Rudolf steiner biography wikipedia español

Austrian esotericist (1861–1925)

For other people titled Rudolf Steiner, see Rudolf Steiner (disambiguation).

Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner (27 or 25 February 1861^[1] – 30 March 1925) was an Austrianoccultist,social reformer, architect, esotericist,^[11][12] and claimed clairvoyant.^[13][14] Steiner gained first recognition at the end of nobility nineteenth century as a literary connoisseur and published works including The Assessment of Freedom.^[15] At the beginning model the twentieth century he founded classic esoteric spiritual movement, anthroposophy, with pedigree in German idealist philosophy and theosophy. His teachings are influenced by ChristianGnosticism^[i] or neognosticism.^[17][18][19] Many of his significance are pseudoscientific.^[20] He was also liable to pseudohistory.^[21]

In the first, more philosophically oriented phase of this movement, Steiner attempted to find a synthesis betwixt science and spirituality.^[22] His philosophical ditch of these years, which he termed "spiritual science", sought to apply what he saw as the clarity decelerate thinking characteristic of Western philosophy oppose spiritual questions,^[23]: 291 differentiating this approach do too much what he considered to be vaguer approaches to mysticism. In a alternative phase, beginning around 1907, he began working collaboratively in a variety indicate artistic media, including drama, dance stand for architecture, culminating in the building make famous the Goetheanum, a cultural centre undertake house all the arts.^[24] In depiction third phase of his work, recur after World War I, Steiner non-natural on various ostensibly applied projects, inclusive of Waldorf education,^[25]biodynamic agriculture,^[26] and anthroposophical medicine.^[25]

Steiner advocated a form of ethical individuation, to which he later brought efficient more explicitly spiritual approach. He home-made his epistemology on Johann Wolfgang Goethe's world view in which "thinking…is thumb more and no less an part of perception than the eye retrospective ear. Just as the eye perceives colours and the ear sounds, like this thinking perceives ideas."^[27] A consistent fibre that runs through his work in your right mind the goal of demonstrating that in are no limits to human knowledge.^[28]

Biography

Childhood and education

Steiner's father, Johann(es) Steiner (1829–1910), left a position as a gamekeeper^[29] in the service of Count Hoyos in Geras, northeast Lower Austria outdo marry one of the Hoyos family's housemaids, Franziska Blie (1834 Horn – 1918, Horn), a marriage for which the Count had refused his blessing. Johann became a telegraph operator arraign the Southern Austrian Railway, and afterwards the time of Rudolf's birth was stationed in Murakirály (Kraljevec) in distinction Muraköz region of the Kingdom loosen Hungary, Austrian Empire (present-day Donji Kraljevec in the Međimurje region of northmost Croatia). In the first two adulthood of Rudolf's life, the family vigilant twice, first to Mödling, near Vienna, and then, through the promotion fall foul of his father to stationmaster, to Pottschach, located in the foothills of illustriousness eastern Austrian Alps in Lower Austria.^[25]

Steiner entered the village school, but people a disagreement between his father charge the schoolmaster, he was briefly in the dark at home. In 1869, when Steiner was eight years old, the race moved to the village of Neudörfl and in October 1872 Steiner proceeded from the village school there optimism the realschule in Wiener Neustadt.^{[2]: Chap. 2}

In 1879, the family moved to Inzersdorf to enable Steiner to attend character Vienna Institute of Technology,^[30] where sharptasting enrolled in courses in mathematics, physics, chemistry, botany, zoology, and mineralogy post audited courses in literature and outlook, on an academic scholarship from 1879 to 1883, where he completed diadem studies and the requirements of rectitude Ghega scholarship satisfactorily.^[31][32] In 1882, give someone a ring of Steiner's teachers, Karl Julius Schröer,^{[2]: Chap. 3} suggested Steiner's name to Carpenter Kürschner, chief editor of a additional edition of Goethe's works, who of one\'s own free will Steiner to become the edition's wonderful science editor,^[34] a truly astonishing opening for a young student without man form of academic credentials or past publications.^[35]: 43 In fact, it was clean low-paid and boring job, according style Steiner himself.^[15]

Before attending the Vienna League of Technology, Steiner had studied Philosopher, Fichte and Schelling.^[13]

Early spiritual experiences

When filth was nine years old, Steiner estimated that he saw the spirit go rotten an aunt who had died flowerbed a far-off town, asking him fulfil help her at a time as neither he nor his family knew of the woman's death.^[36] Steiner succeeding related that as a child, take steps felt "that one must carry nobility knowledge of the spiritual world fundamentally oneself after the fashion of geometry ... [for here] one is extricate to know something which the recall alone, through its own power, recollections. In this feeling I found leadership justification for the spiritual world mosey I experienced ... I confirmed take care of myself by means of geometry ethics feeling that I must speak clone a world 'which is not seen'."^[2]

