The 5 Elements

[Mannun]

It is pretty standard in most Wiccan ritual that at some point during the Erecting of the Temple the 4 Elements of Earth, Air, Fire & Water are called, honored, summoned or what have you. Does anyone incorporate the practice of also calling upon the 5th Element of Spirit/Ether??

[plumedsnake]

Prior to divination an Ifa diviner summons the 4 directions and the center.

[Infinite Grey]

Five elements? I'm pretty sure there are at least 117 observed Elements.

[Windsmith]

Five elements? I'm pretty sure there are at least 117 observed Elements."These are the only ones of which the news has come to Haaaa-vahd / and there may be many others, but they haven't been discaaaaah-vahed."


It is pretty standard in most Wiccan ritual that at some point during the Erecting of the Temple the 4 Elements of Earth, Air, Fire & Water are called, honored, summoned or what have you. Does anyone incorporate the practice of also calling upon the 5th Element of Spirit/Ether??In my tradition we invoke Spirit, which I refer to as the synthesis that makes us more than merely a combination of the others, and also Time. We're still debating whether we view Time as an Element or a Mysterious One.

[Teresa]

Prior to divination an Ifa diviner summons the 4 directions and the center.

QFT! :thumbsup:

[RubyRose]

I summon Spirit if I have need of it.

[Tahroh]

in my circle, we summon spirit as we would all others. we believe that to not recognize spirit is not recognize a part of ourselves. we do not call the elements in the four quarters either, but rather we use a pentagram design with spirit being at the northern most point.

[earthtide]

"These are the only ones of which the news has come to Haaaa-vahd / and there may be many others, but they haven't been discaaaaah-vahed."

Excellent musical taste :lol:

[Hunger]

Five elements? I'm pretty sure there are at least 117 observed Elements.

The word element originally did not describe specific substances, but the nature of substances. For instance, Copper is a substance, but Fire is an element.

The 4-5 elements were a representation of the states of the universe.

Earth-solid
water-liquid
air-gas
spirit-change

However fire is the strange one, which is a bit difficult to understand until you begin delving into the older mythologies, such as the difference between 'lesser fire' or the 'fire of man' and the 'fire of the gods'.

The fire of man was not considered 'true' fire, but rather a imitation. The sun is divine fire, as is lightning. Comments on phenomenon similar to St. Elmo's fire (or foxfire) indicate it was also considered divine fire. Divine fire represents the fourth state of matter, the plasma.

Spirit, the fifth element, sometimes included, sometimes not, is the element of metamorphosis. To quote the first recorded poetess Enheduanna, in rather flat translation that loses all of the beauty and depth of the line, "The spirit incites all things to strive, to move, to create, to transform."

Spirit is more of a binding element that takes all other things and brings them together to make life, or interaction. Unlike the other elements it is entire intangible, yet its effect on the universe is profound. It is the spirit that is light, that is motion, that is power. Divine fire doesn't make light directly, but it has a spirit of its own that is filled with light, the same with mortal fire.

Of course the element of spirit is far more complex than just 'energy' it is also the interaction between things that have no real meaning, spirit makes language, the mind, knowledge, all of these are spirit as well, love is spirit. To put it into a magician-scientist perspective spirit is the conjoining of energy and information.

[WulfcwenStar]

I call upon all four elements Earth, Air, Fire and Water, I call upon Spirit when I need to as I feel Spirit is there when I call upon my Deities to be present. I also call upon all the Powers that be so I feel Spirit would alo be part of that as well.

[omar]

There are 5 elements fire,air water,earth & spirit. Spirit is your higher self.