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itself as an independent being. But this state of separateness was impaired because the ego was
afflicted with the memory of the earth consciousness, the earth-ego. This darkened the vision of the
spirit world, which began to cover itself with a veil between death and birth as was the case for
physical vision on earth.
The physical expression of all the changes that occurred in the spirit world while human evolution
went through the described conditions was the gradual regulation of the reciprocal relationships of
sun, moon, and earth, and in a broader sense also of the other heavenly bodies. The alternation of day
and night can be emphasized as being one consequence of these relationships. (The movements of the
heavenly bodies are regulated by the beings inhabiting them. The movement of the earth through
which day and night occur was caused by the reciprocal relationships of the various spirits standing
above man.
In like manner also the movement of the moon was caused, in order that after its separation from and
the revolving around the earth the Spirits of Form could act in the right way, with the right rhythm,
upon the physical human body.) During the day the human ego and astral body worked in the physical
and life bodies.
At night this activity ceased. The ego and astral body left the physical and life bodies. They entered
during this period entirely into the realm of the Sons of Life (the Angels), of the Spirits of Fire (the
Archangels), of the Spirits of Personality, and the Spirits of Form. Besides the Spirits of Form, the
Spirits of Motion, the Spirits of Wisdom, and the Thrones included at that time the physical and life
bodies in their sphere of action. It was thus possible that the injurious influences, which during the day
were exercised upon the human being through the errors of the astral body, could be repaired.
As the human beings now multiplied again on earth, there was no longer any reason why human souls
should not have incarnated in their descendants. The influence of the earth-moon forces of that time
permitted human bodies to develop, that were thoroughly fit to embody human souls. The souls who
previously were removed to Mars, to Jupiter, and to other planets, were led to the earth. There was in
consequence a soul present for every human descendant born within the cycle of generations. This
continued through long periods, so that the soul migrations to the earth corresponded to the increase in
the number of human beings.
The souls who left the body at death retained in the body-free state the echo of the earthly
individuality like a memory. This memory acted in such a way that when bodies corresponding to the
souls were born on earth, they reincarnated in them. As time went on, there were among, the human
offspring human beings who had souls coming from the outside, who had for the first time since the
earliest ages of the Earth appeared again upon it, and there were others having earthly-reincarnated
souls. In the subsequent period of the Earth evolution, there were fewer and fewer of the young souls
appearing for the first time and more and more of the reincarnated souls.
Nevertheless, for long ages the human race consisted of the two kinds of human beings resulting from
these facts. On earth, man felt more united by a common group-ego with his forebears. The experience
of the individual ego was, however, all the stronger in the body-free state between death and a new
birth. The souls who came from celestial space and entered human bodies were in a different position
from those who already had one or more earth lives behind them. The former brought along with them
for the physical earth life only the conditions to which they were subjected by the higher spiritual
world and by their experiences made outside the earth region.
The others had themselves in previous lives added new conditions. The destiny of the former souls
was determined only by facts that lay outside the new earth relationships. The destiny of the
reincarnated souls was also determined by what they themselves had done in previous lives under
earthly conditions. With reincarnation there appeared at the same time individual human karma. 
Through the fact that the human life body was withdrawn from the influence of the astral body, in the
manner indicated above, the conditions of reproduction also were not within the scope of human
consciousness, but were subject to the dominion of the spiritual world.
If a soul was to sink down to the sphere of the earth, the reproductive impulses of the human earth
being appeared. To earthly consciousness the entire process was to a certain degree enveloped in a
mysterious obscurity.  But the consequences of this partial separation of the life body from the
physical appeared also during earth life. The capabilities of this life body could be easily increased by
means of spiritual influence. In the life of the soul this expressed itself through an especial perfection
of memory.
Independent, logical thinking was at this period only in its very beginnings. The capacity of memory
was, on the other hand, almost limitless. Externally, it was evident that the human being had direct
knowledge  tinged with feeling of the active forces of every living thing. He was able to employ in
his service the forces of life and reproduction of animal nature, and chiefly those of plant nature. He
could extract, for example, the force that causes plant growth and employ it in much the same way that
the forces of inanimate nature are used at the present time, for example, the way the forces slumbering
in coal are extracted and employed to set machines in motion.  Also the inner soul life of man was
changed through the Luciferic influence in the most manifold way.
Many examples of feelings and sensations due to it could be given. Only a few instances, however,
will be described. Prior to the advent of the Luciferic influence, the human soul carried out all its
activities in line with the intentions of higher spiritual beings. The plan of all that should be
accomplished was determined from the beginning, and to the degree that human consciousness was
developed it could foresee how, in the future, evolution would be compelled to proceed in accordance
with the preconceived plan. This prophesying consciousness was lost when the veil of earthly
perceptions was woven over the manifestation of higher spiritual beings and the real forces of the sun
nature concealed themselves in these perceptions. The future now became uncertain.
With this uncertainty, the possibility of the sense of fear implanted itself in the soul. Fear is the direct
result of error.  But we also see how under the Luciferic influence man became independent of
certain forces to which he previously submitted himself without will. Now he could make decisions by
himself. Freedom is the result of this influence, and fear and similar feelings are only the
accompanying phenomena of the progress of man to freedom.
Seen spiritually, the way fear appears indicates that within the earth forces  under the influence of
which the human being had come through the Luciferic powers  other powers were active that had
followed an irregular course in evolution much earlier than the Luciferic powers. With the earth forces
man absorbed the influence of these powers into his being. They gave the character of fear to feelings
that would have manifested quite differently without the presence of these powers. These beings may
be called "Ahrimanic." They belong to the category called, in the Goethean sense, "Mephistophelian."
Although the Luciferic influence made itself felt at first only in the most advanced individuals, it soon
spread out also to others. The descendants of these advanced human beings intermingled with the less
advanced described above. By this means the Luciferic power injected itself also into the latter. But [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]