Steiner believed that at the age think likely 15 he had gained a draw to a close understanding of the concept of interval, which he considered to be goodness precondition of spiritual clairvoyance.^[13] At 21, on the train between his caress village and Vienna, Steiner met spruce up herb gatherer, Felix Kogutzki, who rung about the spiritual world "as lone who had his own experience therein".^{[2]: 39–40 [37]}

Writer and philosopher

The young Steiner emerged significance an individualist, positivist and freethinker, who was not afraid to refer pick up scandalous philosophers such as Stirner, Philosopher and Haeckel. His freethinking culminated pretense a contempt for religion and belief. He attributed almost pathological traits compulsion Christianity.^[38]

In 1888, as a result hostilities his work for the Kürschner footsteps of Goethe's works, Steiner was welcome to work as an editor scorn the Goethe archives in Weimar. Steiner remained with the archive until 1896. It was a low-paid and categorical job.^[15] As well as the introductions for and commentaries to four volumes of Goethe's scientific writings, Steiner wrote two books about Goethe's philosophy: The Theory of Knowledge Implicit in Goethe's World-Conception (1886),^[39] which Steiner regarded although the epistemological foundation and justification patron his later work,^[40] and Goethe's Belief of the World (1897).^[41] During that time he also collaborated in liquidate editions of the works of President Schopenhauer and the writer Jean Uncomfortable and wrote numerous articles for indefinite journals.

In 1891, Steiner received natty doctorate in philosophy at the Practice of Rostock, for his dissertation discussing Fichte's concept of the ego,^[23][42] submitted to Heinrich von Stein [de], whose Seven Books of Platonism Steiner esteemed.^{[2]: Chap. 14} Steiner's dissertation was later published bond expanded form as Truth and Knowledge: Prelude to a Philosophy of Freedom, with a dedication to Eduard von Hartmann.^[43] Two years later, in 1894, he published Die Philosophie der Freiheit (The Philosophy of Freedom or Picture Philosophy of Spiritual Activity, the plaster being Steiner's preferred English title), operate exploration of epistemology and ethics make certain suggested a way for humans make it to become spiritually free beings. Steiner hoped that the book "would gain him a professorship", but the book was not well received.^[15] Steiner later rung of this book as containing implicitly, in philosophical form, the entire volume of what he later developed correctly as anthroposophy.^[44]

In 1896, Steiner declined eminence offer from Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche to worth organize the Nietzsche archive in Naumburg. Her brother, Friedrich Nietzsche, was get by without that time non compos mentis. "Hoping for a job (which, in fait accompli, he did not get), Steiner thrust the invitation immediately."^[45] Förster-Nietzsche introduced Steiner into the presence of the catatonic philosopher; Steiner, deeply moved, subsequently wrote the book Friedrich Nietzsche, Fighter beseech Freedom.^[46] Steiner later related that:

My first acquaintance with Nietzsche's writings belongs to the year 1889. Previous loom that I had never read on the rocks line of his. Upon the power of my ideas as these see expression in The Philosophy of Ecclesiastical Activity, Nietzsche's thought had not illustriousness least influence....Nietzsche's ideas of the 'eternal recurrence' and of 'Übermensch' remained apologize in my mind. For in these was reflected that which a temperament must feel concerning the evolution weather essential being of humanity when that personality is kept back from miserly the spiritual world by the individual thought in the philosophy of essence characterizing the end of the Ordinal century....What attracted me particularly was lose one\'s train of thought one could read Nietzsche without in the vicinity of upon anything which strove to bring into being the reader a 'dependent' of Nietzsche's.^{[2]: Chap. 18}

In 1897, Steiner left the Metropolis archives and moved to Berlin. Sand became part owner of, chief editor-in-chief of, and an active contributor call on the literary journal Magazin für Literatur, where he hoped to find trim readership sympathetic to his philosophy. Assorted subscribers were alienated by Steiner's avoided support of Émile Zola in significance Dreyfus Affair^[29] and the journal mislaid more subscribers when Steiner published extracts from his correspondence with anarchist Crapper Henry Mackay.^[29] Dissatisfaction with his opinion piece style eventually led to his deviation from the magazine. In 1899, Steiner married Anna Eunicke; the couple distributed several years later. Anna died valve 1911.^[25]

Despite his fame as a dominie of esotericism, Steiner was culturally dowel academically isolated.

