The Rudolf Steiner Archive

27. The Interior of the Earth

[ 1 ] It is quite natural that students of spiritual science, under the impression of those tremendous natural events, the eruption of Vesuvius and the earthquake in America, should raise the question of the connection between the cosmic process of evolution on the one hand and human karma on the other. And indeed, it is tremendously interesting to examine and explain these recent events from the standpoint of occultism. In order to do this, it is necessary for the occultist not only to be trained in clairvoyance in the ordinary sense, but also to have undergone the second degree of initiation. It is a well-known fact in occult circles that the interior of the Earth is hidden from the view of the ordinary clairvoyant. It is relatively easy to be astral and devachanic clairvoyantly conscious. But in order to explore the interior of the Earth, a different kind of initiation is required.

[ 2 ] First, let me point out that modern man has only succeeded in penetrating the outermost shell of the Earth to a very shallow depth. They have barely reached a depth of two thousand meters. Everything else below that is beyond their power of perception. And they would indeed be extremely surprised or even confused if they were able to gain closer experience of the deeper layers of our Earth. It would confuse them because they would find things that only remotely resemble those we have on the Earth's surface. He would be at a loss for words to describe most of them, because the conditions of matter in the earth are completely different from those we know up here. He would be extremely astonished to see that the metal corresponding to our silver is liquid like mercury down there. The same is true of the other metals and minerals.

[ 3 ] The earth is now divided into seven different layers, and the exploration of these seven layers corresponds step by step to the seven different degrees of Christian initiation. They are: first, the washing of feet; second, the scourging; third, the crowning with thorns; fourth, the crucifixion; fifth, the mystical death on the cross; sixth, the burial; seventh, the resurrection.

[ 4 ] Accordingly, a person who has passed the first initiation would be able to pass through the outermost layer clairvoyantly in order to explore the second, and so on.

[ 5 ] The earth is thus divided into seven layers. The outermost layer, on which we live, is called the mineral earth in the language of the initiates. This and the following designations come from a great school of occultists. The medieval mystics, Rosicrucians, and others used the same designations.

[ 6 ] This mineral earth contains all the minerals known to us. Its layer is relatively extremely thin and delicate. Volcanic eruptions testify to its permeability to deeper layers.

[ 7 ] This mineral earth is followed by what is known as soft earth. It is so called because the process of hardening has not progressed as far in it as in the mineral earth. Furthermore, it displays a most remarkable property. It possesses a kind of sensation. When touched, it exhibits symptoms of sensation similar to the dull consciousness of certain plant species.

[ 8 ] The next layer is called vapor earth. Just as vapor is produced in a kettle, this layer displays a kind of volition. It possesses an enormous expansive force, and the mineral layer can only enclose it with difficulty.

[ 9 ] The fourth layer is called the form or water earth. It is remarkable that it possesses all the forms that we have in the mineral layer in negative. A rock crystal, for example, would have the form of a negative in it, as in a plaster cast here above.

[ 10 ] The fifth layer is called the fruit earth. If it could escape into the open air, we would observe how forms continually arise and disappear from it. It possesses, as it were, a soul, the abilities of a soul striving for form.

[ 11 ] The sixth layer is the fire earth, a very remarkable layer, as we shall see further on. It has the ability to feel pleasure and pain, so to speak, and is in a state similar to that of a human being who fluctuates between “ecstatic” and “deeply saddened.” Human passions exert an enormous influence on it, so that as human passions increase, so does its restlessness.

[ 12 ] The seventh layer is called the Earth Mirror, precisely because everything that happens on the outermost layer is reflected in this region. However, one must imagine the process a little differently. Everything that is passive here is active there, and vice versa. If one were to strike a metal here so that it sounded, the metal down there would automatically emit a sound.

