Paralipomena on the first, second, third, sixth, eighth, and tenth acts

[First image]

It appears faithfully devoted to noble light,
Which shines from the roses and the cross,
The brotherhood we serve in humility.
It has adopted the consecration customs
Which at the beginning of the earth's creation the spirits
Wanted to reveal to mankind.
The servants of true mysticism cultivated them
Through long earthly ages, and proved
To the high masters whom we followed,
The grace...

Thus, only a small number of people
Be chosen at the beginning of time
To be bearers of that light which, hidden
In all other souls, works purposefully.
The chosen ones did not call this merit,
Only grace, necessary for the salvation of the world,
And if they had wanted to think otherwise,
They would have had to destroy themselves.
As faithfully as our covenant
Was carried firmly in the hearts of the brothers,
Who were more worthy of their office than we ourselves
And preceded us in high service,
So faithfully do we want to serve their goal in complete humility
With our weaker powers.
It is in the nature of our present situation
That we find little faith in you;
But the future will reveal things
That will surely dispel all doubts.

Therefore, to hearts that can believe,
And also to those that must doubt,
My words are freely addressed at this hour. Decisive for meaningful striving
To the servants of our temple of consecration
The moment in which we find ourselves.
Through noble pursuit of knowledge, the man
Whose name is now praised by so many souls
Has accomplished a work that must be firmly supported,
Lest it suffer the fate
That ignorance has so often caused.

*

[On the second image]¹

Dialogue between Maria and Thomasius — the latter accuses himself of being responsible for Theodora's death =

Felix Balde speaks of the signs that are sad at present but can bring good if the power of true love binds them; Theodora is dead and Strader has thus been robbed of the light of his life — but Theodora cannot remain united with Strader because she belongs to a world that cannot be fully connected with that of Strader — through this loss, Strader will transform the spirit of his work so that it turns not to evil, but to good.

The guardian of the threshold holds Thomasius back; he tells him that Theodora's death is a symbol of his destructive power —

MARIA:
You spoke words that reveal
How you are aware only of a part of the truth
That is necessary for you in your situation.
You have recognized that you are living in error;
But the true nature of your error
Remained unknown to you, and will remain so,
As long as spiritual vision has not yet
Allowed you to cross the threshold, where
A serious guardian keeps strict watch.
It separates the realm of the spirit from the realm of the senses.
You have often stood before this guardian;
But you always turned back
When you saw yourself at his threshold.
Therefore, avoid all further thinking,
Until you can know what you must do,
If you have erred and the error of your being
Has been revealed by worldly wisdom.

*

[To the third and eighth pictures]

Thomasius = Ahriman imag., Lucifer touched in his deeper being = Mary has created the basic condition — Through this, Thomasius can find the help to continue in love.

LUCIFER = continues to fight

THOMASIUS must cross the threshold. He can only move forward through the real self-knowledge that this brings. He is afraid of this. His feelings have turned to this.

[To the sixth picture]

*

[On the third and tenth pictures]

Maria will never let Lucifer influence her; through him, she has brought herself into opposition to Capesius. If she were ever to become unfaithful to her position, Capesius would be the one to admonish her—she owes him—she can only escape danger if she is united with Capesius at the place of consecration—