The Rudolf Steiner Archive

18. The Three Paths of Initiation

Address on the Founding of the Paracelsus Branch

[ 1 ] When giving a lecture on a Christian topic before a public gathering, one cannot speak about the Theosophical World Movement as intimately as in the present case, in a smaller, more closed society. The following lecture will provide a sketchy description of the three paths of initiation.

[ 2 ] Many of you will have dealt with theosophy in a variety of ways and will also be familiar with various views propagated by the theosophical world movement. Literature, lectures, and personal reflection have sparked an interest in many people to gain a more precise knowledge of supernatural, eternal things that transcend the temporal and transitory.

[ 3 ] Spiritual science has therefore made it its task to provide teachings about the deeper nature of human beings and their position in relation to the whole world, to investigate what is eternal and permanent in human beings, what are the causes of illness, of evil and suffering in the world and in individual human beings, what are the ultimate goals and purposes of the world and of human beings, and finally, how the world came into being.

[ 4 ] Today, of course, we will mainly discuss the paths that must be taken if one wants to gain insight into those higher problems.

[ 5 ] Human morality is the highest goal that man can set himself. General brotherhood among men is the ideal that all great, noble men have imagined at all times. The Theosophical Society wants the same thing. However, it never aims to establish a new sect based on Buddhism, nor does it seek to abolish or replace Christianity. It does not seek to promote anything unscientific. It is also important to distinguish between the teachings of theosophy, its worldview, and its goals, namely that of universal brotherhood.

[ 6 ] Both the theoretical and practical sides of theosophy are important. Its principles of knowledge should serve to acquaint us with the higher and the highest. For through such theoretical thinking we perform a certain work on our soul. To a certain extent, we prepare it for practical human love and brotherhood. The theoretical goals are to understand our fellow human beings in their essence, so that we can truly understand one another and judge and treat each other accordingly. For different opinions, occupations, environments, and so on, separate us in life. The means of creating peace and love among people despite their diverse opinions should be a deeper insight and understanding, namely the theosophical worldview. It originates from those who have endeavored to recognize more of the world than is possible through the ordinary senses or common sense by deepening and developing their dormant inner abilities. Such people are called initiates. A distinction is made between different levels of initiates. The great founders of religions were great initiates, for example Hermes, the teacher of the ancient Egyptian priests, Zarathustra, Moses, Plato, and Jesus Christ. They all had a more highly developed soul. They were able to see into the spiritual world, which surrounds us in much the same way as the physical world.

[ 7 ] As long as one does not strive to walk the path of initiation oneself, there is only one means of looking into those spiritual worlds, namely human reason. The world becomes light and clear when penetrated by reason.

[ 8 ] Through the spiritual-scientific worldview, knowledge of the world becomes clearer and deeper than through other philosophies. Reason is the judge for the acceptance or rejection of such teachings of humanity. According to them, human beings have a real need, which is why they are presented to them.

[ 9 ] How one can develop one's own soul so that it is capable of recognizing that which is high and supersensible will be explained in more detail below. Of course, there is no requirement or even obligation to undergo such a development. Not everyone needs to follow such a path. Those who are suited to it will receive the necessary inspiration and take the appropriate steps accordingly.

[ 10 ] Methods for acquiring these higher abilities have existed throughout history. However, until recent decades, they were known only to a select few secret teachers and secret students. Those who are called to this path may eventually find the appropriate path of development themselves. All that is required is a serious decision made of their own free will.

[ 11 ] This lecture is not intended to be propagandistic or to urge people to follow such a path. It is only intended to reveal the paths that could be taken. The goal of this process of development is initiation, that is, the attainment of the abilities for supersensible knowledge.

[ 12 ] Unfortunately, there is still a widespread misconception that theosophy is something brought over from the Orient, originating in India, a kind of new Buddhism, and now being imposed on us Westerners as a new religion, so to speak. This, of course, does great injustice to Theosophy, for it has been present in Europe from the very beginning and has taken deep root in many places, especially in recent centuries. Admittedly, it has always been met with greater understanding in the Orient.

