The

Natural

Sun

Jakob Lorber

1. - Chapter 1 -

1. The Sun as the ideal concept of the planetary worlds; Generalities about soil and plant growth

The Lord Jesus' Revelations, commencing 8 August 1842.

1. It will not be necessary, as with the presentation of another cosmic body, to determine the position of this shining star (the sun), since everyday delineates this sharply. Wherefore we shall pause to answer a question: What is the sun? An answer to this shall easily sort out everything else, making it capable of wonderful exposition. So lets ask again: What actually is the sun?

2. In relation to its orbiting planets, the sun indeed is a fixed star; in itself however it is merely a perfect planet, in that it too (like the orbit of the Earth and its moon around the sun), together with its planets moves around the formerly mentioned central sun, a journey taking somewhat longer than the earth's orbit around the sun; for it requires nearly twenty-eight thousand years (note: twenty-eight thousand years / Revelations given 19th Century) to complete its journey.

3. Wherefore we know that the sun is not just sun, but rather a perfect planet, which in relation to its size as a cosmic body, also is bathed in more light than each of its much smaller planets.

4. If however the sun in itself is a perfect planet, then it certainly has to comprise in perfect measure all the essential planetary components occurring in smaller proportional potencies in its orbiting planets. Therefore there has to be present within the sun in great perfection that which, in much smaller form and therefore in much greater imperfections, is found upon the planet Mercury, Venus, Earth and its moon; in Mars, in the four special, individual planets Pallas, Ceres, Juno and Vesta; in Jupiter and its four

5. moons, Saturn and its rings and seven moons; Uranus and its five moons, and another still more distant planet with its three moons, and finally in all the twelve billion (twelve thousand million) comets orbiting around the sun at immense distances.

6. In brief: the perfect planet sun is in the natural sense the complete epitome of all its planetary-world children; or, in this perfect planet is manifested vitally, more perfect in a natural sense, everything that occurs in whatever planet, moon or comet. For better comprehension therefore, we shall cite a few examples:

7. The soil of your planet is dead, hard, stony and not capable of bringing forth anything without the light of the sun. The sun's soil on the other hand is soft and gentle, and not stony or sandy, as the softness of human flesh, or for still greater comprehension, it is as elastic as human flesh, or for still greater comprehension, it is elastic nearly throughout; so that none who happen to fall on the ground would suffer painful injury, the impact being as upon an air-cushion. It is not however of a tough elastic composure like your so-called rubber, but completely loose and not only elastic as a whole but in all its particles, which in themselves are globules filled with true life-ether.

8. Such is indeed also the case with the soil of your planet, but the globules are brittle and so do not yield to a blow or fall, but rather compress further. And, if lying undisturbed alongside one another for many consecutive years, they grip together so stubbornly as to turn to stone, then offering still more stubborn resistance in the natural state than they did in their separate units, for which reason a planet's vegetation must needs be more meager than upon the perfect sun-planet.

9. Because on a planetary body such as your Earth, a rather rough seed, with its germ first has to decay, and then through this very process cause the surrounding soil to simultaneously decay or soften so that the germ then liberated can absorb its appropriate ether sustenance from the softened earth globules. Whereupon it has to immediately drive a large number of rootlets between the

10. earth particles, softening them therewith and then crushing them through its growing bulk to gain additional plant-growth substance.

11. Is this necessary upon the perfect sun planet as well? Behold, here the difference is immense.

12. Upon the sun, no tree of any variety, nor bush or plant has any root or seed, growing and arising like your original stone-moss, mildew or mushroom; except that these growths are not as transitory and of such short duration as the aforementioned terrestrial ones; hence, where such forces cause something to grow, they continue to grow on perpetually. And even where the physical sun-dwellers, as it were, hew it down, this growth is not killed therewith but the chopped tree or picked plant soon renews itself. Since the roots of such growths are not crudely material but more like fiery ether-veins, this vegetative force, after said removal, gathers itself up and grows forth with new splendour and glory.

13. Some may say: well, if these growths cannot be terminated, will they not take over all areas upon this planet so that no other freely moving being can persist beside them?

14. But this is by no means the case, because the physical people of this perfect planet have a much greater willpower than the vegetative force of the solar soil. Wherefore no tree, bush, plant or blade of grass grows upon the sun without the participation of the human will. Human will therefore, is the only endlessly manifold, diverse seed for all vegetation upon this perfect planet. Hence a tree or plant of any shape only grows upon the sun's ground where sun-man wants it. Wherefore there is no permanent and uniform species in the plant-kingdom upon this perfect planet, it is always responding to the prevailing spontaneous will of a person. Once a human has called forth a tree or plant from the ground however, only that person can also exterminate it, or if someone else received empowerment from the producer.

15. Wherefore, there is a truly limitless diversity in the plant kingdom upon the solar earth; for no two similar plants  can be

16. found between two adjacent neighbours, because each entices up different plants from the ground they occupy. And were one of you to journey through the extensive solar areas for many thousands of years, he would indeed constantly come upon new and wondrous species and forms; but he shall not find two plants that completely resemble each other. Behold, from this example alone you can already appreciate why the sun is a perfect planet. The same thing occurs on each heavenly or smaller planet too, but imperfectly.

17. Likewise upon your Earth, existing plants can be altered, grafted or improved but in a much more cumbersome and restricted way. Only in the spiritual domain is there evidence of similar perfection in humans on other planets too, as for instance the fruits of poetic imagination, whether in the conceptual language, as expressed in words or the language of creative arts, or through corresponding pictures with the aid of paints and other suitable materials; but most of all through the language of tones with which the composer can unfold supreme diversity, if his spirit is attuned in that field. But even this apparent perfection upon the planets is only a dim image of what is found in every thinkable subject upon the perfect sun planet.

18. That the sun is a perfect planet and hence must be made up of everything planetary can be seen from the fact that everything upon the planets is formed through the sun's radiating light. The difference between the perfect and imperfect planet can be seen only from the fact that all forms upon the latter arising from the light of the sun are necessarily determinate and not easily changeable and are even capable of counting; whereas upon the perfect solar planet, all forms are free and have no restriction other than the will of man, being therefore countless and infinitely different.

19. It can happen sometimes that even upon the imperfect planets through the effect of sunlight some more ancient species die out, whilst completely different ones come into being. But such cases on the planets are rare and the change and transition period requires a far lengthier period than upon the perfect sun-planet.

20. In this way upon your terrestrial body, several thousand tree, bush, plant and grass species have indeed perished, impressions of them having been found between layers of rock. Several primordial species of giant trees also have perished their wood now being found as hard coal. Likewise a large number of giant animals have completely vanished from existence as for instance the mammoth and a great many of yonder large winged amphibians still known as lizards.

21. Thus, even the gigantic bodies of some men have perished, who in primordial times were known by the term giants, together with several species of giant birds and also many fish not found among all the contemporary ones, except in some rare cases embedded within stones sometimes in well-preserved form.

22. But, as said, all these changes upon an imperfect planet firstly proceed very slowly and not as markedly differentiated from their succeeding forms as the constant changes upon the perfect sun planet.

23. It is for this reason that the sun can be called a perfect planet, because whatever is present upon the planets also is present upon its ground in a most perfect equivalence and in the greatest and most diverse life-like abundance. From this it must be clear to all that the sun must truly be a perfect planet, since it is the complete embodiment of everything comprising a planet from its mid-point through to all its parts and of everything manifesting on its surface. For were it not so, how could its rays call forth its equivalence upon the cosmic bodies?

2. - Chapter 2 -

1. Solar man in general

1. Therewith we know the sun to be a perfect planet; whence we do not intend to restrict ourselves any further with comparisons, but as you are wont to say, move luggage and all to inspect it from pole to pole, however not by the method of an imperfect planet but the reverse.

2. You will ask why! The answer shall not be difficult for me. You would be capable of finding it yourselves had your spirit not been sluggish. The answer is the following: Upon the imperfect planets man develops everything through procreation, man forming the last most perfect link in things and beings. Upon the most perfect solar planet however, man, as their foundation, is the progression of beings because they all go forth from him. By the order of his will through the sun's rays, the lowermost and last potencies are transmitted to the other planets, where they take their inception in the atomistic animals and beings as well as with the most ethereal mildew plants (still unknown to this scientists to this day) to then propagate up to man.

3. If therefore you look at things in this light, then in one sense you are children of solar man. On the other hand of course, concerning the only true living spirit within you, you children of solar man are alternatively in effect their parents; because your immortal spirit is closer to Me than the spirit of solar man, because it is a returning one, whereas that of solar man is like one still going out.

4. You must then ask yourselves: does therefore solar man's spirit also have to transfer to and become a planet-man's spirit? Behold, this is indeed a deep secret, of which no man has had intimation yet. But I shall nevertheless guide you there.

5. Behold, you are aware of how the planets took their inception from the sun in line with the judged order, hence how the latter itself took its own from the central foundation, the primordial suns. You also know from many previous revelations however what the substance of planetary matter itself is, namely nothing other than the visible expression of captive primordial forces or spirits. Where have these come from?

6. If however the entire planet as it lives has gone forth from the sun, then its content is surely to have no other origin since it and the planet, atom for atom, are one and the same. That leaves you only to recollect how a planet has taken its inception in the solar body and still does so from time to time; and it shall be fully clear to you as to what fate awaits certain solar men's spirits.

7. To enable you to see it still more plainly, the physical structure of the sun has to be exposed to you.

8. The sun as a planetary body is so structured as to actually comprise seven concentric suns of which each contains a successive smaller one as one hollow sphere within another; only the innermost one - the heart of the solar planet is, although organic, completely solid from its surface to its mid-point.

9. All these seven concentric suns are populated. For this reason also there is a space to each consecutive sun ranging from one, two and three thousand (German) miles, making each deeper sun inhabitable.

10. The imperfect planets indeed also have a similar structure, but of course much more imperfect by number as well as composition.

11. Since the perfect solar planet through its extraordinary roominess is capable of holding exceptionally large numbers of human beings, it will not surprise you if I say unto you that the population of the sun in aggregate forms a thousand-fold volume to that of all the planets, moons and comets orbiting the sun taken together, even if the individual solar man's volume were no bigger than that of terrestrial man.

12. This will shortly take us where we want to be; but first we have to actually know what the material substance of the solar body is composed of and hence its humans in aggregate

13. The solar body's material in its external aspect is a somewhat firmly held soul substance within which countless spirits are held in a rather loose captivity. But there has also upon the solar body been created, out of My love and grace, a second firmer substantial body well suited for the taking up of the spirits, kept fixed within solar matter. When this body, or rather true solar man is generated through the willpower of a predecessor, then a spirit is at once taken up by this begotten man for a further liberty test. Once the conception has taken place, which always takes place immediately after procreation, then solar man is also there forthwith fully alive. Whereupon he is at once acquainted with My will-system and his own will-perfection pointed out to him on account of which he is in possession of a truly creative capacity requiring no more than to will something firmly, whereupon the solar soil at once yields it to him.

14. With this perfection of will however, solar man is also acquainted with My will, together with the sanctioned commandment not to in any way use his creative perfection contrary to My will. That with such free dispensation of creative capacity, many misuses against My will take place, you can accept with certainty, because the freer and less bound the will, the easier and more likely it is to overstep the lawful mandate of My will.

3. - Chapter 3 -

1. The paths of solar man's development, either against or in accordance with God's will

1. What happens to those however, who do not heed the order of My will? These abandon their bodies moving to another solar globe, which is the first interior sun where they are once again taken up into suitably prepared bodies but still fully conscious of their former being, in order to realise for a certainty that it is a consequence of having acted contrary to the living order of My will. They, by the way, have their complete, mighty freedom of will here also and can act as before. Should they again step outside My order here they are moved to a more interior globe still and eventually through continuing to trespass against My order are moved to the innermost sun itself, which also is the most material and firm one.

2. Those submitting to the order then ascent to higher perfection. Alternatively, they are placed into more rigid captivity and, as part of the sun's bulk, expelled into the wide planetary and cometary spaces.

3. Here you need only to hark back to the volume "The Fly" where you shall see what takes place over time, with these expelled spiritual potencies. Sometimes, it can indeed be the case that these as yet un-solidified spiritual entities, on their initial planetary launching, turn to the divine order again on account of residual consciousness and are received back by the sun for their ongoing development. Conversely however, they are commanded to an extended period of irregular cometary migration, whereupon they are taken into even stricter custody, to be eventually forced into the judged order of a planet or even a moon.

4. The above mentioned explanation will suffice, for from it transpires what type of spiritual children you yourselves are and that you are in fact, as it were, children of solar men.

5. But how, on the other hand, you can also be their parents, shall not be hard to guess. I say unto you that you can be so in a twofold way; in one sense when your children sometimes die prematurely, this is a case where such spirits, if obedient and of a better character return sooner, as you have heard earlier, that some groups of spirits expelled from the sun, if they become submissive in the form of a developing comet, are received back by the sun, without going through a difficult, complete planetary standard test.

6. In this case you are firstly already parents of these children returning to the sun prematurely. In another, much more perfect sense however, you can be parents of the entire solar population in aggregate, namely if, with Paul, you can say: "not I but Christ (now) dwelleth in me!"

7. Behold, now this apparent contradiction shall become clear to you and from that you shall be able to discern even more clearly what is meant by: "Our Father Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name ... Thy will be done!" Because wherever the Father's will is heeded or even where just the inclination towards such will predominates, no full planetary material maturity is needed in order to return to the kingdom of true life: or, to be able to say in spirit: "Thy kingdom come".

8. If you ponder the aforesaid a little, you shall not think it inexpedient that many flowers and unripe fruits drop off the trees. If you want to know why and whereto, just look into the sun. It shall at once tell you that a planet does not always have to ripen physically in order to spiritually return to whence it came. We shall examine other types of relationships upon our perfect planet - sun, next time.

9. The question can be put here: what happens to those solar spirits who always remained within and acted in accordance with My will? And are there many such perfect spirits in the sun who do not have to undergo further downgrading in order to then painstakingly ascend to perfection again?

10. The numerous spirits, who are already perfected in the sun, do not tarry in the sun after their perfection but ascend to a higher central sun from which they had once gone forth together with their sun. There they gain firmness in their humility and ascend to a still deeper arch-primordial central sun, which exceeds the former one unspeakably in size, light and magnificence.

11. When these spirits, ever so translucent, arrive at this second central sun, they feel themselves to be no more than totally dark and lightless. Hence they are once again initiated stage by stage, making them capable of ascending to a still deeper and all but endlessly large central sun. This sun also is the final material pre- school for heaven as such, which is the primordial fatherland of all perfect spirits. But in this last and very largest central sun of a shell-globe, there are many gradations which the spirits with etheric bodies have to go through before being ready to be taken up by the spiritual-sun-world, called heaven. This in outline is the Way for the spirits perfected in the sun.

12. Were someone to ask: why such a drawn-out path, then the answer is: such spirits had descended in stages within the last- mentioned innermost and very greatest central sun, taking up evermore of the material on every such solar step. For this reason they have to make their way back in order to cast off the last material atom, until capable, in perfection, to go over to the purest, true, celestial-solar-world, for all eternities of eternities.

13. Now we also know this. But I see another hidden question in you which says: do the spirits of planetary men also have to go this very enlightening but also very extended path in order to get to actual heaven?

14. If a general answer is sought, neither a yes nor a no will answer this question, because this depends on three factors: children and such people as need further purification after casting off their bodies on Earth have to take this path indeed; likewise those, mostly learned men of the world, in whom there is much conceit and selfish pride, have to take this path and a more complicated

15. one; they have to take this path and sometimes an even far more complex one, several times, starting from this Earth, in that they have to undergo a purifying pre-school in the various other planets before getting to the sun.

16. The difference between prematurely deceased children, who are immediately taken up by the sun and the people mentioned after them, who are taken up into the sun-school at a later stage, is that the spirits of the children brought up in the sun are taken up into one or other association of angels in the true, actual heaven, whilst the more mature upon the planets have to go through the entire prescribed path.

17. Those people on Earth however, who had already cast out everything worldly and material through their pure love for Me, deserve nothing other than Me and have exceedingly shortened their path therewith: for these are truly My children and truly My brothers and sisters and they come into Me fully after joyfully discarding their material body, and so namely, those who completely love Me, come immediately to the pinnacle of the highest heaven, where I Myself dwell.

18. Behold this is the difference with the spirits, especially of this Earth planet, as a consequence of discarding the flesh. Something similar but much rarer, can also happen to the inhabitants of Jupiter and still more rarely with the inhabitants of the planets Saturn, Uranus and the third, still undiscovered planet. But none of the spirits of the inhabitants of the latter planets immediately get to the highest heaven, but only to the first, the wisdom heaven.

19. Now that these paths have been disclosed to you and we are familiar with the sun's exterior aspect, we can move to the inner solar system and to beholding its glories, where you shall behold things of which you previously never had the feeblest suspicion. But to prevent interrupting our inspection, we shall leave these observations till next time and so we will end for today.

4. - Chapter 4 -

1. About sunlight. The atmosphere as light-shell.

1. When examining the sun we shall first look at its light sphere, because the sun becomes sun only by virtue of its surrounding sphere.

2. What is this light-sphere from the natural aspect? It is the atmospheric air-sphere around the actual solar planet and has such a powerful shine upon the outer surface only gradually darkening towards the planet itself, so much so that from the actual solar planet there is an unhindered view into the universe through the light-substance sphere, as from other planets. And this light sphere, through which no view is possible from a planet of the actual solar body, is totally transparent from the solar planet itself.

3. Here you will ask: how can one look unhindered through this most intense light-mass into the endless distances, when it is the sheerest impossibility to look into the inner solar planet through this light-mass?

4. The reason is simple and lies nearer to you than you will believe. A simple, well known phenomenon shall make it clear. If you stand in front of the window of a house from which the sun's rays are being reflected into your eye, what do you see? Nothing but the blinding reflection of the sun from the window creating an insurmountable obstacle to seeing what is behind the window. Shall it also be an obstacle to someone standing behind the window looking out and accurately observing everything outside the window, assuming the windowpane is clean? Not in the least! Whilst you see nothing but the shining-white glass from the outside, the person standing inside shall easily be able to count your hairs.

5. Behold, it is also the same with the sun, as its brilliant shine is nothing other than, in the first instance, the rays taken up from

6. billions of suns each reflecting itself endlessly off this out- stretched solar air-minor surface; however just as the sun itself is endlessly reflected off solid land and especially water objects from any other planet, it is mostly reflected off the continuous air- surface surrounding a planet.

7. You will ask: why is our planet Earth along with some other planets not engulfed with powerful light like the sun, since each planet, like the sun, is located amidst billions of suns? And if so, how about the moon, which would also have to shine as powerfully as the sun, since it can take up the rays from the same billions of suns?

8. To show you how misguided this assertion is, I shall again take you through an example. Take a number of glass spheres of which the smallest shall be no larger than a large grain of sand; then one the size of a hemp seed, another the size of a pea, another like a hazel nut, another like a walnut; another like an average apple, the next like a double fist, and one like a human head: and so on up to a sphere of two meters in diameter. Place all these spheres in a sun-lit place and then watch the sun's reflection from each. On the smallest globule you shall see hardly more than a point of light, whilst from the second one you shall see a more powerful point of light. From the third the sparkle shall already affect your eye considerably. The fourth reflected sun shall already show a measurable diameter and you shall not tolerate its shine for long. The light from further globes shall be blinding, and its diameter more marked. With the human head-size, the diameter shall reach that of a large lentil and you shall not be able to look at it with the naked eye. But the reflection from the last sphere shall have the diameter of one inch, making it even less possible to view with the naked eye.

9. Behold, as it is with the light-reception of these globes, so it is also with the diverse heavenly spheres. Those fixed stars or rather distant suns, which you see from Earth as only shimmering points of light; these same points of light, especially those you call magnitudes one, two and three, appear in size to the inhabitants of

10. Jupiter as twenty, ten and five Kreuzer pieces of silver. How so?

11. Because the "glass globe" Jupiter is already nearly four thousand times the size of your Earth, hence it has to receive the image of the distant suns on a necessarily larger scale than your much smaller Earth planet; for which reason Jupiter, in spite of its far greater distance from the sun, nevertheless has a much more powerful light than the much nearer planet Mars, and also your Earth.

12. Consider the fact that the sun is more than a million times the size of your Earth, and it speaks for itself that even such distant suns of this galaxy must call forth an intense light image from the sun's atmospheric surface, to the extent that distant solar regions which, even to the aided eye on Earth, appear only as a point of nebula on the sun reflecting with a diameter of one to three inches, shining so powerfully that you would not tolerate its image with the naked eye, even for one second.

13. Now consider the images of nearby suns, which not infrequently are reflected with an image of between a hundred and a thousand square miles (German) in area; multiply these countless sun images upon the solar atmospheric sphere surface, and you shall arrive at such light-intensity as to make you shudder.

14. Behold, this is the reason for your daily planetary solar light. This shall explain the preceding matter and enable you to comprehend how the inhabitants of the solar planet can easily look through the apparent light-sphere of the sun, whilst looking inwards is the sheerest impossibility for the eye of the flesh.

15. Now that we know this: I nevertheless see a well-hidden question in you that says: this solar shine-theory seems fairly good, namely that the suns in aggregate light each other up thus. But if each sun shines like that, it begs the question, from where do the suns in total take their light, seeing that each individual one receives it only from rays of other suns, saying as much that no sun has its own light, but bristles only with the reflection of other suns'

16. light. Whence do these other suns then derive their light? Because if the above mentioned light-theory is completely accurate, then each sun is completely dark in itself. Where does the mutual reflecting come from then?

17. Behold, this is a fairly good question. But since the answer to this question must be rather complex for your comprehension, it shall follow in the next revelation. And therewith we will finish for today!

5. - Chapter 5 -

1. The central suns' own light. The reflected light of the lower suns.

1. How all the suns taken together shine individually through reflection from the atmospheric surface of other suns shall be shown to you now, through another easy example. Take a room whose walls are made of polished glass, backed by the necessary metal compound to make them into a complete mirror. Imagine furthermore that this room is fully spherical internally, like a large hollow ball. Now fill this room with all kinds of suspended spheres of polished glass or metal. Bring a chandelier with a powerful light into the middle of this room and then look at all the small, polished balls hanging in this hollow-sphere room, all seem to be self-shining bodies on every side. How does this come about?

2. It is easy to work out. The mirror-smooth walls reflect the chandelier light, not diminished but rather focused back unto the chandelier. In this way all the suspended balls are shone upon from all sides many-fold; firstly from the chandelier directly, secondly from the light reflected from the walls, which taken together form a concave hollow mirror with its focus exactly at the centre of the room. Thirdly light comes from mutual reflections of their light, which also is again taken up and thrown back by the mirrored walls; and finally the reflection of the mirrored walls upon one another.

3. Behold, this image more than adequately answers the question raised because just as it is with the light shining within our hollow ball, so it is also within the great reality. Instead of the minored ball, think of the now familiar "shell-globe" which, although beyond your concept on a cosmic scale, consists of a kind of ether water-mass. For the chandelier substitute the truly endlessly great central sun, which upon its limitlessly out-stretched areas is surrounded by the most supremely intense shine, fiery flames (generated by the spirits, who are either commencing or

4. completing their purification operation upon their return); wherewith you have all the necessary aspects for your answer. The light from this immense central sun travels right up to the walls of the aforementioned shell-globe, from where once again it is reflected through space and solar regions beyond your grasp in outreach. But yet, that which is so immense, is for My eyes, hardly bigger than a grain of sand, which you toy with in your hand.

5. Since all suns have the capacity to take up and reflect the light image of another sun from its atmospheric surface, the way a minor takes up and reflects light, has been explained, you shall comprehend the powerful shine of the sun, being aware of the existence of a self-shining "sun chandelier" within this shell-globe, its light penetrating right up to the walls of the shell-globe, thereby already lighting up half of every sun, the other half being lit by reflection from the outer walls: which causes countless mutual shining to be reflected.

6. If your thinking is somewhat focused, then the source of a sun's powerful light should no longer intrigue you.

7. Knowing this now, you shall further comprehend the shining of each individual sun if I say unto you that, notwithstanding the above, each sun also has its own light, on account of its indwelling spirits, whose intensity however is nowhere near that which you see; their own light consists of the facilitation of the solar body's atmospheric top to vividly and perfectly absorb and reflect the light radiation from the central sun and the light reflected from the shell-globe walls and other suns. This also is the reason for the existence upon every solar body of so-called volcanoes, especially in their equatorial regions. What these volcanoes are however, manifesting as black spots to the aided eye, and how the solar atmospheric capacity to absorb light is maintained through them, shall be the subject of our next communication.

6. - Chapter 6 -

1. The etheric atmosphere of the cosmic bodies and Cosmic body systems. The largest cosmic bodies' combination - a shell-globe.

1. Having found out from whence the suns take their light and how they reflect same, a philosopher may say: I have nothing against this solar-light theory, and it has a lot going for it; yet it must be shown from where, the said, main central sun obtains its peculiar flame-light! And what in actuality is this shining from these presumed flames? How are these flames produced? Of what order is this eternal combustion material that it resists consumption through powerfully shining flames?

2. Behold, this is a profound question, but there is a still more profound one begging to be asked: although the whole thing sounds quite acceptable, it nevertheless is highly questionable whether this shell-globe really exists and whether it really contains such an immense, burning central sun. If this can be proven, then we scientists and astronomers shall indeed accept the thing; but until such proof is presented, we cannot regard the entire shining hypotheses as anything other than a successful and clever result of poetic imagination.

3. Behold, here you have almost verbatim the remonstrations we may encounter in the natural sphere. To preclude this critical philosopher from turning to the author demanding proof, rather than having already proven it herein, we shall encounter this in a practical way.

4. Concerning the shell-globe, this has countless corresponding equivalents in even the smallest being, as well as in a planet or a sun and, in short, in everything you care to look at. Where is the object whose many component parts are not surrounded by a shell, rind or skin?

5. Examine the human or animal eye! It totally corresponds to a shell-globe, within the centre of which the crystal pupil is found, which firstly, and especially with many animals, has its own light and takes up the light of other objects like unto a sun of whatever magnitude, found within a shell-globe. Examine the walls of the eye from within, how, after taking up all the rays received from without through the crystal lense, they multiply this light with the light of that very lense, before casting it into every thinkable distance. For you must know that you do not see the objects themselves but only their respective images, on account of their being taken up by the black rear minor retina (skin) through the crystalline lense and afterwards instantly reflected outward fully lit up. Only then do you behold the objects at their natural location outside of you. For were you to desire seeing the objects themselves then you could only see them in their actual size, whereupon seeing a dust particle now would seem like an elephant-sized animal afterwards, and even a planet-sized being with the spiritual eye.

6. The fact that you see all things through the eye's shell-globe-like composition in a much reduced image is proven by the fact that all objects regardless of how minute can under the microscope be magnified to an extraordinary degree, the magnification being nothing other than the steady approach of the studied object, or rather its light image towards the object's actual size.

7. Were this not so, then under such magnification it would be surprising if several and sometimes countless concise details could not be discovered, which the eye as it is, cannot detect. Say whether such detection does not prove that the naked eye cannot possibly see the actual objects but only their extremely reduced image along the above mentioned lines? (How otherwise could entire hordes of infusoria and other little animals be discovered in a droplet of water the size of the top of a knitting-needle?).

8. Anyone with a bit of a truly brighter mind should discover here, almost on first sight, the resemblance between the eye, a planet, a sun and thereby also a shell-globe.

9. Man likewise has a corresponding semblance to all this. What is his heart from the natural aspect? Is it not the central sun of the whole body? And all the countless nerves and fibres, secondary suns, etc? The outer skin as the shell however stretches over the entire organism. Could man actually exist without this outer cover, which is a good and effective protection from the entire inner physical organism for him and indeed every animal? Therewith we have another corresponding image of a shell-globe!

10. Look at a bird's egg. This is the same? In the broadest sense a replica of an entire shell-globe or central sun by itself or a secondary sun, or a planet or likewise of every existing whole object. Likewise you can consider a planet, and with a little thought you shall see that without an outer skin the planet's endurance cannot be imagined; just keep removing one external particle after another, and you shall ultimately come to the removal of the final particle, for the same needs an outer cover for its existence through which its parts are enclosed and held together.

11. In short, wherever a life is manifested, a suitable organism has to be on hand for this life-manifestation, whose parts are so positioned that one reaches into the other with great precision, one organic part driving, pulling and awakening another, like a clock, where one wheel engages, pulls, drives and awakens another.

12. Would the clock-wheels effect what they do, if their pins were not solidly mounted above and below, or so to say covered, within which cover they can be engaged for systematic movement? If however all this is on hand, what is still lacking for the wheels to tum? A central sun, and this is the spring. Wherefore the clock could not exist without firstly a cover for all wheels and secondly an inner driving force.

13. Thus it is so with the most insignificant plant's organism, which firstly has to have an outer cover, within which a suitable central organism has to be placed and that once again, effectively from the centre of the plant, where the enlivening power, like the light of the central sun, can act through the entire organism, vitalizing right through to the outer enclosure, where this force once again arrests itself, returning to the centre. Could this be effected without the enclosure? Indeed not, for without a container not a drop of water can be delivered home, let alone an organic life maintained.

14. Thus the organism of an animal as well as of a man also has to be enclosed by an outer shell within which the organism can then be put in order and also animated from the central point.

15. The same is the case with a planet without which firstly no planet would be thinkable and even less capable of providing a base for manifold life. Even more is this the case with a sun which is already a central point for an entire planetary system and hence must have a several-fold enclosure, akin to the heart within man's body, because its organism for the larger action has to be much more diverse and perfect than that of another planet. And thus every planetary system with its sun at its centre has its own etheric enclosure within which the entire planetary system moves, lives, mutually attracting, driving and awakening itself.

16. This is even more the case with the magnitude of a succeeding central sun around which up to several million smaller suns orbit with their planets and hence represents a much more grandiose and more diverse active organism than that of a smaller sun with its planets. Behold, these millions of suns in clusters also have their ether enclosed, the reason such distant solar regions can be observed as sharply delineated nebulae which would be impossible without this skin enclosing the ether; which in human as well as animal bodies can be compared to a tiny skin around each individual nerve without which it could neither live nor endure.

17. You are aware that these solar regions in rum have their own central body around which they move and are vitalized by the force of this central body and its still wider shell or self-contained skin or ether. This solar-region conglomerate i.e. where several or rather an immense number of solar regions around a still larger central body, together comprise a still wider solar region, which is in turn enclosed by a still greater skin or ether. And finally these solar conglomerates orbit in vast numbers around a common, bigger central point namely around the truly self-shining central sun, being one and all in life-giving action within an exceedingly out- stretched enclosure or skin. And this is then a shell-globe or a perfect independent solar body.

18. What would happen to this body if this most essential outer water skin or ether were taken from it? Ultimately, the same as what would happen to an eye if the outer cornea were removed or as the shell removed from an egg, or the sheath from a plant or the skin from an animal or finally the outer crust from a planet and that to all the component parts of this immense solar body. This would be the case with the entire solar body. It would partly liquefy, partly dry up, partly scatter infinitely and finally be extinguished and pass away. Hence we have established that it is necessarily for this shell-globe to exist as a complete solar conglomerate and hence also have an inner driving spring or general central sun as well. And our scientists who belittle this theory should now try again to present it as a clever poetic hypothesis!

19. Wherefore, this only leaves us to prove how the central sun shines and blazes. Once we have done that, we can cheerfully and peacefully settle down to behold all the glories and wonders of the fields and the volcanoes of our sun.

7. - Chapter 7 -

1. The suns' own light

1. Concerning the basis for the shining of a flame, this has actually been dealt with in the course of revelations about "The Fly". A sequel nevertheless may serve here to give deeper understanding of this phenomenon.

2. You are aware of the spiritual in its absolute sense not being able to maintain itself without some outer enclosure or organ through which it alone is capable of manifesting. Regarding the envelop, this in itself is nothing other than My love-will, which embraces the spiritual with its mercy, directing it inwards, placing it within some order, whereby it can carry out some part of My overall will and hence achieve some purpose corresponding to My eternal order. Behold, this thing is so!

3. What happens when some force, hidden by the shell of My love- power, regardless of how feeble or other circumstances or effects, is prompted, shaken or thrust? It is thereby thrust out of its order, or what amounts to the same thing, out of its equilibrium, feeling restricted or inhibited thereby, seeking to either restore its former tolerable state or, if overly antagonized, to rupture its entire organism and go over into an absolute (unbound) state?

4. Now consider the diameter of a central sun being such that in a straight line it would even take light, over a trillion years to cover the distance; the size or volume of such a body would be of a phenomenal order from the natural aspect. And if such a body were endlessly colossal for your concepts, would not such endless bulk of matter towards its mid-point, exert an inconceivable pressure from every side?

5. This is for sure; for think of the weight of just one mountain upon your trivial cosmic body; then think of the planet's weight and then that of your entire sun which firstly is a million times

6. bigger than your Earth and hence also harbours a gravitational pull a million times that of your Earth. For were this not so, then it could not attract entire cosmic bodies many thousands of millions of miles distant in such a way that they are unable to escape its region. And in proportion to this gravitational pull in a body also is the weight through the multiplied pull of this body.

7. But now consider that all suns, central suns, planets and comets taken together hardly make up a millionth part of this main primordial central sun and how mighty its gravitational pull must be and how mighty the pull towards its centre!

8. What does matter consist of? You are aware of matter being nothing other than the spiritual or spirits under captivity (condensed). If however, even upon the terrestrial body through collision between two stones, several tightly captive potencies often break loose; and somewhere in the Earth's interior, where the pressure from without becomes too mighty, powerful explosions can ensue without much delay, whose fiery effect can destroy huge mountains and extensive continental stretches. Yet if you trace this back to its cause, it is some sixty-four cubic metres of powerfully pressured spirits captive within matter seeking to throw off and rupture their shackles, seeking liberty to join many other spirits to break loose along the way. If therefore this is the case upon and in the Earth (something already introduced by comparison at the outset) then transpose this miniature relationship of your planet to the central sun. Then you will realize what pressures captive spirits constantly have to bear and this for the merciful reasons that, as mighty captives they are constantly reawakened to life through the mighty pressure.

9. On that account this central sun is also full to excess with the most immense so-called volcanoes, or fire-spewers of which the smallest has a diameter to make room for thirty billion of your suns, to say nothing of the largest of the craters upon this central sun!

10. Now you know that the shine is produced through the flashing or vibrations of the spiritual powers within the shell in which they are enclosed. The heftier the stirring up of a captive spirit within the aforementioned shell through an exterior pressure, knock or blow, the more intense the vibrations it produces and the more blinding the manifestation, that is the shining of a flame or spark. Where however can such spiritual potencies be more mightily pressured, pushed or struck than upon this central sun?

11. Due to these conditions, a spark shines so intensely there, that no human eye could bear it for a moment. Verily I say unto you: if a spark the size of a heather seed a thousand (German) miles above your Earth would ignite with the same light-intensity as it ignites upon this arch-primordial central sun, then through its radiation-vehemence, the Earth would in one moment evaporate like a water droplet upon a white-hot plate.

12. Now imagine the entire immense, chief central sun covered with such supremely intense light-flames and judge for yourselves the outreach or distance of such rays, as the flying excursion of the liberated spirits! This will give you an idea of the effect of such a general "chandelier" sun within the solar-universes chamber of a shell-globe. If you have understood this now, you shall also find it easy to comprehend in what way every small planetary sun as well as every planet can within themselves develop their own light, where the intensity of its peculiar light is always commensurate with the size of its volume and hence gravitational force.

13. Upon a terrestrial sphere for example, you can still look at a candle flame with ease -why? Because through its combustion the spirits bound within its wick and fatty matter are aroused only to an insignificant extent easily able through a low vibration intensity to destroy their surrounding (air) bubbles to then go over into free reign. Less easily are you able to look into a blacksmith's forge because the residual spirits within the coal need a heftier stirring in order to free themselves from their prisons by more intense vibrations. Even less ably shall you bear the light of those flames blazing and flashing forth from a fire-spewing mountain as these have their inception in much heftier agitation of the spirits within the Earth's interior.

14. Transpose this to the sun which escalates all relationships a million-fold and you will see how every sun is able to develop its own light through its volcanoes. The sun's own light nevertheless would still be far too feeble to completely light up and warm distant planets. But this sun's own light nevertheless admirably serves to, as you would say, keep the surface of the solar atmosphere "minor smooth" and in a most pure condition, in order to take up the light of the chief central sun and through same the light of all other suns lit up by it.

15. Therewith, we have disposed of another main obstacle and answered the above mentioned question. Wherefore we can, as said above, quietly start moving about upon our sun and admiring its wondrous splendour

16. But brace yourselves, for verily you shall not encounter so-called kid's stuff here. For everything presenting itself to your gaze upon this perfect planet shall be exceptional in size, loftiness, sublime and deep gravity! Nevertheless not today, but next time.

8. - Chapter 8 -

1. The origin of sun-spots

1. You will frequently have observed that the sun, usually at its equator, exhibits spots of every size around which the aided eye detects a rampart-like padding behind which a light is waving in all directions, which the astronomers have labelled flares. The question has often come up among the worldly learned as to what these spots might be, whilst many hypotheses have never yielded certainty.

2. You shall however this time receive a definite answer. How shall we go about giving you a definite answer to this phenomenon? You will of course say: that's easy. You only have to tell us and we shall believe. That is so indeed, but what I say here may one day come before the eyes of the worldly-wise. Shall they also necessarily believe what I tell you about it? Not at all. This kind is without faith. They do not even necessarily believe it is I, or that a God exists at all, as Revelation has shown, but at the most what their exceedingly wise reason invents. Wherefore as said, they would not believe a mere account but explain it away as the invention of poetic imagination.

3. Wherefore, we also must stand on quite different feet and set these foxes a quite peculiar trap which would not just trap their foot but grab such clever beings by their entire body. How to go about it? Just a little patience and we shall have it.

4. If you drill a sphere exactly through its centre and mount it on a spindle, immersing and rotating it inside water and then lift it out of the water still rotating, from which part of its surface shall the sphere fling off most droplets? You will answer Me: from that part furthest from the spindle where it develops the greatest centrifugal force.

5. Furthermore, take a glass sphere with openings on both sides so that again an axle can be inserted. Position it horizontally, pouring some water into it and spinning it. Where shall the water accumulate? Surely once again at greatest distance from the axle.

6. These two examples suffice to clarify the matter. The sun is also a sphere as you know. A sphere with a diameter of two hundred thousand (German) miles (1 GM = 7.42km; hence 200000 GM = 1,484,000km). This sphere turns around its axis approximately every 29 days. Consider therefore the speed at its equator where any point has to make a journey of 600,000 GM in 29 days - a distance approximately seven times that of the moon from the Earth. A distance that it would take a fast horseman seventy years to ride non-stop, day and night.

7. Visualize a point at the sun's equator and be amazed at the number of German miles it covers per minute, which makes you aware of the great centrifugal force at the sun's equator.

8. Then hark back to our second glass sphere and how the water is massed towards the equator. What therefore shall be taking place in the sun's interior near the equator also? Shall not the more loose parts also be pushing under the equator and on account of the immense centrifugal force trying to break through the sun's crust and with greatest power, thrust and velocity, escape out of the sun into infinite space?

9. In our most recent disclosure you heard what matter actually is regardless of type and what the consequences are if pressed, pushed or struck too hard. Shall not matter, as it masses extraordinarily towards the equator, also be vehemently pressurized and forced at some point or other, proportional to the centrifugal force and velocity at the sun's equator?

10. Behold, now the trap is in place it only needs a fox and you can be assured it shall not escape this trap.

11. You have heard already at the outset that the solar planet's soil is not as hard and brittle as for example that of the Earth but that it is elastic throughout and especially towards the equator. But let us suppose that the soil were brittle and hence to break up easily; what would the consequences be of the exceptional centrifugal force, especially at the sun's equator? Nothing other than one mountain and land area after another being flung from the solar surface with great vehemence into infinite space. Since however the solar soil is so rubbery this is not possible even if the rotation were double the speed.

12. What can nonetheless happen when, as a consequence of the great centrifugal force and pressure from within, powerful massing and hence solar solidification along aforementioned ways take place beneath the solar surface in the equatorial region? For mark well, cosmic bodies also can suffer physical sickness. Nothing other would therewith eventuate than such hardened lumps at some place would eventually, notwithstanding the tough solar soil precisely due to pressure-induced ignition, rupture and break out of the solar surface with vast force into either endless or at least planetary distances.

13. Behold, that is the origin of the resulting solar "black spots". Because with the immense breaking forth, not only the crust of the solar planet but also the photosphere (corona) are so vehemently ripped apart as to not only prevent it from firstly, at such point reflecting the light taken up from the other suns, but also stream forth its own peculiar light, which constantly develops from the elastic solar soil, if not broken up as just described, making it incapable of developing its own light.

14. We also noted before that to the aided eye, sun-spots appear as bordered by less dark mounds; what are they?

15. This is nothing other than the solar soil dug up by the eruption of this hardened mass forming itself into a funnel wall with narrow top and broad base. For a more telling example of a mound forming around the black spot, fashion a hollow half-sphere from tough soil of some pliability and thrust it through with a blunt instrument from inside, and you will get a semblance of these cast-up mounds, except it shall be more fractured as this clay still has less cohesion than the solar soil.

16. That the mound towards the black (mid) point still appears with soft light is due to the torn parts, although deprived of overcast solar photosphere still develop through intense vibration sufficient light of their own equalling the original peculiar light of the sun's own. From this you can see how powerfully the sun would shine with its own light even without the general light.

17. Furthermore, you have heard how beyond such mounds certain sunlight streams or flares develop. These are effected through the surging of the photosphere resulting from the eruption, because the waves mutually reflect one another, magnifying the shine, even whilst the furrowing waves must necessarily appear more feeble.

18. Behold, thus far we have presented things not only vividly but also in a practical way. But I foresee a few learned foxes bloating their faces to ask with dreadfully wise mien: well, well, give the thing an ear; the theory has much going for it, but the playwright seems to have forgotten that these sun-spots pass away drastically changing their shape on the way. How is the author going to get out of that mound? Besides, many astronomical observations show the highest frequency waves upon this very mound. This could considerably inhibit our author's wall-type mound dug up or even lay him to rest.

19. Not so My dear foxes. This indeed is chiefly grist for our mill. For would such foxes care to recall that we had already at the outset and right up to here, for good reason, spoken of the flexible soil of the sun which, after the eruption surely is not going to remain standing wall-fashion like a fire-spewer on Earth but to gradually by virtue of its elasticity draw itself together, healing the wound from the eruption like a cyst upon your body which, after the pus has run off, again diminishes and ultimately heals to where after a while no trace of the eruption is left upon whatever area.

20. If therefore this mound is not rock-hard but flexible, then the quick and extensive movements and alterations of the mound and its gradual disappearance shall surely be explained thereby.

21. Now then, no further objections? Behold, another fox still lurking in the background. He has measured several such black spots with his mathematical instruments finding some so large that thirty Earths could be accommodated next to one another in their dark room.

22. What does he want to say therewith? Nothing, other than: if such a spot arises in the above mentioned way and is seen from Earth, this thrown-up mound should appear more prominently upon the solar edge (Corona), whereas usually no evidence of this raised mound is seen.

23. Secondly, a second portentous question can be put: if the sun casts off such substantial masses from its interior, where do these go? And do not such immense losses affect the sun's bulk? Because with the largest spots one can estimate that in round figures, their mass would amount to a thousand terrestrial bodies. Taking the sun's cubic volume as a million-fold that of Earth, then a thousand such eruptions should consume the sun skin and all!

24. Behold, this fox has sharp teeth and even sharper mathematical eyes. But he too shall be caught in the trap. For My calculating ability can yet compete with these foxes, and an infinity or two beyond. I shall not actually answer this sharp-toothed fox's question immediately but rather ask him a few little ones Myself, and if he can answer them, his also shall be answered.

25. What is the annual cubic content cast off by an oak tree in proportion to the tree itself and that in the course of two hundred years? If however he measures the tree annually then he is sure to find that the tree does not thereby get smaller and thinner but on the contrary thicker, larger and higher. How is this possible? Answer: through constant replacement of all the tree's food sources. Thus I say: hit the same nose against the sun and you shall find that the loss can easily be replaced. Thus we have this objection behind us!

26. Regarding the small ridges of the thrown-up mound edges, let the objector try and spot a blade of grass with his naked eye at ten miles distance, which surely is nothing compared to trying to see a dug-up mound with his aided eye from 23 million G. miles, which at the most extreme limit at the sun's photospheric edge does not amount to a ten thousandth's part of the solar diameter.

27. Let the objector mark well and see that it could easily be as explained here, even if he does not espy Babylonian towers over the sun's edge with his polished glass. Besides that such parts of the ramparts, which come to protrude a little over the photosphere after an eruption, are melted with lightning speed by the colossal light intensity of the photosphere and hence annihilated. The reason such solar edge-protrusions are missed by the objector, can be spotted even less.

28. Therewith we have finished with black spots. Presently we shall witness this eruption with the solar inhabitants. And so let us leave it for today!

9. - Chapter 9 -

1. The solar, human races and their habitations. The solar equatorial belts

29. It was said last time that we shall follow through an eruption from its inception to its conclusion in the company of the sun- dwellers. Now we shall do so.

30. But before doing so we must necessarily become acquainted with the inhabitants of the outer sun.

31. What do these inhabitants look like and how do they co-habit? Are they mainly spiritual or physical humans? And is there only one class of humans upon this huge planet?

32. At the start it was mentioned that whatever occurs upon the sun in the truest sense and meaning of the word, occurs also upon the planets only in an embryonic and imperfect and more stunted and harder state.

33. Such is also the case with humans. Wherefore upon the solar planet, you can meet not only all human types of this Earth but also of all the other planets and their moons, especially concerning form, except that in form man is developed to the highest perfection and to the extent that nowhere upon the terrestrial surface will you encounter such beautiful and perfect human form. You can indeed take it from Me that physically man and woman upon the solar planet, are of such rare beauty that you could not behold it for three seconds without losing your life. Because apart from the exceeding fullness of magnificence in form, the physical shine of solar man is so powerful that if a solar man stood upon a mountain some fifty miles distance you would not be able to look at him for his blinding lustre. At close range he would bum you to ashes almost instantly. In the sun, woman is also much more curvaceous and gentle than man, but her shine is less intense.

34. You will ask: well, if that is so how can these people actually live without being melted by their own light, being more or less physical in body? Leave that to Me; on Earth there is of course no material that could withstand the intense sunlight; but solar matter is grounded upon different laws to those of an imperfect planet and so the material of a sun dweller's body consists of an entirely different material to that of your bodies and hence remains constant under the most supremely intense rays, since it is, as it were, more spiritual and hence incomparably simpler than your. Under such conditions solar men can indeed exist and enjoy their life and employ themselves for most useful purposes.

35. The most beautiful of the sun people nevertheless are white in colour, although there are no ugly people of any colour.

36. Regarding solar man's size, this too varies greatly. The smallest solar men live upon the equatorial regions and are no bigger than a very big man upon Earth. These people are nearly one and all white in colour and hence the most beautiful upon the solar planet. The biggest people however reside upon the sun's poles, and are of a nearly dark-red colour but shining with light too. If such people stood upon Earth at sea level, it would not be hard for them, without stretching their arm too high to grasp the summit of Mt Everest between thumb and forefinger and fling it to the South Pole. From this largest type of human, the sizes drift downwards to the equatorial inhabitants.

37. Here you will ask: "How do these immense giants behave when encountering smaller humans in their travels?" This question is groundless because upon the solar planet every race is confined to their habitat through natural conditions and can abandon such region no more than you can the Earth, were you to pine ever so much to travel to the moon.

38. But you will certainly put another question: how is this to be understood? This journey to the moon is indeed not possible, as it is too distant from the Earth. But the sun is one cohesive whole body, sharing just one surface; why should a long journey not be possible to one of the other races?

39. Just a little patience and we shall scrutinize the impossibilities. Firstly, the solar body's ground from pole to equator is of inconsistent density to the extent that the polar ground is almost as hard as that of your Earth, although far less brittle and fragile. This ground is up to its task with these giants. Where this ground begins to soften, it no longer carries such giants. Were he to continue he would soon start to sway and if continuing would with every step sink roughly to over half his height, as you would into a six metre high pillow on Earth. How would you walk over this pillow filled with feathers? Would you not sink into it with the first step after which all further effort to walk would be futile, even if the distance were only two hundred metres? But a mouse would easily run over it and a fly much more easily. Behold here we have one obstacle on account of which each human race is permanently confined to its quarters.

40. A second obstacle is the races' differing food requirements. For the products vary with the soil, notwithstanding they're being brought forth by the will of man. How is this to be understood? Quite the same as on Earth, but in a more perfect sense; for the solar soil does not obey men's will equally everywhere either, just as it does not equally obey men's activity on Earth. For even if someone stands on his head, it will not drive pineapples out of the ground in the North Sea Islands whilst the most clever gardener shall not raise Reindeer Moss at the equator.

41. The response of the soil on Earth depends on climatic heat. This is of course not the case on the sun, although it is somewhat cooler at the poles than the equator. There the response of the soil relates solely to soil softness or otherwise. A man from the harder soil region can or could indeed call forth something from softer soil, but the latter's shape shall vary with the form of the will of him who called it forth; but it shall be much smaller, weaker and softer, whereafter it shall correspond to the stomach-needs of him who called it forth as little as having to fill your stomach upon an Alps with the sparse rock-moss which will make no one fat. Were

42. someone therefore to succeed in getting through to the solar equator from its polar regions by artificial means, he would mercilessly have to starve to death there.

43. A third obstacle is the various miscellaneous and large circular waters which, as it were divide the most solid grounds sevenfold from pole to equator. These circular waters always have a width of several thousand (G) miles and near the middle, a depth of often ten to twenty (G) miles.

44. The solar water is much thinner than that of the planets, whence it is unfit for navigation and therefore entirely unsuitable for swimming. This is therefore an insurmountable obstacle second to none, which the sun dwellers cannot overcome. Wherefore they stay where they have been placed and don't know whether further land would tum up beyond such waters. They actually believe that with the inception of these circular waters, their world ends and the water continues to infinity.

45. The fourth obstacle which hardly needs mentioning is the many volcanoes and other lofty mountains along the coast of such circular waters. These volcanoes normally rage unceasingly and in such stupendous manner as to leave you without conceivable notion on Earth. Because some of these craters are larger than your Europe, from which trillions of the most violent lightning strikes crash forth with the great intensity, becoming a roar. The sun people are no friends of such natural spectacles staying well clear of the same. These volcanoes too prevent people from the inland from undertaking potential global sailing and they stay put, as you would say.

46. There would be other obstacles indeed, but this will suffice to demonstrate how the diversely sized peoples upon the solar planet can co-exist upon the same cosmic body untroubled. Therewith we have outlined in advance the local conditions of the people as well as the people and witness the above mentioned natural phenomena in their company.

10. - Chapter 10 -

1. The sun's central equator. Landscape and inhabitants. Eruption of a solar billow

1. The inhabited strip or solar belt along each side of the equator is some twenty thousand GM wide out of the total inhabitable width. This is also the most densely populated solar belt and can be walked and travelled by everyone. The ground is softly cushioned withal, wherefore none suffer the slightest injury on falling.

2. South and north upon this belt there are the most extraordinary unbroken and mostly unscaleable high mountains, which in some places cross the equator at more gentle latitudes, easy to scale and surmount. But not so at the northern and southern equatorial borders, where the mountains often reach a height of between one and two hundred GM, and are so steep and mirror-smooth as to make it virtually impossible to set a foot beyond their base.

3. Occasional there are spots with seemingly scaleable inclinations that can be climbed with strained exertion; the lofty solar mountains nevertheless have the feature of multiplying an unbearably blinding shine proportional to altitude. This is caused through rotation of the sun on the mountain-faces at these altitudes which are exposed to proportionately greater solar atmospheric pressure, whereby the capsules enclosing their spiritual substance (of which all matter actually consists) are set to a proportionately increased and self-expansionary vibratory reaction, which as you are now aware of, is also the origin of the intensifying, peculiar shine. (note: is also the origin of the intensifying, peculiar shine / The sun's own as distinct from that reflected from other suns.)

4. For this reason, these contingently scaleable solar "Himalayas" and "Chimbarossas" are left in peace, the sun dwellers only enjoying these mountain chains at a distances from a hundred to a thousand GM, by your measure. They nonetheless are exceedingly

5. great friends of the more gentle heights and lower mountains, dwelling mostly therein, for the great and extensive plateaus are never safe against an eruption, which, as I have said, we shall be watching in company with the sun-dwellers.

6. Scattered over the great plateaus there are great seas as well, which the sun-dwellers like to view though not venturing too close however, as the seas often overflow suddenly and people are not quick enough to escape the flood, such seas frequently holding more water than all the Earth's seas together.

7. Notwithstanding this, the many billions of people inhabiting this solar belt still have endlessly sufficient space, a single such solar hill with its ranges covering an area greater than your Asia, Africa and Europe combined; wherefore, be not anxious about sufficient territory for solar inhabitants. These solar hills furthermore are not to be compared with your terrestrial ones, for they still project some five to ten GM above the plateaus, exceeding your highest Alps tenfold and giving glorious views beyond your imagination; because the manifold groupings of the frontier Alps, the grandiloquent dwellings of people occupying the hills and the great diversity of vegetation: the extensive mirror-shine of the sea, the countless colours of things and above all, the exceedingly majestic and grandiose teaching Temples, make the view from this hill so exceedingly glorious as to magnify it beyond all your preconceptions.

8. We hardly need to mention the many gentle and beautiful land- based and aerial animals occurring in rare and manifold beauty to indicate also the liveliness of the solar landscape.

9. In short, this suffices for us to cheerfully settle down upon one of those hills and attend to one of the most memorable natural spectacles in the company of the sun dwellers. To enable you to observe this amazing scene the more animatedly, we shall join the sun people with sharp ears and listen to how they carry on.

10. Behold, over there, not too far from a large Temple whose pointed, exalted roofing rests upon a thousand great pillars, shining white, a group of about a hundred people of both sexes is standing. Watch how they fix their stares to the other side of the hill, pointing with their fingers. What are they on about? We are about to see.

11. Look, we are among them.

12. Over there, at great distance, in the middle of a large lake, a cone- shaped hill starts forming; watch how it visibly grows! But let us stop talking and listen to what the sun people are saying, and look what they themselves, although familiar with these appearances, are watching with amazement and trepidation!

13. Behold, several teachers also are watching. The two principals have a discussion; principal A says: "Brother, what do you make of this manifestation? What height do you think this growth will reach before the eruption? Look, it grows with great vehemence!"

14. Says B: "Brother, I can't say yet; if its flank doesn't swell then, as you know, it shall result in just a normal, imminent eruption. But watch, I note a great many forks (note: forks / Side craters) rising above the water! And look, behind the first cone I see one of much greater circumference rising above the first one quickly. Listen brother, we shall have to move higher this time, otherwise the rising growth shall push the water up here before the eruption."

