“If he carries out all these rules while he observes himself, a man will record a whole series of very important aspects of his being. To begin with he will record with unmistakable clearness the fact that his actions, thoughts, feelings, and words are the result of external influences and that nothing comes from himself. He will understand and see that he is in fact an automaton acting under the influences of external stimuli. He will feel his complete mechanicalness. Everything ‘happens,’ he cannot ‘do’ anything. He is a machine controlled by accidental SHOCKs from outside. Each SHOCK calls to the surface one of his I’s. A new SHOCK and that I disappears and a different one takes its place. Another small change in the environment and again there is a new I. A man will begin to under-stand that he has no control of himself whatever, that he does not know what he may say or do the next moment, he will begin to understand that he cannot answer for himself even for the shortest length of time. He will understand that if he remains the same and does nothing unexpected, it is simply because no unexpected outside changes are taking place. He will understand that his actions are entirely controlled by external conditions and he will be convinced that there is nothing permanent in him from which control could come, not a single permanent function, not a single permanent state.” Fragments: Six

“The right development of these octaves is based on what looks an accident. It sometimes happens that octaves going parallel to the given octave, intersecting or meeting it, in some way or another fill up its ‘intervals’ and make it possible for the vibrations of the given octave to develop in freedom and without checks. Observation of such rightly developing octaves establishes the fact that if at the necessary moment, that is, at the moment when the given octave passes through an ‘interval,’ there enters into it an ‘additional SHOCK’ which corresponds in force and character, it will develop further without hindrance along the original direction, neither losing anything nor changing its nature. Fragments: Seven

“In an ascending octave the first ‘interval’ comes between mi and fa. If corresponding additional energy enters at this point the octave will develop without hindrance to si, but between si and do it needs a much stronger ‘additional SHOCK’ for its right development than between mi and fa, because the vibrations of the octave at this point are of a considerably higher pitch and to overcome a check in the development of the octave a greater intensity is needed. Fragments: Seven

“In a descending octave, on the other hand, the greatest ‘interval’ occurs at the very beginning of the octave, immediately after the first do and the material for filling it is very often found either in do itself or in the lateral vibrations evoked by do. For this reason a descending octave develops much more easily than an ascending octave and in passing beyond si it reaches fa without hindrance; here an ‘additional SHOCK’ is necessary, though considerably less strong than the first ‘SHOCK’ between do and si. Fragments: Seven

“In the big cosmic octave, which reaches us in the form of the ray of creation, we can see the first complete example of the law of octaves. The ray of creation begins with the Absolute. The Absolute is the All. The All, possessing full unity, full will, and full consciousness, creates worlds within itself, in this way beginning the descending world octave. The Absolute is the do of this octave. The worlds which the Absolute creates in itself are si. The ‘interval’ between do and si in this case is filled by the will of the Absolute. The process of creation is developed further by the force of the original impulse and an ‘additional SHOCK.’ Si passes into la which for us is our star world, the Milky Way. La passes into sol — our sun, the solar system. Sol passes into fa — the planetary world. And here between the planetary world as a whole and our earth occurs an ‘interval.’ This means that the planetary radiations carrying various influences to the earth are not able to reach it, or, to speak more correctly, they are not received, the earth reflects them. In order to fill the ‘interval’ at this point of the ray of creation a special apparatus is created for receiving and transmitting the influences coming from the planets. This apparatus is organic life on earth. Organic life transmits to the earth all the influences intended for it and makes possible the further development and growth of the earth, mi of the cosmic octave, and then of the moon or re, after which follows another do — Nothing. Between All and Nothing passes the ray of creation. Fragments: Seven