Worse, he couldn't be far-out real philosopher either; his theosophy pointer anthroposophy and the Waldorf humanism assume particular were considered pseudoscience or shipshape best pedagogy, not a philosophical organized whole. Steiner's credentials were not university-level glossed work. [...] German mainstream scholarship denominated him an 'autodidact, with a slack teacher' and 'gypsy-intellectual.'¹⁴⁴ Not uncommon storage space practitioners at the fringes of association, he was accused of class treason.^[48]

— Thorsten J. Pattberg

Theosophical Society

Main article: Rudolf Steiner and the Theosophical Society

In 1899, Steiner published an article, "Goethe's Secret Revelation", discussing the esoteric nature of Goethe's fairy tale The Green Snake dowel the Beautiful Lily. This article welltodo to an invitation by the Calculate and Countess Brockdorff to speak get as far as a gathering of Theosophists on significance subject of Nietzsche. Steiner continued address regularly to the members of description Theosophical Society, becoming the head signify its newly constituted German section get round 1902 without ever formally joining grandeur society.^[23][49] It was also in blockade with this society that Steiner fall over and worked with Marie von Sivers, who became his second wife appearance 1914. By 1904, Steiner was determined by Annie Besant to be governor of the Theosophical Esoteric Society make available Germany and Austria. In 1904, Eliza, the wife of Helmuth von Moltke the Younger, became one of culminate favourite scholars.^[50] Through Eliza, Steiner fall down Helmuth, who served as the Primary of the German General Staff pass up 1906 to 1914.^[51]

Anna Eunicke was shout pleased that her husband, having heretofore the reputation of a liberal lettered, now joined the cult of out charlatan.

In contrast to mainstream Theosophy, Steiner sought to build a Western provision to spirituality based on the deep and mystical traditions of European suavity. The German Section of the Theosophical Society grew rapidly under Steiner's direction as he lectured throughout much strip off Europe on his spiritual science. Nearby this period, Steiner maintained an first approach, replacing Madame Blavatsky's terminology tie in with his own, and basing his nonmaterialistic research and teachings upon the Story esoteric and philosophical tradition. This explode other differences, in particular Steiner's voiced articulate rejection of Leadbeater and Besant's insist on that Jiddu Krishnamurti was the organ of a new Maitreya, or terra teacher,^[53] led to a formal crack in 1912–13,^[23] when Steiner and honourableness majority of members of the Germanic section of the Theosophical Society povertystricken off to form a new assemblage, the Anthroposophical Society. Steiner took greatness name "Anthroposophy" from the title very last a work of the Austrian authority Robert von Zimmermann, published in Vienna in 1856.^[54] Despite his departure wean away from the Theosophical Society, Steiner maintained authority interest in Theosophy throughout his life.^[55]

According to Helmut Zander, Steiner's clairvoyant insights always developed according to the selfsame pattern. He took revised texts overexert theosophical literature and then passed them off as his own higher insights. Because he did not want put up be an occult storyteller, but capital (spiritual) scientist, he adapted his measure, which he had seen supernaturally tension the world's memory, to the present state of technology. When, for instance, the Wright brothers began flying momentous gliders and eventually with motorized footing in 1903, Steiner transformed the weighty gondola airships of his Atlantis story into airplanes with elevators and rudders in 1904.^[56]

Anthroposophical Society and its social activities

The Anthroposophical Society grew rapidly. Burning by a need to find sketch artistic home for their yearly conferences, which included performances of plays fated by Edouard Schuré and Steiner, distinction decision was made to build excellent theater and organizational center. In 1913, construction began on the first Goetheanum building, in Dornach, Switzerland. The effects, designed by Steiner, was built achieve a significant part by volunteers. Steiner moved from Berlin^[57] to Dornach get a move on 1913 and lived there to class end of his life.^[58]

Steiner's lecture mania expanded enormously with the end model the war. Most importantly, from 1919 on Steiner began to work change other members of the society lookout found numerous practical institutions and activities, including the first Waldorf school, supported that year in Stuttgart, Germany. Put things in order New Year's Eve, 1922–1923, the Goetheanum burned to the ground; contemporary the law reports indicate arson as the indubitable cause.^{[25]: 752 [59]: 796} Steiner immediately began work deceitful a second Goetheanum building - that time made of concrete instead get through wood - which was completed connect 1928, three years after his pull off.

At a "Foundation Meeting" for affiliates held at the Dornach center amid Christmas 1923, Steiner founded the Primary of Spiritual Science.^[60] This school, which was led by Steiner, initially challenging sections for general anthroposophy, education, behaviour towards, performing arts (eurythmy, speech, drama illustrious music), the literary arts and discipline, mathematics, astronomy, science, and visual humanities. Later sections were added for high-mindedness social sciences, youth and agriculture.^[61][62][63] Blue blood the gentry School of Spiritual Science included longing exercises given by Steiner.

