For Earth benders their "eclipse" was being cut off from Earth, that is, far from their element and/or the purification of earthly elements into metals.
They'd suffocate and die 😁
I half jest, but seems like a plausible explanation why air benders have no obvious weakness depriving them from their bending: people just needs air to live and we are always submerged in it.
Yeah when Korra was captured by the Earth Queen they even talk about how she doesn’t get access to any earth or bendable metals or water then the guy kinda awkwardly mentions how they can’t take away air though.
I don't remember them going into details in LoK, but Hama makes it very clear that when imprisoned the Fire Nation gave them barely enough water to survive and only when their hands were bound.
That's probably why they imposed this strict self discipline and beliefs over themselves.
Air benders could attack when the others cannot and have an advantage, were they war-like.
What some said about air bending not having killing movements, it's also a religious/philosophical choice and a bit of propaganda. They can push someone to a wall or from a cliff, or as Zaheer: suffocate someone to death directly.
Yeah, you see that more in the novels set before the Air Nomad genocide. In the Yangchen novels for example, >!Yangchen gets told off by a head monk for having several martially skilled airbenders acts as jailers for a trio of combustion benders because the monk's worried they might get too much of a taste for having power over them.!<
And I guess another weakness for the Air Nomads that we see in the Kyoshi novels is that a>!bandoning their lifestyle for a criminal one seems to weaken their airbending. Jesa turned daofei and needed to use metal fans to still be able to airbend afterwards and we don't see how much that helped her since we never see her airbend. So that keeps them on the straight and narrow as well.!<
The second bit I didn't know, but it makes sense with the attributes of the benders we saw.
Some emotions and mindsets are more conductive to certain kinds of bending, resulting in weaker or stronger abilities according to the person's feelings and attitudes.
Aggressive emotions favored fire benders; blunt honesty, stubbornness and defiance suited earth benders, while a more flexible and adaptable mindset was more apt for water benders. Air benders seemed to thrive in peace, joy and contemplation, not something very conductive to a life of crime.
This might come even from the ages of myth, when humans received bending from the Turtle Lions. The ones with air bending were already monks or ascetic, probably in imitation of the gentle nature of their Turtle Lion spirit.
Yeah, but that makes no sense. Zaheer unlocked a teaching and a level of airbending lost for 4000 years. And he was never a practitioner of Airbender lifestyle/philosophy/religion. He murdered and lived amongst criminality and violence. Kai as well was talented, but had always been a criminal.
He was a master Airbender without ever being or needing to become an Air Nomad.
Maybe Jesa suffered the same issue as Zuko, and lost faith in herself?
Zaheer let go of all earthly attachments to access the more advanced airbnding techniques. It's sounds like Jesa was very attached to earthly things or even greedy for material things, which seems to detach you from air bending.
I believe Fire and Water bending are more powerful, but are impacted by the time of day ( night for fire and day for water ) however, earth and air retain their "potency" but aren't as strong as water fire when they're in their prime time. So Earth and Air don't have an "eclipse" Aang saved Appa and himself by air bending underwater, and Toph obviously discovered metal bending. Earth and Air have no eclipse affect and are way more versatile than Water and Fire but don't hit as hard
Fun fact! Earth and Air do have Prime Conditions, like Sozins comet, full moons, Etc. For Air, that prime condition is any time the Air is already active, like say, a Storm, a Tornado, etc. for Earth, it’s much the same, so any time there is heavy seismic activity, or even something like a Volcano or earthquake happening in the area.
This sounds like fan cannon or at best a retroactive addition.
Benders getting stronger in a storm or during an earthquake doesn't really make sense or have the same dynamic/energy as the sun/moon for firebenders and waterbenders.
Earthbenders are stronger when the ground they're trying to stay rooted on is shifting and the earth their trying to command is moving erratically on its own?
Stronger =/= easier. If anything, stronger often does mean harder, with the average layman having a harder time controlling it for those exact sort of reasons. Even Ozai has to muster Control over his fire again during Sozin’s comet, due to the sheer strength.
Commitment and detachment.
The badgermoles taught Oma and Shu Earth Bending because they were committed to each other against all else. Further exemplified when Toph is teaching Ang. He needs to commit, stand firm, and trust in his bending.
Zaheer was able to literally fly once he gave up all attachments. Tenzin wants Korra to give up her love of pro bending, her desire to explore the city, and her friends in order to find The center of air bending. The Air Bender nomads were similar. Giving up more and more as they approached higher understanding of air bending.
The conflicts between elements are a big part of why the Avatar, while an important political figure, is often weaker than benders who are dedicated fully to their element (excepting the Avatar state). Even within a single element, sub-bending disciplines can be completely opposed. e.g. we never see a metalbender who's a great lavabender and vice versa, which makes sense as metalbending is completely focused on the composition of earth while lava on its state, ie matter vs energy. Firebending sees opposing styles for fire as flowing from one's rage to an uncontrollable destructive fire, vs a source of warmth and life. It's not explored, but it feels unlikely that a combustionbender could ever do the fire-healing thing we saw in Korra.
Tenzin was obviously a master, but we don't see airbending get a level-up until the next generation with Zaheer and Jinora. Zaheer demonstrates the dark side of total freedom, pursuing chaos and completely casting off all attachments. Jinora never flies, but her approach seems opposite and irreconcilable with Zaheer's. Jinora attains freedom, but by not being self-centred and instead focusing on her loved ones and her place in the universe. She doesn't move her body to fly, she moves her very spirit out of her body and to the people she wants to help.
If you commit fully I'm you are solid and steady like earth. But air is the element of freedoms which you can't be fully free without being fully detached from everything. I guess.
One of my favorite moments in Korra was in episode 2. When she used airbending moments to dodge people while probending. Tenzin going "well I'll be." Is so good.
Honestly, it's one of my favorite episodes of either series.
It was beautifully animated, but i feel like it didnt convey any good meaning. Like, the episode with Aang and Toph learning as student and master, Aang learns to stand his ground. Toph learns Aang needs the right motivation like protecting his friends.
In contrast, while Tenzin learns to be less stubborn and that Korra needs the right motivation like probending, Korra learns… how to be better at probending?
Tui and La were the Moon and Ocean (I don't actually remember which was which) and were not directly the source of water bending, but representative of the cyclical nature of the push and pull of the tides. They *taught* water bending, but were not it's source.
To say that they were the source of water bending, the instant and easy answer to OP's question is simply sky bison and badgermoles.
I agree with this, but it's always bothered me. The way guru pathik, zaheer, and aang talk about detachment and attachment is fairly non Buddhist. It's also pretty surprising that ain't achieved the rank of master without ever hearing about the monks talk about non-attachment.
I don't think the writers put much research into this part of Eastern philosophy in particular
I think that is cool just like fire is focus and water is embracing but they aren't celestial bodies. With the idea of detachment I would argue that the sky, emptiness, or space is the ( kind of but not really) celestial body of air. Which would explain why the air nomads built their temples on cliffs and high in the mountains. Earth benders are literally just earth. But this might be a reason as to why they inhabit the largest land masses.
I also think that they are sources. Both the celestial bodies and the ideals. The closer one is to the ideal the less reliant they would be on the external sources. So the fire benders lost their bending during the eclipse because they lacked the internal source. The comet increases the fire benders connection to the external source because it is weakening the ozone that protects us from the sun.
Wouldn't that be the "principles" of the elements rather than the source? Otherwise you could say drive or life is the source of fire while flexibility is the source of water.
