The Rudolf Steiner Archive

2. Imagination

[ 1 ] It is completely impossible to make real progress in advancing into higher worlds without passing through the stages of imaginative cognition. This is not to say, however, that in the secret training a person must necessarily remain at this stage of imagination for a certain period of time, as if it were a school class that one must sit through. This may be necessary in certain cases, but it is by no means a requirement. It depends entirely on what the secret student has experienced before entering the secret training. It will become apparent in the further course of these discussions that the spiritual environment of the secret student is significant in this regard, and that the relationship to the spiritual environment even gives rise to quite different methods of the “path of knowledge.”

[ 2 ] It can be of extraordinary importance to know the following when one embarks on the path of esoteric training. It should not be regarded merely as an interesting theory, but as something from which one can derive a wide variety of practical insights if one truly wishes to persevere on the “path to higher knowledge.”

[ 3 ] One often hears those who strive for higher development say: “I would like to perfect myself spiritually; I would like to develop ‘the higher human being’ within me,” but I have no desire for the phenomena of the “astral world.” This is understandable when one considers the descriptions of this “astral world” found in books that deal with these matters. There is talk of phenomena and entities that pose all manner of dangers to human beings. It is said that under the influence of such entities, a person can all too easily suffer damage to their moral character and intellectual health. Readers are led to believe that in this realm, the dividing line between “the good and the evil paths” is as thin as a “spider’s web,” and that the fall into immeasurable abysses—the plunge into utter depravity—is all too likely. — It is certainly impossible to simply refute such claims. And yet the stance often taken toward embarking on the secret path is by no means the correct one. Rather, the only possible perspective is simply this: no one should be deterred from walking the path to higher knowledge because of the dangers, but in every case, strict care must be taken to ensure that these dangers can be overcome. In some cases, however, this will lead to a situation where a person who asks a secret teacher for instructions on training is initially advised to wait before beginning this actual training and to first go through certain experiences of ordinary life or learn things that can be learned in the physical world. It will then be the task of the secret teacher to give the seeker the proper guidance to gather such experiences and learn such things. In the vast majority of cases, one will find that the secret teacher proceeds in this way at first. If the student is then sufficiently attentive to what happens to him after he has entered into contact with the secret teacher, he will be able to notice a wide variety of things. He will find that he now has experiences—as if by “chance”—and can observe things to which he certainly would not have been exposed without the connection to the secret teacher. When students often fail to notice this and become impatient, it is simply because they are not paying the necessary attention to their experiences. One must by no means believe that the Secret Teacher’s influence on the student manifests itself in clearly perceptible “magical tricks.” Rather, this influence is a very intimate matter, and anyone who seeks to investigate its nature and essence without having already attained a certain level of secret training will certainly go astray. In any case, the student does himself a disservice if he becomes impatient about being placed in a “waiting period.” This does not in any way hinder the speed of his progress. On the contrary, his progress would actually be slowed down if he were to begin the training—which he often impatiently anticipates—too early.

[ 4 ] If the student allows the “waiting period” or the secret teacher’s other advice and hints to take effect in the proper way, he is in fact preparing himself to withstand certain trials and dangers that will come his way when he faces the stage of imagination, which is unavoidable for him. This stage is inevitable for the reason that anyone who seeks a connection with the higher world without passing through it can do so only unconsciously and is doomed to grope in the dark. One can acquire a vague sense of this higher world without the use of imagination; one can certainly arrive at the feeling, without it, that one is united with “one’s God” or with “one’s higher self,” but one cannot attain true knowledge with full consciousness in bright, luminous clarity in this way. That is why all talk of not needing to engage with the “lower worlds” (the astral and the devachanic), and of the idea that it is merely a matter of a person “awakening the God within,” is nothing more than an illusion. Whoever is content with this should not be dissuaded from their pursuit, and the occultist will not attempt to dissuade such a person either. But true occultism has nothing whatsoever to do with such pursuits. After all, it does not directly call upon anyone to become a disciple. But for those who seek training, it does not merely seek to awaken a vague sense of their “godlikeness,” but rather seeks to open their spiritual eyes to what truly exists in the higher worlds.