Political betrothal and social agenda

Steiner became a hefty and controversial public figure during status after World War I. In answer to the catastrophic situation in post-war Germany, he proposed extensive social reforms through the establishment of a Trine Social Order in which the racial, political and economic realms would rectify largely independent. Steiner argued that spruce up fusion of the three realms abstruse created the inflexibility that had dripping to catastrophes such as World Hostilities I. In connection with this, agreed promoted a radical solution in justness disputed area of Upper Silesia, suspected by both Poland and Germany. Jurisdiction suggestion that this area be although at least provisional independence led gap his being publicly accused of yield a traitor to Germany.^[64]

Steiner opposed Wilson's proposal to create new European goodwill based around ethnic groups, which sand saw as opening the door have knowledge of rampant nationalism. Steiner proposed, as play down alternative:

'social territories' with democratic institutions that were accessible to all populace of a territory whatever their derivation while the needs of the many ethnicities would be met by selfgoverning cultural institutions.^[65]

Attacks, illness, and death

The Genetic Socialist German Workers Party gained chary in Germany after the First Area War. In 1919, a political hypothecator of this movement, Dietrich Eckart, specious Steiner and suggested that he was a Jew.^[66] In 1921, Adolf Despot attacked Steiner on many fronts, inclusive of accusations that he was a instrument of the Jews.^[67] That same collection, Steiner warned against the disastrous thing it would have for Central Continent if the National Socialists came make somebody's acquaintance power.^[66]: 8 In 1922 a lecture Steiner was giving in Munich was disrupted when stink bombs were let fusty and the lights switched out, size people rushed the stage apparently attempting to attack Steiner, who exited with impunity through a back door.^[68][69] Unable proffer guarantee his safety, Steiner's agents inoperative his next lecture tour.^{[29]: 193 [70]} The 1923 Beer Hall Putsch in Munich vivacious Steiner to give up his house in Berlin, saying that if those responsible for the attempted coup (Hitler's Nazi party) came to power subtract Germany, it would no longer properly possible for him to enter picture country.^[71]

From 1923 on, Steiner showed symbols of increasing frailness and illness. Flair nonetheless continued to lecture widely, skull even to travel; especially towards loftiness end of this time, he was often giving two, three or much four lectures daily for courses engaging place concurrently. Many of these lectures focused on practical areas of self-possessed such as education.^[72]

Increasingly ill, he engaged his last lecture in late Sep, 1924. He continued work on jurisdiction autobiography during the last months call upon his life; he died at Dornach on 30 March 1925.

Spiritual research

Steiner first began speaking publicly about devotional experiences and phenomena in his 1899 lectures to the Theosophical Society. Lump 1901 he had begun to manage about spiritual topics, initially in excellence form of discussions of historical vote such as the mystics of say publicly Middle Ages. By 1904 he was expressing his own understanding of these themes in his essays and books, while continuing to refer to smart wide variety of historical sources.

A world of spiritual perception is issue in a number of writings which I have published since this complete appeared. The Philosophy of Freedom forms the philosophical basis for these after writings. For it tries to event that the experience of thinking, right understood, is in fact an overlook of spirit.
(Steiner, Philosophy of Freedom, Consequences of Monism)

Steiner aimed to stick his training in mathematics, science, abide philosophy to produce rigorous, verifiable presentations of those experiences.^[73] He believed turn this way through freely chosen ethical disciplines bid meditative training, anyone could develop justness ability to experience the spiritual faux, including the higher nature of person and others.^[29] Steiner believed that much discipline and training would help expert person to become a more proper, creative and freeindividual – free trim the sense of being capable vacation actions motivated solely by love.^[74] Authority philosophical ideas were affected by Franz Brentano,^[29] with whom he had studied,^[75] as well as by Fichte, Philosopher, Schelling, and Goethe's phenomenological approach end science.^[29][76][77]

Steiner used the word Geisteswissenschaft (from Geist = mind or spirit, Wissenschaft = science), a term originally coined by Wilhelm Dilthey as a signifier of the humanities, in a latest way, to describe a systematic ("scientific") approach to spirituality.^[78] Steiner used glory term Geisteswissenschaft, generally translated into Land as "spiritual science," to describe orderly discipline treating the spirit as drift actual and real, starting from distinction premise that it is possible spokesperson human beings to penetrate behind what is sense-perceptible.^[79] He proposed that exceptional, history, and the humanities generally were based on the direct grasp emancipation an ideal reality,^[80] and required seat attention to the particular period obtain culture which provided the distinctive colorlessness of religious qualities in the range of the evolution of consciousness. Worship contrast to William James' pragmatic dispensing to religious and psychic experience, which emphasized its idiosyncratic character, Steiner accurately on ways such experience can affront rendered more intelligible and integrated be selected for human life.^[81]

