Health and Illness I
GA 348
24 October 1922, Dornach
II. Illnesses Occurring in the Different Periods of Life
Gentlemen, at our last session I started to answer your question about the inner organs of man. Of course, this subject must be seen from a broad perspective and treated from its foundations. We saw how William Windom, who died while delivering a speech, expressed his own inner condition by reading it off, as it were, from his body. After citing another case, we found in examining certain facts about the course of human life that the mortality rate is highest in man's infancy, that human beings die most frequently in their early years. In the period from birth up to the change of teeth at age seven, the mortality rate is at its peak, though it diminishes with the third, fourth and fifth years.
The human being is healthiest from the time of his change of teeth to puberty. This is indeed so, and if we ourselves are careful to prevent the causes of ill health, such as bad posture, which can lead to curvatures, and foul air, which can afflict the internal organs, we can count on children to be healthiest during their school years. The illnesses that do befall them then are for the most part due to external causes. Not until the teens does the danger again arise when man can fall ill from processes arising within his own constitution.
These illnesses, however, are quite different from those of early childhood.
I have mentioned that infants are highly susceptible to suppuration of the blood. It can become so purulent that symptoms of jaundice appear. In children, irregular digestion frequently results in diarrhoea. They also get thrush—those little white pustules in various places—and another, completely different kind of illness, so-called infantile convulsions. A childhood disease that is particularly prevalent these days is infantile paralysis, which can also affect adults. It is extremely damaging; the children cannot move their legs and become quite paralyzed. This disease is increasing rapidly. Perhaps you have read that schools have had to be closed in the province of Thüringen because of an epidemic there.
Thus, we can see that childhood illnesses have a distinctive character; they are quite different from the diseases man gets in later life. Scarlet fever and measles are specifically childhood illnesses, though adults, too, can contract the latter. But we must now ask ourselves why children are particularly susceptible to all these illnesses.
We can explain this susceptibility only if we know how forces work in the human body. When we examine the human embryo in the first, second or third months of pregnancy, we see that it is utterly different form what the human being later becomes. In the first and second months the child is all head; the other organs are only appendages to the head. What later turn into limbs, hands and feet are little stumps, and the actual lung and abdominal region are not yet functioning.
You see, if you take the human embryo (a sketch is drawn here) it looks like this. It is enclosed in a kind of sack, to which are attached blood vessels from the body of the mother. These blood vessels penetrate throughout the embryo, which the mother supplies with blood and nourishment. The other matter is supplementary and is later discarded. In comparison to the rest of the body the embryo's head is huge. See (pointing to the drawing), this is the head; the rest consists of appendages not yet functioning. This part will later become the heart and digestive system. The blood circulation is provided from outside, from the mother. These little stumps will develop into hands and feet. So we can say that the embryo is all head. Its other organs are insignificant because the mother's system provides all the nourishment and air. Hence, during the first few months, the embryo consists primarily of a head.

People are surprised that mental illnesses are hereditary. In fact, mental illnesses are always based on physical ailments; they arise from a malfunctioning of the body. Neither the spirit nor the soul can fall ill. Though mental illnesses are always rooted in physical problems, people wonder how they can occur through heredity, which indeed they can do. If a parent, particularly the mother, suffers from tuberculosis or another disease like arteriosclerosis, which admittedly occurs rarely in younger persons, the children do not necessarily become afflicted with these illnesses but instead can suffer from mental deficiencies. People are surprised about this, but need it puzzle us, gentlemen? Whatever the child can inherit must be inherited first of all from its head. Therefore, if the mother is consumptive, one need not be surprised that her condition is not passed on to the lungs of the unborn child, which, after all, are not even functioning yet. The condition is rather carried over into the head and comes to expression in the brain. Thus, nobody should be surprised that the disease inherited is quite different from that of the parent. Venereal disease, for example, can appear in children as an eye disease. It is no wonder, for when the child's head is developing, its eyes are exposed to what afflicts the parents; its eyes are in an environment that's venereally diseased! So it is not at all surprising.
When the child is born, everyone knows that the most completely formed part of it is its head. In the succeeding years it is the rest of the body that grows the most; the head has much less growing to do than the other organs. This fact tells us how, in reality, the inner organs of man function. Materialistic science cannot form an accurate conception of this because it fails to realize that all growth proceeds from the head. In the child everything is regulated from the head. We can see this most clearly in the embryo, which is nothing more than a head. But even after birth all inner processes are regulated from this part of the body. The digestion, the blood circulation and all other activities in human organization are directed by the head.
Suppose that a child is born whose blood circulation is too slow. For some reason, through some hereditary factor, it can happen that the child's blood circulation is too slow. Let us imagine this case. (See drawing.) Here is the child's heart, and here, its arteries; through both the blood is travelling too slowly. The heart is being formed from the head, but even when the head functions perfectly, the circulation can still be too slow. Thus, even though the heart is properly developed, the blood doesn't flow into it correctly. This is often the case in earliest infancy. The head is perfectly developed, but the blood flows too slowly into the heart. Poor circulation may result simply from keeping the child in stifling air. It cannot breathe properly, and its circulation slows down. The blood circulation may slacken also if the baby is not properly nourished. Then its blood cannot thoroughly penetrate the body. The head may be in excellent shape and try to form the heart aright, but the blood circulation remains sluggish. What happens in such instances is that, because the blood is not circulating well enough, certain substances that normally would be pushed down from the heart into the kidneys and expelled remain in the body; they stay in the blood. When these substances that should have been discharged stay in the system, the blood suppurates.

In the seventh, eighth or ninth years, this danger is not so acute as it is in the earliest years of childhood. You see, the fact that a child has its second set of teeth shows that its body is sufficiently strong; if it were not, the teeth would not come in properly. Why? Well, you must understand that what is contained in a tooth comes out of the whole body. The second teeth emerge from within the whole system; they are the product not just of something in the jaw but of the whole body. This is true only of the second teeth, however, for the first teeth, the so-called milk teeth, are completely different. They are the result of heredity, of the fact that the child's mother and father have teeth. Only after the milk teeth are expelled in the course of the first seven years does the child get its own teeth. The body must make the second teeth for itself.
Actually, a child nine or ten years old already has its second body. It has already completely discarded the one it had inherited, and comes into possession of its own body only around the age of seven. During these first seven years it demonstrates that it was born with enough resistance to tolerate air and nourishment. After it has built up its body and produced its second teeth, the danger of falling ill is no longer so acute. The danger is most acute in earliest infancy while it is learning to cope for itself in breathing, eating, that is, everything that once was done for it within the protection of the mother's womb. In these early years the head is actually in good shape; only with age does it become less perfect. In old age the head doesn't work as well as it did in infancy. It must think and occupy itself with the surroundings and so something often goes amiss. But the infant does not yet need to learn anything, go to school or possess skills. The head works only on the child's own body, and in most cases it does this quite well. During these tender years, however, when the human being is just becoming used to the world, the rest of the body is quite vulnerable. Modern science also has described these matters but not quite as I have, for what I tell you is exact. Popular science does not really comprehend the whole process and cannot explain why the human being is most vulnerable in its earliest years. It cannot come to terms with this fact because it explains away the soul and spirit.
In reality, soul-spiritual elements are united with the child, mainly with the head, while it is still in the mother's womb and after birth. The forces that work on the child from within the head are invisible soul-spiritual forces. Should any of you think that this is merely an arbitrary opinion, you would be committing the same error as one of the following men. Suppose one man says, “Here is a piece of iron,” and the other says, “Fine! I'll shoe my horse with it.” The first man then says, “No, it would be stupid to shoe your horse with this. It's a magnet, and it has a hidden force. Magnets are used for quite other things than for shoeing horses!” The one man thinks the piece of iron should be used for a horseshoe, while the other knows that it is a magnet containing an invisible force. Well, the person who says, in accordance with materialistic science, “The head is nothing but a bit of bones and brains,” is just like the fellow who says of the magnet, “This is a horseshoe.” Indeed, it is not a horseshoe, nor is the head of the infant just flesh and bone. Within it invisible forces are working like a sculptor to build up the whole organism. The human form is among those things the child keeps as an inheritance, but the forces that, during the first seven years, tirelessly build up this form from the head are brought into the world not from the parents but from quite another source.
Suppose a man received these forces from his parents. Well, gentlemen, if a parent is a genius, does that make the child a genius as well? Or if a child is a genius, does that mean the parents were also highly gifted? Not at all! Goethe, for example, was certainly a genius, but his father was a dreadful philistine, and his mother was a kind and pleasant woman who could tell a good story but surely was no genius. Goethe's son was rather stupid; he was no genius either. Whatever pertains to the soul and spirit is not hereditary; it is brought into this world from quite other realms and then is united with the part that is inherited. Aside from the time he spends in his mother's womb, man lives before birth as a being of soul and spirit.
The only reason people disavow this today is that all through the Middle Ages the Catholic Church forbade anyone to ascribe to man a life of soul and spirit before birth. It assumed that the soul was created at birth by a God whose nature was also assumed. So throughout the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church forbade the concept of pre-existence, as it was called, meaning “existence before, prior to birth.” Modern materialistic science has merely followed suit and then congratulated itself on its cleverness. Now people think they are extraordinarily clever to hold this opinion; unfortunately, they fail to realize how they were conditioned to do so.
In truth, man not only inherits a physical existence from his parents and forebears but also brings into the world a soul-spiritual element that works within him. If one does not acknowledge that the soul-spiritual aspect is present before birth, one cannot see that the same soul and spirit remain after death; at most, one can believe it. Knowledge of the immortality of the soul is dependent on knowledge of its existence before birth. If one maintains that the soul came into being with the creation of the body, then, of course, a divine creator would have the privilege of letting the soul disappear upon the body's dissolution. If, however, it is the soul that builds up the body in the first place, then it certainly remains unaffected when the body dies.
Thus, the existence of the human soul follows readily from all the aspects that one can correctly observe. Indeed, how could the soul die, since it is the soul itself that builds up the physical body! One would have to investigate far different regions to discover whether or not the soul can perish. In future lectures we shall consider this question and find that it cannot die in these realms either. It obviously cannot die with the body because it is the soul that built it up.
We have now become acquainted with illnesses that originate because the soul-spiritual element works out of the head, and the body is malfunctioning. But the blood circulation can also be too slow. Stagnation sets in and the blood then suppurates. Still, something entirely different can happen, too. The infant may be too weak to absorb nourishment through its intestines into its blood. Because the body is too weak, nourishment does not pass through the villi and the child becomes afflicted with diarrhoea. What should have been absorbed to remain longer in the body is expelled. Because the food was not properly digested, diarrhoea results, and the substance is discharged unchanged. This is connected with something else. Obviously, a child can get diarrhoea in different degrees, and it may even get summer cholera. Whatever the degree, however, it is only the first stage. If the child cannot digest its food for a considerable length of time, its inner organs cannot be built up properly. The head constantly wants to work on them, but the inner organs cannot be correctly constructed because the necessary substances are lacking. Say you were working on a statue and ran out of clay but continued to make empty-handed motions in the air. In a like manner the head starts to move and fidget around when the child lacks the substance from which its organs can be built. It wants to form the heart or stomach but can only aimlessly fidget about because the substances the head should have received have been eliminated causing diarrhoea.
The educated but materialistic scientist faces a complete puzzle here. He examines the child, discovers diarrhoea and prescribes some medication to stop it. As a result, food will merely accumulate in the intestines because they cannot be absorbed, and the child will get nothing more than a swollen stomach. If one were to examine the organism further, one would discover that the heart is malformed, that it is an empty pouch, or that the lungs are empty sacks. They want to be formed but lack the necessary substances. The forces originating from the head that penetrate into the lungs, which may now be empty sacks, need something to grasp and work with. I can grasp this chair and shake it or, without having taken hold of it, I can merely fidget about like an idiot. But what happens when the head forces fidget about in the lungs? Convulsions occur. A rational explanation of convulsions must acknowledge that the head is fidgeting around and finds no support. Diarrhoea may be explained materialistically but convulsions can no longer be accounted for along these lines.
All this demonstrates that in the infant the soul-spiritual processes are at their height of activity. Later, this activity subsides. Up to the child's sixth or seventh years, however, these spiritual forces are so active that they can separate minute amounts of matter from food that will constitute the second teeth. Imagine having to do that yourself! You would have to be clever enough to distinguish the magnesium salts and carbonates contained in the food. Even if you could do that you would first have to analyse the teeth chemically and learn from them themselves. The teeth made artificially today are not living teeth; no one really knows how teeth are produced. Yet minute portions of the nourishment the child receives up to its seventh year are withdrawn to make the second teeth. Furthermore, to correctly separate the various substances you would need to know not only the chemical composition of food and teeth but also the activity in the stomach. What happens to the minute particles secreted in the second or third years? How do you retain them long enough in the blood stream so that, at just the right time, during the sixth and seventh years, they will penetrate the jaws to build up the teeth? All this that must be accomplished is done unconsciously by the child's soul and spirit. No one here would feel insulted if I said that you cannot produce or make one hair grow on your head. But a child can. It drives the proper substances to the spot where the hair takes root and then offers them to the light, for hair grows under the influence of light. All this occurs in the child, but modern science is unwilling to consider these aspects. It leaves people in the dark by refusing to acknowledge that soul-spiritual forces work within the organism that originate, not from the parents, but from the spiritual world.
