DESKTOP »
  rosicrucianU
mobile
Simplified Scientific
Christianity
 Core Concepts »

Self-Study Guide

The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception
by Max Heindel

Introduction

  This study guide is intended for use with The Rosicrucian Cosmo-Conception, by Max Heindel. The guide contains two groups of questions for each section in The Rosicrucian Cosmo-Conception. The first group of questions for a section are questions whose answer may be found somewhere in the section. The second group of questions are labeled as "thought questions." The answers to these questions are not given in the section, but rather can be answered by relating what was said in the section to one's own experience and by using one's creative imagination.

  In using the study guide it is recommended that one first read an entire section from The Rosicrucian Cosmo-Conception to get an overall picture of the topic being discussed. Then answer the questions below, referring back to the text in the "Cosmo" as needed.

  It is hoped that this study guide will help the reader clarify and make more precise the understanding of esoteric Truths, so that he or she may tread the path with a more certain step.
A Word to the Wise
and Introduction
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

i-1) The best attitude to have when a new teaching is being given is to i-2) Insert either "mind" or "heart" into each blank. The ____________ wants materially demonstrable explanations of the phenomenal world. The _______________ feels instinctively that there are spiritual truths which the _____________________ alone cannot grasp. In time, both will learn to work together.

i-3) Which of the following is the least reliable method of obtaining information concerning life after death? i-4) Thought question: If one is to become wise, why is it necessary to desire wisdom with great intensity?
Section 1
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

1-1) Mark each of the following statements true (T) or false (F). 1-2) In each blank put one of the following words: Chemical, Life, Light, Reflecting. 1-3) Which of the following is not true about the Desire World? 1-4) Choose the correct word or phrase from within each parentheses.

Anything which happens in the Physical World causes a (similar, different) form to be built in the Desire World. If a person truthfully describes an occurrence, a form (like, unlike) the original is formed in the Desire World. These two forms, because they relate to the same thing, are drawn together and (strengthen, weaken) one another. If a false account of an occurrence is given, a form (like, unlike) the original is formed in the Desire World. This latter form is drawn to the original and the two (strengthen, weaken) one another.

1-5) In each blank substitute one of the following words: Passion, Impressionability, Wishes, Feeling. 1-6)Which of the following cannot be found in the Region of Concrete Thought? 1-7) The archetypes in the Continental Region of the World of Thought can best be described as
Thought Questions

1-8) Give an example of an occurence in the Physical World which, in order to be explained, requires a knowledge of the higher worlds?

1-9) What can we learn from existence in the Physical World that we could not learn from existence in the higher worlds?

1-10) In what ways do the laws governing the Desire World differ from the laws governing the Physical World?

1-11) Describe some evil in the world. Then find and describe some good within that evil.

1-12) What do we need to do to surround ourselves with good, pure, and beautiful forms in the Desire World?

1-13) If the Etheric Region of the Physical World, the Desire World, and the World of Thought are all around us, why is it that we cannot see them?
Section 2
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

2-1) Insert in each blank the letter corresponding to the phrase which best completes the sentence. The phrases to be use are: a) grow and propagate; b) feel and move; c) use a definite language and carry on logical thought.

Man has an individual mind and thence can ___________. Animals and man have individual desire bodies and are able to _____________. Minerals lack an individual vital body and therefore cannot ____________. Minerals and plants lack an individual desire body and thence cannot ________________. Plants, animals and man all have individual vital bodies and thence are able to ________________.

2-2) What observational evidence supports the assertion that the vital body of woman is positive whereas the vital body of man is negative?

2-3) What observational evidence do we have that the vital body leaves the dense body at the time of death?

2-4) In each blank, insert one of the following words: bones, heart, liver, muscles, nerves, spleen, desire body, Ego, germs, red blood corpuscles, air, cancer, paralysis, strong, weak.

Vital force from the sun is drawn into the body at the etheric counterpart of the _________________, and then spreads along the ______________________ and energizes these so that they can carry messages of the __________________ throughout the body. After passing through the dense body, the vital force radiates outward from the body and carries _____________________ outward. During sickness the radiations become _____________________ and cannot so readily carry out _____________________. If the vital force currents become blocked, _____________________ may result.

