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The Destiny of Individuals and of Nations
GA 157

9 March 1915, Berlin

9. The Sleeping-and-Waking Rhythm in the Context of Cosmic Evolution

Dear friends, once again, let us first of all remember those who are out there at the front, in the great arena of present-day events:

Spirits of your souls, guardian guides,
On your wings let there be borne
The prayer of love from our souls
To those whom you guard in the spheres.
Thus, united with your might,
A ray of help our prayer shall be
For the souls it seeks out there in love.

And for those who because of those events have already gone through the gate of death:

Spirits of your souls, guardian guides,
On your wings let there be borne
The prayer of love from our souls
To those whom you guard here on earth.
Thus, united with your might,
A ray of help our prayer shall be
For the souls it seeks out there in love.

May the spirit we are seeking as we work towards spiritual knowledge, the spirit who has gone through the Mystery of Golgotha for the good of the earth, for the freedom and progress of man, be With you and the hard duties you have to perform.

A week ago we gave some consideration to imaginative meditation. We found as a result of our considerations that all insight or perception which is genuine perception of the supersensible worlds has to be won by considering the world in a way that is independent of the body. Our ordinary everyday perception has to make itself independent of the conditions imposed by the body, the senses, the nervous system, etc. Ordinary daytime consciousness is achieved when man's spirit and soul elements use the physical body as a tool. Spiritual perception consists in certain more subtle processes which involve man. Some discussion of these processes will form the first part of today's talk.

I said: ‘More subtle processes’. They are finer, more subtle, than the ordinary processes used for everyday perception, observation, apprehension, because man is only able to base himself on what is familiar to him in everyday life, and can only gradually rise to finer, more subtle processes. We should all be able to achieve the most satisfying, the greatest, knowledge of the spiritual world if there was an easy way of being in full conscious awareness for at least a fraction—just a small fraction, a minute if you lik—of the part of our life we spend between going to sleep and waking up again. (I am speaking of no mere dream-like consciousness but full conscious awareness.) Any form of initiation always consists in making conscious the part of us which during the night, when we are asleep, is unconscious and outside the body.

The process of attaining to genuine higher knowledge always consists in making conscious what otherwise remains in a state of sleep and unconsciousness between going to sleep and waking up again'

There is one part of the human being—and this may surprise you—one part of the physical human being that basically is always asleep. These are things one need not necessarily go into at the very beginning-of one's anthroposophical life—the finer points of spiritual science can only come to our attention gradually. When it is said that man is awake in the daytime and asleep at night we naturally assume his ego and astral body to be fully united with the physical and ether bodies during the day whilst having a separate existence outside the physical and ether bodies at night. It is only gradually that we progress from a rough outline of the facts established through spiritual science to more specific truths. Very generally speaking, it is correct that during sleep man's ego and astral body are outside his ether and physical bodies. There is however a part of the body that is asleep also between waking up and going to sleep, at least essentially so. Oddly enough this is the part of the human body we call the ‘head’. This is asleep when we are awake. You might well think the head to be the part that is most awake. In reality, however, it is the least awake part of us. In his thinking activity, and in head work altogether, man is awake. This is only possible, however, because even when we are awake the relationship of the ego and astral body to the head organs is such that they—that is the ego part of the head, the astral part of the head—cannot unite completely with the physical and ether part of the head. They always experience a life of their own outside the physical and ether part of the head. They always experience a life of their own outside the physical and ether parts of the head, as it were. A close union between the astral and the physical parts of the head occurs only when we have a headache. If we have a powerful headache, the astral, physical and ether parts of the head are very much united. We are least able to think when we have a headache. The reason is that the bond between the astral, physical and ether parts of the head is too strong. Our thinking, in which we are awake, and all other waking soul life bases on the fact that the ego and astral body of the head are in a way outside the head and therefore reflected, mirrored, in the physical and ether body of the head. Similarly we are only able to see ourselves in a mirror because we are outside it. It is this mirroring effect that provides the images for everyday consciousness. Those are mirror images we experience and take note of in everyday life. Living thus outside the head, with the head asleep and ego and astral activity reflected back by the hard skull, we are able to feel the inner ego and the inner astral body to be our own. In the other parts of the body ego and astral activity are still influencing the activity of the physical and ether bodies to a much greater extent. If the same held true for the head we would be conscious of the activity of digestive organs, and perhaps also rhythmical activity like that of the heart, In our heads—or perhaps not be conscious of them—and there could be no question of thinking activity. Thinking depends on activity being reflected, thrown back, and absorbed. The heart and other organs with the ability to absorb take in ego and astral body activity. The organs of the head do not absorb it but rather reflect it; the result is that it can be experienced in the inner soul.

During the night, between going to sleep and waking up, the whole ego and the whole astral body—again this is not entirely accurate but merely an approximation—but by far the greater part of the ego and astral body is outside the physical and ether bodies. Between going to sleep and waking up man is able to relate to a far greater part of his ego and astral body the way he relates to his head when awake. But the rest of the organism has not yet progressed as far as the head, it has not yet reached a point where it reflects the way the is able to reflect. Because of this, there can be no conscious awareness during sleep. Considering the way we move our hands we have to say to ourselves: ‘These hands, in so far as we are able to move them, have of course four elements to them—ego, astral body, ether body and physical body. All of these are present and active when we move our hands.’ Now imagine someone found himself in a position where his hands were tied to his body, tied in such a way that he could never move them, for they would be firmly attached to his body. Let us also assume this person had the gift of moving the ether body, or at least the astral body, of his hands independently whilst his physical hands remained immovable. This would have a highly significant result. He would be extending his astral or ether hands beyond his physical hands which are tied and immovable. We'll never go to the effort of actually executing this manoeuvre; when we move any of the astral or etheric parts of our hands we simply move our physical hands as well.

This is something we would find difficult to do in a natural way whilst on earth, yet in the course of evolution it will be achieved, though in a less crude fashion than just described. It will be achieved as mankind develops further in the course of earth evolution and grows towards Jupiter. Then his hands, his physical hands, will in fact become immovable. On Jupiter human beings will no longer have physical hands that are mobile organs, for they will be fixed. On the other hand their astral and ether hands will in part be able to move outside those physical hands. Only a trace of the physical hands will be left on Jupiter and they will be immobile; the astral or ether hands on the other hand will be able to move freely, like wings. As a result, Jupiter man will not merely think with his brain, for his fixed hands will enable him to reflect into the elements now united with his physical hands. His thinking will be much more alive, much more all-embracing. When a physical organ comes to rest, the spirit or soul element belonging to it will be liberated and able to develop spiritual and soul activity.

You see, it is the same with the brain. When we were still living on the Old Moon we had organs up here [the cranium] that moved like hands. These organs have become fixed. On the Old Moon we did not yet have a solid cranium; the organs now folded up to form the brain were then able to move like hands. Because of this, men living on the Old Moon were not yet able to think the way men do on earth. A clairvoyant assessing thought activity clearly perceives that in a human being who is awake the sleeping organs in his brain do indeed move like wings, the way I have described that astral and ether hands would move if our physical hands could be immobilized. It really happened that with the transition from the OW Moon to the earth state 'hands' were brought under control up here. They are still held fast by the solid skull and because of this the etheric and astral elements are free. Our organs need to be developed further. These hands cannot remain as they are when we develop to the Jupiter state—they will undergo a physical change, just as our brain underwent the change that made it an organ of reflection. This is a process we may consider one of natural evolution.

The initiation process is a different one. Here, we take some mantric meditation or other and make it the centre of our thoughts, entering into it completely. When we do this it is really important that we do not make use of our physical organs in forming and holding the thought. We must withdraw from the physical body, the sphere of our physical senses, with this thought. We must hold on to this thought and have no help from the physical world as we meditate. In our ordinary everyday thinking activity we have the help of the physical body, of the physical world. We think when impressions reach us through the senses. This makes thinking a comfortable process—the world makes both a physical and an etheric impression on us and this provides support for our thinking. When we meditate we must go apart from all that is physical, and that includes all ideas or concepts. Entirely of our own free will we have to make a thought the centre of our conscious mind. As a result something very specific occurs, a process more subtle than the process of perception. We have to reach a point where we forget the rest of the world—as though the rest of the world were not there and nothing really existed in space and time except for the one thought. When we have reached the point where we are indifferent to the whole world, living only in that meditative thought, something occurs which physical science will never be able to demonstrate. This subtle process of meditation causes heat consumption—a very small amount of heat is used, is taken away. It is a process we cannot demonstrate by physical methods but consumption does take place. We may return to the subject on some other occasion.48It appears that the theme was not taken up again in this form and that none of the audience returned to it either. For a consideration of the subject from a different point of view. sec the lectures given by Rudolf Steiner in Dornach on 17 December 1920 in Die Brücke zwischen der Weltgeistigkeit and dem Physischen des Menschen, GA 202 (Engl. The Bridge Between Universal Spirituality and the Physical Constitution of Man, trs. not mentioned: New York: Anthroposophic Press 1958) and on 13 January 1924 in Mysterienstätten des Mittelalters. GA 233a (Engl. Rosicrucianism and Modern Initiation, trs. Mary Adams. London: Rudolf Steiner Press 1965). We shall see then that it is possible to prove too to ordinary scientists, on the basis of processes everyone will be able to observe, that the process of meditation involves a subtle heat process and also a subtle light process.

We use up some of the light we have taken in; we consume light. There is something else we consume, but let us for the moment just consider the fact that we use up heat and light. These things we take in make happen what I spoke of a week ago, that something evolves which is very delicate and alive. When we are thinking in the ordinary everday way, something lives within us that leaves its imprint on the organism, triggering a process that also has to do with heat; it leaves its imprint and the process which takes place causes us to have memory. This, however, must not happen when we meditate. When we live in a pure thought or feeling content, separate from everything else, the heat, light, etc., we consume does not leave its imprint on the body, it leaves its imprint in the general ether. It triggers a process outside us. Dear friends, if you are seriously, genuinely meditating, you are impressing your thought form into the general ether; it will be there within it. And if you then look back on a meditation this will not be the usual way of remembering; You are looking back to something which has left its imprint in the cosmic ether.

It is important to take note of this. It is a subtle process and we perform it in such a way that it establishes a link between us and the etheric and astral world surrounding us. A person wjo develops only the ordinary everyday kind of perception and thinking is only involved with himself; it is a process that takes place entirely within us. On the other hand, someone taking up real, genuine meditation lives in a process that at the same time is also a cosmic process. Something goes on there, though it is exceedingly subtle. What happens is that a small amount of heat is used up during meditation. When heat is used up coolness develops; the general cosmic ether is cooled down when we meditate. Light is used up as well so that it is subdued; darkness arises, subdued light. The result is that when someone meditates in some place in the world and then goes away, he leaves behind in that place a very slight coolness and a very slight reduction in light. The general light state is subdued, has grown darker. A clairvoyant is always able to detect where someone has been meditating, genuinely going through the process of meditation. When the person leaves, a shadow image of him remains and this is also cooler than the surrounding area. A cool dark spectre is thus left in that place; we have engraved it there. In a very delicate and subtle way, something has been done in that place which we may very roughly compare with what happens on a photographic plate. A kind of spectre is produced. This is a process which takes place not only within man but as a cosmic reality; man makes himself part of the cosmos through this.

There is one thought human beings meditate on even if they are of not to meditation, if they know nothing whatsoever of any kind of nonphysical science. There is one thought human beings do meditate of on. It is seemjingly small, but of infinite importance in life: the thought of the I or ego. When we think of the I or ego we always think independently of the body. In so far as we have a relationship to the cosmos through our ego, certain things connected with the ego—even if people are not aware of this in life—are thought in such a way that they are like the branches of a tree, if I may put it like this. Certain thoughts, feelings, will impulses become like branches, or else like feelers mobile feelers. These will be grouped around the ego. All is life, therefore, the human being has trailing behind him what he is thinking as an ego, and this stretches out mobile feelers or tentacles in all directions. Man is always leaving a spectre-like jellyfish behind him, all through his life. This is a very real thing, for at one and the the same it contains everything a person has lived through—in so far he has thought and felt it with his ego. This remains. And when the human being has gone through the gate of death he will gradually learn to look back on what he has left behind. This makes it possible for a link to exist between what a human being experiences after death and what he has left behind.

Being in the earth state we must first of all reach the point in meditation where our organs are held fast through the will; the ability to meditate properly depends on really freeing our thinking, feeling and emotions as we meditate, so that the body is not involved. The result is that we are capable of such powerful inner concentration that we are able to choose what does and does not become engraved, leaving a photographic impression as it were, in the cosmic ether. Something we need to stress again and again is that real, genuine meditation is a very real process, an absolutely genuine process.

If we consider that the human being leaves this behind—that, fundamentally speaking, all his experiences are contained in what he leaves behind and that it remains—we will, of course, realize that when the human being has gone through the time between death and new birth and comes down to earth again he will still find in the cosmic ether what he previously left there. Here we see in real terms how karma comes about. For the spectre of himself which man has produced will now influence him and in conjunction with his later life give rise to what will be his karma.

Such insights can only be gained slowly and gradually. A real process is taking place, one that goes beyond us, having an effect on the cosmos, and because of this the person meditating gets the feeling that meditating is something different from the usual kind of thinking activity. With the latter we have the feeling that it is we ourselves who put the thoughts together, taking one with the other; it is we ourselves who make the decisions. Meditating, we gradually get the feeling: It is not just you yourself who is meditating, for something is going on of which you are indeed part, but it also takes place outside you, as something that has happened and remains. That is the feeling which should arise. If I throw a fragile object across the room I have the feeling that what happens is not only what went on before it flew through the air but also something that followed, once the object has become separate from me. In the same way meditation gives rise to the feeling: It is not just you who is thinking. You fan thoughts into flame but they then whirl away, they whirl and exist in their own right. You are then no longer their master for they enter into a life and identity of their own.

When we thus feel ourselves to be within the atmosphere in which our thoughts are active and have a life of their own as if those thoughts actually moved through our brain in waves—when we begin to feel this we come to feel certain and sure that we are within a spiritual world, that we are merely one element weaving within all that is weaving there. It is important that we really achieve such stillness, such inner calm, in our meditation that we achieve the significant feeling: ‘It is not you alone who is doing this; it is being done. You have started to set these waves in motion but now they spread around you. They have a life of their own in which you are merely the centre.’

