I CONTINUE with my explanations about Substantiality and its function in Creation. To do so it is necessary that I first give you a small glimpse into the nearer surroundings of earthman, which is easier for the earthly understanding, before I bring to life before your gaze the vast picture of all the happenings, beginning from above and continuing downwards.

Let us therefore first consider those elemental beings which are concerned with the Gross Material World. These consist of many special groups formed through the nature of their activities. There are, for example, groups which work entirely independent of the human spirits and which, being led only from above, busy themselves with the continuous development of new celestial bodies. They further their maintenance as well as their course, and likewise their disintegration wherever this becomes necessary due to their over-ripeness, in order that they may come into existence again in a new form in accordance with the Primordial Laws of Creation, and so on. But those are not the particular groups with which we want to deal today!

Rather it is the little beings we want to consider! You have often heard of the elves, the nixies, the gnomes and the salamanders, which are occupied with the gross matter of the earth here which is visible to you, also similarly on all the other gross material globes. They are the densest of all and can therefore also be most easily seen by you.

You know about them, but you are not yet acquainted with their actual work. At least you imagine you already know what they occupy themselves with; but you are absolutely ignorant as to the manner in which they perform their task, and how their activity is always carried out strictly in accordance with the Laws of Creation.

Generally speaking, everything that you already call knowledge is not yet real and authoritative recognition, but merely an uncertain groping: indeed a great shout goes up when here and there something is found through this groping, i.e., when these desultory and, in comparison with Creation, trifling attempts to clutch at something happen to reveal a little speck of dust, the existence of which is often a surprise.

However, today I still do not want to unveil this for you either, but I first want to tell you of that which is closely connected with you personally, which is linked up with your thoughts and actions, so that you will gradually achieve the capacity of careful observation at least in such matters.

These groups about which I speak to you today also belong to the little elementals. But you must not forget that every tiniest one of them is immensely important and more reliable in its activity than a human spirit.

They carry out the work assigned to them with an accuracy so great that you cannot even imagine it, because even the apparently most insignificant of the elementals is one with the whole and therefore through it also works the power of the whole, behind which stands the one Will furthering, strengthening, protecting and leading: the Will of God!

It is like this throughout the whole of the realms where »beings« are active, and it could and should also have been the same long ago with you, the spirits of Subsequent Creation which have developed to ego-consciousness.

This firmly-established connection automatically ensures that, should any one of these elementals fail in some way or other, it is immediately expelled by the pressure of the whole and thus remains cut off. It would then wither away because the power no longer flows to it.

All that is weak is quickly shaken off in this way and does not even have a chance to become harmful.

I now want to talk about these elemental beings which, though seemingly small, are yet so great in their activity; these you still have no knowledge about whatever, of the existence of which you have hitherto not known anything.

But you have already heard about their activity in my Message. However, you will not have associated it with Substantiality, since I myself did not link them with this because it would have been premature at that time.

What I then revealed in short sentences objectively I am now giving to you in its real working.

I have already once observed that the little elemental beings around you are influenced by the human spirit and can accordingly produce either good or even evil.

However, this influence does not take effect in that sense as you imagine it. It is not that you could be masters over these beings, that you could direct them!

In a sense, of course, it could be described like that without saying anything wrong. It is actually expressed in the right way as far as your conceptions and your language are concerned, because you look at everything from your point of view and also judge accordingly. Therefore I very often had to speak to you in my Message in the same manner to make myself understood. I could also do it here because in this case it makes no difference as regards your acting in the right way.

Because it more closely corresponded with the attitude of your intellect it was much easier for you to understand at that time when I told you that with your volition you always strongly influence everything of the animistic around you, and that it adjusts itself to your thoughts and actions because you are spiritual.

That in itself remains literally true, but the reason for it is different; for the actual guidance of all creatures standing in the Law of this Creation, which thus live in the Will of God, is exercised solely from above! This includes all the elemental beings!

They are never subject to an alien volition, not even temporarily, nor in cases where it seems to you as if they were.

The little elementals which I mentioned do indeed adjust their activity to your volition and your actions, you human spirits, but nevertheless their work stands entirely in the Will of God!

This appears to be a riddle, but its solution is not so difficult; for now I only need to show you the other side as against that from which you consider everything!

Looked at from your angle you do influence the little elementals! Looked at from the Light, however, these only fulfil the Will of God, the Law! And since any power to act can only come exclusively from the Light, therefore this side which is different to you is the right one!

But nevertheless, for the sake of a better understanding, let us first consider their activity as seen from your side. In accordance with the Law that with every volition the spirit exerts a pressure here in the Material World, also upon the small Substantiality that is only Animistic, so you leave an imprint upon the little elemental beings with your thoughts and deeds. These little elementals then form in fine gross matter everything which is transferred to them by this pressure. Let us therefore say, from your point of view, that they carry out all your volitions!

In the first place your spiritual volition! Spiritual volition, however, is intuitive perception! The little elementals form it in fine gross matter exactly according to the volition that has issued from the spirit. They immediately take up the thread which springs forth from your volition and from your deed, and fashion at the end of the thread that form which corresponds exactly with this thread of will.

Such is the nature of the activity of the little elementals, which you do not yet know in their actual working.

In this way they create or, better said, they form the plane of Fine Gross Matter, which awaits you when you have to pass over into the Ethereal World! It is the threshold thereto for your soul where, to use your expression, it must first »purify« itself after earthly death, before it is able to enter the Ethereal World.

The stay of the soul on this plane is of longer or shorter duration depending upon its inner quality and upon whether, through its various propensities and weaknesses, it strove with greater or lesser strength after the gross material.

This plane of finer gross matter has already been seen by many people. It still belongs to the World of Gross Matter and is formed by the elemental beings which prepare the path of the human spirit everywhere.

This is very important for you to know: The elemental beings prepare for the human spirit, and thus also for the human soul as well as for earthman, that path which he must follow whether he wants to or not!

These elemental beings are influenced by man and also apparently directed by him. But only apparently, for the actual direction in this matter does not come from man but from the Will of God, the adamantine Law of Creation, which stationed this group of elementals at this place and directs their activity in the swinging of the Law.

All the thought-forms also come about through a similar activity of the elementals. However, this work is again carried out by a different group and a different species of the elementals, which also develop a special plane in fine gross matter alongside the first.

In this way landscapes, villages and towns also arise. That which is beautiful and that which is ugly! However, the different kinds are always precisely linked together, i.e., the ugly with the ugly, the beautiful with the beautiful, corresponding to the homogeneous species.

These are the places, the planes, in which you must still move about after your earthly death, before you can enter the Ethereal World. The coarsest which still clings to your soul in the earthly sense is cast off and left behind here. Not one little speck of this dust can you take along with you into the Ethereal World. It would hold you back until it has fallen off, i.e., until you have lived it off through recognition.

Thus the soul must journey slowly onwards after earthly death; it must climb step by step, i.e., plane by plane, through constant recognition by personal experience of that which it acquired.

Wearisome is the path if the elementals had to build dark or gloomy places for you, depending on your volition here upon earth. It is always you who give the cause for it! —

Now you know what the little elementals do and how they work for you under your influence: It is in the Law of Reciprocal Action! The little elementals thereby weave your fate! They are the little master weavers which work for you, because they always and only weave in such a manner as you wish it through your inner intuitive perception, likewise through your thinking and also your actions!

Yet in spite of this they are not in your service! —

There are three species of such elemental beings alone which are busy with this. The one species weaves all the threads of your intuitive perception, the second one the threads of your thinking, and the third the threads of your actions.

It is not to be assumed that this is one weaving only, but there are three; however, they are linked with each other and also again linked with many other weavings besides. A whole army is busy at this work. And these threads are coloured according to their nature. But I must not carry my explanations so far yet, or we shall get into depths which are still incomprehensible to you and would never find an end. You could not get a clear picture thereby!

Therefore let us concern ourselves with the individual person for the time being. Apart from other things there issue three weavings from him, each of a different nature, because his intuitive perception is not always identical with his thinking, nor is his thinking always in strict accord with his actions! In addition, the threads of the intuitive perception are of an altogether different nature, for they reach into the Ethereal and Spiritual Spheres and are anchored there, while the threads of his thinking remain in fine gross matter only, and must be lived off there.

The threads issuing from the actions, however, are still more dense and heavy, and they are therefore anchored closest to life on earth, and must first be journeyed through and lived off after departure from the earth before it is at all possible for a soul to continue.