“In examining the ray of creation or cosmic octave we see that ‘intervals’ should come in the development of this octave: the first between do and si, that is between world 1 and world 3, between the Absolute and ‘all worlds,’ and the second between fa and mi, that is, between world 24 and world 48, between ‘all planets’ and the earth. But the first ‘interval’ is filled by the will of the Absolute. One of the manifestations of the will of the Absolute consists precisely in the filling of this ‘interval’ by means of a conscious manifestation of neu-tralizing force which fills up the ‘interval’ between the active and the passive forces. With the second ‘interval’ the situation is more complicated. Something is missing between the planets and the earth. Planetary influences cannot pass to the earth consecutively and fully. An ‘additional SHOCK’ is indispensable; the creation of some new conditions to insure a proper passage of forces is indispensable. Fragments: Seven

” ‘Buffer’ is a term which requires special explanation. We know what buffers on railway carriages are. They are the contrivances which lessen the SHOCK when carriages or trucks strike one another. If there were no buffers the SHOCK of one carriage against another would be very unpleasant and dangerous. Buffers soften the results of these SHOCKs and render them unnoticeable and imperceptible. Fragments: Eight

“Then an interval, and the ‘SHOCK’ filling it, unknown to us but nevertheless inevitably existing, then mi, re. Fragments: Nine

“Then an ‘interval’ and the ‘SHOCK’ of organic life which fills it, then mi and re. The earth: do, an ‘interval,’ si, and then la, sol, fa — radiations going towards the moon; then again an ‘interval,’ a ‘SHOCK’ unknown to us, then mi, re, and the moon, do. Fragments: Nine

“It must be observed that, although there are six ‘intervals’ in these three octaves, only three of them actually require to be supplemented from outside. The first ‘interval’ between do and si is filled by the will of the Absolute. The second ‘interval’ do-si is filled by the influence of the sun’s mass upon radiations passing through it. And the third ‘interval’ do-si is filled by the action of the earth’s mass upon radiations passing through it. Only the ‘intervals’ between fa and mi have to be filled by ‘additional SHOCKs.’ These ‘additional SHOCKs’ can come either from other octaves which pass across the given point or from parallel octaves which start from higher points. We know nothing about the nature of the ‘SHOCK’ between mi-fa in the first octaoctave Absolute-Sun. But the ‘SHOCK’ in the octave Sun-Earth is organic life on earth, that is, the three notes la, sol, fa of the octave which starts in the sun. The nature of the ‘SHOCK’ between mi and fa in the octave Earth-Moon is unknown to us. Fragments: Nine

“According to the same plan and order the following triad will be constructed: fa, ‘SHOCK,’ mi. ‘Carbon’ which was ‘nitrogen’ in the second triad enters with a density of 4; the ‘nitrogen’ and ‘oxygen’ corresponding to it must have a density of 8 and 12; together they will give ‘hydrogen’ 24 (H24): Fragments: Nine

fa, ‘SHOCK,’ mi-‘hydrogen’ 384 (H384): Fragments: Nine

fa, ‘SHOCK,’ mi — ‘hydrogen’ 6144 (H6144): Fragments: Nine

“As it is known from the law of octaves mi cannot pass independently into fa in an ascending octave; an ‘additional SHOCK’ is necessary. If an ‘additional SHOCK’ is not received the substance mi 192 cannot by itself pass into the full note fa. Fragments: Nine

“La 24 unites with ‘carbon’ 6 present in the organism and is transformed into ‘nitrogen’ 12, or si 12. Si 12 is the highest substance produced in the organism from physical food with the help of the ‘additional SHOCK’ obtained from the air. Fragments: Nine

“Re 96 passes into mi 48 with the help of ‘carbon’ 24 and with this the development of the second octave comes to a stop. For the transition of mi into fa, an ‘additional SHOCK’ is necessary, but at this point nature has not prepared any ‘additional SHOCK’ and the second octave, that is, the air octave, cannot develop further and in the ordinary conditions of life it does not develop further. Fragments: Nine

“There is, however, a possibility of increasing the output, that is, of enabling the air octave and the impression octave to develop further. For this purpose it is necessary to create a special kind of ‘artificial SHOCK’ at the point where the beginning of the third octave is arrested. This means that the ‘artificial SHOCK’ must be applied to the note dodo 48. Fragments: Nine

