The Rudolf Steiner Archive

Fourth Lecture

[ 1 ] We begin this end-of-year celebration with Dr. Steiner recounting the beautiful Norwegian legend of “Olaf Åsteson”—the very same Olaf Åsteson who, as Christmas approached, fell into a kind of sleep that lasted thirteen days: the sacred thirteen days that we have come to know through various of our reflections. During this sleep, he had significant experiences, which he was then able to recount when he awoke.

[ 2 ] In recent days, we have made various observations that have drawn our attention to how, through the Spiritual Science worldview, we can reclaim in a different way ancient treasures of knowledge for human understanding—treasures that in times past were recognized by people as belonging to the spiritual worlds. Time and again, we will encounter this pre-worldly knowledge of the spiritual worlds through one thing or another, and time and again we will be reminded that this ancient knowledge was based on the fact that, by virtue of his earlier constitution, the human being was able to stand in such a connection with the entire universe and its events that—as we express it in our language—the human microcosm was immersed in the laws in the events of the macrocosm, and that through this immersion in the macrocosm, human beings could have experiences concerning things that intimately concern their soul life, but which must remain hidden from them as long as they walk on the physical plane as a microcosm and are endowed only with the knowledge granted to the senses and the intellect bound to the senses.

[ 3 ] We know how materialistic a worldview must be to believe that only human beings within the cosmic order are endowed with the faculties of cognition, feeling, and will, whereas from the standpoint of a spiritual worldview, one must acknowledge that just as there are beings below the human level, there are also beings above the human level of thought, feeling, and willing. Human beings can attune themselves to these beings when they immerse themselves as a microcosm within the macrocosm. We must then, however, speak of this macrocosm as if it were not merely a spatial macrocosm, but as if time, in its passage, held significance in the life of the macrocosm. Just as a human being must withdraw from all the impressions that can be exerted upon his senses from his surroundings—just as he must, so to speak, create darkness around himself by shutting off his sensory perception in order to kindle the light of the spirit within when he wishes to descend into the depths of his soul— so too must that spirit—which we may call the Earth Spirit—be sealed off from the impressions of the rest of the cosmos. The external cosmos must exert the very least possible influence on the Earth Spirit so that the Earth Spirit itself can concentrate inwardly and gather its _ faculties within. For then the mysteries are revealed that human beings must experience through this Earth Spirit, because the Earth, as Earth, has been set apart from the cosmos.

[ 4 ] A time when the greatest influence from the outer macrocosm is exerted upon the Earth is the summer solstice, the time of St. John. We are therefore reminded by many accounts from ancient times—which tie in with depictions of festivals and festival observances—of how such festivals took place in the midst of summer, and how, in the middle of summer, the soul, by detaching itself from the “I” and merging into the life of the macrocosm, is intoxicated and surrendered to the impressions of the macrocosm.

[ 5 ] Conversely, however, the legendary or other depictions of what could be experienced in ancient times—when the slightest degree of impressions from the macrocosm reaches the Earth—remind us that the Earth Spirit, concentrated within itself, experiences the mysteries of the Earth’s soul life in the infinite universe, and that when human beings enter into this experience at the time when the least light and warmth are sent from the macrocosm to the Earth, they share in the most sacred mysteries. That is why these days around Christmas have always been held in such high regard as sacred, because when human beings still possessed the capacity within their organism to share in the Earth’s experience at the time when it is most concentrated, they could be united with the Earth Spirit. Olaf Åsteson, Olaf the Son of the Earth, experiences various mysteries of the universe during these thirteen shortest days, while he is transported into the macrocosm. And the Nordic legend, which has recently been unearthed from ancient records, tells us of the experiences Olaf Åsteson had between Christmas and New Year’s until January 6. We certainly have reason to reflect more often on this ancient way of integrating the microcosm into the macrocosm; our contemplation will then be able to build upon such things. For now, however, let us hear the legend of Olaf, the Son of the Earth, who, in the time in which we now live, experienced the mysteries of worldly existence by living in communion with the Earth Spirit. Let us therefore hear of these experiences.