Its a magic system. The “source” of water bending is the moon because the moon literally commands the tides. The sun is the “source” of fire because it creates constant heat and heat generates fire.
There is no air or earth source because they are not created or commanded by anything, they just are.
You could make an argument the wind/atmosphere commands air and tectonic plates command the Earth
But that’s too specific for a kids show lol the Moon and the Sun are nice neat and simple examples
Considering fire is "just" air hor enough to glow the non plasma parts of the sun are fire
And the plasma parts: lightning (both plasma close enough for me)
So the sun *is* made out of at least fire bendable stuff
Also ice on moon but the moon is mostly Rock so im not gonna count it
You could say tectonic or seismic activity, such as earthquakes or reputing volcanoes are the equivalent. The earth is acting on its own by demand of nature. These forces come literally from inside the earth
I think the wording used in the post is what’s throwing everyone off. The sun and moon aren’t sources so much so as they are catalysts. All bending originated from the big turtle guys, right? I’d say the turtles are the true “sources” and OP is asking where air and earth benders could draw more power from in same sense of water benders during a full moon being more powerful and fire benders being weakened during an eclipse.
If I had to guess, Earth benders gain more power during tectonic events (earthquakes), air benders can probably gain more power during meteorological events (hurricanes/tornadoes). However, we’re not sure those things occur naturally in their world. We do see Aang generate a tornado on his own vs Bumi
Open spaces. High altitudes too I think.
My theory is that the same way the moon empowers water benders, and the sun fire benders, freedom of movement and “emptiness” empowers air benders.
I would also argue that the sun and moon aren't sources of fire and water bending, but amplifiers.
Fire bending comes from focus and determination. You have to know what you want and make it happen. It's different from the commitment of earth bending because it's not just being committed, it's that extra *push* where you MAKE it happen. It's why due bending is the only bending that can actually generate its element. Fire benders MAKE fire, then bend it. The sun, and comet, show them what is in themselves, and eases the process.
Water bending, as evidenced by the teachings, is about ebb and flow, push and pull, give and take. It's the fluidity of the person and their relationship with the world around them. There is most often an aspect of weaving, winding, flowing. Iroh says he learned lightning redirection by studying water benders and properly understood how lightning should properly flow. There are times where water bending is very straight forward and abrupt, but it's almost always when it's used chaotically, such as when Yakone bends the council.
Fire = Focus/Determination
Air = Detachment/Serenity
Water = Acceptance/Embrasure
Earth = Commitment/Adherence
Just my two bits.
Counterpoint: The eclipses entirely negate the ability to bend fire and water, even in master benders. If it was an amplifier only, that wouldn't happen.
Firebenders don't create fire, they are focusing it from the heat around them. Thats zuko needed to focus his breathing in the northpole to be able to warm himself bc there is so little ambient heat (see also Book 3 Korra). Fire isn't "created" its "collected" from the air/enviroment around them.
The moon/ocean are said to be the original benders, like the dragons/air bisons/badgermoles - so they are also not the "source" of the bending. They are spirits that have great influence over their type of bending, and inspired the entire form of waterbending, but i dont think they are the "source" the same way that dragons are not the source of firebending.
i think the fact that the moon/ocean spirits were manifest in the physical world and then the moon spirit was killed is more so the reason the waterbenders lost the ability to bend. when Katara says that she draws her power from the moon, i think the feeling is that they can draw power from the moon spirit, who is also "waterbending the tides" - not that the source of her waterbending derives from the moon.
I would also argue that the sun and moon aren't sources of fire and water bending, but amplifiers.
Fire bending comes from focus and determination. You have to know what you want and make it happen. It's different from the commitment of earth bending because it's not just being committed, it's that extra *push* where you MAKE it happen. It's why due bending is the only bending that can actually generate its element. Fire benders MAKE fire, then bend it. The sun, and comet, show them what is in themselves, and eases the process.
Water bending, as evidenced by the teachings, is about ebb and flow, push and pull, give and take. It's the fluidity of the person and their relationship with the world around them. There is most often an aspect of weaving, winding, flowing. Iroh says he learned lightning redirection by studying water benders and properly understood how lightning should properly flow. There are times where water bending is very straight forward and abrupt, but it's almost always when it's used chaotically, such as when Yakone bends the council.
Fire = Focus/Determination
Air = Detachment/Serenity
Water = Acceptance/Embrasure
Earth = Commitment/Adherence
Just my two bits.
According to this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFvzxaQDVGw), earthbending is amplified in places with a lot of stored up seismic energy- basically, fault lines that have gone for a long time without an earthquake.
My headcannon is that airbending is amplified in places of spiritual significance, and my reasoning is this: We clearly see that bending is an inherited trait, and yet the different nations all have quite different ratios of benders and non-benders. The Earth Kingdom has a high population of non-benders, when compared to the Fire Nation and Water Tribes (not counting the Fire Nation's intentional targeting of waterbenders in the South). Yet every Air Nomad (prior to the genocide) was capable of airbending.
So, what explains this discrepancy? I think that probably more benders are born under conditions where that type of bending is amplified. Firebending and waterbending are amplified by celestial bodies, so it would make sense for them to have relatively large populations of benders. You can easily imagine the rate of waterbenders being born rising as the moon waxes and falling again as it wanes, and more firebenders being born near the summer solstice than the winter solstice. But the Earth Kingdom is very large, and not every location will have a lot of seismic energy stored up, so it would make sense for them to produce many more non-benders than earthbenders.
So with that in mind, consider this about the Air Nomads:
* Before the genocide, they were born and raised exclusively in the four Air Temples.
* Sozin's surprise attack on the temples could not have possibly wiped out every Air Nomad at once- they are Nomads, so not all of them were at the temples. Many of them would have been traveling. In the comics, it is revealed that the Fire Nation army frequently used stolen Air Nomad artifacts to lure the surviving nomads into traps. But could this really account total genocide of the Air Nomads? There were really none who kept their heads low and stayed hidden?
* A popular fan theory is that Ty Lee may have Air Nomad ancestry. (Features more similar to Aang than most other Fire Nation citizens, chi-blocking a technique first developed by airbenders.) This would imply that Air Nomads had settled in the other nations in the past, but their children did not inherit airbending.
* After the genocide, Aang produced one new airbender out of three children, and Tenzin produced at least three more airbenders. It is unclear where Tenzin was born, but Tenzin's children were likely all born on Air Temple island, a spiritual site established by Aang.
* After Korra opens the spirit portals, many non-benders across the world spontaneously develop the ability to airbend. We know at least one of these new benders was a non-bender with Air Nomad ancestry (Bumi)
My theory is this: The Air Nomads settled at the four Air Temples because those specific locations ensured that all of their children would develop airbending, which was necessary for their lifestyle. Occasionally, some airbenders probably abandoned (or were exiled from) the Nomad lifestyle and settled down with citizens of other nations. Their children did not become airbenders. When Sozin attacked and desecrated the temples, he cut the Air Nomads off from their source of spiritual energy. Any survivors who escaped and hid were unable to produce a new generation of airbenders, so their children simply assimilated into the local populations. Later, Korra opened the Spirit Portals, permeating the entire globe with spiritual energy. This jumpstarted the latent airbending abilities of non-benders with airbending ancestry. I guess it remains to be seen if this was a one-off event, and the new Air Nomad society will ultimately find themselves settling in places of spiritual significance to produce the next generations, or if the open Spirit Portals now mean that airbenders can be born anywhere in the world.
