The Rudolf Steiner Archive

53. The Three Pre-Christian and the Three Post-Christian Millennia

Member Presentation

[ 1 ] It might seem to the serious seeker of truth—and—though, strictly speaking, a certain satisfaction is lacking within the [illegible abbreviation, then gap]—it might seem to the serious seeker of truth as if it were possible to record and proclaim the truth, knowledge, once and for all in a certain way, and thus give it to humanity; and on the other hand, it might seem as if it would be enough for a person to acquire this knowledge once and then possess it.

[ 2 ] One may well say that, from the very beginning of any line of thought, nothing seems more self-evident than this; and yet, it would be a mistake to believe that the mere possession of a certain number of words could suffice for human endeavor. If someone who is incarnated today had, let us say, in one of their previous incarnations—perhaps within ancient Egyptian culture—attained high insights and were to recall those insights today, so that they might possess them once more, could we then say that the insights attained at that time would already be beneficial in the present incarnation simply through the act of remembering? — We cannot say that. As strange as this may seem in light of the statement “there is, after all, only one truth,” we must nevertheless say: For human development, it is absolutely necessary that, in different eras, different forms of truth reach the human being, for human nature changes over the course of time. It changes in such a way that the powers of cognition also change. Human beings do not pass from incarnation to incarnation in vain; they progress from one embodiment to the next because, as the world changes, they can take something new into themselves and transform the old into a new form.

[ 3 ] Therefore, it has always been necessary for people in the Mysteries to work their way up to such a higher level of knowledge that they were able to assess how the entire Earth, with all its physical and spiritual aspects, has changed compared to earlier times, and how human souls are changing within the course of this earthly evolution. In occult wisdom, this is expressed with the words: There have always had to be people who were able to read the signs of the times.

[ 4 ] Well, what is particularly necessary to teach people, to proclaim, so that they may recognize this necessity? All of this becomes clear only when one is able to fully grasp the overall situation of development at any given time. Times change, and in fact they change over shorter periods than is commonly assumed. If we consider the development of humanity, we will have to admit that the periods of interest to people today are those occurring roughly three millennia before the founding of Christianity and after the founding of Christianity—the first and second millennia before and after [gap]. We ourselves are at the end of the second millennium of the Christian era, and the third is approaching.

[ 5 ] These six millennia, into which we have been placed in such a peculiar way, are of very special importance. What is beneficial for human beings? What should the [soul] allow to have a particular effect on itself? Much is encompassed in the development of humanity during these millennia. Our souls, which have been incarnated several times during this period, must have gone through significant experiences during these eras, and these eras will now be characterized to some extent.

[ 6 ] [If we go] back to the third millennium before the founding of Christianity, this is the time when the Little Kali Yuga, the Dark Age, had just begun for humankind. How does humanity of this age present itself? [Gap] So that we can say: Before that, the last remnants of the old, twilight-like clairvoyance were still present for a large number of people. They could see not only the physical world, but [through it] into the spiritual world. They could delve down into the soul and find a spiritual foundation there. They could reach this in two ways. Behind the veil of the senses, they saw the creative, guiding spiritual beings who had not descended into an earthly incarnation. They knew—just as we know that there is earth, air, and water—that there are spiritual hierarchies. And on the other hand, when they ascended into the physical world of feeling, willing, and thinking, they discovered the spiritual foundations through a second path,

[ 7 ] This came to an end before the beginning of the third millennium. By then, human beings were increasingly compelled to turn their gaze toward the physical, sensory world. Whereas they had previously directed their mystical gaze inward toward their world of feeling and will, they now said, “I will, I think, I feel,” and could no longer perceive, beyond pure human thinking, feeling, and willing, the spiritual realm from which everything—and they themselves—originate.

[ 8 ] But the course of world history has followed such a peculiarly steady course; to the deeper observer, it proves to be permeated with wisdom everywhere. On the other hand, humanity was given what had been taken from it on the one hand, namely, to find the way back into the spiritual world by applying in the right way what was given to [humanity] in the sensory world.

[ 9 ] How did this happen? What was actually given to human beings as a result of their being driven out of the spiritual world? — They were given self-consciousness. Precisely in the most important states of those times, he lacked self-awareness; it came to him only when he looked into the sensory world, but it was completely silent both in those moments when he could perceive the spiritual through the outer tapestry of the senses—everyone was then completely enraptured, in ecstasy.

