17. The Essence of Man in the Light of Spiritual Science

Thus we have already composed the human being out of two parts, the physical body and the etheric or life body, which it has in common with all plants and animals, with all living beings. But if we were to say that this is all that is enclosed in the human skin, then that would not be correct. There is much that is much closer to the human being than what is physically enclosed, such as bones, muscles, nerves and so on. There is something that is closer to every human being; it is the sum of joy and pain, of drives, desires and passions, everything that lives in the soul up to the highest ideal. Perhaps a materialistic way of thinking would say: All this is there, but it is a product of the physical body. If it were, then one would not need to speak of it as something independent, but spiritual science shows us that all this is not a product of the physical or etheric body, but rather indicates that what takes place in man in terms of drives and desires, feelings, passions and ideals is the result of a third link of the human being. Everything that appears incomprehensible in its complexity when we look at it in its simple elements becomes comprehensible.