15. Says A: "Yes dear brother, you would be right this time, the swelling grows mightily. and further ones are pushing above the water, although I don't see glowing red peaks yet. Wherefore hark, all you dear brothers and sisters, let us retreat up the hill behind us, near the main instruction Temple.

16. Now watch how everyone leaves the spot, hastening up the substantially higher hill behind us.

17. And now they and ourselves have reached the above Temple; let us hear more!"

18. Says A: "What do you think brother, will it be safe to await the eruption? Is it rising vertically or do you notice the cone heading in our direction?"

19. Says B: "You are right brother! May the great God now show us the right escape, or we are lost together with everything adorning this place!"

20. Behold, thereto everyone falls to the ground, praying the great God for mercy and for enlightening their teachers and leaders, helping the latter to take them to a safe spot to awaiting this calamity.

21. Watch how A stands up together with B, A saying: "Brother, eternal thanks to the great God! For look back up there - the third hill; an angelic guardian spirit from the light-spheres is already standing near the Temple of just seventy-seven columns. Let us hasten over there, as we shall just make it before the combined eruption is about to break forth; watch how vehemently all the cones are pushing up with their steadily widening girth! These are signs of a most terrible eruption!"

22. Watch them all rise and rush over to where the guardian spirit indicates is a safe spot. Watch them hold hands and pull each other along, that none would be left behind or be exhausted! Look how they are nearing their destination and we with them; a short while and the spot is reached.

23. "We are here," says A. "Eternal praise and thanks to the Great, Almighty Protector who saved us! And you our honest guardian spirit, if it is the Great God's will then, stay with us in this time of fear and help and comfort the weak."

24. Says B: "Indeed, may the sole, mighty will of the Great God be done forever!"

25. A third one joins them, saying: "Brethren, look down at our first position: it is already awash from the mighty waves and the roof of

26. the Temple can hardly be seen!"

27. A fourth one comes, pointing his hand upwards and saying: "Behold brother, for the almighty God's will: the mighty swelling that is already exceeding the highest mountain is getting glowing shoots and thousands follow them!"

28. Says A: "Be comforted brethren! We are safe, the swelling is turning away from us and no devastation shall reach us with the rupture."

29. Says B: "Brace yourselves! The entire cone has turned glowing red and millions of lightning strikes are escaping from its extensions. What would be the height of the swelling now? Has it reached the glowing surface of the bright atmosphere?"

30. Here the guardian spirit steps over telling them to lie on the ground and thrust their fingers into their ears, as the swelling is rising above the glowing atmosphere and the eruption will now follow.

31. And watch, all lie on the ground with their ears stopped, shaking. But let you also listen and watch the swollen, glowing red cone of several thousand miles diameter! It has ruptured, followed by an earth-shattering bang. The mountains are quaking mightily and the mightiest lightning escapes by the million from every height, accompanied by the most dreadful thundering.

32. Look over there where those walls are getting darker, flashing convulsively! But look down there; some tributary cones have not burst yet. Keep looking there to the right, southward; this one shall burst in the deep. Watch out when its peak starts splitting off, glowing white and alive with flashing lightning; thus it shall burst. A little more patience and you shall see the spectacular display! Now watch it is bursting!

33. Behold the masses crashing forth from the chasm at super- lightning speed! What are these masses? You already know about

34. them; they are new packs of fiendish monsters for new cosmic bodies, consisting of retarded spirits who had not withstood their freedom test!

35. Look into the far distances over there; how great numbers of spherical flares of every size are falling back into the extensive waters. Lift your eyes also upwards into endless space and note how the visible firmament is criss-crossed in all directions with countless shooting stars, as you would call them. And look still further how from the multi-planetary volume crater, massive smoke and cloud-pillars are rising and surging forth towards distant interplanetary spaces!

36. And look at how the big crater is becoming narrower and narrower - and how it collapses again into the depths.

37. And watch also how our company starts to get up off the ground, rendering Me loud praise for preserving them and for the propitious ending of the eruption to an exceptionally immense swelling.

38. Behold, that's what such eruptions look like, except in actuality the duration of its growth and passing is much longer as are the other phenomena also. Since we have seen this now we shall also shortly discuss it a little with the sun inhabitants and indeed get to know the inhabitants of this belt a little better. And so lets leave it at that for today!

11. - Chapter 11 -

1. Pendulum-clock and the timekeeper and other occupations upon the central belt

1. Since we are still with our company, we shall tarry with them a little and therewith hear out and watch diverse things to see what they shall do and say.

2. They are still assembled upon the third height near the small Temple with just seventy-seven pillars; and look how B again joins A, asking: "Brother, how long by your wisdom do you say the great God will be pleased to leave the great swelling, relieved of its trouble, open?" Says A: "Brother, you know how nothing is harder for me than to determine time. Why do you ask me? But give me a timepiece and I shall tell you." Says B: "Brother, the water is now standing where we had created our time counter; wherefore I can't obtain a timepiece for you right now. But this much you could tell me: how far would I get on average speed before the mighty outflow sinks back to its former position?" Says A: "You may indeed walk fifty seven million paces before the mighty outflow sinks back to its depth and the scar heals to a smooth sea bed for the great lake."

3. Here you could ask: why don't the sun-dwellers determine time by years, days and hours? The answer is obvious: there is no night upon the sun, ever, but constant day. Nor is there a moon for determining time.

4. Besides that, the stellar sky suffers poor visibility upon this belt because in this region the solar atmosphere is the most unstable, due to maximum disruption from its mighty rotation, on account of which it is set alight here to the highest degree and generates the most intense light, especially in the higher altitudes, due to which it is more difficult to look into the creational spaces from this part of the sun compared to those points of far lesser atmospheric turbulence, especially the polar regions.

5. Behold, this is also why it is more difficult for sun-dwellers of this belt to determine time, since they have no morning, mid-day, evening or night. How do they cope without time measurement?

6. They make trees of enormous height to grow out of the ground, which does not cost them much time, effort or work: some teacher mentally sketches a tree himself; having thus imagined it he bows to the solar earth, carving into it with some sharp instrument, afterwards thrusting the latter deep into the ground before pulling it out again, then stroking the carved area and the middle of the hole with his fingers, saying after the effort: "The great God's will be done!" Whereupon the sketched tree at once begins to sprout forth from the solar ground. . Once the tree is fully where the will of the artist has placed it, it is used for the purpose for which it was called forth from the solar ground.

7. Since we spoke of a tree for time measurement, we shall look at how they use it there.

8. You will have watched a garden game on Earth called "pigeon shooting" that is the look of this tree, except that it is not hewn nor drilled but it is a round tree of about ten meters girth and six hundred meters high, with ox-horn shaped extensions in place of other branches on both sides on a huge scale. The top of the tree bends some ten meters over the ground from the vertical with a crown for ornamentation. To this area that bends forward a long rope is tied, with a spherical pendulum of the right weight hung at the bottom. A person swings the sphere to the limit of their capacity. This pendulum then swings for quite some time and time determined therewith.

9. The duration of a swing is about half a minute and a determinate number of these then counts as what you regard as about one hour. The total time of swings to full rest the sun dwellers call about what you call a day.

10. But what happens when this timepiece has ceased its oscillations? Then the keeper of time is on hand and swings the pendulum anew; with the solar inhabitants this occupation is held in high esteem. This person is of the highest social standing for they say: if he were not a constant pendulum sentinel then none should know their time of birth or age.

11. Wherefore occasional bribery of the keepers of time occurs, because to sun-dwellers of this belt nothing is more irksome than approaching age, whilst it is an easy matter to be young again; one comes to an agreement with the time sentinel to . let the pendulum rest for a while. This rest then throws all previous calculations overboard, making them void and counting is done anew.

12. Here you will say: well, what becomes of the time-swinging period before the standstill? It is taken off the account because the rest-period cannot be calculated. For which reason the new swing period brings about age equality for all people. This is easy and quite possible over there because ageing is not determined by nature: a person several hundred years old has the same fresh and cheerful appearance as any twenty year old, by your calculation. For which there is substance in making oneself younger in respect to life's time-duration and old and young are distinguished only by wisdom.

13. For this reason the desire for perpetual youth predominates mostly with the female sex and with the male only when intent on nuptials with some female. But when competing for some important post then even the pendulum standstills are counted, so that some arrive at such old age that he is thoroughly ridiculed even by the truly wise teachers and employers. On such occasions however age assessment is not relegated to the stipulated pendulum swings, but the applicant for a position is given difficult questions to answer by teachers in a special temple. If his answers fully satisfy the teachers then he is declared fit for the position and given a cipher testifying his age. Even if this candidate is no more than thirty years by nature, he is declared sixty by wisdom.

14. You will ask what type of positions do they have? I say unto you: no planet offers so many and diverse occupations. Although there are no town clerks or offices as on Earth, there nevertheless is a fist of others, which you could not at present conceptualise, whence we shall run through some of the more important ones.

15. The foremost and most highly esteemed are the teaching professions for which there are in almost countless number of school-temples upon the heights in which the sun-people are instructed about all and sundry.

16. A second main profession is that of the priesthood, consisting in the priests having to familiarize themselves with God's nature and order. Notwithstanding this, the teachers of the first variety are more eminent for these are the actual High Priests and hence regents over the nation.

17. Another office is that of guiding, ordering and developing the people's will in accordance with the will of God: to show people theoretically and practically as you would say, that man can only act fully with his will if it is attuned to the will of God. Wherefore it is every person's primary responsibility to probe this almighty and most holy will before everything else; for without this no man can call forth a plant from the soil.

18. This too is shown them in a practical way, a teacher calling on a student to carve the earth in accordance with his own will, then run his finger over same and then call forth his idea, resulting in neither fruit nor plant. The teacher then shows his student the great God's will letting them take same straight from Him, followed by carving the ground and running the fingers over it to then draw the idea out of the ground through the recognized will of the great God. And the students at once behold the power of will when attuned to the most High!

19. They are also shown that man can coax almost anything from the ground that he desires; but he must not do so as if from his own power but through prayer and the might of the great God's will, which also is shown in a practical way.

20. Behold, this is a most important profession, because instruction is given in solar agriculture therewith in the truest sense.

21. Another office is to counsel men in the order of undertaking every venture. And this profession too is of grave importance, teaching sun-dwellers My order. Alternatively they are shown in practice how contrary-wise, disorder has a destructive effect on everything brought forth through divine order and how disorder endangers all life upon the far-flung grounds.

22. Another office is that of allocating solar land. Notwithstanding the absence upon the sun of land-rights as such, the allocation nevertheless takes place for the sake of order. People are shown where they are allotted to call something out of the ground and in what order so that trees, grass and plants do not grow together haphazardly, a certain good order being maintained everywhere. Behold, that too is a vital office due to which this entire, immensely great solar belt has the appearance of one huge, continuous garden, adorned with the most glorious, countless growth of various trees, shrubs, plants and grasses which as said, are unique with every individual sun-dweller, the very thing that heightens the appeal and beauty of these huge lands to an indescribable degree.

23. Another office more variegated consists in teaching men how to make good use of the products called out of the soil, teaching them also moderation in all things.

24. Another office is responsible for the animal kingdom and classification, teaching their useful employment and giving the reason they are not also able to bring forth animals through their will. Another job consists in showing how to deal with the sundry atmospheric and fire drafts from the mountains, whilst another teaches sign language somewhat like your numerology, for recording the correspondence between things and to recognize them and pass them on to others. Another profession is entrusted with building, giving instruction in erection of dwellings, office buildings, school-temples and finally houses of God - a class devoted exclusively to the building trade. As said, there are a great many other professions of which we shall make mention at the appropriate time.

25. But now we shall have another look at our company and watch how they start their way down from the third hill to the second one with the big Temple. For the swelling has retreated to where the water has receded from the first hill with the timepiece. And thus, one of their company hastens ahead to swing the pendulum, to enable them to more closely determine the course of the eruption.

26. But for today we shall cease observing our blindingly shining company and then catch up with the ran of things with our next revelation!

12. - Chapter 12 -

1. The sinking back and vanishing of the solar growth

1. Behold, B moves over to A again, saying: "Look over there, brother! The pendulum is swinging at regular intervals again. I think that in another ten thousand swings we may see the edge sink down from the heights, as there are substantial indentations and folds at its base. If so then we know that the edge of the swelling will shortly reveal itself.

2. Says A: "You are right, there are not a lot of folds and indentations indeed running down from the top, but I don't see any horizontal ones yet which usually start crossing the vertical ones when the swelling is about to sink to the depths. Hence I don't think we are about to see the bright edge yet."

3. Says B: "Brother, since as you say the top shall not be visible too soon, we ought meanwhile to go over to the Temple and see whether the floods which nearly reached its roof did any damage inside and if so, do some repairs?"

4. Behold, the suggestion is adopted and the big Temple, which by your measure is about seven and a half kilometres long and two kilometres wide, is inspected around all its colonnades and other furnishings for any damage, but after realizing that there was no damage they looked contented. Only some soaking took place.

5. How long did such an inspection take? About three days by your reckoning. Nevertheless, in the sun such activity passes with much faster perception of time as there is no night, as I have said, only perpetual day.

6. Watch how the company is leaving the Temple again and one of them is despatched to enquire of the pendulum sentinel how many swings have taken place since the restart. Behold how our messenger has arrived getting the reply "ten". One for every twenty thousand swings. The messenger is back.

7. Now B notices a horizontal furrow upon the extensive swelling saying so to A. The entire company also voices it cheerfully. The women yelling "Watch, watch, a horizontal fold!"

8. The growth has started to sink with A saying to the company: "Yes, it's here. The first blessed furrow! No further swelling shall be seen in that place too soon for the first horizontal fold is drawing the growth together mightily and belting it up tightly." Behold, all fall down and earnestly with all their strength do as commanded by the first teacher.

9. Only A and B remain standing watching the swelling and the swings of the pendulum mounted not far from the Temple. B notices a second horizontal furrow above the first telling A: "Yes brother, you noticed correctly. It is a sizeable furrow but look another one is forming under the first and look, another one above the second one you saw. All praise to the almighty great God! The big swelling is sinking rapidly. Although I don't see the top yet it should soon come into view."

10. Says B: "Brother, look upward. If my eyes don't deceive me then I already see the mighty flashing of lightening, the harbinger of the top." Says A: "Yes, indeed you're right! As well, I hear the distant dull continuous rolling edge of thunder." He beckons the company to get up and look upwards to see how deliverance is closing in rapidly.

11. With great jubilation the company get up looking upwards through their hands. Ever closer are the lightning flashes and the ever mightier thunder. In silence the company watches for a while the trillions of uninterrupted lightening flashes in all directions from the welling still several thousand GM wide.

12. The keeper of time has just completed another swing. Still no rim! But now B and several others scream: "the brim, the brim, watch it's coming into view! We are all delivered! Only a few more swings and we shall be able to look over it, the glorious, bright rim!" And A says to them: "Yes, this swing shall not have finished moving and we shall be looking over the surface of the rim and get a good view, for it is sinking almost vertically on our side.

13. Says B: "At what distance do you judge it when it gets level with us?" Says A: "I would say thirty wons!" In solar language that means three thousand GM, a quite impressive distance on Earth, but for the sun, one won is no more than about seven minutes on Earth.

14. Says B again: "How wide could the brim be this time?" Says A: "Judging by the size of the growth it could measure some forty won."

15. And A addresses the crowd again: "Beware! The horizontal furrows have started to quake again; the crater shall not be sinking quietly but crash after such signs. Hence brace yourselves and don't fear the sudden banging and seat yourselves on the ground in order not to fall over when the sudden crash shakes our ground quite violently! And pray the great God that He would preserve our dwellings and Temples.

16. And B hastens over to A making him aware of the immense palpitation of the rim now coming into view. Says A: "Indeed brother, well noted, for I notice pulsations of about ten thousand GM (100 Wons) along the periphery as far as my eyes can see and the pulses are getting heftier! How they flicker like the flag on our largest temple riven by a hurricane! Wherefore watch and be on your guard. In a few pendulum swings the rim, now five Wons above us shall plunge down below us so that we may get to see some of the shockingly deep craters - unless the rim walls have not already joined up numerously. Watch, spherical flares are coming down already! The crash is imminent!"

17. Harken and behold, the entire company leaps into the air screaming! Thousands upon thousands of water-spouts are hosing out of the immensely out stretched flood, warring against the slowly sinking rim whilst huge spherical flares the size of the Earth-moon are plunging down from the rim into the raging and foaming flood, each flare accompanied by trillions of lightning strikes. Watch the boiling of the immense waters: what steaming and billowing where the flares crash from the lofty rim into the raging flood!

18. Now heed, as all is ready for the big crash. Behold, the sentinel has stopped the swinging and fastened the pendulum to the tree. Even the two instructors sink down near the tree clutching it with one hand. The entire crowd does so, the sentinel joining them.

19. Watch them all gazing steadfastly at the storm-ravaged rim, unspeakably severe for your concept, where the rim is making up to ten thousand GM to and fro excursions in and out each second, even whilst the simultaneous pitching of the crater itself to and fro also covers up to four thousand GM per second. Now imagine such movements from our solar company's vantage point! Even though they really are thirty Wons removed, this play is for our solar people's eyes and they can therefore indeed witness the terrifying movements of this manifestation.

20. And watch how the rim has dropped but not quite as vehemently as expected. Therefore the resulting tremors of the surroundings were not as hefty as at other times. But this mighty collapse nonetheless has driven the flood into our company's vicinity notwithstanding their position up on this hill being at an altitude of five GM above sea level.

21. Do you grasp such movement? What would you say and feel if situated atop an Alp as high as the Großglockner (3798m) upon Earth and at about five to six GM from the sea, with a raging storm whipping up waves that are just about to reach you? Would you not, one after the other, start pulling your hair out in consternation? Yet upon the sun, such phenomenon would be regarded as "kid's stuff, as you say, since their hill is already nearly five times the height of your Mt. Everest (8882m), i.e. above the quiet solar water level.

22. Consider such comparison, the grandiose flooding consequent upon the collapse of our solar swelling will hit you in the eye. And this too you are to thoroughly grasp that you may recognise all the more how mighty is He Who allows Himself to be called your loving, good Father!

23. But lets look at our company again. Watch how they are gathering around the instructor, praising the great God and how the time sentinel rushes back to his tree to release the pendulum and to give it a new swinging start.

24. But, together with the sun people lets watch over the big swelling rim. Behold its residual width. Do you notice how two of your Earths could comfortably roll along its top? Indeed, that's how it is! But now the crater has narrowed down and is hardly two rim breadths wide and stretching lengthwise rather than breadth-wise having consolidated at various points.

25. Watch how the light-conditioned solar inhabitants are guarding their eyes against the blinding shine of the broad rim and watch how occasional fiery balls are flung out powerfully to a height twice the distance of your moon from the Earth and behold the lightning in countless numbers still crashing from the still agitated rim!

26. Behold, this is the full course of this grandiose manifestation, now gradually collapsing, as the rims are steadily consolidating. The finale is usually a powerful downpour of rain lasting several days, by your time, through which the rims are cooled then quietened and lastly joined up and healed, then sinking back to their former position under the sea surface.

27. Have another look at our sun-dwellers, how they are full of cheer beyond measure, praising and rejoicing over the great God who has in this most wise fashion brought everything back to the previous order. Watch them embracing and greeting each other and then streaming towards their dwellings and how they are met by a great many of their well-preserved children, brothers and sisters.

28. And so this action too is at an end. Presently we shall observe some of the sun-dwellers' domestic arrangements and afterwards cast another superficial glance over this whole belt.

13. - Chapter 13 -

1. Property ownership and life prerequisites of the equatorial inhabitants.

29. Upon the sun and namely our belt there are no actual property rights as such as on your terrestrial body. But there is a right of order underpinned by the axiom: "there must be no landless man, but land that is nevertheless always allotted by special officials, measured out for one or the other's use only. The landowners of measured tracts are therefore the beneficiaries or usufructs only, for the term of their lives.

30. After their decease however, not they but officials appointed by the educationists are the rightful administrators. On the sun, this brings about the cessation of children's inheritance rights, which are an especially hateful abomination before Me upon your Earth. But children are one and all, when of sufficient education and abilities, taken care of by the officials.

31. This is done as follows: If parents have only one, two, three or four children, then on their coming of age and already during the parent's lifetime, the land is divided up two thirds to the children with the parents retaining one third. This third does not revert to the children after the parents' die, but can be allotted by the officials to anyone still landless. Such distribution holds good only for two generations. In the third generation a consolidation of several allotments takes place, which is then systematically allotted anew to any landless persons according to need.

32. In the case of any further landless persons missing out during such allotment, these are then covered by so-called land-reserves. What is this reserved land? This can be either a substantial over- allotment of land already owned or it can be land not yet owned, or even areas suddenly exposed as islands under above mentioned circumstances.

33. Therefore upon the sun, nobody suffers want, although this main belt is heavily populated. For firstly, the people are on average, not much bigger than a few big ones on Earth and are secondly one hundred times less demanding than some of your smaller people; therefore a much smaller land portion suffices them than those of your Earth.

34. Their clothing consists of no more than a loincloth and a fairly wide hat. Their food is brought forth by the solar soil whenever they desire to eat and in moderation. Therefore a landowner is content with an area, which you would call about a half acre.

35. This lawful distribution has the positive result of these people knowing nothing whatsoever about land disputes.

36. Do the landowners have to pay taxes to these officers? That is something alien to sun people for all officials together with educators have their own land - not excluding the keeper of time.

37. But it can be asked whether a person has the right to satiate himself upon his neighbour's land if feeling hungry? Indeed so. In an emergency all ground is public property but it is not tolerated if wanton. But truly no one would do so because only laws and statutes create criminals. Where freedom of will is maintained as far as possible however, it can also be best developed to maintain public order.

38. For a will thrown together from rough laws is a tormented will. A tormented will however takes no pleasure in order but rather tries to find relief for itself here and there, being concerned very little as to whether its action accords with lawful order, its guideline being its own wellbeing. If however free will is maintained and the regulations of order recognised, then it realizes the pleasant advantages thereof and is pleased to discover the divine order by itself.

39. This is also a basic rule in bringing up children in the sun, which would also be better for Earth rather than education through which memory is tormented, intellect ill treated and the spirit killed! Nevertheless, we are now on the sun and not the Earth and note with open eyes of the spirit how the divine order everywhere comes to the fore, most evidently, even in the most insignificant domestic arrangements and responsibilities.

14. - Chapter 14 -

1. The dwellings upon the equatorial belt

40. To enable us to get to the various aspects of housekeeping order, it will be necessary to look at the aspect from which it derives its name (for it is plain that "housekeeping" derives from house), whence it shall be necessary to look at one or other of the solar houses and together with its residents, examine its domestic constitution.

41. What therefore do the houses of the sun people look like on that now familiar belt, which overall has the width of approximately the distance of the moon from your Earth? Do they resemble earthly dwellings? Are they built side by side in vast numbers as in your big cities? Not at all. It is not the case anywhere. Firstly, there is no city anywhere upon the sun and the dwellings also have an entirely different shape and are outfitted differently.

42. So what do they look like? Think of a circle of between one and two hundred meters in diameter. This curvature is taken up by square pillars of four metres thickness and forty metres height, at four metre intervals. On top of each pillar there is a round capital, as you might say, with superb ornamentation and windings. These pillars are topped by massive crossbeams that connect all the pillars in the circle. Above these, roof joists rise to form a multi- pointed pyramid, their length depending on the sharpness of the roof-rounding.

43. Each of these roof beams also has relatively longer or shorter dimensions according to the diameter of the curvature, depending on whether it is bigger or smaller; this means if the diameter of the curvature of the whole house is smaller, then the roof beams also don't have to be so long in order to touch each other at the apex in a pyramidal shape; but if the diameter of the curvature is bigger, then the roof beams also have to be longer in order to touch each other at the apex in the shape described before.

44. Since the style of the roof adhered to is more or less that of the steeples of your so-called Gothic churches, it speaks for itself that the roof beam lengths have to be substantial and thus often six hundred metres in length.

45. You will ask, why such rooves in the sun, where it rains either rarely or not at all? These rooves however are not to be regarded as rain umbrellas but only as very practical light and heat umbrellas. For, notwithstanding the incredible heat-tolerance of the sun people by your standards, they nevertheless are friends of shade and some cool.

46. No roof however is more conducive to light and warmth protection then the pointed style for it constantly unloads light and the associated heat That this is so you can see from a little example by taking a long and well pointed piece of metal, holding the point into a flame, even if the point glows white hot the much bulkier other end gives no warm sensation, whereas in the reverse case, or a uniformly thick rod, it shall immediately heat up intensely right to the other end.

47. Now take a pointed roof not even made of light and heat- conducting material and it shall be clear that such roof is a most efficient protection from light and heat.

48. The roof beams also are nailed over closely with a class of wooden boards. These are overlaid with a type of white mirror plates made of a variety of solar soil similar to your roof-tiles but pyramid-shaped, with their apexes bent at right angles and inserted into the gaps between the boards and sealed with putty. The thickness is no greater than your cardboard but with the flexibility of lead sheeting.

49. This is the type of finish for all rooves and their appearance is of exceptional beauty for these panes have a surface brilliance more intense than your finest polished alabaster, the reason fore reflecting all light and hence not being warmed themselves.

50. Internally, this roof is covered up to its apex with a dark colour found at the coast of great waters and especially after aforementioned eruptions.

51. What are the pillars made of? These are made of a type of brick resembling yours but much finer and as transparent as your most precious stones being of exceptional beauty to look at. For the crossbeams and roof joists, special trees are raised up in the shape for this purpose.

52. In the spaces between the pillars there are tiny circular gardens abounding with the most endearing and charming growths. The sun people are skilful in landscaping growths in graduated height towards the middle so that with the exception of the entrance the beholder is greeted with the most luscious flower pyramids of such rich flower diversity as to leave you short of description, as each pyramid is adorned with a thousand different flower varieties completely distinct from the next and in tum making each house distinct for the next.

53. Therewith we have most superficially presented dwellings there, so far as your imagination will allow. If however you let your spiritual fantasy roam, you shall behold sundry which this restricted presentation failed to convey. In short, here you can fantasize to your heart's content and in spite of its ebullience find it impossible to exaggerate. Why? Because in the kingdom of growth you cannot sketch a form that is not found more perfect in the sun because the far more spiritual people of the sun run circles around the spirits inhabiting all the planets, the way the sunlight itself circumscribes all planets. Wherefore you can fantasize as much as you like and yet not sketch a form which is not presented upon the sun in actuality.

54. Wherefore, as stated, you shall find there not only all visible products of all planets in the greatest perfection but all thought- forms that ever were thought by people upon the planets physically.

55. Whence we can now cast a glance at solar man's dwellings and be delighted, for no man can dream of something more varied and magnificent than he can encounter upon the sun in actual fact. Thus even the colouring of the aforementioned pillars is of such exceptional majesty that the most magnificent glitter of a diamond on Earth is but the flicker of a puddle because, as indicated at the outset, everything upon the planets is as dead and motionless whereas on the sun everything bristles with life.

56. Since we have now cast a fleeting glance we shall also move into such a house and look at its interior set-up.

57. The floor has the appearance of dark, polished transparent gold or of a beautiful, finely polished topaz, except that the floor is of flexible resilience.

58. In the gaps between the inward-facing pillars stand four-faced pyramids like finely polished diamonds mounted upon a stand or pedestal, as you would say, which overlaps as a roomy bench of a total circumference of six to eight metres, which the sun people use like chairs. The material being different to the pyramid but also most finely polished dark green, transparent and resilient.

59. In front of these pyramid-seats there are low fixtures, broad at the top, coloured like finest polished rubies and serving as dinner tables.

60. In the middle there is a pyramidal spiral staircase with a base diameter between twenty and thirty metres, fitted with most artistic landings and level at the top within the landing, enclosing pyramidal seats. The main part of the pyramid is of light violet colour or an occasional rose-red with the landings of diverse, finest polished multi-coloured, transparent materials occurring only in the sun and nowhere else, and also elastic. What is its purpose?

61. It serves for higher conventions, about things divine. In the centre at the top is a pulpit of light-green, shining and transparent material from where the house elder counsels his relatives about

62. God.

63. You will ask why a pyramid? By these spiral stairs people reach quite deeply into the pointed roof, taking them away from distractions by the exceeding splendour of things solar, enabling them to tum towards, even whilst this very same spherical staircase shows them the spirit5ual narrowing of the path and how one can reach the apex of the true inner life only in this way. Regarding the exceedingly beautiful spiral landing ornamentation however this usually depicts My wondrous incarnation upon Earth.

64. At the entrance opposite the middle pyramid there is a raised perfect square a metre off the ground and of four metres diameter, on which there also is a pyramidal seat with a most artistic landing on three sides. Take note for this will take your fancy.

65. Behold, this is a domestic orchestra which must not be lacking in a solar dwelling. It consists of a majestic harp which every solar person is capable of playing by ear. It serves as accompaniment to the most sublime hymns which are invariably sung as praise to the Great God after meetings. As for the tone of this instrument and the exceeding purity of solar people's voices, this you shall be able to grasp only when you are no longer captive in the flesh.

66. Therewith we know all the arrangements inside a solar dwelling. But you must not think of this as the firmly set order in solar dwellings, except generally and in building-style for they are grossly diverse in detail of shape and colour.

67. Thus the pillars could give the look of stacked clouds joined in series or cliffs or steeples or Gothic columns or large animals such as rearing white horses or glowing red elephants carrying the roof with extended trunk and innumerable other forms.

68. In substance the internal arrangement is indeed like the example, but in form they are as diverse as the pillars, only the rooves are all identical.

69. So allow yourselves time to digest this and be prepared for much more extraordinary things next time.

15. - Chapter 15 -

1. The dwellings surrounds upon the equatorial belt.

Tree growth there.

1. What are the surroundings of such dwellings? They normally consist of a circular avenue of immensely high trees of a single species at every house, but different from each other. You could indeed crisscross this forty thousand GM wide and six hundred thousand GM long belt if your life in earthly years, sufficed and never find the same boulevard of fruit trees around two houses. One lot might look like gigantic spiral columns adorned with a weeping willow type crown at the top. The leaves are over a cubit long and just over one cm wide; the underside is carmine red whilst the surface is smooth and green-gold with an exceedingly shiny pearl of blue light hanging from every leaf tip. On long white stalks between the leaves hang fruits which can be likened to your so-called carob but without stones, for as you are now aware, all fruit in the sun is stone-free and of an exceedingly spiritual, sweet flavour making it a favourite for this house.

2. How do the sun people get the fruit down from these lofty trees? That is easy, they have poles fitted with clippers, an almost universal tool. Therewith they break off the fruit of any variety according to need.

3. You will wonder why these people let these trees grow so tall when the growth of all trees and plants is under the control of their will. That would be a misguided question for the sun people are exceedingly wise and do nothing wantonly and for this reason every decoration must have a well thought out and proven usefulness. Thus the lofty position of the crown of these fruit trees has its decided, multiple good purposes.

4. You ask what purpose? Just a little patience and it shall transpire! For a start you have to know that nowhere in the planets are there such charming and far-flung country views as precisely upon the sun, because here it is not unusual from an average hill to overlook an area of at least five thousand GM diameter - hence four times the distance on your Earth from North to South Pole in a straight line. And to that, you have to add that the solar air, especially upon this belt, has ether of the highest purity which, particularly for the sharp-eyed sun people, improves the view in the natural sphere.

5. Behold, now the purpose shall transpire presently! Since the sun people, as already said, are great friends of glorious country views, they deliberately place the crowns of their fruit trees so high that they cannot obstruct the views. Behold, this is one reason, which from your point of view, does not carry much weight but upon the sun is much more important. For it does not concern just a good view, but the lookout: this is something very essential, because there are often manifestations above the ground, which have both good and bad repercussions. Hence everything must be watched with attention or inhabitants of the sun, especially upon this belt, can be overtaken by one or other natural phenomena causing severe damage or complete destruction of their dwellings

6. I shall give you a brief example for your comprehension. Not infrequently there is the sudden appearance of red-shining stars above some hill or other. This has to be watched immediately and the height of the hill carefully estimated as well as the direction the stars take off the hill. Take the case of such a hill being a thousand GM distant and of average height, and the stars moving in the direction of the hill we are occupying: it takes three minutes at the most before theses originally little stars approach us as the size of world masses; their velocity is immense, as their nature is mostly electrical. Whatever is in their path is destroyed instantly.

7. What are the sun people going to do? They at once seek the living God's protection, thrusting pointed rods with flags into high ground. These rods draw the glowing red electric masses higher like a magnet, so that they scatter into the Alps. In this way dwellings, trees, animals and man in the lowlands are saved every time.

8. Behold, this is another good reason for unobstructed views. That is why even the stems of the tree avenues are always lined up with the pillars of a dwelling, so that not even the stems would obstruct the view.

9. Another not too rare occurrence, especially in the vicinity of the great waters, or the high mountains of the belt-borders, for your imagination, is the stupendous water and fire funnels. Concerning the water whirlpools, these of course rarely take to the land; but the fire twirls are that much more destructive. Some reach from one hundred to one thousand GM diameter at a spin per second, meaning that the outer circle of flame covers a distance of between three hundred and three thousand GM per second.

10. Think of the effect of such natural phenomenon upon a district through which it moves; what do sun men do on such occasions? They at once tum to Me for protection with a most living trust, whilst climbing the most accessible hill to place a substantial vessel of water there, whilst thrusting long spikes into the ground around it in radiating directions. This simple device, according to their wisest instructors' experience has the definite power to firstly draw such a fire twirl unto itself and then to slow down its spin.

11. And if you could be witnesses, then you would watch such a natural phenomenon with great surprise, because even if such a fire twirl has the most immense diameter at its inception, it begins, on reaching such a hill to so drastically narrow at the bottom that it has shrunk from a thousand miles to a couple of meters in a few seconds. After reaching the water vessel with its radiating spikes upon the height, then it begins to convert into an immensely tall fire rod, which then seemingly collapses gradually above the vessel to finally vanish.

12. Shortly after this the sun people go up the hill to retrieve their safety tools, finding them unscathed - except for the water, which although diminished in volume has turned entirely black.

13. But how can the sun people escape devastation in this way? They say: Upon the Alps dwell spirits; when these get thirsty from excessive heat, they seize one another in large numbers and like raving ones seek cooling. Wherefore it is necessary to anticipate them with a drink, so that they would not come tearing down to lower levels looking for refreshing water and destroy us and our dwellings and fruit on their way.

14. And I say unto you that such spiritual knowledge on the part of the sun people is completely well-founded, because the course of such a fire vortex on the sun is similar to what I revealed to you as occurring on Earth, since a spirit everywhere remains a spirit on the sun as on the planets, except that his scope of action on the sun is less restricted than upon a planet.

15. Behold again, how important an unfettered view is to the sun people, and the reason every house is built upon a cone-shaped hill with the rest of the property at a lower level. Wherefore you shall not find dwellings in the valleys and private dwellings as well as official buildings are all found upon hills, whilst temples of prayer and worship of the Great God are found upon the highest hills.

16. And so there are many more good reasons for unhindered views, and for the crowns of fruit trees being so high, but citing them all would unduly prolong our revelations.

17. Another reason for growing the crowns of fruit trees so high is that they reduce the light shining on the dwellings from above. Proof of such substantial light absorption by the trees is attested by the shining pearls which form everywhere at the tips of leaves and which in themselves consist of nothing other than the trees' unconsumed light units, similar to your so-called St. Elms fire, seen upon all sharp objects when the air is electrically saturated. This, of course, is only visible to you by night, but only during the day upon the sun (there being no night), and that due to the exceedingly powerful light rays from above.

18. A third reason for planting trees with their crowns so high is to force the children to always come to their parents when hungry, which is commendable, because nothing is more deleterious to the children's immature spirit than parental permission of the children's self-will. Therewith the children are grounded in haughtiness and stubbornness, which vices make up the indestructible foundation stones for all imaginable future vices.

19. In the sun however, where people have a much freer and more unrestricted scope, such upbringing of children is even more necessary, so that their will would be pointed towards maintaining the absolutely essential, general social order. This would of course also be more desirable with yourselves; the people of Earth, however are already of exceedingly limited and mostly stubborn spirit, for which very reason they were placed on this rough Earth. For this reason, nothing is more unpalatable to them than strict obedience, which is the exclusive school for attaining to the true spiritual, inner willpower. Wherefore men of this Earth rarely attain to this power in their physical life, which nonetheless is basically the very condition for their presence here.

20. Nevertheless we are back again on the sun. Hence we shall pursue other domestic practices and particularly, as till now, the natural, domestic part; without which naturally, we shall never go over to the spiritual and only then the celestially pure spiritual. And so we shall next time look at the other grounds that go with the dwelling and study their practical use.

16. - Chapter 16 -

1. Agriculture upon the equatorial belt; vegetable gardens, sheep grazing and wheat field.

1. Some six to ten metres below the tree avenue, there is a so-called small fruit field, bordered on both sides with all kinds of fruit- bearing bushes no more than about a metre and a half tall. The field itself is overgrown with diverse small-fruit plants like your strawberries, proebstlings, melons, so-called paradise apples and others. These are relatively rather than completely similar equivalents; otherwise they are of a most extraordinary diversity and like everything else, not found in any other house.

2. By this point you are ready to ask why nothing similar should be found on neighbour's properties? For surely the land products found on one property will catch a neighbour's fancy! Why should a neighbour not bring forth something he liked on his neighbour's property? If he does not do so, then either the law prevents him or he regards everything inferior to what he brings forth on his own ground.

3. Behold, this question deserves an answer. But before I do so I must point out-that this question has a good basis on your Earth: but in the sun it falls on dry ground, where an answer cannot grow.

4. And again you ask why? Only this "why" I can answer as follows: look at yourselves and tell Me why you are dissimilar as individuals as well as in facial expression, so that not even a blood brother completely resembles the other, although each can be recognised as completely human at least in shape? Can you answer Me this question? For I say unto you that it is precisely therein that your "why" fully lies.

5. But I see that you are not going to come up with an answer. Which leaves Me only to tell you that the reason lies in the corresponding, relevant individual nature of the spirit; because apart from the general class, every spirit is also given something very particularly individual - as it were a pound given every spirit, through which every individual spirit differs from every other. And this difference then also manifests in the outer form, most clearly discernible in every person's face.

6. Now behold, it is just so to a larger extent with the sun's inhabitants, where a spirit's accentuated nature is exhibited not only in outer facial appearance but also in everything solar man brings forth through his will. Wherefore man can indeed bring forth a plant that took his fancy at a neighbour's ground, but it shall not have the same appearance as that on his neighbour's ground; why? Because the neighbour does not look like his other neighbour, neither physically nor spiritually, and this difference in characteristic appearance shall also show in everything he brings forth. Behold, this is the reason why nothing completely similar can be found between two neighbours.

7. This difference also bespeaks something else, namely, that every solar man, on entering another's ground immediately becomes conscious of what his neighbour's spirit is, from one or other of the plants - behold, here we have the full answer.

8. Basically, something similar indeed emerges also upon the planets, where everyone has a different species of plant or tree in his garden, also building his house differently, excepting that all these differences originate only in the different choices, not different plant individuality, since upon the planets these go forth from seed, within which they already carry a permanent order; whereas on the sun they go forth completely from the will of the spirit and hence relate to the spiritual order of him who brings them forth from his free will.

9. Wherewith we have the reason for the differences, and we shall have a look at the way a solar inhabitant's grounds are arranged.

10. Within the aforementioned small-fruits field there is a vacant circle, for strolling about that field. This circle in tum is bordered densely with small trees, somewhat like the miniature trees raised in your gardens. These little trees too are of differing varieties, so that no five to seven are of the same variety and hence yield diverse fruits, similar to your pears, apples, oranges, etc. But everything here is perfect and the flavour superb.

11. This circle of trees is followed by another vacant one, which then is surrounded by a type of living fence. Beyond this fence there is a luscious meadow of some fourteen to twenty metres width, where the grass is all of one variety.

12. This circle is for grazing sheep, which are the only domestic animals kept by solar man, notwithstanding an immense number of all kinds of animals upon the sun - with the sole exception of the snake, which occurs only on some planets.

13. You will ask why sheep are the only domestic animals? Firstly because they are the most patient and gentle of all animal species; secondly, because solar man too consumes their milk. And thirdly, because on the sun too sheep supply rich and exceedingly fine wool for man's clothing. Behold, this is why this animal only is kept, together with a grazing pasture.

14. Since we mentioned a countless number of animals upon the sun, where are they? What is their habitat and subsistence? You are aware already of exceedingly vast plains upon the sun and especially upon this belt. Behold, these plains, as you now know, are not inhabited by man and that for the much emphasized reason of black spots, or presentation of great eruptions upon the solar equator. It is these very plains that are inhabited by countless and most diverse animal species.

15. But this begs the question: how do these animals subsist, since plant growth depends on man's will upon the sun? This is an easy question to answer, namely, that the plains too are over- abundantly covered with most luscious growths, on account of man's will and also through prayer and in close unity with the well- recognised Will of the Great God. How then are these plains cultivated? Through the blessings of the principal teacher - when at the highest temple altitude, a whole community assembles to worship their Great God in the temple of seventy-seven pillars.

16. Behold, this too answers that question. But you are holding back another question: how do the sun inhabitants prevent the plain's animals from climbing up to themselves and easily doing damage to their precious ground? This they achieve through group action, by cutting off all hill country with live, unassailable fencing in every direction. This live fence consists of tightly spaced, pillar-type tree logs of up to two thousand metres in height, provided only at the top with bushy crowns carrying an immense number of fruits to feed the animals.

17. These fences sometimes run in a straight line several hundred GM along the foot of the hill before changing direction. The crowns of the trees are evergreen, of light hue, whilst the stems are dark red starting at the ground, eventually trailing off to pale red at the top, presenting an exceedingly lovely and endearing look.

18. Now we know how the animals are provided for, wherefore we shall return to the grounds of our houses and see what comes after the field.

19. At the bottom end beyond the living fence, this field is surrounded by a mound fitted with water sprinklers facing the house pillars; you will ask again: where do the sun men get the water for the sprinklers?

20. Nothing easier for them. They place a twenty metre long pipe into the earth protruding about two meters. The water immediately collects around the pipe, drilled in many places, and the pressure produces sprouting water for man and beast.

21. Below this field is the so-called twenty-metre wide bread circle. Why bread circle? Because on this field grows the only plant not produced by human will but, as a fruit resembles your wheat, it originates directly in the Will of God, the fruit being regarded as holy.

22. Nor is this field tilled but has been dedicated to the purpose and whenever it is to bear fruit, a special prayer is said with deep reverence. Afterwards the house elder walks through this field seven times with blessings, with all his family in train in proper order, after which a praise and thanksgiving prayer is made to their Great God - and so the bread field is tilled.

23. At the base, this bread field is enclosed by a most magnificent and artificial railing, which serves also as a property border.

24. You will ask of course why this especially consecrated field also is the furthest removed from the house? For it ought to, as a symbol of the more purely divine, stand closer to man than what is just of man. Philosophically this question is a good one, but in this matter, the sun people philosophise even better, for therewith they signify that the divine is not only central to the dwelling but also surrounds the external. Thus should man also, in his most inward parts, erect a throne for a dwelling for God's spirit and then allow same to arrest all his thoughts, desires and actions, that he may be within as well as without, a man fully after the will of the Great God.

25. Behold, this means no more and no less than that men should live and act in accordance with My will - that they should let themselves be seized by My will and penetrated to their innermost, not however as currently many 'better' ones are doing, being satisfied with just the knowledge of My will, but that in their deeds I should tolerate being trundled around by their worldly actions. Behold, with such people this bread field does not constitute the exterior surrounds but rather a world field that yields no fruits of My will, but those of self-interest, the world, ruin and death.

26. From this short presentation, you can well recognise that the sun people are definitely better philosophers than yourselves. For the order they observe in their domesticity, even taken symbolically, surely is more in accordance with My order than that which you apply in your domestic arrangements and adaptations. It is certainly not possible on your planet to keep to such exterior order, and there is basically not much to it. I nevertheless let you see it, that you may arrange your spiritual foundations accordingly! You should therefore note it well; and so we shall next time have a look at the various office buildings and temples and then turn to the inhabitants' domestic constitutions upon this belt.

17. - Chapter 17 -

18. Office schools upon the equatorial belt

1. Regarding offices, these are not built upon the hills like the private dwellings, but more in the valleys to preclude the trainees being distracted by the charming views.

2. To enable you to get a better idea of the office building sites it shall be desirable to further scrutinize the hill dwellers of the sun.

3. There are three kinds of hills on the sun: firstly the sweeping hills running in interminable distances in all directions over their belt like the mountain chains upon your Earth. Secondly the various peaks to these hills which look like regular, blunted cones on top of each other to form a pyramid; and thirdly the individual offshoots which are called the breasts of the hills. Upon these the private dwellings are erected and the remainder of the area allocated to agricultural land where approximately a half acre is apportioned per person. These grounds are usually circular like the hills themselves so that three or four lots usually border each other in small valleys between three or four hills.

4. Where these circles impinge at one point, unoccupied areas remain. It is on these odd parts that the office buildings are built.

5. Some of the latter are smaller than the private buildings, others larger if needed. The smaller ones are elementary schools for children, of plain style; separate for boys' schools and with small flower gardens between the pillars for girls.

6. The outfitting of these office buildings, by the way, is almost identical to that of the private dwellings excepting the omission of decorations bespeaking the students' inward simplicity and dearth of spiritual adornment in their cognitions; whilst the little flower gardens in the girls' schools signify that the girls should develop also outwardly in a clean and delicate manner in order to spawn a pleasing and attractive spirit.

7. This therefore is the first category of official buildings. They are however, not indwelt by the office bearers or teachers, whose dwellings are located upon an adjacent hill.

8. How are office bearers' dwellings distinguished from other dwellings? In nothing more than a direct, private road to the office building, whilst the paths from the other houses are directed towards the impingement points of the circular grounds; the outfitting of office-bearers' houses is the same as other peoples.

9. Which children attend these schools? Only local children of perhaps three, four or five private dwellings.

10. How long do the classes last? Never longer than five hundred swings of the pendulum; then there is a recess lasting five thousand pendulum swings; and so the process continues until the children have fully assimilated the elementary material which consists of no more than giving the children certain rules to keep.

11. A child for example is forbidden to take note of some object, but direct its eyes away from it until the official can see that it no longer causes the child strain to ignore the object. Furthermore, the children are also tempted with various inducements to transgress; spectacles are put on where a child is forbidden to look, costing the child much strain and self-denial in diverting their curious eyes, but practice makes for mastery and this is the case here too; the children let themselves go on occasions but are earnestly warned and on repeated transgressions punished in a small appropriate matter - until the aim is gradually achieved.

12. Once the children are able to keep one rule, a second similar one is given them and on succeeding a third, fourth, fifth and sometimes up to thirty regulations are added.

13. Once the children have in this way learnt to bridle their eyes, they must learn to bridle their tongues; the teacher watches for a child's favourite subject, after which the child is denied the chance to express it for a lengthy period. Once the child can deny itself also on that score, the teacher probes for another inclination, disallowing it again in an appropriate manner.

14. Behold, elementary education consists therein, with a purpose no other than to take away the child's own will in the most appropriate manner, thus making it submissive and therewith into a vessel for the reception of God's will, which is then taught at a higher school.

15. Just as in this elementary school the children are held back from all external activity, leading all their senses, thoughts and desires captive, so reversely in the higher school they are led into one activity after another, in accordance with God's will, wherefore these schools are also somewhat more complex than the first variety, although they are otherwise fitted out like the private dwellings.

16. The interior decorations of these bigger office buildings, normally located where four or five properties impinge, are usually commensurate with the students' prescribed activities, consisting of the fixation of divine objects.

17. A student may for example be shown something that he has to observe uninterruptedly in all its aspects for a lengthy period and then tell the teacher everything he has noted about it. On finishing, he is told to observe the same thing more sharply and carefully check whether he did not leave something out at his first recall. At this second scrutiny, the student tells what has escaped his first observation.

18. Is this all? Not so, the teacher frequently directs the student towards the same object ten, twenty or thirty times. You shall of course ask what is the good of this? Surely one cannot find out more about a thing than it externally presents at first observation. But I say: such observation is only superficial and does nothing for his spirit, as any animal can behold a thing in this way.

19. Through the oft enforced studying, the student is himself forced in his spirit to scrutinize the sundry relationships, connections and consolidations and is habituated into the certainty of his gaze, which is absolutely essential for apathetic spirits. Behold, in such exercises the schooling in this second office consists.

20. When the students have been thoroughly taken through such rules in theory and even more in practice, they are then received into a third school building, no longer situated in the lowlands, but in the private house hill area.

21. This school is already of a considerable size with four rooves, like the pyramidal rooves of the private dwellings. These are already classified something resembling your high schools. What is taught here? Here analysis of visible things is made as it were and the divine order of things pointed out.

22. Wherefore this office building, inside and outside, is of such magnificence schematic design that you could hardly form the least concept. Because firstly, the one hundred pillars on which the four rooves rest are adorned throughout with such exalted sculptural artwork as to give the impression of being alive. These works or decorations upon the normally rectangular columns conjure up Egyptian hieroglyphs, except for the unspeakably greater perfection.

23. In the middle of this office building, four pylons are erected which help to partly carry the roof joists and are partly (for the portion up to the joists) decorated with higher ornamentation which already depicts the actions of their Great God.

24. The pylons, each of about four metres diameter and forty metres height, are made of a material resembling your red quartz, whilst the decorations consist of all kinds of the most precious stones fastened thereto. The pylon bases are round and of a material resembling glowing gold. The chapters at the top look as if they are made of amethyst.

25. There are great white spheres atop the chapters, joined by the most beautiful arches upon which the roof joists rest, the latter made of material resembling fiery ruby. From there the actual roof beams rise, coloured dark violet, as distinct from black in the private dwellings.

26. In short, an incomprehensible uniformity reigns in such official buildings. One thing blends into another and within the fullness of the most glorious ornamentation, there is no ostentation anywhere. Even the floor resembles your so-called mosaics, except for the exalted configuration, each tile instead carrying the finest miniature painting; and every painted object is depicted so realistically as to give the impression of carvings rather than paintings.

27. There are also, as in the private dwellings, the most marvellous resting benches between the pillars. And since this office building consists of four sections as it were, (as evident from the four rooves) there is also in the middle, underneath each roof, an aforementioned splendid pyramidal staircase of similar finish to those we met in the private dwellings.

28. Outside the office building, usually occupied by the official and his family, there are also similar ground divisions and tilling systems to the private dwellings already mentioned, excepting on a larger scale.

29. The overall ground area around the office building frequently measures a thousand acres, yet a half acre only is at each person's disposal; why such large grounds for an official whose family is bound to be no larger tan that of a private house?

30. The reason is that the students of the institution live in during their courses; for here they must learn much, namely as you have heard, God's order in many diverse things, or here, they have to, as it were, learn to read in the great book of God's nature, the reason also for all the aforementioned ornamentations within this building.

31. To give you some idea, I will give you the signification of just a pillar. The round base or foot signifies the power of God or of His will. The external foundation of all things. The square pillar above it signifies the power going forth from this foundation, which is the support of heaven and all created things. The created things are represented by the adornments fastened to the pillar and have a homogeneity among themselves as well as with the power which brings them into being and carries them. For you must know that such decorations are not made and attached to the pillars by human hands but solely through the higher will of the Great God, who speaks through a completely purified human heart. The chapters upon such pillars signify wisdom and the spheres above the chapters the profundity of same within God, the arches joining these spheres signify the inscrutable paths by which God's wisdom sees through and connects everything in supreme order, which order is then the maintaining carrier of all infinity.

32. Behold, this is just a fleeting sketch of the sense in which this office building is erected with all its features, which the students then have to learn to recognize within such order by systematic instruction. Would you not prefer such a college to your Latin ones on Earth? Behold, this is the right type of educational institution!

33. Once upon a time, such schools existed upon your Earth, but human avarice displaced them from such foundations. And thus I once again give you this instruction from the sun, to show you how the right type of school for live education of the human spirit should be established, which however you shall learn to recognize only from our next presentation of temples. And so let us leave it again for today!

19. - Chapter 18 -

1. Simple temples upon the equatorial belt

1. How is a temple upon the sun classified, i.e. the pre-eminent temple upon the low altitudes, where there are two further temples which we shall get to know later?

2. This temple has the standing of a general educational institute to which one moves from the aforementioned official office building. But the transfer of students is not just from one office building, this temple being the recipient of students from up to forty such pre-schools, making it exceptionally large, occasionally enrolling several thousand students.

3. Its form is no longer rotund, but rather like your ships, for the round form would create problems. But being of oval form, the roofing is simplified, as with private dwellings.

4. How is the size of a temple determined? It is by number of pillars. Is their number uniform for all temples of this first order? No, this depends on the number of private houses and large and small schools within an area, wherefore in the smallest instance it can consist of a thousand and in the largest case often thousand pillars, the latter's pillars reaching a far greater height and girth than the ones of private dwellings and they are of a light green, transparent material and simple of style.

5. On the other hand, architecturally, temples vary greatly even within the same class and purpose. Hence temple pillars can be pyramid shaped or made of bars, or stacked, flattened spheres; or pillars like stacked, overturned cones, or stacked rising clouds; and countless other forms of pillars, carrying the rooves.

6. These temples are much more exalted and magnificent than the pre-school, particularly the aforementioned type where students must learn My order. They therefore also have more rooves, among which the roof covering the temple centre is by far the highest, also flying a flag to depict the victory men must gain in this temple, whilst the other seven rooves on each side, progressively lower, in themselves form a pyramid of rooves.

7. The rooftops are indeed decorated with flags, but with decreasing size like the rooves whose style otherwise is that of the private dwellings. The central roofs height on occasion reaches about two thousand metres by your measure, depending on temple size, but is never below one thousand metres, and the other rooves are proportional.

8. You will of course ask: how can the sun people put in place such dreadfully long roof joists above the pillars and from where do they take a one kilometre long tree? Here I have to remind you that the sun people do not erect these with their hands but through their will. They have indeed to first call forth such trees from the soil, through their will, as said. In this way they also have to produce the pillars. But once all these building materials are produced, they are put in order through group will-power by many people, after which construction again is through the same group will.

9. Some building phases nevertheless are still performed by hand, such as covering the roof and its interior painting. The measuring and levelling of the floor also is done by hand; these are the manual operations.

10. How long does such a building last? If not damaged or destroyed through some unwatched natural catastrophe, it stands there as if for eternity; because nothing rots or crumbles there, enduring in freshness and soundness as when created.

11. Now we also know about temple building procedure and form and so we shall examine the interior and the surroundings.

12. What is notable immediately is the majestic height, for the pillars carrying the roof, proportionate to temple size, can rise to a thousand metres and are of enormous circumference. The pillar bases are always perfectly circular with seven nodules each of about four feet diameter, all being proportional to the pillar itself. The base materials in the temples are mostly solid, yet semi- transparent and blue in colour. The pillars are white throughout, except for exceedingly multicoloured decorations.