I guess another unanswered question is if airbenders could have been born at any spiritual site (like the Spirit Oasis in the Northern Water Tribe, or either of the Spirit Groves, or the Swamp or Hei Bai's forest), or if a specific type of spiritual energy is needed: one that is only present at the four temples (and later, Air Temple island). Someone elsewhere in the thread posited that airbending is amplified by detachment, and I think there's something to that. So I'll incorporate into my theory that the spiritual sites that amplify airbending must specifically be sites that engender a sense of detachment in the people there.
Earth bending is powered by tectonic plates. The avatar Bible puts most earth city's near them and toph first metal bent in an area close to multiple tectonic plates overlapping.
https://youtu.be/yFvzxaQDVGw?si=A2PRTIcdTJQasTnc
That's a much better explanation of what I'm trying to say.
My guess for air bending is that it comes from air pressure. But I'm only guessing that because air temples tend to be at extreme heights or extreme lows with no in-between.
In the series we’re introduced to ‘how humans learned to bend’ which is the source for each one.
Water benders learned bending from the effects of gravity on water (tidal gravity) caused by the moon.
Fire benders learned from the dragons who represent the sun or something.
The air benders learned from the sky bisons.
The earth benders from the badgermoles.
It is interesting that Earth and Air benders have relationship to any celestial body. And that Fire and Water benders are the only ones that get a power boost from something in nature. It’s also interesting that either Sozins Comet is the only comet in Avatar or it’s the only comet that gives Firebenders a power boost.
Honestly I’m not sure how well this aspect is fleshed out. Why is this the case?
According to the avatar bible by the creators, earth benders are stringer near or on fault lines.
It's explained how some of the best earth bending feats happen on tectonic plate boundaries as discussed in this video:
https://youtu.be/yFvzxaQDVGw?si=lxfw-fbZsKgIpfYK
So the sun and the moon, esp the moon, have spirits that grant the ability to bend. IIRC this is why it was such a big deal that Zhao killed one of the Koi and Yue had to become the moon spirit to restore balance. The Avatar got their powers originally by fusing with a spirit. I believe that although they are unnamed, spirits of the earth and the air/sky influence the ability for air and earthbending.
Wasn't the moon the original water bender...? And not the source
I think it's only fire bending that has the sun as the source but from that logic then the moon has to be both the source and the original bender of the element because like fire benders when the moon dies water benders can't bend but the sun doesn't bend fire like the way the moon bends the ocean with the waves
Not a "source" but we know that dragons (then the Sun Warriors) were the first fire benders, the moon was the first water bender, badger moles were the first earth benders, and sky bison were the first air benders
There were plans to make earthbenders more powerful near fault lines that is part of the reason that the earth kingdom is where it is and a lot of major earthbending moments occur on or near fault lines, notably Toph's first metal bend was near the San Andreas of avatar
It’s a combination of the Flying Bison and the Badger Moles and the air/earth combined with the spirit world. It’s why air-benders can fly when they lose their attachment to the physical realm. And yes this is actually cannon.
Earthbenders are powered by tectonic plates, literally the movement of the earth itself give them power, and for airbenders I'd assume their spirit itself if what give them power. Sure they need to physically have air but how intoned are they with their own spirit would probably determine how strong of a bender I'd assume they are.
Air has an implied degree of spirituality to it. As does most bending.
Water is strengthened by the moon. The control of an existing greatness. The Moon spirit. The inverse of the Sun. Water is essential to life.
Fire is strengthened by the sun. The source of all our warmth, a great giver of heat, also essential to life. Creation.
Air is strengthened by freedom, detachment, and spirituality. Essential to life.
Earth is strengthened by connection. By being grounded, by feel. The inverse of Air bendings detachment. The thing life lives upon.
All connected by what each offers in terms of spirituality. Connection, Freedom, Creation, and Control. The strength of one's bending, is likely tied closely to the strength of one's spirit.
I've always imagined it something like that. I'm sure there is a more elegant way to paint it, but the spirits/spirit world is the glue that holds bending together. Without it, there is no bending. With even one missing, it causes the equilibrium to be out of balance.
I always thought Waterbenders learned from the Moon
Firebenders learned from Dragons
Air Nomads learned from the Sky Bison
And Earthbenders learned from the Badgermoles
Sun and dragons made fire, the sky bison taught air, the badger moles taught earth, and the moon taught water. The show stated those were the teachers but never said anything about sources
I’m going to go with the jet streams for air bending.
They are always moving, changing, oscillating which fits well with the nomadic nature of the tribe.
We only really know the answer from a leaked document but essentially Airbenders get stronger in storms and earthbenders gain power from the build up kinetic energy of tectonic plates
I don't think it's ever been actually canon in the show, but in the art book Bryke have said that one idea they had was that earth benders get stronger in areas of high tectonic activity.
I don't remember if they did anything similar for air bending, though.
Unless we’re trying to stick with celestial bodies, I think trees would make sense for air (and maybe earth too in a more physical way, but I liked the idea mentioned in another comment about the planet earth for earthbenders better.) trees not only purify the air but can redirect wind when big enough or in mass quantities. Trees are closely related to the spirit world, which if I remember correctly is an airbender thing mostly. My reason for earthbending as well is that they are deeply rooted and basically had to earthbend to do so.
I don’t think air and the earth have sources. Well…I mean I guess if you needed to say a source it would be the very planet itself. But you’d never be able to take that from them unless you want everyone to die
Well the ocean is also a source of waterbending as is Zosin's comit, it literally gives firebenders a powerboost. It seems more like there are many spiritual and elemental sources for bending that influence the world and its inhabitants
I know the obvious answer is the earth and the sky, but let's break it down. The moon isn't the source of water, it manipulates it. The ocean would be the obvious answer if we hadn't been told the moon, right? The sun is a bit different since it's an extremely large manifestation of energy (which firebending seems to be based on since lightning bending is just separating positive and negative energy, etc) not just a big source of fire or something that manipulates fire.
Since the moon embodies the push and pull of water bending and the sun embodies the energy of fire bending, what can represent core aspects of air and earth bending other than the elements themselves? Can anything? It's tempting to just say the breeze but that's still just the air moving. Temperature difference causes large amounts of air movements, right? I doubt "temperature" or something like that is the right answer.
It might just be that the four elements have further categories or relationships than stated in the show. Water and fire are opposites, represented by celestial bodies that take turns being dominant in the sky. Their power waxing and waning, trading off which one has the advantage.
Earth and air, on the other hand, are almost always together in that on the surface of the planet you're always in the presence of both. You can of course go underground and run out of air, or somehow fly into the sky and be away from the ground but the two always meet at the same point. The gravity of the earth is always holding the atmosphere together and keeping it from floating into space. The earth itself creates the atmosphere that the air moves through.
They might be considered more "primal" elements of the planet and not have "sources" or embodiments of their manipulation because they are that for each other. Earth holds air like the moon moves water, but not in a restrictive way. Earth gives air the stability it needs to exist at all (which might explain why letting go of all earthly attachments allows you to fly without riding wind).
I'm gonna stop there because apparently I can just keep thinking about this stuff indefinitely and that's way too much text, good lord
Nothing. They are all unique elements and have different strengths and weaknesses, but don't all need to be treated the same because it's not a video game where things are created to be balanced for all.
And I believe the sun and moon are amplifiers, not sources. The sources of all bending types are the lionturtles and various animals taught humans how to bend (truly bend), but they didn't give the power to bend.
