The Kingdom of Childhood
GA 311
18 August 1924, Torquay
Lecture VI
We will now continue our discussions by speaking of certain matters of method, and here I should like to say that in these few lectures our purpose cannot be to give detailed indications but only general principles. You can also study the Waldorf School Seminar Courses, and with the indications you have received here you will be able to understand them thoroughly. We must get a clear picture of the child between the change of teeth and puberty; we must know that in the years before the change of teeth the inherited characteristics are the determining factors, and that the child receives from his father and mother a “model” body which is completely thrown aside by the time he changes his teeth, for during the first seven-year period it is being replaced by a new body. The change of teeth, indeed, is only the external expression of this replacing of the old body by a new one, upon which the soul and spirit are now at work.
I have already told you that if the spirit-soul is strong, then during the school period from the change of teeth to puberty the child may go through great changes as regards the qualities he formerly possessed. If the individuality is weak, the result will be a body that very closely resembles the inherited characteristics, and with the children of school age we shall still have to take into account deeply-rooted resemblances to the parents or grandparents.
We must be clear in our minds that the independent activity of the etheric body of man only really begins at the change of teeth. The etheric body in the first seven years has to put forward all the independent activity of which it is capable in order to build up the second physical body. So that this etheric body is pre-eminently an inward artist in the child in the first seven years; it is a modeller, a sculptor. And this modelling force, which is applied to the physical body by the etheric body, becomes free, emancipates itself with the change of teeth at the seventh year. Then it can work as an activity of soul.
This is why the child has an impulse to model forms or to paint them. For the first seven years of life the etheric body has been carrying out modelling and painting within the physical body. Now that it has nothing further to do as regards the physical body, or at least not as much as before, it wants to carry its activity outside. If therefore you as teachers have a wide knowledge of the forms that occur in the human organism, and consequently know what kind of forms the child likes to mould out of plastic material or to paint in colour, then you will be able to give him the right guidance. But you yourselves must have a kind of artistic conception of the human organism. It is therefore of real importance for the teacher to try and do some modelling himself, for the teachers' training of today includes nothing of this sort. You will see that however much you have learnt about the lung or the liver, or let us say the complicated ramifications of the vascular system, you will not know as much as if you were to copy the whole thing in wax or plasticine. For then you suddenly begin to have quite a different kind of knowledge of the organs, of the lung for instance. For as you know you must form one half of the lung differently from the other half; the lung is not symmetrical. One half is clearly divided into two segments, the other into three. Before you learn this you are constantly forgetting which is left and which is right. But when you work out these curious asymmetrical forms in wax or plasticine, then you get the feeling that you could not change round left and right any more than you could put the heart on the right hand side of the body. You also get the feeling that the lung has its right place in the organism with its own particular form, and if you mould it rightly you will feel that it is inevitable for the human lung to come gradually into an upright position in standing and walking. If you model the lung forms of animals you will see or you will feel from the touch that the lung of an animal lies horizontally. And so it is with other organs.
You yourselves therefore should really try to learn anatomy by modelling the organs, so that you can then get the children to model or to paint something that is in no way an imitation of the human body but only expresses certain forms. For you will find that the child has an impulse to make forms that are related to the inner human organism. You may get some quite extraordinary experiences in this respect in the course of your lessons.
We have introduced lessons on simple Physiology in the school, and especially in the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh classes, as this is obviously an integral part of the Waldorf School method. Our children paint from the very beginning, and from a certain age they also do carving. Now if you simply let the children work freely it is very interesting to see that when you have explained anything about the human being to them, the lung for instance, then out of themselves they begin to model such forms as the lung or something similar. It is really interesting to see how the child forms things out of his own being. That is why it is essential for you to take up this plastic method, and to find ways and means of making faithful reproductions of the forms of the human organs exactly in wax or plasticine—even, if you like, as our children often do, in mud, for if you have nothing else that is very good material to work with.
This is an inner urge, an inner longing of the etheric body, to be at work in modelling or painting. So you can very easily turn this impulse and longing to account by deriving the letters of the alphabet out of the forms which the child paints or models, for then you will be really moulding your teaching out of a knowledge of man. This is what must be done at this stage.
Now to proceed. Man consists not only of his physical body and etheric body, which latter is emancipated and free at the seventh year, but also of the astral body and ego. What happens to the astral body of the child between the seventh and fourteenth year? It does not really come to its full activity till puberty. Only then is it working completely within the human organism. But whilst the etheric body between birth and the change of teeth is in a certain sense being drawn out of the physical body and becoming independent, the astral body is gradually being drawn inwards between the seventh and fourteenth year, and when it has been drawn right in and is no longer merely loosely connected with the physical and etheric bodies but permeates them completely, then the human being has arrived at the moment of puberty, of sex maturity.
With the boy one can see by the change of voice that the astral body is now quite within the larynx, with the girl one can see by the development of other organs, breast organs and so on, that the astral body has now been completely drawn in. The astral body finds its way slowly into the human body from all sides.
The lines and directions it follows are the nerve fibres. The astral body comes in along the nerve fibres from without inwards. Here it begins to fill out the whole body from the outer environment, from the skin, and gradually draws itself together inside. Before this time it is a kind of loose cloud, in which the child lives. Then it draws itself together, lays firm
hold upon all the organs, and if we may put it somewhat crudely, it unites itself chemically with the organism, with all the tissues of the physical and etheric body.
But something very strange happens here. When the astral body presses inwards from the periphery of the body it makes its way along the nerves which then unite in the spine (see

drawing). Above is the head. It also forces its way slowly through the head nerves, crawls along the nerves towards the central organs, towards the spinal cord, bit by bit, into the head, gradually coming in and filling it all out.
What we must chiefly consider in this connection is how the breathing works in with the whole nervous system. Indeed this working together of the breathing with the whole nervous system is something very special in the human organism. As teacher and educator one should have the very finest feeling for it; only then will one be able to teach rightly. Here then the air enters the body, distributes itself, goes up through the spinal column (see drawing), spreads out in the brain, touches the nerve fibres everywhere, goes down again and pursues paths by which it can then be ejected as carbon dioxide. So we find the nervous system being constantly worked upon by the in-breathed air which distributes itself, goes up through the spinal column, spreads out again, becomes permeated with carbon, goes back again and is breathed out.
It is only in the course of the first school period, between the change of teeth and puberty, that the astral body carries this whole process of breathing, passing along the nerve fibres, right into the physical body. So that during this time when the astral body is gradually finding its way into the physical body with the help of the air breathed in, it is playing upon something that is stretched across like strings of an instrument in the centre of the body, that is, upon the spinal column. Our nerves are really a kind of lyre, a musical instrument, an inner musical instrument that resounds up into the head.
This process begins of course before the change of teeth, but at that time the astral body is only loosely connected with the physical body. It is between the change of teeth and puberty that the astral body really begins to play upon the single nerve fibres with the in-breathed air, like a violin bow on the strings.
You will be fostering all this if you give the child plenty of singing. You must have a feeling that the child is a musical instrument while he is singing, you must stand before your class to whom you are teaching singing or music with the clear feeling: every child is a musical instrument and inwardly feels a kind of well-being in the sound.
For you see, sound is brought about by the particular way the breath is circulated. That is inner music. To begin with, in the first seven years of life, the child learns everything by imitation, but now he should learn to sing out of the inward joy he experiences in building up melodies and rhythms. To show you the kind of inner picture you should have in your mind when you stand before your class in a Singing lesson, I should like to use a comparison which may seem a little crude, but which will make clear to you what I mean. I do not know how many of you, but I hope most, have at some time been able to watch a herd of cows who have fed and are now lying in the meadow digesting their food.
This digestive process of a herd of cows is indeed a marvellous thing. In the cow a kind of image of the whole world is present. The cow digests her food, the digested foodstuffs pass over into the blood vessels and lymphatic vessels, and during this whole process of digestion and nourishment the cow has a sensation of well-being which is at the same time knowledge. During the process of digestion every cow has a wonderful aura in which the whole world is mirrored. It is the most beautiful thing one can see, a herd of cows lying in the meadow digesting their food, and in this process of digestion comprehending the whole world. With us human beings all this has sunk into the subconscious, so that the head can reflect what the body works out and sees revealed as knowledge.
We are really in a bad way, we human beings, because the head does not allow us to experience the lovely things that the cows, for example, experience. We should know much more of the world if we could experience the digestive process, for instance. We should then of course have to experience it with the feeling of knowledge, not with the feeling that man has when he remains in the subconscious in his digestive process. This is simply to make clear what I want to say. I do not wish to imply that we now have to raise the process of digestion into consciousness in our teaching, but I want to show that there is something that should really be present in the child at a higher stage, this feeling of wellbeing at the inward flow of sound. Imagine what would happen if the violin could feel what is going on within it! We only listen to the violin, it is outside us, we are ignorant of the whole origin of the sound and only hear the outward sense picture of it. But if the violin could feel how each string vibrates with the next one it would have the most blissful experiences, provided of course that the music is good. So you must let the child have these little experiences of ecstasy, so that you really call forth a feeling for music in his whole organism, and you must yourself find joy in it.
Of course one must understand something of music. But an essential part of teaching is this artistic element of which I have just spoken.
On this account it is essential, for the inner processes of life between the change of teeth and puberty demand it, to give the children lessons in music right from the very beginning, and at first, as far as possible to accustom them to sing little songs quite empirically without any kind of theory: nothing more than simply singing little songs, but they must be well sung! Then you can use simpler songs from which the children can gradually learn what melody, rhythm and beat are, and so on; but first you must accustom the children to sing little songs as a whole, and to play a little too as far as that is possible. Unless there is clearly no bent at all in this direction every Waldorf child begins to learn some instrument on entering school; as I say, as far as circumstances allow, each child should learn to play an instrument. As early as possible the children should come to feel what it means for their own musical being to flow over into the objective instrument, for which purpose the piano, which should really only be a kind of memorising instrument, is of course the worst possible thing for the child. Another kind of instrument should be chosen, and if possible one that can be blown upon. Here one must of course have a great deal of artistic tact and, I was going to say, a great deal of authority too. If you can, you should choose a wind instrument, as the children will learn most from this and will thereby gradually come to understand music. Admittedly, it can be a hair-raising experience when the children begin to blow. But on the other hand it is a wonderful thing in the child's life when this whole configuration of the air, which otherwise he encloses and holds within him along the nerve-fibres, can now be extended and guided. The human being feels how his whole organism is being enlarged. Processes which are otherwise only within the organism are carried over into the outside world. A similar thing happens when the child learns the violin, when the actual processes, the music that is within him, is directly carried over and he feels how the music in him passes over into the strings through his bow.
But remember, you should begin giving these Music and Singing lessons as early as possible. For it is of very great importance that you not only make all your teaching artistic, but that you also begin teaching the more specifically artistic subjects, Painting, Modelling and Music, as soon as the child comes to school, and that you see to it that he really comes to possess all these things as an inward treasure.
