| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Sylvie and Bruno by Lewis Carroll: Fairy-friends first appeared as Children, I found myself taking a
farewell-stroll through the wood, in the hope of meeting them once
more. I had but to stretch myself on the smooth turf, and the 'eerie'
feeling was on me in a moment.
"Put oor ear welly low down," said Bruno, "and I'll tell oo a secret!
It's the Frogs' Birthday-Treat--and we've lost the Baby!"
"What Baby?" I said, quite bewildered by this complicated piece of news.
"The Queen's Baby, a course!" said Bruno. "Titania's Baby. And we's
welly sorry. Sylvie, she's--oh so sorry!"
"How sorry is she?" I asked, mischievously.
"Three-quarters of a yard," Bruno replied with perfect solemnity.
 Sylvie and Bruno |
The fourth excerpt represents the element of Earth. It speaks of physical influences and the impact of the unseen on the visible world, and is drawn from The Exiles by Honore de Balzac: pointing to the Will of God in all things, and enjoining respect for
His smallest works, he suggested the possibility of rising by faith
from sphere to sphere.
This was the first portion of his discourse, and by adroit digressions
he applied the doctrine of his system to feudalism. The poetry--
religious and profane--and the abrupt eloquence of that period had a
grand opening in this vast theory, wherein the Doctor had amalgamated
all the philosophical systems of the ancients, and from which he
brought them out again classified, transfigured, purified. The false
dogmas of two adverse principles and of Pantheism were demolished at
his word, which proclaimed the Divine Unity, while ascribing to God
|