---
ga: 14
title: "Scene 11 — The Temple of the Sun. Destiny and debtors."
words: 1396
---
# Scene 11

*The Temple of the Sun. Hidden site of the mysteries of the Hierophants.*

*Capesius and Strader appear as in Scene 4.*

*Retardus (to Capesius and Strader before him):*  
Ye have brought bitter grief to me, my friends.  
The office which I did entrust to you  
Ye have administered with ill success.  
I call you now before my judgment seat.  
To thee, Capesius, I did entrust  
Full measure of the spirit, that ideas  
Of mankind's upward striving might compose,  
With graceful words, the content of thy speech,  
Which should have worked convincingly on man.  
Then thine activity I did direct  
Into those gatherings of men, wherein  
Thou didst Johannes and Maria meet.  
Their tendency towards the spirit-sight  
Thou shouldst have superseded by the power  
Which thy words should have exercised on them.  
Instead of that thou didst thyself give up  
Unto the influence which flows from them.—  
And to thee, Strader, did I show the way  
That leads to scientific certainty.  
Thou hadst by rigid thinking to destroy  
The magic power that comes from spirit-sight.  
But yet thou lackedst feeling's certain touch.  
The power of thought did slip away from thee,  
When opportunity for conquest came.  
My fate is close-entwined with your deeds,  
Through you are these two seekers after truth  
Now lost for evermore from my domain;  
For to the Brethren I must give their souls.

*Capesius:*  
Thy trusty messenger I could not be.  
Thou gav'st me power to picture human life;  
And I could well portray whate'er inspired  
The souls of men at this time or at that:  
But yet it was impossible for me  
To gift my words, which painted but the past,  
With power to fill and satisfy men's souls.

*Strader:*  
The weakness which must needs befall me too  
Was but a true reflection of thine own.  
Knowledge indeed thou couldest give to me:  
But not the power to still that yearning voice,  
Which strives for truth in every human heart.  
Deep in mine inmost soul I none the less  
Felt other powers continually arise.

*Retardus:*  
See now then what result your weakness brings.  
The Brethren are approaching with those souls  
In whom they will o'erthrow my power. E'en now  
Johannes and Maria feel their might.

( *Enter Benedictus with Lucifer and Ahriman; behind them Johannes and Maria.*)  


*Benedictus (to Lucifer):*  
Johannes' and Maria's souls have now  
No longer room for blind unseeing power:  
To spirit-life they have been lifted up.

*Lucifer:*  
Then must I straightway from their souls depart.  
The wisdom unto which they have attained,  
Doth give them power to see me, and my sway  
O'er souls of men doth only last so long  
As I remain invisible to them.  
Yet doth the power continue which hath been  
From the creation of the worlds mine own.  
Now that I can no longer tempt their souls,  
My power will cause within their spirit-life  
Most beauteous fruits to ripen and endure.

*Benedictus (to Ahriman):*  
Johannes' and Maria's souls have now  
Destroyed all error's darkness in themselves;  
And spirit-sight hath been revealed to them.

*Ahriman:*  
I must indeed renounce their spirits then:  
For they will turn henceforth unto the light.  
Yet one thing hath not yet been ta'en from me;  
With sense-appearance to delight their souls.  
And though no longer they will deem it truth,  
Yet will they see how truth it doth reveal.  
( *Enter the Other Maria.*)  


*Theodosius (to the Other Maria):*  
Close intertwined was thy destiny  
With thine exalted sister's loftier life:  
The light of love I could impart to her:  
But not the warmth of love, so long as thou  
Didst only let thy noble gift arise  
From the dim feeling life within thy soul,  
And didst not strive to see it clear and bold  
In the full light of wisdom's certainty.  
The influence of the Temple does not reach  
Unto the nature of vague impulses,  
E'en though such impulse wills to work for good.

*The Other Maria:*  
I must admit a noble gift of love  
Can only work salvation in the light.  
So to the temple I now wend my way.  
Mine inner feeling shall in future times  
Not rob the light of love of its results.