The point of time in the life of the child which falls between the ninth and tenth year must be very specially borne in mind in the teaching of languages. I have characterised for you this turning point between the ninth and tenth year as the time when the child first learns to differentiate between himself and his environment. Up to this time they have been as one. I have already indicated the right method of teaching for the child entering school, but he ought not really to come to school before he begins to change his teeth; one might say that fundamentally any kind of school teaching before this time is wrong; if we are forced to it by law we must do it, but it is not the right thing from the point of view of artistic education. In a true art of education the child should not enter school until the change of teeth. Our first task, as I have shown you, is to begin with something artistic and work out the forms of the letters through art; you should begin with some independent form of art as I have explained to you, and treat everything that has to do with nature in the mood and fashion of fairy tales, legends and myths, in the way I have described. But for the teaching of languages it is specially important to consider this epoch between the ninth and tenth year.
Before this point of time is reached language teaching must under no circumstances be of an intellectual nature; that is to say it must not include any grammar or syntax. Up to the ninth or tenth year the child must learn to speak the foreign language just as he acquires any other habit; he must learn to speak as a matter of habit. It is only when he learns to differentiate himself from his environment that he may begin to examine what he himself is bringing forth in his speech. It is only now that one can begin to speak of noun, adjective, verb and so on, not before. Before this time the child should simply speak and be kept to this speaking.
We have a good opportunity for carrying this out in the Waldorf School, because as soon as the child comes to us at the beginning of his school life he learns two foreign languages besides his mother tongue.
The child comes to school and begins with Main Lessons in periods, as I have already described; he has the Main Lesson for the early part of the morning, and then directly after that the little ones have a lesson which for German children is either English or French. In these language lessons we try not to consider the relationship of one language to the other. Up till the point of time I have described to you between the ninth and tenth year, we disregard the fact that a table for instance is called “ Tisch” in German and “table” in English, that to eat is “ essen” in German and “eat” in English; we connect each language not with the words of another language, but directly with the objects. The child learns to call the ceiling, the lamp, the chair, by their names, whether it is in French or in English. Thus from the seventh to the ninth year we should not attach importance to translation, that is to say rendering a word in one language by a word in another, but the children simply learn to speak in the language, connecting their words with the external objects. So that the child does not need to know or rather does not need to think of the fact that when he says “table” in English it is called “ Tisch” in German, and so on; he does not concern himself with this at all. This does not occur to the children, for they have not been taught to compare the language in any way.
In this manner the child learns every language out of the element from which it stems, namely, the element of feeling. Now a language consists, of course, of sounds, and is either the expression of the soul from within, in which case there is a vowel, or else it is the expression of something external and then there is a consonant. But one must feel this first of all. You will not of course pass on to the children exactly what I am saying here, but in the course of your lesson the child should actually experience the vowel as something connected with feeling, and the consonant as a copy of something in the outside world. He will do this of himself because it lies in human nature, and we must not drive out this impulse but rather lead on from it.
For let us think, what is the vowel A [In these references to A and E the sounds of Ah and Eh should be considered, not the names of the letters.] (ah)? (This does not belong to the lesson, but is only something you ought to know!) What is A? When the sun rises I stand in admiration before it: Ah! A is always the expression of astonishment, wonder. Or again, a fly settles on my forehead; I say: E (Eh). That is the expression of warding off, doing away with: E. The English sounds are somewhat differently connected with our feelings, but in every language, English included, we find that the vowel A expresses astonishment and wonder.
Now let us take a characteristic word: roll—the rolling of a ball, for instance. Here you have the R. Who could help feeling that with the R and the L together, the ball rolls on (see drawing a.). R alone would be like this (see drawing b.):

R. L. goes on. L always implies a flowing on. Here you have an external process imitated in the consonant (see drawing c.).
So the whole language is built up in the vowels out of a feeling of inner astonishment, wonder, self-defence, self-assertion, etc., or out of a feeling of imitation in the case of the consonants. We must not drive these feelings out of the child. He should learn to develop the sound from the external objects and from the way in which his own feelings are related to them. Everything should be derived from the feeling for language. In the word “roll” the child should really fed: r, o, l, l. It is the same thing for every word.
This has been completely lost for modern civilised man. He thinks of the word simply as something written down or something abstract. Man can no longer really feel his way into language. Look how all primitive languages still have feeling within them; the most civilised languages make speech an abstract thing. Look at your own English language, how the second half of the word is simply cast aside, and one skips over the real feeling of the sounds. But the child must dwell in this feeling for language.
This must be cultivated by examining characteristic words in which such a feeling plays. Now in German we call what one has up here “Kopf.” In English it is called “head,” in Italian “testa.” With the abstract kind of relationship to language that people usually have today, what do they say about this? They say, in German the word is “Kopf,” in Italian “testa,” in English “head.” But all this is absolutely untrue. The whole thing is nonsense.
For let us think: “Kopf,” what is that? “Kopf” is what is formed, something that has a rounded form. Theform is expressed when you say “Kopf.” When you say “testa”—you have it in the word “testament” and “testify”—then you are expressing the fact that the head establishes or confirms something. Here you are expressing something quite different. You say of that organ that sits up there: that is the establisher, the testator— testa. Now in English one holds the opinion that the head is the most important part of man, (although you know of course that this opinion is not quite correct). So that in English you say “head,” that is, the most important thing, the goal of all things, the aim and meeting-place of all.
Thus different things are expressed in the different languages. If people wanted to designate the same thing, then the Englishman and the Italian too would say “Kopf.” But they do not designate the same thing. In the primeval human language the same thing was expressed everywhere, so that this primeval language was the same for all. Then people began to separate and to express things differently; that is how the different words came about. When you designate such different things as though they were the same you no longer feel what is contained in them, and it is very important not to drive out this feeling for language. It must be kept alive and for this reason you must not analyse language before the ninth or tenth year.
Only then can you pass on to what a noun, a verb or an adjective is and so on: this should not be done before the ninth or tenth year, otherwise you will be speaking of things which are connected with the child's own being, and this he cannot yet understand because he cannot yet distinguish himself from his environment. It is most important to bear in mind that we must not allow any Grammar or comparison of languages before the ninth or tenth year. Then what the child gets from speaking will be similar to what he gets in his singing.
I have tried to illustrate this inner joy in singing by picturing to you the inner feeling of pleasure that rises up out of the digestive organs of the cows in the meadow when they are digesting their food. There must be present an inner feeling of joy of this kind, or at least some feeling for the thing itself, so that the children feel what is really contained in a word, that they feel the inward “rolling.” Language must be inwardly experienced and not only thought out with the head. Today you mostly find that people only “think” language with their head. Therefore when they want to find the right word in translating from one language into another they take a dictionary. Here the words are so put together that you find “testa” or “Kopf” and people imagine that that is all the same. But it is not all the same. A different conception is expressed in each word, something that can only be expressed out of feeling. We must take this into account in language teaching. And another element comes in here, something which belongs to the spirit. When the human being dies, or before he comes down to earth, he has no possibility of understanding the so-called substantives, for example. Those whom we call the dead know nothing about substantives; they know nothing of the naming of objects, but they still have some knowledge of qualities, and it is therefore possible to communicate with the dead as regards qualities. But in the further course of the life after death that soon ceases also. What lasts longest is an understanding of verbs, words of action, active and passive expressions, and longest of all the expression of sensations: Oh! Ah! I (ee), E (eh); these interjectional expressions are preserved longest of all by the dead.
From this you can see how vital it is that if the human soul is not to become entirely un-spiritual it should have a living experience of interjections. All interjections are actually vowels. And the consonants, which as such are in any case very soon lost after death, and were not present before the descent to earth, are copies of the external world. This we should really experience in our feeling, be aware of it in the child, and see that we do not drive it out by giving lessons on nouns, adjectives and so on too early, but wait with these until the ninth or tenth year is reached.
From the first class of the Waldorf School upwards we have introduced Eurythmy, this visible speech in which, by carrying out certain movements either alone or in groups, man actually reveals himself just as he reveals himself through speech. Now if there is the right treatment in the language lessons, that is to say if the teacher does not ruin the child's feeling for language but rather cherishes it, then the child will feel the transition to Eurythmy to be a perfectly natural one, just as the very little child feels that learning to speak is also a perfectly natural process. You will not have the slightest difficulty in bringing Eurythmy to the children. If they are healthily developed children they will want it. You will always discover something that is pathologically wrong with children who do not wish to do Eurythmy. They want it as a matter of course, just as when they were quite little children they wanted to learn to speak, if all their organs were sound. That is because the child feels a very strong impulse to express his inward experiences as activities of will in his own body. This can be seen in the very early years when he begins to laugh and cry, and in the various ways in which feelings are expressed in the face.
It would have to be a very metaphorical way of speaking if you were to say that a dog or any other animal laughs. In any case it does not laugh in the same way as the human being does, neither does it cry in the same way. Indeed in the animal all gestures and movements which carry over inward experience into the element of will are quite different. There is a great difference between animal and man in this respect.
What is expressed in Eurythmy rests upon laws just as language does. Speaking is not an arbitrary thing. With a word like “water” for instance, you cannot put another vowel in place of the “a,” you cannot say “wuter,” or anything like that. Speech has laws, and so has Eurythmy. In the ordinary movements of the body man is in a sense free, although he also does many things out of a certain instinct. When he is cogitating about something, he puts his finger to his forehead; when he wants to show that something is not true, he shakes his head and his hand, extinguishing it, as it were. But Eurythmy leads inward and outward experiences over into ordered movements, just as speech leads an inward experience over into the sound: this is what Eurythmy is, and the child wants to learn it. For this reason the fact that Eurythmy is not yet taught in modern education proves that there is no thought of drawing forth the human faculties out of the very nature of man himself, for if you do that then you must come to Eurythmy in the natural course of things.
This will not mean any interference with Gymnastics, the teaching of physical exercises. This is something quite different, and the teacher and educator must recognise the difference. Gymnastics as taught today and all kinds of sport are something quite different from Eurythmy. You can quite well have both together. For the conception of space is very often considered in quite an abstract way, and people do not take into account that space is something concrete. For people have become so accustomed to think of the earth as round that when someone who lives in this part of the world makes a jump he says he jumps “up.” But when someone in the Antipodes, who has his legs down here and his head up there, jumps, he jumps “down”—or so we imagine. But this is not anything we can experience. I once read a book on Natural Philosophy where the author tried to ridicule the idea that the sky is above us by saying: Down there in the Antipodes the sky must be below! But the truth is far richer than that. We do not make judgments about the world and about space in such a way that we leave ourselves out of it altogether and simply consider space by itself as something abstract. There are certain philosophers who do this—Hume and Mill and Kant. But this is all untrue. It is really all nonsense. Space is something concrete of which man is sensible. He feels himself within space and he feels the necessity of finding his place in it; when he thus finds his way into the balance of space, into the different conditions of space, then Sport and Gymnastics arise. In these man is trying to find his own relationship to space.
