1221. But this "animal" has, of course, as yet neither "sight", "hearing" nor the other senses common to the higher animals and terrestrial human beings. It is superior to the "plant being" only by virtue of it having become day-conscious in its very first weak little form of "drive for self-preservation". It has thus been enriched by a very little amount of "self-awareness", an awareness of being able to contribute to or assist in the creation of its own "feelings of pleasure". And this little "self-awareness" is the little seed or grain from which emerges the enormous, detailed sphere of consciousness that later constitutes the "terrestrial human being" and subsequently the "perfect human being in God's image". But for the time being the experience is still dominated by robust and undetailed "experiences of feeling", which means, the "sensations" of the reactions that arise when its organism touches its outer, physical surroundings. The fixed point in its attraction and thereby its small, newly born "drive for self-preservation" is thus solely its attraction to the feeling of pleasure, that is, the reactions caused by its contact with its physical surroundings that are sensed as "pleasurable" or "enjoyable". And in order to feel this enjoyment or sensation of pleasure the being thus now begins, as well as it can, to help with its little, weak "exercise of will". As it has not developed organs for specifying in great detail its sensory perception or experience, its outer surroundings will still be able to leave nothing but undetailed "images of pleasure" or "images of displeasure" in its consciousness. If such a tiny being is dismembered through another being interfering with its life, it is unable in any way to understand what has happened to it other than the fact that it is encountering an "unpleasant state". Its "awareness" or "mental image" of this state is merely the sensation of a specific form of "displeasure" or "pain". It experiences every "pleasant state" of course in the same way. If another being gives it a pleasant experience, this experience will similarly form itself merely as an undetailed mental image of this "pleasant feeling". But gradually it learns to differentiate between the various forms of "pleasant feelings" and "unpleasant feelings". But it still lives in a world of total darkness and total silence. There are still no beautiful material colours and no beautiful physical sounds or musical tones in the picture gallery of its mental life. Here everything rests as yet in the depths of night, as far as light and sound are concerned.
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