The Foundations of Esotericism
GA 93a
30 October 1905, Berlin
Lecture XXVII
The course of evolution in the world appears to us on three levels: consciousness, life and form.73Rudolf Steiner had explained these concepts to a part of his audience in lectures of October/November 1904 especially 22.10.1904 in Notes on 13 Lectures (Typescript), and 25.10.1904 in History of the Middle Ages (Typescript). Similar presentations are to be found later in lectures 15.9.1907 Occult Signs and Symbols and 17.6.1909 Evolution, Involution and Creation out of Nothing (also contained in The Being of Man and his Future Evolution). Consciousness in its different manifestations finds its expression in the seven Planetary evolutions: Saturn, Sun, Moon, Earth, Jupiter, Venus, Vulcan. On each Planet there are seven Kingdoms of Life and each Kingdom goes through seven Conditions of Form.
Our physical Earth is such a Condition of Form, the fourth Condition of Form or Globe, in the fourth Kingdom of Life, of the fourth Planet, or Condition of Consciousness. We think of the Earth as it now is and ask ourselves: What are we doing here? We take things from outside in space, mainly from the mineral kingdom, and out of them construct artifacts. This is a process of combination; out of separate things we construct a whole, a creation within a form. Now there are other ways in which something new can arise, for instance in a way similar to that in which stalk, leaves and blossoms arise out of the root of a plant. A blossom cannot be put together like a machine, through combination, but it must grow out of what is already there. This is a process within the realm of life. Out of what is there something new is created.
In the case of the third kind of production, out of consciousness, something arises in such a way that we can say: previously there was in fact nothing there—a nothingness.
Let us transfer ourselves to the primal beginning of such a planetary evolution, at the very beginning of Saturn. What is to be observed there? There was as yet no physical planet, not even in the finest Arupa-form was a planet present, we are there even before the moment when Old Saturn entered into its first beginning. Nothing of our series of planets existed; certainly however there was the entire outcome of the preceding planetary chain, in much the same way as when we wake up in the morning, having as yet done nothing, and only the memory of what we did on the previous day is contained in our mind. So when we thus transfer ourselves completely into the beginning of the Saturn evolution, we have in the spiritual beings then in manifestation, the memory of a previous planetary chain and its happenings.
Now let us transfer ourselves to the end of the planetary chain, to the time when the Vulcan evolution will have come to an end. Whereas the chain of planets has gradually come to manifestation as creation, the tendency to it was already there in the beginning as inherent consciousness. So we have to begin with an outpouring of consciousness; out of the content of the earlier, out of memory, consciousness creates the new. At the end therefore something is present which was not there at the beginning: that is, all experiences. What was there at the beginning has flowed out into astral things and beings. At the end a new consciousness has come about with a new content of consciousness. It is something which has come forth from nothingness, out of experiences. When we observe something new we must say to ourselves: to make this possible a seed had to be there. The new condition of consciousness however, at the end of a planetary evolution, has in fact come forth out of nothing, out of experiences; for this no foundations are necessary, something is created which arises out of nothing. When one personality looks at another, it cannot be said that he has taken something from the other one, when as a result he bears within him the memory of the other personality. This memory has come forth out of nothing. Thus the three ways of creating are as follows:
Combining of existing parts: Form
Formations with new Life content out of existing foundations: Life
Creating out of nothing: Consciousness
Here we have three definitions of Beings who bring about, who underlie a planetary chain. They are called the three Logoi. The Third Logos produces by means of combining. When out of one substance something else having new life comes into being, this is brought forth by the Second Logos. Everywhere, however, where we have to do with a coming forth out of nothing, we have the First Logos. This is why the First Logos is also often called the One who is immanent in things, the Second Logos the One who in the quiescent substance in things creates life out of the living, the Third Logos the One who combines everything existing, who puts the world together out of things.
These three Logoi always manifest in the world in and through one another. The First Logos also experiences both the inner wisdom and the will. In the creative activity of the First Logos there is experience, that is to say, the gathering of thoughts out of nothing and then creating once more in accordance with these thoughts out of nothing. Creation out of nothing is however not meant in such a way as if nothing at all had been there. On the contrary, in the course of evolution experiences are made and in the course of becoming the new is created, so that what is there melts away and out of experience there is the creation of the new.
This creation may be compared with the following: Somebody sees another person and observes his appearance. If he were creatively gifted like the First Logos he would be able to say: Yes, I have seen N and I also have a concept of the reversed N. I can also form a complementary picture of him, i.e. white where there is black and vice versa. In this way, out of the experience of the object and its negative, he has created a completely new form. This he could imbue with life. It would be a completely new creation that was not previously there. Let us assume that somebody did this with a number of people and that these people were to perish: then, from his experiences, the observer would be able to create a new world.
In contemplating the world one continually sees the interaction of the three Logoi. Let us form within the framework of our planetary system, a mental picture of the working of the three Logoi in regard to man. Let us think of the very beginnings of the Saturn evolution, when as yet nothing at all was there. What is it that then happens? Then everything that was present previously drips down as it were. All the things that were there earlier stream out. What arises in this way is to become the very first outpouring of substance from the sum of earlier experiences. Therein is contained the substance out of which man developed later,. This substance is to begin with simply there as substance. This out streaming must then be continually worked upon and combined together. The combining of the out streaming substance is a new creation. This is above all a creative activity of the Third Logos. It happens after the out streaming of substance and therefore is a creative activity of the third Logos.
What does this signify for man? For man it signifies that in the first place all the parts are combined which then form his physical body. At that time, on Saturn, the human being was a veritable automaton. If one had spoken a word into him, he would have spoken it out again. Forms of beings are fashioned. This is called the work of the Third Logos and it continues into the Sun epoch, when man also receives his etheric body and with it life. This is the work of the Second Logos. Now let us continue into the Earth Epoch. There man himself acquires a consciousness, that is to say, the possibility of gathering experiences out of nothingness. This is the work of the First Logos. On Saturn man received from the Third Logos what in him is form. On the Sun he received what in him is life from the Second Logos. On the Earth he received what in him is consciousness, from the First Logos.