So you see, my friends, that it is an experience which actually leads to recognition of the spiritual world. It is an experience we have to wait for, possessing our souls in patience. It is extraordinarily important, yet it needs patience, persistence and self-denial to wait for it. This one experience will be enough to make us fully convinced that the spiritual world does objectively exist.

You will be able to see from what has been said here that a state of alternation between waking and sleeping really is a general necessity. We are asleep and awake here in the way that is familiar to us. We sleep and awake so that our brain, which is active throughout the day, shall also be able to immerse itself in that part of us which by day takes care of the organs and at night is outside us, always remaining unconscious. This rhythm between sleeping and waking has to take place; we have seen that it also takes place in the great process of cosmic evolution. Now our brain is really asleep, to enable us to think, and our hands are awake—that is our whole relationship to our hands is free, awake, whereas we do not move them in sleep. On the Old Moon we were quite awake as far as the brain is concerned but we have since learned to sleep; we have been able to evolve into thinkers on earth because we have learned to let the brain sleep. On the Old Moon the brain was still awake, but here it has achieved the ability to sleep. Because of this man is able to think. The mid-body will learn to sleep on Jupiter and thinking will then become a wider experience. That is how the state of alternation between sleep and waking undergoes its evolution. It is, however, quite a general state which may be found in all kinds of different areas. We may say that wherever we look it is apparent that a state of alternation between waking and sleeping is essential. Let me give you a rather peculiar example, one that is peculiar yet may have special meaning for us at the present time.

If you want to find out what went on in the cultural and literary life of the early 19th century you will of course look up a history of literature. This will tell you which poet was important and which was not; and the record will only go a certain way, for poets who were of no importance at all will not be mentioned. And so a person who knows anything at all will know which poets were important at the beginning or in the middle of the 19th century and which were not. They'll know that. Undoubtedly, there must also have been people who wrote poetry during the 19th century and yet are totally unknown to most if not all people today. I think you will agree that there must have been people of whom nothing at all is known today. But a time will come when the picture people have, say of literary life in the 19th century, will be different, completely different. Then a poet given many pages today will be given just half a page whilst another, who is not even mentioned today, will be given ten or twenty pages. Things are going to change. And, indeed, it will be necessary for thing to change quite profoundly. It is particularly when we consider that spiritual science is an element that now has to enter into the process of civilization, taking hold of human knowledge and entering into it everywhere, that we become aware of how men and women will have to change their approach and learn to think. Let me give you an instance.

I think you will agree that something new has to develop in place of present-day cognition, the process in which knowledge is on the whole obtained by giving validity only to whatever man gains by making use of his physical organisation. The new thing which must develop will give validity also to what may be gained by taking the path of spiritual initiation. Today the situation is such that a genuine scientist only considers valid, considers scientifically proven, what has been gained through a path of knowledge based on the instruments of the physical body. Everything else is considered a figment of the imagination. It may just be accepted as hypothesis, but even this is not allowed to go far or else the hypothesis will be called utter fantasy. So that is the situation today. But a time will have to come when validity attaches to insights gained on the path to spiritual knowledge, and, what is more, insights gained in the physical world are fully illumined and truly fathomed only through spiritual insights. That is how it will have to be.

Well, we are not merely speaking metaphorically but in completely real terms if we say we are now living in an age when men are asleep as far as the gaining of insight is concerned—or at least the majority of people are. Courtesy comes easy here, for we can exclude anyone with an interest in spiritual science—they are of course awake when it comes to the gaining of spiritual knowledge. The rest of mankind, then, is asleep when it comes to spiritual insight; they are sleepyheads. And our most highly esteemed science arises because they are really asleep. We are in an age when this genuine reality is being missed by a human race that is utterly and completely asleep. This has been in preparation for a long time and we might say that just as there is the going-to-sleep stage before we sleep so we are able to observe a kind of dream-state and a struggle against sleep when it comes to gaining spiritual insight. It slumbers sweetly. But it has not been easy to achieve this full sleep-state and a struggle against sleep is apparent in certain major events in the first half of the 19th century when some individuals still has a certain intuition, an inner experience dawning, of spiritual truths, of conditions in the spiritual world. As it progressed the 19th century really could do no other, in its desire to achieve those sweet slumbers, but forget poets who still had special knowledge of the spiritual world. They do not fit into this state of spiritual slumber.

I have once before spoken of the poet Julius Mosen whose Ritter Wahn (Sir Illusion) and also Ahasver clearly showed that Julius Mosen had a living relationship with the spiritual world.49Mosen. Julius (1803–1867): Ritter Wahn published in 1831 (due to the interest created by Rudolf Steiner. a new edition was published by Der Kommende Tag AG, Stuttgart in 1921). Ahasver published in 1838. This knight called Ritter Wahn—taken from an earlier legend but given qualities by Julius Mosen which reveal his connection with the spiritual world—this Ritter Wahn is looking for the man on this earth who could tell him about conquering death. The main theme of Julius Mosen's poetic work Ritter Wahn is that Sir Illusion, that is a man in the ordinary state of knowledge, knowledge based on illusion, is looking for someone who is able to tell him how to get beyond the state of illusion connected with physical life. He holds the man able to give him that information in very high regard. Julius Mosen then described the way his knight intended to find the man who will tell him how to gain knowledge that does not depend on the physical body:

Henceforth through all the lands on earth I'll wander,
Eastward, wherever my valiant steed may go,
From king to castle through every land meander.

Until I find the man who will with surety say:
I can preserve your body from the reaper,
I can beat death and can his power stay.

He is the one whom through eternity
I'll serve; these hands grown strong in war
Shall work for him, and wrestle mightily.

Sir Illusion thus wants to learn how knowledge can be attained that is not overcome by the body but itself overcomes the body, continuing through eternities. The longing for this was already there. And the knight then first of all fought the old man Ird, as Julius Mosen called him. This is something people did not understand, this word Ird. But if they could have read it in the original they would not have interpreted Ird as ‘death’, they way Rudolf von Gottschall did who was a professor of literature at Leipzig [1823–1909]. It should have been interpreted as ‘earth’ or ‘world’. So Sir Illusion first of all fought the old man Ird. He overcame him. We spoke of the spirit overcoming the earthly on the last occasion, of the spirit vanquishing earth, time and space. After this the knight overcame the old man Space and arrived at the gates of heaven, that is the spiritual world. He then developed a longing to return to earth because he had not lived life to the full. The whole of this beautiful poetic work tells us that there has been a man once before who wrestled with the problem of initiation, who knew something of the existence of such a problem of initiation. And in his Ahasver Julius Mosen presented a similar theme.

Another German poet who is quite frequently mentioned is Wilhelm Jordan [1819–1904]. Very little mention is made however of the work in which he presented himself at his most spiritual: Demiurgos. This appeared in the 1850s. It is quite a significant work, for in Demiurgos it is really shown how spiritual entities, spiritual powers that may be good or evil, approach man, enter into his soul and manifest here on earth with the help of human beings. So if we see a human being before us we have to remember: 'This person does of course consist of everything we know about, but something acts into him that comes from higher spiritual entities.' Demiurgos basically consists in a description of how man is connected with the spiritual world. In three handsome volumes Jordan shows how spiritual entities are influencing the soul of man.

That was the struggle against sleep, and after this, sleep took over completely. Those were people who still found in their dreams what mankind now has to strive for in spiritual science, emerging from the sweet slumber of purely external, positivist cognition. We must really see this as a process, the way human beings enter into spiritual dreams to end up in a state of idleness, in the sleep of idleness.

We may ask ourselves why there still was such a person as Julius Mosen, a man able to describe spiritual progress and depicting something of an initiation process in the travels of his knight. Where did such things come from? The answer is very strange. Julius Mosen fell ill and for much his life was almost totally paralyzed. What is the significance of such a paralysis? It means that the physical body dried up as it were, separating from the astral and ether bodies. Because of the paralysis the astral and the ether bodies were more free. In this case a disease process had brought about what we have to struggle for in the process of initiation. Such a disease process should not, of course, be seen as one of genuine cognition nor as something desirable to be brought on deliberately. Yet in an age that may be said to have been entering into a state of idleness, the cosmic order caused a man to be born on earth who had been given that particular relationship between his physical and his soul and spirit elements. So there he lay, paralyzed and unable to move his limbs but with a soul and spirit that were alive and active. It was his paralysis that made them free and able to enter into the spiritual world. Something initiation seeks to achieve in a healthy way was here brought about through illness. A man had to spend much of his life Paralyzed and unable to leave his bed, but his soul and spirit triumphed over his physical paralysis and rose in freedom. This is why that man was actually able to write works that strike us as being spiritual by nature. The same could also be achieved in a healthier way than in the case of Julius Mosen, though perhaps it would not have the same depth.

It was possible to achieve it in a healthier way. During the first half of the 19th century it was still possible for a poet to reveal the process of the culture and civilization of man in the course of history by letting shine through everywhere into the figures he describes the connection which exists between the spiritual worlds and man as he walks about on this earth. In the 1830s a beautiful poetic work appeared, Auffenberg's Alhambra.50 von Auffenberg. Joseph (1798–1857). Alhambra, an epic work in dramatic form, appeared in 1828–1830 in 3 volumes Auffenberg is a spiritual poet and his Alhambra is a significant work. Thus we have three works—four if we count AhasverRitter Wahn, Ahasver, Demiurgos and Alhambra. There is much more still to be said about such works which are not easy to get hold of nowadays. They show us that in this age everything to do with man's relationship to the spiritual world is fading away like a dream, as it were, in the face of the general materialistic slumber state. Before, mankind was open to things spiritual, though, of course, the people who are now describing the intellectual life of that time fail to mention the men who did have full awareness of the spiritual world. When someone writes a history of philosophy today he will also fail to mention anyone having awareness of the spiritual world, or no mention is made of the way the most outstanding figures were working in•; concord with the spiritual world.

It is interesting to compare Ritter Wahn, a work pulsing With genuine spiritual life, and Jordan's Demiurgos which also contains something of spiritual life. Jordan was probably a healthy man; the spirit and soul element did not separate from the physical and ether bodies the way it did in the case of Mosen whose body was paralyzed. The consequence was that Jordan was only capable of producing a work such as his Demiurgos in his young years, when he was still more flexible, with an inner energy, elasticity and logic capable of grasping things relating to soul and spirit. Later he fell into the crude Darwinism which had come into intellectual life, and this found reflection in his Nibelungen and other works. This man therefore had to join the rest in succumbing to the lullaby of materialism. It is important for us to realize that it is the mission of our age to bring an insight into the intellectual process, the process of human evolution, which arises out of genuinely spiritual perception—an insight the universal spirit may be said to be pointing to in the tragic fate of Julius Mosen:

Man is no longer able to reach the spiritual world simply without his own volition'. There have been times in the past when this was Possible, where the purely natural constitution of man was such that spirit and soul elements, astral body and ether body, were freer and more independent of the physical body. That time has passed, however. In our present materialistic age—and for the rest of earth existence, in the course of which it will grow more and more intensive—man in his normal state will need a compact union between spirit-soul element and physical body. This, however, does not permit man to achieve some form of awareness of the spiritual world simply through natural circumstances. The reason why this has to be so is that the will must be given opportunity to be active. Imbued with the Power of spiritual science, man must be able to use inner will impulses, acting out of freedom, to separate the spirit-soul element from the Physical body during meditation, through concentration. To achieve spiritual insight the way people did in the past we would have to be sick, paralyzed, have our limbs paralyzed in the second half of our life. Our present organization would make this necessary. In the past it was not necessary. Then, man did not have to be paralyzed, for the union between astral body, ether body and physical body was such that people had clairvoyant vision. Today it could only be acieved through illness. What happened in the case of Julius Mosen has been put there more or less as visible evidence.

We really must use spiritual science to bring before our mind's eye the profound spiritual background to what shows itself in the world. At the same time we must come to see how the necessity which now exists for mankind gradually to accept spiritual science is intimately bound up with profound impulses in the history of the spirit. The necessity arises not from arbitrary choice of some individual but from the great cosmic spiritual evolution which has to take its course throughout the period of earth evolution. Man's mission and task is to enter more and more into genuinely spiritual experience as he moves towards the future, so that mankind does not dry up the way the whole of earthly civilization is drying up, and the spirit will truly be able to continue to live on this earth.

One of of many things capable of bringing such insight home to man is something I have spoken of a number of times: the fact that numerous people are now, within a relatively short span of time, bearing their soul principle upwards when they still have unused ether bodies which contain powers that could have gone on to provide for physical life for many years. Because they are now going through the gate of death due to the terrible historical events of our time they are taking their unused ether bodies up into the spiritual world. And these will be the people who in future will make a major contribution to spiritualizing human civilization. Apart from all else, these major events of our time are profoundly significant in human evolution because the creation of unused ether bodies can yield forces that stream out into earth evolution, forces that will be able to prove that the spiritual world is real.

We know, however, that it would not help, dear friends, to have any number of suns in this world if men were unable to receive the light of the sun through their eyes. It is true, as Goethe has said, that if the eye were not of like kind with the sun it could never see the sun.51Goethe: Zahme Xenien III. Just as the sun would be shining in vain if there were no eyes to take in its light, so organs will have to come to life out of the souls of men which will really be able to take in the spiritual life which is streaming down from the cosmos and the world where men live between death and new birth, a world which also contains those unused ether bodies. Thus the great sacrifice brought in war must join into the spiritual cosmic sphere; it has to be taken up by human souls receptive for things of the spirit. And it would be a dreadful thing if the only science to survive were to be the one that now considers itself to be the one and only one, a science which does nothing but record the facts perceptible to the outer senses, using them to make intellectual judgements. If science merely repeats what is also there without science, it cannot form a link with divine and spiritual reality. This is something only possible for elements awakening in the human soul that truly go beyond sensory perception. These will be able to unite with the spiritual reality so that the process of earth evolution itself will remain spiritual, alive in the spirit. Any progress for mankind depends on the spiritual entering into the process of human soul development, and the decision as to whether something is true or false can only be made out of the spirit. Today, people think they can decide one thing or another, prove one thing or another, without the spirit; yet the final authority when it comes to making decisions relating also to sense-perceptible truths is living spiritual experience.

