Astral

by Sergei Tukholka

Occultism recognizes the existence of three worlds, or, in other words, three planes of existence: the spiritual world, the astral world and the physical world. The representative of the first is spirit, the representative of the second is energy or force, and of the third is matter. The second world serves as an intermediary between the first and the third. However, all worlds penetrate each other to a greater or lesser extent. Indeed, the principle of energy is spirit, and energy manifests itself in matter, which it sets in motion.

The world perceived by our senses is the material or physical world. Therefore, we will begin our research from this world.

What is matter and what types does it have?

Occultists, some of whom were alchemists or hermeticists, recognize the unity of matter. According to physics, all bodies decompose into molecules, and molecules into atoms. In this case, there are simple bodies, whose atoms are different from the atoms of other bodies and cannot be further decomposed: such are gold, iron, as well as other gases, such as hydrogen.

But alchemists think that the atoms into which science decomposes simple bodies can be divided into even smaller atoms, and that the same primary atoms lie at the basis of all bodies and types of matter. Thus, iron atoms can be brought to these primary atoms, and then gold atoms can be produced from them, which is the famous transmutation of metal.

Thus, the types of matter differ among themselves not in the quality of atoms, but only in their density, the method of connection, and various combinations.

Matter has four types: dense bodies, liquids, simple gases (like air) and ether gases, the molecules of which scatter with the greatest speed, like bullets spewed out by a machine gun. This comparison belongs to physicists Crookes and Tesla, who apply the word "bombardement" to this phenomenon.

In ancient times, sages and sorcerers possessed very serious knowledge of physics, and maybe even surpassed us in something, but partly their knowledge was lost, partly this knowledge was preserved only under the guise of symbols, often not understood by us. So, the ancients recognized four elements: earth, water, air and fire. But these names also had a symbolic meaning and depicted the four types of matter to which we indicated above.

In addition, the ancients recognized even more subtle matter, which already passed into energy, and called it ether, and the Indians call it akasha. This fifth element is the astral or astral light.

So, when we come to the primary physical atom, then even smaller atoms of an astral nature follow. Astral is also matter, but of a more spiritual nature.

Thus, a whole ladder of types of matter is obtained. Astral matter is followed by even more spiritual matter, and so on to infinity, as matter becomes spiritualized or it approaches a purely spiritual principle.

So, we see two main poles - spirit and matter, between which there are a lot of intermediate steps. If we take spirit as the starting point and go down the scale, we will get involution or materialization of spirit. If we rise upward from matter, then we will receive evolution or spiritualization of matter. But the expressions "descend and ascend" are only figurative here, since in fact matter, astral and spirit penetrate each other, which can be explained by the example of a vessel filled with stones: between stones we can pour sand, pour water into the sand, and between still air will be water particles.

Astral penetrates and surrounds the whole world and connects the solar and stellar systems with each other, connecting the stars with rays of light, the force of attraction and, perhaps, other factors unknown to us. Astral, being etheric matter, shares the property of ordinary matter, namely: the atoms of all matter are in vibration, and the vibration of the atoms of one body is communicated to the atoms of other bodies. Vibration or movement (in other words, life) results in various phenomena and forces.

 Translated by Eric Midnight, October 2020