The Kingdoms of Life
Extracted and amended from A E Powel’s ‘The Causal Body’.

The second great wave of the divine life descends, coming from the Second Logos or Second Person of the Trinity,: this is usually known as the Second Outpouring..
Slowly and gradually this resistless flood of life pours down through the various, planes and kingdoms, spending in each of them a period equal in duration, to one entire incarnation of a planetary chain, and covering many millions, of years.

At various stages of its descent, the life of the Second Outpouring is known by various names. As a whole, it is often spoken of as a monadic (or Spiritual) essence - Monads (Spirits).
When the Outpouring, or wave of the Divine Life - which in some previous aeon, has finished its downward evolution through the buddhic plane—pours down into the highest level of the mental plane, it ensouls great masses of atomic mental matter. In this its simplest condition, it does not combine the atoms into molecules in order to form a body for itself, but simply applies by its attraction an immense compressing force to them.

We may imagine the force, on first reaching this plane on its downward swoop, to be entirely unaccustomed to its vibrations and unable at first to respond to them. During the aeon which it will spend on this level, its evolution will consist in accustoming itself to vibrate at all rates which are possible there, so that at any moment it can ensoul and use any combination of the matter of that plane. During this long period of evolution it will have taken upon, itself all possible combinations of the matter of the three arupa [formless] or causal levels, but at the end of the time it returns to the atomic (highest)  level - not, of course as it was before, but bearing latent within it all the powers which it has gained.

The Wave of Life, then, having drawn together the matter of the Causal (formless) Plane, combines it into what at that level corresponds to substances, and of these substances builds forms which it inhabits. This is called the First Elemental, Kingdom.

As we are here dealing with the Spiritual essence on its downward arc, progress for it means descent into matter instead of as with us, ascent towards, higher planes. Hence this essence, even on the causal planes, is less evolved than we are, not more so: but it would perhaps be more accurate to say that it is less in-volved, as its e-volution, in the strict sense of that term has not yet commenced.

After spending a whole chain period evolving through different forms at that level, the wave of life, which is all the time pressing steadily downwards identifies itself so fully with these forms that, instead of occupying them and withdrawing from them periodically, it is able to hold them permanently and make them part of itself. When that stage is reached, it can proceed to the temporary occupation of forms at a still lower level. Accordingly it takes forms on the lower mental, or rupa [form] levels of the mental plane, and is known then as the Second, Elemental Kingdom. The student should note that the ensouling life resides on the higher mental or causal level, while the vehicles through which it manifests are on the lower mental plane.

After spending a whole chain-period at this stage, the continuous downward, pressure has caused the process to repeat itself. Once more the life has identified itself with its forms, and has taken up its residence on the lower mental levels. Then it takes for itself forms of astral matter, and becomes the Third Elemental Kingdom.

As we saw in The Astral Body and The Mental Body, both mental and astral elemental essences are very intimately connected with man, entering largely into the composition of his vehicles.
After spending a whole chain-period in the Third Elemental Kingdom, the life again identifies itself with those forms, and so is able to ensoul the etheric part of the mineral kingdom, becoming the life which vivifies that kingdom.

In the course of the mineral evolution, the downward pressure again causes the life to identify itself with the etheric forms, and from those forms to ensoul, the denser matter of such minerals as are perceptible to our senses.

What we know as the mineral kingdom includes, of course, not only what are usually called minerals, but also liquids, gases, and many etheric substances, as yet unknown to Western orthodox science.
When in the mineral kingdom, the life is sometimes called the "mineral monad", just as at later stages it has been named "the vegetable monad", and the "animal monad". These titles, however, are somewhat misleading, because, they seem to suggest that one great monad animates the entire kingdom, which is not the case, because even when the monadic essence first appears before us as the First Elemental Kingdom, it is already not one monad, but very many monads: not one great life-stream, but many parallel streams, each possessing characteristics of its own.

When the Outpouring has reached the central point of the mineral kingdom, the downward pressure ceases, and is replaced by an upward tendency. The "outbreathing", has ceased, and the "inbreathing" or indrawing has begun.

It will be noted that, if there were but one Outpouring of life, which passed from one kingdom to the next, there would be in existence at any given time one kingdom only. This, however as we know, is not the case: the reason is that the Logos sends out a constant succession of waves of life, so that at any given time we find a number of them in operation. Thus we ourselves represent one such wave; the wave that immediately followed our wave now ensouls the animal kingdom; the wave behind that is now in the vegetable kingdom; a fourth is in the mineral stage; whilst a fifth, sixth and seventh are represented by the Three Elemental Kingdoms. All are successive, ripples of the same great Outpouring from the Second Aspect of the Logos.

The whole scheme tends increasingly towards differentiation, the streams as they descend from kingdom to kingdom dividing and subdividing more and more. It may be that before all this evolution takes place there is a point at which we may think of the Great Outpouring as homogeneous, but of that, nothing is known.

The process of subdivision continues until, at the end of the first great stage of evolution, it is finally divided into individualities, i.e., into men, each man being a separate and distinct soul, though at first, of course, an undeveloped soul.

Looking at the work of the Second Life Waves, or Second Outpouring,-as a whole, we may fairly regard its downward sweep as concerned with the making of primary tissues, out of which in due time, subtle and dense bodies will be formed. In certain ancient scriptures this process has been aptly called "weaving".

The materials which are prepared by the Third Logos, are woven by the Second Logos into threads and fabrics out of which future garments - i.e., bodies—will be made.
The Third Logos may be thought of as a Chemist, working as in a laboratory; the Second Logos we may regard as the Weaver, working as in manufactory, Materialistic as are these similes, they are useful as crutches for the understanding.