You have no idea how far many a soul must travel just to be able to enter the Ethereal World, not to speak of the Spiritual Sphere!

In his superficial way man simply calls all this »the beyond« and is satisfied with that. In his indolence he pours everything into one pot!

Many souls are earthbound over a long period because they are suspended on threads which are firmly anchored close to this heavy gross matter. The soul cannot release itself from them until it has lived itself free of them, i.e., when in the course of its compulsory journey through them it came to the recognition that all these things possess neither the value nor the importance which the soul had attached to them, and that it was futile and wrong to waste so much time on them while on earth. This often takes a very long time and it is sometimes very bitter!

Meanwhile many souls are again attracted from out of heavy gross matter, and they are incarnated again and ever again on earth without ever having been in the Ethereal World during that time. They had to remain in fine gross matter because they were unable to free themselves quickly enough. The threads held them too tightly therein. And in this it is impossible to slip through by cunning!

So much is possible for man here upon earth which he is unable to do after his departure. He then hangs more firmly in the Law of this Creation, experiencing everything instantly without the interference of a ponderous gross material cloak to delay matters. The earthly cloak is able to delay through its dense heaviness and impermeability, but it can never actually prevent. Therefore many things awaiting redemption are only postponed, but nothing is ever cancelled.

Everything that man here upon earth has perceived and thought is awaiting him, as well as the strict and just consequences of his actions!

When a man perceives intuitively then the threads thereby produced, which seem like small seeds sprouting forth from the soil, are taken up and cared for by the little elementals. And just as it is in heavy gross matter, the weeds receive exactly the same careful attention as the best plants. As the threads develop they are anchored for the first time at the border of fine gross matter, where they pass into the hands of a different species of the elementals, which lead them onward through the Ethereal World. They are again anchored at the border of the Ethereal World, and passed on into the Animistic Sphere. From the Animistic Sphere they then reach the Spiritual Sphere, where they are finally anchored again by a different species of the elementals.

Such is the path of a good volition which leads upwards. The path of an evil volition is guided downwards in the same way.

With each anchorage at a border these threads lose a certain species of their substance, which they leave behind in order to be able to proceed into the next sphere. This, too, takes place in a lawful manner, exactly corresponding to the particular species of the spheres. And all these developments are subject to the activity of the elementals.

As the intuitive perception of a good volition originates in the mobility of the spirit, these threads are consequently carried into the Spiritual Sphere. From there they pull at the soul or at least hold it fast when it still has to live through or redeem many a thing in fine gross matter. Thus, if there are many such threads anchored in the Spiritual Sphere, the soul cannot sink and fall so quickly as can a soul which carries with itself threads only for fine gross matter, because the latter was spiritually indolent while on earth and only bound itself to the World of Gross Matter, considering its pleasures alone worth striving for.

The soul that is being pulled by the threads of its volition no more sees these threads than does man here on earth, because they are always of a somewhat finer substance than the outermost cloak in which the soul still moves about. At the very moment, however, when the process of living off these threads through recognition enables the cloak to attain the same consistency as the densest among the still existing threads, whereby the soul through the homogeneous nature of its outer cloak could see them, these threads have already fallen off as being redeemed. Consequently it never happens that the soul connected with such threads actually sees them. —

Thus from the earthly point of view these little elementals are in the service of the human spirit because they adjust their activities to the nature of the conscious or unconscious volitions of men. And yet in reality they only act in accordance with the Will of God, Whose Law they thereby fulfil.

Thus their activity is only apparently influenced by the human spirit. For the difference to become evident it depends entirely from which side you look at the matter.

When in the lectures about reciprocal action I spoke of threads which, as they issue from you, are thrust out and attracted, you perhaps until now saw only a conglomeration of threads before your mind’s eye. However, it was not to be supposed that these threads would continue by themselves like worms, but they must pass through hands, must be guided. And these hands belong to the little elementals working therein, of which you could have no knowledge up till now.

But now the picture has come to life and stands before you! Imagine that you are constantly surrounded by these elementals, which observe you and at once take up every thread and guide it to where it belongs. Not only that, but they anchor it and care for it until the seed springs up, indeed until the blossoms and fruit appear! Just as it is here in the World of heavy Gross Matter with the seeds of plants, which are tended by the elemental beings until you can eventually have the fruits thereof!

It is the same basic Law, the same activity, but carried out by other species of the elemental beings which, as we would express it in an earthly way, are specialists in this field. And thus the same weaving, the same activity — the producing of seed, the germination, the growth, the blossoming and the fruit-bearing — under the supervision and care of the elementals, penetrates the entire Creation for everything, no matter what it is and to which species it belongs. The activities of the elemental beings cover every single species, and without their activity there would in turn be no species.

Thus through the activity of the elemental beings, under the impulse of the base volition of men, and through the anchoring of the threads springing forth from this volition, there also came into existence the so-called hell. The threads of the evil volition were anchored there, grew, blossomed and finally bore the corresponding fruit, which those human beings who produced the seed had to accept.

Therefore a consuming lustfulness has dominion in these nether regions, the lust for murder, for quarrelling and for all the aberrations of human passions, each with its corresponding place. However, everything springs forth from the same Law, in the fulfilment of which the little elemental beings also fashion the fairy-like beauty of the more Luminous Realms! —

Thus I shall let one picture after another arise from Creation until you receive a great and uniform survey, which will never allow you to waver upon your ways nor let you go astray, because you are then »knowing«. Whoever even then would still not wish to direct his path towards the Luminous Heights would fundamentally prove himself as absolutely depraved and only worthy to be cast out!

 

SO FAR we have been considering the activity of the little elemental beings in regard to that which issues from earthmen, such as their intuitive perception, their thinking and their actions.

Now, however, we want to remain just as close to earthmen as before, but observe therewith the activities of those elemental beings which develop their sphere of work in a direction leading towards earthmen. Thus they are not the beings which build the paths of the soul leading out of the heavy gross material substance of the earth, but those which strive in the opposite direction towards the gross material substance of this earth.

Everything shows movement, nothing is without form. Thus it appears as if man is surrounded by a huge workshop, the activities of which partly stream towards him and partly diverge from him, thereby intertwining, knotting and loosening, building up and pulling down, in constant change, continually growing, blossoming, ripening and decaying in order to offer new seed the opportunity to develop in fulfilment of the cycle which is in accordance with the Laws of Creation, the cycle of the necessary development and decay of all forms in the World of Matter. This is ordained by the Law of continuous Movement under the pressure of the radiation of God, the Only Living One!

It effervesces and surges, melts and cools off, hammers and pounds without ceasing. Vigorous fists push and pull, loving hands guide and protect, unite and separate the wandering spirits in all this tumult.

But the man of this earth is dull, blind and deaf to all this as he staggers about in his gross material attire. Greedy in his pleasures and knowledge, his intellect shows only this as its goal: Earthly joys and earthly power as the reward for his work and the crown of his existence! For the sluggish and indolent, the intellect tries to conjure up pictures of quiet comfort which, like a narcotic — hostile to the spirit, paralyse the will for activity in Creation.

He does not want to submit, the man of this earth, because the choice was left to his volition. And therefore he chains his living spirit to the dying form, the origin of which he does not even know.

He remains a stranger to this Creation, instead of using its gifts to build up for himself. Only the right knowledge offers the possibility of a conscious adaptation. Therefore man must step out of his ignorance now! In future he can only work knowingly under the rays of the new star, which will separate the useful from the useless in the whole of Creation.

That which is useful — not judged according to human thinking, but only according to God’s Holy Law! Thus all that is useless in the first place includes every person who is incapable of receiving the blessings and mercies of God in humility, something which he can only achieve through the knowledge of all the activities in Creation.

Only out of the Word can he receive all the knowledge which he needs for this. He will find it therein if he seeks earnestly. He finds exactly what he needs for himself! But Christ’s words are now more than ever a law: »Seek, and ye shall find!«

Whoever does not seek with true eagerness of his spirit shall not and will not receive anything either. And therefore he who sleeps or is spiritually indolent will also find nothing in the Word which is living. It does not give him anything!

Every soul must first open itself for this of its own accord and strike the Source which lies in the Word. Therein rests an adamantine and sifting law, which now fulfils in all severity.

You must become knowing, otherwise you will lose every hold and will stumble and fall when now, during the course of the onrolling world events, you are forcibly compelled to take that course which you must take in accordance with the Holy Will of your God, in Whose Works of Grace you have so far trampled about like ignorant animals in the most beautiful flower garden — destroying instead of furthering the upbuilding and helping, indulging in conceited audacity without exerting yourselves to obtain the understanding as to why you are allowed consciously to stay and enjoy everything in the beautiful Creation.

