The Rudolf Steiner Archive

First Lecture

[ 1 ] Today we will have a great deal to discuss from a spiritual-scientific perspective regarding facts and entities in higher worlds and the relationship of such entities and facts to human beings. From the outset, although it might seem that this is not necessary in a theosophical branch such as this, it must be pointed out that today’s lecture will be one of those considered suitable for theosophists at an advanced stage. After all, such topics must also be possible at some point in a theosophical branch. Therefore, those who have perhaps only recently begun attending these Monday lectures may still feel somewhat alienated by some of what is discussed today; but we would not make any progress if we did not also discuss matters pertaining to the higher realms of theosophy from time to time. Those who are complete newcomers, for example, and are perhaps still waiting to be convinced of the truths of spiritual science, might find some of what is discussed today to be something akin to madness; but such topics must also be addressed at some point.

[ 2 ] From the lectures that have been given here recently, you have learned that when we ascend clairvoyantly from the physical plane into the higher worlds, we encounter beings there who, although they do not belong to our physical world, are—as beings of the higher worlds—entities so self-contained that we can refer to them as “persons” in those worlds, just as we refer to human beings here on the physical plane as “persons.” You have seen that entire groups of animals with the same or similar forms belong together to a group soul or a group “I,” and that we encounter the lion soul, the tiger soul, and other group-I’s of animals as self-contained persons on the astral plane, whom we can meet there when we—to put it simply—go for a walk on the astral plane, just as we can encounter human beings here in the physical world. Likewise, in even higher realms—on the Devachan plane—we find the “I’s” of entire groups of plants, and in the highest regions of Devachan we find the “I’s” of minerals as distinct personalities, just as human beings are here on the physical plane. From this we see that in these higher worlds we encounter certain beings who, so to speak, extend their organs, their individual limbs, all the way down into the physical world. If a person were to show his fingers by extending them through a curtain or through a paper wall with a hole in it, we would see only the person’s ten fingers; he himself would be behind the wall. So it is with the group-I’s of animals. Here we see with our physical eyes what is extended downward as limbs by higher beings of the astral plane, and the actual I is behind the wall—behind that wall which separates the physical world from the astral. And so it is, in a corresponding way, with the other group-I’s, with the group-I’s of the plant or mineral world. When we ascend from this starting point in the physical world into higher worlds, we encounter there not only the beings just mentioned, who extend their limbs down into the physical world, but also a whole host of other beings whom we can likewise describe as self-contained personalities for those worlds, though their physical limbs are not as immediately perceptible and verifiable as those of the aforementioned group-I’s of animals, plants, and minerals.

[ 3 ] The astral plane and the Devachan plane are, in fact, very densely populated worlds, and we find all manner of beings there who, even though they cannot be observed here in such a tangible way in their manifestations, nevertheless express their effects and their actions here on the physical plane, and who have a great deal to do with the physical plane and with our entire human life today. One cannot understand human life unless one knows that beings who live in the higher worlds are active within it. Much takes place within the human body itself over which the human being has no control—things that are not expressions of the human “I,” but rather the actions, effects, and manifestations of beings from the higher worlds. We shall speak of such things today.

[ 4 ] When we look at the astral plane, we encounter certain beings there—just one type among many others—who, among the beings of the physical plane that we initially observe, appear to have no manifestation, no revelation, yet are nonetheless connected to our physical plane. We encounter them there on the astral plane as astral entities with a distinct will and distinct intentions. Such beings have a mode of existence within our immediate world such that, as mentioned, we can encounter them on the astral plane; but they are related—they belong to the same kind of beings that inhabit our present-day Moon, beings that even have a certain physical existence on our present-day Moon. Anyone capable of approaching these matters through clairvoyance knows that these are beings who, on the lunar stage, are in a certain sense human-like, except that compared to humans they are like dwarfs, for they barely reach the height of a six- to seven-year-old child. There on the Moon, a unique opportunity for their activities presents itself to them. The physical conditions there are entirely different; the atmosphere, for example, is quite different, and the result is that when these beings retreat, so to speak, to their home, they acquire the ability to roar tremendously, to emit incredibly powerful, terrifying sounds. These dwarf-like beings can dwell within our world as astral beings.