The concept of consciousness must become a little clearer to us. We must work out fully the concept of consciousness on a particular plane. Man is conscious, but we have to know where his consciousness is. Now he is conscious on the physical plane when we are speaking about waking consciousness. But waking consciousness could also be on the astral plane. When in the case of a creature, life is on the physical plane and consciousness is on the astral plane, then this creature is an animal.
In human beings, thinking is localised in the head. With the animal, for instance the tiger, consciousness is on the astral plane. Outside the head what may be called a focal point is formed through which the tiger is affected. When the tiger feels pain this goes over on to the astral plane. With the tiger the organ for this is in front of the head, at the place where the brow is in the case of man. With man this place is already enclosed within the head and it is filled with the frontal brain; consciousness has been imprisoned through the brain and the front part of the skull and is therefore on the physical plane. In the case of the tiger, and indeed of all animals, the focal point of consciousness lies in front of the head, in the astral: from there it goes into the astral world. In the case of the plant things are again different. Could we follow its consciousness, going from above downwards, we would always come out at the tip of the root. If then we were to follow the line of growth, we would come to the centre of the earth. There is the collecting point of all the sensations, the suction point of the consciousness of the plant. It is in direct connection with the mental world. The entire plant world has its consciousness on the mental plane.
The consciousness of the entire mineral world is in the highest regions of the Mental World, on the Arupa plane. The consciousness of stones is such that if we wished to seek its focus we should find it as a kind of Sun-atmosphere. When on the Earth we work upon the mineral world, when we break stones, each single action is in a certain relationship to this Sun-atmosphere. There one perceives the work that man does here. Thus we have a range of beings on the physical plane whose consciousness however lies on different planes.
Human beings and animals differ from each other through the fact that they have their consciousness on different planes. Now there are also other beings besides minerals, plants, animals and human beings. There are beings who have their consciousness on the physical plane and their body in the astral. Such a being is, as it were, an animal in reverse. Such beings actually exist; they are the elemental beings. In order to make their nature comprehensible let us be clear about what belongs to the physical plane.
Physical is: Firstly the solid earth, secondly water, thirdly air, fourthly ether (warmth ether, light ether, chemical ether, life ether). Let us keep to the four lower forms of our physical plane and separate the etheric world from them.
States of consciousness can lie in all four forms of the physical plane while the body of such a being lies in the astral. We must think of the consciousness in the solid Earth, the body in the astral; or a being that has its consciousness in the water and its body in the astral; then such a being with its consciousness in the air and its body in the astral and one with its consciousness in fire and its body in the astral. Present-day man knows but little of such beings; in our time it is only through poetry that they are known. Miners (of minerals) however know such beings very well. A gnome is only visible to someone who can see on the astral plane, but miners frequently possess such an astral vision; they know that gnomes are realities. Thus, on our Earth there exist various forms of consciousness, and what the natural scientist today calls laws of nature are the thoughts of beings who think on the physical plane but have their bodies on the astral plane. When in physics we have to do with laws of nature we can say: these are the thoughts of a being who has its body on the astral plane. The forces of nature are creative beings and natural laws are their thoughts.
In the Middle Ages the alchemist tried to make use of these spirits. Goethe knew this very well; Faust wished to have fire air; this was to be produced by the salamanders which have their body on the astral plane. Thus we have around us beings who actually have their consciousness in fire, to whom we cause pain when fire is kindled, for by so doing we actually cause a certain alteration in the body of the being in question on the astral plane. When one kindles fire one alters this astral being. In the same way when one brings about alterations in other spheres of the elements and the forces of Nature one alters something in these astral beings. When we do this or that we are continuously peopling the astral plane. If we think these thoughts through clearly, we have the meaning of church ritual: that is, not to make use of any kind of substances on the physical plane, except such as have meaning, whereby meaningful beings arise on the astral plane. When for instance one kindles the smoke of incense one does something which has purpose; one burns a particular substance and creates beings of a particular kind. When one passes a sword through the air in four directions one creates a definite kind of being.
It is the same with the priest, when he makes definite movements with his hands, to accompany definite sounds o, i, u, intensified by repetition: Dominus vobiscum. The sound is regular, the air is brought into definite vibrations intensified by definite movements of the hand, and a sylph is called into existence. Sign, grip and word of the freemasons also bring about definite forms which manifest in accordance with definite laws in the physical world. Through a purposeful use of these words a link is formed from one person to another, one is enwrapped in an astral substance which is created through sign, grip and word.
Naturally man continually does all this in ordinary life, but he does it in an unsystematic way, creating contradictory beings. Art consists in working harmoniously upwards from the physical to higher planes. In rituals, through definite acts, the aim is to produce not contradictory but harmonious beings. At present man is not in a position to bring these things into harmony. But for everything man creates in this way on the astral plane there are certain directing beings. So we have a world of elemental beings around us with a king. Among the Indians the king of the gnomes is called Kshiti, the highest of the gnomes; the highest being among the undines: Varuna; the highest being among the sylphs: Vayu, and everything having its consciousness in fire is directed by the king of fire: Agni. In all activity connected with fire, water and so on we have to do with these particular Deva-beings. All the fire we have here on Earth is the substance that is woven out of the beings which belong to Agni. Ceremonial magic is the lowest kind of sorcery and consists in making use of certain specially devised tricks on the physical plane in order to create definite forms and beings on the astral plane. Schools exist today in which ceremonial magic is still exercised. Such usages cause great attraction towards the astral world and very frequently result in suicide, because then a person is almost exclusively active in the astral world and has become unaccustomed to using the physical world for its rightful purpose. He has developed a partiality for the other world and the physical body is often a hindrance.