[ 5 ] Certainly, the “divine self” is present in every human being. But that is true of every being. The “divine self” is also present and active in stones, plants, and animals. But what matters is not merely feeling and knowing this in a general sense, but truly entering into contact with the manifestations of this “divine self.” Just as one who can only repeat to himself over and over again—that this world contains within itself, veiled, the “divine Self”—knows nothing of the physical world, so too does one who seeks the “divine spiritual realm” only in vague, indefinite generalities know nothing of higher worlds. One should open one’s eyes and behold the revelation of the Divine in the things of the physical world—in stone, in plants—rather than dreaming that all of this is merely “appearances” and that God’s true form lies “hidden” behind them. No, God reveals Himself in His creations, and whoever wishes to know God must learn to recognize the essence of these creations. Therefore, one must also learn to truly perceive what takes place and lives in the higher worlds if one wishes to recognize the “Divine.” The awareness that the “God-man” lives within one can, at most, serve as a starting point. But this starting point, when experienced in the right way, becomes the impetus to truly ascend into the higher worlds. However, this is possible only if one develops the spiritual “senses” within oneself for this purpose. Everything else, after all, merely takes the standpoint: “I want to remain as I am and achieve only what is possible for me to achieve in this way.” The standpoint of occultism, however, is to become a different person, so that one may see and experience things beyond the ordinary.

[ 6 ] And for this, the passage through imaginative knowledge is precisely what is necessary. It has been said that this stage of imagination need not be understood as a school class that one must simply “sit through.” This is to be understood in the sense that, particularly in our present life, there are individuals who possess such prerequisites that the Secret Teacher can evoke in them—simultaneously, or at least almost simultaneously with imaginative knowledge—both inspired and intuitive knowledge. But it must by no means be understood as though there could be anyone who might be spared the process of passing through imagination.

[ 7 ] The root of the danger inherent in imaginative knowledge has already been hinted at in my book How Does One Attain Knowledge of the Higher Worlds?. This danger stems from the fact that, upon entering this world, a person, so to speak, loses the ground beneath their feet. What gives them stability in the physical world seems, at first, to be completely lost to them. When one perceives something in this physical world, one asks oneself: Where does this perception come from? One usually does this unconsciously. But one is, so to speak, “unconsciously” aware that the causes of these perceptions are the objects “out there in space.” Colors, sounds, and smells emanate from these objects. One does not see colors floating freely; one does not hear sounds without being able to become aware of the objects to which these colors “adhere” as properties, or from which the sounds originate. This awareness that objects and entities cause them gives physical perceptions—and thus human beings themselves—stability and a secure foundation. If someone has perceptions without an external cause, one speaks of abnormal, pathological states. Such causeless perceptions are called illusions, hallucinations, and visions.

[ 8 ] Now, viewed purely from the outside, the entire world of the imagination consists of such hallucinations, visions, and illusions. It has been shown in How Does One Attain Knowledge of the Higher Worlds? how such visions, etc., are artificially produced through the secret training. By directing one’s consciousness toward a seed or a dying plant, certain forms are conjured up before the soul, which are, at first, nothing more than hallucinations. The “formation of flames,” which was described there as something that can arise in the soul through the contemplation of a plant or the like—and which, after a time, detaches itself entirely from the plant—is, viewed from the outside, to be regarded as a hallucination. And this continues even further in the secret training when one enters the imaginative world. The things one was accustomed to thinking emanated from objects “out there in space” or “adhered” to them as properties—colors, sounds, smells, and so on—now fill the space, floating freely. Perceptions detach themselves from all external objects and float freely in space or flit about within it. And yet one knows quite precisely that the things one has before oneself did not produce these perceptions, but rather that one has caused them “oneself.” Thus, one is led to believe that one has “lost one’s footing.” In ordinary life in the physical world, one must guard against having ideas that do not originate from things—ideas that are, so to speak, without “ground or foundation.” But to evoke imaginative insight, it is precisely essential to first have colors, sounds, smells, and so on that “float freely in space,” completely detached from all things.

