The four elements are Air, Fire, Water and Earth. The four elements are basically the four forces or polarized rhythmic patterns that create and animate reality. Each element is associated with one of the four directions and has a unique essence or resonant quality that helps us evolve toward completion, toward harmony and balance. Collectively, they define the vibratory infrastructure that literally holds together our resonant field of reality.

Air is associated with the East and relates to spring, morning, the rising sun, expansion and control of the mind, and the breath of life. In the science of physics Air would be the equivalent of Electromagnetic Force, one of the four fundamental forces of nature. Fire is associated with the South and relates to summer, midday, growth, vitality, the sky, and illumination. Fire equates to the Strong Nuclear Force. Water is associated with the West and relates to autumn, twilight, assimilation, emotions, flow, the moon, death and rebirth, and transformation. It is the equivalent of Gravitational Force. Earth is associated with the North and relates to winter, darkness, the earth, purification, sensory awareness, completion, and the form-giving aspect of energy. It equates to the Weak Nuclear Force.

The sacred hoop or medicine wheel illustrates the sequence of development in the process of manifestation. Born of the silent emptiness of the center, vibration cycles around the periphery of the circle. Moving from East (Air) to South (Fire) to West (Water) to North (Earth), vibration bonds the elements, and then reverses its rotation toward emptiness to begin the cycle anew. The unmanifest essence of vibration precipitates this bonding sequence in order to manifest a desired form. The energy of vibration is alive and, because it is alive, it seeks ways in which to express or manifest itself. As Ute-Tiwa shaman Joseph Rael concludes in his book, Being and Vibration, "Apparently materialization occurs because vibration is seeking to purify the center (heart) of its newly formulated form."(1)

The four elements are the building blocks of nature and interact with humans in the creative process. The elements are living energies, which change and move as we think, and then take the form of our thoughts. Thought is the tool of the mind that shapes physical reality. Every thought, idea, or image in the mind has form and substance. Everything that we perceive began with a thought, for it is the blending of thought forms with the elemental rhythms that shape physical reality. It is the consciousness of humanity that holds the present physical form of all that we perceive. It is the mind that determines the destiny of forms. We are mind. Our Earth is mind. We live in a universe of mind. From photons to galaxies, life is conscious intelligent energy that can form itself into any pattern or function.

1. Joseph Rael and Mary Marlow, Being and Vibration (Tulsa: Council Oak Books, 1993), p 185.

"An Appreciation of Precipitation"

In Appreciation of Precipitation: A Call to Action
by Jade Grigori

I awoke with the Earth Mother speaking a request of me... of us: Call for an Appreciation of Precipitation.

"Bring the people together in appreciation of the rain", she said. "Speak directly to the people, that they may awaken to their responsibilities of acknowledging the rain." The intense heat has parched our land. The fires surround us around the world. Here is one thing we can do...

Gather. Gather in Appreciation of the Rain. When? Now. Anytime is the right time to be in Appreciation of Precipitation.

How?

While holding a glass of water in your hands, lift the water to your heart and reside within Appreciation. Appreciation of the rain, of water and all its values and blessings it brings in our lives and upon this planet. Water, the primary constituent of Life.

Rain, the replenishment of fresh water upon all the planet. In that inward place, from Appreciation, feel the rain falling upon your face, head tilted back, mouth open to receive the drops of water falling from the sky. Smell the rain, the crisp smell of ozone. Hear the rain drops hitting the ground as thunder rolls through the air.

Be in fullest Appreciation of Rain! Pour the first bit of water upon the Earth (Yes, a potted plant will suffice. Or even your lap, if need be), extending to the Earth and all her Creatures the blessings of the rain. Then drink the water down, experiencing it slide into your body, carrying with it all the blessings of Appreciation that you have evoked.

The water carries these blessings with it, seeping into every cell of your body, transmitting the blessing into your Being, which then acts as a command at a cellular level for you to live, act and express yourself in accord with those blessings of Appreciation called forth.

There is nothing to DO, beyond participating. There is only to BE... to BE in Appreciation of Precipitation!

What? You say you would love to join in but...
Your favorite TV show is on? - Turn it off!
You are getting your children ready for bed at that time? - Place a glass of water in their hands and let them participate.
It is your meditation time? - Then let this BE your meditation for this one evening.
You are flying on a plane? - Ask the aisle assistant for a glass of water.
You are just too busy? - What is of more importance than the reestablishment of our innate relationship with the Waters of Life?!
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This is NOT a call to pray for rain! Far too often folks will jump up and say "We gotta pray for rain!" while just a few months ago they were cursing the snow, or the ruination of a picnic, saying that it is 'bad weather' when it rains or snows inconveniently. STOP! Breathe... this is a call to be in appreciation. We are not, here, setting out to make it rain, forcing our will once again upon Mother Nature. This is a call to simply be in appreciation of precipitation.

Copyright © 2019 by Jade Grigori, a Curator of the Sacred: a compendium of knowledge, storytelling, ceremonies, dances, healing practices, meditations, methods, and ways of Myth as an approach to Spirit.

The Sacred Power of Nature

"In the absence of the sacred, nothing is sacred. Everything is for sale."
--Oren R. Lyons, Faithkeeper of the Onondaga Turtle Clan

One of the most important teachings from indigenous people who are still rooted in shamanic and earth-based traditions is that being embedded in nature means being close to creation, the creator and the divine -- that the sacred is directly experienced through creation and can be understood through observation and communication with the spirit(s) of nature. While we modern people have been led to believe that the divine is somewhere 'out there', indigenous shamanic people remind us that the sacred and divine is 'right here.' We are a part of nature; not separate from it or 'above' it.

Shamans have always immersed themselves in nature because they knew that the only way to recharge was to connect with nature's healing energy. The longer the immersion; the more transformational the experience. What better way to reenergize than to sit in a deep forest, or next to a waterfall for a few days and nights? Shamans knew that some of that natural power could be gathered and stored using shamanic techniques and then applied later to their active endeavors. There is no reason why an ordinary person cannot learn and apply similar techniques to recharge, gather, store, and apply the renewed vitality gained from time in nature.

Shamanism is a way of living in harmony with nature, rather than an adherence to a religious doctrine. By practicing these ways of being, we awaken our soul calling and our connection to nature. The spirits of nature are here to teach us to be better humans. They come to assist us in doing the principal unique thing we have come here to do in a way that benefits all living things. The shamanic way is good medicine for a world that needs to experience the divine in nature in order to become whole.

Shamanism is ultimately about consciousness, about learning through attunement to nature. It provides a myriad of responses to the spiritual quest of self-discovery. It is a path that emphasizes establishing a personal relationship with the powers of creation. It is a way that embeds us in the living web of life, yielding greater awareness and perspective. Shamanic practices are easily integrated into contemporary life and provide a means of navigating the turbulent times in which we live. To learn more, look inside my book The Great Shift: And How To Navigate It.