Coda: Wandering Elements and Natures to Come (original) (raw)
Related papers
Wandering Elements and Natures to Come
Elemental Ecocriticism: Thinking with Earth, Air, Water, and Fire. Ed. J. J. Cohen and L. Duckert.
Earth and sky, water and fire are the fundamental elements that bind the fate and presence of humans and other Earthlings in their interlocked journey of matter and imagination. Also the stuff of elemental passions, and the light of compositional jouissance sparkling into the world’s body- mind, these four classical elements are the building blocks of whatever thinks and respires on this living planet. Our blood is saline water, our bones are calcified earth, our breath is volatile air, and our fever is fire— elements that have composed mountains, oceans, and the atmosphere, and have nourished all terrestrial creativities across time and space. Similar to the planet and its motley of residents, the anthropos, humans themselves, in diverse cultures and features, are multilayered and “autochthones (autochthonous), creatures born of the earth.”
The Elements as an Archetype of Transformation: An Exploration of Earth, Water, Air, and Fire
"I propose that the alchemical cycle of the four elements Earth, Water, Air and Fire provides a useful and exact analogue for the processes of transformation of a wide variety of types, and as such can be considered an archetype. The elemental cycle is a potent symbol for a transformative, qualitative language (logos) which has the potential to guide human consciousness towards lawful, holistic engagement with essentially any phenomenon. When worked consistently, the elemental cycle leads us beyond ‘everyday’ modes of cognition to what could be called Imaginative, Inspirative, and Intuitive modes cognition. In these modes, thinking no longer takes place ‘about’ a phenomenon, but ‘with’, ‘through’, and ‘within’ phenomena. The elemental cycle provides a content, a method, and self-regulating feedback mechanisms for working with transformation, and can help engender a consciousness that can fruitfully dialogue with the interiority of the world by making it explicit. Its power lies in its ability to act as a template and guide for the structuring of human consciousness; it is a tool which makes available a coherent, archetypal patterning which can help guide and transform a human consciousness in healthy and practical ways. By making available new modes of consciousness, it helps us learn to see ourselves and the world in ways that allow for greater creativity and flexibility when faced with difficult or problematic situations. At the same time it illuminates and connects us with phenomena – both outer and inner – that might otherwise pass our notice. This essay comprises a detailed study of the nature of the elements and the elemental cycle, through which it is hoped the reader may gain a solid enough foundation to work experimentally with the elemental cycle independently if desired. Therefore, the cycle is introduced via a brief phenomenology of the individual elements, which are then connected, compared, and brought together to form a complete picture of the cycle. The breadth of applicability of the cycle is then explored through a series of specific instances that also serve to illuminate the qualities of the cycle itself. A report on third-party work with the elemental cycle provides complementary and contrasting experiences, while an in-depth review and application of the cycle to the nature of images opens up the complexities and demonstrates the recursive, self-generating quality of the cycle. Lastly, an introductory series of practical steps and specific exercises, advice, and questions for each elemental stage is provided to help the reader use the cycle independently."
Empedocles not only considered the existence of the four 'classical' elements as the cause of the beginning of the world, but he also supported the view of their uni cation, which results in the creation of the imaginary world of the Sphere. According to Empedocles, the Universe existed in the state of the Sphere before the explicit presence of the four elements and was the cause for the creation of everything. Moreover, the nature of the Sphere is considered as superior, compared to the four elements. The theory of Empedocles on the fundamental elements of nature and their origin has been examined here, as well as some similarities with the modern scienti c views. It has been concluded that both the philosophy of Empedocles and modern scienti c research seek to uncover and explore the underlying unity of the natural world, which is not perceivable by the human senses.
THE NATURE OF THE PLANET EARTH
Does our species possess a conscience awareness, curiosity, desire, sensitivity, appreciation, and value to capture the beauty of life in its organic and inorganic configurations as a true measure of what surrounds us as every day phenomena? Too many of our species these days seem to be preoccupied with arguing one’s ideology as a means of control and domination which in the context of the planet’s evolution will be yet another occurrence of an organism that came and left in the blink of time.