13. The pillars in the temple are not fully continuous to the roof, but carry three galleries, which wind along the entire pillar colonnade, provided with the most masterly crafted landings.

14. How are these galleries accessed? In place of inter-pillar resting benches, there are pyramidal spiral staircases, provided with the most delicate landings. After climbing to gallery level a most decorous carriageway connects it to the pyramid. This connects the galleries with the pyramids.

15. The pyramid material is like fully transparent, faint-red glass, with the landings like solid gold, wound in most superb style which at their extremities are in turn adorned with sublime and portentous configurations of diverse colours looking like suggestive configurations of most precious self-shining stones.

16. The walkway also consisting of a solid gold-type material is provided with a double landing from the pyramid to the main gallery.

17. The main galleries of course, are also fitted with landings, inward and outwardly and consist of diamond pyramids i.e. the pyramids are made of a material beaming like your big, polished diamonds in the sun. These small pyramids between walkways are so lined up as to touch at the bottom and at the tips are connected with a solid gold backing connected to splendid decorative foliage which also runs along the gallery landings being interrupted only by the walkways; on the outside gallery landing, the decor backing the pyramid is continuous and more massive.

18. The main gallery rests on rainbow-like coloured arches running between the pillars.

19. Between the pyramidal staircases again there are pyramids within dark red raised squares upon cube bases, similar to those we have met in the private dwellings.

20. These cubes overlap the pyramids by about one metre and again are used for resting benches. During recess the students rest upon these flexible benches according to need. These benches feel like air cushions and bounce back, together with the backing, leaving no impression after use.

21. The backings also are marvellously decorated. At the top of the pyramids to which they are fastened there is a shining green sphere giving the temple a grandiose and delicate appearance, especially if not bent when in use.

22. So much for the temple interior. Next time we shall move to its even more grandiose interior details, as well as its external surroundings. And so we leave it for today.

20. - Chapter 19 -

1. Interior of a plain temple. Temple Orchestra

1. You now know that the temple comprises fifteen rooves, namely the big central roof, with seven rooves on each side of it. At the centre of each roof inside, there is a magnificent spiral staircase, which reaches right into the roof with rising magnificence and deeper significations with each higher roof towards the central one.

2. There is no such staircase beneath the highest central roof however, as instead the roof is carried by shining blue-red pillars about thirty in number. These pillars reach nearly double the height of those of the actual temple, which is the reason for the greater height of this central section of the temple.

3. These pillars are enclosed with seven circular galleries, which can be reached by a spiral staircase around the pillar. Each pillar is wound around by a staircase up to the seventh gallery. In the midst of this great temple-rotunda stands a great main pillar reaching up to the highest point of the high roof. At the place where the fourth gallery surrounds the pillar there is a walkway from the main pillar in four directions, i.e. two walkways crossing at this pillar.

4. From these crossways, a very wide spiral staircase rises around the main pillar right up to the highest rooftop. The galleries running around this main rotunda of columns likewise are supported by shining rainbow-type arches, each of which is of a single colour; but since there are seven galleries there are also seven supporting arches, each shining with a different colour. Looking over all the seven galleries one enjoys seeing a scattered rainbow.

5. In this main middle rotunda of the temple the gallery rails give the appearance of glowing gold and although of the highest craftsmanship themselves, have their enclosed areas augmented by all kinds of smaller ornamentation of every colour, somewhat like the artfully crafted gold and silver emperor's crown, further adorned with all kinds of expertly polished precious stones.

6. The armrests upon the gallery rails are of shining dark-red, whilst the gallery floors look like a star-studded sky.

7. The middle pillar, rising from the floor to the highest roof-tip looks like a fiery cloud-column. What actually is the purpose of this main pillar? Firstly, it helps to support the heavy roof, the natural use. Secondly, the roof top can be reached by the spiral staircase for potential roof repairs over time. Thirdly, climbing is employed inside this largest educational institution to train men to overcoming dizziness on looking down. The sun dwellers are especially in need of this, notably those thinking of rising through the various building professions. Man's willpower also is tested at various heights to determine at what height his will is still effective over the ground. For you need to remember that the pillar height is not inconsiderable and in some temples can compete in height with your highest mountains even from sea level.

8. This pillar is also of enormous girth, especially at the base with a diameter of two hundred metres, of course, tapering off gradually pyramid-fashion towards the rooftop. With such a girth, you can also imagine the roominess of the staircases around it, which are wide enough at the base for a hundred persons climbing abreast and the seven galleries around them in turn, are of immense roominess as are also the intersecting walkways connecting the middle galleries with the main pillar; these walkways too are wide enough for a hundred persons abreast.

9. How are these crossed walkways and the entire central gallery utilized? Behold, this will interest you, for here is the orchestra for the entire temple. On every walkway there are seventy-seven harps, whilst on the gallery there are seats for the leading singers. Upon this gallery and two walkways, a hymn of praise to the Great God is sung accompanied by harps after every service, the entire extensive temple majestically resounding therewith.

10. You should not think the tone of these harps is like its Earthly counterpart; the tone of these harps is so exceedingly pure and capable of such swelling from pianissimo to forte that you cannot conceptualise it on Earth. With regard to its volume, there your loudest bell is pianissimo by comparison. As for its gentlest tones however, none of your instruments are capable of producing its truly spirit-like soft tones. Besides, your harp-tone is of short duration, whilst that of a sun harp continues to sound until cut off by the player. And such a harp is also capable of all kinds of tone- variations, to the extent that such a harp could replace a full Earth orchestra tenfold. Considering this will give you the impression of a sun concert.

11. This is also the actual purpose of this main temple rotunda. It is the actual house of prayer for this temple, within which nothing is to be carried on that is not in harmony with unanimous praise of the Great God.

12. Only the testing of willpower is carried on at the different heights of this pillar, but that too within this house of prayer, so that all men's wills should unite all the more with that of the Great God. With this go the training exercises, to actually achieve people looking down indifferently without becoming dizzy.

13. Such exercises should not be too bad for Earth either where people are eminently prone to becoming dizzy because people are already filled with dread when looking down from a man's height, and the higher a man's status, the more unbearable the giddy height, which at times runs wild to where some exalted noble would prefer being shot with ten canons at a time rather than even once look into the depths on a work-day and see himself donning a farmer's simple jacket: is this exaggerated? Not at all! Just look at a nobleman; do they not prefer to have their sons torn and hewn into a thousand pieces by the enemy on the battlefield, rather than have such a noble son come to his high nobility parents and say: I would rather become a peasant than be shot as a commander by an enemy on the battlefield.

14. Behold, in order to make people giddy-proof in this respect, it would be highly recommended for them to attend such a pillar- climbing school. But Earth people are still too fond of themselves in this their most destructive sickness. Hence we shall return to where they take appropriate steps, to guard against this sickness in the natural and spiritual sense.

15. It hardly needs repeating that this main temple rotunda is too sublimely beautiful and marvellous for you. Whoever can even moderately awaken his imagination shall be able to form a small concept. But a complete concept shall only be formed by whoever will be able to see such wonders with their own and transcendent eyes and with their own sensitive spiritual ears hear the music of the heavens.

16. Regarding the other parts of the temple, these are assigned partly to divine education and partly as accommodation for students as well as teachers, with one wing for the male and another for the female sexes, who never encounter each other in the temple except in the rotunda, but certainly outside the temple, in frequent walks through the free solar air, as also during scaling higher mountain regions.

17. So much for the temple exterior and interior. The ground surrounds-system is like that of the private houses, except for the size being proportionate to the number of residents.

18. If therefore permanent temple-resident numbers reach ten thousand, then the ground area is that many half acres by your measure, excepting the broader promenades dividing the fields, and the lower surrounding fruit trees are at sufficiently low levels to avoid obstructing the view of the temple.

19. It is also the reason for an extensive, luscious, vivid deep-green lawn around the temple.

20. Bordering the lawn are water fountains that sprinkle both the lawn and the further descending grounds.

21. Behold, this is a temple of the first variety. Next time we shall look at the following two types. And so we shall leave it at that for today.

21. - Chapter 20 -

1. A temple of greater prominence

1. Regarding the second type of temple, this is normally referred to as the great temple; we shall presently see why.

2. In relation to architecture and the multiplicity of pillars, this temple is not really of greater prominence then the previous one. It may indeed be sturdier by one, and some times two thousand pillars than the previous one, but this does not qualify it for the designation: the Great Temple.

3. Although it has more pillars, these firstly are closer together and of lesser height, wherefore the area it occupies is not much larger than the previous one; nor are the rooves anywhere near as high.

4. Why is it therefore called the Great one? Because in this temple, no service other than to God is taught!

5. The inner fittings and its surrounds differ only in their arbitrary ornamentation. Only the orchestra is a far greater one, with double the number of harps and a greater number of singers, understandable on account of the four-to-sevenfold number of resident students.

6. Because here the people from sometimes four to seven of the previous varieties of temple converge to receive instruction in serving God, wherefore things are also far livelier inside and out.

7. Where the size of congregation warrants it, there small private dwellings of ten to twelve pillar private dwellings are erected upon the promenade areas for the excess, outfitted like the private dwellings, minus the spiral staircase.

8. Some of these latter temples are occasionally accompanied by several hundred of these smaller dwellings, of which each has its own supervisor, who is seconded to the senior officials and the headmaster of this temple. His task is to maintain administration.

9. The grounds around this temple are also proportionately bigger than the first variety.

10. The location of the general timekeeper is at this temple, and the time sentinels of this stretched-out temple district must fall in line with him. Where is this timekeeper stationed, so to say? Approximately two thousand metres from the temple, atop a cone- shaped hill. An enormously sturdy tree of about one thousand metres in height is called forth from the ground and fitted with a pendulum reaching down almost to the base of the hill, where excavation makes it steeper. This pendulum is swung by three men and takes thirty of your minutes to come to rest.

11. All pendulums must keep time with this one, even if they are not so big and cannot therefore register its slow rate; their swing times have to be set to either two or four times the main one's frequency.

12. Wherefore in the smaller private houses around this temple there are also small, so-called hand pendulums, with which the swings of the main one are monitored.

13. How does the main pendulum communicate its times audibly to its surroundings? For this, special sentinels are engaged. They take it in turns, one hundred at a time for one hundred swings. There are usually a hundred such "chronometers" employed, four attending in turns.

14. These officials (or 'chronologues') standing is roughly that of your deeply initiated astronomers, although that is not the purpose for introducing them here, which is only to transmit time to the region. Behold, on four sides of the far-flung hill, bells are installed, not resembling your church bells but rather your small clock-resonators.

15. The time-transmitters are provided with hammers wherewith they strike the bell with each pendulum swing, letting the area know the succession of swings. Two sentinels are stationed at the top of the hill for counting the swings and signalling them to the temple guards.

16. That both the pendulum chronologists as well as signalmen take rums goes without saying; therewith we are familiarized also with the second temple. The difference therefore is only in this temple's purpose and in its far larger number of pupils.

17. Keep in mind that this type of temple is located upon a much higher and more extensive mountain than the first category.

18. Were you able to physically behold such a temple upon the sun or find yourselves upon its wide lawn, then you could not bear the singular splendour, coupled to the most glorious views into the enormous distances, for which reason I do not allow it even in a dream, for the mere dream would have fatal consequences. Were such views given a human spirit at close range, he would at once rupture all physical fetters and hasten to where he would certainly derive more pleasure than inside his cumbersome body. For which reason, I show you such magnificence as if in passing; for were I to detail such splendour just through words and thus reveal it to your imagination, then you would not be capable of recording it; because your spirit would withdraw to the extent of forgetting to put the body into action.

19. Wherefore, I won't tell you about the education in serving Me either. Because firstly, you would not grasp the pious style in your present condition. Were you to do so however, then you could not retain your earthly life; for were you to harken unto just one word from My mouth in this exalted sense, then your own nature, together with the world, would seem to you like the darkest monstrosity, especially in view of the Father's word or eternal loves.

20. But to persuade you just superficially of what a word from the Father is all about, I say unto you only that the word love for instance, when referring to Myself, when announced calls forth such indescribable bliss in the sun-people that they would go without food for a lengthy period. It is indeed announced to a wide area in advance through a trumpet, from the greatest height, at the last temple: that imminently, in about a year's time by your standard, this word will be expressed in relation to God. With the first trumpet call already, all the sun people of this belt fall down on their faces, hardly daring to breathe, out of reverence and trembling as it were with over joyous trepidation.

21. When however the time nears for the superintendent-teacher and priest to come down to this second temple to proclaim: "God is love", each person is so gripped that he sinks down as if dead. Indeed through this word all these people experience a kind of trance by your parlance and in this state enjoy the bliss of angels. Once recovered, they rush from the temple and fall on their faces outside, thanking and praising the Great God for this supreme grace of finding them, through His high priest, worthy of a time, none dare to cross the temple's threshold. Once the temple is entered again however, this takes place in a most humbly ceremonious joint venture.

22. From the above you can gauge what kind of effect this temple's instruction creates, whilst, in your mindlessness, take note and watch in what comparative regard I stand with yourselves, where I had not only proclaimed My word through certain teachers and preachers, but where I, the Father, as the most supreme love, have Personally in all My godly fullness walked among you, teaching you with My own mouth the words of eternal life. Notwithstanding this, people forget Me for the sake of a handful of dirt and take less note of Me than their surroundings. Were it not so, how could they strain all day just for the temporal, dedicating hardly a miserable quarter hour to Me in a day?

23. Verily I say unto you: had I done upon the sun what I accomplished on Earth, their joy-light would have taken infinity captive! But the children of the Earth, whom I have made into children of My heart, these stand aloof and despise the Father!

24. Learn it from the sun therefore, if you will not learn it on Earth, as to who He is, that wished out of infinite love for you to even bleed upon the hard cross! Recognise it for once that the Father is Love!

22. - Chapter 21 -

1. The third, most sacred type of temple. The Mystery of the Incarnation of God; ordination of High Priests

1. Having gotten to know the second type of temple, we shall move up to. a substantial altitude, which frequently takes up a region of several thousand square miles (GM), in order to acquaint ourselves with the third type of temple.

2. This type of temple normally is erected upon the highest point of a region and oversees between five to seven temples of the second order.

3. Concerning building style, it is hardly four times bigger than a private house and of far inferior height to the first two types; there are indeed some that are not much higher than a private house.

4. Nor is this temple in the form of a ship, but completely round. The round roof is not pointed but of an obtuse pyramidal style, notwithstanding its considerable height; and around its battlements it has a sturdy rail and is paraded with a horn for proclaiming agenda to the surrounding temples of the second order.

5. The interior set-up is similar to private houses, except that in place of the spiral staircase there is a smooth, round white pillar with a girth similar to the previous ones, reaching up to the highest point of the roof and hence carrying same. A spiral staircase skirts the pillar, with two crossing walkways through an opening in the roof to the battlements. At this crossing there is a rotunda around the pillar through which the staircase winds right up under the roof. It is all of great simplicity without decorations, giving it the appearance of a plain board structure.

6. There are no harps upon the walkway, the orchestral part consisting here of four immensely powerful trumpets, whose powerful tone sometimes can be heard for a thousand miles (GM) due to the pure solar air.

7. This temple's floor consists of floorboards whilst the resting benches at the pillar bases resemble your wooden garden benches. The pillars appear like white wood.

8. In short, here there is nothing of outer splendour.

9. Around the temple there are some twenty to thirty small wooden huts without pillars, resembling your alpine huts, except for higher rooves. One such hut always stands next to the temple as a manse for the High Priest. The rest are occupied partly by his family and officials and a few by students; for this temple-school is attended only by those who are themselves prepared to become teachers and office bearers for the lower temples as well as this highest temple.

10. What is taught in this temple? Behold, this is a temple of deepest secrets into which only a few receive initiation. What do these secrets consist of? They consist of making people aware that God is Himself a human and how in this Human, the highest love resides, which created everything there is out of his own power.

11. What else is taught? Here everything most secret and exalted is taught - how God as purest love, upon a planet called Earth (called Pjur upon the sun) became Man, even within a temporal body, living there in greatest and incomprehensible meekness. He allowed Himself to be nailed to a cross and killed.

12. And they add that this occurred at that very time, as all sun people know only too well, when it became completely dark upon their world, which darkness lasted about twelve single great swings; for you must know that people upon the sun attain to a high age, and that even today there are people and especially among the priestly caste, who were witnesses of this phenomenon upon the sun.

13. What would amaze you is a cross upon a hill opposite the temple. Here the sight is that of a well-shaped, authentic looking Mount Calvary. This solar 'Mount of Calvary; nevertheless is surrounded by a circle of trees, called forth from the ground to make it impossible to see it from any side unless one is admitted through the small gate by the High Priest, which is granted only when someone is ordained as a principal to the second temple.

14. This introduction however is not as easy as you may think and whoever desires it has to undergo an intense fidelity test and even taken through the narrow gate, he is still far from the spot and sees as much of Mount Calvary as if he wasn't there.

15. Because immediately behind the wall of trees, which often reach a height of four thousand metres, there is a pond of four hundred metres width and of uneven depth, entirely encircling Mt Calvary: whoever wants to negotiate same has to know the paths which are hidden by the water. Because below water the paths are laid out in such a way that there is only one main right one from which many branch off to sidetracking piers. He who does not know the main path returns along this sidetrack to where he first set foot in the water. Wherefore everyone must probe with his feet whether it is a narrow or a broad path. Only upon the narrowest one can one get to the other bank, whereas one returns to the first bank by every other, making him believe to have found the right path until it suddenly turns leading him back in twists and turns.

16. Therefore negotiating this pond is not as easy as it looks. Having overcome this difficulty, a bigger one awaits him. Some one hundred and forty metres above the substantial round pond a most convoluted path leads through a so-called fire-scrub with the appearance of a burning forest on Earth, except the bushes are of greater height than your highest trees. This fire scrub too has a width of about four hundred metres and runs around the entire hill which is, of course, of greater circumference than one of the highest Alps on Earth.

17. Here it is most difficult to hit upon the right path. Whoever does not find the narrowest one tries in vain as he shall not get through. Quite a few, of course, do hit the right narrow path but shy back from the flames that sometimes arch over the narrow path and try another path where fewer flames are to be seen. This effort however is in vain for whoever will not engage battle with the flames will not reach the place of the biggest secret. But he who does not shy away from this conflict will reach the place along the shortest path well-preserved, then beholding the mystery of the crucifixion from within the greatest love light!

18. Behold, this is then also the ordination to the High Priesthood. Some reference is made to the great Incarnation even in the private dwellings but full revelation of this secret is displayed only here.

19. But what shape all this takes and the context in which it is placed and what it is all about on this solar Calvary we shall consider in our next disclosure. Hence we shall leave it for today!

23. - Chapter 22 -

1. The holiest so-called burning temple. Deeper initiation into the secrets of God's Incarnation, the childhood of God. God the Father as Himself the Leader

1. Whoever has progressed from the fiery scrub to the grounds of the actual Mount Calvary will be at once received by a secret wise man permanently occupying this spot and is received into his private dwelling which is also a simple one. There he receives hospitality and is taken into a small temple above his dwelling.

2. There he at once notices a group of statues depicting the last supper.

3. From this temple he is escorted to an open area where he beholds a group depicting Christ and His apostles in the garden of Gethsemane upon the Mount of Olives.

4. Still further along a group depicting the Lord being apprehended and so spiralling around the hill from group to group depicting the Lord's consecutive moments of passion and in a most intelligent manner.

5. Finally, on the hill top there is a big cross standing apart, fixed to which is the Lord's earthly form with two much smaller crosses on each side depicting the familiar two thieves.

6. Once the guest has grasped this with the profoundest reverence of his heart, the wise man conveys him a little down the hill to a small temple inside which the sepulchre can be seen.

7. Finally, near the burning bushes, the guide shows him a somewhat larger temple, which is constantly burning with fierce flames. The flames on gradual approach are of such intense light- radiation that even the light-conditioned sun people find it unbearable. Consequently the guide always takes along a special veil or eye cover, enabling the guest to tolerate the exceedingly powerful shine. Notwithstanding the brightness however, they do not burn anyone who is worthy instead fanning to cool him as would a low west wind.

8. The guest is then conveyed into this burning temple in the midst of which he notices a small alter i.e. a pillar-base, table-type of elevation above the floor upon which are found the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. They are written in old Hebrew.

9. Here the guest enquires about the meaning and the guide tells him that this is no other than a specially written book which contains the Word of God and all His guidance for humankind in aggregate for infinity, together with its inner meaning.

10. Whereupon the guest asks whether such signs can be and are allowed to be read, here? He is told: whoever arrives here is obliged to recognize all this because it is the actual purpose of someone's getting here.

11. The guide adds: Behold, now that you have so strengthened your will that the solar soil has to obey it, be advised that these signs too must obey a righteous will and reveal themselves in accordance with the righteous will of him who would recognize them.

12. Whereupon the guide directs the guest to touch the book. As soon as the latter does so a fire streams through him following which the guest can read the writing. Once he starts reading he is gripped with intense amazement and regards himself as the happiest person in that he, for the first time, hears words that had streamed directly out of God's mouth, therewith also recognizing the most amazingly wonderful leadings of the Great God.

13. The most penetrating effect occurs when he comes to the New Testament for this opens up Mount Calvary and he usually can't help himself but offer all praise and thanks and can't conceive of how it could have been possible for the Great God to let such a thing happen to Him.

14. After this, God's great love is pointed out to him and he is told that precisely through this deed, especially those inhabiting Earth, have inherited the sonship of God through which then all are obliged to recognize the Great God as the most loving Father and to address Him as such.

15. The guest then asks the guide whether the people of the sun are not going to ever attain to such unspeakable bliss? The guide answers: not only the people of the sun but all humans inhabiting all the suns and all planets throughout infinity thereby have the inescapable right to such unspeakable bliss, but this can be achieved by no means other than deepest humility and out of this the most perfect love of their entire being towards God!

16. After this reading and instruction the two return from the temple to the wise guide's dwelling whereupon the latter edifies the guest about it, which by your measure takes about three years. It goes without saying that in the course of this time many further visits are made to the aforementioned locations.

17. At the end of such instructions, the guide discloses to the guest that above this cosmic body which they inhabit, upon the perfect light region, there is another much more perfect world where all solar inhabitants shall, when in the spirit, receive the full education about God's incarnation, whereupon they can if desiring so, be received as true children of God, if they are capable of so humbling themselves to the last atom of their being that, as inhabitants of a perfect world, they want to become the last and lowest servants of those children of God whom He Himself made into his children when He was Himself man upon the planet Earth, or Pjur.

18. Because, continues the guide, "we sun inhabitants live in great perfection and on account of our will are complete masters of our world; wherefore it shall be hard for us to sit next to those who through their will cannot call forth even a blade of grass from their Earth. But, as you, my guest, have gathered from all this, the Great God of Heaven and all the worlds takes no pleasure in the big and strong, but in the small and weak, to the extent that He reveals greater things unto babes and completely simple men than upon the most profound angelic spirits. Wherefore we sun dwellers, if desirous of attaining to the sonship of God, have no option but to lay down our solar grandeur, power and strength at God's feet and most willingly and lovingly put ourselves even below those whom He loves. His love indeed reaches out to all human beings in all of infinity. But mark well: only His children shall dwell with Him under one roof. Seek therefore to henceforth be the smallest and most insignificant, serving every man that you encounter and you shall engage the attention of the eternal Father which is the first spark through which you will gain a new life -the life of a child of the Great Father!"

19. After that the guide again takes the guest outside the temple, pointing to the cross and saying: "behold dear brother, this is the way to Him! If you desire to come unto the Father as a child then you must choose this way of the cross!

20. This way is true meekness of the heart; for the children must be like the Father. How would someone inherit the sonship from Him if he does not humble himself out of love for Him. It is appropriate for the children of such a Father, since the Father out of love for His children allowed Himself to be painfully nailed to the cross, to even die for them physically, by way of the flesh that none may see or feel death eternally, if he loves Him above all and has through meekness partaken of this cross upon which the Great holy Father, full of love, had stretched out His almighty hands, bleeding for all of infinity.

21. Behold, that is the reason for erecting this supra-holy image here that we too might recognize that for us too, He stretched out His hands. He wants to embrace us also, but we must first come to Him along the way of the cross as shown you. Wherefore behold this holy sign again!"

22. Here the guest always falls down from too profound love and reverence worshipping the great mystery!

23. But when he gets up again, then behold, everything except the guide and his house upon the mountain has vanished. The guide then takes the guest to the height once again, asking whether he has indeed taken all this up in his heart, which the guest confirms with every atom of his life.

24. Whereupon the guide lays his hands upon him saying: "What you have seen and heard here keep in your heart until the Father shall be pleased to broadcast all this to all men upon this world, either here, to those who have generated a great longing for Him or that much more definitely in the spirit in the beyond, to all of righteous and perfect will.

25. But let you yourself now recognize your Guide! For behold, I am the Father!!! But tell no man Who the Father is!"

26. Whereupon the guide vanishes with only His dwelling remaining whilst the guest returns to the Guide's dwelling in deep love and continual worship. Here the permanently resident wise man, who first received him takes him back, conveying him past the scrub that no longer bums to the pond which is empty upon the return trip.

27. The guide then makes his way back, whilst the visitor exalted and with most loving meekness returns to the third temple.

28. After which, for a lengthy period and deepest reverence, no man dares to utter a word to him until they realize from the behaviour of such Mount Calvary pilgrims that he really is attending to everyone with ready service.

29. Behold, this is the highest training for a teacher upon the sun and it is all that you are capable of understanding of what was left to tell you about the solar Mount Calvary.

30. Presently, we shall further scrutinize some solar domestic regulations. So we will leave it for today.

24. - Chapter 23 -

1. Family life, marriage and procreation upon the equatorial belt.

1. We have already heard of some general aspects about domestic constitution when dealing with private dwellings. Hence we shall here present family life and the actual religious creed.

2. As mentioned previously, in the sun and actually upon this belt, the residents of one house never exceed one family, which is under a father and mother. Because upon seniority and graduation children join up in marriage and when this happens, they are at once provided with their own ground and therewith move into their own home.

3. Are there no so-called male and female domestic servants upon the sun? There is no such thing upon the sun and particularly upon this belt, for the superiors of all country regions on this wide solar belt, as also all office bearers are, in a sense, servants of the free country people. Even the chief High Priest has the status of lowest servant, wherefore his temple and dwelling are also of the simplest and least splendid variety. He nevertheless enjoy the highest respect of the people and on visiting a private house or some temple to render some service, in spite of his lack of ostentation, is received like an angel from the heavens. This servant of a truth, never seeks honour but on the contrary, to be spared every distinction, as he is in no sense a lord but in the truest sense of the word and meaning a servant of all. But this abnegation does not help but only encourages it.

4. Behold, thus in actuality it is also in the heavens, where the highest angelic spirits are the least impressive and placed in a position of servitude to others, as if to their lords. Notwithstanding this however, they enjoy My highest regard as befits them out of My love and wisdom.

5. What does such a servant do when coming to the home of some people? He waits outside until noticed, whereupon the home father reverently hastens out to him, conveying him into the house. Whereupon the High Priest asks if he has need of his service in any matter? If the father has confided anything weighing heavily upon him, either physically or spiritually, then the chief servant at once offers his services.

6. But the father of the house only says thereto: eminent teacher for our entire region! 'Just one word of your wisdom and your brother- blessing in the grade of the Great God and you will have rendered us a full measure of the most living service!'

7. Whereupon this highest servant instructs them in all they have need of, blessing them and then leaving, in order to visit another house to offer the same service. Having in company of a few deputies visited and enlightened an entire district going from house to house and from temple to temple, he returns to his native temple country where he then once again becomes a ready servant to one and all.

8. Whenever someone is in need of his services, he only needs either to come to him or send for him and he shall always find him a ready servant. He does not keep visiting hours, nor is his door ever closed or his house guarded by soldiers, his dwelling being open to everyone at all times and as said, whoever would com- at any time shall always find unhindered entry.

9. You will perhaps think that such a servant would probably draw a high salary? Here I say unto you that this is not at all the case in the sun. Such a servant on the contrary, in worldly terms, is in direst need. Firstly, his land at high altitude is the smallest and leanest, covering barely a half-acre, whilst even his house is the least impressive and his raiment the simplest. The fruits that he calls forth from the soil are also by far the plainest, the least sumptuous and the paltriest.

10. You may think that he relies on collections from his diocese?

11. This is not the case either. Any desirous of offering him something for a service is told at once: "Harken dear friend, and brother, that which you have, the Lord has given you and your house. How would I take away what the Lord has presented you with? Or, could I sell you what the Lord has given me? Were I to give it to you for payment, would not the Lord also be most fundamentally entitled to demand payment from me? What payment however could I make to Him, to whom everything that we have belongs, including every breath of our lungs! I however am only a servant in the house of the Lord and must pass on His gifts without payment as I received them.'

12. Behold, this main code holds every servant back from any offering and even more from any collection, for such a servant is well aware that in My pay exclusively, he enjoys the most supreme conditions.

13. The greatest reward that he has for all his services upon the sun as a chief servant is that he can occasionally, about once a year by your measure, visit the aforementioned Mt. Calvary and that on exceptional occasions he is visited by one or the other angels of heaven in order to receive directions for his entire area on how to elude great threatening natural disasters.

14. How large is the area which such a chief servant has to oversee? Such an area may sometimes be larger than the largest empire on earth; and such a whole area-empire is a wide-stretching hilly and mountainous area where there are only a few even paths.

15. When therefore such a servant journeys through a parish quite a number of times during his incumbency, he questions himself, with what aim? As you are want to say, so say I: for none other than discipleship. Only it may be noted that walking upon the sun firstly is much easier than upon a planet, due to the ground being soft and pliable everywhere. Secondly, the sun people upon this belt, although nearly double your size are nevertheless much lighter since their bodies are of a more etheric or less materially solid nature than yours. On top of that the pedestrians upon the solar body have the advantage that due to their powerful will, they can immensely fortify themselves and as a result are able to move far more rapidly upon their feet between places than the fastest birds upon your Earth. Wherefore it is an easy matter for a sun dweller to surmount a mountain which would take many hours by your measure, in two, three or four minutes.

16. Knowing this it shall be obvious to you how this senior servant can travel through his parish frequently to wherever his help is needed.

17. Behold, such is the relationship between the landlord and servant. Because upon the sun no house-father needs any domestic servant for needs other than the predominantly spiritual.

18. His ground, in any case, he can easily till with his will whilst his wife and their several daughters can, when they have finished school and whilst they are still single, milk the aforementioned sheep and shear them from time to time and spin the wool to make simple aprons.

19. Everything else, such as buildings and their fittings, as well as the necessary materials for a dwelling, in any case, is produced by the builders and so the actual solar husbandman has little to do besides tilling the ground and enjoying the fruits thereof.

20. Wherefore sun-people concern themselves mostly with cultivating their spirit, enjoying visiting each other and admiring the diversity of spiritual powers manifesting in the most splendid products of human will.

21. Whence sun people have no laws and behavioural rules other than those of hospitality and socializing, consisting in perpetual mutual edification thereby building up their knowledge of God and therewith the purpose for which He created them.

22. Besides, sun people are most lovingly obliging and devoted to one another. There is no thought of quarrelling, but rather competition in how they can anticipate each other in service. This is, as it were, a spontaneous attitude not the result of some law but contrariwise of free will, resulting from the knowledge of God and consequently humanity's purpose.

23. Over there it is 'brother' and 'sister' throughout. Even teacher and pupil shall not mingle other than as the sincerest, truest brotherly friends.

24. What are the moral structures? There you can be assured at once that there is not a trace of fornication anywhere. Firstly, propagation does not take place as on Earth but through united prayer and the consequent unified love-will, which is only a unifying of everything good and true or the unifying of light and heat, where the progenitor is as the light and motherhood as heat.

25. In such unification the pair find their greatest bliss. However it is not like your sensuality, but is the state of two people with identical sense of the good and true, necessitating that you upgrade your concept immensely of such an emotional state.

26. This therefore is the act of procreation with sun people, particularly upon this belt. For this reason your foolish and morally destructive state of being-in-love does not occur here and the mutual fondness is grounded solely in the good and true.

27. Although the beauty of the female sex upon the sun is on a most widespread scale, so much so that it is impossible to conceptualise the beauty of such women, such beauty nevertheless has no worth before the male unless fully paired with the recognition of the good and the true. For over here no one regards the form by itself as something attractive, just as you would not regard the single letter from a book or a single note from a composition as attractive, looking to only what is represented. If however it is shallow, worthless and watery stuff you shall not be kissing or seizing such work lovingly either.

28. Behold, solar man regard form just so. If it corresponds with his concept of the good and true, then it also is of decisive worth for him. If not, then it may be ever so beautiful, but it means no more to him than some tiresome advertisement in a newspaper advising vacant dwellings in some Chinese town. Even if it is printed in the most beautiful lettering, you shall still prefer some badly written Psalm of David if only it is legible, rather than such an example of a beautiful advertisement.

29. Behold, thus also upon the sun, everything external is only lettering, receiving its worth from its worthy sense. It was so also upon Earth once, but those times have long passed. Wherefore, I now present this, so that men can gradually, if they find out about it, be guided thereby, if they would be truly happy here in the beyond.

30. If you are desirous of knowing how marriages are entered into in heaven, then marriage upon the sun shall serve as an example for such marriages also last forever, whereas your mostly downright bad marriages being founded in nothing other than the external and therefore most abominable to Me, last at the most until the grave and sometimes less.

31. For believe Me: the most despicable marriage entered into on Earth is that for money and property; this kind surely ends where its foundation ceases. No less destructive and abominable are marriages having sensuality and mutually attractive forms at their core; for these too gradually pass, like their bad foundations. Similar are political marriages, not surviving their foundations either. Also premature junior marriages, for these also pass like their foundation. Of such ilk are society marriages which too, pass like their destructive foundations.

32. Only marriages that have Me as their foundation shall last forever for their foundation is eternal.

33. For this reason have I told you this, that you may see how true marriages are gone into and are compose; and how they should be based.

34. Do you not say yourselves: no choice fruit can appear upon bad soil, but only weed and thistles? If therefore you look at the world in all its wickedness, asking: "How come?" Then I say unto you: 'Behold the foundation on which the fruit has grown, and judge where, in such swamps and morass, choice wine can grow? Do you not sow the vine upon the mountains, so that they may breathe and suck in the more pure sap and good air, saying: this is the best land for the vine?"

35. Behold, just so the living fruits of the human species, as the Earth's most noble plant should be cast into the best soil! Hence don't let the bad fruits astonish you, if raised from puddles, cesspools, swamps and morasses! Such grounds however are your worldly marriages; by them you therefore know their fruits! Verily! These are exceedingly filthy fields in which to cast living seed for fruit that is to endure forever!

36. But enough of this mighty thorn in My side! Let us therefore return to our better solar soil and learn some things from the sun people, which should also similarly prevail upon Earth. This consists of the above mentioned religious creed as practiced outwardly and inwardly by the sun dwellers, especially upon our familiar belt.

37. But we shall not discuss this till next time. Hence let it be for today.

25. - Chapter 24 -

1. Holidays and feast days. Decease of equatorial inhabitants

1. Do sun people also keep the Sabbath or other holidays?

2. Oh, how could this be possible upon the sun, since there are neither pre-determined days or nights? Wherefore there is a different type of order upon the sun from that of the planets.

3. There is nevertheless upon the sun a certain time dedicated to respite from the ordinary business of the day. When does this take place?

4. You are aware of the entire sun rotating around its axis every 29 days. You also know that the sun people are well able to see the stellar sky above them, especially the stars you chart as those of magnitude one, two and three, which appear to the sun people nearly the size of your sun, which applies indeed to magnitudes one and two, but only less by half of which applies indeed to magnitudes one and two, but only less by half for that of magnitude three. On occasions of exceptional atmospheric clarity, they can also detect stars of magnitude four and five, but that is the limit of their sight-range for this belt.

5. Upon the initial appearance of the fixed star that you call Sirius, which is the biggest and brightest however, a holiday ensues until it reaches the Zenith, for which they allow something over seven days by your measure.

6. During this time all alternate pendulums are put on hold; only the main pendulum of the second or Great Temple must never stop. During this time there is neither work nor instruction, as every housefather stays home with his family. During this time, no foot must be set beyond the pillar-line of the house, other than the stated emergency of a natural threat, which however rarely develops within the first half period of the above mentioned star's appearance, but easily within the second half of the same duration. (It speaks for itself that this is not always in the same region but conditionally and dependant upon God's order, will and wisdom.)

7. How do people in their dwellings pass their time during this period? They make certain private resolutions that they then most punctually keep during this period.

8. Such resolutions usually consist of all sorts of exercises in self- denial, roughly resembling your true fasting. This however is not the same in every house but depends on some newly discovered family weakness within a house.

9. If a family is talkative, then fasting is applied to all talking within a house; no person allowing a syllable to escape their lips but turning to inward contemplation. Note Well! Such fasting would be highly recommended upon Earth too, especially in houses where there is useless blubber from early morning till late at night and where slandering of neighbours is rampant as well as other similar abominations.

10. Furthermore, where too much is made of eating in a solar household, as little as possible is eaten during this periods in order to curb this weakness.

11. If a household is quarrelsome or opinionated and stuck on their personal views; during this period all such predilection must cease, especially for those more prone to this vice. Since during this period all children come home from their schools, the number of house occupants swell and any quarrelling amongst them shall benefit from speech fasting.

12. Wherefore fasting is differently apportioned in every house, depending on which spiritual weakness predominates.

13. Once the star has reached its Zenith, all house doors are opened again and everyone rushes  out to the three temples  to give  due thanks for the fortification attained during this stretch. To Whom? This you are bound to discern.

14. At the completion of thanksgiving and mutual blessings, and following the High Priest's blessing, all betake themselves home quickly to start their usual daily tasks.

15. So much for the solar regions' sacraments. Regarding spiritual sacraments, these are continuous, because solar man's entire life revolves around the constant and precise recognition and keeping of God's Will and this is indeed the predominantly spiritual part of every divine service. The most spiritual aspect consists of men conversing about My Incarnation as they attempt to come ever closer to its great love-work. Therewith we have the most spiritual aspect of solar men's sacraments.

16. Curiously to you, is that on the sun men's physical decease also is drawn into religious sacraments. Why? Because dying, in particular upon this belt takes on a most spiritual aspect.

17. You will ask: "What does this consist of?" Just a little patience and you shall shortly find out.

18. People never contract illnesses. When their spirit has gained the proper maturity however it spontaneously bursts forth from its shell through the fiery eruption of its being, progressing to a higher world of which we shall hear later.

19. We have already received some hints of this at the start but shall discuss it imminently in much more detail.

20. Behold, since people in the sun disappear suddenly upon their decease, so-to-say, such vanishing is celebrated by solar man with deepest spiritual devotion and praise is rendered to the Lord for yet again liberating a brother from earthly fetters and leading him back to the primordial kingdom of all light and life!

21. Wherefore this spiritual part of religious doctrine is also called the final song of praise as none follow it after a person's decease in this manner.

22. Not that a deceased person is erased from the memories of the living, particularly because upon the sun, the subject of history is taken far more seriously than upon any planet and especially the Earth where, in world history, only those persons feature who had their heads crowned or who had killed the largest number of their brethren! That's not the way history is treated upon the sun, every inhabitant being recorded in the temples and that in accordance with his character and life-style and how he witnessed one or the other natural occurrence. The products of his will are also recorded and that in the private houses. Wherefore private house decorations are not there willy-nilly, but as a significant letter in the history book of one or other person who occupied the house.

23. Neither is a deceased person in the sun commemorated as upon Earth such as with expensive funerals followed by almost eternal funeral masses, but rather commemoration consists of repeated consideration of what he acted out through My grace in him. This is incomparably better than all paid commemoration exercises. For I, Who alone can help, need no money. He who would be paid however in order to coerce Me into help through vain sacraments, strays mightily. For verily, I say unto you: "a croaking frog shall sooner move Me to grace than a paid prayer." You can take it from Me that the topmost abomination for a man to commit is to let himself be paid by his brethren for advertised power-prayers. When a fly buzzes or a mill clatters or a frog croaks in a puddle, verily this is pleasing to Me; but a paid prayer is repulsive spittle, pus or pestilential stench. I need say no more!

24. From this you will gather the benefits of all ostentatious funerals, and services for souls following on their heels. I need say no more than refer you to the Gospel. Read what reward I promised the Jewish priesthood for long, lying and paid intercessory prayers on behalf of poor widows and orphans. If you read these passages thoughtfully, then you will gather what there is to every funeral ritual, particularly Roman Catholic.

25. Enough said however! Let us return to our sun and examine a house or two where either the father or the mother has received the Requiem Mass. Because in the sun there is no childhood death, everyone having to attain to complete maturity in line with the greatest order, especially upon this belt.

26. What happens to a surviving partner? All domestic responsibilities are at once assigned to the oldest son and for the purpose of fully maturing spiritually, he remains in the house as teacher and adviser in godly things.

27. The widower or widow nevertheless then has frequent meetings with the departed. This spirit appearance however, is seen by none besides the one with whom he stands in everlasting conjugal union.

28. For this reason no one in the sun marries a second time but only once, wishing throughout his life no more than everlasting inseparability from the object of his heart.

29. This constitutes what is most notable about this central solar equator. Wherefore we shall now bring this to conclusion and move to its neighbouring, but somewhat smaller belt.

30. It has to be kept in mind however that there are seven equatorial belts on each side of the main one that are homogenous to one another. When examining an equator therefore and there is discussion of a belt, two are always to be understood thereby, because one belt is south of the main equator, and with little variation resembles its corresponding northern belt. 31: But we shall hear next time what the next, smaller belt and its corresponding belt can offer us. Hence we shall leave it for today.

26. - Chapter 25 -

1. The first pair of corresponding belts. Landscape and the people there. About outer and inner beauty

1. Regarding the next belt and its counterpart, these are firstly much narrower and the ground also considerably firmer than the central, or main equator. The main equator constitutes the actual solar world, whereas the ancillary belts are only worlds corresponding to the planets orbiting the sun.

2. Thus the next two belts stand in correspondence with the plants Mercury and Venus, both of which can be seen quite well by the inhabitants of these side belts. Mercury appears the size of your Moon and Venus about half that.

3. So the northern of these twin belts corresponds to Mercury and the southern to Venus. Hence everything found upon the northern belt is also found upon Mercury, except of course, that it is a far more perfect solar equivalent. Such relationship similarly applies between the southern belt and Venus.

4. This had to precede so that you would gather what these ancillary belts are all about and that with their acquaintance, you would be substantially familiarized with the planets themselves.

5. But to preclude confusion, we shall mainly examine the northern belt, limiting our observations of the southern belt to where it sometimes markedly differs from the northern one. For one thing you must know, is that the planets Mercury and Venus are of identical consistency. Likewise, are the inhabitants of both these planets wise men nearly throughout. What differentiates them is that the inhabitants of Mercury seek and also find wisdom along the path of personal, evidential experiences from which they forge all kinds of assumptions and conclusions. Wherefore these people, even as spirits are still travel bugs, desiring to see the entire

6. Creation with their own eyes to inform and most profoundly convince themselves as to whether their wise conclusions during their carnal lives were fallacious or not. This therefore is the nature or rather prominent attribute of the inhabitants of Mercury.

7. If you want to see the Venusians, these are basically like those of Mercury, except that their school of wisdom commences where that of Mercury ends and their final examination is where the people of Mercury begin their school. In other words, the matter is to be regarded as follows: the people of Mercury first think in the light of experience and then look. The Venusians however look first and then think in the light of experience.

8. Thinking about this statement you shall say: therefore there can't be much difference, akin to a musical scale: whether up or down indeed makes a difference to hearing but the individual notes remain the same, whether ascending or descending.

9. Primarily for this reason these two solar belts are called corresponding ones, in that their relationship is shown clearly; wherefore you will see why it won't be necessary to treat these belts individually but to just deal with the northern one. Because from the nature of this belt, the foregoing makes it easy to deduce the nature of the corresponding southern belt, the way a falling musical scale can be deduced from a rising one since the same fundamental tone underlies both.

10. Before we move on to man however we shall have to examine the topography of our belts in greater detail

11. You are acquainted with the two continuous, insurmountably high mountain ranges delineating the main solar equator. These same two mountain chains therefore also separate the two adjacent sub-equators.

12. With the main equator, we have seen how from these two mountain chains a lot of smaller mountain ranges criss-cross all over the entire extensive belt. This does not however extend to the first two sub-equatorial belts because here these two lofty alpine walls fall right down to the plain, which is constantly under water. Wherefore a fairly wide belt of water running along the high alpine line cuts off the two sub-equatorial belts from the main one. Its width averages about two thousand of your (German) miles.

13. Only beyond this circular sea does the inhabitable land commence. The land itself of both the northern and southern belts is extremely mountainous and includes little flat land and hence no notable land locked waters. Its largest streams and lakes are hardly the size of your Danube or Lake Constance but smaller streams and lakes are there in considerable abundance.

14. The land itself, right up to the next insurmountable main alpine chain, would extend to an average width of about five thousand of your (German) miles, levelling off considerably towards this next mountain range but not as if levelling off in itself, but it is rather the equatorial mountains consolidating and with their crests forming a fairly wide, flat highland which also is frequently and mainly inhabited.

15. Just as this northern ancillary belt makes up the inhabitable land, so does the parallel southern belt, namely that a circular sea follows the lofty mountain range also, followed by an intensely mountainous country which again flattens towards the next lofty alpine range.

16. Comparing these two belts from north to south, you will realize that in the northern belt the high plateau region is its northernmost part; the central part is made up of the low plateau and the southernmost part the high plateau.

17. Behold, this is one illustration of how the two belts correspond with each other, since in one direction one belt ends in the southernmost side, while the other belt commences in its northernmost part and vice versa. You shall find everything that follows has the same corresponding relationship.

18. But to remain true to our previous system we shall also commence our more detailed presentation with man. What type of people inhabit the northern belt?

19. If you were acquainted with the people of the planet Mercury then I could say unto you: they completely resemble the people of this belt, just as the people of the southern belt resemble those of the corresponding planet. But since you naturally don't know this yet, I needs must describe these people to you more closely in relation to shape.

20. These people are somewhat bigger than those of the main belt and also bigger than those on their corresponding planet. But they are firstly not as radiantly beautiful as those of the main belt, yet are nonetheless still far more beautiful than those of their corresponding planet and indeed notably more beautiful than the people of your Earth.

21. This is due to their wisdom; for wisdom has the attribute of developing the outer form most beautifully. With love however it is the opposite; there the inward part is full of endless beauty and the outer part therefore simple and plain. Wherefore men should not be misled by outer beauty of shape since it is of far lesser worth than the interior for it relates like the beauty of a far less valuable crystal to the originally rough form of a diamond. The latter of course in its natural state sparkles far less than a crystal polished by nature; when the diamond is polished however, showing its inner purity, then judge for yourselves how far the sparkle of its fiery colour leaves the beauty of the crystal behind!

22. This small example should completely reassure all true children of love and therewith yourselves as well, when hearing about ever so striking external human forms, for I say unto you: just one heart loving Me truly counterbalances all the thinkable beauties of an entire solar galaxy. Indeed I say more: such a heart is unspeakably more beautiful than the entire heavenly wisdom of the angels, as well as the second wisdom and heavenly love of the highest angels.

23. I need say no more. After I therefore reveal to you the beauty of the people of this belt, you will know in advance how much store to place on it.

24. Next time therefore we shall consider the form and build more closely, which relate like wisdom and its foundation. So we leave it for today!

27. - Chapter 26 -

1. More about form, dress and convention upon the first pair of sub-equators

1. Concerning shape, especially of the inhabitants of the northern belt, this resembles approximately those still extant presently as Asian mountain dwellers, namely in the western Caucasus, excepting that they are half as big again on average than the latter.

2. The female sex is of exceptional tenderness, except for the soles of their feet which are somewhat hard and rough like a file to protect against skidding and falling upon the smooth solar ground. Because, to have a fall here would be more hazardous for bigger and heavier bodies than upon the main equator, the ground being harder than upon the latter.

3. The rest of the female body being, as said, exceedingly tender, soft and well rounded withal. Her hair is by nature brilliant-white, whilst her skin colour is like the sun seen through a pale rose petal. Because upon this belt, people also possess their own light; so if a woman of this equator stood upon one of your mountains at night she would light up a substantial region not with white, but on account of her body, a pale red light. Only her hair would shed an intensely white light that your eyes could not bear, night or day.

4. Her eyes are large and very lively; the apple of the eye is brilliant white and the opening of the iris light blue with a dark green, not black, cornea for greater light tolerance and clear vision in every direction.

5. Therewith sketching a further description of her shape unnecessary in view of everyone's familiarity with all the outer attractions of the exterior of a perfect female form.

6. From this described form, the full physical character can be gauged. To know what is to be understood here by character, be advised that the aggregate type inherent in a complete form, is to be understood.

7. This means: when for example you see a beautiful, perfect foot together with a well-proportioned midriff; an equally beautiful well-rounded arm, a softly rounded neck and a proportionately small head and well developed face, then all this adds up to a beautiful form that cannot really be faulted in that all is perfect: foot like body, the breasts, arms, neck and head. When you admire the details in a painting you have paid tribute to the form.

8. But probing further and asking: what does this form say or bespeak? You get the overall result from a fleeting glance, noting the connections and taking in the total impression: for this consists in the glimpsed harmony which is to be understood as character.

9. Knowing this and having the form revealed to you, it will be easy for you to determine the character itself.

10. And what do such women dress like? Her clothing consists of no more than a rather large loincloth as seen on the inhabitants of the main belt. A white coat hangs from the left arm to the right hip over half the body, divided at the arm leaving the right arm and breast free.

11. Women wear a red band over their brow signifying love for wisdom.

12. This gives a woman's outline.

13. What do the men look like? He is nearly a head taller than the woman. His form is noble and perfect throughout.

14. The man too has a rather hard sole on his feet at times resembling a so-called rasp. The legs are very muscular but not harsh to look at. Likewise body and hands. His neck is round from behind but parted by two powerful muscles to the gullet leaving a furrow between the two muscles.

15. His chin is graced with a rich parted beard yellow in colour tapering off to green. The abundant hair of his head is of a light yellow colour with dark green eyebrows and his eyes are shaped like those of the woman.

16. His ears are rather large in proportion to his head. His head or rather face, always evinces the bent for wisdom and experience with a deeper red facial colour than that of the woman.

17. His body too, in different parts, is darker than that of the woman.

18. Dress consists of a white Toga reaching down to the knees, trimmed down the sides as well as the bottom and the neck end. Neither men nor women cover their heads.

19. Therewith we have a vivid view of man's shape and character.

20. You will ask: we now have the human character-type in the northern belt but what are things like in the southern belt?

21. Men are just as in the northern belt except they are bigger in size, whilst women are more beautiful still.

22. Only their apparel is different. Here it is the woman who wears the Toga, trimmed with red and tightened by a belt around a slim body. Men wear a loincloth reaching down below the knees as well as a half coat like the women of the northern belt.

23. Here the woman's headband is blue, whilst the man wears a small red cap upon his head signifying that he has a especial predilection towards wisdom. The woman's blue headband signifies her constancy, usually in being a follower of the man's wisdom.

24. At the main central equator we saw the people's inquisitiveness but this is as nothing compared to this sub-equator, where the male of the northern belt especially is capable of gaping at a natural spectacle, just standing on one spot for several years by your measure. Consequently, I certainly see to it that a natural spectacle does not last too long on either of these two belts.

25. Most natural spectacles normally take place at the convergence of the two water-belts with the two lofty alpine chains (by which the main equator is separated from these two sub-equators). These plays of nature are especially drawn out during the central belt eruptions, but since such water-belts are of a width approaching two Earth diameters, our inquisitive people don't get to see them much. During especially violent eruptions some of the spherical flares are indeed sometimes flung over the Alps and into these belts, yet due to their enormous distance, they appear no larger than your moon through a powerful telescope, even if of the latter's size. Besides, the drop of such spherical flares takes only a few seconds by your measure leaving the inhabitants of this belt somewhat disappointed.

26. Their main observations however are devoted to the stellar sky and the inhabitants, especially of the northern belt, often exhaust themselves in all kinds of speculations as to what one or other stars purport, what they are and for what purpose were they created.

27. The people of the southern belt even have a kind of aid for the eye, somewhat like your camera obscura, catching and then analysing the image of a star with much diligence. They nevertheless don't get much further than yourselves with binoculars, since they gain no more than the movement of the stars and their magnitude, being ahead of you only so-to-say that, as inhabitants of a fixed star, they are able to more precisely determine the movements and sizes of other fixed stars i.e. so far as their eyes and instruments will reach. Once these fail them however, all calculations are, as with yourselves, at an end.

28. These two belts differ also in that the people of the northern belt place less store by watching than by speculations and conclusions, whilst the people of the southern belt first watch everything most carefully and only then progress to all sorts of speculations and inferences.

29. Thus we have summed up the predilections of these people, and now we shall also take a look at how the people of these two belts live, both as individuals and societies.

30. Regarding the settling of this belt as upon the main equator, the people indeed live in separate houses, the style of which we shall not examine till next time, that being the wise men's way of not disturbing them in their reflections.

31. There nevertheless are upon the shores of minor inland seas and more notably upon the high plateaus, certain communities consisting of several grand buildings strung together with a city- like appearance. These are communally owned cooperatives, usually occupied by the wise men of the country.

32. But we shall examine their individual units and their efficacy next time, so we shall leave it for today.

28. - Chapter 27 -

1. Private houses and communal settlements upon the first Sub-equator

1. Concerning private dwellings, except for the larger scale, these more or less resemble your round garden kiosks, except for the proportionately much higher and more pointed roofs. They are not as open as the dwellings of the middle belt, but enclosed in solid walls through which sufficient light penetrates due to transparency of their green material.

2. What is their size and what do their interiors look like? In size, they are large enough to easily accommodate a fairly large Earth building inside, although they are rarely higher than your average tower i.e. just the walls, whilst the roof sometimes reaches three times the height of the walls.

3. Towards the eastern side there is a door approximately the size of your city gate. This is not at ground level and has ten stepped levels leading to it.

4. Before the door there is a kind of balcony through which a few steps lead to the door. The shelves and the balcony is covered by rooves on fairly massive square pillars.

5. On entering, after crossing another small interior balcony, one descends down a small staircase between two artistic rails on diamond edged multi-cornered columns.

6. From this interior balcony, a fairly spacious gangway, supported from the floor by sturdy hexagonal white pillars, runs along the entire wall. It too has a simple rail. Simple there, means something of taste, even i.e. not decorated with notable paintings or engravings.

7. Beyond this walkway, there follows several circles of pillars, reaching from the floor to the roof-joists they carry. These pillars are quite massive with an average circumference often between six and eight metres.

8. There are circular, comfortable, soft-cushioned benches at their base.

9. Around the central pillar also a spiral staircase leads right up to the attic and over it through a roof trapdoor to the so-called roof- gallery which is there called the observatory, (in accordance with its purpose rather than literally). This gallery too is enclosed elegantly with a rail of miniature columns and is itself roofed, although such roofing is not included with the high plateau observatories, the reason being that even upon the sun it is much cooler there than in the lower regions.

10. There are usually several tables in fours around the pillar benches in the shape of flat dishes around each pillar, resting on pillar type supports.

11. Beneath the gangway around the entire circular wall there are roomy benches like your sofas for resting on after work. Here is where meals are eaten.

12. From the number of tables you will gather that there are numerous families in such a house, numbering about a hundred persons.

13. There is a splendid wardrobe in the background with as many drawers as there are occupants. These drawers have their names on them, enabling everyone to store their physical and spiritual needs.

14. The physical necessities are a few garments and certain tools

15. For their spiritual requirements there is a type of picture book wherein people record all kinds of experiences and views. When a person has accumulated a certain number of experiences and outlook books, they hand them in to the fraternities of their membership. There they are carefully perused. The useful part is entered into a general register and the rest crossed out.

16. Whereupon the contributor receives his books back corrected, so-to-say, entering the commendable approvals in a new book which is then the house priority book, whilst the source diaries are destroyed.

17. The women folk have to do likewise, carefully recording their experiences and views and then also, like the men keeping a proper priority book.

18. The tribe elder of a house then also keeps a register where all the house priority books of males and females are summarised. For this general book he has a fairly large trove behind the round-way into which none besides the tribe elder may look and with which he checks out all the other priority books from time to time.

19. Therewith we have the character and outfitting of a dwelling upon the northern belt.

20. The dwellings are similar in the southern belt, except for rounded instead of pointed roofs. The pillars are round too as distinct from the square ones, these being the only differences.

21. You will gather that the southern belt dwellings are bigger due to the bigger humans.

22. You can know that the inhabitants of both belts pick the most prominent spots for their dwellings. Knowing that, we can now move to the cooperatives.

23. The latter does not consist of a single building, but relative to area, sometimes a hundred or even a thousand buildings. These are not of uniform size and style but related to their purpose.

24. There is always amidst such cooperatives a main building which is also the biggest and highest among them.

25. This building is rectangular with a lofty tower on each comer. It is roofless for unobstructed views. Such a building often has a length of up to two kilometres by your measure, but is only a hundred metres wide, whilst its height sometimes reaches three hundred metres with a roof higher by at least half, of dark red colouring and light violet walls. The tower walls are light green.

26. These are not closed-off walls like those of the dwellings but for lighting, feature one hundred metre-high windows of four metres width on every side at regular intervals, the reason also for non- transparent walls. The windows are not open but are like your "gothic" style, with a type of elastic but transparent and multi- coloured glass and lock out external air.

27. The exterior of this main building is indeed imposing with its colossal size, yet it is not ostentation.

28. But it is so much more splendid inside, although not quite the indescribably great splendour of perhaps the first or second category upon the main belt, but just to be taken in by itself. For regardless of whether a light has the intensity of sunlight, it can still be beautiful in itself, if only steady and peaceable. So it is also, with the interior splendour of this cooperative main building.

29. The entrance also is not at ground level but in the middle of a narrow side of this building. There is a balcony also which is reached through several levels. The balcony is fairly spacious, square and roofed, resting on several square white pillars. The balcony can be passed only through a forty metre-high gate. Inside the building this balcony widens and after a forty metre forward crossing meets two rows of stairs down into the actual building.

30. Between these two staircases a third part of the balcony lengthens leading to the other end of the building, forming a centre walk. Two walkways are about twenty metres high and rest on square pillars from the floor up, spaced at ten metre intervals. It goes without saying that the side as well as middle walks have most elegant railings carried by miniature light-green semi-transparent octagonal pillars.

31. The balcony as well as walkway floors is covered with mosaics of the most manifold configurations and polished like your mirrors just like everything else in this building.

32. Between the centre way and the two walkways runs a line of large pillars carrying both the ceiling and the roof.

33. Lowermost in the building, also around these pillars are benches for resting, made of brilliant red elastic material and the benches are flanked by tables similar to those we found in the dwellings.

34. In the middle of this building between the central walk and the row of main pillars there are two continuous, parallel tables running for two hundred metres around which there are plenty of loose chairs with backs.

35. In place of the tables between the pillars carrying the central walk, there are big cabinets near each pillar, storing the main books, in front of which there are decorous step ladders to enable the shelves in the cabinet to be reached.

36. But contrary to your assumptions these are not wooden cabinets but of a variety of red-gold whose shine exceeds anything you ever saw. The cabinets are of such delicate workmanship and so well positioned between the white walkway pillars, as in no way to detract from the architecture.

37. Beneath the side walkway along the wall between every two pillars, there is another similar cabinet deep yellow in colour and of double the size of the previous ones. These cabinets running along the entire wall are the archives. In some main buildings there are over two thousand of them with each frequently holding a thousand shelves, each holding up to two thousand books per shelf. A little arithmetic indicates a quite voluminous library, but not of your folio type books, but of only up to ten pages per book, each displaying general picture-characters with such portentous contents however, that for you to describe them in your language would need a thousand folio-type books, each five thousand pages per folio.

38. This will indicate how much wisdom is harboured by one of these main cooperative buildings. If however, you can take it from Me, there are up to five million of these main cooperative buildings upon this solar equator, then you may want to add up how many folios of your variety, filled with wisdom, are to be found upon these two belts.

39. Yet all this wisdom does not amount to one drop compared to the wisdom of just one man inhabiting the main solar equator and this is in turn hardly a drop compared to a high priest of this belt who already takes his wisdom out of love. And his wisdom in turn is but a tiny droplet compared to the least of the little ones out of My love! Where does that put the wisdom of the perfect initiates of the heavens and where finally My own?

40. In short, let us leave wisdom to its rest in the archives and examine the remaining setup of this main building for a little time.

41. The ceiling consists of a threefold vault of massive solidity, which shines with a light red gold colour. The walls are an exceedingly fine, polished blue. Hanging half way down from the ceiling upon thick white ropes there are white light-spheres which, although not imbued with their own light, nonetheless through their manifold cut and fine polish, break up the light from the windows into the most manifold colours, giving the interior of the building an extraordinary look of splendour.

42. The walkways along the walls are provided with continuous, cushioned benches to give rest to strollers from their excursions.

43. Therewith we have the outfit of this main cooperative building except for a small door at each corner of this building, through which the towers can be accessed.

44. The towers themselves have nothing to offer other than an easy staircase from storey to storey. These floors are installed to prevent the climbers becoming dizzy. To help you visualize this, think of an almost two thousand metre high tower, which internally is subdivided into twenty metres high storeys connected by railed staircases.

45. Add to that an eight hundred meter circumference for this square tower and you have a small idea of what the building is like. It goes without saying that every floor is provided with three windows, as there is no wall-transparency.

46. That's it! Next time we shall have a look at the remaining buildings and cast a glance at the southerly belt. Therewith we shall leave it for today!

29. - Chapter 28 -

1. Art and science buildings in the communal settlements

1. Concerning the other buildings of the consortium, these differ from the private dwellings only in the wall windows. Also the reason why the walls are non-transparent as distinct from the main building. The shape of these windows is usually semi-circular with just a few round or hexagonal ones.

2. Nor do the roofs reach the height of the private dwellings being rather obtuse and low. Some consortium buildings have cupolas and so the consortium gives the impression of a sizeable city.

3. The consortium is usually surrounded by a high rampart with several watch towers. There is usually a consortium theatre but not of your variety, where performances consisting of the pictorial presentation of one or other person's most diverse experiences. The pictorial performance then faithfully reproduces the region of the presenter's experience. One has to add that this equator's inhabitants are great friends of painting, wherefore with very few exceptions, the inhabitants are competent painters. For here, painting is also the only form of writing, it being every person's responsibility to reproduce nature faithfully.

4. Knowing this, you shall understand the type of theatre performance presented there, for it consists of no more than certain clever pictorial acts, following which the whole theatre has the look of a big, rounded mural depicting a whole city or region of note, except that you have to think of a much larger mural than the frescoes on Earth. Because the theatre in such consortiums has a circumference of between six to eight hundred metres and a height often up to one hundred metres.

5. You may like more details about such buildings and they shall be supplied. This theatre building cannot be entered like other private houses but by an underground entrance for which purpose there is a kind of projection similar to the side chapels of your houses of prayer. In this chapel there is a niche of a sizeable depression of about six metres, at the end of which is the portal whose wings swing outward. From this gate a staircase leads down as into one of your cellars and that into a depression of about fourteen metres. At the bottom of the staircase begins another staircase by which one accesses the middle of the theatre.

6. About six metres from the theatre's interior wall runs a row of pillars which help to carry firstly the ceiling and also the roof. About six metres above the floor, these pillars also carry a spacious gangway with decorous railings from which one actually obtains the best view of the performance.

7. In the middle of the theatre building, about two metres from the ascending staircase door there is another immensely sturdy pillar also supporting the ceiling and roof and carrying a spiral staircase up to the ceiling.

8. Behind this pillar is another smaller one also reaching up to the ceiling. From the main central pillar about ten metres before the ceiling, runs another walkway over the second pillar and then to a row of pillars and through to the theatre wall upon which walkway one can get to the said spiral staircase of the central main pillar.

9. At the same height of this walkway around the entire theatre wall, runs a three metre wide walkway, also provided with a railing of course. This gangway is not supported by pillars but is carried by bow type diagonal wall struts anchored in the wall.

10. You may ask the purpose of this gangway? It serves no purpose other than to hang the mural from its railing hooks, which usually reaches down to the floor from this rail and hence not infrequently giving it a drop of between one hundred and sixty to two hundred metres.

11. You may further ask how to get such huge paintings through the not so large entrance gate? It is done piecemeal in strips of about six meters each. These strips are hung side by side in their order from the walkway rail and together present a complete picture.

12. When taken down, they are rolled up again and taken from the theatre building and into the so-called theatre library building or the presenter has the option of taking his props with him especially if the presented experience did not attract much favourable comment.

13. Works of poetry are also more highly regarded than prose. What do they classify as poetry or prose? Prose is that which presents the author's own, ordinary life experiences. If these experiences are not notable or especially instructive they are handed back to the author without further ado and he is told that such presentations don't belong in this house in which only such things are to be performed as enrich the wisdom of man's spirit. If such prose works can demonstrate such extraordinary scenes then they are accepted, whilst the mundane is handed back to the presenter. Works of poetry are those not originating in experience but are products of spiritual imagination. Such works then remain on fairly extended exhibition.

14. Why are such poetry works so popular? Because they are more rare, especially among the inhabitants of this belt. Wisdom being intrinsically bereft of fantasy in that the domain of imagination is the property of creative love. Wherefore with such performances the well-known maxim applies: where the great ones build, the little ones have their hands full. And all sorts of things are predicted for such work, everyone finding something else for a conversation in it, making it a favourite topic for people of this belt.

15. Therewith the substance of the theatre building. But a clever critic could comment: near the top of the wall is a walkway from which the round mural hangs right down to the floor. The walls are not transparent, nor is there any opening in the ceiling. Since any potential windows would obviously have to be obstructed by the painting, we would ask the author to bring us also some light into this theatre building or we shall not get to see overly much of this mural!

16. Just a little patience. Plenty of light is on the way. On your Earth it is custom to paint diverse theatre decorations. Behold, something similar is the case here, but the art of painting here does not consist of some theatrical goofing but this theatre painting- style employs luminescent paint making it also the most vivid and enduring. For in the sun, paint without its own light soon perishes, but with its own light it bears, as it were, the arms with which to fight off all destructive external light.

17. Behold, this comprises lighting at this stage performance and so the theatre has windows indeed, but these serve for visibility only during the setting up of a production. Once it is set up, all windows are completely closed so that the attraction of this painting would not be spoilt by any other light beam.

18. Although these paints in the sun are not hard to work with, much practice is required in order to, as you would say, allow for shade and light to be evenly distributed. With non-luminescent paint, shading is of course much easier to effect, but with luminescent paints, shading is subject to considerable problems. Because of this, the painters, especially the cooperatives of our belt, are so well practiced that it is easy for them to complete a mural in one year by your reckoning.

19. To give you an idea of this technique, I remind you of a certain painting technique on Earth that has much in common with this type of light-painting upon our solar equator. It is the so-called porcelain painting on your Earth, where painting is done with paints that in the natural state appear extremely dull and uniform. When the crockery is subjected to glazing the beautiful colours emerge.

20. Behold, the theatre exhibits are painted in this way. After the strips are painted they are covered with a kind of lacquer. Only then do the colours begin to appear vividly, all caused by free sunlight taken up initially by these dull colours and then vividly retained permanently.

21. That is all that is noteworthy about the cluster housing theatre.

22. Regarding the other cooperative buildings, these on the one hand serve as dwellings for the teachers of wisdom but on the other hand also as store houses for all sorts of memorabilia and smaller paintings.

23. We can add in passing that these other buildings are usually grouped in an elliptical circle around the main building and that the cluster settlements are usually built upon the shores of lesser seas as well as on the high plateaus on the bank of major rivers.

24. For the southern belt, just think of this as rather rounded off and enlarged and you have everything that the southern belt offers.

25. Presently we shall move to land cultivation upon these two belts and so we can leave it for today.

30. - Chapter 29 -

1. Land cultivation and the animal kingdom upon the first sub-equatorial belts.

1. Concerning land cultivation, this is divided into three classes, namely, cultivation of coastal lands, cultivation of hills and cultivation of high plateaus.

2. Wherein does cultivation of the coastal regions consist? The preferred way consists of the inhabitants of cluster housing raising up plantations of all kinds of edible fruits which thrive well there on account of greater soil moisture.

3. These plantations consist mainly of trees. And how are the various trees planted or raised? Upon the main equatorial belt we saw that the chief seed for countless growths is man's will. Is it so in this sub-equatorial belt? Here I say neither a complete yes nor no. We shall see presently what takes place.

4. Upon this belt the plant kingdom indeed bears no seed, but neither do the inhabitants have seed in their weaker will. It nevertheless depends much on man's will as to where they want a plant or a tree. Upon this equator, the growth of plants is indeed taken care of by Myself and none can bring forth any plant other than those suitable for this belt. But through certain manual efforts, people can nevertheless call forth these same plants from the soil, through their will.

5. This type of plant production there is called primary cultivation, which nevertheless not every person is capable of bringing about, for this, only a few can accomplish; those devoted to this branch and consequent willpower.

6. The remaining inhabitants of these belts usually carry on secondary cultivation consisting of cutting twigs and branches off existing trees and planting them in the soil, roughly the way your willow trees and vines are planted.

7. What however is the primitive cultivation technique? The planter has a sharpened stick which he thrusts about one metre into the ground. He then takes a vessel filled with water over which he has breathed a few times then slowly decants same into the hole. When finished, he prays to God the all wise that He would let a fruit bearing plant sprout forth from the ground. Whereupon he stands bowing his head over the opening, fixing it with his gaze for about an hour by your time, after which he moves on and digs a second such hole, doing as before, continuing until he reaches his predetermined number of one species of trees.

8. When finished, he thanks God the all wise for the loaned strength, patience and perseverance, blessing the plantation and leaving it to God's will, then returning home.

9. Then, in the course of a year by your measure, trees laden with fruit stand where he planted them and in accordance with the species he willed. These trees brought forth through the primitive cultivation method are the most enduring so that some often reach an age of over a thousand years by your measure.

10. In the same way trees are planted, as well as smaller plants and grass, except that a different tool is used for digging holes, consisting of a roller with multiple spikes being rolled over the earth. A planter of primitive cultivation follows the roller with the breathed-over water in a vessel resembling your watering can, carefully sprinkling the perforated ground. After a certain predetermined stretch has been planted, he prays for the entire stretch and in general terms does what he did at the planting of each tree. After three days, by your measure, the entire planted area is completely grown over with the type of plants that the planter desired.

11. By the same method, wide areas of choice grass are planted. A type of grass there called the wild or non-precious, as well as some varieties of non-precious small plants grow of themselves in a certain way, serving the rather sparse animal kingdom for fodder.

12. Such is the nature of primitive planting, which is primarily the method in the coastal regions owned mostly by cluster housing dwellers.

13. What then does hill cultivation consist of? It consists solely in tree cultivation and that by way of secondary planting; small plants do not however occur here normally.

14. Concerning tree fruits, these are as it were improved, through secondary planting, growing much bigger and better in taste than through primary cultivation.

15. I shall describe one noteworthy tree more closely. It does not grow to great heights but spreads that much more widely. Its main middle stem frequently reaches about eight metres, by your measure, yet from this massive stem it drives branches of two to four hundred metres long in all directions, always bristling with exceedingly flavoursome ripe fruits, resembling your largest variety of grapes. This fruit is exceedingly sweet and flavoursome but not as juicy as your grapes and more like your melons. The fruit serves as the main food upon this belt being also the most widespread because the tree thrives well everywhere.

16. Concerning the other tree fruits, these are more of a rich morsel than nutritional. You will ask: do these people have no bread like on Earth? No, such is not to be found anywhere. In its place they dry the excess of the aforementioned fruit tree which substitutes for bread.

17. Such is the land cultivation upon the hills, to which it may be added that such hill inhabitants, to make their grounds more attractive, cultivate the wild grass after a fashion by mowing, giving the hills a green silken look.

18. But that is all about hill cultivation, leaving us only the high plateau cultivation. It shall not take long to deal with as this cultivation differs from the two foregoing techniques only in that consumption of fruit is limited to that of secondary culture only.

19. By way of primitive cultivation only, those trees and garden plants are raised up from which subsequent grafting is done in the aforementioned manner. Only grass is grown by way of primitive cultivation.

20. And therewith we have already presented cultivation upon the plateaus, to which we may add that the high plateau fruits are by far the choicest, just as the inhabitants of these two belts are also the wisest and noblest.

21. You will ask: in view of such high plateau cultivation, animals would have to be scarce? You are right, for there are no animals other than a few birds of song. But there is a species of red goat and white sheep upon the lower lands. The inhabitants keep sheep and occasionally goats.

22. Further down at the coasts of the great circular sea there is also a species of cow, which however resembles a gigantic sheep. The cluster dwellers frequently hunt same trying to catch them alive, which takes much work however; for notwithstanding their harmlessness, these cows are exceptionally fleet footed and it takes much wiliness to comer such an animal.

23. As scarce as land animals may be however, the great circular seas are brimming with marine animals, whilst their occasional but substantial islands are occupied by great flocks of the most diverse bird species. For this reason the cluster housing dwellers, in quiet times betake themselves down to the coast of the great circular sea to watch to their vision limit the multiplicity of living beings upon the great waters.

24. That is all that there is to tell about the cultivation of these two belts, which is exactly the same upon both belts except for the greater size of everything upon the southern belt.

25. And therewith we have finished with this aspect. Next time we shall move to domestic and spiritual and religious matters. And therewith enough for today.

31. - Chapter 30 -

1. Domestic practice upon the first pair of sub- equators. Painstaking order and petty-minded wisdom

1. Regarding domestic order, this on the other hand is quite simple but then also complex. How can the same branch be both simple and simultaneously complicated? Nothing easier, for it takes only the required insight to see that a thing can be seen as completely easy and yet immensely complex.

2. Take an apple and it will seem simple and monotonous externally. But open and examine it microscopically and you shall see it is of such complexity that the multiplicity of its parts will make you shudder and dizzy.

3. Behold, such is the case with our equatorial residents. Entering a house and watching it together with its occupants for ten years, you will see hardly anything but repetitious monotony, simple and naive to the limit, to where a pigeon's flapping on Earth would give you more variegation than such residences, together with its occupants.

4. But not so in its internals, for there everything is so complex and meaningful that the smallest thing would already make you dizzy when a household elder starts to analyse it for you, disclosing to you all the secrets and important aspects that depend upon trivia.

5. I shall give you a couple of overabundant examples.

6. You have a notion of symmetry and equilibrium: what however is your symmetry and equilibrium compared to such inhabitants' notion of symmetry and balance?

7. Let us first take symmetry. If such a sun inhabitant came to your room and saw the objects such as robes, tables, benches, wall decorations and the like in fairly good order, he would clasp his hands above his head and after somewhat recovering from his initial horror would show you to a hair's breath how, due to such disorder an entire cosmic body is out of balance and that eventually with him everything shall be out of equilibrium due to that. He would prove to you that if one or other of the robes or other item were not shifted by a hair's breath, very gently and with great care, then in a thousand million years the entire visible creation could suffer the greatest disorder. And this he would demonstrate not only in the natural sense but also with extraordinary philosophical rigour, metaphysically, saying for example: but do you foolish people not notice that your thoughts have in the first instance to sort and consolidate themselves the way your domestic outfit is sorted. To what order shall these adhere however, when they see a chair next to a robe with some vessel on top of the robe bearing no relation to it; then in another comer of the room a bed and next to it a table and next to that something with no relevance to it, either permanently or even worse, temporarily?

8. And he would further ask: do you know what wisdom is? Wisdom is the infinitely most perfect image in all things; it is the most intelligently calculated order, through which the highest wisdom of God created and maintains all things. How do you intend to ever gain wisdom if you take no care even in these small things so that they would be so ordered and shaped as to condition your eye to an order, allowing through such repeated seeing an inception to your thinking-process about at least these small things, getting used to order and from same move to another? Because if you keep no order where you can, getting accustomed to same, how do you want with this disorder-conditioned spirit to discover and view a higher order? Is not this just as impossible as trying with some unfortunate fraction to discover the root of a number consisting exclusively of even numbers; only then can you risk higher numbers in order to discover therein a well-ordered number that carries the causation of the full number.

9. And a wise inhabitant of this belt would furthermore say unto you: do you know the weight of a heavenly body? "Do you know what makes it revolve around its own axis? Do you know what maintains it in free space? It is equilibrium. If, to start with, your dwellings are built symmetrically, none being larger or smaller than another, as well as uniformly arranged in all rooms as well as within them, then this effects no disturbance on a cosmic body's movement. Contrariwise however, it must be plain to you that such unsymmetrical and variable amassing of materials at one and the same point must bring about, upon a freely floating planet, a mathematical irregularity. If however the balance is only slightly disturbed, then this also transfers unto its movement, causing cumulative disturbances on its movement and consequent cumulative disorder: firstly in the temperature and secondly in the rotation, which is either speeded up or slowed down. If however such disorders are bound to arise around you on account of your awkwardness, when do you intend to uplift your spirit to a higher order and through this alone attain to wisdom?"

10. Behold, this is an example of symmetry. But before throwing more light on it, we shall add something about equilibrium. Here you will ask: what other equilibrium is this wise man going to have besides the one with which he berated our deficient symmetry in the arrangement of our rooms?

11. But I say unto you: this was no more than a hint of what such an equatorial arch wise man understands about equilibrium. Over there, equilibrium reaches such a degree that you cannot actually form a concept of it on Earth.

12. On account of equilibrium, the apparel they wear must be weighed on precision scales, on account of which occupants of a house, even if numbering a hundred persons, must wear clothing of exactly the same weight and consequently suffer themselves repeated weighing of their clothing on set occasions and if differing by one or two dust particles in weight, then such exorbitant underweight must at once be balanced by augmentation.

13. Therefore everyone is weighed and the heaviest taken as the standard measure obliging the lighter ones to always carry an equalizing weight bringing them up to par with the heaviest. It is the same for women, the heaviest being weighed with the lighter ones having to bear compensating weights. The children are sorted into age groups and must always weigh their age-standard, which however is maintained by their being given a certain weight of lead right at the beginning which is reduced periodically so that the first accepted weight for juniors would remain steady to the next age group.

14. In this way food also is always weighed with precision, being picked off the tree with utmost care and then transported home by two people in their exact middle and then laid in the exact centre of a dining table.

15. After the fruits in their proper amounts are piled upon the table in utmost symmetry, two scales men arrive who position themselves on opposite sides of the table with exact steps, mathematically coordinate with the lines on the table, after which they both take fruits of sizes as equal as possible, weighing same with exactitude. After being weighed they are removed from the scales simultaneously and laid into a predetermined dish that is fastened upon a line. The scales men then move with equal steps to another line and weigh up a second portion and continue until all dishes are full. Whereupon the scales men move away from the table in parallel lines and deposit their scales at predetermined places.

16. Following this, all move along mathematical floor lines and circles, in tandem steps and utmost silence to the dining table where they reach out for the dish simultaneously, consuming the fruits in strict order. After which, thanks is given to the great, wise Giver, and the table abandoned in the same way and rest taken.

17. Upon a signal, all rise from their resting benches and move in pairs either to the interior house gallery or occasionally to the roof gallery. But these movements must be simultaneous so that none take a faster or wider step than the floor lines predetermine.

18. Such movement however is the preferred custom only inside the house and up to a certain circle outside, beyond which every person can move more freely and deliberately, by virtue of the ground of their world not having to carry a heavy equilibrium - disturbing house.

19. Such pedantic symmetry and equilibrium observance is also practiced at the colleges.

20. Behold, from these two examples you now can gather the overall nature of the domestic regulations of the inhabitants of this sub- equatorial belt. All the other activities and arrangements have a similar rhythm, giving the impression of exceeding monotony and simplicity on the one hand, but on the other hand of such complexity as to make your greatest wisdom-pendants clasp their hands above their heads.

21. You are amazed over it and say: "what degree of folly would it take to drag such regulations even into domestic order?" But I say unto you that your chiding is unjustified, for such is the nature of all wisdom, if not founded in love.

22. Just go to the residence of an arch-scholar and watch his fastidiousness and let him also explain the positioning of things. And if you skilfully probe the man's soft underbelly, you will witness wonders of pragmatism of historical and mathematical exposition with great dignity and precision.

23. On finding some old and cracked pot in the comer of his room, you probe for significance and he will firstly tell you the history of this pot and how it was used by Alexander the Great when ordered by his physician to take his healing potion when crusading in Persia; after which he will recite how it was handed down and finally reached his hands.

24. If however you ask him how he can position such an exceedingly memorable and priceless piece of antiquity in such an unsightly comer of the room instead of as one aught, to store it with golden cloth jacket in a secret treasure trove? Then the scholar shall be able to expound to you with the greatest historical and mathematical certainty that Alexander the Great, after emptying his potion put it down in a corresponding comer of his tent such as it was found here and that the breakage was sustained by Alexander the Great accidentally kicking it.

25. Behold, this would be this scholar's discourse about a more broken pot, which surely would testify of anything, sooner than to have once served the former Macedonian king. Were you to ask him about any object chancing to lie ever so disorderly and dust- laden in some comer of the room, then to your astonishment, he shall accurately explain its every crease and even the dust upon it.

26. Wherefore you can gather the nature of wisdom and therewith its products, if not as said, found in the proper degree of love.

27. This I have now made known to you, enabling you to discern the domestic order of our two types of equatorial inhabitants, but also see what there is to wisdom in itself. And precisely because My order and My own wisdom are infinite and unfathomable, not much else is left to the mere wisdom-merchants but to get into incalculable difficulties in all its elements.

28. That this manifestation must appear to a love-based wise man as absurd and laughable is understandable, like seeing an actual donkey in a Roman Toga. For verily, this purely would-be wise man, from the spiritual aspect is no better to watch by a hair's breadth then a Toga-clad donkey at a speaker's podium.

29. Presently we shall examine the spiritual and religious aspects and then swing over to another equatorial belt. And therewith let us leave it for today.

32. - Chapter 31 -

1. Wisdom and will schools upon the first pair of sub-equators

1. Concerning the spiritual constitution, these equatorial inhabitants understood it to mean what man has to learn to become a completely wise man

2. To gain familiarity therewith, one has only to learn the teaching material. Once this is know, the entire spiritual constitution is as good as known, especially when one or other material adds the method of teaching and learning in outline.

3. What therefore is the basic substance of the texts by which all others are assessed, as it were? This basic material, especially now in your learned world, is also regarded as the basic foundation of all science. However with you, this material is called mathematics or the art of calculation; upon our belt however, this science is called "pausing" (to pause) (taking stock).

4. This science receives priority and is constantly taught for spiritual development. According to this, every person must be capable of accurately and competently assessing every object to gain facility in finding in every object, regardless of how irregular, a round cipher as a foundation for the entire objects form. For they stipulate: it is no use calculating a number if one does not know its root number.

5. Hence, one of the main exercises for students after their elementary education is to start calculating and determining, by merely looking with the naked eye, the cubic volume as well as surface square of an object of any shape and then, from this number, to find the root and from this its unity. You can be assured that in time these people achieve such facility in this subject that with a superficial glance they can determine its cubic content down to the smallest fraction, as well as determining the height of a mountain before them with precision. Even in the estimation of distant cosmic bodies they are so precise that with one look, they make bigger and more precise calculations than your astute astronomers in the course of decades.

6. Thus they can also raise any number to any multiple with equal speed and divide even the broken and uneven numbers in order to achieve an unbroken result. This is grounded in the fact that they are, as it were, born into all numerical relationships from childhood.

7. They possess an equivalent facility in determining weight and proportions. I need not lecture you further for the aforementioned makes it abundantly clear as to wherein their science is grounded, how it is taught and practiced.

8. And so we shall move to another matter, that of a kind of architecture which is the foundation of building practice.

9. This architectural technique consists of the students having to put together completely symmetrical shapes out of various massive unsymmetrical ones and then even build from them structures which then are fused into bigger ones and so forth until some complete structure of either a dwelling, main college, an archive, theatre or other conventional building, on a small scale, emerges.

10. When the students have mastered this loose building technique, they are familiarized with permanent building practice. Once they have also made this practice their own, they are initiated into decoration and from that into effective furnishing of various buildings.

11. Once they can do this with a measure of skill, they start to learn reading and writing, the latter in actuality is in itself, as with yourselves (with awkward standard), drawing and painting. Reading however consists of familiarizing themselves with the correspondences between all visible things and from their exterior shapes to discern their inner sense. And then they must also, through fusion of various things ascribe a new, arbitrary sense to them. The first they learn through reading and the second through writing.

12. Once confirmed in these two subjects, they are led into the depiction or, as it were, copying of dwellings and whole regions.

13. After internalising this as well, they are especially where talent is evident, introduced into poetry, which they begin to, as it were, discern things of the inner world on a conveyor-belt. Perfect products of this nature and their purpose, we have already encountered at the presentation of cluster house theatres.

14. Once the students have finished with this branch of their spiritual education and have completely mastered this art, the strength of their will is tested. He who among many has the strongest will graduates to the secret school where the substance of primitive cultivation is taught. In this school, he must first be familiar with the entire botany of this belt and must be capable of atomically dissecting every plant from the lowest root to the outermost leaf-tip, and must know how the parts relate, the substance of their connection and how the spiritually substantive, acts within the materially visible.

15. To attain to this higher degree of knowledge, a student is held and guided into prolonged introspection. For no man can behold the spiritual within other matter until he has made his own spiritual absolute.

16. Once he has recognized himself and as it were found himself, he is guided further, attaining to the wonderful perfection that can be accomplished in a moment more in this state than in a lengthy time through matter.

17. Simultaneously, each student is shown clearly how every exterior work of the hand basically is the work of the spirit; but the spirit cannot accomplish this work as quickly because it is greatly hindering by its own matter. But when he has, through the proven wise method conquered the hindrance, then he can also act more strongly and quickly in its absolute state.

18. How can the spirit in its absolute state act more rapidly, strongly and with greater certainty than with the help of its matter? Because its material is very stubborn and this holds a complete spirit captive. Once a master of its own matter however, it shall henceforth also be a master of all other matter, which holds captive unspeakably weaker and imperfect spirits than itself.

19. When, through practice, a student has made all this his own, only then is he guided into the deeper knowledge of God's Spirit and his eternal will and he is shown how every human spirit, liberated by itself, can at will enter into active union with the infinite Spirit of God to the extent that it satisfies the divine order.

20. After this practical recognition the students are also acquainted with the love of this eternal Spirit and that this alone is the means by which to bind the human will with the divine.

21. When the student has assimilated all this in actuality, the wise teacher passes him the planting rod and water jug and he then tries a planting of the first kind. Every student lead thus succeeds at first try.

22. With this branch of the spirit, all schooling upon this belt is at an end, for a spirit educated thus can look into all subjects with such clarity that everyone of his words about it is an accomplished deed, and nobody is in need of further instruction because in this state every spirit is thereafter taught by the Spirit of God in everything else.

23. N.B. This school of cultivation would be more effective upon your Earth than all the high schools, girls' grammar schools, universities and theological seminaries because at the conclusion its charges are indeed presented with a ceremonial holy spirit but not with the true Holy Spirit of the perfect inner life, wherefore their works also are like the spirit they received. And yet, I say unto you: the school for imbuing with the living holy spirit could cost far less than the school imbuing with a dead spirit, which is nothing, never was anything and never shall be anything. There are indeed upon Earth small beginnings that shall grow bigger gradually but disproportionately big still is the hard school of stones that goes with it. You know what I am saying therewith.

24. But we are upon our sun and want to conclude our spiritual education with the comments that in the southern equator especially such spiritual education is superbly implemented, except that in the southern belt it is more widespread than in the northern belt.

25. Now you are acquainted with the substance of the spiritual state and so we shall deal next time with religion that is closely associated with this spiritual state, which shall certainly not leave you dissatisfied. And therewith enough for today!

33. - Chapter 32 -

1. Divine service and nuptials upon the first pair of sub-equatorial belts

1. Regarding religion there are throughout these two belts no ceremonial or, as it were, outwardly visible ceremonial religious sacraments, for the inhabitants of these belts are its most resolute adversaries because according to their most carefully weighed maxims, something externally material is as little capable of being welded to something spiritual as would be the ciphers two and seven.

2. For this reason, no man upon these belts shall notice something which taken externally should offend him in something more exalted. For this reason, there is no holiday or Sabbath time found among them.

3. Therefore these inhabitants have no time-measuring devices of any kind and hence no period-determinations, saying: time- determination is in the hands of the highest Spirit. Man should not measure that for which God has given him no measuring instrument and furthermore: the great worlds Master builder has stretched our world out before us and through the areas, given every man a hint to measure these. But for time duration He has nowhere set down a measure; hence man should not cut same up with his self-will. He has indeed given us a measure and it is everyone's life to himself. Furthermore, He has drawn a measure over the wide heavenly canopy and distant worlds move in accordance with same, and our world itself moves in accordance with this great gauge. But He has placed in our hands no compass for one or the other, so that we should divide and measure same.

4. Wherefore the inhabitants of this belt don't concern themselves with time and some take this so far as to not know which of their grownup children is the oldest. They determine age by spiritual maturity, although sometimes by body weight.

5. From this you will gather that there can be no talk of a Sabbath.

6. Wherein therefore does this religion consist, if no external signs of it are to be seen? By their principles, everything they do is divine service. To this end the wise men upon this belt teach all people the following premise: we did not come into being by ourselves but the power of the highest wisdom of God has shaped us thus and set us down upon this ground. It is this power that constantly guides and sustains us and we are perpetually in His wisest hand. If this power has however thus formed us, maintaining, guiding and taking care of us, how and when should we carry out some work without being reminded with every movement that we are only carrying it out and want to do so as a service to Him, who constantly provides us with the power to do work?

7. Hence no one should think as if they acted out of themselves, but let everyone do everything for Him who has always provided him with the force. Wisdom and faithful deeds in accordance therewith is true divine service. Hence everyone should forthwith do what his ordered wisdom has recognized as the right thing. And so we intend always to serve Him whose highest wisdom has so determined it, setting us aims through which we achieve these, His very aims, by recognizing His order.

8. Hence we should serve God with every breath of our lungs and each of our steps should be well measured and weighed. For we recognize through everything, that God in Himself is the most perfect order.

9. Whoever therefore accords with this order in all his actions, serves God and whoever thoughtlessly transgresses it, not keeping in mind the measure of his steps and hands, is like a foolish fruit that would thrust its roots into the air and its branches into the earth. The branches shall indeed with time also sprout roots, yet the roots shall nevertheless not turn into branches and produce any useful fruit.

10. In childhood a person takes only small steps, his feet not yet able to strike a measure, as these in themselves have no capacity for proportion yet, still being too weak for proper movement. However when the child has fully matured, gaining the condition of a grownup, then his feet will also gained the right measure with which to gauge large areas. Therefore every person has to begin with his own weakness and progressively learn to assess himself. Once he finds his own measure, he shall with this, be able to take God's proper measure.

11. The measure however is order. He cannot recognize God's highest order until recognizing his own order. If he has' not done so, all his doing is in vain for how could a deed have worth if carried out by one who knows not what he does?

12. Wherefore nobody should do something for which he has no measure. Once he has the right measure then let him act accordingly, for the right measure is God's order, according to which all are called to act.

13. Behold, this is the first religious principle of these equatorial inhabitants. They therefore are perpetual servants of God and their entire life span therefore is an uninterrupted Sabbath.

14. For this reason the entire household and their activity is assessed thereby. Since they recognize God as the highest Order, they don't wish to contravene this in any way.

15. Only one act can be regarded as a kind of religious sacrament and that is the nuptial band between two spouses. When they want to enter into union the following procedure is adopted: the man first chooses an extremely well formed being and on finding same he at once goes to the parents of this female being saying to the father, who is asked by him to come out of the house: "I have looked at your daughter's face and am well pleased. If agreeable let me search the order of her heart."

16. The father then approaches the courtier with measured steps saying: show me the measure of your foot and your hand and I shall then guide you into my house and let you see the full measure of my daughter. Here the courtier then always stretches out his hands and as far as possible, his feet. The father then measures his hands and feet and if he finds them good he guides the courtier with well-measured steps into his dwelling and lets him recognize his daughter's measure.

17. If this now matches that of the courtier, then he gives away his daughter to the courtier without the least objection. If the measure does not match however, then the courtier steps back at once for the daughter's measure was of an odd measure in relation to his.

18. If however the courtier has taken the bride of well-matched measure, he leads her away from the stated circle of strict order, awaiting the entire little flock from this house to follow him.

19. When they have come away from the strict circle all get down on the ground and praise the great God for letting the suitor find a well-matched bride. After such praise they all rise and the father lays his hands upon the newlyweds saying: "God's order has brought you together, abide within this order now and forever! And when God provides you with descendants, then lead them into the same order through which you yourselves became (an) order."

20. Whereupon the father and his little flock retreat to his dwelling whilst the bridegroom leads his bride to his parent's home. Reaching the circle of order, his parents and siblings at once meet him with open arms, leading the pair into the house.

21. Here too the father lays his hands upon the newlyweds saying the same words as the bride's father. After this God is given praise again and a well prepared meal is consumed.

22. After the meal the bridegroom with his bride accompanied by his parents, if still alive, otherwise with a brother and a sister, move to a cooperative, the one to whose region such landowners belong. There the bridal pair receives a new name from the chief wise man and they are also shown where they can set up a new possession.

23. The bridal pair then stays, diverting themselves spiritually as well as outwardly, until through clever builders of this cooperative, a dwelling and its ground are made ready. The newlyweds are then provided with all sorts of fruit saplings and move to this new dwelling accompanied by sundry wise men. They are then provided with food by the cooperative until their own plantation bears ample fruit, which by your measure would be about a year at the most.

24. The two parents or siblings, then return to their own domicile as soon as the chief wise man has cared for the bridal pair. In the dwelling, neither children nor parents or neighbours visit each other, but do so frequently in the colleges or the courtyards before the dwellings, cheerfully in reunion.

25. Behold, only these ceremonials can, to a certain extent, be regarded as purely external, visible sacraments and that on account of them having initially an outward measure, because with every other deed, the inner thoughts and feelings have to first be examined before proceeding to an outward action, which nonetheless is still so constituted, that it depends more on an inner spiritual than outward action of the hands.

26. Here you will also want to hear something about begetting children and also people dying, but for these two events I refer you to the solar, central equator. In this, the two sub-equatorial belts fully resemble the central equator, as well as the two sub-belts with each other. And so we know everything noteworthy about these two equators and intend next time to move to the two neighbouring belts. And therewith all for today.

34. - Chapter 33 -

1. The second pair of sub-equators - corresponding to our Earth

1. Regarding the second pair of sub-equators. These are also separated by an unscaleable circle of mountains. From this circular mountain range, mountain chains run off into the equator to follow and sometimes even join up occasionally with the next circular mountain range separating the third equator from this our second one.

2. This second ring or land belt is considerably narrower than the two preceding ones but for this reason both the northern as well as southern one correspond to just a single planet.

3. Upon these two belts there is no circular sea to be found anywhere but there is a considerable number of large seas as well as big currents and rivers. In particular, the southern belt is considerably more watered than the northern. Therewith we have an outline of these two lands.

4. We have heard how the two preceding belts correspond to the two planets Mercury and Venus. With which planets therefore do these two belts correspond?

5. To discover that you shall not need powerful looking glasses for you can bump your nose against it, for it is the one carrying you. Hence your Earth is the planet corresponding to these two belts. The northern for the Earth's northern half and the southern for the southern half.

6. If therefore you want to see the layout of these two belts at a glance, then simply transfer the various conditions of your Earth from the national and personal aspect to these two belts and you are on home ground except that you have to take the properly cultivated part of your Earth, transferring both northern and southern halves to our two solar belts and you are fully at home. For the heathen nations and their domestic systems are missing as are also the moors and the dark peoples and therewith also their domestic, political and religious systems.

7. The layout therefore is as it once was in good Christian times under the true Christians and as it once was with the Israeli nation under Joshua: in the northern belt as with good Christianity and in the southern one, as with the Israelites under Joshua.

8. Now that you know this, we shall have easy work with the equators of the second land ring, because if all is in due order as upon your Earth, then we only have to mention what is peculiar to the sun to complete our exact knowledge of these two belts.

9. What therefore is peculiar to the sun that does not correspond to the planet?

10. This firstly consists of the greater perfection of everything compared to Earth.

11. Secondly the difference consists of there being no so called amphibians, neither in the waters nor upon land, neither any rapacious animals. There are indeed some that resemble the latter class in shape, yet they are nevertheless of a noble and tame nature. Nor have the diverse animals any weapons against one another as on Earth, but all rather resemble the nature of lambs, feeding on grass and roots.

12. The third point of difference is the vegetation. You will indeed encounter all the two hundred thousand varieties of grass, plant and shrubs occurring on Earth. But they are firstly seedless as well as growing freely everywhere upon their habitat, spontaneously from the ground somewhat like moss, various mushrooms and a few plants, especially upon the Earth's equatorial regions. Notwithstanding these, plants and trees upon both belts can be transplanted not only through engrafting of sprouts, but also through the fruits themselves notwithstanding the absence of kernels, like a seedless grape in the East. But after the fruit is laid in the soil, a similar plant or tree emerges.

13. Behold, this is the main solar difference and peculiarity.

14. Concerning the people here and their political, domestic and religious constitution, these correspond fully as shown above.

15. You ask: "Do they believe in Christ the Crucified?" And I say unto you: "In the entire northern belt nobody knows any God other than Christ the Crucified! Because this was proclaimed here by the same apostles who proclaimed Him there. But you must not look at Christianity there through hierarchical eyes and imagine that they have houses of prayer and all sorts of idle and lazy monasteries, but rather that the entire belt is one Christian community with only one Gospel, recognising the one and only Christ, truly in spirit and in truth."

16. The southern belt in its religion differs from this northern one only in that there, the inhabitants also have the preliminary structure of the Old Testament to the main edifice of the New and everlasting Testament, whilst the northern equatorial residents also are in its knowledge, but say: "We indeed honour and treasure everything that has an ever so remote bearing upon our Lord, yet if we possess Him personally, then we let go of the other and abide in Him!" For this reason the inhabitants of the northern belt also are much wiser than those of the southern, for the former are inside the foundation, whilst the others on top of it, or, the ones are in the Temple whilst the others are, only more or less, in its precincts, or, the ones are within love and from that in all wisdom, whilst the others are in wisdom and in love only out of that.

17. You would like to know whether people here are capable of sinning and whether therefore there is baptism for the rebirth of the spirit and therefore salvation from death as a means of gaining life eternal? The inhabitants of every cosmic body are capable of sinning and hence are also here. Because, wherever there are beings in absolute freedom, there are basic commandments with either temporary or permanent sanctions, through which alone the free beings are capable of recognizing their freedom. For freedom consists solely in a free living being recognizing that it can either heed or transgress a given law through its free will. If however there are free beings whose will is bound by one or other free or moral law, to either keep or not keep same, then it speaks for itself that the opportunity for sin or the breaking of the law is possible, where beings exist who have to undergo this very freedom test.

18. Hence this is understandable about our belt. But due to the earnestness of these sun dwellers a sin against the commandment of love is even more rare than your full heeding of it.

19. But if nonetheless there are sinners here and there, then there must also be forgiveness of sins and hence a baptism and salvation. Salvation, baptism and repentance there, are all one, for every sinner, on returning to the commandment of love, repenting his transgression, seizing and vitalizing Christ in his heart, immediately partakes of salvation and is baptised in the spirit, gaining rebirth to everlasting life.

20. Such is also the case upon the southern belt, except that, due to greater opulence of the land, sin also is more prevalent than in the northern belt, and people are more sensual than upon the northern equator. Behold, that is another thing, especially in this time, that markedly differs compared to Earth.

21. In other respects however, everything is as upon your planet. There are even towns and villages and also isolated groups. You would even be astonished to come upon the most beautiful vineyards and find well-wooded Alps right up to altitudes beyond which, owing to the rarefied air, no further growth is possible. You would not even miss the sickle and the plough, except for their far more perfect state.

22. The people themselves are not much bigger than on planet Earth, but are much more beautiful and perfect. Their apparel is very simple as was once that of the Israelite people.

23. Their constitution is purely patriarchal in a broader sense and nationally theocratical. Wherefore they are in perpetual communion with the heavens and in constant visible spiritual connection. I, Myself indeed often personally dwell among the purest and most perfect within love and humility!

24. As for their marriages, these are truly made in heaven i.e. out of pure love for Me and are blessed by the parents and by the angels in My name.

25. Procreation of the human race takes place through sexual intercourse indeed, but there it belongs to actions that are among the most reverent and spiritual.

26. Decease is mostly a free exit from the body, which latter is then buried in a special field. Decomposition is very rapid accompanied by a most pleasant fragrance, which cheers up and enlivens all nature, as it gives (so to speak) a taste of celestial airs.

27. These people have no holidays either and no time measures and they have little interest in the secret nature of things because their highest wisdom consists of their principle: if we have Christ, we have everything; without Him however all things within infinity and eternal space are void.

28. If one of you nevertheless were to ask them to clear up the matter for you, then they shall be able to do so most fundamentally, notwithstanding their having no schools. For their sole school is Christ, and you can be assured that the greatest scholars go forth from this school!

29. You may think that there must be a lot of sad and pious brethren and sisters going around who hardly dare to take their eyes off the ground. Not so! I say unto you: such happy, cheerful and convivial people you will not find upon the entire Earth. They even have music theatres, as well as great concerts, but of course in a different sense than you are accustomed to. Because in all these recreations, the Lord is the exceedingly bright central point, around which everything revolves, whilst with yourselves upon Earth, He is left at home in the best of circumstances, not to mention other considerations!

30. And so we have briefly looked at these two equatorial belts. That climatic conditions upon this belt are the same as upon the other belts, you can surmise from the fact that they all belong to the solar world.

31. It hardly needs mentioning that these equators are also rich in the most diverse natural phenomena, but never of the destructive variety. This leaves us with very little of note about these two equators.

32. The question could surface in you as to whether your moon does or does not also have something corresponding to these two belts? But here you can take it from Me that no planetary moons have any correspondences upon the sun, for the moons have their correspondences only with the planets to which they belong.

33. But now we have finished with our two belts and shall turn to the third equatorial belt next time. And so we shall leave it for today.

35. - Chapter 34 -

1. The third pair of equatorial belts. The northern belt in correspondence with the planet Mars.

1. As previously determined, we shall now move to the third belt. This belt is the smallest, both north and south and measures on average not much over a thousand GM in diameter between the two mountain chains. Notwithstanding this, its circle still extends to over three hundred thousand GM.

2. This equatorial belt has no continuous sea either, but has instead bigger individual and more stretched out seas than the previous one.

3. The land itself is less mountainous than any of the others we have spoken about except the frontier-mountains, which of course are notable, radiating minor chains into the plateau. These offshoots as well as less notable run-off chains are at the same time the only mountains covering this land, which, as said, is mostly made up of plains.

4. Since we have seen, that with the exception of the main equator, all sub-equatorial belts correspond to the planets, you might ask whether this equator does not do so? And I say unto you, that it is so. This belt corresponds to the planet Mars.

5. But just as this planet is a rather meagre one and indeed the paltriest of all the planets, so the corresponding belt also is the most meagre of all the equatorial belts.

6. What is the nature of the paltriness? This is not from the spiritual but the natural aspect.

7. Firstly, the people themselves are rather unsightly and of little beauty, small and rather fat and of little attraction outwardly being of a light brown colour and are frequently dark. Their facial features greatly resemble your Greenlanders, Laplanders and some Eskimos. Their clothing however differs from the aforementioned peoples, consisting of a type of apron bound around the neck and reaching over the entire body to below the knees and is uniform for male and females. There are openings for the hands on both sides to extend the arms for work; after which they withdraw their rather unattractive hands back under the coat. This is paltriness number one.

8. Secondly the vegetation and the animal kingdom are also meagre because vegetation is limited to a few species of unsightly fruit trees whose cultivation yields the inhabitants of this belt only paltry nutrition. The grass upon this equator being sparse in itself, roughly resembles moss upon Earth which you not infrequently see on some old trees and occasionally upon some old straw thatched rooves of poor country cottages.

9. The ground here is quite solid and frequently stony and sandy, especially upon the coasts and banks of great seas and rivers.

10. The animal kingdom however consists of a single species of sheep, which approximately resembles your elves of Siberia. This animal provides them with tasty milk and from its fine wool they make their essential clothing. Then there is a species of worm that feeds on grass, similar to your silkworm, which by nature spins lengthy threads over the ground, somewhat like your spider. These threads are collected by the residents for the preparation of cloth, mostly for women's coats.

11. The air is inhabited by just one bird species, which is quite numerous. The residents also tame some of them and use their feathers for their resting places, consisting in no more than a mound dug up from the ground over which they spread feathers covering same with the coat material.

12. The waters on the other hand are quite lively with vessels sailing along the coasts. Therewith another sparsity.

13. A third type of paltriness is their dwelling, for these normally consist of a niche-type earth mound dugout, which rises about six metres above the ground. Into this are dug further niches of the same depth. Around the rim there is the above mentioned resting- bench, whilst in the background, also earthen, there is a sort of table on which they put their fruits when having a meal.

14. There are occasional large dwellings in the mountains, dug out of the latter.

15. Within these dwellings they prepare their basic tools for their simple, essential work. Their entire industry consists therein and is the aggregate natural wealth of these equatorial inhabitants.

16. Behold, this equator upon this belt and its corresponding planet is of extraordinarily meagre provision, but not so spiritually. Because due to the inhabitants finding few stimulants in the shape of their world, they are compensated by constant inner vision through which their paltry world is glorified and transfigured within, so that it gives far more joy to its people than the central equator.

17. Not that they are heroes in willpower but much more in every kind of self-denial. In this respect they are veritable Diogeneses. Due to this their inner spiritual life gains more scope and they see with their spiritual eyes, things of which no wise man of your Earth has yet dreamt.

18. That the above mentioned things make their national, domestic and religious constitutions simple goes without saying.

19. Their national constitution is actually nothing other than a family relationship in line with which, related families erect their dwellings in proximity to each other, living in perpetual peace and harmony.

20. Their education focuses on the spiritual, being concerned only that their children's spirit develops early inner independence. Once the children, through their doing and letting alone, have passed the necessary tests, they are guided to the "God Man", having to recognize Him as the foundation of all things and as the sole leader of the human race.

21. For they say: when you are in a strange house there is not much for you to do or care for, whilst in your parent's house you are in any case looked after. But we are in the world as in a strange house so what should we care? If however we are within the independence of our spirit, then we are in the parent's house and hence looked after; for God the best Man, cares for all His beings in this house like the best father for his children in his own house. And so we have just one concern and that is to get into that house! Once there, we are provided with everything; for notwithstanding the God Man's meagre provision for our external world, it being a strange house, he has fitted out yonder fatherland house in which He cares for us like the best father for his children.

22. Behold, due to this simple principle, their religious constitution consists solely of everyone striving firstly for his spiritual independence and that along the path of humility and self-denial, and to then increasingly recognize the Good Man and to be guided by Him.

23. This is all that these equatorial inhabitants can show by way of education. You shall find no temples, houses of prayer and schools whatever. Rather, the fatherly niche found in every family is all in all, because in this niche the father gathers his entire family, numbering about thirty, from time to time, teaching them about the inner fatherland, and how to find the true house Father within same. And on concluding his instruction consisting of talks and stories, he blesses his family, who can then return to light work or move to their own somewhat smaller niches and quietly think about the foregoing and probe how far the inner fatherland has revealed itself.

24. The prayer and hence the entire divine service consists of no more than constant live yearning to make the acquaintance of the best Good Man and therefore the only true house Father.

25. The indication of whether one person or the other is close to the door of the great House Father and that it will open to him soon, is when you hear a resounding song of the spheres. The people also have a saying about this: when you hear the great worlds singing the House Father an exalted hymn, then you know that you stand close to the threshold of yonder door leading into the holy house of the only true and supremely good Father.

26. When someone can testify to having heard this, then the others are overjoyed and wish him good luck and steadfastness in the pursuit of his Path.

27. When someone has fully entered into this inner fatherland, then a feast of joy is held in their family house to which the neighbours are also invited. This feast is also the only one that you will get to see here, consisting always of a moderate meal and finally a united praise of the only true House Father.

28. Those who feel fully at home in the inner house are also acquainted with the Lord's Incarnation and are most elated about it. But it is not made known to them how unthankful the people of that planet are towards the supremely good House Father, who showed their Earth the unspeakable grace of wanting to take on the condition of human flesh.

29. Now behold, therewith we have completed the northern belt. Concerning its corresponding southern belt, this covers the four small planets whose correspondence with this belt we shall treat next time, before we proceed to the fourth equatorial belt. And therewith we conclude for today.

36. - Chapter 35 -

1. The southern belt of the third pair of equatorial belts corresponding to the asteroids

1. The aforementioned four small, and as it were, scattered planets can also be called dead planets as there are few living beings left on them and those still extant are primarily in the natural condition and quite alien to the spiritual.

2. These planets are so small in the natural sense that the largest has a diameter smaller than your moon and their vegetation also is so paltry that nothing exists there apart from a few herbs and lean bushes.

3. Only upon the largest of them, is an inferior type of fruit trees found, which however is hardly bigger than your so-called miniature trees and even this species of trees carries meagre fruit, which approximates your beech and stone-pine nuts.

4. The few humans of small stature, comfortably subsist on what their small earth yields them and they clothe themselves with the feathers of a few tame birds (whose meat they consume) and with the skins of a few domestic animals which resemble your rabbits, rats and mice. These are the largest animals upon these cosmic bodies.

5. There are also some creeping things, a few flying insects as well as some frog and fish species in the waters, but these animals are not put to use by the sparse inhabitants.

6. The dwellings of these people consist of holes in the ground which they cover with all kinds of soft cast-offs, like birds' nests and inside which they lie down together like birds in a nest.

7. These hardly sixty centimetre tall humans share the attribute of winter hibernation with some Earth animals, as winter upon these four small earths lasts more than two Earth years, though occasionally it is less, depending on whether their irregular orbit brings them closer to the sun.

8. Just how irregular these orbits are can be appreciated from the fact that all four of these planets, during their orbit around the sun swerve between the Mars and Jupiter trajectories, so that any of them can approach the Mars or Jupiter trajectory, notwithstanding these trajectories being many millions of miles apart.

9. The reason why these four planets, as it were, forlornly swarm about in space is the erstwhile primordial disintegration of a single planet into four parts, on which occasion many considerable fractions were scattered into the wide cosmic spaces, nearly all the planets as well as the sun receiving notable and some quite substantial particles there from. Four portions nevertheless remained at the location where it burst and were rounded off, receiving a new orbital direction around the sun.

10. The few remaining humans together with the few animals and plants shrank upon these so to speak newly formed planets, like the planets themselves.

11. Behold, this interloping was necessary to make the third, southern solar equator more comprehensible. What therefore do things look like here?

12. This belt markedly differs from its corresponding northern belt. For firstly, besides the mountain circle it is already cut off at the second southern belt by a wide circular water as well. Then after this there is an exceedingly mountainous region with few plains, and even these are covered with water. At one point this land is also divided by wide waters between the two mountain rings in such a way that it is not possible for the respective populations to reach each other because the inlet of the actual circular sea is so extensive at this place, that your most hardy global sailors would not venture over them; firstly on account of the extensive waters and especially secondly because at these bays the sea is constantly storm driven, creating waves higher than your highest mountains over which not even the most courageous of your Earth seamen would venture.

13. These four lands, divided from each other, so to say, are at the same time the most meagre upon the entire sun, and are inhabited by the smallest people dwelling upon the sun. No splendour is to be seen here; except for the sun-wide spread of the sun's own evenly distributed light.

14. Here too, people have no dwellings, digging holes for themselves into the mountains with openings shaped like cut cones, fitted out inside like nests, serving as resting places for the people. When these nests are worn out they are replaced by new ones.

15. The vegetation is just as meagre consisting of a few herbs and bush-like tree species, yielding abundant fruit comparable to your hazelnuts and almonds. No juicy fruit is to be found, except for the root of one herb that resembles your white beet but on a smaller scale, being the only juicy nutrition found upon this solar belt.

16. The animal kingdom is just as scanty upon this belt and the inhabitants have only two species of four-footed domestic animals. One in the shape of your Zobel but with richer and finer wool. The latter is made into scanty clothing like your cotton wool. They spread the wool over an even surface like stone (the ground here being very stony) pressing the wool flat and covering it was a sticky juice obtained from a root. This binds the threads and makes them lasting, as if covered with your liquid rubber. Fairly long and broad panels are produced and simple clothing cut there from consisting of a somewhat stiff apron around the loins, covering the private parts, everything else being left uncovered.

17. These people's shape is not actually repulsive and the women look quite decent but the people are no bigger than your five to six year olds.

18. Their preferred habitation is the fairly high regions because they are very afraid of the water. They also think that on seeing the water this is near the end of the world and that the waters gleaned from the high sea waves will gradually rise hence they prefer higher ground.

19. This sums up the special land features and their human habitability. It hardly needs mentioning that no air-inhabitants are found anywhere, but there are aerial creatures above the waters, which are also inhabited by all kinds of marine animals.

20. Knowing this, only the national domestic and religious practices are left to relate following which we shall have covered everything of note upon this equator.

21. Regarding social constitutions this is restricted to the few families spreading out sufficiently to avoid property or border disputes.

22. Within families, the oldest male is the elder in charge as it were, guiding all other family members allocating special tasks to all individuals.

23. Their hand tools consist of no more than a small earthen shovel. The earthen tools are laid out in the more intense sun's rays making them stone hard and ready for immediate use.

24. These are used mainly for digging holes in the mountains in which to live. They are sometimes used for cutting and chopping their clothing and thirdly, they dig up roots and herbs with them.

25. Another tool they make is a form of comb for pulling the wool off the above mentioned animal's back, this being easy to remove when ripe. This tool is used on another rare animal resembling your cow in miniature whose male and females are indistinguishable. The animal has eight teats on its belly, which they push between the comb teeth to as it were comb the milk out of the teats which is done above a hollowed out stone.

26. Having, as it were, combed the milk out of the miniature cow, they let the mild-natured animal forage for its food. They then mix crushed fruit from their miniature trees into it, preparing a most tasty mush, grasping it with their hands to eat.

27. That's the extent of their domestic system so we have their social and domestic practices in one blow, as it were.

28. Their religion is just as simple as their political and domestic constitution.

29. They believe in a God who, according to their concepts is an immensely big, perfect and exceedingly mighty Man being aware of heaven and earth as made by this perfect Man.

30. They are exceedingly humble and fearful and hence also greatly fear this exceptionally perfect Man; they are also aware of heaven and hell, and their immortality.

31. They fear hell exceedingly but always regard themselves as too evil for heaven. Thus they also have a great fear of physical death, seeking to maintain life as long as possible.

32. Some of their Elders occasionally have visible communication with the deceased people of their kind, but are not over joyous about these appearances, taking it as an indication that they will soon have to leave their world.

33. When these spirits tell them that yonder perfect Man has received them most lovingly, they are indeed cheered by it, but always regard themselves as unworthy of such grace, saying: we are too insignificant for such a Lord to even look at us, not to mention receive us into a higher grace out of Himself.

34. Hence they pray eagerly and say thanks for everything they enjoy, for every paltry fruit picked from their trees and even for every little herb they remove from the earth they are most fervently thankful, constantly regarding themselves as unworthy of this present, not being able to understand how this exceedingly perfect Man should be so well-disposed towards them.

35. Behold, in this consists their entire religious sacraments. If you will insist on actual ceremony then that would be the ceremony of the marriage union.

36. This in turn consists of no more than a mutual embrace followed by a family Elder's blessing, then a communal thanksgiving and finally by sexual intercourse, which function is counted amongst the most sacred ceremonies.

37. Their dead are wrapped in all kinds of herbs and holes are dug for them like their dwelling at a lower level, placing the body in the open grave. They add herbs for food in case the dead reawaken.

38. They indeed visit these graves in groups; but on account of the very rapid decomposition of the bodies and therefore finding no trace of their deceased they think that the deceased either reawakened and wandered off somewhere or that they were picked up by spirits.

39. Therefore they pray for their departed frequently, wishing them the best of luck with all their heart.

40. This sums up everything about this planet; wherefore we shall move on and step out upon the fourth equatorial belt next time, where we shall have to tarry a little longer as we shall again get to see great things there. And so we will leave it for today!

37. - Chapter 36 -

1. The sun's fourth equatorial belt - corresponding to the planet Jupiter and its inhabitants

1. I will tell you in advance that the fourth equator in the northern and southern belts corresponds to the big planet Jupiter. You know that it is the biggest of the planets and some four thousand times the size of Earth. Hence the corresponding belts are also the biggest and most marvellous, second only to the central equator, which makes up the actual solar world and has correspondence with all the other equators.

2. What then is the size of the fourth equatorial, i.e. the northern and southern belts that correspond to the planet Jupiter? The two belts together measure some twenty thousand (German) miles, taken together in width, whilst their length on average would be two hundred thousand miles times two. These dimensions indicate that this fourth belt also must have many marvellous things to offer being of such a vast area.

3. This belt too is separated from the previous one by an exceedingly high Alpine belt. This is an exceptionally high mountain range made up mostly of the hardest white marble, which is not subject to melting even under the most intense heat. The highest peaks reaching into the loftiest solar photosphere actually have the appearance of a white-hot glow, but this is not the case. They only have this apparent shine to you because their highest point is incomprehensibly white, completely reflecting all rays from every direction.

4. The base of the high ranges, which form a continuous even wall is lashed by circular waters two thousand (German) miles in width. These waters nevertheless are not continuous but are dotted with large islands in many places and even have larger peninsulas and substantial promontories, which are inhabited by the people of this belt.

5. The land however is more fiat than mountainous whilst its mountains are of far less height than the mountains of the other belts already mentioned. They nevertheless extend far higher above the level of the solar sea than the Earth's highest mountains, without their steepness and inability to surmount. The actual land carries a large number of seas, streams, rivers, brooks and springs and is therewith exceedingly blessed and fruitful.

6. The animal kingdom is exceedingly numerous and the human population dense.

7. Now we know what the land itself is like, we shall in accordance with our adopted system turn to the inhabitants of this land. What do the people look like? What kind of constitution and what kind of religion do they have; how do they relate to things? We will first give an outline and then go to particulars.

8. Regarding the people, firstly they are of extraordinary size, physically extremely wellformed and by character the gentlest and best people upon the sun.

9. Regarding the constitution, firstly it is completely patriarchal and basically theocratical, caring for the common good materially.

10. Their religion also is very simple, without ceremonials. And the education of children also consists of nothing other than to become at one with the heavens and with the Lord.

11. Therewith, we have cited general human relationship points upon their belt and shall move to a more detailed examination.

12. Firstly concerning the size of man; who from the top of his head to his toes is not infrequently two hundred metres by your measure. What is his colour? A soft white, that is gently tapering off to blue-red, approximating the colour of the amethyst, but much paler. This bodily colour occasionally appears on Earth amongst the Caucasian mountain races of Asia, where especially delicate women have a similar colour, especially when blown upon by frequent glacial winds. This is also the colour of the fourth equatorial belt.

13. What kind of facial features do they have? Their faces are completely masculine, that is, not a grimace as is most frequent amongst Earthmen, but more rounded and gentle than Earth males. Their lips are expressive as also the corners of their mouth. A projecting chin but not with sharp lines, softly rounded and beardless throughout. The hair of his head is abundant and long and dark brown, like his eyebrows and lids with high forehead white towards the hairline. Ears and nose are well proportioned in relation to other facial features.

14. His neck is proportionately long and round, his shoulders very wide with well proportioned arms towards the shoulders; only the hand areas are about a fifth larger proportionately than yours. Fingernail colour is that of the body, pale towards the tips and very solid.

15. His trunk down to his hips is also well proportioned with a somewhat more prominent posterior than on Earth, with a consequently constant upright posture, especially when standing still rather than walking because man from early childhood leans heavily forward.

16. His feet are completely regular as also his private parts, with only the foot area proportionately bigger than yours.

17. How does the male dress? This as with women consists of nothing more than a frontal apron just to cover private parts; nothing else is covered. There nevertheless is no greater chastity to be found than with these equatorial inhabitants. So much for the male.

18. The female is smaller by a man's head and perfectly rounded in all parts. Her skin is many times finer than the male's, yet thicker than his. The man's skin for example would be on average about thirty centimetres thick by your measure, whilst that of the woman a good forty centimetres, yet much softer than the man's (and also much softer and more elastic than women on Earth), and finely porous throughout.

19. A woman's breast is completely round sitting upon the chest like two half spheres, which is considered to be of the greatest beauty there.

20. Her face too is most attractively and amicably beautiful, whilst the hair of her head reaches down to below the knee and is most abundant with a somewhat lighter colour than that of the man.

21. On the whole woman's shape here is hardly matched upon any planet, attracting much admiration from men for her physical beauty. For they say: if the woman is of the right heart and hence spirit, then her body must be of the right measure. If the body is not thus balanced, then there must be a reason why her body has not achieved perfection. Complete righteousness however means constant fullness of love in the heart for the Lord, this being the spiritual sustenance for eternal life. The spirit however is the work manager of the body; if it has suffered atrophy through a degree of unjustness of the heart, then its work also must manifest atrophy. It therefore leaves to be determined whether such unrighteousness can be related to the parents or the children; if related to the parents then the children are innocent, and we must therefore not reckon it unto them. If however the unjustness resides in their own heart, then it is our duty to help them fashion a new heart in order to, if possible, restore the righteousness of the body. Where no longer practicable however, it is our duty to at least set the heart right to where the spirit can henceforth obtain the desirable sustenance.

22. Behold, for this reason these equatorial inhabitants place much store on physical beauty, especially that of the woman, and to love same uncommonly if they are within the order. But an untidy woman receives little regard and if not entered upon proper order, she is soon handed over to an unpleasant schooling.

23. This is everything noteworthy about the human form upon this belt. Next time we shall examine their housekeeping. And so we shall leave it for today.

38. - Chapter 37 -

1. Private and business houses upon the fourth equatorial belt

1. Before moving to the actual household, it will be necessary to familiarize ourselves a little with the private dwellings of the people, there being no household without houses. Afterwards we can put the question: "What do houses belonging to these mountain-high people actually look like and what building materials are used?"

2. The private dwellings of these people resemble closely those of the solar, central and main belt, being built of stones and wood, except that they are of course proportionately bigger since the people are bigger than on the central equator. But you must not dwell too much on that because on the central belt the emphasis is on splendid height rather than utility. On the other hand the dwellings upon these belts are built according to need rather than splendour. And thus you will not find any building higher than double a man's height at most. There are no galleries or other elevations as we found in the houses of the central and first two equatorial belts, occupancy being restricted to ground level.

3. Before looking at the interior set-up however we must first look at the shape of the house and its variable size. The shape will reveal itself as we watch it going up from its foundations, thus pay heed.

4. Behold, here in an extensive plain and a new private dwelling is being erected. A rectangular lot four thousand metres long and four hundred metres wide has been allotted. You must not however imagine this as a mathematically perfect rectangle but rather a four hundred metres wide and four thousand metres long track which, although parallel lengthwise in outline is bent inwards at the front and outwards at the back.

5. On both sides lengthwise you see the residents build five hundred pillars projected to reach a height of four hundred metres, each pillar having a diameter of fifty metres. You see them start with twenty pillars at the front, whose diameter is smaller than those lengthwise. You see the back closed off.

6. You see the builders placing mighty crossbeams over the pillars, at the same time erecting two lines of equally high pillars of lesser diameter within the line of pillars. Watch them again connecting these length and crosswise. And watch them laying fairly strong floorboards, which must be an accurate fit, everywhere over these beams leaving no detectable gaps.

7. The floorboards having been laid, now watch how the roof framework is going up. The middle one is higher by half than the outer ones. These are ready. Keep watching! This framework is fixed with a type of board so closely fitting together as to leave no more than a line (3.16mm) between them.

8. This work is done. Behold, around the entire building, big stacks of roof tiles are piled up. The colossal people are climbing up and down immense ladders, covering the roof. This is done the same way we saw upon the central equator. The tiles are dark on the inside but look like the finest polished gold on the outside.

9. The ends of the roof i.e. width-wise are artistically turned in with this gold sheeting and framed as it were. The tile courses are kept open for fresh air to circulate and to cool the entire building from above.

10. Having watched this spiritually, we have arrived at the shape and size of the house, which leaves us to look a little at its interior, then we shall be familiar with the entire living quarters together with its uncomplicated purpose.

11. Behold, between the middle pillars from the second pillar, there is a wall of about forty meters height by your measure, which expands in oval form on both sides between the two pillars. Furthermore watch the top of the wall being fitted with soft cushioning. Verily, you shall not take long to guess its purpose. This bench is the place for people to rest after work.

12. Between the outer pillars you will also notice some one hundred metres tall half-pillars: "What for?" Just glance up at their tops, covered with all sorts of fruits and you will work it out at once. They are the dining tables for the inhabitants of this belt.

13. And now we shall move down to the closed end of our big dwelling which bends acutely outwards. Behold how some sixty metres above ground another rise is built which widens towards the house interior and the middle row of pillars and the top surface joins up with the round wall giving it an oval form.

14. Look again how this surface of over one thousand square metres is profusely laid out with soft cushions. What is the purpose of this lofty resting facility? Firstly this is the seat of the house Elder and secondly the podium where the father instructions his whole family.

15. Behold, this finalizes our attention to the dwelling erected for those three main purposes - resting, meals and education.

16. Are there no houses of business besides these private dwellings? Every private dwelling has on each side of the front, at about four hundred metres distance, two equally large Rondelles (round buildings) consisting of a closed wall and a few round windows. Each Rondelle has a fairly high and wide entrance facing the private houses, but it is roofless. On the inside the walls have all sorts of galleries, not for taking a stroll but for storage of domestic tools.

17. The other Rondelle is for food storage and in some respects a kitchen, some fruits upon this belt being cooked before eating. For this purpose inside of this second Rondelle, from the floor up, there is a stove of about one hundred metres height and diameter of about one hundred and twenty to one hundred and forty metres. At the centre of this stove is a depression for highly inflammable oil-combustion lit by flints. When the white-hot flame spreads intense heat, the genuine gold pots for cooking fruit are stood around it in a circle until the fruit is soft. That is all of the set-up in the second Rondelle.

18. Each Rondelle has a diameter of three thousand metres by your measure. You will ask: "Since we are told at the start that it has closed walls, is provided with a few round windows, whose purpose could be questioned, since the Rondelles are open at the top?"

19. These windows are for the draught; for air in this waterlogged belt often is intensely humid, which in the closed rooms could easily cause mustiness or rust or mould on the tools and fruit. Many openings for air will prevent this by keeping the inner rooms dry.

20. Since this belt is crossed by many diverse air streams on account of its vast plains, it is clear that the wise inhabitants can put these to good use. Therewith more insight into these people's households.

21. To complete our picture of the household in each building I should make you aware of a large animal yard stretching out behind the two Rondelles, proportionate to the grounds. This also is surrounded by a sort of wall which is of a uniform one hundred and forty metres high from the ground up, having a thickness of ten metres being provided with supporting walls also on the outside every two hundred metres

22. This yard is designed for an animal that has no like on Earth. However it resembles your elephant with a head like that of your camel and its body that of a cow, with giraffe-like legs, the front legs being about twice the height of its hind legs. The tail consists of a ball of wool, used for the manufacture of people's aprons, this being the only reason for keeping the animal.

23. Now that we know what the households upon this belt are like we can look at their domestic regulations, which we shall tackle next time. And so we shall leave it for today.

39. - Chapter 38 -

1. Nature and life-style of the fourth equatorial inhabitants

1. You can partially glimpse their domestic regulations from carefully noting the house outfit, notwithstanding the fact that other regulations cannot be glimpsed from the nature of the dwellings. But to get a clue about the domestic behavioural norms it is necessary to gain more insight into the people's character.

2. The people of this belt are among the most gentle anywhere upon the sun or any planet. Their entire behaviour is indeed of such a gentle and humble nature that you could not form an idea of it.

3. A man for instance deems it inappropriate to walk fully upright, lest his smaller wife is obliged to look upwards at him. He also constantly swings his arms widely when walking to cool and somewhat rarefy the air for his physically accompanying wife, so that she can keep up with him more easily. He also bridles his long legs with which he could make very long strides, restricting himself to forty metre steps out of gentle, loving thoughtfulness when he could be taking one hundred and forty metre strides with ease. Thus the man never walks in tandem steps with his wife at his side, as she would have to fight the air herself and occasionally step on rough ground. She therefore has to follow him, to walk on flattened ground and not have to fight the air.

4. The man also treats his children the same as well. They are brought up in love and their father's instruction is soft, inviting and stimulating like the softest wool, figuratively speaking.

5. An unfriendly face is regarded as a sin upon this equatorial belt, therefore these people also wear a soft smile and are so soft hearted that they are moved to tears at the sight of anyone suffering, taking pains to help in every possible way.

6. If a neighbour comes to ask a favour, he finds the utmost graciousness because a greater readiness to oblige and serve a neighbour, than practised by these equatorial inhabitants, you could not imagine. If a neighbour comes to another to borrow a tool or something, then the neighbour not only gives the object most obligingly, but also fervently probes for anything else. And if answered in. the negative, he will still insist on carrying the item to the neighbour's house, even offering him his services in case the neighbour is not completely familiar with the use of the tool.

7. If the neighbour asks for fruit or clothing material, he is not only given tenfold his request, but the giver again personally carries it to his neighbour asking that it not be reciprocated.

8. Even more emphatic is this obliging amicability towards complete strangers on a journey to familiarize themselves with their world. They are always received with the greatest distinction and shown the greatest honour prevalent among these inhabitants. This honour consists of the guest being escorted into the dwelling at once and most courteously offered the house Elder's chair for a rest; whereupon the most pressing task of all the family members is to show this person every possible attention. And there is an equally moving scene when this guest departs to continue his journey.

9. Verily, when the most indulgent mother upon Earth sees her son off to some far country, this painful separation is but a weak shadow of the burden these hosts feel, upon the departure of the guest.

10. He is firstly blessed over and over by the house-father as well as all his family, that he may have every good luck getting through all the countries and that he would revisit them on his way back. He is then provided with every possible need. And finally, on departure, almost the entire family keep him company until approaching another dwelling. Then he is blessed again and on taking leave, exceedingly grateful for all the friendship of course. Then his escorts watch him until they lose sight of him; only then do they return, talking about nothing besides the stranger and that the good Lord of heaven and earth would save him from any calamity.

11. From these few examples you can get an idea of the remaining aspects of the character of these people and also further aspects of their domestic regulations.

12. Here no one is ever commanded to perform tasks, but rather when some work becomes necessary, they compete in their obligation to help, supporting each other to prevent some of them suffering too heavy a burden. The entire domestic order therefore consists of nothing other than in the perfect, truest love of neighbour. From this flow all other rules.

13. A sanctioned law is not to be found anywhere amongst them, love being the only law; but not as a regulation, but vitally in the heart of everyone.

14. Should anyone have in the least transgressed against this law, he is at once admonished with the greatest love and gentleness, a house-elder saying to him: "Now, now, my dear son! You have somewhat forgotten yourself in your heart, not realizing that the brother who asked you for a small favour, also like yourself, harbours an eternal spirit within himself. This is a living spirit from God. How should we not love and not do for him most amicably, that which we can see he may need from us? Opportunities to serve our beloved brothers and sisters are at any rate rare. If however we don't heed even these few opportunities, what are we to make of our love for God, who anticipates us everywhere with His endless love?"

15. This instruction is totally sufficient to persuade someone who had somehow forgotten himself toward his brother to stir himself with the greatest gentleness and amicability to make good to his brother a hundred-fold the neglected and that which he overlooked.

16. Behold, that is everything that household rules consist of. I would that this also were the case with you yourselves! If this were the case, such a one would carry My Word within him live. But instead of this constitution, yours is a constitution of complete self-interest and in an extraordinary numbers of you My Word resembles a decomposed corpse in a grave in which there is no more life than the crawling maggots of self-interest which, with time, fully consume the corpse, signifying the literal sense of the word, to finally make a house of death out of the temple of life.

17. Heed well this domestic code therefore, and consider it in the light of My commandment of love, from which you will recognize that within this love alone resides everlasting life. Secondly, you will see that I am the same purest love everywhere. And thirdly, it shall also attest to the truth of everything that I reveal to you. For truth only flows from the flame of love. And once you find true love, then you have also found the true light, which in itself guarantees you the fullest truth, flickering everywhere from the same love, which is the foundation of all eternal truth.

18. Knowing this, we shall consequently be able to scrutinize these fourth equatorial inhabitants' national constitution next time. And so we will leave it for today!

40. - Chapter 39 -

1. Life-rules generally. Fellowship between husband and wife

1. Regarding a national constitution this is actually no other than the sacramental part of the religious charter, containing the rules that must always be followed in relation to inner divine service.

2. Of course these regulations are much more diverse upon the planet Jupiter, which corresponds to this equatorial belt. Nonetheless the positive aspect of these equatorial rules stands in exact relationship to those on Jupiter.

3. For there is no political head of state other than the house father whereas upon the planet there are people here and there who deem themselves lords and demand acknowledgement as such, and those refusing to do so are even forcibly driven into it or punished. And there are besides people on the planet who regard themselves as demigods, desiring to be Christs between Myself and the people. These especially have aspirations towards leadership and want to be regarded as such. Whoever will not cede this to them they damn forthwith and in some cases the recalcitrants are condemned and sentenced to a fiery death. These lords are in a sense pagans who regard the sun as the face of God, although they do not actually deny Me as Lord. The difference between these, of course, not too frequent heathens upon this planet and the virtuous ones, consists in that whilst these lords say that I am the highest and greatest Lord, the good ones say that I am the only Lord!

4. Behold, under such planetary conditions and practices, the state laws also have to be incomparably more numerous than upon the corresponding solar belt, where there are neither lords nor Christs and least of all pagan demigods. Wherefore you must regard these rules about the corresponding planet as universal only, to a major extent.

5. Wherein do these national codes upon the fourth solar belt, consist? Some of these we have already met in the domestic rules; and so the rest are only a few very peculiar ones left to consider.

6. The first rule relates to discourse, making it the duty of every equatorial inhabitant, never to articulate matters pertaining to the spirit outwardly by tongue but mentally only, through mime or gesture, effected by eye, forehead, lips, corner of mouth, chin and both cheeks assisted by hands. They are allowed to articulate with the mouth only about natural things and with strangers.

7. However this is as much second nature for every fourth equatorial inhabitant through early training, as for you to take a stroll in a beautiful garden upon Earth, especially if your own.

8. Therewith one regulation. Another is that on group excursions no one must walk behind another, except women behind men. But upon the planet, women are not allowed to do so either. On account of this both the people of Jupiter and the corresponding solar belt constantly look behind them to check that no one is walking behind them. Should someone be seen to follow either a company or an individual, even if at considerable distance, the entire group or the individual stop and all tum around and stay there until the one behind has caught up with them.

9. He is then asked whether he noticed their backs when following. If he admits that he did then he is gently reprimanded and told not to divulge it to anyone. If he didn't notice them he is told what small danger he could have been in had they not looked back carefully.

10. You are sure to ask how these normally gentle and good people could become so silly. But I say unto you: may this practice sound ever so silly at first. It nevertheless has a wise reason, which you shall find out soon.

11. It has already been mentioned that these official codes of conduct in a sense constitute the sacramental, inner religious code and this should justify such practice, but how? How shall this transpire?

12. Man's face and his front as a whole signify truth, whilst his reverse side represents the lie. But because these people regard the lie as a vice that degrades man most of all, speaking always the full truth out of love for their brethren and there being no guile in them, they want to avoid showing their much loved brethren their back side which, although only symbolically, signifies the lie. For they say: no brother should be secretive towards his brother, whilst on the other hand he cannot with his back show his brother what is in his heart. Whoever therefore shows his brother his back is hiding his heart from him. He who wants to be forthright therefore with his brother should always keep his back from his brother's face, so that the latter would not have the least occasion to suspect that the other is keeping something from him. If however the most loving, sole Lord of heaven and earth most carefully avoids showing us humans and all creatures His back rather than His most holy visage, from which everlasting life streams to us, then why should we humans not heed what the most loving, sole Lord of heaven and earth maintains towards us humans and all beings, out of His eternal and endless order?

13. Behold, seen from this aspect, the equatorial inhabitants' wisdom is not diminished through observing this rule. Because wherever an action is based in love for Me and a brother, it ceases to be unwise. But where an action, no matter how apparently delicate by appearance, is grounded in self-love and self-interest, there it is also pure foolishness and fuss in the eyes of pure spirits.

14. Therewith we are familiar with this code and shall move to another. This third rule is observed mainly in the house; wherein does it consist? It consists of everyone having to direct his or her eyes towards the house interior during rest. Why? Because these people say: while resting, we should lift our eyes to God; God however is the inward depth of all things in relation to His endless love. Hence the inside of a house also signifies God's love, from which no man should ever divert his eyes.

15. Upon the corresponding planet, people in their somewhat different dwellings have beds, which they normally fill with fig leaves (a fruit prevalent upon this planet). These beds are positioned so that people sleeping always face the interior of the house. Upon the corresponding solar equator however there are no beds in the private dwellings, only the formerly mentioned resting benches between the pillars. People seated on them face the house interior.

16. Only when having meals do they change over to the two outer walks, facing outwards, holding that there, they serve only their outward nature and this should not be mixed up with divine service.

17. Behold, here we have a few more of these national codes, which upon examination certainly have a wise foundation; and so we move to another state rule. What does this consist of?

18. This concerns sitting outside the house, in the open, perchance in the shade of gigantic trees. Every person, male or female is obliged to sit with crossed legs, somewhat like your Turks, and always in a circle with their back outward and their face towards the centre of the circle; with a woman sitting between two men where possible.

19. This order of seating upon this belt pertains to the life of fellowship; and there is much discussion at such meetings and the time glorified with exalted and edifying things.

20. What do they normally discuss? On such occasions speech is by mouth, but never loudly, treating all sorts of things and manifestations. But their preferred subject is always the most loving, sole Lord. When they hit upon Him no other subject is likely to penetrate the fellowship circle.

21. But, speech my mouth forthwith ceases, mime takes over. But, you must not think this a kind of incomprehensible foolish miming, for this speech is one of the spirit and is a perfect tongue through which everything can be described, compared to which speech by mouth, even at a perfect level, seems paltry. I shall give you a comprehensible example for clarification.

22. Let two so-called, second-sighted somnambulists (clairvoyants) get together and let one of them think of a letter to someone, then magnetically connect to the other, and the letter shall at once be able to be written down by him as it was mentally conceived by the first. Behold, this example to which you can relate quite well gives you a clear idea of the nature of the language of miming used by these equatorial inhabitants.

23. That would be another code, which has a good foundation and purpose. But let us move to another concerning how men speak to women by mouth. They guard against speaking too loud in case the tender woman has cause to think the man has something unpleasant against her, as this could easily have a destructive effect on her organism as well as her spirit, causing her to be barren.

24. For this reason the male is exceptionally affectionate towards the female to a degree that you on your rough Earth could not imagine. But this affection also generates delight in the spouses, which you are equally incapable of grasping.

25. But how this magnifies the worth of a woman to an unbelievable extent through the gentleness and affection shown to her, even you on your Earth can gather superficially. If you ever found yourself in a social group, then the woman who enjoyed the most widespread approbation will have made the deepest impression on you. The more she is shown consideration, the more elation you too would experience in her company. This is of course just a dim analogy, introduced because it is impossible to find a better one upon your Earth. But it can give you a small idea of why the female gender upon the fourth equatorial belt is exceedingly tender, gentle and full of the most ardent love and secondly how, a most charming beauty is always tied to this character in a most natural manner.

26. Surely one thing is certain, that the outer physical form is an impress of the inner character. If there are repulsive shapes among you, then these are the result of many years and the decrepitude of an older character of the elder's lineage. When however the characters in their inward part are steadily ennobled in My image to their innermost foundation then the exterior impress also shall come to be steadily ennobled and glorified.

27. From this you can conclude that the women of this belt are exceedingly beautiful, breathing out love and their utmost charm and sweetness everywhere. From this you can discern the obligation concerning men's speech by mouth in accordance with the regulation.

28. And so we conclude today's revelations with this code and follow up with even more important social codes next time; and so we will leave it for today.

41. - Chapter 40 -

1. Plant and animal kingdoms upon the fourth pair of equators

1. Before proceeding to the more important national codes, it shall be necessary to familiarize ourselves a little, with the plant and animal kingdom on this belt.

2. Here you will think: to examine this belt's profuse plant and animal kingdom even marginally would hold us back from continuing with the more important national codes. But I say unto you: "Let you not be troubled, for there are instances where I can axe down the tree with one blow and this shall be the case here."

3. But before I begin to explain, I must take you back to the planet Jupiter. Although this planet is a good four thousand times bigger than the Earth you inhabit, no other planet has a greater resemblance to your Earth, firstly by climate and as a result thereof, by the kingdoms of plants and animals. It has certain peculiarities in common with other planets which as it were abound in it, but which are alien to your planet in terms of plants and animals, notwithstanding this however, you shall find upon this planet everything which your planet holds in a magnified form.

4. One of these peculiarities in respect of plant life is that, in common with the central equatorial belt population, these piously loving people have the complete ability and the will power to call forth plant and tree forms from the soil; except that such species are then seedless and hence not capable of reproduction, whereas positive plants and trees, such as upon your Earth, have a living seed within them.

5. Such positive plants however are the same as the grafted ones upon your terrestrial soil. Thus in the Jovian hot zone you would discover all the tropical growths; then, in its two temperate zones, all fruits and growths occurring in these terrestrial zones; and thus also in the cold zone. But you have to visualize it in a much more refined and far bigger state than on Earth.

6. Thus you could for example be strolling through plentiful grassland stalks as through a young wood plantation; and the trees might be ten times bigger than yours. Yet nowhere upon this planet would you encounter the gigantic animals we met upon the planet Saturn.

7. Thus the humans upon Jupiter are nowhere near as big as upon Saturn and far smaller than the solar belt corresponding to Jupiter. But the people upon Jupiter are no more than three or fourfold the size of you yourself upon Earth.

8. Knowing this we can risk throwing ourselves into it, and you can be assured of getting to know both the plants and animals of this fourth belt. Think of the plants and animal kingdom of your Earth, then imagine them about a hundredfold in size in everything and you have therewith the entire plant and animal worlds of this belt before you.

9. If, for instance, you had a fly the same as on this equator before you, it would make an abundant meal for five of your people. Likewise you would find it hard to consume ten strawberries, whilst two of your strongest people would not easily shift a bunch of grapes. And so with everything else, and likewise with the animals, with the exception of the snake, which cannot be found on Jupiter, nor the corresponding equator. There are indeed lizards, but of a benign nature. These usually keep to the sea coasts and rivers; they stay clear of human dwellings.

10. Behold, only now can we proceed to the official social codes.

11. So here is another regulation that forbids the keeping of any domestic animals other than a few house birds such as chickens and pigeons. Here you will ask: "Will this regulation then also keep the animals out?" But I say unto you: this is a superficial concern, as this regulation requires the inhabitants to fence their domestic properties of sometimes many square miles (GM) in size to keep animals out.

12. To this again you will say: "Is this not going to cause the inhabitants a great deal of work?" If they went about it like yourselves, then they would certainly have much to do, for this fence is quite often several hundred (GM) miles in circumference.

13. So how do they go about it? They take the proper amount of good seed, digging a furrow around their grounds with an instrument resembling a plough but drawn as easily as play by immensely powerful people in place of animals. One woman casts the seeds into the furrow whilst another covers it over with another tool. This proceeds so fast that no birds could keep up with it. And on account of the great fertility of the soil the seed sown trees grow in a short time standing forty metres tall. And in the course of about three years, by your reckoning, the living fence is as good as full grown.

14. Would you also like to know the tree species? Here I say unto you that these trees resemble your cedars, spruce and firs. The stems grow so close together they that form a proper wall which when fully grown, not infrequently, reach a height of over two thousand metres.

15. And so you see that no animal is going to get over this fence. Another regulation requires fencing around every property.

16. If someone were to ask: "Why do these equatorial inhabitants abhor animals so much?" Then this is the answer: in line with their inner wisdom, these people say: the animals, one and all, still have impure souls and through their conduct can cause the human soul to become unclean, in that all their actions are from out of their judgment. Were man to easily imitate one or other of their functions then he would precipitate himself from his freedom into an animal under judgment, which could gradually harm his soul.

17. Hence it is our loving, mutual obligation to keep the animals away from ourselves and rather fear them than maintain an untoward attachment. Love towards animals with time produces unclean feelings and makes the soul animalistic. Hence none should curse animals, but even less, let his sanctified heart suffer attachment to one or other animal.

18. Behold, therein lies the main reason for the above mentioned social norm, just as the inhabitant of this belt have a lofty and wise reason for every one of their regulations.

19. Here some will ask again: "Are the inhabitants of this belt actually able to fence off the flies and other flying insects, as well as the wild birds?" For surely these are also animals with souls less pure than the human.

20. Regarding this and other flying insects, these are easily kept away through man's will. And these animals in any case stick to the sea, lake coasts and river banks.

21. And birds in their flight pose no danger to man. But if they settle down somewhere it is not for long, whilst the damage they cause is easily borne because they more than compensate for it by consuming all kinds of creeping things.

22. For this reason there is another regulation in place forbidding birds from being chased away from where they settle down. Here also they say: whatever can lift itself above our fencing, not heeding this border, is driven by a higher will for our benefit. Whence we should not chase away something that comes to us from above but instead let it serve us in a way God determined for our good. Thus entire flocks of birds are often allowed to settle down on their grounds feeding, and it is said: everything that works is worth its food. Hence let also these workers eat since they have worked, for they cannot come without God's will, nor can they leave without it.

23. And behold, there is also good reason for this regulation. But you will eventually ask: "If the inhabitants of this belt mutually fence off their properties like that, where do the many large animals live?" Don't let that trouble you, for the properties of these inhabitants are not as close together as yours and there are frequently a hundred mile wide vacant stretches left to the animals, on average leaving the animals more space than the people.

24. Yet some could still ask: "We noted that these inhabitants journey quite frequently; are they not endangered by rapacious animals when travelling through their habitat?" This question is unfounded, firstly because the animals are generally of a benign nature and fear men. Secondly man, through his spiritual and physical power is a true lord over his world. And thirdly each traveller is escorted to the next neighbouring property. And so everyone can, with these three aids travel securely, especially as they do not have to fear any night upon the sun.

25. Behold, this is yet another state regulation, insisting on leaving a sufficient area between the fenced properties for animals, with every property having to have seven entrances all around, structured like the overpasses over your fences, which however, only big people can get over not the animals.

26. What do these intermediate animal territories look like allowing access to the overpasses? They are densely wooded areas. Only at the overpass points are the forests thinner to the next property overpass; and these are the paths along which all can journey safely.

27. Regarding the upkeep of this path, a rule states that each neighbour is responsible for keeping his half cleared. For here too the inhabitants say: only the unclean animals travel through uncleared thickets, whereas man should travel along open paths. For it is not within the animal's power to clear its path, but well within man's power to do so; each path as well has to be straight to distinguish it from the crooked paths of creatures that do not recognize the benefit of a straight line but stray about in the thickets of forests.

28. These are then the most important official regulations regarding land management. Next time we shall look at some more of them before turning to religion and so enough for today.

42. - Chapter 41 -

1. Cultivation of wheat and other plants

1. Another official code is that all inhabitants must cultivate wheat, and when ripe collect it into bundles, rubbing it out of the ears and storing the grain.

2. How do they use it? These seeds, almost the size of your smallish hen's eggs, are cooked in a familiar way and consumed straight away. If you were to cook and eat the wheat at once you would indeed obtain a most nourishing food, but without much taste of course, since the wheat on your Earth contains less sugar than that of this belt. But for the people here their cooked wheat is a most pleasant and enjoyable meal.

3. At this point some may ask: "How can this be subject to an official regulation?" But I say: just a little patience! One cannot describe an object externally with one word, but harken to what these people have to say about this fruit: among all the fruit grown, none is more worthy of our attention, because none more resembles the living bread (Manna) from heaven. All other fruits as we know them ripen for us to put straight into our mouth from the plant, shrub or tree; but wheat com, although the best of our fruits must first be separated from the ear, which is bristling with pin points and hooks, then cleaned, and if we want to eat it, softened in water made live by fire.

4. Now look at the bread from heaven, which is the Word of God, proclaimed by the spirits of heaven, how it resembles this wheat seed, which after much effort to prepare, becomes our favourite food! Only after much effort and through testing do we acquire possession of this heavenly bread-word. Having once received it we have to still be purified, through our doing and refraining from doing. For as you know, it is always given us, in a way, enclosing the actual nutrition from the immortal spirit in a hard to open husk, for deep heavenly wisdom. Having finally freed this pure inner com from its shell, we have to cook the hard com in our own living water of the spirit, upon the fire of love for God, so that it would become an eternally sustaining meal for our immortal spirit.

5. Behold, if you follow these words through, it shall be perfectly clear to you why wheat growing upon this belt is regarded as a national code. Therewith we have learnt another weighty regulation.

6. Another regulation determines the order in which ground must be cultivated with trees, shrubs and other plant growths. Here too, everything is spread around the house on elongated circles, at whose extremity stands the big fruit trees, up to where the above mentioned spruce fence closes the last row.

7. This order has its good reason too, for it corresponds according to the wisdom of these residents out of My order, according to which the crudely material, as symbol of rough and exalted wisdom, stands furthest from My love-fire centre. Everything more tender, smaller and weaker is steadily closer to the eternal, chief dwelling of My love. Wherefore the old saying even upon your Earth: the love of God inclines towards the little one! And I Myself once said upon Earth: suffer these little ones to come unto Me, for of such is the Kingdom of God."

8. From this once again you can see clearly how cultivation of fruit from the ground can be subject to government regulation. And this will become clear to you if you call to mind what went ahead of this national code where it was said that these national regulations actually make up the sacramental part of this belt's inhabitants.

9. There would indeed be more of them, but if you take note of those mentioned already then you can conclude that all other rules stem from the same cause as outlined, and these are already the main ones.

10. For this reason we shall now finish with official codes and turn to the religion of the inhabitants on this belt.

43. - Chapter 42 -

1. Religion upon the fourth equatorial belt

1. Regarding religion, this is nowhere simpler than here.

2. It consists of no more than a living faith that God is a most perfect Man and that this most perfect Man created heaven, their earth, all things and beings, out of His free will and man in His image, setting him down into the world as its lord, to rule the outer as well as his own world, which is the natural world during everyone's temporal life. This is taught as the fundamental principle of their religion making up, as it were, the first part of their religious instruction.

3. In the second half it is shown that man is a perfect vessel for the reception of God's will and furthermore, how man only through the taking up of this will can become a mighty lord over all creatures of the world as well as over the world itself.

4. It is further shown in this part how man can gain full possession of God's will through fulfilling it. For it says there: He, who fulfils God's will completely within himself, must have first fully taken it unto himself. But no man can take up God's will until he lets go of his own, apparent will. But how can man let go of his own will? He can let go of it by using it for the purpose that his Creator has poured it into him.

5. And what is this purpose? It reads thus: Man should strive to fulfil God's will with his own and for that purpose strive to recognize it. He who earnestly does so, God will soon recognize in the right measure. To the extent that someone recognizes and then does God's will with his own, to the extent of understanding it, this then unites his own will with the divine by which alone he truly re- establishes the connection between God and man, which amounts to actual religion.

6. The more man strives to recognize the state of religion from within and live in accordance with it, the more he is also united with the power of the divine will. And when someone has made the divine will his own to the extent of having no more will of his own (not even to fulfil God's will), to the point where all will within him has become purely godly, then man has not only joined up with God but has become one with Him.

7. And that is the purpose of religion, that man should become one with God i.e. his action should not be motivated by any will other than God's.

8. Whoever has all his actions controlled solely through God's will acts with ease and great effect. Because the omnipotence of God's will comes to the fore everywhere in every man when this will is the sole, pure motivating force asserting itself in one or other of his actions.

9. Behold, in this short presentation consists the second part of the religion of the inhabitants of this belt.

10. And therewith is the third part, in which only the inner life it presented and that too in the briefest and simplest summary, which you shall discern from the doctrine that like the previous one, I shall present to you literally.

11. The third stage sounds as follows: God is Himself the actual primordial life. Wherefore, within God there actually reigns the greatest enmity towards death, inexorably and eternally, for life cannot fraternize with death. How should God, as arch-eternal most actual basic life, ever seek commonality and friendship with death -the crassest opposite of all life?

12. This enmity, grounded in God's eternal order is called "the wrath of God." If however God, as foundation of all life has created the world and all things out of Himself, then He is bound to not have created these out of His wrath but out of endless good naturedness. This affability or love is the actual basic life of God from which we and all things, have gone forth.

13. If however we, as thinking and willing beings have obviously gone forth from the life of God within which death is unthinkable, then we are certain to have gone forth not for death but life. That this is so however, we can clearly conclude from the fact that we are here as living beings.

14. Because death, this absurdity without existence and only a symbol of the opposite of life surely cannot ever bring forth something; were it able to do so then it would have to exist first. But how and where could it exist, since the living Being of God fills out its infinity, outside which no second infinity is thinkable, since God's one infinity is eternally without restriction.

15. Since we are alive however, and thinking and self-conscious, we obtained our existence out of God's primordial life and are located in the centre of His primordially eternal, supremely perfect life. Nothing can separate us from this other than temporary self-will, which he gave us for a short time.

16. Once we have reunited this with His will, we have re-entered upon arch-primordial life and nothing further separates us from it - except for our feeble skin by appearance only. When this is taken from us in accordance with God's will we are then completely one life with God again, which shall then recognize itself in its divine perfection forever with the highest degree of clarity.

17. But how do we perceive this primordially divine life in us? This we identify through love. He who has love therefore also already has life in him. But he who has no love would have to endure further tests until love began to manifest in him.

18. Love towards our brother and sister is the beginning of inner life. He who has gone over from this love to love for God however, has also from the beginning of his life gone over to the fullness of God's own life.

19. For he who loves his brothers and sisters already lives in their hearts and they in his, whoever then loves God lives in God, and God in him!

20. Nobody can love God of his own love, as God is the fullness of life. But he who has, in a living way through love, taken up his brother and sisters within himself, has therewith broadened his own life sphere to only then take up the fullness of divine life into the same.

21. Because one's own life, out of one's own love, is far too feeble for carrying the fullness of God's love. But through a united brother and sister, life in a man's heart can gradually be fortified as to make it capable of taking up the fullness of God's life.

22. Although every man is in himself a living being, this individual person's life would seem like sheerest death compared to the fullness of god's love, and no man could bear the latter if it came to him in his life- sparse isolation. Spread therefore the arms of your hearts out widely to embrace all brothers and sisters with innermost love in action, wherewith you shall transform your hearts into sufficiently roomy dwelling places in which the fullness of God's life shall be able to move in and take up everlasting residence. For God is great and endless is the fullness of His life.

23. We know however, that no great power can manifest at just one point. When these points unite however a power shall also indwell, proportionate to the size of the merger; is not our big world made up of many points? If however we take up one point therefrom to test its force, then how negligible it shall seem compared to our own, in that we can annihilate it between our fingers. Are we able to do this also with our world? Oh, not in the remotest degree! For the world's power is a fullness corresponding to the endless multiplicity of its aggregate points. This power nonetheless is also nothing other than the perpetual mighty action of God's life in our world.

24. Self-love within a man is similar to a point capable of destruction even by us; how shall it fare within the fingers of our godly life force? When we expand our heart through brotherly and sisterly love however, we enlarge our own inner world through consolidation of the living, individual points, effected by love for brother and sister and therewith creating a powerful organ capable of the taking up of progressively greater powers. Once this organ is fully developed in accordance with God's will, like the external world that carries us, only then shall it become capable of taking up the fullness of higher powers going forth from the primordially eternal endless fullness of divine life-power.

25. Hence love your brothers and sisters, in order to love God. For without love towards brother and sister no man can love God.

26. Behold, in this consists the third basic principle of life through true religion.

27. Marriage also is tied to this basic principle; therefore marriage is nowhere so warmly kept as here.

28. That this without any exception is the case upon the two belts corresponding to Jupiter, you can gather from the fact that at the presentation of the northern equator I never particularly mentioned the southern one. And so we are finished with the fourth equators also and shall presently move to the fifth.

44. - Chapter 43 -

1. The fifth part of equatorial belts - corresponding to Saturn. Land and people

1. Regarding the fifth equator, I need only reveal to you that it corresponds in the northerly and southerly belt to the now familiar planet Saturn of which you have already glimpsed a substantial part and we shall therefore also deal with the equator more quickly than with the previous one.

2. Regarding this belt, it too is separated from the previous one by a high mountain chain. But big offshoots from this chain then run right across the entire belt width of over four thousand miles. On its northernmost part it has a water belt of uneven width and many inlets into the land with an occasional land penetration of up to two to three thousand miles depth. The northern coast of this sea then runs on in a fairly straight line, bordered by fairly steep mountain walls.

3. This is also the case with the corresponding southern belt, except in a reverse direction, on account of which the northern part is inhabitable land, criss-crossed by the many mountain chains with the water belt only following along the southern part of the land, evincing enormous inlets into the inhabitable land.

4. We shall only treat the northern belt however and with its conditions take in the southern ones, as it were.

5. What kind of terrain therefore do we find upon this northern belt? Just take a look at Saturn and you shall see the type of land upon this belt.

6. Here, the Living Tree, the Funnel Tree, the Mirror Tree, the Wall Tree and Miscellaneous Tree, as well as the Pyramid Tree are at home. All these are to be found here except on a grander, more exalted, beautiful and fiery scale than upon the planet Saturn.

7. All shrubs and plants can also be found here on a more exotic scale than upon Saturn. Even the Ship Plant is there and is used the same way as upon Saturn; for upon this belt, seafaring commences.

8. Regarding animals, just the benign ones are found here but not the immense Mud and some other rather vicious animals, nor great Fish and Birds, nor various crustaceans. All other animals however are domiciled upon this belt, even a big Cow and a big Sheep of the mountain dwellers. But, as said, everything is more ennobled and gentler than upon the planet.

9. If you want to glimpse the conditions upon this belt with one blow, as it were, then betake yourselves to the planet's mountain inhabitants and there you will get to know all social, domestic, state and religious conditions.

10. Here too temples of worship are built and timekeeping is carried on nearly in the same manner as upon the planet with the difference that these equatorial people determine time by the sun's revolution around its axis, recognizing its completion by certain changes in the Zodiac upon the horizon. This revolution, of about twenty-nine terrestrial days duration, is then divide into seven time-spans.

11. This Zenith time is usually one of celebration upon the equator just as it is on Saturn. The seventh day is one of festivities and is celebrated upon the planet.

12. The dwellings, clothing and food of the mountain people upon this belt are exactly the same as it is upon the planet.

13. Man too, both male and female resemble those of the planet except for size. In this respect the inhabitants of the belt are about a third smaller than on the planet.

14. They are of an exceedingly gentle nature, fearing nothing so much as emotional upsets and for that reason even shy away from too much love.

15. For this reason things run so quietly upon this belt that with all the fullness of life some of you might think: here undoubtedly death has set up its quarters; but far from it. The inhabitants are exceedingly happy amongst themselves and of good cheer. They are also great friends of sound and delight for hours at a time by your measure, in the endearing song of their song birds. They themselves however are no more singers and musicians than the Saturnians.

16. They fellowship with the spirits and not infrequently with Myself, even more so than their planetary brethren.

17. They are exceedingly chaste and take note of their exceptionally beautiful women only in the heart.

18. Procreation is as on the planet; their willpower is considerably stronger than the planetary inhabitants, wherefore they are able to call up even seedless plants from the ground and have dominion over all animals.

19. These equatorial people too, through their will can at times take to the air and walk on water for short distances in an emergency, not however venturing on lengthy distances, saying: this is a miracle which men should draw into service only in extremity and none should make it habitual. For the Spirit of God Himself only resorts to miraculous work when His endless wisdom judges it desirable; at other times everything must abide within eternal order. Wherefore they don't wager constant applications of their willpower but only in emergencies.

20. This sums up the substantial differences between the planetary and equatorial populations, everything else being exactly the same.

21. It goes without saying that the inhabitants of this belt mostly inhabit the mountains as the plateaus are usually left to the animals.

22. Concerning the so-called "domestic servant" (a Saturian animal), he is domiciled here also, but no longer as an animal but a somewhat subservient human race, relating to this belt's inhabitants as some wild Negro tribes relate on Earth. But they are not predetermined as servants of the actual inhabitants but as the plains people instructed by the true inhabitants in such fashion as to learn true living and to be raised up to equality with the true people, for which their lifestyle then is the same as that of the main inhabitants, with the only difference in procreation, in that this subordinate human race procreates through a type of intercourse, which however is still far less sensual than with yourselves.

23. That however tells you everything about this equatorial belt and we therewith conclude with this fifth northerly and southerly belt simultaneously and shall move to the sixth belt next time.

45. - Chapter 44 -

1. The sixth pair of equatorial belts corresponding to Uranus A look at this planet.

1. It has already been mentioned, when we looked at the presentation of the fifth equator, that its equatorial sea is delineated by a high, straight, mountainous wall. This mountainous wall is also the start of the sixth equator on both the northern and southern ends except it is not so steep in the south.

2. How high might this be? Concerning its sheer drop, it rises some ten (GM) miles above sea level. Beyond this sheer drop this circular mountain chain takes on gentler slopes upwards, only rising a further twenty GM above the sheer drop. At its highest point it begins to gently drop towards the sixth belt, so that the fall from the many miles broad shoulder is at a rate of barely four hundred metres per 7.42km (one GM).

3. And so this mountain chain falls away gently towards the next equatorial sea, with occasional lofty hills and correspondingly steeper drops.

4. This is the nature of the sixth belt and, unlike any other, inhabitable to the highest alpine altitude.

5. It hardly needs mentioning that the corresponding sixth belt is similarly constituted, but more generally rather than symmetrically. Because within each there are diverse mountain chains, great plateaus, seas, currents, rivers and brooks and also many great waterfalls, occurring disparately here and there upon both belts without necessarily being symmetrically coincidental.

6. The overall width of this land from the height to the plains would be just over three thousand GM, with an equatorial sea width of about a thousand miles. Thus we have presented the ground upon which to move around.

7. In order to nevertheless recognize its make-up and destiny the more clearly, it shall be necessary to first cast a glance at the planet corresponding to this belt.

8. You shall know from the foregoing system that this is none other than the planet Uranus, and we shall therefore briefly examine this planet first.

9. Every calendar can provide you with its distance and size, which however adds little to the purpose for which we shall give it a cursory glance. But it matters that we take note of how, why and what its make-up is.

10. By cubic content it exceeds your Earth about a thousandfold, bespeaking a considerable area, for which reason Uranus can almost be regarded as first rank. Its inhabitable land, as with Saturn, is mostly below the equator, because the polar regions are almost uninhabitable on account of their frigidity. But the equatorial regions on the whole have of a pleasant climate and are highly mountainous.

11. No planet considered so far is so studded with fire-spewing volcanoes such as this one and the northern and southern borders of the inhabitable land especially are laced with almost continuous fire-spewing mountain chains. The lands of the interior are almost free of volcanoes and by contrast are well supplied with good, inhabitable land upon even plains.

12. Land vegetation is exceedingly luscious, with a mostly red-blue coloured plant, which has blossoms of either white-green or blending into white light-blue. The vegetation however is not very diverse in species even though wherever it occurs it is much more vigorous and gigantic.

13. As with the plant kingdom, the animal kingdom is also far less abundant than upon other planets. But the few marine as well as land based and aerial animals are exceedingly powerful and mostly gigantic. No kingdom of smaller animals like insects and creeping things occurs except for the fly which is identical with yours in shape and nature.

14. Concerning humans, these are fairly big. The males and females measuring respectively about sixteen and fourteen metres in height with a very stormy and violent nature, wherefore one would not take them up adversarial, in your view. They are also exceedingly bold and full of a most enterprising spirit. As for danger they shy away from nothing and fear of death is foreign to them.

15. For which reason they have to be kept well in check by various means to prevent their often exaggerated virtues turning into vices.

16. Even this planet's departed spirits must be held in isolation, for they usually are victors in conflicts with other spirits.

17. Whoever does not get far with innermost, all-sacrificing love with them, had better move on, for they are unapproachable through wisdom. But he who wins them through love can count himself most fortunate in every sense, because their faithfulness and longsuffering is equally stubborn and no test can shake it.

18. Wherefore their entire social norms boil down to love. Whatever love indicates they put to action with such resolve that they can in no way be held back from whatever they have commenced, except through total annihilation.

19. I will give you an idea of these people's resolve.

20. Suppose someone had commenced a work but halfway through death had overtaken him forcing his spirit and soul to leave his body; do you think anything can get him away from the spot where he had physically been halfway through the action? In no way is he to be removed but as spirit his hands go to work, not leaving the spot until the work is completed!

21. For this reason these planetary inhabitants must be left with the capacity to act in the natural sense until they have completed whatever they have commenced, otherwise their spirit would not be capable of moving, on account of their freewill.

22. Such is the case also with the temporal ones upon this planet. If it were decided that a bridge was to be built from one lofty mountain peak to another, then once the project is decided upon in their willpower, then there is no tarrying or resting until the two alpine peaks are joined with the projected bridge.

23. There, no other planet disports such daring structures. What would your Egyptian pyramids be or some other terrestrial wonders by comparison? Architecture upon the most gigantic scale is to be found on a massive scale. Let Me give you a few small examples.

24. Supposing this planet's inhabitants found themselves upon Earth and in your country (Syria or Austria - Jakob Lorber's country), and two of them were to take a trip to your Switzerland, finding great admiration for one or other of your glaciers. This image then impresses itself lastingly in the travellers' consciousness. On returning, the two are interviewed about all sorts of especial attractions and what they might consider doing about it? They at once describe and then sketch their favourite attraction. Once sketched however, it becomes the most sincere assurance that such a mountain has to also be erected on another location. For this purpose your Schoeckel and its offshoots were to be at once considered, and on the same day still, many thousands of hands are put to work: before the expiry of ten years, you would have a veritable Jungfrau and Wetterhorn or a Schreckhorn in place of your diminutive Schoeckel (about 1400m) before your eyes.

25. Behold, the limits to which these inhabitants take their building technology! But let's have another.

26. Suppose our planetary inhabitants had a certain piece of ground, of great extent of course. The middle of this property however is irritatingly cut by a fairly high mountain ridge of the proportions of your Koralpe, about 2000m. Here it is at once decided to either grade half the mountain with all its tributaries away and use this to fill in all its gorges; or alternatively, to make a one hour's (walk) wide cutting through it right down to ground level, so that the proprietor can walk right through it on level ground. The diggings are used to partly delineate the property and partly as filler for other mountain gorges.

27. If however the proprietor deems it more expedient, he will build the most beautiful road right over the mountain, landscaping it with the most imposing pyramids and other favoured ornamentation. The road must not however be a winding one like yours on Earth, but has to be perfectly straight. But let you try and build a straight road over an Alp, and the staggering costs and shuddering effort would be obvious to you.

28. For the inhabitants of Uranus however, this is an all too welcome challenge. Because the more forbidding the terrain and the manpower and stamina needed, the greater the eagerness to throw themselves into it.

29. Their private dwellings likewise commonly are of an architectural magnitude quite inconceivable to you. Do you imagine that a man from Uranus would be content with a house of stone, the same as you have on Earth? This you can dismiss from your mind at once. For there the expression "he goes in for extras" comes into its own.

30. Because when an inhabitant of this planet selects a building site on a mountain of faultless rock, it is levelled off all around at once, to a cone shape. This is followed by hundreds of hands grabbing hammers and chisels transforming the mountain into a dwelling with the most sophisticated decor for the inhabitants.

31. This dwelling has several storeys joined by good wide staircases and there have to be galleries around every story. Thus the appearance of the finished house has the approximate appearance of a Babylonian tower on a large scale, the way you are want to sketch. But you must not think that every house looks the same, but indeed every house has "gone in for extras".

32. The most imposing buildings however are their temples of God; because for this cause notably entire mountain chains are used, the people believing that I find especial pleasure in one or other mountain chain of about ten miles length that is relatively without fissures.

33. This mountain chain is then unfailingly fashioned into a temple of God, but nevertheless only down to the halfway mark, because a temple to glorify God must always be positioned at a higher altitude than any other building. The rooves of some temples rise to such heights that notwithstanding their equatorial location, where the heat is like your hottest summer, they are permanently snow and ice bound.

34. From these few examples you will discern what the spirit of these planetary inhabitants is like. Notwithstanding their bent for architectural magnificence, their other customs and norms are much more simple. Their attire and food likewise are of the greatest simplicity.

35. Their main code consists of being always mutually supportive without hesitation.

36. This religion is based on nothing other than the greatest honour to God, and their doctrine is an equally simple one as follows: whatsoever we do is for the glory of God! We honour God in spirit if we regard ourselves as little, generally embracing each other lovingly and being mutually supportive in everything. We honour God in actuality however, if we utilize our powers to ennoble that which He has indicated to us for perfecting in His glory. That sums up the religion of these planetary inhabitants.

37. Prayer in the temples is not held after your fashion, temples being rather memorials of God's greatness and exaltation; on the other hand, they are general gathering places for consulting on great undertakings for the glory of God.

38. Here there are no priests or other officials, the most senior elder of a family, which sometimes counts several thousand members, being all in all.

39. Marriages are kept strictly. Reproduction here too is effected through copulation.

40. All cadavers of the departed are cremated and their ashes stored in decorous urns and then transferred to the temple.

41. Males are in constant communion with the departed spirits, not visually but by hearing. Women however have frequent visions.

42. On the industrial front, women take care of clothing and food preparation, whilst men perform the other tasks and are masters in bronze and building.

43. There is writing and art upon this planet also, wherefore they also possess Scripture and hence know Me in the human form, acknowledging Me as Lord of Heaven and Earth i.e. their earth. They are also aware of My having walked in the flesh upon a similar earth; conceiving that planet consequently as the highest heaven, they are prevented from being able to plot its position to preclude their worshipping it as divine.

44. This for the present is all you need to know about this planet for our purpose of moving into the corresponding solar equator.

45. It is hardly worth pointing out that this planet is accompanied by five satellites and is surrounded by a powerful equatorial nebula, leading some astronomers with telescopes to regard this as a kind of Saturnian ring, because planetary moons firstly are not taken up into the solar region, so far as we shall pursue the matter. Concerning the nebula however, this goes with a planet's natural sphere, having nothing to do with the sun so far as we want to examine the sun for its nature in a practical and imaginative manner.

46. After this, we can immediately adjourn to our sixth solar belt.

46. - Chapter 45 -

1. Uranus' sixth corresponding pair of belts; men, plants and animals.

1. How the continental land of the sixth solar belt is constituted has already been considered when getting to know this belt.

2. What is left to consider, is man's position and how his life corresponds to that of the planetary inhabitants. What therefore do these equatorial inhabitants look like?

3. Regarding shape, they are the same as we saw upon the other equatorial belts and have a completely human form, since they are made in the image of My being. Only the size of the people varies between equators. Their size is double that upon the planet and their power ten times that of their planetary brethren.

4. Wherefore their works and building products are also on a far greater scale than those we met upon the planet. These people too are of a most enterprising spirit taking great pleasure in diverse, huge undertakings.

5. There you would come across buildings to make you shudder. Even their private dwellings are of such grandeur, as you have not heard of yet. But regarding their temples of God, it would be difficult to give you a concept thereof.

6. Before going into building particulars however, we want to look more closely at men's shape. By size you would recognise them as planetary inhabitants, but not so by form. This we shall discuss. What does this person look like?

7. His feet are not average and exceedingly muscular and strong by structure. The sole of his foot is of almost horn-like solidity, whilst his footsteps are relatively small. His knees you would call pointed because the kneecap has to be exceptional in relation to the strength of his foot, whilst the thighs are not wellrounded but muscle-flexing with every movement. His posterior is proportionately strong and extremely flexible.

8. His spine rises with great power and is notably wide but slightly narrower towards the loins than at the shoulders - the seat of his arms. His chest is wide but rather flat and richly supplied with muscle bands, which heave mightily with arm movements.

9. His arms and hands are not very large either and notably muscular like his feet with protruding elbows. Of special note however are his flat hands and fingers. The flat hand has an exceptionally prominent thumb muscle, ending in a broad, short and exceedingly strong thumb. His fingers are of nearly equal length and strength with only the little finger a trifle shorter. The three middle fingers deviate very little from a straight line. That is the hand structure.

10. His neck is rather short and square rather than round, upon which sits a rather strong head i.e. a head whose individual parts are of note. His forehead is high but bent forward towards the hair, and ending in two prominences at the temples, the latter themselves ending like two elongated knobs. His eyebrows too protrude considerably, whilst his cheekbones beneath the eyes also are bent forward. His eyes are deep-set and of average proportion to the head and of a wild and fiery appearance. His nose is a strong one with a marked prominence in its middle. His mouth is rather large with muscular comers whilst his chin is beardless and also protrudes markedly. His ears are also rather big and set further back than yours.

11. His hair is shaggy but without curls, somewhat resembling that of your Negro. His skin is of a light chestnut colour.

12. That is how the male looks. It hardly needs to be mentioned that the sex organs also are in proportion to the powerful physical build.'

13. Regarding his attire this consists of a type of trousers similar to that of the Israelites, secured at the top by a band at the loins and similarly below the knees. This is the male's clothing only upon this equator. On the corresponding planet however the male's clothing is similar to the Israelites of yore except it is a lighter colour. That completes the description of the male.

14. What does the woman look like? The woman on the whole is much more rounded than the man, notwithstanding the fact that she would not be classified as beautiful upon your Earth, for her skin colour is only a shade lighter than the male's. Regarding corpulence however, she would pass as merely your meagre types.

15. Her hair is also rather woolly rather than curly and hardly reaches down to the shoulders.

16. Her breast is sagging rather than of oval form and its bulk is concentrated around the nipples or suction warts as you call them.

17. The woman's dress likewise consists of nothing other than a type of apron trousers with many folds as worn by the Turks, closed below the knee.

18. The woman's head is graced with a hat somewhat cone shaped, fastened with a band under the chin.

19. Those are brief portraits of the male and female before us. On considering the physical form of these people you shall not need much physiological science to guess what the spirit of these people is like. They carry on the same as people upon the planet, but on a much bigger scale.

20. Regarding vegetation, this also resembles that upon the planet and likewise the animal kingdom, the latter being less utilised than upon the planet.

21. But more use is made of vegetation. Three species of trees are of especial note, which actually are the main food providers upon this equator. One of the trees resembles your coconut tree upon Earth and upon middle altitudes it grows to such size that it may almost cover your entire country (Austria) with its branches. If its stem were cut, then you could build ten of your cities (Graz) upon its stump. Its height is not proportional to its strength because this reaches only an occasional six hundred metres. But its branches have a much greater outreach, laden with fruit year round. And you can take it from Me that this tree bears twenty million fruit annually, by your time measure, of which, each is the size of a barrel of twenty buckets.

22. The fruit itself is covered with a rich and strong woollen netting which, on account of its strength, flexibility and toughness is used for rope and cable. Under this netting follows a solid husk, which, as with your ordinary walnut, can easily be parted in the middle. The fruit itself is filled with rich flesh and tastes approximate like your hazelnut.

23. When the people feel like eating, the folk pick the fruit fresh, there always being some ripe, some half ripe and some just setting; then they proceed as above. They first remove the woolly netting from the hard shell, then split it in two, cutting the fruit out with curved knives, eating according to need, whilst utilising the shell for all kinds of vessels.

24. The tree also has soft, gigantic leaves. These are amassed in sacks for cushioning in the resting places on this belt.

25. Equally notable is another tree that is of far smaller size but occurs in greater numbers and bears an exquisite fruit nearly resembling your grape, except it has fewer berries upon the stalk, but each is large enough to fill one of your buckets. The people only drink the juice to quench their thirst.

26. A third tree too is of special note, as it nearly resembling your fig tree and grows to gigantic size as well, bringing forth fruit quite similar to your figs. When fully ripe it has the taste of breadcrumbs in honey. It is much enjoyed by these people and hence much effort is put into cultivating this tree.

27. Fruits of other trees nonetheless also are eaten as well as those of plants, although the main staple foods are from the above mentioned three trees.

28. With regard to the animals, only the so-called great hairy cow is kept, which roughly resembles your camel but without the humps. Regarding its size, this would just exceed a hundredfold that of your elephant. But the hair is so plentiful that when shorn, you could not cart it away with ten of your biggest wagons and it hardly needs mentioning how it is utilised by the people of this equator.

29. Therewith we have finished with the presentation of the main aspects of man, as well as the plant and animal kingdoms and shall turn to the work these people do.

47. - Chapter 46 -

1. Iron production and use; building technology and private dwellings upon the sixth equatorial pair.

1. The building and metal industries are mainly understood by the work these people do.

2. The solar mountains in this belt contain a type of metal resembling an alloy of gold and iron. This metal firstly is quite common and is therefore secondly not hard to find and thirdly, it is malleable and yet resiliently hard and hence suitable for all sorts of hammering and cutting tools.

3. But these equatorial inhabitants are most proficient in its production having great ironworks for tool production. A number of people specialise exclusively in this industry. They indeed charge nothing for this work, but those wanting it must supply the equivalent weight in fruit and food.

4. That these tools are not of negligible weight will be understood, especially the hammer axes for these seldom weigh less than between fifty and a hundred hundredweight. With this tool, these inhabitants can indeed erect those gigantic buildings.

5. Private dwellings are rare, meaning that they are not tightly ranged against one another as you might assume, but are as far apart as your towns. But wherever there is one, it represents more than the biggest city upon your planet, accommodating a population proportional to its size. Thus, not infrequently, dwellings house from five to ten million people.

6. From this you will see what a colossal thing such a dwelling is. To describe this dwelling in writing would take you at least ten years, without counting details. But I shall nevertheless give you a brief outline.

7. Such a house normally has seven storeys, but occasionally ten. How are these storeys arranged? Think of a square with each side seventy miles (GM) long. Within this square i.e. bordering the outline, the first storey rises to a height of sixty metres, by your measure. The width of each room is one hundred metres.

8. This storey or great outer border of the building, like the rest of them has no pointed roof, being completely flat and fitted at the outer and inner edges with solid and stylish railings. The walls are continuous, and at regular intervals of ten metres are fitted with big windows similar to those in your houses of prayer - the so- called Gothic style; each room has from seven to ten such windows.

9. Inside the room the ceiling is carried throughout the length of the building by sturdy pillars. The windows themselves like yours are closed off with a type of glass, which however is not as hard and brittle as yours but rather plastic and pliable, being produced from the juice of a root plant which is planted everywhere in great profusion - approximately the way you would make glue from animal cast-offs. The glass is inwardly of a green colour i.e. by nature, but people sometimes mix other colours into the juice: these windows are also cut from multi-coloured glass.

10. The rooms are quite plain but certainly not without taste. Thus, there is also diverse but simple decoration of walls and ceilings. The floors usually are made of multicoloured, square stone tiles, finely cut and polished. The people place much store by the shine of room objects.

11. There are large, circular benches around the pillars in the middle, as well as straight benches along the walls, softly cushioned with foliage fillings, decorously covered.

12. To get an idea of the number of rooms, with their sizes related to the number of windows and their distances from each other in such a peripheral building, you divide the number into the length of seventy miles GM(= approx. 500km), there being an entrance and exit for every room from the outer and inner side. The rooms are, in turn connected by doors, so that one can actually walk around the entire storey through the rooms. Furthermore, a decorous and easy staircase along the lateral wall fitted with railings, leads to the storey's flat roof. Each room is occupied by a family unit.

13. Therewith we have the first storey. Then think of a free space or rather a road, one hundred metres wide. There the second storey building begins. This building has two storeys in actuality, the first running parallel with the first outer, big edge building, the second storey resting upon the first (outline) building. The roof is also flat and suitable for strolling on and is fitted with sturdy, stylish railings.

14. Think of a road running in a straight line for some five hundred kilometres and the grandeur of this private dwelling shall start to sink in!

15. Let us go through this second building! It too has a width of one hundred metres like the first. After that there is another one hundred metre-wide road.

16. Here the third storey building rises from ground level, each storey the height of the first outer building, the latter as said, rising to a height of sixty metres. Wherefore, with this third storey, we reach a total height of a hundred and eighty metres. Here of course we find something new only in the third storey, which easily overlooks the second storey.

17. Going through this building we again come to a road one hundred metres wide, where we see the fourth storey (building), which completely resembles the other buildings in everything, except for bulkier walls than the previous buildings. Here too the roof is fitted with sturdy and decorous landings and one can again overlook the other three storeys.

18. Let us go through this building again and notice another one hundred metre-wide road and a five storey building which has of course shorter sides than the outer building, yet the shorter distance does not amount to one (GM) mile and you would still need to walk several days to cover just one side of this building which is the fifth storey. It hardly needs mentioning that this fifth building also resembles the others except for the walls, which are sturdier.

19. Let us go through this building and another one hundred metre- wide road emerges and we are able to see the front of the sixth storey building. This building too is indistinguishable from the others except for the still stronger and lower walls and the colour for the storeys begin to change from the sixth storey and that in accordance with the colours of the rainbow which of course is a most splendid thing to see. The roof area is enclosed by a pyramid railing, each pyramid topped by a big golden ball. This distinguishes the sixth building from the others, whilst the rooms once again are of similar layout.

20. And so we walk through this sixth building again. Here we suddenly come to a two kilometre-wide road, which is ground and polished throughout like your mirrors. And finally, the seventh building is seen to raise its grand pillars. It is distinguished not only by colour but also by the supporting interior and exterior pillars. For the walls begin to rise inside these mighty pillar galleries. It speaks for itself that the lower storey pillars are sturdier than the upper ones, as they carry heavier burdens. Each row of pillars is of a different colour, again in the order of a rainbow. This roof also is flat and an obelisk stands above each pillar, which again is topped by a golden ball. The roof obelisks are connected with decorous railings, giving an appearance of splendour. This second building, on account of its pillar galleries that are each forty metres wide, is therefore much wider than the others, with an overall width of two hundred metres.

21. These numerous dwellings end here, whilst the immensely roomy inside is a place of common scenic beauty and an ornamental garden, well stocked with thousands of landscape type, smaller structures, as well as many avenues of fruit trees. Nor are all kinds of aquatic art works, of which these equatorial inhabitants are great masters, missing, because these diverse aquatic ducts are also part of their building technique.

22. Some private dwellings are similar to the foregoing and have seven storeys, or sometimes three more thus having an eighth, ninth and tenth storey building, which again has a one hundred metre wide road between each storey. Since these extra buildings resemble the seventh storey building, the road between each of them is two hundred metres wide. Thus the inner area is somewhat reduced in size, yet still large enough to take you several days to walk around it.

23. Behold, these are the private dwellings of the equatorial inhabitants. Your imagination would be too restricted to even approximately conceptualise the splendid sight of these private dwellings.

24. You must not regard these dwellings as the limit of the architectural techniques of these people. Only when we examine their roads, bridges and temples shall you form a concept of their building technology with astonishment. But their highways and bridges shall always be of the greatest grandeur, because you have not dreamt of anything like it and you can take it from Me that the presentation of their road and bridge technology leaves even your most colourful fantasy far behind.

25. As this presentation will be a rather drawn out one for your comprehension, we shall leave it until next time.

48. - Chapter 47 -

1. The great ring road upon the sixth pair of equatorial belts.

1. You have already heard, with the presentation of Uranus, that one of their basic codes is that all their roads must be straight. Although the turning out of straight highways upon that fairly large planet is fraught with many thousands of difficulties, these problems nonetheless are minor compared to those that the terrain of this equatorial belt presents, upon this big solar world.

2. Upon the planet, the mountains are at the most, five or six times the height of your highest mountains upon Earth. What is this compared to the height of the mountains upon the sun, which are measured not in metres but miles? Now think of a main highway construction that merely travels over the middle altitude of the lands of this belt, remembering the vast number of deep gorges, the many massive streams, waterfalls, seas and even the occasional sea inlets. Pondering this, you will realise what is involved in building a straight road there.

3. But consider furthermore that this highway is a ringroad around the entire solar equatorial belt, both the northern and southern ones (with only the variant of rather rounded guardrails in the south compared to more square ones in the north). Consider furthermore the length of this highway - just on 200,000 GM (1,484,000km).

4. The more you think about it, the more magnificent this road will seem to you. Remember also that this highway is a uniform four kilometres wide, and you shall stop dead in your tracks! Consider furthermore over how any thousands of gorges, these bridges must lead, some dropping to a depth of seventy-two kilometres below highway level. Behold, notwithstanding such incredible difficulties, this solid sculptured road nevertheless runs on, high above such dizzying abysses.

5. Therewith you have a sketch. But you will say that this road indeed comes into the domain of the possible, but we can only say of building it: this undertaking is indeed possible to God, but let whoever will, believe that created beings also can bring it about, given the materials and mighty hands! We will continue to regard the thing as impossible until shown what higher powers are at the disposal of these people and how they proceed therewith, to bring it within the realm of their hands!

6. But I say: just a little patience! Look at some of your animals and compare their work with yours, and your shame shall make you shudder in that you will have to regard the products of your greatest craftsmanship as miserable snail shells. To make it clearer I will take you to a two-metre high anthill. Take this work in conjunction with the size of its builders! By comparison to your size and strength it would be as if you had put up a Chimborasso or the Himalayan mountains? If you think this exaggerated, just do some sums and you shall find the comparison substantiated.

7. Take an ant for example and how, together with its tiny head it is hardly one line above the ground; then take the not infrequent three metres height of a big anthill. Divide the number of one-line heights into a height of nine feet. Then multiply your own height by the result and imagine how high your building would have to be to compare it proportionately to this anthill. I shall not even mention the thousand passages and catacombs within this anthill, which are gigantic by comparison with their builders; for it is sufficient to compare only the size of the hill to highlight the building power of these tiny insects to your own.

8. Take also the building of a bee and how boldly it hangs its hive of cells by a mere two lines thick brown wax handle from a wall, which surely says more than if by comparison you were to hang your biggest palace by some massive chains upon some high airborne bow.

9. Consider furthermore a spider web, how far this animal often draws out its thread, building its web in the midst of these threads mid-air. Does that not say as much as if by comparison you had stretched heavy wires and ropes between the highest alpine peaks, setting up suspension-bridges over gaping gorges and valleys therewith?

10. I could present you with many still more marvellous building skills of small animals but the above shall suffice for now. On looking at this closely, you shall recognise your comparatively inferior building capacity. If however these tiny animals put you to shame in their respect, how should it be so inexplicable to you that there should be people who would put your building capacity into the shade on a still larger scale?

11. And such are the very people of our sixth solar belt. Their main prowess expresses itself in building, although spiritually it corresponds to those physical human organs through which the actual vegetative building of the body are effected.

12. Knowing this, we can pass on to the actual building procedure adopted for such colossal roads. Where such highways run over wide stretches of mountain plateaus, the building is, of course, easier and the effort more minimal. But if passing over deep valleys and gorges, then the difficulties are correspondingly greater, for it can continue over lofty bridges. How are these erected?

13. These bridges over a valley or gorge are subdivided into floors, one arch rising above another until reaching the highway level. After that the spaces between the arches are filled in and massive, well-masoned stone slates laid over them and each side fitted with a fairly high stone railing of several metres wide. The floor of this arch work frequently reaches a thickness from one hundred to two hundred metres and in places of gaping valley depths, close on two thousand arch works rise one above another.

14. It may be asked how long it takes a building technologists to complete this gigantic arch-work, especially when a mountain valley measures one hundred of your miles (GM) in width? I say unto you: hardly as long as it takes you to erect an average private house. Because firstly, often on such occasions, several million hands get to work erecting, while many prepare the materials and many again deliver them.

15. Here too, only the lowest arches are built with great masoned cuboid stones, joined with an especially sticky stone mortar, whilst the higher levels are built with bricks made from a tough clay (readily available in the gigantic mountains of this equator). The baking is done in the sunshine until they turn a brownish colour, producing a powerful tone when struck, signifying their finished state, with these qualities.

16. Thus we see how this highway runs above valleys and gorges: we are still left with rivers, seas and even sea inlets. What building procedure is adopted there?

17. Just a little patience and we shall see how enterprising and skilful and tenacious these master builders are. They first build a type of ship from solid wood, with a width of forty metres and a length of two thousand metres, this being no problem for them due to an abundance of luscious forest trees, which often surpass the Pyramid trees upon Saturn.

18. When this ship, or rather raft is finished, building starts upon it and it begins to sink deeper because of the weight of materials on it. When the first raft layer is level with the water surface another layer of hewed and stripped tree trunks is piled on top and firmly secured with braces, after which the pylon is built up in turn upon the raft. When this layer pushes the barge further into the water another layer is put down and so on. This is continued until the builders see whether at last one side has foundered on the bottom. If the seabed is level then there is no problem, and the pylon can then be built on further up to many thousands of metres.

19. If the ground under the water is not level, this of course creates considerable difficulties, and trained divers are sent down to either level the ground or fill it in with materials sent down.

20. Sometimes the cliff chasms are too deep for filling, yet the pylon must have a solid foundation. How do they proceed? A massive metal base is prepared and sunk into the water and manoeuvred on top of the protruding rocks so skilfully under the raft mast pylon that it sits upon the huge metal platform.

21. You may well ask: do these workers not suffocate (drown) when working underwater for such lengthy periods? No, this is not the case, firstly because upon this equatorial belt there is not as much difference between the solar air and the water as there is on Earth. Because the air is much denser the water is therefore thinner. Thus a trained man can breathe quite easily under water, getting the water into his powerful lungs instead of the air. But this conditioning has to be acquired in earliest childhood otherwise the man suffocates. Wherefore conditioning of several of such people is always under way, as with your sailors, who quite often are capable of living a half or an entire hour underwater well preserved.

22. These pylons are then commenced by the thousands simultaneously at about forty metre intervals, depending on the width of the river or sea. When the pylons are properly and firmly anchored at the base, they are interconnected with metal rods at the top. Only then are further pylons erected over the others within the arches, with floors of arches continuing to rise above each other until level with the highway, whereupon the same procedure is adopted as over the valleys.

23. What are the road builders going to do when confronted with a fairly wide sea inlet, after their deep-sea probing reveals that their measuring plungers don't reach the sea bed? Because often these bays can be not merely hundreds or thousands of metres but sometimes from three hundred and seventy to seven hundred and forty kilometres deep!

24. Here they resorted to barge technology. But such ships are then of a colossal size to match the road, except they use massive logs in place of masoned stone for putting a bridge in place, the latter must however also rise to the level of the highway.

25. Firstly this ship is built from the most colossal trees and actually take on the shape of a basket rather than a ship. This ship "basket" then usually is 7.42km long (one GM) and one kilometre wide. The walls of this ship "basket" are usually six hundred metres high and secured as if for eternity, floor upon floor with massive iron rods and braces. Besides three layers of the most massive logs, the floor of this ship is covered with a kind of thick metallic tin. In the water the wood turns into stone. Above water it is saturated with a kind of mixture that makes it indestructible, as if for eternity also. Within this bridge of ships, each ship is fastened to the other with immensely strong metal braces to form a continuous "ship-basket" right across the bight of the entire sea.

26. Hence cast a spiritual glance at this ship-bridge from some height and you will have to concede, that by comparison, even your most opulent fantasies will seem to you like pictures in miniature.

27. Of course this road is not built over here nowadays, because this highway is already older than your human population on Earth, going back some sixty thousand years. Nonetheless, secondary access roads are at this time being connected to this main road and the main highway maintenance kept up, which frequently amounts to replacement of sections.

28. Behold, therewith we have presented the largest structures of these equatorial people. Having nothing further to add we shall go to inspect a temple next time.

49. - Chapter 48 -

1. A temple site upon the sixth equatorial pair

1. Concerning the temples of these equatorial inhabitants to honour God, they are indeed not of the gigantic expanse of the now familiar highway, but this temple nevertheless is an expression of the most extraordinary masterpiece of artistic building technology upon this equator in aggregate. Two things are of exceptional note in the structure of this temple i.e. the size and height.

2. Regarding its size, your country Hungary would hardly be of sufficient size to accommodate the structure upon its soil. Regarding its height however, your highest mountains would hardly serve as ornamentation upon its diverse comers and rounds.

3. Is this temple a building? Indeed not, it is more like the private dwellings upon this belt: a kind of multi-building, resembling a gigantic city rather than a single building.

4. The forecourt of this temple consists of a surrounding wall of over two hundred metres in height, not square in shape but dependant upon the terrain of the country where it is erected.

5. About two kilometres inward of this wall at appropriate distances, there are towers of a style which would conjure up the tower of Babylon to you; these are of equal height and exceed that of the wall by two thirds.

6. Where the ground is uneven, the depressions are filled, for there must be neither an elevation nor a depression upon a temple site and here quite literally, the valleys are made straight and the rough places made plain.

7. What is the purpose of these towers? They serve the approximate purpose of the great pyramids of Egypt. They are monuments or gravestones at the cemeteries of one or the other diocese, but not for individuals, but an abode of peace for many thousands of people. Its circumference at the base often reaches four miles (GM), with a height of six hundred metres. This tower of course resembles a masoned mountain rather than a tower. There are several hundred of these towers within some temple walls.

8. Further inwards, about one mile beyond the towers, a great Rondella building rises to a height of two thousand metres. This building has no storeys, consisting solely of arches over which a highway of more than four kilometres width passes, the latter graced with grandiose ornamental railings on both sides. At the places where a pylon of these arches rises, a kind of triumphal arch rises from the highway to a height of a thousand metres. Within each pylon there is a stairway upon which one can reach the road. From there another staircase goes up the side of the triumphal arch to its own gallery, the latter being flat and also enclosed with its own solid railings.

9. This road over these arches is called the Road of Honour to God, over which equatorial people hold processions in praise of the might and honour of God.

10. Therewith we have finished with this building, which sometimes has a circumference of between two to four hundred GM miles. Now let us move on for another mile; there you will notice another circle of sky-high towers looking more like obelisks.

11. From the ground up you see the keg-shaped bases of these obelisks first, which themselves rise to a height of four thousand metres. From their top rises the gigantic obelisks, keg-shaped, soaring a further eight thousand metres from the base-tops. They are surrounded by stairways fitted with sturdy railings leading from the pedestal to the top of the obelisk. These obelisks can simultaneously be climbed by another joint stairway from the base of the pedestals.

12. What is the purpose of the obelisks? They serve to behold the power of God's wisdom. For these equatorial residents necessarily are also good reckoners, knowing that in a keg there are hidden the greatest mathematical secrets, within which they look for the foundation of wisdom, the reason why the monuments are erected to the honour and power of God's wisdom. Therewith we have also seen this part of the temple.

13. Let us now go another mile inwards; here we see no buildings but a mile wide ditch filled to the top with water. Over this there is no bridge but there are a large number of decorous canoes on the banks in which to make the crossing. The ditch must not be deeper than a man's chin.

14. Let us go over the water one mile further! Behold, here the first temple-court looms to dizzying height before us: a sixteen thousand metre high bare, windowless wall stares at us. Beyond that, at a bluish distance, we note regular needle-like white points which are ornamental pillars atop this wall, the pillars themselves being another four thousand metres high, with a circumference of two thousand metres.

15. Behold, here is a roomy arched entrance for this gigantic building, but we shall not get through this as quickly as you think for it will take up to a three-hour journey of your time to get through. The gate therefore forms a great tunnel and therewith indicates the breath of this massive building. Look at it from the inside and count the number of galleries and the almost numberless tunnel-like archways leading into the interior and note the lively bustle upon the galleries above one another by the hundreds.

16. What might the purpose of this gigantic building be? This is the schoolhouse with diverse classes for educating young people in all sorts of subjects.

17. Behold how in the background at the ground level of this immense building, fires flicker in the tunnel-like passages: listen a little to the crackle and clink. Behold, this is the blacksmiths' school, where they learn to prepare all sorts of metal products. And so you shall find something different on every gallery.

18. Therewith is the purpose of this building. Hence we can leave it too and continue our temple journey.

50. - Chapter 49 -

1. The temple art-museum

1. Behold a three mile-wide area planted with rows of the most glorious fruit trees. Let us go through these fragrant avenues and we have arrived at another equally wide ditch.

2. What are we seeing above this canal? Let us canoe over and put another mile of smooth ground behind us.

3. Behold, here an even more colossal building than the previous rises; it is not as wide but at least twice the height of the previous one. It too has no outward windows, but has many facing inward.

4. The entire building comprises just seven storeys, distinguishable by the rainbow colours. From the outside the colours of this massive wall appear like continuous, parallel bands. Inwardly however, the colossal galleries are painted with one rainbow colour each.

5. Each gallery has a height that, under its archways, would enable you to accommodate Europe's highest mountain. From these galleries, uniform archways run to the interior.

6. What is the purpose of this entire building? It serves for higher spiritual considerations. In actuality, it is a museum of art for both the display and study of art works.

7. One could ask: why chambers of such lofty height? Just a little patience and you shall see that this is not quite without purpose, as at first glance. Because the subject of art, especially that of building engineering upon this belt, is exceptionally grandiose and complex, such as their extraordinary hoisting machines, as well as their pitching machines, frequently of exceptional size and manifold complexity. Just think of the gigantic structures of these people and to what incomprehensible height they lift stones of several thousand hundredweight. It will therefore not surprise you that exceptional means are needed to achieve this.

8. If I now say unto you that these high chambers are filled with such mechanical technology products, then you shall not consider them too high but on the contrary, regard them only as models and not actual machines.

9. But you will ask why seven consecutive galleries above one another, each with dizzying height - for your concept? It needs to be stated that such structures have to be build not just many metres high but sometimes, in all earnestness, miles high. Such cranes consist of seven sections each of a different nature: for were they the same, the lowermost could not carry the others. Hence in these seven sections, a whole structure is erected, with the first on the ground floor. If a projected building is not higher than that, then the first section suffices. If a building is to be twice that high, then everyone can see and study this section on the second gallery and so on with every subsequent level. Should a projected building be higher, as is the case with temples, then the corresponding section, first in an adjacent chamber at ground level while the next section can be seen, with other sections at higher levels, the form of crane corresponding to the type of projected building, with relevant displays.

10. This is also the case with lifting mechanisms, towing machines, throwing mechanisms, building, pushing, compressing and various others for the construction of such gigantic buildings.

11. Now we know the purpose of this huge building.

12. Let us look further ahead and we again notice a three mile-wide field which initially is richly planted with all sorts of fruit trees, but also interspersed with all kinds of building displays, which also suggest a school of building technology. Therefore there are many private houses to be seen for students and teachers, who are entitled to the free use of these orchards. We shall examine the next building next time.

51. - Chapter 50 -

1. High School for spiritual cognition and the innermost temple.

1. Behold, at a mile distance from the tree circle, a split-level building of about seventy levels, each about two thousand metres high. Within each level you will see four storeys with windows shaped like your Gothic windows, but of fifty-fold size. Here again it could be asked: (since this building, built inwardly and outwardly in sections, with every section fitted with good railings), what is the purpose of this building which although an inner part of the temple, nevertheless has a diameter of seventy of your miles (GM)?

2. This building serves for the teaching of higher spiritual cognitions, but also as a dwelling for the servants of the actual, inner Holy of Holies.

3. These servants are fanned out to seventy classes, each class having its own function in the temple. The class occupying the four storeys of the lowest section is the most elementary. Each succeeding class on a higher level is more advanced in its office and its turn for functioning in the temple is more rare. The class occupying the highest level i.e. the seventieth, very seldom gets to do temple service. Hence this level is occupied by the highest and most fundamentally wise priests of the temple.

4. Here you will ask: who delivers food to these people at such dizzying heights? Behold, this is taken care of; because every two thousand metre-wide level also has a perfect garden laid out with good, fruitful soil and planted with all types of medium-sized fruit trees and other edible plants and roots. Essential animals also are kept, finding abundant food in these gardens.

5. It can furthermore be asked: where does the water come from? Through sophisticated plumbing, the aqueducts from the circular mountains of over one hundred miles height being extended right up to this temple building, the water then travelling frequently from over a thousand miles away (GM). And so this immense multi-storey building is well supplied with water through plumbing. Those storeys are indeed often fitted with such enormous pools that their residents can travel far and wide upon them by canoe; and upon the seventieth level, among the fruit trees and gardens there are a plethora of fountains where the water shoots out from fairly high obelisks falling down like dense rain over large water basins.

6. But you will say again: these dwellings are bound to be damp from so much watering! Let this not trouble you, because this building is built from massive, cuboid stones and cemented firmly so that it is like an immensely solid single creation. Not a drop of water can penetrate these almost two hundred metre-thick walls, whilst the wetted stone surface is instantly dried by the solar heat, leaving no trace of moisture in any chamber.

7. One can get to this building's storeys through countless stairs and stairways, both internally and externally. You yourselves would not, of course, get far on these steps, each being four metres high; but for the people upon this equator whose height is between thirty-two and forty metres, they are effortless as they have stairs eight and ten metres high as well.

8. Besides the stairways that lead externally up to the highest point and which are fitted with sturdy railings on both sides, there is also, in the building interior, a so-called chute, serving a purpose similar to your drains; it is an open half-pipe into which all cast- offs and refuse are thrown from each storey to slide or be flushed down or swept out if caught up.

9. As we have seen this multi-storey building from the left and right sides, it shall be evident that if cut in the middle it would form a triangle of equal sides, making it as wide at the base as it is high, wherefore it has a diameter of fourteen thousand metres, whilst the entry and exit gates are two thousand metres high and have two hundred metre-wide tunnels that have to be lit up internally with artificial lighting. This however is not as costly upon this or other equators as you would think. For upon the sun there is an exceedingly great profusion of white stones that are of such powerful luminescence that you could no more tolerate their light than the sun itself at noon. From these stones great spheres of four metres diameter are masoned upon square bases and placed at regular intervals both in the tunnels as well as the chambers of the buildings. With these, the tunnels and chambers are lit up more intensely by several degrees than your Earth at noon. Upon the sun, this light is, of course, considerably weaker than the natural exterior light, but strong enough for everything to be adequately lit up and seen.

10. Such entrances or rather passageways in this gigantic building are there by the thousands. If you are able to stir up your imagination then the grandeur and splendour of this building shall not escape you. Go on the feet of your fantasy up to the seventieth floor and from this lofty terrace look into distant regions and upon the other buildings that we have already got to know and you shall be persuaded of the extraordinary splendour and size of this building.

11. But turn around upon this lofty terrace, which is already seventeen miles (GM) (86.81km) above ground and you shall then see the actual temple at not too great a distance.

12. Behold, this temple does not resemble any other building, but rather a mountain of about twenty GM (148km height). Hence this actual temple (by no means symmetrical), as if built or placed there by chance, resembles a gigantic Gothic tower, with pinnacles over pinnacles and battlements over battlements rising on and on.

13. This temple is perforated with archways upon archways and everywhere you still see rising, internal and external storeys. The highest pinnacles gradually vanish from the beholder's eye into the bright solar atmosphere with only an occasional blink down to the depths like a bright star.

14. This entire building, as you are watching it in your imagination, is put together entirely from white, luminescent stones, being equally bright in and outside. If you were to approach this temple even within a hundred miles (GM), the powerful shine would blind you. Because in the open, these stones shine a thousandfold brighter than your sun does on the Earth. But for the residents' eyes, this shine is no brighter than an area of snow under sunlight.

15. How these people worship God shall be explained later when discussing their religion.

16. Therewith we have learnt about the appearance and size of the temple upon this belt and can now draw a comparison in grandeur and immensity between these three types of structures.

17. Seen from the right angle, you would have to say: these residents' great highways would still have to remain the focus of their gigantic building technology. Concerning the amazing and exceedingly multiform art of building however, their temple, by comparison, certainly ranks higher and emerges as the high point in the artistic building greatness of these equatorial inhabitants.

18. It hardly needs adding that there are multiple temples occupied by several million people. How many of these temples might there be upon this solar belt? Not too many. You would probably find no more than ten. What then is the size of the temple diocese? In area it would exceed your Europe, Asia and Africa combined.

19. How many private dwellings therefore would make up a diocese? Rarely more than twelve. But by number of people it would come to many millions. For you are already familiar with the exceeding density of residents per private dwelling, so that there would be up to three million in just one such building. Adding the several million temple residents, the number of inhabitants is certain to seem more than the number of temples and private dwellings would lead you to believe.

20. All residual land, except for the lowest coastal regions of the sea, are utilised for fruit and tree cultivation. Valley regions are usually planted with forests whose gigantic trees are used for diverse building works. High plateaus and even the not too steep hillsides are used for fruit trees and other plants.

21. Private dwellings and temples however are invariably built on lands not suitable for one or other fruit varieties with the very stony ground being used in general. Along the highway there are indeed also small dwellings allowing at most a hundred residents, wherefore these are spread out at smaller distances of ten, twenty or thirty miles, depending on the type of road railings employed. These residents maintain and sometimes improve a section of the highway, any minor damage being reported to the temple builders.

22. This is all that is noteworthy to report in the outward, natural sense upon this equator. And hence we shall once again, turn to the three codes, i.e. the domestic, political and religious, next time. Hence let us conclude for today!

52. - Chapter 51 -

1. Domestic, State and Religious conditions upon the sixth pair of equatorial belts

1. You will say to yourselves: where there are immense houses, immensely complex codes must also be in place to keep proper order. But here that is not the case, as with all its architectural grandeur, the domestic rules are as simple as can be. And with the domestic constitution the national constitution is as good as merged into it.

2. The one vital thing about the domestic code is that each family must keep its dwelling in perpetual order and cleanliness and where undue damage has accrued to the huge dwelling, which actually is quite rare, then all parties and residents must get together to put it back into good repair.

3. A further rule is that ground use is to be in inverse proximity to height, with the first or border-building storey using the most remote ground and the top one the ground in the vicinity.

4. Another domestic rule is that houses up to six storey buildings are to have no water plumbing since it is easy for them to bring in an alternative supply. From the sixth storey of the building upward, all must have water plumbing. There must likewise be no plant growing upon upper terraces up to the fifth level. Levels above that can establish gardens for growing edible plants and roots.

5. The younger residents also are called upon to occupy the higher storeys of a building. The tribal elders however always live in the innermost building which is also the highest and most magnificent.

6. Also the elders are to use the innermost large garden, occupying the highest building so that they can oversee the others from its high terrace. Even if they don't always do so in person, they nevertheless always keep a few guards upon the highest terrace, who take turns to oversee the entire dwelling, notifying the patriarch at once of any seeming neglect. This could include undue smoke or even a dust cloud. It is every resident's obligation nonetheless to report any untoward incident to the patriarch.

7. Another state and domestic code consists of all male children to be brought to the temple for education, whilst the female child is educated as a domestic at home.

8. On returning home from the temple schools, all boys must pass tests in all the skills acquired before the patriarchs. If found competent they can marry and move into a dwelling for themselves, of which many are kept in reserve for the purpose, in this huge building.

9. These would be the main domestic and state regulations kept by those in one or the other houses. That leaves only some neighbourly relations ceding the privilege to a house occupant to request unrefusable assistance in exceptional circumstances. Should the erection of a new house be contemplated somewhere, this must never be done without the blessing of the temple committee and of the most senor priest. So much for outer, official relationships.

10. That all general domestic affairs are subject to temple guidance shall become clear in the material part of religion later.

11. As we have finished with the first two codes we can now rum to the religion of these equatorial people. To do so, with this most important branch in the most effective and briefest manner however, we shall subdivide religion into the material and spiritual aspects.

12. Hence we are going to ask the first question: "What does the material or better still practical part of religion consist of?" In nothing other than every person doing everything to honour God and hence to check whether his actions suitably honour God. If his actions or the intention to act cannot be deemed fully worthy of God, then it is a person's responsibility to notify the house patriarch and let him check whether it is appropriate for honouring God. If it is found questionable, then he has to unhesitatingly bring it before the high priesthood of the temple. If the latter has recognised the intended action as worthy of honouring God, then the initiator can put it to work without further ado. If found unworthy of honouring God however, then the initiator firstly has to abstain from it and secondly pay penitence for his unworthy intention. This takes the form of some subordinate service in the temple, after which he can return to his country of origin.

13. Therewith, a code pertaining to the practical part of religion. Another rule consists that all residents of a house are to, once in the course of either seven or every ten starlight periods, assemble at the temple to worship God in order to hear the divine doctrines out of the high priest's mouth in the various temple chambers.

14. Thus it is also every man's duty, once in their lifetime, to climb the temple's highest pinnacle, to there, thank God for everything yet to come.

15. Every resident also has a duty, in the course of ten starlight periods, normally lasting just over twenty-nine days, to bring a certain part of their three tree-fruits to the temple as an offering.

16. And furthermore, since the main highway is the property of the temples, which are built mainly near the highway, every resident must at all times be ready, if required, to contribute with all his resources to the upkeep of the highway.

17. Someone is sure to ask: "For what purpose is this road built?" Firstly, to maintain, with the help of this highway, communication with all this equator's residents and therewith all temples, to the honour of God. A second purpose for this road is that, especially those males who want to become high priests, obtain certification from all temples that they have, to the honour of God, travelled the entire length of this highway, close to two hundred thousand miles (GM: = approximately 140,000km), making the acquaintance of all the temples. Therewith the second reason for this road. The third purpose is that anyone wishing to acquire much knowledge and many skills, can do so in the most expedient manner.

18. For here too there is a type of wagon, with which one can travel with speed over even roads; but these are not hauled by animals and even less by humans, but driven by a machine,which, when at top speed, no cannon ball would catch.

19. Who maintains these? Firstly the temple-construction administration; secondly, we have heard that there are small dwellings along the road, whose occupants maintain the highway. Each occupant of these roadhouses has to be constantly provided with a substantial number of these machines, which are always held ready for transportation of travellers to the next station. This is part of the temple-initiated, practical religion. We shall continue next time.

53. - Chapter 52 -

1. More about religion upon the sixth equatorial belt

1. Another temple regulation is that all side roads must join up with the main highway. There must also be a well-maintained road from every private dwelling to the temple and the main road, and it must be straight.

2. If a road goes uphill, it must not wind on that account in order to join the higher main road, but must likewise be laid over hills and ditches, with gentle gradient towards the main road. Should there be any major problems with the terrain, the temple has to be notified, whereupon the temple calls upon neighbours for assistance with the work, which happens without objection. If some dwelling is at a higher level than the main road, the road must not join up with the highway at right angles but run to the intersection at an angle of no more than forty-five degrees.

3. Nor must a side road join up in a west to easterly direction, such as the stars rise, but always from the setting of the stars, so that nobody would move from home to highway in the star-setting but star-rising direction.

4. Another rule says that no one must climb over the high mountain divide because on the other side, in the fifth equator, after some gentle slopes there follows endlessly deep precipices, which no man can negotiate without evident danger to their life. This is due to the fact that these sixth equatorial inhabitants can indeed look down from the highest mountain ridge into the fifth equator, yet see nothing but the sea, not being able to see something of the fifth equatorial countries on account of the vast distance.

5. Wherefore they also have the notion that the world ends with these alpine heights, and eternal waters begin. Their own world they imagine to be a ring that indeed projects above the waters right around, but is hollow within and filled only with the great waters. Such is their folklore. The leading wise men however, due to constant contact with spirits, know what to make of their world, but don't pass it on to the people, saying: if our people find out that the world we live in is endlessly bigger than the part we inhabit, they would dig a tunnel under the Alps, through which they would put great vessels over the sea and enter other people's land, which however is not God's will. Hence, let the people keep their innocent notion of their world and there, at all times, be ready to serve for the honour of the almighty God.

6. Therewith we conclude this code. Another code consists, that all the roadside dwellings keep stocked up with food for hospitality towards travellers. It is therefore the responsibility of all private dwellings to supply the roadside houses in its district. If some private dwellings are too far removed from the highway, they are obliged to deliver their contributions to the neighbour who does deliver to the roadside houses. This sums up the practical part of their religion.

7. So what does their spiritual aspect consist of? It consists of basic divine doctrine, which everyone must know and faithfully incorporate in the practical part of their religion. What are these basic principles? They are as follows:

8. God is a unique being and there is no other being like Him. Hence He is mighty over everything, exalted above all, holy above everything and is filled with supreme honour. His concern is the freedom of His will, His wisdom and the maintenance of His own eternal order. He is the Creator of all things. Whatsoever He does is out of His will; the elements are His thoughts, His will forming them into being. He needs no matter to build a world, matter being His thoughts and His will is His building master in accordance with the eternal order within Him. Initially we cannot recognise God from anything other than His works, which proclaim to us, His great might and honour. Hence we cannot honour God in any way other than by emulating His nature, producing works according to our cognition and to His honour, from the material He gives us. God indeed has no need of our work, for greater things does He create in a moment than we can do with all our power in many thousands of years. We nevertheless build our works as great and lofty as we can, in order to demonstrate thereby in practice, how we are pervaded through and through in our being with His eternally infinite honour. Even if our productions are ever so great without receiving His praise, this should not hold us back from doing something even greater. For how should our ever so great works enjoy His praise, when taken in aggregate they are as nothing before His eyes? Notwithstanding the fact that God does not regard our works however, He looks at our will and endurance in His honour. Hence He blesses us not for our works but the longsuffering of our will.

9. Since we are aware of what pleases God, we seek to conform thereto in order to, at all times, make ourselves worthy of His pleasure. In order to gain God's favour, all must cultivate the following chief virtues:

10. Firstly, since God is the highest, we have to be the lowest. Secondly, since God alone is omnipotent, we must at all times confess our impotence before Him. Thirdly, since God is filled with the highest honour, we must always be deeply humble. Fourthly, since God is holy above everything, our knees must always bend before His name. Fifthly, since all things belong to God, we must never own them, but always thank Him for every gift, were it just a drop of water; for man is not capable of creating even a drop of water. Sixthly, since all power and authority resides in God, everyone should be aware of his strength as coming out of God; wherefore man can do nothing without God; but to whoever God gives same on loan, same is also capable of everything. God shall never withhold any entreated power, if it is the intention to used it for His honour. Seventhly, the greatest honour we can demonstrate to God is that we love and respect each other and from this love and respect, out of His holiness, to dare from the humility of our heart to love Him.

11. Behold, this is what the spiritual aspect of religion consists of for these equatorial inhabitants; but never just in words  but always earnestly in deed. Wherefore it is also the greatest joy of these inhabitants to visit the temple and be able to give honour to God from their heart.

12. Therewith we have finished with this equatorial belt and shall next time move to the seventh and final solar equatorial belt. It has already been mentioned that the same conditions apply upon the sixth northern and southern belts.

54. - Chapter 53 -

1. The seventh pair of belts corresponding to the formerly unknown planet Neptune (Miron)

1. Since the seventh equatorial belt that we are about to visit corresponds to a planet not known to you yet, it shall once again be necessary to pay a small visit to the planet in order to form a concept of this equatorial belt, because without such familiarisation with the planet, the solar equator would lack correspondence and secondly the solar belt could not be so thoroughly examined and recognised if the corresponding planet were not first viewed and recognised to some degree.

2. Hence we can justifiably tum to the planet at once. To get a grip on it in its planetary constellation however, we shall first have to name it. As you have not given this planet a name yet, what name shall we call it? You would say this does not matter as long as it has one, since one will think of it the same way always.

3. Basically you would be right, but if you remember that the name of a thing is not as irrelevant as some would think, then it will be to this purpose that we give it not a title of honour, but a real name. Where shall we find this name? Not upon Earth for sure, for the latter knows nothing of it yet. From the corresponding solar equator? This we don't know yet. Hence it will be best to give it the name its inhabitants have given it. And you will say again: but we don't know them either; but I say: although you don't know them, yet, I know very well what they call their planet. Now lets have it, what is it called? "Miron, signifying world of wonders" - that is its name.

4. Behold, from this name the first concept emerges already and it says with one word what this planet is about. What follows will justify it even more, and so we can proceed to the first aspects of the planet Miron.

5. What is its distance from the sun? Something over a thousand million (GM) miles at its greatest distance. And how big is it? It is by size what amounts to intermediate size between Uranus and Saturn, hence about fifteen hundred times larger than your Earth. Concerning its atmosphere however, this is larger than that of Jupiter and has a diameter of nearly a hundred thousand of your GM miles.

6. And what is its orbiting rate around the sun? As this planet's orbit is slow, it takes nearly five hundred years to complete one orbit around the sun.

7. Does this planet have moons? It has ten of them, which orbit it at various distances, lighting up this planet quite well through their different positions around it. Their distances from this planet are substantial, the first being sixty thousand miles distant, whilst the last is over a million miles distant. On completion of the latter's orbit, for which it takes nearly thirteen of your months, such periods are called years. The years are not however counted there because they firstly call forth no substantial differences and would secondly be too long and thirdly, on account of lesser human life spans they would be hard to count because one solar year already makes up five or six human life spans.

8. On this planet too, only the equatorial regions are inhabited; its polar regions are permanently too snow and icebound for habitation.

9. If you found yourself upon this planet, then the size of the sun would assume only the size of your Taler coin (20c), yet to the inhabitants it appears as large as to yourselves. The reason is greater eye pupil development, due to which the latter appears more flat and hence is capable of capturing a greater beam convergence than your own. Another reason is the much higher atmosphere on account of which a considerable fraction of the sun's rays are captured upon its furthest outreach, which, by the law of light condensation, is ever denser upon the surface of the planet, effecting a still moderate temperature, especially at the equator.

10. Since this planet is more proximate to another sun, which notwithstanding the latter's distance of seven billion and nine hundred thousand miles from that planet, still brings it closer to it than your Earth by at least a thousand million miles, not to mention its above mentioned higher atmosphere, it enables that planet to also receive some warmth from that other sun. The heat difference however between the actual sun and that other one is as the difference between your deep winter and high summer.

11. In this way this planet utilises the rays of still other suns, which forestalls the accumulation of ice, limiting same to certain altitudes as on Earth, beyond which altitude the rays of the sun from every angle again start condensing, moderating the air temperature and preventing further formation of snow and ice. As stated, you can also observe this on Earth. Because an alpine peak above sixteen thousand feet already rises above the ice region. Wherefore you shall find the highest peaks of the Chimborasso as well as the Himalayas of Asia as well as other mountain peaks of these two continents free of snow and ice. As for this planet's polar conditions, these are the same as upon your Earth.

12. The inhabitable land resembles an equatorial belt and in the south and north is enclosed by almost unscaleable mountain chains, over which nobody would easily get to the sea regions, where it is already perpetually frigid, as in the northern part of your Siberia. The sea is constantly encumbered by so-called moving ice, wherefore marine travel over it would be ill advised.