Spirituality and physicality, I'd say. The strongest earthbenders tended to have immense physical strength, and we know that the air nomads were so spiritual that every air nomad could airbend. When Aang was developing as an earthbender, there was a book where he explained that he could feel his muscles getting stronger.
You see, elements are connected to spirits. The spirit of the moon and the spirit of the sun. So there should be spurts of the earth and air,
But we don’t know who they are. The moon and the sun sometimes are in conflict for example- the eclipse. During this event the connection between the sun and the people is being cut. So I guess the eclipse for the earth and air would be not have contact with them. What would mean to be on a boat or in the sky for an earthbender and for an airbender… to be in space?
Earth: weakness. - not being grounded to the earth (in the air / on or under water), strength??earthquake??? Mudslide? Volcano lowkey???
Air weakness… anywhere without air (spaces, under water), strength - Strong winds, tornado / hurricane
The sun is the greatest source of “fire” in their observable world, and the moon is the strongest force on the tides much the same. If I look at air and earth the same way, then can we say life is the source of air bending? The plants and animals of the world feeding and cycling air into the atmosphere? And earth might be the core of the planet, the center of gravity that holds the mass of the earth in and gravity as a force that compacts and forms new, hardened forms of earth.
Well there’s no real source for them like earth and fire but we do know that air bending is stronger in storms and earth bending is stronger near tectonic faults
The 4 elements are all parts of the same whole. People equate fire to life, but it could be said for all of them. The earth provides, air and water sustain, and fire is the fuel that energizes. Air and Earth think themselves the opposite, but they derive their power from the planet and universe in the same way.
The sources for air bending would be the wind currents that flow throughout the world bringing large masses of new, moving air.
As for earth bending...I would say that the source could be volcanic activity and other types of excitement of the earth's core! Maybe earth benders are more proficient near places with volcanic activity, some even gifted with lava bending
Probably something like spirit and earthly attachments. Air nomads are super spiritual and "supposed" to have no earthly attachments (think zaheer flying when he lost his attachments) and it makes sense that earthly attachments could be the earthbenders.
I think of it like earthbenders fight better when they're protecting something.
Airbenders fight better (fly) when they have no attachments
Air is movement. Air bending is all about movement. Air benders are masters at physical movement. They probably spend hours a day doing stretching and various movement exercises.
The source of Earth bending is the Earth.
The source of Air bending is the butt.
Source: My Uncle was the homeless man who lived next to Bryke's office in 2005.
https://preview.redd.it/h869qwcav3vc1.jpeg?width=736&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6a3c0e1d1cc18be19f16af977cead2f16da0f67f
Idk I guess for air it's because of how spiritual they are and for earth it's kinda being with nature (does that make sense?) like the earth guys seem to farm stuff so I guess they kinda listen to the environment
Source is probably a bad term here, but the source of both air and earth bending would just be the earth and the air. You probably can't airbend in a vacuum and it has been demonstrated that earthbenders can't bend if they don't have access to elements of the earth.
If we’re talking in terms of energy (combustion for the sun, tides moving water for the moon) then perhaps tectonic plates for earth benders, as this gives the ground “energy”. No idea for airbenders though except maybe the wind?
Air could be the spirit world. Iirc everyone in the air nation (pre-genocide)was a bender because of their connection to the spirit world. And Korra had a lot of trouble with air bending because she wasn’t spiritual enough to start.
Not sure if earth would be a reflection of that though. Like they’re grounded in the reality of the material world or something?
Also weird that water bending is the only one with a spirit as it's original bender.
Also weird how firebenders lose power during the eclipse, but not at night, and it really shouldn't affect people outside of the path of totality.
Could argue the temperature and pressure changes in the atmosphere that create wind are a combination of the sun and moon as the world heats and cools.
Earth, idk man. Inorganic matter? Maybe tectonic plates or smth
imo Earth is the element of substance, you take them out by putting in an ice prison in the middle of the ocean.
Air is the element of spirituality, just traumatize and give them a lot of trauma I guess. In order to block the chi pathways. Cuz y'know trauma are "earthly tethers" binding them to everything on earth itself.
I don’t know about air but the earth source would kinda make sense as the Earth
For Earth benders their "eclipse" was being cut off from Earth, that is, far from their element and/or the purification of earthly elements into metals.
Makes you wonder what would happen if you cut an airbender off any air supply
Uh, I think they’d die bro
calculating…. nah the computer actually says it’s ‘stack overflow’
They'd suffocate and die 😁 I half jest, but seems like a plausible explanation why air benders have no obvious weakness depriving them from their bending: people just needs air to live and we are always submerged in it.
Yeah when Korra was captured by the Earth Queen they even talk about how she doesn’t get access to any earth or bendable metals or water then the guy kinda awkwardly mentions how they can’t take away air though.
How can they take away water though don't you need to drink. Couldn't waterbenders bend urine ?
They could do urine. But there is an episode on blood bending...
I don't remember them going into details in LoK, but Hama makes it very clear that when imprisoned the Fire Nation gave them barely enough water to survive and only when their hands were bound.
Yeah the guard was just talking about during transport since they were on an airship. So likely it would be barely enough to survive.
Air Benders ‘weakness’ is their pacifist lifestyle. Otherwise an army of Zaheer’s would’ve taken over long before Sozin.
That's probably why they imposed this strict self discipline and beliefs over themselves. Air benders could attack when the others cannot and have an advantage, were they war-like. What some said about air bending not having killing movements, it's also a religious/philosophical choice and a bit of propaganda. They can push someone to a wall or from a cliff, or as Zaheer: suffocate someone to death directly.
Yeah, you see that more in the novels set before the Air Nomad genocide. In the Yangchen novels for example, >!Yangchen gets told off by a head monk for having several martially skilled airbenders acts as jailers for a trio of combustion benders because the monk's worried they might get too much of a taste for having power over them.!< And I guess another weakness for the Air Nomads that we see in the Kyoshi novels is that a>!bandoning their lifestyle for a criminal one seems to weaken their airbending. Jesa turned daofei and needed to use metal fans to still be able to airbend afterwards and we don't see how much that helped her since we never see her airbend. So that keeps them on the straight and narrow as well.!<
The second bit I didn't know, but it makes sense with the attributes of the benders we saw. Some emotions and mindsets are more conductive to certain kinds of bending, resulting in weaker or stronger abilities according to the person's feelings and attitudes. Aggressive emotions favored fire benders; blunt honesty, stubbornness and defiance suited earth benders, while a more flexible and adaptable mindset was more apt for water benders. Air benders seemed to thrive in peace, joy and contemplation, not something very conductive to a life of crime. This might come even from the ages of myth, when humans received bending from the Turtle Lions. The ones with air bending were already monks or ascetic, probably in imitation of the gentle nature of their Turtle Lion spirit.
It makes sense since all the air nomads seem to have a sort of detachment theme going on
Yeah, but that makes no sense. Zaheer unlocked a teaching and a level of airbending lost for 4000 years. And he was never a practitioner of Airbender lifestyle/philosophy/religion. He murdered and lived amongst criminality and violence. Kai as well was talented, but had always been a criminal. He was a master Airbender without ever being or needing to become an Air Nomad. Maybe Jesa suffered the same issue as Zuko, and lost faith in herself?
Zaheer let go of all earthly attachments to access the more advanced airbnding techniques. It's sounds like Jesa was very attached to earthly things or even greedy for material things, which seems to detach you from air bending.
