Rosicrucian Esotericism
GA 109
5 June 1909, Budapest
3. The Nature and Being of Man
In the lecture yesterday I endeavored to give a general survey of the different manifestations and functions of the life of soul in the world around us. Today we will study the nature and being of man himself in greater detail, referring as well to a great deal of what is already known. We will think, to begin with, of facts connected with the nature of man that form part of the picture I was able to give you yesterday.
To begin with, in respect of his lowest body, the human being seems as if he had grown out of the first kingdom that surrounds us, that of the minerals. What immediately catches our eye when a man is standing in front of us, is the most tangible part of all, namely, his physical body. But the occultist knows that this is only one member of his constitution. It is easy to form an erroneous idea of this physical body when it is taken for granted that the physical body is what can be seen with the eyes and touched with the hands. That would be as mistaken as it would be to take hydrogen for water. The higher members of man's constitution are intermingled with his physical body. As it confronts us, this physical body is already permeated by the other members of man's nature, so that the structure of flesh and bones before us cannot without further ado be called the physical body. This physical body of man consists of the same substances and forces that are to be found in the mineral world outside, interwoven with consummate art in the structure of the human body. That this body looks and feels as it does is due to the fact that the other members of man's nature and constitution are mingled with it. The body of man seen by the eye is not, properly speaking, the physical body. The physical body as such is present when the human being has gone through the gate of death. The remaining corpse is the real physical body, the body freed from all the higher members of man's nature. When it is left to itself this physical body follows laws quite other than those followed until the moment of death. Before then, it has, in truth, been consistently repudiating the laws of physical chemistry. In earthly existence the body of man would be a perpetual corpse if it were not permeated by the etheric body that throughout life fights against the decay of the physical body. The ether or life body is the second member of man's being.
We will now take it for granted that both the plant and the animal have etheric bodies. Nevertheless, in a certain respect the human being differs from the animal in his etheric body as well, and it is this difference that is of particular interest to us. In what respect does the etheric body of man differ from that of the animal? First let us ask how clairvoyant consciousness is able to acquire knowledge of man's etheric body. To answer this question we must describe what clairvoyance is.
An individual who has developed a certain faculty of clairvoyance has also acquired such mastery of his mental activity that he is able to focus his attention upon or divert it from something with far greater strength than before. If you were to expect an average human being to be able to control his attention to the extent of suggesting away a physical form in front of him, you would find that it would be possible in the rarest instances. A clairvoyant, however, is quite capable of doing this. The space otherwise occupied by the physical body is then, for the clairvoyant, filled through and through by this etheric body. It has approximately the human form in the head, torso and shoulders, but the lower the area in the body, the less similar it is to the human figure.
The etheric body of an animal is different from its physical body. The etheric body of the horse, for example, extends far beyond its physical form. If you could see the etheric body of an elephant clairvoyantly you would be amazed at its gigantic proportions. In the case of the human form, the lower the level the greater is the difference between the etheric body and the physical form. Otherwise, in a certain respect, left and right correspond in the physical body and in the etheric body. The physical heart lies slightly to the left; the corresponding organ in the etheric body is the etheric heart, which lies to the right. The greatest difference, however, between the physical and the etheric body is that the etheric body of a man is female and the etheric body of a woman, male. This is a fact of great significance and many riddles of human nature are explicable on the basis of this finding of occult investigation. Thus, in the case of the human being there is a kind of correspondence, and in the case of the animal a great difference, between this second member of man's nature and the first.
Of man's astral body it is possible to have a much clearer idea. It is the third member of his constitution. The etheric body of man is a reality to one who is clairvoyant; to a materialist it is simply an illusion. Anatomists and physiologists investigate man's physical body only. But in this physical body there is something—the blood and nerves—that is much more closely related to man's consciousness. This consciousness is aware of his happiness, suffering and joy, all of which take effect in the space filled by his physical body. The bearer of these experiences is invisible to the individual concerned but it is visible to clairvoyant consciousness as a luminous cloud. This is the astral body. It differs greatly from the etheric body.
Movement in the physical body cannot be compared with the extraordinary mobility of the etheric body. In a healthy human being the color of this etheric body is that of the blossom of a young peach tree. Everything in the etheric body gleams and glitters in shades of rosy red, dark and light, becoming a radiant white. The etheric body has a definite boundary, although this fluctuates. The astral body is quite different. It displays the greatest possible variety of colors and changing forms, like a cloud floating by with ever changing movement. The colors and forms that appear in the cloud are expressions of the feelings and experiences that play between one human being and another. If a clairvoyant sees a bluish-red color in the astral body, he perceives love streaming between human beings, but another time he will also see the feelings of animosity that pass between individuals. As a man's activity of soul is constantly changing, so, too, do the colors and forms change in the astral body, appearing and disappearing in a multicolored play.
The fourth member of man's constitution is the bearer of the ego. Thus we have his physical body, which in external nature is comparable with the mineral, then his etheric body, which is comparable with the plant, and then his astral body, which is common to both animal and man. The astral body in man, however, is far more mobile than it is in the animal.
The ego bearer, the fourth member of man's nature, is seen as a kind of oval form, the source of which can be traced to the anterior part of the head. It is visible there to the clairvoyant as a bluish, luminous orb. A kind of bluish sheen streams out from this orb and passes into the human being. When, but not until, the clairvoyant can also suggest away a man's astral body, he is able to perceive the ego bearer. Man has the other three bodies in common with the mineral, plant and animal kingdoms of nature. But the ego bearer distinguishes him from these kingdoms and he becomes thereby the crown of creation.
In studying the fourfold nature of man we have actually been envisaging the dowry he has received from the higher worlds, no matter what his stage of evolution may be. The fact that he has the fourfold constitution of which we have spoken makes him man. Not until the “I,” the ego, works on the three bodies does his own task begin in the real sense. Whether the development achieved by a human being has reached a higher or lower stage depends upon how effectively he has worked upon the lower members of his constitution. The ego begins first of all to work upon the astral body. The effect of this work differs depending upon whether the individual concerned has reached only a low stage of development or is a highly evolved personality such, for example, as Schiller. The one has achieved less than the other in the process of transforming his astral body. This inner work upon oneself is known in occultism as purification, cleansing or catharsis. In this way the ego works at the perfecting of the astral body. In every human being, therefore, it will be found that the astral body is twofold. One part has been worked upon and purified, not so the other. Let us now suppose that the ego continues to work unswervingly upon the astral body. If this is the case, the individual concerned will gradually reach the stage of no longer having to force himself to do what is good, because it will become habit. There is obviously a difference when an individual is obeying a command, or has so much love in him that willy-nilly he will do what is good, meaningful and beautiful. If an individual is simply obeying a command, his ego is indeed working upon his astral body, but if doing the good becomes a habit, then the ego is working upon the etheric body as well.
To understand how the ego works upon the etheric body we will think of an example. When something or other is explained to you and you have understood it, then the ego has worked into the astral body. But if day after day you repeat a prayer, perhaps the Lord's Prayer, you are working into the etheric body because of the repetition every day; the soul is exercising the same activity over and over again. Repetition is an entirely different matter from a momentary understanding. We will clarify our minds as to how, in the latter case, the ego works upon the astral body and, in the former, upon the etheric body through repetition.