Now you will also comprehend the connection with fire worship which has appeared in the history of religion. The followers of Zarathustra sought, through the sacrificial fire of the priests, actually to create definite forms on the astral plane. On the Earth today everything takes place physically. But from what has been said, one can see that astral beings are continually created under the influence of our deeds. All deeds are accompanied by astral beings. These are our Skandas which bring about our Karma. But also all physical deeds leave astral beings behind on the astral plane. For instance Cologne cathedral corresponds to a definite being on the astral plane. Through everything that happens on the Earth, when all physical matter is worked over and the Earth has dissolved, through this the next astral Globe will arise of itself. It will simply be there as astral beings, as the effects of all the earlier physical processes. This is why man must continually work with Karma. In his next life he must put right again the grotesque astral beings that he has bungled, otherwise they would produce meaningless creatures for the next Globe. This is Karma that he must rectify. What takes place on a large scale on the Earth, takes place in a small way in man. Let us think of a child. He is wrongly brought up, spoiled with sweets and so on. This not only brings about processes in the physical body but continually imparts them to the astral, so that in fact the astral body also is changed. What one gives physically to the infant goes over into his astral body, it is present in the shape of definite forms. What is thus worked in, is however gradually worked out again. In advanced age the sins against the child take their revenge. These sins remain throughout the whole life and have great importance particularly in the final years. After the middle period a sort of reversal takes place; the astral then works into the physical plane.
In childhood the foundation of what man will have in old age is implanted into the astral. When a person perceives how he has been sinned against and works upon himself with this in view, then he can eliminate the damage in the astral body, otherwise he will break down in old age under the weaknesses of his childhood. Only what man works into it consciously has a balancing effect on the astral body. If later in life the opposite qualities are not called up consciously, one cannot rid oneself of the failings.
XXVI
Der Gang der Entwickelung in der Welt tritt uns in drei Stufen entgegen: in Bewußtsein, Leben und Form. Das Bewußtsein in seinen verschiedenen Arten drückt sich aus in den sieben Planeten: Saturn, Sonne, Mond, Erde, Jupiter, Venus, Vulkan. Auf jedem Planeten geht es durch sieben Lebensteiche, und jedes Lebensreich geht durch sieben Formzustände.
Unsere physische Erde ist ein solcher Formzustand, der vierte Formzustand oder Globus in dem vierten Lebensreiche des vierten Planeten oder Bewußtseinszustandes. Wir denken uns nun die Erde, wie sie jetzt ist und fragen uns: Was tun wir hier? - Wir nehmen die Gegenstände draußen im Raume, zunächst im Mineralreiche, und bilden daraus Kunstwerke. Da kombinieren wir; wir bilden aus Einzelheiten ein Ganzes. Dies ist ein Schaffen innerhalb der Form. Nun kann noch auf andere Weise etwas Neues entstehen, nämlich auf ähnliche Art wie zum Beispiel aus einer Pflanzenwurzel Stengel, Blätter und Blüten entstehen. Diese Blüte setzt man nicht zusammen wie eine Maschine, durch Kombination, sondern sie muß hervorwachsen aus dem, was schon da ist. Das ist ein Vorgang innerhalb des Lebens. Aus dem, was da ist, wird etwas Neues geschaffen.
Bei der dritten Art der Hervorbringung, bei derjenigen aus dem Bewußtsein, geht etwas hervor auf solche Weise, daß wir sagen können: Es war vorher im Grunde genommen eigentlich nichts da — ein Nichts.
Versetzen wir uns an den Uranfang einer solchen planetarischen Entwickelung, ganz an den Anfang der Saturnentwickelung. Was haben wir da zu beobachten? Es war noch kein physischer Planet da, nicht einmal in der feinsten Arupaform war ein Planet vorhanden, sondern wir sind da noch vor dem Augenblicke, wo der Saturn im ersten Anfange da ist. Da ist von unserer Planetenkette noch gar nichts vorhanden; wohl aber die ganze Frucht der vorhergehenden Planetenkette ist da, so ähnlich, wie wenn wir am Morgen aufwachen, noch nichts getan haben und lediglich die Erinnerung an das, was wir am vorherigen Tage getan haben, in unserem Geiste enthalten ist. So haben wir - wenn wir uns so ganz in den Anfang der Saturnentwickelung versetzen - in den sich offenbarenden Geistern die Erinnerung an eine vorherige Planetenkette, an das, was vorher gewesen ist.
Nun versetzen wir uns an das Ende der Planetenkette, in die Zeit, da die Vulkanstufe zu Ende geht. Während der Planetenkette ist nach und nach als Schöpfung zutage getreten, was an Anlage am Anfange vorhanden war. Wir haben also zuerst einen Ausfluß des Bewußtseins; aus dem Inhalt des Früheren heraus, aus der Erinnerung heraus schafft das Bewußtsein das Neue. Es ist am Ende also etwas da, was am Anfange nicht da war: nämlich alle Erfahrungen. Was am Anfange da war, ist herausgeflossen in lauter Dinge und Wesenheiten. Ein neues Bewußtsein ist am Ende entstanden mit einem neuen Inhalt, ein neuer Bewußtseinsinhalt. Es ist etwas, was aus dem Nichts hervorgegangen ist, aus Erfahrungen. Wenn wir das Erneuern im Leben betrachten, müssen wir uns sagen, es muß ein Same da sein, der das möglich macht. Aber der neue Bewußtseinsinhalt am Ende einer planetarischen Entwickelung ist tatsächlich aus dem Nichts hervorgegangen, aus Erfahrungen; dazu braucht man keine Grundlagen, es schafft etwas, was aus dem Nichts entsteht. Man kann nicht sagen, wenn eine Persönlichkeit die andere anschaut, sie habe der anderen etwas entzogen, wenn sie in der Folge die Erinnerung an die andere Persönlichkeit in sich trägt. Diese Erinnerung ist aus dem Nichts hervorgegangen. Das ist eine dritte Art des Schaffens: aus dem Nichts heraus. Die drei Arten des Schaffens sind also folgende:
Kombinieren der vorhandenen Teile (Form)
Hervorgehenlassen neuer Gebilde mit neuem Lebensinhalt aus vorhandenen Grundlagen (Leben)
Schaffen aus dem Nichts heraus (Bewußtsein).
