The Cycle of Self

The Cycle of Self is the belief that people have always existed, and simply came from somewhere else, with the Self being the most perfect definition of who a person is.
The first step of the Cycle of Self is the Shard, where every Self begins. Shards are created by the meeting of Arcen and Adall, chaos and order, and they reside on the fringes of Yonvri; Shards can remain in this state for hundreds of millions of years before ascending. Shards have no physical attributes, no emotions, and no thoughts.
The second step of the Cycle of Self is the Shade. Shades are created when Yonvri gives a piece of Herself to the Shard, allowing it existence, and Adall places the Shard into an ordered appearance- a simple creature He has already created which simply lives, gains energy, procreates, and dies; Shades can go through thousands of creatures of this sort before ascending. Shades assimilate the general physical appearance and develop basic instincts related to the creature they are part of.
The third step of the Cycle of Self is the Shadow. Shadows are created when the creature that held the Shade dies, and Adall chooses to place the now cultivated Shade into a sentient creature- a creature which can experience the world; Shadows can go through between one and thirty of these creatures before ascending. Shadows develop advanced instincts and emotions related to the creature they are part of, and contribute their physical attributes and base instincts.
The fourth step of the Cycle of Self is the Spirit. Spirits are created when the creature that held the Shadow dies, and Adall chooses to place the developed Shadow into a sapient creature- a creature which can reason to an extent that they can suppress instincts and surpass barriers caused by their physical make up; Spirits typically only go through one of these creatures before ascending, however there are exceptions. Spirits develop logic and reasoning related to the creature they are a part of, and contribute physical and emotional predispositions as well as instincts gained from the previous two stages.
The fifth and final step of the Cycle of Self is the Self; the final stage where all the previous stages are fully combined- allowing their experiences (or non-experiences) to intermingle and the Self to be aware of its history and final capacity.