Within the magic circle, earth is the element of the North. We often think of the element earth as being rock, like a standing stone or stone circle, however it can include quartz, gems, and much more.
Witches have to be in tune with the land, but also our time. By this we mean we still like celebrate the cycle of the year, but we also have to absorb new ideas and stay relevant to peoples lives today. It is all a matter of balance.
Some traditions within witchcraft, druids and possibly others would rate stone as the most powerful element, however water witches, dont find it as easy to use as the others. Stone circles are not all that portable, and are often too public to use. Some covens have their own that they use at some of the sabbats, and some create smaller stone circles using pieces of quartz. many of these stone circles are storage units for magnetic power created in other ways, or used to help maintain a larger cone of power
Originally stone circles and many other places of power, formed a network, many passing power and some storing or amplifying it. We can find evidence of this with any map and a ruler, we find churches built on pagan sites in lines, and all these churches pointing in the same direction and not quite where you would expect. Extra landscaping was done thousands of years ago, and these dragon lines or lay lines all channeled to get maximum effect. Many of these lay lines are still intact and working, but many of the stone circles have been destroyed or recreated differently by well meaning people. Modern changes in landscape from railways to motorways and cities have changed things further. We therefore have two problems, firstly the system is very damaged and secondly we rarely have the right to carry out rituals at the ideal geographical points.
Electricity, radio waves and other electro disturbance also has considerable effect on the overall effect of the element earth. As you will know you can pick up radio with a very simple crystal radio, and any long piece of wire in stone houses has a tendency to have radio speech on it, a major nuisance to people filming using long microphone cables. You will often find witches use crystals as a means of building a neutral area, or pyramid, and on some occasions you can see the differences achieved using a simple compass. Likewise you will find all these changes have caused recordable changes in the pattern of the magnetic effect on each area.
Much of our traditions and celebrations have to do with the fertility cycle of the earth, and many people today are very concerned about pollution, global heating and cooling, the loss of sections of the environment, and other green topics. However we do largely believe that the planet has a self correcting capability. By this we don't mean that you have to pollute, but that perhaps things are not so dire as they sound, after all volcanoes and natural source create far more of the carbon, and any impact we have is really going to be tiny.
Crystal healing is a specialized skill within the craft practiced by some witches, and crystal and stone pendulums are often used. All forms of crystal healing and most traditions of witchcraft start by activating stones or gems by putting them in running water. Many water witches you will find have a rock and crystal garden, this is a bowl containing a number of rocks and crystals standing in water on preferably a east facing window sill.
Historically many of the earth religions, thought of the planet as a mother goddess, and water as the blood flowing out of it. Many ancient healing rituals we find documented in old books tie up water and stones in one form or another, and many think that all stone circles originally had water either in a container or a well in the center. In several places around the UK, ancient underground structures have been found that are stone lined and have a ceremonial pool at the bottom and special ledges above.
It is thought that stone buildings have a form or memory, and can replay particularly dramatic events, explaining many ghosts and other effects. This whole area is an enormous topic, covering lay lines, pyramids and other stone structures, magnetism.... and far more, and very much associated with water and magnetism.
We are lucky within Europe in that we have very many interesting stone circles, standing stones and old remains to explore. Stonehenge for example was a worshipping site for over 4 times as log as Christianity has been in existence, yet is very young compared to the great stone circle at Avebury. There is a misconception that druids were connected with the building of stone circles, when druids came many centuries after they had been built. It may be that Druids also worshiped as many others have at the stone circles. The history of those who built the stone circles is not known, nor their religion or practices, but most including Stonehenge do have arrangements that act as a calendar and the rising sun falls though special positions at set dates, as well as other alignments such as with stars. Water is also thought by its near proximity and direction to be another ingredient of their beliefs. Many have marketed effect on the magnetic field, effect crops that grow nearly and are on ley lines.
We are not saying that the element earth or watchtower of the north is no use to us, or no longer able to be used, but we are saying that we are no longer able to make the same use, as many years ago, or likely to be able to recover the situation. For this reason we have studied and do take an interest in Egyptian rituals and many other ancient ones as well as druid knowledge, but we acknowledge that we have no realistic probability of being able to make slabs of stone fly at this time or many of the other areas of magic that they could at one time do. Later you will find out about other historic evidence using other techniques and the amount of research we have going on in this area. There are many ways to move small items, and in our rituals you will often see things move without mechanical or human aid, but we are working to discover how to move heavy things magically. We, you will not be surprised believe that water is the key to understanding levitation.
Perhaps this discussion was unnecessary at such an early point, but we have set out to be as open as we can with you, and for that reason we should point out are weaknesses as well as our strengths.