“What you say,” I said, “reminds me of something I heard about a school in southern India. A Brahmin, an exceptional man in many respects, told a young Englishman in Travancore of a school which studied the chemistry of the human BODY, and by means of introducing or removing various substances, could change a man’s moral and psychological nature. This is very much like what you are saying.” Fragments: One

“At the same time the same work of art will produce different impressions on people of different levels. And people of lower levels will never receive from it what people of higher levels receive. This is real, objective art. Imagine some scientific work — a book on astronomy or chemistry. It is impossible that one person should understand it in one way and another in another way. Everyone who is sufficiently prepared and who is able to read this book will understand what the author means, and precisely as the author means it. An objective work of art is just such a book, except that it affects the emotional and not only the intellectual side of man.” “Do such works of objective art exist at the present day?” I asked. “Of course they exist,” answered G. “The great Sphinx in Egypt is such a work of art, as well as some historically known works of architecture, certain statues of gods, and many other things. There are figures of gods and of various mythological beings that can be read like books, only not with the mind but with the emotions, provided they are sufficiently developed. In the course of our travels in Central Asia we found, in the desert at the foot of the Hindu Kush, a strange figure which we thought at first was some ancient god or devil. At first it produced upon us simply the impression of being a curiosity. But after a while we began to feel that this figure contained many things, a big, complete, and complex system of cosmology. And slowly, step by step, we began to decipher this system. It was in the BODY of the figure, in its legs, in its arms, in its head, in its eyes, in its ears; everywhere. In the whole statue there was nothing accidental, nothing without meaning. And gradually we understood the aim of the people who built this statue. We began to feel their thoughts, their feelings. Some of us thought that we saw their faces, heard their voices. At all events, we grasped the meaning of what they wanted to convey to us across thousands of years, and not only the meaning, but all the feelings and the emotions connected with it as well. That indeed was art!” Fragments: One

“Many things are possible,” said G. “But it is necessary to understand that man’s being, both in life and after death, if it does exist after death, may be very different in quality. The ‘man-machine’ with whom everything depends upon external influences, with whom everything happens, who is now one, the next moment another, and the next moment a third, has no future of any kind; he is buried and that is all. Dust returns to dust. This applies to him. In order to be able to speak of any kind of future life there must be a certain crystallization, a certain fusion of man’s inner qualities, a certain independence of external influences. If there is anything in a man able to resist external influences, then this very thing itself may also be able to resist the death of the physical BODY. But think for yourselves what there is to withstand physical death in a man who faints or forgets everything when he cuts his finger? If there is anything in a man, it may survive; if there is nothing, then there is nothing to survive. But even if something survives, its future can be very varied. In certain cases of fuller crystallization what people call ‘reincarnation’ may be possible after death, and, in other cases, what people call ‘existence on the other side.’ In both cases it is the continuation of life in the ‘astral BODY,’ or with the help of the ‘astral BODY.’ You know what the expression ‘astral BODY’ means. But the systems with which you are acquainted and which use this expression state that all men have an ‘astral BODY.’ This is quite wrong. What may be called the ‘astral BODY’ is obtained by means of fusion, that is, by means of terribly hard inner work and struggle. Man is not born with it. And only very few men acquire an ‘astral BODY.’ If it is formed it may continue to live after the death of the physical BODY, and it may be born again in another physical BODY. This is ‘reincarnation.’ If it is not re-born, then, in the course of time, it also dies; it is not immortal but it can live long after the death of the physical BODY. Fragments: Two

“The reason why it is possible for four bodies to exist is that the human organism, that is, the physical BODY, has such a complex organization that, under certain conditions, a new independent organism can grow in it, affording a much more convenient and responsive instrument for the activity of consciousness than the physical BODY. The consciousness manifested in this new BODY is capable of governing it, and it has full power and full control over the physical BODY. In this second BODY, under certain conditions, a third BODY can grow, again having characteristics of its own. The consciousness manifested in this third BODY has full power and control over the first two bodies; and the third BODY possesses the possibility of acquiring knowledge inaccessible either to the first or to the second BODY. In the third BODY, under certain conditions, a fourth can grow, which differs as much from the third as the third differs from the second and the second from the first. The consciousness manifested in the fourth BODY has full control over the first three bodies and itself. Fragments: Two

“These four bodies are defined in different teachings in various ways.” G. drew a diagram and said: “The first is the physical BODY, in Christian terminology the ‘carnal’ BODY; the second, in Christian terminology, is the ‘natural’ BODY; the third is the ‘spiritual’ BODY; and the fourth, in the terminology of esoteric Christianity, is the ‘divine’ BODY. In theosophical terminology the first is the ‘physical’ BODY, the second is the ‘astral,’ the third is the ‘mental,’ and the fourth the ‘causal.’1 Fragments: Two

“In the terminology of certain Eastern teachings the first BODY is the ‘carriage’ (BODY), the second BODY is the ‘horse’ (feelings, desires), the third the ‘driver’ (mind), and the fourth the ‘master’ (I, consciousness, will). Fragments: Two

“Such comparisons and parallels may be found in most systems and teachings which recognize something more in man than the physical BODY. But almost all these teachings, while repeating in a more or less familiar form the definitions and divisions of the ancient teaching, have forgotten or omitted its most important feature, which is: that man is not born with the finer bodies, and that they can only be artificially cultivated in him provided favorable conditions both internal and external are present. Fragments: Two

“The ‘astral BODY’ is not an indispensable implement for man. It is a great luxury which only a few can afford. A man can live quite well without an ‘astral BODY.’ His physical BODY possesses all the functions necessary for life. A man without ‘astral BODY’ may even produce the impression of being a very intellectual or even spiritual man, and may deceive not only others but also himself. Fragments: Two

“This applies still more, of course, to the ‘mental BODY’ and the fourth BODY. Ordinary man does not possess these bodies or their corresponding functions. But he often thinks, and makes others think, that he does. The reasons for this are, first, the fact that the physical BODY works with the same substances of which the higher bodies are composed, only these substances are not crystallized in him, do not belong to him; and secondly, it has all the functions analogous to those of the higher bodies, though of course they differ from them considerably. The chief difference between the functions of a man possessing the physical BODY only and the functions of the four bodies, is that, in the first case, the functions of the physical BODY govern all the other functions, in other words, everything is governed by the BODY which, in its turn, is governed by external influences. In the second case, the command or control emanates from the higher BODY. Fragments: Two

“The functions of the physical BODY may be represented as parallel to the functions of the four bodies.” Fragments: Two