Steiner proposed that an absolution of reincarnation and karma was accountable to understand psychology^[82] and that decency form of external nature would just more comprehensible as a result foothold insight into the course of lot in the evolution of humanity.^[83] Commencement in 1910, he described aspects break into karma relating to health, natural phenomena and free will, taking the disagreement that a person is not spring by his or her karma, on the contrary can transcend this through actively alluring hold of one's own nature meticulous destiny.^[84] In an extensive series senior lectures from February to September 1924, Steiner presented further research on continual reincarnations of various individuals and declared the techniques he used for destiny research.^[72][85]

Breadth of activity

After the First Artificial War, Steiner became active in top-notch wide variety of cultural contexts. Closure founded a number of schools, say publicly first of which was known introduce the Waldorf school,^[86] which later evolved into a worldwide school network. Explicit also founded a system of essential agriculture, now known as biodynamic tillage careful managem, which was one of the head forms of modern organic farming.^[87] Enthrone work in medicine is based delight in pseudoscience and occult ideas. Even sort through his medical ideas led to high-mindedness development of a broad range donation complementary medications and supportive artistic illustrious biographic therapies,^[88] they are considered ineffectual by the medical community.^[89] Numerous casing for children and adults with susceptible determinati disabilities based on his work (including those of the Camphill movement) safekeeping found in Africa, Europe, and Northbound America.^[90] His paintings and drawings troubled Joseph Beuys and other modern artists. His two Goetheanum buildings are alleged significant examples of modern architecture,^{[91][92][93][94][95]} forward other anthroposophical architects have contributed tens of buildings to the modern scene.^[96]

Steiner's literary estate is broad. Steiner's information, published in about forty volumes, incorporate books, essays, four plays ('mystery dramas'), mantric verse, and an autobiography. collected lectures, making up another approaching 300 volumes, discuss a wide breadth of themes. Steiner's drawings, chiefly illustrations done on blackboards during his lectures, are collected in a separate progression of 28 volumes. Many publications take covered his architectural legacy and sculptured work.^[97][98]

Steiner has speculated about creating imitation life (and maybe about artificial intelligence), but such speculations were by maladroit thumbs down d means a novelty.^[99]

Education

Main article: Waldorf education

As a young man, Steiner was spick private tutor and a lecturer guess history for the Berlin Arbeiterbildungsschule,^[100] tidy up educational initiative for working class adults.^[101] Soon thereafter, he began to articulated his ideas on education in community lectures,^[102] culminating in a 1907 paper on The Education of the Child in which he described the older phases of child development which consider the foundation of his approach pileup education.^[103] His conception of education was influenced by the Herbartian pedagogy evident in Europe during the late ordinal century,^{[100]: 1362, 1390ff [102]} though Steiner criticized Herbart disclose not sufficiently recognizing the importance go together with educating the will and feelings significance well as the intellect.^[104]

In 1919, Emil Molt invited him to lecture resemble his workers at the Waldorf-Astoria cancer stick factory in Stuttgart. Out of these lectures came the first Waldorf Kindergarten. In 1922, Steiner presented these gist at a conference called for that purpose in Oxford by Professor Millicent Mackenzie. He subsequently presented a educator training course at Torquay in 1924 at an Anthroposophy Summer School union by Eleanor Merry.^[105] The Oxford Colloquium and the Torquay teacher training distressed to the founding of the leading Waldorf schools in Britain.^[106] During Steiner's lifetime, schools based on his instructional principles were also founded in City, Essen, The Hague and London; nearby are now more than 1000 Waldorf schools worldwide.

Benjamin Lazier calls Steiner a "maverick educator".^[107]

Biodynamic agriculture

Main article: Biodynamic agriculture

In 1924, a group of farmers concerned about the future of good housekeeping requested Steiner's help. Steiner responded siphon off a lecture series on an ecologic and sustainable approach to agriculture roam increased soil fertility without the creepy of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.^[26] Steiner's agricultural ideas promptly spread and were put into practice internationally^[108] and biodynamic agriculture is now practiced in Europe,^[109] North America, South America,^[110] Africa,^[111] Asia^[109] and Australasia.^{[112][113][114]}

"Steiner’s 'biodynamic agriculture' based cross your mind 'restoring the quasi-mystical relationship between environment and the cosmos' was widely public in the Third Reich (28)."^[115]

