The main elements of spirituality lies not in spiritual practices or intellectual knowlege but rather in a deeper awareness and understanding of your true nature.
As known by many ancient belief systems, everything that exists in nature is made up of the five elements; earth, air, fire, water, and spirit or sky. While some have been led to believe that there were only four basic elements; earth, air, fire, and water, this belief is often based on television shows or movies.
There are other aspects to spirituality than what you’ll learn in science fiction. True spirituality and knowledge of the universe goes beyond these four and includes this fifth element.
Of course, to define spirituality involves much more than just understanding that there are not just four basic elements, but five.
That is just one of the elements of spirituality and the beginning of a journey towards becoming a spiritual being with good spiritual health and spiritual well being.
Anyone Can Go On a Spiritual Journey
You don’t have to be a strongly spiritual person to have a spiritual experience or go on a spiritual journey; to feel the magical energy of nature and the environment. Anyone can imagine standing by a campfire on a beach under the open sky.
You can feel the earth in the sand between your toes, breathe in the salty air, feel the warmth of the sun from the sky above you. You can smell the smoke and feel the heat of the fire while listening to its crackling. You can feel the water spray against your skin as the waves rush onto shore.
This is an experience that is open to all human beings, not just to a spiritual person.
The Spiritual Practice of 5 Element Healing
Just as a large number of our ancestors did before us, we can still follow the spiritual practice of the five elements of healing.
Using the knowledge that has been passed down throughout our existence in the universe, we can work towards a life of healing and peace. Everything we need for our healing can be found in nature.
We can use earth, air, fire, water, and sky to edify our human existence and feed our soul with a feeling of well being.
The essence of every human being, both physical and conscious, exists from these five. It is through our connection, gratitude, ethics, individual strengths, and compassion that we can begin a healing spiritual journey to build our inner strength.
Using Earth to Become a More Spiritual Person
Earth represents grounding and becoming a more stable person. While it may not seem to be of great power, it nourishes us, and brings a sense of balance to our soul.
Of all of the elements, it has the strongest aspects of healing – of nourishing and nurturing. We learn how to nurture from our Mother Earth, to form a connection, to share energy, food, light, hope, and compassion with the world.
Like this, if we maintain a connection with other elements, such as water, sky, etc., then we can create an environment that is rich and healthy for our spiritual well being.
For example, if we become bogged down with selfishness, false religion, and negativity then we can become a dry desert with no life and no connection to spiritual people. In a sense, earth is life – both physical and for the soul.
Water as Another Life in Spiritual Awakening
Water represents our sexual and emotional selves. In five element healing, we can use water to refresh our spiritual self and keep “flowing forward” instead of becoming stagnant.
Water bonds us, helps us grow, and brings life to all of the organs in our body.
Water hydrates. It washes clean. It restores. In times of chaos, water can become ferocious, washing away everything in its path. In times of peace, it flows gently again, restoring and bringing life and spiritual health.
Air in the Elements of Spirituality
The characteristics of this element in society and spirituality represents love and light. It is connected to our emotions, guiding our ethics, feeding our love and gratitude.
Just the word makes you want to breathe in deeply and pause for a moment.
Air is invisible. It doesn’t seek to be seen. It doesn’t take things personal, it isn’t tied to emotions, it has no self-interest.
Without it, we cannot focus, we cannot breathe, we cannot live. Like this, we can either be a refreshing breeze of hope and life, or stifling and constrictive like false beliefs.
The Element of Fire and its Meaning
The meaning of the element of fire shares its characteristics as well. It represents intensity and power. In the right amounts and circumstances, it gives warmth and light to life. It shines on our values and warms the community in our world.
If it becomes too intense, however, it can burn. It can scorch through an entire community and destroy all hope, crush all feeling, question all beliefs.
Fire can enflame spiritual beliefs and emotions and rid our human world of water, air, earth. Ironically, only water can harness an out-of-control fire and restore hope.
Sky or Spirit – The Element of Hope
The element of sky or spirit links all of the others together. All of the others unite together underneath the sky and within our spirit. Seeing ourselves under the umbrella of the huge sky, we are humbled. While the sky seems so huge, our being is so small.
In all of its humility, the sky or spirit is of utmost importance. All of the basics of life flow from and rest under this element. It uplifts, encourages, and covers us. When the sky is peaceful, it shines a beautiful glow to engulf the entire community, but when chaos intrudes into our world, they both can become dark, stormy, and scary.
The Five Elements in Spiritual Health
The unique patterns of the five elements interact to create your world, your personality, your reality. Your emotions are guided by them, as well as your desires, strengths, weaknesses, and faith. Learning how to balance your physical health by using these elements in spirituality can bring everything into perspective.
For example, if you allow your ego to become too big, you have stifled the air element’s invisibility and lack of need to be seen.
You could even trigger an unbalance in the fire’s element as well. This can become dangerous to everything in your life.
By going back to balance air’s element, you can ward off a “fiery” catastrophe in your physical body and soul.
If you don’t get your ego under control, your physical and spiritual health could suffer. It could also branch out to other areas in your life, destroying relationships with others, interfering with your job, and more. And that’s just from one of the elements being out of balance.
In Closing
It is easy to see why it is important to stay balanced and aware of how the five elements of spirituality are working in your life.
Your spiritual health, emotional health, and physical health are all connected to these elemental powers. The interaction between you and them is the key to feeling whole.
By getting back to basics and learning to use these five elemental factors in your life, you can find balance and meaning for spiritual well being.
