The Effect of Occult Development Upon the Self and the Sheaths of Man
GA 145
29 March 1913, The Hague
Lecture X
We have seen that as the result of serious theosophical training, or esoteric occult development, changes come about in the four principal parts of the human being; and you may have observed that in the descriptions we have given the principal stress has been laid upon the inward change in these four parts of human nature, or the changes which are, to a certain extent, experienced inwardly. But we have to distinguish clearly between this change to be experienced inwardly, and the description of the outer changes manifest to the vision of the seer, which is, of course, quite different. In true esoteric development it is very important to know what takes place within man, and what is in front of him, when he goes through occult development. Interesting, also, although perhaps not so important, is the change outwardly visible to the seer. To sum up in a few words, we might say: that which is perceived inwardly as a sort of ‘becoming more mobile’ and ‘becoming more independent’ of the various parts of the physical body, manifests itself to the clairvoyant vision, which does not experience the changes in the physical body from within, but looks upon them from without, in such a manner that the physical body of a person undergoing occult development is seen to split up, to divide, in a certain sense; and because of this splitting-up, clairvoyant-vision feels it to be separating. To clairvoyant vision the physical body of a person who is steadily advancing in occult development is actually seen to grow. And we may say that if at one time we meet a person who is undergoing a true occult development, that which the clairvoyant vision sees at a definite time as the physical body has a definite size; if we meet him again a few years later his physical body has grown; it has become decidedly larger. Thus there is such a thing as the growth of the physical body beyond the normal physical size, but with this is connected the fact that it becomes more shadowy. Thus we notice that as the person develops, his physical body is seen to become larger and larger. It consists, however, of various parts, as it were, and these manifest themselves in what in occult life is called ‘Imagination.’ The physical body of a person undergoing occult development manifests more and more as a number of imaginations, of pictures which are in a sense inwardly alive and active, and are, or rather become, more and more interesting; for they are not just anything we please. When the person is beginning his development the pictures are not specially significant; and they are least so when the clairvoyant vision observes the body of a person who has not yet developed in occultism. In this latter case a number of pictures, a number of imaginations are perceived. To clairvoyant vision the physical substance disappears, and in its place appear imaginations: but these are so pressed together that instead of the pleasing inwardly shining aspect of a person engaged in occult development, they manifest as in an opaque substance. Even, however, in the case of a person who is not yet developed they are to be seen, and indeed as parts and each part signifies something in the macrocosm. Essentially one can distinguish twelve parts, each of which is really a picture—a painting of one part of the great cosmos. When all twelve are assembled together, the impression is given that some unknown painter has produced miniature pictures of the macrocosm, twelve in number, and from these has formed the physical human body. Now, when the individual is engaged in occult development, this picture grows larger and larger, and also appears inwardly more and more pleasing, radiant from within. This is because, in the case of an individual not engaged in occult development, the macrocosm is only reflected in its physical aspect; but in the case of one undergoing an occult development the spiritual content more and more manifests itself; the pictures of the spiritual essence of the macrocosm are to be seen. Thus occult development also shows us that a person engaged in an occult development, from being merely a physical microcosm, becomes more and more a spiritual one, that is, he manifests within himself more and more, not merely the pictures of planets and suns, but of entities belonging to the Higher Hierarchies. That is the difference between persons engaged and others not engaged in occult development. The more a person presses forward in occult development the more exalted are the Hierarchies manifesting within him. And thus we learn the structure of the world, as it were, by clairvoyantly observing the physical human body.
The human etheric body of one who is not undergoing occult development manifests the progressive course of the world, that which follows consecutively in time; it shows how planets and suns, even the human civilisations on earth, and the individual human beings alter in the course of their incarnations, and how they appear in consecutive stages of growth. Thus the etheric body may truly be called a narrator; it recounts the story of the growth of the world. While the physical body of man is like a sum-total of pictures painted by an unknown artist, the etheric body proves to be a kind of story-teller who narrates in its own inner happenings the story of the world itself. And the more deeply a person is engaged in occult development, the wider the range of the stories. The etheric body of a person who has undergone comparatively little occult development manifests to the clairvoyant vision perhaps only a few generations which have preceded him in physical ancestry—for this development is still also shown in the etheric body of man. But the further a person carries his occult development, the more possible it becomes to see in his etheric body the various civilisations of humanity, the various incarnations of this or that individuality; yea, even to ascend to cosmic development and see the share of the Spirits of the Higher Hierarchies in it.
The astral body of man—which to ordinary observation can only be seen, as it were, through its inner reflection, through experiences of thought, will and feeling—becomes more and more an expression of the value of man, with respect to his essential entity in the cosmos. I want you to consider this description, this presentation, as being of very special significance. The astral body of a human being undergoing an occult development becomes more and more the expression of his value in the cosmos. In a previous lecture we showed how we discover that the astral body, in its original nature, is a sort of egotist, and that this has to be overcome in occult development, raising the personal interests to those of the world. Observing the astral body of a person engaged in higher development one can see from it, according to whether it appears dark and dull or has an inner illumination, according to its revelation of itself in shrill dissonances or in harmonious melodious tones, whether the person in question has so conducted his development that he is still entangled in his personal interests, of which we have spoken, or whether he has really made the interests of the world his own. This is what can be seen from the astral body of a human personality engaged in higher development: when the development goes on in a true, occult, ethical manner, we see in him how wonderful man becomes through extending the horizon of his interests from those that are personal to those that are universally human, and into the common aims of the world. The astral body becomes more radiant, shines more and more like a radiant sun, as the human being learns to make the affairs of all humanity and the world his own.
The further the human being progresses in his development, the more the Self manifests the tendency to split up, to divide. It sends out, as it were, the contents of its consciousness, and these make ‘messenger paths’ in the world. If, for example, a human being wishes to learn to know a being belonging to the Hierarchy of the Angels, it is not sufficient for him to exercise the ordinary forces of perception; if he really wishes to know this being he must be able to transfer his consciousness; that is, he must be able to separate the forces of his Self and transpose a part of his self-consciousness into the being of the Angel. Whatever sort of being we wish to know, we can only do it by transposing our self-consciousness into this being. It is the impulse of the Self to go out of itself, to transpose itself into the other being and allow that which at first lived only in oneself to enter the life of the other being. At a lower stage in the development of the human being, at the stage of ordinary human existence, this manifests as a certain impulse to remove its consciousness out of itself; this can be seen in the need for sleep. And that which psychically drives man to sleep is exactly the same that in higher development directs the consciousness, not into the unconscious world of sleep, but into the consciousness of the Angels or the Spirits of Form or still Higher Hierarchies. Thus one might be paradoxical by inquiring: What does it imply when a man becomes acquainted with one of the Elohim, one of the Spirits of Form? It means that he has developed so far that he is able to sleep over into the consciousness of the Elohim and to awaken within the Elohim, possessing the consciousness of this Spirit of Form, of this spirit belonging to the Higher Hierarchies. This is recognition of a higher being: consciousness must be resigned as in sleep, but so resigned that by reason of the higher forces awakened within, it reawakens and radiates towards us as the consciousness of the higher being. Thus, an astral body under true occult development becomes like a sun which radiates its world-interests; but when the Self is more highly developed it becomes like the planets which circle round the sun of the astral body, and which, in their circling through the world, meet other beings, and by means of this bring messages from them to the perceptive nature of man. Thus the astral body and the Self of a human being undergoing occult development present the picture of a sun—which is the astral body—surrounded by its planets—that are a number of multiplications of the Self, sent out into other beings in order that the student through that which his multiplied Self rays back to him from these other beings may know their nature.
The feeling we have when becoming acquainted with the inner nature of the members of the Higher Hierarchies (we learn to recognise their external being through the physical body and the etheric body; and to recognise them inwardly through the astral body and the Self, we come into communication, as it were, with these beings who belong to the Higher Hierarchies through the astral body and Self)—the feeling we have is as though we had to make our self in our astral body into a sun and to separate from oneself, a Self capable of active participation in the nature of the Hierarchy of the Angels; another Self which has that gift as regards the Hierarchy of the Archangels; and yet another Self which has the gift with regard to the Hierarchy of the Spirits of Form. A fourth Self participates in the nature of the Hierarchy of the Spirits of Motion, a fifth in that of the Hierarchy of the Spirits of Wisdom and of Will, a sixth Self or Ego in that of the Hierarchy of the Cherubim, and a seventh in that of the Hierarchy of the Seraphim. It is possible for a person, when he develops the four parts of his being and continues this development to a high stage, actually to attain to the experience we have just described. This is possible; and in addition to this development of his Self in the manner I have just indicated, he can attain to a still higher development of his Self.
For through the separation of seven selves from the eighth Self, this eighth self, which remains behind, undergoes a higher development. Consider the matter in this way: We have the original Self of man, which is given to him before he undergoes occult development. He then undergoes this, and thereby sends forth from himself seven Selves. In order that the Self originally given him may be able to send forth seven Selves he has to exercise an inner force, the result of which is that the Self rises a stage higher. But now I want you to reflect that the process which I have described in its most extreme development, as it were, only comes about gradually. A person undergoing occult development does not, of course, at once become a perfect Sun in—the astral body, surrounded by the planets of his Selves, but he first attains to an imperfect Sun existence, and imperfect developments of his planetary Selves; all this takes place gradually. And, at the same time, the development of the ordinary Self into the Higher Self takes place slowly and gradually. When this development has reached a definite stage, when the Self has reached higher and higher attainment, then gradually comes the power to look back at former incarnations. This is the stage which gives one the power to look back to previous incarnations; it is the development of the Self beyond itself, the attainment of forces beyond itself, which give it at the same time power truly to understand higher Hierarchies. We might say that, to clairvoyant vision, a person, through occult development, with respect to his Self and his astral body, becomes star-like—similar to a starry system.
In the above I have briefly described what is presented to another person who is becoming clairvoyant, whereas in the previous lectures I spoke more of the inward experiences. There is still something important which I have to lay before you, which is to amplify an indication already made. When the student develops his astral body and his Self he attains, as you have heard, to observation of a world, previously empty, now filled with the beings of the Higher Hierarchies, Angels, Archangels, Archai, etc.
The question might now be asked: Do the kingdoms of nature around man also change? Yes; the kingdoms of nature do very materially change. I have already mentioned that, to the vision of a clairvoyant, the physical body, even of an ordinary person, presents the appearance of a number of paintings, and these shine more and more within the more the person progresses. Now, how does the case stand with the animals? When with clairvoyant vision we look at an animal its physical body also changes into Imaginations, and then we know that these animals are not what they appear to be in maya, but are imaginations: that is, they are imaginations, conceived in a consciousness. Who, then, conceives the animals as imaginations? Whose imaginations are they? Animals, also plants in their outward forms—though plants less than animals, and least of all minerals—are imaginations of Ahriman. Our physicists seek for the material laws in the external kingdoms of nature; but the occultist comes more and more to the knowledge that the external kingdoms of nature, as far as they present themselves as material beings, are imaginations of Ahriman. We know, indeed, that behind the animals, for example, are the Group-Souls. The Group-Souls are not imaginations of Ahriman, but the separate individual animals in their external forms are imaginations of Ahriman. Thus, if we take the lion-tribe; the group-soul of this species belongs to the good spiritual beings, as it were, and the war of Ahriman against the good spiritual beings consists in his pressing their group-souls into the separate individual forms of the animals and imprinting upon them his own imaginations. The separate lion-forms, as they move about outwardly in the world, are forced out of the group-souls by Ahriman. Thus the external world which surrounds us also changes gradually into something quite different from its appearance in maya.
