Water - Spring
Spring is the time when we need to nurture the ideas and possibilities that were brought forward in the Winter.
"The sage took the Emperor into the Equinox of the Spring, The sun and the moon being equidistant within the heavens, night and day being equal in time. As they walked through the forest of K'an, the Emperor began to see a livingness, a life force, a little more accentuated from the time at the end of Fire, for the water was now leaving the snow, the ground was becoming muddy, was difficult in regards to too much rain. There was a lot of wetness, but within this came beauty, came the flowers, as the buds came forth, the new root, the beauty of the plant, the birds nesting, the animals moving from places of long sleep. Things were coming to life. They were coming to life visually, the outside. You could begin to see the life force. You could begin to see the power within the spring, the beauty of the forest. Warmth lit the air outwardly. It was the beauty of the time.
"The Emperor learnt from the sage that it was here that the fertility of nature began to express itself. It was here, as the rains came and the water melted, that there was a tendency for great flooding and the difficulty of the season was too much release too fast. But as the Spring wore on, there began to come forth from the budding the blossom, the fruit began to be on the tree. Birds began their mating and the beauty was there. The sage showed the Emperor that it was the outer experience. Different from the Winter, which was the inner energy; beneath it was the Fire, the power. But within the spring, you could see it outwardly. The outside within Winter looks cold and harsh, but the Spring looks beautiful and flowering and fresh. The inside may not be as strong as the Fire, but the inside, basically, shows what is out, and vice versa.
"And they walked through Spring to the Summer, and as they got close to the Summer time, the winds began to come. They began to come faster and reacted upon water, creating tornados, hurricanes, great storms, electricity and thunder and lightning. It began to be the turbulent season, but the season nearing the harvest. The softness was leaving and an energy force of outward brutality, of outward energy that was stark but consistent showed. Within the Spring, The Emperor saw that even with large rains and great melting snow there was beauty, that even as the buds and the flowers would come forth, even in great flooding, they would be moved and they would grow again. It was truly a fertile period, a time to watch, a time to bring forth the creativity of man, a time to understand that you do not want to have too much, or beauty can be washed away; but if you have just enough, it can be accentuated within smell, touch, taste, hearing, as the essence after a spring rain within a forest.
"The Emperor began to understand his people a little more - to understand the outward emotions that go along with beauty, to understand the turbulence that some of this beauty had as it approached the summer, the strength that this beauty had as it was near the winter. He turned to the sage as he walked toward the Summer Solstice, and said, `Truly, those people that are in this element have great challenges; for what they are will always be seen. Flowers blossom, trees come forward in beauty.' And the sage said, ‘you have learned the key to this element.' And they walked slowly towards the Summer Solstice."
By living in touch with the seasons we create a natural flow in our lives, which makes life as easy as walking from the winter to the spring, then summer and finally autumn. There is a cycle in all things.
The Water Element
The Element of Water is the season of Spring. It is the time when the snow melts and the water begins to flow. For spring is the custodian of new growth. It is the nurturer of young animals and children. It is the archetypal mother. The ice gives up itself to the softness. The triangle of Fire becomes the circle of Spring. There are no sharp edges to endanger any young one. The Spring is the time of water; initially flowing, babbling, cleansing, always allowing growth, then growing still, reflecting. Like the mother hen, it allows the chicks to grow but ever-present in times of need. Like the moon, it is a reflection, allowing the tides and the movement of water. Spring is the protector; it allows vulnerable life forms to emerge into a world of colour and beauty nurtured by motherhood. It is a time when the Water/emotions allow the young to learn in a caring protected environment. It is the time of outer beauty. The symbol of the Spring, Water, seeks the lowest level and nourishes all.
In relationships Water is disturbed by Air; it makes earth soft, then impassable; its passions are warmed by Fire, but too much and the kettle boils and Water floods or drowns itself.
The greatest function of Water is to allow the movement of our emotions. A light covering of Water on the other Elements provides a gentle shower of caring and feelings. Deeper water allows us a deeper spiritual insight and a greater understanding of our feelings; for Water cannot hide; its feelings are always felt. When Water becomes the torrent, passing its point of balance it drowns everything in its emotions. Water cannot be ignored. It can be dammed up or diverted for a short time, but it will always flow to the lowest level. To ignore it, is to walk around with your eyes closed. Just like all the Elements there is a fine line between too much and too little. To each there is a season when they are and need to be dominant.
The water element is centred in the lower abdomen and associated with the thymo-lymphatic system, kidneys, the bladder, and the generative fluids. Its nature is cold, moist, slow, and heavy and its energy sinks downward. Some of the keynotes of the Water element are moisture, liquidity, sinking, malleability, slowness and inhibition. In alchemy it is related to the solvent, which acts as a medium and carrier of the alchemical essence. Water is present in all chemical reactions in the body. Water is the element that gives us life and growth; to much water and we have excess uncontrolled growth. In a balance water is the carrier of life. Water is the spring, it is the time of new growth. It is the time when the snow melts and new life begins to sprout. It is the time of emotion. We all experience the beauty and the vibrance of the spring. It is an element that is imbued with beauty and emotion. Spring is the time when ideas and projects start to move. The water person is alway seen. Even if they are introvert and hiding; their emotions, their feelings are seen. They can do the best to hide their feelings but for the most part they are easily seen. Too much water or out of a balance and they become emotional, weepy, timid, indecisive and moody.