[ 5 ] You must, in fact, imagine the conditions in the higher worlds to be much more complex than is usually assumed. As soon as we speak of the higher worlds, there is indeed a connection between the individual planets, and so there is a connection between the Moon and the Earth in a similar way to how, for example, you make a phone call from Berlin to Hamburg, so that such beings who live on the Moon can exert their influence on Earth with the help of astral forces. These beings are, one might say, merely the dark flip side of other beings we also find in the astral world: benevolent beings who, compared to even the gentlest human nature of today, are still much, much gentler—very gentle even in their speech, These are beings whose speech lacks the stiffness of human speech, in which one must first deliberate at length before expressing oneself, before putting one’s thoughts and ideas into words. One might say that thoughts flow from the lips of these beings—not merely the expression of thoughts in words, but the thoughts themselves flow from their lips in a gentle language. You will also find these beings within our astral world; their true home, however, is on another planet. Just as the first group of beings mentioned are at home on the Moon, so these second ones have their home on Mars; they inhabit it, and there they are even the predominant population, just as certain human races are the predominant population on our Earth.

[ 6 ] As we continue to ascend to the Devachan plane, we find certain beings who, by their very nature, are gentler and more peaceful, and who, in a certain sense, are extraordinarily intelligent. Such beings, whom we find on the Devachan plane, have their true home—like the other beings on the Moon and Mars—on the planet Venus. On Venus, too, we find a second type of being who—in contrast to the gentle, lovable ones—constitute a wild, frenzied variety whose primary occupation consists of mutual warfare and plunder.

[ 7 ] Then, in the higher regions of the Devachan plane, we find certain beings of two kinds that are very difficult to describe. We can only describe them by comparison, by saying that they are infinitely inventive, discovering something at every moment of life; for it would be wrong to say that they “think it up.” In them, this inventive gift is present in much the same way as when one looks at something and, at that very moment—even while looking at it—the idea occurs to one of how it could be arranged differently. The invention takes place immediately in them. Opposite these beings, who have their home on Saturn, are others who, in turn, appear as their polar opposite: wild, terrifying beings who possess, to a far greater and more dreadful degree, everything that lives within human beings in the form of wild sensual greed and desire.

[ 8 ] These entities just mentioned are by no means unrelated to our lives; rather, their actions, effects, and manifestations extend fully into our lives, and their influence is particularly perceptible to people with clairvoyant abilities when certain conditions arise on Earth. For example, those entities that have their home on the Moon—as astral entities, of course—are present on Earth under the most varied circumstances, such as when a person somewhere is afflicted by delusions, or when there are insane people somewhere. Such entities, as astral beings, are particularly fond of lingering in the vicinity of mental hospitals. They are also almost always found near mediums and somnambulists, some of whom are completely surrounded by such entities, and a large part of the influences exerted upon such people stems from the presence of these beings. Where, on the other hand, love and charity reign, where a humanitarian spirit is expressed, there you will find the gentle, mild Martian entities described earlier present as astral beings, and these entities work within the forces that unfold there. This is their “nourishment”—the atmosphere in which they can live and from which they, in turn, exert their influence on human beings.

[ 9 ] Where human inventions are made, where engineers work, in technical workshops—there the atmosphere is created for those inventive Saturn entities that have been described, whereas wherever activities unfold that have something to do with presence of mind, entities are present who have their seat on Venus.

[ 10 ] As you can see, human beings are constantly surrounded and swarmed by such elemental beings—whatever they may be called—in the most diverse situations of life. They are truly never alone; rather, whatever they do and whatever they undertake provides, at the same time, an opportunity for a number of beings to manifest themselves. People’s finer and coarser deeds—the most spiritual and ideal deeds as well as the most depraved deeds—are all occasions for the presence of such creatures, who intervene in human forces and act within them, and whom one must know if one truly wishes to understand life. Those who do not understand these things go through life completely blind. This is not merely a theory or a theoretical requirement, but rather a matter of all these things becoming immediately practical. For only then will human beings gradually learn, in the future of Earth’s evolution, to act and behave in the right way—as they come to recognize more and more which beings are summoned by this or that deed and circumstance. Everything a person does is like a call to unknown beings. Lunar beings—among whom there are some quite malicious rascals—dare to approach not only the mentally ill or mediums, but also, for example, young children when they are overfed in such a senseless way that it stirs up their gluttony; then these beings can prey upon them and ruin their development. There you see how necessary it is to know what a person actually summons into the world around them through their entire conduct and behavior.