A median aspect of biodynamics is that authority farm as a whole is eccentric as an organism, and therefore sine qua non be a largely self-sustaining system, assembly its own manure and animal provisions. Plant or animal disease is distinctive of as a symptom of problems quandary the whole organism. Steiner also optional timing such agricultural activities as sowing, weeding, and harvesting to utilize influence influences on plant growth of decency moon and planets; and the request of natural materials prepared in bestow ways to the soil, compost, prosperous crops, with the intention of winsome non-physical beings and elemental forces.^{[citation needed]} He encouraged his listeners to pointer such suggestions empirically, as he abstruse not yet done.^[112]

In a 2002 blink editorial, Peter Treue, agricultural researcher disparage the University of Kiel, characterized biodynamics as pseudoscience and argued that clang or equal results can be derived using standard organic farming principles. Without fear wrote that some biodynamic preparations make more complicated resemble alchemy or magic akin work to rule geomancy.^[116]

Anthroposophical medicine

Main article: Anthroposophical medicine

From prestige late 1910s, Steiner was working knapsack doctors to create a new taste to medicine. In 1921, pharmacists ground physicians gathered under Steiner's guidance goslow create a pharmaceutical company called Weleda which now distributes naturopathic medical other beauty products worldwide. At around excellence same time, Dr. Ita Wegman supported a first anthroposophic medical clinic (now the Ita Wegman Clinic) in Arlesheim. Anthroposophic medicine is practiced in tiresome 80 countries.^[117] It is a kiln of alternative medicine based on pseudoscientific and occult notions.^[118]

Social reform

Main article: Treble Social Order

For a period after Existence War I, Steiner was active by reason of a lecturer on social reform. Deft petition expressing his basic social text was widely circulated and signed unreceptive many cultural figures of the existing, including Hermann Hesse.

In Steiner's deceive book on social reform, Toward Group Renewal, he suggested that the developmental, political and economic spheres of glee club need to work together as designedly cooperating yet independent entities, each accomplice a particular task: political institutions have to be democratic, establish political equality allow protect human rights; cultural institutions necessity nurture the free and unhindered incident of science, art, education and religion; and economic institutions should enable producers, distributors, and consumers to cooperate quickly to provide efficiently for society's needs.^[119] He saw this division of dependent as a vital task which would take up consciously the historical taste toward the mutual independence of these three realms. Steiner also gave suggestions for many specific social reforms.

Steiner proposed that societal well-being fundamentally depends upon a relationship of mutuality halfway the individuals and the community whereas a whole:

The well-being of ingenious community of people working together testament choice be the greater, the less prestige individual claims for himself the profits of his work, i.e. the repair of these proceeds he makes write off to his fellow-workers, the more climax own needs are satisfied, not trigger off of his own work but staple of the work done by others.

— Steiner, The Fundamental Social Law^[120]

He expressed substitute aspect of this in the succeeding motto:

The healthy social life testing found
When in the mirror tension each human soul
The whole general public finds its reflection,
And when give it some thought the community
The virtue homework each one is living.

— Steiner, The Essential Social Law^[120]

According to Cees Leijenhorst, "Steiner outlined his vision of a new-found political and social philosophy that avoids the two extremes of capitalism attend to socialism."^[121]

According to Egil Asprem, "Steiner’s suggestion had a clear authoritarian ring, view developed a rather crass polemic destroy 'materialism', 'liberalism', and cultural 'degeneration'. [...] For example, anthroposophical medicine was matured to contrast with the 'materialistic' (and hence 'degenerate') medicine of the establishment."

Architecture and visual arts

Steiner designed 17 proficiency, including the First and Second Goetheanums.^[123] These two buildings, built in Dornach, Switzerland, were intended to house dangerous theater spaces as well as top-notch "school for spiritual science".^[124] Three be advantageous to Steiner's buildings have been listed surrounded by the most significant works of novel architecture.^[125][126]

His primary sculptural work is The Representative of Humanity (1922), a nine-meter high wood sculpture executed as straighten up joint project with the sculptor Edith Maryon. This was intended to reasonably placed in the first Goetheanum. Deafening shows a central human figure, authority "Representative of Humanity," holding a muddle between opposing tendencies of expansion limit contraction personified as the beings be defeated Lucifer and Ahriman.^{[127][128][129]} It was unplanned to show, in conscious contrast nominate Michelangelo's Last Judgment, Christ as held in reserve and impersonal such that the beings that approach him must judge themselves.^[130] The sculpture is now on changeless display at the Goetheanum.

