The Rudolf Steiner Archive

22. The Esoteric Life

[ 1 ] By “esoteric life” we mean knowledge of the things of the higher worlds, to which we are already drawn by a longing, a yearning. How can one gain knowledge of them? To put it simply: it happens through initiation, which Dr. Steiner compared to a person born blind regaining their sight. Initiation is accompanied by a gradual awakening of abilities and powers, through which we perceive unknown things that belong to a world of light, color, and radiance beyond the reach of the physical sense organs. The astral, the devachanic, and even higher worlds are, after all, all around us, and the development of spiritual life occurs in accordance with the laws of nature, not outside of its regular course. One day we will all reach these worlds, and there have already been initiates in ancient times whose development proceeded more rapidly than that of the rest of humanity. When we look back at the distant past, we find that in those ancient times, human souls had not yet fully taken possession of their bodies. The people of that time lacked the ability to form clear concepts, and great teachers were needed to guide them.

[ 2 ] The first point that must be emphasized is that no one can attain initiation on their own. There is a mysterious occult law according to which no selfish desire can promote our spiritual development—only a sense of duty and altruism, and not merely the feeling that “I want to help my fellow human beings,” but also the realization that “I must create the tools for this in the most effective way.”

[ 3 ] Awareness of this duty is one of the first major prerequisites for the inner life and the influence of its laws. This is because there is a great difference between the thinking of primitive man and that of a spiritually advanced individual. For the thoughts and feelings of the latter give rise to consequences and effects that radiate into the outer world. Therefore, a person who wishes to embark on the esoteric path must first be imbued with a sense of duty toward humanity and a sense of responsibility for the consequences of his or her occult influence on the outside world.

[ 4 ] The next point that must be clearly before our minds is that the esoteric life depends on certain conditions related to the great laws of the occult world. It is quite difficult for us to understand that things are not as we imagine they should be, but rather as those who know from experience tell us. A glass rod is made electrically by rubbing. But anyone who begins by saying, “I don’t want to rub,” will never succeed in electrifying his rod. Without submitting to the great laws of occult life, one cannot make any progress in this matter. To gain a preliminary understanding of these laws, we must clearly visualize the condition of present-day humanity.

[ 5 ] When we look far back into humanity’s past with the occult eye, we make a remarkable discovery. In ancient Lemuria and later, during the Atlantean epoch, as the Akashic Records teach us, human beings were much more sensitive to the influence of their surroundings than they are today. The physical ability to sleep depended on sunrise or sunset. In other ways, people were subject to the influences of the moon. Certain bodily functions were precisely attuned to the cosmic clock. Certain events occurred at sunrise and sunset. Back then, it was physically impossible to turn night into day, as happens now in our large cities. Humanity lived in harmonious attunement with the rhythm of nature. The fact of this attunement in Lemuria was due to the unconscious ego. It was only through the conscious development of this ego that disharmony arose. The ego began to assert its self-awareness by deviating from the rhythm of nature. The activities that had previously been linked to the course of the sun and the moon were shifted. Up until the time this occurred (during the epoch of transition to the fifth race), human beings had possessed a kind of dreamlike clairvoyance. Now, as we came to possess our present form of consciousness—which, as mentioned, first manifested itself in a deviation from the rhythms of nature—this clairvoyance was temporarily lost. The activity of the “I” that had awakened to consciousness consisted in ordering and purifying the astral body, and this purified and ordered part became Manas. This Manas encompasses all thoughts, all memories, and every intellectual function, and we can call it the Self of the spirit, the spiritual Self. And it is the task of the “I” to transform the astral body, through purification, into a Manasic body. But how can clairvoyance and clairaudience—which were once inherent in human beings, even if only in a dreamlike manner, but which have been lost through deviation from the rhythms of nature—be regained? This can only happen through the influence of the principle of Budhi upon the etheric body, which is its reflection in the lower worlds. In this way, these faculties can be regained—not in a dreamlike state, but with full consciousness.

[ 6 ] The esoteric life, in turn, seeks to reawaken this clairvoyant state of consciousness through methods that influence the soul. The gift of clairvoyance is not bestowed upon a person. The master—or [the disciple approved by him]—gives the candidate instructions, the observance of which must bring him back into harmony with the rhythm of nature. As preparation, he can familiarize himself through study with the theories and teachings of the great esoteric wisdom, but this purely intellectual exercise is not sufficient. The candidate must devote himself to meditation and concentration at regular times each day, cultivating inner contemplation of his own soul life. Regular repetition affects the higher soul life, of which the etheric body is the vehicle. The content of the meditation should be one or another profound saying, and it is best if the teacher chooses it, although it is also desirable that the saying itself have come to us from a high spiritual authority, such as: “Before the eye can see, it must wean itself from tears.” This sentence contains a world of spiritual depth, and it was given by a Master of Wisdom.