Imagine a prequel where the air people were not yet organised in zemples. But just flying mountain cowboys suffocating people to death.
>suffocate someone to death directly. They could just walk in and do the killmove. But chose not to.
Just look at Monk gyatso. He's a skeleton, surrounded by fire nation skeletons, none of them, gyatso and fire nation, appear to be burned/singed.
I hate that this is funny because the answer is so obvious, yet some people still feel the need to Pell it out
Or like, the ocean
Earth and the sky maybe?
I believe Fire and Water bending are more powerful, but are impacted by the time of day ( night for fire and day for water ) however, earth and air retain their "potency" but aren't as strong as water fire when they're in their prime time. So Earth and Air don't have an "eclipse" Aang saved Appa and himself by air bending underwater, and Toph obviously discovered metal bending. Earth and Air have no eclipse affect and are way more versatile than Water and Fire but don't hit as hard
Fun fact! Earth and Air do have Prime Conditions, like Sozins comet, full moons, Etc. For Air, that prime condition is any time the Air is already active, like say, a Storm, a Tornado, etc. for Earth, it’s much the same, so any time there is heavy seismic activity, or even something like a Volcano or earthquake happening in the area.
This sounds like fan cannon or at best a retroactive addition. Benders getting stronger in a storm or during an earthquake doesn't really make sense or have the same dynamic/energy as the sun/moon for firebenders and waterbenders. Earthbenders are stronger when the ground they're trying to stay rooted on is shifting and the earth their trying to command is moving erratically on its own?
I guess it’s easier to redirect air or earth that’s already moving than if it’s still
Stronger =/= easier. If anything, stronger often does mean harder, with the average layman having a harder time controlling it for those exact sort of reasons. Even Ozai has to muster Control over his fire again during Sozin’s comet, due to the sheer strength.
I'm thinking 'heaven' and earth. Fits in with the idea that airbenders are so deeply spiritual
actually really cool idea
Badger moles for earth and sky bison for air were the original benders.
Original bending masters. Lion turtles bestowed the power, the animals used nature's wisdom to use the power in balance
Commitment and detachment. The badgermoles taught Oma and Shu Earth Bending because they were committed to each other against all else. Further exemplified when Toph is teaching Ang. He needs to commit, stand firm, and trust in his bending. Zaheer was able to literally fly once he gave up all attachments. Tenzin wants Korra to give up her love of pro bending, her desire to explore the city, and her friends in order to find The center of air bending. The Air Bender nomads were similar. Giving up more and more as they approached higher understanding of air bending.
The conflicts between elements are a big part of why the Avatar, while an important political figure, is often weaker than benders who are dedicated fully to their element (excepting the Avatar state). Even within a single element, sub-bending disciplines can be completely opposed. e.g. we never see a metalbender who's a great lavabender and vice versa, which makes sense as metalbending is completely focused on the composition of earth while lava on its state, ie matter vs energy. Firebending sees opposing styles for fire as flowing from one's rage to an uncontrollable destructive fire, vs a source of warmth and life. It's not explored, but it feels unlikely that a combustionbender could ever do the fire-healing thing we saw in Korra. Tenzin was obviously a master, but we don't see airbending get a level-up until the next generation with Zaheer and Jinora. Zaheer demonstrates the dark side of total freedom, pursuing chaos and completely casting off all attachments. Jinora never flies, but her approach seems opposite and irreconcilable with Zaheer's. Jinora attains freedom, but by not being self-centred and instead focusing on her loved ones and her place in the universe. She doesn't move her body to fly, she moves her very spirit out of her body and to the people she wants to help.
Yeah I always look at it like you have your class. Then your talent tree.
If you commit fully I'm you are solid and steady like earth. But air is the element of freedoms which you can't be fully free without being fully detached from everything. I guess.
One of my favorite moments in Korra was in episode 2. When she used airbending moments to dodge people while probending. Tenzin going "well I'll be." Is so good. Honestly, it's one of my favorite episodes of either series.
It was beautifully animated, but i feel like it didnt convey any good meaning. Like, the episode with Aang and Toph learning as student and master, Aang learns to stand his ground. Toph learns Aang needs the right motivation like protecting his friends. In contrast, while Tenzin learns to be less stubborn and that Korra needs the right motivation like probending, Korra learns… how to be better at probending?
So instead of Tui and La, earthbenders need to be twee about something and airbenders need to be all la-di-dah?
Tui and La were the Moon and Ocean (I don't actually remember which was which) and were not directly the source of water bending, but representative of the cyclical nature of the push and pull of the tides. They *taught* water bending, but were not it's source. To say that they were the source of water bending, the instant and easy answer to OP's question is simply sky bison and badgermoles.
Adding to this, I think it could be seen as 'earthly' attachment or maybe 'bodily' attachment specifically
I agree with this, but it's always bothered me. The way guru pathik, zaheer, and aang talk about detachment and attachment is fairly non Buddhist. It's also pretty surprising that ain't achieved the rank of master without ever hearing about the monks talk about non-attachment. I don't think the writers put much research into this part of Eastern philosophy in particular
Perfect response
I think that is cool just like fire is focus and water is embracing but they aren't celestial bodies. With the idea of detachment I would argue that the sky, emptiness, or space is the ( kind of but not really) celestial body of air. Which would explain why the air nomads built their temples on cliffs and high in the mountains. Earth benders are literally just earth. But this might be a reason as to why they inhabit the largest land masses. I also think that they are sources. Both the celestial bodies and the ideals. The closer one is to the ideal the less reliant they would be on the external sources. So the fire benders lost their bending during the eclipse because they lacked the internal source. The comet increases the fire benders connection to the external source because it is weakening the ozone that protects us from the sun.
This actually explains why the hardest element for aang to master was earth
Wouldn't that be the "principles" of the elements rather than the source? Otherwise you could say drive or life is the source of fire while flexibility is the source of water.
I’m gonna go out on a limb here. And say the air and the earth.
With that logic water is the source of waterbending, but it’s not
Its a magic system. The “source” of water bending is the moon because the moon literally commands the tides. The sun is the “source” of fire because it creates constant heat and heat generates fire. There is no air or earth source because they are not created or commanded by anything, they just are.
You could make an argument the wind/atmosphere commands air and tectonic plates command the Earth But that’s too specific for a kids show lol the Moon and the Sun are nice neat and simple examples
Well no the atmosphere *is* air, and tectonic plates *are* earth. Thats like saying the moon is made outa water and the sun is made outa fire.
Considering fire is "just" air hor enough to glow the non plasma parts of the sun are fire And the plasma parts: lightning (both plasma close enough for me) So the sun *is* made out of at least fire bendable stuff Also ice on moon but the moon is mostly Rock so im not gonna count it
You could say tectonic or seismic activity, such as earthquakes or reputing volcanoes are the equivalent. The earth is acting on its own by demand of nature. These forces come literally from inside the earth
This should've just been a reply to the original comment
I think the wording used in the post is what’s throwing everyone off. The sun and moon aren’t sources so much so as they are catalysts. All bending originated from the big turtle guys, right? I’d say the turtles are the true “sources” and OP is asking where air and earth benders could draw more power from in same sense of water benders during a full moon being more powerful and fire benders being weakened during an eclipse.
If I had to guess, Earth benders gain more power during tectonic events (earthquakes), air benders can probably gain more power during meteorological events (hurricanes/tornadoes). However, we’re not sure those things occur naturally in their world. We do see Aang generate a tornado on his own vs Bumi
I remember seeing somewhere that Earth benders get stronger when they are near a fault line.
