The Rudolf Steiner Archive

29. The Nature of Egoism (Goethe’s “Wilhelm Meister”)

[ 1 ] One should never confuse things with words, especially with buzzwords. If we regard the enrichment of one’s own self as egoism, we would have to place egoity in the category to which it belongs. [If we strive for the enrichment of our own self, we must first deal with human nature, and here I will begin by discussing the “I,” which can assert itself in various ways within the three human bodies.] I have often spoken to you about our four bodies. The “I” within is simply another name for the self. With its substantiality, it permeates the three bodies, asserting itself within them with varying degrees of power.

[ 2 ] With regard to the physical body, human beings do not have the free will to restrain this “I” that asserts itself within them more strongly than it should. [It is not possible.] Why does it do this? Because at one point in their development, during the Lemurian epoch, human beings were subjected to a certain influence: the Luciferic influence. Human beings are permeated by Luciferic beings. This makes itself felt in all three bodies. [Later, human beings will succeed in influencing all three bodies; for now, they can only influence their astral body—their desires and passions.] You know that human beings are becoming increasingly capable of transforming their bodies. Today, humans have this ability with regard to the astral body. It is more difficult with the etheric body. And with the physical body [they have no influence at all], this lies in the distant future. It will only become possible through the occult development of the breathing process, [in which they develop “Atma” within themselves, which occurs through a special form of breathing]. The part of the etheric body that we transform [develops “Budhi” within itself, and now that we can act upon our astral body, we develop “Manas.” These influences are transformations of the various bodies. The influence exerted at that time by Luciferic beings is referred to as the “serpent,” and through this influence on humanity, the human ego was brought to greater activity.] If today the ego asserts itself more strongly in the physical body than it would have done without the Luciferic influence during the Lemurian epoch—the serpent in Paradise—then there is nothing the human being can do about it. Lucifer simply causes the “I” to exert a more intense influence in the physical body. The first thing that resulted from this was death. Death is the direct consequence of a strengthened “I.” [And death will no longer occur once the influence of the Luciferic beings has been overcome.]

[ 3 ] What would have happened without Lucifer? We need only describe what human beings would be like. They would grow old, but would begin to use their soul forces to soften their muscles and bones, detach parts of themselves, and gradually sweat out material components. This would enable them to attract other matter and rebuild their bodies. There would be a transformation taking place consciously, a beneficial process. [He cannot do this yet, and therefore death occurs to dissolve the matter.] Death has occurred due to the ossification of the skeletal system. [Illness would not exist if the power of the “I” were not working so strongly.] This inability to dissolve one’s own matter—that is death. When the Earth reaches the end of its development, it will undergo a metamorphosis. The situation is different now due to this solidification brought about by Lucifer. Illness arises through his influence. Human beings, in turn, currently have no influence over this. In the processes that should take place—such as dissolution and recomposition—but which now do not unfold in this way, the cause of illness prevails. Daytime thinking is a continuous dissolution of substances in the brain. [At night, the dissolved parts are recomposed by the spiritual world.] The night serves to channel forces from the spiritual world. [Somehow, there must be a balance between breakdown and rebuilding.] The moment there is not as much rebuilding at night as there is breakdown during the day, illness sets in. Illness can only arise when an “I” that asserts itself too strongly is at work within the organism.

[ 4 ] Now, in the etheric body, how does this activity [caused by an “I” that exerts too strong an influence] manifest? It manifests itself through the possibility of error on the one hand and of falsehood on the other. Human beings are subject to error because the “I” is active too strongly in the etheric body and is not in harmony with the external world. Now, what about lying? [When we lie, this thought-form takes shape as a real fact, and what we call an “explosion” in the physical world occurs in the spiritual world.] If the “I” did not merge so completely with the etheric body, human beings would know that whatever is not in accordance with the truth—with reality—brings about destruction, an explosion. We must take these on as part of our karma; they destroy our life path until we have balanced them out again. Those who lie destroy as much in their karma as bomb explosions do in the physical world. Lies and errors are thus caused by the ego asserting itself too strongly in the etheric body.

[ 5 ] When the “I” goes beyond the proper limits of self-assertion, the astral body becomes filled with what is called selfishness or egoism. We must be clear about this when we closely study egoism in the astral body. The astral body consists of the sensory body and the sensory soul. We must distinguish between them precisely. The sensory body is of an astral nature but is formed externally in the human being during the Lunar period. Now, within the sensory body, the substance of the sensory soul is separated out at a subconscious level. The sensory body, as it is in human beings, is perfectly in order. This is why human beings are able to perceive their environment properly. Schopenhauer [held fast only to the idea]: the world as an idea. [He said:] Without an eye, there is no light. But it is also true: Without light, there is no eye. For physical light is entirely permeated by astral light, and that is what the eye has formed [from within the human being]. Thus, it is the astral that draws out the astral in the human being and then sculpts it into shape.

[ 6 ] [First, the astral senses are formed through the inflow of astral substance.] This brings us into harmony with the outside world. If we had only the sensory body, we would be soulless creatures; [we would see with our eyes], but without joy; [the external world would merely be reflected within us]. But now we also have the soul of sensation. In the sensory body, the “I” will be able to be only slightly stronger than would have been the proper measure without the influence of Lucifer. [The influence of the Luciferic beings makes itself felt in the soul of sensation; it does not reach the sensory body.] This has an effect on the soul of sensation. Then disharmony arises. This is egoism. When the “I” constricts the forces of the soul of sensation too strongly, egoism arises. The body of sensation still takes in beautiful impressions, but the soul of sensation cannot take joy in them. The world provides the colors. The soul of sensation is meant to pour itself into what the body of sensation offers. Whoever finds the ability to step outside of themselves to the extent that they embrace the world strengthens their “I.” This egoism is healthy because it is rich in content. All beings should do this.

When the rose adorns itself, it also adorns the garden.

[ 7 ] Schiller says:

Are you searching for the highest, the greatest? The plant can teach you. What it is without will, let you be with will—that’s it!

[ 8 ] Angelus Silesius:

The rose has no reason,
it blooms simply because it blooms;
it pays no heed to itself,
nor does it ask if anyone sees it.

[ 9 ] The person who develops their own abilities as much as possible will serve their fellow human beings the most. Not leaving any of the powers within us undeveloped leads us to salvation. [However, in the endeavor to develop one’s powers as much as possible], there is a danger of falling into destructive selfishness; yet without this, a person could not develop freedom. [And so selfishness can lead one person to salvation and another to ruin.] In the case of a plant, it is ensured that it cannot go beyond a certain limit. When the flower is at its most beautiful, it reveals its very essence. The moment there is a danger of it asserting its “I”—of developing selfhood—the pollen arrives, and the flower must transition into a seed and die. In a certain sense, this law also applies to human beings. Humans, too, experience that when they achieve harmony between the feeling soul and the feeling body, the moment they become hardened—failing to pour themselves out into the world—they wither away. There are people who achieve harmony between what flows into the soul and what they experience. They are then harmonious. This must be the goal of education. [But those in whom the “I” exerts too much influence on the feeling soul, without balance toward the outside—that is, where the inflow and outflow are not harmonious—these wither away.] They are unable to feel anything even in the presence of a work of art. This is the secret of what happens in egoism. People must find the ability to be inspired by the impressions of nature, [to learn to feel something when encountering works of art]. The doctor must put himself in the place of what the soul experiences; [an inner feeling must permeate even the outward movements, for example, during gymnastics]. He must be able to take joy in his surroundings; that is what it means to be a believer in the spirit.

[ 10 ] In other areas, we [must] establish this harmony [for example] in the knowledge [of ourselves]. We must find harmony within our very knowledge. “Know thyself” is often misunderstood. [Bringing our true self into] harmony with our understanding of the world is self-knowledge; it is a step in the education of the human being toward that self-knowledge which is selfless—toward a justified selflessness—so that the self once again pours out into the world. Just don’t brood inwardly! That leads to hardening. Self-knowledge is something that leads us to blossom. Otherwise, we wither away as eccentrics, as pale, envious souls. If we seek God only within ourselves, we place ourselves at odds with the world. If we seek Him in our understanding of the world, [and act outwardly], then there is a restorative balance in our impulses of will. This is an important law regarding what we want. For nothing has an effect as long as it remains within us, but only when it steps out of us. Then it works for our flourishing when it confronts us [from the outside] in the mirror. These are the best conceivable deeds: to project what has been done out into the world. They are what give life. [A person can enrich their ego only as long as the cultivation of their own ego enlivens them.] The best deeds of the egoist, done for their own sake, do not benefit them. The moment egoism exceeds a certain degree, it kills the soul. Many are dissatisfied and desolate; many egoists live in a state of withering. Egoism that overshoots its mark turns against the egoist himself. When a person crosses the line in the development of his ego, he withers. [The egoist lives in a state of withering.] This would be more apparent if a person did not live in an external society. We humans are interconnected, and so it is not the egoist who bears the consequences of his egoism, but someone else must bear them. For the egoist himself, this is expressed only through karma.