The Dream Song of Olaf Åsteson

I.

So listen to my song!
I will sing to you
Of a nimble young man:

It was Olaf Åsteson,
Who once slept for so long.
Of him I will sing to you.

II.

He went to rest on Christmas Eve.
A deep sleep soon enveloped him,
And he could not awaken
Until the thirteenth day,
When the people went to church.

It was Olaf Åsteson,
Who once slept so long.
I will sing to you of him.

He went to sleep on Christmas Eve.
He slept for a very long time!
He could not wake up
Until the thirteenth day
When the bird spread its wings!

It was Olaf Åsteson,
Who once slept so long.
I will sing to you of him.

Olaf could not wake up,
Until on the thirteenth day
The sun shone over the mountains.
Then he saddled his swift horse,
And he rode swiftly to the church.

It was Olaf Åsteson,
Who once slept so long.
I will sing to you of him.

The priest was already standing
At the altar, reading the Mass,
When at the church door
Olaf sat down to recount
The content of many dreams,
Which during his long sleep
Filled his soul.

It was Olaf Åsteson,
Who once slept for so long.
Of him I will sing to you.

And young and old alike,
They listened intently to the words,
That Olaf spoke of his dreams.

It was Olaf Åsteson,
Who once slept for so long.
I will sing to you of him.

III.

“I went to sleep on Christmas Eve.
A deep sleep soon enveloped me;
And I could not awaken
Until the thirteenth day,
When the people went to church.

The moon shone bright
And the paths stretched far and wide.

I was lifted high into the clouds
And cast down to the depths of the sea,
And whoever wishes to follow me,
Can find no joy.

The moon shone brightly
And the paths stretched far and wide.

I was lifted to the heights of the clouds
Then cast into murky swamps,
Beholding the horrors of hell
And also the light of heaven.

The moon shone brightly
And the paths stretched far and wide.

And I had to journey into the depths of the earth,
Where the streams of the gods roar terribly.
I could not see them,
But I could hear the roar.

The moon shone bright
And the paths stretched far and wide.

My black horse did not neigh,
And my dogs did not bark,
Nor did the morning bird sing,
It was nothing but a miracle everywhere.

The moon shone bright
And the paths stretched far and wide.

I had to ride through the land of spirits
across the vast field of thorn heath,
My scarlet cloak was torn to shreds
And so were the nails of my feet.

The moon shone bright
And the paths stretched far and wide.

I came to the Gjallar Bridge.
It hangs in the highest reaches of the wind,
It is studded with red gold
And it has nails with sharp points.

The moon shone bright
And the paths stretched far and wide.

The ghostly serpent struck me,
The ghostly hound bit me,
The bull stood in the middle of the path.
These are the bridge’s three creatures.
They are of a terribly evil nature.

The moon shone bright
And the paths stretched far and wide.

The dog is quite vicious,
And the snake seeks to strike,
The bull looms menacingly!
They let no one cross the bridge,
Who does not honor the truth!

The moon shone bright
And the paths stretched far and wide.

I have crossed the bridge,
Which is narrow and dizzying.
I had to wade through swamps....
They now lie behind me!

The moon shone brightly
And the paths stretched far and wide.

I had to wade through swamps,
They seemed bottomless beneath my feet.
As I crossed the bridge,
I felt earth in my mouth
Like the dead who lie in graves.

The moon shone brightly
And the paths stretched far into the distance.

Then I came to water,
In which, like blue flames,
The masses of ice shone brightly...
And God guided my mind,
So that I avoided the area.

The moon shone brightly
And the paths stretched far and wide.

I directed my steps toward the winter path.
To my right I could see it:
I gazed as if into paradise,
Which shone brightly far and wide.

The moon shone brightly
And the paths stretched far and wide.

And God’s exalted Mother,
I saw her there in the radiance!
To journey to Brooksvalin,
So she commanded me, declaring,
That souls are judged there!