[ 11 ] Now, these entities are by no means unrelated to human beings in other respects either. On the contrary, they have a deep connection to our immediate human constitution. Of all that is found in the human body, only one thing actually belongs to the human being—or can increasingly come to belong to him: that is his blood. The human blood is what directly expresses his “I.” But if a person does not increasingly strive to strengthen their “I” from within through a strong and vigorous will and through their strong and vigorous soul—if, so to speak, they lose their “I”—then other entities can also take root in their blood, and this is very harmful and evil for the person. In contrast, many other beings are still anchored in other parts of the human organism today; they are contained within it, and let us see what exactly is extending its feelers into this human body, what exactly is anchoring itself within the human body. Here we must delve a little into this human physical body.

[ 12 ] You know that the blood flowing through the veins and spreading throughout the human body is the expression of the human “I,” and that it becomes an ever stronger expression of the “I” as the “I” itself finds its center—its inner center of power—within itself with ever greater strength and vigor. With regard to other parts—other components of the organism—the human ego will not gain dominion until a much later time. Today, these constituents of the human body still contain many other entities. Let us now take a closer look at the three humoral stages—chyle, lymph, and blood—for the purpose of our consideration.

[ 13 ] You may be aware of the importance of these three types of juices for humans. You know that when a person eats food, it is first transported to the stomach by the preparatory organs, where it is mixed with the appropriate juices secreted by the glands and prepared so that it can be processed by the intestines. There, the food is transformed into a liquid state—the chyme—which is then propelled forward through the intestines. What can serve as nourishment for a person is then transferred into the body via small organs called intestinal villi to serve as nourishing fluids for this body, in order to continually rebuild it. This is a type of substance we have in the body that we call chyle.

[ 14 ] Then perhaps you also know that, in addition to this chyle—which is produced when food enters the human body from the outside—there are also vessels within the human body that run in exactly the same way, carrying a kind of fluid that is, in a certain respect, similar to the white substance in our blood. This fluid also flows through the entire human organism in certain vessels, and these vessels often run alongside the blood vessels we call veins, because they contain blue-red blood. These vessels even absorb the chyle. The fluid they contain is lymph. It is a fluid that, one might say, is more refined than the actual digestive fluid, the chyle. These lymphatic vessels, which carry the lymph, extend throughout the entire human body; they even permeate the bone marrow to a certain extent, and what they carry also absorbs the chyme, the chyle. Everything in the left half of the body and in the lower extremities—from the left side of the head and the left side of the torso down to the left hand and both legs—all the lymph fluid that is distributed and flows there collects and flows into the left subclavian vein, where it then enters the bloodstream. Only the lymph from the lymphatic vessels on the right side of the head and the right side of the trunk is collected and directed into the right subclavian vein; in this way, the lymphatic vessels reveal an important fact.

[ 15 ] You can see how the human being is thereby divided into two parts—not symmetrically, but in such a way that one part encompasses all of the lower parts of the body and the left half of the torso and head, while the other part is formed by the right side of the torso and head. This is a second fluid that pulses within the human being, a fluid that is much closer to the soul than is the case with chyle—the gastric and intestinal fluid of the chyme—although, of course, states of mind also have a profound influence on digestion and the entire circulation of the digestive juices. However, psychological states are much more deeply connected to the lymphatic fluids. In a person who is highly active, the lymph flows much more vigorously than in a person who is sluggish, lazy, and does nothing. And so we can cite many psychological states that are related to the flow of lymph in the human body.

[ 16 ] The third fluid is blood, which we have often discussed. It is divided into red, oxygen-rich, life-giving blood, which flows through the arteries, and blue-red, carbon-rich blood, which flows through the veins. Just as our blood is the manifestation, the expression, of our “I,” so too is the lymph, in a certain sense, the expression, the manifestation, of the human astral body. Such things do not manifest themselves in just one direction. In another direction, the expression of the astral body is the nervous system. In the direction we wish to consider today, the manifestation and expression of the astral body is, in fact, the lymph. Just as a person can fulfill two professions, so it is with the human astral body: on the one hand, it is the builder of the nervous system; on the other hand, it is the builder and shaper of the lymph. The human etheric body is just as much the builder and shaper of the entire glandular system as it is, in another sense, the builder, organizer, shaper, and regulator of the circulation of chyle, the digestive fluid. Thus, you first have a connection between these fluids flowing through the human body and the members of human nature itself.

