Study on the soul - From a spiritual point of view*

* This study is based on the "Book of True Life" and other New Revelations.

The term "soul" is known to people, but they have different opinions about what the soul is. One knows that it is a component of the human being and includes it in the triad of Body - Soul - Spirit. Three components that form the "human being" entity, with each part having a different task.

The body is the visible, material part of the human being; it serves as a protective shell for the soul and Spirit and is also their tool for communicating with the outside world. Since the body is visible and palpable, it has been studied and researched by scientists over the course of time, so that we now know as much as possible about its functions and its wonderful mechanism. It functions so perfectly and logically that many have forgotten that there is a highly wise, spiritual force behind it.

Knowledge about the other two components of the human body is less certain and sometimes blurred. As they are invisible and cannot be studied experimentally, science finds it very difficult to properly explain the nature and purpose of the soul and Spirit. And yet it is very important to have clarity about this, because if we succeed in lifting the veil of the unknown, we will also gain precise knowledge about the meaning and purpose of human life on earth. However, our intellect alone is not capable of this, because spiritual things can only be grasped and explained spiritually. But God's Spirit reveals these mysteries through people whom He has prepared to receive His inspirations. Through these instruments, God has revealed to us the knowledge that our limited minds are capable of grasping.

The material, visible creation of the world has existed since incomprehensible times; however, before it there was already a spiritual creation. Its author is God, the original spirit from eternity. At the center of His being burned the fire of perfect love, which is His main characteristic. But what use is the highest love if it cannot be passed on and thus proven? - So God created a vessel in a spiritual being into which He could place His love, His wisdom, His light and also His creative power. It was a being that emerged from God's heart of love, an image of God, because it bore the same divine qualities. As it was a pure mirror of the divine light, it was appropriately called "Lucifer" or "light bearer". Thanks to divine authority, this first-created being was able to be creatively active, and soon other, similar beings emerged from it, but of lesser power. They too were children of God's love, in radiant light, in highest perfection. Thus God experienced the inexpressible joy of seeing His love reflected in the countless spirit beings.

The first-created Spirit was overjoyed, but as a being created by God, it was bound by the Creator's will.

God, however, wanted him to be able to develop freely, because this is the characteristic of a divine being. Lucifer's love for his Creator was to be so overpowering that it alone was decisive for the voluntary subordination of his will to the divine will. God wanted to receive this proof of love from His first created being, and to this end He gave him complete freedom of will. The innumerable spiritual beings also possessed free will and were therefore not subject to the creature's law of compulsion but, as children of God, were freely deciding beings. God taught them through their conscience, which was audible in their Spirit as the voice and expression of His will. They were to follow the voice of conscience, not by compulsion, but by free will, in response to the great love that God had for them.

It is characteristic of free will that it carries within it the hidden incentive to do the opposite of what conscience advises. There were thus constant opposites in the spiritual beings, which caused them to constantly decide in a free struggle: to realize the divine virtues or to do the opposite. For long periods of time, the divine voice of conscience prevailed and everything was in the right order. But there came a time when Lucifer no longer wanted to obey the spiritual guidance of His Creator. The glory of the first created being was so great that he allowed himself to be blinded by it. Lucifer saw the countless beings that his will had made appear, and he felt himself to be their creator, even though he knew that he had received the power to do so from God. He could see the created spirits, but not the source of the power, as God only gives Himself visible form on rare occasions for the sake of His children. In his delusion, Lucifer finally believed that the source of power was in himself, and he elevated himself to sole ruler over "his" spirits, whom he knew how to convince that it was not God, but he, Lucifer, who was their creator and that they had to submit to his will.

Lucifer had decided against his creator. Now the countless spirit beings also had to decide, free will could choose. - God's ray of light illuminated them and they felt their divine Father, even though they could not see Him. They felt His love and heard His voice in their conscience. - On the other side was Lucifer, in whom they certainly noticed a change of will. But since they could see him and were devoted to him in love as their direct creator, many listened to his call, submitted to his will and thus strove away from God. These apostate spirits now underwent a momentous change.