[ 13 ] The Orient and the Occident also have very different types of initiation, corresponding to the deeper character of the peoples. More important than the Eastern path for us here is, of course, the European path, which is more appropriate for us to follow. However, all these paths lead to the same goal, for the truth is the same here and there, today and yesterday and for all eternity. First, the three most important paths of initiation will be briefly described: first, the Indian yoga initiation; second, the Christian-Gnostic path, which can still be followed very well by people today; third, the Rosicrucian path, which is certainly the most appropriate for people today, who cannot ultimately find satisfaction in mere faith, but are familiar with the achievements of culture and technology. This path is also fundamentally a Christian path, as is evident from the fact that it is precisely those who have developed through Rosicrucianism who learn to understand the wisdom teachings of Christianity best and most deeply.

[ 14 ] First: The Oriental path of yoga. It is possible for the human soul to develop to such an extent that it becomes like an eye that directly sees the spiritual, eternal, and timeless. The path that Orientals take to achieve this development differs from that of Europeans because of the completely different nature and organization of their constitution. Hindus differ from Europeans not only in their outward appearance, but also in the structure of their brains and souls. It is therefore clear that in order to truly achieve this goal, Hindus must take a different path than Europeans. In fact, it goes so far that a European would ruin himself morally and physically if he were to take the Eastern path of development. The solitude and seclusion of the soul required by the path of yoga is almost impossible in our European culture. One would have to step completely out of ordinary life, indeed out of our entire culture, in order to devote oneself solely to one's own inner development.

[ 15 ] Those who advance spiritually on this path need a spiritual guide or guru to lead them safely through the many confusions. Without such a guru, it is impossible to follow this path. Furthermore, it requires a complete transformation of the human being, a transformation that the guru prescribes. In general, such a guru then has unlimited power over his disciple. It no longer matters what the person does in his or her everyday life. It is no longer enough to be a decent, good person of the ordinary kind, simply a person whom society would describe as ordinary and exemplary.

[ 16 ] The soul and body must now be distinguished and separated as completely as possible; they must no longer interpenetrate each other as they did before. Passions and animal instincts should no longer have anything to do with the soul, for as long as this is the case, the soul is inhibited and prevented from penetrating the mists of the physical world and looking into the higher spiritual world. With a precise separation of soul and body, however, the latter can very well assert its passions and desires, while at the same time the soul is in the higher life. In this way, the soul can develop higher spiritual vision, while the body succumbs to all kinds of bad qualities and eventually degenerates, because its passions and drives are no longer guided for the better by the discerning soul, as was possible in the past when soul and body still permeated each other. This highlights the enormous importance of proper guidance on this dangerous path. In any case, one must listen strictly to the guru, even in cases where one is reluctant to do so. The guru may interfere in the most intimate matters of the heart and give his disciple appropriate rules of conduct. Certain relationships may be forbidden because they are a hindrance to the chosen path of development. Prerequisites for this path of development are: first, to be able to effectively prevent the degeneration of one's lower natural instincts; then, the constant practice of certain behaviors and the consolidation of certain characteristics, as well as the development of further abilities that are still dormant or not yet present.

[ 17 ] Such preparations for the path are: First, weaning oneself off of erratic thinking. This seems to be an easy condition, but in reality it is difficult. We are chased and driven by external impressions. For at least five minutes of the day, a person should be completely in control of their train of thought. As an exercise, one can try, for example, to place a single idea at the center of one's consciousness. Then nothing else may be associated with this idea, no matter how much may involuntarily follow it, except what I myself associate with it through free decision. Such exercises should be done with a wide variety of objects. After some time, a more controlled way of thinking will develop, which will be expressed externally in more precise language.