You never thought of giving the necessary service in return, you did not observe that great Law of God which ordains that the right to take lies in giving alone! But you have taken thoughtlessly; with or without petitions you have made boundless demands without even once thinking of your duty towards Creation, in which you guests wanted to make yourselves unscrupulous masters!

The Creator was expected to give, always to give! You did not even once in serious reflection ask how you really came to deserve this, but you only complained when you had to undergo suffering which you yourselves brought about, and you grumbled when something you had hoped for was not fulfilled for once. And your hoping, your wishes, were directed always and only towards earthly happiness! You have never as yet properly concerned yourselves with genuine longing for all else, for that which is more real! Where you did so it was the urge for earthly knowledge, nothing else!

You wanted to find in order to make yourselves prominent thereby! And when it happened that because of some distress you tried to investigate, then it was only done in order to escape from this trouble, no matter whether it was earthly distress or distress of the soul. But it was never done for the purpose of honouring God!

Now, however, learn at last to know the structure of this Creation in which you dwell and through part of which you also have to wander, so that you will no longer remain as foreign substance therein. With the recognition which will then become ever stronger you will also receive that humbleness which you need in order to absorb the last and great gift: that of being allowed to exist eternally!

With the cognition, which must lead to recognition, you also shorten the period of your wanderings through Creation by thousands of years, and arrive much more quickly and surely at those Luminous Heights which must remain the longing and the goal of that human spirit which does not wish to become lost through being useless.

Thus follow me today further along the paths through the nearer surroundings of your existence upon earth!

Imagine that you are striving towards this earth as it is with every incarnation, no matter whether it be the first or already the fiftieth!

Thereby it is not possible for the soul which is waiting for incarnation to slip into a physical body without further ado. The soul itself, which on account of its nature never unites with the physical body, but which is capable of joining a physical body only when the conditions required for this are fulfilled, could never move or set aglow the physical body without a special bridge. The threads which are tied through the attraction of homogeneous species are not sufficient for such a purpose.

In order to give an absolutely clear picture I will go back once more and in brief outline touch upon a few requirements for an incarnation which are already known.

The effects of the Law of Attraction of Homogeneous Species are not decisive in all cases for incarnations, but there are also other possibilities and compelling reasons.

The Law of Reciprocal Action also intervenes in this matter and sometimes with a strength which eclipses all else. A soul outside of the physical bodies, which through threads of reciprocal action is strongly linked with another soul dwelling upon earth within a female physical body, will absolutely be led to this woman upon earth by way of these threads as soon as there is an opportunity for an incarnation with her.

In addition to such conditions, which cannot be avoided, there is then also the Law of Attraction of Homogeneous Species. But there are also besides these two happenings other kinds and possibilities about which we shall talk in the course of time only, because today any superfluous deviation would only dim the clearness of the necessary picture.

So for the present let us only say that all the threads, no matter what their nature, cannot suffice to enable the soul to move the gross material body and to set it aglow.

Even when the condition is fulfilled that, due to some threads, the soul remains in the neighbourhood of the growing body, and that the body in its radiation also reaches that degree which is able to hold the soul (as I have already mentioned in an earlier lecture), then although it is true that the soul would thereby be bound to the body, yet it would still not on that account be in a position to move or set aglow the physical body connected with it.

A bridge for this is still lacking. Instead of saying bridge we can also call it an implement, which is especially needed by the soul in addition. And this bridge must again be built by the little elemental beings!

Like everything else this also takes place within the laws of the exact meeting together of very specific radiations, which in this case concern earthly manhood and womanhood, as well as various active threads of fate concerning these two human beings and also the soul. This process, too, needs a special explanation later on. Today it should be sufficient to hint that all of this forms the decisive starting-point for the activities of those little elemental beings which build the bridges for the incarnation of souls.

And these bridges are what many today already call the »astral body«.

The astral body consists of medium gross matter. It must be formed by the little elementals directly preceding the heavy gross material earth body, so that it almost appears as if it were being fashioned simultaneously. But this is not so, for the astral body — I still want to retain this known designation for the sake of simplicity — must precede everything which is to be formed in the heavy gross material substance.

There are many people who have arrived at the knowledge of the existence of so-called astral things. But they neither know their actual purpose nor the real process of their coming into existence!

Those who have hitherto known about astral things again looked at everything only from their angle, and therefore thought of them as having originated from the heavy gross material substance. In most cases they consider them to be images of heavy gross matter, because every plant, every stone, and in fact everything of heavy gross matter seems to be reflected in the astral world.

These, however, are not images but prototypes of things in heavy gross matter. Without them nothing whatever would or could form in the World of heavy Gross Matter. That is the difference!

According to earthly conceptions this field of medium gross matter could best be called the workshop for models. Just as an artist first fashions a model, so the so-called astral body comes into existence before the heavy physical body. Except that there is nothing in Creation which would serve one such purpose only and then just be put aside, as it is with earthman! Instead everything, even that which appears the smallest, necessarily has a many-sided value in Creation.

In the working of the elemental beings every single thing belongs as a necessary part to the whole. Each part is also flooded through and pulsated through uniformly by the whole and with the whole.

So every piece upon the earth, even the earth itself, has a co-operating model. Some of those who are allowed to see call it the »shadow«, while others, as already mentioned, call it the »astral body«. There are other lesser known designations for this, but they all mean the same thing. None of them, however, hits upon that which is right, because it was again considered from the wrong side, whereas there is no knowledge whatever about the origin.

There is nothing on earth which has not already been fashioned beforehand in an even more beautiful and more perfect way by the little elemental beings in medium gross matter.

Everything taking place in the World of heavy Gross Matter, even the skill of the craftsmen, the creations of the artists, etc., is only drawn from the preceding activities of the little elemental beings. They have already completed this and much more besides in medium and finer gross matter. There all this is even more perfect in its forms, because the elementals work directly in the laws of the Will of God which is perfect, and which can therefore only give expression to what is perfect in form.

Every invention, even the most surprising one, is only borrowed from things already achieved by the beings on other planes. There are very many such things yet, ready for men to draw upon in order to transfer them here upon earth into the World of heavy Gross Matter.

And yet, although the models are so easily attainable for those who are not only serious but also humble seekers, much has again been distorted here upon earth through the intellect, because in most cases those endowed with the ability lacked the requisite humility to draw in purity, and furthermore because the inhabitants of the earth, through their conceit which hampers everything, have so far paid no attention to the Laws of God in Creation. Not until they obtain exact knowledge of these Laws will the inventing or, more correctly expressed, the discovering on other planes, and consequently also the correct transfer into the heavy gross material substance of this earth, become much easier and more accurate than it has been so far. It will also become much more extensive.

The astral plane is therefore not a reflection of the World of Gross Matter! In the first place this plane in itself still consists of gross matter, only of a somewhat finer species than the earth, and secondly the reverse obtains — the heavy earthly gross matter is a reproduction of medium gross matter, of the so-called astral plane.

However, the astral plane contains two ways and thereby also two great basic divisions, one leading towards the heavy gross matter and another leading away from it again! The part striving towards heavy gross matter is the bridge which is necessary for the upbuilding in the earthly; the part striving away from it, however, is the formed expression of the thoughts and actions of the human spirits which are upon earth in earthly garments.

Men’s knowledge of this has so far been isolated piecework only, whereby owing to their ignorance these few pieces are in a confused medley without any real connection. Thus nothing but a fantastically composed picture floating in the air was devised, which seems like a mirage, and therefore probably exerts a special fascination upon many people who are inwardly unstable. Man can then revel so beautifully in irresponsible things! He can allow himself to establish daring suppositions in these matters, which he naturally likes others to consider as knowledge and certainty, knowing that nobody can hold him responsible thereby if he errs. In his opinion he has been given the opportunity to be held in esteem for once without having any responsibility!

Yes, before men! But not before the Laws of God! Towards these everybody is fully responsible for everything he says! For every word! And all those who follow his wrong opinions, even those whom he merely incites with his erroneous teachings to new and fantastic ideas of their own, all are firmly chained to him, and he must help to free them again individually before he can think of himself and his ascent.

After having again taken a brief glimpse at these matters, we must now return to details.

Thus the little elemental beings fashion the astral body beforehand as the necessary bridge for the soul, so that it is able to control, direct and move the growing body.

