The I's coloring

Introduction

The I's coloring is Martinus's term for the changing expression of a living being's eternal I through its thoughts, will, abilities, manifestations and experiences. In this analysis, the I itself is not identical with any particular body or temporary appearance; rather, the visible life of a being is the changing expression through which the I becomes perceptible. ^[1] ^[2]

Martinus presents the term within the analyses of Livets Bog, especially its discussion of "cosmic chemistry". The coloring is therefore not a physical colour, but a metaphor for the whole differentiated character of a being's life and consciousness. ^[3] ^[4]

The I and its manifestation

Martinus describes the I and the superconsciousness together as the basis from which a visible, created phenomenon can arise. Because every visible manifestation has a beginning, it is temporary and cannot be identical with the eternal I that lies behind it. The I's visibility consequently changes continually: one manifestation becomes the effect of an earlier one and the cause of later manifestations. Martinus identifies this changing succession with cause and effect. ^[5]

In the terminology of his "cosmic chemistry", Martinus calls the I or the invisible life-kernel behind the energies and substances "X1". The organism is understood as a tool through which this unseen creator expresses itself, while the forms and energies used in manifestation belong to the created sphere. ^[6]

Cosmic chemistry as coloring

Creation, in Martinus's analysis, does not produce something from nothing. It transforms material that already exists as the result of will and consciousness. Creation therefore involves both breaking down and building up, and the combined process is what Martinus calls "cosmic chemistry". This applies to physical forms as well as to non-physical manifestations such as thought. ^[7]

The many forms of life, thought and will are consequently different expressions of the I. Martinus describes this as a scale ranging from destructive and harmful forms of life to forms that beautify, ennoble and promote well-being. This range of expression is the varied coloring of the I's eternal existence and the aim revealed through cosmic chemistry. ^[8]

Desire, experience and fate

Martinus connects the I's coloring with the primordial desire, which he describes as the urge toward manifestation and life. It is outside ordinary physical day-consciousness and functions as a permanent automatic attraction toward manifestation as a whole. In his terminology, it links the I, the superconsciousness and the fate-element. ^[9]

The primordial desire is also described as the first energy through which the I can be recognised. Martinus calls it "life substance no. 1" and presents hunger and satisfaction as the basic rhythm behind every manifestation and experience. The I's coloring thus consists of the knowledge, thought, will and ability expressed through this activity. ^[10] ^[11]

Martinus further relates coloring to fate. A being's previous wishes, actions and manifestations produce reactions that shape its later life and organism; in this sense, each new life continues the preceding one. The being is therefore described as participating in the ongoing creation of its own life, including its "light and shade" and its intellectual capacity. ^[12] ^[13]

Relation to reincarnation and development

In The Eternal World Picture, Martinus places the enduring structures of abilities and dispositions in the superconsciousness and fate-element. He describes basic talent kernels, or spiral centres, as centres through which abilities can survive the death of one physical organism and contribute to the creation of another. This provides a mechanism for the I's changing coloring to continue across reincarnation. ^[14]

The coloring is therefore neither fixed nor arbitrary in Martinus's account. It changes through the interaction of the I, its primordial desire, its accumulated abilities and the effects of its previous manifestations. Development can consequently be understood as a gradual transformation of the forms through which the same eternal I expresses its life. ^[15] ^[16] ^[17]

References

[1] Livets Bog 3, section 768

[2] Livets Bog 2, section 304

[3] Livets Bog 3, section 772

[4] Livets Bog 3, section 773

[5] Livets Bog 3, section 768

[6] Livets Bog 2, section 304

[7] Livets Bog 3, section 769

[8] Livets Bog 3, section 772

[9] Livets Bog 2, section 529

[10] Livets Bog 2, section 530

[11] Livets Bog 3, section 773

[12] Livets Bog 3, section 749

[13] Livets Bog 2, section 556

[14] The Eternal World Picture 1, section 6.8

[15] Livets Bog 3, section 768

[16] Livets Bog 3, section 772

[17] The Eternal World Picture 1, section 6.8

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]