Think of the growth of a plant. The living seed produces the stalk and leaf after leaf; constantly new green leaves are added. This is possible because the plant is endowed with an etheric body and the underlying, active principle of the etheric body is repetition. Wherever repetition occurs, an etheric body is at work. The culminating feature of the plant, the blossom, is the product of a different principle, namely, the overshadowing astral body. Culmination, therefore, is brought about by astrality. This can also be observed in the structure of man's physical body. The spine with its numerous vertebrae is an expression of the etheric body in the physical body. Now think of man's head, of the brain. There you have the culmination, the work of the astral body in the physical stature. Spiritually, this is the same process as the manifestation of understanding resulting from the effect made upon the astral body; activity generated through daily repetition of the same prayer or meditative exercise is the product of work upon the etheric body. The essence of meditation is that through repetition it has an effect not only upon the astral body but also upon the etheric body. The reason why the effect made by the great religious teachers has been so dynamic is because they have imparted to humanity principles embodying a power that works ever onward. The etheric body of man is also twofold; one part has been worked upon by the ego, although in the average individual still to a limited extent, while the other part has not yet been worked upon at all.
There is still a third possibility for man. He can work from his ego into the physical body. This is the hardest task of all. Man has already worked continuously upon his physical body unconsciously, but not from his ego. This is possible only for the most advanced individuals.
We have thus studied the four lower members of man's constitution and have been made aware that three higher members are products of the transformation of the lower members as the result of the work of the ego. In this work upon the three lower members there is considerable difference in that it proceeds either consciously or unconsciously—unconsciously, that is to say, without the individual concerned being aware of it. The transformation occurs perhaps through the study and contemplation of works of art, pictures, and so forth, or through pious devotion and prayer. But these individuals are not conscious that they are working upon their astral and etheric bodies; conscious work begins at a comparatively late state. We have therefore to distinguish between conscious and unconscious work upon the lower members of man's being. His astral body is twofold; one part is the product of unconscious activity, the other of conscious effort. The part of the astral body that was worked upon unconsciously by the ego is called the sentient soul, which today is finished and complete in man. What was worked upon the etheric body unconsciously from the ego is the intellectual or mind soul. What has been worked upon in the physical body, unconsciously for long ages, is the consciousness or spiritual soul. Thus in man we distinguish physical body, etheric body, astral body and the ego. The ego, working unconsciously upon the astral body produces the sentient soul, upon the etheric body, the intellectual or mind soul, upon the physical body, the consciousness or spiritual soul. We have, therefore, spoken of six, or rather seven members present in man's nature because he has worked unconsciously upon his own nature and constitution.
Now the conscious work begins. What comes into existence as a result of it? Spirit self, or manas, is the outcome of what a man consciously instils into his astral body; what he consciously instils into his etheric body, but this is dependent upon occult training, is known as buddhi or life spirit. What happens if the ego eventually becomes able to work consciously into the physical body, to inculcate forces into the physical body itself? Through occult training this can actually be brought about consciously through the breathing process but there must be great caution and sensitivity of procedure, for through false methods of training such as are often given in public literature, a European body can be seriously harmed; knowledge of what is suitable for the constitution of a modern human being is essential. Through a conscious method of breathing the physical body can be transformed by the ego into atman or spirit man.
Man was a fourfold being when he assumed earthly form. In his first incarnation on earth he had already begun to work upon his own being through the ego. In the course of the following incarnations he has developed, unconsciously, the three functional aspects of the soul: sentient soul, intellectual or mind soul, consciousness or spiritual soul. We shall subsequently learn how the conscious transformation is achieved of physical, etheric and astral bodies into the three higher members. Meanwhile, you have heard how the sevenfold being of man evolves through the incarnations. The four members, physical body, etheric body, astral body and ego, form the so-called sacred quaternary that was revered in all occult schools and with which a sacred trinity was allied, consciously forming a sevenfoldness or tenfoldness. We have thus a picture before us of man who has within him everything that is out-spread around him but which he transcends by virtue of his ego bearer.
We will now study the human being in waking life and in sleep in order to learn how the bodies are connected. What is happening when joy and pain in a man are stilled, when his consciousness sinks into sleep? His astral body and ego are then outside his physical and etheric bodies. In the state of sleep something striking happens to man. In sleep at night he has descended as it were to the level of the plant by day. He has become a twofold being; his physical and etheric bodies remain in the bed and his astral body and ego are outside. You may now ask whether it can be said that man is a plant while he is asleep. No, but man and plant then consist of the same combination of bodies. On our earth a being with a physical body and an etheric body only is a plant. When an astral body and ego are present, the physical and etheric bodies change. In the plant there are no nerve strands, and it is only a physical body in which there is an ego, that has warm blood. The higher animals must be regarded as degenerate forms of the original man. In the physical body the ego comes to expression in the blood, the astral body in the nerves, the etheric body in the glandular system and the physical nature of man in his own body. If, therefore, the astral body is the creator of the system of nerves, which is actually the case, this system of nerves is in a doleful situation, for during sleep it is abandoned by its creator. Not so the glandular system, for the etheric body remains with it. But the blood system of the physical and etheric bodies is faithlessly forsaken by the ego during the night. The physical body can exist on its own, because the physical nature remains the same, as does the glandular system, since the etheric body remains in the physical body during sleep. The system of nerves, however, is forsaken by its master. We will now ask clairvoyant consciousness what is then happening in the physical body? To the extent to which man's astral body goes out of the physical and etheric bodies during the night, to that same extent a “divine-spiritual” astral body moves into the bodies lying in the bed. The same applies to the blood system; a divine-spiritual ego enters into it and provides for its maintenance. In the night, too, man is a fourfold being but beings of a higher order take possession of the two bodies remaining in the bed. When man's astral body and ego return in the morning to his etheric and physical bodies, his own astral body expels a being of greater power. The same happens in the case of the blood system. Man's ego drives out the divine-spiritual ego that has provided for the blood system during the night.
Divine-spiritual beings are present in our environment all the time. By day they must withdraw, just as we ourselves withdraw during the night. These divine-spiritual beings sleep by day, whilst human beings sleep by night. In the evening a divine-spiritual ego and a divine-spiritual astral body draw into the physical and etheric bodies of the man asleep in bed and leave these bodies in the morning. The process in man is exactly the reverse. In the evening he abandons his bodies and in the morning resumes possession of them. Even in religions a feeling has remained that the gods sleep by day. There are countries where the churches are shut at midday because the gods are then most deeply asleep.
We will now think about what is outside man's body at night, namely, the astral body and the ego. We know that desires, urges and passions are rooted in the astral body but during the night man is not aware of them. Why is this? It is because at the present stage of evolution man's astral body and ego have no organs that would make this awareness possible. Man as he is at present can perceive only by means of physical organs. There are around man as many worlds as he has organs to perceive them. If he has one organ more, a new world reveals itself to him. His astral body, if he has not yet become clairvoyant, has no organs, hence during the night he cannot be aware of anything. It is easy to imagine that during sleep he may be without senses. There are blind people and also people in whom other senses are lacking. No world is present for one who is unable to use his senses. Hence, in the morning, when a man can again make use of his physical senses, he becomes aware of the world around him. But at death it is different. Through the whole of life the etheric body and the physical body remain connected with each other; at death, the etheric body, for the first time as a rule, abandons the physical body. The moment of death is therefore described by those who have knowledge of the subject as the moment when a retrospect of the whole past life passes like a panorama before the human being. What is the explanation of this? It is because the etheric body is the bearer of memory and this memory now becomes free. As long as the etheric body is in the physical body it cannot unfold all its power but only as much as the physical instrument permits. Now, however, at death the etheric body becomes free of the physical body and can unfold what has been inscribed in it during life. This panorama can also arise as the result of a shock but in that case the man concerned must not lose consciousness as he does at death. The shock may be caused by danger of death. But this is an exceptional case.
Now you may ask how long this tableau lasts. The time varies a great deal in human beings. Speaking generally, it can be said that the tableau lasts for as long as the individual concerned could stay awake during life without being overcome by sleep—twenty hours, fifty, sixty to eighty hours. The extreme limit of time during which waking consciousness can be sustained is approximately that of the duration of this panorama. The retrospect persists for as long as this. Then it fades away and a clairvoyant sees how the etheric body detaches itself at the same time—not entirely, however, and that is the important point. The individual concerned takes with him an essence, an extract of his etheric body and with it the fruits of his last life. He ascends, retaining the essence of his etheric body, his astral body and his ego until he also lays aside his astral body. He has now laid aside two corpses, and then he passes into the spiritual world.
Tomorrow we shall study the life after death and the entry into the devachanic world.
Das Wesen des Menschen
Gestern versuchte ich, Ihnen einen Überblick zu geben über die verschiedene Art der Beseelung der uns umgebenden Welt. Heute wollen wir uns über das Wesen des Menschen selbst genauer orientieren. Mancherlei schon Bekanntes wird auch hier erwähnt werden müssen. Wir wollen uns zunächst Tatsächliches aus dem Wesen des Menschen in solcher Art vor Augen führen, wie es sich am besten in das Bild hineinstellt, das ich Ihnen gestern geben konnte. Da werden wir dann sehen, wie der Mensch aus dem ersten Reich, das uns umgibt und das wir als das Mineralreich charakterisiert haben, in bezug auf seinen niedrigsten Leib zunächst wie aus ihm herausgewachsen erscheint. Betrachten wir den Menschen, wie er vor uns steht, so ist das erste, was wir an ihm wahrnehmen, das Handgreiflichste: sein physischer Leib. Für die okkulten Forscher aber ist dieses nur ein Glied seiner Menschennatur. Es ist leicht, sich über diesen physischen Leib eine falsche Vorstellung zu machen, wenn man denkt, der physische Leib sei eben das, was man mit Augen sehen, mit Händen greifen kann. Man begeht damit denselben Fehler, wie wenn man Wasserstoff für Wasser ansehen wollte. Diesem physischen Menschenleib sind nämlich schon die höheren Glieder beigemischt. So wie er uns physisch entgegenttritt, ist dieser physische Menschenleib schon von den andern Gliedern der Menschennatur durchdrungen, so daß dasjenige, was uns da als Fleisch und Knochen entgegentritt, nicht ohne weiteres der physische Leib genannt werden kann. Dieser physische Menschenleib ist zwar das, was aus denselben Stoffen und Kräften besteht wie dasjenige, was Sie draußen in der mineralischen Welt haben, in kunstvollem Bau sind diese selben Stoffe und Kräfte zusammengefügt im Menschenleib, doch daß er so aussieht, sich so anfühlt, wie er es tut, das rührt davon her, daß ihm schon die andern Wesensglieder beigemischt sind. Was das Auge vom physischen Menschenleib sieht, das ist eigentlich nicht der physische Leib. Der ist als solcher vorhanden, wenn der Mensch eben durch die Pforte des Todes gegangen ist: der Leichnam, das ist der eigentliche physische Leib, das, was befreit ist von all den Gliedern der höheren Menschennatur. Wenn er sich überlassen ist, dieser physische Leib, so folgt er ganz andern Gesetzen als bis zu diesem Augenblick. Bisher hat er eigentlich stets den physikalisch-chemischen Gesetzen widersprochen. Der Körper des Menschen würde im irdischen Leben jeden Augenblick Leichnam sein, wenn er nicht dauernd durchzogen wäre vom Ätherleib, der ein Kämpfer ist gegen den Zerfall des physischen Leibes das ganze Leben hindurch. Der Äther- oder Lebensleib ist das zweite Glied der menschlichen Wesenheit.
Wir wollen hier gleich vorausnehmen, daß einen Ätherleib auch die Pflanze und auch das Tier hat. Aber es unterscheidet sich doch der Mensch in gewisser Beziehung auch in seinem Ätherleib vom Tier. Und dieser Unterschied soll uns nun besonders interessieren: Wie unterscheidet sich der menschliche Ätherleib von dem des Tieres? — Zunächst aber wollen wir noch fragen: Wie kommt das hellseherische Bewußtsein dazu, etwas zu wissen vom Ätherleib des Menschen? Zur Beantwortung dieser Frage müssen wir das Hellsehen schildern.
Wer eine gewisse Stufe des Hellsehens erreicht hat, der hat auch die Fähigkeit sich erworben, die starke Kraft errungen, seinen Geist so zu beherrschen, daß er in viel höherem Grade imstande ist, auf etwas seine Aufmerksamkeit zu lenken, oder sie davon abzulenken. Wenn Sie vom gewöhnlichen Menschen verlangen, seine Aufmerksamkeit so abzulenken, daß er sich sozusagen die physische Gestalt absuggetieren kann, so wird ihm das nur äußerst selten möglich sein; der Hellseher aber ist dazu durchaus imstande. Der Raum, in dem sonst der physische Leib ist, ist für den Hellseher dann ausgefüllt, durchglänzt von diesem Ätherleib oder Lebensleib. Derselbe hat annähernd die menschliche Gestalt an Kopf, Rumpf und Schultern. Je mehr er nach unten verläuft, desto weniger ähnlich ist er der menschlichen Gestalt. Beim Tier ist der Ätherleib sehr verschieden vom physischen Leib. Beim Pferd zum Beispiel ragt, wie Sie wissen, der Ätherkopf weit heraus. Und wenn Sie erst beim Elefanten den Ätherleib hellseherisch beobachten könnten, würden Sie erstaunt sein, welch riesigen Aufbau derselbe hat, Je mehr wir bei der Menschengestalt nach unten kommen, desto mehr ändert sich der Ätherleib gegenüber der physischen Form. Sonst aber entspricht sich in gewisser Beziehung Links und Rechts im physischen und im Ätherleibe. Etwas nach links liegt das physische Herz; das entsprechende Organ im Ätherkörper ist das Ätherherz, welches auf der rechten Seite liegt. Der größte Unterschied aber zwischen physischem und Ätherkörper ist der, daß der Ätherleib des Mannes weiblich ist und der der Frau männlich. Diese Tatsache ist sehr wichtig, und viele Rätsel der Menschennatur sind auf Grund dieses okkulten Forschungsergebnisses erklärlich. So ist also beim Menschen eine Art Entsprechung, beim Tier ein großer Unterschied zwischen diesem zweiten Glied der menschlichen Wesenheit und dem ersten.
Den Astralleib können Sie sich beim Menschen noch viel klarer machen. Er ist das dritte Glied der menschlichen Wesenheit. Schon der Ätherleib ist eine Tatsache für den Hellseher, für den Materialisten freilich eine Phantasterei. Die äußere, anatomische, physiologische Wissenschaft durchforscht am Menschen nur den physischen Körper. Aber in diesem physischen Körper ist etwas, was als Blut und Nerven dem Bewußtsein des Menschen noch viel näher steht. Er weiß nämlich von seiner Lust, von seinem Leid, von seiner Freude, und dieses spielt sich ab im Raum, der von seinem physischen Körper ausgefüllt ist. Der Träger davon, der ihm unsichtbar ist, wird sichtbar für das hellseherische Bewußtsein wie eine leuchtende Wolke: es ist der astralische Leib. Dieser unterscheidet sich sehr vom Ätherleib.
Die Bewegung im physischen Leib ist nicht zu vergleichen mit der außerordentlichen Beweglichkeit des Ätherleibes. Beim gesunden Menschen hat dieser die Farbe der Blüte des jungen Pfirsichbaumes. Es glänzt und glitzert alles an ihm in der eigentümlichen Nuance, in Rosenrot, Dunklem und Hellem bis zum Weiß-Leuchtenden; dabei hat der Ätherleib eine bestimmte Grenze, wenn dieselbe auch schwankend ist. Beim astralischen Leib ist das ganz anders. Der zeigt die mannigfaltigsten Farben und Formen, gleich einer Wolke, die dahinflutet in steter wechselnder Bewegung. Und das, was sich in der Wolke bildet, das drückt sich aus in den Gefühlen und Empfindungen, die der Mensch dem Menschen entgegenbringt. Sieht der Hellseher die bläulich-rote Farbe im Astralleib auftauchen, so sieht er gleichsam die Liebe strömen von Mensch zu Mensch, doch sieht er auch all die häßlichen Empfindungen, die von Mensch zu Mensch spielen. Und da die Seelentätigkeit des Menschen sich fortwährend ändert, so ändern sich auch fortwährend die Farben und Formen des astralischen Leibes, sie treten auf und schwingen ab in buntem Spiel und bilden ihre Einschlüsse.
Das vierte Glied der menschlichen Wesenheit ist der Träger des Ich.
So haben wir am Menschen nun den physischen Leib, der in der Natur draußen dem Mineral gleichkommt, dann den Ätherleib, welcher der Pflanze vergleichbar ist, und als drittes den Astralleib, den das Tier mit dem Menschen gemeinsam hat. Nur ist der Astralleib beim Menschen viel beweglicher als beim Tier.
Der Ich-Träger, das vierte Glied der menschlichen Wesenheit, ist gleich einer Art Ovalfigur, deren Ursprung bis hinein in das Vorderhirn zu verfolgen ist. Dort ist dieselbe für den Hellseher als eine bläulich-leuchtende Kugel sichtbar. Von der strömt aus in Ovalform, wie ein Raum-Ei, könnte man sagen, das in den Menschen hineinspielt, eine Art von Bläue. Wie ist dieser Ich-Träger zu sehen? Erst wenn der Hellseher imstande ist, sich auch den Astralleib des Menschen abzusuggerieren, erst dann vermag er den Ich-Träger wahrzunehmen. Die drei andern Leiber hat der Mensch mit den drei Reichen der Natur, dem Mineralreich, Pflanzen- und Tierreich gemeinsam. Durch den Ich-Träger aber unterscheidet er sich von diesen, dadurch ist er die Krone der Schöpfung.
Indem wir so die viergliedrige Wesenheit des Menschen betrachtet haben, haben wir uns gleichzeitig das vor Augen geführt, was der Mensch sozusagen von den höheren Welten mitbekommen hat, ganz gleichgültig, auf welcher Entwickelungsstufe er steht. Dadurch, daß er diese vier Glieder der menschlichen Wesenheit hat, dadurch ist er eben Mensch. Jetzt erst, wenn das Ich an den drei andern Leibern arbeitet, beginnt die Arbeit des Menschen selbst. Ein Mensch steht höher oder niedriger in seiner Entwickelung, je nachdem er seine Arbeit an den drei niedrigeren Gliedern seiner Wesenheit vollbringt. Es beginnt das Ich zuerst am Astralleib zu arbeiten. Diese Arbeit drückt sich an einem niedrigerstehenden Menschen und an einer hochstehenden Persönlichkeit, wie Schiller etwa, sehr verschieden aus. Der eine hat an der Umwandlung seines Astralleibes weniger geleistet als der andere. Diese innere Arbeit an sich selbst nennt man in der Geheimsprache die Läuterung oder Reinigung: Katharsis. In dieser Weise arbeitet das Ich an der Vervollkommnung des Astralleibes. Bei allen Menschen finden Sie daher, daß der Astralleib in zwei Teile zerfällt: der eine Teil ist durchgearbeitet, geläutert, der andere nicht. Nehmen wir nun an, das Ich arbeitet unentwegt weiter am astralischen Leib, dann wird der Mensch allmählich dahinkommen, nicht mehr sich gebieten zu müssen, das Gute zu tun, sondern das Gute zu tun wird ihm zur Gewohnheit werden. Es ist nämlich ein Unterschied, ob der Mensch nur einem Gebot folgt, oder so stark in der Liebe ist, daß er gar nicht anders kann, als das Gute, das Gescheite, das Schöne zu tun. Folgt der Mensch nur dem Gebot, so arbeitet das Ich am Astralleibe; wird ihm aber das Gute zur Gewohnheit, so bearbeitet das Ich bereits auch den Ätherleib.
In welcher Weise arbeitet nun das Ich am Ätherleib? Um dies zu erkennen, wollen wir ein Beispiel zu Hilfe nehmen. Wenn Ihnen irgend etwas erklärt wird und Sie haben die Sache verstanden, so hat das Ich in den Astralleib hineingearbeitet. Wenn Sie aber tagtäglich ein Gebet verrichten, etwa tagtäglich das Vaterunser beten, so arbeiten Sie in den Ätherleib dadurch hinein, daß Sie jeden Tag dasselbe wiederholen, daß die Seele immer wieder dieselbe Tätigkeit zustande bringt. Wiederholung ist etwas ganz anderes als einmaliges Verständnis. Wir wollen uns das klarmachen, wie das eine den Astralleib, das andere den Ätherleib vom Ich aus bearbeitet.
Schauen Sie auf das Wachsen der Pflanze. Sie treibt den Keim, den Stengel, setzt Blatt für Blatt an, immer neue grüne Blätter. Dadurch, daß sie mit einem Ätherleib begabt ist, kann sie das, denn das Prinzip des Ätherleibes ist das der Wiederholung. Überall da, wo Wiederholung auftritt, da wirkt ein Ätherleib. Den Abschluß der Pflanze, die Blüte, den bewirkt ein anderes Prinzip, der sie überschattende Astralleib. Also ein Abschluß, das ist das Prinzip der Astralität. Merken Sie wohl - Sie können das auch beim Menschen am Bau seines physischen Leibes beobachten. Sehen Sie das Rückgrat an, die immer sich wiederholenden Rückenwirbel, da haben Sie den Ätherleib im Physischen ausgedrückt. Nun betrachten Sie den Kopf des Menschen, das Gehirn: da haben Sie den Abschluß, den Astralleib in der physischen Form. Denselben Vorgang haben Sie geistig als das einmalige Verständnis durch die Wirkung auf den Astralleib, und als errungene Tätigkeit durch die tägliche Wiederholung desselben Gebetes oder derselben Meditationsübung, einer Arbeit am Ätherleib. Darin ist das Wesentliche der Meditation zu sehen, daß sie durch das Prinzip der Wiederholung in den Astralleib nicht allein, sondern in den Ätherleib hinein wirkt. Die großen Religionslehrer haben deshalb so Großes gewirkt, weil sie der Menschheit Inhalte gegeben haben, in denen fortwirkende Kraft sich offenbarte, die immer noch weiter wirkt. So ist also auch der Ätherleib des Menschen zweiteilig: er hat einen durchgearbeiteten Teil, der allerdings beim Durchschnittsmenschen noch gering ist, und den vom Ich aus noch nicht bearbeiteten Teil.
Ein drittes noch gibt es für den Menschen: Er kann von seinem Ich aus in den physischen Körper wirken. Das ist die härteste Arbeit. Der Mensch hat unbewußt fortwährend schon an seinem physischen Körper gearbeitet; nicht aber von seinem Ich aus. Das ist nur den Vorgeschrittensten möglich.
So lernen wir die vier niederen Glieder des Menschen kennen und die drei höheren Glieder, welche Umwandlungsprodukte sind der drei niederen Leiber durch die Arbeit des Ich. Es besteht bei dieser Bearbeitung der drei unteren Glieder ein beträchtlicher Unterschied: dieselbe geschieht bewußt oder unbewußt. Unbewußt, das heißt ohne daß der betreffende Mensch es weiß, durch das Betrachten und Insich-Aufnehmen künstlerischer Werke, Bilder und so weiter, durch hingebende Andacht und Gebetsverrichtungen. Es sind sich aber die Menschen dessen nicht bewußt, daß sie an ihrem Äther- und Astralleib arbeiten; das bewußte Arbeiten daran beginnt verhältnismäßig spät. Wir haben also zu unterscheiden ein bewußtes und ein unbewußtes Arbeiten des Menschen an den unteren Wesensgliedern. Es besteht der menschliche Astralleib aus zwei Gliederungen: einem unbewußten und einem bewußten Teil. Den Teil des Astralleibes, der vom Ich aus in unbewußter Weise durchgearbeitet wurde, nennt man die Empfindungsseele; diese ist beim Menschen heute fertig durchgebildet. Was unbewußt am Ätherleib vom Ich aus bearbeitet wurde, das ist die Verstandesseele. Was im physischen Leibe unbewußt seit langer Zeit umgearbeitet worden ist, das ist die Bewußtseinsseele. So unterscheiden wir also am Menschen den physischen Leib, den Ätherleib, den Astralleib und das Ich, und von diesem als vom Astralleib unbewußt Umgearbeitetem die Empfindungsseele; vom Ätherleib die Verstandesseele; vom physischen Leib die Bewußtseinsseele. Wir haben also sechs, beziehungsweise sieben Glieder der menschlichen Natur, die so entstanden sind, daß der Mensch unbewußt an sich gearbeitet hat. Nun beginnt das bewußte Arbeiten. Was entsteht dadurch? Es ist dasjenige, was der Mensch bewußt in den Astralleib hineinarbeitet, das Geistselbst oder Manas; was der Mensch bewußt an seinem Ätherleib arbeitet - das aber geschieht erst bei einer bewußten okkulten Schulung -, nennt man die Buddhi oder den Lebensgeist. Und was geschieht dann, wenn das Ich einmal in die Lage kommt, den physischen Leib bewußt zu bearbeiten, das heißt Kräfte bis in den physischen Leib hineinzuarbeiten? Durch okkulte Schulung, durch den Atmungsprozeß kann das wirklich bewußt geschehen, aber es muß dabei sehr vorsichtig und sehr subtil zu Werke gegangen werden, denn bei falscher Schulung, wie sie oft in öffentlichen Schriften gegeben wird, kann man auch dem Körper des Europäers sehr schaden, und man muß wissen, was der Konstitution des modernen Menschen angemessen ist. Durch solche bewußte Atmung wird dann der physische Körper vom Ich aus umgestaltet zu Atman oder dem Geistesmenschen.
Das Wesen des Menschen war viergliedrig, als er irdische Gestaltung annahm. Mit der ersten irdischen Inkarnation beginnt er schon die Arbeit an sich selbst durch das Ich. Dabei entwickelt er durch die Verkörperungen hindurch unbewußt die drei Seelenaspekte: Empfindungsseele, Verstandesseele, Bewußtseinsseele. Wir werden noch sehen, wie die bewußte Umgestaltung von physischem Leib, Ätherund Astralleib in die drei höheren Glieder vor sich geht. Hier haben Sie nun inzwischen dasjenige, was gewissermaßen die siebengliedrige Wesenheit des Menschen ist, sie entwickelt sich so durch die Inkarnation hindurch. Die vier Glieder: physischer Leib, Ätherleib und Astralleib mit Ich sind die sogenannte heilige Vierheit, wie man sie in allen okkulten Schulen verehrte, zu der sich noch eine heilige Dreiheit gesellte, die sich zu einer Siebenheit und einer Zehnheit bewußt gliedert. So haben wir den universellen Menschen vor unsere Seele hingestellt, der alles in sich hat, was ihn gleichsam fächerartig umgibt, der aber durch seinen Ich-Träger darüber hinausragt.
Nun wollen wir auch den Menschen im Wachen und Schlafen betrachten, um zu erkennen, wie da die Leiber zusammengefügt sind. Was geschieht, wenn Freude und Schmerz im Menschen schweigen, wenn das Bewußtsein in den Schlaf hinabsinkt? Der Astralleib und das Ich sind dann außerhalb des physischen und Ätherleibes. Für den Menschen tritt da im Schlafzustande etwas sehr Eigentümliches ein. Wie eine Pflanze am Tage, so ist der Mensch in der Nacht: er hat nur den physischen und Ätherleib in sich, er ist sozusagen heruntergestiegen zur Pflanzheit. Das Menschenwesen spaltet sich in zwei Glieder: physischer und Ätherleib bleiben im Bette und Astralleib und Ich sind außerhalb. Nun können Sie die Frage vorlegen: Ja, ist denn der Mensch im Bette eine Pflanze? - Nein, das nicht, aber sie bestehen beide aus der gleichen Körperzusammensetzung. Auf unserer Erde nun kann ein Wesen mit physischem und Ätherleib nur existieren, wenn es Pflanze ist. Dadurch, daß ein Astralleib und ein Ich darinnen wohnt, verändern sich die andern Leiber auch, der physische und der Ätherleib. Bei den Pflanzen finden sich keine Nervenstränge, und warmes Blut hat nur der physische Leib, in dem ein Ich darinnen wohnt. Die höheren Tiere sind als heruntergesunkene Formen des ursprünglichen Menschen zu betrachten. Im physischen Leibe drückt sich das Ich im Blutsystem aus, der Astralleib in den Nerven, der Ätherleib im Drüsensystem und die physische Natur in des Menschen eigenem Körper. Wenn nun der Astralleib der eigentliche Bildner des Nervensystems ist, und das ist er, so kommt dieses bei Nacht in eine sehr trübselige Lage, denn es wird von seinem Herrn verlassen; das Drüsensystem aber nicht, denn der Ätherleib bleibt ihm treu. Aber auch das Blutsystem des physischen und Ätherleibes wird in der Nacht treulos vom Ich verlassen. Der physische Leib kann für sich bestehen, denn die physische Natur bleibt dieselbe, ebenso das Drüsensystem, denn der Ätherleib bleibt im physischen Leibe bei Nacht. Aber das Nervensystem wird von seinem Herrn verlassen. Wir wollen nun das hellscherische Bewußtsein fragen, was dann im physischen Leibe geschieht? In demselben Maße, in dem der menschliche Astralleib während der Nacht aus dem physischen und Ätherleib herausgeht, in demselben Maße dringt ein göttlich-geistiger Astralleib in die Leiber, die im Bette liegen, ein. Ebenso verhält es sich mit dem Blutsystem: ein göttlich-geistiges Ich geht hinein und versorgt es. Der Mensch ist auch in der Nacht ein viergliedriges Wesen, aber etwas anderes lebt in ihm: ein Wesen höherer Ordnung nimmt Besitz von den zwei Leibern im Bette. Und wenn der Mensch, das heißt sein Astralleib und sein Ich, am Morgen zu seinem Äther- und physischen Leibe zurückkehrt, so jagt sein kleiner Astralleib ein Mächtigeres hinaus. Ebenso geht es bei seinem Blutsystem: sein Ich vertreibt das göttlich-geistige Ich, das während der Nacht dasselbe versorgt hat.
In unserer Umgebung sind immer göttlich-geistige Wesenheiten. Diese müssen sich nun bei Tage zurückziehen, wir tun dasselbe bei Nacht. Diese göttlich-geistigen Wesenheiten schlafen nämlich bei Tag: Götterschlaf und Menschenschlaf entsprechen sich vollständig. Ein göttlich-geistiges Ich und ein göttlich-geistiger Astralleib ziehen am Abend in den im Bette liegenden Menschen, seinen physischen und Ätherleib ein und kehren am Morgen daraus zurück. Beim Menschen geschieht dies gerade umgekehrt, er verläßt am Abend seine Leiber und nimmt am Morgen wieder Besitz von ihnen. Selbst in den Religionen ist ein Empfinden zurückgeblieben für den Schlaf der Götter bei Tage. Es gibt Länder, wo die Kirchen um die Mittagszeit geschlossen werden, weil da die Götter am tiefsten schlafen.
Auch dasjenige wollen wir uns nun vom Menschen ansehen, was da bei Nacht außerhalb seines Leibes ist: der Astralleib und das Ich. Wir wissen, daß im Astralleibe Triebe, Begierden und Leidenschaften wurzeln, aber der Mensch nimmt diese in der Nacht nicht wahr. Woher kommt das? Weil der Astralleib und das Ich des Menschen in der gegenwärtigen Entwickelung keine Organe haben, um wahrzunehmen. Nur mit den physischen Organen kann der gegenwärtige Mensch wahrnehmen. Denn so viele Organe der Mensch hat, so viele Welten eröffnen sich ihm, sind um ihn. Hat er ein Organ mehr, so erschließt sich ihm eine neue Welt. Der Astralleib des Menschen hat, wenn der Mensch noch nicht hellseherisch geworden ist, noch keine Organe, deshalb nimmt der Mensch in der Nacht auch nichts wahr. Wir können uns leicht denken, daß der Mensch da ohne Sinne sein kann. Wir wissen, es gibt Blinde und solche, denen andere Sinne fehlen; keine Welt ist für den Menschen da, wenn er sich nicht seiner Sinne bedienen kann. Daher ist am Morgen, wenn der Mensch sich wieder der physischen Sinne bedienen kann, die Welt wieder um ihn herum da. Anders aber ist es beim Tode. Der Ätherleib und der physische Leib bleiben während des ganzen Lebens miteinander verbunden; im Tode nun geht der Ätherleib in der Regel zum ersten Male heraus und verläßt den physischen Leib. Der Moment des Todes wird daher von dem, der davon etwas weiß, als der Moment des Rückblicks geschildert, wo das ganze verflossene Leben wie ein Panorama am Menschen vorbeizieht. Warum? Weil der Ätherleib der Träger des Gedächtnisses ist und dieses Gedächtnis nun frei wird. Solange der Ätherleib im physischen Leib ist, kann er nicht seine ganze Kraft entfalten, sondern nur so viel davon entwickeln, als das physische Instrument zuläßt. Jetzt aber, im Tode, wird er frei und kann ohne den physischen Leib das entwickeln, was in der ganzen Lebenszeit in ihn eingeschrieben worden ist. Auch durch einen Schock, bei dem aber den Menschen das Bewußtsein nicht wie nach dem Tode verlassen darf, kann dieses Panorama eintreten, zum Beispiel bei Todesgefahr. Das ist aber ein Ausnahmefall.
Nun können Sie fragen: Wie lange dauert dieses Tableau? Das ist nun bei den Menschen sehr verschieden. Im allgemeinen kann man sagen, es dauert so lange, als der Mensch im Leben wachen kann, ohne vom Schlaf übermannt zu werden; das ist: zwanzig Stunden, fünfzig, sechzig bis achtzig Stunden. Die äußerste Grenze, die der Mensch im Wachen erreichen kann, ist ungefähr die Zeitdauer für dieses Panorama. So lange währt diese Rückerinnerung, dann flutet sie ab, und zugleich sieht der Hellseher, wie sich der Ätherleib herauslöst, aber nicht ganz, und das ist das Wesentliche. Eine Essenz, einen Extrakt nimmt der Mensch mit sich, und mit der Essenz seines Ätherleibes die Früchte seines letzten Lebens. Dadurch steigt der Mensch auf. Nun behält er die Essenz seines Ätherleibes, seinen Astralleib und sein Ich, bis er auch den Astralleib ablegt. Jetzt hat er zwei Leichname abgelegt, und dann geht er in die geistige Welt ein.
Morgen wollen wir dann das Leben nach dem Tode und den Eintritt in die devachanische Welt betrachten.
The Nature of Human Beings
Yesterday, I attempted to give you an overview of the different types of animation in the world around us. Today, we will take a closer look at the nature of human beings themselves. Some things that are already familiar will also need to be mentioned here. Let us first consider the facts about the nature of human beings in such a way that they fit best into the picture I was able to give you yesterday. We will then see how human beings, in relation to their lowest body, appear to have grown out of the first kingdom that surrounds us and which we have characterized as the mineral kingdom. When we look at the human being standing before us, the first thing we perceive is the most tangible: his physical body. For occult researchers, however, this is only one member of his human nature. It is easy to form a false idea of this physical body if one thinks that the physical body is simply what one can see with the eyes and touch with the hands. This is the same mistake as thinking that hydrogen is water. The higher members are already mixed in with this physical human body. Just as it appears to us physically, this physical human body is already permeated by the other members of human nature, so that what appears to us as flesh and bones cannot simply be called the physical body. This physical human body is indeed made up of the same substances and forces as those you find outside in the mineral world, but these same substances and forces are artfully combined in the human body. However, the fact that it looks and feels the way it does is due to the fact that the other members of the human being are already mixed in. What the eye sees of the physical human body is not actually the physical body. That exists as such when the human being has just passed through the gate of death: the corpse is the actual physical body, that which is freed from all the members of the higher human nature. When this physical body is left to itself, it follows laws that are completely different from those it followed up to that moment. Up to that point, it has actually always contradicted the physical and chemical laws. The human body would be a corpse every moment of earthly life if it were not constantly permeated by the etheric body, which fights against the decay of the physical body throughout life. The etheric or life body is the second member of the human being.
