How do you know what your element is?
 

I used to laugh at the birth signs telling you what element you are in. Then again I used to laugh at a lot of things I take very serious now.

And I have noticed that some people seem to find certain energies a lot more pleasant than others. I know at least one who loves it when I send fire energy, as opposed to sending air or water energy. And another who gets drained when I send earth energy.

Disregarding for the moment what the horoscopes claim, how can you tell what element you are closest to or what energy works best for you? I identify the following non-living elemental energies so far: earth, fire, air, water, and spirit.

According to the birth signs, I'm Earth. However, I seem to be more water. I came to this conclusion when I took time to ponder each one of the elements, and how I felt when I embrace them. I enjoy being in nature, hiking, camping, etc, but I do not put my bare feet in the grass often. However, when I'm in the water, be it pool, ocean, lake, pond, etc. I feel so calm and at ease. I crave just sitting my the waterfront, breathing the sea air. That's how I knew what I'm closest to and relate to.

OnAPath, I'm supposed to be earth too and I can believe that I am...but I love water too and I think pisces are people I connect most with in my own life, the great majority of people I admire, respect and get along with are pisces and they are the water sign, I believe. So I live in the country and fight tooth and nails to keep my property I live on now. The house is ****, but my land is lovely...enough land to keep me happily planting and admiring and I have a creek and a pond and a lake...so I enjoy it very much.

WhiteWarroir,

My power element is air/wind. The way I find out was my what rituals, practices and tools I used. My spirit reacts strongly to things that are associated with air. Even my power animals are birds. Maybe do a quick evaluation of your rituals, practices, tools, guides, horoscope, and such. What I found out was mine almost all were tied to air. What I was drawn to had much to do with air. It just happened that way and I found out by researching the aspects of my path that air was dominate.

Well. I like to sit on the shore, it feels very peaceful. And I love sailboats. But I also like the winds and the birds in the sky and the peace found when sitting on the top of a hill or mountain range. As for fire... I cut down trees and make them into firewood, and smithies call to me, and I love guns and anything else that goes boom. The forest and the mountains and anywhere where the animals make the paths, calls to me and crystals glow in my hands. And the stars and the moon are so beautiful. I don't know what element does NOT call to me. I can certainly access them all for energy now. But surely there must be one element more meant for me than the others... or is there no 'must' in this?

WW,

It is something that may develop and you will take notice or it may not be part of your spiritual circuit. It may reveal itself later...IMO when it comes to spiritual tools and such there is no must...

I often feel like them all too, WW.

I was asking myself the same question :wink:


Don't really understand ,how do you send eart energy for example ?


I also think if you are attracted by all the element,maybe it's because your element is the 5th, the Spirit, as maybe there's spirit in everything... ws just thinking of that but it could completly be false also ahah ;)

Speaking it terms of the 4 traditional elements, I have a Fire sign, but I feel Earth is strongest for me. I love working with earth, playing in the garden, getting my hands into the soil. I help others feel more grounded and stable when I am nearby.

Hey dhaga,

This was a great example to share, so have people expressed that they feel more grounded around you?

Yes, people have told me this. When they are around me, even when interacting with me at a distance (through chat, talking on the phone, etc).

Reality is quintessential.

It's important to remember that the idea behind the Four Elements was to explain what the underlying substance (or substances) is/are behind all things in reality. Empedocles established that there are four roots that underly all of reality. This was later embraced by more influential Greek philosophers - most notably Aristotle - and became the canon of natural philosophy up until the advent of modern science. It was understood that nothing in this world is made up of just one element, but that all things in reality have all four of the Elements within them. The ratio of each could vary and was part of how the nature of a thing was determined. Humans in particular were understood to be balanced among the Four. When they were not, they were said to be mentally or physically ill.

In part because of this, I regard questions like "what Element are you?" to be more like a quaint child's game, no offense intended. I think we can validly ask "what Element do you like the most or do you feel resonates with you the most?" but the previous question is more dicey. If it is a valid question to ask, most people who go about determining their so-called Element don't do so from a position of strong knowledge about the Four. If you have a strong knowledge of the Four, you don't tend to ask the question. You either recognize it as a non-question or you already know what "your" Element is based on experience/knowledge.

Whitewarrior,

IMO, most things and most creatures are a combination of the elements. Even water (a liquid) is made up of hydrogen and oxygen (air). This is also reflected in the chant:
Earth my body
Water my blood
Air my breath
Fire my spirit

That being said, there are all different combinations of elements. Many people have one element which resonates
most strongly for them. Others feel strongly connected to two or three, but not the other two or one. Some people have a very strong connection to all four.

Personally, my main elements are water and fire, followed closely by earth. I have the least connection with air, yet I know that it is a part of me and I can see the attributes of air that I have and that resonate strongly with
me -- for example: I tend to be extremely intellectual and and seek knowledge constantly. I am also extremely logical, which complements me being extremely emotional and helps to keep me from getting in over my head. I also have some birds as spirit animals.