If you do this gymnastic movement (arms outstretched), you have the feeling that you are bringing your two arms into a horizontal direction. If you jump you have the feeling that you are moving your body upwards by its own force. These are gymnastic exercises. But if you feel you are holding within you something which you are experiencing inwardly—the sound EE—and you reflect upon it, then you may make perhaps a similar movement, but in this case, the inner soul quality is expressed in the movement. Man reveals his inward self. That is what he does in Eurythmy, which is thus the revelation of the inner self. In Eurythmy there is expressed what man can experience in breathing and in the circulation of the blood, when they come into the realm of soul. In Gymnastics and in Sport man feels as though space were a framework filled with all sorts of lines and directions into which he springs and which he follows, and he makes his apparatus accordingly. He climbs a ladder or pulls himself up on a rope. Here man is acting in accordance with external space.
That is the difference between Gymnastics and Eurythmy. Eurythmy lets the soul life flow outwards and thereby becomes a real expression of the human being, like language; Eurythmy is visible speech.
By means of Gymnastics and Sport man fits himself into external space, adapts himself to the world, experiments to see whether he fits in with the world in this way or in that. That is not language, that is not a revelation of man, but rather a demand the world makes upon him that he should be fit for the world and be able to find his way into it. This difference must be noticed. It expresses itself in the fact that the Gymnastics teacher makes the children do movements whereby they may adapt themselves to the outside world. The Eurythmy teacher expresses what is in the inner being of man. We must feel this, we must be sensible of it. Then Eurythmy, Gymnastics, and Games too, if you like, will all take their right place in our teaching.
We will speak further of this tomorrow.
Sechster Vortrag
Wir wollen nun im Anschlusse an die gemachten Ausführungen noch einiges, was auf die Methode Bezug haben kann, besprechen, und dazu möchte ich bemerken, daß man natürlich in den wenigen Vorträgen, die hier gehalten werden können, nicht so vorgehen kann, daß einzelne pädagogische Winke, möchte ich sagen, die ich gegeben habe, weiter ausgeführt werden, sondern wir können ja nur Prinzipielles erörtern. Und Sie werden ja dann auch die Seminarkurse der Waldorfschule studieren und sie wohl durchgreifend verstehen können, wenn Sie diese Winke hier empfangen.
Wir müssen das Kind noch einmal recht ins Auge fassen zwischen dem Zahnwechsel und der Geschlechtsreife, müssen uns klar sein darüber, daß in den Jahren vor dem Zahnwechsel durchaus die vererbten Merkmale in dem Kinde das Maßgebende sind. Das Kind erhält sozusagen von Vater und Mutter einen Modellkörper, der bis zum Zahnwechsel vollständig abgeworfen wird, und der wird während der ersten siebenjährigen Lebensepoche durch einen neuen Körper ersetzt. Der Zahnwechsel ist ja nur der äußere Ausdruck dieses Ersatzes durch einen neuen Körper, an dem das Seelisch-Geistige nun arbeitet. Ich habe Ihnen gesagt: Ist das Seelisch-Geistige stark, dann wird unter Umständen das Kind während der Schulperiode vom Zahnwechsel bis zur Geschlechtsreife sich sehr ändern gegenüber den Eigenschaften, die es vorher gehabt hat. Ist die Individualität schwach, so wird etwas zustande kommen, was den Vererbungsmerkmalen sehr ähnlich ist. Und noch bei dem volksschulmäßigen Kinde werden wir auf tiefgehende Ähnlichkeiten mit den Eltern oder Voreltern hinzusehen haben.
Nun müssen wir uns darüber klar sein, daß mit dem Zahnwechsel eigentlich erst die selbständige Tätigkeit des Ätherleibes des Menschen beginnt. Der Ätherleib hat in den ersten sieben Lebensjahren mit allem, was er an selbständiger Betätigung aufbringen kann, zu tun, um den zweiten physischen Körper wirklich zu bilden. So daß dieser Ätherleib in den ersten sieben Lebensjahren ein ausgesprochener innerer Künstler im Kinde ist, ein Plastiker, ein Bildhauer. Diese bildhauerische Kraft, die da vom Ätherleib auf den physischen Leib angewendet wird, wird frei, emanzipiert sich mit dem siebenten Lebensjahre mit dem Zahnwechsel. Sie kann sich dann seelisch betätigen.
Daher hat das Kind durchaus den Drang, Formen plastisch oder auch malerisch zu bilden. Der Ätherleib hat ja die sieben ersten Lebensjahre hindurch an dem physischen Leib plastiziert und gemalt. Jetzt will er diese Tätigkeit, da er an dem physischen Leib nichts weiter oder wenigstens nicht so viel zu tun hat, außen ausführen. Wenn Sie daher als Lehrer selber recht gut kennen, welche Formen am menschlichen Organismus vorkommen, und daher wissen, was das Kind aus plastischen Stoffen heraus gern formt oder was es mit Farben gerne hinmalt, dann werden Sie dem Kinde eine gute Anleitung geben können. Sie müssen aber selber eine Art künstlerischer Anschauung haben vom menschlichen Organismus. Daher ist es schon wichtig für den Lehrer, weil die heutige Seminarbildung darinnen noch gar nichts tut, daß er versucht, sich selber plastisch zu betätigen. Sie werden sehen, wenn Sie noch soviel gelernt haben über eine Lunge oder über eine Leber, oder sagen wir, irgendwelche verwickelten Zusammenhänge von Gefäßen, Sie wissen nicht soviel, als wenn Sie das Ganze einmal in Wachs oder in Plastilin nachbilden. Da fangen Sie plötzlich an, ganz anders über die Sache zu wissen. Bei der Lunge müssen Sie ja die eine Hälfte anders bilden als die andere. Sie ist ja nicht symmetrisch. Die eine hat deutlich zwei, die andere sogar drei Abschnitte. Bevor Sie das lernen, vergessen Sie überhaupt immer wiederum, was links und rechts ist. Wenn Sie diese merkwürdigen asymmetrischen Formen in Wachs oder Plastilin herausbilden, dann bekommen Sie das Gefühl, Sie können nicht das Linke rechts und das Rechte links herumstellen, geradesowenig, wie Sie das Herz auf der rechten Seite machen können. Sie bekommen auch das Gefühl, das sitzt darinnen in seiner Form im Organismus. Sie bekommen das Gefühl, wenn Sie es richtig ausbilden, daß es gar nicht anders möglich ist, als daß die Lunge nach und nach in eine aufrechte Stellung geht, daß sie sich aufrichtet beim Gehen. Wenn Sie dann Lungenformen von Tieren bilden, so werden Sie sehen, oder Sie greifen es der Form an, daß die Lunge horizontal liegt. Und so auch bei anderen Organen.
So müssen Sie versuchen, wirklich plastisch Anatomie zu treiben, um etwas, was gar nicht den menschlichen Körper nachahmt, sondern nur Formen hat, um das beim Kinde formen oder auch malen zu lassen. Und Sie werden sehen, das Kind hat den Drang, Formen zu machen, die an das Innere des menschlichen Organismus anknüpfen. Man bekommt da sogar ganz merkwürdige Erfahrungen im Laufe des Unterrichts.
Wir haben ja, weil das für eine solche Methode, wie die Waldorfschul-Methode selbstverständlich ist, überall den Menschenkundeunterricht angefügt, namentlich so in der 4., 5., 6., 7. Klasse. Die Kinder malen bei uns schon vom Anfange an, und von einem gewissen Lebensalter an bildhauern sie auch. Nun ist es sehr interessant, wenn man die Kinder einfach so darauflos arbeiten läßt, nachdem man ihnen etwas erklärt hat vom Menschen, die Lunge oder ein anderes Organ, dann fangen sie an, solche Formen aufzubauen, wie die Lunge oder die dem ähnlich sind, und zwar ganz von selber. Das ist sehr interessant zu sehen, wie das Kind aus seiner eigenen Menschenwesenheit heraus formt. Und deshalb ist es so notwendig, daß Sie sich auf diese plastische Methode wirklich einlassen, sich Mittel suchen, wodurch Sie in die Lage kommen, die Formen der menschlichen Organe sinngemäß wirklich nachzubilden, mit Wachs oder in Plastilin oder meinetwillen - wie es oftmals auch unsere Kinder machen - in Straßenschmutz. Nun ja, wenn man anderes Material nicht hat, so ist das ein sehr gutes Material.
Das ist der innere Drang, die innere Sehnsucht des Ätherleibes: so plastisch-malerisch tätig zu sein. Daher kann man sehr leicht an diesen Drang, an diese Sehnsucht anknüpfen und so die Buchstaben aus den Formen hervorholen, die das Kind malt, oder auch aus den Formen, die das Kind plastisch ausbildet, weil man wirklich aus Menschenerkenntnis heraus dann den Unterricht gestaltet. Das muß auf jener Stufe geschehen.
Nun weiter. Der Mensch besteht ja nicht nur aus seinem physischen Leib und dem Ätherleib, der dann mit dem 7. Jahre sich emanzipiert und frei wird, sondern auch noch aus dem astralischen Leib und dem Ich. Was ist denn mit dem astralischen Leib bei dem Kinde zwischen dem 7. und 14. Lebensjahre? Der kommt zur vollen Tätigkeit eigentlich erst mit der Geschlechtsreife. Da wirkt er erst ganz im menschlichen Organismus drinnen. Aber während zwischen der Geburt und dem Zahnwechsel der ätherische Leib gewissermaßen aus dem physischen herausgezogen wird, selbständig wird, zieht man zwischen dem 7. und 14. Jahre den astralischen Leib nun nach und nach an; und wenn er ganz angezogen ist, wenn der astralische Leib nicht mehr bloß lose verbunden ist, sondern den physischen und Ätherleib ganz innig durchdringt, dann ist der Mensch auf dem Lebenspunkt der Geschlechtsreife angelangt.
Beim Knaben sieht man an der Verwandlung der Stimme, daß der astralische Leib nun ganz im Kehlkopf drinnen ist; bei der Frau an der Ausbildung anderer Organe, Brustorgane und so weiter, daß der astralische Leib nun ganz eingezogen ist. Der astralische Leib zieht langsam in den menschlichen Leib hinein von allen Seiten.
Die Linien und die Richtungen, die er verfolgt, das sind die Nervenstränge. Den Nervensträngen nach, von außen nach innen, zieht der Astralleib ein. Er fängt da an, von der Umgebung, von der Haut aus allmählich und dann sich innerlich zusammenzuziehen, den ganzen Körper auszufüllen. Vorher ist er eine lose Wolke, in der das Kind lebt. Dann zieht er sich zusammen, ergreift innig all die Organe, verbindet sich, wenn wir grob sprechen, chemisch mit dem Organismus, mit dem physischen und ätherischen Gewebe.