Now, in order that you may have something on which you may range as on the steps of a ladder the thoughts which have been opened to us in the course of these lectures, I will give you a sort of diagram.
Here on the left I will represent what we may call the constitution of the ordinary man: Physical body, Etheric body, Astral body, Sentient soul, Intellectual soul, Consciousness soul, Spirit Self, Life Spirit and Spirit Man. We know this as the constitution of man. I will represent this only by lines. The inner being would be the Sentient soul, the next, the Intellectual or Mind soul, the next, the Consciousness soul, the next would be Spirit Self. The higher parts may be left out of account, as we do not need to consider them to-day. This constitution of man so manifests itself externally that the bodily part consists of the three lower principles; that which is experienced in the soul, of the three middle ones; the Spirit Self is not present in man, except as a perspective of the future, as it were. Now, when a person undergoes occult development the first thing to be done is to suppress certain things in the soul itself. We have seen that it is particularly important for the student to be able to lay aside the external sense impressions. It is, indeed, the first requirement of true occult progress that the student should lay aside external sense impressions. Now through this laying aside of external impressions of the senses, that principle of the soul which is chiefly developed under the influence of these impressions, namely, the Consciousness Soul, changes inwardly. It must be clearly understood that the Consciousness Soul is at present undergoing its chief development, because so much value is now attached to the external impressions of the senses. You must not confuse the fact that the Consciousness Soul generally is inwardly strengthened by the impressions received through the senses, with the fact that these sense impressions are transmitted through the Sentient Soul. When we are dealing with occult development we must notice under what sort of influences the Consciousness Soul is most strengthened, and we find these to be the external sense impressions. When these are laid aside the Consciousness Soul is then suppressed, so that in the one who is undergoing occult development it is the Consciousness Soul which must first of all retire into the background. (Here, on the right, I will draw that which in the occultly developing man corresponds to the several parts of the soul.) We are speaking of that which in ordinary life leads a person to emphasise his ‘ego,’ which above all leads him to lay stress upon his ego in all sorts of directions. In our age special stress is laid upon this ego or ‘I’ in the direction of thought. One hears nothing more often said than—this is my standpoint, I think this or that—as though the opinion of this or that person had any significance compared with the truth. It is true that the sum of the three angles of a triangle is 180 degrees, and it is immaterial how a person regards it. It is true that the Hierarchies, counting from man upwards, are divided into three times three, and it is quite immaterial how this truth is regarded. Insistence upon the ego retires into the background, and in its place the Consciousness Soul, which previously served principally for the development of the ego, is gradually filled with what we call ‘Imaginations.’ We may simply say that when a person develops his Consciousness Soul is changed into the Imaginative Soul.
We also know from what has been said in the previous lectures that thinking itself, which is developed principally in the Intellectual or Mind Soul, must also be changed. We have heard that thinking must more and more give up developing its own thoughts, that it must more and more suppress personal thinking; the human personality suppressing its own thought. When the student is able to suppress that which in his ordinary life he has made of his Intellectual or Mind Soul, then in the place of that which exists in him as ordinary thinking, as reason, and also as the ordinary mental life on the physical plane, comes Inspiration. The Intellectual or Mind Soul changes into the Inspirational or Inspired Soul. The inspired works of culture have been received in the transformed Intellectual Soul as Inspiration.
The sentient soul is chiefly laid aside by overcoming the astral body, by making the world-interests one's own, and thereby rising more and more above personal feelings; the sentient soul thereby changes; and all the inner impulses, »•;inner passions and emotions, change into Intuitions; and in the place of the Sentient Soul appears the Intuition Soul. So that here on the right (see diagram I.) we may sketch the developed human being, of whom we say: He consists of astral body, etheric body and physical body but inwardly of the Intuitional Soul, the Inspirational Soul, and the Imaginative Soul which then changes into Spirit Self. And now from this diagram, which reflects truly the facts of occult observation, you may gather from the results of these lectures how a person influences his occult development by the degree of his moral development. For what is a person who is still absolutely filled with personal emotions and passions, and who acts under the impressions of what we might call human instincts? Such a person still lives entirely in his Sentient Soul; he does not moderate his instincts by means of intellectual ideas, or by means of the development of his consciousness; he has only developed, as it were, as far as the Sentient Soul here, if I might now indicate the moral development in the middle (small arrow in diagram). Thus we may have the case of a person who has only developed as far as the Sentient Soul; that is to say, he is ruled entirely by his personal passions, impulses, etc. Now let us suppose that such a person were forced on by occult development. The consequence would be the transformation of his Sentient Soul into his Intuitional Soul, and he would have certain intuitions; these intuitions would, however, represent nothing but the transformations of his own personal impulses, passions and instincts.
A man who in his moral development has progressed to the Intellectual Soul, that is, one who has acquired pure conceptions, more general universal ideas, whose inner feelings include feelings of interest in the whole world, such a one will at least transmute his Intellectual or Mind Soul into the Inspirational Soul, and he can arrive at certain inspirations, although his clairvoyant power may not be always quite pure as yet. But it is only when a person has really penetrated with his ego as far as the Consciousness Soul that he arrives at the transformation of his Consciousness Soul into Imaginative Soul, and the rest follows as a self-evident consequence, because he has passed through the other stages. Hence in our age, in order to arrive at true clairvoyance, the student must be given the task of so working at his moral development that he shall first take away from his impulses, passions, etc., all that is personal, and raise himself to the standpoint of making the interests common to the whole world his own. Then the endeavour must be made to teach him really to comprehend himself as ‘I;’ but he must feel this in the Consciousness Soul. Then the Sentient Soul, the Intellectual Soul and the Consciousness Soul may be transformed into the Souls of Intuition, Inspiration and Imagination without any danger. When we consider the ordinary consciousness on the physical plane the Sentient Soul is the richest Soul. For what a number of instincts and impulses does not such a human Soul conceal, however low its stage! Of what impulses and passions is not such a human soul capable! The human soul is somewhat poorer as regards the contents of intellect and its more cultivated feelings, poorest of all as Consciousness Soul, shrivelled up to the consciousness of the self, as though to one point. One might say that the figure which represents the human soul in its natural condition on the physical plane would be a sort of pyramid (see diagram II.). In the lower part, at the base, the sum total of impulse, desires and passions; at the top, at the summit, the point of consciousness. A reversed pyramid represents the developed soul of the true clairvoyant, a pyramid having its base above, that is, all possible kinds of imaginations which can be formed, which express all that can reflect for us the contents of the cosmos; here below as the point, that which results as the higher individual consciousness of man.
This diagram is a standard, to a certain extent, in another sense. In the new edition of my book Theosophy I have said that the Sentient Soul is, as it were, the provisionally transformed astral body, so that we may sum up thus: Below is the physical body, then the etheric body, then the astral body. The astral body on its way to transformation is the Sentient Soul on the physical plane; the etheric body so proceeding is the Intellectual or Mind Soul, and the physical body the Consciousness Soul.
Thus in our present cycle of humanity we have the Consciousness Soul localised in the physical body; that is to say, it makes use of the physical instrument. The Intellectual Soul is in the etheric body; that is, it makes use of the etheric movements. The Sentient Soul, containing the impulses, desires and passions, makes use of the forces localised in the astral body. The Soul of Intellect or Mind, which contains the forces of inner feeling, of sympathy, makes use of the etheric body; the Consciousness Soul uses the brain of the physical body.
As in this sense the Sentient Soul is transformed into the Intuitional Soul, we must also correspondingly imagine that the Intuitional Soul uses the astral body of man as its instrument. The Inspirational Soul is the transformed Intellectual or Mind Soul; its instrument is the etheric body of man. And the Imaginative Soul, the transformed Consciousness Soul, has as its instrument the physical body of man. And now, if you compare what I have presented here in diagram with what I have said previously, you will become aware that in this diagram you have a memory picture. I mentioned that to clairvoyant vision the physical body is transformed into imaginations, which are pictures of the macrocosm. In this diagram you see that the Imaginative Soul fills up the physical body. The Imaginative Soul actually enters into the physical body and permeates it, so that when a developed human being is observed by clairvoyant consciousness, the parts of the physical body are seen to be permeated with higher and higher imaginations, according to the degree of his development; these are impressed into the physical body by the inner being of this personality. In an ordinary individual there are a number of imaginations imprinted in the various principles of his body by higher spiritual beings; in a more highly developed man there appear in the various parts of his physical body, in addition to the imaginations originally there, others which he imprints into the parts of his body from his own inner being, so that the organs in the physical body of a developed human being become richer and richer.
In this diagram I wished to give you a sort of précis which sums up what I have described at length in these lectures. I specially draw your attention to this: that this diagram may always remind you that the Sentient Soul, the Intellectual or Mind Soul and the Consciousness Soul are reversed, so that the Consciousness Soul does not become the Intuitional Soul but the Imaginative Soul; and the Sentient Soul does not become the Imaginative Soul but the Intuitional Soul. In this you have a sketch of what could be given in the course of these lectures under the title of: The changes in the human sheaths and the human self in the course of a seriously conducted theosophical development, or an esoteric occult development—which, indeed, fundamentally may coincide.
