“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

(An infusion from Jung cropped up in this chapter, of course — although handled in Seth’s own way. But then such events in our own lives have influenced every other chapter in the book, too. The particular form of a chapter could be affected to some degree by just when the sessions for it were held, as well as by its intrinsic subject matter. Even interruptions, then, would play their part….)

The atoms that compose the fetus have their own kind of consciousness. The volatile awareness-consciousnesses that exist independently of matter, form matter according to their ability and degree. The fetus, therefore, has its own consciousness, the simple component consciousness made up of the atoms that compose it. This exists before any reincarnating personality enters it. The consciousness of matter is present in any matter — a fetus, a rock, a blade of grass, a nail.

You do not have completely empty shells of matter about to be filled, in that the new personality hovers in and about, particularly after conception and with greater frequency and intensity thereafter. The shock of birth has several consequences, however, that usually draw the personality full blast, so to speak, into physical reality. Before this, the conditions are fairly uniform. The body consciousness is nurtured almost automatically, reacting strongly but under highly controlled conditions.

Those mentioned earlier who enter at the point of conception are usually highly anxious for physical existence. They will, therefore, be more fully developed and show their individual characteristics very early. They seize upon the new body and already mold it. The control over matter is vigorous, and they usually stay within the body, dying either in accidents where death is immediate or in sleep or with a disease that strikes quickly. They are manipulators of matter as a rule.

(10:40.) They are emotional. They work out their problems in immediate, sometimes impatient, tangible ways. They work well with earth materials, and translate their ideas with great force into physical terms. They make cities, monuments. They are architects. They are concerned with forming matter and molding it to their desire.

(10:48.) Because of their own characteristics, however, some prefer to set up a certain distance between themselves and their physical existences. They are much more concerned with symbols. They look upon earthly life as highly experimental. They approach it almost with a jaundiced eye, so to speak. They are not interested so much in manipulating matter as they are curious as to the ways in which ideas appear within matter.