315. But as the I or divine "Something" is not a created thing and therefore in itself is above time and space, then it must have existed throughout eternity. Consequently, it never had a beginning and can never come to an end. Everything coming under these concepts lies upon a different plane from that of the I itself, for these concepts can only refer to situations concerning things created by the I in matter or substance. The I, therefore, will always be both before and after that which has been produced, and it is precisely through this fact that it reveals itself as being beyond time, for time can only define the life-span of "created" things from their formation until their termination. But as "created" things are merely reactions of the I in matter and substance, then the I is shown to be also the master and creator of time itself.
      Moreover, it is clear that if there had ever been a time when the I was without consciousness and without an organism, that is to say without any creative ability or matter, then these two realities would have manifested out of nothing. Which is, of course, an impossibility. "Something" cannot come from "nothing". Besides, as the realities in question constitute exactly the principle conditions necessary for any form of creation to come about, such creation would be totally impossible at a time when the I was without such conditions. The I's connection with matter and the ability to create has therefore also existed throughout eternity. This creative ability is not a "created" thing in itself, but constitutes an eternal principle which appears in an eternal stream of successive variations. Each new variation enables the I to produce a corresponding new effect or reaction in matter. It is this reaction we call a "created thing". A creation of this kind has had a beginning and will come to an end and is thus defined as temporal or mortal, in other words as something which once began and will one day cease to be.
      Thus it is not the unit consisting of the three "X's" – the "living being" itself – which is "temporal" or "mortal" in existence, but on the contrary that which this living being produces, or "that which is created".