Es sind dies drei Definitionen von Wesenheiten, die eine Planetenkette hervorbringen, einer planetarischen Kette zugrunde liegen. Man nennt sie die drei Logoi. Der dritte Logos bringt aus der Kombination hervor. Wenn aus der einen Substanz etwas anderes hervorgeht mit neuem Leben, so ist das der zweite Logos, der hervorbringt. Überall aber, wo wir ein Hervorgehen haben aus dem Nichts, da haben wir den ersten Logos. Daher nennt man den ersten Logos oft auch das in den Dingen selbst Verborgene, den zweiten Logos die in den Dingen ruhende Substanz, die Lebendiges aus Lebendigem schafft, den dritten Logos den, der alles Vorhandene kombiniert, aus den Dingen die Welt zusammensetzt.
Diese drei Logoi gehen in der Welt immer durch- und ineinander. Der erste Logos erfährt auch die innere Weisheit und auch den Willen. Im Schaffen des ersten Logos ist Erfahrung, das heißt, Gedankensammeln aus dem Nichts und dann wieder Schaffen nach den Gedanken aus dem Nichts. Die Schöpfung aus dem Nichts ist aber nicht so gemeint, als ob gar nichts dagewesen wäre, sondern daß im Laufe der Entwickelung Erfahrungen gemacht werden und daß im Laufe des Werdens Neues geschaffen wird, daß das, was da ist, gleichsam abschmilzt und aus der Erfahrung heraus Neues geschaffen wird.
Diese Schöpfung geschieht vergleichsweise so: Jemand sieht einen anderen Menschen an und merkt sich das Bild. Wäre er schöpferisch begabt wie der erste Logos, dann könnte er sich folgendes sagen: Ja, ich habe NN gesehen und ich kenne auch den Begriff des umgekehrten NN. Ich kann mir auch ein negatives Bild von ihm machen: Also statt wo Schwarz ist, Weiß und umgekehrt. So hat er aus der Erfahrung des Objekts und dessen Negativs ein vollständig neues Gebilde geschaffen. Dies könnte er mit Leben begaben. Es wäre ein neues Gebilde, das früher nicht da war. Nehmen wir nun an, jemand macht dieses so mit vielen Menschen und die vielen Menschen würden zugrunde gehen, so würde der Beobachter nach seinen Erfahrungen eine neue Welt schaffen können.
Indem man die Welt betrachtet, sieht man fortwährend die drei Logoi ineinanderwirken. Wir wollen uns innerhalb unseres Planetensystems das Wirken der drei Logoi in bezug auf den Menschen vorstellen. Denken wir uns den Punkt des Anfanges der Saturnentwickelung, als noch nichts da war. Was geschieht da? Da wird alles, was vorher vorhanden war, gleichsam wie ausgeträufelt. Alle Dinge, die vorher da waren, werden ausgeströmt. Was auf diese Weise entsteht, das würde die allererste Stoffergießung sein aus der Summe der Erfahrungen von früher. Alles was früher aufgenommen worden ist, wird in Form von Stoff ausgeströmt. Darin ist auch der Stoff enthalten, aus dem später die Menschheit entsteht. Dieser Stoff ist zunächst bloß als Stoff da. Diese Ausströomung muß dann fortwährend aufgebaut, zusammenkombiniert werden. Diese Kombination des ausgeströmten Stoffes ist eine neue Schöpfung. Das ist zunächst ein Schaffen des dritten Logos; nach der Ausströmung des Stoffes also ein Schaffen des dritten Logos.
Was bedeutet das nun für den Menschen? Für den Menschen bedeutet das nun, daß zunächst alle die Teile zusammenkombiniert werden, die dann seinen physischen Körper bilden. Der Mensch war damals, auf dem Saturn, ein richtiger Automat. Wenn man damals in ihn ein Wort hineingesprochen hätte, hätte er es wieder herausgesprochen. Formen der Wesen werden gebildet. Dies nennt man die Arbeit des dritten Logos und sie dauert bis in die Sonnenzeit hinein, in der der Mensch dann auch den Ätherkörper, das Leben bekommt. Dies ist die Arbeit des zweiten Logos. Nun gehen wir weiter bis in die Erdenzeit. Da bekommt der Mensch selbst ein Bewußtsein, das heißt die Möglichkeit, Erfahrungen zu sammeln aus dem Nichts heraus. Dies ist die Arbeit des ersten Logos. Der Mensch auf dem Saturn erhält das, was Form in ihm ist, von dem dritten Logos. Der Mensch auf der Sonne erhält das, was Leben in ihm ist, von dem zweiten Logos. Der Mensch auf der Erde erhält das, was Bewußtsein in ihm wird, von dem ersten Logos.
Der Begriff des Bewußtseins muß uns noch ein wenig klarer werden. Wir müssen uns dazu vollständig herausarbeiten den Begriff des Bewußtseins auf einem bestimmten Plan. Der Mensch ist bewußt, aber es handelt sich darum, zu wissen, wo sein Bewußtsein ist. Der Mensch ist jetzt bewußt auf dem physischen Plan, wenn wir von dem Wachbewußtsein sprechen. Aber das Wachbewußtsein könnte ja auch auf dem Astralplan sein. Wenn bei einem Geschöpf das Leben auf dem physischen Plan und das Bewußtsein auf dem Astralplan ist, so ist das ein Tier.