The moon shone brightly
And the paths stretched far and wide.”

IV.

“I dwelt in other worlds
Through many long nights;
And only God can know
How much anguish of the soul I saw—

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.

I saw a young man,
He had murdered a boy:
Now he must carry him forever
In his own arms!
He stood so deep in the mud

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.

I also saw an old man,
He wore a cloak as if made of lead;
Thus was he punished for having
Lived on earth in greed,

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.

And men appeared,
Wearing garments of fire;
Dishonesty weighs
Upon their poor souls

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.

I could also see children,
Who had embers of coal beneath their feet;
They had done evil to their parents in life,
Which weighed heavily upon their spirits

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.

And to approach that house,
It was decreed upon me,
Where witches were to perform their work
In the blood that had enraged them in life,

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.

From the north, in wild hordes,
Evil spirits came riding,
Led by the Prince of Hell,

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.

What came from the north,
Seemed most evil of all;
He rode ahead, the Prince of Hell,
On his black steed

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.

But from the south came
Other hosts in noble tranquility.
Saint Michael rode at the head
At the side of Jesus Christ

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.”

The souls, burdened with sin,
They trembled in fear!
Tears streamed down in torrents
As the consequences of evil deeds

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.

There stood Michael in majesty
And weighed the souls of men
On his scales of sin,
And standing there in judgment
Was Jesus Christ, the Judge of the Worlds

In Brooksvalin, where souls
Are subject to the Last Judgment.”

V.

“How blessed is the one who, in this earthly life
Gives shoes to the poor;
He need not walk with bare feet
Through the field of thorns.

Then the tongue of Libra speaks,
And the truth of the worlds
Resounds in the realm of the spirit.

How blessed is he who, in his earthly life
Gives bread to the poor!
He cannot be harmed
By the dogs in that world.

Then the tongue of Libra speaks,
And the truth of the worlds
Resounds in the realm of the spirit.

How blessed is the one who, in earthly life
Gives grain to the poor!
He cannot be threatened
By the sharp horn of the bull,
When he must cross the Gjallar Bridge.

Then the tongue of Libra speaks,
And the truth of the worlds
Resounds in the realm of the spirit.

How blessed is the one who, in earthly life
Gives clothing to the poor!
He cannot be frozen to death
By the masses of ice in Brooksvalin.

There the tongue of the Scales speaks,
And the truth of the world
Resounds in the realm of the spirit.»

VI.

And young and old alike,
listened intently to the words
that Olaf spoke of his dreams.
You have slept for so long...
Awake now, O Olaf Åsteson!

[ 6 ] My dear friends, we have heard how Olaf Åsteson fell into that sleep which was to become for him a revelation of the mysteries of those worlds that are hidden from sensory life, from ordinary life on the physical plane. In the legend, we have received the message of those ancient insights, those ancient understandings of the spiritual worlds, which are to be regained through what we call the Spiritual Science worldview.

[ 7 ] The saying that runs through all the teachings dealing with the human soul’s entry into the spiritual world has often been cited; it states that a person can only perceive the spiritual world when he reaches the threshold of death through his own experience and then plunges into the elements. So that the elements of earthly existence are not around him as they are in ordinary life on the physical plane—as earth, water, air, fire—but rather that they are lifted above this outer aspect, this sensory outer aspect of the elements, and immersed in what these elements truly are when one comes to know them according to their true nature, their next-to-true nature, where beings are present within them that are connected to the experiences of the human soul.

[ 8 ] That Olaf Åsteson experienced something of this immersion in the elements could still be sensed in the passage where it is first recounted how Olaf arrives at the Gjallar Bridge and how he walks across the bridge along the paths of the spiritual world, which stretch far and wide. How vividly the experience with the earth element is described to us, how he is depicted as immersing himself in the earth element. This is brought to such a degree of vividness that it tells us he feels earth in his mouth, just like the dead lying in their graves. And it is then clearly indicated to us how he experiences the water element and everything that can be experienced within the water element when one experiences this water element together with its moral content. Then, in turn, it is indicated how the human being comes into contact with the fire element and the air element.