[ 10 ] This was granted to the initiated, especially in the northern lands. In ancient times, we find initiation sites stretching from Britain to Russia and Persia—in the west, the sites of the Druids; in the east, those of the Trotten. There they had the opportunity to enter a state of ecstasy, where they were transported yet felt themselves to be part of the whole world. They were guided to participate in the movements of, for example, the world of the stars. [It was] not the case that people were confined to the narrowest circle of earthly existence; they shared in the great events of the world. The sun is in a different position around our Christmas season. The sun withdraws a certain portion of its forces from earthly existence. What modern people now perceive only faintly when autumn arrives—when vegetation withers away, the melancholy of autumn—was heightened in those people to an immensely intense sensation, so that they shared in what the sun experienced, right down to the sun’s lowest point.

[ 11 ] All of this was experienced by the soul not merely as a concept, but as a deep sense of empathy. When this melancholy reached its peak, it was, so to speak, given a substitute; the soul learned to feel. The external sensory world offered nothing joyful, but rather something like a counterforce—like an elastic ball that, when compressed on one side, expands—and then this soul experienced something; thereafter, the soul gained insight into the forces underlying the world. The spiritual senses opened up; human beings were devoted to the spirit of the sun. They looked into—or at least sensed—the hierarchies of existence. And when the sun then sent more power to the earth once again, human beings lived with [gap]. The sun had a certain symbolic significance, and in the temples, one could observe the shadow cast by the sun and witness how the sun works, so that the service of the spirit was one that integrated itself into the service of nature. Humanity lived in harmony with this as the days once again made it possible for them to direct their gaze back toward the sensory world. They experienced this with exultant joy until those days when the sun shone most strongly upon them.

[ 12 ] Two moments in the course of the year: first, when he was wholly absorbed in the spiritual in a state of ecstasy; second, when he was jubilantly absorbed in the external world; people were instructed in this at the Nordic mystery sites. At one point, he no longer felt the seeds of the “I”; he was as if poured out into the whole world.

[ 13 ] It became increasingly difficult for human beings to put themselves in this state of mind. But something else was given to them. They were now able to place their sense of self more and more firmly within their “I”; ecstasy was taken away, and the “I” was strengthened. The way was prepared for humanity for the moment when that Being would come—a Being who could not approach humanity in a state of ecstasy, but who could enter into the very depths of the human soul. The Christ Being took on such a form that human beings could feel within their “I” as if they could pour that Being into their “I.” Previously, they were outside themselves, outside the world from which they had been taken. Through the appearance of Christ, it was to be made possible for human beings [gap]. When I relive what Christ experienced, I experience something divine within myself. This could be prepared. It was prepared over the three millennia preceding the founding of Christianity. There Abraham comes to meet us. He had his mission /[gap?]]. He first ascended with his “I” to the Deity who wished to descend. The divinity could only be fully recognized after it had descended. This was usually accomplished by selecting, from among all of humanity, that physical individual who was capable of seeing God not in ecstasy and not by [immersing himself] in the human inner being, but who, through his intelligence, [was able] to see God with a degree of clairvoyance. He possessed the physical instrument in his brain that enabled him, with the aid of this physical instrument, to synthesize the external physical conditions; and in this synthesis he understood: Underlying the entire world is something that underlies the human “I.” As the World “I,” Abraham was the first to recognize the deity. This ability was bound to physical embodiment. In earlier times, it was not bound to the physical instrument; rather, human beings had to arrive at a perception free from the body. That was Abraham’s special mission. [His era was the third millennium B.C.] The knowledge of God was grasped right down into the physical realm of the brain. In all ancient times, knowledge of God and the spirit was bound up with transcending the physical. With Abraham, a personality first emerged who was able to attain knowledge of God through the physical brain. He was able to instill this in the development of humanity.

[ 14 ] This is expressed in the documents in such a profound tone that one cannot help but be filled with wonder and admiration. For example, we are told that Joseph began to have dreams. This is meant to suggest that he had strayed from the norm; after all, they were not supposed to have visions through dream-like clairvoyance. It was present in him as an inheritance; thus, he could not be utilized in the direct line of development and was therefore cast out by his brothers. Such an ability—to see with the physical brain—could only be passed on through physical heredity, since it was a physical ability.

[ 15 ] The people entrusted with this mission had to realize that it was precisely this physical characteristic that was a gift from God. It was shown to those who were to receive this mission [in this way]: by demonstrating to them that it was a gift from God, through Abraham being commanded to sacrifice Isaac. In doing so, he would have sacrificed the entire people, for the entire Hebrew people were to descend from him. By having Isaac returned to him, he was given the opportunity to pass on this physical characteristic. The mission came to the people as a gift. These things are depicted with such depth in the occult records. If we go back to the first millennium of the Kali Yuga, we find the event through which humanity was given the sense of self for clairvoyance.

