四大五常
sì dà wǔ cháng
"four greats and five constants"
Chinese cosmology typically holds that there are five elements: 水，土，金，木，火 water, earth, metal, wood, and fire. Calling them "elements" is misleading, though, as they're thought of more as processes or phases, not building blocks of the physical universe. The 四大 Four Greats referred to in this line of the Thousand Character Classic are the four elements we typically think of when we hear the term: water, earth, fire, and air. The presence of this concept in China is most likely due the influence of Buddhism.
The 五常 Five Constants can refer to the primary five Confucian virtues: 仁，義，禮，智，信 benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and sincerity, but also the Five Phases (五行) mentioned above. This double reading is undoubtedly intentional, but the line as a whole makes me wonder why there's a reference to an imported cosmological notion in the first place.
Looking back to the previous line, we can read it in conjunction with this one: "Presumably, this body and hair [exists] among the Four Great Elements and Five Constant Virtues [or Five Phases]." Paar pulls that "exists" seemingly out of thin air, but it makes the lines work together. If you were to look at the lines as part of a poem, you could probably drop the connecting phrase in English, but it's hard to argue that it doesn't make it easier to read.
微臣
史大偉
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