Love, the center of the divine spirit spark, had to separate itself from the spirits after they had decided against their Creator. As a result, they deprived themselves of the divine life force, and the vessels and executive organs (souls) that remained without the Spirit hardened into a soul substance.

In His omniscience, the Creator knew that a large proportion of His children would not pass the great test of love, and He had His plan ready: Not the destruction of the apostates, but their return. Since the spiritual beings had turned away from God through the wrong exercise of their free will, He wanted to prepare and educate them with great patience - on an infinitely long and arduous path, far from His Father's house - so that they would find their way back to His Father's heart. God seized the soul substance of Lucifer as well as that of the countless beings devoted to him, dissolved it into the smallest particles and reshaped it into a visible, material creation. - This is incomprehensible to the mind; only those who already possess spiritual knowledge can grasp it by intuition. For the scientist it is a nuisance to recognize the thesis that the material, matter, is prepared, hardened soul substance. But against this background, we can understand the words of the apostle Paul's letter to the Romans, chapter 8, verse 19, namely that the whole creature groans and waits with us for its redemption.

In what we consider to be an infinitely long process of development, the substance of the soul must continually change, transform itself into ever new and higher forms of life. This also explains why matter is transient, i.e. why it is constantly in the process of "dying and becoming". In other words: Matter has no eternal existence, as it is only the shell of spiritual soul substances that have to develop higher and therefore cannot remain in the same shell forever. Although matter itself consists of the same soul substance, it is still at the beginning of its development and therefore has to serve the already more highly developed life forms in creation as a lower form of life. While these are normally invisible to us, matter is perceptible to our senses, since our body also consists of particles of matter, i.e. of condensed soul particles of the same lower vibration.

The soul particles bound in the material creation must coalesce in the course of the development process like a crystal formation. The upward development begins in the mineral kingdom and continues through the plant and animal kingdoms. This is to be understood in such a way that, for example, in the animal kingdom, the soul units of large numbers of tiny animals are combined into a larger unit after a longer period of development when their shells die off, in order to produce an already more highly developed soul substance that continues to develop in a larger animal. This process is repeated several times until finally, in intelligent animals, the soul has reached its highest possible maturity at this stage of development. Several such souls are then combined into a new unit in accordance with the divine plan of redemption, which does not tolerate a standstill in upward development, and result in a human soul. The soul's development across the realms of creation in the mineral, plant and animal kingdoms takes billions of years and is guided by God's Spirit through His innumerable host of spirits of light who transmit and carry out His will in accordance with natural law.

The educated soul is now ready. It has acquired powers and abilities on its journey through the various kingdoms of nature and awaits the final stage of its development: incarnation in the human being. It approaches the lovers on earth, and at conception it is placed in the womb of the future mother. But the essentials are still missing so that the soul can attain its highest perfection. Shortly before the birth of the new earthly citizen, God directs a Spirit into the soul that is ready for its first incarnation. This makes the spiritual being complete again: The two parts of this unity now strive together for the final development to perfection, which also takes a long time and involves many reincarnations, i.e. multiple lives on earth in different eras.

In the case of reincarnation, the spirit-soul unit is ready to take possession of a new earthly body, but even then the soul initially enters the mother's body alone at conception and establishes a connection with the nascent life-germ. The Spirit only enters its soul shell later, in some cases earlier, in others later, but no later than three days before birth. - Since the soul consists of countless tiny particles that are not absolutely inseparable, it also absorbs soul particles from its parents during the process of conception, which - in addition to the attraction of related souls - can explain the inheritance of some parental dispositions.

Now that the origin and development of the soul has been explained above, its nature and some of its tasks in human life will be examined. First of all, it should be made clear once again that the soul is not an earthly-material thing, but an invisible, etheric-spiritual force. It once emerged from God's Spirit as an independent being and, according to an eternal atonement through the divine creations, has found its way back to its originally intended task. - In spatial terms, the soul extends throughout the human body; like the nervous system, it is distributed across all organs and parts of the body. It animates the body, which would be lifeless without it and leaves it behind as a lifeless shell when it is detached from it. Practical thinking and willing, sensual feeling and sensation, as well as hearing, seeing, tasting and smelling are functions of the soul. It is the inner, driving force of the physical shell, and only those who have the gift of spiritual sight can see it and recognize that it completely possesses the form of the associated human form; this is why it is also called the astral body.

