The Rudolf Steiner Archive

The Gospel of John VI

[ 1 ] One of the most important mysteries of all secret schools, including the Dionysian ones, is the so-called mystery of numbers. No one can read a secret script who is not able to decipher the mystery of numbers. Whenever numbers appear in religious texts, there is always a deeper meaning underlying them. The school of Pythagoras is also founded on the secret of numbers. Even if it is true that the letter kills, one must nevertheless assign a certain value to the letter when interpreting secret writings; otherwise, one runs the risk of reading into this writing the spirit one wishes to find in it. In the Gospel of John we find a variety of numbers with secret meanings. In the fifth lecture, we spoke of the three women who stood at the cross: the Virgin Mother Sophia, Mary, and Mary Magdalene. In today’s lecture, we shall first base our discussion on a different numerical analysis.

[ 2 ] Let us first recall the conversation between Jesus Christ and the Samaritan woman (chap. 4:7 ff.). Christ speaks these significant words: “You have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband.” And once again the number five appears, in the healing of the man who had been ill for thirty-eight years (chap. 5:5). The Pool of Bethesda has five porticoes. Let us examine the significance of this mystical number five in more detail. Let us consider the human being in the context of the evolution of humanity. As we have seen, the human being is composed of nine parts, which can, however, be traced back to seven. In the development of the human being, these seven bodies gradually unfold. In modern humans, not all seven members are yet developed. The average human being has developed up to the level of the consciousness soul; the Spirit-Self is only at the beginning of its unfolding. Let us go back to the point in human evolution when human beings learned to consciously say “I” to themselves. This point was preceded by the ancient Atlantean epoch, in which human beings were still endowed with dim clairvoyant powers. In the region of Atlantis, which corresponds to present-day Ireland, lived an Atlantean people who had advanced so far in their development that the covering of the etheric and physical heads had formed in them.

[ 3 ] This was the most advanced people of that time, and they were destined to become the bearers of future development. A highly advanced spirit, Manu, led this group eastward through what is now Russia to Central Asia, into the region of the present-day Gobi Desert. There a colony was founded, from which groups were sent out in various directions to spread the culture of this group. This took place at the time when the Atlantean continent was gradually sinking. Present-day Africa and Europe ‘gradually emerged from the floods. Another group of Atlanteans moved westward from their settlements and formed the indigenous population of present-day America, where they were found upon its rediscovery by the Europeans. A group also moved to northern Europe. All these groups have preserved their clairvoyant memories in ancient legends and myths. Once we truly understand these legends and myths, much of the darkness that still hangs over human history will be illuminated; then we will come to understand many things that are still incomprehensible to us today. However, we must not approach the interpretation of these legends and myths in a pedantic manner. We must recognize the complex interplay of clairvoyant experiences and imagination in the creation of these ancient legends. In this era of the first dawning of the “I” in the personality, human beings lived more intimately within their surroundings than they did later. They perceived not so much the outer outlines of the objects surrounding them as their inner qualities and the relationship these objects held to them—whether they were useful or harmful, friendly or hostile. The more the “I” became enclosed within the human personality, the more clairvoyant abilities diminished, while the forms of the external world became increasingly visible to the physical eye. If we have a mental image of this fact, we can easily understand that the emergence of the “I” brought about a tremendous change. Previously, human beings did not see their own bodies; now they began to regard them as their “I.”

[ 4 ] In recent times, Atlantis was a land of mist, shrouded in thick fog; there was no alternation of rain and sunshine, nor did rainbows appear. Rainbows could only emerge in the post-Atlantis era, when the masses of fog began to disperse. This event has remained alive in the popular consciousness as the legend of Heimdall and in the story of Noah and the Ark. The memory of the land of mist has been preserved in the Norse name Niflheim, “Mistland.” The Norse peoples have also preserved the impact of the “I” on the human personality in the Nibelungen saga. There, the ego is represented by the symbol of gold. The gold was dissolved in water, but it has coalesced into the ring, the treasure of the Nibelungs: the ego, which had previously been scattered throughout the world, has coalesced into the solid human form. In Wagner’s adaptation of this legend, one can truly perceive the unconscious sensibility of the creative artist. Wagner was not fully conscious of what he was creating in his work, but a subconscious knowledge guided him. Thus, for example, Wagner may have characterized the ego that has come into consciousness in the pedal point that runs through the entire overture of the opera “Rheingold.”

