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the biography of an animal for members of each tribe all act alike under similar circumstances. If we desire to know the facts about Edward VII, it would profit us nothing to study the life of the Prince-Consort, his father, or of George V, his son, as both would be entirely different from Edward. In order to find out what manner of man he was, we must study his own individual life. If, on the other hand, we wish to know the characteristics of beavers, we may observe any individual of the tribe, and when we have studied its idiosyncrasies, we shall know the traits of the whole tribe of beavers. What we call “instinct,” is in reality the dictates of group-spirits which govern separate individuals of its tribe telepathically, as it were. The ancient Egyptians knew of these animal group spirits and sketched many of them, in a crude way, upon their temples and tombs. Such figures with a human body and an animal head actually live in the desire world. They may be spoken to, and will be found much more intelligent than the average human being. That statement brings up another peculiarity of conditions in the Desire World in respect of language. Here in this World human speech is so diversified that there are countries where people who live only a few miles apart speak a dialect so different that they understand each other with great difficulty, and each nation has its own language that varies altogether from the speech of other peoples. In the lower Regions of the Desire World, there is the same diversity of tongues as on earth, and the so-called “dead” of one nation find it impossible to converse with those who lived in another country. Hence linguistic accomplishments are of great value to the “Invisible Helpers”, of whom we shall hear later, as their sphere of usefulness is enormously extended by that ability. Even apart from difference of language our mode of speech is exceedingly productive of misunderstandings. The same words often convey most opposite ideas to different minds. If we speak of a “body of water”, one person may think we mean a lake of
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the biography of an animal for members of each tribe all act alike under similar circumstances. If we desire to know the facts about Edward VII, it would profit us nothing to study the life of the Prince-Consort, his father, or of George V, his son, as both would be entirely different from Edward. In order to find out what manner of man he was, we must study his own individual life. If, on the other hand, we wish to know the characteristics of beavers, we may observe any individual of the tribe, and when we have studied its idiosyncrasies, we shall know the traits of the whole tribe of beavers. What we call “instinct,” is in reality the dictates of group-spirits which govern separate individuals of its tribe telepathically, as it were. The ancient Egyptians knew of these animal group spirits and sketched many of them, in a crude way, upon their temples and tombs. Such figures with a human body and an animal head actually live in the desire world. They may be spoken to, and will be found much more intelligent than the average human being. That statement brings up another peculiarity of conditions in the Desire World in respect of language. Here in this World human speech is so diversified that there are countries where people who live only a few miles apart speak a dialect so different that they understand each other with great difficulty, and each nation has its own language that varies altogether from the speech of other peoples. In the lower Regions of the Desire World, there is the same diversity of tongues as on earth, and the so-called “dead” of one nation find it impossible to converse with those who lived in another country. Hence linguistic accomplishments are of great value to the “Invisible Helpers”, of whom we shall hear later, as their sphere of usefulness is enormously extended by that ability. Even apart from difference of language our mode of speech is exceedingly productive of misunderstandings. The same words often convey most opposite ideas to different minds. If we speak of a “body of water”, one person may think we mean a lake of
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