The Rudolf Steiner Archive

30. Health Issues in the Light of the Humanities

[ 1 ] When the term “health issues” is mentioned, many of our contemporaries may well reflect on how—particularly in light of the realities of life and the challenges it presents, to which this term alludes—our views and opinions influence our daily lives, life in general, and our overall well-being and suffering; when the term “health issues” is mentioned, however, we should recall in particular a feeling that lies dormant, more or less consciously or unconsciously, in every human soul: the fact that people rightly regard health as a precious asset in this physical life.

[ 1 ] When the term “health issues” is mentioned, many of our contemporaries may well reflect on how—particularly in light of the realities of life and the challenges it presents, to which this term alludes—our views and opinions influence our daily lives, life in general, and our overall well-being and suffering; when the term “health issues” is mentioned, however, we should recall in particular a feeling that lies dormant, more or less consciously or unconsciously, in every human soul: the fact that people rightly regard health as a precious asset in this physical life.

[ 3 ] What the word “health” encompasses is truly connected, directly or indirectly, to our highest purpose and to our goals as human beings. Therefore, it may well weigh heavily on some who reflect on how health and illness are, in a certain sense, viewed differently and in ever-changing ways, depending on how human perspectives and opinions shift; and those who are attentive observers of life in its depths may well have witnessed many changes in this regard, particularly in recent decades.

[ 4 ] That which underlies all endeavors concerning health and illness, concerning the healing of human beings—that, in turn, is nothing other than what we must call the science of life, the knowledge of life. What changes have taken place in our understanding of life over the past few decades—changes far greater than is generally assumed! It could be very revealing to the observer of life to consider the way in which, from the scientific foundation—from the scientific understanding of the world—arise the currents that lead to this or that view of illness and health, and to compare these currents and this foundation [with those] of 20 or 30, or 40 years ago—how it was then and how it appears to us today.

[ 5 ] What has often been emphasized here in relation to many other fields—namely, that our age has taken a significant, momentous step toward materialism—can be observed in particular in the field to which our discussion today is devoted.

[ 6 ] Anyone who is able to look back on the scientific foundation of knowledge underlying the subject of our current discussion—as it took shape 20, 30, or 40 years ago—might, if they happened to encounter this phenomenon, come to regard it as a venerable figure. I myself once encountered this venerable figure, and since he seems to me to be symptomatic of the changes that have taken place over the course of the last few decades, I feel justified in drawing on the distinctive character of this figure.

[ 7 ] Anyone who had the opportunity to study in Vienna quite some time ago could have become acquainted there with the scientific foundations of our current field of study at the Medical Faculty in Vienna; they would have met the anatomist Hyrtl, who was famous and highly influential at the time—the man who laid the groundwork for hundreds upon hundreds of young doctors, the foundation that every doctor needs—the anatomical fundamentals... When he stood before his audience and reconstructed the human being from the components of the human organism—which, for scientific analysis, seemed to be expressed in the driest of terms—when he reconstructed the human being from the anatomical parts, then, listening to him, one had the feeling that behind this description, this explanation of the structure of the human organism, something else was still alive—something born of a deep understanding of the spiritual, which builds the marvelous edifice of the human organism... there was simply something... a... in Hyrtl’s exposition, one encountered something that can only be expressed this way: Just as creative nature itself—just as the spirit of nature causes the entire structure of the human organism to spring forth from the individual parts—so did this human organism take shape anatomically before the listeners.

[ 8 ] Those of you who have frequently attended these lectures here know that spiritual science tells us that what is called external, physical corporeality—that which the eyes see, the hands grasp, and the ears and lower senses of human beings can perceive—is only a part of the human being, merely the outer, sensory part; that everything which external science can provide can, in essence, deal only with this outer aspect—you also know that, for those who can observe human beings with higher faculties, the very first higher aspect of human nature that truly and really lives is what we in spiritual science call the etheric or life body: the mysterious architect who is present and who builds up this human organism.

[ 9 ] This etheric or life body is something that, while it cannot be seen by the outer physical eye, can be perceived—as a fact just as real as the external sensory facts perceived by the outer eye—by the seer’s open “spiritual eye.”

[ 10 ] One might say: Hyrtl stood there as a chaste scientist, as a chaste physician; he said nothing about this etheric or life body, but the way he spoke of it,

[ 11 ] As one thing developed from another, it was as if that principle of the living body were alive in his words; and this was enough; it had an immensely stimulating effect, influencing his listeners in such a way that something came alive within them from the mysterious depths of the whole of human nature, that something was kindled within them from that striving which seeks to grasp human beings ever more deeply and does not remain on the surface ...

[ 12 ] It soon became clear that the days when this scientific foundation was viewed in this way were coming to an end...

