Martinus: Livets Bog, vol. 2, sect. 521

521. All types of thoughts in this sphere are therefore "selfish" or "egoistic". This means that they are all based upon bringing about purely external, physical protection for the "I" in question. The being's "cosmic chemistry", that is to say, its conscious life and guidance of thought, becomes identical here with the fulfilment of the desire or longing for those energies or substances which, when combined, can provide just such protection.
As that sphere of consciousness belonging to "animals" and "terrestrial people" is the culminating zone of the "killing principle", which means that the "substances" or material used by the being to build up its protection to a great extent already form part of the energy-combinations for attraction and protection in other I's or beings, then this being must, to a corresponding degree, collect its "materials" from the energy-combinations of these other beings in order to be able to build up its own protection. But as these "materials" are already "bound" by the power of attraction possessed by these other beings, then in order to construct its own protection, this being must break down that power of attraction in these other beings. If it possesses a stronger power of attraction, which means a stronger desire or will, or a more profound longing for the energies in question than the being or "I" in whose combination of energies those "materials" are to be found, then it will of course easily be able to assert itself. But if it possesses no superior power of attraction, it is in danger not only of not asserting itself, but also of having the "materials" it has already acquired taken away by the other being's powers of attraction, and, becoming desired by them, will be taken into their energy-combinations and itself be compelled to surrender.
However, in the "animal-like human zone", the desire to avoid this danger has long since been brought to the forefront of the living being's consciousness and thoughts. These thoughts are central to the instinct of self-preservation itself. They form the kernel of all "egoism". These thoughts are created to a great extent with the help of the spiral's second and third basic energies – "gravity-energy" and "feeling-energy", which are correspondingly the same as what is called "heat" and "cold". These two forms of energy are the main materials for creating a method whereby the being can sustain its attraction and desire for those energies or "materials" which are already combined within the material-combination of its neighbours or fellow beings and are thus subject to their power of attraction. This method is identical with what is described under the term "explosion".