[ 5 ] Over in the Far East, under the leadership of a highly developed individual, the first civilization had emerged, as attested to by the ancient Vedas. The first influence of this civilization was felt to the south, in ancient Indian culture. In the ancient Indian myths and legends, the religious records, accounts of these facts are preserved; they can be read by clairvoyants. Many things that seem contradictory are revealed there as the deepest truth. This culture had preserved clear memories of the earlier, ancient clairvoyance and still felt a deep longing for it as for a precious, unfortunately lost treasure. People were still so deeply imbued with the reality of the spiritual world that they described the physical world as maya, an illusion. Therefore, they also sought to regain this lost treasure by turning their gaze away from the earthly and constantly toward the spiritual. This is the origin of the yoga exercises, which seek to lead one into the spiritual world by dampening the consciousness. They wanted to return to the old twilight state; they sought the path leading back to the lost paradise. Throughout the entire Atlantean era, the outer world had been perceptible to people only in vague outlines. The Atlanteans still lived predominantly in the spiritual world. For the spiritual researcher, the entire post-Atlantean era signifies nothing more than a gradual conquest of the physical plane. The first post-Atlantean cultural epoch, the Indian one, still had little sense of what exists out there in physical nature, which the initiates regarded as an absolute illusion from which they sought to escape into the only reality, the spiritual reality.

[ 6 ] The second major influence was ancient Persian culture. The Persians are already closer to the outside world than the Indians; they recognize the existence of good and evil, represented by the gods Ormuzd and Ahriman. They seek to align themselves with the former in order to combat the latter. For them, the Earth is a field of work for integrating the spirit into physical existence. The third cultural epoch is the Egyptian-Assyrian-Chaldean-Babylonian culture. Humanity has taken another step forward in the conquest of the physical plane. For the Persians, the world was still a physically undifferentiated field of work. Now, however, humanity is already applying its knowledge to harness the forces of the earth. It knows geometry to divide up its land; its gaze also extends beyond the earth to the stars, and thus astronomy arises.

[ 7 ] The fourth is the Greco-Latin cultural epoch. Whereas previously humanity had focused on external culture in the realm of science, it now infuses the material world with its own inner essence—that which is specifically human. We see his own form reappear in the works of art he creates; in the epics and dramas he writes, he depicts his own spiritual qualities. The Roman is the citizen who projects his own sense of justice outward, thereby shaping the state and jurisprudence. In the fifth epoch, in which we still live today, humanity has made even greater strides in mastering the external world. Our epoch marks the deepest descent of the spirit into matter since the Atlantean era. This descent had to occur if humanity was to move forward. Only after the spirit has descended completely into matter can its ascent begin anew. Our age has developed a high degree of scientific knowledge, with the help of which we can master the most diverse forces of nature. In ancient times, when humans ground their grains in a primitive manner between two stones, no great expenditure of spiritual energy was required to satisfy their modest needs for life. It is quite different in our time. Let us only consider the immense expenditure of spiritual energy required to satisfy the material needs of modern humanity. We have locomotives, steamships, telephones, and electric light. A vast amount of spiritual energy has been invested in matter here. Yet humanity’s spiritual interests are entirely pushed into the background in the process. We see, then, that the entire spiritual development of humanity in the post-Atlantean era signifies a descent of the human spirit into matter. The purpose of this descent, however, is the overcoming of matter, this great adversary of the spirit. For after the deepest descent, an ascent toward conscious spiritual life must now begin.

[ 8 ] We can illustrate the course of human history in the post-Atlantic era using the graph shown here.