Some of why I am closest to the o the elements that I am has to do with my zodiac and natal chart: All three water signs, one of the fires, and two of the earths as my zodiac signs. The element of your sun sign is not likely to be the only astrologically significant sign to you. There is also your moon sign and ascendant to take into consideration. Then, of only slightly less significance, if any less, are your descendant, Midheaven and IC.

But the elements prominent in your natal astrology are not necessarily the element(s) that resonate most strongly with you. You can find out which element(s) resonate most with you by looking at your path, your habits,
rituals,the aspects of your personality, where you feel most at home, what environments suit you best, your spirit animals and plants, your natal chart, and by meditating on the elements.

The elements also resonate with people in different ways. For example: while I am slightly closer with water and fire than earth, I need to be in nature and to stay grounded. I try to live in accordance with natural law. My personal pantheon includes Gaia and Cernunnos (two deities of earth). I work closely with animals, plants, and minerals.

Some things you might want to consider, but that may not have any bearing, after all: your profile says you are an Aries (fire). Your username: The color white is usually elementally associated with air and spirit. Warrior energy
is usually considered to correspond to male elemental energy (fire and air) and of the two, it is usually ascribed to being more of a fire trait -- the main exception I can think of at the moment being tarot, where it is linked
with swords. Unfortunately, I don't have more insight on that because, while I do use oracle I haven't worked with a traditional tarot deck in years.

Also, you may want to do research regarding the elements and their correspondences. Sorry about the wall of text!

I still don't think I have found my primary element. I believe I am leaning slightly toward air at the moment.

Twisting the question slightly - you who DO know what your primary element is; how do you use this knowledge? Do you summon or use energy from that element with any particular benefit? Anything else?

I'd like to add that the four elements we usually talk about are those of the western astrology or philosophy in the case of the Ancient Greeks (always with the addition of the fifth element, the Divine or Void).
However i have found Chinese astrology to be quite accurate, and the personal element can be different, for example i'm Water in the western but Fire in the eastern zodiac and i could say it describes me quite accurately !

I was born May 31, so I would be Gemini. What element does that make me?

Dawn, gemini is an air sign.

Let see if I can answer this and I hope it makes sense. I move in what is known a 'bird medicine', my rituals and practices are always done with my power animals and they are both birds. I use a feather prayer stick/wand when doing my rituals, feathers are representative of the air element. Using candles also brings into the rituals the need for air to have a flame and to carry the intentions. I also use windchimes as they carry healing sound as needed for certain things. Blue calcite when handled for me releases like a breeze to my spirit and clears the way for my intentions. Other abilities I work with require the element air to be able to do them properly.

Thanks. I wonder if this is why I'm afraid of water (like large ponds or oceans, not small creeks).

Hm. I too am using a feather as a wand at times; I have collected a few from the ground. And my Cherokee name is White Owl. And I love blue crystals (although that could be a water reference too right?) and blowing instruments. Perhaps my thought that air is my first element could be correct. What is bird medicine?

Bird medicine is working with bird guides and learning how they connect with you. I found on the process of my journey I came to recognize my connection to birds and there connection to the air element and how much of what I move in is tied to these things. Many times if you know what giftings or abilities you have, you will find as you begin to understand them better and how they work through you they will often be stronger or become intensified when you couple them with the element they are connected with. At least this is how it has unfolded for me.

Also if you know your power animals and you study about them you will find they are connected to an element as well.

Thanks, Quint--Someone had to say it. We are all of them. Maybe we have a need of one or another to balance us at particular times.

It does seem like a game--just like astrology.

IsleWalker - Lora

I can understand what you both are expressing but this isn't just about the element, it is about connections. Thanks for sharing your view.

I have not positively identified my power or totem animals yet either, but that will have to be for another thread.

Hello

Maybe work with all of them. I do not go to just the one in the work that I do I find a balance in all of them. Like I see all of us as "ONE" too I see the Elememts all as "one" in the balance that can be found.

Way back when I was 16 I learned to use them in this way and have ever since. I like to think that I am a balanced person....


Using the Four Elementsin Balance

AIR

Take a deepbreath into your heart, and let it out. As ye breathe in, take a moment to think on the mystery of the Airaround us. We live in a World of many ananimal and we all need in that Air to live. We to also live in a World of plants that take in the carbon dioxide weexhale. They too take in like us theenergy of the Sun. The plants give offoxygen so we can eat them. Breathing in and out in the life cycle that is ourvery breath.

FIRE

Take the timeto watch the flame of a candle. See howit is fed by wick that gives it life. See how the wax melts away and turns from solid to liquid and to solidagain. See how the combinations of gas,liquid and solid combine as one. See thepure energy in the fire. The ash from itthat feeds our very soil. Too the Sun bea ball of fire that gives the Earth the life we have. Embrace the power in the flame but toorespect that power.


WATER

Water is that ofthe moods and emotions. Water can be buta single drop of rain that falls or a massive wave that destroys. It can nourish and it can destroy. We do our best to contain it and use it butwe are not its master. Take the time tosee in one’s mind the moods that be water. The rain on a window, the waves of the ocean, the stillness of a creek,or the rage of a river and of a giant wave. Let it flow fast and slow and slow and fast, see how that feels. Many times one will find memories that stirthe feelings. Take in the understandingsfound in those feelings.