“But what is meant by an ‘artificial SHOCK’? It is connected with the moment of the reception of an impression. The note dodo 48 designates the moment when an impression enters our consciousness. An ‘artificial SHOCK’ at this point means a certain kind of effort made at the moment of receiving an impression. Fragments: Nine

“It has been explained before that in ordinary conditions of life we do not remember ourselves; we do not remember, that is, we do not feel ourselves, are not aware of ourselves at the moment of a perception, of an emotion, of a thought or of an action. If a man understands this and tries to remember himself, every impression he receives while remembering himself will, so to speak, be doubled. In an ordinary psychic state I simply look at a street. But if I remember myself, I do not simply look at the street; I feel that I am looking, as though saying to myself: ‘I am looking.’ Instead of one impression of the street there are two impressions, one of the street and another of myself looking at it. This second impression, produced by the fact of my remembering myself, is the ‘additional SHOCK.’ Moreover, it very often happens that the additional sensation connected with self-remembering brings with it an element of emotion, that is, the work of the machine attracts a certain amount of ‘carbon’ 12 to the place in question. Efforts to remember oneself, observation of oneself at the moment of receiving an impression, observation of one’s impressions at the moment of receiving them, registering, so to speak, the reception of impressions and the simultaneous defining of the impressions received, all this taken together doubles the intensity of the impressions and carries do 48 to re 24. At the same time the effort connected with the transition of one note to another and the passage of 48 itself to 24 enables do 48 of the third octave to come into contact with mi 48 of the second octave and to give this note the requisite amount of energy necessary for the transition of mi to fa. In this way the ‘SHOCK’ given to do 48 extends also to mi 48 and enables the second octave to develop. Fragments: Nine

“We have followed the development of two octaves. The third octave, that is, the octave of impressions, begins through a conscious effort. Do 48 passes to re 24; re 24 passes to mi 12. At this point the development of the octave comes to a stop. “Now if we examine the result of the development of these three octaves, we shall see that the first octave has reached si 12, the second la 6, and the third mi 12. Thus the first and third octaves stop at notes which are unable to pass to the following notes. “For the two octaves to develop further, a second conscious SHOCK is needed at a certain point in the machine, a new conscious effort is necessary which will enable the two octaves to continue their development. The nature of this effort demands special study. From the point of view of the general work of the machine it can be said in general that this effort is connected with the emotional life, that it is a special kind of influence over one’s emotions. But what this kind of influence really is, and how it has to be produced, can be explained only in connection with a general description of the work of the human factory or the human machine. Fragments: Nine

“If we now take the work of the human factory as a whole, we shall be able to see at the moments when the production of fine substances is arrested by what means we can increase the productivity of the factory. We see that, under ordinary conditions and working with one mechanical ‘SHOCK’ the factory produces a very small quantity of the fine substances, in fact only si 12. Working with one mechanical and one conscious ‘SHOCK’ the factory now produces a much greater quantity of the fine substances. Working with two conscious ‘SHOCKs’ the factory will produce a quantity of the fine substances such as, in the course of time, will completely change the character of the factory itself. Fragments: Nine

“In order to understand the analogy between man, the human organism, and the universe, let us take the world as we did before in the form of three octaves from the Absolute to the sun, from the sun to the earth, and from the earth to the moon. Each of these three octaves lacks a semitone between fa and mi and in each octave the place of this missing semitone is taken by a certain kind of ‘SHOCK’ which is created artificially at the given point. If we now begin to look for an analogy between the three-story factory and the three octaves of the universe, we ought to realize that the three ‘additional SHOCKs’ in the three octaves of the universe correspond to the three kinds of food entering the human organism. The ‘SHOCK’ in the lower octave corresponds to physical food; this ‘SHOCK’ is do 768 of the cosmic three-story factory. The ‘SHOCK’ in the middle octave corresponds to air. It is do 192 of the cosmic factory. The ‘SHOCK’ in the upper octave corresponds to impressions; it is do 48 of the cosmic factory. In the inner work of this cosmic three-story factory all three kinds of food undergo the same transformation as in the human factory, on the same plan and in accordance with the same laws. A further study of the analogy between man and the universe is possible only after an exact study of the human machine and after the respective ‘places’ of each of the ‘hydrogens’ in our organism has been established exactly. This means that to proceed with any further study we must find the exact purpose of each ‘hydrogen,’ that is to say, each ‘hydrogen’ must be defined chemically, psychologically, physiologically, and anatomically, in other words, its functions, its place in the human organism, and, if possible, the peculiar sensations connected with it must be defined. Fragments: Nine

