| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Polity of Athenians and Lacedaemonians by Xenophon: clamber down precipices with less danger. In fact, with his feet so
trained the young Spartan would leap and spring and run faster unshod
than another shod in the ordinary way.
[8] Cf. Plut. "Lycurg." 16 (Clough, i. 106).
Instead of making them effeminate with a variety of clothes, his rule
was to habituate them to a single garment the whole year through,
thinking that so they would be better prepared to withstand the
variations of heat and cold.
Again, as regards food, according to his regulation the Eiren,[9] or
head of the flock, must see that his messmates gathered to the club
meal,[10] with such moderate food as to avoid that heaviness[11] which
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle: As for yon traitor Tinker, him will I hang, if I catch him,
upon the very highest gallows tree in all Nottinghamshire."
Then he bade all his servants and retainers to make ready to go
to London Town, to see and speak with the King.
At this there was bustling at the Sheriff's castle, and men
ran hither and thither upon this business and upon that,
while the forge fires of Nottingham glowed red far into the night
like twinkling stars, for all the smiths of the town were busy
making or mending armor for the Sheriff's troop of escort.
For two days this labor lasted, then, on the third, all was ready
for the journey. So forth they started in the bright sunlight,
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Child of Storm by H. Rider Haggard: Ndwande, Zikali, the great Nyanga, smelt out Masapo the wizard, he who
was my husband, and brought him to his death for this crime. Must I
then be tried for it again?"
"Not so, woman," answered Panda. "All that Zikali smelt out was the
poison that wrought the crime, and as some of that poison was found upon
Masapo, he was killed as a wizard. Yet it may be that it was not he who
used the poison."
"Then surely the King should have thought of that before he died,"
murmured Mameena. "But I forget: It is known that Masapo was always
hostile to the House of Senzangakona."
To this remark Panda made no answer, perhaps because it was
Child of Storm |
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 An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce: lungs. To die of hanging at the bottom of a river! -- the
idea seemed to him ludicrous. He opened his eyes in the
darkness and saw above him a gleam of light, but how distant,
how inaccessible! He was still sinking, for the light became
fainter and fainter until it was a mere glimmer. Then it
began to grow and brighten, and he knew that he was rising
toward the surface -- knew it with reluctance, for he was now
very comfortable. "To be hanged and drowned," he thought,
"that is not so bad; but I do not wish to be shot. No; I
will not be shot; that is not fair."
He was not conscious of an effort, but a sharp pain in his
An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge |
