The Threshold of the Spiritual World
GA 17
XV. Summary of Part of the Foregoing
[ 1 ] Man bears within him a real ego, which belongs to a super-spiritual world. In the physical world this real ego is, as it were, concealed by the experiences of thinking, feeling, and willing. Even in the spiritual world man only becomes aware of his real ego when he effaces in himself the memories of everything which he is able to experience through his thinking, feeling, and willing. The knowledge of the real ego emerges out of forgetfulness of what is experienced in the physical world, the elemental world, and the spiritual world.
[ 2 ] The human physical body is revealed in its true nature when the soul beholds it from the super-spiritual world. Then it becomes evident that that body first took its rise out of the universal cosmic process during a Saturn period which preceded the Sun period of the earth. Subsequently, during the Sun, Moon, and Earth periods, it developed into what the human physical body is at present.
[ 3 ] In accordance with the foregoing, man's collective being may be expressed in tabular form as follows:
[ 4 ] I. The physical body in the environment of the physical world. By its means man recognises himself as an independent individual being or ego. This physical body was formed, at its first beginning, from the universal cosmic essence during a long-past Saturn period of the earth, and through its development during four planetary metamorphoses of the earth has become what it now is.
[ 5 ] II. The subtle, etheric body in the elemental environment. By its means man recognises himself as a member of the earth's elemental or vital body. This body was formed, at its first beginning, from the universal cosmic essence during a long-past Sun period of the earth, and through its development during three planetary metamorphoses of the earth has become what it now is.
[ 6 ] III. The astral body in a spiritual environment. Through it man is a member of a spiritual world. In it is situated man's other self which realises itself in repeated earth-lives.
[ 7 ] IV. The real ego in a super-spiritual environment. In this man finds himself as a spiritual being, even when all experiences of the physical, elemental, and spiritual worlds, and therefore all experiences of the senses and of thinking, feeling, and willing, sink into oblivion.
Zusammenfassung einiges Vorangehenden
[ 1 ] Der Mensch trägt in sich ein « wahres Ich», welches einer übergeistigen Welt angehört. Dieses «wahre Ich» ist in der Sinneswelt wie verdeckt durch die Erlebnisse des Denkens, Fühlens und Wollens. Selbst noch in der geistigen Welt wird der Mensch dieses «wahren Ich» erst bewußt, wenn er die Erinnerungen an alles in sich austilgt, was er durch sein Denken, Fühlen und Wollen erleben kann. Aus dem Vergessen des in der Sinnes-, der elementarischen und der geistigen Welt Erlebten taucht das Wissen von dem «wahren Ich» auf.
[ 2 ] Der physisch-sinnliche Menschenleib offenbart sich, seiner wahren Wesenheit nach, wenn ihn die Seele von der übergeistigen Welt aus betrachtet. Da zeigt sich, daß er seine erste Anlage aus dem allgemeinen Weltprozesse heraus in einem dem Sonnenzustande der Erde vorangegangenen Saturnzustande erhalten hat. Er hat sich dann durch den Sonnen-, Monden- und Erdenzustand hindurch zu dem entwickelt, was er gegenwärtig als physischer Menschenleib ist.
[ 3 ] Schematisch kann man nach dem Vorangehenden die gesamte Wesenheit des Menschen so betrachten:
[ 4 ] I. Den physischen Leib in der physisch-sinnlichen Umwelt. Durch ihn erkennt sich der Mensch als selbständiges Eigenwesen (Ich). Dieser physische Leib hat sich aus dem allgemeinen Weltensein in seiner ersten Anlage während eines langvergangenen Saturnaustandes der Erde gebildet und ist durch seine Entwickelung in vier planetarischen Verwandlungen der Erde zu dem geworden, was er gegenwärtig ist.
[ 5 ] II. Den feinen, ätherischen Leib in der elementarischen Umwelt. Durch ihn erkennt sich der Mensch als Glied des Erdenlebensleibes. Er ist in seiner ersten Anlage während eines langvergangenen Sonnenzustandes der Erde aus dem allgemeinen Weltensein heraus gebildet und ist durch seine Entwickelung in drei planetarischen Verwandlungen der Erde zu dem geworden, was er gegenwärtig ist.
[ 6 ] III. Den astralischen Leib in einer geistigen Umwelt. Durch ihn ist der Mensch das Glied einer geistigen Welt. In ihm liegt das «andere Selbst» des Menschen, welches sich in den wiederholten Erdenleben zum Ausdrucke bringt.
[ 7 ] IV. Das «wahre Ich» in einer übergeistigen Umwelt. In diesem findet der Mensch sich als geistiges Wesen selbst dann, wenn alle Erlebnlsse der Sinnes-, der elementarischen und der geistigen Welt, also alle Erlebnisse der Sinne, des Denkens, Fühlens und Wollens der Vergessenheit anheimfallen.
Summary of some of the above
[ 1 ] The human being carries within him a "true self" that belongs to a super-spiritual world. This "true self" is concealed in the sensory world by the experiences of thinking, feeling and willing. Even in the spiritual world, a person only becomes aware of this "true self" when he eradicates the memories of everything he can experience through his thinking, feeling and willing. The knowledge of the "true self" emerges from the forgetting of what has been experienced in the sensory, elemental and spiritual worlds.
[ 2 ] The physical-sensual human body reveals its true essence when the soul observes it from the super-spiritual world. There it becomes apparent that it received its first formation out of the general world process in a Saturnian state preceding the solar state of the earth. It then developed through the solar, lunar and terrestrial states to become what it is today as a physical human body.
[ 3 ] According to the foregoing, the entire essence of man can be viewed schematically as follows:
[ 4 ] I. The physical body in the physical-sensual environment. Through it, the human being recognizes himself as an independent being (ego). This physical body was formed from the general world-being in its first development during a long-past Saturnian state of the earth and has become what it is today through its development in four planetary transformations of the earth.
[ 5 ] II The subtle, etheric body in the elemental environment. Through it man recognizes himself as a member of the earthly body. It was first formed during a long-past solar state of the earth out of the general world existence and has become what it is today through its development in three planetary transformations of the earth.
[ 6 ] III The astral body in a spiritual environment. Through it, the human being is a member of a spiritual world. In it lies the "other self" of the human being, which expresses itself in the repeated earthly lives.
[ 7 ] IV. The "true self" in a super-spiritual environment. In this, man finds himself as a spiritual being even when all experiences of the sensory, elementary and spiritual worlds, i.e. all experiences of the senses, of thinking, feeling and willing, fall victim to oblivion.