[ 18 ] Second: initiative in action. Some people lack this almost entirely, because from an early age they are usually pushed into a profession that now absorbs most of their actions. Most of our actions are determined by external factors. Therefore, those who seek initiation should make it a priority to perform a specific action at a specific time of day that comes from their own inner impulses, even if it is something insignificant.

[ 19 ] Thirdly, the student should rise above the “highest highs and lowest lows,” that is, they should not surrender themselves to every pain and every pleasure, but should maintain their inner balance even in the face of the most severe pain and the greatest pleasures. This certainly does not need to produce dullness and insensitivity; on the contrary, it results in an even finer and more intense sensitivity.

[ 20 ] Fourth: A Persian legend about Christ Jesus should come alive in the student, namely: Jesus was walking across the country with his disciples. By the wayside lay a half-decayed dog, gruesome to behold. The disciples turned away in horror, but Christ Jesus looked at the carcass with loving eyes and remarked: Look at the beautiful teeth of this dead animal! — The quintessence of this is to discover the hidden beauty even in ugliness and always to seek the positive, that which one can say yes to. Even in the life of the worst villain, there are moments of light that should be met with understanding.

[ 21 ] Fifth, one should strive for complete freedom from prejudice. The past should never determine one's judgment of the present. One should not simply reject something new because one has never encountered it before. If one wants to become an initiate, one should approach new insights with an open mind.

[ 22 ] Sixth: Development of soul harmony. This will actually arise naturally from all the others.

[ 23 ] The qualities listed are essential prerequisites for anyone who wants to be initiated into the path of yoga.

[ 24 ] The actual path of yoga also consists of individual sections that must be kept strictly separate.

[ 25 ] First: The yoga student should not kill, lie, steal, live extravagantly, or covet. The more one stops living at the expense of others, the closer one comes to what is meant by the requirement “do not steal.” Of course, this does not refer to theft that is punishable by law, but to more subtle forms of it. Everyone knows immediately what the other requirements mean.

[ 26 ] Secondly, it is highly desirable to recognize certain symbolic actions as one's own. One should have a sense of this and learn to understand that a ritual act is actually only a symbolic expression of a deeper meaning.

[ 27 ] Thirdly: adopting a certain body posture and position, because it is by no means irrelevant what position one gives the body during the exercises for higher wisdom. One should, as far as possible, bring it into line with the spiritual currents in the world.

[ 28 ] Fourthly: Pranayama or yoga breathing is also of great importance, which is connected with the requirement not to kill, because through his breath, man has a killing effect on many things in his environment. Yoga breathing aims to gradually remove the killing influence of human breath on other living beings. Above all, less deadly carbon dioxide should be emitted. That this is possible is evident from the fact that deeply initiated individuals can spend decades in dark caves without physical deterioration.

[ 29 ] The fifth stage refers to the suppression of certain sensual ideas. We must no longer allow every sensual idea to influence us, but should select individual ones and then concentrate all our attention on them. Furthermore, the other thoughts should each be given a specific and regulated course of action.

[ 30 ] Sixth: In further pursuit, the student should concentrate on an impression of light, or rather, on the image of such an impression that remains in the soul. The latter represents an even higher stage. Even more valuable is meditation that starts from an idea that no longer belongs to the sensory world. It is absolutely necessary for a person's training that they devote themselves to such ideas in contemplation.

[ 31 ] The following seventh stage is very difficult, because it consists of the person banishing all ideas from their consciousness while remaining completely awake. In this way, he approaches the state of intuitive conception. Only now is the ground prepared for the contents of a hitherto unknown world to flow to us.

[ 32 ] In all this preparation and training, the guru is indispensable, for it is only through him and exclusively through him that these inner processes are guided in the right way and for the benefit of the disciple.

[ 33 ] The presentation of this path of yoga given here is, of course, only an incomplete sketch and is by no means a guide for anyone to embark on this path. To reiterate, from time to time, the indispensable guidance of the guru, which can only be transmitted from person to person, is required.

