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1Chemical force is death, that is, balanced, still and motionless. The spiral motion is the type of life. It is the motion of life. It is a spiritual screw, with all the mechanical advantages of a screw in pene¬ trating the universe of matter. The spiral varies in magnitude from the infinitely great to the infinitesimally small. Conceive the lesser forces to be but an infinite fraction less than their opposites, then the spiral will be almost infinite in its sweep of curve, and will require almost an eternity to reach its culminating point. On the contrary, the greater the diversity in power the less will become the curve, until we have the infinitesimally small spiral that will culminate almost instantly. Thus between these two extremes we have every phenom¬ enon of fife, from that of the tiniest insect to the great cosmic life of an astral universe. V. The Vegetable State Since we have found that motion is the fife of matter, we must now seek for a still higher form, the immediate product of matter. We therefore ask the student to mentally bridge the distance between the formation of a crystallized atom to the evolution of a planet with its gaseous envelope, called its atmosphere. This done, we will care¬ fully notice the evolution of the first rudimentary forms of vegetable life from which primal forms all the infinite variety of the vegetable kingdom are evolved. Having made the assertion that the spiral is the motion of life, . Original from
2V UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN 26 THE LIGHT OF EGYPT it will be as well to see if the vegetable kingdom will substantiate our assertion. As some sort of external evidence, then, let us call to our aid the phyllotaxy of plants (as it is technically termed). On the stems of plants the leaves are so placed that a line wound around the stem, and touching the petiole of each leaf, would be a spiral. Where the leaves are in two rows, the space between two opposite leaves is just half a circle or circumference of the stem, and where there are three rows, it is one-third of the circumference, and so on to a regular suc¬ cessive series in different plants which express the ratios of 1-2, 2-5, 3-8, 5-13, 2-21, 13-34, 21-55. The external facts, demonstrated by botanical science, not only confirm our assertion, but also tend to show that vital force is subject to measurement in the plant.
3In order to understand how the vegetable evolves from the min¬ eral, not only must the spiral motion of life be held in view, but the various changes of atomic polarity must also be clearly apprehended. As, for instance, the atoms of oxygen and hydrogen by a certain com¬ bination produce water. In this union both become polarized, and form a substance which is the polar opposite of their original inflam¬ mable states. From this change of polarity we have clouds, oceans and rivers. When the vapor from these waters is drawn upward by the heat of the sun, an infinitely small fraction becomes decomposed into its gaseous state. Although decomposed, the atoms are actually the same as they were previously, after combining in the substance known as water. They have only received a different angle of motion. Whereas before they rotated in a circle, they now ascend and revolve in the form of a spiral. In this ascension from earth they attract or are attracted by the atoms of carbonic acid gas, and instantly a violent rotation among the various atoms is produced. They combine and lo - another transformation has taken place; a new thing has been pro¬ duced, viz.; a molecule or germ of physical life. Under the control of a central atom of fire, the predominating forces being oxygen and carbon, this union produces another change of polarity, and they be¬ come re-attracted to the earth. Here, water or moisture receives them, and a species of vegetable slime is the physical result. When this vegetable product has served its purpose and decays, its liberated atoms arise in their spiral and, in turn, become attracted, or themselves attract, some one or more of the atoms of air with which they have a natural affinity. The same process of polarization is repeated, with
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
1Chemical force is death, that is, balanced, still and motionless. The spiral motion is the type of life. It is the motion of life. It is a spiritual screw, with all the mechanical advantages of a screw in pene¬ trating the universe of matter. The spiral varies in magnitude from the infinitely great to the infinitesimally small. Conceive the lesser forces to be but an infinite fraction less than their opposites, then the spiral will be almost infinite in its sweep of curve, and will require almost an eternity to reach its culminating point. On the contrary, the greater the diversity in power the less will become the curve, until we have the infinitesimally small spiral that will culminate almost instantly. Thus between these two extremes we have every phenom¬ enon of fife, from that of the tiniest insect to the great cosmic life of an astral universe. V. The Vegetable State Since we have found that motion is the fife of matter, we must now seek for a still higher form, the immediate product of matter. We therefore ask the student to mentally bridge the distance between the formation of a crystallized atom to the evolution of a planet with its gaseous envelope, called its atmosphere. This done, we will care¬ fully notice the evolution of the first rudimentary forms of vegetable life from which primal forms all the infinite variety of the vegetable kingdom are evolved. Having made the assertion that the spiral is the motion of life, . Original from
2V UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN 26 THE LIGHT OF EGYPT it will be as well to see if the vegetable kingdom will substantiate our assertion. As some sort of external evidence, then, let us call to our aid the phyllotaxy of plants (as it is technically termed). On the stems of plants the leaves are so placed that a line wound around the stem, and touching the petiole of each leaf, would be a spiral. Where the leaves are in two rows, the space between two opposite leaves is just half a circle or circumference of the stem, and where there are three rows, it is one-third of the circumference, and so on to a regular suc¬ cessive series in different plants which express the ratios of 1-2, 2-5, 3-8, 5-13, 2-21, 13-34, 21-55. The external facts, demonstrated by botanical science, not only confirm our assertion, but also tend to show that vital force is subject to measurement in the plant.
3In order to understand how the vegetable evolves from the min¬ eral, not only must the spiral motion of life be held in view, but the various changes of atomic polarity must also be clearly apprehended. As, for instance, the atoms of oxygen and hydrogen by a certain com¬ bination produce water. In this union both become polarized, and form a substance which is the polar opposite of their original inflam¬ mable states. From this change of polarity we have clouds, oceans and rivers. When the vapor from these waters is drawn upward by the heat of the sun, an infinitely small fraction becomes decomposed into its gaseous state. Although decomposed, the atoms are actually the same as they were previously, after combining in the substance known as water. They have only received a different angle of motion. Whereas before they rotated in a circle, they now ascend and revolve in the form of a spiral. In this ascension from earth they attract or are attracted by the atoms of carbonic acid gas, and instantly a violent rotation among the various atoms is produced. They combine and lo - another transformation has taken place; a new thing has been pro¬ duced, viz.; a molecule or germ of physical life. Under the control of a central atom of fire, the predominating forces being oxygen and carbon, this union produces another change of polarity, and they be¬ come re-attracted to the earth. Here, water or moisture receives them, and a species of vegetable slime is the physical result. When this vegetable product has served its purpose and decays, its liberated atoms arise in their spiral and, in turn, become attracted, or themselves attract, some one or more of the atoms of air with which they have a natural affinity. The same process of polarization is repeated, with
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
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