“The first stage refers to the work of the human organism as it has been created by nature, that is to say, to the life and functions of man number one, number two, and number three. The first octave, that is, the octave of food, develops in a normal way to mi 192. At this point it automatically receives a ‘SHOCK’ from the beginning of the second octave, and its development goes on consecutively to si 12. The second octave, that is, the air octave, begins with do 192 and develops to mi 48 where it stops. The third octave, that is, the octave of impressions, begins with do 48 and stops there. Thus seven notes of the first octave, three notes of the second, and one note of the third octave represent a complete picture of the work of the ‘human factory’ in its first or natural stage. Nature has provided only one ‘SHOCK,’ that is, the ‘SHOCK’ received from the entrance of the second octave which helps mi of the first octave to pass to fa. But nature did not foresee and did not provide for the second ‘SHOCK,’ that is, the ‘SHOCK’ that would help the development of the third octave and thereby enable mi of the second octave to pass to fa. A man must create this ‘SHOCK’ by his own personal efforts if he desires to increase the output of the fine hydrogens in his organism. Fragments: Nine

“The second stage refers to the work of the human organism when a man creates a conscious volitional ‘SHOCK’ at the point do 48. In the first place this volitional ‘SHOCK’ is transmitted to the second octave which develops as far as sol 12, or even further up to la 6 and so on, if the work of the organism is sufficiently intense. The same ‘SHOCK’ also enables the third octave to develop, that is, the octave of impressions which in this event reaches mi 12. Thus in the second stage of the work of the human organism, we see the full development of the second octave and three notes of the third octave. The first octave has stopped at the note si 12, the third at the note mi 12. Neither of these octaves can proceed any further without a fresh ‘SHOCK.’ The nature of this second ‘SHOCK’ cannot be so easily described as the nature of the first volitional ‘SHOCK’ at do 48. In order to understand the nature of this ‘SHOCK’ it is necessary to understand the meaning of si 12 and mi 12. Fragments: Nine

“The effort which creates this ‘SHOCK’ must consist in work on the emotions, in the transformation and transmutation of the emotions. This transmutation of the emotions will then help the transmutation of si 12 in the human organism. No serious growth, that is, no growth of higher bodies within the organism, is possible without this transmutation. The idea of this transmutation was known to many ancient teachings as well as to some comparatively recent ones, such as the alchemy of the Middle Ages. But the alchemists spoke of this transmutation in the allegorical forms of the transformation of base metals into precious ones. In reality, however, they meant the transformation of coarse ‘hydrogens’ into finer ones in the human organism, chiefly of the transformation of mi 12. If this transformation is attained, a man can be said to have ‘achieved what he was striving for, and it can also be said that, until this transformation is attained, all results attained by a man can be lost because they are not fixed in him in any way; moreover, they are attained only in the spheres of thought and emotion. Real, objective results can be obtained only after the transmutation of mi 12 has begun. Fragments: Nine