Let us return to this matter of hair. Man normally grows hair only on certain parts of his body, but once, ages ago, he was covered completely with a shaggy growth of hair. Why did he lose it? I will not give you a theory, which anyone can dream up, but merely point out some facts. Consider another creature, the pig. When pigs are free in nature, they are covered with hair, but domesticated pigs lose it. In their natural habitat wild boars grow thick coats of fur; when they are domesticated and in surroundings not originally their own, they lose it. Man, like the domesticated animals, did not originally live under today's conditions. But there was a time when, under the influence of light and warmth, he grew hair all over his body, and we may witness this fact today in an embryo a few months old. During the first months of pregnancy the whole embryo, insofar as it is only a head, is covered with hair. Later, the hair disappears. I have already explained how plants in their first stage of growth utilize light and warmth from the previous year. Likewise, the child has hair on account of the light and warmth emanating from the mother. Only later is it lost. So a consideration of hair, too, can show us how forces of soul and spirit work on the body.
I have said that the human being is most healthy during the school years, between the ages of seven and fourteen. Why is this so? Only those children who can develop those strong forces that produce the second teeth survive. During that period, the child unfolds vigorous forces, but they must first be acquired in the earliest years through radical adaptation. Everything that the head accomplishes within the organism is most pronounced during those early years. Though the child is unaware of its activity, the head must really exert itself and be a great artisan. It has to overcome the body's constant resistance all by itself because it gets no support in its continual and taxing efforts during the first seven years. This tremendous strain causes all those illnesses I have told you about.
Let us now suppose that the circulation of the blood is malfunctioning, not on account of its absorbing too little nourishment, but because it absorbs too much. This can also happen. Indeed, the parents, who often think it is best to stuff the baby with food, may not be as wise as the organism. They can hardly be reproached for this practice, though, because it is usually quite difficult to tell when the child has had enough. Children know their limits, as a rule, through their own inherent wisdom and instinct. If the mother produces too much milk, however, and it is fed to the child, its instinct will become uncertain through eating too much. Now, if too much food is absorbed by the system, the head cannot keep up; it cannot handle too large an amount and will try to eliminate the surplus. The food has already been absorbed into the blood through the intestines, however, so the head cannot eliminate the surplus in the normal way. What does it do then? It discharges the superfluous substances through the skin. Measles and scarlet fever are the result.
These illnesses differ completely from diarrhoea and convulsions. A child gets the latter because it does not receive enough food and its forces fidget around aimlessly within the body. When too much food is absorbed, however, it must somehow be eliminated, occasionally even through the lungs. Diphtheria and pneumonia are the body's defence measures used to rid itself of substances it cannot otherwise eliminate through the skin. When one understands the human being and the processes that occur in the body, one finds it quite natural that an infant is susceptible to these illnesses.
A child can be afflicted with yet other diseases. Take the case of a child who is too weak to produce his second teeth. His milk teeth were inherited and required no effort from his system. Now, it can happen that the forces unable to produce the new teeth are diverted into the lungs. The lungs become inflamed and the child gets pneumonia. You see, the human body is extremely complicated, and when a child falls ill with pneumonia the doctor should examine the condition not only of the lungs but also of the kidneys, stomach, etc. When an illness arises, one must always examine the whole body and not just the part immediately affected.
When a child has reached the age of seven, however, its breathing processes have become sufficiently developed to function without the intervention of the head. In the infant the head must constantly regulate the breathing. It must not only build up the teeth but also care for the organs of breathing. When the head has been relieved of these tasks at age seven or eight, the child is now in a position to breathe properly. It is of utmost importance to realize that with the second teeth the child can bring order into its breathing, and can receive its second lungs and bronchi, as it were, which have by now been built up. The child no longer breathes with a weak inherited organism but with the new one that has been built up. Now it is in quite a different situation; now it has support. It is one thing if the child has inherited from, say, a weak mother and father, a breathing apparatus that must be directed from a head that is too weak, and it is quite another thing if it has properly built up a second apparatus suited to its needs. A head that is too weak simply cannot build up the lungs properly. Thus, because from age seven to fourteen the organs of breathing are in such fine shape, the individual is then at his healthiest. The positive aspect of these years is that the breathing process is at its best. With the onset of puberty, however, some of the nourishment is now diverted to this development. In the younger child substances are not yet absorbed through the later processes of puberty, but now digestion must take a completely new form. The reason is easily understood, for something completely new has come into play and its food is diverted in a new direction. From the age of puberty onward the mature organs of breathing cause the digestive organs to readjust so that the right counter-pressure is exerted from the stomach and intestines, since some of what earlier constituted the overall pressure was diverted. Now, the proper counter-pressure must come about. No wonder that anaemia and other illnesses afflict girls of this age since the organism must take time to adjust.
From age seven to fourteen the child enjoys its greatest protection from illness. In earlier years the head must make a tremendous effort to work into the rest of the organism and it must adjust to this task. Then, during the school years, the child is at its healthiest. The second breathing system is unhindered and can freely distribute the oxygen to the benefit of both the brain and the digestion. As I have mentioned before, things can be upset only through outside causes—activities in school and the like.
But now the child reaches puberty. Look at a boy. Up to this point he has perfected his body and is as healthy as a human being can be. He has successfully renewed his organism and everything has gone smoothly. But with the onset of puberty his metabolism begins to affect his whole body. The processes of digestion begin to work upward into his breathing system and, as a result, his voice changes. At the age when he must again reform his organism, the metabolic system becomes influential. This is expressed in a deepening of the voice. He must make new exertions and again illnesses threaten.
You see, only when we observe the human being in this manner are we able to answer the question one of you gentlemen posed last time. Otherwise, we cannot even think about it, let alone learn anything. But knowing now that it is the head that works the most during the first seven years, what conclusion may we reach? You must understand that, while the head is developed in the mother's organism, it is not merely formed by conception and substance but by the whole universe. The mother's substances represent only the foundation on which the form occurs. The head is a representation, an image of the universe. Its roundness indicates the working of the whole universe, and it is no idle fancy that the starry heavens work upon the skull, which is sometimes covered by a stupid looking hat. It is as true as this fact that I've mentioned to you before. Suppose we have a compass; the magnetic needle always points north, not just anywhere. Now, no one thinks that the needle contains the forces that determine its position. Everyone agrees that it is the magnetic forces of the earth, and that the needle takes its direction from these earthly forces. Everyone comprehends that. Yet, in regard to human embryonic development, men falsely think it all arises from conception. It would be just as clever to think that the direction pointed to by the magnetic needle was determined by its own forces.
The human head represents the whole cosmos, and this it is that has worked upon it. In addition, these forces bestowed by the universe continue to work within the child through its head. To build up the lungs, for example, the head must receive the right forces from the universe. To perfect the kidneys, forces must be received from far-off regions, from Jupiter, for instance. This is no idle fancy. It can be investigated just as other, physical matters can be investigated. Thus, when a child is born, it carries within its head all the forces of the universe.
Of course, it is nonsense to say that the moon, sun or Jupiter have an influence on an organ, or to cast a horoscope thinking the planet Jupiter, for example, is dominant. The head is formed from the whole universe, and the forces that work on the human being during the first seven years have been given to the head from the cosmos. During the next seven years, man becomes increasingly accustomed to the earth's atmosphere, so that whereas before he was influenced by the stars, he is now influenced by the air.
After this period the substances of digestion and the metabolic system play such an important part that they can even affect the voice. What does this mean? It is all a result of what we absorb through digestion from the earth. I have already explained to you this process of how, for example, substances from the earth must first be made lifeless within the intestines. This becomes man's main task when he reaches puberty. At that time he becomes dependent on the earth. As males we owe our voices first of all to the air, but the deepening results from the action of earthly substances. We can be born on earth because originally we were beings of the stars. After birth we let the forces we have brought with us from the starry worlds echo within our organisms. Then we become beings of the air. Only at puberty are we assigned to the earth to become its beings. Only then do we become attached to those things that fetter us to this planet. Thus, you see the course of man's descent to the earth from the cosmos.
Often materialists blindly fantasize about human development. They do not realize that man gradually accustoms himself to the earth and then, in old age, grows away from it. For what happens in old age? The forces we possess in advanced age we also possessed in youth. They hardened the bones while the other parts stayed pliable. But in old age the forces contained in the bones pass into the rest of the body, and the initial result is arteriosclerosis. The arteries harden, and the brain can calcify. Actually, the brain must always contain a minute amount of what arises through calcification. The child would be dull if its brain lacked these minute traces of calcium secreted by the pineal gland. The soul could not act; it would not have the substances in which to work. But if later in old age too much calcium is secreted and calcification occurs, the soul again cannot direct matters because it encounters too much resistance. This can result in paralysis or apoplexy or some other kinds of stroke. One can also become senile, since one can no longer take hold of and use the brain. Calcification in other parts of the body has the same effect, lifting one out of the region of the earthly forces. Thus we can see how man, up to the end of puberty, grows into the forces of the earth and how, later, when the secreted deposits become increasingly resistant and the soul's activity is impeded, he grows away from the earth.
So you see that it is, in fact, possible to discover what man has received and brought down from the universe. But one must not fall for superstitions such as a certain star is influencing the lung of a thirty-five year old man even though the lung has indeed been built up by the forces that initially descended from the stars into the head of the infant.
By examining such things scientifically, one arrives at a real science of the spirit. A spiritual science exists, and it can be studied just like any other science. We can belittle ancient times as much as we like, but in those days people did know something. Granted, we cannot bring back the past; what was right for people then is not so for us today. But if once again we have men who understand the world and man, men who know that the human head is not just produced in the mother's womb as a kind of pinhead, then we shall also have better politicians. You see, gentlemen, a person who knows nothing of these matters and of the nature of the human being cannot be a good politician simply because he will not know what people need. It is absolutely essential that once more there be men who really know something about the world. This is what we must strive for.
Schools must again teach people something of value. Today, much importance is placed on learning the skills required for making machines. Nothing can be said against this from the standpoint of spiritual science because it is quite worthwhile. But the skills needed to cope among human beings are neglected. An abstract social science, ignorant of man's needs, was invented and this is taught instead. Above all, one must study man as we have done here, but unhappily what I told you is not taught. Look back on your own school days! Where is something like this taught today? That is what our age lacks. Teaching men the things they learn today is about as good for them as feeding them rocks instead of bread. Maybe the stomach of a goose can take rocks but that of a human being cannot! To do so would ruin the digestive system, and when you teach men what is being taught today, you actually ruin their heads. You know that the arm becomes weak if it is unused, and the head also becomes weak if it is not used in the right way. While the head was developing in the mother, it received forces from the stars. If it is told nothing about them, if it entertains no thoughts of them, it grows weak, just as muscles do when they are not exercised. If the child learns nothing of the real world, it remains weak. The worst thing about conditions today is that people have weak heads and do not understand anything about one another. They separate themselves according to social standing and do not speak to those of other classes. This is like training a man to become an athlete while neglecting his biceps. If, in educating men, I leave their heads weak, they will not know the very thing that matters most. This is how things stand.
When children have finished building up their organisms with inherent, unconscious wisdom and have received their second teeth, it is of utmost importance to impart to them something that they have previously employed unconsciously. Then do they become proper human beings, people who can direct their thoughts properly and conceive of spiritual science in the right way. Once social thinking is ruined, nothing rational can be achieved. But if we make use of a genuine science of the spirit, much can be improved in that respect.
Zweiter Vortrag
Nun, meine Herren, ist gewünscht worden, daß wir etwas sprechen über die inneren menschlichen Organe, und ich habe damit das letzte Mal angefangen. Solch eine Sache kann man natürlich nur, ich möchte sagen, von weit her besprechen. Man kann sie nur so besprechen, daß man wirklich auf die Sache von Anfang an eingeht. Und ich habe Ihnen gesagt, nicht nur, daß das vorkommen kann, daß der Mensch gewissermaßen, wie ich Ihnen das an dem Beispiel von William Windom erklärt habe und noch an einem andern Beispiel, aus sich heraus redet wie dieser Windom, der während einer Rede gestorben ist und fast ganz seinen eigenen Zustand in Worten geschildert hat - ich habe Ihnen nicht nur das gesagt, sondern ich habe Ihnen gewisse Dinge gesagt über den Verlauf des menschlichen Lebens so, daß wir finden, daß in den allerersten Lebenszeiten, also während der Mensch Säugling ist, in den ersten Kinderjahren ist, die Sterblichkeit am allergrößten ist. Da sterben die Menschen am häufigsten. Und wenn das auch später mit dem dritten, vierten, fünften Jahre abnimmt, so kann man trotzdem sagen: Die größte Sterblichkeit ist bis zum Zahnwechsel, so um das siebente Jahr herum.
