Misplaced Pages

#849150

117-566: The Demeter Biodynamic Certification is used in over 65 countries to verify that biodynamic products meet international standards in production and processing. The Demeter symbol was introduced and registered as a trademark in 1928, and as such was the first ecological label for organically produced foods. Certification is difficult to come by and must be renewed annually. Demeter’s “biodynamic” certification requires biodiversity and ecosystem preservation, soil husbandry, livestock integration, prohibition of genetically engineered organisms and viewing

234-600: A "maverick educator". Biodynamic agriculture, is a form of alternative agriculture based on pseudo-scientific and esoteric concepts. It was also the first intentional form of organic farming, begun in 1924, when Rudolf Steiner gave a series of lectures published in English as The Agriculture Course . Steiner is considered one of the founders of the modern organic farming movement. "And Himmler, Hess, and Darré all promoted biodynamic (anthroposophic) approaches to farming as an alternative to industrial agriculture." "'[...] with

351-420: A Philosophy of Freedom , with a dedication to Eduard von Hartmann . Two years later, in 1894, he published Die Philosophie der Freiheit ( The Philosophy of Freedom or The Philosophy of Spiritual Activity , the latter being Steiner's preferred English title), an exploration of epistemology and ethics that suggested a way for humans to become spiritually free beings. Steiner hoped that the book "would gain him

468-411: A Spiritual Path ). Here, Steiner developed a concept of free will based on inner experiences, especially those that occur in the creative activity of independent thought. "Steiner was a moral individualist". By the beginning of the twentieth century, Steiner's interests turned almost exclusively to spirituality. His work began to draw the attention of others interested in spiritual ideas; among these

585-408: A child, he felt "that one must carry the knowledge of the spiritual world within oneself after the fashion of geometry ... [for here] one is permitted to know something which the mind alone, through its own power, experiences. In this feeling I found the justification for the spiritual world that I experienced ... I confirmed for myself by means of geometry the feeling that I must speak of a world 'which

702-517: A form of ethical individualism , to which he later brought a more explicitly spiritual approach. He based his epistemology on Johann Wolfgang 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. Steiner's father, Johann(es) Steiner (1829–1910), left

819-505: A fusion of the three realms had created the inflexibility that had led to catastrophes such as World War I . In connection with this, he promoted a radical solution in the disputed area of Upper Silesia , claimed by both Poland and Germany. His suggestion that this area be granted at least provisional independence led to his being publicly accused of being a traitor to Germany. Steiner opposed Wilson 's proposal to create new European nations based around ethnic groups, which he saw as opening

936-407: A job (which, in fact, he did not get), Steiner accepted the invitation immediately." Förster-Nietzsche introduced Steiner into the presence of the catatonic philosopher; Steiner, deeply moved, subsequently wrote the book Friedrich Nietzsche, Fighter for Freedom . Steiner later related that: My first acquaintance with Nietzsche's writings belongs to the year 1889. Previous to that I had never read

1053-490: A lecture series on an ecological and sustainable approach to agriculture that increased soil fertility without the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides . Steiner's agricultural ideas promptly spread and were put into practice internationally and biodynamic agriculture is now practiced in Europe, North America, South America, Africa, Asia and Australasia . "Steiner’s 'biodynamic agriculture' based on 'restoring

1170-457: A line of his. Upon the substance of my ideas as these find expression in The Philosophy of Spiritual Activity , Nietzsche's thought had not the least influence....Nietzsche's ideas of the ' eternal recurrence ' and of ' Übermensch ' remained long in my mind. For in these was reflected that which a personality must feel concerning the evolution and essential being of humanity when this personality

1287-427: A particular task: political institutions should be democratic, establish political equality and protect human rights ; cultural institutions should nurture the free and unhindered development of science, art, education and religion; and economic institutions should enable producers, distributors, and consumers to cooperate voluntarily to provide efficiently for society's needs. He saw this division of responsibility as

SECTION 10

#1733085467850

1404-450: A period after World War I, Steiner was active as a lecturer on social reform. A petition expressing his basic social ideas was widely circulated and signed by many cultural figures of the day, including Hermann Hesse . In Steiner's chief book on social reform , Toward Social Renewal , he suggested that the cultural, political and economic spheres of society need to work together as consciously cooperating yet independent entities, each with

1521-481: A person's lives, or karma . The anthroposophical view of evolution considers all animals to have evolved from an early, unspecialized form. As the least specialized animal, human beings have maintained the closest connection to the archetypal form; contrary to the Darwinian conception of human evolution, all other animals devolve from this archetype. The spiritual archetype originally created by spiritual beings

1638-558: A person's spiritual development could occur only after a period of moral development. In 1912, Steiner broke away from the Theosophical Society to found an independent group, which he named the Anthroposophical Society. After World War I , members of the young society began applying Steiner's ideas to create cultural movements in areas such as traditional and special education , farming, and medicine . By 1923,

