CHAPTER II

THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP
E must next consider the state of
’ ’ sleep, if we are to come to any understanding of Imaginative Know- ledge. So long as man has attained to no higher stage than Material Cogni- tion, the soul, although it truly lives during sleep, is unable to perceive any- thing in the world in which it then dwells. It is in this world like a blind man in the world of matter. Such a one lives in the midst of light and colour, but is unable to perceive them. From the outer sense-organs — the eye, the ear, the ordinary activity of the brain, and so forth — the soul, in sleep, has withdrawn.
19
20 THE GATES OF KNOWLEDGE
It receives no impressions through the senses. What, then, is it doing during sleep?
We must realise clearly that in waking life the soul is in a state of constant activity. It takes in the impressions of the outer senses and works upon them: that is its occupation. This ceases during sleep, but the soul is not then idle. Asleep it works upon its own body. This is worn out by the activity of the day, which manifests itself in fatigue. And during sleep the soul occupies itself with its own body in order to prepare it for further waking work. We see by this how essential is good sleep for the main- tenance of bodily health. The man who does not sleep sufficiently, does not allow his soul to execute upon the body the needful work of repair; and the conse- quence of this must be the deterioration
THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP 21
of the body. The forces with which the soul works upon the body in sleep are the same with which it acts during the waking state ; only in the latter case they are used to take in impressions from the outer senses and to work upon them.
Now when Imaginative Cognition awakes in man, part of the force expended upon the body in sleep must be employed in another way. By these forces the spiritual sense-organs are fonned, which enable the soul, not merely to exist in the higher worlds, but also to take cogni- sance in them. Thus the soul during sleep works no longer upon the body only, but also upon itself. This result is brought about by meditation and con- centration, and also by other exercises. It has already often been stated in my other books, giving the methods for the attainment of the Higher Knowledge,
22 THE GATES OF KNOWLEDGE
that the particular directions for these exercises are given only from man to man. No one should undertake such exercises on his own account. For only those who have experience of these things can judge what will be the result, in any individual, of withdrawing the activity of his soul from the body and applying it to a higher purpose.
Meditation, Concentration, and other exercises, cause the soul to withdraw for a time from its connection with the sense-organs. It is then sunk in itself, and its activity is turned inwards. In the 'first stages of this detachment, its inner activity does not differ greatly from its daily work. The same representations, feelings, and sensations must be employed in the work within as during ordinary life. But the more it accustoms itself to be in a measiu-e blind and deaf to its
THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP 23
physical surroundings, the more it lives within itself, the more fit does it become for the inner achievements. And that which is accomplished by meditation first bears fruit in the condition of sleep. When the soul is freed from the body at night, that which has been quickened in it by the exercises of the day, con- tinues to work. Organs are formed in it, by which it can come into relation with its higher surroundings, in exactly the same way as it has already come into contact with the physical world through the outer organs of sense. Out of the darkness of the nocturnal environment come forth visions of light from the higher worlds. Subtle and intimate is this inter- course at first.
It must always be borne in mind that for a long time to come the act of waking to the light of day will immediately draw
C4 the gates of knowledge
a dense veil over the experiences of the night. The recollection of having per- ceived something during the night, only- very slo-wly and gradually comes through. For the disciple does not easily learn to pay attention to the delicate images of his soul, which in the course of his develop- ment begin to mingle with the common events of every-day sense-life.
At first, such images resemble what one calls the accidental impressions gathered by the soul. Everything depends upon his learning to distinguish what is due to the ordinary world from that which pre- sents itself through his own being as a manifestation from the higher worlds. In a quiet, introspective mental life, he must acquire this discernment. It is necessary that he should first develop a sense of the value and meaning of those intimate soul-images which, like chance
THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP 25
impressions, mingle themselves with daily life, but which are really recollections of the nightly intercourse with a higher world. As soon as one grasps these images roughly and applies to them the standards of the sense-life, they vanish away.
It is clear from what has been said that, owing to this work in a higher world, the soul must withdraw from the body part of the activity formerly bestowed upon it with such care. It leaves it, to a certain extent, alone. And the body needs a substitute for that which the soul did for it before. If it does not obtain such a substitute, it runs the risk of fall- ing a prey to maleficent powers. For we must clearly recognise that man is con- tinually exposed to the influences of his surroundings. In fact, he maintains life only through co-operation with his sur-
26 THE GATES OF KNOWLEDGE
roundings. Among these we must con- sider first the kingdom of visible Nature. Man himself belongs to this visible Nature. If there were no mineral, plant, and animal kingdoms, and no human beings around him, he could not live. If an individual could be imagined as cut off from the earth and lifted up into sur- rounding space, he must inevitably perish quickly as a physical being, just as the hand will perish if cut off from the body. The illusion of a hand that imagined that it could exist without the body would be no greater than that of a man who main- tained that he could live as a physical being without the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms, and the rest of humanity.