[ 13 ] Let me say this right away: It was not simply because Hyrtl was some kind of exceptional genius, but because he had come of age in a time that, if not exactly possessing knowledge of the spiritual world, at least had a sense of that spiritual world. Anyone who observes life knows that today everything is composed of parts, that such a conception simply no longer exists in wide circles of science... therefore we must emphasize all the more that it is precisely spiritual science that, in turn, looks to the whole, to the spiritual and living reality behind the sensible world; that it, in turn, has the calling to enrich and illuminate that which, in the external, sensible realm, can be offered precisely for the horizons that interest us today, for in the external, sensory realm, our admirable science is indeed accomplishing the most extraordinary feats... for there is no lack of individual research, nor is there a lack of methods through which one can gain insight into the individual external facts of natural existence and its interrelationships...

[ 14 ] But what the spiritual science will have to contribute to this specific research ... that is the overarching spirit of the matter ...

[ 15 ] Well, Hyrtl, whom we just mentioned, made a curious statement—one that can serve as our guiding principle today and from which we can proceed. It may sound strange to many today, and yet it was made by a brilliant anatomist and physician:

Only a doctor can diagnose illnesses, but anyone who knows how to help can heal them.

[ 16 ] A seemingly rather strange statement; well, let's see how spiritual science might approach this ...

[ 17 ] Above all, we must agree on one thing, for given the brevity that today’s lecture must have—its subject matter could span 20 to 40 lectures without exhausting the topic—it is necessary that what is said be understood in such a way that one recognizes the mindset from which it is spoken. This attitude is, in essence, the same one that underlies all spiritual science; it can be briefly characterized by saying: Spiritual science does not have the task of proving one political faction or another right; it must stand on a higher vantage point and, precisely because it looks into the depths of existence and life, gain a perspective that can have a unifying effect... Anyone who takes a broad view of life knows that the political factions fighting it out on the … are generally not such that one can say one is absolutely right and the other wrong …

[ 18 ] As a general rule, one must say: Those who fight under a slogan, who carry a banner, have formed their views and opinions within very specific social circles; these social circles have, so to speak, had a suggestive influence on them, and they are really only saying what one can quite naturally derive from their social circle as a one-sided outlook on life ...

[ 19 ] Theosophy, however, is not meant to advocate for this or that approach, not even in the area that interests us today—the area of illness, health, and healing methods... It is perhaps precisely the scholar of spiritual sciences who might easily feel tempted to advocate for one thing or another... for in how many factional divisions do we see today that very field fragmented—the field in which the human heart perhaps most longs to sense a sense of unity.

[ 20 ] Theosophy has the task of stating what is, how things are in life ... and then the theosophist has confidence that when a person knows, through his own insight, what is, he will then come to realize on his own what he ought to do. A viewpoint has not yet become theosophical if it steps forward and says: “I also want to persuade others that this or that should be done, and not ...”

[ 21 ] Theosophy or spiritual science should never be concerned with the concept of “ought” or with making demands; it should objectively describe what is, and trust that when people know what is, they will find the guiding principle for their “ought” within their own souls ...

[ 22 ] Well, who could deny that we are confronted with the most diverse, the most varied, and the seemingly most contradictory political factions precisely in the field of health issues... and with what persuasiveness and vehemence do both sides fight for their own convictions, and with what bitterness do they combat the opposing views! And let it also be stated at the outset that Theosophy, in particular, will never wish to do anything that is absolutely opposed to the sciences or to true scientific endeavor. To put it bluntly: spiritual science or Theosophy must not indulge in amateurism, especially in this field; it would prefer nothing more than to work harmoniously with precisely those who at least have the opportunity to be experts in this field ...

[ 23 ] Of course, it is not possible to list all the different schools of thought in this field here, but even if that is not possible, we should at least outline the basic characteristics of some of them. First, we have allopathic medicine—the very approach that is so fiercely opposed by so-called naturopathy and what is known as homeopathy... There is much more that could be said, but we must sketch out the broad outlines... For now, let us not focus so much on what the concepts of spiritual science might contribute, but rather on what is said—in popular or scientific terms, so to speak—to characterize the various schools of thought. We hear that the medical approach is based on the assumption that there are indeed diseases—impairments of health—and that there are indeed specific remedies from certain realms of nature that, in a certain way, counteract specific impairments, which we call diseases; this remedy is prescribed for one disease, that one for another, and science works diligently and conscientiously to find, through experience in the sensory realm, the specific remedies for this or that form of disease ...