You will have observed that we began with the tiny, almost imperceptible, changes in the physical body, which the student who is developing at first perceives but faintly: the various parts of the physical body become more and more inwardly living, while usually only the whole physical body of man appears to us as a living thing. We then saw how certain changes take place, presenting the mighty facts of the inner life, changes in the astral body and the Self providing those mighty imaginations through which we may feel ourselves transposed to the beginning of our earthly human development; yet even further back, for they lead to the Imaginations of Paradise, and of Cain and Abel. You have seen how, in fact, there arises as a reality in the physical body a sort of force which enables it to divide, as it were—but still it holds together; it does not give way, because here, in our present cycle of humanity, occult training may not go so far as to lead to the injury of the physical body—still there is, however, a degree of occult development which leads to the possibility that the physical body and the etheric body may draw to themselves inwardly destructive forces; and this danger is always present when a person meets the Guardian of the Threshold. This meeting with the Guardian of the Threshold is not possible without being confronted by the danger of implanting destructive forces in the physical and etheric bodies; but every true occult development provides the remedies at the same time, and these remedies are given in that which you find described in my book, Occult Science, as the six auxiliary occult exercises: Concentration of thought; that is, strenuous exertion of thought, the concentrated gathering together of thoughts; the development of a certain Initiative of Will; a certain Equilibrium of joy and sorrow, a certain Positivity in relation to the world, a certain Impartiality. The student who endeavours to develop these qualities in his soul parallel with his occult development, on the one hand certainly produces in himself a sort of effort to break the physical and etheric bodies to pieces, that is, under the influence of occult development to take in the seed of death; but to the same extent that this develops it is annulled, so that it is never really active when a person develops the qualities mentioned, or when through his moral development he already possesses the qualities equivalent to these six. It has been my endeavour to give you more than a mere description of what occult development is, namely, to rouse in your hearts a feeling of what it is, and what manifold changes it produces in a human being. You may have been able to divine and feel that a person has to meet much that is terrible and also much that is dangerous when he goes through occult development; but side by side with much that, even in this theoretical manner of considering the matter may have produced a certain amount of dread, we must always call to mind the thought which dispels all dread, can take away all fear of danger, simply arousing enthusiasm and strength of will within our souls—the thought that by developing ourselves further we are thus working actively at one part of the evolution willed by the Gods. A man who knows how to grasp this thought in all its greatness, and take into himself its stimulus and feel it with enthusiasm, and who forms this thought in such a manner that it presents evolution, or occult development in its most beautiful sense, as his duty, he is one who feels the beginning of that which, side by side with all danger, all fighting, all entanglements, all hindrances, is connected with all development, namely, the approach towards the beatitude of the spiritual worlds. For when he feels this thought of the enthusiasm-producing power of the ideal of development he may already begin to feel the bliss of development; but this means to recognise the development, the occult progress as a necessity. The future of such spiritual, esoteric movements as ours will be that the spiritual development of human souls will be regarded more and more as a necessity, and that the exclusion of spiritual development and the adoption of a hostile attitude towards it will signify a union with the earthly dross, which is cast out through its own weight, a union with what has fallen away from the God-willed evolution of the universe.
Elfter Vortrag
Wir haben gesehen, daß mit den vier Hauptgliedern der menschlichen Wesenheit durch die im Ernst getriebene anthroposophische oder durch esoterische okkulte Entwicklung Veränderungen vorgehen, und bemerken konnten Sie, daß in unserer Schilderung der Hauptwert gelegt worden ist auf die innere Veränderung dieser vier Glieder der menschlichen Natur, auf jene Veränderung, welche gewissermaßen im Innern erlebt wird. Man muß wohl unterscheiden diese im Innern erlebbare Veränderung von jener Schilderung, welche gegeben werden kann für den Blick des Hellsehers nach außen. Das ist natürlich etwas anderes. Bei der eigentlichen esoterischen Entwicklung ist es ja zunächst wichtig, daß man weiß, was im Innern des Menschen vorgeht und was einem bevorsteht, wenn man eine okkulte Entwicklung durchmacht. Interessant, wenn auch vielleicht nicht so wichtig, ist die Veränderung, wie sie sichtbar wird für die äußere hellsichtige Anschauung. Und da können wir etwa kurz charakterisierend sagen: Was im Innern wahrgenommen wird wie eine Art von Beweglicherwerden und Unabhängigerwerden der einzelnen Teile des physischen Leibes, das zeigt sich für den hellseherischen Blick, der also nicht von innen erlebt die Veränderung mit dem physischen Leib, sondern der sie von außen ansieht, das zeigt sich dadurch, daß der physische Leib eines Menschen, der in okkulter Entwicklung begriffen ist, sich gewissermaßen zerteilt, zerspaltet; und dadurch, daß er sich zerspaltet, fühlt ihn der hellseherische Blick wie auseinandergehend.
Es wächst tatsächlich der physische Leib einer immer und immer weiter in okkulte Entwicklung dringenden Persönlichkeit für den hellseherischen Blick. Und man kann sagen: Wenn man es mit jemand zu tun hat, der in einer wirklichen okkulten Entwicklung begriffen ist, so hat man den Anblick so, daß, wenn man ihm in einer bestimmten Zeit begegnet, dasjenige, was der hellseherische Blick als physischen Leib sieht, eine bestimmte Größe hat; begegnet man ihm nach Jahren wieder, so ist dieser physische Leib gewachsen, wesentlich größer geworden. Es gibt also ein solches Wachsen des physischen Leibes über die gewöhnliche physische Größe hinaus; nur ist das verbunden damit, daß dieser physische Leib schattenhafter wird. Man bemerkt aber dann: Wenn der Betreffende sich entwickelt hat, so zeigt er einem einen immer mehr und mehr sich vergrößernden physischen Leib; der ist aber sozusagen aus einzelnen Teilen zusammengesetzt, und diese einzelnen Teile stellen sich einem dar in demjenigen, was man im okkulten Leben Imagination nennt. Immer mehr zeigt sich der physische Leib einer in okkulter Entwicklung begriffenen Persönlichkeit als eine Summe von Imaginationen, von gewissermaßen innerlich lebendigen und regsamen Bildern; und diese Bilder sind oder werden vielmehr immer interessanter, denn diese Bilder sind nicht beliebig. Sie sind zuerst, wenn der Betreffende im Anfang der okkulten Entwicklung ist, noch nicht besonders bedeutsam; am wenigsten sind sie bedeutsam, wenn der hellseherische Blick den noch nicht okkult entwickelten Menschenleib betrachtet.
Wenn man den noch nicht okkult entwickelten Menschenleib betrachtet, nimmt man wahr eine Anzahl von Bildern, von Imaginationen. Das, was physische Materie ist, das verschwindet ja für den hellseherischen Blick, an die Stelle treten Imaginationen; aber die sind so zusammengeschoben, daß sie den freundlichen, innerlich erglänzenden Anblick einer Person, die in okkulter Entwicklung begriffen ist, nicht zeigen, sondern sich so zeigen wie in sich verfinsterte Materie. Aber auch bei dem noch nicht entwickelten Menschen zeigen sie sich, und zwar wie Teile, und jeder Teil bezieht sich auf etwas im Makrokosmos. Im wesentlichen kann man zwölf Glieder unterscheiden. Jedes solche Glied ist eigentlich ein Gemälde; ein Gemälde eines Teiles der großen Welt. Wenn man alle zwölf zusammen hat, hat man den Eindruck, irgendein unbekannter Maler habe Miniaturbilder geschaffen vom Makrokosmos — zwölf an der Zahl - und habe daraus den physischen Menschenleib gebildet. Wenn nun die Persönlichkeit in okkulter Entwicklung begriffen ist, dann wird dieses Bild immer größer und größer, aber auch innerlich immer freundlicher und freundlicher, von innen heraus leuchtend. Das kommt daher: Bei einer Persönlichkeit, die nicht in okkulter Entwicklung begriffen ist, wird der Makrokosmos nur in seinem physischen Aspekt abgebildet; bei einer Persönlichkeit aber, die eine okkulte Entwicklung durchmacht, zeigt sich immer mehr und mehr in den Bildern auch der geistige Inhalt, zeigen sich die Bilder der geistigen Wesen des Makrokosmos. So stellt sich uns die okkulte Entwicklung auch noch so dar, daß die in einer okkulten Entwicklung begriffene Persönlichkeit von einem bloß physischen Mikrokosmos immer mehr und mehr ein geistiger Mikrokosmos wird; das heißt, daß sie immer mehr in sich die Bilder nicht bloß von Planeten und Sonnen, sondern von Wesenheiten der höheren Hierarchien zeigt. Das ist der Unterschied zwischen einer nicht in okkulter Entwicklung begriffenen Person und einer solchen, die in okkulter Entwicklung begriffen ist. Und immer höhere Hierarchien zeigen sich, je mehr der Mensch in seiner okkulten Entwicklung vorwärts dringt. Man lernt also sozusagen das Gefüge der Welt kennen, indem man hellseherisch den physischen Menschenleib betrachtet.
Der ätherische Menschenleib, der zeigt bei einer nicht in einer okkulten Entwicklung begriffenen Person den Werdegang der Welt, dasjenige, was in der Zeit aufeinanderfolgt; er zeigt, wie sich Planeten und Sonnen oder auch menschliche Kulturen auf der Erde oder auch einzelne Menschen durch ihre Inkarnationen hindurch verändern, wie sie sich im aufeinanderfolgenden Werden zeigen. Der Ätherleib ist also eigentlich ein Erzähler; er erzählt den Werdegang der Welt. Während der physische Leib des Menschen wie eine Summe von Gemälden ist, von einem unbekannten Maler gemalt, erweist sich der Ätherleib wie eine Art Erzähler, der die Weltengeschichte selber in seinen eigenen inneren Geschehnissen erzählt. Und je mehr der Mensch in einer okkulten Entwicklung begriffen ist, desto weiter reichen die Erzählungen hinauf. Ein Mensch, der verhältnismäßig wenig in okkulter Entwicklung begriffen ist, der zeigt in seinem Ätherleib vielleicht für den hellseherischen Blick ein paar Generationen, die ihm in physischer Vererbung vorangegangen sind; denn dieses Werden zeigt sich auch noch im Ätherleib des Menschen. Je weiter aber die okkulte Entwicklung einer Persönlichkeit geht, desto mehr ist es möglich, in dem Ätherleib Menschheitskulturen, einzelne Verkörperungen dieser oder jener Individualitäten zu sehen, ja hinaufzusteigen zu dem kosmischen Werden und dem Anteil der Geister höherer Hierarchien an dem kosmischen Werden.
Der astralische Leib des Menschen, der ist ja für die gewöhnliche Beobachtung sozusagen nur durch sein inneres Schattenbild zu sehen, durch Gedanken-, Willenserlebnisse, Gefühlserlebnisse; er wird immer mehr und mehr zu einem Ausdruck desjenigen, was der Mensch in bezug auf seine Wesenheit im Kosmos wert ist. Diese Schilderung, diese Darstellung bitte ich ganz besonders bedeutsam zu nehmen. Der astralische Leib des in einer okkulten Entwicklung begriffenen Menschen wird immer mehr und mehr der Ausdruck für den Wert des Menschen im Kosmos. Wir haben ja geschildert, wie wir darauf kommen, daß der astralische Leib seiner Urwesenheit nach eine Art Egoist ist, wie aber die okkulte Entwicklung diesen überwinden muß dadurch, daß Persönlichkeitsinteressen zu Weltinteressen hinaufgehoben werden. Beobachtet man den astralischen Leib einer in höherer Entwicklung begriffenen Persönlichkeit, dann wird man an diesem astralischen Leib sehen, je nachdem er sich finster oder dunkel erweist oder innerlich sich hell erglänzend zeigt, je nachdem er sich in schrillen Mißtönen zu erkennen gibt oder in harmonischen, melodischen Klängen, daran wird man sehen, ob der betreffende Mensch seine Entwicklung so geleitet hat, daß er mit seinen persönlichen Interessen verknüpft geblieben ist, von denen gesprochen worden ist, oder ob er wirklich Weltinteressen zu seinen Interessen gemacht hat. Das ist es, was sich ergeben kann an dem astralischen Leibe einer in höherer Entwicklung begriffenen Menschenpersönlichkeit, daß, wenn die Entwicklung in richtiger okkulter Moral vor sich gegangen ist, wir an ihm sehen, wie wunderbar der Mensch dadurch wird, daß er den Horizont seiner Interessen aus dem Persönlichen in das Allgemein-Menschliche und in die allgemeinen Weltintentionen hinaus erweitert. Immer strahlender, immer sonnenhafter wird der astralische Leib dadurch, daß der Mensch immer mehr und mehr lernt, die allgemeinen Menschheits- und Weltangelegenheiten zu seinen Angelegenheiten zu machen.