Aber dabei ist etwas Besonderes der Fall. Wenn da von der Körperperipherie aus der astralische Leib nach innen vordringt, dann dringt er den Nerven nach vor, die sich da dann im Rückgrat vereinigen. (Es wird gezeichnet.) Da oben ist der Kopf. Langsam dringt er auch durch die Kopfnerven vor, krabbelt sich da an den Nerven gegen die Zentralorgane, gegen das Rückenmark, gegen den Kopf hinein, kommt so nach und nach hinein und füllt alles aus.

Was nun besonders in Betracht kommt, das ist die Art, wie die Atmung mit dem ganzen Nervensystem zusammenwirkt. In der Tat, dieses Zusammenwirken der Atmung mit dem ganzen Nervensystem ist etwas ganz Besonderes im menschlichen Organismus. Dafür sollte man als Lehrer, als Erzieher das allerfeinste Gefühl haben. Nur dann, wenn man dieses feine Gefühl hat, wird man richtig unterrichten können. Es geht da also die Atemluft in den Körper hinein, breitet sich aus, geht durch den Rückenmarkskanal da hinauf (siehe Zeichnung), breitet sich im Gehirn aus, kommt immer zusammen mit den Nervensträngen, geht wieder herunter und verfolgt die Wege, wodurch sie dann als Kohlensäure ausgestoßen werden kann. So daß wir fortwährend das Nervensystem von der eingeatmeten Luft bearbeitet haben, die sich ausbreitet, durch den Rückenmarkskanal hinaufgeht, sich ausbreitet, mit Kohlenstoff sich durchdringt, wiederum zurückgeht und ausgeatmet wird. Dieses ganze Atmen, wie es längs der Nervenstränge geht, wird erst im Laufe der Zeit, in der das Kind gerade schulpflichtig ist, zwischen dem Zahnwechsel und der Geschlechtsreife ganz eingeschaltet von seiten des astralischen Leibes in den physischen Leib. So daß der astralische Leib in dieser Zeit, indem er sich nach und nach mit Hilfe der Atemluft hineinschaltet, auf demjenigen spielt, was da wie Saiten aufgespannt ist, in der Mitte auf dem Rückenmarkskanal. Es ist wirklich eine Art von Leier, ein Musikinstrument, unsere Nerven, richtig ein innerliches Musikinstrument, das da in den Kopf hinauftönt.
Und wenn der Zahnwechsel beginnt - es ist natürlich schon früher der Fall, aber da ist der Astralleib noch lose -, aber mit dem Zahnwechsel beginnt der astralische Leib deutlich sich mit der Atemluft der einzelnen Nervenstränge wie Saiten einer Violine zu bedienen.
Das alles aber wird befördert, wenn Sie dem Kinde dasjenige beibringen, was gesanglich ist. Und Sie müssen ein Gefühl haben, das Kind ist ein Musikinstrument, indem es singt; müssen vor der Klasse stehen, wo Sie Gesangunterricht, Musikunterricht erteilen, mit dem deutlichen Gefühl: Jedes Kind ist ein Musikinstrument und fühlt innerlich das Wohlgefühl des Tönens.
Denn das Tönen wird durch diese besondere Zirkulation des Atems bewirkt. Das ist innerliche Musik. Und daher muß man, während das Kind anfangs, in den ersten sieben Lebensjahren, alles durch Nachahmung nur lernt, nun versuchen, daß das Kind jetzt nach innerem Wohlgefühl, das es bekommt beim Melodienbilden, beim Rhythmenbilden, den Gesang lernt. Wenn Sie vor der Klasse stehen und Gesangunterricht erteilen, müssen Sie eine Vorstellung haben, für die ich einen Vergleich gebrauchen möchte, der etwas ins Grobe geht, aber der Ihnen das, was ich meine, deutlich machen wird. Ich weiß nicht, wie viele von Ihnen, aber hoffentlich werden die meisten es schon dahin gebracht haben, einmal eine Kuhherde sich anzuschauen, wenn die Kuhherde gefressen hat und daliegt auf der Weide und nun verdaut. Solch ein Verdauen einer Kuhherde ist tatsächlich etwas ganz Wunderbares. Da ist in der Kuh etwas wie ein Abbild der ganzen Welt vorhanden. Die Kuh empfindet in ihrem Verdauungsapparat, in ihrem Ernährungsapparat, wenn da verdaut wird, wenn da die verarbeiteten Speisen übergehen in Blutgefäße, Lymphgefäße, wenn das alles vor sich geht, empfindet die Kuh ein solches Wohlgefallen, das zu gleicher Zeit Erkenntnis ist. Jede Kuh hat eine wunderbare Aura beim Verdauen, in der sich die ganze Welt spiegelt. Es ist das Schönste, was man sehen kann, solch eine Kuhherde, auf der Wiese liegend, verdauend und im Verdauen die ganze Welt begreifend. Bei uns Menschen ist das alles ins Unterbewußte hinuntergerückt, damit der Kopf das spiegeln kann, was der Körper sich erkennend verarbeitet.
Wir sind tatsächlich schlecht daran als Menschen, weil der Kopf es nicht dazu kommen läßt, die schönen Dinge wirklich zu erleben, die zum Beispiel die Kühe erleben. Wir würden viel mehr von der Welt wissen, wenn wir zum Beispiel den Verdauungsvorgang erleben könnten. Wir müßten ihn dann natürlich nur wirklich mit dem Gefühl des Erkennens erleben, nicht mit dem Gefühl, das der Mensch hat, wenn er im Unterbewußten bleibt im Verdauungsvorgang. Nun, das sollte uns klarmachen, was ich eigentlich sagen will. Ich will damit nicht sagen, der Verdauungsvorgang sei in der Pädagogik nun ins Bewußtsein heraufzubringen, aber ich will sagen, daß etwas auf einer höheren Stufe wirklich beim Kinde vorhanden sein muß: dieses Wohlgefühl des inneren Verlaufes eines Tönens. Denken Sie nur, wenn die Violine fühlen würde, was in ihr vorgeht! Wir hören der Violine nur zu, die ist draußen, wir sind fremd dem ganzen Entstehen des Tones, wir hören nur den äußeren Sinnesschein davon. Wenn die Violine empfinden könnte, wie jede Saite vibriert mit der anderen, die würde ja Seligkeiten erleben - vorausgesetzt, daß das Stück gut ist. So müssen Sie das Kind diese kleinen Seligkeiten erleben lassen, müssen wirklich Musikgefühl im ganzen Organismus hervorrufen, selber richtig Freude daran haben.
Natürlich muß man etwas von Musik verstehen. Aber zum Unterrichten gehört dieses künstlerische Element, das ich eben jetzt auseinandergesetzt habe.
Daher ist es notwendig, weil das der wirkliche Verlauf der Vorgänge im Menschenwesen zwischen dem Zahnwechsel und der Geschlechtsreife fordert, ganz von Anfang an mit den Kindern auch Musikunterricht zu treiben und möglichst zunächst das Kind gewöhnen, ganz empirisch, ohne Theorie, kleine Liedchen zu singen. Ja nichts anderes als kleine Liedchen singen lassen, und die aber gut singen! Und nach und nach erst zum Einfacheren übergehen, damit das Kind erst nach und nach sich aneignet, was Melodie, Rhythmus, Takt ist und so weiter. Zunächst aus dem Ganzen heraus die Kinder gewöhnen, einfache Liedchen zu singen, einfach zu spielen auch, so gut es nur geht. Wenn nicht die Anlage ganz dagegen spricht, beginnen wir in der Waldorfschule sogleich, wenn die Kinder in die Schule kommen, sie auch auf irgendeinem Instrument spielen zu lassen, ein Instrument gleich handhaben zu lernen, wie gesagt, so gut es die Möglichkeiten gestatten. Aber man sollte die Kinder veranlassen, möglichst früh zu fühlen, wie das ist, wenn das eigene musikalische Wesen nun hinüberfließt in das objektive Instrument. Dazu ist das Klavier, das ja eigentlich nur eine Art Memorierinstrument sein sollte, natürlich am schlechtesten anzuwenden für das Kind. Man sollte ein anderes Instrument bei dem Kinde verwenden, womöglich ein Instrument, auf dem geblasen werden kann. Aber natürlich muß man dabei sehr viel künstlerischen Takt haben und sehr viel auch, ich möchte sagen, Autorität haben. Also womöglich solch ein Instrument, wo geblasen werden kann. Davon haben die Kinder am allermeisten, wenn sie irgendein einfaches Blasinstrument handhaben lernen und allmählich Musik verstehen lernen. Natürlich kann man die allerschlimmsten Erfahrungen machen, wenn die Kinder zu blasen anfangen. Aber es ist auf der anderen Seite etwas Wunderbares im Erleben des Kindes, wenn es diese ganze Konfiguration der Luft, die es sonst umwebt, innerlich längs der Nervenstränge hält, nun fortsetzen muß und hineinleiten muß. Da fühlt der Mensch seinen Organismus vergrößert. Vorgänge, die sonst nur im Organismus drinnen sind, werden auf die Außenwelt übergeleitet. Ähnlich ist es auch, wenn das Kind Violine spielen lernt, wo die Vorgänge, die Musik, die da lebt, direkt übertragen wird, wo der Mensch fühlt, wie das Musikalische in ihm durch den Bogen auf die Saiten übergeht und so weiter.
Aber möglichst früh gerade diesen Unterricht im Musikalischen und im Gesanglichen bei den Kindern beginnen! Das ist etwas, was von einer ganz besonderen Bedeutung ist, daß man nicht nur artistisch allen Unterricht erteilt, sondern auch mit dem eigentlich Artistischen, mit dem Malen, mit dem plastischen Arbeiten und mit dem Musikalischen sogleich beginnt, wenn das Kind in die Volksschule kommt, und darauf sieht, daß das alles wirklich inneres menschliches Eigentum wird.
Es ist von besonderer Wichtigkeit, daß wir den Punkt in der Lebensentwickelung des Kindes zwischen dem 9. und 10. Jahre mit Bezug auf die Erlernung des Sprachlichen ins Auge fassen. Ich habe Ihnen ja diesen Punkt zwischen dem 9. und 10. Jahre charakterisiert, wo das Kind eigentlich erst lernt, sich von seiner Umgebung zu unterscheiden. Bis dahin fühlt es sich eins mit seiner Umgebung. Wir werden also sachgemäß mit dem Kinde so beginnen, wie ich es angedeutet habe, wenn es in die Schule kommt. Es sollte eigentlich nicht in die Schule kommen, bevor der Zahnwechsel beginnt. Alles frühere schulmäßige Lernen ist im Grunde genommen Unfug; wenn wir durch die Gesetze gezwungen werden, müssen wir es ja tun, aber sachgemäß pädagogisch-künstlerisch ist es nicht. Sachgemäß pädagogisch-künstlerisch ist, das Kind erst mit dem Zahnwechsel in die Schule hereinzubekommen. Dann hat man es zunächst, wie ich angedeutet habe, mit dem Künstlerischen beginnend, damit zu tun, die Buchstabenformen aus dem Künstlerischen herauszuarbeiten; daß man auch in dieser Weise mit dem selbständig Künstlerischen beginnt, wie ich es auseinandergesetzt habe, daß man alles dasjenige, was sich auf die Natur bezieht, in der märchenhaften, legendenhaften, mythenhaften Art behandelt, wie ich es auch auseinandergesetzt habe. Aber wichtig ist, in bezug auf den Sprachunterricht Rücksicht zu nehmen auf diese Lebensepoche zwischen dem 9. und 10. Lebensjahr.