[ 9 ] All of this is described in a wonderfully vivid way and brought together in the experience of the human soul’s communion with the mysteries of the spiritual world. The legend was discovered later; it was collected where it was still alive in the oral tradition of the people. And there are many aspects of this legend, as it exists today, that are no longer as they originally were. Originally, there was undoubtedly first the vivid description of the experiences in the realm of the earth, then those in the realm of water. And then the experiences in the realms of air and fire were likely even more nuanced than is the case in the faint echo that was rediscovered after centuries and that we have before us today.

[ 10 ] Likewise, the ending—which, even as it stands today, in its current form, no longer evokes the originally immensely grandiose language or the superhuman poignancy inherent in such folk legends, whereas today’s ending is merely humanly moving—moving precisely because it is connected to such profound mysteries of the macrocosm and human experience.

[ 11 ] In times such as the one in which we now live, in seasons such as these—if we understand them correctly—there is ample reason to reflect on the fact that humanity—albeit with a different, more subdued, twilight-like awareness in times past—was imbued with a knowledge that has been lost and must be regained. And so the question may once again arise in our souls: Since we can already recognize today how such knowledge must once again come about for the sake of humanity, should we not regard it as one of our most urgent tasks to do everything that can bring about such knowledge—everything that can permeate today’s human culture with such knowledge?

[ 12 ] Many things will be necessary so that the shift I have just alluded to can take place in the proper way throughout the entire human—I would now say—worldview. Above all, one thing will be necessary—I say one, for it is one among many, but one can only take one at a time: it will be necessary for human souls, on the basis of our worldview based on Spiritual Science, to cultivate reverence and devotion toward what was known in ancient times, in the old way, about the great mysteries of existence. One will have to arrive at the realization that, in these materialistic times, we have failed to develop this reverence and this devotion in the soul.

[ 13 ] One cannot help but sense how dry and sober this materialistic age is, and how arrogantly humanity, in the first centuries of the fifth post-Atlantean cultural epoch, stood before the revelations of ancient religious and knowledge traditions—which, when approached with the necessary reverence, truly suggest that profound, profound wisdom lies within them. How irreverent, in essence, are we today even in the face of the Bible! I do not wish to speak at all of that kind of modern, monstrous scholarship that dishevels and unravels the entire Bible; I wish only to speak of the sober, dry manner in which we approach the Bible today—equipped, as it were, only with sensory perception and the ordinary powers of reason—and how we can no longer muster a sense of the immense grandeur of human insight that confronts us in many passages. I would like to point to a passage from the Second Book of Moses, chapter 33, verse 18:

[ 14 ] And Moses said to God, “Please show me the form of your revelation.”

[ 15 ] Then Yahweh said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of Yahweh before you, and I will be gracious to whom I may be gracious, and I will show mercy to whom I may show mercy.”

[ 16 ] But then Yahweh said, “You cannot see my face, for no one can see me and still live.”

[ 17 ] And Yahweh said, “There is a place here with me; stand on the rock. And when my glory passes by, I will place you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then, when I remove my hand, you will see my back; but my face cannot be seen.”

[ 18 ] When one takes stock of the many things that have found their way into our souls and hearts over the past years of our endeavors in Spiritual Science, and approaches this passage, one may have the feeling: Yes, what infinite wisdom speaks from this passage, and how deaf are the human ears of the materialistic age that they can hear nothing at all of the infinitely deep wisdom that speaks from this passage. — I would also like to take this opportunity to draw your attention to a little book that has been published under the title: “Worte Mosis,” published by Bruns Verlag in Minden, Westphalia, because some passages in this little book from the Five Books of Moses are better translated than in other editions. Dr. Hugo Bergmann, the editor of “Worte Mosis,” has put a great deal of effort into the interpretation.

