The Rudolf Steiner Archive

11. The Esoteric Life

[ 1 ] Wherever we, members of the Theosophical Society, come together, we never feel like strangers to one another; we always find our place, as if in a shared homeland. Through the esoteric life, a spiritual home is to be discovered; this is what we long for... Human beings strive to become acquainted with the realms of the spiritual worlds and to explore their sources. Modern science makes use of an infinite number of sophisticated instruments that are becoming increasingly refined...

[ 2 ] In the spiritual realm, only one instrument is needed, and that is the human soul, the human spirit. This instrument can be refined through inner life. ... What happens to the ordinary person when he turns from outer life to inner life? There is nothing magical about it, nothing dreamlike; it is a natural continuation from everyday life into the spiritual realm. ...

[ 3 ] With his limbs and sense organs in the physical body, the human being is only a part of himself. We find the same substances in minerals, plants, and animals. Yet within the human being there are the most complex interrelationships of chemical substances, which are destroyed at death. These interrelationships are possible only because these physical substances are animated by another component, the etheric body. This prevents the physical body from perishing—and this etheric body, like the human being itself, is a fighter against destruction. We share the etheric body with plants and animals. In contrast, we have a third body, the astral body, which is not shared with minerals or plants, but only with animals, and this body is the bearer of passions and instincts. ...

[ 4 ] We call the fourth link the “I” of one’s own soul. This is the God of the human soul—not God Himself, but a drop from the divine ocean! We find this “I,” the soul, in the average person, in the idealist, and in the saint. ...

[ 5 ] But there are major differences. ... The savage follows his instincts and passions, which can escalate to the point of devouring his fellow human beings. The average person suppresses his instincts. ...

[ 6 ] In an intellectually developed human being, we therefore already find two parts of the astral body: namely, the old part and the part that has already been enlightened—the part that is already under the control of the “I.” We ascend further to the ideal human being, who has learned to master one part of the astral body—Manas—and has also learned to work on his or her astral body. (An example is shown below.)

[ 7 ] Characteristics of an eight-year-old child, such as vehemence and anger, ... reappear in adulthood. Only then can these traits be changed—when the impulse comes from the Eternal, when the drive to change one’s temperament is present. In this process, beautiful experiences of art and music—and above all, religion—can help us. Here is another example:

[ 8 ] The plant is a being that possesses a physical body and an etheric body; we see its structure repeated constantly from leaf to leaf. ... But from the outside, the plant is enveloped by astral matter, and this causes growth to transition into fruit formation. The etheric brings about repetition, and the astral brings about completion. In humans, we see repetitions of vertebrae in the spine, which find their completion in the brain and the cranial cavity. In growth, we find the principle of constant repetition.

[ 9 ] If the etheric body is to grow and develop, this must be fostered through constant engagement with religious issues and [through] meditation. The “Our Father” prayer gains its value only through repetition and leads us to a satisfying understanding. And through this, the original etheric body is transformed into the Life-Spirit, or buddhi, which can work its way into the physical human being. In occult anatomy, the human being learns to observe himself. He becomes inwardly aware of his nerves, his blood circulation, and his breathing process.

[ 10 ] An introduction to this study is necessary. We can begin by consciously abandoning or changing certain small external habits; this is of great value for the esoteric life—more important than the study itself. This is the guidance for acquiring the spiritual organs of perception. While a person lies in dreamless sleep at night, they consist solely of the physical body and the etheric body. The astral body is separated from these; it possesses only organs of feeling as long as it is connected to the physical body. But we can provide it with organs of feeling and sensation through intense experiences in the symbolic world.

[ 11 ] Let us imagine a plant. It is a sleeping being, composed of roots, leaves, and pure plant sap. ... From this sleeping being—that is, the plant—humanity later emerged, but humanity has permeated the pure, chaste plant sap with its desires and passions, so that it is no longer the pure plant sap but the red blood, permeated by desires and passions, that now flows through our veins. ... It is now our new task to purify this blood once again. Our desires must die away, and we must ascend to a higher consciousness, like the red rose that winds its way up around the black cross (the Rosicrucian symbol).

[ 12 ] Because we know that we have ascended from the lower realms, we should bow before them in humility, as is implied in the Gospel of John, chapter 13, where Jesus Christ says that he owes his existence to the Twelve; without them, he could not be—nor could he be what he is now. ...

[ 13 ] These mental images affect the astral body, and through the repetition of these humble feelings, one seeks to leave an imprint on the physical and etheric bodies, thereby harmonizing them. For what is fatigue, about which so much is now written and spoken? It is a disharmony between the physical and the spiritual. - The astral body works at night to dispel fatigue. Gradually, we should try to live a life free of disharmony, finding a tiny grain of gold in everything we encounter, as in the legend of Christ and the dead dog; where Christ, despite the animal already decomposing—from which the disciples turned away in revulsion—still admired the animal’s beautiful teeth.

[ 14 ] Just as in our example of Jesus Christ, we should learn to find the good and the beautiful in everything, even in what is unattractive.