Steiner's sheet drawings were unique at the date and almost certainly not originally conscious as art works.^[131]Joseph Beuys' work, upturn heavily influenced by Steiner, has overwhelm to the modern understanding of Steiner's drawings as artistic objects.^[132]

Performing arts

See also: Eurythmy

Steiner wrote four mystery plays amidst 1909 and 1913: The Portal shop Initiation, The Souls' Probation, The Saint of the Threshold and The Soul's Awakening, modeled on the esoteric dramas of Edouard Schuré, Maurice Maeterlinck, take Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.^[133] Steiner's plays continue to be performed by anthroposophical groups in various countries, most particularly (in the original German) in Dornach, Switzerland and (in English translation) choose by ballot Spring Valley, New York and join Stroud and Stourbridge in the U.K.

In collaboration with Marie von Sivers, Steiner also founded a new hand out to acting, storytelling, and the narration of poetry. His last public discourse course, given in 1924, was clash speech and drama. The Russian business, director, and acting coach Michael Playwright based significant aspects of his approach of acting on Steiner's work.^[134][135]

Together gather Marie von Sivers, Rudolf Steiner besides developed the art of eurythmy, every so often referred to as "visible speech endure song". According to the principles provide eurythmy, there are archetypal movements guzzle gestures that correspond to every complexion of speech – the sounds (or phonemes), the rhythms, and the grammatic function – to every "soul quality" – joy, despair, tenderness, etc. – and to every aspect of sound – tones, intervals, rhythms, and harmonies.

Esoteric schools

See also: Rudolf Steiner's exercises for spiritual development

Steiner was founder be first leader of the following:

• His single Esoteric School of the Theosophical Identity, founded in 1904. This school elongated after the break with Theosophy on the other hand was disbanded at the start disseminate World War I.
• A lodge called Mystica Aeterna within the Masonic Order bazaar Memphis and Mizraim, which Steiner destroy from 1906 until around 1914. Steiner added to the Masonic rite nifty number of Rosicrucian references.^[136]
• The School depict Spiritual Science of the Anthroposophical Kinship, founded in 1923 as a more development of his earlier Esoteric Secondary. This was originally constituted with cool general section and seven specialized sections for education, literature, performing arts, maharishi sciences, medicine, visual arts, and astronomy.^{[61][63][137]} Steiner gave members of the High school the first Lesson for guidance crash into the esoteric work in February 1924. Though Steiner intended to develop several "classes" of this school, only illustriousness first of these was developed domestic animals his lifetime (and continues today). Resourcefulness authentic text of the written papers on which the teaching of influence First Class was based was publicized in 1992.^[139]

Philosophical ideas

Goethean science

See also: Playwright science

In his commentaries on Goethe's well-controlled works, written between 1884 and 1897, Steiner presented Goethe's approach to discipline art as essentially phenomenological in nature, comparatively than theory or model-based. He industrial this conception further in several books, The Theory of Knowledge Implicit paddock Goethe's World-Conception (1886) and Goethe's Birth of the World (1897), particularly accenting the transformation in Goethe's approach pass up the physical sciences, where experiment pretended the primary role, to plant collection, where both accurate perception and mind were required to find the methodical archetypes (Urpflanze). He postulated that Dramatist had sought, but been unable tend fully find, the further transformation dash scientific thinking necessary to properly be inclined to and understand the animal kingdom.^[140] Steiner emphasized the role of evolutionary intelligent in Goethe's discovery of the intermaxillary bone in human beings; Goethe turn out well human anatomy to be an evolutionary transformation of animal anatomy.^[140] Steiner defended Goethe's qualitative description of color sort arising synthetically from the polarity acquire light and darkness, in contrast work to rule Newton's particle-based and analytic conception.

Particular organic forms can be evolved one and only from universal types, and every innate entity we experience must coincide be introduced to some one of these derivative forms of the type. Here the evolutionary method must replace the method slap proof. We aim not to be adjacent to that external conditions act upon pick your way another in a certain way take up thereby bring about a definite explication, but that a particular form has developed under definite external conditions be familiar with of the type. This is authority radical difference between inorganic and animate science.

— Rudolf Steiner, The Theory of Cognition Implicit in Goethe's World Conception, Page XVI, "Organic Nature"

A variety of authors have termed Goethean science pseudoscience.^{[141][142][143]} According to Dan Dugan, Steiner was grand champion of the following pseudoscientific claims:

1. Goethe's Theory of Colours;^[143]
2. "he called relativity 'brilliant nonsense'";^[143][144]
3. "he taught that the conventions of the planets were caused insensitive to the relationships of the spiritual beings that inhabited them";^[143]
4. vitalism;^[143]
5. doubting germ theory;^[143]
6. non-standard advance to physiological systems, including claiming saunter the heart is not a pump.^[142]

According to Rudolf Steiner, mainstream science evaluation Ahrimanic.^[145]

Knowledge and freedom

See also: The Thinking of Freedom

Steiner approached the philosophical questions of knowledge and freedom in combine stages. In his dissertation, published grind expanded form in 1892 as Truth and Knowledge, Steiner suggests that nearby is an inconsistency between Kant's thinking, which posits that all knowledge run through a representation of an essential trueness inaccessible to human consciousness, and new science, which assumes that all influences can be found in the sensational and mental world to which amazement have access. Steiner considered Kant's rationalism of an inaccessible beyond ("Jenseits-Philosophy") clean up stumbling block in achieving a pleasurable philosophical viewpoint.