Together with the body's own defenses, the soul is responsible for the health of the body. If it can vibrate undisturbed and harmoniously, it forms a protective barrier against all kinds of pathogens. However, if these have already penetrated the human body, the soul immediately takes up the fight against them in conjunction with the body's defense functions in order to render them harmless or drive them out. It is a real battle that causes increased temperatures, which we know as fever. - The soul also has a role to play in nourishing the body. The subtle life forces of the food ingested by the body are passed on by the soul to all the body organs so that each one receives the subtle spiritual energies that are beneficial to it. But when we eat and drink too much, we feel our soul becoming dull and sluggish because it is too busy with physical concerns and has therefore lost its buoyancy for some time.

This little study would be incomplete without explaining the relationship between the soul and the Spirit and what the Spirit is and what its tasks are. First of all, what it is not: it must not be confused with "mind". The Spirit in man is a spark of the Divine Spirit, of Divine Love, of Divine Light. It carries within it all divine qualities, which is why God calls us His images and we may call Him Father. Nevertheless, our Spirit must constantly draw strength from the source of its origin: through prayer and spiritual upliftment as well as through the study of divine revelations. Only in this way can it remain active and alive and impart to man the love, wisdom and strength to fulfill God's commandments.

The human Spirit - of divine origin - was placed in Adam by the Creator according to the biblical account of God blowing His breath of life into Adam's nostrils. Since then, this invisible act of grace has been repeated at the birth of every human being, when the Spirit is embedded in the soul. The soul forms the shell, as it were, for the Spirit, just as the body is the shell for the soul. It is now the Spirit's task to enlighten the soul, to imbue it with the divine virtues. In these efforts, however, the Spirit must not force the soul; the latter must freely submit to the Spirit's guidance.

The soul incarnated in the human being is initially completely turned towards the body and is prepared to fulfill all its wishes. And to the same extent as the body develops, the earthly-sensual qualities of the soul, which it still carries within itself from its long path of development, also become stronger. This is where the Spirit's task begins. With love and patience it must instruct the soul through conscience that it must discard the lower and evil inclinations and overcome the earthly desires of the body - if they are illicit. If the Spirit listens to the soul, then he has achieved great success, even if there are always relapses in which the soul fulfills the body's earthly desires. If the soul continues to keep itself open to the Spirit's admonitions, the spiritual virtues can penetrate it more and more, and at the same time it becomes increasingly immune to the wrong desires of the body. The consequences of this transformation then become visible in the emanations of the person: It is a person with good thoughts and pure feelings; he shows humility, patience and kindness as well as charity. When the hour of death comes, Spirit and soul leave the earthly body in full harmony and great joy, because they know that bliss and peace await them in the afterlife. As one they continue on the path marked out for them in the spiritual kingdom until they have regained the highest perfection they had when God created them as spiritual beings. God's plan of salvation is thus brought to an end and the return of the "Prodigal Son" is achieved.

But the course of a human life can also take a completely different course. When the soul resists the teachings and urgings of the Spirit, it opens itself more and more to the demands of the body and the lower qualities within it. The Spirit fights a desperate battle and asks for strength and wisdom from its Heavenly Father. If the soul, in its free will decision, stubbornly rejects all influences and admonitions of the Spirit, it becomes a slave to sensual passions, material desires and all selfish impulses. It sinks so low that the spark of God in it is forced into inactivity; it becomes a prisoner in the spiritual shell, the person is then "spiritually dead". - At this stage, it becomes clear that Spirit and soul are two different forces. While the Spirit is condemned to inactivity and no longer makes itself felt through the conscience, the soul lives very intensely in the "conscience-less" person (otherwise the body would be lifeless), and its evil vices then become recognizable through the thoughts and words, feelings and actions in the person's outer sphere. God does not abandon His child in this lost state. If the soul does not want to hear the voice of conscience, God speaks to it through illnesses in its material body and through various hardships. In many cases, the soul then begins to reflect and is ready to heed the Spirit's admonitions to repent. In this way, a change takes place and the soul voluntarily submits to the Spirit's guidance. He draws it to Himself, imbues it with spiritual virtues, and so together they walk the arduous path of higher development until God calls them away from earthly life.