[ 24 ] Of course, we cannot go into detail here; as mentioned, we will merely point out the key features. But now we hear from many others who adhere to the so-called naturopathic approach that everything the so-called allopathic approach claims is, in essence, based on a mistake ... For it takes too little account of the deeper causes of the disease; it focuses on the way the disease manifests itself, but one must go deeper, assuming that the causes lie deeper, that where a form of illness occurs, there are underlying disturbances in the organism that can only be remedied by intervening in this organism in the same way that nature itself would intervene if it were directing and guiding the organism in a completely normal manner.

[ 25 ] We hear there that, above all, the focus should not be so much on combating individual diseases, but rather on investigating those activities within the organism—those functions—that have been compromised and as a result of which the disease arises, and which, in turn, must be brought back on the right track through appropriate measures; and now various methods of healing are suggested, various physical and other remedies... .

[ 26 ] Above all, what is being contested here is the specific remedy that, based on experience, is used to treat this or that disease. The battle rages bitterly from one side to the other...

[ 27 ] Now let us briefly characterize—regardless of what one person or another, or even I myself, may think about it—how, for example, the homeopathic method of healing, in turn, conceives of its main principles; it states: In what first presents itself to us in the disease, we do not find what is initially regarded as the damage, as something unhealthy; rather, in the symptoms that present themselves to us, we find a kind of force that is mobilized within the organism to combat the actual damage, which lies deeper. Thus, in what presents itself to us as a symptom of the disease, we have something that the organism deploys to eliminate the actual, deeper-seated damage. We must therefore pay attention to what specifically triggers the very symptoms that manifest in the disease; we must investigate which remedy we can find in the natural kingdoms that, in a healthy person, produces precisely the symptoms we observe in the sick person. We then support what nature has set in motion ...

[ 28 ] What appears to us as a disease has been initiated by nature, and we should assist nature by using remedies that produce the same symptoms in healthy people, in order to support the fight against the actual damage.

[ 29 ] One might say that with all these ideological nuances—as far as the theories are concerned, at least, and in terms of what is presented as the logical foundation—one might say, one can go a long, long way with any of them, and one soon realizes—if one looks a little deeper into the matter—how little merit the objections raised by the respective opponents actually have; and in fact, we can say that in all these areas, the proponents do present substantial arguments in support of their convictions. Or is it not true that today, scientific medicine points to the great successes—particularly in public health care—through easily compiled statistics, such as the improvement in health standards in cities under the influence of precisely this medical approach... and how it is then pointed out what benefits have been achieved in this regard through the research into many specific remedies in recent decades... Great successes can be pointed to; those who would compare health conditions in cities a century ago with those of today would be unjust if they failed to acknowledge what medical science has accomplished here. On the other hand, however, we hear—and we must certainly admit—that even though these conditions have improved, it cannot be denied that certain forms of illness—heart disease, nervous disorders, and the like—are increasing at an alarming rate... and this, too, must be acknowledged...

[ 30 ] And isn't it true that even the layperson sometimes says this or that—that while it is true in a certain sense that many conditions have improved, there are nonetheless various troubling social consequences ...

[ 31 ] Just consider, for example, that in the case of a disease that was only discovered relatively recently—tetanus—reference is made to a pathogen that can, as is rightly pointed out, be carried by people who remain healthy, causing others to become ill ...

[ 32 ] ... Where would one end up ...

[ 33 ] For example, it is entirely possible—and in fact has happened—that entire schools have been infected with one contagious disease or another, and it has turned out that teachers who remained completely healthy were the carriers of the germs; they themselves were not affected by the disease. What tyranny would result if one were to base dogmatic legislation on such cases?

[ 34 ] ...How does what one might call the fear of disease—the fear of the mysterious sources of disease—grow through a way of thinking that can so easily be grounded in such indisputable experiments ...

[ 35 ] You really have to be a party man if you want to use certain catchphrases to fight this or that ...

[ 36 ] Some buzzwords in naturopathy, for example, suggest that all specific remedies must be eliminated, as if one could only address the root causes of disease and support bodily functions through physical or other methods... One buzzword comes up again and again: poison; all specific remedies are poisons, but a poison can under no circumstances be of any benefit. —And one can observe how the word “poison” sometimes exerts an immense suggestive influence on entire gatherings. One need only allow these suggestions to take effect, thereby evoking convictions that have an extraordinarily far-reaching impact. But anyone who knows what poison really is knows that those who use such catchphrases are the ones who have given the least thought to what poison actually is. What is poison? The phenomena and facts of nature—especially those in human life—are so immensely complex that answering this question is not at all easy. What is poison in nature?

[ 37 ] Belladonna, for example, is poisonous to humans; rabbits can eat it just fine.

[ 38 ] Hemlock ... Socrates had to drink the cup of hemlock to carry out his own death sentence, but for goats, hemlock is not a poison at all ...