Let us assume here that plants and animals also have an etheric body. But in a certain respect, the human being also differs from the animal in its etheric body. And this difference should now be of particular interest to us: How does the human etheric body differ from that of the animal? — But first, let us ask: How does clairvoyant consciousness come to know something about the etheric body of the human being? To answer this question, we must describe clairvoyance.
Anyone who has reached a certain level of clairvoyance has also acquired the ability, the powerful force, to control their mind to such an extent that they are able to focus their attention on something or divert it away from something to a much greater degree. If you ask an ordinary person to divert their attention in such a way that they can, so to speak, detach themselves from their physical form, they will only be able to do so in extremely rare cases; but the clairvoyant is perfectly capable of doing this. The space in which the physical body is normally located is then filled for the clairvoyant, illuminated by this etheric body or life body. It has approximately the human form in the head, torso, and shoulders. The further down it goes, the less it resembles the human form. In animals, the etheric body is very different from the physical body. In horses, for example, as you know, the etheric head protrudes far out. And if you could observe the etheric body clairvoyantly in an elephant, you would be amazed at its enormous structure. The further down we go in the human form, the more the etheric body changes in relation to the physical form. Otherwise, however, the left and right sides correspond to each other in a certain way in the physical and etheric bodies. The physical heart lies slightly to the left; the corresponding organ in the etheric body is the etheric heart, which lies on the right side. The greatest difference between the physical and etheric bodies, however, is that the etheric body of the man is female and that of the woman is male. This fact is very important, and many mysteries of human nature can be explained on the basis of this occult research. Thus, in humans there is a kind of correspondence, while in animals there is a great difference between this second member of the human being and the first.
You can understand the astral body much more clearly in humans. It is the third member of the human being. The etheric body is already a fact for the clairvoyant, but of course a fantasy for the materialist. External, anatomical, physiological science investigates only the physical body in humans. But within this physical body there is something that is much closer to human consciousness than blood and nerves. For humans are aware of their desires, their suffering, their joy, and these take place in the space filled by their physical body. The carrier of these, which is invisible to him, becomes visible to clairvoyant consciousness like a luminous cloud: it is the astral body. This differs greatly from the etheric body.
The movement in the physical body cannot be compared with the extraordinary mobility of the etheric body. In healthy people, it has the color of the blossom of a young peach tree. Everything about it shines and glitters in its own unique shades, from rose red to dark and light to white and luminous; at the same time, the etheric body has a definite boundary, even if it is fluctuating. The astral body is completely different. It displays the most varied colors and forms, like a cloud flowing by in constant, changing motion. And what forms in the cloud is expressed in the feelings and sensations that people have toward one another. When the clairvoyant sees the bluish-red color appear in the astral body, he sees, as it were, love flowing from person to person, but he also sees all the ugly feelings that play between people. And since the soul activity of human beings is constantly changing, the colors and forms of the astral body are also constantly changing; they appear and disappear in a colorful play and form their inclusions.
The fourth member of the human being is the carrier of the I.
Thus, in the human being we now have the physical body, which in nature corresponds to the mineral, then the etheric body, which is comparable to the plant, and thirdly the astral body, which the animal has in common with the human being. Only the astral body is much more mobile in humans than in animals.
The ego carrier, the fourth member of the human being, is like a kind of oval figure whose origin can be traced back to the forebrain. There it is visible to the clairvoyant as a bluish-glowing sphere. From it flows, in an oval shape, like a spatial egg, one might say, a kind of blue that plays into the human being. How can this ego carrier be seen? Only when the clairvoyant is able to remove the astral body from the human being can he perceive the ego carrier. The human being shares the other three bodies with the three kingdoms of nature: the mineral, plant, and animal kingdoms. But it is through the ego carrier that they differ from these, and this makes them the crown of creation.
By considering the fourfold nature of the human being in this way, we have at the same time brought to mind what human beings have, so to speak, received from the higher worlds, regardless of their stage of development. It is precisely because he has these four members of the human being that he is human. Only now, when the ego works on the other three bodies, does the work of the human being himself begin. A human being stands higher or lower in his development, depending on how he accomplishes his work on the three lower members of his being. The ego begins to work first on the astral body. This work expresses itself very differently in a lower human being and in a higher personality, such as Schiller, for example. One has accomplished less in the transformation of his astral body than the other. This inner work on oneself is called purification or catharsis in the secret language. In this way, the ego works on the perfection of the astral body. In all people, therefore, you will find that the astral body is divided into two parts: one part is worked through, purified, the other is not. Let us now assume that the ego continues to work steadily on the astral body, then the person will gradually reach the point where they no longer have to command themselves to do good, but doing good will become a habit. There is a difference between a person merely following a commandment and being so strong in love that they cannot help but do what is good, wise, and beautiful. If a person merely follows a commandment, the I works on the astral body; but if doing good becomes a habit, the I is already working on the etheric body.
How does the ego work on the etheric body? To understand this, let us take an example. When something is explained to you and you understand it, the ego has worked into the astral body. But if you say a prayer every day, for example the Lord's Prayer, you are working into the etheric body by repeating the same thing every day, by the soul repeatedly bringing about the same activity. Repetition is something quite different from understanding something once. Let us make it clear to ourselves how one thing works on the astral body and the other on the etheric body from the ego.
Look at the growth of a plant. It sprouts the seed, the stem, and produces leaf after leaf, always new green leaves. It can do this because it is endowed with an etheric body, for the principle of the etheric body is that of repetition. Wherever repetition occurs, an etheric body is at work. The completion of the plant, the flower, is brought about by another principle, the astral body that overshadows it. So completion is the principle of astrality. Remember this well—you can also observe it in humans in the construction of their physical body. Look at the spine, the ever-repeating vertebrae, there you have the etheric body expressed in the physical. Now look at the human head, the brain: there you have the conclusion, the astral body in physical form. You have the same process spiritually as the unique understanding through the effect on the astral body, and as an activity achieved through the daily repetition of the same prayer or the same meditation exercise, a working on the etheric body. The essence of meditation can be seen in this: through the principle of repetition, it works not only into the astral body, but also into the etheric body. The great religious teachers have therefore achieved so much because they gave humanity content in which a continuing power was revealed that is still at work today. Thus, the etheric body of the human being is also twofold: it has a part that has been worked through, which is still small in the average human being, and a part that has not yet been worked on by the I.
There is a third aspect for the human being: he can work on the physical body from his I. This is the hardest work. Human beings have been working unconsciously on their physical bodies all along, but not from their ego. This is only possible for the most advanced.