Dann, von dem Zahnwechsel an, bis das Kind geschlechtsreif wird, ist eigentlich der Mensch am allergesündesten. Tatsächlich ist es so. Wenn wir nicht selber in der Schule die Kinder ungesund machen, wenn wir sie nicht durch allerlei falsches Sitzen und dergleichen dazu bringen, daß sie Verkrümmungen oder durch schlechte Luft irgendwelche inneren Erkrankungen zeigen, wenn wir achtgeben, so können wir in der Tat während des sogenannten schulpflichtigen Alters, während der Volksschulzeit, darauf rechnen, daß wir da die Kinder im allgemeinen am gesündesten haben. Was da vorkommt an Erkrankungsfällen, das ist meistens von außen verschuldet. Die große Gefahr, daß der Mensch wiederum durch sich selber krank wird, die beginnt eigentlich erst wiederum im fünfzehnten, sechzehnten Lebensjahre. Und dann treten ganz andere Krankheiten auf, als im Kindesalter auftreten.
Sehen Sie, da ist es so: Bei ganz kleinen Kindern - ich habe es schon zum Teil gesagt — finden wir, daß sie zum Beispiel sehr leicht Vereiterungen des Blutes kriegen. Das Blut wird eiterig. Das kann so weit kommen, daß gelbsuchtartige Erscheinungen auftreten. Dann tritt sehr häufig bei den Kindern eine unregelmäßige Verdauung in Form von Durchfall auf. Dann bekommen die Kinder diese kleinen weißen Pustelchen an den verschiedenen Stellen, Schwämmchen, wie man sagt, und dergleichen; und dann bekommen die Kinder noch eine ganz andere Art von Erkrankung, die sogenannten Fraisen - Kinderkrämpfe sind das. Heute tritt ja ganz besonders stark auf als eine Kinderkrankheit die sogenannte Kinderlähmung, die auch noch im späteren Alter auftritt, die aber eine furchtbar verderbliche Krankheit ist. Die Kinder kommen in die Unmöglichkeit, zum Beispiel ihre Beine zu bewegen. Sie haben ganz gelähmte Beine und dergleichen. Diese Krankheit tritt heute immer stärker auf. Sie haben ja vielleicht gelesen, daß von Thüringen gemeldet wird, daß selbst Schulen geschlossen werden mußten, weil die Kinderlähmung epidemisch auftritt.
Aus alledem und noch aus manchem anderen kann man sehen, daß die Kinderkrankheit einen ganz besonderen Charakter hat. Die Kinderkrankheiten schauen anders aus als die Krankheiten, die der Mensch später bekommt. Die Kinderkrankheiten sind ja gerade Scharlach, Masern - allerdings, Masern ist ja eine Krankheit, die der Mensch auch später bekommen kann, und wir müssen uns fragen: Warum bekommen sie die Kinder am allerhäufigsten?
Sehen Sie, man kann diese Dinge nur verstehen, wenn man weiß, wie eigentlich im menschlichen Leib die Kräfte wirken. Wenn man das Kind als Menschenkeim betrachtet, bevor es geboren wird, sagen wir sogar, betrachtet im ersten, zweiten, dritten Monat, so ist ja das Kind eigentlich im Grunde genommen etwas ganz anderes als der spätere Mensch. Das Kind ist im ersten Monat, und im zweiten auch noch, so, daß es eigentlich nur Kopf ist, und die anderen Organe sind eigentlich nur ein Anhang am Kopfe. Alles das, was später Gliedmaßen sind, Hände, Füße, sind ja kleine Stumpfe; und auch die eigentliche Brust- und Bauchgegend funktioniert ja noch nicht, ist ja noch nicht tätig. Es ist ja so, sehen Sie, daß wenn man den Kindeskeim hat, so schaut er ja eigentlich so aus: Da hier ist dann, ich möchte sagen, eine Art von Sack, in dem er drinnen ist, und in diesem Sack sind vom mütterlichen Leibe aus Blutgefäße. Diese Blutgefäße, die gehen dann in das Kind hinein und füllen es aus. Das Blut kriegt das Kind von der Mutter, und ebenso die Nahrungsstoffe. Das sind Anhangsorgane, die später abfallen. Das fällt ja alles ab. Der Kopf ist im Verhältnis zu dem Körper bei dem Kindeskeim riesengroß. Das ist der Kopf (siehe Zeichnung); das andere sind nur Anhängsel — das ist noch nicht tätig. Da entsteht später das Herz und der Verdauungsapparat. Die Blutzirkulation wird von außen, von der Blutzirkulation der Mutter besorgt. Da sind nur kleine Stumpfel als Hände und Füße; das wird später erst entwickelt. So daß man sagen muß: Das ist alles der Kopf, und alles andere sind unbedeutende Organe, denn alles, was Nahrungs- und Luftaufnahme ist, das wird beim Kind von der Mutter aus besorgt. Also das Kind ist eigentlich in den ersten Monaten von der Mutter aus ganz Kopf.

Sehen Sie, meine Herren, die Leute wundern sich darüber, daß Geisteskrankheiten, wie man sie nennt, durch Vererbung entstehen. Geisteskrankheiten sind aber immer körperliche Krankheiten, die sich dadurch ausdrücken, daß der Körper seine Funktionen nicht ordentlich ausführt. Der Geist wird nicht krank, die Seele auch nicht; Geisteskrankheit ist immer etwas Körperliches. Also die Leute wundern sich darüber, daß jemand, wie man also sagt, geisteskrank wird durch Vererbung. Ja, gewiß, der Mensch wird geisteskrank durch Vererbung. Wenn die Eltern, namentlich die Mutter, an Schwindsucht leiden, oder wenn sie an irgendwelchen Krankheiten, sagen wir zum Beispiel an Arterienverkalkung leiden — das kommt ja in der Jugend weniger vor, aber es kommt bei manchen Leuten vor -, wenn also die Eltern leiden an Schwindsucht, an Tuberkulose, an Arterienverkalkung, so werden die Kinder nicht durchaus wieder an Schwindsucht, an Tuberkulose, an Arterienverkalkung leiden, sondern sie können geisteskrank werden. Da wundern sich die Leute.
Ja, meine Herren, braucht man sich darüber zu wundern? Dasjenige, was der Mensch erben kann, muß er ja zunächst über den Kopf erben. Also wenn die Mutter schwindsüchtig ist, so braucht man sich nicht zu wundern, daß das nicht übergeht auf die Lunge — die ist ja noch gar nicht tätig —, sondern auf den Kopf geht das über, so daß es im Kopf zur Ausgestaltung kommt. Also man braucht sich gar nicht darüber zu verwundern, daß dasjenige, was vererbt wird, ganz andere Krankheiten sind als diejenigen, die dieEltern hatten, die sie vererbten.
Sehen Sie, wenn die Eltern zum Beispiel irgendwie geschlechtskrank sind, so können die Kinder eine Augenkrankheit zeigen. Das ist nicht zu verwundern. Wie soll man sich denn nicht verwundern, wenn die Eltern geschlechtskrank sind, und das Kind den Kopf ausgebildet hat die Augen sind ja am meisten ausgesetzt dem, was die Eltern haben; sie sind ja in einer geschlechtskranken Umgebung! Über diese Sache braucht man sich also gar nicht zu verwundern.
Und nun wird das Kind geboren. Das weiß nun jeder von Ihnen auch:,Wenn das Kind geboren ist, dann ist der Kopf zunächst auch noch am meisten ausgebildet. Das Kind muß mit dem anderen Körper erst in der späteren Zeit am meisten wachsen. Der Kopf ist am meisten ausgebildet, wächst nicht mehr so stark wie die andern Organe, wächst viel weniger. Und daran, an alledem kann man ja sehen, wie eigentlich die inneren Organe eines Menschen arbeiten. Darüber kann sich die materialistische Wissenschaft keine richtige Vorstellung bilden. Das ist ganz unmöglich, weil sie gar nicht so richtig darauf kommt, daß beim Kinde alles Wachstum vom Kopfe ausgeht. Alles wird vom Kopfe aus geregelt. Beim Kindeskeim ist es am auffallendsten, daß vom Kopfe aus alles geregelt wird, weil es nur den Kopf hat. Später aber ist noch immer, was im menschlichen Leibe vor sich geht, vom Kopfe aus geregelt. Vom Kopfe aus wird alles geregelt im menschlichen Organismus. Der Magen, die Darmtätigkeit und der Blutumlauf, alles wird vom Kopfe aus geregelt.

Nehmen Sie jetzt einmal an, ein Kind wird geboren, und durch irgend etwas hat es einen zu langsamen Blutumlauf. Das kann also vorkommen. Es kann das vorkommen, daß das Kind durch Vererbung einen zu langsamen Blutumlauf hat; das gibt es einmal. Nun denken Sie sich einmal, das Kind - ich will jetzt Adern zeichnen — hat so die Adern und da geht das Blut zu langsam durch; da ist das Herz, da geht das Blut zu langsam durch. Aber das Herz wird vom Kopfe aus gebildet. Der Kopf kann ganz in Ordnung sein, doch der Blutumlauf ist zu langsam. So kommt es, daß das Herz zwar ordentlich ausgebildet ist, aber daß das Blut nicht ordentlich hereinfließt ins Herz. Das ist bei Kindern im allerersten Säuglingsalter sehr häufig der Fall, daß der Kopf ganz ordentlich ist, aber nicht ein ordentlicher Blutumlauf stattfindet. Das kann einfach dadurch geschehen, daß das Kind in stickiger Luft lebt; so kann es dann nicht richtig atmen, und der Blutkreislauf stockt. Oder wenn es nicht die richtige Nahrung kriegt, kann das Blut nicht richtig in den Körper übergeführt werden; der Blutkreislauf kann stocken. Der Kopf ist ganz in Ordnung, will das Herz richtig ausbilden, aber der Blutumlauf stockt. Statt daß die Sache richtig abgeführt wird vom Herz in die Nieren und herausginge, bleibt sie im Körper, bleibt sie im Blut drinnen. Sind Stoffe, die nicht im Körper sein sollten, die schon herausgeschafft sein sollten, noch im Blut drinnen, so vereitert das Blur.
Sehen Sie, diese Gefahr ist eben später, sagen wir, im achten, neunten Jahre nicht mehr so stark vorhanden, als sie vorhanden ist im allerersten Kindesalter. Warum? Nun, wenn das Kind die zweiten Zähne ordentlich gekriegt hat, so ist das schon ein Beweis dafür, daß sein Körper eigentlich stark ist. Sonst kriegt es die zweiten Zähne nicht ordentlich. Warum? Ja, sehen Sie, die zweiten Zähne, die werden ja aus dem ganzen Körper herausgetrieben. Was da in einem Zahn sitzt, das kommt aus dem ganzen Körper heraus; das ist nicht bloß etwa da im Kiefer, sondern beim zweiten Zähnekriegen ist der ganze Körper tätig. Aber nur bei den zweiten Zähnen. Bei den ersten Zähnen noch nicht. Die ersten Zähne, die das Kind kriegt, die sogenannten Milchzähne, die sind etwas ganz anderes als die zweiten Zähne. Die ersten Zähne kriegt das Kind durch Vererbung, weil seine Mutter und sein Vater auch Zähne haben. Diese werden im Lauf der ersten sieben Jahre ausgestoßen, und dann kriegt das Kind erst seine eigenen Zähne, die zweiten Zähne, die der Körper selber fabrizieren muß.
Überhaupt, wenn Sie ein Kind angucken, das neun oder zehn Jahre alt ist, so hat es ja schon seinen zweiten Körper. Da ist der erste, den es geerbt hat, ganz weggeschmissen. Eigentlich kriegt das Kind seinen eigenen Körper erst so um das siebente Jahr herum. Und während der ganzen Zeit bis zum siebenten Jahre, da zeigt es sich, daß das Kind so stark geboren ist, daß es die Luft und die Nahrung verträgt. Hat es gezeigt, daß es die zweiten Zähne kriegen kann, dann ist die Gefahr, krank zu werden, nicht mehr so groß, weil es schon seinen Körper aufgebaut hat; dann hat es eben die Zähne schon. Und deshalb ist die Gefahr am allergrößten beim Säugling. Er muß in alles, was er sonst im Schutze des Mutterleibes getan hat, sich hineinfinden. Der Kopf ist eigentlich immer im ersten Stadium gut; er wird erst später schlecht. Wenn man einmal alt wird, ist der Kopf nicht mehr so ordentlich. Da soll er denken, sich mit der Außenwelt beschäftigen. Da muß er sich auch erst hineinfinden. Da hapert es auch häufig! Aber in den allerersten Lebensjahren braucht das Kind noch nicht Geschicklichkeit für die Arbeit, braucht noch nicht in die Schule zu gehen, noch nichts zu lernen. Der Kopf arbeitet nur am eigenen Körper. Dazu ist er meistens gut. Aber der eigene Körper, der ist im zarten Kindesalter am allerschlechtesten, denn da muß man sich erst eingewöhnen in die Welt.
