Pancha Bhoothangal or Five elements - We have heard a lot of the 5 elements, especially in textbooks and movies. We have a film which has five songs, each one based on one element. I am talking of the Tamil movie 'Rhythm'. We have the famous cartoon - Captain Planet, comprising of 5 heroes each ahving one ring of power based on one element each. When all together join, the form the masterhero- Captain Palnet. But, ask anyone. They name only four correctly- Earth, Fire, Water, Air. They always confuse the fifth element. Some say it is the Spirit. Some say it is the heart of human which completes Mother Earth. Some say it is space, which contains all the other elements. Some even say it is Metal.
If you ask me what the fifth element is, I feel everyone is more concerned about fifth element. It is because they feel it is the most superior and it should the greater than the remaining four - be it heart or metal or space. Be what the fifth element may be, I feel the most superior is not the fifth element, but Fire. Fire is the superior element because fire cannot be adulterated or turn bad. Take the case of earth or water or wind or space or metal, all will turn impure. But fire is the only element which will remain pure forever, plus it has additional quality of making other elements pure. We heat water to make it drinkable. We burn incense to purify the air. We heat the metal to its melting point to separate the pure from the rest. We burn the body to cleanse Earth of disease and to erase the memory of the person. Fire gives light for us to see things in the dark. Religion, History - all speak mighty of the fire. One of the most important inventions in history of mankind is Fire. Hindus use fire for marriage ceremony. Muslims burn incense. Christians use fire to light candles. No wonder, Rama wanted Sita to undertake Agnishudhi to prove she is still virgin. Next time when you see fire or hear of it, don't think of it as something dangerous, but see it in a new light.
If you ask me what the fifth element is, I feel everyone is more concerned about fifth element. It is because they feel it is the most superior and it should the greater than the remaining four - be it heart or metal or space. Be what the fifth element may be, I feel the most superior is not the fifth element, but Fire. Fire is the superior element because fire cannot be adulterated or turn bad. Take the case of earth or water or wind or space or metal, all will turn impure. But fire is the only element which will remain pure forever, plus it has additional quality of making other elements pure. We heat water to make it drinkable. We burn incense to purify the air. We heat the metal to its melting point to separate the pure from the rest. We burn the body to cleanse Earth of disease and to erase the memory of the person. Fire gives light for us to see things in the dark. Religion, History - all speak mighty of the fire. One of the most important inventions in history of mankind is Fire. Hindus use fire for marriage ceremony. Muslims burn incense. Christians use fire to light candles. No wonder, Rama wanted Sita to undertake Agnishudhi to prove she is still virgin. Next time when you see fire or hear of it, don't think of it as something dangerous, but see it in a new light.
