THE FOUR ELEMENTS, BEINGS
& DIRECTIONS
The Four Directions (actually six) of Isaiah and the Native Americans are a useful and intuitive way to connect with these Elements and Beings.
Below is a simplistic rendition of the Four Directions of the Native Americans (with four main archetypes added as per Angelis Arrien below.) The Native Americans differ widely in tradition and description within themselves but most also have a phase of life, a season and move clockwise from the South of the child - summer,
to the West of the adolescent - fall,
the North of the adult - winter
and the East, the visionary or elder - spring.
Animals differ but the Bear usually is in the West, the white buffalo in the North and a raptor with vision in the East. (In some Eastern traditions the birds of vision which are more passive, such as an egret, heron or sacred ibis are birds, are usually chosen.)
Each one of us may have a different idea of how to work with our own "circle." The West which is often black represents the bear who is getting ready to hibernate. Fall is a time for introspection. In the case of the adolescent struggling with hormonal fluxes and insecurity and others as well it can also represent the dark night of the soul. The North which is white, representing winter, should be governed by the adult, wise, spirit warrior who has already made provisions for the winter for the tribe. The East of spring is the visionary, shaman, elder, crone, artist etc. and is the place of inspiration and new beginnings. The elder of the east will eventually reincarnate back into the child of the south. These four basic archetypes have many extrapolations these days but held well in their original form in indigenous societies.
Today the healer, teacher, warrior and visionary could each represent numerous possibilities. For instance there are many ways to teach or heal. That direction can also be the archetype you need to be or need help from if you are stuck in that direction and wanting to move forward to another. Any direction in the case of an adult may be where one needs to look into one's past for inner guidance to solves issues or blocks in one's life path. Even the elder/visionary at some stage may want to adopt the energy of the archetype in one of the other directions to better progress and prosper, e.g. have more warrior power for a certain challenge. Or the adult - warrior might need to embrace (as the cliche goes,) his inner child to rid himself of child like attitudes. The adolescent in the West may need the right teacher to guide her to the warrior energy of the North or the vision of who she wants to be as an elder in the East one day.
If one is in the Southern hemisphere the directions should be adapted to the different animals and the reversal of the seasons. The honey badger is an animal of mastery and has incredible warrior like energy. There are innumerable raptors in Africa to choose from for the vision of the East. The leopard like the bear is a powerful animal that keeps a low profile and seems introspective like the bear. He or she often hunts in the "black" of night. There are many possibilities that depend on the energy of the animal that you would like to represent or have represent and help you more directly as your power animal.
In both Kabbalah and Native American tradition each direction includes an element, a vibration, a color and an animal.
Kabbalah also has an Archangel, a "Being," a "River" and a "Wind" or Spirit force from the Creator (Ruach which is similar to Prana) as well as other polarities.
Here is a brief figure to help you configure yours.
remembering that ...
The Four Directions (actually six) of Isaiah and the Native Americans are a useful and intuitive way to connect with these Elements and Beings.
Below is a simplistic rendition of the Four Directions of the Native Americans (with four main archetypes added as per Angelis Arrien below.) The Native Americans differ widely in tradition and description within themselves but most also have a phase of life, a season and move clockwise from the South of the child - summer,
to the West of the adolescent - fall,
the North of the adult - winter
and the East, the visionary or elder - spring.
Animals differ but the Bear usually is in the West, the white buffalo in the North and a raptor with vision in the East. (In some Eastern traditions the birds of vision which are more passive, such as an egret, heron or sacred ibis are birds, are usually chosen.)
Each one of us may have a different idea of how to work with our own "circle." The West which is often black represents the bear who is getting ready to hibernate. Fall is a time for introspection. In the case of the adolescent struggling with hormonal fluxes and insecurity and others as well it can also represent the dark night of the soul. The North which is white, representing winter, should be governed by the adult, wise, spirit warrior who has already made provisions for the winter for the tribe. The East of spring is the visionary, shaman, elder, crone, artist etc. and is the place of inspiration and new beginnings. The elder of the east will eventually reincarnate back into the child of the south. These four basic archetypes have many extrapolations these days but held well in their original form in indigenous societies.
Today the healer, teacher, warrior and visionary could each represent numerous possibilities. For instance there are many ways to teach or heal. That direction can also be the archetype you need to be or need help from if you are stuck in that direction and wanting to move forward to another. Any direction in the case of an adult may be where one needs to look into one's past for inner guidance to solves issues or blocks in one's life path. Even the elder/visionary at some stage may want to adopt the energy of the archetype in one of the other directions to better progress and prosper, e.g. have more warrior power for a certain challenge. Or the adult - warrior might need to embrace (as the cliche goes,) his inner child to rid himself of child like attitudes. The adolescent in the West may need the right teacher to guide her to the warrior energy of the North or the vision of who she wants to be as an elder in the East one day.
If one is in the Southern hemisphere the directions should be adapted to the different animals and the reversal of the seasons. The honey badger is an animal of mastery and has incredible warrior like energy. There are innumerable raptors in Africa to choose from for the vision of the East. The leopard like the bear is a powerful animal that keeps a low profile and seems introspective like the bear. He or she often hunts in the "black" of night. There are many possibilities that depend on the energy of the animal that you would like to represent or have represent and help you more directly as your power animal.
In both Kabbalah and Native American tradition each direction includes an element, a vibration, a color and an animal.
Kabbalah also has an Archangel, a "Being," a "River" and a "Wind" or Spirit force from the Creator (Ruach which is similar to Prana) as well as other polarities.
Here is a brief figure to help you configure yours.
remembering that ...
The Ancestors
It is up to each individual to formulate and adapt a model that makes the most sense to her or him. The directions belong to everyone as do their properties that you personally must select.
In order to relate to the elements we have to leave our cognitive abilities behind and try as best we can to adopt a more primal, indigenous, hunter-gatherer or shamanic seer consciousness which requires that we go inward.
As John Muir once said;
As John Muir once said;
With meditative techniques and right intention we can all begin to "see" differently and adopt a more right brained function.
For those of a shamanic inclination...
The Ancestors
With imagination and intuition we may begin to see some of what our hunter-gatherer ancestors could discern that was beyond the five senses. In order to survive they had to live beyond the five senses. In order to prosper spiritually we should endeavor to do the same.
With an indigenous mind set we can begin to appreciate more than the one percent world to which we do not even realize we are confined.
Click on the link to download then play and meditate on the elements, directions and their polarities and personalize them. This takes a long time to actualize - weeks, months or more.
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