[ 16 ] But all of this had to be taken to the next level. The next step was taken in the second millennium of the Dark Age, in that—through special developmental processes—the one who had become capable of perceiving the outer God through the mission derived from the inherited characteristics of external nature—Moses was able to perceive the “I-God,” whom human beings perceive, within his own “I,” [directly perceiving Him in the elemental events of the world]. That [second millennium of the Dark Age before Christ—beginning of the Dark Age, the great Kali Yuga 3101 B.C., ending in 1899 A.D.—] is the Age of Moses, when the I-God is perceived in nature.

[ 17 ] Third Millennium — [the first millennium B.C.]: At the end comes the revelation of that very same Being, the Being who restored Isaac and who appeared in the burning bush; this Being now incarnated in human form. Humanity was to be prepared [for this] by those leaders associated with the name of Solomon, so that it might comprehend this event within itself. His wisdom was meant to serve, in the last millennium, to enable humanity to understand how this Being incarnated as a human being. Thus, in occult wisdom, we call this millennium the Solomonic.

[ 18 ] We have outlined these three ages as the first three in the Dark Age. Then come ages that one can [only] understand if one is familiar with a certain law of human development. Events that occurred in the past repeat themselves in a certain way, but one must know how. Some events repeat themselves as follows: 1, 2, 3, then 3, 2, 1. [Only] then can one understand [them] if one knows exactly how they repeat themselves. We must not apply any fixed pattern, for it is precisely this diversity—that the repetition is different—that gives rise to variety. The repetition of the first three ages occurred in reverse order; for those who could assess the entire world situation, [this was clear: they] knew that the first age following the founding of Christianity was a repetition of the Solomonic age. It was also a reincarnation of Solomon: the entire spirit that flowed from Solomon’s wisdom governs the understanding that is gradually developing for the Christ impulse.

[ 19 ] In the Second Millennium: The Moses Impulse—Conversely, the event at Sinai did in fact repeat itself. When Moses perceived the I-Deity in the burning bush, it was a perception of the Deity from the outside through the elements of nature. The reverse event took place in the second millennium. It consisted of the “I-Divinity” now announcing itself through a deep insight into the soul. In the mysteries of the Middle Ages, there lived individuals who were able to experience this by delving into the soul. A reverse Moses experience: The “I”-Divinity reveals itself to Christian mystics within their own souls. Now the Divinity radiates from the soul. Just as Moses had a kind of kindred spirit, so too did he have the other mystics as kindred spirits.

[ 20 ] We live in a special age in which [one] sees the end of the second millennium approaching. The third millennium will herald a repetition of the Abrahamic era—very slowly and gradually—but it will be characterized by the fact that the Abrahamic event will occur in reverse. What was once found only in ecstasy was experienced by Abraham as self-awareness. Human beings will have to acquire the ancient clairvoyant abilities in addition to these capabilities. Through Abraham’s mission, that which was formerly experienced directly has flowed into the brain. Human beings will have to step outside the immediate sphere of their consciousness—while preserving this consciousness—toward a spiritual knowledge involving powers bound to the physical body.

[ 21 ] In a certain sense, the realization of the third millennium is brought about by the fact that we ourselves are now living in a significant era. The Kali Yuga ended in 1899. We are now moving toward the development of entirely new abilities.

[ 22 ] Humanity is moving in two currents. One flows through the mysteries—not the ancient ones, but the present-day ones. Through this current, human beings must acquire and develop the abilities necessary for clairvoyant perception. Humanity cannot exist without this path, because without it, no orientation would be possible. Alongside this runs another current, within which humanity changes in a natural way.

[ 23 ] One must certainly take into account that these two currents exist. All souls who are here today also existed in the past. When a soul entered into existence through birth in ancient Egypt, it experienced something very specific and had to experience something specific. One cannot relive in a later age what one should have experienced in the past.