Der Sprachunterricht darf unter keinen Umständen, bevor dieser Lebenspunkt eingetreten ist, irgend etwas enthalten von intellektueller Betrachtung der Sprache, also nichts von Grammatik, nichts von Satzbau und dergleichen. Das Kind muß bis zu diesem Lebenspunkt im 9. oder 10. Lebensjahre ganz so sprechen, wie es sonst irgendwelche Gewohnheiten sich aneignet; gewohnheitsmäßig muß es sich das Sprechen aneignen. Erst wenn das Kind sich unterscheiden lernt von der Umgebung, darf auch dasjenige, was das Kind selber vollbringt, also das Sprechen, betrachtet werden. Erst von da ab sollte man von Hauptwort, Eigenschaftswort, Verbum und so weiter sprechen, nicht früher. Vorher soll das Kind einfach sprechen und im Sprechen erhalten sein.
Wir haben ja in der Waldorfschule Gelegenheit, dies durchzuführen, weil sogleich, wenn das Kind zu uns in die Volksschule, in die Elementarschule kommt, es außer seiner Muttersprache zwei fremde Sprachen lernt.
Wir nehmen das Kind in die Schule herein. Es hat zunächst seinen epochenmäßigen Unterricht - ich habe das charakterisiert, was Epochenunterricht ist - in den ersten Schulstunden am Morgen, und daran schließt sich dann gleich für das kleine Kind ein Unterricht im Englischen und Französischen. Dabei versuchen wir diesen Sprachunterricht so zu erteilen, daß gar nicht das Verhältnis der einen Sprache zur anderen dabei in Betracht kommt. Wir sehen vor dem Lebenspunkt, den ich charakterisiert habe, zwischen dem 9. und 10. Jahre ganz ab davon, daß, sagen wir, der Tisch im Deutschen Tisch, im Englischen table heißt, daß essen im Deutschen essen, im Englischen eat heißt. Wir knüpfen jede Sprache nicht an Worte einer anderen Sprache an, sondern an die unmittelbaren Gegenstände. Das Kind lernt benennen, sei es im Französischen, sei es im Englischen, die Decke, die Lampe, den Stuhl. Es wird also im 7., 8., 9. Jahre noch nicht irgendwie Wert aufs Übersetzen gelegt, das heißt aufs Umsetzen eines Wortes aus einer Sprache in die andere, sondern das Kind lernt einfach in der Sprache sprechen in Anlehnung an die äußeren Gegenstände, so daß das Kind gar nicht zu wissen braucht oder nicht daran zu denken braucht, daß, wenn es im Englischen table sagt, das im Deutschen Tisch heißt und so weiter. Das gibt es nicht für das Kind; es kommt gar nicht darauf während der Stunde, denn es wird bis dahin keinerlei Sprachvergleich oder so etwas mit dem Kinde getrieben.
Dadurch bekommt das Kind die Möglichkeit, die Sprache aus dem Elemente heraus zu lernen, und jede Sprache aus dem Elemente, aus dem sie stammt, aus dem Gefühlselemente. - Was ist denn die Sprache in ihren Lauten? - Denn aus Lauten besteht ja die Sprache. Sie ist entweder der Ausdruck von innerem Seelischem, dann steht der Vokal da; oder sie ist der Ausdruck von Äußerlichem, dann steht der Konsonant da. Aber das muß man zuerst fühlen. Nehmen wir an, das Kind soll dasjenige fühlen, was zum Beispiel in dem Worte water liegt. Wir werden das, so wie ich es jetzt sagen werde, nicht im Unterricht gebrauchen, sondern wir sollen nur den Unterricht so einrichten, daß das Kind wirklich mit dem Vokal Gefühl verbindet und mit dem Konsonanten die Nachahmung von etwas Äußerem empfindet. Es tut das Kind das schon, weil das in der menschlichen Wesenheit liegt; aber wir sollen das nicht austreiben, sondern wir sollen daran anknüpfen.
Denn, sehen Sie, was ist A? - Also das gehört nicht zum Unterricht, das dient nur dazu, daß Sie es wissen! - Was ist A? Ich stehe, wenn die Sonne aufgeht, bewundernd vor der aufgehenden Sonne: Ah! A ist immer der Ausdruck des Erstaunens, der Verwunderung. Eine Fliege setzt sich auf meine Stirne, ich mache: E. Das ist der Ausdruck des Abwehrens, des Wegmachens: E. Im Englischen verschiebt sich das gegenüber dem Deutschen, es ist aber doch in jeder Sprache, auch hier der Ausdruck des Erstaunens, des Verwunderns da.
Jetzt nehmen Sie ein charakteristisches Wort: rollen, das Rollen einer Kugel, im Englischen: roll. Da haben Sie das R. Wer sollte da nicht fühlen (siehe Zeichnung I), daß ich es weitergebe, das L. R wäre nur so (Zeichnung II). Z geht weiter. Z ist immer das Werterfließen. Roll, da haben Sie einen äußeren Vorgang in den Konsonanten nachgeahmt (siehe Zeichnung II).

So ist die ganze Sprache entweder aus dem Gefühl des inneren Erstaunens, Verwunderns, Sichwehrens, Sichbehauptens und so weiter und aus dem Nachahmegefühl bei den Konsonanten zu verstehen. Das soll man dem Kinde nicht austreiben. Es soll fühlen lernen an den Gegenständen und an seinem Gefühlsverhältnis zu den Gegenständen, den Laut zu entfalten. Es soll alles aus dem Sprachgefühl heraus geholt werden. Das Kind soll wirklich bei dem roll fühlen: r-o-l-l. So ist es bei jedem Worte.
Das hat ja der moderne zivilisierte Mensch ganz verloren. Er glaubt, das Wort ist etwas Aufgeschriebenes oder irgend etwas ganz Abstraktes. Der Mensch kann sich ja gar nicht mehr eigentlich in die Sprache hineinleben. Primitive Sprachen, die haben noch überall das Gefühl in der Sprache; die zivilisiertesten Sprachen, die machen die Sprache abstrakt. Sehen Sie nur einmal in der eigenen englischen Sprache, wie die zweite Hälfte der Worte weggeworfen, weggeschleudert wird, wie man da über das eigentliche Fühlen in den Lauten wegspringt! Aber das Kind muß im Gefühl der Sprache erhalten bleiben.
Und dieses Sprachgefühl sollte man, indem man charakteristische Worte nimmt, an denen man dies Gefühl erörtern kann, geradezu pflegen. Im Deutschen haben wir für das, was der Mensch da oben hat, das Wort Kopf. Im Englischen haben wir head, im Italienischen haben wir testa. Nun, was tut man, wenn man sich zu der Sprache so abstrakt verhält, wie man das gewöhnlich tut? Man sagt, im Deutschen heißt der Kopf: Kopf, im Italienischen testa, im Englischen head, Aber das ist ja alles nicht wahr, das ist ja alles Unsinn.
Sehen Sie, Kopf, was ist das? Kopf ist dasjenige, was geformt ist, so rundlich geformt ist. Da drückt man die Form aus, wenn man Kopf sagt. Sagt man testa, Sie sehen das in dem Worte "Testament, testieren, so drückt man aus, daß der Kopf etwas feststellt. Man drückt etwas ganz anderes aus. Man sagt zu dem, was da droben sitzt: das ist der Feststeller, der Testierer = testa. Im Englischen ist man der Ansicht, daß der Kopf das Hauptsächlichste des Menschen ist. Sie wissen Ja, diese Ansicht ist nicht ganz richtig. Man sagt also im Englischen bead, das Wichtigste, dasjenige, wohin alles zielt, worinnen alles zuammenkommt.
Man drückt also Verschiedenes aus. Es wird in den verschiedenen Sprachen Verschiedenes ausgedrückt. Wollte man dasselbe bezeichnen, würde der Engländer und der Italiener ebenso Kopf sagen. Aber er bezeichnet nicht dasselbe. In der menschlichen Ursprache wurde überall dasselbe bezeichnet. Daher ist die menschliche Ursprache für alle dieselbe gewesen. Dann haben sich die Menschen getrennt, haben die Dinge verschieden bezeichnet; dadurch kamen die verschiedenen Worte. Wenn man Verschiedenes als «gleich» bezeichnet, dann wird nicht mehr gefühlt, was drinnen ist. Und das ist sehr notwendig, daß man das Sprachgefühl nicht heraustreibe; das muß drinnen bleiben. Deshalb darf man auch eine Sprachbetrachtung nicht vor dem 9. oder 10. Jahre eintreten lassen.
Da erst sollte man übergehen zu dem, was Hauptwort, Zeitwort ist, Substantiv, Adjektiv, Verbum und so weiter, nicht früher, nicht vor dem 9. oder 10. Jahre; sonst betrachtet man am Kinde etwas, was an ihm selber ist. Das kann es aber nicht fassen, weil es sich noch nicht unterscheidet von seiner Umgebung. Und das ist sehr wichtig, unmittelbar ins Auge zu fassen: nichts von Grammatik, auch nichts von Sprachvergleichung vor dem 9. oder 10. Lebensjahr eintreten zu lassen! Dann bekommt das Kind etwas Ähnliches beim Sprechen, wie es beim Singen bekommt.
