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Collected Works of Rudolf Steiner #CW 141
Life between Death and Rebirth: The Active Connection between the Living and the Dead (CW 140)
In these lectures Steiner deals with the experiences of the human soul during and after death. On the basis of precise clairvoyant observations, he describes the events experienced during the millennium of the soul's journey within the vast realms of soul and spirit between death and rebirth. Steiner describes the states of consciousness experienced by our deceased loved ones and how we-by considering their new consciousness-can communicate with them and even help them. Reading these descriptions, it becomes clear that excarnated souls need the spiritual support of those presently incarnated, and that those still on earth, in turn, derive enlightenment and support from their former earthly companions.
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1968
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About the author
Rudolf Steiner
4,285 books1,087 followersAuthor also wrote under the name Rudolph Steiner.
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...
Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner was an Austrian occultist, social reformer, architect, esotericist, and claimed clairvoyant. Steiner gained initial recognition at the end of the nineteenth century as a literary critic and published works including The Philosophy of Freedom. At the beginning of the twentieth century he founded an esoteric spiritual movement, anthroposophy, with roots in German idealist philosophy and theosophy. His teachings are influenced by Christian Gnosticism or neognosticism. Many of his ideas are pseudoscientific. He was also prone to pseudohistory.
In the first, more philosophically oriented phase of this movement, Steiner attempted to find a synthesis between science and spirituality. His philosophical work of these years, which he termed "spiritual science", sought to apply what he saw as the clarity of thinking characteristic of Western philosophy to spiritual questions, differentiating this approach from what he considered to be vaguer approaches to mysticism. In a second phase, beginning around 1907, he began working collaboratively in a variety of artistic media, including drama, dance and architecture, culminating in the building of the Goetheanum, a cultural centre to house all the arts. In the third phase of his work, beginning after World War I, Steiner worked on various ostensibly applied projects, including Waldorf education, biodynamic agriculture, and anthroposophical medicine.
Steiner advocated a form of ethical individualism, to which he later brought a more explicitly spiritual approach. He based his epistemology on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's world view in which "thinking…is no more and no less an organ of perception than the eye or ear. Just as the eye perceives colours and the ear sounds, so thinking perceives ideas." A consistent thread that runs through his work is the goal of demonstrating that there are no limits to human knowledge.
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...
Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner was an Austrian occultist, social reformer, architect, esotericist, and claimed clairvoyant. Steiner gained initial recognition at the end of the nineteenth century as a literary critic and published works including The Philosophy of Freedom. At the beginning of the twentieth century he founded an esoteric spiritual movement, anthroposophy, with roots in German idealist philosophy and theosophy. His teachings are influenced by Christian Gnosticism or neognosticism. Many of his ideas are pseudoscientific. He was also prone to pseudohistory.
In the first, more philosophically oriented phase of this movement, Steiner attempted to find a synthesis between science and spirituality. His philosophical work of these years, which he termed "spiritual science", sought to apply what he saw as the clarity of thinking characteristic of Western philosophy to spiritual questions, differentiating this approach from what he considered to be vaguer approaches to mysticism. In a second phase, beginning around 1907, he began working collaboratively in a variety of artistic media, including drama, dance and architecture, culminating in the building of the Goetheanum, a cultural centre to house all the arts. In the third phase of his work, beginning after World War I, Steiner worked on various ostensibly applied projects, including Waldorf education, biodynamic agriculture, and anthroposophical medicine.
Steiner advocated a form of ethical individualism, to which he later brought a more explicitly spiritual approach. He based his epistemology on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's world view in which "thinking…is no more and no less an organ of perception than the eye or ear. Just as the eye perceives colours and the ear sounds, so thinking perceives ideas." A consistent thread that runs through his work is the goal of demonstrating that there are no limits to human knowledge.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 16, 2014
Mr. Steiner discusses the idea that religions are spiritual tools created for specific use in certain times and places. But then, he goes on to assert the supremacy of the Christ principle above all else. It felt to me as if he was ignoring his own idea that religions are appropriate in some areas for some people for spiritual growth but actually, if misused or treated as a blanket cure all, can actually have the opposite effect.
I suppose I could point to the time period he was in, but Steiner seemed dismissive of the spiritual truths found in the Buddhist and Hindu traditions. Perhaps I misread his opinions, but I didn't agree with the assertion that one religion or spiritual principle was superior or more true than others.