[ 9 ] The force that is to bring about this ascent is the power of Christianity. In the middle of the fourth cultural epoch, long before the lowest point of the descending line is reached, the star of Christianity rises. Christ Jesus appears as the exalted figure who brings humanity the strength for its later ascent into the spirit. All preceding cultural epochs can also be regarded as a preparation for Christianity. In the fifth cultural epoch, Christianity must endure its greatest trial, as materialistic thinking obscures the spiritual truths of Christianity. In the sixth epoch, Christianity will unite humanity into a great brotherhood, and Theosophy is to be regarded as the harbinger, the herald of this coming age, preparing humanity for spiritualization. The teachings given to humanity through Christianity are so profound, so full of wisdom, that no future religion will be able to replace or supplant Christianity. Christianity possesses the inherent ability to adapt to all future cultural forms.

[ 10 ] Another aspect of human development should be considered. During the Atlantean epoch, the physical body was formed, and when the Atlantean continent was flooded, human beings had roughly the same form they have today. Now the development of the spiritual members began. During the Indian cultural epoch, the etheric body was developed. The Indian people, as the first cultural branch of the post-Atlantean era, were very receptive to spiritual life. This is connected with the special development of the etheric body.

[ 11 ] As a side note, the following might be added. Our modern European culture differs greatly from both ancient Indian and contemporary Indian culture, and so it is understandable that the means and methods leading an Indian and a European to the spiritual life must be different. The yoga exercises that are beneficial for the Indian are unsuitable for the European. The paths of initiation are adapted by the Masters who impart them entirely to the respective stages of human development. What is an excellent method for one stage may be downright detrimental for another. Nor is it without reason that religions have succeeded one another. Even though a common core of truth is contained in all of them, the various expressions of this truth are conditioned by the differences in cultural epochs. A tree is a self-contained whole from root to blossom, and yet the root requires different nourishment than the leaves and blossoms. So too, for humanity in different cultural epochs, a different method of religion and initiation is required.

[ 12 ] In Persian culture, the astral body develops. In Egyptian-Assyrian-Chaldean-Babylonian culture, the feeling soul develops within the astral body. In Greek-Latin culture, the intellectual soul is brought to development. Our own culture brings the conscious soul to development. In the sixth epoch, the Spirit-Self will develop, which today exists only as a seed. It requires the mighty driving force of the Christ Spirit to bring this seed to development. True Christianity will only blossom once the Spirit-Self is developed. Then humanity will prepare to receive the Buddhi, the Life-Spirit, within itself. Initially, only a small group of people will unfold this power within themselves, but they will attain a wonderful spiritual life. Christianity is only at the beginning of its development today. Those who are preparing today for the formation of the Spirit-Self within themselves will, in the next epoch, make this deeper, spiritual Christianity increasingly accessible to humanity.

[ 13 ] We see how, in the third age, a small group—the Jewish people—prepares the conditions that make the emergence of Christianity possible; how, in the fourth age, the power of Christ enters the physical world; how, in the fifth age, humanity’s greatest descent into the physical world takes place; how, after humanity has gained dominion over this physical world, humanity in the sixth epoch acquires all the greater power and capacity to absorb within itself the spiritual life brought by the Christ Spirit. Christ appears as the Firstborn, the human being far ahead of his time, who has already reached the stage that the rest of humanity will not attain until the sixth epoch. The fifth epoch is the most material of human development.

[ 14 ] Mental states form the basis of physical conditions, and every physical illness is an expression of some mental aberration. Thus, leprosy, the dreadful disease of the Middle Ages, was a physical manifestation of the fear that the European peoples had of the Huns. The Huns were the declining descendants of the Atlantean race. While their physical bodies were still healthy, their astral bodies, on the other hand, were already permeated with putrid substances. Fear and terror are an excellent breeding ground for the putrefactive substances of the astral plane. Thus, these putrefactive substances of the Atlantean tribes were able to take root in the astral bodies of the European peoples and, from there, caused leprosy in the physical body in later generations.