[ 9 ] Now the next stage of imaginative insight must consist in finding a new “foundation” for the ideas that have become adrift. This must take place in the other world, which is now to reveal itself. New things and beings take hold of these ideas. In the physical world, for example, the color blue “adheres” to a cornflower. In the imaginative world, however, it must not remain “floating freely.” It flows toward a being, as it were, and whereas it was previously ownerless, it now becomes the expression of a being. Something speaks through them to the observer, which the observer can perceive only within the imaginative world. And so the “free-floating” mental images gather around certain focal points. And one becomes aware that beings speak to us through them. And just as in the physical world there are physical objects and beings to which colors, smells, and sounds, etc., “adhere” or from which they originate, so now “spiritual beings” express themselves through them. These “spiritual beings” are, in fact, always present; they constantly surround human beings. But they cannot reveal themselves to him unless he provides the opportunity. And he provides this opportunity only by awakening within himself the ability to allow sounds, colors, and so on to arise before his soul even when they are not caused by any physical object.

[ 10 ] The “spiritual facts and entities” are quite different from the things and beings of the physical world. It is not entirely easy to find an expression in everyday language that even approximately characterizes this difference. Perhaps one comes closest to the point by saying: in the imaginative world, everything speaks to the human being as if it were directly intelligent, whereas in the physical world, even intelligence can reveal itself only indirectly through physical corporeality. This is precisely what constitutes the flexibility and freedom of the imaginative world—that the intermediary link of external things is missing, and that the spiritual expresses itself quite directly in the freely floating tones, colors, and so on.

[ 11 ] The reason for the danger that threatens human beings in this world lies in the fact that they perceive the manifestations of “spiritual beings” but not the beings themselves. This remains the case as long as they remain only in the imaginative realm and do not ascend to a higher one. Only inspiration and intuition gradually lead them to these beings themselves. But if the secret teacher were to awaken these beings prematurely, without thoroughly introducing the student to the imaginative realm, then the higher world would take on only a shadowy and ghostly existence. The entire magnificent wealth of images through which they must reveal themselves would be lost if one were to truly enter into them. — This fact explains why the initiate needs a “guide” or a “guru,” as this guide is called in esoteric science.

[ 12 ] For the student, the world of the imagination is, at first, truly nothing more than a “world of images,” the meaning of which he often does not understand. The secret teacher, however, knows to which things and entities these images refer in an even higher world. If the student trusts him, he can be assured that connections will later be revealed to him that he does not yet fully comprehend. In the physical world, the objects in space themselves served as guides. He was able to verify the accuracy of his perceptions. Physical reality is the “rock” against which all hallucinations and illusions must shatter. This rock vanishes into an abyss when one enters the world of imagination. And that is why the “guide” must step in as another such “rock.” Through what the guide is able to offer the student, the latter must perceive the reality of the new world. From this one can gauge how great the trust in the guide must be in any secret training that is truly worthy of the name. For as soon as one can no longer believe in the guide, it is, in this higher world, as if everything upon which one has built one’s belief in the reality of one’s perceptions were suddenly taken away in the physical world.