“Alchemists who spoke of this transmutation began directly with it. They knew nothing, or at least they said nothing, about the nature of the first volitional ‘SHOCK.’ It is upon this, however, that the whole thing depends. The second volitional ‘SHOCK’ and transmutation become physically possible only after long practice on the first volitional ‘SHOCK,’ which consists in self-remembering, and in observing the impressions received. On the way of the monk and on the way of the fakir work on the second ‘SHOCK’ begins before work on the first ‘SHOCK,’ but as mi 12 is created only as a result of the first ‘SHOCK,’ work, in the absence of other material, has of necessity to be concentrated on si 12, and it very often gives quite wrong results. Right development on the fourth way must begin with the first volitional ‘SHOCK’ and then pass on to the second ‘SHOCK’ at mi 12. Fragments: Nine

“The third stage in the work of the human organism begins when man creates in himself a conscious second volitional ‘SHOCK’ at the point mi 12, when the transformation or transmutation of these ‘hydrogens’ into higher ‘hydrogens’ begins in him. The second stage and the beginning of the third stage refer to the life and functions of man number four. A fairly considerable period of. transmutation and crystallization is needed for the transition of man number four to the level of man number five. Fragments: Nine

“Speaking in general, what is necessary to awake a sleeping man? A good SHOCK is necessary. But when a man is fast asleep one SHOCK is not enough. A long period of continual SHOCKs is needed. Consequently there must be somebody to administer these SHOCKs. I have said before that if a man wants to awaken he must hire somebody who will keep on shaking him for a long time. But whom can he hire if everyone is asleep? A man will hire somebody to wake him up but this one also falls asleep. What is the use of such a man? And a man who. can really keep awake will probably refuse to waste his time in waking others up: he may have his own much more important work to do. Fragments: Eleven

“In the first instance the intellectual center, and in the second the moving center, draw the energy necessary for their work from the small accumulators. When an accumulator is nearly empty a man feels tired. He would like to stop, to sit down if he is walking, to think of something else if he is solving a difficult problem. But quite unexpectedly he feels an inflow of strength, and he is once more able to walk or to work. This means that the center has become connected with the second accumulator and is taking energy from it. Meanwhile the first accumulator is refilling with energy from the large accumulator. The work of the center goes on. The man continues to walk or to work. Sometimes a short rest is required to insure this connection. Sometimes a SHOCK, sometimes an effort. Anyway, the work goes on. After a certain time the store of energy in the second accumulator also becomes exhausted. The man again feels tired. Fragments: Eleven

“Again an external SHOCK, or a short rest, or a cigarette, or an effort, and he is connected with the first accumulator. But it may easily happen that the center has drawn energy from the second accumulator so quickly that the first one has had no time to refill itself from the large accumulator, and has taken only half the energy it can hold; it is only half full. Fragments: Eleven

“Then suddenly, again a short rest, or an external SHOCK, or an effort, brings a new flow of energy and the man is once more able to think, to walk, or to work. Fragments: Eleven

” ‘Hydrogen’ si 12 can pass into do of the next octave with the help of an ‘additional SHOCK.’ But this ‘SHOCK’ can be of a dual nature and different octaves can begin, one outside the organism which has produced si, and the other in the organism itself. The union of male and female si 12 and all that accompanies it constitutes the ‘SHOCK’ of the first kind and the new octave begun with its help develops independently as a new organism or a new life. Fragments: Twelve

“We have spoken earlier of the law of octaves, of the fact that every process, no matter upon what scale it takes place, is completely determined in its gradual development by the law of the structure of the seven-tone scale. In connection with this it has been pointed out that every note, every tone, if taken on another scale is again a whole octave. The ‘intervals’ between mi and fa and between si and do which cannot be filled by the intensity of the energy of the process in operation, and which require an outside ‘SHOCK,’ outside help so to speak, connect by this very fact one process with other processes. From this it follows that the law of octaves connects all processes of the universe and, to one who knows the scales of the passage and the laws of the structure of the octave, it presents the possibility of an exact cognition of everything and every phenomenon in its essential nature and of all its interrelations with phenomena and things connected with it. Fragments: Fourteen

