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Collected Works of Rudolf Steiner #CW110
The Spiritual Hierarchies and the Physical World: Zodiac, Planets & Cosmos (CW 110) (Volume 110)
10 lectures in Düsseldorf, April 12–18, 1909;
participants' notes from Q&A sessions (CW 110) Ever since nature and consciousness were separated during the late Middle Ages―giving rise to scientific thinking that considers only the physical world and views the mind as merely an epiphenomenon of neural chemistry―the spiritual beings who are the universe have felt abandoned and unable to complete their work, which depends on human collaboration for its success. Human beings have likewise felt abandoned and alienated. In these remarkable lectures, Rudolf Steiner reestablishes the human being as a participant in an evolving, dynamic universe of living spiritual a living universe, whole and divine. He does so in concrete images, capable of being grasped by human consciousness as if from within. How is this possible? Implicit in Rudolf Steiner's view is the fact that, essentially, the universe consists of consciousness. Everything else is illusion. Hence, to understand the evolution of the cosmos and humanity in any terms other than consciousness is also an illusion. Whenever we are dealing with grand cosmic facts, we are dealing with states of consciousness. But states of consciousness never exist apart from the beings who embody them. Therefore, the only true realities are beings in various states of consciousness. In this sense, Steiner's spiritual science is a science of states of consciousness and the beings who embody them. Indeed, any science―physics, chemistry, botany, psychology―is a science of beings. And the sensory perception, or physical trace, is simply the outer vestment of the activity of beings in various states of consciousness. To describe these beings, Steiner uses the names made familiar by the wisdom traditions of the West. He speaks of the evolutionary states of Saturn, Sun, Moon, and so on; the nine choirs of angels; elemental beings and nature spirits; and the elements of fire, earth, air, and water. The Spiritual Hierarchies and the Physical Zodiac, Planets & Cosmos is a translation from German of « Geistige Hiearchien und ihre Wiederspiegelung in der physischen Welt. Tierkreis, Planeten, Kosmos » (GA 110). The Spiritual Hierarchies and the Physical Reality and Illusion (1996) contained a previous edition of this lecture course.
participants' notes from Q&A sessions (CW 110) Ever since nature and consciousness were separated during the late Middle Ages―giving rise to scientific thinking that considers only the physical world and views the mind as merely an epiphenomenon of neural chemistry―the spiritual beings who are the universe have felt abandoned and unable to complete their work, which depends on human collaboration for its success. Human beings have likewise felt abandoned and alienated. In these remarkable lectures, Rudolf Steiner reestablishes the human being as a participant in an evolving, dynamic universe of living spiritual a living universe, whole and divine. He does so in concrete images, capable of being grasped by human consciousness as if from within. How is this possible? Implicit in Rudolf Steiner's view is the fact that, essentially, the universe consists of consciousness. Everything else is illusion. Hence, to understand the evolution of the cosmos and humanity in any terms other than consciousness is also an illusion. Whenever we are dealing with grand cosmic facts, we are dealing with states of consciousness. But states of consciousness never exist apart from the beings who embody them. Therefore, the only true realities are beings in various states of consciousness. In this sense, Steiner's spiritual science is a science of states of consciousness and the beings who embody them. Indeed, any science―physics, chemistry, botany, psychology―is a science of beings. And the sensory perception, or physical trace, is simply the outer vestment of the activity of beings in various states of consciousness. To describe these beings, Steiner uses the names made familiar by the wisdom traditions of the West. He speaks of the evolutionary states of Saturn, Sun, Moon, and so on; the nine choirs of angels; elemental beings and nature spirits; and the elements of fire, earth, air, and water. The Spiritual Hierarchies and the Physical Zodiac, Planets & Cosmos is a translation from German of « Geistige Hiearchien und ihre Wiederspiegelung in der physischen Welt. Tierkreis, Planeten, Kosmos » (GA 110). The Spiritual Hierarchies and the Physical Reality and Illusion (1996) contained a previous edition of this lecture course.
240 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 1995
21 people are currently reading
274 people want to read
About the author
Rudolf Steiner
4,317 books1,099 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
March 3, 2025
Even 100 years later, Rudolf Steiner's teachings are mind-stretching stuff. In a series of lectures given in 1909, Steiner describes the 9 hierarchies of angels and their respective functions in the cosmos and in cosmic history. And while his version of the latter would appear to be at odds with the accepted mechanistic-physical account accepted by modern science, he insists that this is not so, but is rather an artifact of the incompleteness and biases of materialistic science.
The more I read of Steiner, the more I incline to the likelihood that he was mostly right about everything; but even though I fully believe in clairvoyance, angels, and astrology, I still find plenty of things in his work that give me pause! I dare say that's because of my remaining limitations rather than anything to do with his teachings.
No matter what, Rudolf Steiner is learned, intelligent, and passionate about his topics, which are surely among the most important that we can turn our minds to. For these reasons, he is well worth reading, no matter how skeptical you are.