G. drew another diagram, representing the parallel functions of a man of physical BODY and a man of four bodies. “In the first case,” said G., “that is, in relation to the functions of a man of physical BODY only, the automaton depends upon external influences, and the next three functions depend upon the physical BODY and the external influences it receives. Desires or aversions — ‘I want,’ ‘I don’t want,’ ‘I like,’ ‘I don’t like’ — that is, functions occupying the place of the second BODY, depend upon accidental shocks and influences. Thinking, which corresponds to the functions of the third BODY, is an entirely mechanical process. ‘Will’ is absent in ordinary mechanical man, he has desires only; and a greater or lesser permanence of desires and wishes is called a strong or a weak will. Fragments: Two

“In the second case, that is, in relation to the functions of the four bodies, the automatism of the physical BODY depends upon the influences of the other bodies. Instead of the discordant and often contradictory activity of different desires, there is one single I, whole, indivisible, and permanent; there is individuality, dominating the physical BODY and its desires and able to overcome both its reluctance and its resistance. Instead of the mechanical process of thinking there is consciousness. And there is will, that is, a power, not merely composed of various often contradictory desires belonging to different “I’s,” but issuing from consciousness and governed by individuality or a single and permanent I. Only such a will can be called “free,” for it is independent of accident and cannot be altered or directed from without. Fragments: Two

“It is impossible to stabilize the interrelation of powders in a state of mechanical mixture. But the powders may be fused; the nature of the powders makes this possible. To do this a special kind of fire must be lighted under the retort which, by heating and melting the powders, finally fuses them together. Fused in this way the powders will be in the state of a chemical compound. And now they can no longer be separated by those simple methods which separated and made them change places when they were in a state of mechanical mixture. The contents of the retort have become indivisible, ‘individual.’ This is a picture of the formation of the second BODY. The fire by means of which fusion is attained is produced by ‘friction,’ which in its turn is produced in man by the struggle between ‘yes’ and ‘no.’ If a man gives way to all his desires, or panders to them, there will be no inner struggle in him, no ‘friction,’ no fire. But if, for the sake of attaining a definite aim, he struggles with desires that hinder him, he will then create a fire which will gradually transform his inner world into a single whole. Fragments: Two

“The process of imparting new properties to the alloy corresponds to the process of the formation of the third BODY and of the acquisition of new knowledge and powers with the help of the third BODY. Fragments: Two

“When the third BODY has been formed and has acquired all the properties, powers, and knowledge possible for it, there remains the problem of fixing this knowledge and these powers, because, having been imparted to it by influences of a certain kind, they may be taken away by these same influences or by others. By means of a special kind of work for all three bodies the acquired properties may be made the permanent and inalienable possession of the third BODY. Fragments: Two

“The process of fixing these acquired properties corresponds to the process of the formation of the fourth BODY. Fragments: Two

“And only the man who possesses four fully developed bodies can be called a ‘man’ in the full sense of the word. This man possesses many properties which ordinary man does not possess. One of these properties is immortality. All religions and all ancient teachings contain the idea that, by acquiring the fourth BODY, man acquires immortality; and they all contain indications of the ways to acquire the fourth BODY, that is, immortality. Fragments: Two

“The way of the fakir is the way of struggle with the physical BODY, the way of work on the first room. This is a long, difficult, and uncertain way. The fakir strives to develop physical will, power over the BODY. This is attained by means of terrible sufferings, by torturing the BODY. The whole way of the fakir consists of various incredibly difficult physical exercises. The fakir either stands motionless in the same position for hours, days, months, or years; or sits with outstretched arms on a bare stone in sun, rain, and snow; or tortures himself with fire, puts his legs into an ant-heap, and so on. If he does not fall ill and die before what may be called physical will is developed in him, then he attains the fourth room or the possibility of forming the fourth BODY. But his other functions-emotional, intellectual, and so forth — remain undeveloped. He has acquired will but he has nothing to which he can apply it, he cannot make use of it for gaining knowledge or for self-perfection. As a rule he is too old to begin new work. Fragments: Two

“The second way is the way of the monk. This is the way of faith, the way of religious feeling, religious sacrifice. Only a man with very strong religious emotions and a very strong religious imagination can become a ‘monk’ in the true sense of the word. The way of the monk also is very long and hard. A monk spends years and tens of years struggling with himself, but all his work is concentrated on the second room, on the second BODY, that is, on feelings. Subjecting all his other emotions to one emotion, that is, to faith, he develops unity in himself, will over the emotions, and in this way reaches the fourth room. But his physical BODY and his thinking capacities may remain undeveloped. In order to be able to make use of what he has attained, he must develop his BODY and his capacity to think. This can only be achieved by means of fresh sacrifices, fresh hardships, fresh renunciations. A monk has to become a yogi and a fakir. Very few get as far as this; even fewer overcome all difficulties. Most of them either die before this or become monks in outward appearance only. Fragments: Two

“The third way is the way of the yogi. This is the way of knowledge, the way of mind. The way of the yogi consists in working on the third room and in striving to enter the fourth room by means of knowledge. The yogi reaches the fourth room by developing his mind, but his BODY and emotions remain undeveloped and, like the fakir and the monk, he is unable to make use of the results of his attainment. He knows everything but can do nothing. In order to begin to do he must gain the mastery over his BODY and emotions, that is, over the first and second rooms. To do this he must again set to work and again obtain results by means of prolonged efforts. In this case however he has the advantage of understanding his position, of knowing what he lacks, what he must do, and in what direction he must go. But, as on the way of the fakir or the monk, very few acquire this understanding on the way of the yogi, that is, that level in his work on which a man knows where he is going. A great many stop at one particular achievement and go no further. Fragments: Two

“Thanks to this, the fourth way affects simultaneously every side of man’s being. It is work ore the three rooms at once. The fakir works on the first room, the monk on the second, the yogi on the third. In reaching the fourth room the fakir, the monk, and the yogi leave behind them many things unfinished, and they cannot make use of what they have attained because they are not masters of all their functions. The fakir is master of his BODY but not of his emotions or his mind; the monk is master of his emotions but not of his BODY or his mind; the yogi is master of his mind but not of his BODY or his emotions. Fragments: Two

“The method of the fourth way consists in doing something in one room and simultaneously doing something corresponding to it in the two other rooms — that is to say, while working on the physical BODY to work simultaneously on the mind and the emotions; while working on the mind to work on the physical BODY and the emotions; while working on the emotions to work on the mind and the physical BODY. This can be achieved thanks to the fact that on the fourth way it is possible to make use of certain knowledge inaccessible to the ways of the fakir, the monk, and the yogi. This knowledge makes it possible to work in three directions simultaneously. A whole parallel series of physical, mental, and emotional exercises serves this purpose. In addition, on the fourth way it is possible to individualize the work of each separate person, that is to say, each person can do only what is necessary and not what is useless for him. This is due to the fact that the fourth way dispenses with a great deal of what is superfluous and preserved simply through tradition in the other ways. Fragments: Two

“But on the fourth way knowledge is still more exact and perfect. A man who follows the fourth way knows quite definitely what substances he needs for his aims and he knows that these substances can be produced within the BODY by a month of physical suffering, by a week of emotional strain, or by a day of mental exercises — and also, that they can be introduced into the organism from without if it is known how to do it. And so, instead of spending a whole day in exercises like the yogi, a week in prayer like the monk, or a month in self-torture like the fakir, he simply prepares and swallows a little pill which contains all the substances he wants and, in this way, without loss of time, he obtains the required results. Fragments: Two

“Has this anything to do with the consciousnesses of separate parts and organs of the BODY?” I asked him on this occasion. “I understand this idea and have often felt the reality of these consciousnesses. I know that not only separate organs, but every part of the BODY having a separate function has a separate consciousness. The right hand has one consciousness and the left hand another. Is that what you mean?” Fragments: Three

“That man can have several bodies,” he said, “must be understood as an idea, as a principle. But it does not apply to us. We know we have the one physical BODY and we know nothing else. It is the physical BODY that we must study. Only, we must remember that the question is not limited to the physical BODY and that there are people who may have two, three, or more bodies. But it makes no difference to us personally either one way or another. Someone like Rockefeller in America may have a great many millions, but his millions do not help me if I have nothing to eat. It is the same thing in this connection. Everyone must think of himself; it is useless and senseless to rely on others or to console oneself with thoughts of what others possess.” Fragments: Three

“How is one to know if a man has an ‘astral BODY’?” I asked. Fragments: Three

“There are definite ways of knowing that,” answered G. “Under certain conditions the ‘astral BODY’ can be seen; it can be separated from the physical BODY and even photographed at the side of the physical BODY. The existence of the ‘astral BODY’ can be still more easily and simply established by its functions. The ‘astral BODY’ has definite functions which the physical BODY cannot have. The presence of these functions indicates the presence of the ‘astral BODY.’ The absence of these functions shows the absence of the ‘astral BODY.’ But it is too early to speak of this now. All our attention must be concentrated on the study of the physical BODY. It is necessary to understand the structure of the human machine. Our principal error is that we think we have one mind. We call the functions of this mind ‘conscious’; everything that does not enter this mind we call ‘unconscious’ or ‘subconscious.’ This is our chief error. Of the conscious and the unconscious we will speak later. At this moment I want to explain to you that the activity of the human machine, that is, of the physical BODY, is controlled, not by one, but by several minds, entirely independent of each other, having separate functions and separate spheres in which they manifest themselves. This must be understood first of all, because unless this is understood nothing else can be understood.” Fragments: Three

“The advantage of the separate individual is that he is very small and that, in the economy of nature, it makes no difference whether there is one mechanical man more or less. We can easily understand this correlation of magnitudes if we imagine the correlation between a microscopic cell and our own BODY. The presence or absence of one cell will change nothing in the life of the BODY. We cannot be conscious of it, and it can have no influence on the life and functions of the organism. In exactly the same way a separate individual is too small to influence the life of the cosmic organism to which he stands in the same relation (with regard to size) as a cell stands to our own organism. And this is precisely what makes his ‘evolution’ possible; on this are based his ‘possibilities.’ Fragments: Three

“Yes,” said G., “that is one meaning of the expression, but I am speaking of another meaning. This necklace of bones which encircles the neck beneath the skin is directly connected with what is called the ‘astral BODY.’ The ‘astral BODY’ is, so to speak, attached to it, or, to be more accurate, this ‘necklace’ connects the physical BODY to the astral. Now if the ‘astral BODY’ continues to live after the death of the physical BODY, the person possessing a bone of this ‘necklace’ can always communicate with the ‘astral BODY’ of the dead man. This is magic. But they never speak of it openly. You are right about their having magic and this is an instance of it. It does not follow, of course, that the bone you saw was a real one. You will find these bones in almost every house; but I am telling you of the belief which lies at the bottom of this custom.” Fragments: Three

“In pronouncing the word ‘man’ everyone will involuntarily connect with this word the point of view from which he is generally accustomed to regard man, or from which, for some reason or other, he regards him at the moment. One man at the moment may be occupied with the question of the relation between the sexes. Then the word ‘man’ will have no general meaning for him and on hearing this word he will first of all ask himself — Which? man or woman? Another man may be religious and his first question will be — A Christian or not a Christian? The third man may be a doctor and the concept ‘man’ will mean for him a ‘sick man’ or a ‘healthy man,’ and, of course from the point of view of his speciality. A spiritualist will think of ‘man’ from the point of view of his ‘astral BODY,’ of ‘life on the other side,’ and so on, and he may say, if he is asked, that men are divided into mediums and non-mediums. A naturalist speaking of man will place the center of gravity of his thoughts in the idea of man as a zoological type, that is to say, in speaking of man he will think of the structure of his teeth, his fingers, his facial angle, the distance between the eyes. A lawyer will see in ‘man’ a statistical unit, or a subject for the application of laws, or a potential criminal, or a possible client. Fragments: Four

“Man number one means man in whom the center of gravity of his psychic life lies in the moving center. This is the man of the physical BODY, the man with whom the moving and the instinctive functions constantly outweigh the emotional and the thinking functions. Fragments: Four

“It must be observed that the idea of the ray of creation and its growth from the Absolute contradicts some of the modem views, although not really scientific views. Take, for instance, the stage — sun, earth, moon. According to the usual understanding the moon is a cold, dead celestial BODY which was once like the earth, that is to say, it possessed internal heat and at a still earlier period was a molten mass like the sun. The earth, according to the usual views, was once like the sun, and is also gradually cooling down and, sooner or later, will become a frozen mass like the moon. It is usually supposed that the sun is also cooling down and that it will become, in time, similar to the earth and later on, to the moon. Fragments: Five

“This question has many different sides to it. First of all what does immortal mean? Are you speaking of absolute immortality or do you admit different degrees? If for instance after the death of the BODY something remains which lives for some time preserving its consciousness, can this be called immortality or not? Or let us put it this way: how long a period of such existence is necessary for it to be called immortality? Then does this question include the possibility of a different ‘immortality* for different people? And there are still many other different questions. I am saying this only in order to show how vague they are and how easily such words as ‘immortality’ can lead to illusion. In actual fact nothing is immortal, even God is mortal. But there is a great difference between man and God, and, of course. God is mortal in a different way to man. It would be much better if for the word ‘immortality’ we substitute the words ‘existence after death.’ Then I will answer that man has the possibility of existence after death. But possibility is one thing and the realization of the possibility is quite a different thing. Fragments: Five

“Work on oneself must begin with the driver. The driver is the mind. In order to be able to hear the master’s voice, the driver, first of all, must not be asleep, that is, he must wake up. Then it may prove that the master speaks a language that the driver does not understand. The driver must learn this language. When he has learned it, he will understand the master. But concurrently with this he must learn to drive the horse, to harness it to the carriage, to feed and groom it, and to keep the carriage in order — because what would be the use of his understanding the master if he is not in a position to do anything? The master tells him to go yonder. But he is unable to move, because the horse has not been fed, it is not harnessed, and he does not know where the reins are. The horse is our emotions. The carriage is the BODY. The mind must learn to control the emotions. The emotions always pull the BODY after them. This is the order in which work on oneself must proceed. But observe again that work on the ‘bodies,’ that is, on the driver, the horse, and the carriage, is one thing. And work on the ‘connections’ — that is, on the ‘driver’s understanding,’ which unites him to the master; on the ‘reins,’ which connect him with the horse; and on the ‘shafts’ and the ‘harness,’ which connect the horse with the carriage — is quite, another thing. Fragments: Five

“In a man with two bodies the second BODY is active in relation to the physical BODY; this means that the consciousness in the ‘astral BODY’ may have power over the physical BODY.” G. put a plus over the ‘astral BODY’ and a minus over the physical. Fragments: Five

“In a man with three bodies, the third or ‘mental BODY’ is active in relation to the ‘astral BODY’ and to the physical BODY; this means that the consciousness in the ‘mental BODY’ has complete power over the ‘astral BODY’ and over the physical BODY.” G. put a plus over the ‘mental BODY’ and a minus over the ‘astral’ and the physical bodies, bracketed together. Fragments: Five

“In a man with four bodies the active BODY is the fourth. This means that the consciousness in the fourth BODY has complete power over the ‘mental,’ the ‘astral,’ and the physical bodies.” G. put a plus over the fourth BODY and a minus over the other three bracketed together. Fragments: Five

“As you see,” he said, “there exist four quite different situations. In one case all the functions are controlled by the physical BODY. It is active; in relation to it everything else is passive. In another case the second BODY has power over the physical. In the third case the ‘mental’ BODY has power over the ‘astral’ and the physical. And in the last case the fourth BODY has power over the first three. We have seen before that in man of physical BODY only, exactly the same order of relationship is possible between his various functions. The physical functions may control feeling, thought, and consciousness. Feeling may control the physical functions. Thought may control the physical functions and feeling. And consciousness may control the physical functions, feeling, and thought. Fragments: Five

“In man of two, three, and four bodies, the most active BODY also lives the longest, that is, it is ‘immortal’ in relation to a lower BODY.” Fragments: Five

He again drew the diagram of the ray of creation and by the side of earth he placed the physical BODY of man. Fragments: Five

“This is ordinary man,” he said, “man number one, two, three, and four. He has only the physical BODY. The physical BODY dies and nothing is left of it. The physical BODY is composed of earthly material and at death it returns to earth. It is dust and to dust it returns. It is impossible to talk of any kind of ‘immortality’ for a man of this sort. But if a man has the second BODY” (he placed the second BODY on the diagram parallel to the planets), “this second BODY is composed of material of the planetary world and it can survive the death of the physical BODY. It is not immortal in the full sense of the word, because after a certain period of time it also dies. But at any rate it does not die with the physical BODY. Fragments: Five

“If a man has the third BODY” (he placed the third BODY on the diagram parallel to the sun), “it is composed of material of the sun and it can exist after the death of the ‘astral’ BODY. Fragments: Five

“The fourth BODY is composed of material of the starry world, that is, of material that does not belong to the solar system, and therefore, if it has crystallized within the limits of the solar system there is nothing within this system that could destroy it. This means that a man possessing the fourth BODY is immortal within the limits of the solar system. “You see, therefore, why it is impossible to answer at once the question: Is man immortal or not? One man is immortal, another is not, a third tries to become immortal, a fourth considers himself immortal and is, therefore, simply a lump of flesh.” Fragments: Five

“You remember what I said about the ‘astral BODY’? Let us go over it briefly. People who have an ‘astral BODY’ can communicate with one another at a distance without having recourse to ordinary physical means. But for such communication to be possible they must establish some ‘connection’ between them. For this purpose when going to different places or different countries people sometimes take with them something belonging to another, especially things that have been in contact with his BODY and are permeated with his emanations, and so on. In the same way, in order to maintain a connection with a dead person, his friends used to keep objects which had belonged to him. These things leave, as it were, a trace behind them, something like invisible wires or threads which remain stretched out through space. These threads connect a given object with the person, living or in certain cases dead, to whom the object belonged. Men have known this from the remotest antiquity and have made various uses of this knowledge. Fragments: Five

“I should like to be convinced that I shall go on existing after the death of the physical BODY, or, if this depends upon me, I should like to work in order to exist after death,” said one of the company. Fragments: Six

“For this it is necessary ‘to be’ If a man is changing every minute, if there is nothing in him that can withstand external influences, it means that there is nothing in him that can withstand death. But if he becomes independent of external influences, if there appears in him something that can live by itself, this something may not die. In ordinary circumstances we die every moment. External influences change and we change with them, that is, many of our I’s die. If a man develops in himself a per­manent I that can survive a change in external conditions, it can survive the death of the physical BODY. The whole secret is that one cannot work for a future life without working for this one. In working for life a man works for death, or rather, for immortality. Therefore work for immortality, if one may so call it, cannot be separated from general work. In attaining the one, a man attains the other. A man may strive to be simply for the sake of his own life’s interests. Through this alone he may become immortal. We do not speak specially of a future life and we do not study whether it exists or not, because the laws are everywhere the same. In studying his own life as he knows it, and the lives of other men, from birth to death, a man is studying all the laws which govern life and death and immortality. If he becomes the master of his life, he may become the master of his death. Fragments: Six

“Like everything in nature the human BODY which represents a certain whole bears both within and without the same correlations. According to the number of the notes of the octave and its ‘intervals,’ the human BODY has nine basic measurements expressed by the numbers of a definite measure. In individuals these numbers of course differ widely but within certain definite limits. These nine basic measurements, giving a full octave of the first order, by combining in a certain definite way pass into measurements of subordinate octaves, which give rise in their turn to other subordinate octaves, and so on. In this way it is possible to obtain the measurements of any member or any part of the human BODY as they are all in a definite relationship one to another.” Fragments: Seven

“In order to understand what the difference between states of consciousness is, let us return to the first state of consciousness which is sleep. This is an entirely subjective state of consciousness. A man is immersed in dreams, whether he remembers them or not does not matter. Even if some real impressions reach him, such as sounds, voices, warmth, cold, the sensation of his own BODY, they arouse in him only fantastic subjective images. Then a man wakes up. At first glance this is a quite different state of consciousness. He can move, he can talk with other people, he can make calculations ahead, he can see danger and avoid it, and so on. It stands to reason that he is in a better position than when he was asleep. But if we go a little more deeply into things, if we take a look into his inner world, into his thoughts, into the causes of his actions, we shall see that he is in almost the same state as when he is asleep. And it is even worse, because in sleep he is passive, that is, he cannot do anything. In the waking state, however, he can do something all the time and the results of all his actions will be reflected upon him or upon those around him. And yet he does not remember himself. He is a machine, everything with him happens. He cannot stop the flow of his thoughts, he cannot control his imagination, his emotions, his attention. He lives in a subjective world of ‘I love,’ ‘I do not love,’ ‘I like,’ ‘I do not like,’ ‘I want,’ ‘I do not want,’ that is, of what he thinks he likes, of what he thinks he does not like, of what he thinks he wants, of what he thinks he does not want. He does not see the real world. The real world is hidden from him by the wall of imagination. He lives in sleep. He is asleep. What is called ‘clear consciousness’ is sleep and a far more dangerous sleep than sleep at night in bed. Fragments: Eight