1755-515: A pharmaceutical company called Weleda which now distributes naturopathic medical and beauty products worldwide. At around the same time, Dr. Ita Wegman founded a first anthroposophic medical clinic (now the Ita Wegman Clinic) in Arlesheim . Anthroposophic medicine is practiced in some 80 countries. It is a form of alternative medicine based on pseudoscientific and occult notions. For

1872-564: A political theorist of this movement, Dietrich Eckart , attacked Steiner and suggested that he was a Jew. In 1921, Adolf Hitler attacked Steiner on many fronts, including accusations that he was a tool of the Jews. That same year, Steiner warned against the disastrous effects it would have for Central Europe if the National Socialists came to power. In 1922 a lecture Steiner was giving in Munich

1989-523: A poor teacher' and 'gypsy-intellectual.' Not uncommon for practitioners at the fringes of society, he was accused of class treason. In 1899, Steiner published an article, "Goethe's Secret Revelation", discussing the esoteric nature of Goethe's fairy tale The Green Snake and the Beautiful Lily . This article led to an invitation by the Count and Countess Brockdorff to speak to a gathering of Theosophists on

2106-685: A position as a gamekeeper in the service of Count Hoyos in Geras , northeast Lower Austria to marry one of the Hoyos family's housemaids, Franziska Blie (1834 Horn – 1918, Horn), a marriage for which the Count had refused his permission. Johann became a telegraph operator on the Southern Austrian Railway, and at the time of Rudolf's birth was stationed in Murakirály ( Kraljevec ) in the Muraköz region of

2223-530: A professorship", but the book was not well received. Steiner later spoke of this book as containing implicitly, in philosophical form, the entire content of what he later developed explicitly as anthroposophy . In 1896, Steiner declined an offer from Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche to help organize the Nietzsche archive in Naumburg . Her brother, Friedrich Nietzsche , was by that time non compos mentis . "Hoping for

2340-408: A progressive direction of evolution, has led to an excessive reliance on abstraction and a loss of contact with both natural and spiritual realities. However, to go further requires new capacities that combine the clarity of intellectual thought with the imagination and with consciously achieved inspiration and intuitive insights. Anthroposophy speaks of the reincarnation of the human spirit: that

2457-443: A schism had formed between older members, focused on inner development, and younger members eager to become active in contemporary social transformations. In response, Steiner attempted to bridge the gap by establishing an overall School for Spiritual Science . As a spiritual basis for the reborn movement, Steiner wrote a Foundation Stone Meditation which remains a central touchstone of anthroposophical ideas. Steiner died just over

SECTION 20

#1733085467850

2574-522: 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

2691-483: A separate series of 28 volumes. Many publications have covered his architectural legacy and sculptural work. As a young man, Steiner was a private tutor and a lecturer on history for the Berlin Arbeiterbildungsschule , an educational initiative for working class adults. Soon thereafter, he began to articulate his ideas on education in public lectures, culminating in a 1907 essay on The Education of

2808-585: A variety of communities: for example in the favelas of São Paulo to wealthy suburbs of major cities; in India, Egypt , Australia, the Netherlands, Mexico and South Africa. Though most of the early Waldorf schools were teacher-founded, the schools today are usually initiated and later supported by a parent community. Waldorf schools are among the most visible anthroposophical institutions. Benjamin Lazier calls Steiner

2925-403: A vital task which would take up consciously the historical trend 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 between the individuals and the community as a whole: The well-being of a community of people working together will be

3042-671: A wide variety of historical sources. A world of spiritual perception is discussed in a number of writings which I have published since this book appeared. The Philosophy of Freedom forms the philosophical basis for these later writings. For it tries to show that the experience of thinking, rightly understood, is in fact an experience of spirit. (Steiner, Philosophy of Freedom , Consequences of Monism ) Steiner aimed to apply his training in mathematics , science, and philosophy to produce rigorous, verifiable presentations of those experiences. He believed that through freely chosen ethical disciplines and meditative training , anyone could develop

3159-569: A year later, in 1925. The Second World War temporarily hindered the anthroposophical movement in most of Continental Europe, as the Anthroposophical Society and most of its practical counter-cultural applications were banned by the Nazi government . Though at least one prominent member of the Nazi Party, Rudolf Hess , was a strong supporter of anthroposophy, very few anthroposophists belonged to

3276-796: Is based in pseudoscience and occult ideas. Even though his medical ideas led to the development of a broad range of complementary medications and supportive artistic and biographic therapies, they are considered ineffective by the medical community. Numerous homes for children and adults with developmental disabilities based on his work (including those of the Camphill movement ) are found in Africa, Europe, and North America. His paintings and drawings influenced Joseph Beuys and other modern artists. His two Goetheanum buildings are considered significant examples of modern architecture , and other anthroposophical architects have contributed thousands of buildings to