[ 19 ] We have often emphasized that, fundamentally, if a person wishes to immerse themselves in the spiritual worlds, they must adopt a completely different way of relating to the world than the way they relate to the sensory world. The sensory world surrounds us. We look at the sensory world; we see it in its colors and forms and hear its sounds. The sensory world is there; we stand before it; it acts upon us; we take it in through our perception; we reflect on it. Such is our relationship to the sensory world. We are passive; it works its way, as it were, into our soul. We reflect on the sensory world; we create a mental image of the sensory world.

[ 20 ] Our behavior is quite different when we ascend into the spiritual world. This is one of the difficulties in gaining a correct mental image of what a person experiences when entering the spiritual world. I have attempted to describe some of these difficulties in the little book *The Threshold of the Spiritual World*. We imagine the sensory world; we think about the sensory world. When we go through everything that one who wishes to walk the path of initiation must go through, then something occurs that can be described as follows: Just as the things around us relate to us, so do we relate to the beings of the higher hierarchies—they create a mental image of us; they think of us. We think of the objects outside ourselves—the minerals, plants, and animals—and they become our thoughts. We, in turn, are the mental images, thoughts, and perceptions of the spirits of the higher hierarchies. We become the thoughts of the Angeloi, Archangeloi, Archai, and so on. We are taken in by them, just as we ourselves take in plants, animals, and human beings. And we must feel secure by being able to tell ourselves: The beings of the higher hierarchies think of us; they create a mental image of us. These beings of the higher hierarchies embrace us with their souls. — Yes, we can indeed imagine that when that Olaf Åsteson fell asleep in front of the church gate, he became a mental image for the spirits of the higher hierarchies, and while he slept, the beings of the higher hierarchies experienced what the beings of the Earth Spirit experience—which, for us, is a plurality. And as Olaf Åsteson sinks back down into the physical world, he remembers what the spirits of the higher hierarchies experienced within him.

[ 21 ] Let us imagine for a moment that we are setting out on the path of initiation. How should we relate to the spiritual worlds into which we—as a collective of spiritual beings from the higher hierarchies—wish to enter? How should we relate to them?—We can address them and ask: How do we enter into you, and how do you reveal yourselves to us? — And then, once we have gained an understanding of the different way in which the human soul relates to the higher worlds, a response will, as it were, come to us from the spiritual worlds: “Yes, just as you perceive the sensory world—as it appears before your eyes, as it presents itself to your senses—so you cannot perceive the spiritual world.” We must introduce you to it as a mental image, and you must sense yourself within us. You must perceive yourself in the same way that the thought you think in the sensory world would experience itself if it could experience itself within you. You must surrender yourself to the spiritual world; then everything that can reveal itself to you—the beings of the higher hierarchies—will enter into you. Then it will flow into your soul and dwell there graciously, just as you live in your thoughts when you reflect on the sensory world. If the spiritual world wishes to bestow grace upon you, it will permeate you with its love—if it takes pity on you and wishes to fill you with its love!

[ 22 ] But you must not think that you can relate to spiritual beings in the same way as you do to the physical world. Just as Moses had to enter the cave, so must you enter the depths of the spiritual world. You must place yourself there. Just as the thought lives within you, so must you live your way into the spiritual beings. You yourself must live within the macrocosm as a world-thought. You cannot experience what you experience in this way on your own during your earthly life between birth and death; you can do so only after death, once you have died. No one can experience the spiritual world in this way before they have died, but the spiritual world can pass before you, bestow its grace upon you, and flood you with its love. And then, when you subsequently—or while you are already within this spiritual world—develop your earthly consciousness, what the spiritual world is will shine into your earthly consciousness.

[ 23 ] Just as an object exists outside and a person stands before it, just as the object penetrates into the person’s consciousness and then resides there, so too is the person, with his soul, within the recesses of the spiritual world. The spiritual world flows through him. Here, the person stands before things. When a person enters the spiritual world, the beings of the higher hierarchies are behind him. There he cannot see their faces, just as thoughts do not see our face when they are within us. The face is in front; the thoughts are behind it; they do not see the face. The whole mystery of initiation lies in the words that Yahweh speaks to Moses.

