# Spiritual Hierarchies Q & A

## GA 110 — 21 April 1909, Düsseldorf

### Questions And Answers I

Do we have to imagine the spiritual hierarchies with the concept of spatiality, since they are spoken of as domains?

We can say of man that the being of this man lives out within space. But space itself, in occult terms, must also be imagined as something created. This creation lies before the works and effects of the highest hierarchies; we may therefore assume the existence of space. But we may not imagine the highest Trinity spatially, for Space is its product. We must imagine the spiritual entities without Space; Space is something created. But the effects of the hierarchies in our world are spatially limited, like those of man. The other hierarchies are what moves within Space.

Is time applicable to spiritual processes?

Certainly; but the highest spiritual processes in man lead to the concept that they take place timelessly. The activities of the hierarchies are timeless. It is difficult to speak of the arising of time: the word “arise” already contains the concept of time; one would have to say rather: the essence of time, and that is not so easy to speak about. There would be no time if all beings were at the same stage of development. Time comes into being through the interaction of a sum of lower and a sum of higher beings. Different degrees of development are possible in the timeless; through their interaction, time becomes possible.

On the concept of development.

The concept of evolution extends to all worlds; but for the Godhead it is another.

What is the difference between the Luciferic and the Ahrimanic or Mephistophelian entities?

The latter have a stronger, more powerful will to evil. The two types of entities come from different hierarchies. At the beginning of evolution, beings were more on the same level; then we have remaining beings. The stages of development overlap. The Ahrimanic entities are lower in the region of evil and are recruited from the most diverse hierarchies; for example, some remained behind on the sun, others on the moon; those left behind on the sun can catch up on their development on the moon, those left behind on the moon on the earth, and so on. Mephistophelian or Ahrimanic entities are those that stand higher or lower in the hierarchy of evil than the luciferic ones; they recruit themselves from the archangels to the powers.

Can elemental beings become human?

There are entities that came into being because higher entities did not develop their limbs; these became detached and became elemental beings. There are whole armies, whole hosts of them. The lifespan of such entities varies greatly. As a rule, they undergo a downward development and disappear completely from existence; for example, there can be no question of the elemental spirits developing to the level of humanity.

The Indian teaching is so little emphasized in your discussion of the etheric body; why?

What Dr. Steiner said is the property of all secret teachings. The Secret Doctrine is not an Indian doctrine, just as there is no such thing as an “Indian Theosophy”. Dr. Steiner used the common terminology of all secret teachings in his remarks.

Are the Elohim still above the nine Hierarchies?

The Elohim are those beings who remained connected to the sun when the sun separated from the moon and earth; they belong to the hierarchy called the powers, spirits of form, and from there upwards to the hierarchies. They are still within our evolution. Elohim is the collective name for the sun beings; at that time they had chosen the sun as their dwelling place - not as their sphere of activity. Christ, the highest of the Elohim, is their ruler. However, he does not belong to the hierarchies, but to the Trinity. In Christ we have an entity before us that is so powerful that it has influence over all the members of our solar system.

The Second Coming of Christ.

The return of Christ will be very real, and it will take place when a large part of humanity has reached the point that they will be able to recognize Christ in the form in which he will appear, and this experience can then be something for people. Because what matters is that as many people as possible will also be able to recognize him.

Concerning the Asuras.

The asuras – the evil ones – are entities that are one degree higher in their will to evil than the ahrimanic entities and two degrees higher than the luciferic ones.

What protection is there from black magicians?

The best defense is to try to maintain your freedom, to use your sound judgment and to employ your reason. If you are always mindful of this, you will not expose yourself to any danger, and you will not have to deal with anything from this side. Of course, where the belief in authority plays such a large role today and the addiction to recognize all kinds of things in a hazy state of consciousness is so great, it is easily possible for black magic forces to flow in. Protection against them is only necessary when one enters a certain level of occult development. In a properly conducted occult training course, which aims at harmonizing the soul forces, one already acquires protective powers against such attacks. There are no general rules.

Is there a difference between the group souls of bees, ants and corals?

Certainly; there are many degrees of difference. The group soul of the beehive is a very high entity, higher than that of the ants; it is so high that one could say: it is cosmically precocious. It has reached a state of development that man will only reach on Venus. We must look at it like a precocious child; it stands out from the normal development. It is similar with the group soul of ants, only it is lower. The coral group soul is an even higher being, but also a precocious being; it is higher than, for example, the group soul of cattle. However, the level does not always fit into the time; some later degree of development is anticipated. This exposes the beings to various dangers that they are not yet able to cope with. Occult zoology is very complicated and the level of development of group souls varies greatly.

