Earth.



Our one and only home.

The origin of all the life that we, as human beings, have ever come to know.



The Earth is, without question, the most valuable possession that we could have ever hoped to receive. From the dawn of civilization, the Earth in all of its glory has been the prime source of our survival. It is a treasure beyond treasures.


It is the only gift that gives back; the only resource that truly benefits all living things.


But land is a gift rarely cherished these days. Living in harmony with the Earth has become a concept that is seldom taken seriously; an art that is lost to more and more people with every passing day.



We must remember that the Earth is the single, common root from which all life has sprung, and therefore the only thing that has kept us all eternally linked.

If you were to seek out the essence of the Earth, then surely you would discover for yourself the only secret you would ever need to know.



And if you're willing to take that journey, then there are a thousand ways to start.

The Earth is ever present.







Mountains






The pinnacles of the Earth.



The climbing of mountains is a noble passion.

Humans have always found a great purpose in conquering mountains, if only for the final thrill of triumph, or the sweet taste of accomplishing what few others can.



Mountain peaks are sacred, the ultimate grounds of purity and divinity.

For they are the places where the earth meets the sky.



To stand upon a mountain is to know the heavens.









“For every mountain there is a miracle.”

~ Robert H. Schuller






“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings.

Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees.

The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms

their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.”


~ John Muir





“No matter how sophisticated you may be,

a large granite mountain cannot be denied -

it speaks in silence to the very core of your being.”


~ Ansel Adams







Wood





Nothing is more essential to life on this planet than the forests and jungles of the world, with the only major exception being water. From these natural reservoirs of vitality, humans have obtained one thing of especial importance: wood.

Perhaps the oldest resource known to mankind, wood is one of the five elements of the Wu Xing, a system that was developed by the ancient Chinese to describe natural phenomena. Strength, flexibility, warmth, generosity, and of course, idealism were all attributed to this element.


As technology develops and values change, fewer and fewer people actually feel compelled to spend time in the ever-diminishing forests.

Even less realize that certain places within the depths of those forests offer insights that can never be obtained in a classroom.









“It is not so much for its beauty that the forest makes a claim upon men's hearts,

as for that subtle something, that quality of air, that emanation from old trees,

that so wonderfully changes and renews a weary spirit.”


~ Robert Louis Stevenson







“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately,

to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn

what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die,

discover that I have not lived.”


~ Henry David Thoreau








“The battle we have fought, and are still fighting for the forests

is a part of the eternal conflict between right and wrong,

and we cannot expect to see the end of it ...


So we must count on watching and striving for these trees,

and should always be glad to find anything

so surely good and noble to strive for.”


~ John Muir







Stone





Stones, being resolute divisions of the earth, have often played essential roles in history.


Among other things, stones have been used to accomplish great feats in construction, advance technology, and even fulfill ancient prophecies. Rocks are also home to the hidden metals and jewels that we cherish in all of our grand materialism.


Stones can actually represent many significant ideas and values, both literally and in the form of metaphors. Resilience, balance, and perhaps something even more crucial that you must discover for yourself.








“The observer, when he seems to himself to be observing a stone,

is really, if physics is to be believed, observing the effects of the stone upon himself.”


~ Bertrand Russell







”The finest workers in stone are not copper or steel tools,

but the gentle touches of air and water working at their leisure

with a liberal allowance of time.”


~ Henry David Thoreau







Sand







Most people like sand.

After all, every one of us could be considered a single grain of sand.


Sand is essentially the result of eons of ocean waves pounding against the rocks on the shore. Even the deserts that seem land-locked in our time are thought to have been vast expanses of sea when the Earth was young.

Areas covered in sand are among the only places on Earth that cannot be developed by humans. We can claim to "own" little sections of beach, or set up our futile tents next to the shoreline, but nothing can ever be permanent with sand.


That is simply not the proper way of things.









“We all leave footprints in the sand.

The question is, will we be a big heal, or a great soul?”







“In every outthrust headland, in every curving beach,

in every grain of sand there is the story of the earth.”


~ Rachel Carson







“The more sand that has escaped from the hourglass of our life,

the clearer we should see through it.”


~ Niccolo Machiavelli







Soil





The Earth at the most literal level.

Soil is arguably the most appropriate symbol for sustenance.


Eliminate the existence of soil, and you've practically wiped out all life on this Earth.

From the soil, every land dweller obtains nutrients.

From the soil, even clay is formed; an entire industry and art form in itself.


Livelihood in all aspects of our lives as landlubbers ultimately stems from the soil.

Although soil may not glitter or glow, surely there can be nothing quite so valuable.









“Emancipation from the bondage of the soil is no freedom for the tree.”

~ Rabindranath Tagore







“The nation that destroys its soil destroys itself.”

~ Franklin D. Roosevelt







“Clay. It's rain, dead leaves, dust, all my dead ancestors.

Stones that have been ground into sand. Mud.

The whole cycle of life and death.”


~ Martine Vermeulen







Lava





Although volcanoes may seem more appropriate representing the lively element of fire, the great eruptions that continue to affect today's world have much to do with the Earth.

There is perhaps no other force of nature quite as fearsome as an unstable volcanic eruption. Yet, even more so than anything else, volcanoes and the lava that they spew from the bellows of the Earth represent an endless cycle of death and rebirth.

When a lava flow ravages the land, everything in its path is reduced to piles of ash.

But new land is created in the wake of this destruction.


From this violent end, new life takes root.

Volcanoes are the source of new earth.








“Volcanoes have a big impact.

The ocean warming and sea level would have risen much more if it weren't for volcanoes.”


~ Peter Gleckler







Human Analysis





Once upon a time, humans knew the secrets of the Earth.


Ancient cultures worshipped deities that they believed personified the Earth, and in some cases even the Earth itself. Although the many beliefs differed from one another, a general rule of thumb was to show respect to the Earth and the natural environment.

Earth was also one of the four classical Greek elements, occupying a place between Water and Fire among the elemental spheres. It represented such qualities as strength, stability, and abundance. The astrological signs of Taurus, Capricorn, and Virgo have been associated with earthly attributes, as well. People born in these signs are thought to possess calm, practical, and responsible traits.


Harmonious. Balanced. As the Earth should be.





Today, people living in modern and civilized environments have generally lost the desire and overall ability to connect with the Earth.

And yet many of them still seek the meaning of life.





Perhaps it's true:


All you need to do to understand life is to simply live. Exist.

Be at one with the Earth, once more.








“It is good to realize that if love and peace can prevail on earth,

and if we can teach our children to honour nature's gifts,

the joys and beauties of the outdoors will be here forever.”


~ Jimmy Carter








"We need plants in our environment to survive.

And they are very nice, pleasant, calm, and soothing to look at;

they're just a balance of the Earth."


~ Bobbye Dykes








“Everything in nature is lyrical in its ideal essence,

tragic in its fate, and comic in its existence.”


~ George Santayana







“A life in harmony with nature, the love of truth and virtue,

will purge the eyes to understanding her text.”


~ Ralph Waldo Emerson








“There's quite a balance here that people are trying to figure out.”

~ David Chamberlain







“Let the beauty you love be what you do.

There are a thousand ways to kneel and kiss the earth.”







Conclusion





“The mountains, rivers, earth, grasses, trees, and forests are always emanating

a subtle, precious light, day and night, always emanating a subtle, precious sound,

demonstrating and expounding to all people the unsurpassed ultimate truth.”





To the extraordinary photographers who captured the element of earth in every way:

Thank you.







Past Issues


Water: [link]

Fire: [link]

Air: [link]



Fin