[ 15 ] Man's Ascent into New Worlds. Four Stages of Knowledge:

1. external cognition, objective thinking
2. imaginative cognition
3. inspirations
4. intuitions

[ 16 ] What is imagination? The things around us exhibit colors, sounds, warmth, cold, taste, and smell. ... We are now to learn to experience these things and qualities without the things themselves. When we look at a plant—the green leaf, the red rose—we do not merely see the green and red colors; we also perceive something that makes an impression on our feelings. Green evokes a different impression than red. It is not easy to capture an emotional impression, but this is necessary. And yet we must distinguish between what the red and what the green evoke in us. We must bring these feelings to mind ... without objects.

[ 17 ] If—after patiently repeating these attempts—you stand before the green leaf and the red rose, you will see the leaf and the rose as transparent. The green and red hues appear before you like visions. You look into the very core of the objects. You see them floating freely in space. We are to come to know the spiritual beings that are always hovering around us—and which have not yet become visible to us—in this same way, just as we are to learn to see the aura. This is spiritual insight. Continue the experiment. Apply it to the seed, within which the entire plant is already hidden. Allow the seed to work its magic on you. It will then grow forth for you in a spiritual sense. All beings around us are more than we realize—namely, what is latent within them. Let us consider the heart with its striated muscle fibers: anatomically, it forms a cross and its movements are involuntary. The hand, on the other hand, is voluntary—that is, conscious in its movements—and [likewise striated]. What the hand is now, the heart aspires to become in the future.

[ 18 ] Observe things; look at what they are, and you will find inspiration. We can apply this experiment, which we conducted with the plant, to sounds and colors as well. Observe the feeling you have when listening to a sound. ... By patiently and repeatedly recalling this sensation, a state of soundlessness—absolute silence—will set in. ...

[ 19 ] But after the silence comes the spiritual sound, the spiritual music. After observing colors, absolute darkness should reign; after the darkness, the answers come from the other side. One must exercise caution in distinguishing between the physical and spiritual tones, so as not to confuse them, which can lead to grave errors, even madness. With every attempt, something of the lower realm loses its value!

[ 20 ] Sound fades away first. We first reach silence; color impressions linger longer; the sense of smell lasts the longest. All of this forms the basis of inspiration. Intuition then comes of its own accord; one is then within all things. Generally speaking, human beings are outside of all objects; through these exercises, they learn to understand the soul of all things. We come to know the soul in an animal, a plant, and a mineral, and once we have learned to walk—spiritually speaking—on the astral plane—please do not take offense at this expression—we will find this soul there as a group soul. The most prominent quality of the group soul is wisdom, and we find this to be far greater than in human beings. Let us observe the birds as they migrate in the fall. The beaver in its intricate dwelling—(no engineer, no matter how astute, can replicate the bridge-building of which the beaver gives us an example)—and let us watch the bees prepare their honey; what wisdom is contained therein!

[ 21 ] But what we do not find in the group soul of animals is love. The group soul of animals is a wise but cold entity. Love is found only in individual animals and in human beings.

[ 22 ] Just as animals do, plants also have shared souls. Plants themselves are the center of the Earth. We see that the roots of plants point downward, while the flowers point upward. Now we must compare the root to the human head. Human beings are the reverse of plants. Plants have their reproductive organs directed toward the light, toward the sun, but their heads are directed toward the earth. Human beings, however, have their heads turned toward the sun and their reproductive organs directed toward the earth.

[ 23 ] If we compare these three kingdoms to a cross, we find the plant at the bottom, the animal in the middle (the animal with its horizontal spine), and the human being at the top, drawn toward the light. The mineral is the foundation from which the plant sprouts as a group.

[ 24 ] When we pluck leaves and flowers, it does not happen without the plant soul feeling it. It feels a sense of well-being in the process, for it is [the milk] of the earth and gives of itself, just as a cow gives milk to her calf. If, on the other hand, a plant is torn out by the roots, the plant soul experiences pain (development is associated with pain, just as birth is). (Various terms for the graying of hair.) If the farmer in the fall were “seeing” and discerning, then he would experience nothing but contentment, for the earth bestows its gifts upon the world with joy and contentment. Insight into this comes from intuition.

[ 25 ] The soul of the stone, too, is to be recognized by human beings. We find this soul of the stone in the upper Devachan. Workers in quarries have observed feelings of pleasure and joy when stones are blasted apart. If, on the other hand, they were to try to put the shattered pieces back together or compress them, this would cause pain to the soul of the stone. (Example with salt in water: dissolution is a feeling of pleasure; crystallization is pain.)

[ 26 ] Our experience here is similar to that with religious texts: Only when we understand them does the meaning become clear to us (example of the Flood). Before the Flood, everything was shrouded in mist; there was no rain, no sunshine—it was the realm of mist (Nebelheim, Niflheim, Nibelungenheim) . After the Flood, the air was purified, and the rainbow appeared. In the distant past, the Earth’s temperature was much higher than it is now. The metals were liquid, molten. ...

[ 27 ] In order for humankind to dwell on Earth, the fluid was crystallized through suffering and pain. Through its continued development, the Earth will later be spiritualized. Solid matter will dissolve; it will become a process of bliss, a rush toward salvation. Romans 8:21–22. When human beings have learned to understand all beings, they will be freed from illusions, from Maya, and from all barriers. — “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free!” John 8:32.