2-5) If someone has become a trained clairvoyant, what ethical rules will he follow in the use of his power?

2-6) Why do animals of a given species all act the same under similar circumstances?

2-7) The Ego of man has its consciousness focused in the ____________ World, whereas the Group spirit and Ego of animals have their consciousness focused in the ___________________ World.

2-8) The body of man which is most highly organized is the _____________________ body. The __________________ body and _________________ body are yet almost entirely unorganized and are of little use when not connected to the highly organized ______________ body.

2-9) In each blank insert one of the following words: mineral, plant, animal, man, group spirit, earth spirit.

When a mineral is broken the ____________________ feels what happened. When a plant is cut, the _________________ feels what happened. When an animal is hurt, both the ______________________ and the ____________________ suffer. When a man's body is injured, the _____________________ feels pain.

2-10) Choose the correct word or phrase in each parentheses. Man has (no, some, complete) free will, and as a consequence often acts contrary to Cosmic Law and brings suffering upon himself. Animal spirits have (no, some, complete) free will. They (must, may if they wish) follow the dictates of the group spirit. In time the current animals will attain the human stage of development, and then will have (no, some, complete) free will.
Thought Questions

2-11) In what ways does the desire body of an advanced person differ from that of a less advanced person (in size, material, and organization).

2-12) In what ways does an animal group spirit help the animals of its species?

2-13) Compare the role of the group spirit in relation to the animal spirits to the role of a mother in relation to her children.
Section 3
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)
3-1) What happens when the power of will projects an idea into the concrete mind?

3-2) What three types of reactions are possible when a thought form is projected onto the desire body?

3-3) What does the ether in the air we breathe carry into our lungs and thence into the negative atoms of the vital body?

3-4) During sleep, what bodies withdraw from the dense body?

3-5) During sleep, which of the following has its harmony and vitality restored first? Which is restored last? 3-6) Why does sleep accomplish more restoration than rest?

3-7) How is soul brought into being?

3-8) How does the soul benefit the spirit?

3-9) Why should the dying not be given stimulants?

3-10) When the heart stops beating, what is withdrawn from the dense body?

3-11) For a period of three and one-half days after the heart stops beating, which of the following should be done with the body of the dead person? 3-12) Why should the body be treated as in question 3-11?

3-13) After death and after the vital body collapses the person breaks connection with the vital body and enters the Desire World. What does the Ego then have in its possession?

3-14) Why does a suicide feel hollowed out after death? How long does this feeling last?

3-15) When the panorama of life is reviewed in the lower part of the Desire World, what does the person feel?

3-16) How can we cleanse ourselves from our evil deeds prior to death?

3-17) After death, if someone habitually thinks in a materialistic manner when they are building their body for the next life, what is the effect on the body being built?

3-18) What types of action during earth life bring us happiness in the First Heaven?

3-19) Mark each of the following true (T) or false (F). 3-20) Which of the following is not a reason why a child may die before the age of fourteen? 3-21) Next to each item on the left put the letter of the item on the right which is most closely related:

Purgatory _____ A. The Chemical Region of the Physical World
The First Heaven _____ B. The Etheric Region of the Physical World
The Second Heaven _____ C. The Lower Desire World
The Third Heaven _____ D. The Higher Desire World
E. The Region of Concrete Thought
F. The Region of Abstract Thought

3-22) What does the Ego carry with it when it enters the Second Heaven?

3-23) Which of the following is not one of the activities carried on in the Second Heaven?

3-24) When the desire arises for new experience and a new birth is contemplated, what pictures appear before the vision of the Ego?

3-25) Why do we need to return to physical existence on earth many times?

3-26) When an Ego is coming into rebirth, what do the Recording Angels impress into the reflecting ether of the vital body?

3-27) Which of the following is not involved in building the vital body for the coming life of an Ego? 3-28) What must be present in the head of one of the spermatoza in the semen of the father before fertilization can take place?

