The 4 seasons: the cycle of Life The cycle of birth, growth, flowering, fruiting, decaying, dying, being reborn,…….
2- birth/death. fixed line or changing line 3 - cardinal, mutable, changeable 4 - 4 seasons, elements,
Ecclesiastes 3:1–8 (NKJV):
To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck what is planted; A time to kill, And a time to heal; A time to break down, And a time to build up; A time to weep, And a time to laugh; A time to mourn, And a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, And a time to gather stones; A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing; A time to gain, And a time to lose; A time to keep, And a time to throw away; A time to tear, And a time to sew; A time to keep silence, And a time to speak; A time to love, And a time to hate; A time of war, And a time of peace.
The Fourfold Nature of Life
4: It divides circle into four directions and time into four movements, and it shows up again and again because it is the most economical symbolic shape that holds polarity, rhythm, and structure all at once.
Solstices and equinoxes mark two pivots and two balances in the solar year, producing four turning points that anyone working the land must know. Planting, growing, harvesting, death/eating/storing
The 4 comes from the 2. The 2 come from the polarity of the 1.
Once culture forms, the agricultural rhythm internalized and integrated into all aspects of life and is mythologized. Civilizations encode these rhythms into gods, rites, calendars, and cosmologies.
The practical cycle becomes cosmological symbolism: birth → growth → harvest → dying/seed. Because human life mirrors the land (childhood, growth, maturity, decline), the four-fold pattern becomes a universal grammar of meaning.
Inbreath, hold, outbreath, hold The 4 sides of a square YHVH 4 elements, archangels, 4 qabalistic worlds 4 court cards of tarot 4 stages of alchemy 4 Directions
References in Scriptures
“While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease.”
- Genesis 8:22 (after the Flood, NKJV)
“And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise And knowledge to those who have understanding.”
- Book of Daniel 2:21
“The wheel of law with twelve spokes revolves around the heavens; On it are set 720 sons of Agni in pairs.”
- Rig Veda 1.164.15
“All things rise and fall, Grow strong and then decline. This is the way of Heaven.”
- Dao De Jing, Chapter 29
“It is He who sends down water from the sky. With it We bring forth the buds of every plant. From them We bring forth greenery, From which We produce grain heaped up; And from the date-palm, its spathes, Clusters of dates hanging low and near. And gardens of grapes, olives, and pomegranates, Similar and dissimilar. Behold the fruit when it yields, And its ripening. Indeed, in these are signs for those who believe.”
- Qur’an 6:99
“The seasons go round and return, The months follow each other without end. Heaven has given them their laws, Men must take them as their pattern.”
- Odes of Confucius (Book of Songs, Ode 154)
in your life
The 4 seasons and the Wizard - magician, alchemist following the flow and rhythym of the seasons in your own life. Live closely to nature and allow your energy and activities to match the season. Contemplate how this cycle and these 4(or more) stages are present in all things, in all life. “to everything there is a season” To be wise, is to live aligned with the seasons of life - whether literally the time of the year, or more metaphorically in the sychnoistic flow of lifes happenings…
Plant in early spring trim and prune increase energy Bring to greatest light and energy and attention allow the fruit to grow and ripen Pluck the fruit and eat it at its ripest point savour it allow it to coast downhill allow the energy to slow and come to stillness Rest in that nadir Allow the light to be reborn …..
The Alchemical Cycle
The Alchemical Cycle - taking a thing through this cycle many times, and in many way….
Each time purifying and extracting and evolving it to a higher and higher form. Until it is perfected in the quintessence and cannot be any better. It has become perfect.
Wheel of Initiation
a continuous spiral, going around in a circle, but also evolving upwards
- Spring (East/Air): Birth, innocence, fresh starts, clarity, ideas, inspiration, and seeding intentions.
- Summer (South/Fire): Growth, maturation, manifestation, strength, ambition, vigor, and full expression.
- Autumn (West/Water): Harvest, fruition, reflection, letting go, decay, integration, and deepening wisdom.
- Winter (North/Earth): Death, stillness, darkness, rebirth, rest, gestation, and renewal.
Each year and each cycle is a complete initiation, an alchemical round.
You master the rhythm of planting, cultivating, harvesting, and resting.
The four seasons mirror the four alchemical stages:
- Spring (Albedo): Purification, cleansing, renewal, preparation.
- Summer (Citrinitas): Enlightenment, expansion, flowering, full illumination.
- Autumn (Rubedo): Fruiting, completion, integration, perfected manifestation, the Philosopher’s Stone achieved.
- Winter (Nigredo): Dissolution, breakdown, death, shadow work, rest, reset.
Astrotheurgy & the Ritual Alignment:
For the astrotheurgist wizard, the seasons align with the cardinal zodiac signs—key portals of energetic power and ritual opportunity:
- Aries (Spring Equinox): Birth, initiation, fiery intention, invocation rituals.
- Cancer (Summer Solstice): Heightened power, charging talismans, strength rituals.
- Libra (Autumn Equinox): Balance, gratitude, harmony, harvesting spiritual fruits, rituals of thanks.
- Capricorn (Winter Solstice): Turning inward, communion with ancestral forces, rituals of rebirth and return of the light.
- Daily/Seasonal Rituals: Honor each seasonal gate with ritual work, reflection, journaling, divination, and aligned magical acts.
- Personal Rhythm: Adapt your life’s rhythm, activities, and energy to flow naturally with seasonal patterns—honor rest in winter, plant seeds in spring, flourish in summer, harvest in autumn.
- Magical Correspondences: Build your own correspondences between herbs, crystals, colors, and magical intentions that match seasonal energies.
the wizard doesn’t just observe seasons—he embodies them, becomes them, masters them. Thus, life itself becomes a ritual, a ceremony, and a ceaseless spiral of refinement, growth, and mystical union.
Quintessence: The subtle spirit that emerges when the four seasons or elements are in perfect harmony. It represents mastery, spiritual perfection, the Philosopher’s Stone, Christ Consciousness, and the full power of the Wizard.