The soul is connected with the astral body and works through this upon the heavy physical body. Likewise the physical body with the radiation necessary for this can really bind the soul to itself only through the astral body acting as a mediator. The radiations issuing from heavy gross matter, through which the animistic pulsates, must first penetrate the medium gross matter of the astral body, for otherwise they cannot connect with the radiations of the soul, the outermost cloak of which is by then already of finest gross matter.

Let us at present distinguish only between three basic species of gross matter, although there are still various intermediate and side species in addition. For the time being we will only consider the fine, the medium heavy and the heaviest gross material substance. In this sense the physical body also belongs to the heaviest earthly species, and the astral body to the transitional species of medium heavy gross matter, i.e., to that species which lies next to the heaviest.

When an incarnation is to take place this astral body is first fashioned by the elemental beings, and immediately afterwards the physical body is formed so that it appears as if both occur simultaneously. In reality, however, the fashioning of the astral body precedes the process in heavy gross matter; it must precede it, otherwise the physical body could not be completed and the soul would be unable to do anything with it.

I am only giving you the picture of the process here, so that the conception can arise therefrom. Later on we shall perhaps follow step by step the growing, the maturing and the decaying, with all the logical order and with all the threads which are part of it, as soon as the whole stands before you like a picture.

The astral body is connected with the physical body, but is not dependent upon it, as has been assumed in the past. The lack of knowledge of the actual process of development in Creation brought in its train the many errors, especially since man always basically presented the little knowledge he acquired by considering it from his point of view.

As long as he imagines himself as the most important point in Creation, where in reality he does not at all play a special main role, but where he is nothing but a creature like innumerable others, he will always go wrong, also in his investigations.

It is true that after the soul has severed itself from the physical body the astral body decays along with the physical body. But this must not be taken as a proof that it is therefore dependent upon it. This does not even give a justifiable foundation for such an assumption!

In reality the process is different: When it severs itself the soul, being the mobile part, draws the astral body away from the physical body. Figuratively speaking: The soul upon stepping out of and leaving the physical body pulls the astral body out with it. That is how it appears! In reality the soul only pulls it off the physical body, because a fusion has never taken place but only a telescoping, as it is with field glasses which go in and out.

In so doing the soul does not draw this astral body along very far, because the latter is not only anchored with the soul but also with the physical body; and, moreover, the soul from which the essential movement issues also wants to sever itself from the astral body and consequently strives away from it too.

Thus after the earthly departure of the soul the astral body always remains near the physical body. The further the soul then moves away the weaker the astral body also becomes; and the ever-increasing severance of the soul finally brings about the decay and decomposition of the astral body, which in turn immediately brings in its train the decay of the physical body, in the same way as it also influenced its formation. This is the normal process in accordance with the Laws of Creation. Naturally special acts of intervention also bring about special conditions and disarrangements, but without being able to eliminate the lawfulness.

The astral body, which is first and foremost dependent upon the soul, is the mediator to the physical body. Whatever happens to the astral body is also definitely suffered by the physical body. The sufferings of the physical body, however, touch the astral body much less, although they are closely connected with each other.

If, for example, some part of the physical body is taken away (let us suppose it is a finger), then the finger of the astral body is not also taken away simultaneously, but it still remains as before. That is why a person on earth can actually still feel pain or a pressure periodically at that spot where he no longer possesses a member of his physical body.

Cases of this kind are well enough known, but man never found the proper explanation of it because he lacked the survey.

Thus the elemental beings knot and connect all the souls to their astral bodies, which we shall call the bodies of medium gross matter, while the heavy earth bodies, even when coming into existence, are directly connected with the body of medium gross matter and form and develop accordingly.

It must be reserved until possible later lectures to show the way in which the soul works through this cloak upon the heavy physical body, for to reach such a point much has still to be clarified beforehand in order to presuppose the right understanding.

All this, however, is also pervaded by one single law, which is zealously and faithfully fulfilled by the little elemental beings without any deviation. In this they are models for the human spirits, which can and also shall learn therefrom, until at last they work hand in hand and without presumption with the little master-builders in this Creation, so that through deeds which lead to complete harmony they will jubilantly and gratefully praise the Wisdom and Love of their Creator!

 

IN THE last two lectures I explained the happenings in the planes of medium gross matter (formerly called the astral plane by those who knew about it), which are directly connected with men’s existence upon earth.

There are many other happenings besides those mentioned therein which also belong to the fields of activity of the elemental beings. But since these types of work only touch men’s souls indirectly, we do not yet want to speak about them but first to consider what lies nearest at hand: the human soul itself in connection with what has already been explained.

Therefore follow me for a short distance along the path upon which a soul must wander after departure from its physical body. Let us, then, observe its first steps!

We are standing in medium gross matter. Before us we see threads of fate of various colours and strengths, of which we talked in the last lectures when considering the activities of the little elemental beings. Let us eliminate everything else this time; for in reality there exists in this region much more, flowing closely together and through each other, than just these threads. Everything swings in the strictest order in accordance with the Laws in Creation. We look neither right nor left, but stay only by these threads.

These threads appear to trail along with only slight movement, showing no particular activity; for they are such as were already spun a long time ago. Suddenly one of them begins to quiver. It vibrates and increases its movement more and more, swells out, deepens its colour, and starts to become more active in every respect... A soul which is connected with this thread has released itself from a physical body. It approaches the place where we are waiting.

This bears a resemblance to a fire hose into which water is suddenly driven. One can accurately observe the path of the oncoming water as it forces its way forward in the hose. It is the same process with the threads of fate, which become released when the soul is forced to wander along the path thus marked out for it. The radiation of the spirit within the soul streams ahead of it and animates the thread of its path, even if this thread was only in weak activity up till then. Through this stimulation the tension becomes stronger and pulls the soul more vigorously to the nearest anchorage of this thread.

This place of anchorage abounds with homogeneous species of such threads, which in turn are connected with souls still dwelling upon earth in gross material earth bodies. Yet other souls which have previously left the earth are already at the anchorage, and must now at this place partake of the fruit which ripened through the activity and care of the little elemental beings according to the species of the threads, which work like seed stalks.

The forms of the fruit are of a very definite and uniform nature at this particular place. Let us assume it is a place of envy, which is very widespread upon earth and finds excellent soil among earthmen!

That is why the anchorage for these threads is such an immensely large and many-sided place. Landscape upon landscape, towns and villages, with corresponding activities of every kind!

But envy lies in wait everywhere, arousing repugnance. Everything is permeated by it. Envy has taken on grotesque forms which move about and work in these regions. They work on all the souls drawn to this place in the most decisive and increased way, so that these souls may themselves experience with greater intensity that which they so obtrusively favoured their fellow-men with here on earth.

Let us not occupy ourselves with individual descriptions of this place; for it is of such a thousandfold variety that no firmly given picture would suffice to provide even the shadow of a conception. But the expression »nauseating« is a mild and exceedingly glossed-over description of it!

It is to this place that the thread which we observed leads; the thread which we suddenly saw becoming more active, richer in colour, and fresher through the approach of the soul which had left the earth.

As the soul now moves towards the place itself, there also at a very definite spot where the thread is firmly anchored everything gradually becomes more mobile and colourful — let us call it more animated. Everything flares up!

This revival, however, issues quite unconsciously from the spirit of the soul; it comes about through the radiation of the spirit, even though this soul, as occurs in most cases, journeys along the path with eyes still closed. It then awakens at its destination, at this very place, where everything had just become more lively at its approach through the radiation. For here are the fruits of that thread, or perhaps also of various threads connected with this very soul, because they were produced by it.

Through this coming to life under the personal radiation of the soul concerned, the spirit living in this soul impresses a certain personal note of its own upon its new environment, which was already awaiting it — a note which always differs from that of the other souls. This always makes it, so to speak, a quite distinctive world in itself for each soul, despite the fact that everything is closely interwoven, that the souls molest each other to excess, and that the whole place can be considered as one single, great, uniform plane.

Thus it happens that in spite of the experience which so many souls simultaneously share in this place, and also basically in the same form, each individual soul always experiences and lives through it only according to its very own nature, i.e., each soul receives an entirely different impression of it from the other souls which have to live through the same with it. What is more, this soul will also see things differently from a second or third soul which has the same picture before it.

Picture this to yourself! A soul awakens at such a place. This place or plane possesses a very definite picture as regards its formation and everything that moves therein. Even the happenings there may be called uniform, because they also remain subject to one single great law through which they take effect.