3-29) What must be in the womb of the mother (in addition to an ovum) before fertilization can take place?

3-30) At what time does the Ego in its desire body and mind sheath actually enter the mother's body?

3-31) At approximately what age is the vital body of the child liberated from the macrocosmic vital body?

3-32) Prior to the birth of the vital body only the forces which operate along the (negative, positive) pole of the child's vital body are active.

3-33) Which of the following are carried on through forces which work along the positive pole of the vital body? 3-34) How do the forces which work along the positive pole of the ethers get carried out (to a limited extent) in the child's body?

3-35) At approximately what age is the individual desire body born from the macrocosmic desire body?

3-36) When the individual desire body is born, the force which had been use for growth is diverted from that, and becomes available for _______________________.

3-37) At approximately what age is the individual mind born from the macrocosmic mind?

3-38) What can the mind do after it is born which it could not do before?

3-39) Which of the following is not needed if the Ego is to control the blood?
Thought Questions

3-40) Give examples of thought forms which, when projected on the desire body, might arouse forces of attraction. Repeat for forces of repulsion, and for forces of indifference.

3-41) Give some examples of desires which might make a deceased person want to remain on the earth plane.

3-42) What might you say to a person contemplating suicide in order to dissuade them?

3-43) If you were in charge of some children in the First Heaven, what might you mold them out of desire stuff?

3-44) If God is a loving God, why did He include pain in the universal plan?

3-45) What is the purpose of life on earth?

3-46) Why is it dangerous to put too much physical strain on a child's body before the age of seven, to put too much emotional strain on a child before the age of fourteen, or to put too much mental strain on a child before the age of twenty-one?
Section 4
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

4-1) The materialist asserts that mind is the result of material structures. What conclusion would the materialist tend to draw from the fact that at least once in seven years there is a change in every atom composing our bodies?

4-2) How do the twin laws of Rebirth and Consequence account for the inequities in talents with which different people are born?

4-3) If talents are not inherited, why do people with similar talents often occur in the same family?

4-4) Why are two people who hate each other sometimes drawn into the same family?

4-5) In general, how many times is an Ego born during the time when the equinox passes through one sign of the zodiac?

4-6) In earlier times, man had perception in the spiritual worlds and knew that when one body died, another could be built to take its place. Why was it necessary that man's spiritual perception be lost and that he become ignorant of rebirth?

4-7) What effect does alcohol have on man's consciousness?
Section 5
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

5-1) Which of the following is not true concerning the Seventh Cosmic Plane? 5-2) Next to each item on the left, put the letter of the item on the right which is most closely related:
The God of our Solar System ________ A. The Seventh Cosmic Plane
Planetary Spirits _______ B. The First Cosmic Plane
Gods of other solar systems _______ C. The Root of Existence
The Supreme Being __________
The Seven Great Logoi ______
The Absolute _______

5-3) What are the three aspects of the God of a Solar System?
Thought Question

5-4) Explain how Will, Wisdom and Activity are needed for a person to create, say, a house.
Section 6
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

6-1) Mark each of the following true (T) or false (F).

6-2) Which of the following is not one of the things which the God of the Solar System does to the Cosmic Root-substance in the process of creating a Solar System? 6-3) Which of the following is not true concerning the virgin spirits which proceed from the God of the Solar System? 6-4) Why is it desirable for us to understand the scheme of evolution?
Thought Question

6-5) What will we have at the end of the seven great Periods of Manifestation which we did not have at the beginning?
Section 7
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

7-1) Next to each item on the left put the letter of the item on the right which is most closely related:

Saturn Period-Globe A ____ A. World of Divine Spirit
Sun Period-Globe A ______ B. World of Life Spirit
Moon Period-Globe D _____ C. World of Human Spirit
Earth Period-Globe D _____ D. Region of Abstract Thought
Vulcan Period-Globe B _____ E. Region of Concrete Thought
F. Desire World
G. Etheric Region
H. Chemical Region

7-2) How many times is Globe A of the Saturn Period traversed?

7-3) When Globe D of the Saturn Period has been traversed for the last time, what happens to the globe and the forces within it?