Das Selbst des Menschen zeigt, je weiter der Mensch in seiner Entwicklung vorwärtsdringt, immer mehr und mehr die Tendenz, sich zu zerspalten, sich zu zerteilen. Es schickt gleichsam seinen Bewußtseinsinhalt aus; dieser Bewußtseinsinhalt macht Botengänge in der Welt. Ja, wenn der Mensch zum Beispiel eine Wesenheit aus der Hierarchie der Angeloi kennenlernen will, dann genügt es nicht, daß er Erkenntniskräfte anwendet von gewöhnlicher Art. Wenn er sie wirklich kennenlernen will, dann muß er sein Bewußtsein verlegen können, das heißt, er muß die Kräfte seines Selbsts heraussondern können und ein Stück von seinem Selbstbewußtsein hinüberverlegen können in die Wesenheit des betreffenden Wesens aus der Hierarchie der Angeloi. Was wir immer für ein Wesen kennenlernen, wir können es nur so kennenlernen, daß wir unser Selbstbewußtsein in dieses Wesen hineinverlegen. Das ist der Drang des Selbstes, aus sich herauszugehen, sich in das andere Wesen hineinzuverlegen und das, was zuerst nur in einem selbst gelebt hat, weiterleben zu lassen in dem anderen Wesen. Dieser Drang zeigt sich auf einer niedrigeren Menschheitsstufe der menschheitlichen Wesenheit, auf der Stufe des gewöhnlichen Menschendaseins, in einem gewissen Drange, sein Bewußtsein aus sich selber heraus zu entfernen; es zeigt sich dieses in dem Bedürfnis nach Schlaf. Und dasjenige, was den Menschen seelisch zum Schlafen treibt, das ist ganz derselbe Impuls, der in höherer Ausbildung das Bewußtsein nicht in die unbewußte Schlafenswelt hinüberleitet, sondern in das Bewußtsein der Angeloi oder des Geistes der Form oder höherer Hierarchien. So könnte man das paradoxe Wort aussprechen: Was heißt es, einen der Elohim, einen der Geister der Form kennenzulernen? Das heißt, sich so weit entwickelt haben, daß man imstande ist, hinüberzuschlafen in das Bewußtsein des Elohim und im Elohim aufzuwachen mit dem Bewußtsein dieses Geistes der Form, dieses Geistes der höheren Hierarchien. Das heißt Erkennen einer höheren Wesenheit: sein Bewußtsein aufgeben, wie man es im Schlaf aufgibt, aber es so aufgeben vermöge der höheren in ihm erwachten Kräfte, daß dieses Bewußtsein aufwacht und einem als das Bewußtsein dieses höheren Wesens entgegenleuchtet.
So wird ein astralischer Leib in richtiger okkulter Entwicklung wie eine Sonne, welche ihre Weltinteressen hinausstrahlt. Ein Selbst aber wird, wenn es sich höher entwickelt, wie die Planeten, die um diese Sonne des astralischen Leibes kreisen und welche bei ihrem Kreisen durch die Welt anderen Wesenheiten begegnen und, indem sie anderen Wesenheiten begegnen, von diesen anderen Wesenheiten Kunde bringen dem erkennenden Wesen des Menschen. So bietet in der Tat der astralische Leib und das Selbst bei einem in okkulter Entwicklung begriffenen Menschen das Bild einer Sonne — das ist der astralische Leib —, umgeben von ihren Planeten: das ist eine Anzahl von Vervielfältigungen des Selbstes, die hinausgesandt werden in andere Wesenheiten, damit der Mensch durch das, was ihm zurückstrahlt sein vervielfältigtes Selbst von diesen anderen Wesenheiten, das Wesen dieser anderen Wesenheiten erkenne.
Und das Gefühl, das man hat beim Erkennen der Glieder höherer Hierarchien in ihrer inneren Wesenheit - durch physischen Leib und Ätherleib lernt man sie erkennen in ihrer äußeren Wesenheit; innerlich lernt man sie erkennen durch astralischen Leib und Selbst, man gelangt durch astralischen Leib und Selbst sozusagen in Verkehr mit diesen Wesenheiten der höheren Hierarchien -, das Gefühl, das man hat, das ist: wie wenn man sich müßte in seinem astralischen Leibe zur Sonne machen und ein Selbst von sich abspalten, welches die Veranlagung hat, unterzutauchen in die Hierarchie der Angeloi; ein anderes Selbst, das die Veranlagung hat, unterzutauchen in die Hierarchie der Archangeloi; ein anderes Selbst, das die Veranlagung hat, unterzutauchen in die Hierarchie der Geister der Form. Ein viertes Selbst taucht unter in die Hierarchie der Geister der Bewegung, ein fünftes taucht unter in die Hierarchie der Geister der Weisheit und des Willens, ein sechstes Ich taucht unter in die Hierarchie der Cherubim und ein siebentes in die Hierarchie der Seraphim. Es ist möglich, meine lieben Freunde, daß der Mensch, wenn er die vier Glieder seiner Wesenheit zur Ausbildung auf eine hohe Stufe erhebt, in der Tat zu einem solchen Erleben kommt, wie es jetzt eben charakterisiert worden ist. Es ist dieses möglich; aber neben dem, daß der Mensch zu einer solchen Entwicklung seines Selbstes kommt, wie ich es eben jetzt angedeutet habe, kann er zu einer gewissermaßen noch höheren Entwicklung seines Selbstes gelangen.
Dadurch nämlich, daß das Selbst sieben Selbste aus sich heraussondert, dadurch macht es als achtes zurückbleibendes eine höhere Entwicklung durch. Also bitte, wollen Sie die Sache so betrachten: Wir haben das ursprüngliche Selbst des Menschen, das dem Menschen gegeben ist, bevor er eine okkulte Entwicklung durchgemacht hat. Jetzt macht er eine solche durch, und dadurch sendet dieser Mensch sieben Selbste aus sich aus. Damit das, was ihm ursprünglich gegeben ist, sieben Selbste hat aussenden können, hat er eine innere Kraft anwenden müssen. Dadurch, daß dieses Selbst das durchgemacht hat, ist es aber selber um eine Stufe höher gestiegen. Nun bitte ich Sie aber, zu bedenken, daß der Vorgang, den ich hier sozusagen in seinem Extrem geschildert habe, sich nach und nach vollzieht. Der Mensch, der eine okkulte Entwicklung durchmacht, ist natürlich nicht gleich eine vollkommene Sonne in seinem astralischen Leib, umgeben von den Planeten seines Selbstes, sondern er erlangt zuerst ein unvollkommenes Sonnendasein, unvollkommene Ausbildungen seiner planetarischen Selbste; das geht alles nach und nach vor sich. Damit aber geht auch ganz langsam und allmählich die Entwicklung des gewöhnlichen Selbstes ins höhere Selbst über. Wenn diese Entwicklung an einem bestimmten Punkt angelangt ist, wenn also tatsächlich das Selbst höher und höher gelangt, dann bietet sich allmählich die Möglichkeit, zu früheren Inkarnationen zurückzuschauen. Ich bezeichne Ihnen hier also den Punkt, der die Möglichkeit gibt, in frühere Inkarnationen zurückzuschauen. Das ist die Entwicklung des Selbstes über sich hinaus, so daß es über sich hinauskommt durch die Kräfte, die ihm zugleich die Möglichkeit geben, die höheren Hierarchien zu durchschauen. Man könnte also sagen: Der Mensch wird in bezug auf sein Selbst und seinen astralischen Leib durch seine okkulte Entwicklung sternenähnlich, sternensystemähnlich für den hellseherischen Blick.
Damit, meine lieben Freunde, habe ich Ihnen mehr oder weniger dasjenige geschildert, was für das äußere Hellsehen, für das Anschauen einer anderen hellsehend werdenden Persönlichkeit sich ergibt, während ich Ihnen in den verflossenen Tagen mehr die Erlebnisse als innere Erlebnisse dargestellt habe. Noch etwas Wichtiges ist darzustellen, was gewissermaßen eine Andeutung, die schon gemacht worden ist, weiter auszuführen hat. Der Mensch gelangt dazu, wie Sie sehen, wenn er also seinen astralischen Leib und sein Selbst ausbildet, eine Welt, die vorher leer war, angefüllt zu schauen mit den Wesenheiten der höheren Hierarchien: Angeloi, Archangeloi, Archai und so weiter. Jetzt können Sie ja die Frage aufwerfen: Verändern sich auch die Reiche der Natur um den Menschen herum? - Und in der Tat, die Reiche der Natur verändern sich ganz wesentlich. Sehen Sie, ich habe Ihnen ja vorhin gesagt, daß der physische Leib für den Hellseher schon bei der gewöhnlichen Persönlichkeit wie eine Summe von Gemälden sich darstellt, die immer mehr innerlich erglänzend werden, je mehr die Persönlichkeit fortschreitet.
Wie ist es denn bei den Tieren? Ja, wenn man mit hellseherischem Blick die Tiere anschaut, dann verwandelt sich ihr physischer Leib auch in Imaginationen, und dann weiß man: Diese Tiere sind nicht das, was sie in der Maja erscheinen, sondern sie sind Imaginationen, das heißt sie sind in einem Bewußtsein vorgestellte Imaginationen. Wer stellt denn die Tiere als Imaginationen vor? Bei wem sind sie die Imaginationen? Tiere, auch Pflanzen in ihren äußeren Formen - aber Pflanzen weniger als Tiere und am wenigsten die Mineralien - sind Imaginationen Ahrimans. Unsere Physiker suchen nach den materiellen Gesetzen in den äußeren Naturreichen; der okkultistische Erkenner kommt immer mehr und mehr darauf, daß die äußeren Naturreiche, insofern sie sich als materielle Wesenheiten darstellen, Imaginationen Ahrimans sind. Wir wissen ja, daß den Tieren zum Beispiel Gruppenseelen zugrunde liegen. Die Gruppenseelen sind nicht Imaginationen Ahrimans, sondern die einzelnen Individuen der Tiere in äußeren Gestalten sind die Imaginationen Ahrimans. Wenn wir also das Reich der Löwen haben, so ist die Gruppenseele derselben angehörig sozusagen den guten geistigen Wesenheiten, und der Kampf Ahrimans gegen die guten geistigen Wesenheiten besteht eben darin, daß er ihnen ihre Gruppenseele preßt in die einzelnen individuellen Gestalten der Tiere und denen aufprägt seine Imaginationen. Die einzelnen Löwengestalten, wie sie draußen real herumlaufen in der Welt, sind aus den Gruppenseelen herausgezwängt durch Ahriman. So zeigt sich uns auch die Umwelt allmählich sich verwandelnd in etwas ganz anderes, als sie in der Maja erscheint.