This soul which we are considering now sees the other souls already there or those arriving later experience the same which this soul is also forced to experience. However, the soul sees this of itself and of the others in a very definite way which is entirely its own, and it also lives through these things correspondingly.

One must not come to the conclusion from this that the other souls too see and experience everything in exactly the same way as does this one soul which we named; for this is not the case, but each of these souls sees and experiences things in accordance with its own personal nature and quite differently from the others! They see the happenings differently, likewise the colours and the landscapes!

This is because the radiation of the inherent spirit also lends to the environment there the personal expression which belongs only to this particular spirit, and the expression is animated according to its nature. In the first moment this may seem very strange to you!

But perhaps I can furnish you with a few similar although much more clumsy illustrations from the heavy terrestrial World of Matter, which will give you an idea towards a better understanding.

Let us take two persons who are visiting a beautiful park! Without a special understanding between them it is seldom that both will designate the same point as being the most beautiful therein, even if they walk through the park side by side. Each will find something different as beautiful for himself. One of them perhaps nothing whatever, but he only says otherwise out of politeness, though he prefers the wild forest to the cultivated park!

This is then simply done away with by saying that the one has no »sense« for what the other declares to be beautiful. This, however, does contain a certain truth. The »sensing« of the one simply goes in another direction! Therefore the scene looks different to him from that viewed by his companion!

In the recognition of a picture, in the way as to how one sees it, it is the purely personal sensing or the direction of the sensing of him who looks at it which is decisive, not the picture or the landscape which is being observed. One person experiences it differently from another.

That which becomes evident here in such a clumsy way is more lively and impressive in the more easily mobile layers of matter. This is why it happens that the same place with the same events calls forth different experiences in the individual souls, depending on their own particular natures.

We can delve more deeply into this matter, however!

Let us again take two persons to serve as an example! While they are young a colour is shown to them and they are told it is blue. Thereafter each of them always considers this particular colour he saw as being blue. But this does not prove that both of them also see this particular colour in the same way. The opposite is the case. In reality each one sees the colour which he calls blue differently from the other. Even here already in the physical body!

Even if you closely examine the physical eyes and find them of an exactly similar quality, this condition is not decisive to define how the colours are seen. The brain also has a say in this, and in addition, as the main thing, the personal nature of the human spirit itself!

Let me try to take the explanation further! Let us stick to blue! You yourselves have thereby quite a definite colour before you which, with all its shades, was once pointed out to you as being blue. And if your fellow-man who was taught likewise will also pick out from all the colours when questioned the same colour which you yourself call blue, it does not prove that he sees the colour which he also calls blue in the same way as you do!

As for him, it is just this very particular kind which is blue. You do not know how it looks to him in reality. Naturally he will and is bound to regard everything of this colour which he sees, and which is thus designated, as being blue, just as he would also call the white colour black if he had been told it was so from the very beginning. He will always say blue to this one definite colour which you also call blue. In spite of this, however, he does not see it in the same way as you do!

It is the same with the tone. A certain tone you hear is, for example, an »E« to you. To every person! Because he learned to hear and call it as such. He will also form it in this way with his mouth, but always in accordance with his own sensing, which will naturally always bring forth the same tone for what is also considered »E« by you. However, this does not at all mean that he actually hears it in the same way as you hear it. But in reality he always hears it only in accordance with the nature of his spirit, differently from his fellow-man.

Now I come to what I wish to explain with this. In Creation the colour in itself is constant and each one for itself remains unchanged. The same applies to the tone. But the experiencing of this colour and of the tone differs with every person in accordance with his personal nature. That is not uniform!

Part of the experiencing is also the seeing, no matter whether gross material with its different species, or ethereal, animistic or spiritual. As it is with the colour and the tone, so is it also with the form.

Each one of you experiences his surroundings in a different way, sees and hears it differently from his neighbour. You have merely become accustomed to finding uniform designations for things, but these lack vitality. Thus you have pressed that which is mobile into fixed forms, and you think that with these fixed forms of your language all movement in Creation must also become rigid for you!

This is not so! Each person lives and experiences absolutely according to his own nature! Therefore he will some day also see and recognise Paradise in a different way from his fellow-man!

And yet if one of them would design a picture of it as he sees it, the others would also immediately recognise and see as being right in the picture that which they themselves experienced by Paradise; for they again see the picture according to their own nature, and not as the one who reproduced Paradise in the picture sees it.

The thing in itself is always the same, it is only the way in which the human spirits see it which varies. Colour is colour, but it is absorbed in different ways by the human spirits. Tone is tone, and form is form, of a very definite kind in the entire Creation. The various human spirits, however, experience them differently, always according to their maturity and their nature.

That is how a person can suddenly experience Spring and all the awakening in Nature in an entirely different way to that in which he experienced it in past decades, just as if he had never really observed or »enjoyed« it. This occurs in particular when a man has had to pass through some critical period in his life which enabled him to mature inwardly.

Nature and Spring have always been like this; but it is he who has changed, and according to his maturity he experiences them differently!

Everything depends on him alone. And thus it is with the entire Creation. You human beings change and not Creation! Therefore you could already have Paradise here on earth if you were mature for it. Creation can remain the same but you, you and always again only you, must change in order to see it differently and therewith to experience it differently. For seeing, hearing and feeling belong to experiencing, are part of it.

That is why the World is seen and experienced in millions of different ways by human spirits. These differences, however, are put into it by men alone; for Creation itself actually has quite simple basic forms, which always repeat themselves. They are formed, ripen and decay in accordance with one uniform law in order to arise anew in these same forms. Everything which is real is simple, but this simplicity is experienced by men in a thousandfold ways.

With this knowledge you now already come nearer to the process of what happens to the soul once it is released from heavy matter on earth. It experiences the so-called beyond in accordance with its inner nature; for it animates the forms which had to be connected with it through its personal radiation, it vitalises them in accordance with its own character, which must spend itself out therein.

The fact that the soul may thereby come to the recognition of whether that which it created for itself was right or wrong, i.e., to the recognition of which paths it took, remains a special act of grace in itself. One of those which the Creator wove into everything, so that the struggling soul will always have lifebelts in every place and at all times in order to rise above the entanglements, and so that with a really good volition and recognition at the right time it need not become lost!

The many-sided indispensable value of everything that exists in Creation always proffers the possibility of ascent again in some way or other, even amid the greatest confusion caused by men. Whether or not the soul recognises and uses these possibilities is its affair alone. The lifebelts are there! The soul only needs to reach out for them with a good volition in order to swing itself up on them. —

Having changed inwardly man also sees everything differently, as the popular saying goes! However, this is not a mere saying, but in reality man does then see everything differently. With his inner change his seeing and his hearing change to a certain degree; for it is the spirit which sees, hears and feels through the corresponding tools in the various different planes, and not the physical or ethereal eye itself. If the spirit changes then the way of seeing changes with it, and consequently also the way of experiencing. The tools play no part in this whatever; they are merely mediators.

The radiation of the spirit absorbs the resistances which it meets and leads them back to the spirit in a sort of reciprocal action. In this World of heavy Gross Matter the leading back goes through the gross material organs provided for the purpose, such as the eyes, ears and brain. Thereby the brain is the meeting place for the mediations of all the lower organs.

Only later shall we speak about this in more detail!

Today I am only trying in this way to make it clear to you that the nature of the impression of the outer world, i.e., of the surroundings, is dependent upon the particular spirit itself! For this reason one and the same form always affects the various spectators differently, even when they have become equally clear as to its beauty. And if one person sees a certain form differently from his fellow-man, then a sketch of the form seen by the one must yield for the other a picture identical with the form itself.

At this point everything must indeed come together again in one; for only the seeing is different, and not the actual form.

Men have created a common name for every form. Only the name for it is common, but not the way in which it is recognised or seen.

In this you have also so far gone wrong in your opinions. But if you now seek to approach the experiencing in the so-called beyond more closely from the viewpoints newly shown to you, much will become clearer to you. You will be able to understand many things more easily when I now continue with my explanations, and so much that is puzzling will become clear.

What has been shown to you also explains why two or more persons with mediumistic abilities see, hear and interpret one and the same thing quite differently, without there being any justification for reproaching them; for they see it according to their nature, and therefore always in a different way from the other. The subject being dealt with, however, is only of a very definite type. And only he who has learned to reckon with these happenings through the knowledge of the Laws of the Divine Will in Creation also knows exactly how to find the connection in the various reports and thus to recognise what is right therein, how it really is!