“Moreover, it happens fairly often that essence dies in a man while his personality and his BODY are still alive. A considerable percentage of the people we meet in the streets of a great town are people who are empty inside, that is, they are actually already dead. Fragments: Eight

“‘Hydrogen’ 96 is represented by rarefied gases which man cannot breathe, but which play a very important part in his life; and further, this is the matter of animal magnetism, of emanations from the human BODY, of ‘n-rays,’ hormones, vitamins, and so on; in other words, with ‘hydrogen’ 96 ends what is called matter or what is regarded as matter by our physics and chemistry. ‘Hydrogen’ 96 also includes matters that are almost imperceptible to our chemistry or perceptible only by their traces or results, often merely presumed by some and denied by others. Fragments: Nine

“The work of the factory consists in transforming one kind of matter into another, namely, the coarser matters, in the cosmic sense, into finer ones. The factory receives, as raw material from the outer world, a number of coarse ‘hydrogens’ and transforms them into finer hydrogens by means of a whole series of complicated alchemical processes. But in the ordinary conditions of life the production by the human factory of the finer ‘hydrogens,’ in which, from the point of view of the possibility of higher states of consciousness and the work of higher centers, we are particularly interested, is insufficient and they are all wasted on the existence of the factory itself. If we could succeed in bringing the production up to its possible maximum we should then begin to save the fine ‘hydrogens.’ Then the whole of the BODY, all the tissues, all the cells, would become saturated with these fine ‘hydrogens’ which would gradually settle in them, crystallizing in a special way. This crystallization of the fine ‘hydrogens’ would gradually bring the whole organism onto a higher level, onto a higher plane of being. Fragments: Nine

” ‘Learn to separate the fine from the coarse’ — this principle from the ‘Emerald Tablets of Hermes Trismegistus’ refers to the work of the human factory, and if a man learns to ‘separate the fine from the coarse,’ that is, if he brings the production of the fine ‘hydrogens’ to its possible maximum, he will by this very fact create for himself the possibility of an inner growth which can be brought about by no other means. Inner growth, the growth of the inner bodies of man, the astral, the mental, and so on, is a material process completely analogous to the growth of the physical BODY. In order to grow, a child must have good food, his organism must be in a healthy condition to prepare from this food the material necessary for the growth of the tissues. The same thing is necessary for the growth of the ‘astral BODY’; out of the various kinds of food entering it, the organism must produce the substances necessary for the growth of the ‘astral BODY.’ Moreover, the ‘astral BODY’ requires for its growth the same substances as those necessary to maintain the physical BODY, only in much greater quantities. If the physical organism begins to produce a sufficient quantity of these fine substances and the ‘astral BODY’ within it becomes formed, this astral organism will require for its maintenance less of these substances than it required during its growth. The surplus from these substances can then be used for the formation and growth of the ‘mental BODY’ which will grow with the help of the same substances that feed the ‘astral BODY,’ but of course the growth of the ‘mental BODY’ will require more of these substances than the growth and feeding of the ‘astral BODY.’ The surplus of the substances left over from the feeding of the ‘mental BODY’ will go to the growth of the fourth BODY. But in all cases the surplus will have to be very large. All the fine substances necessary for the growth and feeding of the higher bodies must be produced within the physical organism, and the physical organism is able to produce them provided the human factory is working properly and economically. Fragments: Nine

“Let us take the human organism in the form of a three-story factory. The upper floor of this factory consists of a man’s head; the middle floor, of the chest; and the lower, of the stomach, back, and the lower part of the BODY. Fragments: Nine

“A great deal of energy is also spent on work which is completely unnecessary and harmful in every respect, such as on the activity of unpleasant emotions, on the expression of unpleasant sensations, on worry, on restlessness, on haste, and on a whole series of automatic actions which are completely useless. As many examples as you like can be found of such unnecessary activity. First of all there is the constantly moving flow of thoughts in our mind, which we can neither stop nor control, and which takes up an enormous amount of our energy. Secondly there is the quite unnecessary constant tension of the muscles of our organism. The muscles are tense even when we are doing nothing. As soon as we start to do even a small and insignificant piece of work, a whole system of muscles necessary for the hardest and most strenuous work is immediately set in motion. We pick up a needle from the floor and we spend on this action as much energy as is needed to lift up a man of our own weight. We write a short letter and use as much muscular energy upon it as would suffice to write a bulky volume. But the chief point is that we spend muscular energy continually and at all times, even when we are doing nothing. When we walk the muscles of our shoulders and arms are tensed unnecessarily; when we sit the muscles of our legs, neck, back, and stomach are tensed in an unnecessary way. We even sleep with the muscles of our arms, of our legs, of our face, of the whole of our BODY tensed, and we do not realize that we spend much more energy on this continual readiness for work we shall never do than on all the real, useful work we do during our life. Fragments: Nine

“All that has been said before about work on oneself, about the formation of inner unity and of the transition from the level of man number one, number two, and number three to the level of man number four and further, pursues one and the same aim. What is called according to one terminology the ‘astral BODY,’ is called in another terminology the ‘higher emotional center,’ although the difference here does not lie in the terminology alone. These are, to speak more correctly, different aspects of the next stage of man’s evolution. It can be said that the ‘astral BODY’ is necessary for the complete and proper functioning of the ‘higher emotional center’ in unison with the lower. Or it can be said that the ‘higher emotional center’ is necessary for the work of the ‘astral BODY.’ Fragments: Nine

“The ‘mental BODY’ corresponds to the ‘higher thinking center.’ It would be wrong to say that they are one and the same thing. But one requires the other, one cannot exist without the other, one is the expression of certain sides and functions of the other. Fragments: Nine

“The fourth BODY requires the complete and harmonious working of all centers; and it implies, or is the expression of, complete control over this working. Fragments: Nine

“First of all we must examine what the ratio of zero to infinity means,” I said. “If we understand this, we shall understand the relation of one cosmos to another. In the world accessible to our study we have a perfectly clear example of the relation of zero to infinity. In geometry this is the relation of one unit of a certain number of dimensions to another unit of a greater number of dimensions. The relation of a point to a line, of a line to a plane, of a plane to a solid, of a solid, that is, of a three-dimensional BODY to a four-dimensional BODY, and so on. Fragments: Ten

“The ‘period of dimensions’ contains within itself seven dimensions: The zero-dimension, the first, the second, and so on up to the sixth dimension. The zero-dimension or the point is a limit. This means that we see something as a point, but we do not know what is concealed behind this point. It may actually be a point, that is, a BODY having no dimensions and it may also be a whole world, but a world so far removed from us or so small that it appears to us as a point. The movement of this point in space will appear to us as a line. In the same way the point itself will see the space along which it moves as a line. The movement of the line in a direction perpendicular to itself will be a plane and the line itself will see the space along which it moves in the shape of a plane. Fragments: Ten

“Up to now I have examined the line from the point of view of the point, and the plane from the point of view of the line, but the point, the line, and the plane can also be taken from the point of view of a three-dimensional BODY. In this case the plane will be the boundary of the BODY, or its side, or its section. The line will be the boundary limiting the plane, or the section of the plane. The point will be the limit or the section of the line. Fragments: Ten

“A three-dimensional BODY differs from the point, the line, and the plane by the fact that it has a real physical existence for our perception. Fragments: Ten

“The plane is in fact only a projection of a BODY, the line is a projection of a plane, and the point is a projection of a line. Fragments: Ten

“A ‘BODY’ has an independent physical existence, that is, it possesses a number of different physical properties. Fragments: Ten

“But when we say a thing ‘exists,’ we mean by this existence in time. But there is no time in three-dimensional space. Time lies outside the three-dimensional space. Time, as we feel it, is the fourth dimension. Existence is for us existence in time. Existence in time is movement or extension along the fourth dimension. If we take existence as an extension along the fourth dimension, if we think of life as a four­dimensional BODY, then a three-dimensional BODY will be its section, its projection, or its limit. Fragments: Ten

“As every cosmos has a real physical existence, every cosmos therefore is three­dimensional for itself or in itself. In relation to a lower cosmos it is four-dimensional, in relation to a higher cosmos it is a point. To put it differently, it is, itself, three-dimensional, but the fourth dimension lies for it in the cosmos above and the cosmos below. This last point is perhaps the most paradoxical, but nevertheless it is exactly as it should be. For a three-dimensional BODY, such as is a cosmos, the fourth dimension lies as much in the realm of very large magnitudes as in the realm of very small magnitudes; as much in the realm of what is actually infinity as in the realm of what is actually zero. Fragments: Ten

“Further we must understand that the three-dimensionality of even one and the same BODY can be different. Only a six-dimensional BODY can be completely real. A five­dimensional BODY is only an incomplete view of a six-dimensional BODY, a four­dimensional BODY is an incomplete view of a five-dimensional BODY, a three­dimensional BODY is an incomplete view of a four-dimensional BODY. And of course, a plane is an incomplete view of a three-dimensional BODY, that is to say, a view of one side of it. In the same way a line is an incomplete view of a plane and a point is an incomplete view of a line. Fragments: Ten

“Moreover, though we do not know how, a six-dimensional BODY can see itself as three-dimensional. SomeBODY looking at it from outside may possibly also see it as a three-dimensional BODY, but in a completely different kind of three-dimensionality. For instance, we represent the earth to ourselves as three-dimensional. This three­dimensionality is only imaginary. As a three-dimensional BODY the earth is something quite different for itself from what it is for us. Our view of it is incomplete, we see it as a section of a section of a section of its complete being. The ‘earthly globe’ is an imaginary BODY. It is the section of a section of a section of the six-dimensional earth. But this six-dimensional earth can also be three-dimensional for itself, only we do not know and we can have no conception of the form in which the earth sees itself. Fragments: Ten

“The possibilities of the earth are actualized in the Ayocosmos; this means that in the Ayocosmos the earth is a six-dimensional BODY. And actually we can to a certain extent see in what way the form of the earth must change. In the Deuterocosmos, that is, in relation to the sun, the earth is no longer a point (taking a point as a scale reduction of a three-dimensional BODY), but a line which we trace as the path of the earth around the sun. If we take the sun in the Macrocosmos, that is, if we visualize the line of the sun’s motion, then the line of the motion of the earth will become a spiral encircling the line of the sun’s motion. If we conceive a lateral motion of this spiral, then this motion will construct a figure which we cannot imagine because we do not know the nature of its motion, but which, nevertheless, will be the six­dimensional figure of the earth, which the earth itself can see as a three-dimensional figure. It is necessary to establish and to understand this because otherwise the idea of the three-dimensionality of the cosmoses will become linked with our idea of three-dimensional bodies. The three-dimensionality even of one and the same BODY can be different. Fragments: Ten

“If we want to represent graphically the interrelation of the cosmoses,” I said, “we must take the Microcosmos, that is, man, as a point, that is to say, we must take him on a very small scale and, as it were, at a very great distance from ourselves. Then his life in the Tritocosmos, that is, among other people and in the midst of nature, will be the line which he traces on the surface of the earthly globe in moving from place to place. In the Mesocosmos, that is, taken in connection with the twenty-four hours’ motion of the earth around its axis, this line will become a plane, whereas taken in relation to the sun, that is, taking into consideration the motion of the earth around the sun, it will become a threedimensional BODY, or, in other words, it will be something really existing, something realized. But as the fundamental point, that is, the man or the Microcosmos, was also a three-dimensional BODY, we have consequently two three-dimensionalities. Fragments: Ten

“If the Microcosmos, or man, is a three-dimensional BODY, then the Tritocosmos — organic life on earth — is a four-dimensional BODY. The earth has five dimensions and the sun — six. Fragments: Ten

“The usual scientific view takes man as a three-dimensional BODY; it takes organic life on earth as a whole, more as a phenomenon than a three-dimensional BODY; it takes the earth as a three-dimensional BODY; the sun as a three-dimensional BODY; the solar system as a three-dimensional BODY; and the Milky Way as a three-dimensional BODY. Fragments: Ten

“Neither can the earth be regarded as a three-dimensional BODY. It would be three­dimensional if it were stationary. Its motion around its axis makes man a five­dimensional being, whereas its motion around the sun makes the earth itself four­dimensional. The earth is not a sphere but a spiral encircling the sun, and the sun is not a sphere but a kind of spindle inside this spiral. The spiral and the spindle, taken together, must have a lateral motion in the next cosmos, but what results from this motion we cannot know, for we know neither the nature nor the direction of the motion. Fragments: Ten

