Water is a more or less passive element by nature. It flows freely and takes the shape of whatever it is contained in. I call it passive as it is a yielding element which goes and flows however the external forces and nature dictate it to. For example; still water will move and ripple at the slightest touch, a river flowing straight will move around a rock and take an alternate direction instead of just going through the rock. Wind can cause water to move in different directions. This is one of the reasons why water, a yielding element, is opposite to earth, an unyielding element. That rock in the bank of the river will not move for the water, it will stay firm. If the rock were to walk through the river straight, the water would go around the rock, not the other way around. This is a rudimentary understanding, however water itself can be very powerful and forceful. A large enough mass of water may disroot the rock if strong enough. Water may be condensed to a fine area and move at great speeds to cause a powerful impact. That is where variables come in, which is what any element manipulates, the variables of the properties that can enhance an element's potential. If you want to look at things in terms of balance, Taoism and philosophies behind water and it's general movement. Water is the Yin half, not forceful, yielding and water redirects energy instead of meeting it head on. The Chinese Internal styles of martial arts talk about redirecting your opponents force back onto them which is essentially a property of water (the redirection that is). Force is not met with force rather the force is allowed to continue until redirected suddenly, often times against even harder forces that are much stronger. An example would be if somebody were to punch you. They are traveling in one direction at a certain speed. You simply move out of the way while guiding the fist further in that direction, increasing the speed. Should there be a wall behind them, they make impact with that wall and most often hurt their hand. Water can be anything from a calm and small lake to a gigantic tsunami, which causes widespread destruction. Water can be spewn from the body as a stream, fired as projectiles, or be released from the body's pores itself, as well as, you can materialize water out of thin air. Certain techniques require a source of water to insert your chakra and manipulate it to your will. Water is nearly endless and a provider of life and ultimately, divine.