[ 13 ] In addition to this one fact, there is another that could confuse a person if they were to venture into the world of the imagination without guidance. For the initiate learns, above all, to know themselves through all spiritual beings. In physical life, a person has feelings, desires, wishes, passions, ideas, and so on. Although all of these are triggered by the things and beings of the outer world, a person knows very well that they constitute his inner world, and he distinguishes them—as what takes place within his soul—from the objects of the outer world. But as soon as the imaginative sense is awakened, this ease of distinction ceases entirely. One’s own feelings, imaginations, passions, etc., literally emerge from within, taking on form, color, and tone. One now faces them just as one faces objects and beings that are entirely foreign in the physical world. And one will understand that this confusion can become complete when one recalls what was said in the chapter “On Some Effects of Initiation” in How Does One Attain Knowledge of the Higher Worlds?. For what is described there is nothing other than the way in which the imaginative world appears to the observer. For in that world, everything appears reversed, as in a mirror image. What radiates from the human being appears as if it were approaching him from the outside. A desire he harbors transforms into a figure, for example, in the form of a fantastical-looking animal, or perhaps even a human-like being. This figure seems to beset him, to launch an attack against him, or even to prompt him to do this or that. Thus it can happen that a person feels as though he is surrounded and swarmed by a wholly fantastical world—often alluring and seductive, yet often also gruesome. In truth, this represents nothing other than his own thoughts, desires, and passions, transformed into images. — One would be committing a grave error if one were to believe that distinguishing this self—transformed into images—from the real spiritual world is easy. To begin with, it is virtually impossible for the student to truly make this distinction. For the exact same image could just as easily originate from a spiritual being speaking to the person as from something within the soul itself. And if a person acts hastily in this very situation, they run the risk of never learning to properly distinguish between the two. The utmost caution is required here. — The confusion is only compounded by the fact that the soul’s own desires and cravings clothe themselves in images that bear a character exactly opposite to what they truly are. Take, for example, the vanity that takes on such a guise. It can appear as a charming figure that promises the most wondrous things if one carries out what it suggests. Its suggestions seem to hold out the prospect of something thoroughly good and desirable; yet if one follows them, one plunges oneself into moral or other ruin. Conversely, a good quality of the soul can cloak itself in an unappealing guise. Only the true connoisseur is able to distinguish between them, and only a person whose resolve regarding a true goal cannot be shaken is safe from the seductive arts of the soul’s own images. — In light of all this, one must acknowledge how essential it is to have the guidance of a teacher who, with sound judgment, draws the student’s attention to what is illusion and what is truth in this realm. However, one need not believe that this teacher must always be physically present with the student. Physical presence with the teacher is by no means what is always essential for the secret student. Certainly, there are moments when such physical presence is desirable, and also times when it is absolutely necessary. On the other hand, the secret teacher also finds ways to remain in contact with the student, even when they are physically apart. Furthermore, it is worth considering that much of what takes place between teacher and student in this realm during a meeting can often have a lasting effect for months, perhaps even years. There is, however, one thing that is certain to sever the necessary bond between teacher and student. This occurs when the latter loses trust in the former. — And it is particularly serious when this bond of trust breaks before the student has learned to distinguish the illusions of his own soul from true reality.

[ 14 ] Now one might perhaps say: yes, if such a bond to the teacher arises in this way, then the initiate loses all freedom and independence. He places himself, so to speak, entirely in the teacher’s hands. Yet in truth, this is not the case at all. Admittedly, there are differences regarding dependence on the teacher in the various methods of occult training. This dependence may be greater or lesser. It is relatively greatest in the method followed by the occultists of the East and still taught by them today as their own. To a much lesser extent, this dependence on a human being is already present in the so-called Christian initiation. And it actually ceases entirely on the path of knowledge that has been taught since the fourteenth century by the so-called secret schools of the Rosicrucians. In this path, the teacher cannot be dispensed with, for that is impossible. But any dependence on him truly ceases. How this is possible will become clear in the continuation of this exposition. For in it, the differences between these three “paths of knowledge”—the Eastern, the Christian, and the Rosicrucian—will be described in detail. In the latter, indeed, nothing comes into consideration that could in any way disturb a modern person’s sense of freedom. This continuation will also describe how one person or another, as a secret student, might come to follow—even today, in modern Europe—not the Rosicrucian path, but the Eastern or the older Christian one, even though the Rosicrucian path is currently the most natural. As will become clear later on, this path is by no means unchristian. A person can follow it without jeopardizing their Christianity, and it can also be followed by someone who believes they stand at the very pinnacle of the modern scientific worldview.

[ 15 ] Another point, however, might still require explanation. One might be tempted to ask whether the initiate could not be spared the task of sifting through the illusions of his own soul. If that were the case, he would never arrive at the independent discernment that is so desirable for him. For nothing can make the wholly unique nature of the imaginative world more vivid than the contemplation of one’s own soul. After all, a person initially knows the inner life of his soul from only one side. He is, in fact, right in the midst of it. And this is precisely what the secret student must learn: not only to view things from the outside, but to observe them as if he were immersed within them all. When his own world of thoughts now confronts him as something foreign, he thereby learns to know something—which he already knows from one side—from the other side as well. He must, so to speak, become the first example of such insight for himself. In the physical world, he is, after all, accustomed to something entirely different. There, he always perceives all other things only from the outside, but he experiences himself only from the inside. As long as he remains in the physical world, he can never see beyond the surface of things. And he can never step outside of himself—as it were, “step out of his own skin”—to observe himself from the outside. The latter is literally his first task in the secret training, and with its help he then learns to look beyond the surface of external facts and entities as well.