When God created the world, step-by-step, putting in the elements and living beings one by one, He designated tasks, duties and a specific role for each one of His creations as the chapter on Genesis in the Bible tells us. In India we have places of worship dedicated to the panchabooth as the five elements of earth, wind, water, akash and fire at Kanchipuram, Kalahasti, Thiruvanaikaval, Chidambaram and Thiruvannamalai probably to not let one forget their importance. Yoga practitioners will vouch for the fact that establishing a connect with the earth is a very soothing and healing experience. When we walk barefoot on the ground in sacred or open spaces prana is transmitted through the soles of the foot to the rest of our body.
Water and rivers have a vital role in the web of life. They quench our thirst, nourish and sustain plants and crops, and are considered sacred and life-giving. When good rains translate into a flowing river, lamps are lit and prayers are offered. As for fire, what can equal its warmth and light on a cold, wintry night? Without heat and fire there would be no food and it is through Agni, the fire God, that our offerings during a havan are routed to the deities and planets.
The Koran even educates us on the part played by winds in the rain cycle — God says “And We send the winds fertilising (to fill heavily the clouds with water) then cause the water (rain to descend from the sky) and We give it to you to drink and it is not you who are the owners of its stores (i.e. to give water to whom you like or to withhold it from whom you like) — Surat A-Hijr-verse 22.
Therefore, every one of the elements works in curious ways to sustain the world and all life on it. Man in his ignorance, however, has lost sight of that fact and is under the delusion that the elements are meant to be overpowered. After all, what is all the technology at his disposal for, if he can’t rewrite the rules? So, whether it is agriculture or industry or our faulty lifestyles — large scale deforestation, taming of rivers, etc. are all examples of this short sighted approach in which the delicate balance is upset and the quiet rhythms are interrupted. This is why perhaps ever so often we see Nature unleashing her fury in the form of famine, floods, earthquakes and Tsunamis on people to reinstate her supreme position and to remind mankind that such an approach will backfire disastrously.
Technology and science can only achieve so much. Harnessing the elements is fine but the intent to conquer is flawed. In the final analysis we would do well to remember to lead a life that is synchronous with the natural order.
As Chief Seattle once said, “Man did not weave the web of life. He is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web he does to himself.”
The writer is a Reiki channel, yoga practitioner and a spiritual seeker
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