Beim Menschen ist das Bewußtsein im Kopfe lokalisiert. Beim Tier, zum Beispiel beim Tiger, ist das Bewußtsein auf dem Astralplan. Es schafft sich außerhalb des Kopfes einen gewissen Angriffspunkt, durch den es auf den Tiger wirkt. Wenn der Tiger Schmerz empfindet, dann geht der Schmerz auch über auf den Astralplan. Das Organ dafür ist bei dem Tiger vor dem Kopfe, an der Stelle, wo beim Menschen die Stirne ist. Beim Menschen ist der Punkt bereits in den Kopf eingeschlossen und mit dem Vorderhirn ausgefüllt; es ist das Bewußtsein eingefangen worden durch das Gehirn und den Vorderschädel und ist daher auf dem physischen Plan. Bei dem Tiger und überhaupt bei allen Tieren liegt der Knotenpunkt des Bewußtseins vor dem Kopfe, im Astralen, da geht es in die Astralwelt hinein. Bei der Pflanze ist es wiederum anders. Wenn wir ihr Bewußtsein verfolgen könnten, würden wir, von oben nach unten gehend, immer an der Wurzelspitze herauskommen. Wenn wir dann die Linie des Wachstums verfolgen, so würden wir an den Mittelpunkt der Erde kommen. Da ist der Sammelpunkt aller Empfindungen, der Aufsaugepunkt des Bewußtseins der Pflanzen. Er steht direkt in Verbindung mit der mentalen Welt. Die gesamte Pflanzenwelt hat ihr Bewußtsein im Mentalen.
Bei der gesamten mineralischen Welt ist das Bewußtsein auf den höchsten Gebieten der Mentalwelt, auf dem Arupaplan. Die Steine haben ihr Bewußtsein so, daß wenn wir den Punkt suchen wollten, wir ihn wie eine Art Sonnenatmosphäre finden würden. Wenn wir auf der Erde die mineralische Welt bearbeiten, Steine klopfen, steht jede einzelne Tat zu dieser Sonnenatmosphäre in einer gewissen Beziehung. Dort spürt man, was der Mensch hier arbeitet. Da haben wir also eine Reihe von Wesenheiten auf dem physischen Plan, deren Bewußtsein aber auf verschiedenen Planen liegt.
Menschen und Tiere unterscheiden sich dadurch, daß sie ihr Bewußtsein auf verschiedenen Planen haben. Es gibt nun auch noch andere Wesen als Mineralien, Pflanzen, Tiere und Menschen. Es gibt Wesen, die ihr Bewußtsein im Physischen haben und ihren Körper im Astralen. Ein solches Wesen ist sozusagen das umgekehrte Tier. Solche Wesen gibt es wirklich, es sind die Elementarwesen. Machen wir uns zu ihrem Verständnis klar, was zum physischen Plan gehört.
Physisch ist: Erstens die feste Erde, zweitens Wasser, drittens Luft, viertens Äther (Wärmeäther, Lichtäther, chemischer Äther, Lebensäther). Bleiben wir bei den vier unteren Formen unseres physischen Planes, scheiden wir die ätherische Welt davon ab.
In allen vier Formen des physischen Planes können Bewußtseine liegen, während der Körper eines solchen Wesens im Astralen liegt. Man denke sich das Bewußtsein in der festen Erde, den Körper im Astralen; oder ein Wesen, das im Wasser sein Bewußtsein hat, und dessen Körper im Astralen ist; dann ein solches mit dem Bewußtsein in der Luft und dem Körper im Astralen; und eines mit dem Bewußtsein im Feuer und dem Körper im Astralen. Die heutige Menschheit weiß nicht viel von diesen Wesen, man kennt sie in unserer Zeit nur durch die Poesie. Die Bergleute aber kennen solche Wesen sehr gut. Ein Gnom ist nur wahrnehmbar für den, der auf dem astralen Plan schauen kann, aber Bergleute besitzen manchmal ein solches astrales Schauen, sie wissen, daß Gnomen Wirklichkeiten sind. So sind in unserer Erde eigentlich Bewußtseine vorhanden, und was der Naturforscher heute Naturgesetze nennt, das sind die Gedanken von Wesenheiten, die auf dem physischen Plan denken, aber ihren Körper auf dem Astralplan haben. Wenn in der Physik etwas von einem Naturgesetz steht, so können wir uns sagen: das sind Gedanken eines Wesens, das auf dem Astralplan seinen Körper hat. Die Naturkräfte sind schaffende Wesenheiten und die Naturgesetze sind ihre Gedanken.
Im Mittelalter versuchte der Alchimist, sich die Geister dienstbar zu machen. Goethe hat das recht gut gewußt; Faust will Feuerluft haben; da soll der Salamander hervorgehen, der auf dem Astralplan seinen Körper hat. Wir haben also um uns Wesenheiten, die tatsächlich im Feuer ihr Bewußtsein haben, denen wir Schmerz verursachen, wenn wir Feuer anzünden, denn dadurch verursacht man eine gewisse Veränderung des betreffenden Körpers der Wesenheit auf dem Astralplan. Wenn man Licht anzündet, verändert man diese astrale Wesenheit. Ebenso wenn man auf anderen Gebieten der Elemente und der Naturkräfte Veränderungen hervorbringt, verändert man etwas an diesen astralen Wesenheiten. Wir bevölkern den Astralplan fortwährend mit Wesenheiten, indem wir dies oder jenes tun. Denken wir uns diesen Gedanken klar aus, dann haben wir den Sinn der kirchlichen Zeremonie: nämlich nicht beliebige Dinge vorzunehmen auf dem physischen Plan, sondern solche, die sinnvoll sind, wodurch sinnvolle Wesenheiten auf dem Astralplan entstehen. Wenn man zum Beispiel mit Weihrauch räuchert, macht man etwas Planvolles; man verbrennt bestimmte Stoffe und schafft Wesenheiten von einer bestimmten Sorte. Wenn man ein Schwert nach vier Seiten durch die Luft führt, schafft man ein bestimmtes Wesen. Ebenso der Priester, wenn er bestimmte Handbewegungen macht bei bestimmten Lauten, wie zum Beispiel bei 0, i, u, verstärkt durch die Wiederholung: Dominus vobiscum. Der Klang ist regelmäßig angeordnet, die Luft wird in bestimmte Erschütterungen gebracht, die dadurch verstärkt werden, daß man bestimmte Handbewegungen macht, und es wird eine Sylphe hervorgerufen. Auch Zeichen, Griff und Wort der Freimaurer bringen bestimmte Gebilde hervor, die eine Gesetzmäßigkeit in der physischen Welt ausdrücken. Durch planvolles Gebrauchen dieser Worte schafft man ein Band vom einen zum anderen, man hüllt sich ein in eine astrale Materie, die durch Zeichen, Griff und Wort geschaffen worden ist.