Also, in his discussion of the planetary assent of the soul of man (after death), Mr. Steiner delved into kabbalistic ideas but without the depth that one would expect from a kabbalistic scholar. I found his interpretation to be very much like Madame Blavatsky's writings, which I have never really been able to make much sense of. He described the ascent of the soul in the traditional "lightning flash" arrangement of Earth to Moon to Mercury to Venus to Sun and said that was the only way. Minimal study of the Tree of Life shows multiple ways up the tree, there is not just one way even though it is true that most people chose that way.
Those were my concerns with this collection of lectures. I feel like when anyone says that there is only "one way" to do anything that it lends itself to fanaticism and schisms in society. Perhaps these clairvoyant descriptions of life after death are the "only way" that Rudolph Steiner observed but, from his own writings, he explained that what we see is what we are or what we expect to see. I think that this was true for him too.
I suppose I could point to the time period he was in, but Steiner seemed dismissive of the spiritual truths found in the Buddhist and Hindu traditions. Perhaps I misread his opinions, but I didn't agree with the assertion that one religion or spiritual principle was superior or more true than others.
Also, in his discussion of the planetary assent of the soul of man (after death), Mr. Steiner delved into kabbalistic ideas but without the depth that one would expect from a kabbalistic scholar. I found his interpretation to be very much like Madame Blavatsky's writings, which I have never really been able to make much sense of. He described the ascent of the soul in the traditional "lightning flash" arrangement of Earth to Moon to Mercury to Venus to Sun and said that was the only way. Minimal study of the Tree of Life shows multiple ways up the tree, there is not just one way even though it is true that most people chose that way.
Those were my concerns with this collection of lectures. I feel like when anyone says that there is only "one way" to do anything that it lends itself to fanaticism and schisms in society. Perhaps these clairvoyant descriptions of life after death are the "only way" that Rudolph Steiner observed but, from his own writings, he explained that what we see is what we are or what we expect to see. I think that this was true for him too.
April 5, 2008
Currently changing my life.
February 27, 2023
excellent discussion on reincarnation
In my near-dear experience and visitation to the other side I came back with knowledge the soul lives on after physical death. The more earthly lives we experience the more the soul carries experience and knowledge from other life experiences.
In my near-dear experience and visitation to the other side I came back with knowledge the soul lives on after physical death. The more earthly lives we experience the more the soul carries experience and knowledge from other life experiences.
February 17, 2023
For some readers a must read !
Few books explain these things. This is one of them!. Some explanations, though are difficult to grasp, but Steiner acknowledged this difficult since the spiritual life has others "languages".
Few books explain these things. This is one of them!. Some explanations, though are difficult to grasp, but Steiner acknowledged this difficult since the spiritual life has others "languages".
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February 5, 2015For reasons indicated here: http://corjesusacratissimum.org/2011/... ...
I do not even want to rate this book. My views on Steiner are so complex and so likely to be misunderstood that I would rather not reduce them to soundbites.
I simply want to say I have read this book and that whilst Steiner served to free me from Eastern Theosophy and the New Age scene I found at Findhorn, Valentin Tomberg, in turn, provided me with a very different hermeneutic with which to engage Steiner.
I hope the above link however can contribute a little to the tangled issues involving Steiner and Tomberg - and why I believe this "very different hermeneutic" is necessary for a world plunging into a cold-as-steel mechanised society ...
I do not even want to rate this book. My views on Steiner are so complex and so likely to be misunderstood that I would rather not reduce them to soundbites.
I simply want to say I have read this book and that whilst Steiner served to free me from Eastern Theosophy and the New Age scene I found at Findhorn, Valentin Tomberg, in turn, provided me with a very different hermeneutic with which to engage Steiner.
I hope the above link however can contribute a little to the tangled issues involving Steiner and Tomberg - and why I believe this "very different hermeneutic" is necessary for a world plunging into a cold-as-steel mechanised society ...
April 18, 2009
Don't ever think that Steiner is easy to read. It's best to take on lecture at a time, preferbably once a week or so. It is real helpful to let it soak in.
August 27, 2014
brilliant One of the experiences after death that we have is experiencing the pain and joy we gave to others.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews