10. Between Death and Rebirth of the Human Being

More and more, the forces that were initially felt only vaguely, which go to the escaped life experiences, now appear to the person who illuminates the outer spiritual world around them. The archetype of a new life becomes more and more definite, and this causes the person, through the forces that are placed within them, to feel driven down to physical life on earth, in such a way that they feel attracted to the pair of parents who can give them the physical shell that most closely corresponds to the archetype of their coming life on earth created in the spiritual world. Three elements are thus combined in the rebirth of the human being: the masculine, the feminine, and the spiritual. It can be said that long before a human being enters the new earthly life at birth, this developed force draws them to the parents in question; for the human being is, inwardly and substantially, this force, which grows, one might say, as the force that first drives them to the archetype and then to the new earthly life. But it is precisely here that a wide variety of circumstances can arise. What comes into consideration here is, first of all, that the human being has a retrospective view of his or her previous earthly lives. This naturally leads to an inner longing for a new earthly life. But now it can happen that the human being feels very strongly within themselves: You must incarnate on earth; but you cannot get to the point where you can incarnate in a new earthly body in such a way that you can grasp the life experiences that have preceded you.