7-4) What period, revolution and globe are we in now?

7-5) What takes place in between Periods?
Section 8
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

8-1) Next to each item on the left put the letter of the item on the right which is most closely related (for the life wave which is currently human).

Work on the dense body _____ A. Saturn Period, seventh revolution
Work on the vital body ____ B. Sun Period, first revolution
Work on the desire body _____ C. Sun Period, sixth revolution
Work on the mind _______ D. Sun Period, fifth revolution
Work on the Human Spirit ____ E. Moon Period, fourth revolution
Work on the Life Spirit ___ F. Moon period, fifth revolution
Work on the Divine Spirit ___ G. Earth Period, fourth revolution

8-2) Next to each item on the left put the letter of the item on the right which is most closely related:

Hierarchies who were so far
advanced that helping humanity
gave them no new experience. ___		 A. Angels
Hierarchies who helped awaken
the Life Spirit in Man. ________ 		B. Archangels
Hierarchies who were human
in the Saturn Period. ________		 C. Cherubim
Hierarchies who are currently
helping man build and use his
desire body. _________		 D. Lords of Individuality
Hierarchies who are currently
helping man build and use his vital body. _________		 E. Lords of Mind
Hierarchies who worked with us
throughout the Moon Period. ________
Hierarchies who are no longer
involved with human evolution. ______
Hierarchies who were human in
the Sun Period. ________
Hierarchies who were human in the
Moon Period. ________
Hierarchies who have charge of
the development of the Life Spirit during
the Earth Period. ________
Hierarchies who radiated from
themselves into man the nucleus of material
from which we are building a mind. ____________

Section 9
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

9-1) If a being is to evolve, what must it be able to do when it meets new conditions?

9-2) Next to each item on the left put the letter of the item on the right which is most closely related:
Beings who commenced evolution in
the Saturn Period and did not
straggle. ____		 A. Present day animals
Beings who commenced evolution in the
Saturn Period but straggled in
the Saturn or Sun Period. ____ 		B. Present day anthropoids
Beings who commenced evolution in
the Sun Period and did not straggle. ____		 C. Present day angels
Beings who commenced evolution
in the Sun Period and straggled
in the Sun Period. _______		 D. Present day pioneers of humanity
Beings who commenced evolution in
the Moon Period and straggled. _______		 E. Trees and perennials
F. Flowers and grasses
G. Sands and soft soils

9-3) Mark each of the following true (T) or false (F).

Thought Question

9-4) Why is it undesirable to be a straggler?
Section 10
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

10-1) a) At the beginning of the Earth Period what vehicles were possessed by those beings who began their evolution in the Saturn Period but straggled in the Moon Period?
b) Among these beings, some had desire bodies which could be divided into two parts. Why was this feature desirable?
c) What became of those whose desire bodies were divisible?
d) What became of those whose desire body was not divisible.

10-2) What modification in the dense body was made in the Saturn Revolution of the Earth Period?

10-3) When matter has become too crystallized for a spirit to work in, what does the spirit do?

10-4) What Period was recapitulated on Globe C of the fourth revolution of the Earth Period?
Section 11
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

11-1) Why does our solar system need to have planets in it?

11-2) Where does matter come from?

11-3) The interim between Periods and Revolutions is (more, less, equally) important to the growth of the soul (than, as) manifested existence. During these intervals of rest, beings of lesser development (are, are not) in contact with beings of higher development and thereby benefit. Also past experiences are (assimilated, expurgated) during these rest periods.

11-4) What are the dense bodies of the "Seven Spirits before the Throne?"

11-5) Next to each item on the left put the letter of the item on the right which is most closely related:

The first planet thrown off from the sun _____ A. Mercury
A body on which life is at a stage
corresponding to the Saturn Period _______		 B. Venus
A body on which the field of evolution
corresponds to the Jupiter Period ________		 C. Earth
The last planet thrown off from
the sun _______		 D. The Earth's moon
A body on which retrogression and
disintegration is occurring due to too
close adherence to material existence on
the part of the inhabitants ____		 E. Mars
Former moons of Mercury and Venus _______ F. Jupiter
A planet which does not properly
belong to our solar system _____		 G. The Asteroids
H. Saturn
I. Uranus
J. Neptune

11-6) How did the inhabitants of the former moons of Mercury and Venus earn the right to return to the parent planets?