The water element is all about emotion; everything is expressed and experienced through their feelings. This is why the Water type is so psychic, sensitive, mediumistic, and empathetic. When they are in "pleasant humour" they are imaginative, sensitive, artistic, romantic, sentimental and sympathetic. They are gentle, sweet, and mild and have a receptive, yielding disposition and a tendency to try to please everyone.
They like comfortable, safe situations and when they are with friends they come out and can be quite playful, frivolous, and like to tease. Their strengths are that they are very sensitive, imaginative, sympathetic, adaptable, peaceful, tolerant, gentle, placid, soft, receptive, considerate, and calm. Their weaknesses are that they become easily attached and are sad, tearful, hysterical, indecisive, vulnerable, unsure, fearful, timid, envious, hesitant, changeable, submissive, indifferent, silent, reticent, unforgiving, mournful, pitiable and stubborn.
Jung called these personality "feeling types" because of their strong emotional sensitivity. They live by their feelings rather than by intellect or reason. A Water person makes others feel peaceful in their presence or emotional. They are very sensitive to the feelings of others, reflect on other emotions, and have trouble with boundaries. They easily take on the sufferings of the child, family, society, and the world.
like water itself these people are very effected by those around them. On their own they can appear calm and withdrawn. When effected by the other elements water comes to life. They are easily effected by all the other elements. The person themselves has difficulty in relationships because they can take on the energy of the other person. Just like the element water can take on the energy of other elements.
Without water there would be no life. The Water element carries with it the essence of life.
Under stress the Water type becomes changeable, with alternating states, and tearful, fearful, sentimental moods. Their changeable moods come in waves and tides like an emotional ocean where one moment they seem happy and the next tearful and sad. When their mental skies are cloudy they rain down a shower of tears that gives them a sense of relief and allows them to return to bright sunny clarity until the next storm. They cry for happy or sad reasons, and sometimes, for no reason at all. If they are under prolonged stress they become sad and withdrawn as if a dark cloud has settled over them and they become timid, shy, inward and dreamy.
The Water element forms very strong emotional bonds with their loved ones and suffers great grief, loss, and sense of abandonment when relationships fail. They have reverence and strong memories of the past. They have a tendency to think they are not appreciated, respected, loved and are easily hurt. They are < worse when exposed to too much excitement, over stimulating environments, and when forced to do things in a hurry. In their own private way they can be stubborn, irritable, and they easily suffer from inward grief with silent peevishness. The often use a form of passive resistance in which they avoid confrontation but do not easily make changes. As they break down under stress the water type becomes more insecure, indecisive, cold, careless, listless, apathetic and suffers from nervous exhaustion. They begin to lose control over their body systems. This can lead to the storage water in all the wrong places. They end up emotionally drained, washed up, and drowned in a sea of confused feelings as they drown in their own element, the element of water.
Strengths
Sensitive
Loving
Imaginative
Sympathetic
Adaptable
Peaceful
Tolerant
Gentle
Placid
Soft
Calm
Receptive
Considerate
Weakness
Attachment
Sadness
Hysterical
Lachrymose
Indecisive
Vulnerable
Unsure
Timid
Envious
Hesitant
Changeable
Submissive
Timid
Indifferent
Silent
Reticent
Hurt
Mournful
Pitiable
Fearful
Physical Constitution
The Water element has a well rounded physique, they have soft tissues with flaccid or a lack of musculature. They suffer from oedema or water retention. They are generally worse for damp, cold atmosphere, while conversely they are generally better for warm, dry environments and warm drinks.
The water element moves like water itself, with leisurely, graceful motions. Unless supported by the other elements they can have difficulty doing things quickly because rapid motion or response to situations can make them feel confused. They have a tendency toward slowness or under-activity in the body such as slow metabolism, low temperature, hypo-pituitary, hypothyroid, low blood pressure, and lack of energy.
Under continual stress the water constitution experiences changeable and alternating moods, and become tired, weak, slow, chilly, and prone to oedema.
The water element has a round face, soft features. Their skin is generally cold, moist and pale. Their hands are cold, thick, soft, humid, swollen, and plump and their skin is white and puffy. Their fingers are often short with thick tips and the joints are reasonably lax. The nails of the Water type are often wide, white, pale, and soft and the moons are not very prominent. When they shake hands their palm feels soft, wet, and cold, and their grip is weak. Water element women tend to hug softly and often do not offer a kiss as a greeting. If they do kiss, it is usually on the cheek, which causes them to blush and look sideways.
The water element is prone to water retention, cold stomachs, insufficient secretion of digestive juices (such as hydrochloric acid), poor assimilation, anaemia, and flatulence. They are < worse from cold food and drinks. They suffer from poor circulation, lymphatic stagnation, watery swelling, autointoxication, glandular swellings, increased mucus and serous secretions and watery discharges of clear or whitish color.
The Water type has a tendency to disorders of the genitourinary system and their urine is frequent, pale and in larger quantities.
The tongue of a Water type is pale, swollen and may be watery or coated with a white coating.
Their pulse is usually slow, soft, wide and slippery. It is strong in the first phases of an illness but it becomes weak and stagnates as a disease becomes chronic.
They may like open air because it stimulates them but they do not like cold wind. They have a tendency to cold clammy perspiration that may be < aggravated by emotions. All complaints worse by < cold, cloudy weather, winter and dampness, and are better > in warmer, dry climates and warm influences. They also can be worse < cold and heat as their temperature control is extremely unstable.
Next post we will look at the Air Element which is aligned to the season of Summer.
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