“Further, seven cosmoses represent a ‘period of dimensions,’ but this does not mean that the chain of cosmoses comes to an end with the Microcosmos. If man is a Microcosmos, that is, a cosmos in himself, then the microscopic cells composing his BODY will stand towards him in about the same relation as he himself stands to organic life on earth. A microscopic cell which is on the boundary line of microscopic vision is composed of milliards of molecules comprising the next step, the next cosmos. Going still further, we can say that the next cosmos will be the electron. Thus we have obtained a second Microcosmos — the cell; a third Microcosmos — the molecule; and a fourth Microcosmos — the electron. These divisions and definitions, namely ‘cells,’ ‘molecules,’ and ‘electrons,’ are possibly very imperfect; it may be that with time science will establish others, but the principle will remain always the same and lower cosmoses will always be in precisely such relation to the Microcosmos.” Fragments: Ten

“This is the normal and natural way to use the energy of si 12. But in the same organism there is a further possibility. And this is the possibility of creating a new life within the actual organism, in which the si 12 has been manufactured, without the union of the two principles, the male and the female. A new octave then develops within the organism, not outside it This is the birth of the ‘astral BODY.’ You must understand that the ‘astral BODY’ is born of the same material, of the same matter, as the physical BODY, only the process is different. The whole of the physical BODY, all its cells, are, so to speak, permeated by emanations of the matter si 12. And when they have become sufficiently saturated the matter si 12 begins to crystallize. The crystallization of this matter constitutes the formation of the ‘astral BODY.’ Fragments: Twelve

“The transition of matter si 12 into emanations and the gradual saturation of the whole organism by it is what alchemy calls ‘transmutation’ or transformation. It is first this transformation of the physical BODY into the astral that alchemy called the transformation of the ‘coarse’ into the ‘fine’ or the transformation of base metals into gold. Fragments: Twelve

“Completed transmutation, that is to say, the formation of the ‘astral BODY,’ is possible only in a healthy, normally functioning organism. In a sick, or a perverted, or a crippled organism, no transmutation is possible.” Fragments: Twelve

“Where, in the cosmic octaves of radiation, the place of the interval fa-mi appears, in the diagram are marked the ‘machines’ which are found there in the same way as in the human BODY. Fragments: Fourteen

“Man in himself is not one, he is not ‘I,’ he is ‘we,’ or to speak more correctly, he is ‘they.’ Everything arises from this. Let us suppose that a man decides according to the Gospels to turn the left cheek if someBODY strikes him on the right cheek. But one ‘I’ decides this either in the mind or in the emotional center. One ‘I’ knows of it, one ‘I’ remembers it — the others do not. Let us imagine that it actually happens, that some­BODY strikes this man. Do you think he will turn the left cheek? Never. He will not even have time to think about it. He will either strike the face of the man who struck him, or he will begin to call a policeman, or he will simply take to flight. His moving center will react in its customary way, or as it has been taught to react, before the man realizes what he is doing. Fragments: Fifteen

Indicating what had been preserved up to our time, G. at the same time pointed out what had been lost and forgotten. He spoke of sacred dances which accompanied the “services” in the “temples of repetition” and which were not included in the Christian form of worship. He also spoke of various exercises, and of special postures for different prayers, that is, for different kinds of meditation; about acquiring control over the breathing and of the necessity of being able to tense or relax any group of muscles, or the muscles of the whole BODY at will; and about many other things having relation, so to speak, to the “technique” of religion. Fragments: Fifteen

On one occasion, in connection with the description of exercises in concentration and bringing the attention from one part of the BODY to another, G. asked: “When you pronounce the word ‘I’ aloud, have you noticed where this word sounds in you?” Fragments: Fifteen

We did not at once understand what he meant. But we very soon began to notice that when pronouncing the word ‘I’ some of us definitely felt as if this word sounded in the head, others felt it in the chest, and others over the head — outside the BODY. Fragments: Fifteen

“This is connected with Kant’s ideas of phenomena and noumena,” I said. “But after all this is the whole point. — The earth as a three-dimensional BODY is the ‘phenomenon,’ as a six-dimensional BODY, the ‘noumenon.’ ” Fragments: Fifteen

“The first way is the way of the fakir, the way of people number one, of people of the physical BODY, instinctive-moving-sensory people without much mind and without much heart. Fragments: Fifteen

“The second way is the way of the monk, the religious way, the way of people number two, that is, of emotional people. The mind and the BODY should not be too strong. Fragments: Fifteen

“The third way is the way of the yogi. This is the way of the mind, the way of people number three. The heart and the BODY must not be particularly strong, otherwise they may be a hindrance on this way. Fragments: Fifteen

“The center of gravity of the middle story of man is ‘hydrogen’ 96. The intelligence of ‘hydrogen’ 96 determines the average intelligence of ‘man,’ that is, the physical BODY of man. The center of gravity of the ‘astral BODY’ will be ‘hydrogen’ 48. The center of gravity of the third BODY will be ‘hydrogen’ 24, and the center of gravity of the fourth BODY will be ‘hydrogen’ 12. Fragments: Sixteen

“Then work on moving center can only be properly organized in a school. As I have already said, the wrong, independent, or automatic work of the moving center deprives the other centers of support and they involuntarily follow the moving center. Often, therefore, the sole possibility of making the other centers work in a new way is to begin with the moving center; that is with the BODY. A BODY which is lazy, automatic, and full of stupid habits stops any kind of work.” Fragments: Seventeen

“But theories exist,” said one of us, “that a man ought to develop the spiritual and moral side of his nature and that if he attains results in this direction there will be no obstacles on the part of the BODY. Is this possible or not?” Fragments: Seventeen

“Both yes and no,” said G. “The whole point is in the ‘if.’ If a man attains perfection of a moral and spiritual nature without hindrance on the part of the BODY, the BODY will not interfere with further achievements. But unfortunately this never occurs because the BODY interferes at the first step, interferes by its automatism, its attachment to habits, and chiefly by its wrong functioning. If the development of the moral and spiritual nature without interference on the part of the BODY is theoretically possible, it is possible only in the case of an ideal functioning of the BODY. And who is able to say that his BODY functions ideally? Fragments: Seventeen

“And it must be further understood that we are not speaking of exceptions or accidents which may or may not occur, but of general principles, of what happens every day to everyone. Ordinary man, even if he comes to the conclusion that work on himself is indispensable — is the slave of his BODY. He is not only the slave of the recognized and visible activity of the BODY but the slave of the unrecognized and the invisible activities of the BODY, and it is precisely these which hold him in their power. Therefore when a man decides to struggle for freedom he has first of all to struggle with his own BODY. Fragments: Seventeen

“I will now point out to you only one aspect of the functioning of the BODY which it is indispensable to regulate in any event. So long as this functioning goes on in a wrong way no other kind of work, either moral or spiritual, can go on in a right way. Fragments: Seventeen

the hands, the feet, the fingers, and so on at will. The idea of the necessity of relaxing the muscles was not actually a new one, but G.’s explanation that relaxing the muscles of the BODY should begin with the muscles of the face was quite new to me; I had never come across this in books on “Yoga” or in literature on physiology. Fragments: Seventeen