[ 17 ] Now we must be clear that in the human astral body and in the human etheric body, the “I” is by no means the sole ruler. Through its evolution, the human being gradually gains more and more control over its astral and etheric bodies from the perspective of the “I,” as it transforms its astral body into the spiritual self or Manas, and transforms the etheric body so that the “I” gains control over the life spirit or Buddhi. But as long as human beings do not have dominion over these parts of their being, other beings remain connected to these human members.

[ 18 ] Embedded in the human astral body—like maggots in cheese—excuse this unappetizing comparison, but that is how it is—are other entities. Specifically, incorporated into it and connected to this astral body are those astral beings of whom I have told you that their true home is on the Moon or Mars, depending on whether they are benevolent or malevolent beings. They anchor themselves in the astral body, and the lymph—that whitish fluid that flows through the human being—belongs to the bodies of those beings who live in our astral world. However, these beings—whom we find on the astral plane as astral entities and who have their true home on the Moon or Mars—are not as tangible as the “I”s of the animal groups. But they are of such an astral nature that we can say, in a certain other sense: Just as we have, in animals—for example, in a group of lions—a kind of manifestation of the being we encounter on the astral plane as a unified personality, as the lion “I,” so too do we have, albeit not as tangibly, in what flows through the human body as lymph, a manifestation of the outstretched limbs of these astral beings.

[ 19 ] So, you might ask: Do these astral entities also have a kind of physical existence, just as the group souls of animals—such as the group ego of the lion species—manifest themselves in the individual lions here on the physical plane? If you ask that, the answer would be: Yes, they do. — Just as we saw with animals that the astral group-I extends its individual members into the individual lions, so these astral entities also extend their physical nature into the physical plane here. However, they cannot simply extend them from the outside into the physical plane; rather, they need beings on the physical plane of whom they are parasites, into whom they cling and burrow. Here, they are the parasites of human beings. If there were no human beings here on Earth, they would very soon take their leave of the Earth, because they would find no dwelling places; they would not find it to their liking here. But there are beings—humans and higher animals—who have lymph: it is there, in this lymph, that these beings manifest physically. Thus, it is not merely a material substance that pulses through our body, but within every such circulation there move—in whole swarms, in fact—such beings that rotate through the human being, move through him, and have their bodies in the lymph, while the actual human being, the “I”-human, initially has his body only in the blood. And whether more lunar beings of this kind or more Martian beings of this kind circulate through a person gives his lymph its particular character. If more lunar beings circulate through a person’s body, he is more inclined toward malice, anger, and fury; if more Martian beings circulate through him, he is a person who is more inclined toward gentleness, benevolence, and mildness. Thus you see how the human being is permeated not only by humors but also by spirits, and how one can only understand the human being if one knows that he is permeated not only by humors but also by spirits.

[ 20 ] If you now use clairvoyance to investigate what is called chyle—which is, in essence, the outward expression of the human etheric body—you will find that similar entities have been anchored and integrated there as well. What is incorporated there are, first and foremost, those beings we characterized earlier—on the one hand as the good Venusian beings, and on the other as the evil Venusian beings—those beings who have their home on Venus and who are found in our devachanic world. There, they appear as personalities to clairvoyant perception, and their manifestation, their revelation here in physical life, is found in the human digestive fluid—the chyle—however strange that may seem. These beings, whose true home is on the Devachan plane and who, insofar as they assume a physical body, live their physical lives on Venus, dwell within this digestive fluid that permeates the human body. And since Venus, in its forces, is connected in a certain way to all of our Earth’s vegetation and to everything else that lives on our Earth, you will understand the connection that exists between what nourishes human beings and what becomes of them through this nourishment. This is by no means insignificant. In all plants—and, of course, in animals as well—the influences of the Venusian beings are at work: on the one hand, those of the good, gentle, and mild beings; on the other hand, those of the wild Venusian beings who have been described to you as predatory and warring entities. Depending on whether one set or the other of these beings influences our animals or plants, the meat or the plants are such that, when they are transformed into digestive juices, they instill virtues or vices into the human body.

[ 21 ] From this, you can see—from an even higher perspective than was possible in previous lectures—the importance of understanding human nutrition from the point of view of spiritual science: knowing the influences acting on this or that plant, and which animals are subject to which influences, From this you can draw the lesson that, for example, anyone who knows that in a given country this or that plant or animal thrives under this or that celestial influence will understand how a very specific national character must develop, because in everything a person consumes—food obtained from their surroundings—they do not merely eat the substances identified by chemistry, but they also ingest certain spirits, and it is these that pass through their mouth into their stomach and permeate their being. This opens up the perspective for us of how one can recognize the character of a people from the deeper geographical nature of a country.

