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In the lower order of animals there is a very small amount of what we call consciousness. The consciousness of the lower forms of life is little more than mere sensation—the subconscious plane of life is in the ascendant, and even that upon only the grosser faculties, the higher faculties remaining dormant and undeveloped. Life in the lower forms is almost automatic. In the mineral world there appears to be no life at all, so almost completely is the life principle smothered in matter. And yet the occultists tell us that even in the mineral world there is the first faint indication of life, and some of the more advanced scientists are beginning to recognize that matter is not entirely dead—that there is nothing absolutely dead in Nature—that intelligence is merely a matter of degree—that the mineral has its law of life which it follows.

There is in Nature an instinctive tendency of living organisms to perform certain actions—the tendency of an organized body to seek that which satisfies the wants of its organism. It is a simple form of mental effort, apparently wholly along sub-conscious lines. In plant life this tendency is plainly discernible, ranging from the lesser exhibitions in the lower types, to the greater in the higher types. It is this which is often spoken of as the “life force” in plants. In some of the higher forms of plant life, however, there appears a faint color of independent “life action”—a faint indication of consciousness—a faint exhibition of conscious effort.

In the lower animal kingdom, we see a much higher grade of consciousness, varying in degree in the several family and species, from the almost plant-like forms of the lowest animal forms to the almost human intelligence of the highest forms. The degree of consciousness in the highest of the so-called “lower animals”, almost approaches that of the lowest form of the human race, and certainly reaches that of the young child. As a child, before birth, shows in its body the stages of physical evolution of Man; so does a child, before and after birth—until maturity—manifest the stages of the mental evolution of Man.

As Man progressed in development and unfoldment, he began to manifest the first indications of what is known as Self Consciousness, which is higher in the scale than Simple Consciousness. It is very difficult to convey in words the idea of consciousness in its different forms, in fact many writers on psychology state that, strictly speaking, it is incapable of definition. To describe a thing it is necessary to compare it with something else, and as there is nothing else in nature like consciousness, we have nothing with which we can compare it. To my mind the best idea of consciousness is conveyed by the words: “awareness”; “knowing”.

Simple consciousness is an awareness of outward things— of things other than the inner self. Self-consciousness is an awareness of the inner self—a result of turning the mental gaze inward . The great majority of people scarcely know what self-consciousness is. They are in the habit of taking themselves as a matter of course, and never deem it necessary to take mental stock of themselves. On the other hand some become morbidly self-conscious, and find it difficult to turn their gaze away from themselves. It is the old principle of the outer and inner, which manifests itself in so many forms.

With the advent of Self-consciousness, came to Man a conception of the “I”. Heretofore he had never formed the mental concept “I”. At first the concept was hazy and dim. Man began to think of himself as compared to others of his kind. He began to notice himself, make deductions the results of which he applied to others. The concept of “I” began to grow. Let us leave primitive man, in whom this “I” realization is unfolding, and come down to man of today. A little thought will show us that each of us has an “I” in a different stage of development. We think of ourselves in different ways.

Many of us think of ourselves on the physical plane alone. We think of the “I” as a physical being, having a head, body, limbs and organs ranging from brain to liver. To one in this stage of development, the Body is the real self, and the Mind but a dimly understood appendage of the Body—something necessary for the uses of the body. Such a man speaks of “my mind” or “my soul”, as things belonging to him (the Body) and which he uses, but which are not him . To him “my mind” or “my soul” are but as “my hat”, “my coat”, “my shoes”—something attached to or used, but not “I”. The “I” is on the physical plane alone, the higher part of the man is his “not I”, just as are the things he wears or otherwise uses.

The man on the physical plane lives the physical life. He eats, drinks, sleeps, and performs other physical acts which come easy and seem pleasant to him. He finds his sole pleasure in the physical—he knows nothing else. His emotions and passions are but slightly in advance of the brute and he fails to understand another man who has grown beyond this stage. Of course we cannot blame such a man, or condemn him, for he can only see what he is, and if we were in his stage of development, we would do just the same. It is a necessary stage of development, through which each has passed, or is passing. It is the childhood stage. Such a man is like a young bear—all his troubles are before him. He has a comparatively easy time—the only pain he recognizes is pain to the body, or what is its equivalent, a deprivation of that which would gratify the sensual nature. He does not realize that his is not the highest life, and he feels a sense of pity or contempt for those who find pleasure in other things. He enjoys a sort of animal happiness, and it seems to be rather a pity that he has to be awakened, and face the pain of the next stage—but Life is inexorable—the child must grow, in spite of pain—yes, by means of pain.

Some of us have grown out of the physical stage of consciousness, into the mental stage. To one who has reached this plane, the “I” is pictured as Intellect, or Mind, having control of the body and its organs, and having its abode in the brain or brains of the human being. It makes very little difference whether these people think of Mind as does the materialist—a substance evolved from, or secreted by, the brain; or whether they regard it as a somewhat intangible substance manifesting through the brain. Either view is a matter of Intellectual opinion with them, and they feel the same in either case—in either case their picture of the “I” is the same—they have a feeling that the center of their consciousness is in the Intellect. To such a man the Intellect seems to be the real self, in fact he may even get to the point where he will bow down to his Intellect and worship it as a God. He realizes the wonderful powers of the mind, and begins to cultivate and develop them (all of which is a very necessary part of growth) and often attains results little short of marvelous. Some of these men will follow the path of pure Intellectual abstraction; others will develop the creative power of the mind, and manifest it in wonderful inventions, great discoveries, etc.; others will develop the Imagination, and become poets, writers, artists; others will combine the operative and imaginative qualities, and become “captains of industry,” etc., etc. Each will follow the line of least resistance and will develop upon lines which prove more attractive, but their “I” is always the Mind. Some will proceed along certain lines of psychic development, which is merely one form of manifestation along the mental plane. Psychic power is by many considered to be identical with spiritual power, but is really on the mental plane of consciousness, although the higher form of psychic power is available only to those who have attained a certain stage of spiritual development. The lower forms of psychic power may be acquired by those who develop the mind along certain lines, and they belong strictly to the mental plane, although apparently far removed from ordinary mental development. The higher forms of psychic power can be attained only by those who have reached a certain stage of spiritual unfoldment.