The more I read of Steiner, the more I incline to the likelihood that he was mostly right about everything; but even though I fully believe in clairvoyance, angels, and astrology, I still find plenty of things in his work that give me pause! I dare say that's because of my remaining limitations rather than anything to do with his teachings.
No matter what, Rudolf Steiner is learned, intelligent, and passionate about his topics, which are surely among the most important that we can turn our minds to. For these reasons, he is well worth reading, no matter how skeptical you are.
May 8, 2025
The worst book I've ever read.
September 28, 2015
Лекционният курс на Рудолф Щайнер относно "Духовните йерархии" е значително постижение в розенкройцерската и антропософската окултна мисъл в началото на 20 век. Той разглежда духовните цивилизации и тяхната неизменна еволюция, пречупени под непрестанните измерения на вълната на живота - напреднали и изостанали духовни същества в своето развитие. Поколенията от изостаналите сформират една полу-божествена, полу-незавършена конструкция от същности, оформили се от края на всяка планетарна епоха и манвантара. Тази тема неведнъж е разисквана и в други лекции на австрийския теософ, но тук намира най - широко отражение: как и доколко влиянието на поколенията луцифериански и ариманически същества рефлектира върху материалната история на човечеството от земната планетарна епоха. За да достигне до своята основна теза, Щайнер прави бърз преглед на досегашните окултни изследвания върху натрупаното от гносиса, древните мистерии и летописи, описва планетарната еволюция, духовната еволюция на съзнанието и човека, неговата конструктивност и многопластов строеж. По този начин най - добре ще бъде изяснена ролята на "Изостаналите" от своите космични събратя. Как съсловието на поколения обединени под термина "Ариман" се проявяват в етерното тяло и как старолунните "луцифери" - в астралното тяло на човека.
В поредица от лекции, проведени в Германия през април 1909 година, Щайнер разкрива и другата посока на проявяването на "Изостаналите" в културните епохи на човечеството, върховният златен век на Луцифер, достигнал до зенита на Атлантската епоха, както и проявлението на Ариман след квазиисторически сблъсък с Михаил, осъществил се напълно през 1879 година.
Оттук започва същинската профетология. Чрез своите изследвания, Щайнер предрича неминуемия сблъсък между световните сили и антанти, както и неизбежна световна война, период в който никой не е предполагал, че такъв катаклизъм може да избухне цели два пъти. Последствията от Аримановия импулс все още се проявяват до днес, а там Щайнер се оказва застрашително прав, предвиждайки душевността на хората век след неговата физическа смърт, бумът на технократската епоха, скептицизма, зародишите на клонирането и др, включително европейски обединения, прототипни модели на Европейския съюз.
В поредица от лекции, проведени в Германия през април 1909 година, Щайнер разкрива и другата посока на проявяването на "Изостаналите" в културните епохи на човечеството, върховният златен век на Луцифер, достигнал до зенита на Атлантската епоха, както и проявлението на Ариман след квазиисторически сблъсък с Михаил, осъществил се напълно през 1879 година.
Оттук започва същинската профетология. Чрез своите изследвания, Щайнер предрича неминуемия сблъсък между световните сили и антанти, както и неизбежна световна война, период в който никой не е предполагал, че такъв катаклизъм може да избухне цели два пъти. Последствията от Аримановия импулс все още се проявяват до днес, а там Щайнер се оказва застрашително прав, предвиждайки душевността на хората век след неговата физическа смърт, бумът на технократската епоха, скептицизма, зародишите на клонирането и др, включително европейски обединения, прототипни модели на Европейския съюз.
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July 16, 2014Nearly 90 years after the death of the author, we behold the steely cold ascending forces of materialism that Rudolf Steiner called “Ahrimanic”. We see that the Anthroposophic movement which he hoped would be helping millions of people by now is like a damp squib compared to his hopes.
Faced by this ascending cold-as-steel dehumanised society, what does one do? My answer involves what Steiner says here:
http://corjesusacratissimum.org/2011/...
These are very strange things indeed. That what he was so opposed to was the only wakeful consciousness within our sleeping civilization …
For reasons indicated at the above link that I do not wish to rate this book.
I simply want to say I have read it 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 dark, mechanised society ...
Faced by this ascending cold-as-steel dehumanised society, what does one do? My answer involves what Steiner says here:
http://corjesusacratissimum.org/2011/...
These are very strange things indeed. That what he was so opposed to was the only wakeful consciousness within our sleeping civilization …
For reasons indicated at the above link that I do not wish to rate this book.
I simply want to say I have read it 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 dark, mechanised society ...
January 10, 2020
Read with our study group, but with traveling I missed a bunch. Still very good!
October 23, 2023
Come ogni volume di Steiner, contenuto dal sapere sterminato. Infiniti livelli di lettura. Magia.
June 30, 2024
Es difícil de comprender ya que toca temas de otros libros del mismo autor, que son clave para comprender el desarrollo de los conceptos
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews