The Five Elements

Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water—the fundamental forces that shape your personality, behavior, and physical being.

In Traditional Eastern Astrology, every Primary Star is born under the breath of one of the Five Phases—ancient elemental archetypes that echo through your personality and body alike. They are not just categories, but subtle energies shaping how you feel, act, and connect.

Each element represents a different way of being in the world, with unique strengths, challenges, and physical correspondences. Understanding your elemental nature reveals patterns in your behavior, relationships, and health.

Five Elements Interactive Diagram

WoodFireEarthMetalWater

Click on elements to learn more • Use buttons to explore cycles

Wood

Creative, Adaptable, Yearning to Grow

Core Traits

You live in motion—curious, expressive, and sensitive to your environment. Like a sapling stretching toward the sun, you crave space to grow, to feel, to be seen. You shine in teams, eager to contribute, full of flexible intelligence.

Body Correspondence

liver, gallbladder, eyes

Element Insight: Wood energy is most balanced when it can express its natural flow—through growth, creativity, and flexible adaptation.

Fire

Radiant, Bold, Quick to Burn

Core Traits

You run hot. Driven by passion and the gaze of others, you chase brilliance and clarity. You want to be understood, respected, seen as right. There's a fierce righteousness in you—truth matters.

Body Correspondence

heart, small intestine, tongue

Element Insight: Fire energy is most balanced when it can express its natural flow—through passion, recognition, and clear communication.

Earth

Stable, Grounded, Hard to Know

Core Traits

You are the anchor. Calm, conservative, slow to change. There is a quiet wisdom in your being—a collector of routines, memories, and systems that keep life intact.

Body Correspondence

spleen, stomach, mouth

Element Insight: Earth energy is most balanced when it can express its natural flow—through stability, routine, and gradual change.

Metal

Precise, Rational, Emotionally Distant

Core Traits

You're built on clarity and structure. Reputation matters to you. You move step by step, needing reason, order, and efficiency. Your mind is a sharp tool, capable of seeing patterns instantly.

Body Correspondence

lungs, large intestine, nose

Element Insight: Metal energy is most balanced when it can express its natural flow—through structure, precision, and logical processes.

Water

Intuitive, Deep, and Fluid

Core Traits

You feel everything. Emotions are your language, and relationships your medium. People trust you because you see between their words.

Body Correspondence

kidneys, bladder, ears

Element Insight: Water energy is most balanced when it can express its natural flow—through emotional connection, intuition, and fluid boundaries.

How Elements Interact

Generative Cycle

Water nourishes Wood
Wood feeds Fire
Fire creates Earth (ash)
Earth produces Metal
Metal collects Water

Destructive Cycle

Water extinguishes Fire
Fire melts Metal
Metal cuts Wood
Wood depletes Earth
Earth absorbs Water

Understanding Balance: The goal isn't to avoid destructive cycles but to understand how different elemental energies can support or challenge each other in your personality and relationships.

Five Elements in Traditional Eastern Astrology | Learn | Day Day Sze Mei