11-7) What happens to an abandoned moon?
Section 12
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)

12-1) In the Polarian Epoch, where in the Solar System was the material which now forms the Earth?

12-2) Describe the means of propagation in the Polarian Epoch.

12-3) How did propagation differ in the Hyperborean Epoch from what it was in the Polarian Epoch?

12-4) When was the Earth thrown off from the Sun?

12-5) How did throwing off the Earth from the Sun, and of the Moon from the Earth result in people beginning to exhibit predominantly either will or imagination?

12-6) What effect did Mars have n humanity prior to the time when the Earth was thrown off from the Sun?

12-7) What happened to Mars and its influence over the iron on the Earth when the Earth was thrown off from the Sun?

12-8) When part of the creative force began to be used to build a brain and larynx, how was procreation affected?

12-9) When the Lords of Venus and the Lords of Mercury guided early humanity step by step there was no rebellion. Why?

12-10) How did the Lemurians view a) their dense bodies, b) other people, c) physical death, d) physical birth, e) sex relations, f) language, g) past events.

12-11) What quality did the education of the Lemurian boys aim to develop?

12-12) What quality did the education of the Lemurian girls aim to develop?

12-13) From what life wave are the Lucifer Spirits stragglers?

12-14) What did the Lucifer Spirits need which they could not obtain for themselves?

12-15) What beings first brought man's attention the physical world?

12-16) What else did these beings tell man about?

12-17) What came to man as a result of his becoming his own (often unwise) master?

12-18) At what point in time did the Lucifer Spirits first start awakening man to the existence of the Physical World?

12-19) When (in the latter third of the Atlantean Epoch) man gained full consciousness in the dense Physical World, what did he lose?

12-20) Why did the Atlanteans sorrow at the loss of their spiritual perception?

12-21) Which of the following was not a major characteristic of the Toltecs (the third Atlantean Race): 12-22) For what purpose did the Original Semites (the fifth Atlantean Race) use their reasoning powers?

12-23) Were the original Semites able to see the God whom they were supposed to worship?

12-24) What incentives did the Original Semites have for obeying the commands of God?

12-25) What incentive is present in Popular Christianity for living a good life?

12-26) What incentive does the Esoteric Christian have for doing right?

12-27) What viewpoint must be taken in order to avoid becoming so enmeshed in a Race that one cannot progress beyond the race idea?
Thought Question


12-28) Why did the Earth need to throw off its moon? What beings inhabit the Moon?
Section 13
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)


13-1) What will be the object of the new Race of the Sixth Epoch?

13-2) Where is the nucleus of the new Race of the Sixth Epoch being developed?

13-3) What characteristics must a person have if he is to be part of the nucleus of the new Race of the Sixth Epoch?
Section 14
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)


14-1) Choose the correct word or phrase from each parentheses.

The book of Genesis, properly translated, indicates that the heavens and the earth were created out of (ever-existing essence, nothing), that (one being was, many beings were) involved in the creation, that the being or beings responsible for the creation was or were (doubled-sexed, female, male), and that Adam was (many people, one individual).

14-2) Next to each description on the left put the letter of the period on the right which is being described:
Darkness rested upon
the face of the deep. _____ 		A. Aryan Epoch
The Elohim said, "Let there be
Light; and there was Light." _____ 		B. Hyperborean Epoch
The Elohim said, "Let there be
an expansion in the waters." ______ 		C. Lemurian and Atlantean Epoch
The Elohim said, "Let the earth
put forth vegetation." ____ 		D. Moon Period
The Elohim formed man in
their likeness, male and
female made they them. ________		 E. Saturn Period
On the seventh day the Elohim
finished their work which they
had done, and they rested. ______		 F. Sun Period
G. Vulcan Period


14-3) Which of the following is not one of the responsibilities of Jehovah?