All this interested me particularly because certain experiments I had carried out had led me long ago to conclude that physical states, which are connected with new psychological experiences, begin with feeling the pulse throughout the whole BODY, which is what we do not feel in ordinary conditions; in this connection the pulse is felt at once in all parts of the BODY as one stroke. In my own personal experiments “feeling” the pulsation throughout the whole BODY was brought about, for instance, by certain breathing exercises connected with several days of fasting. I came to no definite results whatever in my own experiments but there remains with me the deep conviction that control over the BODY begins with acquiring control over the pulse. Acquiring for a short time the possibility of regulating, quickening, and slowing the pulse, I was able to slow down or quicken the heart beat and this in its turn gave me very interesting psychological results. I understood in a general way that control over the heart could not come from the heart muscles but that it depended upon controlling the pulse (the second stroke or the “big heart”) and G. had explained a great deal to me in pointing out that control over the “second heart” depends upon controlling the tension of the muscles, because we do not possess this control chiefly in consequence of the wrong and irregular tension of various groups of muscles. Fragments: Seventeen

“In order to oppose this automatism and gradually to acquire control over postures and movements in different centers there is one special exercise. It consists in this — that at a word or sign, previously agreed upon, from the teacher, all the pupils who hear or see him have to arrest their movements at once, no matter what they are doing, and remain stock-still in the posture in which the signal has caught them. Moreover not only must they cease to move, but they must keep their eyes on the same spot at which they were looking at the moment of the signal, retain the smile on their faces, if there was one, keep the mouth open if a man was speaking, maintain the facial expression and the tension of all the muscles of the BODY exactly in the same position in which they were caught by the signal. In this ‘stopped’ state a man must also stop the flow of his thoughts and concentrate the whole of his attention on preserving the tension of the muscles in the various parts of the BODY exactly as it was, watching this tension all the time and leading so to speak his attention from one part of the BODY to another. And he must remain in this state and in this position until another agreed-upon signal allows him to adopt a customary posture or until he drops from fatigue through being unable to preserve the original posture any longer. But he has no right to change anything in it, neither his glance, points of support, nothing. If he cannot stand he must fall — but, again, he should fall like a sack without attempting to protect himself from a blow. In exactly the same way, if he was holding something in his hands he must hold it as long as he can and if his hands refuse to obey him and the object falls it is not his fault. Fragments: Seventeen

“Let us try to follow what occurs. A man is walking, or sitting, or working. At that moment he hears a signal. A movement that has begun is interrupted by this sudden signal or command to stop. His BODY becomes immovable and arrested in the midst of a transition from one posture to another, in a position in which he never stays in ordinary life. Feeling himself in this state, that is, in an unaccustomed posture, a man involuntarily looks at himself from new points of view, sees and observes himself in a new way. In this unaccustomed posture he is able to think in a new way, feel in a new way, know himself in a new way. In this way the circle of old automatism is broken. The BODY tries in vain to adopt an ordinary comfortable posture. But the man’s will, brought into action by the will of the teacher, prevents it The struggle goes on not for life but till the death. But in this case will can conquer. This exercise taken together with all that has been said is an exercise for self-remembering. A man must remember himself so as not to miss the signal; he must remember himself so as not to take the most comfortable posture at the first moment; he must remember himself in order to watch the tension of the muscles in different parts of the BODY, the direction in which he is looking, the facial expression, and so on; he must remember himself in order to overcome very considerable pain sometimes from unaccustomed positions of the legs, arms, and back, so as not to be afraid of falling or dropping something heavy on his foot. It is enough to forget oneself for a single moment and the BODY will adopt, by itself and almost un-noticeably, a more comfortable position, it will transfer the weight from one foot to another, will slacken certain muscles, and so on. This exer­cise is a simultaneous exercise for the will, the attention, the thoughts, the feelings, and for moving center. Fragments: Seventeen

But I will return to the physical exercises we carried out at that time. G. showed us the different methods that were used in schools. Very interesting but unbelievably difficult were exercises in which a whole series of consecutive movements were performed in connection with taking the attention from one part of the BODY to another. Fragments: Seventeen

It became more and more difficult for me to breathe and to mark time, and to observe the count of breaths and steps. I was pouring with sweat, my head began to turn round, and I thought I should fall. I began to despair of obtaining results of any kind and I had almost stopped when suddenly something seemed to crack or move inside me and my breathing went on evenly and properly at the rate I wanted it to go, but without any effort on my part, while affording me all the amount of air I needed. It was an extraordinarily pleasant sensation. I shut my eyes and continued to mark time, breathing easily and freely and feeling exactly as though strength was increasing in me and that I was getting lighter and stronger. I thought that if I could continue to run in this way for a certain time I should get still more interesting results because waves of a sort of joyful trembling had already begun to go through my BODY which, as I knew from previous experiments, preceded what I called the opening of the inner consciousness. Fragments: Seventeen

But the principal part of the work which began at that time were the rhythmics to music and similar strange dances which afterwards led to the reproduction of the exercises of various dervishes. G. did not explain his aims and intentions but according to things he had said before, it was possible to think that the result of these exercises would be to bring under control the physical BODY. Fragments: Eighteen

“You must realize that there are three kinds of breathing. One is normal breathing. The second is ‘inflation.’ The third is breathing assisted by movements. What does this mean? It means that normal breathing goes on unconsciously, it is managed and controlled by the moving center. ‘Inflation’ is artificial breathing. If for instance a man says to himself that he will count ten inhaling and ten exhaling, or that he will inhale through the right nostril and exhale through the left — this is done by the formatory apparatus. And the breathing itself is different because the moving center and the formatory apparatus act through different groups of muscles. The group of muscles through which the moving center acts are neither accessible nor subordinate to the formatory apparatus. But in the event of a temporary stoppage of the moving center the formatory apparatus has been given a group of muscles which it can influence and with whose help it can set the breathing mechanism in motion. But its work will of course be worse than the work of the moving center and it cannot go on for long. You have read the book about ‘yogi breathing,’ you have heard or have also read about the special breathing connected with the ‘mental prayer’ in Orthodox monasteries. It is all one and the same thing. Breathing proceeding from the formatory apparatus is not breathing but ‘inflation.’ The idea is that if a man carries out this kind of breathing long enough and often enough through the formatory apparatus, the moving center which remains idle during this period can get tired of doing nothing and start working in ‘imitation’ of the formatory apparatus. And indeed this sometimes happens. But so that this should happen many conditions are necessary, fasting and prayer are necessary and little sleep and all kinds of difficulties and burdens for the BODY. If the BODY is well treated this cannot happen. You think there are no physical exercises in Orthodox monasteries? Well, you try to carry out one hundred prostrations according to all the rules. You will have an aching back that no kind of gymnastics could ever give. Fragments: Eighteen