Elemental Correspondence

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 20 Apr 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

felicityk	20 Apr 2003
I was reading the biography of Éliphas Lévi at Villa Revak and came across the following passage: "In Dogme et rituel, he was the first to write that...The four suits corresponded to the Four Elements, viz., Coins (later called Pentacles) = Earth, Cups = Water, Scepters (later called Wands) = Air, and Swords = Fire" Source: http://www.villarevak.org/bio/levi_2.html I found it interesting that the first person to make elemental assignments linked Swords to Fire (my preferred assignment), though the more common approach by far today is to link Wands to Fire. I wonder what caused this shift? Felicity

Rusty Neon	20 Apr 2003
Papus (Tarot of the Bohemians, 1896, page 283) assigns Sceptres (Wands) to fire and Swords to air ... but he assigned Pentacles to WATER and Cups to EARTH. So that doesn't get us to Golden Dawn assignments either. :)

felicityk	25 Apr 2003
Hm...maybe this thread should be moved to Tarot History and Iconography, to stimulate more discussion? I'm very interested in how the elemental correspondences evolved over time, and why. Felicity

Alex	06 May 2003
we are not raised anymore within the "four elements" aristotelic philosophy. There is no "intuitive" grasp of four elements. We drink H20, we eventually make fire when we go camping, otherwise we only have to deal with fire drills (the stove is electric, candles are dangerous), earth is that thing where we plant trees to celebrate earth day (a little spot in the plaza and that's it) and air... air is this thing we breathe and we only think about it when we have astma. We could well do without the four elements or else replace them by words we concern ourselves with nowadays. "Feelings" suit "Sex drive and creativity" suit "Material and Sensory" suit "Reason and stubborness" suit. Alex.

jmd	07 May 2003
When I reflect on the usage of the four elements, I am struck by the way in which they have such underlying meaning. For example, irrespective as to whether I use a gas or electric stove, I am applying heat. Irrespective of where I live in the world, the heat of the Sun, either as too furious or as a welcome warming being, again says something of the element of Fire - which, when I reflect within myself, highlights the flames which I may sense within in either creative, angered or lustful energies. Similarly with the element of Water. Here I am struck by the flow of a stream, the wavelets on a (near empty) dam, the rapids of a fall, or the waves of the ocean - but each time, the very moisture and incredible motion of the element - and its drenching aspect to my parched thirst or the parched land. Again, this element calls forth within me areas which force me to reflect upon my feeling life. The Air I breathe seems more than air, but as carrier of light, as wind, as voices travelling the invisible, as rhythmic consciousness. As invisible as my thoughts, as quick as they appear, as light... And the Earth, that solidity by which I find anchor in the world... It seems to me that the four elements allow for psychological reflections in addition to much more. Personally, I value what these concepts allows both in terms of my own reflections, but also my reflections on the reflections of others, be they living now or 3000 years ago. __________ Historically, though I do not know of any reference predating Eliphas Levi who makes direct correlations between the suits (or, using the French term, the colours) and the elements, it should be noted that nearly a century before him, De Gebelin made a link between the suits and the four directions. Given that there was also a tradition which connected the directions with the elements, it is highly probable that suit and element were correlated prior to Levi.

allibee	07 May 2003
jmd: you might like to look at the four humors in conjunction with the three + one estaat's (estates) on this link: http://www.dac.neu.edu/english/kakelly/med/body.html#anchor285297 http://www.dac.neu.edu/english/kakelly/med/body.html#anchor283833 (As a side note: here the estaat's can be referred to: Merchants - Coins Clergy - Cups/Chalices Nobility - Swords Peasants - Staffs I feel these are very LITERAL medieval depictions and I wonder whether it is only in latter days that we have given them more contemporary and 'airy' qualities such as creativity/spirit, intellect an so on?, but that's another story :O)) But as I say, these Medieval Humors/Elements have been around for a while although having nothing to do with tarot, I feel you can see where people got it from, whereas these revelations are new to me, I'm probably stating common knowledge :O). Allison

Keslynn	07 May 2003
The humors/elements began with Aristotle, and the medievals merely took what he had done as their modern science. Galen applied the humors to the body. Certainly the Golden Dawn and Levi and others may have attached some extra things to the elements, but they already came with a lot of baggage attached. For example, someone with a lot of fire in their makeup would have a "fiery" personality, with all the connotations that we would give it today.

The Elemental Correspondence thread was originally posted on 20 Apr 2003 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.