[ 22 ] Do not forget a remark you can find in the transcript of the lecture on the Lord’s Prayer, in which this fact is presented from an entirely different perspective—where you were told that, with regard to his etheric body, the individual stands in a certain relationship to the entire national character—just as he is connected to his immediate surroundings through his astral body.

[ 23 ] Here you can see, from an even deeper perspective, how the national character is formed from the spiritual entities that are absorbed into human beings through food. This is one of the means by which the great spiritual guidance of the Earth distributed the various national characters across the globe, by distributing the foods—which bring about one effect or another—in such a way that, in the food that is produced, one national character or another comes to the fore. This does not, by any means, lead indirectly to materialism; rather, spiritual science shows how everything material is a manifestation of the spirit, and how, in a way unknown to human beings, spiritual influences spread within the human being.

[ 24 ] More difficult to understand is the way in which the spirits of Saturn affect human beings. These are spirits who, when they look at something, quickly come up with an idea; on the other hand, they develop terribly wild, sensual passions, compared to which everything a human being can develop in this regard is child’s play. These Saturn spirits insinuate themselves into the human body in an even more mysterious way, namely through sensory perception. When a person directs their gaze toward something beautiful, pure, and noble, an image is stirred within them; when they direct their gaze toward something filthy and ignoble, a different image is stirred within them. As external impressions evoke an image in the soul, the Saturn spirits—both good and evil—creep into the person at the same time. And through everything a person unfolds around themselves—whether through mere sympathy or antipathy toward their surroundings, or through what they see, hear, and smell—they expose themselves to the infiltration of these or those Saturn spirits. They enter through the eyes, the ears, and the entire skin as the person perceives. For example, from an occult perspective, it is truly astonishing what kind of wild spirits in certain perfumes—which are highly prized in human society—creep into the noses of people who are in such an environment, quite apart from what creeps into the noses of those who wear such perfumes themselves.

[ 25 ] There you see how carefully and intimately one must observe even the most mundane things from a spiritual perspective if one wishes to gain clarity about life. Much could be told you about people who, more or less consciously or unconsciously, understood how to command such spirits that influence people specifically through scents and insinuate themselves into people through those scents. If you had a deeper and more intimate knowledge of certain aspects of the history of this or that era—particularly the history of France during the reigns of Louis XIII, XIV, and XV, with all the arts that flourished there—where aromas actually played an important role in the web of intrigue—then you would have some idea of what people are capable of doing when, consciously or unconsciously, they know how to command the spirits that, through perfumes and ‘aromas’ and sneak into human sensory perception. I could refer you to a quite fascinating book that was recently written by the minister of a small court. He wrote it, of course, without any knowledge of these facts, but he was well aware of the effects. It is a very interesting book about a small court where a major catastrophe has taken place in recent years. In the book, the minister and dignitary in question describes, drawing from his memoirs, the effects of a person who, in a certain way, knew how to command the aromas with their spirits. And he describes this with a certain satisfaction, because he was prepared for it and did not fall for it. You see, these things are not without significance or impact on the practical realities of life. If one approaches life not as a blind materialist but as a person of insight, then one can sense spiritual influences everywhere, and only those who recognize these influences truly understand life.

[ 26 ] So you see how we must conceive of human beings as highly complex beings, as companions of many different worlds and many different beings. Those who advance further and further along the path of occult development toward higher knowledge come to know these entities in their unique nature, and only then do they become free from them, gaining a clear overview of them. To take in the truth about the higher worlds means to become truly free and truly mature, because through this we learn to understand the effects and impulses that pulse through and permeate our lives. Learning to understand means, at the same time, becoming free and independent.

[ 27 ] Just as one can point to certain fluids that course through the human body, so too can one point to individual human organs in which beings from the higher worlds likewise find their expression and manifestation. For example, the beings that were most recently described to you as the Saturnian beings find their expression, in a certain sense, in the human liver. You must, of course, realize that spiritual science, if one truly wishes to understand it, is a very, very complex field.