Der Mensch tut das alles natürlich auch im gewöhnlichen Leben fortwährend, aber da tut er es unsystematisch, er schafft sich widersprechende Wesenheiten. Die Kunst besteht darin, vom physischen Plan auf höhere harmonisch hinaufzuwirken. In den Kultuszeremonien sollen durch bestimmte Handlungen nicht widersprechende, sondern harmonische Wesenheiten erschaffen werden. Der Mensch ist zunächst nicht imstande, diese Dinge in Harmonie zu bringen. Aber für alles, was der Mensch so schafft auf dem Astralplan, gibt es gewisse dirigierende Wesenheiten. So haben wir eine Welt von Elementarwesen um uns mit einem König. Bei den Indern werden genannt der König der Gnomen: Kshiti, der alleroberste Gnom; das oberste Wesen unter den Undinen: Varuna; das oberste Wesen unter den Sylphen: Vayu; und alles, was im Feuer sein Bewußtsein hat, wird dirigiert durch den König des Feuers: Agni. Bei allem Feuer- und Wasserwirken und so weiter haben wir es zu tun mit diesen bestimmten Devawesenheiten. Alles Feuer, das wir hier auf der Erde haben, ist der Stoff, der aus den Wesen, die zu Agni gehören, gewoben ist. Zeremonielle Magie ist die niedrigste Art der Zauberei und besteht darin, daß man sich gewisse Kunstgriffe aneignet auf dem physischen Plane, um bestimmte Gebilde und Wesenheiten auf dem Astralplan zu schaffen. Es gibt Schulen, in denen zeremonielle Magie heute noch getrieben wird. Ein solches Treiben verursacht einen großen Hang zur Astralwelt und bewirkt sehr häufig Selbstmord, weil dann der Mensch fast nur in der astralen Welt tätig ist und sich abgewöhnt hat, die physische Welt um ihrer selbst willen zu nehmen. Er hat den Hang zur anderen Welt ausgebildet und der physische Körper ist ihm dann oft hinderlich.
Nun werden Sie auch den Zusammenhang mit dem Feuerdienst begreifen, der in der Religionsgeschichte hervorgetreten ist. Die Anhänger des Zarathustra versuchten, durch das Feueropfer der Priester gewisse Gebilde auf dem astralen Plane tatsächlich zu schaffen. Auf der Erdkugel geht jetzt alles physisch vor sich. Aber man kann aus dem Gesagten sehen, daß sich fortwährend astrale Wesenheiten bilden unter dem Einflusse unserer Taten. Alle Handlungen sind begleitet von astralen Wesenheiten. Das sind unsere Skandhas, die unser Karma vollziehen. Aber auch alle physischen Tatsachen lassen astrale Wesenheiten im Astralen zurück. So zum Beispiel entspricht auch dem Kölner Dom eine ganz bestimmte Wesenheit auf dem Astralplan. Durch alles, was auf der Erde geschieht, wenn alle physische Materie umgearbeitet ist und die Erde sich auflöst, wird von selbst der nächste astrale Globus gebildet. Er ist einfach da als die astralen Wesenheiten, als die Wirkungen aller früheren physischen Vorgänge. Darum muß der Mensch fortwährend im Karma wirken. Er muß die grotesken astralen Wesenheiten, die er verpfuscht hat, im nächsten Leben wieder zurechtbringen, sonst wären diese als sinnlose Geschöpfe für den nächsten Globus da. Das ist Karma, das der Mensch ausbessern muß. Was da im Großen vorgeht auf der Erde, das geht beim Menschen auch im Kleinen vor. Man denke sich ein Kind. Man erzieht es falsch, man verzieht es durch Leckereien und so weiter. Das zieht nicht nur Vorgänge im physischen Körper nach sich, sondern das teilt sich dem Astralen fortwährend mit, so daß man tatsächlich den Astralkörper mitverändert. Was man dem Säugling beibringt, physisch, das geht in seinen Astralkörper über, das ist da in Form von bestimmten Gebilden vorhanden. Was so hineingearbeitet ist, wird aber stufenweise wieder herausgearbeitet. In der Zeit des höheren Alters rächen sich die Sünden, die an dem Kinde begangen worden sind. Diese Sünden bleiben durch die ganze Lebenszeit hindurch und sind von großer Wichtigkeit gerade für den letzten Lebensabschnitt des Menschen. Nach dem mittleren Zeitpunkt des Lebens geschieht eine Art von Umkehr; das Astrale wirkt dann in den physischen Plan hinein. Der Mensch legt in der Kindheit im Astralen den Grund zu dem, was er im Alter haben wird. Wenn der Mensch einsieht, was an ihm gesündigt worden ist und er daraufhin an sich selbst arbeitet, dann kann er die Schäden im Astralleib wieder ausmerzen, sonst wird er im Alter unter denselben Schwächen seiner Kindheit zusammenbrechen. Auf den Astralkörper wirkt aber nur dasjenige ausgleichend, was man bewußt hineinarbeitet. Wenn man später nicht bewußt die entgegengesetzten Eigenschaften hervorruft, kann man die Fehler nicht ablegen.
XXVI
The course of development in the world presents itself to us in three stages: in consciousness, life, and form. Consciousness in its various forms is expressed in the seven planets: Saturn, Sun, Moon, Earth, Jupiter, Venus, Vulcan. On each planet, it passes through seven life pools, and each life realm passes through seven states of form.
