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The characteristic of the mineral kingdom is the absence of life

1. Observing the beings of Nature, the naturalists classify them into three kingdoms: mineral, plant and animal. The latter also includes the man, taking into consideration only the physical part, that is, only his material body, which is, effectively, similar to the superior animals. Considered, though, in its integrity, man differentiates from the other beings by his intelligence and rationality. He stands out, so, from the animals by qualities that do not belong the matter and are attributes from the Spirit. There would be, then, in Nature a fourth kingdom: the human.

2. The distinction among the beings of Nature is so intuitive that entered into human grasp. However, observing the simplest beings from the extremes of the three natural series, we are forced to recognize transitional forms so subtle that it is difficult to precise, among them, the exact classification they belong to.   

3. There is, nonetheless, a distinctive character between minerals and other groups, very easy to notice: the absence of life in the minerals and the presence of it in plants and animals. So, another kind of classification is preferred, one that considers on a side, minerals constituting the primitive beings or inorganic beings, and on the other, plants and animals making up the group of living beings or organic beings.  

4. The presence of life is shown in the organic beings by their cellular organization of their bodies and the corresponding appearances of nutritional and reproduction functions. There are many beings formed of only one cell ^[1], like the protophyte, among the plants, and the protozoa, among the animals. In developed beings, the cells are gathered in tissues, the tissues in organs and these in systems. 

The animals show to possess a certain degree of intelligence 

5. Answering the question 585 of The Spirits’ Book, about the division of Nature into three groups, the Spirits said: “They are all good; as to which is best, that depends on your point of view. From the point of view of matter, there are only inorganic and organic beings; from the moral point of view, there are evidently four degrees.”

6. The beings that form the mineral kingdom only manifest a mechanical force, which comes from the matter they are formed of. They lack intelligence and will. Such beings do not even have an instinct, which shows that, if there is in them something different than the matter, this is completely suppressed, numb, in a state of inactivity.  

7. The beings that form the plants, up to a certain point inert and primitive, having neither intelligence nor will, show the inner movement of life and have a complete vital cycle: they are born, grow, eat, develop, reproduce, get old and die. It is that, beyond this dense matter, they have the vital principle, where comes this force which communicates life. These beings do not show, however, any conscience of their existence, feel neither pleasure nor pain, and have no perceptions and feelings. They only have organic life, which is given them by their union with the vital principle.  

8. The beings that form the animal kingdom live like the plants, but they show movements and sensations that plants do not have, being observed, as for the superior animals, their movements are free and they clearly obey their will, which reveals they possess a certain degree of intelligence. It prevails, however, in the animal the instinct – its intelligence is not able to think. 

Free-will is a prerogative of the human species 

9. Man, by his material body, is similar to the animals, but from them he is totally different by his spiritual nature, by his soul, which confers him reasoning and moral sense. The Spirits of High Degree say that it is too long the distance between the soul of man and that of the animals. In the man lies, as the essential being, a conscious Spirit, free and responsible, bound for purity, justice, love and charity. 

10 His body is subject to destruction, like that of the animals; but his spirit has a destiny that he alone can understand, because he alone is completely free. Free-will is a prerogative of the human species. There is, still, another important difference between the animal and the man: after the death of the body, the animal’s soul t preserves its individuality, but not the consciousness of its me. The life of intelligence remains latent in them.  

11. The animal’s soul – teaches the Spiritism – “It is in a sort of erraticity, because it is not united to a body; but it is not an errant spirit. The errant spirit is a being who thinks and acts of his own free-will; but the soul of the animal has not the same faculty, for it is his self-consciousness which is the principal attribute of the spirit”.

12. The soul of the animal is classed after its death, by the spirits charged with that work, and almost immediately utilized; it has not the leisure to enter into connection with other creatures.

[1] The cell is the structural and functional unit of all known living organisms. It is the smallest unit of an organism that is classified as living, and is sometimes called the building block of life. Some organisms, such as most bacteria, are unicellular (consist of a single cell). Other organisms, such as humans, are multicellular. (Humans have an estimated 100 trillion or 1014 cells; a typical cell size is 10 µm; a typical cell mass is 1 nanogram.).

Answer Key

1. The mineral kingdom shows a unique characteristic that stands out from the others. What is it? A.: A distinctive character between minerals and other groups, very easy to notice: the absence of life in the minerals and the presence of it in plants and animals.

2. What are inorganic beings? A.: Another kind of classification is preferred, one that considers on a side, minerals constituting the primitive beings or inorganic beings, and on the other, plants and animals making up the group of living beings or organic beings.

3. Are all organic beings formed of many cells? A.: No. The presence of life is shown in the organic beings by their cellular organization of their bodies and the corresponding appearances of nutritional and reproduction functions. There are many beings formed of only one cell.

4. What is the basic difference between plants and animals? A.: The beings that form the animal kingdom live like the plants, but they show movements and sensations that plants do not have, being observed, as for the superior animals, their movements are free and they clearly obey their will, which reveals they possess a certain degree of intelligence.

5. What special characteristics differentiate the man from the other beings? A.: Man, by his material body, is similar to the animals, but from them he is totally different by his spiritual nature, by his soul, which confers him reasoning and moral sense. The Spirits of High Degree say that it is too long the distance between the soul of man and that of the animals. In the man lies, as the essential being, a conscious Spirit, free and responsible, bound for purity, justice, love and charity.


Bibliography: 

The Spirits’ Book, by Allan Kardec, items 585 - 600.