How can the four elements improve your well-being?

The importance of Fire, Air, Water and Earth.

As astrological discourse continues to seep into our everyday lives, more and more focus is becoming centered around the signs. Everyone can pretty much tell you their opinion of a friend or family member that is an Aries or Libra, for example. The signs hold an increasingly powerful place in our minds. But they of course do not provide the entire picture of astrology and its significance. 

The signs are considered one of the three core roots of astrological wisdom alongside the planets and the houses. A metaphor often used in describing the interplay between these three roots is that of a theatre, with the planets representing the actors, the signs representing the script and the houses representing the stage or backdrop. 

This perfectly simplifies the interaction between the key parts at play. But as you go deeper into your astrological understanding, you start to find that there are more questions that arise. Like who is the producer funding this backdrop of houses? Who is the director guiding the planets? And who decides what narrative tone the signs create their scripts from? The answers around the planets and houses are out of the scope of this particular article. However, in considering the signs, when we zoom out in order to grasp the driving force that influences and encapsulates them, we become acquainted with the four classical elements - Fire, Air, Water and Earth.

Somewhere in the back of our minds, most of us are aware that the astrological signs are related to the four elements, especially those of us who are deep into our astrological study. Even so, the emphasis on the elements has been somewhat lost or perhaps overshadowed by the signs, and our goal at Elemental Being is to return the elements to their pedestal and bring them to the forefront of your self-discovery and healing journey. This is because the closer you look at the elements, the more you see the extensive power they hold for greater knowledge and healing. And this impact is not limited to astrology, but extends across multiple fields, doctrines and cultures. The elements appear to be a solid source of vitality. Mastering the balance of the elements is quite literally the energetic embodiment of the philosopher's stones. Yes, this wasn’t just a fictional part of Harry Potter, it’s an actual notion that has its roots in ancient wisdom. It was a highly sought after state of blissful balance and the path to its experience lies within the elements. 

While this concept may seem complicated, in actuality, it is not rocket science and is accessible to anyone who decides to understand. In its pure simplicity - the path to your internal balance and improved well-being lies within your unique elemental composition. The great news is that astrology gives you this exact information. Using your birth data, you’re essentially able to see the distribution of the elements in the skies, based on the astrological constellations when you were born. You are an expression of this exact distribution of elements. This information is crucial to your well-being because if you know your elemental composition and the source of vitality is creating balance across the elements, then astrology practically gives you the blueprint you need to create this balance by exposing the elements that you are either dominant or lacking in. It tells you where to direct your focus to gain overall balance. Have we been sleeping on the true benefits of astrology this whole time? Perhaps!  

Let’s assume that as you’re reading this article, you don’t need to be convinced about the validity of astrology. Even so, it’s worth spending a moment highlighting or clarifying what astrology actually is. Many consider it to be symbolic jargon based on non factual opinions. In actuality, it is the logical correlation of patterns, founded in empirical observations, measured for more than 5,000 years. It is the doctrine that has had the longest tenure of study, far outliving the theories of the Einsteins and Newtons of modern science. Astrology has yet to be officially refuted. What is meant by this is that yes, there are people that doubt it, but no one has actually outrightly been able to prove that it is not a valid interpretation. The strongest argument against it is that it doesn’t fit into the Newtonian objective ways of measurement, which makes sense because it is essentially based on the exploration of the human psyche within the cosmos, which is in itself subjective. 

Astrology gave birth to science. Their methodologies are similar. Both are centered around asking a question, observing the patterns and drawing conclusions. Whether in relation to science or spirituality, those that ask questions, observe, find the patterns and use this information to their benefit, empower themselves by mastering the human experience in a way commonly described as alchemy - observation, understanding and transformation.

It’s clear that astrology provides a key, and we should use it to unlock the door to greater harmony. But it’s important to note that astrology is just a way of translating the universe. In this case it’s a way of translating the elements within and around us, but the elements themselves exist far beyond the interpretations of astrology. When considering the original theory of how the universe works, there was clear emphasis on the influence of the elements as a driving force. The idea that matter behaves in different ways depending on a combination of differing qualities of hot, cold, moist and dry, gave birth to the four elements as the building blocks of everything around us including ourselves. Although  modern science has debunked this theory as old and outdated, the reality is that if you are open to truly observing what's around you, the existence of the four elements and their characteristics are undeniable. The closer you look, the clearer this becomes. 

Let’s consider some examples. Think about everything around you and how you experience it. Do you agree that passion and excitement creates an internal feeling of heat, like fire? Have you ever considered that air exists but you can’t see it, kind of like a thought? Have you noticed the way water flows effortlessly and can be deep like your emotions? And have you felt the stability of the solid ground of the earth keeping you standing? Each of these are examples of both tangible and abstract expressions of the elements, integrated into all that is both around and within you. Another pertinent example is the four seasons - summer, autumn, winter and spring. These are the expressions of elements through time. They impact the growth, decay, gestation and rebirth of everything around you, through the combinations of elemental energy. 

It is clear that elemental forces influence your environment and also have a profound impact on your psyche and how you function in your own unique way. To briefly expand on this point, if you have a lot of water in your elemental composition, you’re likely to be deep and focused on emotions. This is just one example but using astrology and your birth data, we can map your composition across all the elements using the twelve astrological signs. Aries, Leo and Sagittarius are expressions of Fire. Libra, Aquarius and Gemini are born from Air. Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces flow from Water. And Capricorn, Taurus and Virgo stem from Earth. 

Shifting focus from just the signs to the elements themselves can give greater context to the energies that influence who you are and how you interact with your surroundings. Looking at your chart holistically and understanding your distribution, pinpoints the elements that you are dominant in and the elements that you have less representation of, giving insights to how you might create balance. Your elemental distribution may explain why you might feel “out of your element” at times and can help you uncover why you may be more passionate (Fire), emotional (Water), thought driven (Air) or practical (Earth) than others in certain situations. Your elemental distribution will give you the blueprint for knowing yourself beyond just your Sun, Moon or Ascendent, allowing you to explore a greater sense of stability and harmony.

This article is just a small spec in the playing field of the power of the elements. It’s a thought starter, a context setter and hopefully the beginning of your journey in questioning, observing, finding patterns and using this information to your benefit. If you want to go deeper, be sure to check out the Elemental Being ebook - “the power of the elements” where you’ll get more of an overview of how the elements came to exist, a timeline of how they have been integrated across cultures, from ancient civilisations to the 21st century, the core characteristics of each element and its associated signs and finally an introduction on how to approach elemental practices towards improved well-being. 

The goal is to support you in your quest for internal and external stability through the balance of the elements.

Stay balanced, elemental being.