But you have sought to press Creation and yourselves into rigid and stationary forms by means of the language with which you make yourselves understood. You will never succeed in this; for Creation is mobile, as is your inner life also. When you seek to reflect about this, however, you think in the firmly-moulded words of your language!

Just think how foolish this is! The firmly-moulded language never suffices to reproduce correctly anything that is mobile!

Here again the impediment is your intellect, which can only work with very definite words, and which is also capable of absorbing only very definite words. You can realise from this how you have firmly chained and enslaved yourselves by considering the intellect to be the highest for man, whereas it is only useful for and applicable to the heavy gross matter of this earth. And even then only to a limited extent and not for everything! Little by little you recognise how really paltry the intellectuals are!

For this reason I have already called out to you often that you must try to absorb my Word in such a manner that as you read it you see pictures of it before you! For you can understand it only in pictures, not with the paltry words of these earthmen which I am compelled to use in order to tell you about it.

You will never learn to understand Creation in words, nor that which is within you, because all of that is and must remain mobile, whereas words press everything into firm and rigid forms only. And that is impossible, an entirely vain effort with and for everything that is mobile! Understanding will not come to you with words!

However, as soon as the soul lays aside the terrestrial heaviness of the physical body it enters the mobility of Creation. It is drawn into the constant surging and seething, and will then experience its surroundings in a much more mobile way. The surroundings often change in the redemptions awaiting every soul, to which the soul is drawn by the animating of all the threads clinging to it.

And all this is again reciprocal in its effects. When the soul withdraws from the physical body, when it strives away from it and lets it fall back, i.e., when it no longer radiates through it, then its radiations, which manifest even more strongly through becoming freer, go in one direction only with their full strength — towards medium gross matter, the nearest anchorage of the threads of fate.

The threads receive a much greater animation thereby, called forth by the soul’s radiation, which is now guided in this one direction. Through this animation their capacity to attract is also intensified, which retroactively strikes the connected soul and attracts it more keenly. All these are automatic, absolutely lawful and thus completely natural happenings, which you can also easily understand if you try to go deeply into it.

Thus the soul is drawn along on its path by threads which it animates through its radiations, which it cannot hold back or avoid. And in this way it goes either towards its purification or towards its destruction. All this happens ever again through the soul itself. The elemental beings only form and build in accordance with the Law. The animation of the forms and the releasing are brought about by the souls themselves through their radiations. And according to the nature of the radiations, the forms which are animated in such a variety of ways then exercise a more or less strong retroactive effect on the soul.

Here, too, the saying becomes valid: As you call it into the wood so it echoes! In this case it means: As it radiates into the forms so are they animated and work accordingly. A great lawful simplicity and unswerving justice is inherent in all this! —

What I have described to you herein solely concerns the human spirits alone, for it is also inherent in the activity of the free will. With the elemental beings it is again different! —

Let these happenings come to life before your eyes for once! Exert yourselves to achieve it, for the effort is worthwhile and the reciprocal action will bring you rich reward. You will thereby again become knowing as regards a part of this Creation. —

I have described to you how it has been so far. But now it comes like a lightning flash out of the Light! Divine Power suddenly strikes unexpectedly into the threads of fate of all earthmen, as well as of all the souls which dwell on the planes of Subsequent Creation.

Thus everything now comes to its final release, immediately and unexpectedly! The elemental beings are newly strengthened to unprecedented power. In their activity they turn against all those human beings who through their doings and dealings have compelled them in the past to create ugly forms in obedience to the Law of Creation. Now, however, the Power of God is above all human volition in the entire Creation; the Will of God which permits only the pure, the good and the beautiful to be formed, and destroys all else!

The Power of God has already penetrated into Subsequent Creation also in order to work here Itself, and all the elemental beings, supported by this Highest Power, quickly, joyfully and proudly seize the countless meshes of the weaving of all the threads of fate for men in order to guide them jubilantly to their end.

In obedience to the Command of the Light they tear the threads which are only weakly anchored in the spiritual, so that the souls will remain completely severed from the Light when the dark cords, with everything clinging to them, rebound sharply upon their originators.

But the tearing of these threads also proceeds in an absolutely lawful manner, whereby the nature of men themselves is decisive; for the elemental beings do nothing arbitrarily.

The Divine Power of the Light now strikes like lightning into all threads! Those threads which bear corresponding similarities to the species striving for the Light, and which through the really strong volition of those attached to them also became strong enough to bear the sudden penetration of this unaccustomed Light-Power, will gain firmness and freshness thereby, so that the human souls attached to them will by the strong attraction be wrenched upwards from out of the dangers of Darkness, and thus from out of the danger of being dragged along into disintegration also.

However, the weak threads of light produced only by a weak volition cannot stand the sudden and tremendous pressure of Divine Power, but they become singed and are thereby severed by the elemental helpers; thus those who were tied to these threads remain a prey to Darkness. The cause of this natural happening is their own lukewarmness, which was incapable of producing threads of sufficient strength and firmness.

Thus you find nothing but justice in every happening! Therefore it is promised that the lukewarm will be spewed out, as it literally happens therewith from the Light.

All the elemental helpers, great and small, now become free from having to form what is dark under the compulsion of the evil or false volition of men and in fulfilment of the Law. And simultaneously everything that is animistic (all the elemental beings) is drawn back from this severed Darkness by the Power of the Light, to which they closely attach themselves in jubilant joy so that they may now form and maintain what is willed by the Light. Thereby they become strengthened in new power in order to swing in exultant accord with the entire Creation amid the surging Light of God!

Honour be to God Who sows but Love! Love also in the Law of the annihilation of the Darkness!

 

WITH my lectures on »Substantiality«, »The little elemental beings«, »In the gross material workshop of the elemental beings«, and »A soul wanders« I gave a piece of knowledge about the constant activity in Creation. I explained a small part of your nearer surroundings, and only about that which is very closely connected with you personally. However, I did not just give it so that you might become aware of it, but for the very purpose of enabling you to draw benefit from it for your life upon earth, now, in the physical body. At the same time also as a blessing for those who are with you and around you!

The knowledge of it brings you no advantage; for it is the sacred duty of every human spirit to apply any knowledge for the development in Creation, for the progress and happiness of all those who are connected with him or who just come in contact with him. Then his spirit profits greatly from it, but never otherwise!

The spirit will become free of all repressions, and in the Law of Reciprocal Action it will be uplifted unfailingly to a height upon which it can perpetually draw powers, powers which are penetrated by the Light, and which must bring blessing where they strike the right soil here upon earth. Thus the knowing one becomes a strong mediator of high Divine Power.

Therefore I want to show you what you could draw from the last lectures for your path on earth, and what you must also draw from them; for the Word must not remain without practical application.

In broad outlines I called your attention to a small part of the weaving and working of very definite species of the elemental beings in Creation, and I also showed you that the human spirit has so far walked about in Creation in a completely ignorant manner.

The beings of Substantiality supervise and weave in loyalty in the household of the great Creation, while that which is spiritual is to be considered as a guest journeying therein, a guest who has the duty to adapt himself harmoniously to the order of the great household and to use his best abilities to further and support the ministration of these beings. Thus he should lend a hand in the maintenance of the great work which offers him a dwelling, the possibility to subsist and a home.

To view it aright you must put it thus: The high Substantiality has released the spirit from out of itself or given birth to it, and offers it the possibility of a joyful existence in its great household of Creation!

Provided, of course, that this spirit does not disturb the harmony of the household; for then it is a disagreeable guest and will be treated accordingly. Then it will never be able to receive and enjoy a really happy existence!

The guest is also naturally obliged not to hamper the household, but to adapt itself to the existing order, and even to support and to protect it in return for the hospitality.

Finally, for a better understanding one can also express it differently without altering the actual sense: The great all-embracing Divine Substantiality has divided itself into two parts, into an active part and a passive part, or into a positive part and a negative part.

The passive or negative part is the finer part, the more sensitive, gentler part; the active or positive part is the coarser and not so sensitive part!

The more sensitive part, i.e., the passive part, is, however, the stronger and predominant part, which in reality has a leading effect. Through its delicate sensitiveness it is more capable of absorbing and is more responsive to pressure, and consequently qualified to stand and act more securely in the power of the Holy Will of God, this being the highest pressure. Pressure here means the lawful impressing of the higher species upon the lower species, but not perhaps some arbitrary act of force, no pressure of a violent and unstable craving for power!

