NEUOFFENBARUNG← Gifts of Heaven · Volume 1 · Contents
Snail shell, rose thorn, butterfly chrysalis, bird's nest.
Questions in spiritual light. 27th March 1841, 4:00 -8:45 pm
The four daughters of Anselm Hüttenbrenner each asked a question with the request for an answer through the servant Jakob Lorber. ◦ Marie asked: "What does a snail shell tell us?" – ◦ Wilhelmine: "What do the thorns of the rose mean?" – ◦ Pauline: "What does the chrysalis of a butterfly teach us?" – ◦ Julie: "What does a bird's nest tell us?" Writer: The Lord graciously answered through His servant Jacob Lorber as follows:
[1] These four questions, dear children, can be compared to the actions of a man who found himself in a large treasure chamber and was allowed to freely choose four pieces from the many treasures that the chamber enclosed. Being completely dazzled by the great splendor of these treasures, he finally became doubtful in his choice and did not know what to reach for. In the meantime, however, the time of the open treasury donation passed; and the indecisive fool, now even more confused by the approaching limit, had finally to reach for the next best one in sudden haste not to leave the chamber empty-handed.
[2] But when he came out into the open, he pulled out his treasure trove and looked at it. But how wide-eyed the astonished fool was when, instead of the supposed gold, silver and precious stones and other treasures, he saw four half-decomposed skeletons in his hand!
[3] Now behold, My dear children, such a "treasury" is open to you every day, and you can take from it what and how much you want! But how is it with you that you, like this man, do not reach for gold, silver, precious stones and other treasures, but for things that are not much richer than the mentioned skeletons?
[4] So today you have taken a "snail shell" for now! What has the living snail done to you, that you have banished it from the house? Likewise you have brought the "thorn of a rose"! What have you done to the whole rose bush, that you have taken from it just that, in which there is no life and no reproduction. So you have also taken a "pupa"! You should have reached for a live caterpillar first! Because the pupa is the grave of the caterpillar. And finally you even came with an exceedingly dead "bird's nest"! Why did you not rather take the bird out of the nest, since it is an animated being, instead of the dead nest?
[5] What would you say if I were to bring these four dead things to life and they were to become living snail shells, reproducing thorns, bouncing pupae, and flying birds' nests?
[6] Wouldn't it seem to you like a moving carriage, which moves along, but instead of living horses pulling it, it drags two dead horses behind it? Or what would you say if you found a tree with it's top in the ground and it's roots reaching up into the air, and instead of bearing fruit, it's roots were covered with parched thorns? Or what would you say if you found a cook who filled his pots with dull coals instead of food and piled up all kinds of edible things in the place of the fire? Or what would you say
if, when building a bridge over a water, the builders would point the yoke sticks upward, but put the bridge's footboards into the water?
[7] Behold, dear children, how all these falsities presented to you – just so behave your today's four items in question – which, if I would animate them, would not look much better for your heart than the mentioned cart, tree, cook and the bridge under the water.
[8] But since you have now brought these things to light, I will nevertheless still make something out of it for you, and show you why you did not take something better this time.
[9] Now see what "rare things" I will make out of it for you! If these things seem a little strange to you, think that for this present moment I have not been able to bring about anything else from them that would be more pleasing to you.
[10] Behold, I have artificially made a very cute little mirror for you out of the "snail's house"! – The questioner should look at herself more often in this mirror, and she will gradually recognize that a person who only seeks vain, worldly things is very much like such an empty snail shell, which has consumed and lost it's living inhabitant, because this inner inhabitant has integrated himself into the dead, rigid house (in a certain way consuming himself). Or, so that you may understand it more easily, I say that the living snail thus gradually made itself into a shell; but since the shell became too large and heavy in this way and the living remainder of the snail could no longer reach out of the too much enlarged shell, and the parts that barely reached out no longer had the strength to act on the intention to feed, the little life finally shrank back to the bottom of the shell and finally consumed itself, i.e. it shrank, moldering, to a point which stuck to the dead shell as completely dead life. That is, it contracted, moldering, to a point, which, as a completely dead life, adhered to the dead shell.