Nun, nicht ganz so, wie ich es erzähle, weil ich Ihnen die Tatsachen ganz genau erzähle, aber so ähnlich erzählt das ja auch die äußere Wissenschaft. Aber diese äußere Wissenschaft versteht eigentlich den ganzen Vorgang nicht. Diese ganze äußere Wissenschaft steht eigentlich wie vor einem Rätsel, wenn sie nun sieht, wie der Mensch in den allerersten Jahren den größten Krankheiten ausgesetzt ist. Aber das ist aus dem Grunde, weil diese äußere Wissenschaft glaubt, daß das, was man Seele und Geist nennt, eigentlich nichts Rechtes ist.
In Wirklichkeit ist das so: Wenn das Kind noch im Leibe der Mutter ist und dann geboren wird, so ist ja das Seelisch-Geistige hauptsächlich mit dem Kopf verbunden. Was da drinnen arbeitet, sind ja Kräfte, ist ja dasjenige, was man nicht sieht. Diese Kräfte, diese geistig-seelischen Kräfte arbeiten an dem Kinde.
Sie werden sagen: Ja, das ist eine Ansicht, die man haben kann oder nicht. Aber wenn Sie glauben, daß man diese Ansicht haben kann oder nicht, dann machen Sie sich desselben Irrtums schuldig, wie jemand, der sagt: Da ist ein Stück Eisen; ein anderer kommt und sagt: Her damit, damit will ich mein Pferd beschlagen! — Der erste sagt ihm aber: Kerl, du bist aber dumm, wenn du damit dein Pferd beschlagen willst! Das ist nämlich ein Magnet, da ist eine Kraft drinnen. Diesen Magnet, den verwendet man zu etwas ganz anderem als zum Pferdebeschlagen! - Der eine weiß, das ist einfach ein Hufeisen; der andere weiß, daß es ein Magnet ist, in dem eine unsichtbare Kraft drinnen ist. Sie können das ja nicht sehen. Und ebenso ist der, der mit der materialistischen Wissenschaft sagt: Nun ja, das ist ein Stück Fleisch, der Kopf. - Der ist geradeso wie der, der sagt: Das ist ein Hufeisen! — Der kindliche Kopf ist eben nicht bloß ein Stück Fleisch, sondern da drinnen arbeiten die unsichtbaren Kräfte, die wie ein Bildhauer den ganzen menschlichen Organismus aufbauen. Sie bauen ganz frisch auf in den ersten sieben Jahren. Der Mensch behält ja manches davon als die Form, die Gestalt, was er geerbt hat. Und die Kräfte, mit denen der Mensch da ganz frisch aufgebaut wird, das sind die seelisch-geistigen Kräfte, die vom Kopfe ausgehen, und die bringt der Mensch von ganz woanders her als von den Eltern.
Wenn er sie sich von den Eltern herbrächte - ja, meine Herren, wenn mal einer ein Genie ist, haben Sie gesehen, daß dann die Kinder auch Genies werden? Oder wenn die Kinder Genies sind, haben Sie gesehen, daß die Eltern es auch sind? Das ist ganz gewiß nicht der Fall! Nehmen Sie zum Beispiel Goethe, der ganz gewiß ein Genie war: sein Vater war ein furchtbarer Philister, seine Mutter war auch kein Genie — sie war eine liebe, nette Frau, die schöne Geschichten erzählen konnte -, und sein Sohn war dumm, der war gar kein Genie. Also dasjenige, was geistig-seelisch ist, das kann man nicht vererben, das bringt man sich aus ganz anderen Welten mit. Das vereinigt sich nur mit dem, was man vererbt. Der Mensch hat eben außer dem, daß er ein Dasein hat im Mutterleibe, ein Dasein vorher als geistig-seelischer Mensch.
Sehen Sie, daß die Menschen das heute ableugnen, das beruht ja nur darauf, daß das ganze Mittelalter hindurch die katholische Kirche gesagt hat: Man darf dem Menschen nicht ein geistig-seelisches Dasein vor der Geburt zuschreiben — weil die katholische Kirche angenommen hat, die Seele muß geschaffen werden bei der Geburt von irgendeinem solchen Gotte, wie ihn eben die katholische Kirche angenommen hat. Und dasjenige, was die katholische Kirche das ganze Mittelalter hindurch verboten hat anzunehmen, daß man eine, wie man es dazumal nannte, Präexistenz hatte — das heißt vorexistieren, vorher existieren -, das beobachtet heute die materialistische Wissenschaft auch und fühlt sich furchtbar gescheit. Das ist es eben, daß die Leute gar nicht wissen, wie sie erst dressiert worden sind zu solcher Ansicht, und nachher glauben, gerade mit einer solchen Ansicht besonders gescheit zu sein.
In Wahrheit ist es so, daß tatsächlich der Mensch, geradeso wie er ein physisches Dasein in seinen Eltern, Großeltern und so weiter hat, ein geistig-seelisches Dasein hat, das er sich mitbringt. Das arbeitet in ihm. Das ist das Geistig-Seelische. Und derjenige, der nicht einsieht, daß das Geistig-Seelische vor dem Körper schon da ist, sieht auch nicht ein, daß das Geistig-Seelische nach dem Tode bleibt, sondern er kann höchstens daran glauben. Ein Wissen von der Unsterblichkeit der menschlichen Seele kann man nur dadurch bekommen, daß man auch weiß: sie ist vorher schon da. Natürlich stünde es einem göttlichen Schöpfer zu, wenn er den Menschen schaffen würde, die Seele auch wieder verschwinden zu lassen, wenn der Mensch stirbt; aber wenn diese Seele erst da sein muß, damit der Körper aufgebaut werden kann, dann bleibt sie natürlich auch vorhanden, wenn der Körper stirbt.
Also Sie können sich sagen: Aus alle den Dingen, welche man richtig beobachten kann, folgt ganz ohne weiteres das Dasein der menschlichen Seele. Und wie soll sie denn sterben, wenn sie es ist, die das Sterbliche erst aufgebaut hat! Man müßte ja in ganz andere Welten gehen, um einzusehen, daß die Seele sterben könnte. Darüber wollen wir dann in späteren Vorträgen reden, daß sie dort auch nicht sterben kann. Aber durch den Körper kann sie nicht sterben, weil sie den Körper erst selber aufbaut.
Jetzt haben wir solche Krankheiten kennengelernt, die dadurch entstehen, daß vom Kopfe aus das Geistig-Seelische arbeitet und der Körper nicht in Ordnung ist. Es kann aber noch anderes eintreten. Es kann das eintreten, daß der Blutkreislauf zu langsam ist und die Stockung eintritt, von der ich Ihnen gesagt habe, daß das Blut vereitert. Aber es kann noch etwas ganz anderes eintreten. Es kann das eintreten, daß das Kind Nahrung bekommt und es zu schwach ist, diese Nahrung überhaupt vom Darm aus nur ins Blut hinein zu kriegen. Es geht nicht durch die Darmzotten durch. Der Körper ist zu schwach. Was tritt dann ein? Dann kriegt das Kind zunächst einmal Durchfall. Natürlich, was nicht aufgenommen wird, muß heraus; aber es sollte eigentlich im Körper bleiben und aufgenommen werden. Statt dessen geht es im Durchfall unverarbeitet hinaus. Aber das ist noch mit etwas anderem verbunden. Gewiß, das Kind kriegt ein bißchen Durchfall, stärkeren Durchfall, kriegt vielleicht Brechdurchfall. Das ist oftmals nur das erste Stadium. Aber wenn das Kind längere Zeit die Nahrungsstoffe nicht verarbeiten kann, dann können ja die inneren Organe nicht aufgebaut werden. Der Kopf will sie fortwährend aufbauen. Die inneren Organe können nicht aufgebaut werden, weil kein Stoff durchgeht. Es ist so, wie wenn Sie, sagen wir, an irgendeiner Bildsäule arbeiten und keinen Stoff haben, aus dem Sie sie machen können, und Sie fuchteln in der Luft herum. So fuchtelt der Kopf in der Luft herum, wenn zum Beispiel das Kind keinen Stoff bekommt, aus dem es die Organe formen kann. Er will das Herz formen, den Magen formen. Er fuchtelt in der Luft herum, weil er keinen Stoff kriegt, weil der durch den Durchfall weggegangen ist.
Ja, wenn man nun materialistischer Gelehrter ist, kann man jetzt überhaupt nichts begreifen. Da sagt man sich halt: Ich untersuche das Kind; nun, das hat Durchfall. Geben wir ihm irgendwelche Mittel, daß es nicht weiter Durchfall hat. - Da wird nur die Folge sein, daß die Nahrungsstoffe sich im Darm ansammeln, denn aufgenommen können sie nicht werden, und das Kind kriegt einen dicken Bauch, aber weiter nichts. Man untersucht weiter und findet, daß zum Beispiel die Lunge nichts anderes als ein leerer Beutel wird. Sie will gebildet werden, aber die Stoffe sind nicht da. Man findet nichts als einen leeren Beutel anstelle der Lunge.

Derjenige, der also die Lunge anguckt und nur einen leeren Beutel findet, der muß aber wissen, daß in diese Lunge eben gerade diejenigen Kräfte hineingehen, die vom Kopfe ausgehen. Das, was vom Kopfe ausgeht, das geht in die Lunge, durch die Lunge. Jetzt wollen die Kräfte vom Kopfe aus etwas haben, wodurch sie sich betätigen können. Die greifen etwas an, was ihnen keinen Halt gibt. Jetzt ist das so: Wenn ich den Stuhl schüttle, da habe ich Halt am Stuhl; wenn ich aber so herumfuchtle und nicht den Stuhl kriege, habe ich keinen Halt. Sie sehen dann nur, daß ich wie ein Narr herumfuchtle. Aber wenn der Kopf herumfuchtelt in der Lunge und keinen Halt kriegt, dann entstehen Krämpfe, die Fraisen.
Sehen Sie, wenn einer überhaupt vernünftigerweise die Krämpfe erklären will, dann muß er wissen, daß da der Kopf herumfuchtelt und keinen Halt kriegt. Durchfälle kann man noch auf materialistische Weise erklären; Krämpfe kann man nicht mehr auf materialistische Weise erklären.
Also das zeigt einem, daß gerade beim Kind am meisten geistige Tätigkeit vorhanden ist. Die hört später auf. Denn so viel geistige Tätigkeit ist beim Kind vorhanden, daß aus alledem, was es ißt bis zu seinem sechsten, siebenten Jahre, immer nur ganz kleine, winzige Partikel, Teile, ausgesondert werden, und aus denen werden nun die zweiten Zähne gemacht. Denken Sie, meine Herren, wenn Sie das selber machen müßten! Sie müßten erstens so gescheit sein, daß Sie wissen könnten, wie in den Nahrungsmitteln da drinnen Magnesiumsalze und kohlensaure Salze sind. Das kann man zur Not noch lernen, aber man kann es auch nur dadurch, daß man die Zähne zuerst chemisch analysiert, selber erst aus den Zähnen lernt. Denn kein Mensch kann natürlich heute sagen, wie man solche Zähne macht, denn die künstlichen Zähne, die gemacht werden, sind ja natürlich keine Zähne, keine lebendigen Zähne. Also da wird aus alledem, was das Kind ißt bis zum siebenten Jahre, immer in ganz kleinen Portionen dasjenige herausgeholt, was als zweite Zähne erscheint.
Aber man muß nicht nur wissen, was für Stoffe drinnen sind, sondern man muß wissen, was machen sie im Magen, damit der richtige Stoff ausgesondert wird, oder was machen diese kleinen Partikelchen, die Sie ausgesondert haben im zweiten, dritten Jahre? Wenn Sie das ausgesondert haben, wie halten Sie das lange genug im Blutkreislauf fest, daß es weiter mitgeht, gerade just im sechsten, siebenten, achten Jahr in die Kiefer hineingeht, so daß die Zähne daraus werden? Das alles muß ja gemacht werden und wird gemacht von dem GeistigSeelischen des Kindes, das nur unbewußt ist. Aber gemacht wird es. Ich glaube, Sie werden sich gar nicht beleidigt fühlen, wenn ich Ihnen sage: Sie sind nicht imstande, wenn ich sage, laß da irgendwo ein einziges Haar wachsen -, Sie sind nicht imstande, dieses Haar irgendwie wachsen zu lassen! Aber das Kind ist dazu imstande, indem es die nötigen Stoffe hintreibt bis zu dem Ort, wo die Haarwurzeln sich eingliedern, diese Stoffe dem Lichte entgegenzubringen - denn die Haare wachsen, werden aus Licht.
