Theos-Talk Archives (November 1999 Message tl00087)

>>Theosophy posits that there is a double line of evolution, the
material and the Spiritual. ... The independent Minds, >>

Dallas, while you are simply quoting Blavatsky, I would like to
make a small point here. "Evolution" by its very definition implies
progress=change over time. Depending on how we want to
define "spiritual" we could, in fact, say that anything spiritual
is perfect and therefore in no need of any "progress."  This
idea of a spiritual evolution is, IMHO, plain crazy, unless we
define "spiritual" as something below "perfection."  Some
would separate spiritual from divine and have the divine as
perfect and the spiritual as still evolving. If this is how you
see it, then you are at least consistant. But the offhand use
of the term "spiritual evolution," as if we know what it means,
throws off a lot of people and some outsiders read this and
conclude that Theosophy is full of fruitcakes.

As to matter evolving, we have to recall that Blavatsky
said that no plane can ever be skipped insofar as
manifestation is concerned. What this means, is that
all planes evolve, not just spirit (the highest three) and
matter (the seventh and lowest).

My own take is that to say there are two evolutions,
spiritual and material, is misleading. Blavatsky came out
with this for a reason -- in her day only physical
evolution was acknowledged. Today, just about everyone
will agree that the human mind or psyche also
evolves. But the fact is that all planes evolve, and so
our physical, affective, cognitive, and spiritual aspects
all evolve over time and they do so interactively. Each
is dependent on the others.

Jerry S.