Nun will ich Ihnen noch, damit Sie gewissermaßen etwas haben, woran Sie die Gedanken, die sich uns eröffnet haben im Laufe dieses Zyklus, wie auf einer Leiter hinanführen können, ich will Ihnen noch eine Art schematischer Zeichnung geben. Zunächst will ich aufzeichnen links hier das, was wir nennen können die Gliederung des gewöhnlichen Menschen aus physischem Leib, ätherischem Leib, astralischem Leib, Empfindungsseele, Gemüts- oder Verstandesseele, Bewußtseinsseele, Geistselbst, Lebensgeist, Geistesmensch. S6 kennen wir ja die'Gliederung des. Menschen. Ich will also das nur in Strichen darstellen. Das Innere, das sei Empfindungsseele, das nächste Gemüts- oder Verstandesseele, das nächste Bewußtseinsseele, das nächste sei Geistselbst. Die oberen Glieder können ja, weil wir sie heute nicht mehr brauchen, ergänzt gedacht werden. Diese Konstitution des Menschen zeigt sich ja äußerlich so, daß das Leibliche gleichsam in den drei niederen Gliedern, das, was seelisch erlebt wird, in den drei mittleren Gliedern, und das Geistselbst gar nicht mehr sozusagen, sondern wie eine Perspektive in die Zukunft am Menschen vorhanden ist. Wenn nun der Mensch eine okkulte Entwicklung durchmacht, so handelt es sich zunächst darum, daß gewisse Dinge in der Seele selber unterdrückt werden. Wir haben geschen, wie es insbesondere darauf ankommt, daß der Mensch es dazu bringt, die äußeren Sinneseindrücke auszuschalten. Das ist ja das erste Erfordernis eines wirklichen okkulten Vorwärtskommens, daß man die äußeren Sinneseindrücke ausschaltet. Dadurch, daß der Mensch die äußeren Sinneseindrücke ausschaltet, verändert sich innerlich das Glied seiner Seele, welches vorzugsweise unter der Einwirkung der äußeren Sinneseindrücke sich ausbildet. Das ist die Bewußtseinsseele. Verstehen Sie recht: die Bewußtseinsseele ist gegenwärtig in ihrer Hauptausbildung, weil da hauptsächlich auf die äußeren Sinneseindrücke gezählt wird. Daß die Bewußtseinsseele innerlich am meisten erstarkt unter dem Eindrucke der Sinneseindrücke, müssen Sie nicht mit der Tatsache verwechseln, daß diese Sinneseindrücke durch die Empfindungsseele vermittelt werden. Wenn es sich um die okkulte Entwicklung handelt, so hat man darauf zu sehen, unter was für Einflüssen die Bewußtseinsseele am meisten erstarkt: das ist unter den Einflüssen der äußeren Sinneseindrücke; wenn diese ausgeschaltet werden, dann wird die Bewußtseinsseele gedämpft. So daß also - rechts will ich hinzeichnen das, was sich im okkult entwickelten Menschen mit den einzelnen Seelengliedern entspricht - die Bewußtseinsseele im okkult sich entwickelnden Menschen vor allen Dingen wird zurücktreten müssen. Das also ist gemeint, was im gewöhnlichen Leben den Menschen dazu führt, sein Ich zu betonen, was ihn dazu führt, vor allen Dingen auf allen möglichen Gebieten dieses Ich zu betonen. In unserer Zeit wird ja dieses Ich schon auf dem Gebiet des Denkens betont. Nichts kann man öfter hören als: Dies ist mein Standpunkt, ich denke dies oder jenes.- Als ob es darauf ankäme, was dieser oder jener Mensch denkt, als ob es nicht vielmehr darauf ankäme, was die Wahrheit ist! Wahr ist, daß die Summe der drei Winkel eines Dreiecks zusammen hundertachtzig Grad ausmachen, und gleichgültig ist, was der Mensch für einen Standpunkt dazu einnimmt. Wahr ist es, daß die Hierarchien zerfallen in drei mal drei nach oben vom Menschen aus gerechnet, und gleichgültig ist, was der Mensch für einen Standpunkt dazu einnimmt. Das also, was Betonung des Ich ist, tritt zurück; dafür erfüllt sich die Bewußtseinsseele, die früher vorzugsweise zur Kultur des Ich gedient hat, allmählich mit dem, was wir die Imagination nennen. Wir können geradezu sagen: Beim okkult sich entwickelnden Menschen verwandelt sich die Bewußtseinsseele in die Imaginationsseele.
Dann wissen wir ja aus den Darstellungen der vergangenen Tage, daß sich verwandeln muß auch das Denken selber, welches vorzugsweise ausgebildet wird in der Verstandes- oder Gemütsseele. Wir haben ja gehört, wie das Denken immer mehr und mehr verzichten muß, eigene Gedanken zu entwickeln, wie die menschliche Persönlichkeit immer mehr und mehr das Selbstdenken unterdrücken muß. Wenn es dem Menschen gelingt, das, was er in seinem gewöhnlichen Leben aus seiner Verstandes- oder Gemütsseele gemacht hat, zu unterdrücken, dann geht an den Platz dessen, was als gewöhnliches Denken, als Verständigkeit und auch als gewöhnliches Gemütsleben für den physischen Plan in dem Menschen lebt, die Inspiration, da verwandelt sich die Verstandes- oder Gemütsseele in die Inspirations- oder inspirierte Seele. Die inspirierten Werke der Kultur sind in die verwandelte Verstandesseele herein inspiriert worden.
Die Empfindungsseele wird vorzugsweise dadurch allmählich ausgeschaltet, daß man den astralischen Leib überhaupt überwindet, Weltinteressen zu den seinigen macht und dadurch immer mehr und mehr über das persönliche Empfinden hinauskommt; dadurch verwandeln sich Empfindungsseele, alle inneren Impulse, inneren Leidenschaften und Affekte, in Intuitionen. Und an die Stelle der Empfindungsseele tritt die Intuitionsseele. - So daß wir jetzt rechts hier (siehe Schema Seite 186) aufzeichnen können den okkult entwickelten Menschen, von dem wir sagen: Er besteht auch aus astralischem Leib, Ätherleib und physischem Leib, aber innerlich aus der Intuitionsseele, der Inspirationsseele, der Imaginationsseele, was dann ins Geistselbst übergeht. Und jetzt können Sie aus dem Schema, das richtig die Tatsachen der okkulten Beobachtung wiedergibt, von den Ergebnissen der Vorträge sozusagen behalten, wie der Mensch durch den Grad seiner moralischen Entwicklung sich seine okkulte Entwicklung beeinflußt. Was ist denn ein Mensch, der noch ganz erfüllt ist von persönlichen Affekten, persönlichen Leidenschaften, der unter dem Eindruck von, man möchte sagen, menschlichen Instinkten handelt? Ein solcher Mensch lebt noch ganz in seiner Empfindungsseele; der moderiert seine Instinkte nicht durch Verstandesbegriffe, geschweige denn durch die Ausbildung seines Bewußtseins; der ist sozusagen, wenn ich jetzt die moralische Entwicklung in die Mitte hereinzeichne als diesen Strich (Seite 186, kleinster Pfeil), ist gleichsam nur bis zu der Empfindungsseele hierher entwickelt.
Es kann also der Fall eintreten, daß ein Mensch nur bis zu der Empfindungsseele entwickelt ist, das heißt, daß er ganz und gar seinen persönlichen Begierden, Trieben und so weiter die Herrschaft läßt. Nehmen wir an, ein solcher würde hinaufgeschraubt durch okkulte Entwicklung. Die Folge wäre, daß er seine Empfindungsseele umgestaltet in seine Intuitionsseele und er gewisse Intuitionen hätte; aber diese Intuitionen stellten sich als nichts anderes dar denn als die Umgestaltungen seiner eigenen persönlichen Triebe, Begierden und Instinkte. Ein Mensch, der mit seiner moralischen Entwicklung bis zur Verstandesseele gekommen ist, das heißt, der reinliche Begriffe, allgemeinere Begriffe sich angeeignet hat, der in seinem Gemüte umfaßt allgemeine Welteninteressen in gewisser Weise, der wird wenigstens seine Gemütsseele in die Inspirationsseele verwandeln und er kann zu gewissen Inspirationen kommen, wenn auch noch immer seine hellsichtige Kraft nicht ganz reinlich ist.
Erst wenn der Mensch mit seinem Ich wirklich bis zur Bewußtseinsseele vorgedrungen ist, dann entwickelt er zunächst die Umgestaltung seiner Bewußtseinsseele in die Imaginationsseele, und das andere ergibt sich sozusagen, weil er ja durch die anderen Stadien gegangen ist, als eine selbstverständliche Konsequenz. In unserer Zeit muß daher ein entsprechendes wirkliches Hellsehen darauf gehen, dem Menschen die Aufgabe zu stellen, seine moralische Entwicklung in der Weise zu betreiben, daß er zunächst seine Triebe, Begierden und so weiter aus dem Persönlichen herausschält und auf den Standpunkt der allgemeinen Welteninteressen erhebt; dann muß versucht werden, daß ein solcher Mensch wirklich sich als Ich erfaßt, aber in der Bewußtseinsseele sich als Ich erfaßt. Dann werden ohne alle Gefahr verwandelt werden können Empfindungsseele, Gemütsseele, Bewußtseinsseele in Intuitionsseele, Inspirationsseele, Imaginationsseele. Es ist, wenn wir das gewöhnliche Bewußtsein auf dem physischen Plan betrachten, die Empfindungsseele die reichste Seele. Denn was alles ist als eine Summe von Instinkten und Trieben in so einer Menschenseele, wenn sie noch so niedrig steht, verborgen! Welcher Triebe und Begierden ist so eine Menschenseele nicht fähig! Etwas ärmer schon ist diese Menschenseele an Gemüts- und Verstandesinhalt, aber am ärmsten als Bewußtseinsseele, zusammengeschrumpft bis zu dem Bewußtsein des Selbstes, also gewissermaßen bis zu einem Punkt. Man möchte sagen: Die Figur, welche uns darstellt die menschliche Seele im natürlichen Zustand auf dem physischen Plan, würde eine Art nach oben gerichteter Pyramide (siehe die zwei Dreiecke) darstellen; unten an der Basis die Summe der Triebe, Begierden und Leidenschaften, oben an der Spitze der Punkt des Bewußtseins. Eine umgekehrte Pyramide stellt dar die entwickelte Seele des wahren Hellsehers: Eine Pyramide, welche oben die Basis hat, nämlich alle möglichen Imaginationen, die man sich bilden kann und die da zum Ausdruck bringen alles das, was uns abbilden kann den Welteninhalt, unten als Spitze dasjenige, was das höhere Einzelbewußtsein des Menschen ergibt. Aber noch in einem anderen Sinne ist dieses Schema gewissermaßen maßgebend. Ich habe es auch schon angedeutet in den neuen Auflagen meiner «Theosophie», daß wir sagen können: Die Empfindungsseele ist gleichsam der provisorisch umgestaltete Astralleib. So daß wir hier zusammenstellen können: unten physischen Leib, dann Ätherleib, dann astralischen Leib. Der provisorisch umgewandelte Astralleib ist die Empfindungsseele auf dem physischen Plan; der provisorisch umgewandelte Ätherleib ist die Verstandes- oder Gemütsseele, und der provisorisch umgewandelte physische Leib ist die Bewußtseinsseele.
Also die Bewußtseinsseele haben wir zunächst im gegenwärtigen Menschheitszyklus lokalisiert im physischen Leib, das heißt so, daß sie sich der physischen Werkzeuge bedient. Die Verstandesseele im Ätherleib, das heißt, daß sie sich der ätherischen Bewegungen bedient. Die Empfindungsseele, die Triebe, Begierden und Leidenschaften zum Inhalt hat, bedient sich der Kräfte, die im astralischen Leib lokalisiert sind. Die Gemüts- oder Verstandesseele, die die inneren Empfindungskräfte, Mitleidskräfte zum Beispiel zum Inhalte hat, bedient sich des ätherischen Leibes; die Bewußtseinsseele bedient sich des Gehirns des physischen Leibes.
Wenn in diesem Sinn die Empfindungsseele umgestaltet wird zu der Intuitionsseele, so müssen Sie sich demgemäß auch vorstellen, daß die Intuitionsseele im Astralleibe des Menschen ihr Werkzeug hat. Die Inspirationsseele ist die umgewandelte Verstandes- oder Gemütsseele. Sie hat im Ätherleibe des Menschen ihr Werkzeug. Und die Imaginationsseele, die umgewandelte Bewußtseinsseele hat im physischen Leib des Menschen ihr Werkzeug. Und nun vergleichen Sie das, was ich hier als Schema dargestellt habe, mit dem, was ich eben vorhin ausgeführt habe, dann werden Sie gewahr werden, daß Sie an diesem Schema ein Erinnerungsbild haben. Ich habe Ihnen ausgeführt, daß sich der physische Leib für das hellseherische Anschauen in Imaginationen verwandelt, die Gemälde des Makrokosmos sind. Sie sehen hier im Schema die Imaginationsseele den physischen Leib ausfüllen. In der Tat taucht ein die Imaginationsseele in den physischen Leib, durchdringt ihn, so daß das hellseherische Bewußtsein, je mehr es einem entwickelten Menschen gegenübersteht, die Glieder des physischen Leibes durchdrungen sieht mit immer höheren und höheren Imaginationen, die von dem Inneren dieser Persönlichkeit in den physischen Leib hineingedrückt werden. Im gewöhnlichen Menschen sind eine Anzahl von Imaginationen, die ihm von höheren geistigen Wesenheiten in die Glieder seines Leibes eingeprägt sind; bei dem höher entwickelten Menschen treten in die Glieder des physischen Leibes zu den Imaginationen, die ursprünglich da sind, diejenigen hinzu, welche er aus seinem eigenen Innern in seine Leibesglieder hineinprägt; so daß immer reicher und reicher die Organe des physischen Leibes einer okkult entwickelten Persönlichkeit werden.
Ich wollte Ihnen in diesem Schema nichts anderes geben als eine Art von Notiz, die zusammenfaßt das, was ich in den Vorträgen schildernd ausgeführt habe. Ich mache Sie besonders darauf aufmerksam, daß Sie aus diesem Schema immer die Erinnerung davon behalten können, daß Empfindungsseele, Gemüts- oder Verstandesseele und Bewußtseinsscele sich umkehren, so daß nicht die Bewußtseinsseele zur Intuitionsseele, sondern zur Imaginationsseele, und nicht die Empfindungsseele zur Imaginationsseele, sondern zur Intuitionsseele wird.
Damit, meine lieben Freunde, haben wir eine Skizze von dem geliefert, was im Laufe dieser unserer Vorträge gegeben werden konnte unter dem Thema: Die Veränderungen der menschlichen Hüllen und des menschlichen Selbstes im Laufe einer ernsthaft getriebenen anthroposophischen Entwicklung oder einer esoterisch okkulten Entwicklung, was ja im Grunde durchaus auch zusammenfallen kann. Sie haben gesehen, wie wir begonnen haben sozusagen bei den kleinen, kaum wahrnehmbaren Veränderungen des physischen Leibes, die der in okkulter Entwicklung Begriffene zuerst leise wahrnimmt: die einzelnen Glieder des physischen Leibes werden wie innerlich lebendiger und lebendiger, während uns sonst nur der gesamte physische Leib des Menschen wie ein Lebendiges vorkommt. Dann haben wir gesehen, wie gewisse Veränderungen vorgehen, die gewaltige Tatsachen des Innenlebens darstellen: diejenigen Veränderungen des astralischen Leibes und des Selbstes, welche jene gewaltigen Imaginationen geben, durch die wir uns wie an den Anfang unserer Erdenmenschheitsentwicklung versetzt fühlen können, ja noch ein Stück darüber hinaus, die zur Paradieses- und zur Kain-Abel-Imagination führen. Sie haben gesehen, wie in der Tat als eine Wirklichkeit eine Art von Kraft im physischen Leib entsteht, die ihn befähigt, sich gleichsam zu zerteilen; er bleibt aber doch zusammen, er gibt nicht nach, weil hier in unserem Menschheitszyklus die okkulte Übung nicht so weit gehen darf, daß es zur Schädigung des physischen Leibes führt. Aber es gibt doch eine Stärke der okkulten Entwicklung, welche bis an die Möglichkeit heranführt, daß der physische und der Ätherleib sich innerliche Zerstörungskräfte heranerziehen; und im Grunde genommen ist das immer da, wenn der Mensch die Begegnung mit dem Hüter der Schwelle hat. Diese Begegnung mit dem Hüter der Schwelle ist gar nicht möglich, ohne daß man vor der Gefahr steht, in gewisser Beziehung Zerstörungskräfte einzupflanzen seinem physischen und ätherischen Leibe; aber eine jede richtige okkulte Entwicklung schafft zugleich die Gegenmittel, und diese Gegenmittel sind gegeben in dem, was Sie in meiner «Geheimwissenschaft» als die sechs okkulten Nebenübungen bezeichnet finden: Gedankenkonzentration, das heißt starkes Anspannen seiner Gedanken, konzentriertes Zusammenfassen seiner Gedanken; Herausentwicklung einer gewissen Initiative des Willens, eines gewissen Gleichmaßes von Lust und Leid, eine gewisse Positivität im Verhalten zur Welt, einer gewissen Unbefangenheit. Wer diese Eigenschaften in seiner Seele parallel der okkulten Entwicklung heranerzieht, bei dem entwickelt sich allerdings auf der einen Seite eine Art Bestreben des physischen und ätherischen Leibes, zu zerbrechen, das heißt, Todeskeime unter dem Einflusse der okkulten Entwicklung aufzunehmen; aber in dem gleichen Maße, wie sich das entwickelt, wird es aufgehoben, so daß es eigentlich nie wirksam ist, wenn der Mensch die genannten Eigenschaften entwickelt oder durch seine moralische Entwicklung ohnedies schon genug hat an Eigenschaften, die diesen sechs Eigenschaften gleichkommen.
Mehr noch als eine Schilderung Ihnen zu geben, war ich bestrebt, ein Gefühl in Ihren Herzen hervorzurufen von dem, was okkulte Entwicklung ist und wie mannigfaltig und den Menschen verändernd okkulte Entwicklung in das Menschenwesen eingreift. Ahnen und empfinden haben Sie es können, daß der Mensch vor mancherlei Erschütterndem, auch Gefahrbringendem steht, wenn er eine okkulte Entwicklung durchmacht. Aber neben manches, was vielleicht schon in der theoretischen Betrachtungsweise ein leises Grauen eingeflößt hat, mußte doch immer sich der Gedanke vor die Seele hinzaubern, der alles Grauen hinwegschafft, alle Furcht vor Gefahr beseitigen kann, der einfach Enthusiasmus, Willensstärke in unserer Seele aufruft: der Gedanke, daß wir an der von den Göttern gewollten Evolution selbsttätig ein Stück arbeiten, indem wir uns weiterbringen. Wer diesen Gedanken zu fassen weiß in seiner ganzen Größe, in seiner ganzen enthusiasmierenden und anfeuernden Bedeutung, wer diesen Gedanken zu fassen weiß so, daß er Evolution, okkulte Entwicklung im schönsten Sinn als seine Pflicht erscheinen läßt, wer dies vermag zu fühlen, der fühlt den Beginn dessen, was neben aller Gefahr, neben allem Kampfe, neben allen Verwirrungen, neben allen Hindernissen verknüpft ist mit aller Entwicklung des Entgegengehens den Seligkeiten der geistigen Welten. Denn indem man diesen Gedanken von der enthusiasmierenden Kraft des Ideals der Entwicklung empfindet, kann man schon die Seligkeit der Entwicklung beginnen fühlen; aber diese Seligkeit bedeutet: dieses Entwickeln, diesen okkulten Fortschritt als eine Notwendigkeit anzuerkennen. Das wird die Zukunft solcher spirituell-esoterischer Bewegungen, wie die unsrige eine ist, sein, daß spirituelle Entwicklung der Menschenseelen immer mehr und mehr als eine Notwendigkeit wird angesehen werden und daß das Ausschließen, das Sichfeindlichstellen zur spirituellen Entwicklung bedeuten wird ein Sichverbinden mit den in der eigenen Erdenschwere zugrunde gehenden Abfallsprodukten des Irdischen, mit dem Herausfallen aus der gottgewollten Evolution des Weltenalls.
Eleventh Lecture
We have seen that changes take place in the four main members of the human being through serious anthroposophical or esoteric occult development, and you may have noticed that in our description the main emphasis has been placed on the inner change in these four members of human nature, on the change that is experienced, so to speak, inwardly. A distinction must be made between these inner changes and the description that can be given to the clairvoyant looking outward. That is, of course, something else. In actual esoteric development, it is important to know what is happening within the human being and what lies ahead when one undergoes occult development. The change that becomes visible to the external clairvoyant observer is interesting, though perhaps not so important. And here we can briefly characterize it as follows: What is perceived internally as a kind of becoming more mobile and more independent of the individual parts of the physical body is visible to the clairvoyant gaze, which does not experience the change with the physical body from within, but rather observes it from outside, is manifested by the fact that the physical body of a person undergoing occult development is, in a sense, divided, split; and because it is split, the clairvoyant gaze perceives it as moving apart.