13. As this belt of over a thousand miles width therewith forms a valley which is made uneven by only a few smaller mountain chains, whilst the entire planetary body turns around its axis within ten hours, giving a night of hardly five hours, this belt is as temperate as an average summer. This temperature is then not subject to any change, except from occasional winds and frequent lunar phases, from which it transpires that the planet's inhabitability, in spite of its great distance from the sun, is not really unfavourable for bringing forth and enlivening a desirable plant and animal kingdom.

14. Therewith we have learned the essential details about this planet. Some astronomer may say: if there had ever been another planet in our solar region we would have discovered it long ago, since we discovered much smaller comets, although not visible to the naked eye. But I say: this continued non-discovery is due because it shifts too slowly for detection by astronomical instruments, on account of its immense distance and even more due to the relatively recent period of observation. Thus it comes about that this stellar body is still being viewed as a fixed star, and that of insignificant magnitude, hence not yet recognised as a planet. Was it not a similar case with the nearer planet Uranus, regarded for many thousands of years in its orbit as a fixed star and hardly worthy of consideration, due to weak instruments, and so it will be obvious to the erudite that in spite of their sharp observation, there can still be a planet whose category they have not yet been able to determine due to inadequate instruments.

15. Having established this, we can move on to the planet's nature, by which we don't mean any analysis of the actual planet but only its inhabitable ground, the latter's consistency, vegetation and inhabitants.

55. - Chapter 54 -

1. Miraculous plant-growth upon the planet Miron (Neptune) Mutability of life forms

1. This planet's terrain is on average, level rather than mountainous. The plains are normally criss-crossed by brooks, rivers and streams, the streams surging into the sea from some mountain gorges with a roar and great force. No standing waters of any significance, such as lakes, are to be found anywhere. The largest among them would have a circumference of hardly a few hours walk.

2. But at the northern and southern mountain boundaries there are volcanoes and therewith frequently boiling springs also and occasional hot brooks, which considerably raise this land's temperature. Firstly, the air streaming through these plains and valleys is heated, so that you could not easily speak of cold winds; secondly, the soil itself is warmed, raising the temperature, wherewith it becomes very fruitful, bringing forth the most amazing fruits everywhere.

3. Regarding the volcanoes, it is to be noted that their flames as well as glow is not of a dirty red colour like on Earth but a light green one, which firstly is much brighter than the red, making it more beneficial in its warming effect, than the shine of the red colour.

4. Therefore this planet's inhabitants also see the sun itself in a greenish-white light. The reason is the extended atmosphere, as well as the latter's purity. Wherefore, distant lands do not appear blue, as on Earth but green which, as said, is due to the light and mostly the atmosphere. For this reason the leaves of trees, shrubs and plants as well as the grass are blue, being the reverse of what it is on Earth. We have already found the blue colour predominant upon Saturn, but that is nowhere near as intensive and vivid as here.

5. Some might ask: how is this possible? This is easily possible and can be understood by those initiated into light-refraction. Green is the most intensive and therefore most powerful colour, wherefore it also penetrates almost the entire plant world upon planets nearer the sun, being reflected from leaves and younger branches. All other colours therefore are less intensive and hence can penetrate only tender objects. The colour blue however is the least intensive, wherefore its most minimal part is consumed, leaving the air saturated with it, the reason why upon your Earth, distant objects always appear blue.

6. Upon our planet Miron however, due to its great distance and its dense atmosphere, the opposite is the case. The colour of green light at such distance (from sunshine) necessarily loses some of its intensity, for you can take it from Me that there are fewer sun's rays falling upon the entire planet Miron than upon your Africa. When these few sun's rays fall upon the Miron atmosphere they are, as the most beneficial, immediately absorbed. Only the blue ray, the far inferior enlivener, is allowed through its atmosphere, to fall upon the plant kingdom; for which reason, as previously said, the plants, excepting the blossoms, appear coloured in a most beautiful blue. But we shall not need further mathematical relationships for our purpose, and that is enough said for every thinking spirit. Hence we shall turn to the actual kingdom; this is something truly marvellous for you.

7. Concerning this planet's plant kingdom, it is something truly marvellous.

8. A fruit tree, for example, continues growing until it reaches a certain size and the fruit is as lusciousness as it can be. It grows to a height of about two hundred metres in twenty to thirty Miron years, each of which last thirteen of your months, not as a sun year but a Miron year. Once it reaches maximum growth a sudden transformation takes place from one day to the next. Either it completely vanishes and an observer detects a host of completely new insects; or the tree casts off its branches, which detach themselves somewhat like your autumn leaves and the stem then drives forth completely different branches, which in time bringing forth entirely different fruit.

9. What occurs with various trees can also occur with smaller plants.

10. The law of this transition also extends to the animal kingdom, right up to the biggest four-footed land animals. The kingdoms of amphibians and the various insects also are subject to this transition. However, unlike in the kingdom of caterpillars and insects upon your Earth, where the same butterfly always emerges from the same caterpillar and the same insect from the same worm, on the planet Miron, this all happens in accordance with circumstances and the season, wherefore none can predict what shall emerge at any location.

11. Wherefore this planet's inhabitants do not trouble unduly with science, especially concerning the world of plants and lower animals, but they do establish observations where nature exhibits consistency.

12. Thus upon Miron it can frequently happen that some bird, butterfly or flying insect lays its eggs, usually into the warm soil and instead of similar or different animals, a plant will emerge, which lasts for a certain time and then completely dies out. From the mildew of these dead plants and not infrequently their seeds, instead of similar plants, new animals emerge; and sometimes even a well-formed animal can be found within the notably large and solid shells when they are opened, with a shape resembling either an already known animal or some entirely new one.

13. Some could say: this can also be found on Earth, for who has not seen fruit and kernels species that not infrequently already carry creeping things within and like the Gallus apple, the Beech tree leave kernels, the Oak tree acorns, the gnarled bud of the rose bush and so on, are nothing but peculiar plant eggs within which a living worm is born. But I say: this is indeed true, but there is a big difference between a constantly uniform and a constantly changing manifestation.

14. For which reason this planet can rightly be called Miron (world of wonders), since its vegetation as well as animal manifestation is so exceptionally changeable that an extinct plant, tree or animal species never re-appears completely the same. To what extent this planet corresponds to its peculiar name shall be shown even more distinctly next time.

56. - Chapter 55 -

1. The Devotion Tree, Living Reed Tree and Flying Bread Tree

1. Since we started our observations upon this planet with the plant and animal kingdoms, we shall detain ourselves there a little longer and see more of these rare things.

2. Noteworthy among the exceedingly numerous tree species upon this planet is the so-called Eternal Tree. This is also the only plant on this planet that never changes its shape or nature, for this reason, it is also presented as the symbol of fidelity. It grows exceedingly tall with very few branches, which never extend far beyond the narrow stem. Wherefore its fruit is always the same. What are its qualities and appearance?

3. Before answering that, we have to know more about the tree, which shall then answer the question. This tree grows out of the ground somewhat like your corals grow from the seabed. It is not of wood in substance, the stem, roots and branches being of a mineral substance similar to your mussels. Hence it is rindless and shiny smooth, with a whitish-blue metallic shine and completely white branches. The tree trunk itself, especially if of great age, frequently reaches a height of between six and eight hundred metres and at the ground has a circumference of between forty and sixty metres. The sparsity of branches in relation to size, even on the largest tree does not number over twenty, none of which extends over ten metres beyond the trunk.

4. These branches are as solid and inflexible as the stem itself, consisting of just a fairly round and solid stalk that takes a vertical direction. On both sides it is provided with horizontal rake-like long rungs that seem as if inserted on both sides. These shorten and weaken towards the end of the branch.

5. Each of these branches run into a host of little tubules, which are saturated with a sweet liquid, forming into sticky droplets dripping to the ground. This liquid firstly makes up the entire tree and its parts. The tree absorbs the part essential for its development, discarding the unusable part through sweet and sticky droplets. After air exposure for a time, it turns into sweet flour similar to Manna dew, being gathered by the residents, who mix it with their domestic goat milk and eat it as a choice food.

6. Behold, now the previous question is answered, together with an explanation of why this tree is called the "eternal and faithful" tree. The eternal because it never changes its form and secondly because it never dies; and thirdly because through its constant dripping it casts off fruit, for which reason it is also called the faithful tree, because under its branches one always finds its fruit. Wherefore the people flatten the ground under this tree to minor smoothness in order not to lose its precious juice.

7. Behold, although this tree is constant, it nevertheless is of a most peculiar nature, belonging to the animal rather than plant kingdom. Because, as it were, its entire mineral substance is nothing but the amassing of tiny animals that have aggregated at a certain suitable soil location, and having cast off their hulls, they shape this tree.

8. You might ask how this went on and how the sap can rise through such lumps of mineral? Just a little patience! This shall be clarified forthwith. These tiny animals from which an entire tree is formed from the roots up, are tiny round disks which have tiny feet in the middle of the underside, for climbing up and down. Upon the disk in front of the feet there is a suction opening, with an elimination canal at the rear. These little animals, after sucking themselves full and reproducing a thousandfold, crawl atop each other into a fully horizontal fashion, therewith forming completely round pillars, each having a diameter of hardly a tenth of a line (1/100 foot, or 3.16mm). These little pillars line up against one another with rows of these pillars bumping into each other. Therewith sharp, triangular gaps between them create a pipe through which the liquid rises from the ground to any height, in accordance with the law of attraction for such hair-thin tubules.

9. Once the juice comes to a point of overflow, which is always positioned upon the branches, and that through the animalcule's instinct, or better said their imbued spiritual intelligence, it is at once sucked in or consumed by the still live animalcules at the egress point. The excrement released by these tiny animals makes up that sticky juice dripping from the branches, regarded as the fruit of this certainly peculiar tree, which will make you realize its miraculous nature.

10. That leaves only the question of whether this tree truly never dies? This tree dies like your mountain rocks: when damaged through some cause by the elements it starts to weather away gradually turning into soil. Therewith a most noteworthy tree.

11. Another growth of almost identical nature is the so-called living reed. This too grows a high stem of up to two hundred metres, looking like funnels stuck together, giving the appearance of big rings stuck next to each other upon a pole. Here also, between these rings, a sweet sticky juice exudes, of particular delicacy for the world of insects. But after eating themselves full, they perish at their meal. In this way these ring "galleries" are filled with these insect cadavers. And soon thereafter, a transformation scene occurs and all sorts of weeds can be seen emerging from the rings, through which this basically animal stem gets a plant-like appearance, nearly resembling the trimmed poplars in Earth gardens, that also look like green pillars. If any of the fruits are edible, the people welcome them; otherwise they are left alone. This Reed Tree therefore as a stem also is unchangeable; put through this metamorphosis, it changes externally of course, in that the plant life which arises out of its rings, as above, can turn into an animal kingdom and then back into a plant kingdom. Behold, there we have yet another memorable growth.

12. But here, one of the most peculiar trees is the so-called "Flying Bread Tree". Are we going to see a flying plant or even a flying tree? This at first takes you aback, but it shall soon be clarified. In the more swampy regions, a type of tree grows out of the ground, which almost resembles your so-called corals, or your stag-horn mushrooms. This tree often grows to a height of a hundred metres and at the base of the very short stem measures a circumference of a hundred and twenty metres. This tree consists substantially of cells and tubules which cling together intensely through mutual attraction, forming a whole somewhat like the aforementioned mushroom, except that the mushroom has much greater cellular toughness and elasticity. After reaching its due size and age of about ten years, the suction tubules at the base close (the tree having no roots is therefore classified as a mushroom as well), whereafter the juice dries up in the cells and tubules, leading to the formation of air that cannot escape the tough elasticity of the cells and tubes. As the trapped air is much finer and lighter than this cosmic body's atmosphere, it leads to tree-material, made lighter by its own air, being, as it were, torn from the ground and rising balloon-fashion to the heights, sometimes staying up for a few days, floating about. When the light air that was trapped gradually escapes through the rather narrow pores, the tree begins to sink to the ground. On seeing this tree floating near the ground, the residents will spare no effort to take possession of it with hooks and poles, to take it apart for further drying in the sun's rays. Once they think it has reached the right state of dryness, like choice bread, it is consumed according to need.

13. Now we know why it is called flying bread, and how it flies. Next time we shall see more of these marvels.

57. - Chapter 56 -

1. Lightning forests. The Bubble Tree

1. Entire forests of so-called Lightning Trees rise upon the mountains near notable mineral springs or fire-spewing volcanoes. These forests, of course, have no duration and at the most last three years. But for the local people, they are especially troublesome, even if not detrimental: firstly, because this region cannot be journeyed into without danger to life, when near these trees and secondly, because due to the sound-carrying capacity of this planet, the continuous loud cracking noises of these trees fills the air so that one cannot hear oneself speak in their vicinity.

2. You will ask: are these trees actually of a plant nature? Not so, but as you would say in your art jargon, purely electro-plasmic. Because when an excessive amount of electricity has accumulated in the above region, on account of either large mineral springs or fire-spewing volcanoes, a degree of saturation you cannot imagine on Earth, the airborne electricity draws homogeneous mineral atoms from the ground and air together, resulting in visible globules and little hooks that connect up, dropping to the ground wherever there is the greatest attraction. This process results in the rise of entire stems with gnarled branches of all shapes, which attract still more electricity, releasing their excess charge as lightning and an accompanying bang.

3. This usually continues until some nearby fire-spewing volcano has quietened down or until the local electric over-saturation has merged with overall electricity, to form equilibrium. Thereafter it needs only an average air draft and the entire forest is lifted from its territory like a dust cloud and scattered over the lands, bringing about the end of this forest.

4. Do the inhabitants actually gain by this natural process? Indeed and in no small measure. They watch the forest trees gradually lose their charge then approach cautiously with baskets and long poles fitted with pins and some with shovels. They sweep over the tree probing it for a residual charge and if still loaded, jab the pins into it until totally discharged. Then they proceed to cut off the gnarled branches with their shovels eventually filling the baskets with the branches and the entire tree. The contents resemble the lave ash of your volcanoes, making it indisputably the best manure for their fields. Therewith is the use made of these trees.

5. You will ask: why don't we also have such phenomena? But I say unto you: firstly, your Earth is far less electrically charged than our planet Miron (Neptune) and secondly, you are still too unaware of terrestrial phenomena and electrical effects for you to ask this question (translated in the year 1842). Let someone, for instance, betake themselves to the Central African region and others below the equator and they shall soon come across the most rare, fatamorgana-type electro-plasmic objects. Yet there is a difference between terrestrial electro-plasma and that of our planet, because what takes place on a small scale for you, does so with gigantic dimensions there, the ratio being approximately one to one or two thousand.

6. And that takes care of this peculiar tree. We shall mention only one more growth called the Bubble Tree, over there. This tree usually grows to a large size by the sea which, as you remember, is not extensive. It is shaped thus: upon a stem of about sixty metres height and six metres in diameter with a fairly smooth bark, there are about three rows of slightly rising but otherwise straight branches, which at the top of the trunk has a great many branches shooting forth in all directions, the end of each being provided with a kind of funnel through which a small, narrow tube passes right through the branch and the entire tree. This tree also is more of a mushroom species than a tree, having no roots but just a broad, wedge-shaped stem sticking in the soil.

7. It could be asked: why call it the Bubble Tree? Behold, at the above mentioned branch openings a kind of sticky juice issues forth during a certain time, after which the juice in the interior of this mushroom tree runs dry, rarefying into a type of air, which also is produced by the action of a heavy electric charge. Since the juice in these branch runnel openings has solidified into elastic, it cannot be dissolved, thus obstructing the escape of the air developed inside the tree.

8. What is the obvious result? None other than what you played with in your childhood - soap bubbles. The air leaks from the tube to the sticky elastic juice in the funnel-like branch openings, lifting it and expanding it to a balloon, frequently several metres in diameter. When the residents noticing it, they come with ropes, tying the balloon at the funnel opening before cutting it off where it is tied. After the mass has fully dried up, achieving the desired consistency, they untie the strings obtaining the most beautiful and durable pouches and bags in which to preserve things; because this "bubble" in its natural condition, is more durable than your rubber tubes, being so tough that it is hard to cut even with the sharpest instrument.

9. The tree is regarded as preferred combustion material also and transported home, firstly because its dried bulk is almost fully resin and secondly because of a popular fragrance upon combustion; and thirdly because the flame from this burning tree has an exceedingly beautiful, light-green glow accompanied by very little smoke.

10. These are the rarest growths upon this planet and occur nowhere else. Owing to shortness of time, we shall take on the marvellous animal kingdom next time.

58. - Chapter 57 -

1. The animal kingdom upon the planet Miron. The Steamer, Thunderer and Wind Maker

1. Regarding the animal kingdom over here, we have already touched upon how, up to a certain stage it is subject to constant transformation of form and alternates from plant to animal and vice versa. Hence we shall not dwell on this lower stage, subject to such drastic change of form, but turn at once to that higher class of animal, which already occupies a lasting stage.

2. Above all these species belong to a considerable number of diverse, large four-footed, land-based animals together with another animal species not occurring anywhere else, namely that of the two-footed animal species and thereafter some fowl. Only then shall we consider man himself.

3. One animal among the four-footed variety, named "Steamer" is amongst the rarest upon this planet. It measures some sixty metres from the ground to the top of its back and has a body circumference of at least seventy-two metres; its legs are relatively long and sturdy resembling an elephant's legs, except that at the bottom instead of blunt paws it has strong bear-type claws. This animal also has a relatively long and powerful tail, richly covered with a frizzy tail-brush, similar to your lion's. Its head sits upon a short but sturdy neck, with substantial similarity to the Rhino.

4. In place of the nose-horn it has a roomy funnel of several metres circumference. Two trunks above the funnel upon its forehead, extendable up to sixty metres which is used to gather roots and all kinds of fruits, dropping them into the wide and voluminous funnel; when full, very hot steam is emitted into it from its nostrils. The fruits are therewith actually cooked and when sufficiently soft, the animal picks them out with its trunks one by one, pushing them into its broad jaw, which in place of teeth has powerful crusher-muscles with which it crushes the cooked food from the funnel before swallowing it.

5. When cooking its meal, this animal spreads steam, rising in thick clouds, more intense than a house fire upon Earth. The reason for its name "the Great Steamer".

6. Upon no other planet are there so many hostile animistic tendencies and hence adversarial encounters, as upon Miron. Whereupon our Great Steamer has many natural enemies seeking its life. But in combat it leaves all these adversaries badly done by, because notwithstanding its size, it is extremely dexterous and its trunks arrow-fast. When it senses an enemy approach therefore, it acts as if it doesn't notice letting the enemy come close to its body, suddenly shooting its trunk out after its enemies, throwing them into its solid steam funnel, releasing its hot steam over them. On seeing the spectacle, other approaching animals turn back, having no hope of attacking this adversary, retreating with tail between legs, keeping their adversarial rage for a rainy day on which however they fare no better by a hair's breadth. Only for humans, for whom it has special respect, does it desist from this defence; but if antagonized too much, it chases them off with its far- reaching trunk swinging, enveloping people nonetheless with a massively thick steam-cloud from its funnel, to make them lose track of it. Such people stay put, within this not too fragrant cloud, until it disperses, after which they pull back with unfinished business.

7. Therewith we already have a noteworthy animal of this planet. Its usefulness is more of a metaphysical nature, representing a transition from a metamorphosed plant life to a constant animal life. It is of a green-grey colour.

8. A second, no less memorable animal upon this planet, is the Thunderer. It is a third smaller than the previous animal and peculiar only to this planet. It has an exceptionally large belly that furthermore, on account of its own air, can inflate to a circumference of eighty metres around the belly, four times its normal girth of twenty metres. It more or less resembles your kangaroo or marsupial, except for a round head resembling that of your apes, with similar but proportionately sturdier feet.

9. This animal also lives on plants and occasional tree fruits, living in proximity to water. Why is it the Thunderer? This shall transpire shortly.

10. When pursued and cornered it inflates its belly giving it a grotesquely terrifying look, whereupon it enters the water, swimming away from shore with its inflated belly. At some thirty metres from shore it starts beating its drum-tight belly with its front feet, causing enough of a racket for the coast to quake and the frightened adversaries avoiding this area for a lengthy period.

11. People are not too well disposed towards this rather unpleasant noise, which intensifies to the point where it would put cannon-fire to shame.

12. Its usefulness is similar to the preceding ones. Nor do people hunt this animal because otherwise it is of a tame disposition, harming no other creature unless pursued, when it makes the above mentioned noise and keeps it up until its enemies have scattered far and wide; whereupon it returns to shore releasing the air from its belly and resuming its normal life. On its back it is a dark blue colour that becomes a greenish yellow at the front, on its belly.

13. Therewith we have the second noteworthy animal upon this planet. Now we shall proceed to another, no less memorable one.

14. This third amazing animal is called "Windmaker". Before dealing with its name, we shall consider its peculiar shape. What does it look like? For your terminology, truly comical. There is no such laughable animal shape on your Earth. Your donkey could, by comparison, make out a wise man from the East. The reason they fence it in is as a cheering spectacle, towards which they are well disposed, because in the spiritual sense it corresponds to the laughing-gland upon the Great Cosmic Man's belly.

15. This animal is ten times the size of your horse, and is a dirty reddish brick colour. It has relatively long legs, bent a trifle forward, especially below the knee bone and is thickly covered with fuzzy hair from belly to its camel type blunt paws. The hind legs also are bent outwards and hairy, like the front legs. The belly area is hung with two rows of teats frequently a metre long. The male's teats are somewhat shorter with more prominent sex organs, especially the gonads, hanging right down to below the hind knees. The tail from its root is richly covered with fuzzy hair and lively in chasing away insects. Its back also is richly covered with fuzzy hair. Its midriff is the same as well as its prominent rear that quite resembles your baboon on a gigantic scale except for its feet and tail. From a fairly plump and voluminous body there rises a slim swanlike neck upon which sits a head resembling that of your mule but somewhat more blunt and with much bigger and less pointed ears. Its ears are bordered with rich hair like its legs. From below the cheek hangs a pair of long bare teats of grey colour with occasional long hair. Besides that it has a wide-stretching jaw and a tongue several metres in length that reaches in any direction. Therewith is its shape.

16. Why call it Windmaker? If teased and provoked beyond measure for its funny appearance, it bloats itself up, rolling its tongue into a blowpipe, blowing through it with such force that a person of quite notable size, upon this planet, is blown over if they don't take care. It applies its wind with especial gusto when seeing a mass of loose and dirty stuff on the ground, blowing this in its tormentor's direction, serving up plenty of trouble for the daring. This rums into major fun, not because of the substance but the comical stance the animal assumes while doing it.

17. This is the only thing it is usefulness for from their viewpoint, and for which they employ it. Its use otherwise being similar to the aforementioned two species. Therewith we have finished with this animal and shall continue our observations next time.

59. - Chapter 58 -

1. The Miron goat and the "Ground Flattener"

1. We will mention three more species of animals from the four- footed variety and then move to the two-footed variety.

2. The next four-footed animal to be discussed is the common goat, which is also a native and is kept by the residents as a useful domestic animal. Its size is about tenfold that of your cow, but resembles neither a terrestrial goat nor cow, being unique to this planet. What does it look like? Its midriff is of immense girth, frequently reaching a belly diameter of twenty-four metres, with relatively thin and stilt-like legs. In place of your goat's hooves, its feet are quite similar to your geese and ducks with heavy skin stretched between the toes and blunt claws. Its rear end is two veritable cones each rising about three metres above the spine. Between these two rear cones sits a rather long, trunk-like tail provided with a sizeable brush of hair at the end. The hair is short right up to the spine; but standing richly and sturdily upon the latter are long and stiff bristles, often over two yards long and the thickness of your duck's quills. At the spot where the legs leave the body it has a thick circular bulge of fuzzy wool, with a smaller bulge below the knee. Forward of the front legs a perfectly round neck rises as long as the body itself, covered with short hair, upon which sits a camel-like head but distinguished by three fairly long, sharp horns jutting out of its forehead, the middle one being the longest and sturdiest. From the middle of the female's belly hang four strong teats, which can be milked, yielding the residents a choice and fat milk. So much for this animal's shape.

3. What is so noteworthy about this animal? That it can choose its food from the three elements, namely in the water, on the land and in the air. Some might say: this is not so unusual! That's how all our four-footed animals live, for they too live off water, land and air. Things nonetheless are different here; this goat can enter water and swim like a duck, while consuming marine plants. This in itself would not be extraordinary for there are four-footed animals on Earth that are good swimmers and also love marine vegetation. This animal however can also take to the air and dexterously chase wind-blown leaves and other vegetation to consuming them. For it has to be added, that this planet's atmosphere is full of all kinds of meteoric manifestations, and not a day passes when clouds of strange plants, seeds, strange animals and such-like fill the air for short periods. These meteoric substances hardly ever fall to the ground, drifting along merrily in the air facilitated by a much denser and heavier air than upon Earth.

4. When this animal therefore wants to make a feeding expedition through the air, it properly inflates its belly with its own developed air, directing itself in all directions with its light legs and feeling at home in this meteoric planetary cloud. On eating itself full, it sails back to its place, not omitting to take some supplies with it between its prominent rear shanks.

5. This animal normally is of an exceedingly benign nature, but nonetheless has its adversaries, who nevertheless cannot easily master this animal if it espies them in time. For on seeing them, it at once takes to the air, hastily swimming through it towards its enemies, thrusting its horns towards them with great agility. If the adversaries are of no substantial size, it picks them up with its sturdy toes, carrying them to dizzy heights before dropping them. The adversaries know and remember this, turning on their heels when they see this animal take to the air.

6. But these animals are very attached to humans, never doing them any harm and costing them next to nothing. Hence hundreds are sometimes kept, yielding an abundant income. These animals do not desert a household easily unless a person has killed one of them; then they all leave the household, even if there were hundreds of them to enrich some other household.

7. This certainly noteworthy animal is generally a greenish-red colour, whilst the larger hair bunches are dark-blue, the bristles, tail, rear legs, neck and horns being brilliant white.

8. Another equally interesting animal over there is the so-called "Ground Flattener," roughly resembling your elephant except for its feet and trunk; for its feet look like four cones hung upon the animal with the wide ends downwards and the narrow end stuck into the body. The rest of the body, except for tenfold bulk, is exactly like your elephant including the head, except for the trunk, which is relatively shorter and twice as thick at the end than at the head from which it proceeds as an elongated nose. So much for its appearance.

9. Why is it the "Ground Flattener"? Its name highlights its use; for wherever it has its abode it stamps the ground even, not resting until the area in which it has chosen to make its habitat is stamped completely even.

10. This animal is also tamed and used as a foundation stone layer for their private dwellings. The residents only have to dig a furrow where they want completely even ground. On being taken to this furrowed spot, the animal immediately begins to level the ground, digging up the ground with its two long, straight catcher-teeth and powerful trunk, then like a builder's master, mathematically loosens the site. Once loose, it proceeds to stamp, which produces such even and solid ground that even a spirit level positioned on it would show a more complete fulcrum level, whilst the solidity of ground would take you much work to loosen again with your pickaxes.

11. This animal also feeds on herbs and roots and has, quite exceptionally, almost no adversaries, save a few rare insects. It is pale green in colour. As we have nothing further of note to say about this animal, we shall move to the most useful and also most peculiar domestic animal upon this planet.

60. - Chapter 59 -

1. The Miron cow

1. What kind of animal is this? None other than what the cow is on Earth, but with a far different appearance. It manifoldly exceeds the usefulness of your equivalent animal. But we shall have to deal with its shape again first.

2. Firstly its length is forty metres from the back to the top of its head and twenty metres from the ground to the top of its spine, whilst its belly also is of disproportionate size. The legs resemble those of the above goat, but less sturdy and thinner. A long, bushy tail with horse-type mane sits on its rear; its back is quite camel- like, but without the sharp curve upwards gradually from the back and then gently down towards the shoulder area of the front legs. In its shoulder area, two oval, foreshortened cones of about one metre jut out, giving it a rough appearance, the cones moving towards one another at every step in a haphazard fashion.

3. Immediately above the shoulders rises a broad neck, which is nevertheless thinner by comparison with the body and a rather large mule-like head sits upon its neck, and there is one vertical horn upon its head as distinct from your nearly extinct unicorn's forward-facing horn. Upon the horn sits a completely round lump like a sphere of about two metres in circumference of very solid substance, like your quartz. The horn has a strong, bushy mane around its base, underneath which are two large and fiery eyes, which surpass all other animal eyes in their sharpness. The full length of its tongue is over two metres i.e. stretched out over the jaw, and full of spines like those of the porcupine. With this pronged tongue it can easily and firmly grasp its food and pull it into its jaws crushing it with its crusher-teeth and swallowing it.

4. The rest of its body, except for the extremities is covered with the most beautiful, fine, rich wool; short hair covers the feet, cones and ears. This is the only animal upon this planet that has hooves similar to your female stag. There is a large udder just before the hind legs on its belly with six teats in one straight line; its wool is completely white, whilst the mane upon the tail and horn are dark brown, the shorter hair sections having a pale look. So much for its shape.

5. Looking at this animal, one could say: it may be useful but by no means extraordinary; but I say unto you: although everything that shines is not gold, as you would say, a lot can be gold without sparkle. For whoever wants it to sparkle has to polish it like any other metal. So we shall get into polishing this animal and see how much peculiar gold comes out, proceeding to the noteworthy and amazing part before revealing its usefulness.

6. The first notable thing about this animal is that it is able to virtually communicate with men upon this planet, through a kind of language of signs with its front legs, accompanied by mimicry with its head, tongue and eyes. Not that it has to be trained for this first, the way you do with some animals on Earth, as this is already part of its nature. This ability is of course developed gradually over time with its dealings with man, though without instruction.

7. Wherefore these animals are also the most reliable prophets for future happenings; developing their ability ever further through contact with man, they herald, nearly to the second, the future weather aberrations, atmospheric eclipses through all kinds of meteoric formations, great earthquakes, future appearances of Lightning-Trees, and such-like upon this planet.

8. Wherefore these people have great respect for this animal sometimes leading to a kind of idolatry, although such does not last for long, as these people are also in contact with their planet's spirit world, but rather like the foolish enthusing of some of your poets, who at times cry songs before carved statues, as if standing before an angelic spirit of the third celestial kingdom. That too is idolatry but, as you have gathered, of no deep or lasting duration. It is the same upon our planet also, where it resembles their amazement at the animal's abilities, more than idolatry.

9. Behold, this animal's ability already exceeds that of any animal we have dealt with so far. Has this animal any further noteworthy and amazing capabilities? Indeed, hearken further!

10. Its other amazing and noteworthy capacity is how it encounters its enemies, of which it has many. How does it defend itself? Firstly it accurately determines the position of the lurking adversary, advancing on its enemy with its barbed tongue extended. By poking its tongue out, the animal, due to its inner structure, charges itself with an immense amount of positive current. On perceiving its charge full, it closes its jaws after pulling in its tongue, turning its sphere-topped horn, it discharges the full electric load over the enemy who, if not killed instantly, is so humbled with this shock that it compulsorily leaves, never to approach this animal again. Therewith another memorable attribute.

11. A third one is that when the residents want milk, they don't have to milk it but just place a vessel before it, the animal voluntarily releases its milk into the vessel; if however the udder is not sufficiently full, the animal milks itself by taking its teat between its two front claws, carefully pressing the milk out to the last drop, then signalling to the people, who pick up the vessel for their consumption.

12. A fourth noteworthy attribute of these animals is that, during great storms, they tum into living lightning rods, for the animal has a natural affinity with lightning. On the approach of highly charged clouds these animals stand together upon some elevated height stretching their tongues towards the cloud and not infrequently completely discharge their electricity, then gradually discharging it through their shoulder cones, which is the purpose of these cones. For this reason they are also the best night watchmen for private dwellings on this planet, it not being advisable for anyone, other than a familiar person, to approach their home at night. Anyone doing so is in great danger of being either killed by a lightning strike or suffering serious injury.

13. That this animal can be used on account of these attributes can easily be seen. You will guess that they are used during frequent hunts, and on many other occasions. So, apart from its peculiarities we have also dealt with its usefulness. It needs only to be added that its rich wool provides residents with their clothing; and therewith we have the entire usefulness of this animal before us; hence we shall turn to the two-footed animals next time, after casting a cursory glance at the rest of the animal kingdom. And so we will leave it for today.

61. - Chapter 60 -

1. The prolific animal kingdom upon Miron; the two- footed animals

1. During this presentation of the planet Saturn, we have already heard that similar and homogenous things are found upon planets that belong to the same sun. Wherefore you can rightly conclude that upon the planet under our investigation, animals are found similar to those on Earth, differing of course, in details of shape, size and colour; you would nevertheless not find it hard to pick out those animals that are homogeneous to those of your terrestrial body. But not only the animals of your planet but of other planets exist here with certain variations of size, form and colour.

2. Indeed, not even Saturn's Mud is missing here, inhabiting only certain islands outside of the actual equatorial belt. But there is a big difference in size between the Mud on Saturn and the Mud on Miron. Upon Miron, this animal is hardly twenty times the size of your elephant. Compared to this, you shall soon become aware of the difference.

3. Thus, there are also other animals occurring upon the other planets in our solar system but, as said, with diverse variations that would, for our purpose, not allow detailing. However, there are over one hundred thousand species of just four-footed animals upon this planet that are not subject to transition of form. Then just imagine the host of animals referred to as transitional, and finally the immensely prolific kingdom of two-footed animals. That shows you the time it would take to present each species in detail. Hence let this summary suffice, together with the assurance that hardly any other planet is imbued with such colourful goings-on, without restricting man in nature or action. For there is abundant room for these generations of animal species to take over for themselves. Especially suitable for this are the coastal areas of the sea as well as regions beyond the mountains where it truly teems with beings of every kind, of whom only some rarely, and others never, make it over the great mountain chains in order to set up residence in human habitation; and on such rare penetrations, they are turned back as aliens by the native animals.

4. Since we shall not undertake further especial note of the four- footed animals, we shall now proceed to the two-footed animals. You will ask: what could these be - birds or apes? For only these two species are constituted so that birds move on two feet and apes can usually perambulate on their hind legs.

5. But I say unto you that two-footed animals are an entirely different matter here, being neither birds nor apes. You might think there could be a quarter, a third or half-humans among these? But this is not the case either, for these animals rarely have the slightest resemblance to man; so what kind of creatures are they? Behold, just as everything upon this planet has a smattering of the miraculous, it is just so with this peculiar animal species!

6. In order, as you would say, to fell a tree with one blow and unravel the knottiest knot for our Macedonian hero, while lighting up this species with one beam: this is nothing but a repetition of the four-footed species in aggregate, which perambulate on two instead of four legs.

7. Regarding their bodies, the difference is only that they are more than five times smaller than the actual four-footed animals and that their two feet are of course somewhat different to those of the front or rear legs of the four-footed variety. Firstly because their feet are relatively stronger than those of animals with four feet, and secondly their steps are larger and more purposeful. But they are also distinguished from human feet in that their knees face backwards, whilst men's knees face forward.

8. An unusual difference between the two varieties also, is that the legs of the ones with two feet are joined by a very light extensible skin from belly to knee, and hence are, as it were, grown together. This skin however does not impede the animal in the least. It will soon transpire why these animals are given this skin: where these animals make large, bird-like claw steps, the claws are joined to this skin, even though the legs are only covered with it to the knees.

9. Those animals however, whose skin goes right down to their tread, at the juncture of neck with body have fairly large, strong, fan-like arms not unlike the fins of your fish. Animals with legs pointed only to the knees, having skin-covered claws, don't have these fan-like arms, but a fairly long, fan-like tail in their place.

10. Why are these animals structured thus? Because they are all inhabitants of both land and air, quite like your bats and other flapping animals. All these animals, on account of their organism's capacity to develop exceedingly light air like your balloons, rise into this planet's thick air; and once airborne, they can by means of their leg-skin and fan arms or their claw-skin and fan-type tails, skillfully manoeuvre in the air, as animals that flapping do on Earth.

11. You may indeed ask what purpose they have on this planet? A very significant one, for in metaphysical terms they form the transition stage from animal to man. Secondly, they are in a natural sense the most essential and skilful air cleaners. For it has already been mentioned how this planet's atmosphere is, to a height of fifty to one hundred German miles, filled and enlivened with all sorts of meteoric and also metamorphic animals or plant creatures. But something significant remains to be mentioned and you can take it from Me that such appearances begin to multiply especially towards evening to an extent never observed by you, except at total eclipse. At the inception of such meteoric and metamorphic phenomena, millions of these animals take to the air with extraordinary speed to climb from mountains, sometimes uninviting valleys and ditches, to quickly catch up with the meteoric or metamorphic cloud, and it hardly needs to be mentioned, for a sumptuous meal. They often, almost completely consume a cloud of over a hundred cubic miles volume in a few hours and this is obviously to man's immense benefit.

12. The almost completely metamorphic and numerous bird kingdoms are held in check by these guests.

13. But you will ask: do these peculiar two-footed animals not also become a burden to man? Not so! For these animals are extremely shy and inhabit only such spots, places and regions of the land on this planet, as are normally not easily accessible to man and other animals, or where accessible, appear so bare and uninviting that man and other creatures have no business there.

14. Hence we have completed this animal species and shall now turn to man.

62. - Chapter 61 -

1. Man upon Miron; dwellings and villages

1. Concerning men upon this planet, they are not as large as upon Saturn, yet larger than those upon Uranus, although subject to great size fluctuation among themselves. Thus there are people of forty metres height and others of hardly twenty metres. In this respect the planet nearly resembles your Earth, where there are also great variations in physical size. This also applies to women.

2. The physical shape of both sexes is one of great beauty although there are considerable deviations as well. To get the best picture, we shall keep to average types from which viewpoint all others can be surmised; we shall have a look at a man of sixty and a woman of fifty-six metres height.

3. What does this man look like? He has a serious but by no means repulsive appearance. His limbs are fully masculine, like those of a perfect Earthman. His head is covered with long curly hair, dark- green in colour. His skin colour is white with occasional transition to light green. His lips, although red, have a greenish sheen. Eyes are never blue or grey but variants of green, with a rich green beard, somewhat lighter than his head. His fingernails have the look of solid green glass, whilst his fingers are completely white when clean, which is usually the case upon this planet. His teeth are of bluish mother-of-pearl and shine in various colours. His voice is tuneful but usually very deep, so that the average speaking voice would move in the region of your contra-basso and is of such sonority that it would be like thunder to your ears from even two to three miles away. Although the woman also speaks in a low pitch, her voice is nonetheless more pleasant, and more flexible as it were. Wherefore she is most attractive to the male of this planet and more so because this planet is the mother of musical art, so to speak. For here, art is practiced not only by the different and flexible human voices, amongst which the female excels over others, but also with diverse musical instruments.

4. This tells us what the naked man looks like; and now we shall study the female without her clothing. It could be asked: why not with clothing on? The reason is the diversity of clothing, as with you yourselves, and so no representative fashion can be given. For here too, men wear miscellaneous coats, overcoats, leg covers, shoes and hats, depending on the country and custom and the women do likewise. Hence if you want any person dressed up, you have to do so yourselves, which should not be too difficult for you. You only have to transfer the more fashionable national dresses of your European and Asian folk on an enlarged scale of course, unto this planet's inhabitants and you have them before you, dressed! Knowing this, we can now look at a naked woman appropriately, to see her type.

5. The woman is usually of exceptional beauty, and that sometimes to an amazing degree. She has a wonderful sweetness, charm, softness, tenderness and her build is almost always curvaceous. Her skin is exceptionally tender and of a brilliant white colour, like your freshly fallen alpine snow, with only her cheeks becoming soft green. Her hair is a blackish green, shimmering like your peacock feathers, together with the perspiration locks under her arms, which blink like diamonds; and similarly her pubic hair. Her fingernails are a most vivid green, shining like finely polished glass, giving a most exquisite appearance upon the round white fingers of this planet's woman.

6. The woman's face has that shape which, in your vernacular, you call the most beautiful. A smooth high forehead, fairly ample eyebrows, big and very lively eyes with a pupil of a fiery green, with an occasional touch of red. Her nose is long and softly rounded with a well-proportioned mouth in accordance with all her other features. Her chin is neither too pointed nor too wide, but has a perfectly oval shape with an average dimple.

7. Her neck is of average length and round, the nape being without prominences. Her breast is a full one and below it the woman is slim down to her hips after which her figure broadens sharply to shoulder-width toward the thigh joint. It goes without saying that her feet are well proportioned also.

8. Now you can dress this woman as you like and get an idea of what a well formed woman looks like without making her into a Parisienne make-up doll however but, as said, with some national costume.

9. Therewith you have the humans but without their dwelling however, which we shall now look at; for like yourselves, people on this planet live in houses. What do these houses look like and are they isolated or in clusters, like your villages? Whereupon we shall have provided our beautiful and big people of this planet with a private dwelling.

10. The dwellings here almost resemble yours, but without storeys and usually no higher than a man's height and a half. The rooves likewise look like your country houses but are more pointed, somewhat like gothic houses of prayer.

11. Each house has no more than three rooms, one for males, one for females and one, usually in the middle as a living room for everyone. What is their size? Relative to these people's size, neither too big nor too small, but easily able to accommodate a hundred people.

12. What is their building material? Hewn stone throughout. Windows are high, but not too wide and glazed with elastic natural glass, similar to your mica, usually in metal frames; the colours are diverse, as nature's free workshops provide. The residents also have artificial glass, the purpose of which we shall discussed later.

13. Besides private dwellings there are also business houses and houses for animals as well as for other domestic purposes. In front of the private dwellings there are also single room creches that are of similar height to the general dwelling although of less girth.

14. It only needs adding that people generally live in villages and presently we shall look at their other arrangements.

63. - Chapter 62 -

1. Ownership upon Miron; general and private property

1. Once we have put a roof over our Miron residents, it shall certainly be necessary to also add some ground, without which, just as anywhere else, it shall be hard to live. Hence it can be asked: how is land managed? Is there common land in the village or has every house owner his own measured lot, which will yield him the necessary fruit nutrients for his house?

2. Strictly speaking, neither the one nor the other applies here because both options are united in an amazing way, as shall transpire. Every village firstly has its own common land, which is more than adequate to provide all inhabitants with their needs of fruit sustenance of every variety; none can say: this is my land! Instead, everyone can harvest the fruits from the common ground.

3. This is right, but the question remains to be asked: if the entire village owns the ground, how does this common property tie in with the private property? I say unto you - nothing could be simpler! Private property only extends to areas, where a resident has personally worked for a certain period to bring forth a harvest of small fruits. If a certain village house exclusively works this ground, then it must display the coat of arms of this house. From the time this is display to harvest time, the worker of this plot cannot be challenged. After harvest however, the ground reverts to communal property and can be claimed without objection from the previous owner.

4. Regarding the large fruits produced by the above mentioned trees (which are not subject to metamorphosis) however, they are all communal village property. At the time of harvesting of these trees, the yield is shared out to all village residents equally.

5. Concerning the so-called "metamorphic" fruits, such as small plants and shrubs with temporary duration (before they vanish and later reproduce in animal nature), property right is ceded to the first finder, obliging the owner however to notify the entire village community. And if any household is desirous of sharing in same, then human codes initiate a consultation on what share each one is looking to have. When this is established, the superintendent of harvests arranges distribution.

6. The case is the same for the aforementioned "Flying Bread". Whoever catches it is the priority owner and likewise, under village fellowship convention, shares it out with other houses, except for the customary retention of at least half by the priority owner.

7. Regarding domestic animals however, these are subject to communal ownership, but not in regard to their products, like milk and wool; for here also the right of "propriety occupant" applies, although not extendable to milk which the cow has itself released in front of another's house, to which latter the "primo occupanti" right is therewith transferred and not to the neighbour who could have been the first to reach out for the milk container.

8. All mineral products furthermore belong to all village residents equally, for which reason also an equal number of workers are engaged from each house. It is likewise the case with hunting yields, the prey also being shared out equally.

9. Products of domestic craftsmanship however are fully the property of the producing house and can only be either bartered or given away freely. To these belong mainly musical instruments and mechanical products, produced here in abundance and for multiple uses. What these and the music instruments consist of shall be revealed at the appropriate time.

10. Since these people, as aforesaid, dress similarly to your fashions, you can be sure that they must have looms for all sorts of animal wool; weavers are not found in every household but have a large factory in the village centre. If the wool is spun in private houses, then it is brought to the factory with the household trademark.

11. There it is woven into material and received back as clothing material by the house that spun it.

12. It can be asked: what kind of payment do the weavers receive, public or private? The factory is built jointly by the village community, after which the weavers have no other concerns because every dwelling then contributes a certain portion of its harvest to the factory, for which the weavers are obliged to deliver the required work back to each house without individual wages.

13. The same applies to the clothing manufacturers, for there are actual tailors and shoemakers here who are obliged to work without individual wages, for they too like the weaving mill, are supported by the whole community.

14. Now we know almost everything about inter-domestic arrangements and how righteous the communal life is, leaving only one point: is there a superintendent?

15. Basically there isn't, as all is based on mutual agreements. Nonetheless, in important cases the village elders, who also are priests and teachers, are regarded as counsellors, and committee decisions are irrevocably accepted by the entire community.

16. Do they have emperors and kings? Indeed no! Every village in its entirety is its own lord in everything. Wherefore, there are also neither taxes nor wars. The villages besides are at such distances from one another and allocated immense land areas that frequently surpass the size of your Austrian Empire.

17. And so we have a summary of the domestic rules of these inhabitants. Next time we shall deal with some further minor domestic, as well as inter-village arrangements. So we will conclude for today.

64. - Chapter 63 -

1. Domestic codes, good social norms, music and musical instruments upon Miron

1. What is understood by minor domestic customs? Nothing other than those rules followed by every individual home, from a social aspect. To these belong obligatory, friendly relations and related etiquette, by which a house indicates its close relatedness.

2. The first rule therefore is: respect for respect, love for love and friendship for friendship, followed by a second rule: eye upon eye, hand upon hand and heart for heart! A third one says: step for step, ear to ear, walk for walk. These precepts are followed by every occupant of a house.

3. The parents are the head of the family, the father for the males and the mother for the females. Since over there, father and mother truly make up one body, these two uppermost rallying points unite to focus one action. Wherefore the mother wants whatever the father does, amounting to a convention among both males and females.

4. Wherefore one rule says: respect upon respect, in the house in general. The housefather respects his wife and the wife respects the house-father, by which they become one because only from this respect can true love emerge. Wherefore the brothers respect their sisters and the sisters their brothers; and so do the children respect their parents, from the youngest up and the parents respect their children. And the younger brother respects the older and the older the younger, as with the sisters, and equally the older sister towards a younger brother and an older brother towards a younger sister.

5. Wherefore, through the solid foundation of mutual respect, all are united through mutual love, which expresses itself in mutual affability. Wherewith all other rules are already fulfilled. Because "eye for an eye" under such amiable conditions surely signifies seeing together, being of one heart and practical supportiveness, gladly lending each other a hand, gladly listening to each other and going along with one another.

6. Sometimes, not just one but three to five families reside together in one house making up five pairs of parents as it were, who are blessed with diverse numbers of children; yet all these families within one house are so united that there is hardly ever any talk of a quarrel; on the contrary, the more families that live together, the more sincere and blessed they are. These people truly love one another so much that they would rather suffer anything than fall short of respect towards any family member in the smallest degree; but rather, starting from the smallest children leaving their creche, the greatest respect and gentleness is adhered to.

7. Which also is the reason why these people love music as it mostly corresponds to their inner character in all their talents and sciences; and music also counts among the main domestic activities.

8. But to get an idea of the musicianship of these people, we shall first go through their musical instruments and thereafter lend our ears to a small musical production.

9. Regarding their instruments, these bear no resemblance to yours, wherefore the sound of music is completely different. Neither wind nor string instruments are to be found here. But in place of stringed instruments there is a kind of bell instrument together with disk and ball instruments.

10. Regarding the bell instrument, this is prepared from a very tuneful metal as follows: several bells are cast in the shape of half- spheres, which are then fastened unto a spindle, after prior polishing and precision tuning, in the manner of your chromatic scale. There are usually three octaves of bells upon a spindle, from your "D" in double base up. Double tones are enticed from each bell either by soft hammer or rubbing by the fingers, which are first

11. put into a little salt water. This instrument is usually played by the men and is not a solo instrument, but for harmonic accompaniment to women singers.

12. After this instrument there is the disk instrument, which is produced from the above mentioned glass. The disks likewise are fastened upon a spindle, which like the previous one is rotated, the tone being produced by the fingers rubbed in resin. This gives a most penetrating tone and the instrument is tuned an octave higher than the previous one and is used only to augment the previous bell instrument.

13. The much preferred and also solo instrument is the aforementioned ball instrument. As this is of a rather involved mechanism, we shall detail it next time, together with the way the musicians skilfully handle it; and so we will leave it for today.

65. - Chapter 64 -

1. Ball instrument, musical art and composition Optics, mechanics and the (art of) writing upon Miron.

1. The ball instrument is made up entirely of wound pipes, rather flat on the outside but completely round inside. At its widest, the ball has a diameter of six metres; beneath this widest part of the sphere, the thickest pipes are wound. Towards the sphere's poles however, which are open in a funnel fashion, smaller graduated pipes are attached.

2. This sphere rests upon an open tripod, beneath which there is a powerful wind mechanism, through which the wind is conveyed into the sphere through the tripod legs. Besides the aforementioned main tone pipes, there run smaller windpipes whose openings are aligned with above holes that emerge from the sphere with a slight prominence. At the point of wind distribution into the diverse pipes there is a valve and shutter-flap, opening and closing by its own mechanism. On opening, the wind is brought to the sound-producing pipe opening, or alternatively the shut-off, ending the tone somewhat like your organs.

3. So much for the instrument structure. How is it played? Like your organ, it is played on a type of keyboard, which however is differently shaped, the half tones divided differently to your piano. Because the scale, which you call diatonic, is not a basic scale here, the basic scale consisting of whole tones, between which half tones are placed. This correspondingly is the keyboard, consisting of two rows of elongated half-spheres of about a foot in width. This keyboard is called the lower. Between this lower key, somewhat higher and shorter, there is also a half-sphere, a mere half foot wide. You will say: would flat keys not be preferable to these round ones? For your fingers indeed, flat keys would be better than round ones; but for the strong fingers of our Mironians, these keys are better, for if they were flat, they would have to be twice as wide for depressing individually, because a Mironian's finger is usually two feet in diameter. Through the higher positioning of the keys however, the player can, without trouble to the two adjacent keys, depress each individual key whose drop is small, which shows you their advantage to these inhabitants.

4. Therewith we now know what this instrument is like; what kind of sound does it make? The tone resembles that of your flute, except with incomparably greater power, but through a shutter system near the instrument poles, the tone can be modulated in volume from fortissimo to pianissimo.

5. Upon this instrument, our Miron dwellers are great artists and would astonish your greatest artist with their ball instrument. Thus it is not absent in any household, being so popular that anyone who does not possess at least a modicum of ability upon it, is regarded as extremely dull, which however is rare.

6. You would indeed want to know what sort of pieces are played and whether they have compositions like yourselves on Miron? You can take it from Me that there is no lack of such productions, for there is a resident composer in nearly every house, who writes down his ideas in colours upon three lines representing three octaves, on either metal or stone tablets and occasionally on smooth, thinly planed wooden ones.

7. These signs are much simpler than yours, because through six colours they represent six tones, with round points like yours. The half-tones however are drawn in equally sized hills, in the colour of the preceding basic note. Therewith the composer can write an entire scale within an octave. If a harmonic scale is desired, he makes points of different colours above each other, as you do, keeping clear of the second line, for this reason there is ample space left between the lines.

8. You will say: that's easy enough, but what about rhythmic divisions? That's easy! He draws a line over the notes within the same time-measure, placing either a cipher or dots under it. For sustaining a note longer, it is placed by itself, with a cipher for its length underneath the single note. And there is a time signature before every section, as with yourselves, for a subsequent section, the rhythm being indicated with vertical lines, as you do.

9. This in substance is how the Miron composers write down their ideas. Since their instruments are restricted to three octaves, the three lines suffice, with just one key signature. Although the disk instrument reaches an octave higher, this causes no problem, for it then depends only on the instrument itself, which will read the notes like an instrument of a lower octave. The same goes for singers, who rarely reach the range of their instruments.

10. A full orchestra therefore, except for singers, consists of only three persons; and with the ball-instrument, with the addition of a bellows-operator. These three people together with the bellows- operator however bring forth such volume that you could hear it from three hours (walk) away. Firstly, these instruments have extraordinary (carrying) power on account of the immense air- elasticity of this planet; and secondly, the singers here have such immense voices; for the full volume of a Miron singer would make a fairly lively canon-barrage all but inaudible upon your earth.

11. At close range, this concert would indeed be a little too powerful for your ears; but at a substantial distance it would reduce you to rapture. For these compositions are of an exalted nature, rarely moving within a major scale but mostly a minor one, which they call half-tone scales.

12. In their musicology they recognise three kinds of tone: the completely hard, which is the foundation of the rest; then one composed of whole tones similar to your minor scale; and then a half-tone scale, corresponding to your major scale, which major scale they recognise as the only pleasing fruit of their tone-tree; the whole-tone scale (minor) they call the inedible tree stem; whilst the hard-tone variety is the root of this tree which, like the stem, is declared inedible. And therewith we have the substance of the musical art of the inhabitants of this planet.

13. It only needs mentioning that these people have the same skill in optics as they have in acoustics. And from this you can in turn gather that they are also conversant with the subjects of mathematics and astronomy.

14. It hardly needs mentioning that in view of their instrumental production, they have to be competent also in the subject of technology. You would be surprised to find everywhere the most efficient mechanical clocks, much more precise than yours (approximately the year 1840 - the trans.), measuring much more minute time-units. These technicians are found in every village, like other professionals, with, relevant factories, besides their private dwellings.

15. Similarly, this planet's inhabitants also have writing to record their words, upon the same material used for musical composition. From this surely you can conclude that the people of this planet are in every sense literate.

16. Regarding their religious education of the spirit, we will thoroughly discuss this next time. Hence we will leave it for today.

66. - Chapter 65 -

1. Inner, zealous religion upon Miron. Procreation and burial; astronomy as a means for recognising God

1. With the inhabitants of this planet there is no ceremonial, sacramental divine service to be found; and their religious cult in its entirety consists of an inner recognition of God.

2. Nor do they have prayers, but have in their place, the inner development of the spirit, through which they are guided into all other science and wisdom. They say: to worship God with words is ridiculous, and unworthy of an immortal human, and displeasing to the most exalted God. Whoever has nevertheless recognised his true destiny in his spirit, living in accordance with same, pleases God. And the best prayer and the greatest honour we can render to God is, if we live in accordance with our destiny, which He laid in us, faithfully allowing us to find it within ourselves. Behold, that is all there is to their religion, or: the people of this planet live and act by this precept and their divine service is living and acting it at all times.