When the old experience of the spirit vanished during the first half of the 19th century, evidence was again given, one might say, of what the spirit could bring about in certain people, to demonstrate the non-nature of scientific argumentation concerned only with external, sense-perceptible things. A man who wrote under the name of Dr Mises' did a great deal at that time to show that everything, but everything, can be proved, and that the opposite can also be proved, so that the final authority still lies in the relationship to spiritual life. This man had seen many things happen in science, in medical science—he was a member of the medical profession—he saw new drugs coming up all the time for one disease or another. He lived at a time, for instance, when people started to prescribe iodine for the treatment of goitre. It was a time when this remedy was much celebrated, when people wanted to demonstrate—this was in the 1820s—what a valuable remedy iodine was. So one day Dr. Mises sat down and demonstrated that one could easily prove, using all the scientific principles, that Iodine was an excellent thing. the reason being that the moon consisted of iodine, as could be clearly proven.52Fechner, Gustar Theodor (1801–1887): Beweis, dass der Mond aus Jodin besteht 2nd edn. Leipzig 1932. [Jodin appears to be a spoof word made up by Dr Fechner—it could perhaps be rendered into English as ‘iodene’. (Translator)] And he provided irrefutable evidence in support of this. His intention was to show that it is possible to prove anything we want to prove. And we certainly can. The intellect, which is bound to the brain, really is able to prove yes or no with regard to simply everything. It is almost always the case that some scientific view or other comes to the fore and the opposite comes up at another time; people are able to prove something just as well as the other side is able to disprove it. Anything where we do not have the yes-no wave surging up and down in such Ahrimanic fashion, anything which is real progress in a human evolution which is good and divine, bases on the spiritual.

We must be clear in our minds that the present age has produced its own characteristic cultural features on the basis of being the age when nonphysical science is asleep, and because slumber of the mind has spread to an extraordinary degree over all the things that tend to be regarded as science. This slumber of the mind is necessary. I am not being critical, but merely stating a fact. With all due regard it has to be said, to be emphasized, that it was necessary for the whole of science to go to sleep for a time as far as the spiritual world Was concerned. Now, however, the time has come when there must be an awakening, new vitality, in spiritual life, and we can sense the longing for this which exists everywhere. This, dear friends, will provide the foundation for the feeling that must bring us to life now, in these pain-racked times. We may only be able to have a faint notion that it is possible for man to find the way to the spiritual world, but because we have the feeling we must look for this way. We must seek a way in which our spiritual thoughts can meet with what is streaming down from those unused ether bodies. And a time will come when we shall really be able to look back on these days which are so full of pain and laden with destiny and do so from a certain spiritual elevation. This spiritual elevation will come when more and more people find impulses for spiritual science out of the genuine content of life awareness within them.

I have always from the depths of my soul given you a final thought here in this place in recent times, and this is something which will then come true. Let us make it our hope, a hope anyone who is connected with spiritual science can and indeed should cherish in days like these which are laden with fate.

Out of courage shown in battle,
Out of the blood shed in war,
Out of the grief of those who are left,
Out of the people's deeds of sacrifice
Spirit fruits will come to grow
If souls with knowledge of the spirit
Turn their mind to spirit realms.

Neunter Vortrag

Meine lieben Freunde, wir gedenken wiederum zuerst derjenigen, die draußen auf den großen Feldern der Ereignisse der Gegenwart stehen:

Geister eurer Seelen, wirkende Wächter,
Eure Schwingen mögen bringen
Unserer Seelen bittende Liebe
Eurer Hut vertrauten Erdenmenschen,
Daß, mit eurer Macht geeint,
Unsre Bitte helfend strahle
Den Seelen, die sie liebend sucht.

Und für diejenigen, die infolge dieser Ereignisse schon durch die Pforte des Todes gegangen sind:

Geister eurer Seelen, wirkende Wächter,
Eure Schwingen mögen bringen
Unserer Seelen bittende Liebe
Eurer Hut vertrauten Sphärenmenschen,
Daß, mit eurer Macht geeint,
Unsre Bitte helfend strahle
Den Seelen, die sie liebend sucht.

Der Geist, den wir durch unsere erstrebte Geist-Erkenntnis suchen, der Geist, der zu der Erde Heil, zu der Menschheit Freiheit und Fortschritt durch das Mysterium von Golgatha gegangen ist, der sei mit euch und euren schweren Pflichten!

Wir haben heute vor acht Tagen eine Art Betrachtung über das imaginative Meditieren angestellt, und wir haben gesehen, daß auch diese Betrachtung uns zeigt, wie alle Erkenntnis, die eine wirkliche Erkenntnis der übersinnlichen Welten sein soll, gewonnen werden muß durch ein leibfreies Weltenbetrachten, dadurch, daß die gewöhnliche, die Alltagserkenntnis sich frei macht von den Bedingungen, die durch den Leib, durch die Sinne, durch das Nervensystem und so weiter gegeben sind. Die gewöhnliche Tageserkenntnis kommt ja dadurch zustande, daß sich das menschliche Geistig-Seelische der leiblichen Werkzeuge bedient. Nun besteht diese geistige Erkenntnis in gewissen feineren Prozessen, die sich mit dem Menschen abspielen, und auf diese Prozesse wollen wir zunächst heute im ersten Teil unserer Betrachtung etwas hinweisen. Feinere Prozesse, sagte ich. Feiner sind die Prozesse deshalb, feiner als die gewöhnlichen Alltagsprozesse des Erkennens, der Beobachtung, der Wahrnehmung, weil der Mensch ja nur ausgehen kann von dem, woran er im Alltag gewöhnt ist, und sich allmählich nur zu feineren, intimeren Prozessen erheben kann. Nun würden wir ja alle die befriedigendsten, die höchsten Erkenntnisse der geistigen Welt gewinnen können, wenn wir imstande wären, ohne weiteres wenigstens einen Teil, ja nur einen kleinen Teil, meinetwillen nur eine Minute, von demjenigen Zustand unseres Lebens, den wir zubringen zwischen Einschlafen und Aufwachen, vollbewußt zuzubringen; nicht bloß träumend-bewußt, sondern vollbewußt. Denn alle Initiation besteht ja darin, daß dasjenige von uns, was unbewußt außer unserem Leibe verweilt in der Nacht im Schlafe, bewußt gemacht wird.

Niemals besteht ein wirklich höherer Erkenntnisprozefß3 eigentlich in etwas anderem als in einem Bewußstmachen desjenigen, was sonst unbewußt vom Einschlafen bis zum Aufwachen im schlafenden Zustand verweilt. |

Nun gibt es allerdings, was Sie vielleicht verwundern wird, einen Teil des Menschen, des leiblichen Menschen, der im Grunde immer im schlafenden Zustand ist, der immer schläft. Auf diese Dinge braucht man sich ja nicht gleich im Eingang des anthroposophischen Lebens einzulassen; gewissermaßen die Feinheiten der geisteswissenschaftlichen Forschung können uns erst langsam und allmählich zum Bewußtsein kommen. Wir denken ja natürlich, wenn geschildert wird, daß der Mensch bei Tage wacht und bei Nacht schläft, daß bei Tage sein Ich und sein Astralleib mit dem physischen Leibe und dem Ätherleib voll vereinigt seien, und daß bei Nacht Ich und Astralleib außerhalb des physischen Leibes und des Ätherleibes ihr Wesen haben. Wir denken auch zunächst ganz richtig so, denn nur allmählich können wir uns von der gröberen Auffassung der geisteswissenschaftlichen Tatsachen zu den spezielleren Wahrheiten hinwenden. Im groben also ist das richtig, daß der Mensch mit seinem Ich und Astralleibe im Schlafe außerhalb seines Ätherleibes und physischen Leibes ist. Aber für einen Teil des Leibes gilt es doch, daß im wesentlichen auch vom Aufwachen bis zum Einschlafen dieser Teil des Leibes schläft, wenigstens im wesentlichen schläft. Und das ist gerade merkwürdigerweise derjenige Teil des menschlichen Leibes, den wir das Haupt, den Kopf nennen. Der schläft gerade dann, wenn wir wachen. Und obwohl man leicht glauben könnte, daß der Kopf das Allerwachste sei, so ist er in Wirklichkeit dasjenige, was am wenigsten wach ist. Denn die wache Tätigkeit des menschlichen Denkens, überhaupt der Kopfverrichtungen, beruht gerade darauf, daß auch im Wachen das Ich und der Astralleib gegenüber den Kopforganen ein solches Verhältnis haben, daß sie nicht vollständig - also der Ichteil des Kopfes, der Astralteil des Kopfes — mit dem physischen und dem ätherischen Teile des Kopfes sich verbinden können, sondern immer gewissermaßen ein Eigenleben außerhalb des physischen und des ätherischen Teiles des Kopfes erleben. Nur dann findet eine innigere Verbindung noch statt zwischen dem astralischen Kopfleib und zwischen dem physischen, wenn man Kopfschmerzen hat. Und wenn man recht starke Kopfschmerzen hat, dann ist am allermeisten Verbindung zwischen dem astralischen Teil des Kopfes und dem physischen Teil des Kopfes. Dann kann man gerade am schlechtesten denken, wenn man Kopfschmerzen hat. Das rührt davon her, weil dann eine zu starke Verbindung eintritt zwischen dem astralischen, dem physischen und dem ätherischen Teile des Kopfes. Nun beruht aber unser waches Denken und auch das übrige wache Seelenleben eben gerade darauf, daß in einer gewissen Beziehung das Ich und der Astralleib des Kopfes außerhalb des physischen und Ätherleibes sind und sich gerade dadurch in dem physischen und ätherischen Leibe des Kopfes spiegeln; wie wir uns ja auch nur im Spiegel sehen können, wenn wir außerhalb sind. Diese Spiegelung gibt ja die Bilder unseres Alltagsbewußtseins. Das sind Spiegelbilder, die wir im Alltagsleben erleben, erkennend wahrnehmen. Und durch dieses Aufßerhalb-des-Kopfes-Leben, durch dieses Schlafen des Kopfes, und durch die durch die Härte des Schädels bewirkte Zurückwerfung der Tätigkeit des Ich und Astralleibes wird gemacht, daß wir eben das Innere des Ich und das Innere des Astralleibes empfinden als unser eigenes. Würde so, wie es bei den anderen Teilen des Organismus der Fall ist, die Tätigkeit des Ich und Astralleibes noch mehr hineinarbeiten in die Täugkeit des physischen und Ätherleibes, dann würden wir verdauungsorganische Tätigkeit, vielleicht auch rhythmische Tätigkeit wie im Herzen, im Kopfe wahrnehmen, vielleicht auch nicht wahrnehmen aber von einer Denktätigkeit würde nicht die Rede sein können, denn diese beruht darauf, daß diese Tätigkeit nicht aufgenommen, sondern zurückgestrahlt wird. Das Herz, die anderen Organe, welche absorbieren, die nehmen die Tätigkeit des Ich und Astralleibes auf. Die Kopforgane nehmen sie nicht auf, sie strahlen sie vielmehr zurück; daher kann sie dann erlebt werden im seelischen Innern.

Nun, in der Nacht, vom Einschlafen bis zum Aufwachen, da ist gewissermaßen das ganze Ich und der ganze Astralleib - auch das ist nicht einmal ganz richtig, aber ungefähr -, es ist also ein viel größerer Teil des Ich und des Astralleibes außerhalb des physischen und Ätherleibes. Der Mensch ist da in der Lage, vom Einschlafen bis zum Aufwachen, in bezug auf ein viel größeres Stück von Ich und Astralleib, sich so zu verhalten, wie er sich beim Wachen gegenüber seinem Kopfe verhält. Aber nun ist noch nicht der übrige Organismus so weit wie der Kopf; er ist noch nicht so weit gediehen, daß er zurückstrahlen könnte, wie es der Kopf kann. Daher kann keine Bewußtheit eintreten im Schlafe. Wenn wir die Bewegung unserer Hände betrachten, so müssen wir uns sagen: In diesen Händen haben wir, soweit wir sie bewegen können, wenn wir wach sind, natürlich die betreffenden Glieder, Ich, Astralleib, Ätherleib und physischen Leib. Das alles ist vorhanden, das alles ist in Tätigkeit, wenn wir die Hände bewegen. Nun denken Sie sich einmal, es würde ein Mensch in die Lage versetzt, daß seine Hände angebunden würden an seinen Organismus, und zwar so, daß er sie niemals würde bewegen können, sondern daß sie fest wären an dem Organismus, daß sie fest an den Organismus angebunden wären. Und nehmen wir an, es würde dem Menschen zugleich die Gabe verliehen, während er jetzt seine angebundenen physischen Hände nicht bewegen kann, daß er den Ätherleib oder wenigstens den Astralleib der Hände allein bewegen könnte. Das würde etwas sehr Bedeutendes zur Folge haben. Er würde dann gleichsam hinausstrecken seine Astral- beziehungsweise Ätherhände aus den physischen Händen, die er nicht bewegen könnte, die angebunden wären. Wir bemühen uns nicht, diese Prozedur überhaupt je auszuführen; wenn wir etwas vom Astralischen und Ätherischen der Hände bewegen, so bewegen wir eben die physischen Hände mit. Nun kann man das auf der Erde so ohne weiteres nicht gut durchführen als etwas Narürliches, aber im Laufe der Evolution wird es durchgeführt, nur etwas anders als in der groben Weise, wie ich es jetzt besprochen habe. So wird es durchgeführt, daß, indem sich der Mensch im Laufe der Erdenevolution weiter entfalten und zum Jupiter hinüberwachsen wird, in der Tat das eintreten wird, daß seine Hände, die physischen Hände, unbeweglich werden. Auf dem Jupiter wird der Mensch schon so erscheinen, daß seine physischen Hände nicht mehr bewegliche Organe sind, sondern festliegen, dafür aber eben die astralischen und auch die Ätherhände zum Teil sich heraus bewegen können. Also es wird auf dem Jupiter von den physischen Händen nur noch unbewegliche Andeutungen geben, dagegen werden sich die astralischen, respektive Ätherhände frei bewegen wie Flügel. Darauf wird es beruhen, daß dieser Jupitermensch nicht bloß ein Gehirndenker ist, sondern daß ihm dann seine festliegenden Hände die Möglichkeit geben, zurückzustrahlen in das, was jetzt mit den physischen Händen verbunden ist, und er wird dadurch ein viel lebendigeres, ein viel umfassenderes Denken haben. Dadurch, daß ein physisches Organ zur Ruhe kommt, dadurch kann das entsprechende geistig-seelische Glied, das zu dem physischen Organ dazugehört, befreit werden und kann dann eine geistig-seelische Tätigkeit entfalten. Es ist nämlich wirklich so mit unserem Gehirn: als wir noch Mondmenschen waren, da hatten wir solche Organe, die sich hier wie Hände bewegten, und diese Organe sind festgemacht worden. Auf dem Monde hatten wir noch keine feste Gehirnschale; da konnten sich die Organe, die jetzt im Gehirn zusammengefaltet sind, bewegen wie Hände. Dafür konnte der Mensch auf dem Monde noch nicht so denken wie auf der Erde. Aber für denjenigen, der hellsichtig das Denken prüft, ist es klar, daß sich da die im schlafenden Gehirn befindlichen Organe tatsächlich beim wachenden Menschen flügelartig bewegen, wie ich Ihnen beschrieben habe, daß sich Astral- und Ätherhände bewegen würden, wenn die physischen Hände festliegen könnten. Das ist also vom Übergang des Mondenzustandes zum Erdenzustand wirklich geschehen, daß hier gleichsam Hände gebändigt worden sind und jetzt noch festgehalten werden durch die feste Gehirnschale, und daß dadurch das Ätherische und Astralische frei ist. Aber die Organe müssen fortentwickelt werden. Diese Hände können nicht bleiben wie sie sind, wenn wir uns zum Jupiter entwickeln, sondern diese Hände werden in substantieller Beziehung eine Abänderung erfahren, wie sie unser Gehirn erfahren hat, so daß es zum Rückstrahlorgan geworden ist. Dieser Prozeß ist der, den man bezeichnen könnte als den der naturgemäßen Evolution.