[ 39 ] Hydrogen sulfide is certainly very toxic to the body in a certain sense; but there are small organisms, so-called sulfur bacteria—a type of spalt algae—that live almost exclusively on this substance: they build their bodies from sulfur in a very remarkable way ... and if you deprive them of hydrogen sulfide, they die. This fact provides an example of how the material can be integrated into the manifestations of life ...

[ 40 ] So the buzzword “poison” certainly shouldn’t be allowed to take on the role of telling us what we’re actually supposed to be fighting against ...

[ 41 ] Essentially, we will only make progress if we try to align our entire perspective more and more closely with spiritual science ...

[ 42 ] What, then, is actually the difference between conventional medicine and naturopathy ... in terms of their principles? We see a major difference here, one that a scholar of the humanities can characterize quite accurately from his or her own perspective without taking sides with one approach or the other ...

[ 43 ] For those who understand these matters, it is simply nonsense to say that there are no specific remedies for this or that illness. But what is the point of treating them with such remedies?

[ 44 ] There is nothing wrong with the idea that a disease involves some form of damage and that the remedy combats this damage—that this can happen. To object to the positive, to that which has been gained through experience, is simply narrow-mindedness and would not be spiritual science. But what exactly are we dealing with in the human being when we heal in such a way that we combat some form of damage to health with external remedies? We are dealing with the physical human body, the outer aspect of human nature. Since the human being possesses this physical body, there is absolutely no doubt that it can also be treated with such an external remedy.

[ 45 ] Natural medicine has a certain inkling that there is something mysterious and supernatural behind the physical human body, that the elements of which the physical body is composed are governed by the etheric or life body ... The physician need not believe in it, but he certainly takes the view that there is something that acts and works as a living force behind the physical apparatus. The naturopathic physician has a sense of this etheric or life body and tries, so to speak, not to place too much emphasis on what can be ascertained merely externally through physical means, but rather goes back to what lies behind the physical and observable. This is very important, but the pressure of materialistic thinking is far too strong for it to rise to a true spiritual understanding of human nature. It would indeed be horrifying if anyone claiming to be scientific were to suggest that the visible has its roots in the invisible, or that the sensory has its roots in the supersensory

[ 46 ] has. Therefore, one can at most suspect that such a thing exists, but one must not speak of it as a reality. If one speaks of it and has derived this conviction from spiritual science—if one has recognized the inner reasons that lead to this supersensible aspect of human nature—then one cannot stop there; one must proceed to other aspects of human nature as well... then, through the purest spiritual science, one enters into the mysteries of the invisible, which is nonetheless very real and true.

[ 47 ] Then we go on to learn that within this physical human body there is not only an etheric or life body that distinguishes human beings from everything around us that appears to be lifeless ... This etheric or life body is a constant fighter against the physical body’s tendency to follow its physical substances and chemical forces during life. For when this life body withdraws from the physical body, the human physical body follows the physical substances and forces—and then it becomes a corpse. During life, however, the etheric or life body is a constant fighter against the decay of the physical body ...

[ 48 ] Thus, in the etheric body, we find the creator, the architect of the physical body of a human being or any living being, who stands behind this physical body.

[ 49 ] We then move on to what we call the astral body. This is the vehicle of pleasure and suffering, joy and pain, of all the ebbing and flowing sensations and ideas, of everything that constitutes drives, desires, and passions—in other words, instincts. But beyond that, we then also arrive at a fourth member, the bearer of true self-consciousness, the bearer of the “I.”

[ 50 ] These four members together constitute the whole human being, and if we are to consider the whole human being, we must view him in such a way that the higher, supersensory members are the actual creators of the lower, more sensory members. Everything that takes place in the lower members arises from what takes place in the upper members ...

[ 51 ] Therefore, one should not merely proceed as far as the notion of an etheric or life body; rather, one must consider that deeper causes—much deeper causes—must lie precisely in the astral body and in the soul-spiritual realm of the human being if one wishes to arrive at an understanding of illness and health. Here, the causes of illness are not so easy to find. This vehicle of pleasure and suffering, instinct, desire, and passions expresses what is within it through the etheric body and the physical body. If something unhealthy—arising from distorted passions, drives, or instincts—exists in the astral body, it must have an effect on the etheric body and the physical body:

[ 52 ] Yes, but, someone might say, let us consider a human being; what a contradiction there can be between what his healthy feelings and healthy instincts are, and the illnesses he nevertheless suffers from! Here, then, we must fully align ourselves with spiritual science and be clear that what we call the innermost essence of the human being—the human being’s true individuality—is something that is merely enveloped by the physical shell, something that follows entirely different paths in its development than this physical shell. When one looks at the core of the human being, one says: This human being flows from two currents...

[ 53 ] Let us take a look at the person we encounter in life. He is, first and foremost, the product of heredity—the result of what comes from his father, mother, and preceding ancestors ...