[ 24 ] You will say: That is terribly discouraging. What has been missed would be irretrievably lost. Now that one has come to this realization, it is no longer possible to change anything. — This is so because, throughout all their previous incarnations, human beings were actually not in a position to miss out on anything. Only now is this era beginning; in the past, human beings were guided by the spiritual world. In the ages that preceded the Kali Yuga, the old impulses were still at work. Now [human beings] are becoming free; they must take charge of [their] own development; in the age when it first becomes possible for human beings to miss out on something, care is also taken to ensure that they become aware that they must not miss out on anything. With each incarnation, human beings become increasingly free. One experiences two to three incarnations during such a time, and only by the fifth is the point reached where what has been missed is irretrievably lost. Anyone who cannot approach Theosophy today without attaining a certain level of consciousness will be able to receive it in their next or the one after that incarnation. An example that shows how true it is that it is not enough to communicate general truths, but that individuals capable of assessing the entire situation are necessary. — They know that a new era is now beginning, one that will bring salvation and further development to humanity. For every era, it is necessary to find the appropriate form of expression. We must yet recognize how these human abilities will continue to develop. These abilities, into which people will grow, will be found in the fact that people will develop new abilities alongside the old soul abilities—namely, etheric clairvoyance. A certain number of people will walk the Earth, [and be able], through natural development, to see not only the physical body but also the etheric body. This ability waned with the advent of Kali Yuga. It is beginning again.

[ 25 ] Second[ly] /?}: Once people have acquired a sufficient understanding, they will be able to judge at the right time what is really happening. They will know how to interpret it when someone says they see something that penetrates the physical body. We practice Theosophy because we feel a responsibility to make this understandable to people. It could also be that people remain stuck in the quagmire of materialism; if that were to happen, those who perceive such things would be regarded as sick. They will be trampled underfoot by the materialistic worldview.

[ 26 ] The prophecy will be wrong if these abilities are not taken into account. It depends on people how they can receive and understand an event once they acquire an understanding of the experience that is still developing in the first half of our century as a natural human characteristic. The first foundations of initiation will develop naturally. The first people to receive this without initiation will emerge between 1930, 1940, and 1950. This is how progress manifests itself. For those who cannot yet experience this at such an early time, the opportunity to attain it will arise over the next 2,500 years. During this time, a sufficiently large number—if humanity proves itself worthy—will have acquired this ability. It makes no difference whether one is living in the life between birth and death or in the time between death and a new birth. For this event signifies something very important. People will experience a renewal of the Damascus event, and more and more will experience it over the next 2,500 years. In the beginning, the Christ was physically incarnated; now human capacities are rising, and people can perceive the Christ with more highly developed faculties. Once the Christ was physically incarnated; since that time, the initiate has seen him in his etheric body. When this event occurs—when the Christ’s light shines into our Earth [begins], then this signifies not only something for the time between birth and death; rather, just as Christ once descended to the souls who were between death and a new birth, so too does the event we call the Christ event of the 20th century extend—He will descend to those who have acquired an understanding of it in the physical world.

[ 27 ] If a person has passed by without understanding, they do not carry with them the ability to understand Christ, and they must wait until they can prepare themselves in a new incarnation. This understanding must be gained here. Life here is important.

[ 28 ] This understanding is, so to speak, the last thing we must assimilate from the Kali Yuga era through our minds. It will be a peculiar moment when the reappearance of Christ occurs in the 20th century. The external Christian documents are gradually disappearing from people’s lives. Efforts are being made from all sides to pick apart these texts and to deny the existence of Christ altogether. Those who believe they can preserve the old ways are short-sighted. With tremendous speed, the view that the [truth of] the Gospels cannot be established [gap] will spread among so-called enlightened humanity. Those who resist this, who say, “Let humanity remain with theosophy [gap?], are as short-sighted as can be.

[ 29 ] When the crisis has reached its peak, the Christ will be present before humanity. Then there will be no documents [for] them, nor will they be necessary anymore. Just as many things were once unbelievable, so too will people become; just as many things became believable through observation, so too will people—without historical records—know what Christ is, perceiving him through clairvoyance. Theosophists will be put to the test in this age. It will be the case that in the coming decades, simply everything will be proclaimed, and the materialists will be unable to believe anything else. [2 blank pages] It must be a sensory perception. Belief in a physical return will take hold. Will they be ready to believe in the spiritual, or will they believe it only when it appears before them in physical form? A number of people will embrace the belief in the return of Christ and present themselves to the world as false messiahs.

[ 30 ] Humanity must now be able to consciously take control of its own development. There have often been false messiahs in the past, and people believed in them all. Back then, this happened without causing any particular harm to humanity, because people did not yet hold their own destiny in their hands. Now they must learn to distinguish reality from maya.

[ 31 ] The age in which the Christ will appear as an etheric being is the time when the first etheric clairvoyance manifests itself and /Stenogram breaks off.]