The Second Logos thus "weaves" various kinds of cloth, i.e., of material, out of which will later be made the causal and mental bodies of men; out of the cloth of astral matter, of desire stuff, will later be made the astral bodies of men. Thus are fashioned the materials of the mechanism of consciousness, the characteristics of each class of material being determined by the nature of the aggregations of particles - texture , colour, density, and so forth.

All this downward sweep of the life-wave through the planes, giving qualities to the many grades of matter, is a preparation for evolution and is often and more properly, called involution .
After the lowest stage of immersion in matter is reached both the first and the second outpouring turn upwards and begin their long ascent through the planes: this is evolution properly so called.

DIAGRAM VI is an attempt to illustrate graphically the First Outpouring from the Third Logos, forming the matter of the five lower planes, and The Second Outpouring which, taking the matter vivified by the Third Logos, moulds and ensouls it so as to produce the three Elemental Kingdoms, and the Mineral Kingdom, and in due succession, the vegetable, and animal kingdoms.

There is indicated also on the diagram the Third Outpouring, from the First Logos, the Outpouring from which results the formation of individual entities, or human beings. With this however, we shall deal more fully at a later stage of our study.

The student should take careful note of the exact position of the figures in Diagram VI, representing each kingdom. Thus the mineral is shown of full width in the denser part of the physical plane, showing that the life there, such as it is, has full control over the dense physical matter. But the band grows steadily narrower as it mounts up through the etheric sub-planes, indicating that control over etheric matter is not yet perfectly developed.

The small point penetrating into the astral plane indicates that a little consciousness, works through astral matter. This consciousness is the beginning, of desire, expressed in the mineral kingdom as chemical affinity, etc. We shall refer to this again when we come to the Mineral Group-Souls.
The band representing the vegetable kingdom has full width in the whole of the physical plane, dense as well as etheric. The portion representing astral consciousness is, of course, much larger, because desire is much more fully developed in the vegetable than in the mineral kingdom. Students of plant life will know that many members of the vegetable kingdom exhibit a great deal of ingenuity and sagacity in attaining their ends, limited though those ends seem to us, regarded from our point of view. The student is recommended in this connection to such books as The Sagacity, and Morality of Plants, by J.E. Taylor.
In the animal kingdom the band shows that there is full development in the lowest astral sub-plane, showing that the animal is capable of experiencing to the fullest possible extent the lower desires; but the narrowing of the band through the higher sub-planes shows that his capacity, for the higher desires is much more limited. Nevertheless it does exist so that it happens, in exceptional cases, that he may manifest an exceedingly high quality of affection and devotion.

The band representing the animal, shows also that there is already a development, of intelligence, which needs mental matter for its expression. It is now generally admitted that some animals, both domestic and wild, undoubtedly, exercise the power of reasoning from cause to effect, although the lines along which their reason can work are naturally few and limited, not is the faculty powerful yet.

As the band is intended to represent the average animal, the point pierces only into the lowest sub-plane of the mental plane; with the highly developed domestic animal the point might readily extend even to the highest of the four lower levels, though of course it would remain only a point, and by no means the full width of the band.

As we are considering here the relative degrees of consciousness in the various kingdoms, we may as well anticipate somewhat, and indicate the stage at which man has arrived. The band representing the human kingdom, is seen to be of full width up to the lowest level of the mental plane indicating that up to that level his reasoning faculty is fully developed. In the higher subdivisions of the lower mental plane, the faculty of reason is not yet fully developed, as indicated by the narrowing of the band.

An entirely new factor, however, is introduced by the point on the higher mental or causal plane, because man possesses a causal body and a permanent reincarnating ego.
In the case of the great majority of men, the consciousness does not rise beyond the third mental sub-plane. Gradually only, as his development proceeds, the ego is able to raise his consciousness to the second or the first of the mental sub-planes.

The band on the extreme right hand side represents—a man much in advance of the ordinary man. Here we have the consciousness, of a highly spiritual man, whose consciousness has evolved beyond that of the causal body, so that he can function freely on the plane of buddhi, and also has consciousness - at least when out of the body-on the plane of atma.

It will be noted that the centre of his consciousness indicated by the widest part of the band, is not, as in the case of most men, on the physical and astral, planes but between the higher mental and the buddhic planes. The higher mental and higher astral are much more developed than are their lower parts, and although he still retains his physical body, yet this is indicated, merely by a point, the explanation being that he holds it solely for the convenience of working in it, and not in any way because his thoughts and desires are fixed there. Such a man has transcended all karma which could bind him to incarnation, so that he takes the lower vehicles solely in order that through them he may be able to work for the good of humanity and to pour out at those levels those forces which otherwise could not descend, so far.

After this necessary disgression, in order to explain the relative degrees of consciousness attained by each of the kingdoms of nature, it is important to note that the evolutionary process, which leads into expression the involved, consciousness, has to begin by contacts received by its outermost vehicle, i.e., it must begin on the physical plane. The consciousness can become aware of an outside only by impacts on its own outside. Until then, it dreams within itself, as the faint inner thrillings ever outwelling from the Monad cause slight pressure in the Jivatma [Atma-Buddhis-Manas] like a spring of water beneath the earth, seeking an outlet.

With this process of ascent, and the Third Outpouring, which results in the formation of the causal body of the man, we shall deal in succeeding chapters, in due course.
Reverting to the Second Outpouring, we must note that it not only divides itself to an almost infinite degree, but also appears to differentiate itself, so that it comes through countless, millions of channels on every plane and sub-plane. Thus, on the Buddhic Plane it appears as the Christ-Principle in man; in Man's mental and astral bodies it vivifies various layers of matter, appearing in the higher part of the astral as a noble emotion, in the lower part as a mere rush of life-force energising the matter of the body. In its lowest embodiment, it rushes from the astral body into the etheric chakrams or force centres, where it meets the Kundalini welling up from the interior of the human body.