[ 15 ] Everything first exists in a spiritual form, only to later express itself in the physical body. Even today’s nervousness is merely a consequence of the materialistic mindset of our time. The wise leaders of humanity know that if the flood of materialism were to continue any longer, major epidemics of nervous disorders would break out among us; children would already be born with trembling limbs. That is why the Theosophical Movement was brought into the world, to save humanity from the dangers of materialism. Whoever spreads materialistic thinking and feeling thus encourages these devastating diseases; whoever combats materialism fights for the health and capacity for development of our people. The individual can contribute nothing to his own health; he is a member of the whole of humanity and draws the substances for his sustenance from the source common to all people. Whoever looks more deeply into the laws of human development must watch with a bleeding heart as the individual suffers and how his suffering is merely the expression of the spiritual aberration of all humanity. Theosophy is less called upon to help the individual human being than to give all of humanity an uplift into the spiritual and thereby work for the physical recovery of humanity.

[ 16 ] In the sixth and seventh ages, through the power of Christ, the Spirit-Self and the Life-Spirit will develop within those who turn to Christ. These individuals will simultaneously attain sound thinking and sound feeling. Christianity brings great health and great healing. The life force of Christ overcomes all infirmity and death. The human body has developed as a solid body out of the liquid, and therefore, in Spiritual Science, the liquid element is regarded as the physical element. The five porticoes surrounding the Pool of Bethesda symbolize the five ages during which humanity penetrates ever deeper into physicality, and at the end of which it has become completely enslaved to matter. Only after passing through these five periods can humanity become healthy. Whoever has fallen prey to these five porticoes cannot be healed unless the great Healer, Christ, approaches him. Then what is described in the fifth chapter of the Gospel of John takes place. Thus, the account of the man who had been ill for thirty-eight years is a prophetic foreshadowing of what will occur in the sixth epoch, when humanity will no longer need remedies because it will become its own healer.

[ 17 ] At the beginning of the post-Atlantean epoch, we still find remnants of blood kinship. Christ’s words: “Whoever does not leave father and mother… cannot be my disciple,” point to the stage of humanity in the sixth age. Then, in place of the national spirits, the tribal and racial spirits, a single universal spirit of humanity will reign. Then man will no longer be a son of his tribe or people, but a son of humanity, the Son of Man. Here, too, Christ is indeed the first to rightly bear this name (John 3:13–14). Even at that time, he behaved as human beings will behave when they become sons of man.

[ 18 ] This is expressed by the fact that Christ goes to the Samaritan woman—after all, Samaritans had no fellowship with the Jews. What a person possesses within themselves, what makes their development possible, is something feminine and passive in relation to the spirit, which represents the fertilizing, masculine, active principle. The result of this constant influence of the masculine on the feminine principle is first the unfolding of the etheric body, then the astral body, the feeling soul, the intellectual soul, and the conscious soul. In the latter, the Spirit-Self then takes shape. This is hinted at in Christ’s conversation with the Samaritan woman (chap. 4:18) with the words: “You have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband.” The five husbands the woman has had are the five spiritual bodies that acted upon the physical one, and the sixth, the Spirit-Self, is no longer a husband in the old sense. The other five are lower, transitory stages of development, while the sixth, the Spirit-Self, represents the divine and eternal. Thus, we also see in the conversation with the Samaritan woman a proclamation of the coming age by Christ Jesus.

[ 19 ] While the five bodies require purification from the outside, the Spirit-Self will keep the person pure from within. The Body of Christ is already filled with purity. He also wishes to purify humanity and therefore steps forward and cleanses the temple of merchants and money changers (chap. 2:14–22); that is, he cleanses the temple of the Holy Spirit, the body of man, of the lower principles clinging to it and enables it to receive the Spirit.

[ 20 ] However, these remarks should not create a mental image that the descriptions in the Gospel of John are to be understood merely as symbols. In ancient times, the giving of names was not arbitrary, but strictly adapted to the character of the individual. Just as it is true, for example, that the three women who stood at the foot of Jesus’ cross represented the three aspects of the soul—the conscious soul, the intellectual soul, and the feeling soul—so it is equally true that these three individuals were physically present at the foot of the cross. When we read the Gospel of John, we are thus looking both at symbolic images of what will be realized on this earth in the coming age and at something that actually occurred at the beginning of our era. The historical facts have all been presented by the wise powers guiding humanity as symbols of humanity’s future development.