[ 54 ] But in all that which continues in this way through the generations, in all of it, something entirely different lives—something that now has to do with the astral body and the “I.” And when a person comes before us, we see not only what we have inherited from the generational line, but also what has descended from the spiritual world as the spiritual core of the being. We are looking at what is called reincarnation, at the innermost core of the being that extends from life to life. This unites with what lies in the line of heredity; it permeates and infuses with vital force what is inherited from the father and mother. And even if we cannot see today how the instincts and drives of the individual affect the physical body—whether causing illness or promoting health—we would see this if we looked at what the person had been in their previous life.

[ 55 ] Once we recognize this, we can learn to see, in this present life, the passions, impulses, and desires that stem from what we have brought with us from these past lives—and which act as causes of illness in this present life, even if they were not acquired in this life.

[ 56 ] And this is where what the understanding of the essence of the human being can provide as a sound foundation for evaluating the method of healing begins.

[ 57 ] Is there any way we can see how the astral body indicates what it has to say regarding what makes the physical body healthy or sick?

[ 58 ] An example: Someone has a child to raise... People have the stereotypical view that this or that is good for a child’s nature. Instead of strict individualization—even with regard to health—the prevailing opinion is: There are many diseases, but only one kind of health. In reality, however, there are as many kinds of health as there are people. Every person has their own health, their own conditions for being healthy. But with stereotypical notions, one can ruin all sorts of things for the child. For example, the child refuses to eat this or that food. Of course, people think this is bad behavior. It would be much more accurate, however, to say: This is proof that sympathy and antipathy are nothing other than the astral body’s perception: “I must have this if I want to act upon my physical body in the right way,” and “what the child rejects, it cannot use.”

[ 59 ] What a child’s palate rejects or craves reflects what is healthy for the child. It is therefore right to carefully observe what the child craves, what it is eager for. When does the astral body experience something as a pleasure, particularly in childhood? When what it enjoys has, as it were, an inherent quality that is favorably assimilated by the organism. Only when something has already gone awry in the order of healthy human nature is pleasure no longer a true guide... The fact that what is healthy for the child also tastes good to them, and that what makes them sick does not taste good to them—this is, in fact, the only true measure of health: that there is an appropriate sensation for everything we take into our organism. Thus, the point is that we should make the awareness of what is good for us as vivid as possible within ourselves, that we should enliven our astral body—the vehicle of pleasure and desire—for what is healthy for our organism...

[ 60 ] There are now ways to achieve a great deal in this regard ... Human nature varies from person to person because a distinct individuality permeates and shapes the outward appearance.

[ 61 ] Here’s a real-life example: There was a man who, from early childhood, had a terrible aversion to all meat; he simply couldn’t stand the smell of it, so to speak. He just couldn’t stand the smell, so he didn’t eat it. At first, he was in a tolerant environment. But then aunts and uncles came along who thought it was completely crazy not to eat meat... And so the good man let himself be persuaded to at least start with some broth, then move on to veal and so on... but he eventually got around to eating mutton as well... and he soon ended up with a

[ 62 ] severe encephalitis, because it was absolutely impossible for this person’s body to use its own internal forces to perform the functions necessary for the digestion of meat. He was built in such a way that he had a very good sense of what was healthy for him, from his earliest youth onward ...

[ 63 ] But if one were to give the same food—which was the only suitable one for this person—to someone else, that person could suffer great harm as a result ...

[ 64 ] All people must be regarded as individuals. And there are countless people who, if they wish to continue living as they do now, will never be able to switch to vegetarianism without difficulty.

[ 65 ] It has been said that human nature is not capable of performing the work necessary to transform what we take in from plants into what the human organism needs. With a plant-based diet, humans would have to perform a certain amount of internal work that they are unable to muster. The work that must be done is partially relieved by consuming food from the animal kingdom, where part of this work has already been done, so that humans now have less work to do. However, this does not apply to everyone, only to many people. For many, it would be unhealthy if they were unable to employ the powerful forces of digestion and metabolism required to break down plant-based food...

[ 66 ] To understand this, one must come to terms with the radical difference between the plant and human kingdoms ... the animal kingdom lies right in the middle.

[ 67 ] There is a contrast between humans and plants ... we can first characterize this contrast by noting that something that exists purely in the physical realm ...

[ 68 ] Human beings breathe; they inhale the oxygen in the air and exhale carbon dioxide. Plants absorb the carbon dioxide, break down the compound, extract the carbon it contains, and use it to build their own organism from non-living, purely physical carbon, releasing the oxygen back into the atmosphere. Thus there is an interaction between humans and plants. This expresses to us, in an external analogy, a spiritual interaction. Behind the plant lies its spiritual aspect; behind the human being lies his or her spiritual aspect. You know that a plant cannot thrive if it is deprived of light. Look at it, how it withers away. What the plant builds up from lifeless substances, it builds up under the influence of light... Light! How much we owe to it... we draw from it as much as we need...

[ 69 ] But we must not merely look—even at the light—merely at the physical. In what is physically present in the light, there is also a spiritual element contained. Behind the physical light there is also a spiritual element. This spiritual element, which flows toward us from the sun to the earth with the rays of light, is the very same thing that lives in our astral body—that inner light that works and creates within us—in the spiritual light, the spiritual aura. They are nothing other than the spirit of the physical body, the invisible light that works within us as the astral body. This is what works within us! And outside, the physical light of the sun acts upon the plants. And this is the peculiar relationship between the physical light outside, which acts upon the plants so that they grow and bloom... and the spiritual light that is within us as our astral body. This is the relationship: that they are opposites...

[ 70 ] That which builds up the plants is broken down, decomposed, and destroyed by the process that the spiritual light within us sets in motion. And our life in the physical body as spiritual beings could not exist if we did not, so to speak, initiate processes of destruction in everything we take in. We break down what the plants have built up. We continue, in a contrary manner, what the plants have begun ... Thus, we stand in spiritual contrast to the plant. And what is given to us as nourishment from the plant kingdom—we actually destroy it ...

[ 71 ] In its physical manifestation, our thinking is a process of destruction. Whatever we take in must be broken down again; it must be shattered once more. This is how we develop an inner life ...

[ 72 ] What is given to us from the plant kingdom as food is given to us in its pure, unadulterated form. What is given to us from the animal kingdom, however, is not given to us in such a pure, unadulterated form ... Since the animal stands in between the plant and the human, it accomplishes to a certain extent what the human must accomplish ... it already accomplishes to a certain extent what the human would otherwise have to accomplish within itself ... and the human can only begin its own activity where that which it has received is found. He receives only what the animal has already made of it...

[ 73 ] Let's take a look at human beings; they are truly a microcosm, a distillation of everything that is happening out there ...

[ 74 ] Its process of nutrition is what elevates what is widespread in the plant kingdom and transforms it in such a way that the human body can become an instrument of consciousness. In this regard, it is a whole, a totality. For the spiritual scientist, the animal is nothing more than a one-sided manifestation of human characteristics. Every animal, every animal species, represents for the spiritual scientist certain characteristics that have developed in a particular way ...

[ 75 ] All these qualities, combined in harmony—each tempered by the other, each balanced by the other—result in the human being ...

[ 76 ] The animal carries out the natural process to a certain degree of one-sidedness... We adopt this one-sidedness when we consume food from the animal kingdom that is no longer in its pristine state...

[ 77 ] Let us now assume that we are truly organized in such a way that we could actually muster the energy necessary to process plant-based food; we have this powerful reservoir of energy within us that is used only when we consume plant-based food. What if we do not do so—if we do not accomplish this transformation from the plant realm to the human realm? Then the forces that remain unused will seek other activities within our organism.

[ 78 ] The French abbot I told you about possessed precisely such powers. They are there, and they must act; and if they cannot find a healthy outlet, they eventually turn to another sphere of activity. This abbé ultimately died as a result of the great forces that manifested themselves in an improper way.

[ 79 ] Let’s take, by contrast, another person—say, a bank manager—who knows nothing but his profession. If we were to expect him to follow a plant-based diet, he would not be able to do so. He would not be able to survive on it. He cannot process the plant-based substances to the point where they can serve him in the functioning of his body; he must rely on others to do part of the work

[ 80 ] We thus also see a significant difference and contrast between the way plant-based food and the way animal-based food affect humans. What must a person develop within themselves if they wish to digest plant-based food? What do they do when they consume plant-based food? They must mobilize certain forces that act from below—from the plant itself. These are forces that lie more at the core of their being than those needed to process animal food. These are forces that reside within them, and no one can do this work for them. By accomplishing this internally, they also gain a source of inner independence and strength. His inner life thereby becomes more active and intense. Through what he consumes from the plant kingdom, his inner life does indeed become more active. However, this presupposes a more comprehensive spiritual life directed toward contemplation and the understanding of the great interconnections of life... When a person derives his nourishment from the animal kingdom, this is only appropriate if he lacks precisely these forces of self-reliance. For the foods that a person derives from the animal kingdom, he will employ inner forces that make him less self-reliant, since he allows part of the work to be done for him ...

[ 81 ] In spiritual terms, that which originates from the animal kingdom has a stimulating effect on what makes humans strong and vigorous without any effort on their part.

[ 82 ] For those who cannot draw vitality and energy for life from within themselves, a plant-based diet will be of no use; such people will only be weakened by it, and must, so to speak, receive their strength and vitality from sources prepared by animals.

[ 83 ] In light of these connections, we can now easily understand why peoples who subsist on plant-based foods lead a life more devoted to contemplation ... while those who consume animal-based foods exhibit more warlike traits.

[ 84 ] Thus, what must be regarded, so to speak, as both a health issue and a nutritional issue is entirely tied to the individuality of the human being—to the inner forces that a person can muster. And we can see in human beings whether, through a plant-based diet, they do not in part acquire strong forces of independence within their inner being ...

[ 85 ] Through plant nutrition, we see him thus acquiring all the powers he needs to become, so to speak, a well-rounded human being—a person capable of taking a broad view of the various aspects of life. Through what he acquires from animal-based nutrition, we see him being guided toward specialized fields ...

[ 86 ] Thus, through this interplay ... through what ... the great questions of existence are regulated in every detail of life ... There we see, so to speak, the inner nature of the human being manifesting itself in such a way that there are powerful forces within him ... or that he must allow these powerful forces to be bestowed upon him ... We see, so to speak, the astral body at work within him … and how this activity must be if balance is to be established in the human organism …

[ 87 ] And once we have understood this, we will no longer doubt that much, much depends on how we are able to influence the astral body in particular ... but not only that—also on how we can influence the physical body physically and the etheric body etherically ...

[ 88 ] A materialistic perspective will seek to focus solely on the physical ... Let us consider the case of a sick person. The materialist will examine these symptoms and reason as follows: In this or that region, there is this or that type of air, there are these or those conditions, which—just as one physical entity affects another—affect the sick organism ...

[ 89 ] Anyone grounded in the humanities will know that in many cases this is a rather erroneous conclusion. They will know that a more radical, more thorough effect must be achieved when a person is placed in an environment where their inner experiences can be stimulated in the appropriate way, where they can truly be happy and find true inner harmony. Particularly in the case of certain forms of illness, namely nervous disorders, it will be of the utmost importance that we act directly upon the astral body and through that which can stimulate powerful forces within the astral body ...

[ 90 ] Thus, if a person develops within themselves those powerful forces that are cultivated through a plant-based diet, it can certainly be an effective remedy for restoring balance even to the body after severe damage. What takes place internally—when the inner forces required to process the ... pure plant-based nutrients are activated—can eliminate severe damage.

[ 91 ] You can tell by looking at a person whether they are willing to use their own inner powers to convert plant-based nutrients—which contain little fat—into fat, or whether they prefer to have that work done for them by consuming animal fat ... ...those strong, self-sustaining forces within him... in other words, whether a person is too lazy to contribute even a little to his own fat production... you can tell from the look in his eyes whether this is happening or not...

[ 92 ] Those who do not overindulge in animal fat will, in turn, find within themselves the ability to develop their inner strengths, which are increasingly oriented toward the mental and the spiritual ...

[ 93 ] And now there is a great, all-encompassing law ... which states: Everything that a person enjoys and beholds as something sensory has an effect on the withering, dying forces within them … and everything that they behold as spiritual and intellectual has an effect on the life-giving, health-promoting forces within a person … and conversely, those who wish to help themselves in this regard can do so by consuming sufficient plant-based food in addition to meat; in this way, they can support themselves in awakening an interest in the supersensible world ...

[ 94 ] Anyone who takes the trouble to prepare their own fat from low-fat plant-based foods will be able to become much more mentally alert than someone who relies on animals for all their fat ...

[ 95 ] A grotesque confirmation emerges from the following incident. There is a so-called “NacktKultur” in Berlin. Someone went there initially out of purely artistic interest, wanting to see it for themselves and to let the audience—and then what was being presented there—sink in. Then this person quickly ran away. It was a strange audience, almost entirely made up of old men ...

[ 96 ] Where one in fact assumes that the sensual acts upon the sensual, there exists a bond of attraction to that which is dying in life. And whoever seeks the sensuous merely as sensuous will be able to see that particular effects are exerted upon the dying parts of his being ... whereas spiritual interest ... will have a particular effect on the germinating, growing parts of the human being.

[ 97 ] Spiritual research is beginning to offer people something that is, however, not as convenient as what is merely described ... nor as convenient as attending a lecture where images are projected onto a wall. It requires very little inner effort on the part of the listener.

[ 98 ] Spiritual science, after all, speaks of the supersensible, and that is not something one can simply take for granted. It appeals to something in human nature that requires our active cooperation—something that demands we mobilize the most dynamic forces within ourselves to work in harmony with it ... This spiritual science thus addresses the spiritual directly… the paths of the soul… It is not meant for the eyes… And no one claims that the concepts, notions, and ideas of spiritual science are “real” in the sense that they are tangible. They are not meant to be true in that sense. But what are these so-called “unreal” conceptions—which are scarcely known in wide circles today? They are precisely the healthy, the strong conceptions which, if they are allowed to take sufficient effect in human nature, are at the same time the powerful, vigorous, and health-promoting conceptions that work their way right into the etheric body.