[ 34 ] Second: The Christian-Gnostic path. The main difference between this path and the previous one is that here, not every individual student needs a special guru for themselves. They are relieved of this requirement by the existence of a great, exalted personality, namely Christ Jesus, who is to be the student's goal and guide. He finds a more detailed description of the path to be taken in the Holy Scriptures, the Bible, and specifically in the Gospel of John, which in its deeper meaning is in fact a direct instruction for mystical training.

[ 35 ] On this path, the guide is more of an advisor than an authoritative guru. The highest authority, namely Jesus Christ, is also included in the instructions for initiation. The Gospel of John provides these instructions for mystical development. It is therefore not a study book, but in the truest sense a book of life. Even the first few sentences of this Gospel have a certain mystical power and are extremely important for entering the path of initiation. A Christian mystery student must therefore meditate on these few sentences, which means, for example, making these sentences and nothing else the content of his soul at a certain time every morning. After some time, the deep meaning of these sentences will become intuitively clear to him, and only then will the moment have come when he can really begin to study the Gospel of John in a fruitful way.

[ 36 ] In the course of this study, the images of the Gospel will gradually creep into our dreams, so that we ourselves experience the events described in it inwardly. This inner experience then extends over all stages of development, which I do not wish to describe in detail here.

[ 37 ] Once one has progressed to the foot washing, which is the symbolic act of humbly confessing one's dependence and growth from one who is lower than oneself, certain symptoms also become apparent externally: a strange feeling of water trickling down one's feet. This is accompanied by the imaginative image of foot washing as an inner symptom. In Christian mystical development, the washing of the feet represents the first stage.

[ 38 ] The second stage is the scourging, which is also experienced emotionally. It means that despite the great and many pains and sorrows we have to endure in life, we always stand upright and do not become faint-hearted. Here, too, we have both an external and an internal symptom, namely a strange physical stinging sensation and the mental image of our own scourging.

[ 39 ] The third stage is the crowning with thorns. This act signifies that even when we encounter pain, when our most sacred feelings and convictions are persecuted with scorn and ridicule, we should not lose our inner strength and balance. Symptoms: headaches, vision of oneself with the crown of thorns on one's head.

[ 40 ] Fourth, the carrying of the cross [crucifixion]: Here, the student should experience that the body is actually an indifferent object in relation to the soul and its importance. If we are truly aware of this, then we will also be able to use the body merely as an instrument for higher things, and then we will truly master it. Symptoms: Appearance of the stigmata of Christ as reddened areas on the hands and feet. This blood test, of course, only occurs for a few moments during meditation. Inner vision that one is being crucified oneself.

[ 41 ] Fifth, mystical death. Here the student has the strange experience of feeling as if the whole world around him were covered with a veil, and behind the veil he senses the essential. While he feels himself in darkness, the veil suddenly tears, and he looks through it into a whole new, wondrous world. He now learns to judge what lies at the bottom of the human soul on a completely different level. This mystical death is, as it were, a descent into hell.

[ 42 ] Now he is awakened and can proceed to the sixth stage, the burial. Here, the human being perceives his entire external environment as his body. His personality expands and encompasses the whole earth. The body feels at one with the earth, and personal consciousness expands into earth consciousness.

[ 43 ] The seventh stage cannot be described in more detail, for it is beyond all sensory imagination. At most, it can still be grasped in thought by those people who, through incessant practice, have finally become free from this world. This stage encompasses the entry into perfect divinity and glory, for which our words are no longer sufficient to describe.

[ 44 ] This Christian path is a difficult one, because it is intrinsically linked with great humility and self-denial. But those who have walked it have achieved what is the goal and dignity of human beings; in them, true Christianity has truly come to life.

[ 45 ] Third: the Rosicrucian path. This path is actually only a modification of the other two. It emerged in the 14th century because the adepts at that time already foresaw that cultural conditions would be very different in the coming centuries.

