“The belief that nearly all diseases have their origin in the invisible nature of Man (the Astrum) is a fundamental precept of Hermetic medicine, for while hermeticists in no way disregard the physical body, they believed that man’s material constitution was an emanation from, or an objectification of, his invisible spiritual principles. A brief, but it is believed fairly comprehensive, resume of the hermetic principles of Paracelsus follows:

There is one vital substance in Nature upon which all things subsist. It is called, archeus, or vital life force, and is synonymous with the astral light or spiritual air of the ancients. In regard to this substance, Eliphas Levi has written, ‘Light, that creative agent, the vibrations of which are the movement and life of all things; Light, latent in the universal ether, radiating about absorbing centers, which, being saturated thereby, project movement and life in their turn, so forming creative currents; Light; actualized in the stars, animated in animals, humanized in human beings; Light, which vegetates all plants, glistens in metals, produces all forms of Nature and equilibrates all by the laws of universal sympathy—this is the Light which exhibits the phenomena of magnetism, divined by Paracelsus, which tinctures the blood, being released from the air as it is inhaled and discharged by the hermetic bellows of the lungs’ (The History of Magic)

“This vital energy has its origin in the spiritual body.” ~Manly P. Hall

Invisible Nature of Man

While Mr. Hall equates the “invisible nature of Man” with “the Astrum,” I find that Astrum is derived from Latin, and means a star. So he is saying, I believe, that man gets his invisible nature from the stars, or from a star, which could only mean the Sun. While that is not exactly correct, it is true that the Light referred to later in the quote does reach us through the sun, and the most spiritual frequencies of it from the Spiritual Sun.

Another note: spirits are invisible to the physical senses, but not to the spiritual ones, so awakening the spiritual senses allows us to “see” spirits on another level.

Material Nature an Emination from Spirit

In a sense, it is true that the material body is an emanation from the spirit, but not because spirits set forth to generate physical bodies. It is because, the false god, the Demiurge, created the realm of matter by altering some of the spiritual realm. As a result, we can say that everything material has some spirit within it and behind it, and it is the goal of all true spiritual development to return that which is material back to its original state as spirit.

Vital Life Force

Paracelsus calls the Vital Life Force, “archeus”. The definition I found online says that the Archeus is a term that “generally refers to the lowest and most dense aspect of the astral plane which presides over the growth and continuation of material life. In short, it is the link between matter and spirit.

When I look up Vital Life Force, I find several similar definitions that basically say it is a vital essence (or energy) that animates all living things. Wikipedia relates it to the Ayurvedic “prana” which permeates reality on all levels. The most interesting part of this definition is when they add that “prana is sometimes described as originating from the Sun and connecting the elements.” So we can say that the Vital Life Force is that which generates life, feeds and maintains life, and encourages the existence of life.

Of course, some of the more materialistic definitions laugh at the concept, such as this from The Free Dictionary: “A hypothetical force (not physical or chemical) once thought by Henri Bergson to cause the evolution and development of organisms”

Creative Vibrations of Light

There are indeed creative vibrations in light. Both physical and spiritual light generate life on one level or another. Physical light is responsible for material life. Plants are the most obvious as they live almost entirely on light and water. Animals get light directly from the sun, but also indirectly from plants that they eat. Man also gets physical light for his physical body, but humans are also capable of taking in spiritual Light from the Spiritual Sun for their spiritual Self. Even without trying, we take in a little spiritual Light, but to fully awaken and develop our Spirits, we need to take in more spiritual Light by seeking it and accepting it in Love and humility. Spiritual Light will not flow to greedy and arrogant individuals.

Phenomena of Magnetism

We know that magnetism is not a force that is found in light, but when Paracelsus said that it was, it was at a time when magnetism and electricity were considered the same thing. While the two are related, magnetism and electricity are not the same. So I think Paracelsus was saying that light is responsible for electricity. While that is not true either, there is some connection. We know that electricity can produce light under certain circumstances, and light can produce electricity at times. But It may be that Paracelsus was trying to say that Light gives us the “electricity” or “magnetism” of the Vital Life Force, so to strengthen and extend our life, we must turn to the Light.

“When exercises for intuition are practiced, they not only affect the etheric body but extend to the supersensible forces of the physical body. But it must not, of course, be imagined that effects are brought about in the physical body which are discernable to ordinary sense observation, for these effects the clairvoyant alone is able to judge, and they have nothing to do with external powers of perception. They come as a result of a ripened consciousness, when this latter is able to have intuitional experiences, even though it has divested itself of all previous inner and outer experiences. The experiences of intuition are, however, subtle, delicate, and intimate, in comparison with which the physical body, at its present stage of development, is course. For this reason, it offers a positive hindrance to the success of any exercises for attaining intuition. Nevertheless, should these be pursued with energy and perseverance, and with the required inner calm, they will ultimately be these powerful hindrances of the physical body. The student will become aware of this when he [, or she] notices how by degree, particular actions of the physical body which hitherto had taken place without his [, or her] own own volition, now come under control.” ~Rudolf Steiner

Exercises Practices

Steiner speaks of these practices as “exercises for intuition” but they can also be called exercises for spiritual development or spiritual growth. Those terms are more commonly used today but mean the same thing as it was spiritual development that Mr. Steiner was trying to teach. Of course, we students of Cosolargy are aware that exercises, or as we call them, techniques, must be practiced regularly and faithfully to achieve any significant spiritual growth.

Extend the Supersensible Forces

Steiner doesn’t explain what he means by “supersensible forces,” but I think we can say that practicing spiritual techniques not only brings energy (Light) into the energy centers of the spirit but also those of the body, so practicing these techniques can have a good effect on the body and mind as well as the spirit. Mr. Steiner says their effects are not discernable by the physical senses, and that is generally true, but there are exceptions. While beginning students may find this hard to believe, many Cosolargy students who had brown eyes when they started have seen their eye color gradually change to blue or grey (which experts say is not really grey, but a grayish shade of blue). While this color change may not seem to matter, as it doesn’t seem to be accompanied by other changes, it is, at the very least, a good indication that one is practicing the techniques properly and achieving the desired results. Other noticeable effects might be a general improvement in physical health and in mental health and attitude. Some of those improvements may be due to changing long-held beliefs that have proven untrue once you start developing higher levels of consciousness. Other may be the result of the increased energy of a positive kind brought into the body by practicing the techniques. However, it should not be assumed that practicing spiritual techniques will eliminate all illnesses, though it does happen to a few individuals.

Ripened Consciousness

Mr. Steiner says these changes come about because of a “Ripened” consciousness. While that is an unusual way to say it, it is totally appropriate. Today, we are more likely to say expanded consciousness, or reaching higher levels of consciousness. I have chosen to illustrate this article with an animated GIF of an opening Lotus blossom to represent this expansion of consciousness. It might be useful to think of that image when practicing techniques.

Hindrance By the Body

The physical body can be a hindrance to spiritual development. Gene Savoy, Sr. has noted this in some lectures when he said that it is hard to practice techniques when one has a toothache or headache. But even when you are not suffering from any obvious illness, the dense materialism that the physical body has degenerated into over many centuries does offer a hindrance to spiritual development. It can, however, still be done with patience and regular practice. We must all understand that we can’t erase centuries of degeneration with a few weeks, or even months, of spiritual techniques. We must keep at it diligently and faithfully for years.