that is, in one case x between mi and fa, and in the other between sol and la, where it is not necessary. “The apparent placing of the interval in its wrong place itself shows to those who are able to read the symbol what kind of ‘SHOCK’ is required for the passage of si to do. “In order to understand this, it is essential to recollect what was said about the role of ‘SHOCKs’ in the processes proceeding in man and in the universe. “When we examined the application of the law of octaves to the cosmos then the step ‘sun-earth’ was represented in this way: “In relation to the three octaves of radiation it was pointed out that the passage of do to si, the filling of the interval, takes place within the organism of the sun. It was pointed out in the cosmic octave in relation to the ‘interval’ do-si that this passage is accomplished by the will of the Absolute. The passage fa-mi in the cosmic octave is accomplished mechanically with the help of a special machine which makes it possible for fa, which enters it, to acquire by a series of inner processes the characteristics of sol standing above it, without changing its note, that is, to accumulate, as it were, the inner energy for passing independently into the next note, into mi. Fragments: Fourteen

“Of course there are very many people who consider that the life of humanity is not proceeding in the way in which according to their views it ought to go. And they invent various theories which in their opinion ought to change the whole life of humanity. One invents one theory. Another immediately invents a contradictory theory. And both expect everyone to believe them. And many people indeed do believe either one or the other. Life naturally takes its own course but people do not stop believing in their own or other people’s theories and they believe that it is possible to do something. All these theories are certainly quite fantastic, chiefly because they do not take into account the most important thing, namely, the subordinate part which humanity and organic life play in the world process. Intellectual theories put man in the center of everything; everything exists for him, the sun, the stars, the moon, the earth. They even forget man’s relative size, his nothingness, his transient existence, and other tilings. They assert that a man if he wishes is able to change his whole life, that is, to organize his life on rational principles. And all the time new theories appear evoking in their turn opposing theories; and all these theories and the struggle between them undoubtedly constitute one of the forces which keep humanity in the state in which it is at present. Besides, all these theories for general welfare and general equality are not only unrealizable, but they would be fatal if they were realized. Everything in nature has its aim and its purpose, both the inequality of man and his suffering. To destroy inequality would mean destroying the possibility of evolution. To destroy suffering would mean, first, destroying a whole series of perceptions for which man exists, and second, the destruction of the ‘SHOCK,’ that is to say, the force which alone can change the situation. And thus it is with all intellectual theories. Fragments: Fifteen

At the end of winter when conditions of living became slightly easier I began to look through my notes and drawings of G.’s diagrams which with G.’s permission I had preserved since St. Petersburg. My attention was particularly attracted by the enneagram. The explanation of the enneagram had clearly not been finished and I felt that there were in it hints at a possible continuation. I very soon saw that a continuation must be sought in connection with the wrong situation of the “SHOCK” Fragments: Eighteen

The point 3, or the “interval” mi-fa, was the place where the “SHOCK” came in which gave do 192 of the second octave. When I added the beginning of this octave to the enneagram I saw that the point 6 came at the “interval” mi-fa of the second octave and the “SHOCK” in the form of the third octave do 48 which begins at this point. The completed drawing of the octaves came out as follows: Fragments: Eighteen

This signified that there was no wrong place for a “SHOCK” at all. Point 6 showed the entry of the “SHOCK” in the second octave and the “SHOCK” was the do which began the third octave. All three octaves reached Hi 2. In one it was si, in the second sol, and in the third mi. The second octave which ended at 12 in the enneagram ought to have gone on further. But si 12 and mi 12 required an “additional SHOCK.” I thought a great deal about the nature of these “SHOCKs” at that time but I will speak of them later. Fragments: Eighteen

“The final substance in the process of the food octave is the substance si (‘hydrogen’ 12 in the third scale), which needs an ‘additional SHOCK* in order to pass into a new do. But as three octaves have taken part in the production of this substance their influence is also reflected in the final result by determining its quality. The quality and quantity can be regulated by regulating the three kinds of food received by the organism. Only in the presence of a full and harmonious conformity between all three kinds of food, by a strengthening or weakening of the different parts of the process, is the required result obtained. Fragments: Fourteen