Therewith you see the great picture before you, coming from above, and it is no longer difficult to comprehend that the after-effects in Creation are always and quite naturally repeated in the same way, and are ultimately also to be transmitted to the split-off parts, the human spirits of Subsequent Creation, being the effect of one uniform Law which penetrates the entire Creation. Only it is named differently on the various planes and cooling-off stages.

Thus in the grading the human woman of Subsequent Creation embodies the more sensitive element of Substantiality as being the negative, passive part, and the man embodies the coarser spiritual as the positive, active part; for the splitting that has once set in is also further repeated in the parts which already split off ever again and continuously, so that one can say that the entire Creation actually consists only of splittings! That part which is really stronger, which actually dominates, is at the same time always the more sensitive part; thus among human beings it is womanhood! According to her nature it is much easier for her intuitively to perceive the pressure of the Will of God and to obey it. Thereby womanhood has and provides the best connection with the only real Living Power!

This Law of Creation should also be observed by investigators and taken into account by inventors. The part which is really the stronger and more powerful is always the more sensitive, i.e., the negative or passive part. The more sensitive part is really the deciding one, while the active part is only the executing one.

Therefore in every normal development all that is womanly exercises a strong and solely uplifting influence (which in its unconscious beginnings always swings purely) upon the male as soon as the latter attains physical maturity. With physical maturity there simultaneously awakens the great generative sensing, which forms the connection or the bridge for the activity of the spiritual core of earthman in the plane of coarse matter, i.e., here on earth.

You already know this from my Message. All this takes place simultaneously. One immediately necessitates the other. In this you recognise the enormous help which a human spirit on earth receives through the Laws of Creation! You see the almost indescribable protection and the merciful, scarcely-to-be-overlooked supports provided for ascent. Also the secure paths precisely given therein, from which no one can go astray unintentionally. A very evil will indeed is needed, even opposing efforts, when a person tries wantonly to push all these things aside and leave them unheeded. In fact man must even forcibly resist all these automatic aids in order not to use them!

In spite of this, however, he does it! I therefore purposely said that in the »unconscious« beginnings of maturity the womanly influence will always result in a pure upward swinging to the heights on the part of the male, because it then operates uninfluenced by the decadent intellect and only according to the Laws of God in Creation! Not until the intellect with all its cunning is also awakened in this, and sets to work, does this purity and all the aids with it become dragged into the dirt and debased through evil thinking!

The evil thinking is brought about through the impurity of womanhood, moral corruption, persuasions by false friends, bad examples, and last but not least also through the false trend in art and literature.

However, when once the many bridges to Luminous and Pure Heights are burst and broken down then it is very difficult to find a way back! And yet also in this matter the All-Wise Creator in His Grace gives through the Laws of Creation a thousand possibilities and also further automatic aids, if only a human spirit which has gone astray tries to bring up within itself the really earnest volition towards purity.

The Message already throws sufficient light on all these things, so that it is no longer necessary to give you any further references to it.

Men, you do not at all know what mercies you tread underfoot ever anew and almost daily, and therefore you likewise do not know how great and ever greater your burden of guilt becomes with every hour, which you must pay for in any case, for all the Laws of God which rest in Creation and help you also turn against you when you refuse to observe them.

You cannot get around the necessity of recognising them. Not one among all the creatures! And the Laws are the Love of God, which remained incomprehensible to you because you tried to make something entirely different of it from what it really is.

Learn and recognise! Woman, if you do not awaken to your real value in Creation and then act accordingly, the reaction of the great guilt will shatter you before you divine it! And you, man, at last recognise in woman that great help which you need and can never dispense with if you want to swing in the Laws of God. And honour in woman that for which God destined her! The way in which you intuitively feel towards the woman will become the Gate to the Light for you. Never forget this!

Besides, really strong and genuine manhood never manifests otherwise than in gentle consideration towards genuine womanhood; with increasing spiritual values this becomes ever more clearly expressed.

Just as with the body real strength never becomes evident in weighty, heavy steps, but through the control of all movements results in an elastic and light step clearly indicating security and firmness, so genuine manliness shows itself in respectful gentleness towards all womanhood which swings in purity.

This is the absolutely natural process in the swinging of the undimmed radiations in accordance with the Laws in Creation. All else is distorted!

Just meditate deeply upon all these descriptions for once! You will find them confirmed everywhere by your experiences. Always let these words form a basis for your observations. Thereby you will see much quite differently, and you will also recognise it more readily than you did in the past. Even in the smallest things the effects are quite evident, not only on earth but in all Creation!

You will now perhaps ask yourselves why the human woman is the more sensitive part! Therefore I also want to answer this right away:

In the separations or splittings-off the woman forms the bridge between Substantiality and Spirituality! Therefore the Primordial Mother also had to come into existence first, before further splittings could follow or take place.

And always the woman of the particular separated plane is the bridge between the next higher form of Substantiality and the Spirituality which has emanated from the latter. For this reason woman has still kept within herself a special part of the higher Substantiality which is closest to her own plane, and man lacks this part.

The popular saying is also again quite right when it noted that woman is more closely connected with Nature than is man! Woman, indeed, is actually nearer to Nature in every respect. You students of the Message, however, know that the expression »connected with Nature« means nothing else than being more closely connected with Substantiality.

This is how it is in the great household of Creation! From this you must draw lessons for yourselves and wisely apply them to life upon earth. I will tell you today how you can do this. When you neglect to do so, you do not submit to the swinging harmony of the household in which you are guests. And if you wish to act differently and go on other paths than those Creation clearly points out to you, then you will never be successful, nor will you receive genuine joy and the peace for which you long so much!

Everything which does not swing in the sense and the Laws of this Creation is bound to fail and collapse; for then it not only loses all support, but it creates for itself opposing currents which are stronger than any human spirit and which in the end will always overpower him and his work.

Therefore adjust yourselves now and at last to the perfection of the harmony of Creation, then you will find peace and success!

In this the woman has failed first and foremost; but the man is also mainly guilty of this. Of course, not by a hair’s breadth less the woman on that account, for she had no need at all to adjust herself to him. Each is responsible in this for himself or herself alone. The greatest evil of all herein was again the voluntary subordination to the intellect.

The woman of Subsequent Creation should have formed the bridge from Substantiality to the Spiritual; the bridge from that Substantiality from which the spiritual element of Subsequent Creation originally severed itself! Not from that animistic substantiality which, after the separation of the last remnants of what was spiritual, sank down still further in order to form the bridge to the World of Matter, and to provide the origin for all the animal souls!

In the values of Creation, grading downwards, there thus comes first of all the woman and then the man. But the woman of Subsequent Creation has utterly failed therein. She does not stand in that place which Creation assigned to and ordained for her.

Woman kept the great part of Substantiality (not of the lower animistic kind but of the higher kind) as a bridge within herself and thus could and should remain accessible to the Will of God as is Substantiality itself, which always swings only in the Will of God. Naturally it was a condition that she kept this part of Substantiality pure, pure for perceiving the Divine Will, the Laws in Creation!

Instead she opened this intuitive perception only too quickly and too easily to all the seductive arts of Lucifer. And since through her speciality, which lies in the connection to Substantiality in Creation, woman is stronger than the coarser spiritual species of man, and consequently the decisive factor, or let us say in the most literal sense, she »sets the standard«, she very easily dragged man down with her into the depths.

For this reason I have already called out to all womanhood in my Message that she must take the lead over man in ascent; for this is her duty, because it is inherent in her capacity! Not just because she thereby redeems the guilt with which she has burdened herself from the very beginning! That in itself is an act of Grace, the retroactive effect of which sets in automatically through the volition for ascent!

The woman of Subsequent Creation could fall so deeply despite her attribute of substantiality because, being the last of her species, she is furthest away from the proximity of God. As a compensation for this, however, she had through that part of the higher Substantiality a strong anchor within herself to which she could cling, and she would indeed have clung to it if it had only been the woman’s earnest will to do so. However, the coarser spiritual element within her wanted it otherwise. And the distance from the proximity of God allowed it to triumph!

Woman could fall but she did not have to do so! For she had help enough at her side. But by not making use of it she never accepted the help!

In the Millennium, however, she must be different. Woman will now change and live only according to the Will of God! She will be purified or perish in the Judgment, for she is now receiving the Power of God on earth direct! Therewith every excuse for all womanhood has already fallen away! And every woman who has not yet entirely buried the element of substantiality within herself through frivolity and sinfulness must intuitively perceive the Power of God, and therein gather strength for higher power. In accordance with the living Laws in Creation! But only those who are still capable of gratefully recognising the pressure of the pure Power of God as such will have this automatic help.