Ein anderer Prozeß ist nun der Initiaionsprozeß. Er besteht darin, daß wir in den Mittelpunkt unseres Bewußtseins irgendeine mantrische Meditation gedanklich stellen und darinnen ganz aufgehen. Wenn wir das tun, so liegt wirklich viel daran, daß wir nun nicht unser Leibliches benützen, um diesen Gedanken zu bilden, um den Gedanken zu haben, sondern daß wir wirklich uns von dem Leiblichen, dem Physisch-Sinnlichen mit diesem Gedanken zurückziehen, daß wir in ihm verharren, daß wir beim Meditieren keine Hilfe haben an der physischen Welt. Beim gewöhnlichen Alltagsdenken hilft uns der physische Leib, hilft uns die physische Welt. Wir denken, wenn durch die Sinne auf uns Eindrücke gemacht werden. Dadurch wird uns das Denken bequem. Denn die Welt macht auf uns zugleich einen ätherischen und einen physischen Eindruck. Das ist eine Unterstützung für unser Denken. Wenn wir meditieren, müssen wir uns gerade abseits stellen von allem Physischen, auch von allen Vorstellungen. Wir müssen ganz aus dem eigenen freien Willen einen Gedanken in den Mittelpunkt unseres Bewußstseins stellen. Dadurch geschieht nun etwas höchst Eigentümliches, das dem Wahrnehmungsprozeß gegenüber ein feinerer Prozeß ist. Wenn wir es dahin bringen, daß wir gleichsam im Vergessen der ganzen übrigen Welt — als wenn die übrige Welt nicht da wäre, es eigentlich nichts geben würde in Raum und Zeit als den einzigen Gedanken -, wenn wir es dahin gebracht haben, daß uns die ganze Welt gleichgültig ist und wir nur leben im Meditationsgedanken, dann tritt dasjenige ein, was selbstverständlich keine physische Wissenschaft konstatieren kann: durch diesen feinen Prozeß des Meditierens wird gewissermaßen ein feiner Wärmeverbrauch erzielt; Wärme wird verbraucht, wird weggebracht. Es ist ein Prozeß, den man selbstverständlich nicht physisch konstatieren kann, aber der Verbrauch findet statt, und wir werden einmal darüber bei Gelegenheit sprechen. Dann werden wir sehen, wie durch Vorgänge, die jeder beobachten kann, man nachweisen kann der physischen Wissenschaft, daß der Meditationsprozeß mit einem feinen Wärmeprozeß und mit einem feinen Lichtprozefß3 verknüpft ist.

Von dem Licht, das wir aufgenommen haben, verbrauchen wir innerlich etwas; wir verbrauchen Licht. Wir verbrauchen auch noch etwas anderes, aber wir wollen dabei stehenbleiben, daß wir Wärme und Licht verbrauchen. Das, was wir verbrauchen, das macht eben, daß dasjenige eintritt, was ich vor acht Tagen hier besprochen habe, daß aus dem Prozeß des Meditierens sich etwas bildet wie ein feines Lebendiges. Wenn wir im gewöhnlichen Alltagsprozesse denken, lebt auch in uns etwas, was sich eindrückt in unseren Organismus und einen Prozeß bewirkt, der auch mit Wärme zu tun hat; das drückt sich da ein, und das, was sich da abspielt, das bewirkt, daß wir Erinnerung haben. Aber dazu darf es beim Meditieren nicht kommen. Wenn wir abgeschlossen leben in dem reinen Gedankenoder Empfindungsinhalte, dann drückt sich nicht in unserem Leib dasjenige ab, was wir da verbrauchen, sondern das drückt sich ab im allgemeinen Äther. Das verursacht außerhalb einen Prozeß. Ja, meine lieben Freunde, wenn Sie wirklich ernstlich, wahrhaftig meditieren, dann drücken Sie dem allgemeinen Äther Ihre Gedankenform ein; die ist da drinnen. Und wenn Sie dann auf einen Meditationsprozeß zurückschauen, ist es nicht ein gewöhnliches Erinnern, sondern ein Zurückschauen zu dem, was sich eingedrückt hat dem Weltenäther. Das ist wichtig, daß wir das beachten. Das ist ein feiner Prozeß, den wir so ausführen, daß er eine Beziehung darstellt zwischen uns und der umgebenden ätherischen und astralischen Welt. Der Mensch, der das gewöhnliche, alltägliche Wahrnehmen und Denken entwickelt, hat nur mit sich selbst etwas zu tun; es ist ein Prozeß, der sich in uns nur abspielt. Derjenige aber, der sich einläßt auf das wahre, echte Meditieren, lebt in einem Prozeß, der zugleich ein Weltenprozef, ein kosmischer Prozeß ist. Da geschieht etwas, wenn es auch etwas außerordentlich Feines nur ist. Und was geschieht, ist das folgende: Beim Meditieren wird etwas Wärme verbraucht. Wenn sie verbraucht wird, entsteht Kälte; es wird der allgemeine Weltenäther, wenn wir meditieren, abgekühlt. Und da auch Licht verbraucht wird, wird er gedämpft; es entsteht Dunkelheit, abgedämpftes Licht. So daß, wenn ein Mensch an einer Stelle der Welt meditiert und dann weggeht, er an dieser Stelle zurückläßt eine schwache Abkühlung und zu gleicher Zeit eine Dämpfung des Lichtes. Der allgemeine Lichtzustand ist herabgedämpft, ist dunkler geworden. Hellsichtig kann man immer verfolgen, wenn ein Mensch an einer Stelle meditiert hat, wo er wirklich den Meditationsprozeß ausgeführt hat. Wenn er wieder weggeht, ist ein Schattenbild von ihm da, das sogar kühler ist als die Umgebung. Es ist also ein kühles dunkles Gespenst an die Stelle hingebracht; das haben wir dort eingraviert. Und es ist im feinen, im ganz feinen wirklich etwas vollzogen an der Stelle, was Sie vergleichen können im groben mit dem, was auf der photographischen Platte entsteht. Es ist wirklich eine Art Gespenst da gebildet. Es ist das also ein Prozeß, der sich nicht bloß im Menschen, sondern kosmisch wirklich abspielt, wodurch der Mensch sich einfügt in den Kosmos.

Nun gibt es allerdings einen Gedanken, den der Mensch meditiert, auch wenn er gar nicht Meditant ist, wenn er gar nichts weiß von irgendwelcher Geisteswissenschaft. Einen Gedanken meditiert der Mensch schon. Und dieser eine Gedanke, es ist ja scheinbar ein recht kleiner, aber ein für das Leben unendlich wichtiger, das ist der Gedanke des Ich. Der Gedanke des Ich wird nämlich immer so gefaßt, daß er leibfrei gefaßt wird. Und insofern wir mit unserem Ich ein Verhältnis zur Welt haben, werden auch gewisse Dinge, die mit unserem Ich zusammenhängen, wenn es auch der Mensch nicht merkt im Leben, so gedacht, daß sie eben, ich möchte sagen, wie Zweige an einem Baume sind. So werden gewisse Gedanken, Empfindungen, Willensimpulse wie Zweige oder auch wie Fühlhörner, bewegliche Fühlhörner; die werden um das Ich herumgruppiert sein. So daß in der Tat der Mensch immerfort, sein ganzes Leben hindurch, hinter sich hergehen läßt dasjenige, was er als Ich denkt und was solche bewegliche Fangarme nach allen Seiten ausstreckt. Eine gespensterartige Qualle läßt der Mensch immer hinter sich, sein ganzes Leben hindurch. Aber das ist eine sehr reale Sache, denn die enthält zu gleicher Zeit alles das, was der Mensch - insofern er es in seinem Ich erdenkt, erfühlt - durchlebt hat. Das bleibt bestehen. Und wenn der Mensch durch die Pforte des Todes gegangen ist, lernt er allmählich auf dieses Zurückgelassene zurückschauen, und das macht die Möglichkeit, daß ein Zusammenhang besteht zwischen dem, was er nach dem Tode erlebt und was er zurückgelassen hat.

Im Meditieren müssen wir als Erdenmenschen zunächst erreichen das Festhalten unserer Organe durch den Willen; und es beruht ja die Möglichkeit, richtig zu meditieren, darauf, daß wir wirklich unser Denken, Fühlen und Empfinden in der Meditation freimachen, so daß der Leib nicht mittut und wir dadurch so stark uns innerlich konzentrieren können, daß bloß das, was wir wollen, nicht was wir nicht wollen, sich eingräbt, sich abphotographiert gleichsam in den Weltenäther. Das müssen wir immer betonen, daß wirkliches, richtiges Meditieren ein realer Prozeß ist, ein wirklich realer Prozeß ist.

Wenn wir bedenken, daß der Mensch das zurückläßt und im Grunde die ganzen Erlebnisse in dem drinnen sind, was er zurückläßt, und daß das bleibt, so werden wir auch einsehen, daß, wenn der Mensch durch die Zeit hindurchgegangen ist, die zwischen dem Tod und einer neuen Geburt liegt, und wieder herunterkommt auf die Erde -, daß er dann noch im Weltenäther drinnen das vorfindet, was er da zurückgelassen hat. Da haben wir das real, wie sich Karma bewirkt. Es ist ja da dasjenige, was der Mensch erzeugt hat als sein Gespenst und was auf ihn nun wirkt und im Zusammenhang mit dem späteren Leben eben das bildet, was im Karma sich abspielt.

Man kann erst langsam und allmählich zu der Erkenntnis dieser Dinge kommen. Weil das so ist, weil ein wirklicher Prozeß sich abspielt, der über uns hinausgeht, der in den Kosmos eingreift, daher bekommt der Meditant das Gefühl: es ist das Meditieren etwas anderes als das gewöhnliche Denken. Bei dem letzteren haben wir das Gefühl: wir sind es, die die Gedanken zusammenfügen, die den einen Gedanken zum anderen bringen; wir sind es, die da urteilen. Beim Meditieren bekommt man allmählich das Gefühl: das bist nicht bloß du, der da denkt, der meditiert, sondern da geschieht etwas, worin du zwar stehst, was aber auch sich außerhalb von dir als etwas bleibend Geschehenes abspielt. Und dieses Gefühl muß man bekommen. Gerade so, wie wenn man das Gefühl hat, daß, wenn man einen zerbrechlichen Gegenstand an die Wand wirft, nicht nur dasjenige geschieht, was vor dem Fliegen geschehen ist, sondern nachher etwas, was damit im Zusammenhange steht: er zerbricht, das geschieht, wenn er sich losgelöst hat von uns -, so bekommt man das Gefühl im Meditieren: das bist nicht du, der denkt, sondern du fachst zwar deine Gedanken an, aber dann wirbeln sie weiter, sie wirbeln und wesen. Du bist dann nicht mehr bloß der Herr von ihnen, sondern sie beginnen ein selbständiges Eigenleben und Eigenwesen. Und dieses sich wie in der Atmosphäre, wie in der Webe- und Wesens-Atmosphäre seiner Gedanken Darinnenfühlen, wie wenn die Gedanken sich sogar wie Wellen durch unser Gehirn hindurchbewegen würden -, anfangen dieses zu fühlen, das ist das, was das feste, sichere Gefühl ergibt: du stehst in einer geistigen Welt darinnen; du bist selbst nur ein webendes Glied in dem allgemeinen Weben darinnen. Und das ist wichtig, daß wir wirklich zu solcher Stille, zu solcher Seelenruhe im Meditieren kommen, daß wir zu diesem bedeutsamen Gefühl kommen: du bist nicht allein, der das macht; es wird gemacht. Du hast angefangen, diese Wellen zu bewegen, aber sie breiten sich aus um dich herum. Sie haben ein Eigenleben, dessen Mittelpunkt du nur bist.

Sie sehen daran, meine lieben Freunde, daß es ein Erlebnis ist, das eigentlich die Erkenntnis der geistigen Welt gibt. Und dieses Erlebnis, das muß man in aller Ruhe abwarten. Er ist von außerordentlicher Bedeutung, aber es gehört Geduld, Ausdauer, Entsagung dazu, es in aller Ruhe abzuwarten. Denn es genügt dieses Erlebnis, um die volle Überzeugung zu bekommen von dem objektiven Vorhandensein der geistigen Welt.

