Atlantis, Lemuria, and Human Evolution Through Ages

GA 94 — 6 July 1906, Leipzig

Lecture IX

In the following lectures, we will deal with the development of human beings, the Earth itself, and the entire solar system, as well as the methods of occult, inner training, in particular the difference between Eastern and Western initiation, and then Christian initiation as it has been practiced since John, the author of the Gospel of John and the Apocalypse.

Occult research into the development of humankind goes far back beyond the times reported to us by history and natural science. How does the occultist know about these long-past events? He learns and researches them from the Akashic Records. This living chronicle of the spiritual world contains the documents and facts we will be discussing. They are completely consistent with the research findings of natural science. Even external natural science is now beginning to concern itself with Atlantis. For occult research, Atlantis has always been present and known. It is important to note that what can be seen with the eyes is better known to modern natural science than in the past, but that the ancient science of mysteries knew about more comprehensive, more powerful realities. What modern science does not yet admit, namely that humans also lived in Atlantis, is presented as fact by occultism. Our ancestors, the peoples who live on our continent, are all descended from the Atlanteans. Of course, Atlantean humans, adapted to the conditions on Earth at that time, looked very different from humans today. Atlantis had a completely different climate and therefore a completely different distribution of air and water. It was a land of mist. There was therefore no alternation between rain and sunshine at that time. Everything was shrouded in clouds; only the degree of humidity changed. It was only when the floods had receded and Atlantis had sunk that the alternation between rain and sunshine arose, as we can read in the Old Testament. There is mention of the rainbow that Noah saw after the Flood.

Religious documents can be viewed from four perspectives. First: Naively and literally. Second: From the standpoint of science, which considers itself wiser than the authors of these documents. Third: allegorical-symbolic in interpretation. This type of interpretation can be very witty, but it is often arbitrary. Fourth: from an occult point of view, by accurately interpreting the facts written in the peculiar language of such documents and thus regaining a literal understanding. For example, Noah's rainbow is not a symbol, but an expression of the fact that after the demise of Atlantis and the clearing of the fog, a rainbow was possible for the first time. In ancient Atlantis, there could not yet be a rainbow. Noah is to be regarded as the leader, Manu, who had to lead the peoples out of the sinking Atlantis. It was at this point in time that the rainbow appeared for the first time. In this way, one learns to take the Bible literally again, and at the same time one learns to be more cautious about what others criticize. The following statement applies: Where you consider yourself a critic today, you will later feel like an apprentice when your knowledge and understanding have grown. Likewise, there is a deeper meaning and an ancient truth in legends and fairy tales. The Germanic legend, for example, speaks of “Niflheim.” This refers to the misty land of Atlantis. “Nibelungen Land” is a transformation of the word Niflheim, Nebelheim.

The flora and fauna, like the humans, were very different in Atlantis than they are today. High foreheads did not exist at that time; they were flattened far back. The ratio of the etheric body to the physical body in Atlanteans was such that the former protruded far, especially at the head. The further development of humans since then has consisted of the etheric head moving into the physical head. The ancient Atlantean did not yet have the ability to think abstractly, nor the power to say “I” with certainty. Instead, other abilities were highly developed in him, such as memory. He had little intellectual power, but his will was strong and effective. For example, he could promote the growth of plants through a certain impulse of will. The power of his will had a magical effect. The Atlanteans lived in a state of dim clairvoyance. They did not see things as we see them today as material, but in supersensible images. That is why all their mental products were pictorial myths.

The culture of the Atlanteans was completely different in nature. The Atlanteans mastered the life force, especially in earlier times. In this way, they built their means of transportation, with which they could rise from the ground and move across it. They powered these gliders with the life force hidden in plants. These Atlantean vehicles were fueled by grains, similar to how our railroads are fueled by coal. In this regard, the future will bring many remarkable developments in the field of technology. Living conditions were also very different at that time. Since the Atlanteans controlled the life force, they were able to build a kind of cave dwelling from trees, which they could bend at will, using only living structures and no dead materials. The Atlanteans were infinitely closer to nature than people are today. Their culture was very advanced. There was a city where the highest initiates lived, referred to in ancient mysteries as the city with the golden gates. The method of teaching was also different at that time. The powerful force of will was used to influence the students suggestively. The Atlanteans still had a direct sense of the living radiance of the divine in all natural phenomena. The process of breathing was still something sacred and religious for them. All these religious feelings flowed together in humans into a basic feeling. The external sound for this can no longer be pronounced today, but the Chinese still have something similar in the word TAO. The sign for this sound can be found in the Greek letter Tau and in the ancient sign of the cross, which still plays a role in Freemasonry today.

The predecessor of the Atlantean was the Lemurian. Lemuria represents an even earlier stage of human development. Due to much higher temperatures, conditions on Earth were very different then than they are today. Humans already existed at that time. This brings us to the relationship between animals and humans. Around the middle of the Lemurian period, the union, the merging of the human soul with the body, took place. The soul already lived in the human body in late Lemuria and Atlantis. Before that, however, there was a time when humans were not yet able to have their soul in a physical body. At that time, the human soul still lived entirely in the higher worlds, on the astral plane. We will talk about that tomorrow.