Whoever is unable intuitively to perceive this Power any longer, nor wants to do so, will wither away, and will not much longer have the possibility to call herself woman!

You will now, of course, ask yourselves how it can then happen that many a human soul can be incarnated on earth alternately, at one time as a woman and at another as a man. The solution to this is not as difficult as you think; for a woman who is genuine in every respect will never get into the position of having to be incarnated in the gross material as a man.

Such a happening is again merely one of the evil consequences of the domination of the intellect, strange as this might sound!

The earthwoman who subjugates herself to the intellect, just by doing so represses her genuine womanliness. This becomes suppressed because the delicacy of perception which it represents is walled in by the cold intellect. The threads of fate are thereby so knotted that such a woman must be incarnated as a man the next time, because after this repression and walling in only the coarser spiritual element prevails, and in accordance with the Laws in Creation the threads simply cannot be knotted otherwise.

Such changes in incarnation are then necessary because everything that is touched in the spiritual core of man must develop. In particular the present unnatural imitation of men by women, which is contrary to the Laws of Creation, as well as the pronounced intellectual work, are bound to have serious consequences for womanhood because they disturb the harmony in Creation.

All such women suppress their genuine womanliness and must thereupon be incarnated in male bodies the next time. This in itself would not be so bad, but although the circumstance is such that the soul of the woman through this distortion of her task may well work cleverly in the male body, nevertheless this is only physical, and she will never be a truly genuine man in spirit and soul! It is and remains an aberration!

In the distortion of Creation these things have happened hitherto, but it will no longer be possible in the Millennium; for then all such souls of women who have walled in their womanliness will be absolutely unable to incarnate on earth but, being useless, they will fall into the category of those masses which are drawn into disintegration during the Judgment. They are all lost unless they remember their task as women in time and work accordingly.

But the reverse is also true! The soul of a man which through weakening has inclined itself too much towards the female species in thought and action, has thereby forced itself through the threads which have thus come into existence to enter a female body at a later incarnation. But here, too, it was just as little possible for such souls to become genuine women, because they lack that part of the higher Substantiality which belongs to womanhood.

For this reason we often find on earth men with predominant feminine characteristics and women with predominant masculine qualities! In neither case, however, is the respective species of soul genuine, but it is distorted. In Creation itself they are useless except for the possibility of physical procreation.

In this also the first resolution of the spirit-germ is decisive and fundamental for its whole existence; this resolution, however, is not made consciously but lies only in an inner, awakening urge! If this urge leads to a more delicate activity, then the existence of the spirit-germ is determined to be of a female kind; for thereby it keeps or holds a part of the higher Substantiality from which it severs or splits itself off. If it is inclined towards the coarser, active or positive working, then gradually the delicate and finer part of the higher Substantiality entirely severs itself and stays behind; in fact it is automatically cast off, so that for such a spirit-germ the masculine nature has therewith been determined as fundamental.

Thus right at the beginning the guarantee of the one-time free resolution, which is called the free volition, is fulfilled for the spiritual also here.

Woman! How much does this word alone express as a collective or radiating conception in the way of purity, grace and longing for the Luminous Heights!

What was meant to become of you, you earthwoman — something so great, so high, so noble — and what have you made of yourself!

You can no longer even perceive that your wish to enjoy admiration and appear desirable in the social trifling you so much favour, and every word, even every glance therein from the male side, are really insults to your womanly dignity... a besmirching of your God-willed purity!

If there were not still a few among you on earth in whose souls the Will of God could yet be anchored, verily it would be better if a movement of the Hand of God would sweep away these caricatures of womanhood from the smooth soil of this glorious Creation!

But for the sake of those few faithful ones the earthwoman, through the nearness of God, shall be permitted to rise to that height which was already ordained for her from the very beginning!

The purity of earthly woman lies in her faithfulness! For faithfulness is purity! A woman without faithfulness is unworthy to be called woman. And unfaithful is every woman who playfully trifles with men, either in words or in thoughts! Unfaithful to herself and to her high task in this Creation, therefore also on earth!

Faithfulness alone calls forth all the virtues in woman. Not one of them will be lacking!

Just as mankind had formed for themselves a one-sided, rigid, thus utterly wrong and narrow conception of chastity, so through their base thinking they have whittled down the high conception of purity to become something clumsy and ridiculous! They made a caricature, an unnatural fetter of it, which is contrary to the Laws in Creation, is utterly wrong, and merely shows the narrow limits of their paltry intellectual thinking!

The purity of the human woman rests solely in her faithfulness! Indeed, purity for mankind is faithfulness!

In absolutely plain words: Purity among men is personified in faithfulness! He who grasps this aright will always be able to find and to walk upon the right path therein, and not push aside the Law of Creation through psychic distortions. Therefore you must try and learn to understand it aright!

Purity as such is Divine! Therefore man himself cannot possess purity in its original form at all; for he is but a small part in Creation and as such is subject to very definite laws. Purity, however, can lie only in Divine Perfection; it is a part of this Perfection!

Man cannot therefore just possess purity in the true sense, but he can only personify it figuratively in accordance with his nature, by expressing it in a changed form in faithfulness! Faithfulness is thus the gradation of purity for mankind. Man puts faithfulness in the place of Divine Purity. And above all and in the most noble sense woman does so! Whatever she does is pure when it is done in faithfulness. Nor is it otherwise with man. Faithfulness is purity for every human being!

Naturally faithfulness must be genuine; it must not merely spring from the imagination. Genuine faithfulness can only live in true love, never in passion or phantasy. This again contains a protection and also a standard which serves for self-examination!

Man cannot be divine and must adjust himself to the laws of his own species. All else becomes distorted, unnatural and unhealthy, merely the consequence of false opinions, of a conceited craving which strives to draw attention to himself at all costs, or to stand apart from his fellow-men, to be admired or also perhaps to do something special before God. Never does it hold anything genuine and natural, but it is a nonsensical, forceful crippling of the soul which also brings physical detriment. It by no means contains anything great or sublime, but merely shows a grotesque distortion which has a ludicrous effect in Creation.

Man can only come to useful value in Creation when he remains what he is meant to be, and when he tries to bring his species to perfection through ennoblement. However, he can only achieve this through swinging in the laws, not when he places himself outside them.

Therefore faithfulness is the highest virtue of every woman; it also enables her fully to accomplish her high task in this Creation!

Heed this well, ye men:

The high, fine Substantiality, that which is most perceptive and more gentle, leads the household in the great Creation! Therewith woman is also appointed to her office, which she is completely capable of fulfilling: To lead the household in the earthly existence, to offer a home in the right sense! It is the task of the woman to make this earth homelike and harmonious, and she can develop this task to artistic heights. Therein lies everything, and upon this everything must be founded if it is to thrive and blossom forth!

The home must become a sanctuary through the woman! It must become a Temple for the Will of God! This contains worship of God when you listen in to His Holy Volition in Creation and when you adjust your life and your activity on earth accordingly.

And also man, whose profession in the past has proved to be based exclusively on slavish subjection to the intellect, will change through the nature of woman when he is forced to recognise in her the hint to what is more noble.

Always look into the household of this Creation and you will know how you have to arrange your life on earth!

However, man must not disregard the order of a household in an inconsiderate way, no matter whether through neglectful non-observance or a craving for power; for the activity of the woman in the household is just as important as is that of the man in his profession. It is merely of a different nature, but it cannot be dispensed with. Woman’s task in the home swings in the Law of God of which you are urgently reminded by the physical body, in that the latter seeks recreation, rest and nourishment, and last but not least... harmony among the souls therein, which refreshes and provides a new incentive and new strength for all man’s activities.

The balance in this, however, must be absolutely harmonious. For this reason the woman, too, must respect the work of the man, and not think that her activity may alone be decisive. The activity of both parts shall be joined to each other in an even swinging. The one may not disturb the other!

Thus man must not wilfully upset or confuse the orders in the household, but through being punctual and showing a growing understanding he must even help so that everything can keep its harmonious course.

This is what you can and must learn from Creation. In the Millennium you will yet be compelled to do so, otherwise you could never exist therein!

All those who now do not wish to obey the Laws of this Creation are rebels against their home, against their Creator, their God! They will be cast out and destroyed by the Laws themselves, which through the increased Power of God now quickly and invincibly turn against everything that destroys the God-Willed harmony.

Therefore pay heed to your home, men, and learn to understand this Subsequent Creation! You must become familiar with it and now at last adjust yourselves to the order also here on earth!