[ 13 ] These seven layers are followed by two more, which are of a very peculiar nature. The eighth layer was called the sphere of numbers by the school of Pythagoras, because of a peculiarity that we will learn about in a moment. Our occult schools call it the splitter. If we were to hold a flower against it, for example, so that we could try to look through the flower at the layer, we would see it multiplied infinitely many times. If, on the other hand, we were to try this experiment with a stone, no multiplication would occur. Only living natural forms or creations made with artistic sensibility are suitable for this. This region is the seat of all disharmony, all immorality, all discord. Everything there strives to separate. It is the opposite of love. If a black magician succeeds in penetrating it—and this is within the realm of his powers—the evil within him is greatly intensified. The respective morality of human beings has an enormous influence on this sphere. If human beings increasingly succeed in eliminating immorality and replacing it with morality, this zone will also become more and more peaceful. Then, in turn, there will be a reaction on the part of the zone on the attitudes of human beings.

[ 14 ] The ninth and last layer is, so to speak, the dwelling place of the planetary spirit. It exhibits two peculiar phenomena. It could be compared to a human being, for it possesses an organ resembling a brain. Another organ resembles a heart. The planetary spirit is also subject to changes that are closely related to the development of human beings.

[ 15 ] We now return to the fiery earth. As mentioned, it displays the characteristic of feeling pleasure and pain, and the passions of living human beings exert a powerful influence on it, so that at times when human beings develop great passions, it becomes all the more restless and agitated. As a result, it exerts even greater pressure on the fruit earth above it. And from this layer, branched channels lead to all the layers above. In the mineral earth, there are now large cavities, albeit at considerable depth. The channels coming from the fruit soil lead into these cavities and press enormous masses into them, which in turn either cause earthquakes or seek their way out in the shaft of a volcano. And these causes are also responsible for the most recent catastrophes.

[ 16 ] The Lemurians, the third great root race, still lived on the soft earth. The hardening process had not yet progressed very far in the outer crust at that time, and there were only a few harder areas that floated like islands on this soft layer. The last remnants and evidence of the soft earth can be seen in the many small islands in the Pacific Ocean that suddenly rise above the sea surface and sink again after a while. The Lemurians, who developed tremendous passions, exerted such an influence on the fiery earth as they progressed in their development and indulged in their blasphemies that it became rebellious, so to speak, rose to the surface with tremendous force, and destroyed the race.

[ 17 ] We see, then, that the Lemurians have themselves to blame for their downfall. For the occultist, this gives rise to the consideration that when he works on his own perfection, he not only accelerates the evolutionary process of his epoch, but can also have a significant impact on the development of the Earth. This must give rise to a sense of responsibility in two directions and spur him on to further work on himself.

[ 18 ] Let us now turn our attention to two highly important occult facts related to these natural events. First, let us consider the karma of those who perished in these catastrophes. Of course, it is understandable that people are amazed at the tremendous karma that befalls so many people on such occasions. But let me say that occult observations have shown that all those souls who have died in such a catastrophe become the best spiritualists in their next incarnation. The violent death they now met was, as it were, the final shock that enabled them to finally cast off the shackles of materialism.

[ 19 ] And the other observation, made from an occult perspective, is that all those born around the time of such eruptions become materialists in life. This is entirely understandable. At a time when they are striving with all their might for reincarnation, the unsettling element of the fiery earth exerts its influence upon them and instills materialistic passions. Whether the soul is born here while, for example, the eruption is taking place in America is irrelevant. Spatial separation remains without cause in this zone. Thus, many readers and authors of materialistic writings were born around the year 1822, at the time when Vesuvius erupted again after a long period of dormancy. The fact that Vesuvius remained dormant for centuries serves as an indication of the spiritual Middle Ages. Since then, eruptions have followed one another at shorter intervals. Now, an accelerated development is taking place. The period from Charlemagne to Frederick the Great corresponds to the period of the 19th century. This is to be understood in such a way that all events during the designated long period, in terms of their number and significance with regard to development, correspond today to a period of one hundred years. We will develop even more rapidly in the time to come.