Esoteric Lesson

It is good that the soul has the opportunity to feel the need for solitude. The soul needs solitude at times, and it is good that it stands alone. Those who devote themselves to prayer and meditation feel the need for solitude. The need to be with other people often arises from selfish feelings. We think we want to help. There are certain borderline areas where selfishness and love are almost indistinguishable. We want to do something for other people, and basically we do it only because it gives us satisfaction. A magnetizer may think that he can help people in a particular way with a certain stroke, but in reality it only happens because the stroking gives him a certain feeling of well-being. Now one could mistakenly object: yes, but it is selfish of me to devote myself to solitude. That is not the right way of thinking, and would not be selfless in the true sense. For I draw strength from solitude, and from this egoism I draw the strength to perform acts of love. The necessity of solitude is a blessing for the soul, and it can be a happy feeling for the soul. But a feeling can also arise that says: I stand there, lonely and dependent on myself; all people are distant and strange to me, and no one can understand me. Such a feeling can fill the soul with suffering, but it must be able to rise above it.