14-4) When an Ego is coming into rebirth, does it have any influence on the body which it is coming into?

14-5) Choose the correct phrase from each parentheses.

When forms are inhabited by pioneers of a life wave, the pioneers (work on and improve the forms, allow the forms to degenerate, leave the forms as they got them). When forms are inhabited by stragglers of a life wave, the stragglers (work on and improve the forms, allow the forms to degenerate, leave the forms as they got them). The current anthropoid bodies (advanced, degenerated) from (animal, human) bodies.

14-6) When viewed from the form side the mineral, plant and animal forms were created (before, at the same time as, after) the human forms. When viewed from the Life side, the Life which ensouls the minerals, plants and animals were started on their evolutionary paths (before, at the same time as, after) the Life which now ensouls human forms.

14-7) The Archangels were human in the __________________ Period in which the lowest globe was in the _____________ World/Region and thus they became expert in working in _____________________ matter. Now some Archangels work with __________________ and help them build and control their _______________ bodies.

14-8) The Angels were human in the ___________________ Period in which the lowest globe was in the ____________________ World/Region and thus they became expert in working in ________________ matter. Now some Angels work with ___________________________ and help them build and use their ____________________ bodies.

14-9) When individual members of a Race have evolved ___________________, they are emancipated from the influence of the Race-spirit.

14-10) A race or national spirit permeates the _____________________ of the country inhabited by the people under its dominion. As a person breathes, he draws into his lungs _______________ of all that occurs within his aura and these enter the blood and are stored in the blood. When there is intermarriage within a family, the _________ in the blood of both parents are similar, and hence tend to be _______ to the offspring. When there is intermarriage within a race, the racial __________ stored in the blood of both parents are similar and hence tend to be _____________ to the offspring. As man is becoming prepared for individualization, he is now (commanded to marry, forbidden from marrying) within the family, so that the _______________ in the blood of the parents would tend to (strengthen, weaken) one another and hence tend to be ______ to the offspring, leaving the offspring freer to hew out their own path.

14-11) Christ came to ___________ the various races in bonds of ___________.

14-12) Next to each item on the left put the letter of the item on the right which indicates how the item on the left is symbolically represented in the story of Adam and Eve in Genesis:
All men ________ A. The Serpent
All women _____ B. Eve
The Lucifer Spirits ______ C. The flowers in the garden
Attaining self-consciousness ____ D. Adam
Attaining the power to heal ____ E. Eating of the Tree of Life
F. Eating of the Tree of Knowledge
Thought Questions


14-13) What developments must occur between the time when people are directed by Race or national spirits and the time when Universal Brotherhood is felt?

14-14) When man became aware of himself as an individual, possessing free will, why did he then begin to also experience pain?
Section 15
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)


15-1) Since religion requires the body to make sacrifices and sometimes go against its own interests, the source of religion must be from (the body itself, some source other than the body).

15-2) Give the order in which man takes the following steps in religion.

15-3) "The Father" is the highest Initiate among the humanity of the ________________ Period. "The Son" is the highest initiate among the humanity of the _______________ Period. "The Holy Spirit" is the highest Initiate among the humanity of the __________________ Period. Jesus, Mary and Joseph are members of the humanity of the ________________________ Period, but are all more pure and spiritually advanced than most other members of their life wave.

15-4) The lowest body which the Christ Spirit was able to build was a ___________________ body. When Jesus was thirty years of age, with the consent of Jesus, Christ entered the ______________ and _________________ bodies of Jesus and used them for for His work on earth.

15-5) During what time of year are the physical solar rays from the sun strongest in the northern hemisphere?

15-6) During what time of year are the spiritual rays from the sun most active in the northern hemisphere?

15-7) What is the "Star" which can lead present day "wise men" to the Christ?

15-8) In general the involuntary muscles have (crosswise, lengthwise, both crosswise and lengthwise) stripes and the voluntary muscles have (crosswise, lengthwise, both crosswise and lengthwise) stripes. The heart is currently (an involuntary, a voluntary) muscle, yet it is striped like (an involuntary, a voluntary) muscle. As one learns more and more to live according to the principles of love and brotherhood, the heart will become more and more (involuntary, voluntary).