3. Wherefore they also have no holy days, as each day is holy to them. For they say: as many days as we live, we will live out those days for God. Hence there should be no difference between days, and there should be no hour during which we think less of God than any other, nor more of God than in any other. Because just as our life-influx is steady from our entry into the world until our exit, so we cannot say that we live any more or less in any hour; hence we should not fluctuate between one hour and another in our piety.

4. Furthermore they say, because there are occasional devotees: of what use is it to man if at certain times he mumbles his prayers, whilst desisting therefrom at other times? Should God, the perpetually holy one, be worthy of honouring only at predetermined times, and not at other times? How would that go down with a pure spirit who recognises that God is equally holy at all times and should be honoured by man constantly in all his actions or refrain therefrom? What can our impotent tongue do, as if it was man's only part that can honour God? Since we were however created by Him in our entire being, should we not honour God with our entire being?

5. Behold, after considering the religious precepts of this planet's inhabitants, you will understand Paul's saying: "continue in prayer" (Colossians 4:2). For he who lives in accordance with My order and hence keeps My easy commandments; he it is who prays or honours Me unceasingly. But, he who thinks that he has to carry on with his lips day and night, is either a fool or a deceiver. For it has often been repeated in Scripture how I regard praying with the lips.

6. People upon Miron, with very few exceptions, therefore live the way every person upon Earth should live. There are indeed diverse deviations here and there, but the deviants are soon set right by the wise men, and a wise man will not easily rest until he has set an errant brother or sister back on track. The deviations upon this planet are never as severe as with yourselves. The majority are to be found in the domain of opinions, which however are set right far more easily than your deviations along the path of gross selfishness.

7. If however you desire something ceremonial in the subject of religion, then you can put procreation and finally burial among the religious sacraments.

8. Because over there, procreation, although achieved through intercourse takes place in a most uplifting manner. This act is always performed in the morning and never inside a dwelling, but inside a temple erected for the purpose upon a neighbouring high mountain.

9. The bodies of the deceased likewise are brought unto another high mountain where, underneath a temple, again built for the purpose, they are laid face upwards and covered with mown grass, causing them to rapidly decay, perishing so completely that no a trace of the huge bodies can be found after three days. Therewith another sacrament.

10. However, their main divine service and most exalted way of honouring God are in music and astronomy. We have already dealt with music in detail, but a fair amount is left to mention; because through astronomy, these people learn about My omnipotence and greatness and simultaneously My exceedingly punctilious order, which has to reside within Me, because in the visible world, all the great works move within astounding order and interconnectedness.

11. That their moons play a major role in their astronomy can be inferred from the fact that firstly these people, on account of their great distance from the sun, never get to see any of the other planets orbiting the sun except Uranus on rare occasions; secondly, that their entire stellar sky has besides their moons no moving cosmic body to show for itself, other than an occasional vacillating comet, which at this distance from the sun however appears without a tail and hence is quite a plain sight.

12. What is most remarkable and simultaneously highly engaging for their spirit is that they have basically only three moons, but then again ten of them!

13. You will ask: how is this possible? Firstly, I say, nothing easier! How? This you shall see immediately by this example.

14. Assume that the sun is a perfect planet, as you assuredly can do by now. Since the sun is a perfect planet however, what are the planets such as for example Mercury, Venus, Earth etc? You will say: these are the sun's moons. But what is the number of moons the sun has? You shall say: Mercury one, Venus two, Uranus two and Miron twelve. But now I say: how many moons has Earth? You say, one. How many has Jupiter? You say four. How many has Saturn? You say seven. How many has Uranus? You say five. How many has Miron? You say: according to the first number, three. That makes twenty moons altogether. What relationship have these moons to the sun then? You cannot possibly say anything other than: these are sub-moons. Good! This is all I need. Now we shall move back to our Miron.

15. This somewhat amazing planet has the peculiarity that its primary moon likewise has another two moons that move around it, orbiting in conjunction with it around the main planet, hence like your moon with the Earth around the sun. The second and higher moon likewise has two ancillary moons and is larger than the first. The third moon, as the highest has actually three satellites or sub-moons, making it easy to distinguish from the other two moons, so that with its orbit, the now familiar season of this planet is calculated. Therewith you have the entire, impenetrable mystery revealed before you!

16. But some would say: but why was this not mentioned right at the outset? But I ask: why are you unable with your naked eye to see Jupiter's four satellites, which appear to melt into one image with Jupiter on account of their immense distance, only a powerful telescope being able to undo this five-fold point, enabling you to view the planet and its moons separately. You will say: the reason is our eye structure, which not infrequently makes us see a distant multipolar object as a single unit. But I will answer your previous question: just as it is within my order to present to you something that is unified through distance and to only then unravel it as a complexity when you have approached it in spirit, the way you did Jupiter with the help of a telescope. Behold, this too is a system, completely measured out in accordance with my Plan.

17. When the learned of your Earth say to you: we have discovered three (star) nebulae! Have these erudite astronomers spoken correctly or incorrectly? I say unto you: both correctly and incorrectly! Correctly because they really did discover only three nebulae, incorrectly however because every such nebula often contains a veritable trillion stars! I need not tell you the difference between three and several trillions and you will all see how erroneous this number three is compared to the multiplicity of stars actually discovered thereby.

18. Therefore I say: these examples suffice to show you how My gradual revelation of these things is strictly within the natural as well as spiritual order.

19. But some could ask: why must the planet Miron's three main moons also have, as no other planet has, ancillary sub-moons? To this question I don't intend giving an answer but will throw it open. Let him who wishes to know this out of idle scientific scepticism first tell Me out of his spirit why for instance the planets Mercury, Venus, Mars and the four small planets have no moons at all? Why has the far bigger planet Jupiter only four moons whilst the smaller planet Saturn, besides its rings has seven? Whoever can thoroughly clear this up for Me, to that person's spirit I shall also reveal the ancillary moons of the planet Miron.

20. Our subject at hand is the sun and not planetary details. Therefore we know as much about this planet as we need to for our purpose and hence detain ourselves upon its realm no more, but unhesitatingly move back to the sun's seventh equatorial belt. And so we will leave our subject for today.

67. - Chapter 66 -

1. The seventh equatorial belt and its gigantic inhabitants

1. The seventh and last equatorial belt, although not separated by a very high mountain chain, is instead separated from the sixth belt by a broad belt of water.

2. The mountains are mostly of a volcanic nature and the size of occasional craters has already been mentioned.

3. Following the water belt is a not too mountainous, inhabitable mainland, which is also the most solid, south as well as north, upon the entire sun, and omitting the width of the sea, has an average width of six thousand miles (GM) up to the polar mountains.

4. The polar regions of the sun or rather poles are, like the planetary poles permanently uninhabitable; therefore they are cut off from this last inhabitable belt by a circle of extremely steep, high mountains of sheer, bare rock. These mountains are so lofty that their summits sometimes reach above the brilliant solar air, which on average is found to be six hundred GM above solar land. This figure should not however be regarded as the standard, because just as there are variations in the atmospheric altitude upon Earth, these are more so upon the sun, which in its interior is much more lively than any planet.

5. With this belt before us, we shall not dwell upon the dead land overmuch, but tum to its inhabitants.

6. With regard to the humans, they differ very little from their corresponding brethren upon the planet Miron, except that their size transcends into the fantastic; for these people are of a size that would make the Himalayan or Chimborasso heights fit for little walking sticks. This does not mean that all these people are of equal size, for in hardly any belt or planet are there greater size variations amongst humans. Notwithstanding this, people four to six hundred metres in height, are regarded as tiny dwarves, by the actual inhabitants. Because the actual size of true inhabitants on this belt, from the sole of the foot to the top of the head, is not less than eight, ten and twelve thousand metres tall. Yet such giants are not the norm upon this belt, the average human height fluctuating between sixteen and twenty-four hundred metres.

7. These giants mostly live near the polar mountain circle, where they find sufficient food. Humans on this belt diminish gradually towards the seas, whilst the so-called dwarves live upon the numerous islands, which nonetheless are bigger than all other equatorial inhabitants of this belt upon the sun. Wherefore you must not imagine these islands as small either.

8. If you think of the smallest in area as similar to your Asia and Europe combined, your estimate will be about right. These islands are indeed connected to the land by many inlets, but negotiable only by our dwarves; it is not so easy to get over this land promontory or narrow land pass for bigger people, because it would firstly be too narrow for their feet and if occasionally passable, the ground would not be sufficiently solid to carry the weight of sometimes many thousands of hundredweights, without sinking. The dwarves on the other hand can quite easily set foot upon the solid land, and undertake journeys right up to the giant's country, where the inhabitants always receive them most gently and hospitably. Here one can with good reason say: they are carried upon the giant's hands.

9. But just as sizes vary greatly upon this belt, so upon the sun human skin colours vary like hardly anywhere else. Except for the sheerest black colour, you shall most likely find every other colour. Thus the very great giants range from a dark fiery red right into a very light rose colour. Likewise there are green and blue-coloured giants, whose colour sometimes tapers off to pale yellow. And there are besides, colour-tints that would take an entire book to detail. There are indeed colour deviations also upon the other solar equators, but the same fundamental colour base is detectable, whereas here you have not only chromatic tints, but also truly enharmonic tones of colour.

10. What kind of language do these people speak? This is of a twofold nature: through gestures and by tongue. It is amazing when a giant speaks to a dwarf; when noting that the dwarf desires to speak to him, the giant lifts him up to his ear. If the giant speaks however, he holds him as far as possible from his mouth, then speaking as high-pitched and quietly as possible, so as not to hurt the dwarf with his tone; for were the giant to speak in his usual deep pitch and volume, the dwarf would firstly not hear the word on account of its low pitch, whilst the individual vocal cord vibrations would shake him up too much. Thus the giants take the greatest care in their traffic with the little ones. If this giant were to speak a rather loud word on your Earth, it would cause such a powerful earthquake that several countries would lose all their cities, and even the mountaintops would suffer severe damage.

11. It could be asked: in that case, what about their dwellings? Here I say, firstly, these immensely large giants have no dwellings other than the solar ground, and hence live out in the open; and since the ground is very solid, it can easily carry them.

12. Besides that, these huge people are extremely sensitive, notwithstanding their massiveness, and thus their gain and all their doing and refraining is of a supremely gentle nature. They live together very peaceably, and if going anywhere they take relatively short and slow steps, putting their feet down softly as if in fear of destroying something. Therefore they also watch the ground carefully for anything moving. If they notice anything, they bend down to check it out; and if anything live is found, they very carefully set it aside, only then taking another careful step.

13. For this reason, these giants rarely come to the inhabited sea regions, in order not to destroy something with their steps. If undertaking such a journey, they usually walk in the fairly broad rivers and streams, where they have much less to clear out of their way. But they are hardly ever seen in the country and especially the solid coastal sea regions.

14. Are you curious to know what these people live on and their food? These people live on fruit, which occurs in great abundance upon permanent gigantic trees, but also on products they call forth from the solar soil through their willpower (the same as other sun- dwellers already mentioned). For the willed vegetation is widespread upon this last belt. A third source of food upon this belt is the meteorite-rich solar air. For here, the air is the same as on the corresponding planet Miron, except of course, for being on an immensely bigger scale. Thus "Flying Bread" is also found here. These flying portion however, might not inconceivably amount to sufficient bulk for a planetary satellite.

15. When you ponder this it shall be clear that the great Host Who has to feed so many myriads upon myriads on the central sun, so that they are constantly satiated, should also easily find the means to satiate its people. For the natural maintenance of a central sun, compared to which your Earth does not even feature as a dust particle, surely shall demand more than the upkeep of a human, were he even big enough to reach from Earth to moon. Whether a body is large or small, it shall not perish in My unlimited larder.

16. And so you need not trouble yourselves about the maintenance of such large beings, because before Me there is nowhere, anything big. That which you call big and indeed unmentionably big, hardly merits to be called an atom in My eyes. The great cosmic man who consists of countless hosts of shell globes is before Me no larger than the smallest point within the depths of infinity!

17. In view of these few comments, the thousand-metre high humans upon the seventh equatorial belt shall seem quite modest to you. Therefore, we shall not concern ourselves any longer with their physical size and maintenance, but move to their national constitutions, and finally their religion. And so we will leave it for today!

68. - Chapter 67 -

1. Life conditions and spiritual nature upon the seventh belt.

1. Concerning social norms among this belt's inhabitants, these as already said, are almost identical to those upon the corresponding planet, except that there are no dwellings to be found and therefore no villages. People nevertheless congregate in social groups using jointly possessed grounds i.e. this substantially great area is not owned by any individual.

2. Whatever the ground yields naturally and normally is available for everyone's needs. But whatever someone is able to call forth from the soil through his will is exclusively his. But in accordance with their civil conventions, everyone can cede at least a third of their own production to the commonwealth. This is also the case with those possessions claimed as coincidental, of which you might say: "this is land to my liking, where roasted birds fly into your mouth!"

3. You will remember that Miron's atmosphere brings forth wonderful sustenance, which only has to be caught and put into one's mouth. This is even more the case upon this solar belt, and especially the northern one; for the sun's polar regions being the very ones from which the entire host of planets obtain their rich sustenance, you can take it then that an abundant portion of "crumbs" find their way over the polar mountain-chain and into the seventh equatorial belt. And so there is always something for the inhabitants to nibble.

4. Wherefore the climate upon this belt is also much cooler than upon the other belts, since the air is constantly filled with all kinds of fruitful mists, out of which all kinds of good material things come forth, no less beneficial for these inhabitants than was the manna to the Israelites in the desert. Whatever the air freely yields therefore belongs to the first finder and claimant, although he is to share half with the community. Therein lies the social code of these residents.

5. However, since these huge people have no houses, it can be asked how are they accommodated? They seek out soft, level areas on the hills, which are of notable size. There they grow thick grass of great elasticity, not infrequently reaching a height of several Klafters (one Klafter is approximately 2 metres). This area usually two to three square miles (GM) is surrounded with immensely high, gigantic fruit trees and together with the surrounding trees is then the communal dwelling place, apportioned partly to men and women respectively. This type of dwelling or rather these dwelling places are never of regular shape but are dependant upon the hill area.

6. The rest of the land around this hill often extends to between eight hundred and a thousand square miles and is a common area for the residents' benefit.

7. Who is in charge of this community? The order is similar to the planet. The parents are everything to the children; any elder, or if more than one is consulted for advice on important issues, the advice then is also keenly followed.

8. What unites such groups? Great friendship in their gatherings. There is no distinction among them, unlike upon the Earth- dwellers, who treat their darker brethren like animals. On the contrary, upon this belt, greater respect is always given to a person of another colour and that in the belief that the great Creator wanted to show further proof of His unapproachable wisdom. Wherefore they also probe the Creator's all-wise reason for this human being a different colour, whereafter every word from the mouth of this other-coloured individual is treated like a treasure found and observed from every angle and taken apart for its innermost meaning.

9. The diverse human sizes upon this belt likewise receive special attention, for these individuals too are regarded in the same way as those of a different colour.

10. Are these people as industrious as those of the planet? Not really, for as they have neither houses nor clothing this eliminates much industry, consequently they have little need of the requirements of the residents of other planets.

11. They are however vastly ahead of their planetary counterparts in terms of their spiritual and scientific knowledge. Besides their powerful will, they have no tools other than their two hands and healthy senses.

12. What is their position musically? Materially very bad, because they do not possess musical instruments nor can they produce anything resembling music with their voices, which are too deep. But spiritually, they are so much more musical, being able to impart their spiritual concerts to each other inwardly, audibly and perceptibly, the way you can communicate your thoughts through words.

13. How does this take place? Almost the same way that some of your so-called somnambulists can distinctly perceive those tones and harmonies that their so-called magnetiser thinks and feels. You shall ask: how is this possible? To this I say firstly that spiritual man has ears and all other senses just like natural man. Just as natural man can, with his natural senses perceive the song of others, just so and incomparably better can the spirit do so with his incomparably more perceptive senses. From this it surely transpires that man can, without instruments and the material capacity to sing, still be the most competent musician. Were this not the case, no music would have arisen amongst you. For whence would the first musician have derived it, had his spirit not been already a clever musician. From what has been said, you are well able to understand how our inhabitants upon the seventh belt can be excellent musicians, even without musical instruments and singing ability, capable of delighting one another and Myself most deeply in praise.

14. Music in the spirit indeed always corresponds to the deepest, innermost praise that a spirit can bring Me from his innermost, celestial depth, as did the man after My heart and others, in My honour and as the angelic spirits of heaven always do. If however music is treated, as by yourselves, then many musicians would be better off performing with rattlesnakes at the public balls than with their tuneful musical instruments whose tones, taken together spiritually, are no more than Satan's trumpet call to eternal death! But enough of that, as you are very well aware of the extent of contemporary music's degeneration.

15. What is the state of these people's astronomy? Very good, just as with music. In consequence of this belt's constant mists, they don't actually ever see a star in their wide sky, but ever so much more in their spirit, and they are so competent in this subject that distant regions of space are almost as familiar to them as their equatorial belt.

16. Not everyone, but their wise men certainly know the set-up of the perfect planet - sun and what boarders it carries upon its surface as well as its interior and its atmospheres. But they also know that they have to abide there physically for as long as their spirits are destined to carry their bodies. Thus these inhabitants are by no means as naive and clumsy as they might appear in their huge nakedness.

17. Were someone to ask: why are these people so unbelievably huge physically, if their spirit with all its perfection nevertheless has no more to show for itself than any other perfect spirit of an incomparably smaller human? Behold, this again is a question, which instead of being answered, calls for certain other questions. For could you not just as well ask: why is the oak so big in relation to its insignificant fruit? And why is the apple tree with the biggest apples not only the smallest in relation to the oak but also to its fellow apple trees? You could further ask: why has the great elephant the smallest eyes in relation to other animals, whilst the fly and other such insects has such big eyes in relation to its smallness?

18. Many more such amusing counter questions could be asked; but these two shall suffice to make it clear to you and others that I have certain peculiar things up my sleeve for which I am not always inclined to account for Myself, especially not to those men in their natural state who, out of further well-considered reasons on My part, are inaccessible to higher wisdom. Once however this time of testing is at an end, there shall still be plenty of time to lead perfect spirits into all kinds of wisdom. Wherefore we shall leave our huge men upon this belt to themselves for now. There shall come a point in time, when the spirit shall be in a condition to grasp everything.

19. Since we have now looked through the social norms of our seventh belt inhabitants, we shall next time turn to their religion, when certain seeming contradictions in our presentation of the sun shall level off. And so we will leave it for today.

69. - Chapter 68 -

1. Basic tenets about the solar inhabitants' religion and substance of divine revelations.

1. If you have taken notice of the religion of the inhabitants of Miron, you will have derived a foretaste of how religion upon this seventh belt is grounded. But you must not lose sight of the fact that the solar equator is never of equal but opposing polarity i.e. solar in all its relationships to corresponding planets. This is also the case with religion.

2. Religion upon a planet moves from the material to the spiritual, wherefore the material also predominates over the spiritual. It is the exact opposite upon the sun. There religion moves from the spiritual to the material, making its appearance as the creative, substantive basis for all things. Whence the spiritual there predominates over the material.

3. To highlight the distinction even further, you have to visualize the thing as follows: if you, inhabitants of one or other planet, have the material or its formed products in front of you, you admire it and on observing it intensely, you are bound to ask: how did this come about? Through this and subsequent questions you are led ever deeper. And if you investigate by the right rules, you necessarily must come to the spiritual and hence to an independent life, as the motionless and dead matter finally calls out to you: I could not possibly have created and even less vitalized myself! In other words: you take the anti-solar path, going from the material to the spiritual.

4. Upon the sun, the path is the reverse as said above. There, nobody looks at a thing as it appears before him, his first glance being its basis, and from there he traces his steps in stages upon those paths according to which, out of the spiritual, a natural being has procreated or developed itself, which path is called - the solar.

5. Every revelation is constituted so with you, it goes over from the spiritual to the materially shaped. For this reason, not infrequently, all external forms must appear as if contradictory, although stemming from the most exalted and well-calculated order.

6. To again make this clearer, I will give you a small example: behold an old tree! Provided it is healthy it would be most easily examined by cutting the stem horizontally and with sharp eyes note how, from its core, it gets steadily more disorderly in the wood layers to finally arrive at its very rough bark covering. If you then look at the core and its immediate surround and how it is formed in strict order, then it can surely be expected that you will be gripped by this order. On observing the steadily rising disorder of the wood circles outward from the core, you will surely say: from whence did this disorder come? This obviously contradicts the completely round core. For we find concavities and convexities of frequently several inches, notwithstanding the circular core. What has compressed or pushed out the annual rings? And how will you explain the utmost disorder of the outer bark, with its rough grooves? You will have to say: the more light we shed on it, the greater the contrast between the core and the tree's outer covering. Behold, just one cross-section of the tree teaches you that!

7. But we shall shed some more light on this. If for instance you cut through the tree at various places, always comparing them with the same core, what mighty differences you shall find! But even these differences are not overly remarkable. Hence we shall look at the thing at a deeper level!

8. Let us take the seed of a tree for example! You can for instance compare a hundred acorns and even weigh them. If you take the actually quite beautiful fruits of this tree, then the differences shall hardly be noticeable. And if you then peel out the germ, examining them microscopically, you shall find one and the same order in each of these germ-warts. But now My beloved ones, we shall take the trouble to take a little stroll through an oak tree forest. Hey Ho! You shall exclaim, here not one tree looks like another! One has these branches, another different ones; and not two in the entire forest resemble one another! You may think perhaps that a greater order reigns there, commensurate with the acorn? Just let us dig the trees up, for this is easy, spiritually. See the roots, and how they differ just like the stems and crowns!

9. If you consider this a little, must you not truly exclaim: what disorder, what contradiction with the extraordinarily congruent matching and uniform order within the germ! "How can, from such order arise such self-contradictory disorder in all stems, branches and twigs!

10. Behold, therein lies what you need to understand, if you would truly benefit to the letter from every external form of spiritual revelation. For the spiritual is in itself a self-determining power, having the greatest order within itself. When this power however manifests itself from within, it must take into consideration the greatest order within itself, to manifest itself in the face of external circumstances in a way that does not lose sight of its primordial nature, yet act in such a way as to harmonize with the external circumstances.

11. Behold, from this it will be clear that, when as the primordial force I manifest Myself to the external world out of the most supremely spiritual eternal order, I then, as its most fundamental initiator observe these two rules very strictly and that nothing of the actual divine holiness, in its fullness is lost thereby, but must rather indwell same everywhere in highest perfection and substance. But regarding its external, formal outward manifestation, this must again submit itself to external circumstances, having to manifest externally in all sorts of contradictions, notwithstanding its own complete harmonization in the highest order within itself, and hence, notwithstanding the uniformity of the oak trees among themselves in substance, always revert back to the same basic order, even if seeming to contradict themselves in exterior form.

12. Will some not say here: how does this explanation agree with the religion of the people of the seventh belt? But I say: it shall presently be shown how important this explanation was, to understand the subject of religion, as things pertaining fundamentally to the spirit not only for the inhabitants of the seventh belt but all other belts, in order to benefit therefrom.

13. I have already mentioned during the presentation of the religion of the inhabitants of the seventh belt; that some seeming contradictions shall be cleared up with the completion of these disclosures. How would you grasp this without the preceding explanation? Knowing this, it shall not be too difficult to set this right for you, and to show you the difference between the solar and anti-solar effect.

14. Wherefore we shall not deal with the subject of religion until next time. Therewith enough for today!

70. - Chapter 69 -

1. The key to understanding all religions and revelations

1. Regarding the actual subject of religion, this (with the inhabitants of the seventh belt) consists of eliciting unanimous praise for God's nature in all His attributes.

2. For this reason, all things upon this pair of belts are examined, which seen from within, must have one and the same foundation. This does not depend on large or small, nor on much or little; or on whether this is the biggest and the other the smallest thing; or, a distance indicator shows one number whilst another indicates another distance. Considered only, outwardly such differences are noticeable and contradict each other; from within however, they are fully equal.

3. So for instance, I can say to you: the distance from your house to a town as for instance in your uplands is seven miles; but again I can say: the distance from your house to the same city is ten miles; and again, I can say: this distance is twenty miles, and that by the same route; I could indeed give you several more such mileages. Seen outwardly, you cannot but in good conscience say: this is obvious nonsense! For a blind person can see that a distance measured as seven miles can be neither lengthened nor shortened, provided the route remains the same. Outwardly, this objection is well founded; and hence seven, ten and twenty miles cannot be the same. But what aspect does this objection take on, if examined from within? This is another matter.

4. That you may see the nature of this objection however, I will again help you out with another telling image. How do you imagine your city of Bruck? You say: as we always saw it. I ask again: where can you imagine this? You will say: firstly within us, i.e. through the power of our imagination, and retrospection to the natural standpoint of this city. Good, I say. Does your recollection depend on a certain location and are you forced in your spirit to imagine this city only where it stands? Surely you can, in your spirit, transfer this city to any distance you desire. Behold now, this gives us enough to go on. If it is all the same for the spirit, as to where from within, it wants to imagine this place, it always costs exactly the same effort to imagine it, then ask your spirit what difference it finds between the distances indicated? Will it need less time to imagine it at seven than at a hundred miles? He who remembers the speed of his thought, knows there is no difference between thinking a distance of one mile and immediately afterwards several trillion miles. If however this is the same for his spirit, or "seen from within", it will be clear that all things seen from within, going out from one point, are also one and the same thing within one and the same point.

5. This you can already gather from the general concept of summarisation. Under which concept can you imagine all created things, without distinction of nature, attribute and form? You say: under the general term: beings or creatures. Good, I say. But say unto Me: how different within these terms of summarisation do you find the endless multiplicity and diversity of beings. Here you have to admit and say: within these general descriptions there is to be found no difference between the countless creations; for in these two terms (beings or creatures) only a multiplicity of the created beings expresses itself. I ask again: why? Considering the foregoing, you cannot answer this in any way other than saying: because at their source, all the many endlessly and diverse things are fully one. If I add how, and wherein? Then you must, as it were, bump against it with your nose and say: since all things go forth from divine love, they must also be as completely present and united as the divine love is united within itself.

6. If this is countered with: must everything have gone forth from God's love? God surely also is the highest wisdom; is it therefore not more correct to assume that His endless wisdom rather than love is the creative principle? For we see this amongst ourselves, in that there are some who possess a mighty portion of love, to the extent of wanting to consume all their brothers and sisters with philanthropy; if however they don't seek to also develop their intellectual powers, then little will come of all their great love, even whilst other people, not imbued with this strong portion of love are, through their many-sided learning, able to get great things under way. Such a rejoinder would indeed warrant some attention, if God and man were one and the same. Since there is a powerful distinction however, the difference between God's love and that of man also remains, although man ought to most resemble God on this point.

7. With God, wisdom proceeds from love as does light from the flame. Even if no one can argue that all things in their diversity are not positioned and ordered by God's wisdom, no one can say that ultimately they do not all, including wisdom, go forth from love. Behold, now that we realize this, it has to transpire that as seen from the innermost aspect, everything has to seize and find itself in deepest order, as if, externally there were no difference. The multiplicity in the aforementioned disclosures, finally in the seed, once again converges into the simple, undifferentiated, eternal order.

8. Whoever therefore, out of this inner order or, stated more clearly, out of inner love for Me, as the basic germ of all beings, takes a look at himself and all other beings, shall find the same unity and one and the same integral order everywhere!

9. Consider for instance the tree of life or the written Word of the Old and the New Testament: how many thousands of branches, twigs and roots you can see on it! Not one root, branch or twig resembles another. Outwardly everything seems to contradict itself. Dogmas about one and the same thing sound different. Prophecies about one and the same happening are described differently by different prophets. Even the four Gospels relate the same thing with different words, and differ even in various numerical facts. Even the places of some occurrences of text disagree, and even dates often vary. Whoever therefore wishes to get to the inner connection of all this from outer observation surely will lose his way and will hit the mark as little as someone drilling a tree from the outside and claiming: he will hit the core from a certain angle; but after checking the drill hole, finds he missed the core by several inches. If however he first splits the tree and then drills from the core outward, can he possibly miss the bark? Why not? Because everything converges in the core, but the core is not to be found on the outside. Someone could indeed, as you would say, with his drill hit the centre through "blind luck", but to what end? Will that enable him in future, to always hit the core or centre, with every tree he drills?

10. Behold, from that angle the outer, as it were anti-solar, intellectual wisdom does as much as nothing for him. This outer intellectual wise man shall constantly trudge about like a blind person, where everything shall be guesswork rather than an inner, convincing certainty. But he, who along the solar path, drills trees from the core outwards, can never miss the bark?

11. Behold, this is the right key, not only to throw light upon and open up true inner wisdom regarding the religion of the inhabitants of our seventh solar belt, but much more still, for your revealed religion and also in respect of this present New Revelation, to enable you through this very key or true inner wisdom, to drill to examine not only what is revealed, but also all things and manifestations of the true, inner and everywhere inwardly cohesive, never self-contradictory basis and main aspect of inner wisdom and hence from the centre of your love for Me.

12. The further pursuit of the religion of the people of the seventh belt shall put you into a still brighter light! And so we shall leave it again for today!

71. - Chapter 70 -

1. Devoutness as religious and life-basis upon the seventh pair of belts

1. Yesterday we heard how he who drills from the centre cannot possibly miss the bark of the tree, firstly because the bark surrounds the entire tree and secondly because, from the centre of a circle there always is a straight and sure way to the periphery. He who does not have the centre of a circle shall hardly find it from the periphery with precision, for he shall have to search for it from the periphery.

2. But some will say: this is true indeed, but if one has to split the tree first to drill from the core, it becomes hard work! And I say: certainly! Because to probe for truth and constant infallibility takes more than to invent some lie. Ought one therefore to shy away from seeking pure truth because the path is harder than to the lie? Surely none shall assert that. Just so with the splitting of the tree: it is easier to drill from the outside inwards and then say: I have hit the centre, rather than to split the tree and drill from the centre outwards.

3. Truth nonetheless demands this. One has to search for life where it is and then proceed from life and not search where it isn't, attempting as one dead, to find life in death in order to probe it!

4. He who wants therefore to tread the right Path has to go the solar and not anti-solar way. And the tree has to be split so that the centre of life comes to the light.

5. It could be said: this is all very well; but how shall we split the tree. The crown is at the top and the roots at the bottom! But I say: saw off the crown and remove the roots, leaving you the stem that is easy to split.

6. But here you will say again: what's the meaning of that; we don't understand it? What is a tree's crown? It is the worldly banter that resides in the outer intellect.

7. And what do the roots signify? You need not look far but just answer the question: why do people enrich their intellect with all sorts of worldly knowledge? And the roots will then come fully into view. Should the difficult answer elude you, I shall tell you then! These are to be understood as all worldly interests and advantages. These worldly interests and advantages unite in a tree-core, depicting man's self-love, the latter then spreads into all sorts of handy backchat, to gather in ever more food for its own existence.

8. Hence this parable will be understandable now. Away with the crown! Away with the roots! Split the tree! So that self-love, turned inside out turns to love of neighbour and God; and thus cart- wheeled, becomes exposed to the beams of the eternal life-sun! Behold, thus turned outward love can be scrutinized; and wherever an inner wisdom-drill is revved up, it shall proceed from the lit-up basis, always hitting the periphery in the straightest direction, without laboriously searching for it.

9. But some will say: this is a tolerable metaphor; but this operation mucks up the tree! And I say unto you: if not mucked up from without, then with time, the inner one will perish together with the outer one. If however the outer one perishes for the inner one's sake, the inner one shall be preserved. For he who loves the worldly life shall lose the life of the spirit, but he who loves the life of the spirit, scorning the life of the world, he shall gain the life of the spirit.

10. He therefore, who loves the life of the spirit, gaining same, has split himself and exposed his innermost life to the light out of Myself. And this light is the true wisdom-drill that penetrates everything and is the point where all things and beings converge.

11. Knowing this, we are now familiar with nearly everything pertaining to the religion of the inhabitants of our seventh solar belt. This consists exclusively of: scanning everything from within and from this inner view, bringing Me true, inner living praise.

12. Of what does this praise consist? It consists of complete atonement, through the return of everything external and natural to the purely spiritual. May the external be ever so scattered, it must nevertheless express itself internally as completely cohesive.

13. This expression is: God is love! Everything that exists is a radiation of this eternal holy of holies! And this holy of holies finds itself in its endless omnipresence within itself, endlessly perfect, just as it finds itself in us - His images. Within this image we are then consequent upon our self-found, integral sanctum, ourselves at one with the arch-eternal, integrated, most perfectly cohesive sacrosanct, which is God Himself, the only Love. Thus we love God if we possess His love, for God will not be loved other than with His own, integral love. He who therefore would love God, so that He would dwell within him everlastingly must have God's love within him as a complete unity with God, which is the bringing back of all in its sacred unity, which the eternal, unified love has radiated in countless rays of grace from itself in view of its great mercy.

14. Behold, this is the actual basic principle of the religion of the seventh belt. This basic principle hence is also the governing principle of the actions of these people.

15. And so their entire being manifests this visibly. They are outwardly naked because they don't regard externals. But they are so much more clothed within, because to them the spiritual is everything. They are big physically as testimony of their taking everything external captive, to unite it there. They vary in size in order to do away with and unite these external differences in their spirit. Thus they live on all kinds of fruit, partly growing from trees and shrubs in the wild, partly from fruit called forth from the soil by their will and partly on foodstuff which the atmosphere conveys to them like miracles to signify that man should gather up the scattered fullness of eternal Love.

16. Behold, all their striving is also, aimed at uniting everything in the love of God. Outwardly, the biggest is not better than the smallest. Since in the spirit they know all the inhabitants of the sun, they say: the inhabitants of the central equator, as those bristling the most with external splendour are the smallest of the sun's people. If they were speaking of external dimensions, they would surely find still smaller ones than those we found in the course of these revelations about the sun and its inhabitants. As they regard all things from within, they also name them how they find them within themselves. I remind you that I Myself testified of those upon the central belt as the smallest; this testimony however is related to the current illumination. For wherever the exterior is supremely splendid and manifold, the interior is the smallest. Wherever the exterior is bereft of all pomp, the inward part is proportionately bigger.

17. Here upon the seventh belt we have seen no outward pomp anywhere; whereas the inward part also is the biggest. Even if here the physical form reaches immensity, this does not detract from our cause; for this immense size is only the consequence of true, inner immensity and testimony of what we dealt with. Likewise the dimensions of the middle equator are given variously; but that too is inclusive of allowance for the scale of the people inhabiting this belt. And so likewise many a thing is different from an interior aspect than meets the external eye.

18. Having found this out as well, we can always regard what was presented in a twofold way, namely from without and from within. Wherever an external split is perceived, there note that this incoherence too merges within the centre. And if we consider the thing from its inwards then we shall in any case always hit upon the straight path recognizing in advance that the exterior outgrowth and unevennesses shall nevertheless merge in the centre and are unable to give it a different direction, no matter how much they differ among themselves by ever so great clefts, cracks, elevations and depressions.

19. Therewith we are finished with the presentation of the religion of the people of this belt and want to just say a little about their procreation, birth marriage and their passing on next time and then move to the inner sun, which we shall deal with as briefly as possible. And so we shall leave it for today!

72. - Chapter 71 -

1. Procreation, marriage and death upon the seventh equatorial belt

1. Since procreation is man's first appearance or rather his entering upon the natural sphere from the spiritual one, we shall also begin herewith. How is the act of procreation effected by the huge people of the sun?

2. If you have looked at the products of the land and how they originate from three sources, then you can discern that it is the same with the generation of man. It likewise is carried out in a threefold way, although neither by the one or the other method, but always from union along a threefold way.

3. You will ask how this is possible? And I say unto you: this is quite easy. Because generation is also threefold with yourselves. But it is in the reverse order, since with yourselves it is firstly sensual, followed unconsciously to you mostly by the psychological and then spiritual. With sun-people however, spiritual generation comes first. After that comes that of the soul and only then the physical.

4. What kind of intercourse is the spiritual? From the inner word to the inner word. And soul generation? Through will to will and the physical? Through embracing which is like that between brothers. After this embrace the man breathes over the woman and the act of intercourse is complete because, what John says about becoming flesh, is carried out literally here.

5. The great significance of the "becoming" man lies in the hidden reason for which he goes forth and which he eventually recognises through his development, that reason being, the centre within where everything unites, which I have now sufficiently shown you.

6. That leaves us nothing further to ask regarding procreation. How is marriage effected? In a threefold manner like the generation; no external reason ever brings the spouses together, but only an inward one. Being one in the word and then the will, they also become one in body.

7. When therefore a man of about a hundred years of age (by your measure) recognises some man's daughter in a way that he finds in her his word and will, he goes to the father saying: "Behold, I have found my word and my will in this your maiden, hence it is the great God's will that I take her for my wife. This I reveal to you so that you may probe your maiden and then lead her body unto mine, that I embrace her, producing a new fruit of life within her." The father responds by calling his daughter, saying to her: "Behold here before you is the man whose word and will you carry in accordance with the almighty God's will; wherefore become his and let him embrace you as your husband! God's blessing be with you and His word be your life, now and forever!" Whereupon he escorts his daughter to her bridegroom and marriage is performed. Should the daughter's father be no longer alive, which however rarely happens, then this marriage-making office is undertaken either by the oldest brother of the father, or lacking same, then someone to whom the deceased father had entrusted his children. This takes care also of this aspect.

8. How does death come about with these people who usually live up to a thousand years? As for the actual act of dying, this firstly is of a marvellous nature and feared by neither man nor woman for to them it is rather the high point of the most joyful manifestations.

9. Sickness is no part of it. When someone is about to die physically however, he knows it a considerable time in advance, as this is the brightest period in his life, and he prepares in a most practical manner for the time when he passes into the purely spiritual. When the time is near, a great thanksgiving feast is usually prepared, followed by a friendship meal. Then the person whose time has arrived rises, greets all his relatives and his neighbours who inhabit one circle of trees; after which he at once leaves the company to rush up to a rise where the entire company can watch him. There he lies down face up, disappearing without a trace within a few minutes.

10. Shortly afterwards, he returns to the company as a spirit and all see him through their inner (second) sight. This appearance lasts only a few minutes; then his spirit is at once borne away and nothing more is seen of him at this place.

11. When all this is at an end, the entire company moves to this mountain to give God unanimous praise and thanks. Then, cheerful for God's great grace bestowed upon one of their brethren, they return home. This act of dying is the same upon the entire belt, on the islands as well as solid land.

12. One thing of note is that men perish more rapidly than woman and the biggest giants more quickly than the smaller people; that is all there is to know about the act of dying upon the seventh belt.

13. It hardly needs mentioning that, what has been said applies to both these belts. Having come to a conclusion about the entire inhabitable solar surface, we shall next time move to the sun's interior. And therewith enough for today!

73. - Chapter 72 -

1. The interior suns and their inhabitants. Proper and improper ascent of the sun's basic light-spirits

1. From the outset, we have already noted that the sun is not a compact body but that it consists of seven concentric interior suns, between each of which there is an empty space of several thousand miles.

2. It has also been stated that these interior suns are inhabited. The question is: what kind of inhabitants? Are they actual physical inhabitants or do they have a resemblance to your "little men" of the mountains and the so-called air, fire, water and earth spirits? Or are they perhaps a unique type of being not occurring anywhere besides the sun's interior? These three alternatives cannot be dismissed fully, but also not fully affirmed. There is a seeming semblance with these suggestions but none in respect of inner meaning.

3. Because with the sun, you must keep in mind that only beings of primitive or solar nature are upon it, whereas upon the planets they are of a secondary or anti-solar nature. Looking only at the form, which of course expresses itself as upon the planets; but their inner nature and its basis stand in the starkest contrast to everything of this type found upon the planets.

4. Therewith we are ready to cast a glance at the inhabitants of these inner suns. They differ from each other as the colours of a rainbow; thus we have in reality neither little mountain men, nor air, water, earth or fire spirits or even natural, physical people, but human spirits who only in the course of time will enter exterior natural life either on the surface of the sun or in unfavourable cases, into the outward life upon the planets.

5. Whoever seeks a general term for these spirit beings will do best to call them basic solar light-spirits. These spirits manifest to one another, as do natural men among themselves from the atmosphere, wherever they so desire; and they can do so out of their extreme freedom within the space they have been given by Me as a habitat.

6. If applying their state of independence and full freedom righteously, they become steadier and more durable in their being with time and can then, along the way of procreation and birth go over to the sun's upper surface, whereupon the aforementioned Path to spiritual perfection stands open to them.

7. If however these spirits do not, with their state of intelligent freedom, apply themselves commensurately with My order, they develop themselves in a lawless fashion; then they assume shapes of all kinds of unspeakable aberration. When seeing the favourable departure of the law-abiding ones, the lawless congregate together in trillions upon trillions, attempting to likewise take off, wanting to violently achieve what the law-abiding ones reached along the short and righteous path, namely the outermost solar surface and with it their accustomed, most absolute freedom.

8. The starkest contrasts manifest themselves upon the last interior sun, which actually is the first after the actual, visible sun. Because in the more deeply interior sans, the contrasts are of a far less striking nature i.e. the inhabitants are at least in appearance more homogeneous than upon the last interior sun.

9. Least noticeable are the differences upon the most interior or solid sun, making up the sun's heart, as it were. From this heart, all these spiritual beings of all shapes strive towards the uppermost sun, the way the blood of the heart goes forth to all parts of the body, setting the nutritious blood down and returning the less nutritious.

10. In general terms, it also happens that the lawless spirits upon penetrating to the sun's surface have to turn back from it in all sorts of shapes, through the poles. In this way they are reunited with the sun's heart after lengthy periods, recommencing their thrust and ascent in either orderly or lawless fashion.

11. This much we know now. How does the ascent proceed? Concerning the ascent through the inner suns, this is of a more spiritual and hence imperceptible nature and hence not associated with eruptions; but the rise to the solar surface is always of an exceedingly violent fashion.

12. The effects of such violent ascent you have already witnessed in the course of explaining solar black spots. What is left to relate is the method of the procedure not only in the now familiar natural sense but also the intelligent spiritual path.

13. These spiritual beings of the lawless variety gather together as aforesaid, to countless trillions, somewhat towards the last interior sun's equatorial region. When considering themselves sufficiently powerful they rise up in masses upon masses, penetrating up to the interior surface of the actual sun, probing the weakest part. Finding this spot, which is simultaneously permeated with a host of veins and canals, they penetrate to increasing depth, starting to kindle intensively, making the surface of their attachment likewise to and associating also with the spirits bound within this matter, then steadily seeing them more intensely on fire and applying such force that the several thousand miles thick outer solar crust must give way to them, letting itself be distended upwards in the aforementioned fashion, for an eventual eruption.

14. Since through their lawless striving they also gain material weight, as it were, this becomes most useful for their undertaking, making use of the high speed of the sun's revolution around its axis. And it then becomes their literal motive: let us be helped by whatever will and can, for we must gain our objective!

15. Then you can now collate this with the explanation of black spots, then any dark spots shall light up when you come, in the alternative case, upon a contradiction which you could not easily have resolved; and some erudite fox may have picked up grit for his sharp teeth, eyes and claws.

16. I will suggest such a contradiction along these lines: if these swellings upon the solar equator arose exclusively on account of the centrifugal force around its axis, then I would like to see someone build a temple, and that upon a mountain, where the force is heftier than deep down, without the temple being flung off, together with the occupants, supposing it were possible to build one in the first place! The sun's centrifugal force is proportional to its great gravitational force; but the same can well assist such spiritual undertaking, facilitating rather than inhibiting the latter's violent nature.

74. - Chapter 73 -

1. The fate of solar rebels. Comets and the development of planets. The eternal, incalculable work of Creation.

1. We have seen during our dealing with sunspots that these spirits, on the one hand achieve their purpose; in what way God's order facilitates them to strive for this aim shall shortly be highlighted even further.

2. After attaining to their freedom in this violent fashion, these spirits in their million upon millions swarm out into the vastness of space. The immediate consequence of this violent flight is of benefit in the short term, for the spirits in their undertaking are all, as you might say, cooled off and hence quietened down within this space.

3. But what is the second consequence of this state of absolute freedom? This cannot be comprehended until you are first acquainted with the fact that, regardless of what character, every spirit must have nutrition for his sustenance and wellbeing. If he does not have same, he becomes gradually weaker to the extent of a kind of ultimate state of unconsciousness, resembling deep sleep. This condition is then also the consequence of this lawless, violent solar spirits gaining absolute freedom.

4. What shall be the result of this second condition? To guess this will not cause anyone a headache. Because if someone were to succeed in starving a tiger and then putting him to sleep, it shall not be hard to catch this raging animal, as its feebleness will leave it defenceless, not even noticing while sleeping, that it has become the hunter's prey. Behold, the consequence are similar for these fully freed solar spirits! They become victims of planetary gravitational forces lurking everywhere around them, which they serve as welcome sustenance.

5. A portion of these absolutists is forced back by the power of the solar spirit world after the breakthrough, and a portion falls back into the great solar oceans, where it calms down and cools off; a still larger portion, forcing an exit of still greater distance from the sun, is seized by the sun's mighty polarity and returned back into the sun's actual heart. That portion absorbed by the ocean also, with time, makes a retreat through the sun's many pores, veins and canals, sometimes right back to the last inner sun, which you now know is the first after the sun's outer surface. Some of those spirits that fell back into the waters are actually used for the outer sun's sustenance and to bear fruit.

6. Those spirits of the interior sun, that have already made repeated return journeys do not easily join up again with those spirits intending another equatorial breakthrough, but try rather to secretly take off through back alleys to the polar regions. Finding resistance there once again, they can then become smaller parties resorting to violence, thus still achieving their goal on one or other polar belts. I only need to remind you of the aforementioned volcanoes and you will see where the "carpenter left a hole" for these beings. But this hole does not help them much either, for they can hardly get further than the shiny top of the photosphere. Soon after these almost perpetual repetitive attempts by these liberalist spirits, they receive a most insistent invitation from the sun's poles not to shy away from the trouble of again making a little visit to the innermost sun or actually sun-heart, where they are to give plenty of time for thought as to what is better: to conform to lawfulness or to high-handed impotence, wherewith to immensely aggravate their law-abiding chance for drawn out periods.

7. Behold, that is how things are. Now it can be asked whether these are the only spirits with the fatal honour of being received back by the sun's poles, or whether there are other ones? Indeed there are all sorts of others! And these are partly fugitives from the planets orbiting the sun, but also partly similar storm troopers from other suns, such spirits being seized by the sun's polar force when drifting into this sun's planetary region. Only if in a sun-distant region they combine in an aforementioned way, manifesting as comets, can they move around the sun in a clumsy, planetary fashion. If however, they helplessly and clumsily approach the sun too closely, they are consumed "core and stem" by the sun, as you would say. Even if some, in time, turn into real planets, they nevertheless are not precluded thereby from becoming the sun's food-prey. Because once the sun's polar force has seized something, it is as good as the sun's prey, for with its force, it firstly feeds steadily upon such guests, weakening them millennium by millennium, until in the end, hauling them into its wide, fiery womb.

8. You can already recognize this from the present position of the planets. Because once many millions of years ago the planet Mercury still occupied the position of your Earth; Venus approximately the position of the present planet Mars, and Earth approximately the position of Jupiter; now you can calculate how much the sun, with its power, has attracted these planets! From that you can easily see that the sun, even after many thousands of years, will take hold of the presently free floating planets, whereupon the most stubborn spirits from these heavenly bodies shall again attain to their law-abiding, but also on account of their regained freedom, lawless state.

9. That other planets shall take the place of those completely taken up by the sun, you can gather from the fact that a host of at least ten thousand million comets just swarm around your sun, for which reason one or the other more developed comets can easily position itself in the location of a planet. There are indeed already present a great many well-developed comets in your sun's wide regions which are, for the most part, already inhabited, even if not by humans yet, but by diverse precursory animals.

10. Behold, this is the system. For your concepts, these periods are endless yet before My eyes, their beginning or end is the same. But just as the sun can dissolve its planets, the central suns can in the same way dissolve their planetary suns, chief central suns entire hosts of solar regions and solar universes. New ones are placed at the location of the consumed ones, so that the progression within the system of My things would not be interrupted. From this you ought to assume, that I shall not stop to create in all eternity, because I as God cannot ever cease to think: for My thoughts are the beings.

11. But some could say: why such an ultimately endless multiplicity of beings? But I ask in return: how would a yet so great, but ultimately limited number of beings relate to an unlimited God?

12. Wherefore let no man be troubled; for within My infinity, the infinite surely shall find accommodation, not being capable of ever over filling same, even if the increase of beings should be multiplied to an unspeakable degree beyond its present system.

13. This overview should give you the reassurance that your good and holy Father is greater, mightier and more perfect than an earthly spirit, even in his most lucid moments, can imagine.

14. Wherewith we have also finished with the material sun and next time intend to betake ourselves to the spiritual or celestial sun. And so once again we leave it for today!

Table of Contents

- Chapter 1 -

The Sun as the ideal concept of the planetary worlds; Generalities about soil and plant growth

- Chapter 2 -

Solar man in general

- Chapter 3 -

The paths of solar man's development, either against or in accordance with God's will

- Chapter 4 -

About sunlight. The atmosphere as light-shell.

- Chapter 5 -

The central suns' own light. The reflected light of the lower suns.

- Chapter 6 -

The etheric atmosphere of the cosmic bodies and Cosmic body systems. The largest cosmic bodies' combination - a shell-globe.

- Chapter 7 -

The suns' own light

- Chapter 8 -

The origin of sun-spots

- Chapter 9 -

The solar, human races and their habitations. The solar equatorial belts

- Chapter 10 -

The sun's central equator. Landscape and inhabitants. Eruption of a solar billow

- Chapter 11 -

Pendulum-clock and the timekeeper and other occupations upon the central belt

- Chapter 12 -

The sinking back and vanishing of the solar growth

- Chapter 13 -

Property ownership and life prerequisites of the equatorial inhabitants.

- Chapter 14 -

The dwellings upon the equatorial belt

- Chapter 15 -

The dwellings surrounds upon the equatorial belt.Tree growth there.

- Chapter 16 -

Agriculture upon the equatorial belt; vegetable gardens, sheep grazing and wheat field.

- Chapter 17 -

Office schools upon the equatorial belt

- Chapter 18 -

Simple temples upon the equatorial belt

- Chapter 19 -

Interior of a plain temple. Temple Orchestra

- Chapter 20 -

A temple of greater prominence

- Chapter 21 -

The third, most sacred type of temple. The Mystery of the Incarnation of God; ordination of High Priests

- Chapter 22 -

The holiest so-called burning temple. Deeper initiation into the secrets of God's Incarnation, the childhood of God. God the Father as Himself the Leader

- Chapter 23 -

Family life, marriage and procreation upon the equatorial belt.

- Chapter 24 -

Holidays and feast days. Decease of equatorial inhabitants

- Chapter 25 -

The first pair of corresponding belts. Landscape and the people there. About outer and inner beauty

- Chapter 26 -

More about form, dress and convention upon the first pair of sub-equators

- Chapter 27 -

Private houses and communal settlements upon the first Sub-equator

- Chapter 28 -

Art and science buildings in the communal settlements

- Chapter 29 -

Land cultivation and the animal kingdom upon the first sub-equatorial belts.

- Chapter 30 -

Domestic practice upon the first pair of sub- equators. Painstaking order and petty-minded wisdom

- Chapter 31 -

Wisdom and will schools upon the first pair of sub-equators

- Chapter 32 -

Divine service and nuptials upon the first pair of sub-equatorial belts

- Chapter 33 -

The second pair of sub-equators - corresponding to our Earth

- Chapter 34 -

The third pair of equatorial belts. The northern belt in correspondence with the planet Mars.

- Chapter 35 -

The southern belt of the third pair of equatorial belts corresponding to the asteroids

- Chapter 36 -

The sun's fourth equatorial belt - corresponding to the planet Jupiter and its inhabitants

- Chapter 37 -

Private and business houses upon the fourth equatorial belt

- Chapter 38 -

Nature and life-style of the fourth equatorial inhabitants

- Chapter 39 -

Life-rules generally. Fellowship between husband and wife

- Chapter 40 -

Plant and animal kingdoms upon the fourth pair of equators

- Chapter 41 -

Cultivation of wheat and other plants

- Chapter 42 -

Religion upon the fourth equatorial belt

- Chapter 43 -

The fifth part of equatorial belts - corresponding to Saturn. Land and people

- Chapter 44 -

The sixth pair of equatorial belts corresponding to Uranus A look at this planet.

- Chapter 45 -

Uranus' sixth corresponding pair of belts; men, plants and animals.

- Chapter 46 -

Iron production and use; building technology and private dwellings upon the sixth equatorial pair.

- Chapter 47 -

The great ring road upon the sixth pair of equatorial belts.

- Chapter 48 -

A temple site upon the sixth equatorial pair

- Chapter 49 -

The temple art-museum

- Chapter 50 -

High School for spiritual cognition and the innermost temple.

- Chapter 51 -

Domestic, State and Religious conditions upon the sixth pair of equatorial belts

- Chapter 52 -

More about religion upon the sixth equatorial belt

- Chapter 53 -

The seventh pair of belts corresponding to the formerly unknown planet Neptune (Miron)

- Chapter 54 -

Miraculous plant-growth upon the planet Miron (Neptune) Mutability of life forms

- Chapter 55 -

The Devotion Tree, Living Reed Tree and Flying Bread Tree

- Chapter 56 -

Lightning forests. The Bubble Tree

- Chapter 57 -

The animal kingdom upon the planet Miron. The Steamer, Thunderer and Wind Maker

- Chapter 58 -

The Miron goat and the "Ground Flattener"

- Chapter 59 -

The Miron cow

- Chapter 60 -

The prolific animal kingdom upon Miron; the two- footed animals

- Chapter 61 -

Man upon Miron; dwellings and villages

- Chapter 62 -

Ownership upon Miron; general and private property

- Chapter 63 -

Domestic codes, good social norms, music and musical instruments upon Miron

- Chapter 64 -

Ball instrument, musical art and composition Optics, mechanics and the (art of) writing upon Miron.

- Chapter 65 -

Inner, zealous religion upon Miron. Procreation and burial; astronomy as a means for recognising God

- Chapter 66 -

The seventh equatorial belt and its gigantic inhabitants

- Chapter 67 -

Life conditions and spiritual nature upon the seventh belt.

- Chapter 68 -

Basic tenets about the solar inhabitants' religion and substance of divine revelations.

- Chapter 69 -

The key to understanding all religions and revelations

- Chapter 70 -

Devoutness as religious and life-basis upon the seventh pair of belts

- Chapter 71 -

Procreation, marriage and death upon the seventh equatorial belt

- Chapter 72 -

The interior suns and their inhabitants. Proper and improper ascent of the sun's basic light-spirits

- Chapter 73 -

The fate of solar rebels. Comets and the development of planets. The eternal, incalculable work of Creation.