[11] But that's why you, questioner, gave here such a thing for consideration, because according to your exterior, you still are strongly related with it. Therefore, remove the dead "snail house", which represents the external desires, as soon as possible from you, so that in the end, you do not partake in the snail's lot!
[12] Behold, this is the artful work, which I have been able to prepare for you from this "snail house"! All of you consider it, and act accordingly, and you shall live.
[13] But what shall we make of the "thorn"? It would be of little use to you if I would make something small of it; therefore, we want to make this thorn larger and then place the work of art as a lightning conductor on a house, and so this pointed plant, as on the stump, so now, enlarged, is put on the house with a similar electricity-sucking property.
[14] Consider yourself, oh giver, as such a dwelling house, in which a living inhabitant dwells! Put on this house this deflector, which is made of a fourfold metal, as there is the gold of humility, the silver of modesty, the iron of faithfulness and perseverance and the lead of domesticity – so this lightning arrester thorn will protect you from the striking of the satanic lightning, which would ignite your dwelling house with all the evil passions, so that you then might easily perish in the deadly flames of your inflamed passions.
[15] But that is why you gave Me the "thorn", because you, unconsciously, felt such misery in yourself. I say therefore: unconsciously – because your "sleeping inhabitant" has played such, secretly creeping, into your mouth.
[16] But what should I make out of the dead pupa? I tell you in advance that there won't be much of value to make out of it. The best that can be made out of it would be a small coffin, and so we will remain with that.
[17] What is a coffin meant for? Truly not for nothing, but only for the reception of a dead person! And what happens to the coffin together with the dead? It is buried in the grave of decay.
[18] What would you say, giver, if you would see people who would like to wrap themselves in a coffin instead of a dress? Wouldn't you, seized by fear, fall down half-dead to the earth, especially if at night time you would meet people dressed in coffins? But I say to you that those who are clothed in such coffins could, like the butterfly from its chrysalis, arise to eternal life. But the present fashion dolls wear much worse coffins around their bodies, from which a glittering butterfly will hardly ever arise to eternal life. For this coffin of clothes makes the body a musty grave, in which the life is eaten up to the last drop by the worms of self-love, vanity, pride and arrogance.
[19] But that is why you gave this "pupa" to Me, because your inner being, which you do not yet suspect, is oppressed by such distress! Therefore, you had better dress yourself in the clothing of humility, deep modesty and great, persistent receptivity for everything that is good and true to faith, so that one day a glorious butterfly will emerge from your "chrysalis".
[20] Now we still have the "bird's nest" – Think what the bird's nest is for, when the inhabitant has flown out and has abandoned it to all winds, because he no longer finds safety, protection, warmth and food in it! You will say: "It is no longer of any use!" And I say: You have answered rightly! Therefore, I cannot make anything more out of this nest for this time, just as I cannot make anything more out of a human being if he, by virtue of his lack of conscience, has gone so far that My "birds of heaven", which are, as it were, the voice of conscience in the human being, have flown out of the inner "nest of love", which was built in the heart.
[21] This nest will then also be exposed to the evil winds. But if you want to know what these "winds" are called, I will tell you. The first wind is called carelessness. The second wind is called the lukewarmness to everything serious, true, good and from it, beautiful. The third wind is the complacent and comfortable laziness that comes from it. And the fourth wind is finally the sinking into all kinds of mad and confused worldly folly and finally out of that, into complete oblivion of God. Therefore, see to it that your nest is not abandoned, otherwise you will become such an abandoned "bird's nest" and experience it's fate under the evil winds.
[22] But for this reason the fourth gave such a dead thing, because the still lingering birds put it on her tongue as a warning!
[23] See, dear children, this is how you have unconsciously presented your illnesses to Me today! I have prepared for you from them effective remedies. Use them according to My Fatherly, loving order, and you will miraculously revive your dead snail shells, turn the dead thorn into a life-attractor, see a new glory burst out of the dead chrysalis, and in your nest, the indwelling Phoenix-bird will be reborn to a new and eternal life and will never leave it. For he himself will come forth from it, glorified, to eternal life. Amen.
[24] Take note Who has told you all this! Hear, it is your true Father, holy, holy, holy! Amen.