15-9) The extract of experiences of past lives is stored in the Life Spirit to act as ____________ in future lives. The Life Spirit has closest interaction with the ___________________________ and _______________ of the of the physical body. Thus, one often feels in these organs the _________________ view of a situation. This feeling comes so quickly that it is felt before the ____________ has time to reason things out.

15-10) When the Life Spirit gains full control of the heart, it will be able to withhold blood from areas of the brain devoted to selfish purposes. What will then happen to these areas of the brain? Why?

15-11) If the laws of Rebirth and Consequence are gradually leading all to perfection, why are some in need of a 'savior'?

15-12) Under the Race-religions, man learned to control his _____________ body. The Race-religions gave people _______________ to live by, and ______________ were given if such were obeyed. Thus people learned to desire that which brought ______________________.

15-13) Christ taught that Law must be superseded by __________________.

15-14) When Christ Jesus was crucified and his blood flowed, He gained entrance into the Earth. Thence Christ diffused His desire body over the Earth. In what way did and does this benefit humanity?

Thought Questions


15-15) What qualities do Race-religions help people to develop?

15-16) What qualities does Christianity help people to develop?

15-17) Why do people need to live under Race-religions before they can, with benefit, strive for the Christian ideals?

15-18) What are the effects of the mind being linked with the desire body?
Section 16
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)


16-1) How does the path of initiation differ from the path taken by humanity in general?

16-2) Next to each item on the left put the letter of the item on the right which gives the Period when the humanity of the Earth Period attained or will attain the designated state:
Unconsciousness corresponding
to deep trance _________		 A. Saturn
Waking, Objective Consciousness ____ B. Sun
Internal Picture Consciousness
of soul qualities of outward objects ____		 C. Moon
Picture Consciousness which is
under control of the thinker
and which is visible to others _____________		 D. Earth
Consciousness similar to that of
the plants ___________		 E. Jupiter
A consciousness which enables the
thinker to give form and life to
his mental creations __________		 F. Venus
The ability to create forms ______ G. Vulcan
The ability to create forms which
can live and grow ________
The ability to create forms which can
live and grow and feel _______


16-3) Why will hypocrisy and flattery not be possible in the Jupiter Period?

16-4) The lowest Globe in the Jupiter Period is in the _______________ World/Region, so the ______________ body can no longer be used in the Jupiter Period. Then the forces of the __________ body will be superimposed on the ________________ body.

16-5) What is soul?
Thought Questions


16-6) How is soul produced?

16-7) What will the Divine Spirit have absorbed by the end of the Vulcan Period?
Section 17
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)


17-1) Race religions aid people to purify and gain control of their _________________ bodies; Christianity aids people to purify and gain control of their __________________ bodies. Repetition of high and lofty thoughts helps build the ____________________ body.

17-2) A greater proportion of phosphate of lime, carbonate of lime and sulphate of lime and other earthy materials are contained in the body of (a young, a middle-aged, an old) person. If we would maintain pliability and functioning of the body as long as possible, then we should take into our bodies as (much, little) as possible of earthy matters.

17-3) What foods and drinks contain the least earthy matter?

17-4) Phosphorus is particularly important for building the ____________.

17-5) The action of the _____________ body in the spleen produces white blood corpuscles, which are carried by the ________________ throughout the body. When annoyance or anger is felt, the __________________ swell and open the way for passage of the white blood corpuscles into the tissues of the body where they form bases for the collection of _________________________.

17-6) Before a particle of food can be built into our bodies, what must we, as spirits, have achieved with respect to the life in that particle?

17-7) Cells in (plants, animals) are more individualized than cells in (plants, animals). Thus flesh food from animals requires (more, less) energy to digest, and remains assimilated for a (greater, lesser) amount of time before the cells reassert their independence. Thus the flesh-eater requires (more, less) food than the vegetarian, and the flesh-eater must eat (more, less) often.

17-8) Explain how the prayer, "Forgive us our trespasses" helps purify the vital body.

