The Elements (Earth)

The Elements…

 Are believed to be the building blocks of the universe. In many pagan practices there are 5 elements earth, air, fire, water and spirit/divine. Though it is not unheard of for there to be more then just the 5. It is believed that everything in the world around us contains one or more of these elemental energies.

Earth

The earth is seen as our mother, which might be why it is considered a feminine element. Governing over fertility, prosperity, business, and stability. This is the element we are closest with, since it is our home living out our lives, where we raise our food, and bury our deceased providing a foundation for our circle of life.  Earth doesn't necessarily have to represent the physical Earth/planet, but those parts that are stable, solid, and dependable. We couldn't exist without the Earth. But true Earth energy also exists within ourselves and within our universe at large.

Earth Correspondences:

    * Direction: North

    *Attributes: Birth, Death, Caves, Caverns, Chasms, Fields, Food, Business, Physical World, Stability, Practicality, Sense of Touch, Rules of the Body, Material Gain, Growth, Employment, Prosperity, Silence, Laws, Understanding , Fertility, Standing Stones, Mountains, Sustenance, Metal, Bones, Structures, Grounding, Centering, Healing, Fortitude, Old Age, Wisdom, Nurturing, Hunting, Groves

    * Type of energy: Receptive.

    * Basic nature: Fertile, moist, nurturing, stabilizing, grounding.

    * Color: Green - from the color of living plants. Brown – from the color of the dirt and soil.

    * Places: Caves, canyons, forests, groves, valleys, fields, farms, gardens, parks, plant nurseries, farmer's markets, kitchens, baby nurseries, basements, mines, holes.

    * Rituals: The body, growth, naturism sustenance, material gain, money, creativity, birth, death, silence, rocks, standing stones, crystals, jewels, metal, bones, structure, night, riches, treasures, surrender in self-will, touch, empathy, grounding, mystery, industry, possessions, conservative, incorporation, business, prosperity, employment, stability, success, fertility, birth, healing, combined forces of nature and it's bounty, material abundance, wisdom, runes, strength, practical wisdom, teaching, symbols

    * Ritual forms: Burying, planting, making images in soil or sand.

    * Plants: Comfrey, Grass, Ivy, Grains, Corn

    * Herbs: Earth-smelling plants, such as patchouli, mosses, lichens; nuts; dry and stiff plants; heavy, low-growing plants; generally roots.

    * Stones: Heavy or opaque, as in coal; green, as in emerald and peridot.

    *Jewel:  agate, bloodstone, smokey quartz, tiger's eye, emerald

    * Oils: Honeysuckle, Patchouly, Vetivert

    * Musical instrument: All percussion instruments such as the drum.

    * Creatures: Dogs, horse, earthworm, gopher, ant, cattle, burrowing animals, dragon (earth), sphinx, bison, bulls, snake, stag

    * Season: Winter

    * Time: Midnight

    * Magickal tools: Pentacle, stones, salt bowl, staff

    * Sense: Touch.

    * Natural symbols: Salt, clay dish of fresh soil, rocks, sheaves of wheat, acorns.

    * Types of magical rules: Gardening, magnet, image, stone, tree, knot, binding.

    *Zodiac:  Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn

    *Planet: Earth, Saturn, Venus

    *Element spirit: Gnomes

    *Goddess: Anath, Artemis, Bona Dea, Ceres, Cybele, Magna Mater, Danu, Demeter (Queen of the Fruitful Earth), Durga, Ertha, Eve, Fauna, Flora, GAia (Mother of Life), the Great Goddess, the Great Mother, Hamadryads, Inanna, Isis, Kore, Mah, Maia, Mother Earth, Mother Nature, Nephthys, Nokomis, Parvati (the Lady of the Mountain), Persephone, Pomona, Prithivi, Prosperine, Rhea, Rhiannon, Sheela Na Gig, Tellus, Terra, Themis

   *Gods: Achilles, Adonis, Arawn, Ariel, Atlas, Athos, Attis,  Baal (Lord of Earth), Bacchus, Cernunnos, Chango Dagon, the Dagda, Dionysus, Enki (Lord of the Goddess Earth), Enlil, the Green Man, Green Zeus, Hades, Marduk, Osiris, Pan, Robin Hood, Tammuz, Uriel, vegetation gods, Vertumnus, Yahweh, Zeus Chronius

 Lemon Salt Scrub:
Since one of the correspondences for Earth is salt I thought this would be a fun and easy recipe to do.

Items you will need:

5 tablespoons sea salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 lemon

First mix the olive oil and sea salt together. Once the salt gets coated by the oil, the lemon won’t dissolve it! Next cut the lemon in half and squeeze over the salt + oil. Mix and mash. (Feel free to adjust the recipe to your liking.) Now scrub away :-)