Our physical Earth is such a state of form, the fourth state of form or globe in the fourth realm of life of the fourth planet or state of consciousness. We now think of the Earth as it is now and ask ourselves: What are we doing here? We take the objects outside in space, first in the mineral kingdom, and form works of art from them. We combine; we form a whole out of details. This is creation within form. Now, something new can also arise in another way, namely in a similar way to how, for example, stems, leaves, and flowers arise from a plant root. This flower is not assembled like a machine, through combination, but must grow out of what is already there. This is a process within life. Something new is created from what is already there.
In the third type of creation, that which arises from consciousness, something emerges in such a way that we can say: basically, there was nothing there before — a void.
Let us place ourselves at the very beginning of such a planetary development, at the very beginning of Saturn's development. What do we observe there? There was no physical planet yet, not even in the finest arupa form was a planet present, but we are still before the moment when Saturn first came into being. Nothing of our planetary chain exists yet; but the entire fruit of the previous planetary chain is there, similar to when we wake up in the morning, have done nothing yet, and only the memory of what we did the previous day is contained in our mind. So when we place ourselves at the very beginning of Saturn's development, we have in the revealing spirits the memory of a previous planetary chain, of what has been before.
Now let us place ourselves at the end of the planetary chain, at the time when the volcanic stage is coming to an end. During the planetary chain, what was present at the beginning gradually came to light as creation. So first we have an outflow of consciousness; from the content of the past, from memory, consciousness creates the new. So at the end there is something that was not there at the beginning: namely, all experiences. What was there at the beginning has flowed out into all kinds of things and beings. A new consciousness has emerged at the end with new content, a new content of consciousness. It is something that has come out of nothing, out of experiences. When we consider renewal in life, we must tell ourselves that there must be a seed that makes this possible. But the new content of consciousness at the end of a planetary development has actually emerged from nothing, from experiences; no foundations are needed for this, it creates something that arises from nothing. When one personality looks at another, one cannot say that it has taken something from the other if it subsequently carries the memory of the other personality within itself. This memory has emerged from nothing. This is a third type of creation: out of nothing. The three types of creation are therefore as follows:
Combining existing parts (form)
Allowing new structures with new content to emerge from existing foundations (life)
Creating out of nothing (consciousness).
These are three definitions of entities that produce a planetary chain, which underlie a planetary chain. They are called the three Logoi. The third Logos brings forth from the combination. When something else emerges from one substance with new life, it is the second Logos that brings it forth. But wherever we have something emerging from nothing, we have the first Logos. Therefore, the first Logos is often called that which is hidden in things themselves, the second Logos the substance resting in things, which creates living things from living things, and the third Logos that which combines everything that exists, composing the world from things.
These three Logoi always pass through and into each other in the world. The first Logos also experiences inner wisdom and will. In the creation of the first Logos there is experience, that is, gathering thoughts from nothingness and then creating again according to the thoughts from nothingness. However, creation from nothing does not mean that nothing existed before, but rather that experiences are gained in the course of development and that new things are created in the course of becoming, that what is there melts away, as it were, and new things are created from experience.
This creation happens comparatively as follows: Someone looks at another person and remembers the image. If he were creatively gifted like the first Logos, he could say to himself: Yes, I have seen NN and I also know the concept of the reverse NN. I can also form a negative image of him: So instead of where there is black, there is white and vice versa. In this way, he has created a completely new entity from the experience of the object and its negative. He could bring this to life. It would be a new entity that did not exist before. Now let us assume that someone does this with many people and the many people would perish, then the observer would be able to create a new world based on his experiences.
When we look at the world, we constantly see the three Logoi interacting. Let us imagine the workings of the three Logoi in relation to human beings within our planetary system. Let us think of the point at the beginning of Saturn's development, when nothing existed yet. What happens there? Everything that existed before is, as it were, poured out. Everything that was there before is poured out. What emerges in this way would be the very first pouring out of matter from the sum of previous experiences. Everything that was previously absorbed is poured out in the form of matter. This also contains the matter from which humanity will later emerge. This matter is initially present only as matter. This outpouring must then be continuously built up and combined. This combination of the outflowing substance is a new creation. This is initially a creation of the third Logos; after the outflow of the substance, it is therefore a creation of the third Logos.
What does this mean for humans? For humans, it means that first all the parts are combined to form their physical body. At that time, on Saturn, humans were true automatons. If you had spoken a word to them, they would have repeated it. Forms of beings are created. This is called the work of the third Logos and it continues into the Sun period, when human beings also receive their etheric body, their life. This is the work of the second Logos. Now we move on to the Earth period. Here, human beings themselves receive consciousness, that is, the ability to gather experiences out of nothingness. This is the work of the first Logos. Human beings on Saturn receive what is form within them from the third Logos. Human beings on the sun receive what is life within them from the second Logos. Human beings on earth receive what becomes consciousness within them from the first Logos.
The concept of consciousness must become a little clearer to us. To do this, we must work out the concept of consciousness on a specific plane. Man is conscious, but the question is to know where his consciousness is. Man is now conscious on the physical plane, when we speak of waking consciousness. But waking consciousness could also be on the astral plane. If a creature's life is on the physical plane and its consciousness is on the astral plane, then it is an animal.
In humans, consciousness is located in the head. In animals, for example in tigers, consciousness is on the astral plane. It creates a certain point of attack outside the head through which it acts on the tiger. When the tiger feels pain, the pain is also transferred to the astral plane. The organ for this in the tiger is located in front of the head, where the forehead is in humans. In humans, this point is already enclosed in the head and filled with the forebrain; consciousness has been captured by the brain and the front of the skull and is therefore on the physical plane. In the tiger, and in all animals in general, the junction of consciousness is located in front of the head, in the astral plane, where it enters the astral world. In plants, it is different again. If we could follow their consciousness, we would always end up at the tip of the root, going from top to bottom. If we then follow the line of growth, we would arrive at the center of the earth. This is the gathering point of all sensations, the absorption point of plant consciousness. It is directly connected to the mental world. The entire plant world has its consciousness in the mental realm.
