The Rudolf Steiner Archive

13. Theosophy and Modern Science

Public lecture by Rudolf Steiner as part of the annual meeting of the German Theosophical Society. Report in the *Theosophische Rundschau*, No. 1-2/1904

[ 1 ] At the lecture evening, which took place on Sunday at 8:00 p.m. in Meinhold’s Halls before a wide public, Dr. Franz Hartmann first spoke [- Florence -] spoke first on the motto of the Theosophical Society, “No religion is higher than the truth,” followed by Dr. Rudolf Steiner, who spoke on “Theosophy and Modern Science.” Since it is impossible to convey even the main ideas from the rich content of these two lectures here, we must content ourselves with mentioning only a few fragments:

[ 2 ] Dr. Hartmann explained truth as divine reality and religion as the union of human consciousness with the consciousness of the divine Self within. Anyone who wishes to realize true religion must, as Sankara-acharya taught, above all acquire the ability to distinguish the eternal from the transitory within oneself and in all things; one must cease to seek reward for one’s deeds in this life or the next, since this only reinforces one’s false, egoistic self. Furthermore, one must develop spiritual faith. This faith can be compared to the sensation of warmth through which the blind perceive the sun. The fire of the higher life finally becomes the light of knowledge within a person when that person has advanced so far along the path of inner purification that he has become ripe for enlightenment or theosophy. Then Christ arises within the person, and salvation is accomplished.

[ 3 ] Dr. Steiner, building on a theosophical statement by Herder in which the latter emphasizes that human beings must unite within themselves all the forces of nature, provided a historical overview of the evolution of the quest for knowledge. In earlier times (e.g., in the Greek mysteries), truth was sought within, and the external world received little attention. In more recent times, especially since the microscope and telescope have been used as the primary tools of research, people have forgotten the fundamental teaching that the origin of the external must be sought within. After explaining the evolutionary theories of Lamarck and Darwin and their inadequacies, the speaker went on to point out that it is precisely the diligence of the representatives of modern science that has led them to recognize the inadequacy of their research methods. The realization of the inadequacy of physiological attempts to explain the mysteries of existence leads one to occult psychology and to the acceptance of the teachings of karma and reincarnation. We are learning to seek the law of life once again in the spiritual realm, and this cannot be achieved solely through rational thought. The speaker referred to universal brotherly love and to the law: “Love your neighbor as yourself,” and concluded with the words: “Be of one mind, completely of one mind!”