Also das alles geschieht in dem Kinde. Sehen Sie, das alles ist etwas, wovon die heutige Wissenschaft nicht reden will. Sie macht den Leuten diese Dinge durchaus unklar. Sie weiß nichts darüber und will nicht reden davon, daß da das Geistig-Seelische drinnen arbeitet, und daß das Geistig-Seelische nicht vererbt wird, sondern daß das GeistigSeelische eben aus einer geistigen Welt kommt.
Nun, ich habe Ihnen das Beispiel von den Haaren erzählt. Sehen Sie, der Mensch ist ja im allgemeinen während seines normalen Lebens nicht behaart, sondern nur an gewissen Stellen bleiben die Haare, sonst ist er unbehaart. Aber der Mensch war einmal auf der Erde auch behaart. Er hat die Haare verloren. Er war ein ganz behaarter Mensch. Einmal, in sehr alten Zeiten war der Mensch auch zottelig behaart, ganz zottelig behaart. Er hat die Haare verloren. Ja, wodurch hat der Mensch die Haare verloren? Ich will Ihnen darüber keine Theorie geben, denn die kann man sich ausdenken, aber ich will Sie auf Tatsachen verweisen. Andere Wesen zum Beispiel, welche auch, wenn sie in der Natur herumgehen, behaart sind, verlieren die Haare, wenn sie zahm gemacht werden: das sind die Schweine. Schauen Sie sie an im wilden Zustande: da haben sie Haare; und wenn sie gezähmt werden, wenn sie also in solchen Verhältnissen leben, in denen sie ursprünglich nicht gelebt haben, da verlieren sie die Haare. Der Mensch hat auch ursprünglich nicht in solchen Verhältnissen gelebt wie heute. Der Mensch ist nämlich auch wie solch ein gezähmtes Tier. Daß er aber Haare bekommen hat, unter dem Einfluß von Licht und Wärme Haare bekommen hat, das zeigt das Kind ja heute noch; denn in den ersten Monaten, wo es fast nur Kopf ist, da ist der ganze Kindeskeim behaart — im Mutterleib ist das Kind in den ersten Monaten sogar behaart! Die Haare verliert es wieder; die gehen weg. Es ist ganz behaart. Geradeso wie ich Ihnen erklärt habe, daß die Pflanzen im ersten Stadium das Licht und die Wärme noch vom vorigen Jahr haben, so hat das Kind Licht und Wärme von der Mutter, so bekommt es das Licht und verliert erst später die Haare. Also auch daraus können Sie sehen, wie das GeistigSeelische am Körper arbeitet.
Nun sagte ich Ihnen: Während des schulpflichtigen Alters, da ist der Mensch eigentlich von Natur aus am allergesündesten. Das ist so. Warum? Ja, das ist so, weil nur diejenigen Menschen übrig bleiben, die die Kräfte entwickelt haben, durch die sie die zweiten Zähne entwickeln können, denn das sind starke Kräfte. Man treibt da ganz harte Kräfte aus sich heraus. Diese Kräfte, die muß man durch eine ganz furchtbar starke Angewöhnung erst erwerben während des kindlichen Alters. In den ersten Kindesjahren ist also alles dasjenige, was der Kopf am Innern des Menschen macht, am stärksten entwickelt. Und da ist es wirklich so, daß man sagen muß - natürlich weiß der Mensch nichts davon -: Dieser Kopf, der muß sich anstrengen, der muß ein ganz großer Künstler sein. Und der Körper gibt ihm fortwährend Widerstände. Dagegen muß der Kopf fortwährend ankämpfen. Es hilft ihm nichts. In den ersten sieben Jahren kann er nichts haben, was ihm richtig hilft. Man muß solch eine furchtbare Kraft anwenden. Und unter dieser Kraftanstrengung kommen eben alle diese Krankheiten, von denen ich Ihnen erzählt habe.
Nehmen Sie aber jetzt an, der Blutkreislauf ist nicht dadurch in Unordnung, daß nicht genügend abgeht, sondern daß zu viel übergeführt wird. Das kann ja auch sein. Es gibt schon einmal dieses, daß die Eltern eben nicht so weise sind, wie der menschliche Organismus eigentlich ist. Die Eltern glauben oftmals: Wenn man möglichst viel hineinstopft, so ist das das allerbeste. Nun, man kann ja daraus niemand einen Vorwurf machen, denn es ist wirklich im allgemeinen schwer zu wissen, wann das Kind genug hat. Es weiß es meistens nur durch seinen eigenen Instinkt, durch seine eigene Weisheit, die in ihm ist. Wenn es zu viel Milch kriegt, weil die Mutter zu viel erzeugt, bekommt das Kind einen unsicheren Instinkt und ißt selber zu viel. Dann wird zu viel hineingestopft, da kann der Kopf nicht nach; dann ist er zu langsam, um das Viele da hineinzukriegen. Dann muß er sich wehren, damit das ausgeworfen wird, damit das weggeht. Aber das ist ja schon von dem Darm ins Blut hineingegangen; er kann es nicht mehr auf dem natürlichen Wege des Wiederablassens oder der Verdauung wegwerfen, denn es ist schon ins Blut hineingegangen. Was tut er? Er muß es auswerfen durch die Haut. Scharlach, Masern entstehen! Scharlach und Masern sind ganz andere Krankheiten als Durchfall oder die Krämpfe. Durchfall und Krämpfe, das sind Krankheiten, die das Kind kriegt, weil es im Innern einfach herumfuchtelt und zu wenig Nahrung bekommt. Wenn aber zu viel hineinkommt, dann muß das ausgeworfen werden, und dann entstehen solche Dinge, selbst dasjenige, was dann durch die Lungen ausgeworfen wird, wenn es zu viel ist. Diphtherie, Lungenentzündung, die werden dadurch hervorgerufen, daß der Körper sich dadurch hilft, daß er noch durch die Haut wegwirft, was er sonst nicht herauskriegt. Wenn man den Menschen versteht, versteht man, wie das eigentlich vor sich geht, und es ist ganz natürlich, daß ein Kind solche Krankheiten kriegen kann.
Es kann noch andere Krankheiten kriegen. Denken Sie einmal, es ist gerade zufällig das Kind zu schwach, um die zweiten Zähne herauszutreiben. Es hat die ersten Zähne gekriegt, die hat es geerbt; da braucht es sich nicht anzustrengen. Aber es ist zu schwach, um die zweiten herauszutreiben. Jetzt gehen die Kräfte, die da nicht ankommen, in die Lunge, und das Kind zeigt eine Lungenentzündung. Das kann auch sein. Der menschliche Leib ist ein furchtbar kompliziertes Ding. Wenn also ein Kind eine Lungenentzündung kriegt, so ist nicht nur nachzuschauen, wie es mit dem Kind auf der Lunge ist, sondern wie es ist mit den Nieren, wie mit dem Magen und so weiter. Man muß also bei jeglicher Krankheit den ganzen menschlichen Körper untersuchen, nicht nur einen Teil, an dem gerade die Krankheit auftritt.
Wenn aber das Kind jetzt sieben Jahre alt ist, dann sind auch seine Atmungsorgane so weit, daß nicht mehr der ganze Körper vom Kopf aus die Atmung besorgen muß. Beim ganz kleinen Kind muß der Kopf noch fortwährend die Atmungsorgane in Ordnung bringen. So wie er die Zähne aufbauen muß, so muß er die Atmungsorgane aufbauen. Mit dem siebenten, achten Jahre ist das Kind so weit, daß sie in Ordnung sind. Jetzt kann das Kind ordentlich atmen. Das ist gerade das Allerwichtigste, daß man einsieht: Wenn das Kind die zweiten Zähne gekriegt hat, ist sein Atmungsorganismus in Ordnung gekommen; es hat seine zweiten Lungen bekommen, seine zweiten Bronchien - alles ist aufgebaut. Es atmet nicht mehr mit dem schwachen vererbten Organismus, sondern es atmet mit dem zweiten, aufgebauten Organismus. Dadurch steht es ganz anders da. Jetzt hat es eine Hilfe. Das ist eben die Geschichte. Es ist etwas ganz anderes, ob ich von einem schwachen Vater oder einer schwachen Mutter meinetwillen einen Atmungsorganismus habe, den ich vom Kopf aus dirigieren soll, der aber zu schwach ist, oder ob ich mir als Kind richtig einen zweiten Atmungsorganismus aufgebaut habe, wie ich ihn brauche. Denn der Kopf baut ihn sich ordentlich auf. Und dadurch, daß dieser zweite Atmungsorganismus bei Kindern, die überhaupt so alt werden — die andern sind vorher weggestorben —, in Ordnung ist, dadurch sind diese Kinder zwischen sieben und vierzehn Jahren am allergesündesten, denn bei den Kindern ist es vorzugsweise der Atmungsorganismus, der ganz gesund wird. Das ist das Gute in diesem zweiten Lebensalter, daß der Atmungsorganismus da am allergesündesten wird.
Wenn aber die Geschlechtsreife eingetreten ist, dann nimmt nämlich diese Geschlechtsreife etwas von den Nahrungssubstanzen für sich weg. Früher, wenn das Kind noch nicht geschlechtsreif ist, geschieht das nicht. Da nimmt die Geschlechtsreife noch nicht etwas von den Nahrungsmitteln für sich weg. Jetzt muß eine ganz andere Art von Verdauung eintreten. Das können Sie leicht einsehen, weil etwas ganz anderes nun eingetreten ist, weil die Nahrungsmittel zu etwas anderem hingeleitet werden. Diese neue Art zu atmen, die macht, daß von der Geschlechtsreife an überhaupt die Verdauungsorgane sich erst neu einrichten müssen, daß also erst vom Magen, von den Gedärmen aus der richtige Gegendruck eintreten muß, weil von dem, was früher Druck war, etwas weggenommen ist. Jetzt muß der richtige Gegendruck eintreten. Kein Wunder, daß Bleichsucht bei den Mädchen und andere Krankheiten in diesem Alter auftreten, weil sich der Organismus erst einrichten muß.
So ist das Kind in dieser Zeit vom siebenten bis vierzehnten Jahre am allermeisten geschützt. Denn in den ersten Jahren muß vom Kopfe aus so furchtbar stark hineingearbeitet werden in den Organismus. Daran muß er sich erst gewöhnen. In dieser Zeit vom siebenten bis vierzehnten Jahre, also in der Volksschulzeit, ist das Kind am allergesündesten. Dieser zweite Atmungsorganismus, der ist von nichts beeinträchtigt, und der kann ganz fein den Sauerstoff überliefern. Der wirkt auf der einen Seite günstig nach dem Kopf hinauf, auf der andern Seite günstig nach der Verdauung zu. Da müßte man, wie gesagt, schon von außen durch eigene Schulgeschichten die Sache verderben.
Jetzt kommen wir zur Geschlechtsreife. Sehen Sie sich den Knaben an. Bis zur Geschlechtsreife hat er seinen Organismus ausgebildet mit den gesündesten Kräften, die der Mensch hat. Er hat den Ansturm unternommen, zum erstenmal seinen Organismus neu zu machen. Nichts hat ihm das verdorben, wenn er eben übrig geblieben ist. Doch jetzt kommt die Geschlechtsreife heran. Sehen Sie sich den Knaben an: Der ganze Atmungsorganismus wird da durch die Verdauung beeinträchtigt. Nicht einmal die Stimme behält er. Die Stimme wird tiefer. Der Stimmwechsel zeigt ja, daß die Verdauung heraufwirkt bis in den Atmungsorganismus. Also das zweite Mal, wenn er seinen Organismus bilden muß, da pfuscht ihm die Verdauung hinein. Dieses Hineinpfuschen, das ist eben im Stimmwechsel zum Ausdruck kommend. Da muß er ganz andere Saiten anschlagen. Da stürmen nun wiederum die Krankheiten heran.
Und sehen Sie, erst wenn man den Menschen nun so betrachtet, dann kriegt man die Möglichkeit, überhaupt über eine solche Frage nachzudenken, wie sie einer der Herren das letzte Mal gestellt hat. Vorher kann man ja über diese Fragen überhaupt gar nicht nachdenken, denn man kriegt nichts heraus. Wenn man weiß, daß es einfach der Kopf ist, der in den ersten sieben Lebensjahren am meisten arbeiten muß, was wird man sich da sagen?