But besides the above-named kingdoms there are three others, which generally escape the notice of man. These are the
THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP 27
three elemental kingdoms, which stand in a sense below the mineral kingdom. There are beings who do not condense into the mineral condition, but who are none the less present and exert their influence upon man. (Further informa- tion concerning these elemental kingdoms will be found in my Atlantis and Lemu- ria,^ and also in the remarks upon them in my Theosophy.) Man is thus exposed to influences from kingdoms of Nature which in a sense must be called invisible. Now when the soul works upon the body, a considerable part of its activity consists in regulating the influences of the elemen- tal kingdoms in such a way that they are beneficial to man. But the instant the soul withdraws part of its activity from
^The Submerged Continents of Atlantis and Lemuria. Their History and Civilisation. By Rudolf Steiner, Ph.D. The Rajput Press, Chicago; Theosophical Publ., Soc., London.
28 THE GATES OF KNOWLEDGE
the body, injurious powers from the elemental kingdoms may get hold of it. Herein lies one of the dangers of the higher evolution. Care must therefore be taken that the body is in itself acces- sible only to the good influences of the elemental world as soon as the soul is withdrawn from it. If this be dis- regarded, the ordinary man will be, to a certain extent, physically and morally injured, in spite of having gained access to the higher worlds.
While the soul dwells in the higher regions, pernicious forces steal into the dense physical and etheric bodies. This is the reason why certain bad qualities, which, previous to this higher develop- ment, had been held in check by the regulating power of the soul, may now, for lack of such power, become apparent. Men who were formerly of good moral be-
THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP 29
haviour may, under such circumstances, when they enter the higher worlds, reveal all kinds of low propensities, — extreme selfishness, untruthfulness, vindictiveness, wrath, etc. No one need be alarmed by this fact, or deterred from ascending into the higher worlds, but care must be taken to prevent the occurrence of such things. The lower nature of man must be forti- fied and made inaccessible to the danger- ous elemental influences. This can be brought about by the conscious cultiva- tion of certain virtues. These virtues are set forth in the theosophical hand- books dealing with spiritual develop- ment; and here we have the reason why they must be carefully sought after. They are the following:
First of all, the pupil must deliberately, continually, and in all things, recognise the imperishable, the lasting; distinguish
30 THE GATES OF KNOWLEDGE
it from the perishable, and turn his atten- tion towards it. In all things and in all beings he may assume and discern some- thing which abides when the transitory appearance has vanished. If I see a plant, I can first observe it as it presents itself to the senses ; and this no one should neglect to do. For no one will be able to discover the permanent in objects, who has not first made himself thoroughly familiar with their perishable aspect. Those who are continually afraid that to fix their attention on the spiritual and eternal will cause them to lose the freshness and naturalness of life, do not yet understand of w'hat we are really speaking. When I look at a plant in this way, it may become evident to me that there is in it a permanent Hfe-impulse which will re-appear in a new form when the plant before me has long since crum-
THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP 31
bled to dust. This attitude of mind towards things must become thoroughly bound up with our nature. Then we must fix our hearts upon all that is wor- thy of esteem, and genuine, and learn to value it more highly than that which is fleeting and insignificant. In all our feelings and actions we must take into consideration the value of any one thing in relation to the whole. Thirdly, we must cultivate six qualities: control of thoughts, control of actions, endurance, impartiality, confidence in our surround- ings, and inner equilibrium.
Control of the thought-world can be attained if we take the trouble to combat that wandering of the thoughts and feel- ings which tosses the ordinary man to and fro. In every-day life man is not the master of his thoughts: he is driven by them. And, as a matter of course, it
32 THE GATES OF KNOWLEDGE
cannot be otherwise; for life itself rules man and, as a worker, he must yield to the pressure of life. In ordinary life this must be so. But if man would rise into higher worlds, he must set apart at least certain short periods in which to make himself master of his world of thought and feeling. Then, with full inner free- dom, he sets a thought in the centre of his soul; whilst ordinarily, ideas were driven into it from without. Then he tries to keep at a distance aU other thoughts and feelings, and to add nothing to the first thought except that which he admits of his own will. Such an exercise has a beneficial effect upon the soul, and through it, upon the body. It brings the latter into such a harmonious condition that it evades pernicious influences even when the soul is not directly working upon it.
THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP 33
Control of actions consists in a similar regulation of these by inner freedom. A good beginning is mg,de when we set our- selves to do regularly something which it would not have occurred to us to do in ordinary life. For in the latter, man is driven to action from without. But the smallest action which we undertake of our own innermost initiative, does more for us in the direction of which we are speak- ing than anything we may do through the pressure of life from without. Endur- ance consists in deliverance from those moods which may be described as alter- nating betweeen “exulting to the highest heaven” and “sorrowing even unto death.” Man is driven to and fro be- tween all kinds of moods. Pleasure makes him glad; pain depresses him. This finds its justification. But he who seeks the Path to the Higher Knowledge
34 the gates op KNOWLEDGE
must be able to moderate both his joy and his sorrow. He must become stable. He must be able to restrain himself in the midst of pleastu*able, as well as of painful experiences; he must carry himself with dignity through both. He must never be unmanned or disconcerted. This does not imply any lack of feeling; but only that the man has made for himself a fixed centre in the tide of life which ebbs and flows round about him. He has himself always well in hand.
Another very important quality is the “instinct of affirmation.” He will de- velop this for himself who notices in all things their good, beautiful, and service- able characteristics; not, in the first place, that which is blameworthy, ugly, perverse. There is a beautiful story among the Persian legends concerning Christ, which illustrates the meaning
THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP 35
of this quality. A dead dog was lying in the road, and Christ was among the passers-by. All the others turned away from the ugly spectacle which the animal presented; but Christ paused to speak admiringly of its beautiful teeth. It is possible to see all things in this way ; and he who truly seeks will find even in the most repulsive object something worthy of appreciation. The fruitful principle in everything is not what it lacks, but what it has.
Further, it is important to cultivate the quality of “impartiality.” Every one has gained his own experiences, and has formed from them a definite number of opinions by which his life is regulated. And as it is self-evident on the one hand that conduct must be guided according to experience, it is no less important that he who would advance spiritually in the
36 THE GATES OF KNOWLEDGE
Higher Knowledge should preserve an unbiased mind towards everything new and unfamiliar that meets him on his way.
He will be as cautious as possible with such comments as, “That is impossible,” or, “That cannot be.” Whatever opinion he may have formed from previous expe- riences, he will be ready at any moment, when he encounters something new, to form a new opinion. All preference for his private opinion must be given up.
Wlien the five qualities already named have been acquired, a sixth will follow of itself, — ^namely, the inner equilibrium: the harmony of the spiritual forces. The pupil must find within himself a spiritual centre of gravity, to give him firmness and security amidst all that would draw him hither and thither in life. But he must not shrink from sharing the life around him and letting everything influ-
•V
'AV.
THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP 37
ence him. Duty does not lie in flight from all the activities of life which draw us in every direction; but rather, on the contrary, in fully giving oneself up to life, and yet at the same time guarding firmly and securely the inner harmony and equilibrium.
Lastly, the seeker must put before him the “will towards liberation.” He has acquired it already, who finds within him- self the foundation and support of every- thing that he accomplishes. This is hard to attain, because it involves the main- tenance of perfect balance between the opening of the senses to everything great and good, and the simultaneous refusing of all compulsion. We say so lightly: “Freedom is incompatible with influence from without.” That the two should be reconciled within the soul, — that is the essential thing. When a ■ man tells me
38 THE GATES OP KNOWLEDGE
something and I accept it under the pressure of his authority, I am not free. But I am no more free if I close myself to the good which I might obtain in this way. For then the “less good” in my own soul acts as a constraint upon me.
Liberation me^ns, not only that I am free from the constraint of an outside authority, but above all that I am free from my own prejudices, opinions, sen- sations and emotions. And the right way to attain freedom is not through blind subjection to what is received, but by opening ourselves to the impvdse from it, receiving it impartially, so that we may freely acquiesce in it. An outside author- ity should only influence us so far as to make us say: “I free myself by following what is good in this, and making it my own.” An authority based upon Occult Wisdom will never work otherwise than
THE OCCULT FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP 39
in this way. It gives whatever it has to give, not in order itself to gain power over the recipient, but solely that he may become richer and freer through the gift.
We have already dwelt upon the signi- ficance of these qualities when speaking of the “lotus-flowers.”* Therein was shown their relation to the development of the twelve-petal] ed lotus-flower in the region of the heart, and to the currents of the etheric body connected with it. The purport of what has been already stated is that these qualities enable the seeker to dispense with those forces which formerly
benefitted the physical body during sleep, «»
and which now, because of his develop- ment, must be gradually withdrawn from that task.
* See Initiation and its Results,