Was Sie entnehmen können den Auseinandersetzungen, die wir eben gepflogen haben, das ist, daß diese Abwechslungszustände von Wachen und Schlafen im Grunde recht allgemein notwendige sind. Hier schlafen und wachen wir in der Weise, wie es uns eben bekannt ist. Aus dem Grunde schlafen und wachen wir, damit unser während des ganzen Tages tätiges Gehirn auch untertauchen kann in den Teil, der bei Tage die Organe versorgt und bei Nacht heraus ist und unbewußt bleibt. Dieser Rhythmus von Schlafen und Wachen muß stattfinden; aber wir haben gesehen, daß er auch stattfindet im großen Entwickelungsgange des Weltenwesens. Wenn wir jetzt unser Gehirn eigentlich schlafend haben, damit wir denken können, und die Hände wachend, das heißt unser ganzes Verhältnis mit den Händen frei, wachend haben, während wir sie im Schlafe nicht rühren, so waren wir auf dem Monde mit Bezug auf unser Gehirn recht wach, und wir haben das Schlafen gelernt; wir können gerade dadurch das Erdendenken entwickeln, daß wir das Schlafen des Gehirns gelernt haben. Während es auf dem Monde noch wach war, erreichte es hier die Möglichkeit zu schlafen; und dadurch kann der Mensch denken. Der Mittelleib wird lernen, auf dem Jupiter zu schlafen, dadurch wird das Denken ein weiteres Erlebnis werden. So gehen die Zustände zwischen Schlafen und Wachen durch die Entwickelung hindurch. Aber diese Zustände sind ganz allgemeine, sie zeigen sich auf allen möglichen Gebieten. Man kann sagen: Wo man hinschaut, sieht man, daß schlafende und wachende, abwechselnde Zustände richtig notwendig sind. Ich werde ein absonderliches Beispiel einmal dafür anführen, ein absonderliches Beispiel, das uns aber doch in unserer Zeit etwas naheliegen kann.

Nicht wahr, Sie können, wenn Sie sich unterrichten wollen, was sich im literarischen Geistesleben im Anfang des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts in der Kultur abspielte, in einem literaturhistorischen Werk nachsehen, welcher Dichter bedeutend, welcher unbedeutend war; und das Bild hört auch auf an einer Stelle: nämlich die Dichter, die dann ganz unbedeutend waren, werden gar nicht erwähnt. Und der Mensch, wenn er überhaupt etwas gegenwärtig weiß, weiß nun, welche Dichter in der ersten Hälfte oder in der Mitte des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts bedeutend oder unbedeutend waren. Das weiß man; und von manchen, die — das ist ja nicht zu leugnen — auch geschrieben haben im neunzehnten Jahrhundert, wissen viele Menschen — ich will nicht sagen alle — jetzt gar nichts mehr. Nicht wahr, es gibt schon Menschen, von denen man gar nichts mehr weiß. Nun, es wird aber gewiß eine Zeit kommen, wo man ein anderes Bild haben wird, ein völlig anderes Bild von dem, was man zum Beispiel das literarische Geistesleben des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts nennt; wo man gewiß Dichtern, denen man heute viele Seiten widmet, nur eine halbe Seite widmen wird, und einem, den man heute gar nicht erwähnt, zehn bis zwanzig Seiten. Diese Dinge werden sich ändern. Und es besteht sogar die Notwendigkeit, daß diese Dinge sich gründlich ändern. Insbesondere, wenn man mit Rücksicht darauf, daß Geisteswissenschaft etwas sein muß, was jetzt in den Kulturprozeß der Menschheit einzieht und das menschliche Wissen ergreift und durchsetzt, wenn man dies in Betracht zieht, dann wird man wissen, wie die Menschen werden umlernen, werden denken lernen müssen. Eines will ich anführen. Nicht wahr, an die Stelle der heutigen Erkenntnis, welche eigentlich nur gewonnen wird dadurch, daß man gelten läßt als einzige wirkliche Erkenntnis dasjenige, was der Mensch mit Hilfe der Leibesorganisation gewinnt, muß sich ein anderes entwickeln, ein anderes, das auch gelten läßt dasjenige, was man auf dem geistigen Initiationswege sich erringen kann. Heute steht die Sache so, daß der wahre Wissenschafter dasjenige allein gelten läßt, dasjenige allein als gesichert hält, was durch das Erkennen gewonnen wird, welches durch die Werkzeuge des Leibes gewonnen wird. Alles andere ist Phantasiegebilde. Eventuell läßt er es noch als Hypothese gelten. Aber das darf nicht sehr weit gehen, sonst nennt er auch die Hypothese schon etwas höchst Phantastisches. Also das gilt heute. Eine Zeit muß kommen, in welcher nicht nur gelten gelassen wird dasjenige, was auf dem Wege geistiger Erkenntnis errungen wird, sondern wo auch dasjenige, was in der physischen Welt erkannt wird, durchleuchtet wird und im rechten Sinne erst ergründet wird durch die geistige Erkenntnis. Das muß so kommen.

Nun, man kann nicht nur vergleichsweise, sondern aller Wirklichkeit nach sagen: Wir leben jetzt in einer Zeit, in der der Mensch mit Bezug auf die Erkenntnis schläft, wenigstens die Menschen im allgemeinen; höflich zu sein ist ja sehr leicht, da ja der für Geisteswissenschaft sich Interessierende ausgeschlossen ist, der wacht also mit Bezug auf die geistige Erkenntnis. Aber die übrige Menschheit schläft mit Bezug auf die geistige Erkenntnis: sie ist schlafmützig. Und gerade das, was die allerverehrteste Wissenschaft ist, entsteht dadurch, daß sie in Wirklichkeit schlafend ist. Wir stehen in einer Zeit, wo diese wahre Wirklichkeit im allerintensivsten Sinne von der Menschheit verschlafen wird. Das hat sich vorbereitet seit langer Zeit, und, man möchte sagen, wie immer sich ein Einschlafen vollzieht vor dem Schlafe, so können wir auch beobachten, wie eine Art Traumzustand und ein Ringen mit dem Schlafe gerade im neunzehnten Jahrhundert da war. Jetzt leben wir ja in dem Zeitalter, wo mit Bezug auf das geistige Erkennen die Menscheit am meisten schläft. Jetzt schlummert sie süß. Aber es ist nicht leicht geworden, diesen Schlaf ganz völlig zu erringen, und wir sehen zum Beispiel, wie in einzelnen großen Erscheinungen in der ersten Hälfte des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts ein Ringen mit dem Schlafe stattfindet, indem in gewissen Menschen noch ein gewisses Ahnen, ein inneres Erleben aufgeht von geistigen Wahrheiten, von geistigen Verhältnissen. Das neunzehnte Jahrhundert konnte dann in seinem weiteren Verlaufe ja nichts anderes tun, um in diesen süßen Schlummerzustand zu kommen, als Dichter, welche von der geistigen Welt noch etwas Besonderes gewußt haben, zu vergessen. Da passen sie nicht herein, in diesen geistigen Schlummerzustand.

Aber ich habe schon einmal aufmerksam gemacht auf einen Dichter, Julins Mosen, der in seinem «Ritter Wahn», sogar auch in seinem «Ahasver» wirklich Dichtungen geliefert hat, aus denen wir sehen, daß in Julius Mosen ein lebendiger Zusammenhang mit der geistigen Welt lebte. Ritter Wahn, den Julius Mosen darstellt, den er einer älteren Sage nachbildete, aber den er durchdrungen hat mit gewissen Ideen, aus denen man sieht, er hatte noch einen Zusammenhang mit der geistigen Welt -, Ritter Wahn sucht auf der Erde denjenigen, der ihn aufklären kann über die Besiegung des Todes. Das ist im wesentlichen das Thema des Gedichtes von Julius Mosens «Ritter Wahn», daß der Ritter Wahn, also der, der in der gewöhnlichen Erkenntnis ist, die eine Wahnerkenntnis ist, daß dieser Ritter Wahn aufsucht jemand, der ihn aufklären kann: Wie kommt man über die Wahnerkenntnis des physischen Lebens hinaus? Und er hat eine hohe Meinung von demjenigen, der ihn darüber aufklärt. Julius Mosen gibt dann Schilderungen, die sich beziehen darauf, wie der Ritter Wahn den finden will, der ihn aufklären will über die leibfreien Erkenntnisse:

Ich will von nun durch alle Länder streifen,
Ostwärts, so weit das tapf’re Roß mich trägt,
Von Schloß zu Schloß, von Land zu Ländern schweifen

Bis unverbrüchlich einer mir kann sagen:
Ich kann den Leib dir retten vor dem Tod,
Ich kann die Macht ihm brechen und ihn schlagen.

Dem will von Ewigkeit zu Ewigkeiten
Ich dienen mit der kampferstarkten Hand,
Arbeiten ihm, gewaltig für ihn streiten.

Dieser Ritter Wahn sucht also Aufklärung darüber, wie man eine Erkenntnis erlangt, die nicht vom Leibe bezwungen ist, sondern die selbst den Leib bezwingt, die Ewigkeiten währt. Also diese Sehnsucht ist schon vorhanden. Und nun kämpft der Ritter Wahn — wie Julius Mosen sagt - erstens mit einem Greise «Ird». Nun, das haben die Leute nicht verstanden: Ird. Aber man hätte können im Original nachlesen den Namen, so würde man Ird nicht mit «Tod» übersetzt haben, wie der Leipziger Literaturprofessor Rudolf von Gottschall es gemacht hat. Man hätte es übersetzen müssen mit «Erde» oder mit «Welt». Nun, mit diesem Greise Ird kämpft der Ritter Wahn zuerst. Er überwindet ihn. Wir haben gesprochen das letzte Mal über die Überwindung des Irdischen durch das Geistige, den Sieg des Geistigen über Erde, Zeit und Raum. Er überwindet dann den Greis «Raum» und gelangt an die Pforte des Himmels, das heißt der geistigen Welt. Dann bekommt er die Sehnsucht, auf die Erde zurückzukommen, weil er das Leben nicht voll ausgelebt hat. Diese ganze schöne Dichtung «Ritter Wahn», die stellt uns dar, daß schon einer dagewesen ist, der gerungen hat mit dem Initiationsproblem, der etwas wußte davon, daß es ein solches Initiationsproblem gibt. Und in seinem «Ahasver» stellt Julius Mosen wiederum so etwas dar.

Nun gibt es einen anderen deutschen Dichter, Wilhelm Jordan, der öfter genannt wird, das Werk aber am wenigsten, durch das er sein Geistigstes gegeben hat: «Demiurgos.» Dieser «Demiurgos» — in den fünfziger Jahren ist das Werk erschienen - ist ein recht bedeutendes Werk, denn in diesem «Demiurgos» kommt wirklich zum Ausdruck, wie geistige Wesenheiten, geistige Mächte, gute und böse, herankommen an den Menschen, die die Menschenseele durchdringen und mit Hilfe der Menschen sich auf der Erde hier manifestieren. So daß, wenn wir einen Menschen vor uns haben, wir daran zu denken haben: dieser Mensch ist ja gewiß aus alledem bestehend, was wir kennen, aber herein in ihn wirkt das, was von höheren geistigen Wesen kommt. Und «Demiurgos» beruht zum großen Teil darauf, daß dieser Zusammenhang des Menschen mit der geistigen Welt dargestellt wird. In drei schönen Bänden stellt Jordan in seinem «Demiurgos» dies dar, wie geistige Wesenheiten hereinspielen in die Menschenseele. Das ist das Ringen mit dem Schlafe, der dann vollständig eintritt. Das sind Menschen, in deren Träume noch hereinkommt dasjenige, was sich die Menschheit durch Geisteswissenschaft erringen muß, aus dem süßen Schlummer der rein äußerlichen, positivistischen Erkenntnis heraus. Das müssen wir wirklich als einen solchen Prozeß} ansehen, daß sich da die Menschen durch spirituelle Träume in die Faulheit, in den Faulschlaf hineinbringen.

Wenn wir uns nun fragen: Worauf beruht es denn nun eigentlich, daß? es doch noch einen Menschen gibt wie Julius Mosen, der imstande ist, spirituelle Prozesse darzustellen, der so etwas wie den Initiationsprozeß in der Reise seines «Ritter Wahn» darstellt, woher kommt denn das? Es ist sehr merkwürdig: Julius Mosen wurde krank und verbrachte einen großen Teil seines Lebens fast ganz gelähmt. Was bedeutete aber diese Lähmung? Daß der physische Leib gleichsam vertrocknend sich loslöste vom Ätherleib und Astralleib. Durch diese Lähmung war der astralische und der Ätherleib freier. Dasjenige, was wir mühevoll uns erringen müssen durch den Initiationsprozeß, das wurde bei ihm durch einen Krankheitsprozeß bewirkt. Natürlich darf dieser Krankheitsprozeß nicht als ein echter Erkenntnisprozef3 aufgefaßt werden oder als wünschenswert gar herbeigeführt werden; aber gleichsam in einer Zeit, die in die Faulheit hineinging, setzte die Weltordnung einen Menschen hinein in die Welt, dem sie ein solches Verhältnis gab zwischen den physischen und den geistig-seelischen Gliedern. So lag er da, gelähmt, er konnte kein Glied rühren, aber mit reger Seele, mit regem Geiste, die dadurch gerade frei wurden und hineindrangen in die geistige Welt. Dasjenige, was die Initiation sucht auf gesunde Weise, das wurde hier durch eine Krankheit heraufgerufen. Da lag ein Mensch einen großen Teil seines Lebens gelähmt im Bett, aber triumphierend über die Lähmung des Leibes löste sich los das Geistig-Seelische. Daher konnte dieser Mensch so etwas, was uns so spirituell anmutet, wirklich hervorbringen. Es wäre ja auch noch auf gesündere Weise zu erreichen als bei Julius Mosen, aber vielleicht gerade dadurch weniger tief.