Ja, nicht wahr, im mütterlichen Leibe wird das gebilder (auf die Zeichnung deutend); aber der Kopf, der im mütterlichen Leibe gebildet wird, der wird ja wirklich nicht bloß gebildet durch die Befruchtung, nur durch die Substanz, sondern dieser Kopf wird gebildet aus dem ganzen Weltenall herein. Die mütterliche Substanz bilder nur die Grundlage, daß sich das bilden kann. Aber der Kopf des Menschen wird aus dem ganzen Weltenall herein gebildet. Er ist ja auch ein Abbild, er ist ein Bild des Weltenalls. Er ist deshalb oben rund, weil er nachgebildet ist dem Weltenall. Da drauf auf diesen Hirnschädel, den manchmal etwas so Dummes bedeckt beim Menschen, da drauf wirkt die ganze Sternenwelt. Da wirkt wirklich die ganze Sternenwelt. Das ist nicht eine Phantasterei. Das ist ebenso wahr, wie es das Folgende ist, ich habe es Ihnen schon einmal gesagt: Denken Sie sich, es wäre hier eine Magnetnadel; diese Magnetnadel können Sie nicht beliebig zum Stillstand bringen. Sie steht immer von Norden nach Süden. Keinem Menschen wird es einfallen, zu sagen, da sitzen Kräfte in der Magnetnadel drinnen, die diese von Norden nach Süden stellen, sondern jeder sagt: Die Erde ist selber ein Magnet und die Magnetnadel richtet sich nach der Erde. — Das sieht jeder ein. Nur in bezug auf das, was sich da im mütterlichen Leibe drinnen entwickelt, sind die Menschen so dumm, daß sie sagen: Das kommt von der Befruchtung. — Das ist ebenso gescheit, wie wenn man sagen würde: Daß sich die Magnetnadel immer von Süden nach Norden richtet, das kommt von Kräften in der Magnetnadel! - Daß sich da dieser Kopf ausbildet wie ein Abbild von der ganzen Welt, das zeigt eben, daß die ganze Welt wirkt auf den Menschenkopf. Und die Kräfte, mit denen der Kopf dann wiederum im Kinde weiter wirkt, die hat der Mensch aus dem Weltenall bekommen. Wenn also meineLunge aufgebaut wird, dann hat der Kopf dieKraft zum Aufbauen meiner Lunge bekommen aus dem Weltenall. Namentlich wenn zum Beispiel die Nieren ausgebildet werden, so hat der Mensch die Kräfte von weit im Weltenall draußen liegenden Körpern bekommen, vom Jupiter zum Beispiel. Also das sind keine Phantastereien. Das kann man ebenso untersuchen, wie man andere physikalische Sachen untersucht. So daß der Mensch, wenn er mit seinem Kopfe geboren wird, wirklich in seinem Kopf dieKräfte der ganzen Welt drinnen trägt.
Natürlich ist es ein Unsinn, wenn einer sagt, der Mond oder die Sonne oder der Jupiter wirken auf irgendein menschliches Organ. Also wenn die Leute sich hinsetzen und ein Horoskop stellen, weil sie glauben, der Mond, die Sonne, der Jupiter und so weiter wirken, das ist Blech! Aber der Kopf ist herausgebildet aus dem ganzen Weltenall. Und die Kräfte, die dem Kopf aus dem ganzen Weltenall mitgeteilt worden sind, die wirken dann in den ersten sieben Jahren auf den Menschen. Und in den zweiten sieben Jahren gewöhnt sich der Mensch mehr an den Umkreis der Erde, so daß er herauswächst aus dem Weltenall. Er wird also, während er vorher ein Sternenmensch war, mehr ein Luftmensch.
Und nachher, wenn da die Verdauungsstoffe eine so besondere Rolle spielen beim Menschen, daß sie ihm sogar die Stimme verändern, was ist denn das? Ja, das ist nichts anderes als das, was wir hereinbringen von der Erde. Was wir von der Erde hereinbringen, das müssen wir dann verarbeiten. Ich habe Ihnen gezeigt, daß das erst getötet werden muß in den Gedärmen und so weiter. Das wird erst zur Hauptsache in den Zeiten, in denen der Mensch geschlechtsreif wird. Da wird er hauptsächlich von der Erde abhängig. Wir haben als Männer zuerst die Stimme von der Luft; daß die Stimme dann dumpf wird, das kommt davon her, daß später die Erdensubstanzen und die Erdenstoffe drinnen wirken.
Erst kommen wir zur Welt, indem wir Sternenmenschen sind, vom Kopf aus die Kräfte nachwirken lassen, die wir aus der Sternenwelt zuerst hereingebracht haben. Dann werden wir Luftmenschen. Und mit der Geschlechtsreife werden wir erst Erdenmenschen, werden erst richtig dem Erdigen zugeteilt. Später werden wir erst den Dingen zugeteilt, die uns mehr an die Erde fesseln. Und so sehen Sie, daß der Mensch erst von der Welt herein auf die Erde versetzt wird.
Wenn man nicht so verstockt ist wie die Materialisten oftmals, die darüber phantasieren, daß der Mensch wächst und so weiter, dann sieht man ja, wie der Mensch in die Erde hineinwächst. Und wenn er alt genug dazu wird, wächst er nämlich im Alter wieder heraus. Was geschieht zum Beispiel im Alter? Die Kräfte, die wir im Alter haben, die haben wir auch in der Jugend; die haben unsere Knochengebilde sehr, sehr hart gemacht; aber die anderen Teile bleiben weich. Wenn aber im Alter die Kraft, die in den Knochen ist, in den andern Körper übergeht, so verhärten zuerst die Adern, und dann kommt, was man Arteriosklerose nennt. Das Gehirn kann auch verkalken. Das Gehirn muß immer ein bißchen von dem haben, durch das die Verkalkung eintritt. Sehen Sie, wenn das Kind nicht ein wenig Kalksand im Kopfe hat, der von der Zirbeldrüse ausgestreut wird, verteilt wird, wenn es nicht ein wenig Kalksand im Kopfe hat, dann bleibt es dumm, dann kann die Seele nicht eingreifen, denn die bildet in den Kalk hinein. Wenn aber später (im Alter) zu viel Kalk abgelagert wird, dann kommt eben die Verkalkung, und dann kann wiederum die Seele nicht eingreifen, weil das zu stark ist. Dann kommt die Lähmung, der Gehirnschlag, oder so etwas, oder man wird eben ergriffen von Altersschwachsinn, weil man das Gehirn nicht mehr ergreifen kann, nicht mehr verwenden kann. Aber wenn im übrigen Körper eine Verkalkung eintritt, ist es ebenso. Man wird wieder herausgenommen aus den Kräften der Erde. Man kann also sehen, wie der Mensch hineinwächst in die Kräfte der Erde bis zu seiner Geschlechtsreife, und wie er dann wieder herauswächst aus der Erde, wie die abgelagerten Schichten immer dicker und dicker werden und dadurch die Seele nicht mehr eingreifen kann.
So sehen Sie tatsächlich, daß man studieren kann das, was der Mensch vom Weltenall hat. Er trägt es selber herein. Man muß nur nicht der abergläubischen Ansicht huldigen, daß auf die Lunge meinetwillen irgendeines fünfunddreißigjährigen Menschen irgendwie ein Stern wirkt! Aber die Lunge ist aufgebaut nach den Kräften, die zuerst im Kindeskopf von den Sternen hereingekommen sind.
Also wenn man die Sache richtig wissenschaftlich anschaut, dann gibt es eben eine Geisteswissenschaft. Die gibt es einmal, und die kann man ebenso studieren, wie die andere Wissenschaft. Und es ist einmal so, man mag ja noch so stark schimpfen über frühere Zeiten — gewiß, wir können nicht wieder dieselben Zeiten heraufholen, die früher waren —, aber sie waren halt für die Menschen, die früher da waren, brauchbar, für uns nicht mehr. Aber die Zeit, in der wir leben, die ist nur brauchbar für uns. Wenn wieder Leute da sein werden, die etwas wissen von der Welt, die nicht bloß glauben, der Menschenkopf wird nur als, was weiß ich, so eine kleine Kugel im Mutterleibe erzeugt, sondern die etwas wissen von der Sache, wird es auch wieder bessere Politiker geben. Wenn man nichts weiß, kann man auch kein ordentlicher Politiker sein. Denn derjenige, der nichts weiß vom Menschen, der weiß auch nicht, was die Menschen tun sollen. Daher ist es so dringend notwendig, daß Leute entstehen, die wiederum etwas wissen von der Welt. Das ist dasjenige, was unbedingt angestrebt werden muß.
Die Schulen sollen den Menschen wiederum etwas lehren, was einen Wert hat. Heute hat das einen großen Wert, womit man Maschinen machen kann. Dagegen wird auch nichts gesagt von der Geisteswissenschaft, denn das hat ja seinen großen Wert; aber wodurch man unter den Menschen zurechtkommt, das wird gar nicht gelehrt, sondern es wird irgendeine abstrakte soziale Wissenschaft gelehrt, die man erfindet, weil man den Menschen nicht kennt. Den muß man erst kennenlernen, dann aber so, wie wir es hier tun. Das aber, was ich Ihnen hier sage, das wird ja leider nicht gelehrt. Erinnern Sie sich an Ihre eigene Schulzeit! Wo wird denn so etwas gelehrt? Und das ist dasjenige, was heute dem Menschen fehlt. Dasjenige, was der Mensch heute lernt, das ist geradeso in ihm, wie wenn Sie ihm Steine in den Magen hineinlegen. Das verträgt höchstens eine Gans, aber nicht der Mensch. Wenn Sie dem Menschen Steine in den Magen hineingeben, dann ruiniert er seinen Verdauungsapparat. Wenn Sie den Menschen das lehren, was heute gelehrt wird, so ruinieren Sie eigentlich seinen Kopf. Nicht wahr, wenn ich meinen Arm nicht gebrauche, wird er schwach. Wenn ich meinen Kopf nicht richtig gebrauche, wird der Kopf schwach. Aber der Kopf hat auch während des mütterlichen Keimens schon Sternenkräfte bekommen. Wenn Sie ihm nichts erzählen und er keine Gedanken haben kann von den Sternen, so bleibt er schwach, geradeso wie die Muskeln, wenn man sie nicht gebraucht. Wenn man dem Kind nichts beibringt von der Welt, so muß der Kopf schwach bleiben. Und der hauptsächlichste Schaden des heutigen Zustandes ist — Sie müssen das nicht übel nehmen -, daß die Menschen schwache Köpfe haben und nichts verstehen voneinander, sich nach Klassen trennen und gar nichts verstehen voneinander. Das ist geradeso, wie wenn ich Menschen zu Athleten machen will und ihnen ihren Bizeps ganz schwach lasse. So ist es mit Menschen, die ich ausbilde und deren Kopf ich schwach lasse, weil sie dann gerade dasjenige nicht wissen, was sie wissen sollten. Das ist schon so.
Wenn die Kinder mit der unbewußten Weisheit, durch die sie ihren Körper aufbauen, fertig sind und ihre zweiten Zähne gekriegt haben, ist es von besonderer Wichtigkeit, daß man ihnen jetzt bewußt etwas beibringt von dem, was sie früher unbewußt angewendet haben. Dann werden sie auch richtige Menschen, solche Menschen, die nicht so verkehrt denken wie die heutigen, sondern Menschen, die richtig denken eine gesunde Geisteswissenschaft.
Richtet man alles soziale Denken erst zugrunde, so kriegen wir kein vernünftiges Denken über das, was man tun soll. Wenn wir eine richtige Geisteswissenschaft anwenden, so wird in dieser Beziehung vieles besser werden können.
Second Lecture
Well, gentlemen, it has been requested that we talk a little about the internal human organs, and I began this topic last time. Of course, such a subject can only be discussed, I would say, from a distance. One can only discuss it by really getting into the subject from the beginning. And I have told you not only that it can happen that a person, in a sense, as I explained to you using the example of William Windom and another example, speaks from within himself like this Windom, who died during a speech and described his own condition almost entirely in words – I have not only told you that, but I have also told you certain things about the course of human life, so that we find that in the very first stages of life, that is, while a person is an infant, in the first years of childhood, mortality is at its highest. That is when people die most frequently. And even if this decreases later on in the third, fourth, and fifth years, one can still say that the highest mortality rate is until the change of teeth, around the age of seven.
Then, from the change of teeth until the child reaches sexual maturity, humans are actually at their healthiest. This is indeed the case. If we do not make children unhealthy ourselves at school, if we do not cause them to develop deformities or internal diseases due to poor posture and the like, if we are careful, we can indeed expect children to be at their healthiest during their so-called school age, during elementary school. Most of the cases of illness that occur at this stage are caused by external factors. The great danger of people making themselves ill again only really begins at the age of fifteen or sixteen. And then completely different illnesses occur than those that occur in childhood.
You see, it is like this: with very young children — as I have already mentioned in part — we find that they are very prone to blood poisoning, for example. The blood becomes purulent. This can go so far that jaundice-like symptoms appear. Then, very often, children experience irregular digestion in the form of diarrhea. Then the children get these little white pustules in various places, sponges, as they say, and the like; and then the children get a completely different kind of illness, the so-called Fraisen — these are childhood convulsions. Today, polio is particularly prevalent as a childhood disease, which also occurs in later life, but which is a terribly destructive disease. Children become unable to move their legs, for example. They have completely paralyzed legs and the like. This disease is becoming increasingly prevalent today. You may have read that Thuringia has reported that even schools have had to be closed because polio is occurring epidemically.