The physical body of a personality who is advancing further and further into occult development actually grows for the clairvoyant gaze. And one can say that when one has to do with someone who is undergoing real occult development, one has the impression that when one encounters them at a certain time, what the clairvoyant gaze sees as the physical body has a certain size; if one encounters them again after years, this physical body has grown, has become considerably larger. So there is such a growth of the physical body beyond the ordinary physical size; only this is connected with the fact that this physical body becomes more shadowy. But then you notice that as the person develops, they show you a physical body that is getting bigger and bigger; but this body is, so to speak, made up of individual parts, and these individual parts appear to you in what is called imagination in occult life. The physical body of a personality undergoing occult development increasingly reveals itself as a sum of imaginations, of images that are, in a sense, inwardly alive and active; and these images are, or rather become, increasingly interesting, for they are not arbitrary. At first, when the person concerned is at the beginning of occult development, they are not yet particularly significant; they are least significant when the clairvoyant gaze looks at the human body that has not yet been developed occultly.
When one looks at the human body that has not yet been developed occultly, one perceives a number of images, of imaginations. Physical matter disappears from the clairvoyant gaze and is replaced by imaginations; but these are so jumbled together that they do not reveal the friendly, inner radiance of a person who is undergoing occult development, but appear as darkened matter. But they also show themselves in people who are not yet developed, as parts, and each part relates to something in the macrocosm. Essentially, twelve members can be distinguished. Each such member is actually a painting; a painting of a part of the great world. When all twelve are together, one has the impression that some unknown painter has created miniature pictures of the macrocosm—twelve in number—and has formed the physical human body from them. When the personality is undergoing occult development, this picture becomes larger and larger, but also increasingly friendly and radiant from within. This is because in a personality that is not undergoing occult development, the macrocosm is only depicted in its physical aspect; but in a personality undergoing occult development, the spiritual content also becomes more and more apparent in the images, and the images of the spiritual beings of the macrocosm appear. Thus, occult development also presents itself to us in such a way that the personality undergoing occult development becomes more and more a spiritual microcosm from a merely physical microcosm; that is, it shows more and more within itself the images not only of planets and suns, but of beings of the higher hierarchies. This is the difference between a person who is not undergoing occult development and one who is. And the more a person advances in their occult development, the higher the hierarchies that appear. So, by observing the physical human body clairvoyantly, one learns, so to speak, about the structure of the world.
The etheric human body shows the development of the world, what follows in time, in a person who is not undergoing occult development; it shows how planets and suns or even human cultures on Earth or even individual human beings change through their incarnations, how they reveal themselves in successive stages of development. The etheric body is therefore actually a narrator; it narrates the development of the world. While the physical body of the human being is like a collection of paintings by an unknown painter, the etheric body proves to be a kind of narrator that narrates world history itself in its own inner events. And the more a person is engaged in occult development, the further back the stories reach. A person who is relatively little engaged in occult development may reveal in their etheric body, visible to clairvoyant eyes, a few generations that preceded them in physical inheritance; for this becoming is still visible in the etheric body of the human being. But the further the occult development of a personality goes, the more it is possible to see in the etheric body the cultures of humanity, individual incarnations of this or that individuality, and even to ascend to cosmic becoming and the part of the spirits of higher hierarchies in cosmic becoming.
The astral body of the human being is, so to speak, only visible to ordinary observation through its inner shadow image, through thoughts, experiences of will, and experiences of feeling; it becomes more and more an expression of what the human being is worth in relation to its essence in the cosmos. I ask you to take this description, this representation, very seriously. The astral body of a human being undergoing occult development becomes more and more an expression of the value of the human being in the cosmos. We have described how we arrive at the conclusion that the astral body is, in its original nature, a kind of egoist, but that occult development must overcome this by raising personal interests to world interests. If we observe the astral body of a personality in a higher stage of development, we will see in this astral body, depending on whether it appears dark or gloomy or shines brightly within, depending on whether it reveals itself in shrill dissonances or in harmonious, melodious sounds, we will see whether the person in question has guided their development in such a way in such a way that they have remained connected to their personal interests, as mentioned above, or whether they have truly made world interests their own. This is what can happen to the astral body of a human personality in a higher stage of development: if the development has taken place in accordance with correct occult morality, we see how wonderful the person becomes as a result of expanding the horizon of his interests from the personal to the general human and to the general world intentions. The astral body becomes ever more radiant, ever more sunlike, as the human being learns more and more to make the general affairs of humanity and the world his own affairs.
The more a human being advances in his development, the more the self shows a tendency to split and divide. It sends out, as it were, the contents of its consciousness; these contents of consciousness perform errands in the world. Yes, if a person wants to get to know a being from the hierarchy of the Angeloi, for example, it is not enough to use ordinary powers of cognition. If he really wants to get to know it, he must be able to transfer his consciousness, that is, he must be able to separate the powers of his self and transfer a part of his self-consciousness into the being of the entity in question from the hierarchy of the angeloi. Whatever being we want to get to know, we can only do so by transferring our self-consciousness into that being. This is the urge of the self to go out of itself, to transfer itself into the other being and to allow what was first only alive in oneself to live on in the other being. This urge manifests itself at a lower stage of human existence, at the stage of ordinary human existence, in a certain urge to remove one's consciousness from oneself; this manifests itself in the need for sleep. And that which drives human beings to sleep is the very same impulse which, in higher education, does not lead consciousness into the unconscious world of sleep, but into the consciousness of the angeloi or the spirit of form or higher hierarchies. Thus one could express the paradoxical statement: What does it mean to get to know one of the Elohim, one of the spirits of form? It means to have developed so far that one is able to sleep over into the consciousness of the Elohim and wake up in the Elohim with the consciousness of this spirit of form, this spirit of the higher hierarchies. This means recognizing a higher being: giving up one's consciousness as one does in sleep, but giving it up through the higher powers awakened within oneself, so that this consciousness awakens and shines back at one as the consciousness of this higher being.
Thus, in proper occult development, an astral body becomes like a sun that radiates its world interests. But when the self develops higher, it becomes like the planets that circle around this sun of the astral body and, in their circling through the world, encounter other beings and, in encountering other beings, bring news of these other beings to the knowing being of the human being. Thus, in a person undergoing occult development, the astral body and the self present the image of a sun—the astral body—surrounded by its planets: these are a number of multiplications of the self that are sent out into other beings so that the human being, through what is reflected back to him, may recognize his multiplied self from these other beings, the essence of these other beings.
And the feeling one has when recognizing the members of higher hierarchies in their inner being—through the physical body and etheric body one learns to recognize them in their outer being; inwardly one learns to recognize them through the astral body and self; through the astral body and self one comes, so to speak, into contact with these beings of the higher hierarchies—the feeling one has is this: as if one had to make oneself into the sun in one's astral body and split off a self from oneself that has the predisposition to submerge into the hierarchy of the angeloi; another self that has the predisposition to submerge into the hierarchy of the archangeloi; another self that has the predisposition to submerge into the hierarchy of the spirits of form. A fourth self submerges into the hierarchy of the spirits of movement, a fifth submerges into the hierarchy of the spirits of wisdom and will, a sixth I submerges into the hierarchy of the cherubim, and a seventh into the hierarchy of the seraphim. It is possible, my dear friends, that when a human being raises the four members of his being to a high level of development, he actually has an experience such as has just been described. This is possible; but in addition to the human being achieving such a development of his self as I have just indicated, he can attain a still higher development of his self, so to speak.
Namely, by separating seven selves from itself, the self undergoes a higher development as the eighth self remaining behind. So please consider the matter in this way: we have the original self of the human being, which is given to the human being before he has undergone an occult development. Now he undergoes such a development, and through this the human being sends out seven selves from himself. In order for what was originally given to him to be able to send out seven selves, he had to apply an inner force. However, by undergoing this process, the self itself has risen one level higher. Now I ask you to consider that the process I have described here, so to speak, in its extreme form, takes place gradually. The person who undergoes occult development is not, of course, immediately a perfect sun in his astral body, surrounded by the planets of his self, but first attains an imperfect solar existence, imperfect formations of his planetary selves; this all takes place gradually. But with this, the development of the ordinary self also slowly and gradually transitions into the higher self. When this development has reached a certain point, when the self has actually risen higher and higher, then the possibility gradually arises to look back on previous incarnations. I am describing here the point that makes it possible to look back on previous incarnations. This is the development of the self beyond itself, so that it transcends itself through the forces that at the same time give it the opportunity to see through the higher hierarchies. One could therefore say that, in relation to its self and its astral body, the human being becomes star-like, star system-like to the clairvoyant gaze through its occult development.
With this, my dear friends, I have more or less described to you what happens in external clairvoyance, in the viewing of another personality who is becoming clairvoyant, whereas in the past I have described to you more the experiences as inner experiences. There is still something important to describe, which is, in a sense, a further elaboration of something that has already been hinted at. As you can see, when a person develops their astral body and their self, they come to see a world that was previously empty filled with the beings of the higher hierarchies: Angeloi, Archangeloi, Archai, and so on. Now you may ask: Do the realms of nature around human beings also change? And indeed, the realms of nature change quite significantly. You see, I told you earlier that for the clairvoyant, even the physical body of the ordinary personality appears as a collection of paintings that become increasingly luminous within as the personality progresses.
How is it with animals? Yes, when you look at animals with clairvoyant vision, their physical bodies also transform into imaginations, and then you know that these animals are not what they appear to be in Maya, but that they are imaginations, that is, they are imaginations presented in a consciousness. Who presents the animals as imaginations? In whose consciousness are they imaginations? Animals, and also plants in their outer forms—but plants less than animals, and minerals least of all—are imaginations of Ahriman. Our physicists search for material laws in the outer realms of nature; the occultist comes to realize more and more that the outer realms of nature, insofar as they present themselves as material entities, are imaginations of Ahriman. We know, for example, that animals are based on group souls. The group souls are not Ahriman's imaginations, but the individual animals in their outer forms are Ahriman's imaginations. So when we have the realm of lions, the group soul of lions belongs, so to speak, to the good spiritual beings, and Ahriman's battle against the good spiritual beings consists precisely in pressing their group soul into the individual forms of the animals and imprinting his imaginations upon them. The individual lion forms, as they run around in the world, are forced out of the group souls by Ahriman. Thus, the environment gradually reveals itself to us as something completely different from what it appears to be in Maya.