Unfortunately, there are countless cases in which the soul persists in its evil ways despite the Spirit's good admonitions through conscience and despite the trials. If such a soul is surprised by death, it will have a rude awakening in the afterlife. There it can no longer escape the voice of conscience, which relentlessly accuses it of disregarding the divine commandments, of evil deeds and base passions. These self-accusations cause great pain to the soul and serve to purify it. When a soul realizes and repents of its transgressions, its reawakened Spirit can guide it to gradually shed its evil inclinations and embrace the divine virtues. In cases where a soul remains obstinate in its wickedness, it creates an unhappy existence for itself. Since it no longer possesses an earthly body and is also unable to enter the spiritual sphere, it wanders aimlessly across the earth in the vicinity of people. It is then attracted to those whose bad thoughts, evil deeds and base passions coincide with its own nature. It takes up "residence" with them, influences them to evil, and this state can lead to possession, which makes things worse and worse with such people. The earth-bound souls support acts of violence, confuse the mind and cause illness; they are a constant danger to all people. But there is a protection: people who align their lives according to God's will and send out good thoughts and feelings are surrounded by them as if by a protective shell, from which the ill-intentioned attacks of lower souls bounce off, as their whispers find no resonance in these people and are immediately rejected; moreover, people of good will can and should help the benighted souls through their prayer and the sending out of light-filled thoughts.

God does not prevent the evil doings of dark souls, as He must respect their free will. But there comes a day - usually after a very long time - when the soul tires of its miserable existence and looks back with disgust at the shameful deeds it has caused. If she sincerely repents and asks for forgiveness and help, her Spirit can intervene at the same moment to help and gently guide her. Spirits of light and angels of God are then also available to help and instruct her. Now, step by step, the ascent can begin in the spiritual sphere.

The human Spirit - as the divine spark within us - stands in opposition to the body, while the soul stands between the two. It must choose Spirit or body, for it cannot serve two masters at the same time. If it chooses the Spirit, then it is ready to receive the divine within itself and submit to the guidance of the Spirit. If she chooses the body, then she submits to the desires of the flesh and the inclinations within her can run riot to their detriment. In practice, there are only two poles and therefore the Lord does not mention the soul or its functions such as mind, thoughts, feelings etc. as often as Spirit and body in His teachings. The "Spirit" is mentioned most frequently - as the most important part - whereby it has become understandable according to the above explanations that the soul is also included in the general reference to the spirit being, even if perfect unity has not yet been achieved between "spirit" and "soul". - In the New Revelations, the Divine Master very often speaks of the struggle of the Spirit against the influences of the body. According to the previous explanations, this is to be understood as meaning that it is a struggle of the Spirit with the soul when the latter has become completely "fleshed out", i.e. has become completely enslaved to the influences of the body and everything material. For the body cannot be led directly by the Spirit, but only via the soul.

The great poet Goethe sensed the two opposing forces with delicate sensitivity, and in his "Faust" he puts the words into the mouth of one person:

"Two souls dwell "alas"! in my breast,

The one wants to separate from the other;

The one holds in coarse love-lust

Clings to the world with clutching organs;

The other lifts itself violently from the dust

To the realms of high ancestors."

He speaks of "two souls" in his chest: one power, the soul, is in bondage to the lust of love and earthly thinking and willing. The other force, the Spirit, wants to free itself from the grip of the senses and materialism and rise to the high realms, to the Divine Spirit from which it emanated. It is the conflict between Spirit and soul when the latter has not yet overcome the lower desires of the body-nature. 

-----------

You may visit our homepage here:  https://www.friedensreich-christi-auf-erden.com