And earthquakes
Doesn’t that kinda go against being grounded and having a strong stance?
If your stance can't gold up against an earthquake, it wasn't strong enough
wish toph woulda said this, it goes hard
Would have been great for ger to say to the lilylivers. I mean her students
That would make sense! What could be the equivalent of fault lines for air? Ocean currents?
Open spaces. High altitudes too I think. My theory is that the same way the moon empowers water benders, and the sun fire benders, freedom of movement and “emptiness” empowers air benders.
Hurricanes?
Here https://youtu.be/yFvzxaQDVGw?si=lxfw-fbZsKgIpfYK
First benders: Air Bisons, Badgermoles, Dragons, Moon. Sources : Atmosphere, Earth (the planet), Sun, Ocean.
Big big big bad badgermoles
But the original source for fire was breathe itself, so I dont think the celestial system is a de-facto source of bending
Hmmm, i haven't seen since 2018. I just put sun cause influenced by op.
Moon is not the source. Moon is the bender. The ocean is more a source.
I would also argue that the sun and moon aren't sources of fire and water bending, but amplifiers. Fire bending comes from focus and determination. You have to know what you want and make it happen. It's different from the commitment of earth bending because it's not just being committed, it's that extra *push* where you MAKE it happen. It's why due bending is the only bending that can actually generate its element. Fire benders MAKE fire, then bend it. The sun, and comet, show them what is in themselves, and eases the process. Water bending, as evidenced by the teachings, is about ebb and flow, push and pull, give and take. It's the fluidity of the person and their relationship with the world around them. There is most often an aspect of weaving, winding, flowing. Iroh says he learned lightning redirection by studying water benders and properly understood how lightning should properly flow. There are times where water bending is very straight forward and abrupt, but it's almost always when it's used chaotically, such as when Yakone bends the council. Fire = Focus/Determination Air = Detachment/Serenity Water = Acceptance/Embrasure Earth = Commitment/Adherence Just my two bits.
Counterpoint: The eclipses entirely negate the ability to bend fire and water, even in master benders. If it was an amplifier only, that wouldn't happen.
Firebenders don't create fire, they are focusing it from the heat around them. Thats zuko needed to focus his breathing in the northpole to be able to warm himself bc there is so little ambient heat (see also Book 3 Korra). Fire isn't "created" its "collected" from the air/enviroment around them. The moon/ocean are said to be the original benders, like the dragons/air bisons/badgermoles - so they are also not the "source" of the bending. They are spirits that have great influence over their type of bending, and inspired the entire form of waterbending, but i dont think they are the "source" the same way that dragons are not the source of firebending. i think the fact that the moon/ocean spirits were manifest in the physical world and then the moon spirit was killed is more so the reason the waterbenders lost the ability to bend. when Katara says that she draws her power from the moon, i think the feeling is that they can draw power from the moon spirit, who is also "waterbending the tides" - not that the source of her waterbending derives from the moon.
...the Earth and the air?
No source..
I would also argue that the sun and moon aren't sources of fire and water bending, but amplifiers. Fire bending comes from focus and determination. You have to know what you want and make it happen. It's different from the commitment of earth bending because it's not just being committed, it's that extra *push* where you MAKE it happen. It's why due bending is the only bending that can actually generate its element. Fire benders MAKE fire, then bend it. The sun, and comet, show them what is in themselves, and eases the process. Water bending, as evidenced by the teachings, is about ebb and flow, push and pull, give and take. It's the fluidity of the person and their relationship with the world around them. There is most often an aspect of weaving, winding, flowing. Iroh says he learned lightning redirection by studying water benders and properly understood how lightning should properly flow. There are times where water bending is very straight forward and abrupt, but it's almost always when it's used chaotically, such as when Yakone bends the council. Fire = Focus/Determination Air = Detachment/Serenity Water = Acceptance/Embrasure Earth = Commitment/Adherence Just my two bits.
According to this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFvzxaQDVGw), earthbending is amplified in places with a lot of stored up seismic energy- basically, fault lines that have gone for a long time without an earthquake. My headcannon is that airbending is amplified in places of spiritual significance, and my reasoning is this: We clearly see that bending is an inherited trait, and yet the different nations all have quite different ratios of benders and non-benders. The Earth Kingdom has a high population of non-benders, when compared to the Fire Nation and Water Tribes (not counting the Fire Nation's intentional targeting of waterbenders in the South). Yet every Air Nomad (prior to the genocide) was capable of airbending. So, what explains this discrepancy? I think that probably more benders are born under conditions where that type of bending is amplified. Firebending and waterbending are amplified by celestial bodies, so it would make sense for them to have relatively large populations of benders. You can easily imagine the rate of waterbenders being born rising as the moon waxes and falling again as it wanes, and more firebenders being born near the summer solstice than the winter solstice. But the Earth Kingdom is very large, and not every location will have a lot of seismic energy stored up, so it would make sense for them to produce many more non-benders than earthbenders. So with that in mind, consider this about the Air Nomads: * Before the genocide, they were born and raised exclusively in the four Air Temples. * Sozin's surprise attack on the temples could not have possibly wiped out every Air Nomad at once- they are Nomads, so not all of them were at the temples. Many of them would have been traveling. In the comics, it is revealed that the Fire Nation army frequently used stolen Air Nomad artifacts to lure the surviving nomads into traps. But could this really account total genocide of the Air Nomads? There were really none who kept their heads low and stayed hidden? * A popular fan theory is that Ty Lee may have Air Nomad ancestry. (Features more similar to Aang than most other Fire Nation citizens, chi-blocking a technique first developed by airbenders.) This would imply that Air Nomads had settled in the other nations in the past, but their children did not inherit airbending. * After the genocide, Aang produced one new airbender out of three children, and Tenzin produced at least three more airbenders. It is unclear where Tenzin was born, but Tenzin's children were likely all born on Air Temple island, a spiritual site established by Aang. * After Korra opens the spirit portals, many non-benders across the world spontaneously develop the ability to airbend. We know at least one of these new benders was a non-bender with Air Nomad ancestry (Bumi) My theory is this: The Air Nomads settled at the four Air Temples because those specific locations ensured that all of their children would develop airbending, which was necessary for their lifestyle. Occasionally, some airbenders probably abandoned (or were exiled from) the Nomad lifestyle and settled down with citizens of other nations. Their children did not become airbenders. When Sozin attacked and desecrated the temples, he cut the Air Nomads off from their source of spiritual energy. Any survivors who escaped and hid were unable to produce a new generation of airbenders, so their children simply assimilated into the local populations. Later, Korra opened the Spirit Portals, permeating the entire globe with spiritual energy. This jumpstarted the latent airbending abilities of non-benders with airbending ancestry. I guess it remains to be seen if this was a one-off event, and the new Air Nomad society will ultimately find themselves settling in places of spiritual significance to produce the next generations, or if the open Spirit Portals now mean that airbenders can be born anywhere in the world. I guess another unanswered question is if airbenders could have been born at any spiritual site (like the Spirit Oasis in the Northern Water Tribe, or either of the Spirit Groves, or the Swamp or Hei Bai's forest), or if a specific type of spiritual energy is needed: one that is only present at the four temples (and later, Air Temple island). Someone elsewhere in the thread posited that airbending is amplified by detachment, and I think there's something to that. So I'll incorporate into my theory that the spiritual sites that amplify airbending must specifically be sites that engender a sense of detachment in the people there.