From all this and much more, it can be seen that childhood diseases have a very special character. Childhood diseases look different from the diseases that people get later in life. Childhood diseases are scarlet fever and measles – although measles is a disease that people can also get later in life, and we must ask ourselves: why do children get it most often?
You see, one can only understand these things if one knows how the forces actually work in the human body. If one considers the child as a human germ before it is born, let's say even in the first, second, or third month, then the child is actually something completely different from the later human being. In the first month, and also in the second, the child is essentially just a head, and the other organs are really just appendages to the head. Everything that will later become limbs, hands, and feet, are just small stumps; and even the actual chest and abdominal areas are not yet functioning, are not yet active. You see, when you have the embryonic child, it actually looks like this: there is, I would say, a kind of sac in which it is enclosed, and in this sac there are blood vessels from the mother's body. These blood vessels then enter the child and fill it. The child receives blood from the mother, as well as nutrients. These are appendages that will later fall off. Everything falls off. The head is enormous in relation to the body of the embryonic child. That is the head (see drawing); the rest are just appendages — they are not yet active. Later, the heart and digestive system develop. Blood circulation is provided from outside, from the mother's blood circulation. There are only small stumps for hands and feet; these will develop later. So one must say: this is all the head, and everything else is insignificant organs, because everything that is food and air intake is provided for the child by the mother. So in the first few months, the child is actually entirely head from the mother.

You see, gentlemen, people are surprised that mental illnesses, as they are called, are hereditary. But mental illnesses are always physical illnesses that manifest themselves in the body not functioning properly. The mind does not become ill, nor does the soul; mental illness is always something physical. So people are surprised that someone, as they say, becomes mentally ill through heredity. Yes, certainly, people become mentally ill through heredity. If the parents, especially the mother, suffer from consumption, or if they suffer from any illness, for example arteriosclerosis — which is less common in young people, but it does occur in some people — if the parents suffer from consumption, tuberculosis, arteriosclerosis, then the children will not necessarily suffer from consumption, tuberculosis, arteriosclerosis, but they may become mentally ill. People are surprised by this.
Yes, gentlemen, is there any need to be surprised? What a person can inherit must first be inherited by the head. So if the mother has consumption, it is not surprising that it does not affect the lungs — which are not yet active — but rÄther the head, where it develops. So it is not surprising at all that what is inherited are completely different diseases than those that the parents had and passed on.
You see, if the parents have a sexually transmitted disease, for example, the children may develop an eye disease. That is not surprising. How can one not be surprised when the parents have a sexually transmitted disease and the child has developed a head? The eyes are most exposed to what the parents have; they are in a sexually diseased environment! So there is no need to be surprised about this.
And now the child is born. You all know that when the child is born, the head is still the most developed part of the body. The rest of the body has to grow later on. The head is the most developed part of the body and does not grow as much as the other organs; it grows much less. And from all this, we can see how the internal organs of a human being actually work. Materialistic science cannot form a correct idea of this. It is quite impossible, because it does not really realize that in a child all growth originates from the head. Everything is regulated from the head. In the embryonic child, it is most striking that everything is regulated from the head, because it only has a head. Later, however, what goes on in the human body is still regulated from the head. Everything in the human organism is regulated from the head. The stomach, intestinal activity, and blood circulation—everything is regulated from the head.

Now suppose a child is born and, for some reason, has too slow a blood circulation. That can happen. It can happen that the child has too slow a blood circulation due to heredity; that does happen. Now imagine that the child—I will draw some veins—has veins like this, and the blood flows through them too slowly; there is the heart, and the blood flows through it too slowly. But the heart is formed from the head. The head may be perfectly fine, but the blood circulation is too slow. So it happens that although the heart is properly formed, the blood does not flow properly into the heart. This is very common in children in the very early stages of infancy, where the head is perfectly fine, but the blood circulation is not working properly. This can simply be because the child is living in stuffy air; this prevents them from breathing properly and the blood circulation stagnates. Or if they are not getting the right nutrition, the blood cannot be properly transported around the body; blood circulation can stagnate. The head is fine, the heart wants to develop properly, but blood circulation stagnates. Instead of being properly transported from the heart to the kidneys and out of the body, it remains in the body, it remains in the blood. If substances that should not be in the body, that should already have been removed, are still in the blood, the blood becomes infected.
You see, this danger is not as great later on, say in the eighth or ninth year, as it is in early childhood. Why? Well, if the child has grown its second teeth properly, this is proof that its body is actually strong. Otherwise, it will not grow its second teeth properly. Why? Well, you see, the second teeth are driven out of the whole body. What is in a tooth comes from the whole body; it is not just there in the jaw, but when the second teeth come in, the whole body is active. But only with the second teeth. Not yet with the first teeth. The first teeth that the child gets, the so-called milk teeth, are something completely different from the second teeth. The child gets its first teeth through heredity, because its mother and fÄther also have teeth. These are pushed out over the course of the first seven years, and then the child gets its own teeth, the second teeth, which the body itself has to produce.
In fact, when you look at a child who is nine or ten years old, they already have their second body. The first one, which they inherited, has been completely discarded. Actually, the child only gets its own body around the age of seven. And during the entire time up to the age of seven, it becomes apparent that the child is born so strong that it can tolerate the air and food. Once it has shown that it can get its second teeth, the risk of becoming ill is no longer so great because it has already built up its body; it already has its teeth. And that is why the danger is greatest for infants. They have to find their way into everything they used to do under the protection of the womb. The head is actually always good in the first stage; it only becomes bad later. Once you get old, your head is no longer so orderly. That is when you are supposed to think, to engage with the outside world. That is when you have to find your way into it. This is where things often go wrong! But in the very first years of life, the child does not yet need skills for work, does not yet need to go to school, does not yet need to learn anything. The head only works on its own body. It is usually good at this. But one's own body is at its worst in early childhood, because one first has to get used to the world.
Well, not quite as I describe it, because I am telling you the facts exactly as they are, but external science tells a similar story. However, external science does not really understand the whole process. External science is actually faced with a mystery when it sees how humans are exposed to the most serious illnesses in their earliest years. But that is because this external science believes that what we call the soul and spirit are not really real.
In reality, it is like this: when the child is still in the mother's womb and then is born, the soul and spirit are mainly connected to the head. What is at work in there are forces, things that cannot be seen. These forces, these spiritual-soul forces, are at work in the child.
You will say: Yes, that is a view that one may or may not hold. But if you believe that one may or may not hold this view, then you are guilty of the same error as someone who says: There is a piece of iron; another comes and says: Give it to me, I want to shoe my horse with it! — But the first one says to him: “Man, you're stupid if you want to shoe your horse with that! That's a magnet, there's a force inside it. This magnet is used for something completely different than shoeing horses!” One knows that it is simply a horseshoe; the other knows that it is a magnet with an invisible force inside it. They cannot see it. And likewise, the one who says with materialistic science: Well, yes, the head is a piece of flesh. He is just like the one who says: That is a horseshoe! — The child's head is not just a piece of flesh, but invisible forces are at work inside it, building up the whole human organism like a sculptor. They build it up completely fresh in the first seven years. The human being retains some of this as the form, the shape, what he has inherited. And the forces with which the human being is built up completely fresh are the soul-spiritual forces that emanate from the head, and the human being brings these from somewhere completely different than from his parents.
If they brought them from their parents—yes, gentlemen, if someone is a genius, have you seen that their children also become geniuses? Or if the children are geniuses, have you seen that the parents are also geniuses? That is certainly not the case! Take Goethe, for example, who was certainly a genius: his fÄther was a terrible philistine, his mother was no genius either — she was a lovely, kind woman who could tell beautiful stories — and his son was stupid, he was no genius at all. So what is spiritual and mental cannot be inherited; it is brought with you from completely different worlds. It only unites with what you inherit. Apart from having an existence in the womb, human beings also have a previous existence as spiritual and mental beings.
You see, the fact that people deny this today is only because throughout the Middle Ages the Catholic Church said: One must not attribute a spiritual-soul existence to humans before birth — because the Catholic Church assumed that the soul must be created at birth by some kind of God, as the Catholic Church assumed. And what the Catholic Church forbade throughout the Middle Ages, namely the belief in what was then called pre-existence — that is, existing before, existing beforehand — is now also observed by materialistic science, which feels terribly clever about it. The thing is, people don't even know how they've been trained to think this way, and then they believe that having this view makes them especially clever.
The truth is that, just as human beings have a physical existence in their parents, grandparents, and so on, they also have a spiritual-soul existence that they bring with them. This works within them. This is the spiritual-soul aspect. And those who do not understand that the spiritual-soul aspect is already there before the body does not understand that the spiritual-soul aspect remains after death, but can at most believe in it. Knowledge of the immortality of the human soul can only be gained by also knowing that it is already there beforehand. Of course, it would be fitting for a divine creator, if he created human beings, to also make the soul disappear again when the human being dies; but if this soul must first be there in order for the body to be built up, then it naturally also remains when the body dies.
So you can say to yourself: from all the things that can be correctly observed, the existence of the human soul follows quite naturally. And how could it die when it is the soul that has built up the mortal body in the first place! One would have to go to completely different worlds to see that the soul could die. We will talk about this in later lectures, that it cannot die there either. But it cannot die through the body, because it builds the body itself.
We have now learned about diseases that arise when the spiritual-soul works from the head and the body is not in order. But something else can also happen. It can happen that the blood circulation is too slow and stagnation occurs, which I told you causes the blood to fester. But something else entirely can also happen. It can happen that the child receives food but is too weak to get this food from the intestines into the bloodstream. It does not pass through the intestinal villi. The body is too weak. What happens then? First of all, the child gets diarrhea. Of course, what is not absorbed must come out, but it should actually remain in the body and be absorbed. Instead, it comes out unprocessed in the diarrhea. But there is something else connected with this. Certainly, the child gets a little diarrhea, more severe diarrhea, perhaps vomiting and diarrhea. This is often only the first stage. But if the child cannot process nutrients for a long time, then the internal organs cannot be built up. The head wants to build them up continuously. The internal organs cannot be built up because no nutrients are getting through. It is like when you are working on a statue, for example, and you have no material to make it from, and you wave your arms around in the air. In the same way, the head waves its arms around in the air when, for example, the child does not receive any material from which to form the organs. It wants to form the heart, to form the stomach. It flails around in the air because it cannot obtain any material, because it has been lost through diarrhea.
Yes, if you are a materialistic scholar, you cannot understand anything at all. You just say to yourself: I will examine the child; well, it has diarrhea. Let's give it some medicine so that it no longer has diarrhea. The only result will be that the nutrients accumulate in the intestines because they cannot be absorbed, and the child will get a big belly, but nothing else. You examine further and find that, for example, the lungs are nothing more than an empty bag. They want to be formed, but the substances are not there. You find nothing but an empty bag instead of lungs.

So, anyone who looks at the lungs and finds only an empty sac must know that the very forces that emanate from the head enter these lungs. What emanates from the head goes into the lungs, through the lungs. Now the forces emanating from the head want something through which they can act. They grasp at something that gives them no support. Now it is like this: when I shake the chair, I have a hold on the chair; but when I flail around and cannot get hold of the chair, I have no hold. Then you only see me flailing around like a fool. But when the head flails around in the lungs and cannot get a hold, then cramps arise, the convulsions.
You see, if anyone wants to explain cramps in a reasonable way, they must know that the head is flailing around and cannot find support. Diarrhea can still be explained in a materialistic way; cramps can no longer be explained in a materialistic way.
So this shows us that children have the most mental activity. This stops later on. Children have so much mental activity that from everything they eat up to the age of six or seven, only very small, tiny particles, parts, are excreted, and these are used to make their second teeth. Just imagine, gentlemen, if you had to do that yourselves! First of all, you would have to be so clever that you could know how magnesium salts and carbonic salts are present in the food. You can learn that if necessary, but you can only do so by first chemically analyzing the teeth, learning from the teeth themselves. Because, of course, no one today can say how such teeth are made, because the artificial teeth that are made are, of course, not teeth, not living teeth. So, from everything the child eats up to the age of seven, in very small portions, what appears as second teeth is extracted.
But you not only have to know what substances are in them, you also have to know what they do in the stomach so that the right substance is excreted, or what do these small particles that you have excreted do in the second or third year? Once you have excreted them, how do you keep them in the bloodstream long enough for them to continue on their way, entering the jaw in the sixth, seventh, or eighth year, so that they become teeth? All this has to be done and is done by the child's mental and spiritual faculties, which are only unconscious. But it is done. I don't think you will feel offended if I tell you: you are not capable, if I say, let a single hair grow somewhere — you are not capable of making that hair grow in any way! But the child is capable of doing this by driving the necessary substances to the place where the hair roots are located, bringing these substances toward the light — for hair grows, is made of light.