Ich habe versucht, dieses innere Wohlgefühl beim Singen zu veranschaulichen durch das innere Wohlgefühl, welches aufsteigt aus den Verdauungsorganen der Kühe auf der Weide, wenn sie verdauen. Und ein solches inneres Wohlgefühl, oder wenigstens Sachgefühl, so daß die Kinder fühlen, was in einem Worte ist, daß sie das innerliche «Rollen» fühlen, das muß vorhanden sein. Es muß innerlich die Sprache erlebt werden, nicht bloß mit dem Kopf gedacht werden. Heute denken zumeist die Menschen die Sprache nur noch mit dem Kopf. Daher nehmen sie eben einfach, wenn sie wissen wollen, was in einer Sprache richtig ist, was von einer Sprache in die andere übersetzt werden soll, ein Wörterbuch. Die Wörter sind da so zusammengestellt, daß da «testa» oder «Kopf» steht. Und so bildet sich das Gefühl, als ob das gleich wäre. Es ist aber nicht gleich. Es ist immer etwas anderes bezeichnet. Und das kann nur aus dem Gefühl heraus bezeichnet werden. Das ist notwendig zu berücksichtigen beim Sprachunterricht. Dazu kommt noch ein anderes - geistiges Element. Wenn der Mensch stirbt oder bevor er auf die Erde heruntersteigt, hat er zum Beispiel gar keine Möglichkeit, sogenannte Substantiva zu verstehen. Der sogenannte Tote weiß gar nichts von Substantiven. Was da von Gegenständen benannt wird, davon weiß er nichts. Er weiß noch etwas von Eigenschaften. Man hat also eine Möglichkeit, sich mit den Toten zu verständigen über Eigenschaften. Das hört auch bald auf. Am längsten dauert das Verständigen über Verben, über Tätigkeitsworte, aktive und passive Bezeichnungen, und am allerlängsten die Bezeichnung der Empfindungen: Oh! Ah! I, E; diese Interjektionsbezeichnungen bewahrt sich der Tote am allerlängsten.
Daraus können Sie auch sehen, wie die menschliche Seele darauf angewiesen ist, wenn sie nicht ganz ungeistig werden soll, in den Interjektionen wirklich zu leben. Interjektionen sind ja in Wirklichkeit alle Vokale. Und die Konsonanten, die ja ohnedies sehr bald auch als solche verlorengehen nach dem Tode oder nicht vorhanden waren vor dem Herabsteigen zur Erde, die sind Nachahmungen des Äußeren. Das sollen wir im Gefühl wirklich erleben und darauf sehen, wo das beim Kinde liegt, und es nicht austreiben durch einen frühzeitigen Unterricht in Substantiven, Adjektiven und so weiter, sondern den eigentlich erst zwischen dem 9. und 10. Jahr beginnen lassen.
Wir haben nun in der Waldorfschule vom Anfange des Volksschulunterrichtes an die Eurythmie eingeführt, diese sichtbare Sprache, in der der Mensch durch Bewegungen, die er an sich selbst und in Gruppen ausführt, sich so offenbart, wie er sich sonst durch die Sprache offenbart. Nun ist es tatsächlich so, wenn das Kind nicht im Sprachunterricht verdorben wird durch einen das Sprachgefühl nicht berücksichtigenden Erzieher, wenn es also im Sprachgefühl erhalten wird, dann empfindet das Kind den Übergang zur Eurythmie gerade so selbstverständlich für den Menschen, wie das ganz kleine Kind es selbstverständlich findet, die Lautsprache zu lernen. Man hat nicht die geringste Schwierigkeit, Eurythmie an die Kinder heranzubringen. Sie wollen sie, wenn sie gesund entwickelte Kinder sind. Man kann immer nachforschen, wie irgendwo etwas Pathologisches sitzt, wenn die Kinder nicht an die Eurythmie herankommen wollen. Sie wollen ebenso selbstverständlich eurythmisieren, wie sie als ganz kleine Kinder sprechen lernen wollen, wenn die Organe alle gesund sind. Das ist aus dem Grunde, weil das Kind besonders kräftig den Drang fühlt, das innerlich Erlebte auch willensgemäß an sich zum Ausdruck zu bringen. Das äußert sich ja schon dann, wenn der Mensch als Kind frühzeitig zum Lachen und Weinen übergeht, in den besonderen physiognomischen Äußerungen für Gefühle.
Sie werden schon recht sehr in Metaphern, in Vergleichen sprechen müssen, wenn Sie von einem Hund oder einem anderen Tier sagen wollen, es lache. Es lacht jedenfalls nicht in derselben Weise wie der Mensch, weint auch nicht wie der Mensch. So aber sind beim Tiere überhaupt Gebärden, Bewegungen, die das innerlich Erlebte in das Willenselement hineintragen, etwas ganz anderes als beim Menschen.
Nun, so gesetzmäßig, wie der Mensch spricht, ist auch dasjenige, was in der Eurythmie zum Ausdrucke kommt. Sprechen ist ja nichts Willkürliches. Man kann nicht, wenn es im Englischen zum Beispiel water heißt, an Stelle des a auch einen anderen Vokal hersetzen, man kann nicht sagen: water und dergleichen. Fs ist gesetzmäßig, das Sprechen. So ist auch das Eurythmische gesetzmäßig. Bei den gewöhnlichen Gebärden des Leibes ist man noch in gewissem Sinne frei, obwohl der Mensch auch da manches aus einem Instinkt heraus macht. Wenn er nachdenkt, dann greift er mit den Fingern an die Stirn; wenn er andeuten will, daß etwas nicht wahr ist, macht er so ..., er schüttelt den Kopf und die Hand, löscht es aus. Das innere und äußere Erleben in so gesetzmäßigen Bewegungen überführen in das Bild, wie die Sprache das innere Erleben in den Laut überführt, das ist eben die Furythmie; und das Kind will Eurythmie lernen. Deshalb ist die Tatsache, daß in der heutigen Erziehung nicht schon Eurythmieunterricht ist, ein Beweis dafür, daß man gar nicht darauf bedacht ist, die menschlichen Fähigkeiten aus der Natur, aus dem Wesen des Menschen herauszuholen; denn dann kommt man ganz von selbst auf die Eurythmie, wenn man das tut.
Dadurch wird dem Turnunterricht, dem Unterricht in den Leibesübungen kein Abbruch getan, aber es ist etwas anderes, und man soll diesen Unterschied als Lehrer, als Erzieher gut einsehen. Es ist der gymnastische Unterricht, wie er heute getrieben werden kann, und alles sportliche Treiben und so weiter etwas anderes als Eurythmie. Beide können nebeneinander sehr gut bestehen. Denn sehen Sie, der Begriff des Raumes wird ja von den Menschen sehr häufig ganz abstrakt gefaßt, die Menschen nehmen keine Rücksicht darauf, daß der Raum etwas Konkretes ist. Nicht wahr, die Menschen haben sich heute so daran gewöhnt, die Erde rund zu denken, daß sie sich vorstellen: Derjenige, der hier wohnt, sagt, wenn er springt, er springt hinauf. Sein Gegenfüßler, der da unten die Beine und da oben den Kopf hat, der springt hinunter, so denkt sich der Mensch. Aber das ist ja nichts Erlebbares. - Ich habe einmal ein Buch gelesen, Anschauungen über Naturphilosophie, da wollte der Autor dieses, daß der Himmel oben ist, dadurch lächerlich machen, indem er sagte: Da unten bei den Antipoden ist dann der Himmel unten! - Aber so arm sind die Dinge nicht. Wir urteilen nicht so über die Welt und den Raum, daß wir uns ganz ausschalten und den Raum als irgend etwas Abstraktes hinstellen. Das tun bestimmte Philosophen, Hume und Mill und Kant. Aber das ist ja alles nicht wahr, ist eigentlich ein Unsinn. Der Raum ist etwas ganz Konkretes und vom Menschen Empfundenes. Und der Mensch fühlt sich im Raume drinnen und fühlt die Notwendigkeit, sich in den Raum hineinzustellen. Wenn er sich ins Gleichgewicht des Raumes, in die verschiedenen Lagen des Raumes hineinstellt, so entsteht das Sportliche, das Gymnastische, das Turnen. Da will der Mensch sich hineinlagern in den Raum.
Wer zum Beispiel diese gymnastische Bewegung macht (Arme gestreckt), der hat das Gefühl, er legt seine beiden Arme in die horizontale Richtung hinein. Wer springt, der hat das Gefühl, seinen Körper durch dessen eigene Kraft nach aufwärts zu bewegen. Das ist Turnen. Das sind gymnastische Übungen.
Wer das Gefühl hat, er hält etwas innerlich Empfundenes, I, sinnend, der macht vielleicht auch diese Bewegung, aber da wird das innere Seelische in die Bewegung hineingelegt. Da offenbart der Mensch sein Inneres. Das tut er in der Eurythmie. Eurythmie ist also die Offenbarung des Inneren. In der Eurythmie wird dasjenige, was der Mensch erleben kann beim Atmen, bei der Blutzirkulation, insofern diese seelisch werden, zum Ausdruck gebracht. Beim Turnen, bei Gymnastik, Sport fühlt der Mensch, als ob der Raum überall Richtungen und Stellagen und alles mögliche hätte. In die springt er hinein, nach denen richtet er sich, macht sich auch solche Geräte zurecht. Er klettert auf einer Leiter hinauf, er zieht sich an einem Seil hinauf und so weiter. Da richtet sich der Mensch nach dem äußeren Raume.
Das ist der Unterschied zwischen der Gymnastik und der Eurythmie. Die Eurythmie läßt das seelische Leben nach außen fließen und wird dadurch zu einer wirklichen Äußerung des Menschen, wie die Sprache; sie ist eine sichtbare Sprache.
Durch das Turnen, die Gymnastik, den Sport fügt sich der Mensch in den äußeren Raum hinein, paßt sich der Welt an, probiert, ob er so und so in die Welt hineinpaßt. Das ist nicht eine Sprache, das ist nicht eine Offenbarung des Menschen, sondern das ist eine Forderung der Welt an den Menschen, daß er für die Welt tüchtig sein kann, daß er sich in die Welt hineinfinden kann. Und diesen Unterschied muß man merken.
Dieser Unterschied drückt sich darinnen aus, daß der Turnlehrer, der Gymnastiklehrer die Kinder dazu veranlaßt, solche Bewegungen zu machen, wodurch sie sich der Außenwelt anpassen.
Der Eurythmielehrer drückt dasjenige aus, was im Innern des Menschen ist. Das muß man wiederum fühlen, empfinden; dann werden Eurythmie-, Turn- und Gymnastikunterricht, meinetwillen auch Sportübungen, die richtige Stellung im Unterrichte haben. Darüber wollen wir dann morgen weitersprechen.
Sixth Lecture
Following on from what has been said, we now want to discuss a few more things that may relate to the method, and I would like to point out that, of course, in the few lectures that can be given here, it is not possible to elaborate on the individual pedagogical hints, so to speak, that I have given, but we can only discuss principles. And you will then also study the seminar courses of the Waldorf School and be able to understand them thoroughly if you receive these hints here.
We must take another close look at the child between the change of teeth and sexual maturity, and be clear that in the years before the change of teeth, the inherited characteristics in the child are definitely the decisive factor. The child receives, so to speak, a model body from its father and mother, which is completely discarded by the time the teeth change, and is replaced by a new body during the first seven-year period of life. The change of teeth is only the outward expression of this replacement by a new body, on which the soul and spirit are now working. I have told you: if the soul and spirit are strong, then under certain circumstances the child will change greatly during the school period from the change of teeth to sexual maturity compared to the characteristics it had before. If the individuality is weak, something will come about that is very similar to the hereditary characteristics. And even in children of elementary school age, we will have to look for profound similarities with their parents or ancestors.