Es war auch noch auf gesündere Weise zu erreichen. Es war einem Dichter möglich noch in der ersten Hälfte des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts, den kulturhistorischen Prozeß der Menschheit wirklich so darzustellen, daß er überall in seine Gestalten hereinleuchten läßt den Zusammenhang zwischen den geistigen Welten und dem, was auf der Erde als Mensch herumgeht. Da ist eine schöne Dichtung in den dreißiger Jahren des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts, «Alhambra» von Auffenberg. Dieser Auffenberg ist ein spiritueller Dichter, und «Alhambra» ist ein bedeutendes Werk, so daß wir drei Werke, mit «Ahasver» vier Werke: «Ritter Wahn», «Ahasver», «Demiurgos» und «Alhambra» — es müßte aber noch vieles gesagt werden von solchen, die gar nicht leicht heute zu haben sind -, so daß wir vier solche Werke haben, welche uns zeigen, wie in dieser Zeit gleichsam traumhaft schwindet gegenüber dem allgemeinen materialistischen Schlummerdasein dasjenige, was des Menschen Zusammenhang mit der geistigen Welt ist. Vorher war die Menschheit schon offen der geistigen Welt gegenüber; nur natürlich diejenigen, die sie jetzt hinterher beschreiben, die geistige Welt, die lassen die Menschen aus, diejenigen, welche ein völliges Bewußtsein von der geistigen Welt hatten. Wenn man heute eine Philosophiegeschichte schreibt, läßt man es auch aus, wenn jemand ein Bewußtsein der geistigen Welt hat, oder man erwähnt nicht dieses Zusammenwirken mit der geistigen Welt bei den hervorragendsten Gestalten.

Nun ist ganz interessant ein Vergleich zwischen dem «Ritter Wahn», in dem wirklich spirituelles Leben pulst, und Jordans «Demiurgos», bei dem auch spirituelles Leben anklingt. Jordan war wohl gesund; da konnte sich nicht trennen wie bei Mosen, der den gelähmten Leib hatte, das Geistig-Seelische von dem Leibe. Die Folge davon war, daß Jordan nur während seiner beweglicheren Jugendzeit, wo er noch durch innere Energie und Elastizität und Logik das Geistig-Seelische erfaßte, zu dem Gedanken des «Demiurgos» kam; später kam er in einen grob-materialistischen Darwinismus der Kulturgeschichte hinein, der dann als ein Zug geht durch seine «Nibelungen» und so weiter. Der muß also mitmachen den Gang in das Schlummerlied des Materialismus hinein. Das ist aber das Bedeutsame, daß wir einsehen, daß unsere Zeit die Aufgabe hat, die Erkenntnis in den geistigen Prozeß, den Entwickelungsprozef3 der Menschheit hineinzuschaffen, welche einem wirklich geistigen Erkennen entspringt — die Erkenntnis, daß der Weltengeist gewissermaßen durch das tragische Geschick eines Julius Mosen angedeutet hat: Unwillkürlich kann der Mensch nicht mehr ohne weiteres in die geistige Welt hineinkommen; früher gab es die Zeiten, wo er das konnte, wo durch die rein natürliche Beschaffenheit des Menschen Geistig-Seelisches, Astralleib und Ätherleib auch freier und unabhängiger waren von dem physischen Leibe; aber diese Zeit ist vorüber. Im natürlichen Zustand muß der Mensch in unserem heutigen materialistischen Zeitalter - und das muß für den Rest des Erdendaseins so bleiben und noch immer intensiver werden — einen kompakten Zusammenhang haben zwischen GeistigSeelischem und Physisch-Leiblichem. Der läßt aber nicht zu, daß durch natürliche Verhältnisse selber der Mensch zu irgendeinem Bewußtsein der spirituellen Welt kommt. Das muß aber gerade aus dem Grunde eintreten, damit das der Wille tun kann; damit durch die Durchdringung mit dem Moment der Geisteswissenschaft der Mensch aus inneren Willensimpulsen, aus der Freiheit heraus, in der Meditation, in der Konzentration loslöst das Geistig-Seelische von dem Physisch-Leiblichen. Denn würde man auf dieselbe Weise, wie früher der Mensch, zu spirituellen Erkenntnissen kommen, so müßte man krank sein, gelähmt sein, die zweite Hälfte des Lebens mit gelähmten Gliedern zubringen. Bei der jetzigen Organisation war das notwendig. Das war früher nicht notwendig. Der Mensch brauchte da nicht gelähmt zu werden, sondern der Verband zwischen dem astralischen Leibe, dem Ätherleibe, dem physischen Leibe war so, daß hellsichtige Erkenntnis da war. Heute war sie nur möglich durch Erkrankung. Das wurde gewissermaßen als ein Wahrzeichen hingesetzt, was bei Julius Mosen zutage trat.

So muß man den tiefen geistigen Zusammenhang der Weltenerscheinungen gerade durch die Geisteswissenschaft sich vor die Seele rufen, muß aber auch sich klarmachen, mit welchen tiefen geisthistorischen Impulsen innig zusammenhängt dasjenige, was notwendig macht, daß die Menschen allmählich zur Geisteswissenschaft übergehen. Das wird nicht erfordert durch irgendeine Willkür eines einzelnen, sondern durch den großen Gang, den eben die weltengeistige Entwickelung durch das ganze Erdenwerden nehmen muß. Des Menschen Mission und Aufgabe ist: gegen die Zukunft hin immer mehr und mehr wirklich in spirituelles Erleben überzugehen, damit die Menschheit nicht mit der ganzen Erdenkultur vertrocknet, damit der Geist wirklich weiterleben kann auf der Erde.

Unter den vielen Dingen, welche solch eine Erkenntnis dem Menschen nahelegen können, ist auch das, was ich schon wiederholt ausgesprochen habe: daß zahlreiche Menschen jetzt in verhältnismäßig kurzem Zeitraum hinauftragen ihr seelisches Wesen, hinauftragen so, daß sie unverbrauchte Ätherleiber haben, die noch Kräfte enthalten, die noch durch Jahrzehnte hindurch hätten die physischen Leben versorgen können, und die dadurch, daß sie jetzt durch das furchtbare historische Ereignis durch die Pforte des Todes gehen, ihre Ätherleiber unverbraucht hinaufbringen in die geistige Welt. Das werden aber die großen Mitarbeiter werden in der Spiritualisierung der menschlichen Kultur. Und neben allem übrigen hat dieses große Zeitereignis eben diese ungeheuer tiefe Bedeutung in der Menschheitsentwickelung, daß durch das Schaffen unverbrauchter Ätherleiber Kräfte hinausströmen können in unsere Erdenentwickelung, die das Geistige zu bewahrheiten in der Lage sein werden. Aber so wie es nichts helfen würde, meine lieben Freunde, wenn noch so viele Sonnen in der Welt wären, wenn die Menschen nicht aufnehmen würden durch Augen das Sonnenlicht, so wie das Wort wahr ist, das Goethe ausgesprochen hat: «Wär’ nicht das Auge sonnenhaft, nie könnt’ die Sonne es erblicken», wie eben die Sonne vergeblich scheinen würde, wenn nicht Augen da wären, ihr Licht aufzunehmen — so müssen eben aus Erdenmenschenseelen heraus die Organe erwachen, um dasjenige wirklich aufzunehmen, was als geistiges Leben herunterströmt aus dem Kosmos und auch aus der Welt, in der die Menschen das Leben zwischen dem Tod und einer neuen Geburt zubringen und in der auch die unverbrauchten Ätherleiber sind. Verbinden muß sich so dasjenige, was geopfert wird durch die großen Kriegsopfer, dem geistigen kosmischen Dasein, aufgenommen muß es werden durch Menschenseelen, welche für das Geistige empfänglich sind. Und ein Furchtbares wäre es, wenn nur fortleben würde diejenige Wissenschaft, die heute sich als die einzige dünkt, die nichts anderes tut, als die äußerlich wahrnehmbaren Tatsachen registrieren, und sie verwendet, um Verstandesurteile darüber zu fällen. Wenn die Wissenschaft nur Wiederholung ist desjenigen, was ohne die Wissenschaft da ist, so kann sie sich nicht mit Göttlich-Geistigem verbinden. Nur dasjenige, was in der Menschenseele wirklich über das Sinnlich-Wahrnehmbare hinaus erwachen kann, nur das kann sich mit dem realen Göttlich-Geistigen verbinden, so daß der Entwickelungsprozeß der Erde selber geistig, spirituell-lebendig bleibt. Aller Fortschritt der Menschheit beruht auf dem Eindringen des Spirituellen in den menschlichen Seelenentwickelungsprozeß, und allein vom Geiste aus ist es zu entscheiden, ob irgend etwas wahr oder falsch ist. Man glaubt heute, man könne ohne den Geist dieses oder jenes entscheiden, dieses oder jenes beweisen; die letzte Instanz, auch über sinnliche Wahrheiten zu entscheiden, ist aber das geistige Erleben.

Als das alte geistige Erleben in der ersten Hälfte des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts untergegangen ist, da wurde wiederum als ein Wahrzeichen, so möchte man sagen, hingestellt dasjenige, was der Geist wirken konnte in gewissen Menschen, um das Wesenlose einer bloß auf das Äußerlich-Sinnliche gerichteten Beweisführung zu zeigen. Ein Mann, der unter dem Namen Dr. Mises schreibt, er hat gerade in dieser Zeit manches geleistet, um zu zeigen, wie man alles, alles beweisen kann und auch das Gegenteil davon beweisen kann, und wie die letzte Instanz doch nur der Zusammenhang mit dem geistigen Leben ist. Zum Beispiel hat dieser Mann mancherlei erlebt von seiten der Naturwissenschaft, der medizinischen Wissenschaft her — er war selbst Mediziner -, er hat erlebt, daß alle Augenblicke ein neues Heilmittel auftaucht für diese oder jene Krankheit. Und so hat er gerade die Zeit erlebt, als man anfing, gegen den Kropf Jodin zu verschreiben. Es war nun die Zeit, in der dieses Heilmittel ganz besondere Triumphe feierte, in der man beweisen wollte — es war in den zwanziger Jahren des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts — welches kostbare Mittel eigentlich Jodin ist. Da hat sich denn einmal der Dr. Mises dahintergesetzt und hat gezeigt, daß man gut beweisen kann, nach all den naturwissenschaftlichen Grundsätzen, daß das Jodin etwas Ausgezeichnetes aus dem Grunde sei, weil man eben wirklich belegen könne, daß) der Mond aus Jodin besteht. Und er hat den unwiderleglichen Beweis geliefert, daß das so sei. Er wollte damit zeigen, daß man alles, was man will, beweisen kann. Und das kann man auch. Der Verstand, der an das Gehirn gebunden ist, kann wirklich Ja und Nein mit Bezug auf jede Sache beweisen. Und es ist fast immer so, daß irgendeine wissenschaftliche Ansicht auftaucht und das Gegenteil zu einer anderen Zeit da ist; daß die Menschen das Ja ebensogut beweisen können auf der einen Seite wie das Nein auf der anderen. Dasjenige aber, was nicht ein solches ahrimanisches Auf- und Absteigen der Ja-Nein-Woge, sondern der wirkliche Fortschritt der guten Göttlichkeit der Menschheitsevolution ist, das beruht auf dem Spirituellen. Und klar müssen wir uns darüber sein, daß die Gegenwart ihre besonders charakteristischen Kulturtatsachen dadurch hervorgebracht hat, daß sie die Schlafenszeit der geistigen Wissenschaft ist und dafß über alledem, was sich vielfach als Wissenschaft dünkt, eben gerade der geisuge Schlummer in besonderem Maße sich ausbreitet. Er ist notwendig, dieser geistige Schlummer. Das ist keine Kritik, die ich liefere, sondern nur die Konstatierung einer Tatsache. In aller Liebe muß eben erzählt werden, muß betont werden, daß es schon notwendig war, daß eine Zeit hindurch die ganze Wissenschaft sich schlafen legte mit Bezug auf die geistige Welt. Aber jetzt ist auch wiederum die Zeit, wo heraufkommen muß das lebendige Erwachen des geistigen Lebens, dieses geistigen Lebens, dessen Sehnsucht wir ja wirklich überall empfinden. Und das ist dasjenige, was die Empfindung begründen kann, meine lieben Freunde, die uns jetzt in dieser schmerzdurchwühlten Zeit beleben muß. Insofern wir nur eine Ahnung uns verschaffen können, daß der Mensch den Weg finden kann in die geistige Welt, müssen wir diesen Weg suchen; müssen wir suchen, daß sich begegnen unsere spirituellen Gedanken mit dem, was herunterströmt von den unverbrauchten Ätherleibern. Und das wird wirklich in der Zukunft geben können ein Zurückschauen auf unsere schmerzbewegten und schicksaltragenden Tage von einer gewissen spirituellen Höhe aus. Diese spirituelle Höhe wird kommen, wenn immer mehr und mehr Menschen aus ihrem wahrhaftigen Lebensbewußtseinsinhalt die geisteswissenschaftlichen Impulse finden. Und dann wird sich eben das zutragen, was ich aus tiefster Seele immer als einen Schlußgedanken Ihnen anführte in diesen Beobachtungen hier an dieser Stelle in den letzten Zeiten, was wir als eine Hoffnung aufnehmen wollen, als eine Hoffnung, die derjenige haben kann, aber auch haben sollte, der mit Geisteswissenschaft verbunden unsere schicksalschweren Tage durchlebt:

Aus dem Mut der Kämpfer,
Aus dem Blut der Schlachten,
Aus dem Leid Verlassener,
Aus des Volkes Opfertaten
Wird erwachsen Geistesfrucht —
Lenken Seelen geistbewußt
Ihren Sinn ins Geisterreich.

Ninth Lecture

My dear friends, we again remember first those who stand outside in the great fields of present events:

Spirits of your souls, active guardians,
May your wings bring
The pleading love of our souls
To the earthly people entrusted to your care,
So that, united with your power,
Our plea may shine helpfully
Upon the souls that seek it lovingly.

And for those who have already passed through the gates of death as a result of these events:

Spirits of your souls, active guardians,
May your wings bring
The pleading love of our souls
To the people of the spheres whom you protect,
That, united with your power,
Our plea may shine helpfully
To the souls that seek them lovingly.

The spirit we seek through our striving for spiritual knowledge, the spirit that has come to the earth to bring salvation, freedom, and progress to humanity through the mystery of Golgotha, may it be with you and your difficult duties!

Eight days ago, we engaged in a kind of contemplation on imaginative meditation, and we saw that this contemplation also shows us how all knowledge that is to be real knowledge of the supersensible worlds must be gained through a body-free contemplation of the world, by freeing ordinary, everyday knowledge from the conditions imposed by the body, by the senses, by the nervous system, and so on. Ordinary everyday knowledge comes about through the human spirit and soul making use of the physical instruments. Now, this spiritual knowledge consists of certain finer processes that take place within the human being, and we want to point out something about these processes today in the first part of our reflection. More subtle processes, I said. These processes are more subtle than the ordinary everyday processes of cognition, observation, and perception because human beings can only start from what they are accustomed to in everyday life and can only gradually rise to more subtle, more intimate processes. Now, we would all be able to gain the most satisfying, the highest insights into the spiritual world if we were able to spend at least a part, even if only a small part, for my sake even just a minute, of the state of our life that we spend between falling asleep and waking up in full consciousness; not just in dream consciousness, but in full consciousness. For all initiation consists in making conscious that part of ourselves which remains unconscious outside our body during the night while we sleep.