*Theodosius:*  
Through this, thine insight, thou dost give me power  
To make Maria's soul-light on the earth  
Run smooth and evenly upon its path:  
For aye aforetime it must lose its might  
In souls, such as thine own was heretofore,  
Which would not unify their love with light.

*Johannes (to the Other Maria):*  
I see in thee that nature of the soul,  
Which also holdest sway within mine own.  
I was unable to find out the way  
Which led to thine exalted sister's soul  
So long as in my heart the warmth of love  
From love's light ever held itself apart.  
The sacrifice which to the temple's shrine  
Thou bring'st, shall be repeated in my soul.  
Therein the warmth of love shall sacrifice  
Itself unto love's wonder-working light.

*Maria:*  
Johannes, in the realm of spirit-life  
Thou hast attained to knowledge through myself.  
To spirit knowledge thou canst only add  
True soul-existence, when thou findest too  
Thine own soul, as thou didst find mine before.  
( *Enter Philia, Astrid, and Luna.*)  


*Philia:*  
Then from the whole creation of the worlds  
The joy of souls shall be revealed to thee.

*Astrid:*  
From thine whole being then can be outpoured  
The light and radiance of the warmth of souls.

*Luna:*  
Then shalt thou dare to live out thine own self,  
When such light can illuminate thy soul.  
( *Enter Felix and Felicia Balde.*)  


*Romanus (to Felix Balde):*  
Long hast thou from the temple held thyself.  
Thou only wouldst admit enlightenment,  
When light from thine own soul revealed itself.  
Men of thy nature rob me of the power  
To give my light unto men's souls on earth.  
They will but draw from unillumined deeps  
The gifts they have to offer in their life.

*Felix Balde:*  
But now at length 'twas even man's illusion  
That urged me on from the dark deeps to light,  
And let me to the temple find my way.

*Romanus:*  
The fact that thou hast hither found thy way  
Gives me the power to give light to the will  
Of both Johannes and Maria here.  
That it no more may follow forces blind,  
But from world-aims henceforth direct itself.

*Maria:*  
Johannes, thou hast seen thine own self now  
In spirit in myself. Thou shalt live out  
Thine own existence as a spirit, when  
The world's light can behold itself in thee.

*Johannes (to Felix Balde):*  
In thee, good brother Felix, I behold  
The force of soul which in my spirit too  
Hath held the will fast bound. This temple's light  
Thou hast at length been ready to approach;  
So will I guide my spirit's strength of will  
Straight forward to the temple of the soul.

*Retardus:*  
Johannes' and Maria's souls e'en now  
Escape from my domain: how then shall they  
Discover all that springs forth from my might?  
So long as they did lack within their souls  
The fundaments of knowledge they did still  
Find joy and pleasure in my gifts, but now  
I see myself compelled to let them go.

*Felicia:*  
That man without thine aid may fire himself  
To rational thought, that have I shown to thee:  
From me a learning streams that shall bear fruit.

*Johannes:*  
This learning shall be wedded to the light,  
Which from this temple's source can fill men's souls.

*Retardus:*  
Capesius, my son, thou art now lost.  
Thou hast withdrawn thyself from my domain  
Before the temple's light can shine for thee.

*Benedictus:*  
He hath begun the path. He feels the light.  
And he will win the strength to search and know  
In his own soul all that, which up till now  
Good Dame Felicia hath produced for him.

*Strader:*  
Then I alone seem lost, for of myself  
I cannot cast all doubts from out my heart;  
And surely I shall never find again  
The way that doth unto the temple lead.

*Theodora:*  
From out thine heart a glow of light spreads forth;  
A human image is now born therefrom;  
And I can hear the words, which do proceed  
From this same human form. E'en thus they sound:  
‘I have achieved the power to reach the light.’  
My friend, trust thou thyself! These very words,  
When thy time is fulfilled, thyself shalt speak.