In this way, we learn about the four lower members of the human being and the three higher members, which are the products of the transformation of the three lower bodies through the work of the ego. There is a considerable difference in this processing of the three lower members: it happens consciously or unconsciously. Unconsciously, that is, without the person concerned knowing it, through contemplating and absorbing artistic works, pictures, and so on, through devotional meditation and prayer. However, people are not aware that they are working on their etheric and astral bodies; conscious work on them begins relatively late. We must therefore distinguish between conscious and unconscious work by the human being on the lower members of his being. The human astral body consists of two parts: an unconscious and a conscious part. The part of the astral body that has been worked through unconsciously from the I is called the sentient soul; this is fully developed in human beings today. What has been worked on unconsciously in the etheric body from the I is the intellectual soul. What has been unconsciously transformed in the physical body over a long period of time is the conscious soul. Thus, we distinguish in human beings the physical body, the etheric body, the astral body, and the I, and from this, as something unconsciously processed by the astral body, the sentient soul; from the etheric body, the intellectual soul; and from the physical body, the conscious soul. We therefore have six or seven members of human nature, which have come into being through the unconscious work of the human being upon himself. Now conscious work begins. What arises from this? It is that which the human being consciously works into the astral body, the spirit self or manas; what the human being consciously works on his etheric body—but this only happens with conscious occult training—is called buddhi or the life spirit. And what happens when the ego is able to consciously work on the physical body, that is, to work forces into the physical body? Through occult training, through the breathing process, this can really happen consciously, but it must be done very carefully and very subtly, because with incorrect training, as is often given in public writings, one can also cause great harm to the European body, and one must know what is appropriate for the constitution of modern humans. Through such conscious breathing, the physical body is then transformed from the ego into the Atman or spiritual human being.
The essence of the human being was fourfold when it took on earthly form. With the first earthly incarnation, it already begins the work on itself through the ego. In the process, it unconsciously develops the three aspects of the soul through its incarnations: the sentient soul, the intellectual soul, and the conscious soul. We will see later how the conscious transformation of the physical body, the etheric body, and the astral body into the three higher members takes place. Here you now have, so to speak, the sevenfold nature of the human being, which develops in this way through incarnation. The four members: the physical body, the etheric body, the astral body, and the I are the so-called sacred fourfold nature, revered in all occult schools, to which a sacred threefold nature is added, consciously structured into a sevenfold and a tenfold nature. Thus we have placed before our soul the universal human being, who has everything within himself, surrounding him like a fan, but who rises above it through his ego.
Now let us also consider the human being in waking and sleeping states in order to recognize how the bodies are joined together. What happens when joy and pain are silent in the human being, when consciousness sinks into sleep? The astral body and the I are then outside the physical and etheric bodies. Something very peculiar occurs for the human being in the state of sleep. Like a plant during the day, so is the human being at night: he has only the physical and etheric bodies within him; he has, so to speak, descended to planthood. The human being splits into two parts: the physical and etheric bodies remain in bed, and the astral body and I am outside. Now you may ask: Are humans in bed plants? No, they are not, but they both consist of the same bodily composition. On our Earth, a being with a physical and etheric body can only exist if it is a plant. Because an astral body and an I live within it, the other bodies, the physical and etheric bodies, also change. Plants have no nerve strands, and only the physical body, in which the ego dwells, has warm blood. Higher animals are to be regarded as degraded forms of the original human being. In the physical body, the ego expresses itself in the blood system, the astral body in the nerves, the etheric body in the glandular system, and the physical nature in the human being's own body. If the astral body is the actual creator of the nervous system, and it is, then at night it finds itself in a very gloomy situation, for it is abandoned by its master; but the glandular system is not, for the etheric body remains faithful to it. But the blood system of the physical and etheric bodies is also faithlessly abandoned by the ego at night. The physical body can exist on its own, because physical nature remains the same, as does the glandular system, because the etheric body remains in the physical body at night. But the nervous system is abandoned by its master. Let us now ask the clear consciousness what happens in the physical body. To the same extent that the human astral body leaves the physical and etheric bodies during the night, a divine-spiritual astral body enters the bodies lying in bed. The same is true of the blood system: a divine-spiritual I enters and nourishes it. Even at night, the human being is a four-membered being, but something else lives within him: a being of a higher order takes possession of the two bodies lying in bed. And when the human being, that is, his astral body and his I, returns to his etheric and physical bodies in the morning, his small astral body drives out a more powerful one. The same happens with his blood system: his I drives out the divine-spiritual I that has nourished it during the night.
Divine-spiritual beings are always present in our environment. These must now withdraw during the day, and we do the same at night. These divine-spiritual beings sleep during the day: the sleep of the gods and the sleep of humans correspond completely. A divine-spiritual ego and a divine-spiritual astral body enter the human being lying in bed in the evening, entering his physical and etheric bodies, and return from them in the morning. In humans, this happens in exactly the opposite way: they leave their bodies in the evening and take possession of them again in the morning. Even in religions, a sense of the gods' sleep during the day has remained. There are countries where churches are closed at midday because that is when the gods sleep most deeply.
Let us now look at what is outside the human being at night: the astral body and the I. We know that impulses, desires, and passions are rooted in the astral body, but human beings are not aware of them at night. Why is this? Because in their present state of development, the astral body and the I do not have organs of perception. The present human being can only perceive with the physical organs. For as many organs as the human being has, so many worlds open up to him, surround him. If he has one more organ, a new world opens up to him. The astral body of the human being, if the human being has not yet become clairvoyant, does not yet have any organs, which is why the human being does not perceive anything at night. We can easily imagine that humans can exist without senses. We know that there are blind people and those who lack other senses; no world exists for humans if they cannot use their senses. Therefore, in the morning, when humans can use their physical senses again, the world is there around them once more. But it is different at death. The etheric body and the physical body remain connected throughout life; at death, the etheric body usually leaves the physical body for the first time. The moment of death is therefore described by those who know something about it as a moment of looking back, when the whole past life passes before the person like a panorama. Why? Because the etheric body is the carrier of memory, and this memory is now set free. As long as the etheric body is in the physical body, it cannot unfold its full power, but can only develop as much of it as the physical instrument allows. Now, however, in death, it becomes free and can develop without the physical body what has been inscribed in it during the entire lifetime. This panorama can also occur through a shock, but in this case the person must not lose consciousness as they do after death, for example in the case of mortal danger. But this is an exceptional case.
Now you may ask: How long does this tableau last? This varies greatly from person to person. In general, one can say that it lasts as long as a person can remain awake in life without being overcome by sleep; that is: twenty hours, fifty, sixty to eighty hours. The outer limit that a person can reach while awake is approximately the duration of this panorama. This flashback lasts for that long, then it ebbs away, and at the same time the clairvoyant sees how the etheric body detaches itself, but not completely, and that is the essential point. The person takes an essence, an extract, with them, and with the essence of their etheric body, the fruits of their last life. In this way, the human being ascends. Now he retains the essence of his etheric body, his astral body, and his ego until he also discards the astral body. Now he has discarded two corpses, and then he enters the spiritual world.
Tomorrow we will consider life after death and entry into the devachanic world.