Elements of Harmony

The Elements of Harmony are magical artifacts that are used by Twilight Sparkle and her friends to defeat Night Mare Moon at the end of the first storyline of My Little Pony Friendship is Magic, and defeat Discord in The Return of Harmony Part 2. They are first mentioned in the prologue of the series' first episode.

Friendship is Magic, part 1 and part 2
The Elements are first mentioned in the first episode's prologue, where the narration tells of two unicorns who ruled the land of Equestria. The unicorns, later named Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, were responsible for raising the sun and the moon, respectively, but the younger, Luna, grew resentful of their subjects who slept throught the night and "shunned" it. She refused to lower the moon, and her bitterness transformed her into Night Mare Moon, who vowed to keep Equestria in eternal night. Her older sister used the magic of the Elements of Harmony to banish her in the moon.

The pony reading this legend, Twilight Sparkle, sets to learn more about Night Mare Moon and the Elements of Harmony, and discovers that Night Mare Moon is set to return "on the longest day of the thousandth year", which is the next day. She sends a letter to Princess Celestia warning her of Night Mare Moon's return, but the Princess dismisses it as "an old pony's tale" and sends her to Ponyville to see to the preparations of the Summer Sun Celebration and "make some friends".

After overseeing the preparations and inadvertently making friends, the moment of Night Mare Moon's return arrives, and Princess Celestia goes missing. Twilight sets out to find the Elements of Harmony to defeat Night Mare Moon, and her new friends accompany her. She discovers that they are located in the ruins of the "ancient castle of the royal pony sisters" which is located in the Everfree Forest. They each demonstrate a noble quality throughout their journey, which is later linked to an Element of Harmony. They come upon five of the Elements of Harmony (briefly shown to be six) which are shown as stone orbs. They are later transformed through Twilight's magic into gem-studded jewelery.

Applejack – honesty
Applejack possesses the element of honesty. As Applejack tries to save Twilight Sparkle from hanging over the edge from a long drop, she tells her to let go, much to Twilight's surprise. Applejack says that if Twilight will trust her and let go, she will be safe. Twilight does so, and mid-fall, she is caught by Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. Her element manifests as a necklace with a reddish-orange apple-shaped gem.

Fluttershy – kindness
Fluttershy possesses the element of kindness. When the group encounters an angry manticore, they decide to fight it in order to get past it, but Fluttershy intervenes and approaches it calmly. She discovers that a thorn stuck in its paw is causing the manticore discomfort and therefore angering it. She removes it and calms the beast, letting the ponies pass. Her element manifests as a gold necklace with a pink butterfly-shaped gem.

Pinkie Pie – laughter
Pinkie Pie possesses the element of laughter. After wandering into a darkened area of the forest, the group is frightened by trees carved with scary faces. However, Pinkie just laughs and makes funny faces, causing the faces on the trees to vanish. She explains that they can conquer their fears simply by laughing at them. Her element manifests as a gold necklace with a blue balloon-shaped gem.

Rarity – generosity
Rarity possesses the element of generosity. After encountering a flamboyant sea serpent who is upset about his mustache being ruined, Rarity, who is angered by this "crime against fabulousity," sympathizes with him and cuts off part of her own tail so that his mustache can be restored. Her element manifests as a gold necklace with a purple diamond-shaped gem.

Rainbow Dash – loyalty
Rainbow Dash possesses the element of loyalty. After the ponies reach the old castle, Rainbow Dash repairs the rope bridge for them to get across. She is confronted by a group of dark ponies who call themselves The Shadowbolts. They ask Rainbow Dash to join them as their captain, which would fulfill her dream of becoming part of an elite flying club, but at the cost of abandoning her friends. Rainbow Dash declines their offer and ties the bridge, letting the others cross. Her element manifests as a gold necklace with a red thunderbolt-shaped gem.

Twilight Sparkle – magic
Twilight Sparkle possesses the element of magic, descrbed as the most elusive element of them all by Discord. Twilight activates the Elements of Harmony through a "spark" within her that ignites upon hearing her friends arrive to her aid. Her element manifests as a gold tiara with a magenta star-shaped gem.

The Return of Harmony Part 1 and Part 2
Princess Celestia tells Twilight and her friends in The Return of Harmony Part 1 that the Elements were wielded by herself and Princess Luna and were used to defeat Discord by turning him in to stone. She continues, saying that she and her sister are no longer connected to the Elements. She stores the Elements in what she believes to be a chamber only she can open with her magic spell, but upon opening it she discovers the Elements are missing, and that Discord has hidden them somewhere. Discord divulges the whereabouts of the Elements in a riddle, and Twilight and her friends venture on a quest to retrieve them. Discord makes them behave in a manner contrary to the Element they represent, and once they find the Elements they are not able to use their magic.

After the failed attempt, Twilight is about to give up, but then discovers that Celestia has been sending back all her friendship reports. She reads the friendship reports and reverts to her former self, then sets out to use a memory spell on each of her friends, which restores them to their former selves too. They confront Discord again, this time successfully turning him to stone with the magic of the Elements and restoring Ponyville and Equestria to their former state.

Toys
Twilight Sparkle is sold with her element of magic tiara in the Royal Castle Friends toy set.

Gallery

 * Elements of Harmony image gallery

Trivia
Harmonins element
 * In the legend of Night Mare Moon, the gems' colors are, clockwise from the top: red, orange, green, blue, pink, with the center gem being purple. When Twilight and her friends use the elements, there is no green gem, and instead there is a magenta-colored gem that is bestowed upon Twilight.