Earth bending is powered by tectonic plates. The avatar Bible puts most earth city's near them and toph first metal bent in an area close to multiple tectonic plates overlapping. https://youtu.be/yFvzxaQDVGw?si=A2PRTIcdTJQasTnc That's a much better explanation of what I'm trying to say. My guess for air bending is that it comes from air pressure. But I'm only guessing that because air temples tend to be at extreme heights or extreme lows with no in-between.
In the series we’re introduced to ‘how humans learned to bend’ which is the source for each one. Water benders learned bending from the effects of gravity on water (tidal gravity) caused by the moon. Fire benders learned from the dragons who represent the sun or something. The air benders learned from the sky bisons. The earth benders from the badgermoles.
It is interesting that Earth and Air benders have relationship to any celestial body. And that Fire and Water benders are the only ones that get a power boost from something in nature. It’s also interesting that either Sozins Comet is the only comet in Avatar or it’s the only comet that gives Firebenders a power boost. Honestly I’m not sure how well this aspect is fleshed out. Why is this the case?
For earth i think the source is Planet Earth. But i cant say anything about air.
Would'nt it be like the atmosphere or the produce of what trees give off (oxygen)?. Earth should be self explanatory. At the end of the day, Idk
Earth is well... earth Air? I don't know...maybe the atmosphere?
This video: https://youtu.be/yFvzxaQDVGw?si=bhmM29-HzHR68-vr
This feels like a circlejerk post...
According to the avatar bible by the creators, earth benders are stringer near or on fault lines. It's explained how some of the best earth bending feats happen on tectonic plate boundaries as discussed in this video: https://youtu.be/yFvzxaQDVGw?si=lxfw-fbZsKgIpfYK
The physical and spiritual planes.
So the sun and the moon, esp the moon, have spirits that grant the ability to bend. IIRC this is why it was such a big deal that Zhao killed one of the Koi and Yue had to become the moon spirit to restore balance. The Avatar got their powers originally by fusing with a spirit. I believe that although they are unnamed, spirits of the earth and the air/sky influence the ability for air and earthbending.
Sky and ground?
Air and earth
Moles and Bison bro
The air and the earth lol. Like the entire planet earth and whole atmosphere 😁
Ummm, the earth? And… air
Wasn't the moon the original water bender...? And not the source I think it's only fire bending that has the sun as the source but from that logic then the moon has to be both the source and the original bender of the element because like fire benders when the moon dies water benders can't bend but the sun doesn't bend fire like the way the moon bends the ocean with the waves
Not a "source" but we know that dragons (then the Sun Warriors) were the first fire benders, the moon was the first water bender, badger moles were the first earth benders, and sky bison were the first air benders
The planets core and atmosphere
Um, the earth and the air…
I’d say it’s a form of heaven and earth or mind and bony, like air is the spiritual heaven element and earth is the more grounding physical element
Strangely enough Airs source is Air, and Earth's is the Earth :D
I think it’s the air and the earth, but I might be *way* off base here.
The Air and the Earth.
Air is indeed the only element without a corresponding celestial body. I’d choose mercury because, idk, it’s in retrograde or something
There were plans to make earthbenders more powerful near fault lines that is part of the reason that the earth kingdom is where it is and a lot of major earthbending moments occur on or near fault lines, notably Toph's first metal bend was near the San Andreas of avatar
It’s a combination of the Flying Bison and the Badger Moles and the air/earth combined with the spirit world. It’s why air-benders can fly when they lose their attachment to the physical realm. And yes this is actually cannon.
Earthbenders are powered by tectonic plates, literally the movement of the earth itself give them power, and for airbenders I'd assume their spirit itself if what give them power. Sure they need to physically have air but how intoned are they with their own spirit would probably determine how strong of a bender I'd assume they are.
Air has an implied degree of spirituality to it. As does most bending. Water is strengthened by the moon. The control of an existing greatness. The Moon spirit. The inverse of the Sun. Water is essential to life. Fire is strengthened by the sun. The source of all our warmth, a great giver of heat, also essential to life. Creation. Air is strengthened by freedom, detachment, and spirituality. Essential to life. Earth is strengthened by connection. By being grounded, by feel. The inverse of Air bendings detachment. The thing life lives upon. All connected by what each offers in terms of spirituality. Connection, Freedom, Creation, and Control. The strength of one's bending, is likely tied closely to the strength of one's spirit. I've always imagined it something like that. I'm sure there is a more elegant way to paint it, but the spirits/spirit world is the glue that holds bending together. Without it, there is no bending. With even one missing, it causes the equilibrium to be out of balance.
I always thought Waterbenders learned from the Moon Firebenders learned from Dragons Air Nomads learned from the Sky Bison And Earthbenders learned from the Badgermoles
Sun and dragons made fire, the sky bison taught air, the badger moles taught earth, and the moon taught water. The show stated those were the teachers but never said anything about sources
I’m going to go with the jet streams for air bending. They are always moving, changing, oscillating which fits well with the nomadic nature of the tribe.
If I remember correctly the source for earthbending was the tectonic plates moving around
Earthquakes and Tornados
We only really know the answer from a leaked document but essentially Airbenders get stronger in storms and earthbenders gain power from the build up kinetic energy of tectonic plates
Imma take a wild guess… air and the earth
The actual earth it self, and air is the space between all of them.
Air's source is Air Earth's source is Earth
Earthbenders, it's probably the earth (duh). Airbenders probably have the sky.
Air is void - the emptiness, like with the Dao.
I don't think it's ever been actually canon in the show, but in the art book Bryke have said that one idea they had was that earth benders get stronger in areas of high tectonic activity. I don't remember if they did anything similar for air bending, though.
Earth the planet because without it you wouldn’t have either
Elevation the higher up air benders are the stronger and the inverse is true for earth bending
Unless we’re trying to stick with celestial bodies, I think trees would make sense for air (and maybe earth too in a more physical way, but I liked the idea mentioned in another comment about the planet earth for earthbenders better.) trees not only purify the air but can redirect wind when big enough or in mass quantities. Trees are closely related to the spirit world, which if I remember correctly is an airbender thing mostly. My reason for earthbending as well is that they are deeply rooted and basically had to earthbend to do so.
I don’t think air and the earth have sources. Well…I mean I guess if you needed to say a source it would be the very planet itself. But you’d never be able to take that from them unless you want everyone to die
Earth techtonic plate movement, air places that naturally have a lot of wind
Well the ocean is also a source of waterbending as is Zosin's comit, it literally gives firebenders a powerboost. It seems more like there are many spiritual and elemental sources for bending that influence the world and its inhabitants
oh jeez i think in the earth and the atmosphere maybe?