[ 11 ] “Wilhelm Meister” addresses the problem of the egoist. What does Wilhelm Meister want? Nothing other than to make his individuality as rich and complete as possible. That is why he leaves his profession for one in which he expects the greatest freedom, so that everything from the outside can influence him. Goethe shows where Wilhelm Meister’s error has led him. He knew that there is a spiritual law. Goethe himself called humanity the “great individual,” and so on. He said: Wilhelm Meister is a rather poor soul. But there is, after all, a guiding force within man that always brings him back to the right path. This is the great law of karma, which does not allow us to do foolish things without doing wise things in the next life. Goethe has been severely criticized for hinting at this secret guiding force. No one can see in another person anything other than what they themselves are. Thus, modern biographers portray Goethe as a philistine—[Engel is a grotesque, outrageous portrayer of Goethe]. In 1780, Goethe became a member of the “Duchess Amalie” Masonic lodge—a symbol of spiritual guidance.

[ 12 ] The best explanation of Hamlet is found in Wilhelm Meister. In Confessions of a Beautiful Soul, Susanne von Klettenberg appears—almost word for word—as a mirror image of her own development. During her illness, Makarie brooded as much as possible over her inner world, but her inner nature seeks the outer world once more within herself, finds communion with divine beings within her own being, and delights in this foretaste of mysticism. She reaches a high level. Her healthy nature pushes beyond this and, [through] a significant event, [comes to ask]: Is God only within? Then her gaze turns toward Palestine, toward Christianity. Christ became human, endured everything even unto death. When she thoroughly understood this, she said: In every flower, the divine reveals itself from within into the world. Now she lives with the event of Golgotha. Susanne von Klettenberg gave Goethe a significant impetus for his inner development. He never stood still.

[ 13 ] The “Apprenticeship Years” were completed under Schiller’s critical guidance. The “Wandering Years” came about under unusual circumstances. It turned out, in fact, that the typesetter could print faster than Goethe could write; and at first [he filled in] with [material he had written earlier: “Saint Joseph,” “A Man of 50,” “Melusine,” and others]. Eventually, he could no longer keep up, so he gave the manuscripts to Eckermann to revise. That is how the “Wandering Years” came into being. But it is worth noting that everything Goethe wrote is full of the highest wisdom [and it is a condensed account of his own development]. Each represents a stage in his own development, a stage in Goethe’s evolution. Thus, life flows like a composition, provided it is received in the right way and can have an effect on the individual. Much has emerged from Goethe’s life journey. Take The Pedagogical Province: The boys have three gestures. [Signs of] insight into the effect of symbols. [These are three religious stages.] The best of the three religious categories: [A gesture upward, downward, and toward one’s peers symbolizes genuine reverence for the Supreme, for those who stand below us, and for our peers.] Goethe calls the first direction of reverence “upward,” the second “toward one’s peers,” and the third “downward.” Even what is beneath us is of divine origin. Then we have reverence [for] religion, because the deity has descended. As the [student] immerses himself in what the gesture signifies, the gesture is meant to draw itself into his soul. The boys are dressed differently. Why? To foster individuality, they should choose their own colors.

[ 14 ] The conclusion shows how the “I” expands to encompass the entire world in Makarie, who intuitively perceives the laws of the stars—she has an astronomer at her side—and derives their measurements from the solar system. Selfless cognition that merges with the world itself—where Goethe subtly depicts the entire emotional life of such clairvoyant beings. The occult view of the world is portrayed in Makarie at the end of Wilhelm Meister, for Goethe seeks to depict the unfolding of the self.

[ 15 ] Thus, in Wilhelm Meister, Goethe depicts the “I” as rising from stage to stage, becoming richer and ever richer as it grows into the problem of the world. In order for the human being not to lead to death, the shell must be torn apart. The work is true and genuine.