[ 24 ] And Moses said to God, “Please show me the form of your revelation.”

[ 25 ] Then Yahweh said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of Yahweh before you, and I will be gracious to whom I may be gracious, and I will show mercy to whom I may show mercy.”

[ 26 ] But then Yahweh said, “You cannot see my face, for no one can see me and still live.” — After all, one reaches the gates of death through initiation.

[ 27 ] And Yahweh said, “There is a place here with me; stand on the rock. And when my glory passes by, I will place you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then, when I remove my hand, you will see my back, but my face cannot be seen.”

[ 28 ] It is the exact opposite of how one perceives the sensory world. One must draw upon much of what one has acquired over the years through endeavor in Spiritual Science in order to stand before such a revelation in the proper manner—with reverence and devotion. But then, little by little, this feeling of reverence toward these revelations enters the human soul more and more, and among the many things we need so that the aforementioned transformation in humanity’s spiritual culture can come to the fore is this reverence, this devotion.

[ 29 ] The time when the least amount of impressions from the macrocosm reaches the Earth—the period from Christmas through New Year’s and on until about January 6—is well suited not only for recalling the concrete aspects of spiritual knowledge, but also for reflecting on the feelings we must develop within ourselves through the absorption of Spiritual Science. Thus we truly immerse ourselves once more in the Earth Spirit, with which we together form a whole, and with which the ancient, clairvoyant knowledge lived, as it is depicted for us, for example, in this legend of Olaf Åsteson. Humanity in the materialistic age has, in many ways, forgotten its reverence and devotion to spiritual life. Above all, it is essential to ensure that this reverence and devotion return, for only through them will we be able to develop the attitude that will lead us to the new Spiritual Science in the right way. For the time being, the prevailing attitude is still one that approaches the Spiritual Science in the same way one approaches other, conventional sciences. In this regard, however, a fundamental change of heart must take place.

[ 30 ] Because humanity has lost its understanding of the spiritual world, it has also lost its proper relationship to the whole of human existence, to humanity. The materialistic worldview gives rise to chaotic perceptions of existence in the world. These chaotic perceptions of the existence of the world and of humanity were bound to emerge in the age of materialism. Let us consider a time—and this time is our own: the first centuries of the fifth post-Atlantean cultural epoch—when people no longer had any real sense that the human being is a threefold entity: physical, soul, and spiritual. For indeed, this is the case. That which for us must already belong to the very first elements of Spiritual Science knowledge—the threefold division of the human being into body, soul, and spirit—was completely unknown from the first four centuries of the fifth post-Atlantean cultural period right up to our own time. A human being was simply a human being, and any talk of a human division of the kind we have—into body, soul, and spirit—was regarded as foolish, fanciful rambling.

[ 31 ] One might think that these things are significant only for knowledge. But they are not. They are not significant solely for knowledge; they are also significant for the entire way in which human beings approach life. In the fourth century of modern development—or, as we say in our language, the development of the fifth post-Atlantean cultural epoch—three powerful words burst into this era, through which this age, in a sense, understood—or at least attempted to understand—the center of human will in earthly existence. Three words that are significant, but which acquired their distinctive character by bursting into humanity at a time when nothing was known about the threefold nature of the human being. Humanity heard of liberty, equality, and fraternity.

[ 32 ] That these words resonated within modern culture at a specific time was a profound necessity. One will truly understand these words only when one understands the threefold structure of human nature, because only then will one know what significance these words can have for human nature, in the truest sense of the word. As long as one fills these three words with those chaotic feelings that stem from the idea that “a human being is a human being” and that the threefold structure of the human being is a foolish delusion, one cannot find one’s way within the scope of the guiding principle of these three words. For just as these three words present themselves to us, they cannot be applied directly—one might say—on the same levels of human experience. They simply cannot. Simple considerations—which, perhaps because they are so simple, may not immediately appear before the eye of the soul in all the gravity of their meaning—can suggest to you how, on the very same level of life, the meaning of these three words can lead to serious life conflicts.