EARTH

Take a walk inthe forest. See the trees beforeone. Feel their trunks as ye and feelthe roots at one’s feet. Feel thebranches that reach to the Light. Smellthe nature around one see the new life all around ye. Let ye become the tree feel the power beinggrounded to the Earth. Feel the soilaround ye and the wind in ye. Feel thewarmth of the Sun. Feel the power thatbe Mother Earth. Play in this place andgrow in this place.

Feel thesecurity of all that is around one in nature. Take in with all the senses the feel of nature. See the animals around one.

Absolutely balance is very important. Working with the elements is pretty much like any other spiritual aspect. Some people work with them some don't, some have a stronger connection to one, some don't. They are all connected and I use them all, bur I just happen to know that I move most effectively in the air element. When one works with their abilities do they not work in the area they move best in? It is pretty much the same thing. As I touched on earlier and as others have shared maybe you are meant to use them all...go with what feels right to you and how you feel it fits with what you do. :smile:

Well, I am a Sagittarius- fire sign, and I have found that this is definitely the element I connect most with. I love heat, and flames - bonfires, candles...(yes, I've been called a fire-bug many times!)
However, I also connect strongly with earth...I love walking in the woods, sinking my hands in dirt, putting my hands on a grand, old tree and feeling its life-force.
I definitely do NOT connect with water at all - I have always had a fear of water for as long as I can remember...
The air element doesn't do much for me, either....

You and I both have a fear of water. I've connected to a few Sagittarius men in my lifetime, but ended up marrying an Aquarius. My sign (as a Gemini) is air, and I read that Aquarius is air as well. But like you, I feel strongly connected with the earth as well.

My sign says fire too, and whilst i thought I was earth, fire seems to be more me. I'm trying to think of a way to say that I suit fire without sounding like a pyromaniac :)

Greetings WhiteWarrior:
 

I am a student of Astrology and I think it is important to note that we are much more than just our individual SunSign. A NatalChart can be heavily influenced by many different factors--beginning w/ cusp Children (like me:smile: ).

I am technically a Sagittarian. However--by the old Astrological System I am a Scorpio and my personality has always been more true to the ScorpionNature. I have a Taurus Rising and a Capricorn Moon and I can tell you that I am heavily influenced by the Elements of Water and Earth--although I work w/ all of the Elementals in my Rituals and CandleWorkings.

I would like to suggest a book entitled, "The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever Need" by Joanna Martine Woolfolk. Astrology can go much deeper than even this book can tell--but it is a wonderful place to start for those who wish to fully understand how and why they are influenced by certain energies.

Peace and Love on your path to Discovering the Mysteries...

Blessed be...

I have looked into astrology in the past. It has been interesting, but I can't always find what I am looking for. I have the Sun in Aries and a Capricorn Moon myself. I balk at thinking that is enough to reveal my best energy element though. Frankly I think it is a question of more factors than my birth date.

Is there a reliable NatalChart online? Am curious where I fall under.

Greetings Everyone:
 

Just to give you some idea (concerning the book I mentioned) the very basic NatalCharts it has helped me do for myself, family, and others--are anywhere from 12 to 14 handwritten pages long and give indepth insight into a person's personality and tendencies.

However--as it relates to the Elements--you can clearly see what Planets were in your 12 Astrological Houses at the time you were born and can determine in this way just how strongly certain Elements effect you.

I don't know about online sources--Dawn1976--but if you will PM me your birth date, your time of birth, and the City and State in which you were born--I would be glad to do an overview for you.

Peace and Love on the path of your choice...

Blessed be...

Thank u LadyTerra :hug2:

Learn about the elements. What is the nature of each? Water and earth are heavy and tend to move down, fire and air are light and tend to move up. Earth is sedentary, air is in constant motion. Fire consumes, and transforms; Water adapts and nourishes. The better you understand the nature of each element, and of course the better you understand yourself, the more easily you will be able to determine which element you tend to identify with.

It sounds like a good line of thought. And it tells me that I don't understand myself well enough yet.

Now that has given me plenty to think about. :cool:

Hmmmm.... and now, the spirits have spoken. I had a chat through a medium yesterday. My question was: "what is my best element to turn to for energy use?" The reply was first 'earth', and then 'fire' - a lot of flames was shown. This isn't the first time I hear earth, it also came up in a card reading. But fire was also mentioned. So now I am scratching my head a bit. After some thinking my best guess is that earth is the element that represents me best. And the other way around. But based on my energy experiments in the past I know I am quite handy with fire energy, even if I do not in any way consider myself a 'firebug'. So maybe fire is my best work tool even if earth best describes my nature? I don't see the connection, but it is the info I have for now.

Curious... Does anyone have a test or set of questions to help me figure this out for my own? Please feel free to PM me or reply here if they wish to take me on, thanks.