In the entire mineral world, consciousness is in the highest realms of the mental world, on the Arupa plane. Stones have their consciousness in such a way that if we wanted to find the point, we would find it as a kind of solar atmosphere. When we work with the mineral world on earth, chipping stones, every single action has a certain relationship to this solar atmosphere. There, one can sense what human beings are working on here. So we have a series of beings on the physical plane whose consciousness, however, lies on different planes.
Humans and animals differ in that they have their consciousness on different planes. There are also other beings besides minerals, plants, animals, and humans. There are beings who have their consciousness in the physical and their bodies in the astral. Such a being is, so to speak, the reverse of an animal. Such beings really exist; they are the elemental beings. To understand them, let us clarify what belongs to the physical plane.
Physical means: first, solid earth; second, water; third, air; fourth, ether (heat ether, light ether, chemical ether, life ether). Let us stick to the four lower forms of our physical plane and separate the etheric world from it.
Consciousness can reside in all four forms of the physical plane, while the body of such a being resides in the astral plane. Imagine consciousness in the solid earth and the body in the astral plane; or a being whose consciousness is in water and whose body is in the astral plane; then one with consciousness in the air and the body in the astral; and one with consciousness in fire and the body in the astral. Today's humanity does not know much about these beings; in our time, they are known only through poetry. Miners, however, know such beings very well. A gnome is only perceptible to those who can see on the astral plane, but miners sometimes possess such astral vision; they know that gnomes are real. Thus, there are actually consciousnesses present in our earth, and what natural scientists today call laws of nature are the thoughts of beings who think on the physical plane but have their bodies on the astral plane. When physics refers to a law of nature, we can say to ourselves: these are the thoughts of a being that has its body on the astral plane. The forces of nature are creative beings, and the laws of nature are their thoughts.
In the Middle Ages, alchemists tried to make spirits serve them. Goethe knew this quite well; Faust wants to have fire air; this is where the salamander, which has its body on the astral plane, is supposed to emerge. So we have beings around us who actually have their consciousness in fire, and we cause them pain when we light a fire, because this causes a certain change in the body of the being on the astral plane. When you light a light, you change this astral being. Similarly, when you bring about changes in other areas of the elements and forces of nature, you change something in these astral beings. We constantly populate the astral plane with beings by doing this or that. If we think this through clearly, we understand the meaning of church ceremonies: namely, not to do arbitrary things on the physical plane, but things that are meaningful, thereby creating meaningful beings on the astral plane. For example, when one burns incense, one is doing something purposeful; one burns certain substances and creates beings of a certain kind. When one swings a sword through the air in four directions, one creates a certain being. Similarly, when a priest makes certain hand movements while uttering certain sounds, such as 0, i, u, reinforced by repetition: Dominus vobiscum. The sound is arranged in a regular pattern, the air is set into specific vibrations, which are reinforced by making certain hand movements, and a sylph is conjured up. The signs, gestures, and words of the Freemasons also produce certain structures that express a lawfulness in the physical world. Through the deliberate use of these words, one creates a bond from one to the other, enveloping oneself in astral matter created by signs, gestures, and words.
Of course, humans do all this continuously in everyday life, but they do so unsystematically, creating contradictory entities. The art lies in working upwards from the physical plane to higher harmonies. In cult ceremonies, certain actions are intended to create harmonious entities rather than contradictory ones. At first, humans are incapable of bringing these things into harmony. But for everything that humans create on the astral plane, there are certain directing entities. Thus we have a world of elemental beings around us with a king. The Indians name the king of the gnomes: Kshiti, the highest gnome; the highest being among the undines: Varuna; the highest being among the sylphs: Vayu; and everything that has consciousness in fire is directed by the king of fire: Agni. In all fire and water activities and so on, we are dealing with these particular devas. All the fire we have here on earth is the substance woven from the beings that belong to Agni. Ceremonial magic is the lowest form of sorcery and consists of acquiring certain skills on the physical plane in order to create certain structures and beings on the astral plane. There are schools where ceremonial magic is still practiced today. Such practices cause a great inclination toward the astral world and very often lead to suicide, because the person is then almost exclusively active in the astral world and has lost the ability to appreciate the physical world for its own sake. They have developed an inclination toward the other world, and the physical body then often becomes a hindrance to them.
Now you will also understand the connection with the fire service that has emerged in the history of religion. The followers of Zarathustra attempted to actually create certain structures on the astral plane through the fire sacrifices of the priests. On the globe, everything now takes place physically. But from what has been said, we can see that astral beings are constantly being formed under the influence of our actions. All actions are accompanied by astral beings. These are our skandhas, which carry out our karma. But all physical facts also leave astral beings behind in the astral world. For example, Cologne Cathedral corresponds to a very specific being on the astral plane. Through everything that happens on Earth, when all physical matter has been reworked and the Earth dissolves, the next astral globe is formed automatically. It is simply there as the astral beings, as the effects of all previous physical processes. That is why human beings must constantly work on their karma. They must rectify the grotesque astral beings they have botched in their next life, otherwise these would be there as meaningless creatures for the next sphere. This is karma that human beings must repair. What happens on a large scale on Earth also happens on a small scale in human beings. Think of a child. It is brought up wrongly, spoiled with treats and so on. This not only has consequences for the physical body, but is also constantly communicated to the astral body, so that the astral body is actually changed as well. What is taught to the infant physically is transferred to its astral body, where it exists in the form of certain structures. However, what has been worked into it is gradually worked out again. In old age, the sins committed against the child take their revenge. These sins remain throughout the entire lifetime and are of great importance, especially for the last stage of a person's life. After the middle point of life, a kind of reversal takes place; the astral then works into the physical plane. In childhood, the human being lays the foundation in the astral for what he will have in old age. If the human being realizes what sins have been committed against him and then works on himself, he can eradicate the damage in the astral body; otherwise, he will collapse in old age under the same weaknesses of his childhood. However, only what one consciously works into the astral body has a balancing effect on it. If one does not consciously bring forth the opposite qualities later on, one cannot overcome one's faults.