308. An I is entirely independent of all the substances of the Universe. It only connects itself to these substances or energies by virtue of what we call "desires". When these appear in a more day-conscious or patent form we call them "wishes". In this way every living being is guided by its wishes. It would therefore be quite impossible for any individual to experience anything whatsoever which cannot be traced back to its first origin as a tiny desire or wish, even though the circumstances might develop later into an accident or catastrophe for the I in question, bringing about a situation which is the complete opposite from what it had wished.
      That a situation turns into something so different from what had been planned is not the fault of the substances themselves, but a fault in the choice of substances whose reaction should have been a fulfilment of the original wish. When the I in question chose the wrong substances or the wrong kind of matter, the result must of course also be wrong. But as we have already indicated, in this way the I obtains total freedom. Precisely by those means it has the ability to "make mistakes".
      On account of the law governing the reaction of substances, "making mistakes" causes disharmony, meaning unhappiness, sorrow and ill-health, while the opposite appears as harmony, joy, health and happiness, so by the strength of this same law it becomes possible for the I to gain knowledge of how to create these phenomena. In this way its creative ability is gradually developed so that it can create felicity and happiness just as well as misfortune and unhappiness. It is all simply a question of will and of reasoning.