Now, so that you have something to which you can refer, as it were, to guide your thoughts that have opened up to us in the course of this cycle, I would like to give you a kind of schematic drawing. First, I will sketch on the left what we might call the structure of the ordinary human being, consisting of the physical body, the etheric body, the astral body, the sentient soul, the soul of feeling or intellect, the consciousness soul, the spirit self, the life spirit, and the spirit man. We are familiar with the structure of the human being from S6. I will therefore represent this in outline form. The innermost part is the sentient soul, the next is the soul with feelings and intellect, the next is the conscious soul, and the next is the spirit self. The upper members can be added, since we no longer need them today. This constitution of the human being is manifested externally in such a way that the physical is, as it were, present in the three lower members, what is experienced soul-wise in the three middle members, and the spirit self is no longer present in this way, but rather as a perspective into the future of the human being. When a human being undergoes occult development, the first thing that happens is that certain things are suppressed in the soul itself. We have seen how important it is for the human being to switch off the external sense impressions. This is the first requirement for real occult progress: to switch off the external sense impressions. By shutting out external sensory impressions, the part of the soul that develops primarily under the influence of external sensory impressions undergoes an inner change. This is the consciousness soul. Understand this correctly: the consciousness soul is currently in its main stage of development because it relies mainly on external sensory impressions. You must not confuse the fact that the consciousness soul is strengthened internally under the influence of sensory impressions with the fact that these sensory impressions are mediated by the sentient soul. When it comes to occult development, one must look at the influences under which the consciousness soul is strengthened most: these are the influences of external sensory impressions; when these are eliminated, the consciousness soul is dampened. So that — I will sketch on the right what corresponds to the individual soul members in the occult development of the human being — the consciousness soul in the occult development of the human being will have to recede above all else. This is what is meant by what leads people in ordinary life to emphasize their I, what leads them to emphasize this I above all else in all possible areas. In our time, this ego is already emphasized in the realm of thought. Nothing can be heard more often than: This is my point of view, I think this or that. As if it mattered what this or that person thinks, as if it did not matter what the truth is! It is true that the sum of the three angles of a triangle is one hundred and eighty degrees, and it is irrelevant what position a person takes on this. It is true that hierarchies are divided into three times three, counting upwards from the human being, and it is irrelevant what position a person takes on this. Thus, what is the emphasis of the ego recedes; in its place, the consciousness soul, which previously served primarily the culture of the ego, gradually fills with what we call imagination. We can say quite literally that in the occult development of the human being, the consciousness soul is transformed into the imagination soul.
Then we know from the descriptions of the past few days that thinking itself, which is primarily developed in the intellectual or emotional soul, must also transform. We have heard how thinking must increasingly renounce developing its own thoughts, how the human personality must increasingly suppress independent thinking. When human beings succeed in suppressing what they have made of their intellectual or emotional soul in their ordinary life, then inspiration takes the place of what lives in the physical plane as ordinary thinking, as understanding, and also as ordinary emotional life in human beings. the inspiration, and the intellectual or emotional soul is transformed into the inspirational or inspired soul. The inspired works of culture have been inspired into the transformed intellectual soul.
The sentient soul is gradually eliminated, preferably by overcoming the astral body altogether, making worldly interests one's own, and thereby increasingly transcending personal feelings; as a result, the sentient soul, all inner impulses, inner passions, and emotions are transformed into intuitions. And the sentient soul is replaced by the intuitive soul. So that we can now record here on the right (see diagram on page 186) the occult development of the human being, of whom we say: He also consists of an astral body, an etheric body, and a physical body, but inwardly of the intuitive soul, the inspirational soul, and the imaginative soul, which then merge into the spirit self. And now, from the diagram, which correctly reflects the facts of occult observation, you can retain, so to speak, from the results of the lectures, how human beings influence their occult development through the degree of their moral development. What is a human being who is still completely filled with personal emotions, personal passions, who acts under the influence of, one might say, human instincts? Such a person still lives entirely in their sentient soul; they do not moderate their instincts through concepts of the intellect, let alone through the development of their consciousness; they are, so to speak, if I now draw moral development in the middle as this line (page 186, smallest arrow), developed only up to the sentient soul here.
It can therefore happen that a person is only developed up to the sentient soul, that is, that they allow their personal desires, drives, and so on to rule them completely. Let us assume that such a person is raised up through occult development. The result would be that he would transform his sentient soul into his intuitive soul and would have certain intuitions; but these intuitions would turn out to be nothing more than the transformation of his own personal drives, desires, and instincts. A person who has reached the intellectual soul in their moral development, that is, who has acquired pure concepts, more general concepts, who in their mind comprehends general world interests in a certain way, will at least transform their sentient soul into the soul of inspiration and can attain certain inspirations, even if their clairvoyant power is not yet completely pure.
Only when a person has truly advanced with his ego to the consciousness soul does he first develop the transformation of his consciousness soul into the imagination soul, and the rest follows, so to speak, as a natural consequence, because he has passed through the other stages. In our time, therefore, a corresponding real clairvoyance must aim to set man the task of pursuing his moral development in such a way that he first separates his instincts, desires, and so on from his personality and raises them to the level of the general interests of the world; then an attempt must be made to enable such a person to truly grasp himself as an I, but as an I in the consciousness soul. Then the sentient soul, the emotional soul, and the consciousness soul can be transformed without any danger into the intuitive soul, the inspirational soul, and the imaginative soul. When we consider ordinary consciousness on the physical plane, the sentient soul is the richest soul. For what is hidden in such a human soul, when it is still so low, as the sum of instincts and drives! What impulses and desires is such a human soul not capable of! This human soul is somewhat poorer in terms of feeling and intellect, but poorest of all as a conscious soul, shrunk to the consciousness of the self, that is, to a point, so to speak. One might say that the figure representing the human soul in its natural state on the physical plane would be a kind of pyramid pointing upwards (see the two triangles); at the base, the sum of the instincts, desires, and passions; at the top, the point of consciousness. An inverted pyramid represents the developed soul of the true clairvoyant: a pyramid with its base at the top, namely all possible imaginations that can be formed and which express everything that can represent the content of the world to us, and at the bottom, as the point, that which constitutes the higher individual consciousness of the human being. But this diagram is also authoritative in another sense. I have already indicated in the new editions of my “Theosophy” that we can say: The sentient soul is, as it were, the provisionally transformed astral body. So that we can put together here: below, the physical body, then the etheric body, then the astral body. The provisionally transformed astral body is the feeling soul on the physical plane; the provisionally transformed etheric body is the mind or intellectual soul, and the provisionally transformed physical body is the consciousness soul.
So, in the present human cycle, we have initially located the consciousness soul in the physical body, which means that it makes use of the physical instruments. The mind soul is located in the etheric body, which means that it makes use of etheric movements. The sentient soul, which has instincts, desires, and passions as its content, makes use of the forces located in the astral body. The mind or intellectual soul, which has inner sentient forces, such as compassion, as its content, makes use of the etheric body; the consciousness soul makes use of the brain of the physical body.
If, in this sense, the sentient soul is transformed into the intuitive soul, you must also imagine that the intuitive soul has its instrument in the astral body of the human being. The inspirational soul is the transformed intellectual or emotional soul. It has its instrument in the etheric body of the human being. And the imaginative soul, the transformed consciousness soul, has its instrument in the physical body of the human being. Now compare what I have presented here as a diagram with what I explained earlier, and you will realize that this diagram is a memory image. I have explained to you that the physical body is transformed for clairvoyant vision into imaginations, which are pictures of the macrocosm. Here in the diagram you see the soul of imagination filling the physical body. In fact, the imaginative soul plunges into the physical body, permeates it, so that the clairvoyant consciousness, the more it faces a developed human being, sees the limbs of the physical body permeated with ever higher and higher imaginations, which are pressed into the physical body from the inner being of this personality. In the ordinary human being, there are a number of imaginations imprinted into the limbs of his body by higher spiritual beings; in the more highly developed human being, the imaginations that are originally present in the limbs of the physical body are joined by those that he imprints into his limbs from his own inner being, so that the organs of the physical body of an occultly developed personality become richer and richer.
In this diagram, I wanted to give you nothing more than a kind of note summarizing what I have described in the lectures. I would like to draw your attention in particular to the fact that you can always remember from this diagram that the sentient soul, the emotional or intellectual soul, and the conscious soul are reversed, so that it is not the conscious soul that becomes the intuitive soul, but the imaginative soul, and it is not the sentient soul that becomes the imaginative soul, but the intuitive soul.
With this, my dear friends, we have provided an outline of what could be given in the course of these lectures under the theme: The changes in the human shells and the human self in the course of a seriously pursued anthroposophical development or an esoteric occult development, which in essence can also coincide. You have seen how we began, so to speak, with the small, barely perceptible changes in the physical body that those engaged in occult development first perceive quietly: the individual members of the physical body become more and more alive internally, whereas otherwise only the entire physical body of the human being appears to us as a living entity. Then we saw how certain changes take place that represent powerful facts of inner life: those changes in the astral body and the self that give rise to those powerful imaginations through which we can feel transported back to the beginning of our earthly human development, even a little beyond, leading to the Paradise and Cain and Abel imaginations. You have seen how, in fact, a kind of force arises in the physical body as a reality, enabling it to divide itself, as it were; yet it remains together, it does not give way, because here in our human cycle occult practice must not go so far as to damage the physical body. But there is nevertheless a strength in occult development that leads to the possibility of the physical and etheric bodies attracting inner forces of destruction; and basically this is always present when a person encounters the guardian of the threshold. This encounter with the guardian of the threshold is not possible without facing the danger of implanting destructive forces in one's physical and etheric bodies in a certain sense; but every proper occult development also creates the antidotes, and these antidotes are given in what you will find in my “Secret Science” as the six occult supplementary exercises: Concentration of thought, that is, strong focusing of one's thoughts, concentrated summarizing of one's thoughts; development of a certain initiative of the will, a certain balance of pleasure and pain, a certain positivity in one's attitude toward the world, a certain impartiality. Those who cultivate these qualities in their souls parallel to occult development will indeed develop, on the one hand, a kind of striving of the physical and etheric bodies to break down to break down, that is, to absorb the seeds of death under the influence of occult development; but to the same extent that this develops, it is counteracted, so that it is never actually effective if the person develops the aforementioned qualities or, through their moral development, already possesses enough qualities that are equivalent to these six qualities.
More than giving you a description, I was eager to evoke in your hearts a feeling of what occult development is and how manifold and transformative occult development is in human beings. You have been able to sense and feel that human beings face many things that are shocking and even dangerous when they undergo occult development. But alongside many things that may have instilled a quiet horror in theoretical contemplation, there must always be a thought conjured up in the soul that dispels all horror, removes all fear of danger, and simply evokes enthusiasm and strength of will in our souls: the thought that we are actively working on the evolution willed by the gods by advancing ourselves. Those who can grasp this thought in all its greatness, in all its inspiring and encouraging meaning, those who can grasp this thought in such a way that it makes evolution, occult development in the most beautiful sense, appear as their duty, those who are able to feel this, feel the beginning of that what, alongside all danger, all struggle, all confusion, all obstacles, is linked to all development toward the bliss of the spiritual worlds. For when one feels this idea with the inspiring power of the ideal of development, one can already begin to feel the bliss of development; but this bliss means recognizing this development, this occult progress, as a necessity. The future of spiritual-esoteric movements such as ours will be that the spiritual development of human souls will be seen more and more as a necessity, and that exclusion and hostility toward spiritual development will mean connecting oneself with the waste products of the earthly realm that are perishing in their own earthly heaviness, and falling out of the God-given evolution of the universe.