[ 28 ] It has been made clear to you in the context of human evolution during the Saturnic stage that the senses came into being in their earliest form through the forces of Saturn. Even today, Saturn continues to influence human beings, and among the human organs—the internal physical organs—it is the liver upon which the forces of Saturn exert a strong and intense influence. Therefore, because human beings are on the path of developing ever further beyond all that is Saturnian, they must grow beyond the forces anchored in their liver. Indeed, anchored in the liver are those human forces that a person must increasingly outgrow, yet which were necessary for the human being to attain its present form and shape. And the liver is the organ that contains the forces a person must overcome the most. You can verify this to a certain extent through an external manifestation, an external expression. For example, you can see for yourselves that during the period when a human being is primarily building up his or her body—that is, before birth and immediately after birth—the liver is the largest organ in relation to the rest of the body. Then, in relation to the rest of the body, it becomes smaller and smaller. If you were to specify the ratio of the liver’s size to the rest of the human body immediately at birth, you could say it is one to eighteen, whereas later the liver shrinks to such an extent that it stands in a ratio of one to thirty-six to the rest of the body. It shrinks to about half its original size, and through his purely natural development, a person overcomes the forces anchored in the liver.

[ 29 ] By receiving on Earth the potential to develop toward ever-higher spirituality, human beings have thereby acquired, as an outward physical expression, the ability to overcome the forces of the liver. In a certain sense, the organ opposite the liver is the lung—the organ that does not stuff everything egoistic into the human being (for that is what the liver does), but rather opens the human being freely to the outside world, where, through the air that is inhaled and exhaled, the human being stands in constant communication with the external world. A combustion process takes place in the lungs. The red-blue, carbon-rich blood enters the lungs and, through its combination with oxygen, is transformed into red, life-sustaining blood. Just as substances combine with oxygen in a burning flame, so too does a combustion process take place in the lungs. Breathing is, in a certain sense, a combustion process, and through this process of breathing and combustion, human beings are granted the potential for ever higher and higher development. The forces that have built up the human being find their ultimate fulfillment in the liver. Those forces that bind him to the earth will be torn away from him by the forces he receives from the air like a fire. The fire that human beings receive from the air—which is expressed in their breathing—is what lifts them up to ever higher and higher spheres.

[ 30 ] It is always the myth, the legend, that is deeper and wiser than our seemingly so advanced science. The aspect of human life just mentioned finds magnificent expression in the myth of Prometheus. The statement that Prometheus brought fire from heaven to humankind expresses that Prometheus is involved in the process manifested in breathing, a process that leads humankind ever higher. But at the same time, it is wonderfully conveyed that: Because Prometheus rises above the forces that bind humans to the earthly realm, thereby setting himself in opposition to earthly power, and because he is the one who first gave humans the possibility of possessing this power of fire, he must suffer for it. This suffering is wonderfully depicted as the central fact underlying this myth: a vulture gnaws at the liver of the bound Prometheus! How could one depict more beautifully and wisely that the forces flowing into us through the process of breathing gnaw at the liver, and that the one who accomplishes in advance what humanity will accomplish in the distant future stands there like one crucified, as that which descends from the air gnaws at the liver!

[ 31 ] Thus, in the myths—insofar as they originate from initiates—initiates have expressed the great wisdom of existence. There is no myth drawn from the mysteries that does not express truly profound wisdom, which we, in turn, can verify. And so, when we approach the myths equipped with the facts of esoteric science, we stand in awe of these myths, which—as is rightly said—the higher spiritual beings have revealed to humanity so that people may first learn through imagery what they are to attain in later times through clear concepts. This is what will become increasingly evident: that myths contain wisdom, and that if one wishes to find the deepest wisdom represented in any area of life, one must turn to myth. This has been recognized by those who have created works from the depths of art. For example, Richard Wagner’s entire relationship to myth is grounded in deep truth, even if it was expressed in an artistic manner in his work. Our age will once again rise from mere physical everyday life to a wholly spiritual current. If you look deeply into what is pulsating in our time, you will grasp the task of spiritual science in an ever deeper sense.

[ 32 ] Thus, we have begun with reflections on higher worlds and, from the context, have recognized what the true mission of spiritual science is: to give human beings the opportunity to come to know life, and, in their work and creative endeavors, to introduce them more and more to that which mysteriously intervenes when they move their hands, when they create with spirit, soul, and body. He is surrounded by spiritual beings, and through spiritual knowledge he will become increasingly aware of these beings and live and create in harmony with them. In this way, spiritual research will reveal the full reality to him and enable him to bring knowledge and wisdom into his life.