The Five Elements From A Norse Perspective

Reasons to list Aethem power in the east and air in the west for Teutonic shamanism.

Many traditions list west as being the direction of water and the east as the direction of the element of air. In this article we shall list look at an argument for spirit to be in the east. Further, since we have ICE in the northern traditions, water is already included in the north. It is for this reason that air could be in the west.

1) Taoism Perspectives of the Five Elements

If we reference first Taoist philosophy, yin and yang, the five elements; and their relationships to tai chi,

we learn that they view wood in the east. Wood is their version of Aethem (ON: ond) spiritual energy.

Wood energy is rising, expanding, and is the force of growth. This is also the least dense of the energy forms.

Outer circle is density order

Next in the south they have fire, which is the second least dense. Continuing to the west is listed the element Metal. Metal energy is consolidating and with inward movement, like a flower closing its petals.  This counter balance to the expanding energy in the east is in exact agreement with Norse mythologies and clearly is the Taoist version of Air (not water).

Further confirmation can be found in the fact that water is indeed in the north for a Taoist and earth in the center. So from least dense to most dense the direction is east,south,center,west,north.

note: picture does not represent directions, ie: wood looks like west in picture but it is actually east. This picture shows the direction of energy descending in density. Spirit is lightest, ice densest.

2) Hinduism Perspectives of the Five Elements

To the Hindus, the Guardians of the Directions (Sanskrit:  Dikpāla) are listed as follows:

In the East is Indra and the weapon is the thunderbolt. The thunderbolt corresponds to Thorr's hammer and the elctromagnetic energy of lightning.  The god Indra is also associated with thunder and rain.

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The guardian of the west in Hindu and early Indian Buddhism traditions is Varuna. While this is clearly a water and ocean deity it is clear that it corresponds to the Vanir.

So here we have listed the Hindu pre Christian tradition that shares a common ancestry with northern Euorpeans (called Indo-European) and an eastern tradition of Taoism that also agrees that spirit (inspiration, expanding energy) is in the east. Taoism assigns air to the west, and while Hinduims does list water in the west, it's guardian is clearly a Vanir type of deity.

The Vanir Gods as Air Entities as Well as Ocean Spirits

Q So what makes the Vanir air entities? I thought they were water elementals?

There are two sources I use to justify this correspondence. One is the fact of the war between the Vanir and the Giants. The second is in the subtle clues found in the Lay of Allwise. 


One: The Vanir vs the Thurses (Giants) in the model of the nine worlds of Yggdrasil we see that Vanaheim is directly accross from Jotunheim. This illustrates that the expanding energy of the giants must be counter-balanced bythe contracting force of the Vanir gods (Air element is contracting).


Two: In the Lay of Alvis (ALLWISE the dwarf) we see that everytime Thorr asks him to say what the Vanir call an object, every answers suggests that they are Wind entities.




The Vanir call earth: the ways
Like the wind they use earth to travel directions. Being earth bound gods, the ways suggests that earth is a means to travel.


The Vanir call heaven: wind maker. This to me means that if it was not for the Aesir there would be no wind and wind is everything to the Vanir.


They call the clouds wind river (or Windblown). Wind itself is called whinnier or Neigher, as in a horse. Here we see that the Vanir see the wind as something to ride. Going further we see that the sea is called waves (again a wind reference). They called calm as Wind-Lull (end of wind).


OK I could go on and on. readers are encouraged to read the Alvismal themselves. You can find a modern English translation of the Alvismal here  and a more older style English translation here.





Water according to some northern traditional references is to the north because it is ice. To the ice age Teutonic people, ice would be the primary form of water. This leaves a void in the west where water usually is. Since Jotunheimr is in the east and giants are expansive in nature. We know that it's opposite is contracting. We know that the war between the Vanir and Jotuns is covered in mythology.