[ 33 ] Let us first consider the realm in which brotherhood presents itself to us in the most natural way possible. Let us consider the human bond of blood—the family—where we do not first need to establish brotherhood, where it is naturally innate to human beings, and let us reflect on how it speaks to our feelings when we can see that genuine, true brotherhood reigns in a family, that everything is bound together in brotherly love. But now—without needing to dampen in the slightest the wonderful feeling we can derive from this brotherhood—let us look within to see what can arise within the family’s brotherhood, precisely because of the family’s brotherhood. There may be a member of the family who, precisely because of the brotherhood that is justified within the family, does not feel at ease, who longs to break free from the family’s brotherhood, because they feel they cannot unfold their soul within the family’s brotherhood, because they feel they must leave the family—in which they can live so fraternally—in order to freely unfold their soul. We see that freedom—the free unfolding of the soul’s life—can come into conflict with the most well-intentioned brotherhood.

[ 34 ] Of course, a superficial person might say that this is not true brotherhood, which is incompatible with the freedom of a soul within the brotherhood. But one can say anything one can imagine. One can say that everything is compatible with everything else; there is no doubt about that. I recently came across a dissertation. Among the theses to be defended was the following: A triangle is a quadrilateral. - Of course, one can defend that—indeed, one can even rigorously prove that a triangle is a quadrilateral! In the same way, one can fully prove that brotherhood and freedom are compatible. But that is not the point; rather, the point is how, for the sake of freedom, certain areas of brotherhood must be—and are—abandoned. We could cite many other examples as well.

[ 35 ] If one were to list the discrepancies between brotherhood and equality, it would take a very long time to discuss them. Of course, in the abstract, one can have a mental image of everyone being equal, and one can show that brotherhood and equality are compatible. But we are not dealing with abstractions here, but rather with the observation of reality, if we take life seriously and honestly. The moment we realize that the human being consists of the physical aspect, which manifests itself on the physical plane; the soul aspect, which actually manifests itself in the world of the soul; and the spiritual aspect, which manifests itself in the spiritual world—the correct perspective on the relationship between the three powerful terms we have mentioned also becomes clear. Brotherhood is the most important ideal for the physical world; freedom, for the world of the soul; and insofar as human beings exist within the world of the soul, one should speak of the freedom of the soul—that is, of a social condition that fully guarantees the freedom of the soul. And when we consider that each of us must strive, from our individual standpoint, for spiritual knowledge and for the development of our spirit in order to be immersed in the spirit in the spiritual realm, it will very soon become clear to our spiritual eye where our understanding of the spirit would lead us if everyone were to seek only along their own path and each were to arrive at a completely different spiritual understanding.

[ 36 ] As human beings, we can only come together in life if we—each on our own—seek the spirit and are ultimately able to arrive at the same spiritual content. One can speak of the equality of spiritual life. Of brotherhood on the physical plane and in relation to everything connected with the laws of the physical plane and that which is internalized into the human soul from the physical plane. Freedom with regard to everything that permeates the human soul as laws of the soul world; equality with regard to everything that permeates the human soul from the laws of the spirit realm.

[ 37 ] You see, a new world year must dawn, in which a sun will grow in terms of its warming and radiant power: that sun which must provide radiant warmth for many things that, though alive during the time of darkness, remain misunderstood. That is precisely what is peculiar about our time: that many things are strived for, many things are spoken of, without being understood.

