Ancient Wisdom of Four/Five Elements system

This blog post is a continuation or evolution of my previous post on this topic.

https://www.peaceandbalance.org/post/ancient-wisdom-the-medicine-wheel

Students of Native American healing tradition are very aware of and practice the four quarters or four elements of the medicine wheel. While practitioners of Eastern healing traditions follow five elements. That creates some confusion. Are there four or five elements?

Most teachers in North and South America teach Four directions or four elements of the Medicine Wheel; they are represented by Earth, Water, Air, and Fire. These four elements are also represented by four directions, four animals, four colors, four plants, and seasons. They symbolize specific characteristics and conditions of human physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. For a human to be healthy, all four elements must be in sync and harmonized with each other.

There are five elements in TCM and Ayurveda. They are represented by Earth, Fire, Water, Air, and Space (Ether.)* They introduce one more element – Space or Ether (in some metaphysical traditions - time). The teachings of the five-element propose that everything in the universe, from the smallest atom to the planetary system, contains a unique combination of these five elements. ** It also means that we humans are made up of these elements. If some elements are out of balance, they affect the human's physical body and psyche. Different Eastern healing traditions like Feng Shui or Ayurveda have different approaches to balancing these elements. They are all very unique and specific.

These two traditions do not oppose each other. They are actually validating each other. To see this, we need a second look at the medicine wheel. Have a fresh look at the Medicine Wheel to understand the shamanic code. How many geometrical shapes are in the Medicine Wheel? There are Five; four segments (quarters) and a circle. We already discussed these four segments in detail, but what about the circle? The circle represents the fifth element – the individual or space where four elements reside and need to be in balance and harmony. The whole medicine wheel is a space that holds these four elements inside. To make it easier visually, I put it as a smaller circle inside the outer circle. This represents what I am talking about when I try blending Western and Eastern healing traditions. I want to clarify that I did not put inside these four sectors everything that they represent in different healing traditions.

Two traditions share the same wisdom using slightly different languages. It is hard for a researcher to prove some of them because a lot of written documents survive in China or India and almost nothing in the Americas. Some have a clear correlation, whereas with others we need to go deeper into. For example, in America's oral tradition, we talk about Father Sun and Grandmother Moon; it represents feminine and masculine or yin and yang in Eastern healing practices. Or, in one tradition, we mention seasons and times of the day that are connected with the four stages of life (childhood, youth, adulthood, and old age); these could be easily linked to the importance of understanding circadian rhythm or four moon cycles in other traditions.

It is incredible how this universal wisdom spreads around the globe. From North Europe to Africa, from the far East to the Americas. Only now we are beginning to fully understand this ancient wisdom. Realize that we are part of this circle of life, and know that we have not only power but also responsibilities. We have the responsibility to preserve the balance and live in harmony inside us and the world around us. That one cultural healing tradition helps us more deeply understand another healing practice.

The Native American phrase "We do not inherit this earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our kids" has profound meaning. We are guardians of Earth, Earth Keepers. The first step in creating peace on Earth is to create peace inside us. Inner peace means that all elements need to be in balance and harmony with each other. This is the foundation for our health and happiness. There is no better starting point than Reiki precepts. They are the manual to our true selves, to our inner light. Precepts teach us about oneness, how everything is connected and affects each other. They teach us about love and compassion to ourselves and everyone and everything around us.

With love and light,

Roman

January 2, 2023

*In some Eastern traditions, five elements are Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, and Wood.

**If we start researching 'the five elements, we eventually come up with a pentagram image—the earliest images found in Mesopotamia and dated 3500 BC. In ancient Sumeria, it was used to represent the human body. In ancient Chinese and Japanese religions, pentagrams symbolize elements of life. Ancient Greeks were fascinated by the mathematical purity of this symbol and viewed it as a sign of perfection. Each point represents one of the five elements that make up man: fire, water, air, earth, and psyche.