What happens to you when you sit quietly and look out onto a horizon filled with ocean? A clear mountain stream, or a favorite lake when no one else is around? There is something majestic and deeply soothing about water that it can be so still and calm, but in constant motion. The depths of the sea can draw us into the depths of ourselves, and a fast moving stream can remind us of how effortless the movement of life can be when it is simply following its way, like water following the gravity and curves of its landscape. These very same intuitions and connections have been made for centuries, and those ancient sages that formulated the Five Movement (sometimes called Five Element) philosophy studied this in detail when considering the Water Movement.
Lessons of the Seasons
In the changing of the seasons, the Water Movement is the winter. In the fall we had the inward movement of what matters most to our lives, and the letting go of more exterior concerns. In the winter we have the full transition to our depths. Take a walk in the frozen woods of New York in January and you can feel that stillness. Nature is meditating upon herself before arising again to explore the outward world of spring. As a part of nature, the Five Movement philosophy advises us to embrace stillness and introspection in our lives during the winter months. It is a perfect time for deep meditations and contemplations using a very soft focus on effortless awareness, rather than actively moving a lot of energy around.
Lessons of the Body
In our physical bodies, the water movement is associated with the healthy elimination of fluid waste and urination. No real head-scratcher there! The water element is also in charge of the underlying vitality of our reproductive system, as well as our bones, bone marrow, brain and joints. These processes, including structural stability and the ability to reproduce, are very deep and fundamental to who we are as physical beings. Keeping the water element in good health and conserving its vital presence in our lives is very important in both short term health and the process of aging. This includes managing our sleep, choosing valuable nutrients in our diet, proper hydration, not pushing ourselves so far that we are pulling from our reserves, and the pursuit of wisdom over excitement or trends; a steady and smooth flow.
Lessons of the Spirit
The water movement is characterized by inward and downward movement that goes to the very depths. When we are moving with it, we are operating from a place of calmness akin to quiet wisdom and contentment, with the resonant quality of deep power. When in balance, it is the quiet presence of one who is following the way of their life without resistance or internal strife, combined with the vigor of will found in the understanding and acceptance of that fact. It is not just the calm depths of our inner world, it is the power and stability that can arise from such a place, particularly when it is well preserved and cared for. It is the calmness that we can hold to so that we can act from compassion and inner strength rather than knee-jerk or unconscious responses.
The negative emotion of the Water Movement is fear. Fear is the concept that we may not survive; that our wellbeing is in danger; or that it will be if a certain action or event takes place. When fear is operating as it should, it gives rise to positive action toward survival and thriving. When fear lingers or overwhelms, it leads to the nearly opposite effect of mental paralysis, or “freezing up.” This is frozen water—vitality and vigor that has been locked down and restrained due to our response to real or imagined circumstances.
Frozen water cannot irrigate fields, relieve thirst, or moisten tissue. It is not “bad water,” it is just locked up in a way that prevents it from nourishing its environment. If warmed and thawed by love and inspiration, it becomes free and productive once again. This highlights a central relationship between the water of the kidneys and the fire of the heart. Heart fire (sincere and honest connection with self, others, and nature; love) warms the kidney water to keep it flowing. Kidney water cools the heart fire to prevent it from flaring and turning into mania or anxiety. This central pivot within us links the most fundamental aspect of our being (the inner peace and virility of Water), with the most elevated aspect (the connection with nature and each other represented by Fire).
Lessons of the Ages
The Water Movement is the gift of effortless motion, or stillness within motion along a natural path, as well as a sense of peaceful depth and virility. It tends toward the inward and downward directions, and relates to very deep physical processes including reproduction and skeletal structure. We can experience it within during deep meditation. We can experience it when sitting at peace by a body of water; and we can experience it in the quiet, low thrum that speaks to itself deep in the woods of a northeastern winter. With the cold months coming upon us now, try taking the time to “go with the flow” this season, and enjoy the inward movement of reflection. Like the ancients, perhaps you too will discover why Water, more than any other of the Five “Elements,” has been associated with an ideal that we treasure today here in the West: wisdom.