A truly higher process of knowledge never consists in anything other than making conscious that which otherwise remains unconscious from the moment of falling asleep until the moment of waking up in the sleeping state.

Now, however, there is something that may surprise you: a part of the human being, the physical human being, which is basically always in a sleeping state, which is always asleep. You don't need to get into these things right at the beginning of your anthroposophical life; the subtleties of spiritual scientific research can only come to our consciousness slowly and gradually. When it is described that human beings are awake during the day and asleep at night, we naturally think that during the day the ego and the astral body are fully united with the physical body and the etheric body, and that at night the ego and the astral body exist outside the physical body and the etheric body. At first, we are quite right to think this, for only gradually can we turn from the coarser conception of spiritual scientific facts to the more specific truths. In a general sense, it is therefore correct that during sleep the human being, with his ego and astral body, is outside his etheric body and physical body. But for part of the body, it is true that from the moment of waking until the moment of falling asleep, this part of the body is essentially asleep, at least in essence. And strangely enough, this is precisely the part of the human body that we call the head. It sleeps precisely when we are awake. And although one might easily believe that the head is the most awake part of the body, it is in reality the least awake. For the waking activity of human thinking, indeed of all head functions, is based precisely on the fact that even when awake, the ego and the astral body have such a relationship to the head organs that they cannot connect completely — that is, the I-part of the head, the astral part of the head — with the physical and etheric parts of the head, but always experience a kind of independent life outside the physical and etheric parts of the head. Only when one has a headache does a more intimate connection still take place between the astral head body and the physical head body. And when you have really severe headaches, the connection between the astral part of the head and the physical part of the head is at its strongest. That is why it is so difficult to think when you have a headache. This is because there is too strong a connection between the astral, physical, and etheric parts of the head. However, our conscious thinking and the rest of our conscious soul life are based precisely on the fact that, in a certain relationship, the ego and the astral body of the head are outside the physical and etheric bodies and are reflected in the physical and etheric bodies of the head; just as we can only see ourselves in a mirror when we are outside it. This reflection gives us the images of our everyday consciousness. These are mirror images that we experience and perceive cognitively in everyday life. And through this life outside the head, through this sleeping of the head, and through the rejection of the activity of the ego and the astral body caused by the hardness of the skull, we come to perceive the inner life of the ego and the inner life of the astral body as our own. If, as is the case with the other parts of the organism, the activity of the ego and astral body were to work even more into the capacity of the physical and etheric bodies, then we would perceive digestive activity, perhaps also rhythmic activity such as in the heart, in the head, perhaps we would not perceive it, but there could be no question of thinking activity, for this is based on the fact that this activity is not absorbed but reflected back. The heart and the other organs, which absorb, take up the activity of the ego and the astral body. The head organs do not take it up, but rather reflect it back; therefore, it can then be experienced in the inner soul.

Now, during the night, from falling asleep to waking up, the whole ego and the whole astral body are, in a sense—this is not entirely correct, but approximately so—there is a much larger part of the ego and the astral body outside the physical and etheric bodies. From the moment of falling asleep until the moment of waking up, the human being is able to behave in relation to a much larger part of the ego and astral body in the same way as he behaves in relation to his head when he is awake. But the rest of the organism is not yet as far developed as the head; it has not yet matured to the point where it can radiate back as the head can. Therefore, consciousness cannot enter during sleep. When we consider the movement of our hands, we must say to ourselves: in these hands, insofar as we can move them when we are awake, we naturally have the relevant members, the ego, the astral body, the etheric body, and the physical body. All of this is present, all of this is active when we move our hands. Now imagine that a person is placed in a situation where his hands are tied to his organism in such a way that he can never move them, but that they are fixed to the organism, that they are firmly attached to the organism. And let us assume that this person was also given the ability, while unable to move his bound physical hands, to move the etheric body or at least the astral body of his hands alone. This would have a very significant consequence. He would then, as it were, stretch out his astral or etheric hands from his physical hands, which he could not move because they were bound. We do not attempt to carry out this procedure at all; when we move something of the astral and etheric bodies of the hands, we move the physical hands along with them. Now, this cannot be easily accomplished on Earth as something natural, but in the course of evolution it will be accomplished, only somewhat differently than in the crude manner I have just described. It will be accomplished in such a way that, as human beings continue to develop in the course of Earth's evolution and grow toward Jupiter, their hands, their physical hands, will indeed become immovable. On Jupiter, humans will appear in such a way that their physical hands are no longer movable organs, but are fixed in place, while their astral and etheric hands can move outwards to some extent. Thus, on Jupiter, there will only be immobile remnants of the physical hands, while the astral and etheric hands will move freely like wings. This will be based on the fact that these Jupiter humans will not merely be thinkers with their brains, but that their fixed hands will give them the ability to radiate back into what is now connected with their physical hands, and they will thereby have a much more lively and comprehensive way of thinking. When a physical organ comes to rest, the corresponding spiritual-soul member belonging to that physical organ is freed and can then develop spiritual-soul activity. This is really the case with our brain: when we were still moon people, we had organs that moved here like hands, and these organs have been fixed in place. On the moon, we did not yet have a fixed skull; the organs that are now folded together in the brain could move like hands. On the other hand, people on the moon could not yet think as they do on earth. But for those who clairvoyantly examine thinking, it is clear that the organs located in the sleeping brain actually move like wings in waking people, as I have described to you, that astral and etheric hands would move if the physical hands could remain fixed. So what really happened during the transition from the lunar state to the earthly state is that hands were, as it were, restrained and are now still held in place by the solid skull, and that as a result the etheric and astral are free. But the organs must be further developed. These hands cannot remain as they are when we evolve to Jupiter, but these hands will undergo a change in their substantial relationship, just as our brain has undergone a change, so that it has become a reflex organ. This process is what one might call natural evolution.

Another process is the initiation process. It consists of placing some kind of mantric meditation in the center of our consciousness and becoming completely absorbed in it. When we do this, it is really important that we do not use our physical body to form this thought, to have the thought, but that we really withdraw from the physical, the physical-sensory with this thought, that we remain in it, that we have no help from the physical world when meditating. In ordinary everyday thinking, the physical body helps us, the physical world helps us. We think when impressions are made on us through the senses. This makes thinking comfortable for us. For the world makes both an etheric and a physical impression on us. This is a support for our thinking. When we meditate, we must distance ourselves from everything physical, including all ideas. We must, entirely of our own free will, place a thought at the center of our consciousness. This gives rise to something highly peculiar, which is a finer process than the process of perception. When we reach the point where we have, as it were, forgotten the rest of the world—as if the rest of the world did not exist, as if there were nothing in space and time except the single thought—when we have reached the point where the whole world is indifferent to us and we live only in the thought of meditation, then something occurs that physical science cannot, of course, verify: through this subtle process of meditation, a subtle consumption of heat is achieved, so to speak; heat is consumed, is removed. It is a process that cannot, of course, be physically observed, but the consumption takes place, and we will talk about it at some point. Then we will see how, through processes that everyone can observe, it can be proven to physical science that the process of meditation is linked to a subtle process of heat and a subtle process of light.

We consume some of the light we have absorbed internally; we consume light. We also consume something else, but let us stick with the fact that we consume heat and light. What we consume causes what I discussed here eight days ago to happen, namely that something like a subtle living entity is formed out of the process of meditation. When we think in the ordinary processes of everyday life, something also lives within us that impresses itself upon our organism and causes a process that also has to do with warmth; it impresses itself there, and what takes place there causes us to have memories. But this must not happen during meditation. When we live in a state of pure thought or feeling, what we consume is not imprinted in our bodies, but in the general ether. This causes a process outside of us. Yes, my dear friends, when you meditate seriously and truthfully, you imprint your thought forms on the general ether; they are there. And when you then look back on a meditation process, it is not ordinary remembering, but looking back at what has been imprinted on the world ether. It is important that we bear this in mind. It is a subtle process that we carry out in such a way that it represents a relationship between us and the surrounding etheric and astral world. People who develop ordinary, everyday perception and thinking have only to do with themselves; it is a process that takes place only within us. But those who engage in true, genuine meditation live in a process that is at the same time a world process, a cosmic process. Something happens, even if it is only something extremely subtle. And what happens is this: when we meditate, some heat is consumed. When it is consumed, cold arises; the general world ether is cooled when we meditate. And since light is also consumed, it is dimmed; darkness arises, subdued light. So that when a person meditates in one place in the world and then leaves, they leave behind a slight cooling and at the same time a dimming of the light. The general state of light is subdued, has become darker. With clairvoyance, you can always follow when a person has meditated in a place where they have really carried out the meditation process. When they leave, a shadow image of them remains, which is even cooler than the surroundings. So a cool, dark ghost has been brought to that place; we have engraved it there. And something has really been accomplished in a subtle, very subtle way at that spot, which you can roughly compare to what appears on a photographic plate. A kind of ghost has really been formed there. It is therefore a process that takes place not only within the human being, but also cosmically, whereby the human being integrates himself into the cosmos.

Now there is, however, a thought that human beings meditate on, even if they are not meditators at all, even if they know nothing about spiritual science. Human beings do meditate on one thought. And this one thought, which is apparently quite small but infinitely important for life, is the thought of the I. The thought of the I is always conceived as being body-free. And insofar as we have a relationship with the world through our I, certain things that are connected with our I, even if we are not aware of them in our lives, are conceived as being, I would say, like branches on a tree. Thus certain thoughts, feelings, and impulses of the will are like branches or even like feelers, mobile feelers; they are grouped around the ego. So that in fact, throughout his entire life, human beings constantly leave behind them what they think as the ego and what extends such mobile tentacles in all directions. A ghostly jellyfish follows a human being throughout their entire life. But this is a very real thing, because it contains everything that a human being has experienced — insofar as they have conceived and felt it in their ego. That remains. And when a person has passed through the gate of death, he gradually learns to look back on what he has left behind, and that makes it possible for there to be a connection between what he experiences after death and what he has left behind.

In meditation, we as earthly human beings must first achieve control of our organs through the will; and the possibility of meditating correctly depends on our really freeing our thinking, feeling, and sensing in meditation, so that the body does not interfere and we can concentrate inwardly so strongly that only what we want, not what we do not want, becomes ingrained, photographed, as it were, in the world ether. We must always emphasize that real, proper meditation is a real process, a truly real process.

When we consider that human beings leave this behind and that, basically, all their experiences are contained in what they leave behind, and that this remains, we will also understand that when a person has passed through the time between death and a new birth and comes back down to earth, they will still find what they left behind in the world ether. Here we have the real effect of karma. It is what the human being has created as his ghost, and it now acts upon him and, in connection with his later life, forms what takes place in karma.

One can only slowly and gradually come to the realization of these things. Because this is so, because a real process is taking place that goes beyond us, that intervenes in the cosmos, the meditator gets the feeling that meditation is something different from ordinary thinking. In the latter case, we have the feeling that it is we who put thoughts together, who bring one thought to another; it is we who judge. In meditation, one gradually gets the feeling that it is not just you who is thinking, who is meditating, but that something is happening in which you are involved, but which also takes place outside of you as something permanent. And you have to get this feeling. Just as when you throw a fragile object against the wall, you feel that not only what happened before it flew happens, but also something afterwards that is connected with it: it breaks when it detaches itself from you. In meditation, you get the feeling that it is not you who thinks, but you initiate your thoughts, and then they swirl on, they swirl and exist. You are then no longer merely their master, but they begin an independent life and existence of their own. And this feeling of being inside, as if in the atmosphere, as if in the weaving and essential atmosphere of one's thoughts, as if the thoughts were even moving like waves through our brain — beginning to feel this is what gives rise to the firm, secure feeling: you are standing inside a spiritual world; you yourself are only a weaving member in the general weaving within it. And it is important that we really attain such silence, such peace of mind in meditation, that we attain this significant feeling: you are not alone in doing this; it is being done. You have begun to move these waves, but they spread out around you. They have a life of their own, of which you are only the center.

You see, my dear friends, that this is an experience that actually gives you knowledge of the spiritual world. And this experience must be waited for in complete calm. It is of extraordinary importance, but it requires patience, perseverance, and renunciation to wait for it in complete calm. For this experience is sufficient to gain full conviction of the objective existence of the spiritual world.

What you can gather from the discussions we have just had is that these alternating states of waking and sleeping are basically quite necessary. Here we sleep and wake in the way we are familiar with. We sleep and wake up so that our brain, which is active throughout the day, can also submerge into the part that supplies the organs during the day and is unconscious at night. This rhythm of sleeping and waking must take place; but we have seen that it also takes place in the great evolutionary process of the universe. If we now have our brain actually asleep so that we can think, and our hands awake, that is, our entire relationship with our hands free, awake, while we do not move them in sleep, then we were quite awake on the moon in relation to our brain, and we learned to sleep; we can develop earthly thinking precisely because we have learned to sleep with our brain. While it was still awake on the moon, it attained the ability to sleep here; and through this, human beings can think. The middle member will learn to sleep on Jupiter, and through this, thinking will become a further experience. Thus, the states between sleeping and waking pass through development. But these states are quite general; they appear in all possible areas. One can say that wherever one looks, one sees that alternating states of sleeping and waking are absolutely necessary. I will give a peculiar example of this, a peculiar example, but one that may be somewhat familiar to us in our time.