Now we must be clear that it is only with the change of teeth that the independent activity of the human etheric body actually begins. During the first seven years of life, the etheric body has to do everything it can in terms of independent activity to really form the second physical body. So that during the first seven years of life, this etheric body is a distinct inner artist in the child, a sculptor, a sculptor. This sculptural power, which is applied by the etheric body to the physical body, becomes free, emancipates itself at the age of seven with the change of teeth. It can then become active in the soul.
This is why children have such a strong urge to create forms, either sculpturally or through painting. The etheric body has been sculpting and painting on the physical body throughout the first seven years of life. Now that it has nothing more to do, or at least not as much to do, on the physical body, it wants to carry out this activity externally. If, as a teacher, you are well acquainted with the forms that occur in the human organism and therefore know what the child likes to shape from plastic materials or what it likes to paint with colors, then you will be able to give the child good guidance. However, you yourself must have a kind of artistic view of the human organism. It is therefore important for the teacher, because today's teacher training does not do anything in this area, to try to engage in plastic arts themselves. You will see that even if you have learned a great deal about the lungs or the liver, or, say, the complex interrelationships of blood vessels, you will not know as much as you would if you were to model the whole thing in wax or plasticine. Suddenly you begin to understand the subject in a completely different way. With the lung, you have to form one half differently from the other. It is not symmetrical. One has two distinct sections, the other even three. Before you learn this, you always forget which is left and which is right. When you form these strange asymmetrical shapes in wax or plasticine, you get the feeling that you cannot turn the left side to the right and the right side to the left, just as you cannot make the heart on the right side. You also get the feeling that it sits there in its form in the organism. You get the feeling that if you shape it correctly, there is no other possibility than for the lungs to gradually move into an upright position, to straighten up when walking. When you then form the lungs of animals, you will see, or you will grasp from the shape, that the lungs lie horizontally. And so it is with other organs.
So you must try to teach anatomy in a truly plastic way, using something that does not imitate the human body at all, but only has forms, to let the child shape or paint it. And you will see that the child has the urge to make forms that connect to the interior of the human organism. You even have some very strange experiences in the course of teaching.
Because this is a natural part of the Waldorf school method, we have incorporated human studies into all grades, namely in grades 4, 5, 6, and 7. The children paint from the very beginning, and from a certain age they also sculpt. Now, it is very interesting when you simply let the children work on this after you have explained something to them about the human being, the lungs or another organ, then they begin to build shapes that are similar to the lungs or other organs, and they do this all by themselves. It is very interesting to see how the child shapes from its own human nature. And that is why it is so necessary that you really engage with this plastic method, find means by which you can truly recreate the forms of human organs in a meaningful way, with wax or plasticine or, for that matter, as our children often do, with street dirt. Well, if you don't have any other material, that is a very good material.
This is the inner urge, the inner longing of the etheric body: to be active in a plastic-pictorial way. Therefore, it is very easy to connect with this urge, this longing, and thus bring out the letters from the forms that the child paints, or also from the forms that the child shapes plastically, because then you are really designing the lessons out of an understanding of the human being. This must be done at that stage.
Now let's continue. The human being does not consist only of their physical body and the etheric body, which then emancipates itself and becomes free at the age of 7, but also of the astral body and the ego. What happens to the astral body in children between the ages of 7 and 14? It only becomes fully active at puberty. Only then does it begin to work fully within the human organism. But while between birth and the change of teeth the etheric body is, in a sense, drawn out of the physical body and becomes independent, between the ages of 7 and 14 the astral body is gradually drawn in; and when it is completely drawn in, when the astral body is no longer loosely connected but completely permeates the physical and etheric bodies, then the human being has reached the point of sexual maturity.
In boys, the change in their voice shows that the astral body is now completely inside the larynx; in women, the development of other organs, such as the breast organs, etc., shows that the astral body is now completely incorporated. The astral body slowly draws into the human body from all sides.
The lines and directions it follows are the nerve strands. The astral body draws in along the nerve strands, from the outside to the inside. It begins there, gradually contracting from the surroundings, from the skin, and then inwardly, filling the whole body. Before that, it is a loose cloud in which the child lives. Then it contracts, intimately grasping all the organs, connecting itself, roughly speaking, chemically with the organism, with the physical and etheric tissue.
But something special happens in the process. When the astral body penetrates inward from the periphery of the body, it advances along the nerves, which then unite in the spine. (A drawing is made.) The head is at the top. Slowly it also penetrates through the cranial nerves, crawling along the nerves towards the central organs, towards the spinal cord, towards the head, gradually entering and filling everything.

What is particularly noteworthy is the way in which breathing interacts with the entire nervous system. In fact, this interaction between breathing and the entire nervous system is something very special in the human organism. As a teacher or educator, one should have the most refined sensitivity to this. Only when one has this refined sensitivity will one be able to teach properly. So the air we breathe enters the body, spreads out, goes up through the spinal canal (see drawing), spreads out in the brain, always together with the nerve strands, goes back down and follows the pathways through which it can then be expelled as carbon dioxide. So we have continuously worked on the nervous system with the inhaled air, which spreads, goes up through the spinal canal, spreads, permeates with carbon, goes back again and is exhaled. This whole process of breathing, as it travels along the nerve strands, is only fully integrated into the physical body by the astral body during the period when the child is of school age, between the change of teeth and sexual maturity. So that during this time, the astral body, gradually connecting itself with the help of the breath, plays on what is stretched there like strings in the middle of the spinal canal. It is really a kind of lyre, a musical instrument, our nerves, truly an inner musical instrument that sounds up in the head.
And when the teeth begin to change – of course this happens earlier, but then the astral body is still loose – but with the change of teeth, the astral body begins to make clear use of the breath of the individual nerve strands like the strings of a violin.
All of this is promoted when you teach the child what is musical. And you must have a feeling that the child is a musical instrument when it sings; you must stand in front of the class where you teach singing, music, with the clear feeling that every child is a musical instrument and feels the inner well-being of sounding.
For sound is produced by this special circulation of the breath. This is inner music. And therefore, while the child initially, in the first seven years of life, learns everything only by imitation, you must now try to teach the child to sing based on the inner sense of well-being it gets from creating melodies and rhythms. When you stand in front of the class and teach singing, you must have an idea, for which I would like to use a comparison that is somewhat crude, but which will make clear what I mean. I don't know how many of you have done this, but hopefully most of you will have had the opportunity to watch a herd of cows after they have eaten and are lying in the pasture digesting their food. The digestion process of a herd of cows is truly something wonderful. The cow is like a microcosm of the entire world. The cow feels in its digestive system, in its nutritional system, when digestion takes place, when the processed food passes into the blood vessels, the lymph vessels, when all this is going on, the cow feels such pleasure that it is at the same time knowledge. Every cow has a wonderful aura when digesting, in which the whole world is reflected. It is the most beautiful thing to see, such a herd of cows lying in the meadow, digesting and comprehending the whole world in the process of digestion. In us humans, all of this has been relegated to the subconscious so that the head can reflect what the body is processing in a conscious way.
We humans are actually at a disadvantage because our minds do not allow us to truly experience the beautiful things that cows, for example, experience. We would know much more about the world if we could experience the digestive process, for example. Of course, we would then have to experience it with the feeling of recognition, not with the feeling that humans have when they remain in the subconscious during the digestive process. Well, that should make it clear what I actually mean. I am not saying that the digestive process should be brought into consciousness in education, but I am saying that something must really be present in the child at a higher level: this feeling of well-being from the inner process of a sound. Just think if the violin could feel what is going on inside it! We only listen to the violin, which is outside us; we are alien to the whole process of sound production, we only hear its external sensory appearance. If the violin could feel how each string vibrates with the others, it would experience bliss – provided the piece is good. So you must let the child experience these little moments of bliss, you must really evoke a feeling for music in the whole organism, and you yourself must take real pleasure in it.
Of course, you have to understand something about music. But teaching requires this artistic element that I have just explained.
Therefore, because this is what the actual course of events in the human being between the change of teeth and sexual maturity requires, it is necessary to teach children music from the very beginning and, if possible, to first accustom the child to singing little songs in a completely empirical way, without theory. Nothing else but singing little songs, and singing them well! And only gradually move on to simpler things, so that the child gradually learns what melody, rhythm, beat, and so on are. First of all, get the children used to singing simple songs and playing simple tunes as well as they can. If there are no reasons not to do so, we at the Waldorf School begin as soon as the children start school to let them play an instrument, to learn how to handle an instrument, as I said, as well as circumstances permit. But one should encourage the children to feel as early as possible what it is like when their own musical nature flows into the objective instrument. For this purpose, the piano, which is really only a kind of memory instrument, is of course the least suitable for children. Another instrument should be used for children, preferably one that can be blown. But of course, this requires a great deal of artistic tact and, I would say, authority. So, if possible, an instrument that can be blown. Children benefit most when they learn to play a simple wind instrument and gradually learn to understand music. Of course, one can have the worst experiences when children start to blow. But on the other hand, there is something wonderful in the child's experience when it has to continue and channel this whole configuration of air that otherwise surrounds it, holding it internally along the nerve strands. The person feels their organism enlarged. Processes that are otherwise only inside the organism are transferred to the outside world. It is similar when a child learns to play the violin, where the processes, the music that lives there, are directly transmitted, where the person feels how the musicality in them is transferred to the strings through the bow, and so on.
But start teaching children music and singing as early as possible! It is of particular importance that not only artistic instruction is given, but that the actual artistic activities, such as painting, sculpting, and music, are started as soon as the child enters elementary school, and that care is taken to ensure that all of this truly becomes part of the child's inner being.
It is particularly important that we consider the point in the child's development between the ages of 9 and 10 with regard to language learning. I have characterized this point between the ages of 9 and 10, when the child actually learns to distinguish itself from its surroundings. Until then, it feels at one with its surroundings. So we will begin appropriately with the child, as I have indicated, when it starts school. It should not actually start school before the change of teeth begins. All earlier school learning is basically nonsense; if we are forced to do so by law, we must do it, but it is not appropriate from an educational and artistic point of view. It is appropriate from an educational and artistic point of view to only send the child to school once their teeth have started to change. Then, as I have indicated, the first thing to do is to start with the artistic, working out the shapes of the letters from the artistic; that one also begins with independent artistic activity in this way, as I have explained, that one treats everything related to nature in a fairy-tale, legendary, mythical way, as I have also explained. But it is important, with regard to language teaching, to take into account this stage of life between the ages of 9 and 10.
Under no circumstances, before this stage of life has been reached, should language teaching include anything related to the intellectual consideration of language, i.e., nothing about grammar, sentence structure, and the like. Until this stage of life in the 9th or 10th year, the child must speak in the same way as it acquires any other habit; it must acquire speech habitually. Only when the child learns to distinguish itself from its surroundings may what the child itself accomplishes, i.e., speaking, be considered. Only then should we talk about nouns, adjectives, verbs, and so on, not before. Before that, the child should simply speak and be allowed to speak.