[ 7 ] From such a well, truth flows inexhaustibly and, with each new reflection, wells up anew in a thousand shades of spiritual light. Esoteric life does not consist in intellectually understanding such a saying; one must engage with it again and again with one’s whole soul. One should not always seek or desire a new saying; rather, the same content must pass through the soul anew time and again. This also explains the profound power of prayer: whoever prays allows the same spiritual current to flow through their soul again and again. And this repetition means acting upon a spiritual vehicle other than that of the intellect.

[ 8 ] If we examine the structure of the human being, we find, on the one hand, the “I”—this name that cannot be expressed by the environment—and, on the other hand, the four lower principles, each of which must be transformed and brought into consciousness by the “I.” Thus, desires must be transformed into moral ideals. If we compare the native with the European through the occult gaze, we see that in the former, the astral body is unified, whereas in the latter, a part of it has been transformed by the “I” into Manas. The sight of the aura proves this. And this Manas is, in occultism, the spiritual self—albeit in its lowest form. “But the human being is not merely Manas. As a person grows older, their knowledge increases, at least up to a certain age. But what remains virtually the same—unless they develop their being through occult methods—are their habits and their temperament. This temperament, these character traits, and these habits arise from the etheric body. A decisive, developing influence on the etheric body can only come about through impulses arising from the buddhi, of which the etheric is the reflection. These impulses, which must act upon the etheric body again and again, are awakened by devotional religious feelings, true art, and music. Thus, from the etheric body—awakened and transformed by the influence of buddhi—arises the power, the willpower, to consciously change a habit, which actually means renouncing a habit or breaking a moral failing.

[ 9 ] And repetition also plays a role here. At regular intervals, every day, one should devote oneself to the meditation described above, not merely comprehending the content of the meditation, but becoming one with it through one’s soul. To the extent that the ethereal is recreated in consciousness, to that extent is there Budhi consciousness. Later, when the candidate wishes to bring the principle of the Atma into consciousness, he will have to act upon the physical body.

[ 10 ] “Well,” said Dr. Steiner, “we still need to form a clear concept of this repetition in rhythms. We must imagine the matter analogously to the laws of growth in the plant world. The growth of a plant is governed from within by the etheric principle. This etheric principle is guided by the law of repetition; thus, branches grow from the trunk and leaves from the branches. The astral principle of the plant surrounds it from the outside like a shining light, which guides and tempers the principle of repetition in its workings and, at the right moment, halts further leaf formation to make room for the formation of buds, flowers, fruit, and seeds. The etheric principle is that of repetition; the astral principle is that of completion. In human beings, the effect of the etheric principle can be seen in the structure of the spine, which is completed by the formation of the skull. To live esoterically means to influence the etheric body through repetition, for what happens unconsciously must be repeated in the mind. This repetition must take place day after day in meditation. Just as in a plant all energy acts outward during growth, so in human beings all energy must act outward through meditation. Through this spiritual repetition, the soul regains its rhythm; in other words, it has regular moments of spiritual repose.

[ 11 ] One can follow a simple rhythm every day or use the same saying week after week, but one can also create a more complex rhythm—for example, by having a specific saying for each day of the week. In this way, the rhythm develops from that of which we ourselves are made, and the “I” attains independence, emerging from within itself in the rhythm. That is why, in ancient legends, initiates of the sixth degree are called “sun heroes,” since they did not deviate from the rhythm dictated by the course of the sun in nature.

[ 12 ] The esoteric life is not merely repetition; it must also have guidance and limits, just as the astral radiance does in plants. In the development of a person’s esoteric life, this element is represented by devotional feelings, religion, and true art—aligning oneself with an individuality as one’s ideal. And this meditation and this devotion must then coincide, just as the flower bud and the fruit do in a plant.

[ 13 ] But the person who devotes himself to the esoteric life must also keep his eyes fixed on the world around him. Escaping from the world is not his ultimate goal. He possesses energy and competence and does not wish to be a saint in a distant realm, but rather a saint in the world. It is not esoteric to walk one’s path in introspection when there is so much to see, learn, and do in the outside world. And the outward work of such a person must be an expression of their inner self. Therefore, isolation based on misunderstanding must give way to holiness in the service of humanity.