So all this happens in the child. You see, all this is something that today's science does not want to talk about. It makes these things completely unclear to people. It knows nothing about them and does not want to talk about the fact that the spiritual-soul works within, and that the spiritual-soul is not inherited, but that the spiritual-soul comes from a spiritual world.
Now, I have told you the example of hair. You see, humans are generally not hairy during their normal lives, but only in certain places do hairs remain; otherwise, they are hairless. But humans were once hairy on Earth. They lost their hair. They used to be completely hairy. Once, in very ancient times, humans were also shaggy, completely shaggy. They lost their hair. Yes, how did humans lose their hair? I don't want to give you a theory about this, because you can make one up yourself, but I want to point you to the facts. Other creatures, for example, which are also hairy when they roam around in nature, lose their hair when they are domesticated: pigs. Look at them in their wild state: they have hair; and when they are domesticated, when they live in conditions in which they did not originally live, they lose their hair. Man did not originally live in conditions such as those of today. Humans are also like such a domesticated animal. But the fact that they have grown hair, have grown hair under the influence of light and warmth, is still evident in children today; for in the first few months, when they are almost all head, the whole embryo is hairy — in the womb, the child is even hairy in the first few months! It loses its hair again; it goes away. It is completely hairy. Just as I explained to you that plants in their first stage still have the light and warmth from the previous year, so the child has light and warmth from the mother, so it receives the light and only loses its hair later. So from this, too, you can see how the spiritual-soul works on the body.
Now I told you: During school age, human beings are actually at their healthiest by nature. That is true. Why? Yes, that is because only those people remain who have developed the forces that enable them to develop their second teeth, for these are strong forces. One drives very hard forces out of oneself. These forces must first be acquired through a very strong habituation during childhood. In the first years of childhood, everything that the head does inside the human being is most strongly developed. And it is really true to say – although of course the human being knows nothing about it – that this head has to make an effort, it has to be a great artist. And the body constantly resists it. The head has to fight against this constantly. Nothing helps it. In the first seven years, there is nothing that can really help it. One has to exert such tremendous effort. And it is precisely this effort that causes all the illnesses I have told you about.
But now suppose that the blood circulation is not disordered because too little is flowing, but because too much is being transferred. That can also be the case. It is possible that parents are not as wise as the human organism actually is. Parents often believe that stuffing as much as possible into their child is the best thing to do. Well, you can't blame anyone for that, because it is generally difficult to know when a child has had enough. Most of the time, only the child's own instinct and wisdom can tell. If they get too much milk because the mother produces too much, the child develops an uncertain instinct and eats too much themselves. Then too much is stuffed into them, and their head can't keep up; then it is too slow to get all that in. Then they have to defend themselves so that it is thrown out, so that it goes away. But it has already entered the bloodstream from the intestines; it can no longer be expelled naturally through defecation or digestion, because it has already entered the bloodstream. What does it do? It has to expel it through the skin. Scarlet fever and measles develop! Scarlet fever and measles are completely different diseases from diarrhea or cramps. Diarrhea and cramps are illnesses that children get because they simply fidget around inside and do not get enough food. But if too much gets in, then it has to be expelled, and then such things arise, even that which is then expelled through the lungs when there is too much. Diphtheria and pneumonia are caused by the body helping itself by expelling through the skin what it cannot otherwise get rid of. If you understand the human being, you understand how this actually happens, and it is quite natural that a child can get such diseases.
It can get other diseases too. Just imagine that the child happens to be too weak to push out its second teeth. It has gotten its first teeth, which it inherited; it doesn't need to exert itself for that. But it is too weak to push out the second ones. Now the forces that are not reaching their destination go into the lungs, and the child shows signs of pneumonia. That can also happen. The human body is a terribly complicated thing. So when a child gets pneumonia, it is not only necessary to check how the child's lungs are doing, but also how the kidneys are doing, how the stomach is doing, and so on. So with any illness, you have to examine the whole human body, not just the part where the illness is occurring.
But when the child is seven years old, its respiratory organs are developed enough that the whole body no longer has to breathe from the head. In very young children, the head still has to constantly regulate the respiratory organs. Just as it has to develop the teeth, it also has to develop the respiratory organs. By the age of seven or eight, the child is ready for them to be in order. Now the child can breathe properly. It is very important to understand that when the child has grown its second teeth, its respiratory system has come into order; it has grown its second lungs, its second bronchi – everything has been built up. It no longer breathes with the weak inherited organism, but with the second, built-up organism. This puts it in a completely different position. Now it has help. That is the story. It is quite different whether I have a respiratory system from a weak fÄther or a weak mother, which I am supposed to control from my head, but which is too weak, or whether I have properly developed a second respiratory system as a child, as I need it. Because the head builds it up properly. And because this second respiratory organism is in order in children who reach this age at all — the others have died before — these children between the ages of seven and fourteen are the healthiest, because in children it is primarily the respiratory organism that becomes completely healthy. That is the good thing about this second stage of life, that the respiratory organism becomes most healthy then.
But when sexual maturity sets in, this sexual maturity takes some of the nutrients for itself. This does not happen earlier, when the child is not yet sexually mature. At that stage, sexual maturity does not yet take anything from the food. Now a completely different kind of digestion must take place. This is easy to understand, because something completely different has now occurred, because the food is being directed to something else. This new way of breathing means that, from the onset of sexual maturity, the digestive organs have to readjust themselves, so that the correct counterpressure must first come from the stomach and intestines, because something has been taken away from what was previously pressure. Now the correct counterpressure must occur. No wonder that anemia and other diseases occur in girls at this age, because the organism must first adjust.
Thus, the child is most protected during this period from the age of seven to fourteen. For in the first years, the organism must be worked on so intensely from the head. It must first get used to this. During this period from the age of seven to fourteen, i.e., during elementary school, the child is at its healthiest. This second respiratory system is not impaired by anything and can deliver oxygen very finely. On the one hand, it has a beneficial effect on the head, and on the other hand, it has a beneficial effect on digestion. As I said, it is only through external influences, such as school experiences, that this can be spoiled.
Now we come to sexual maturity. Look at the boy. Until sexual maturity, he has developed his organism with the healthiest forces that humans possess. He has made the effort to renew his organism for the first time. Nothing has spoiled him, if he has remained intact. But now sexual maturity is approaching. Look at the boy: his entire respiratory system is impaired by digestion. He doesn't even retain his voice. His voice becomes deeper. The change in voice shows that digestion affects the respiratory system. So the second time he has to form his organism, digestion interferes. This interference is expressed in the change of voice. He has to strike a completely different chord. Now the diseases rush in again.
And you see, only when you look at human beings in this way do you have the opportunity to think about a question such as the one one of the gentlemen asked last time. Before that, you cannot think about these questions at all, because you cannot get anything out of them. If you know that it is simply the head that has to work hardest in the first seven years of life, what will you say to yourself?
Yes, isn't it true that it is formed in the mother's womb (pointing to the drawing); but the head that is formed in the mother's womb is not really formed solely by fertilization, solely by substance, but this head is formed from the entire universe. The maternal substance only forms the basis on which it can be formed. But the human head is formed from the entire universe. It is also an image, it is a picture of the universe. It is round at the top because it is modeled on the universe. On top of this skull, which is sometimes covered by something so stupid in humans, the entire starry world has an effect. The entire starry world truly has an effect on it. This is not a fantasy. It is just as true as the following, which I have already told you: Imagine there is a magnetic needle here; you cannot bring this magnetic needle to a standstill at will. It always points from north to south. No one would think of saying that there are forces inside the magnetic needle that make it point from north to south, but everyone says: The earth itself is a magnet and the magnetic needle points to the earth. — Everyone understands that. Only in relation to what develops inside the mother's body are people so stupid that they say: That comes from fertilization. That is just as clever as saying that the magnetic needle always points from south to north because of forces within the magnetic needle! The fact that this head develops as a reflection of the whole world shows that the whole world has an effect on the human head. And the forces with which the head then continues to work in the child are those that humans have received from the universe. So when my lungs are formed, the head has received the power to form my lungs from the universe. Specifically, when the kidneys are formed, for example, humans have received the forces from bodies far out in the universe, from Jupiter, for example. So these are not fantasies. This can be investigated in the same way as other physical things are investigated. So that when a human being is born with its head, it really carries the forces of the whole world inside its head.
Of course, it is nonsense when someone says that the moon or the sun or Jupiter have an effect on some human organ. So when people sit down and draw up a horoscope because they believe that the moon, the sun, Jupiter, and so on have an effect, that is rubbish! But the head is formed from the entire universe. And the forces that have been communicated to the head from the entire universe then have an effect on the human being during the first seven years. And in the second seven years, the human being becomes more accustomed to the surroundings of the earth, so that he grows out of the universe. So, whereas he was previously a star person, he becomes more of an air person.
And afterwards, when the digestive substances play such a special role in humans that they even change their voice, what is that? Yes, it is nothing other than what we bring in from the earth. What we bring in from the earth, we then have to process. I have shown you that this must first be killed in the intestines and so on. This only becomes the main thing in the times when humans reach sexual maturity. Then they become mainly dependent on the earth. As men, we first have the voice of the air; the fact that the voice then becomes muffled comes from the fact that later the earth substances and earth materials work inside.
First we come into the world as star beings, allowing the forces we first brought in from the star world to continue to work from our heads. Then we become air beings. And with sexual maturity, we first become earth beings, first truly assigned to the earthly realm. Later, we are assigned to things that bind us more to the earth. And so you see that human beings are first transferred from the world to the earth.
If one is not as stubborn as materialists often are, fantasizing that human beings grow and so on, then one can see how human beings grow into the earth. And when they become old enough, they grow out of it again in old age. What happens in old age, for example? The powers we have in old age are also present in youth; they have made our bones very, very hard, but the other parts remain soft. But when, in old age, the power that is in the bones passes into the other parts of the body, first the veins harden, and then what is called arteriosclerosis sets in. The brain can also calcify. The brain must always have a little of what causes calcification. You see, if a child does not have a little calcium sand in its head, which is scattered and distributed by the pineal gland, if it does not have a little calcium sand in its head, then it remains stupid, then the soul cannot intervene, because it forms into the calcium. But if too much calcium is deposited later (in old age), then calcification occurs, and then again the soul cannot intervene because it is too strong. Then paralysis, stroke, or something like that occurs, or one is seized by senility because one can no longer grasp the brain, can no longer use it. But when calcification occurs in the rest of the body, it is the same. One is again removed from the forces of the earth. So one can see how the human being grows into the forces of the earth until sexual maturity, and how he then grows out of the earth again, as the deposited layers become thicker and thicker and the soul can no longer intervene.
So you can actually see that it is possible to study what human beings have received from the universe. They carry it within themselves. One must simply not subscribe to the superstitious view that the lungs of a thirty-five-year-old person are somehow influenced by a star! But the lungs are structured according to the forces that first entered the child's head from the stars.
So if you look at the matter properly scientifically, then there is indeed a spiritual science. It exists, and it can be studied just like any other science. And the fact is, no matter how much we may complain about earlier times — of course, we cannot bring back the times that were — they were useful for the people who lived then, but not for us. But the time in which we live is only useful for us. When there are people again who know something about the world, who don't just believe that the human head is created as, I don't know, a little ball in the womb, but who know something about the matter, there will also be better politicians again. If you don't know anything, you can't be a proper politician. Because someone who knows nothing about people also doesn't know what people should do. That's why it's so urgently necessary for people to emerge who know something about the world again. That is what must be strived for at all costs.
Schools should teach people something that has value. Today, what has great value is what can be used to make machines. Nothing is said against the humanities, because they have great value; but how to get along with other people is not taught at all. Instead, some abstract social science is taught, which is invented because people do not know human beings. First you have to get to know them, but in the way we do here. Unfortunately, what I am telling you here is not taught. Think back to your own school days! Where is such a thing taught? And that is what people are lacking today. What people learn today is just like putting stones in their stomachs. At most, a goose can tolerate that, but not a human being. If you put stones in a person's stomach, you ruin their digestive system. If you teach people what is taught today, you are actually ruining their minds. Isn't it true that if I don't use my arm, it becomes weak? If I don't use my head properly, my head becomes weak. But the head has also received star powers during its development in the womb. If you don't tell it anything and it can't think about the stars, it remains weak, just like muscles that are not used. If you don't teach the child anything about the world, his mind must remain weak. And the main damage of today's situation is — you mustn't take this badly — that people have weak minds and don't understand each other, separate themselves into classes, and don't understand each other at all. It's just like if I want to turn people into athletes and leave their biceps completely weak. It is the same with people whom I train and whose minds I leave weak, because then they do not know what they should know. That is how it is.
When children have finished building their bodies with unconscious wisdom and have gotten their second teeth, it is particularly important to consciously teach them something of what they previously applied unconsciously. Then they will become real human beings, people who do not think as wrongly as people do today, but people who think correctly, a healthy spiritual science.
If we destroy all social thinking first, we will not be able to think sensibly about what we should do. If we apply a correct spiritual science, much will improve in this respect.