A Multidimensional View of the Human Being: Bodies, Ego, and Soul

Summary

Gonzalo Rodríguez-Fraile proposes that, just as the universe is multidimensional, the human being has four bodies: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual (the soul). The first two are shared with advanced animals. Each body has its own file of information: the genetic file, the character or personality file, and the consciousness file. The first two are corruptible and dissolve at death; the consciousness file is not, and it guarantees an evolution that is always ascending. To illustrate this, he cites Annie Marquier's image of the carriage, with the soul as the master who rides inside and sets the course.

He explains that the three lower bodies make up the ego, with its three basic needs: security, control over what is external, and being loved or admired. He insists that the ego should not be eliminated or fought against, but rather understood and transcended, because it is a valuable instrument for learning while incarnated. He distinguishes between instinct, reason, and intuition; emotions and feelings; the brain, the mind, and consciousness; and love (agape) and affection. He attributes freedom, intention, and the ability to see essence to the soul.

He presents life as a school of souls, quotes Saint Basil, and acknowledges that he gives less importance to the body than Pablo and Rafael Domingo do, although they all agree on the primacy of the soul. He closes with questions about personality after death, the difference between soul and spirit, the action of God, and intuition.

Key Ideas

• The human being is multidimensional: we have physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual bodies, and mystics add the image of God as a fifth body.
• Each body has a file of information; the genetic and personality files are corruptible and dissolve at death, while the consciousness file is incorruptible and ensures an evolution that is always ascending.
• The ego, formed by the three lower bodies, should not be eliminated or fought against, but rather understood and transcended, because it is an essential instrument for learning while we are incarnated.
• The ego's three basic needs (security, control over what is external, and being accepted) cause anguish and stress, and recognizing them makes it easier to transcend the ego.
• Instinct is pre-rational and intuition is trans-rational: you can tell them apart because intuition leaves an inner sense of certainty and peace, and instinct does not.
• Emotions arise from the instinctive body and are healed by observing them and letting them go; feelings arise from the mind and are healed by thinking differently about what causes them.
• Earth is a school of souls: the soul has freedom, intention, and the ability to see essence, and placing ourselves in the soul, rather than in the body, fosters inner peace.

Chapters

1. 0:00Introduction and the Four Bodies of the Human Being
2. 5:14The Three Information Files
3. 11:06Operating Centers and Transcending the Ego
4. 13:41The Three Basic Needs of the Ego
5. 17:54Instinct, Reason, and Intuition
6. 22:18Emotions and Feelings
7. 28:22Brain, Mind, and Consciousness
8. 33:27Love and Affection
9. 37:22The Capacities of the Soul
10. 40:19Earth as a School and the Importance of the Body
11. 55:02Questions and Answers