Spirit (also known as Aether) isn't an element per se, but it is often included among the magickal elements as the fifth point of the pentagram. It's hardest to define. The best way to think of it is this: Spirit is the binding link between the other four elements; it is the source of magick. Spirit resides within and without, around, above, and below all things. Although you can experience earth, air, fire, and water directly with your temporal senses, Spirit is elusive, and to be witnessed it requires both the practitioner's faith and metaphysical senses.
Native Americans call this fundamental, life-sustaining energy Grandfather, or Arch of Heaven. In Hindu writing, atman is the spiritual essence of creation. Polynesians and the Jains have a similar idea but use the terms manaor jiva respectively, meaning that which animates all life, or the life principle.
As noted in lesson 1, Aristotle added Aether as the quintessence (fifth element), reasoning that whereas fire, earth, air, and water were earthly and corruptible, since no changes had been perceived in the heavenly regions, the stars cannot be made out of any of the four elements but must be made of a different, unchangeable, heavenly substance. According to the ancients, it is the stuff of which the Gods are made and that which they breathe. As humans breathe air, so the Gods breathe Aether. Some also believe that the combination of the four elements make up that which is Akasha and that Akasha exists in every living creature in existence; without Akasha, there is no spirit, no soul, no magick. Because of that belief, contemporary writers and scholars most often just call this “spirit.” Modern Crafters call the fifth element Spirit or Akasha. Scott Cunningham describes the Akasha as the spiritual force that Earth, Air, Fire, and Water descend from.
“Akasha” is the Sanskrit word meaning "aether" in both its elemental and metaphysical senses, translating as “inner space.” It takes the name of Akasha from that place on the astral where the akashic records are held, the accounting of all that has happened in the past, present, and future of the universe and beyond. Because Akasha is actually an East Indian word meaning inner-space, it reflects our belief that the universe is both within and without ourselves.
On a larger scale, Akasha is one of the Tattvic Tides of occult philosophy, an energy form that is most active at sunrise. As one of the Tattvic Tides, Akasha emanates the power of spirit to harmonize the four elements of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. The ancient myths of Western civiliztion tell of a time when the chaos was brought into harmony by the intervention of spirit. This is the symbolism of the pentagram, the four elements of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water controlled by spirit. In ancient Roman mythology the four elemental winds were the gods Borus, Eurus, Notus, and Zephyrus. Above them was a higher god, Aeoulus, who kept watch over them.
It is the purely spiritual element, the realm of the All. It is protection and justice, movement and mastery, life and death and rebirth. It is often symbolized by the turning wheel, or the sign of Infinity. The upward point of the pentacle, the pentagram or five-pointed star within a circle, represents Akasha. Akasha is the central element. The Ethereal element has no direction, yet encompasses all directions. It is the Center, the circumference, above and below. It is beyond seasons and time, yet is all seasons and time. This is the element that transcends, yet is a part of, all the other elements. It combines all others into one final divine element. Because the divine is in us, Akasha really describes the power within you to strengthen and seal your magick.
Akasha can ultimately be defined as "the immutable, changeless source of all energy." Because it is the source of all energy, the type can be considered both receptive and projective. The colors most associated with Akasha are purple and black since purple is the color to represent psychic abilities and black is to represent the combination of all colors.
To move energy in a ritual, spell, or work of magick is to evoke Akasha. Akasha is an element of the kundalini force as well, lying latent at the base of all magickal operations. The power of Akasha, as it relates to kundalini, is an "occult electricity." This energy rises with our emotions and desires, and is the basis for fertility of mind, body, and spirit. It is the energy of motivation, passion, and determination.
In summary, the Elements emerge from Akasha, the immutable, changeless source of all energy. This is the realm of potentiality: of promise, of paths not yet taken, of unformed galaxies, of outer space. Akasha is also present within our bodies. Some say that the spark of life, that unknowable force that is called the "soul," is a bit of Akashic energy housed in the physical body. Akasha is sometimes thought to be symbolically present on the Earth. More often it's seen as the Mother (Creatrix) of the elements. It's little used in natural magick, but something of its nature should be understood. Primarily, Akasha is unbeingness. Its energy, which extends everywhere throughout the universe, has not yet achieved form and substance. It's the primal source of energy that creates and fuels the elements. Because of this, it contains complete, balanced energy: Earth and Air and Fire and Water.
Correspondences
Basic nature: unknowable;
Type of energy: projective/receptive;
Colors: purple and black; ultraviolet
Places: inner space, vacuums, the Void;
Types of rituals: religious in nature;
Stones: none;
Metal: meteoritic;
Musical instrument: none;
Creatures / Elemental: none (and yet all); Sphinx is sometimes used
Direction: Center and Circumference, within and throughout: north, east, south and west, also within and without, up and down, also a complete lack of directions and dimensions
Time: eternal starlight;
Astrological signs: none;
Point in life: pre-conception, soulness;
Sense: none;
Natural symbols: none;
Types of magick ruled: religious, especially for transcendence, transformation, change, immanence, balance
Energy Flow: Nonlocal
Feeling: Bliss
Direction of View: Holistic
Part of Person: Spirit
Consciousness: Enlightenment
Physical State: Singularity
Image: Ultraviolet Light
Posture: Back straight, arms sweep, then rest at side
Affirmation: I am Balanced. I am All.
Time: Beyond time, for all time is one time
Season: The turning wheel
Tool: Cord (represents binding it all together)
Wind: Tornado of Power
Sense: Inner Knowing
Incense: Combination Incense
Plants: Mistletoe
Tree: The Flowering Almond
Goddesses: Isis, Shekinah, the secret name of the Goddess, Hera
Gods: Akasha, JHVH, Buddha, Zeus
Quarter: Center
Quarter Candle: Silver or Purple
Chakra Candle: Violet
Chakra : The Third Eye
Idea: Vision/Wisdom
Visualization: Violet Pentacle or ultraviolet light
Activity:
Because spirit creates everything, abides in everything, and enlivens everything, it is always present. When a Crafter / Witch calls upon a divine being to bless a spell or ritual, she connects with spirit and invites it to participate in her magick. By honoring spirit, she elevates her workings from the physical realm to the divine one. So tonight’s homework is to practice connecting to Akasha.
Steps: 1. Visualize and feel yourself in the center of an unlimited space. This will feel like floating. There is no above or below or sideways. Akasha is ultra-violet, very similar to what is known as a black light. For those of you who are familiar with the black lights of the 1970s and how they illuminated florescent colors on posters, this is the color you should be visualizing as it is very powerful. This energy is the first step in the non-visible spectrum of light. The soul is composed of both the visible and non-visible spectrums of light.
2. Breathe in the Akasha, visualizing yourself completely surrounded by the ultra-violet energy as you would with energy breathing and fill your entire being with it for eleven breaths. FEEL this energy and focus your mind and astral senses upon it.
3. Meditate on the feeling you get from invoking this energy for 10-15 minutes.
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