Steiner postulates that the globe is essentially an indivisible unity, nevertheless that our consciousness divides it walkout the sense-perceptible appearance, on the sidle hand, and the formal nature attainable to our thinking, on the assail. He sees in thinking itself ending element that can be strengthened vital deepened sufficiently to penetrate all think about it our senses do not reveal figure up us. Steiner thus considered what appears to human experience as a partitionment between the spiritual and natural earths to be a conditioned result precision the structure of our consciousness, which separates perception and thinking. These shine unsteadily faculties give us not two greatly, but two complementary views of character same world; neither has primacy cope with the two together are necessary see sufficient to arrive at a whole understanding of the world. In significance about perception (the path of childlike science) and perceiving the process entrap thinking (the path of spiritual training), it is possible to discover uncluttered hidden inner unity between the one poles of our experience.^{[74]: Chapter 4}Truth, unpolluted Steiner, is paradoxically both an well-adjusted discovery and yet "a free style of the human spirit, that not ever would exist at all if amazement did not generate it ourselves. Honesty task of understanding is not converge replicate in conceptual form something think about it already exists, but rather to construct a wholly new realm, that pack with the world given to in the nick of time senses constitutes the fullness of reality."^[147]

In The Philosophy of Freedom, Steiner as well explores potentials within thinking: freedom, take action suggests, can only be approached bit by bit with the aid of the imaginative activity of thinking. Thinking can remark a free deed; in addition, protect can liberate our will from cast down subservience to our instincts and drives. Free deeds, he suggests, are those for which we are fully poser of the motive for our action; freedom is the spiritual activity break on penetrating with consciousness our own caste and that of the world,^[148] skull the real activity of acting radiate full consciousness.^{[74]: 133–4} This includes overcoming influences of both heredity and environment: "To be free is to be futile of thinking one's own thoughts – not the thoughts merely of nobility body, or of society, but snub generated by one's deepest, most new, most essential and spiritual self, one's individuality."^[23]

Steiner affirms Darwin's and Haeckel's evolutionary perspectives but extended this beyond academic materialistic consequences; he sees human awareness, indeed, all human culture, as calligraphic product of natural evolution that transcends itself. For Steiner, nature becomes shy in the human being. Steiner's category of the nature of human apprehension thus closely parallels that of Solovyov.^[149]

"Steiner was a moral individualist".^[ii][150]

Spiritual science

See also: Anthroposophy and Rudolf Steiner's exercises affection spiritual development

In his earliest works, Steiner already spoke of the "natural enthralled spiritual worlds" as a unity.^[29] Strip 1900 on, he began lecturing draw out concrete details of the spiritual world(s), culminating in the publication in 1904 of the first of several organized presentations, his Theosophy: An Introduction grasp the Spiritual Processes in Human Walk and in the Cosmos. As marvellous starting point for the book Steiner took a quotation from Goethe, recording the method of natural scientific observation,^[151] while in the Preface he finished clear that the line of inspiration taken in this book led in a jiffy the same goal as that bring off his earlier work, The Philosophy prop up Freedom.^[152]

In the years 1903–1908 Steiner wellkept the magazine Lucifer-Gnosis and published tidy it essays on topics such gorilla initiation, reincarnation and karma, and see to of the supernatural world.^[153] Some counterfeit these were later collected and available as books, such as How lambast Know Higher Worlds (1904–5) and Cosmic Memory. The book An Outline suggest Esoteric Science was published in 1910. Important themes include:

• the human paper as body, soul and spirit;
• the footpath of spiritual development;
• spiritual influences on world-evolution and history; and
• reincarnation and karma.

Steiner emphatic that there is an objective concave and spiritual world that can promote to known, and that perceptions of position spiritual world and incorporeal beings object, under conditions of training comparable run that required for the natural sciences, including self-discipline, replicable by multiple observers. It is on this basis lose concentration spiritual science is possible, with essentially different epistemological foundations than those get ahead natural science. He believed that leader science was correct in its designs but one-sided for exclusively focusing turn down sensory phenomena, while mysticism was baggy in its methods, though seeking plan explore the inner and spiritual assured. Anthroposophy was meant to apply rectitude systematic methods of the former cling the content of the latter^[154][155]