We have the opportunity to do this at the Waldorf school because as soon as the child comes to us in elementary school, they learn two foreign languages in addition to their mother tongue.
We welcome the child into the school. First, they have their block lessons – I have described what block lessons are – in the first lessons of the morning, followed immediately by English and French lessons for the young children. We try to teach these languages in such a way that the relationship between one language and the other is not taken into account. Before the stage of life I have described, between the ages of 9 and 10, we completely disregard the fact that, for example, the table is called Tisch in German and table in English, or that essen means to eat in German and eat in English. We do not link each language to words in another language, but to the immediate objects. The child learns to name, whether in French or English, the blanket, the lamp, the chair. So in the 7th, 8th, and 9th years, no importance is attached to translation, that is, to converting a word from one language to another, but the child simply learns to speak in the language based on external objects, so that the child does not need to know or think about the fact that when it says “table” in English, it means “Tisch” in German, and so on. This does not exist for the child; it does not occur to them during the lesson, because up to that point, no language comparison or anything like that has been done with the child.
This gives the child the opportunity to learn the language from its elements, and every language from the elements from which it originates, from the elements of feeling. - What is language in its sounds? - For language consists of sounds. It is either the expression of something inner and spiritual, in which case the vowel is there; or it is the expression of something external, in which case the consonant is there. But one must first feel this. Let us assume that the child should feel what lies in the word “water,” for example. We will not use this in class as I am about to describe it, but we should only structure the lesson in such a way that the child really connects the vowel with feeling and feels the imitation of something external with the consonant. The child already does this because it is inherent in human nature; but we should not drive it out, we should build on it.
For, you see, what is A? – Well, that's not part of the lesson, it's just so that you know! – What is A? When the sun rises, I stand in admiration before the rising sun: Ah! A is always the expression of astonishment, of wonder. A fly lands on my forehead, I make: E. That is the expression of repulsion, of removal: E. In English, this shifts compared to German, but it is still the expression of astonishment, of wonder in every language, including here.
Now take a characteristic word: rolling, the rolling of a ball, in English: roll. There you have the R. Who would not feel (see drawing I) that I am passing it on, the L. R would only be like this (drawing II). Z continues. Z is always the flow of value. Roll, there you have imitated an external process in the consonants (see drawing II).

Thus, the entire language can be understood either from the feeling of inner astonishment, wonder, self-defense, self-assertion, and so on, or from the feeling of imitation in the consonants. This should not be driven out of the child. The child should learn to feel the objects and its emotional relationship to the objects in order to develop the sound. Everything should be drawn out of the feeling for language. The child should really feel the roll: r-o-l-l. This is the case with every word.
Modern civilized man has completely lost this. He believes that a word is something written down or something completely abstract. Man can no longer really empathize with language. Primitive languages still have this feeling in their language; the most civilized languages make language abstract. Just look at your own English language, how the second half of words is thrown away, hurled away, how you jump over the actual feeling in the sounds! But the child must remain in touch with the feeling of language.
And this feeling for language should be cultivated by using characteristic words that can be used to discuss this feeling. In German, we have the word Kopf for what a person has on top of their body. In English, we have head, in Italian we have testa. Well, what do you do when you approach language in such an abstract way, as is usually the case? You say, in German the head is called Kopf, in Italian testa, in English head, but that's not true, that's all nonsense.
You see, Kopf, what is that? Kopf is that which is shaped, shaped in such a round way. You express the shape when you say Kopf. When you say testa, you see that in the words “testament, testate,” you express that the head determines something. You express something completely different. You say to what sits up there: that is the determiner, the testator = testa. In English, it is believed that the head is the most important part of a person. You know, this view is not entirely correct. So in English, one says “bead,” the most important thing, the thing toward which everything is directed, in which everything comes together.
So different things are expressed. Different things are expressed in different languages. If one wanted to refer to the same thing, the English and the Italian would also say “head.” But it does not refer to the same thing. In the original human language, the same thing was referred to everywhere. Therefore, the original human language was the same for everyone. Then people separated and referred to things differently, which led to different words. If you refer to different things as “the same,” then you no longer feel what is inside. And it is very important not to drive out the feeling for language; it must remain inside. That is why language should not be introduced before the age of 9 or 10.
Only then should one move on to what is a noun, a verb, a noun, an adjective, a verb, and so on, not earlier, not before the age of 9 or 10; otherwise, one is looking at something in the child that is part of the child itself. But the child cannot grasp this because it does not yet distinguish itself from its surroundings. And it is very important to keep this in mind: do not introduce anything about grammar or language comparison before the age of 9 or 10! Then the child will experience something similar when speaking as it does when singing.
I have tried to illustrate this inner feeling of well-being when singing by comparing it to the inner feeling of well-being that rises from the digestive organs of cows in the pasture when they digest. And such an inner feeling of well-being, or at least a sense of reality, so that the children feel what is in a word, so that they feel the inner “rolling,” must be present. Language must be experienced internally, not just thought about with the head. Today, most people only think about language with their heads. Therefore, when they want to know what is correct in a language, what should be translated from one language to another, they simply pick up a dictionary. The words are arranged in such a way that “testa” or “head” is listed. And so the feeling arises that they are the same. But they are not the same. It always refers to something different. And that can only be described from a feeling. This must be taken into account when teaching language. There is also another element involved – a spiritual one. When a person dies, or before they descend to earth, they have no way of understanding so-called nouns, for example. The so-called dead know nothing about nouns. They know nothing about the objects that are named. They still know something about characteristics. So it is possible to communicate with the dead about characteristics. But that soon ceases. Communication about verbs, about words denoting activity, active and passive designations, lasts the longest, and the designation of feelings lasts the longest of all: Oh! Ah! I, E; the dead retain these interjections the longest.
From this you can also see how the human soul, if it is not to become completely spiritless, is dependent on really living in the interjections. Interjections are, in reality, all vowels. And the consonants, which in any case are lost very soon after death or were not present before descending to earth, are imitations of the external. We should really experience this in our feelings and see where it lies in the child, and not drive it out by teaching nouns, adjectives, and so on too early, but rather let it begin between the ages of 9 and 10.
We have now introduced eurythmy into the Waldorf school from the beginning of elementary school education, this visible language in which the human being reveals himself through movements that he performs on his own and in groups, just as he otherwise reveals himself through language. Now, if the child is not spoiled in language lessons by a teacher who does not take their sense of language into account, if their sense of language is preserved, then the child finds the transition to eurythmy just as natural for human beings as a very young child finds it natural to learn spoken language. There is not the slightest difficulty in introducing eurythmy to children. They want it if they are healthily developed children. If children do not want to approach eurythmy, one can always investigate whether there is something pathological somewhere. They want to do eurythmy just as naturally as they want to learn to speak as very young children, if all their organs are healthy. This is because children feel a particularly strong urge to express their inner experiences through their will. This is already evident when children begin to laugh and cry at an early age, in the special physiognomic expressions of feelings.
You will have to speak in metaphors and comparisons if you want to say that a dog or another animal is laughing. In any case, it does not laugh in the same way as humans, nor does it cry like humans. But in animals, gestures and movements that carry inner experiences into the element of will are something completely different from those in humans.
Well, what is expressed in eurythmy is just as lawful as the way humans speak. Speech is not arbitrary. For example, in English, when we say “water,” we cannot substitute another vowel for the ‘a’; we cannot say “water” and the like. Speech is lawful. Eurythmy is also lawful. In ordinary bodily gestures, one is still free in a certain sense, although people also do many things out of instinct. When they think, they touch their forehead with their fingers; when they want to indicate that something is not true, they do this ... they shake their head and hand, erasing it. Transforming inner and outer experiences into lawful movements in the same way that language transforms inner experiences into sound is precisely what eurythmy is; and children want to learn eurythmy. Therefore, the fact that eurythmy is not already part of today's education is proof that there is no intention to draw out human abilities from nature, from the essence of the human being; for if one did so, one would come to eurythmy quite naturally.
This does not detract from physical education or physical exercise classes, but it is something different, and as a teacher or educator, one should understand this difference well. Physical education as it is practiced today, and all sporting activities and so on, are different from eurythmy. Both can coexist very well. For you see, the concept of space is very often understood in a completely abstract way by people; people do not take into account that space is something concrete. Isn't it true that people today have become so accustomed to thinking of the earth as round that they imagine that someone who lives here says that when he jumps, he jumps up. His counterpart, who has his legs down there and his head up there, jumps down, or so people think. But that is not something that can be experienced. I once read a book, Views on Natural Philosophy, in which the author wanted to ridicule the idea that the sky is above by saying: Down there, at the antipodes, the sky is below! But things are not that poor. We do not judge the world and space in such a way that we completely switch off and present space as something abstract. Certain philosophers do that, Hume and Mill and Kant. But none of that is true, it is actually nonsense. Space is something very concrete and perceived by humans. And humans feel themselves inside space and feel the need to position themselves within it. When they position themselves in the balance of space, in the different positions of space, this gives rise to athletics, gymnastics, and exercise. Humans want to position themselves within space.
For example, someone who performs this gymnastic movement (arms stretched out) has the feeling that they are placing both arms in a horizontal direction. Someone who jumps has the feeling of moving their body upward through their own strength. That is gymnastics. Those are gymnastic exercises.
Those who feel that they are holding something felt inwardly, I, contemplating, may also make this movement, but then the inner soul is placed into the movement. There, the human being reveals his inner self. He does this in eurythmy. Eurythmy is therefore the revelation of the inner self. In eurythmy, what a person can experience in breathing and blood circulation is expressed insofar as these become soulful. In gymnastics, sports, and athletics, people feel as if space has directions and positions and all kinds of possibilities everywhere. They jump into it, orient themselves to it, and also adapt themselves to such equipment. They climb up a ladder, pull themselves up on a rope, and so on. In this way, people orient themselves to the outer space.
That is the difference between gymnastics and eurythmy. Eurythmy allows the soul life to flow outward and thus becomes a real expression of the human being, like language; it is a visible language.
Through gymnastics, exercise, and sport, the human being fits into the external space, adapts to the world, tries to see whether he or she fits into the world in this or that way. This is not a language, it is not a revelation of the human being, but rather a demand of the world on the human being, that he or she can be useful to the world, that he or she can find his or her place in the world. And this difference must be noted.
This difference is expressed in the fact that the physical education teacher, the gymnastics teacher, encourages children to make movements that enable them to adapt to the outside world.
The eurythmy teacher expresses what is inside the human being. This, in turn, must be felt and sensed; then eurythmy, gymnastics, and physical education classes, and for that matter sports exercises, will have their rightful place in the curriculum. We will continue talking about this tomorrow.