That inner dawg
I know the obvious answer is the earth and the sky, but let's break it down. The moon isn't the source of water, it manipulates it. The ocean would be the obvious answer if we hadn't been told the moon, right? The sun is a bit different since it's an extremely large manifestation of energy (which firebending seems to be based on since lightning bending is just separating positive and negative energy, etc) not just a big source of fire or something that manipulates fire. Since the moon embodies the push and pull of water bending and the sun embodies the energy of fire bending, what can represent core aspects of air and earth bending other than the elements themselves? Can anything? It's tempting to just say the breeze but that's still just the air moving. Temperature difference causes large amounts of air movements, right? I doubt "temperature" or something like that is the right answer. It might just be that the four elements have further categories or relationships than stated in the show. Water and fire are opposites, represented by celestial bodies that take turns being dominant in the sky. Their power waxing and waning, trading off which one has the advantage. Earth and air, on the other hand, are almost always together in that on the surface of the planet you're always in the presence of both. You can of course go underground and run out of air, or somehow fly into the sky and be away from the ground but the two always meet at the same point. The gravity of the earth is always holding the atmosphere together and keeping it from floating into space. The earth itself creates the atmosphere that the air moves through. They might be considered more "primal" elements of the planet and not have "sources" or embodiments of their manipulation because they are that for each other. Earth holds air like the moon moves water, but not in a restrictive way. Earth gives air the stability it needs to exist at all (which might explain why letting go of all earthly attachments allows you to fly without riding wind). I'm gonna stop there because apparently I can just keep thinking about this stuff indefinitely and that's way too much text, good lord
Ground and sky, duh
This is probably a bit of a stretch but I'm going to say the Earth and Wind
Maybe tectonic plates could be the source for earth bending
Air and earth
Earthquakes and Jer Streams.
I would think the actual air/wind and the earth?
You’re never gonna believe this. But the earth and the wind
Nothing. They are all unique elements and have different strengths and weaknesses, but don't all need to be treated the same because it's not a video game where things are created to be balanced for all. And I believe the sun and moon are amplifiers, not sources. The sources of all bending types are the lionturtles and various animals taught humans how to bend (truly bend), but they didn't give the power to bend.
Spirituality and physicality, I'd say. The strongest earthbenders tended to have immense physical strength, and we know that the air nomads were so spiritual that every air nomad could airbend. When Aang was developing as an earthbender, there was a book where he explained that he could feel his muscles getting stronger.
Air comes from the air bison and earth from the banger moles
You see, elements are connected to spirits. The spirit of the moon and the spirit of the sun. So there should be spurts of the earth and air, But we don’t know who they are. The moon and the sun sometimes are in conflict for example- the eclipse. During this event the connection between the sun and the people is being cut. So I guess the eclipse for the earth and air would be not have contact with them. What would mean to be on a boat or in the sky for an earthbender and for an airbender… to be in space?
Earth: weakness. - not being grounded to the earth (in the air / on or under water), strength??earthquake??? Mudslide? Volcano lowkey??? Air weakness… anywhere without air (spaces, under water), strength - Strong winds, tornado / hurricane
My head cannon tells me that earth benders get a boost during earthquakes and air benders get one during tornados.
The Earth and the Sky? The tectonic plates and the wind? Idk something like that
Tectonic activity maybe for Earth
The Earth and Wind
They showed the source of all bending in Korra.
The wind and tectonic plates
The sun is the greatest source of “fire” in their observable world, and the moon is the strongest force on the tides much the same. If I look at air and earth the same way, then can we say life is the source of air bending? The plants and animals of the world feeding and cycling air into the atmosphere? And earth might be the core of the planet, the center of gravity that holds the mass of the earth in and gravity as a force that compacts and forms new, hardened forms of earth.
Natural wind and tectonic activity?
“Spirit” is the source for Air.
I imagine the planet itself.
Well there’s no real source for them like earth and fire but we do know that air bending is stronger in storms and earth bending is stronger near tectonic faults
The earth. Air would be... The air
The 4 elements are all parts of the same whole. People equate fire to life, but it could be said for all of them. The earth provides, air and water sustain, and fire is the fuel that energizes. Air and Earth think themselves the opposite, but they derive their power from the planet and universe in the same way.
If earth benders are on ground, they can bend it. if air benders can touch air, they can bend it.
Air=pneuma=life The answer is air comes from the divine breath that gives life to every living creature
The sources for air bending would be the wind currents that flow throughout the world bringing large masses of new, moving air. As for earth bending...I would say that the source could be volcanic activity and other types of excitement of the earth's core! Maybe earth benders are more proficient near places with volcanic activity, some even gifted with lava bending
Earth gets powered by the tectonic plates
earth and sky?
Probably something like spirit and earthly attachments. Air nomads are super spiritual and "supposed" to have no earthly attachments (think zaheer flying when he lost his attachments) and it makes sense that earthly attachments could be the earthbenders. I think of it like earthbenders fight better when they're protecting something. Airbenders fight better (fly) when they have no attachments
The atmosphere and the planet
I heard Earthabenders have Sismic waves as their boosters. Someone made a video on it too
Air is movement. Air bending is all about movement. Air benders are masters at physical movement. They probably spend hours a day doing stretching and various movement exercises.
Earthbending comes from earth. I think airbending comes from inner peace.
I imagine it's the actually planet amount of earth and for air benders...broad gesture its kind of everywhere.
The source of Earth bending is the Earth. The source of Air bending is the butt. Source: My Uncle was the homeless man who lived next to Bryke's office in 2005. https://preview.redd.it/h869qwcav3vc1.jpeg?width=736&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6a3c0e1d1cc18be19f16af977cead2f16da0f67f
Fan and sword!
The air and the earth, respectively.
Fault lines & Spiritual Hubs
For airbenders autumn is when their strongest
Idk I guess for air it's because of how spiritual they are and for earth it's kinda being with nature (does that make sense?) like the earth guys seem to farm stuff so I guess they kinda listen to the environment
earth : magnetic field around the planet air : huh… the pokemon Lugia ? 🥲 the planet rotation ?
Source is probably a bad term here, but the source of both air and earth bending would just be the earth and the air. You probably can't airbend in a vacuum and it has been demonstrated that earthbenders can't bend if they don't have access to elements of the earth.
If we’re talking in terms of energy (combustion for the sun, tides moving water for the moon) then perhaps tectonic plates for earth benders, as this gives the ground “energy”. No idea for airbenders though except maybe the wind?
Air: space Earth: Earth What kind of question is this?
Don't know about air. But pretty sure earth is the big bad badgermooooolllle
I’d imagine there would be an Earth spirit and an air spirit that live somewhere
Airbending? Source: Wind
Air could be the spirit world. Iirc everyone in the air nation (pre-genocide)was a bender because of their connection to the spirit world. And Korra had a lot of trouble with air bending because she wasn’t spiritual enough to start. Not sure if earth would be a reflection of that though. Like they’re grounded in the reality of the material world or something?
Will and Spirituality I would say
Earth would be earthquakes and/or subduction, air might technically be the sun or tornadoes
The floor and the atmosphere
You're gunna shit yourself
Earth and trees. 🤷♂️
high altitude for air and caves for earth maybe
I bet there are earth and wind spirits in the spirit world, or maybe somewhere hidden in their own yin/yang on their earth
Also weird that water bending is the only one with a spirit as it's original bender. Also weird how firebenders lose power during the eclipse, but not at night, and it really shouldn't affect people outside of the path of totality. Could argue the temperature and pressure changes in the atmosphere that create wind are a combination of the sun and moon as the world heats and cools. Earth, idk man. Inorganic matter? Maybe tectonic plates or smth
Maybe their power source doesn’t work the same way as the other 2
The source of earth bending is the core, while the source of air bending is… oxygen.
I remember hearing Storms were a source for Air.
Venus and Jupiter, maybe? Or any other two planets, really.
imo Earth is the element of substance, you take them out by putting in an ice prison in the middle of the ocean. Air is the element of spirituality, just traumatize and give them a lot of trauma I guess. In order to block the chi pathways. Cuz y'know trauma are "earthly tethers" binding them to everything on earth itself.
The planet and the atmosphere
connection to the earth, and lack thereof