Self-Knowledge and God-Knowledge I
Theosophy, Christology and Mythology
GA 90a
16 February 1904, Berlin
Translated by Steiner Online Library
16. The Evolution of Beings
[ 1 ] Seven stages and states. In the fourth round: arupa, rupa, astral, physical.
[ 2 ] The inner life of human beings gives rise to entirely different states of consciousness. Waking consciousness is the best-known state. Below that lies, first of all, the state of the dreaming person—which is now the state of most animals, albeit with gradual differences, despite their waking sensory activity.
[ 3 ] The next lowest level is the consciousness that our body possesses while we sleep, which is entirely absorbed in physical functions—it is that of the plant, identical to our own while we sleep. The lowest is that of trance—that of the entire mineral realm; it lives in harmony with all of nature and therefore extends throughout the entire environment; hence the perception of things that constitute knowledge of the structure of the world; the universe is a descent and a spiraling downward. —When we descend very deeply, we become omniscient at the expense of our higher consciousness. - Above waking consciousness lie states similar to the previous ones, in which we move freely on the astral plane—the psychic state, initially with clear consciousness. - On the hyperpsychic Devachan plane, where the spiritual archetypes work their way into us and the physical body becomes a hollow space, it disappears—if we so desire.
[ 4 ] The astral world is a duplicate; the spirit world builds in from the outside. — Spiritual consciousness, where one begins to develop cosmic vision, is the highest stage of our earthly evolution. — Each cycle has the task of normally developing a particular state. - In the third round: a state of highly perfected dream consciousness—the effect emanated from Mahat through rapport. - Even before that, they had plant consciousness, which is why the spiritual beings on the outside were all the more concerned. - During the first round, everyone was in the deepest trance. Thus, the states of consciousness gradually
[Gap in the transcript]
[ 5 ] The deeper human consciousness becomes, the more real the forces surrounding people become. The more independent a person becomes, the more these forces withdraw. In the next three rounds, the next three states will be developed: Jonas in the shark and the swimming turtle—devachanic experiences perceived physically.
[ 6 ] In the second stage, there is no clear boundary between humans, animals, and plants—beings that are all-in-one. —In the third stage, plants are set apart, but humans and animals are not yet separated. Full differentiation occurs during the fourth stage.