What hierarchies are the Greek and Germanic gods related to?

With the Angels. Here we are dealing with beings who developed their activity in the Atlantean period. At first, man lived together with these beings; he lived together with gods, for these beings only withdrew later and only became “gods” in the late Atlantean period. In Atlantis itself, men and gods still lived side by side. The human line of development went downward, that of the gods upward. Every hierarchy has innumerable degrees and gradations.

What will become of the animal world in the future? Is it destined for a higher development?

The group soul of the animals develops upward; it will be a different being on Jupiter. They will not, of course, become human in the modern sense, but on Jupiter these group souls will achieve a kind of humanity. There is no upward development for the individual animal, because the individual animal relates to the group soul as the bark of a tree relates to the sprouting shoot: it falls away, just as the bark of a tree falls away; but the group soul rises up.

How high is the value of so-called prenatal education?

The mother has a lot to consider during the pregnancy. In today's world, where the mother knows nothing of all this, very important measures are being neglected. The first ten (lunar) months of life on earth can be the time when something very good is snatched away from man. Today the task of preventing this falls to the gods; later, when people have matured, it will fall to people. The gods, in their supreme wisdom, have withdrawn the first ten (lunar) months of human development from human influence. Men should be glad that they cannot interfere with prenatal development. If the life of the mother is so ordered that it corresponds to a certain ideal in thinking, feeling, sensing and willing, then that is certainly also best for the child.

On Vulcan Evolution.

What can be mentioned about this is that this development is not a conclusion; but we want to be satisfied if we know what is happening there, once it is the time for us. In the course of development, even the concept of development develops.

On the relation of spiritual science to modern science.

In the facts of modern science you will find evidence for spiritual science; only the theories nowhere lead into the field of spiritual science, but lead away from it. Today's science is not attacked, but what has been achieved is recognized; but we must clearly and sharply show the boundary as to how one enters spiritual science or is led away from it.

Is there a connection between blood relationship and Karma?

It is karmically conditioned that a person is born into a particular family; it may be the fulfillment of past karma. But a person can also create new karmic connections for himself. We create them for ourselves through what we do today. People who are truly connected to each other meet again and again. The fact that we were born into a certain environment is an expression of previous karma. But one does not always have to remain connected to those with whom one is related by blood. Spiritual ties, formed out of family ties, lead to each other again. But such things change with the different cycles of humanity; consanguinity is beginning to have less significance than before, and it will lose this significance more and more. In the development of humanity,

the binding force of blood ties becomes weaker and weaker.

Concerning the quarrel in heaven.

In the conflict in heaven, not the worst and most incompetent powers were singled out and “detailed”. In the mystery play, initiates were also put in masks of the opposing forces to make this clear to the disciple. A person of wisdom should be rubbed off on a person of wisdom who is on the path of error.

On the Negative and the Positive.

Humanity will increasingly come to the realization that pettiness, folly, and so on, are only significant for the physical world and will die with the people; however, the good, as the positive, will remain forever. In his knowledge, the occultist is guided by great world laws, for example, by the one - that sounds trivial - by which herrings reproduce in the sea. The herring eggs perish en masse: the negative is a necessary part of becoming. This should not prevent us from doing positive things again and again. No matter how many opposing forces there may be, what needs to be done must be done.

On the meaning of suffering.

Suffering is a concomitant of higher development. It is indispensable to knowledge. Man will say to himself one day: “What the world gives me in the way of joy, I am grateful for. But if I am given the choice between keeping my joys or my sufferings, I will want to keep the sufferings; I cannot do without them for the sake of knowledge. After a certain time, every suffering presents itself in such a way that one cannot do without it, for we have to understand it as something contained in development. There is no development without suffering, just as there is no triangle without an angle. When the harmony of the Christ is attained, we shall recognize that all preceding suffering was a necessary condition for this harmony. For the harmony of the Christ to be there, suffering must be there; it is an absolute factor in evolution.

By overcoming egotism, man rises above the feeling of being oppressed and paralyzed. In this phenomenon one can see something good: strength from inadequacy. Thank God that I am encouraged to continue acting through an inadequate act, that is, its failure! The human striving is not an uncertain lottery. Only he remains unredeemed whose free will turns away from the destiny of the human being. In the synthesis of the world process, suffering is a factor.

What will the theosophical movement mean in the future?

Something very useful, and it will be shown that those who use it as a battering ram for development are mistaken.