The Realm of Water
| The natural philosophers of Ancient Greece tried to explain the origin of the universe in terms of the "four elements" of fire, water,air, and earth. They liked to explain all things, seen and unseen, by providing them with a concrete form, and therefore they illustrated the principle of fire with pine torches, water with running streams, airwith birds, and earth with insects; they classified everything, up to and including the human temperament,into fourtypes according to its particular characteristics. The theory of correspondences also dates from this time, which holds that the providence of the universe at large (the macrocosmos), as revealed in the fixed circuits of the stars, also governs the universe in miniature of humanity (the microcosmos). The phrase, "the realm of water,"immediately brings to mind the fishes, but since water is an element common to all living things, all life belongs within this category.The Chinese category for "sea" (umi,in Japanese)incorporates the character for "mother"(haha). "The realm of water," beginning with the ocean,is the womb for all libving things. |
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