| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Phoenix and the Turtle by William Shakespeare: Every fowl of tyrant wing,
Save the eagle, feather'd king:
Keep the obsequy so strict.
Let the priest in surplice white,
That defunctive music can,
Be the death-defying swan,
Lest the requiem lack his right.
And thou, treble-dated crow,
That thy sable gender mak'st
With the breath thou giv'st and tak'st,
'Mongst our mourners shalt thou go.
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Resurrection by Leo Tolstoy: the nearest carriage with soft yet determined steps, and were
about to get in, but were at once driven away by a guard. Without
stopping, the workmen passed on, hurrying and jostling one
another, to the next carriage and began getting in, catching
their bags against the corners and door of the carriage, but
another guard caught sight of them from the door of the station,
and shouted at them severely. The workmen, who had already got
in, hurried out again and went on, with the same soft and firm
steps, still further towards Nekhludoff's carriage. A guard was
again going to stop them, but Nekhludoff said there was plenty of
room inside, and that they had better get in. They obeyed and got
Resurrection |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Apology by Xenophon: recognise the gods which are recognised by the state, since, as far as
sacrificing goes, the rest of the world who have chanced to be present
have been in the habit of seeing me so engaged at common festivals,
and on the public altars; and so might Meletus himself, if he had
wished. And as to novel divinities, how, pray, am I supposed to
introduce them by stating that I have a voice[21] from God which
clearly signifies to me what I ought do do? Why, what else do those
who make use of the cries of birds or utterences of men draw their
conclusions from if not from voices? Who will deny that the thunder
has a voice and is a very mighty omen;[22] and the priestess on her
tripod at Pytho,[23] does not she also proclaim by voice the messages
The Apology |
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 Door in the Wall, et. al. by H. G. Wells: upon me. I have been free to choose my life, and I have chosen
this.'
"'But war--,' she said.
"I sat down beside her. I put an arm behind her and took her
hand in mine. I set myself to drive that doubt away--I set myself
to fill her mind with pleasant things again. I lied to her, and in
lying to her I lied also to myself. And she was only too ready to
believe me, only too ready to forget.
"Very soon the shadow had gone again, and we were hastening to
our bathing-place in the Grotta del Bovo Marino, where it was our
custom to bathe every day. We swam and splashed one another, and
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