[ 99 ] When spiritual science guides us ... it stirs within us ideas that, in the most profound sense, have a healing effect from within ... organic substance in such a way that it has, so to speak, already left its origins behind and cannot be restored by itself ... The higher we ascend in the series of organisms ...

[ 100 ] Where inner forces are to be developed for healing, the strongest force is that which flows from the human spirit, directed toward renewal and growth; and whoever appeals to these forces also stands on a solid foundation in terms of health... unleashing the powerful inner forces all the way up to the higher realms of health... However, hardly any progress has been made yet ...

[ 101 ] People hardly understand anything beyond a physical effect on human beings ... This is where spiritual science is called upon to address health issues in such a way that remedies are found and will be available that do not merely act on the physical, but directly on the spiritual—that is, on the astral—and, indirectly through the astral, have a physically healing effect. Here, indeed, theosophy will have a great task. It will be able to accomplish it, for it can penetrate deeply into the life that surrounds us daily—into the life of both healthy and sick people.

[ 102 ] And so it is truly a source of great satisfaction to note that a promising start has already been made on the basis of theosophical research, as Dr. Peipers in Munich is applying a form of color therapy that is firmly grounded in theosophical principles and the science of the spirit ... the secrets of color—its deeper spiritual underpinnings—have been uncovered.

[ 103 ] Here one does not think of the physical effects ... it is not the light that acts in these things; the color must first become a mental image, must first shine and glow in the astral body ... as a mental image of color, via the astral body, they radiate outward into the periphery ... Even if this can initially be applied only to certain forms of illness, a start has nevertheless been made...

[ 104 ] And this theosophical movement, by delving into the depths of things, will bring about many other developments in this and various other areas—things that today’s materialistic mindset cannot even begin to imagine. Whatever one may say... the truth—the truth of the spiritual—will prevail. So... here are a few points of view related to this topic. It will have become clear to you how, on the one hand, spiritual science can never be one-sided...

[ 105 ] Let’s suppose, for example, that someone has a migraine. What do they take? Perhaps Migränin. That’s nothing! Or they’re prescribed some other medication. But they might not have time to do everything they’re told to do... A person can certainly be strong enough to tolerate physical treatment of their body in certain areas.

[ 106 ] But in truth, the problem can only be solved on an individual basis. Through a deeper understanding of human nature, one will come to realize that spiritual science itself provides a foundation for fostering healthy drives and healthy instincts ... that spiritual life is what ...

[ 107 ] Behind all matter lies spirit ... and what appears as content ... in matter is merely an expression of spiritual processes ... The same is true of food: It should taste good, for the fact that it tastes good is an expression of how it integrates into the organism in a healthy, harmonious way.

[ 108 ] In this way, spiritual science will enable us to stimulate feelings and instincts in a healthy manner, and the result will be that those who engage with spiritual wisdom will become healthy ...

[ 109 ] Just as the animals graze out in the meadow and, guided by their instincts, find what is right for them ... so, on a higher level, spirituality and spiritual science will in turn instill in human beings that which shows them, in full consciousness, what serves them and what is healthy for them... so that spiritual science itself is a great remedy, a great means of healing... since it brings them the right insight into what is necessary for them individually in one case or another.

[ 110 ] Recognizing illness in relation to the human being as a whole will lead us to know, in this field as well, what helps ... and so Hyrtl, who ... said something very beautiful when, drawing on his experience, he remarked: ... Only the doctor can recognize illnesses ... and he meant: The other part is more difficult; he meant: One cannot always help simply by recognizing illnesses; only the one who knows what helps can heal ... Only the one who is capable of looking deeply, very deeply into the depths of human nature can know what helps.

[ 111 ] Q&A [Excerpts]

Question: [Not recorded.]

[ 112 ] Answer: A strict distinction must be made between irregularities caused by external injuries—which he can at most correct through the inner forces inherent in the human being—and internal illnesses ... an external injury, such as a broken leg ... The same applies, however, when, for example, some harm is caused inside the stomach by unsuitable food. ... just as with a broken leg, one cannot work on such external injuries from the astral body ... Nevertheless, it is important to speak more about healing from within the human being than about forms of illness ... more about the paths to healing than about illnesses.

Question: [Not recorded.]

[ 113 ] Answer: [...] Feuerbach said: “Man is what he eats.” That is true if, through the nature of his food, he deprives himself of the means to rise higher ... He should eat in such a way that, precisely through that, he is not what he eats.