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11 lectures, Stuttgart, March 5-Nov. 22, 1920 (CW 197)"The present age needs to understand that human beings must hold the balance between the two extremes, between the ahrimanic and the luciferic poles. People always tend to go in one direction.... Christ stands in the middle, holding the balance."
-- Rudolf SteinerThese eleven lectures were given in postwar Stuttgart against a backdrop of struggle and uncertainty--not only within society at large but also within the anthroposophical movement. Rudolf Steiner and his supporters were working to introduce "threefold" social ideas and--given Steiner's public profile--were coming under increasing personal and sometimes physical attack.
Steiner responds to this turbulent situation by revealing the spiritual background to the forces of decline working in contemporary civilization. He speaks of retrogressive powers--spiritual beings referred to as luciferic or ahrimanic--that work directly into human culture, manifesting, for example, in what he refers to as the "initiation streams" of Western secret societies, the Church-allied impulse of Jesuitism, and the Bolshevik force of Lenin-ism. The spiritual agents of adversity also encourage polarized thinking and false opposites such as East verses West, materialism, and mysticism, or knowledge and belief. Only the threefold principle, represented by Christ, allows us to create a balance in the midst of these existential conflicts.
This freshly reworked translation is complemented with notes, an index and an introduction by Matthew Barton.
This volume is a translation from German of
Gegensätze in der Menschheitsentwickelung: West und Ost- Materialismus und Mystik - Wissen und Glauben (GA 197).
Über den Autor / die Autorin
Rudolf Steiner (b. Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner, 1861-1925) was born in the small village of Kraljevec, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now in Croatia), where he grew up. As a young man, he lived in Weimar and Berlin, where he became a well-published scientific, literary, and philosophical scholar, known especially for his work with Goethe's scientific writings. Steiner termed his spiritual philosophy
anthroposophy, meaning "wisdom of the human being." As an exceptionally developed seer, he based his work on direct knowledge and perception of spiritual dimensions. He initiated a modern, universal "spiritual science" that is accessible to anyone willing to exercise clear and unbiased thinking. From his spiritual investigations, Steiner provided suggestions for the renewal of numerous activities, including education (general and for special needs), agriculture, medicine, economics, architecture, science, philosophy, Christianity, and the arts. There are currently thousands of schools, clinics, farms, and initiatives in other fields that involve practical work based on the principles Steiner developed. His many published works feature his research into the spiritual nature of human beings, the evolution of the world and humanity, and methods for personal development. He wrote some thirty books and delivered more than six thousand lectures throughout much of Europe. In 1924, Steiner founded the General Anthroposophical Society, which today has branches around the world.
