The Element Fire

Wisdom Teachings
The 5 Elements

Fire is the essence of creation. In the Vedas it is called Agni. Agni means the foremost one. Agni is the first spur, the cause for the emergence from seeming nothingness to apparent something. The spur causes the light of creation. It is also called consciousness.

The solar systems begin to exist as whirlpools of fire; as whirlpools of fire the planets begin to precipitate. We have in us the correspondences of the solar system and the planets – in the head centre and in the six chakras, which are promoted into lotuses of fire.

There is a basic fire from which all the levels of existence come forth as flames blown out from the one fire. Fire is latent in all. All formations on all levels are its work, and the cosmic, solar and planetary devas work with it. Fire is the builder, the preserver and the destroyer. It can consume all formations and bring them back to the essence. In the Old Testament God is therefore called the all-consuming fire.

The one fire exists as three fires which are described in the Scriptures as electric fire, solar fire and fire by friction. The three fires represent the three higher principles in us, Atma, Buddhi and Manas. The four lower principles, the bodies of the personality, are also called the four flames, so that we have in us seven fires.

We have the potential to link up with the higher fires and thus to make the lower fires ascend. But we don’t master them yet; we aren’t yet able to deal properly with the fire of the mind. We cannot even handle correctly the fire of desire, and thus there are difficulties with the lower fires and health problems. Our training environment for purification of thought, word and deed is the human society with our daily routine as our laboratory. Our body is the place for the sacred purification ritual. We clean it and work with certain practices; this is the ritual.

A fire ritual we conduct outside is to invoke the fire inside. We build 7 triangles with the sticks, for the 7 planes of existence and the 7 tissues of the body. We pour some ghee on them and light the fire. When the flame has caught all the 7 triangles, the bridge is built between the 7 planes. The ascending flames are a symbol of the purification of the seven planes in us.

When undesirable thoughts and emotions are bothering us, we can light a fire, sit before it quietly and pray to the fire: Please burn up these thoughts which are causing me problems. Thus, we request to burn the burdensome thoughts and feelings and to bestow on us thoughts full of light.

Thoughts are products of fire: The mind is one of the flames of the fire of existence, the seventh or lowest flame of the fire by friction. In a fire ritual the fire by friction or the fire in matter is represented by the wooden sticks. The fire in the wooden sticks is not visible as long as it is not lighted. But if we set fire to it, the matter of the wood releases the fire and thus preserves the flame.

Another aspect of the flame is the electric fire, the fire in space, which descends as oxygen and enables the flame to burn. It permeates the entire surroundings and is also not visible. We cannot realise it unless we function as souls, because it is beyond the subjective.

The visible flame is the meeting point between the electric fire and the fire by friction. The flame is the manifestation of the solar light, the bridge between the two invisible fires. The flame is magical; hence, we should contemplate on the flame. It connects spirit and matter and causes the matter of the wood to take from the gross to the subtle state. When the flames of a fire ritual have done their work on the burning material, the ash is considered sacred. It is purified by the fire and has survived. Nothing can keep on burning the ash. From this developed the tradition to apply it on the forehead and especially put it on the brow centre.

If we want to reach a higher or subtler state, we have to work with the fire. However, as long as we are not pure we cannot kindle the fire in us. If our fuel is wet from emotions or astral disturbances, the fire cannot flame up. If our mind is full of impure matter, the fire spits sparks of badly regulated thoughts and words which hurt others, mislead them or spread gloom.

The direction connected with the fire is south-east. Therefore it is recommended to orient the kitchen and cooking to this direction. The place of fire is our mouth. When we eat food, the fire of digestion ensures the intake of food and the distribution to the body as energy. We therefore should consciously offer the food to the fire and eat in peace. We can take in the food with the following words: “I am thankful to the Lord for the food made available. I offer this food to the Lord of Fire, for his distribution to the Devas within the body. May the Lord be pleased. May the Devas be pleased with this act of mine.”

If we act irresponsibly and offer impure things to the fire this has consequences and we have to pay. By eating wrong or impure food we become sick. Eventually, we have to suffer for our irresponsible acts.

We find the fire in the warmth of the body cells and in the warmth generated by the work with respiration. Soft, deep and uniform respiration brings increased oxygen, expels carbon and vitalises the life force. These exercises also purify the mind and make the body tissues radiant. They are particularly effective together with the light of dawn and dusk.

Especially the work with OM is a work with fire. If we utter OM with a firm intention we kindle the fire. It is very important to do this with an attitude of good will, for we destroy other thoughts with OM or even ourselves. Through meditation and prayer the fire in the body is also stirred and emerges as Kundalini fire. Master CVV says, “I will start a movement in you which serves to kindle fire in you.”

The fire is strengthened by fiery aspiration called tapas. Regular engagement with wisdom is like an inner rubbing which generates heat and strengthens the alchemy of transformation.

The fiery signs in the zodiac support the fiery transmutations. But even if you don’t have any planets in fiery signs you can get the needed fire for transformation through the transits of the big planets through fiery signs. Also when planets move through a fiery sign by progression, we can use the time for the fiery work. When many planets are in airy signs the work of fire has already been done to a certain degree.

The three fiery signs symbolise the three great fires: Sagittarius represents the fire by friction which helps to purify matter from inertia. Leo belongs to the solar fire which represents the soul. It transforms the personality and leads us into the fields of light. Aries, the electric fire, stands for the head above the brows where the highest enlightenment can take place.

The seed sound of fire is RA or RAM. It is the oldest mantram on the planet. The mantram SRI RAM helps for a faster transformation. SRI stands for the splendour, the Divine Nature. SRIYAM is the light of Ajna. VAM is the sound of Ajna, SRIM the fire of Ajna. HRIM is the fire of golden light. AIM is the light as the Word. The light of joy is KLIM. We find all these sounds in the fire ritual: AIM, KLIM, SRIM, HRIM, in this way.

In Hierarchy Master Morya represents the fire aspect. His statements sound bitter, but if we “chew” them, they become sweet. If we delve more into the meaning of the “Treatise on Cosmic Fire”, we transform our life. To read it does not mean to study it. A person who studies it automatically becomes more responsible because it contains so much fire. It is in fact fire arranged in the form of paper. Each time we touch it we will experience changes in the personal actions. It helps us to gain more fire and thus to keep on changing our life.

Sources: K.P. Kumar: Agni – The Symbolism and the Ritual of Fire / Mantrams / notes from seminars. E. Krishnamacharya: Agni Yoga – Yoga of Synthesis. The World Teacher Trust - Dhanishta, Visakhapatnam, India.