About

I’ve named this blog Elemental Witchery, though I guarantee I’ll be writing about more than my practice of Witchcraft and my spiritual journey.  But, first things first.

So what is elemental witchery, as I’m currently defining it (besides a cute and fun-to-say little phrase that seemed to fit what I mean)?

We (and all situations/experiences and other people we encounter) are made up of a combination of the five elements: Air, Earth, Fire, Water, and Spirit.  Here’s where I might get a little unpopular.  All of the elements can manifest in upright/balanced ways and contrary/imbalanced ways.  Upright elemental manifestations are creative in nature and contrary manifestations are destructive.  I think it’s important to point out here what I mean when I say ‘creative’ and ‘destructive.’  The nature of the universe is cyclical and things are not always what they seem.  Acts of destruction done for the purposes of making room for new growth, for what is in someone’s or something’s highest and best interest, are truly creative.  Similarly, one can easily claim an act of creation when what is being created is negative.  In this case, the work is truly destructive.  True destruction can be identified because nothing is truly born of it but more destruction or because it is done solely for the sake of destruction.

Each of the elements are associated with different general things as well as different aspects of the Self.  In terms of the self, Air is the mind, Earth is the body, Fire is the will, Water is the heart, and Spirit is the, well, spirit/soul/essence.  Similarly, each of the elements is associated with a key phrase.  Air is “to think,” Earth is, “to have,” Fire is, “to do,” Water is, “to feel,” and Spirit is, “to be.”  In general, Air is associated with the intellect, problem-solving, and communication; Earth is associated with the physical, health, finances, security, and the home; Fire is associated with sexuality/sensuality, action, will power, and discipline; Water is associated with emotionality, psychism, and intuition; Spirit is associated with spirituality, healing, and connection to Divinity.  Each of the elements also have corresponding associations for their upright and contrary manifestations.  The following list is certainly not exhaustive but covers the basics:

Upright Air: clear communication ability (both producing and receiving/understanding); clear, calm, cool and quick thinking; focus and strong powers of concentration and memory; playfulness, wonder, and innocence; and, integrity.

Contrary Air: flightiness, scattered thoughts and inability to focus/concentrate; poor memory and confusion; lack of integrity; being overly serious or inappropriately playful; and, inability to communicate clearly (in both directions).

Upright Earth: stability and security; financial well-being; prosperity; physical health and well-being; generosity and nurturing; home and hearth are secure and happy; cleanliness; and, patience.

Contrary Earth: insecurity/instability; greed, excessive  shopping or excessive frugality; poor management of finances; disordered eating; physical illness (though illness is not always a manifestation of contrary Earth); and, obsessive compulsive disorders.

Upright Fire: strong and balanced will, determination, and perseverance; healthy and balanced sexuality/sensuality; discipline; courage and confidence; and, assertiveness.

Contrary Fire: lack of will or stubbornness; being over-sexed or having no sex drive; lack of discipline/motivation, passivity, and laziness; aggressiveness and anger; lack of confidence; and, impatience and frustration.

Upright Water: balanced and healthy emotionality; gratitude; unconditional love and compassion; accurate psychic awareness/knowledge and intuition; and, the ability to flow with life circumstances.

Contrary Water: over-emotionality or complete lack of emotionality; selfishness, manipulation, and inconsideration for others; inaccurate psychic information and intuition; emotional “stuckness”; ingratitude; and, melodrama

Upright Spirit: strong and clear connection to Divinity; healing; unconditional love and compassion*; and, balanced elemental energy

Contrary Spirit**: poor connection to Divinity; disowning of the Self; the use of spirituality to control others

* – Both Water and Spirit are associated with unconditional love and compassion; however, Water’s form is typically softer and gentler and what one thinks of when considering these two qualities.  Spirit’s form can appear harsher and is a fiercer manifestation of these.

** – Many people believe that contrary Spirit energy does not exist, that it cannot.  I disagree.  Cult leaders, manipulative and controlling spiritual teachers, and people like Charles Manson are perfect illustrations of contrary Spirit energy

Every person on the planet has some combination of each of the elements, and it is the specific combination of them that makes a person who they are.  Similarly, each person typically has one element that is their strongest element, kind of like their default element.  For those of you interested in and versed in astrology, this is not necessarily the element associated with an individual’s sun sign (hell, I’m a capricorn which means if we go with that logic, I “should be” Earth; however, Earth is actually one of my weaker elements and my strongest element is Water).  To potentially oversimplify things, the “big idea” here is to find balance.  The tricky part is that balance is dynamic, it is ever changing, it is fluid, and it is a journey.  This means that there isn’t ever only one single “Ta da!” moment of arriving at a destination (balance) because there is no destination.  There is only the journey. 

So…now you have an introduction to the language I speak!  I’m more than happy to answer questions about any of the above or provide clarification, so just ask!