17-9) When we have been wronged by someone else, the desire body may try to impress on the vital body the idea of ____________________. Concentration upon __________________ strengthens the vital body and helps keep the desire body from attaining mastery.

17-10) Why should the aspirant not use the sex-function for sense-gratification, but only for propagation?

17-11) Why should aspirants sacrifice some of their creative force for propagation when married and when they are healthy and financially able?

17-12) In the past, how were the pituitary body and pineal gland used?

17-13) In the great majority of people, what are the pituitary body and pineal gland currently doing?

17-14) When the pituitary body and the pineal gland are reawakened, how will their connection with the nervous system have changed from what it was previously? What effect will this change have?

17-15) What must one do to get the creative force currents to flow into the head?

17-16) What can the creative force currents in the head be used for?

17-17) Why must the two lower ethers of the vital body and lower part of the desire body stay with the dense body during sleep?

17-18) Why must the two higher ethers of the vital body accompany the higher part of the desire body and mind if these are to function as a vehicle of consciousness for the Ego?

17-19) What must be awakened in the desire body before consciousness in the inner worlds is possible?

17-20) By what exercises can these parts of the desire body be awakened?

17-21) Next to each item on the left put the letter of the item on the right which is most closely related.
Focusing thought on a single
object, and building a clear, objective and
living image of the form ____		 A. Adoration
Tracing the history of an object ____ B. Concentration
Holding an object before the
mind and letting the soul of it speak
to one ________		 C. Contemplation
Perceiving and taking note of
objects in ones environment ____		 D. Discrimination
Making distinctions (such as
between right and wrong, or between
lasting and ephemeral) _________		 E. Meditation
Unification with the Source
of all things ______________		 F. Observation


17-22) When a person is ready to be initiated, should he then seek a teacher? Why?
Thought Questions


17-23) Why does one need faith in order to develop higher faculties?

17-24) Why should the aspirant avoid eating meat?

17-25) Under what conditions is desire for material wealth justified?

17-26) Under what conditions is desire for fame justified?

17-27) Why is it required that the aspirant give proof and unselfishness before the teacher will help him unfold his clairvoyant powers?

17-28) What type of criticism is acceptable?
Section 18
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)


18-1) How many strata are there within the Earth (not counting the core)?

18-2) How many Initiations are required to learn how to penetrate the strata of the Earth (not counting the core)?

18-3) Which of the following are not contained within the strata of the Earth?

8-4) What effect does human life have on the "Nature forces" in the seventh strata?
Section 19
(The Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception)


19-1) What was the result in the "dark ages" of religion taking predominance over science?

19-2) What is the result in modern times of science taking precedence over religion?

19-3) How should religion and science be related to one another?

19-4) What has been the aim of the Order of the Rosicrucians, since its founding by Christian Rosenkreutz in the thirteenth century?

19-5) What Initiations are the Brothers of the Order of the Rosicrucians able to lead people through?

19-6) What must one be able to do before one can become a pupil (lay brother or sister) in the Rosicrucian Mystery School?

19-7) What does the candidate learn about during the first four (Lesser)Initiations?

19-8) What does the candidate learn about in the fifth Initiation?

19-9) What does the candidate learn about in the sixth through the ninth Initiations?

19-10) What transmutation do the Brothers of the Rose Cross carry out in their daily midnight services?

19-11) Why does the Rosicrucian method of attainment advise against people meeting in groups to do their spiritual exercises?

19-12) When Adam knew Eve, they bore children. In this same sense, what will man be able to do when he fulfills the motto of the Greek mystery temples, "Man, know thyself."

19-13) In the symbolism of the Rose Cross, if the cross represents the dense body, and if the rose is placed at the center in the place of the larynx, then what does the rose represent?
The Kabbalah »
Self-Study Guides Menu »
Browse by Category »
This web page has been edited and/or excerpted from reference material, has been modified from its original version, and is in conformance with the web host's Members Terms & Conditions. This website is offered to the public by students of The Rosicrucian Teachings, and has no official affiliation with any organization.
 DESKTOP »