The Gifts of the Air Element
Air…we breathe it, it sustains our physical life, but this vital element can do so much more!
The element of air can be felt as soft and gentle, when it comes as a breeze, or gusty and forceful as a tornado. It can be present without much notice at all on a still day, yet still provide life giving energy.
Air can also be the carrier of the other primary elements, such as when the winds bring in the water element via snow or rain, or carry the fire element of a spark from a bonfire, or it can carry the earth element as it spins up a dust storm in the desert.
Air can also carry vibrations of sounds for our ears to hear, scents for our nose to smell, and temperatures of vast extremes for our body to feel!
It is powerful enough to carry an 835,000 pound Boeing 747 forty thousand feet above the earth, absorbent enough to dry up inches of rainfall, and abundant enough to sustain life for all the plants, animals and humans! And does all this while invisible!
Psychologically, it can shift our emotional state the same as it moves a cloud across the sky. A very windy day can cause us a sense of irritability as papers are whisked out of our hands, hair flies in our face, or our umbrella gets turned inside out and we get soaked in the rain. It can also bring gratefulness to our hearts when we are working outside on a hot summer’s day and the air brings in a breeze to cool down our body. The element of air can carry scents and aromas that bring wonderful memories to mind, warm our heart, and fill us with joy…or sometimes the opposite effect if it reminds us of something unpleasant.
The element of Air is also associated with the energy of our thoughts, also known as our “Mental Body”. We’ve all experienced a ‘fleeting thought’ that whisked through our mind so quickly like the wind, or had that moment when our thought just ‘disappeared into thin air’ and we couldn’t remember what we were going to say! When someone is caught up in their head to the exclusion of their emotions, the slang expression is to ‘stop being so mental’. Energetically, we have a biofield around us, commonly referred to as our aura. The aura has seven primary layers within the field of energy that, because they form around our body, are called bodies of energy. As it expands away from the body, the ‘mental body’ is the third field, located somewhere between 3-8 inches out from the physical body. The mental body holds the energy of our thoughts, positive or negative, and influences our emotions, choices and actions. This is important to know, because we can directly work within this field to heal and transmute negativity every time we meditate, pray, set intentions, imagine a new way, or receive energy healing such as Reiki! Working with our thoughts is fundamental to creating and maintaining good psychological functioning. But also, as we explore the thought field, or mental body in this way, we are starting to bridge the psychological function of the air element, to the spiritual functions.
Spiritually, the element of air is symbolic of that which is invisible, so not only thoughts, but also the Soul.
We often think of spirits as wispy and swirling, both qualities we assign to the air. Connection with your spirit is often described as if you are feeling tingles, or chills - also experiences connected to air.
The element of air is connected to our spiritual work through its unique alchemical qualities!
We call upon the Air element in Integral Breathwork to release blocks lodged in our energy system when we feel stuck and unproductive. We call upon the Air element in relaxation breathing to shift inner anxiety to inner calm. We call upon the Air element to ‘blow off steam’ when we are angry. And more intentionally, when we are having any inner disposition we are struggling with, we can use the Air element as follows:
- Close your eyes
- Bring your awareness to the part of the body where you are feeling it
- Then, using your active imagination, visualize and create, an internal scene that engages the Air element, as a gentle breeze or a gusty wind or whatever is needed, and with inner sight, watch the air move, change, transform or transmute! Much like the wind can change the shape of a cloud, or disperse it into smaller parts that float away, or quickly and efficiently move numerous storm clouds out of the area. Yes! You too can use the Air element in these ways…and more! Your imagination opens this to endless possibilities…
Enjoy the freedom that the Air element brings!
Join us for our November and December meditations as we expand awareness of the elements!
Blessings,
Cheryl and Lynn