[ 46 ] This path is the most suitable for modern man. It is also the most appropriate for Europeans. Of course, this does not mean that one of the other paths cannot also lead to the goal. However, the Rosicrucian system is compatible with our entire culture and civilization. This path has not yet been recorded in books or manuscripts, but has been passed down from one generation to the next through oral tradition. A more detailed explanation of this can be found in “Lucifer Gnosis” under the title “How to attain knowledge of the higher worlds.”

[ 47 ] Here we have a completely different view of the guru. He is no longer an unconditional authority for the student, but more of an advisor and friend. Authority here is merely the free decision of the individual.

[ 48 ] The development takes place in seven stages, namely: first, study; second, imagination; third, knowledge of occult writings; fourth, rhythmicization of life; fifth, seeking appropriate relationships between the macrocosm and microcosm; sixth, contemplation; seventh, experiencing godliness.

[ 49 ] So, first of all, study is necessary, not scientific study in the scholarly sense, of course, but an engagement with thoughts about the world and human life, about the origin of the stars, and so on, or other training of the mind. For thinking has the property of giving new experiences and insights, that is, only purposeful, logical thinking. It forms a reliable guide through all worlds, for in each one, one must think consistently in the same way.

[ 50 ] Secondly, the acquisition of imagination. This consists in gaining not merely a theoretical and intellectual relationship to one's surroundings, but a moral one. Here one should learn to discover in every thing that which corresponds to a moral background. To cultivate this imagination, one can, for example, bring to mind the image of a plant in all its clarity and distinctness. Or one can place a grain in front of oneself and imagine the gradual sprouting of a stalk and finally a finished plant with fruit. After some practice, one then really sees how a plant emerges from such a grain and grows upward. Of course, this requires strong occult powers. But with lesser means, you can perceive the astral body of the plant as a small flame emerging from the seed.

[ 51 ] Thirdly, learning occult writing. This is the acquisition of symbols that have to do with the world process.

[ 52 ] Fourthly, the rhythmization of life. This includes regulating the breathing process, in which the ratio of exhaled carbon dioxide to inhaled oxygen is changed in a certain way. Rhythmization of life is very necessary in our restless times. All processes follow each other in a great rhythm, and this rhythm should be carried into life as much as possible. For example, one should schedule a meditation process at a specific time, or review one's past life at the same time in the evening. This releases powerful forces in one's soul.

[ 53 ] Fifthly, seeking the correspondences between the microcosm and the macrocosm. Goethe also expressed the connection between these two in beautiful words:

Were not the eye sun-like,
It could never behold the sun,
Were not God's own power within us,
How could the divine delight us?

[ 54 ] A deep contemplation of our organs teaches us about the corresponding parts of the macrocosm. For example, the study of the eye teaches us about light, an exploration of the lungs gives us insight into the composition of air, and so on. Similarly, one should ultimately arrive at self-knowledge.

[ 55 ] Thus, through contemplation of the small inner world, the large world gradually becomes apparent to us. Through such comparative observations, the state of godliness is finally attained as a result of all the preceding exercises and especially the deep, peaceful contemplation of the sixth stage.

[ 56 ] In all this, it is necessary that the person be imbued with certain good qualities, such as self-confidence, self-control, and presence of mind.

[ 57 ] This inner development must be worked on incessantly. For although the divine is already latent within us, it will not become immediately apparent without work and appropriate development. This path does not require us to leave human and social circles in order to devote ourselves to our own development in solitude. Nor does it require contempt for matter, but merely transcending it and overcoming it in order to attain a higher level.

[ 58 ] Self-knowledge is knowledge of the world! — let this be your motto.

[ 59 ] The three paths described now lead people to higher discipleship. Only from this point can they then obtain the final key to the secret of the world from a true initiate, thereby gaining insight into the deeper connections of world and human life. This highest level then means the ability to absorb intuitions from higher worlds. It is a state of spiritual clarity and divine light.