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The Elements
For many who work with magic, elemental considerations are of great importance. To begin with, the Quarters or directions with which the elements of air, earth, fire, and water are associated, are often invoked in creating sacred space within a working Circle. The associations vary somewhat, but possibly the most common align Air/East, Fire/South, Water/West, and Earth/North. Elemental correspondences are often employed, using such alignments as Air/Thought, Fire/Action-Will, Water/Emotion, and Earth/Physical-Material.
But before we discuss these alignments in detail, it might be good to look at the basic model of the Elements from which these correspondences arise. Ivo Dominguez, Jr. says that this model "helps to unify and to redefine the polarity of matter and energy1." Since magick is the manipulation of energy through raising, directing, transferring, or sharing it, usually in order to affect matter in some way, it would stand to reason that having a model of such things to help understand them would be extremely beneficial, perhaps downright crucial, to anyone who is trying to do serious work.
Physics describes matter as having four phases: solid, liquid, gas, and plasma. These can be related to Earth, Water, Air, and Fire, and Energy can be related to Ether or Spirit. It is important to remember that when we are using these correlations, we are not speaking of the literal manifestation of the elements; in other words, Earth isn't a rock, or a lump of dirt, but rather the essence of Earth; Water is not a drop of rain, but the underlying nature of Water. The specific energies contained within the Elements, however, tend to work quite predictably within the model according to the characteristics of each. For instance, a magical work designed to affect one's emotional state, say to lift depression, might well incorporate energies associated with Water, because of its emotional properties. Air energy would be appropriate for workings associated with thought and intellect; Fire is better suited to matters requiring action, enforcement of will, etc. Earth energy is effective in matters related to tangible, material change or growth, and Spirit or Ether energy works well in situations requiring unification, resolution, or "becoming more than the sum of the parts2." While nothing is absolute, and in fact, magic is much more simple and much more complex than to be reduced to simple a+b=c formulae, harnessing sympathetic energies specific to our intent is a potent way to increase the effectiveness of our workings.
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