[ 38 ] But this, too, can lead us to a sense of awe and devotion toward the spiritual world. For when we consider that many in the fourth century of the fifth post-Atlantean epoch strove for brotherhood, freedom, and equality—and uttered these words without them being truly understood—we already have the opportunity to understand and find an answer to the question: Where, then, did these words come from? — The divine-spiritual world order first instilled them in advance into the human soul—which did not yet understand them—so that the soul might climb upward toward a true understanding of the world by clinging to such guiding principles. Even in such facts, we can observe the wise guidance in the evolution of the world. In times both near and far within our own experience, we can observe this guidance everywhere—noticing how we often realize only in hindsight that what we did previously was actually wiser than we could have accomplished with the wisdom we possessed at the time. I drew attention to this right at the beginning of my treatise on “The Spiritual Guidance of the Individual and of Humanity.”

[ 39 ] But if you consider, for example, the fact that guiding principles—which can only be understood gradually—are woven into the development of the world and of humanity, then you will likely become aware of an image that can be used to characterize this past period of the fifth post-Atlantean cultural epoch. For in certain respects, it can truly be compared to the season of Advent, when the hours of daylight grow shorter and shorter. And now, in our present age—in which we can once again gain insight into the revelations of the spiritual world—evolution is entering a phase in which we can form a mental image that the times of light are growing longer and longer, and we can speak of how this course of time truly appears analogous to the thirteen days and the return to the days that are growing longer again.

[ 40 ] But the issue runs even deeper. It is not right—not right at all—for us to have only harsh words for the materialistic era of the last four centuries. After all, this new era arose as a result of the great discoveries and inventions—the kind we call “great” in the materialistic age—such as circumnavigating the globe, discovering lands previously unknown, and beginning to colonize the Earth. That was the beginning of material culture. And then, little by little, the time came when people were almost suffocating in material culture. The time came when all of our spiritual powers were directed toward understanding and grasping material life. As we have seen, the insights, perceptions, and visions of the spiritual world derived from ancient knowledge were increasingly forgotten.

[ 41 ] But it is not right to have only harsh words for this era. Rather, the truth lies elsewhere; the truth is found when we consider that this human soul, in its waking aspect, thought and felt in a materialistic way, that it laid the foundations for science and culture from a materialistic perspective, yet that this human soul is a whole. If I were to express this schematically, I could say: One part of the human soul laid the foundation for materialistic culture. In the past, this part was inactive; people knew nothing of external science, knew nothing of external, material life; at that time, the spiritual part was more awake. (A diagram was drawn.) Over the last four centuries, it was precisely that part that was awake—the part that laid the foundation for materialistic culture—while the other part, this other part of the human soul, was asleep. And indeed, the forces we are now developing within humanity to work our way back up toward spirituality were laid down during the era of materialistic culture in the soul members that lay dormant. Humanity was truly, in terms of spiritual knowledge during those times: Olaf Åsteson. That is truly what it was. Only, this humanity has not yet awakened! Spiritual Science must bring it to awakening. The time must come when young and old alike hear words spoken from that part of the human soul that slept during the dark ages.

[ 42 ] This human soul has slept for quite a long time, but the world spirits will approach it and call out to it: “Awake now, O Olaf Åsteson!” - We need only prepare ourselves properly so that we are not confronted with the call: “Awake now, O Olaf Åsteson!”—and yet have no ears to hear it. To this end, we pursue Spiritual Science so that we may have ears when the call to spiritual awakening resounds in the course of human evolution.

[ 43 ] It is good for a person to sometimes remember that he is a microcosm and that he can have many experiences when he merges with the macrocosm. And we have seen: the time, the season in which we now live, is favorable. Let us try, on this New Year’s Eve, to let it serve as a symbol for that New Year’s Eve necessary for humanity’s earthly evolution—the one in which the new epoch will dawn, in which the light—the light of the soul, the vision—will grow and continue to grow ever more, and the recognition of that which lives in the spiritual realm and can surge through and flood the human soul from the spiritual realm. If we connect the microcosm of our experience on this New Year’s Eve with the macrocosm of humanity’s experience across the Earth, then we will be able to experience the feelings we are meant to experience, for we can sense the dawn of the new great world day in the fifth post-Atlantean period—a dawn we are now standing at the threshold of, and whose midnight we wish to experience with dignity.