Lessons in Theosophy





Lesson 10, Individualization


      Individualization is the process whereby an animal group-soul is transformed into a human-soul.

      In C. Jinarajadasa’s book, The First Principles of Theosophy, the process of individualization is described.       The example given is Jack the Dog going through the process of individualization. Here is the graphic from that story:





      The process is like this: Over a great deal of time, a group-soul matures. As it matures, it divides and divides, until one day there is only one animal that uses that group-soul. When it is ready, the group-soul individualizes.

      The group-soul seeks out a Monad, and the two make a connection. A causal body is then created. It is this causal body that begins the long journey through many human incarnations. The causal body is the object that remains intact from incarnation to incarnation.

      The new causal body has only a fleeting sense of consciousness.
      “From the moment that [the causal body] breaks off from his group-soul and commences his separate existence, he is a conscious entity; but the consciousness is of an exceedingly vague nature. (Charles Leadbeater, The Inner Life, page 164 online or hardcopy)
      The only possible place for consciousness is on the physical plane.
      “When the ego is still undeveloped the forces of the higher mental plane pass through him practically without affecting him, as he cannot respond to more than a very few of these extremely fine vibrations. It needs powerful and comparatively coarse vibrations to affect him at first, and these do not exist upon his own plane, and for that reason he has to put himself down to lower levels in order to find them. Therefore full consciousness comes to him at first only in the lowest and densest of his vehicles, his attention being focussed for a long time down in the physical plane; so that, although that plane is so much lower than his own and offers so much less scope for activity, in those early stages he feels himself much more alive when he is working there. (Charles Leadbeater, The Inner Life, page 165 online or hardcopy)


The Seven Principles


It is now time to take a closer look at the integral parts that are involved in the process. Take a look at Figure 1.


Figure 1. The Seven Principles, Forming One Causal Body


      These are the Seven Principles of Man as illustrated on page 242 of The Secret Doctrine. The upper three Principles (Atma-Buddhi-Manas) descend from the Monad. They attach to the four lower Principles, which are supplied by the Group Soul. The seven Principles unite, a Causal Body is formed, and the newly-created human being is now ready for its first incarnation.


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      It is a long road, of many incarnations, that allows the causal body finally to be consciousness in the astral, mental and causal bodies — the reason and purpose of our lives here on Earth.

Next: Lesson 11, Monad, Atma, Ego, Causal Body, etc.



   

 
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2005, 2006, & 2007
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