Isn't it true that if you want to learn about what was happening in literary intellectual life at the beginning of the nineteenth century, you can look in a work of literary history to see which poets were important and which were insignificant; and the picture stops at a certain point: namely, the poets who were then completely insignificant are not mentioned at all. And if people know anything at all, they know which poets were important or insignificant in the first half or in the middle of the nineteenth century. That is common knowledge; and many people—I won't say all—know nothing at all about some of those who, it cannot be denied, also wrote in the nineteenth century. Isn't that so, there are already people about whom we know nothing at all. Well, there will certainly come a time when we will have a different picture, a completely different picture of what we call, for example, the literary intellectual life of the nineteenth century; when we will certainly devote only half a page to poets to whom we now devote many pages, and ten to twenty pages to someone who is not even mentioned today. These things will change. And there is even a necessity for these things to change thoroughly. Especially when one considers that the humanities must be something that is now entering the cultural process of humanity and grasping and permeating human knowledge, when one takes this into account, then one will know how people will have to relearn, will have to learn to think. I will cite one example. Isn't it true that in place of today's knowledge, which is actually only gained by accepting as the only real knowledge that which man gains with the help of his physical organization, another must develop, one that also accepts that which can be attained through spiritual initiation? Today, the true scientist accepts as valid and certain only that which is gained through knowledge acquired by means of the physical instruments. Everything else is a figment of the imagination. He may allow it to remain as a hypothesis, but not for very long, otherwise he will consider even the hypothesis to be highly fantastical. That is how it is today. A time must come when not only what is achieved by means of spiritual knowledge will be accepted, but also what is recognized in the physical world will be examined and only then truly understood through spiritual knowledge. That must come to pass.

Now, one can say not only comparatively, but in all reality: We are now living in a time when human beings are asleep with regard to knowledge, at least human beings in general; it is very easy to be polite, since anyone interested in spiritual science is excluded, and therefore awake with regard to spiritual knowledge. But the rest of humanity is asleep with regard to spiritual knowledge: it is sleepy. And precisely that which is the most revered science arises from the fact that it is in reality asleep. We are living in a time when this true reality is being slept through by humanity in the most intense sense. This has been in preparation for a long time, and, one might say, just as falling asleep always precedes sleep, we can also observe how a kind of dream state and a struggle with sleep existed in the nineteenth century. We now live in an age in which humanity sleeps most deeply in relation to spiritual knowledge. Now it slumbers sweetly. But it has not been easy to achieve this sleep completely, and we see, for example, how in individual great phenomena in the first half of the nineteenth century there is a struggle with sleep, in that in certain people a certain premonition, an inner experience of spiritual truths, of spiritual relationships, is still dawning. In the further course of the nineteenth century, there was nothing else it could do to achieve this sweet state of slumber than to forget poets who still knew something special about the spiritual world. They do not fit into this spiritual state of slumber.

But I have already drawn attention to a poet, Julius Mosen, who in his “Ritter Wahn” (Knight Madness) and even in his “Ahasver” has produced poems from which we can see that Julius Mosen had a living connection with the spiritual world. Knight Wahn, whom Julius Mosen portrays, whom he modeled after an older legend, but whom he imbued with certain ideas from which we can see that he still had a connection to the spiritual world—Knight Wahn searches the earth for someone who can enlighten him about the defeat of death. This is essentially the theme of Julius Mosens' poem “Ritter Wahn” (Knight Madness), that Knight Madness, that is, the one who is in ordinary knowledge, which is delusional knowledge, seeks someone who can enlighten him: How can one go beyond the delusional knowledge of physical life? And he has a high opinion of the one who enlightens him about this. Julius Mosen then gives descriptions of how Knight Delusion wants to find someone who can enlighten him about non-physical knowledge:

From now on I will roam through all countries,
Eastward, as far as my brave horse will carry me,
From castle to castle, from country to country.

Until someone can tell me with certainty:
I can save your body from death,
I can break its power and strike it down.

To that person, from eternity to eternity,
I will serve with my mighty hand,
Work for him, fight mightily for him.

This knight Wahn is therefore seeking enlightenment on how to attain knowledge that is not conquered by the body, but which itself conquers the body and lasts for eternity. So this longing already exists. And now the knight Wahn fights—as Julius Mosen says—first with an old man named “Ird.” Now, people did not understand this: Ird. But if one had read the original, one would not have translated Ird as “death,” as the Leipzig literature professor Rudolf von Gottschall did. It should have been translated as “earth” or “world.” Well, the knight Wahn first fights this old man Ird. He overcomes him. Last time we talked about the overcoming of the earthly by the spiritual, the victory of the spiritual over earth, time, and space. He then overcomes the old man “Raum” and reaches the gates of heaven, that is, the spiritual world. Then he longs to return to earth because he has not lived life to the full. This beautiful poem, “Knight Wahn,” shows us that there was once someone who struggled with the problem of initiation, who knew something about the existence of such a problem. And in his “Ahasver,” Julius Mosen depicts something similar.

Now there is another German poet, Wilhelm Jordan, who is often mentioned, but whose work, through which he gave his most spiritual contribution, is least known: Demiurgos. This Demiurgos — the work was published in the 1950s — is a very significant work, because in Demiurgos it is truly expressed how spiritual beings, spiritual powers, good and evil, approach human beings, penetrate the human soul and, with the help of human beings, manifest themselves here on earth. So that when we have a human being before us, we must remember that this human being certainly consists of everything we know, but that what comes from higher spiritual beings also works within them. And “Demiurgos” is largely based on the presentation of this connection between human beings and the spiritual world. In three beautiful volumes, Jordan depicts in his Demiurgos how spiritual beings play into the human soul. This is the struggle with sleep, which then sets in completely. These are people into whose dreams still enters that which humanity must attain through spiritual science, out of the sweet slumber of purely external, positivistic knowledge. We must really see this as a process in which people bring themselves into laziness, into a slumber of laziness, through spiritual dreams.

If we now ask ourselves: What is the basis for the fact that there is still a person like Julius Mosen who is capable of depicting spiritual processes, who depicts something like the initiation process in his “Ritter Wahn” (Knight Madness), where does this come from? It is very strange: Julius Mosen became ill and spent a large part of his life almost completely paralyzed. But what did this paralysis mean? It meant that the physical body, as it were, dried up and detached itself from the etheric body and the astral body. Through this paralysis, the astral and etheric bodies were freer. What we have to achieve through the initiation process with great effort was brought about in him through a process of illness. Of course, this illness cannot be seen as a real process of knowledge or even as something desirable; but at a time when the world was becoming lazy, the world order put a person into the world who had this relationship between his physical and spiritual-soul members. So he lay there, paralyzed, unable to move a limb, but with a lively soul and a lively spirit, which were thereby freed and penetrated into the spiritual world. What initiation seeks in a healthy way was brought about here by illness. Here was a man who had spent a large part of his life paralyzed in bed, but triumphant over the paralysis of his body, his spiritual and soul life broke free. That is why this man was able to produce something that seems so spiritual to us. It could have been achieved in a healthier way than in the case of Julius Mosen, but perhaps less profoundly.

It could also have been achieved in a healthier way. In the first half of the nineteenth century, it was still possible for a poet to portray the cultural-historical process of humanity in such a way that the connection between the spiritual worlds and what goes on on earth as human beings shines through in all his characters. There is a beautiful poem from the 1830s, “Alhambra” by Auffenberg. Auffenberg is a spiritual poet, and “Alhambra” is such an important work that we have three works, or four with “Ahasver”: “Ritter Wahn,” ‘Ahasver,’ ‘Demiurgos,’ and ‘Alhambra’ — but there is much more to be said about others that are not easily available today — so that we have four such works that show us how, in this age, what connects human beings to the spiritual world is disappearing, as if in a dream, in contrast to the general materialistic slumber of existence. Previously, humanity was already open to the spiritual world; but naturally, those who now describe it, the spiritual world, leave out those who had complete awareness of the spiritual world. When writing a history of philosophy today, one also leaves out anyone who has an awareness of the spiritual world, or one does not mention this interaction with the spiritual world in the case of the most outstanding figures.

Now it is very interesting to compare “Ritter Wahn,” in which spiritual life truly pulsates, with Jordan's “Demiurgos,” in which spiritual life also resonates. Jordan was probably healthy; unlike Moses, who had a paralyzed body, he was not able to separate the spiritual-soul from the body. The result was that Jordan only came up with the idea of the “Demiurgos” during his more active youth, when he was still able to grasp the spiritual-soul aspect through inner energy, elasticity, and logic; later, he fell into a crude, materialistic Darwinism of cultural history, which then runs like a thread through his “Nibelungen” and so on. He must therefore join in the march into the lullaby of materialism. But what is significant is that we realize that our time has the task of bringing into the spiritual process, the process of human development, the knowledge that springs from true spiritual recognition — the knowledge that the world spirit has, as it were, indicated through the tragic fate of a Julius Mosen: Human beings can no longer enter the spiritual world involuntarily; there were times in the past when they could, when the purely natural constitution of human beings meant that the spiritual-soul, astral, and etheric bodies were freer and more independent of the physical body; but that time is past. In the natural state, human beings in our present materialistic age—and this must remain so for the rest of our existence on earth and become even more intense—must have a compact connection between the spiritual-soul and the physical-corporeal. However, this does not allow human beings to attain any consciousness of the spiritual world through natural conditions alone. But this must happen precisely so that the will can do its work; so that through permeation with the moment of spiritual science, human beings can detach the spiritual-soul element from the physical-bodily element out of inner impulses of the will, out of freedom, in meditation and concentration. For if we were to attain spiritual knowledge in the same way as humans did in the past, we would have to be sick, paralyzed, and spend the second half of our lives with paralyzed limbs. With the present organization, this was necessary. It was not necessary in the past. Human beings did not need to be paralyzed, but the connection between the astral body, the etheric body, and the physical body was such that clairvoyant knowledge was possible. Today, it is only possible through illness. This was, in a sense, set as a signpost, which came to light in Julius Mosen.

Thus, it is necessary to call to mind the deep spiritual connection between world phenomena, precisely through spiritual science, but it is also necessary to realize the profound spiritual-historical impulses that are intimately connected with what makes it necessary for human beings to gradually transition to spiritual science. This is not required by the arbitrary will of any individual, but by the great course that the world spirit must take through the entire evolution of the Earth. The mission and task of human beings is to move more and more toward spiritual experience in the future, so that humanity does not wither away with the entire Earth culture, so that the spirit can truly continue to live on Earth.

Among the many things that such a realization can suggest to human beings is what I have already said repeatedly: that numerous human beings are now, in a relatively short period of time, carrying their soul beings upward in such a way that they have unspent etheric bodies that still contain forces that could have sustained their physical lives for decades, and that, because they are now passing through the gate of death as a result of the terrible historical event, they are bringing their etheric bodies unspent into the spiritual world. These will become the great co-workers in the spiritualization of human culture. And besides everything else, this great event has precisely this enormously profound significance in human evolution, that through the creation of unspent etheric bodies, forces can flow out into our earth's evolution that will be able to prove the spiritual. But just as it would be of no help, my dear friends, if there were still so many suns in the world, if people did not take in the sunlight through their eyes, just as the words spoken by Goethe are true: “If the eye were not sun-like, the sun could never be seen,” just as the sun would shine in vain if there were no eyes to receive its light—so the organs must awaken from the souls of earthly human beings in order to truly receive that which streams down as spiritual life from the cosmos and also from the world in which human beings spend their lives between death and a new birth and in which the unspent etheric bodies also are. Thus, what is sacrificed through the great war sacrifices must be connected with spiritual cosmic existence; it must be received by human souls who are receptive to the spiritual. And it would be terrible if only that science were to survive which today considers itself the only one that does nothing but register the outwardly perceptible facts and use them to make intellectual judgments about them. If science is only a repetition of what is there without science, then it cannot connect with the divine-spiritual. Only that which can truly awaken in the human soul beyond the realm of the senses can connect with the real divine-spiritual, so that the process of development on Earth itself remains spiritual and spiritually alive. All progress of humanity is based on the penetration of the spiritual into the process of human soul development, and it is solely from the spirit that it can be decided whether anything is true or false. Today, people believe that they can decide this or that, prove this or that, without the spirit; but the final authority for deciding even about sensory truths is spiritual experience.

When the old spiritual experience disappeared in the first half of the nineteenth century, what the spirit was able to achieve in certain people was once again held up as a symbol, so to speak, to show the insubstantiality of reasoning based solely on the external and sensual. A man writing under the name Dr. Mises did much during this period to show how everything, absolutely everything, can be proven and also proven to be the opposite, and how the final authority is nevertheless only the connection with spiritual life. For example, this man had experienced many things in the natural sciences and medical science—he was a physician himself—and he had seen that every moment a new remedy appeared for this or that disease. And so he lived at the very time when iodine began to be prescribed for goiter. It was a time when this remedy was enjoying great success, when people wanted to prove—this was in the 1820s—how valuable iodine actually was. Dr. Mises then set about proving that, according to all the principles of natural science, iodine was something excellent because it could be proven that the moon was made of iodine. And he provided irrefutable proof that this was the case. He wanted to show that anything can be proven. And you can. The mind, which is connected to the brain, can really prove yes and no about anything. And it's almost always the case that some scientific view pops up and then the opposite comes along at another time; that people can prove yes just as well on one side as no on the other. But that which is not such an Ahrimanic rise and fall of the yes-no wave, but rather the real progress of the good divinity of human evolution, is based on the spiritual. And we must be clear that the present has produced its particularly characteristic cultural facts because it is the sleeping time of spiritual science and because, above all that which often thinks itself to be science, it is precisely spiritual slumber that is spreading to a particular degree. This spiritual slumber is necessary. This is not a criticism on my part, but merely a statement of fact. It must be said with all love, it must be emphasized, that it was necessary for a time for all science to fall asleep with regard to the spiritual world. But now the time has come again when the living awakening of spiritual life must come forth, this spiritual life whose longing we truly feel everywhere. And that, my dear friends, is what can give rise to the feeling that must now enliven us in this painful time. Insofar as we can gain even the slightest inkling that human beings can find the way into the spiritual world, we must seek this way; we must seek to bring our spiritual thoughts into contact with what streams down from the unspent etheric bodies. And in the future, it will truly be possible to look back on our painful and fateful days from a certain spiritual height. This spiritual height will come when more and more people find the spiritual scientific impulses in the true content of their life consciousness. And then what I have always said to you from the bottom of my heart as a final thought in these observations here at this point in recent times will come to pass, which we want to take up as a hope, as a hope that those who are connected with spiritual science and are living through our fateful days can have, but also should have:

From the courage of the fighters,
From the blood of the battles,
From the suffering of the forsaken,
From the sacrifices of the people
The fruits of the spirit will grow —
Souls will consciously guide
Their minds into the realm of the spirit.