3393-602: Is helped in this task by the mediation of the Representative of Humanity , also known as the Christ being, a spiritual entity who stands between and harmonizes the two extremes. There is a pedagogical movement with over 1000 Steiner or Waldorf schools (the latter name stems from the first such school, founded in Stuttgart in 1919) located in some 60 countries; the great majority of these are independent (private) schools. Sixteen of

3510-489: Is kept back from grasping the spiritual world by the restricted thought in the philosophy of nature characterizing the end of the 19th century....What attracted me particularly was that one could read Nietzsche without coming upon anything which strove to make the reader a 'dependent' of Nietzsche's. In 1897, Steiner left the Weimar archives and moved to Berlin. He became part owner of, chief editor of, and an active contributor to

3627-463: Is not seen'." Steiner believed that at the age of 15 he had gained a complete understanding of the concept of time, which he considered to be the precondition of spiritual clairvoyance . At 21, on the train between his home village and Vienna , Steiner met a herb gatherer, Felix Kogutzki, who spoke about the spiritual world "as one who had his own experience therein". The young Steiner emerged as an individualist, positivist and freethinker, who

Demeter International - Misplaced Pages Continue

3744-475: Is that good is found in the balance between two polar influences on world and human evolution. These are often described through their mythological embodiments as spiritual adversaries which endeavour to tempt and corrupt humanity, Lucifer and his counterpart Ahriman . These have both positive and negative aspects. Lucifer is the light spirit, which "plays on human pride and offers the delusion of divinity", but also motivates creativity and spirituality ; Ahriman

3861-450: Is the dark spirit that tempts human beings to "...deny [their] link with divinity and to live entirely on the material plane ", but that also stimulates intellectuality and technology . Both figures exert a negative effect on humanity when their influence becomes misplaced or one-sided, yet their influences are necessary for human freedom to unfold. Each human being has the task to find a balance between these opposing influences, and each

3978-471: Is the human being, and philosophy's highest aim is self-knowledge, or Anthroposophy." In 1882, the philosopher Robert Zimmermann published the treatise, "An Outline of Anthroposophy: Proposal for a System of Idealism on a Realistic Basis," proposing that idealistic philosophy should employ logical thinking to extend empirical experience. Steiner attended lectures by Zimmermann at the University of Vienna in

4095-553: The Akashic Records (sometimes called the "Akasha Chronicle"), thought to be a spiritual chronicle of the history, pre-history, and future of the world and mankind. In a number of works, Steiner described a path of inner development he felt would let anyone attain comparable spiritual experiences. In Steiner's view, sound vision could be developed, in part, by practicing rigorous forms of ethical and cognitive self-discipline, concentration, and meditation. In particular, Steiner believed

4212-557: The Kingdom of Hungary , Austrian Empire (present-day Donji Kraljevec in the Međimurje region of northernmost Croatia ). In the first two years of Rudolf's life, the family moved twice, first to Mödling , near Vienna , and then, through the promotion of his father to stationmaster, to Pottschach , located in the foothills of the eastern Austrian Alps in Lower Austria . Steiner entered

4329-447: The University of Kiel , characterized biodynamics as pseudoscience and argued that similar or equal results can be obtained using standard organic farming principles. He wrote that some biodynamic preparations more resemble alchemy or magic akin to geomancy . From the late 1910s, Steiner was working with doctors to create a new approach to medicine . In 1921, pharmacists and physicians gathered under Steiner's guidance to create

4446-1103: The arts , and more. The Anthroposophical Society is headquartered at the Goetheanum in Dornach , Switzerland . Anthroposophy's supporters include writers Saul Bellow , and Selma Lagerlöf , painters Piet Mondrian , Wassily Kandinsky and Hilma af Klint , filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky , child psychiatrist Eva Frommer , music therapist Maria Schüppel , Romuva religious founder Vydūnas , and former president of Georgia Zviad Gamsakhurdia . While critics and proponents alike acknowledge Steiner's many anti-racist statements. "Steiner's collected works...contain pervasive internal contradictions and inconsistencies on racial and national questions." The historian of religion Olav Hammer has termed anthroposophy "the most important esoteric society in European history". Many scientists, physicians, and philosophers, including Michael Shermer , Michael Ruse , Edzard Ernst , David Gorski , and Simon Singh have criticized anthroposophy's application in

4563-483: The Anthroposophical Society had been established in fifty countries and about 10,000 institutions around the world were working on the basis of anthroposophical ideas. Anthroposophy is an amalgam of the Greek terms ἄνθρωπος ( anthropos 'human') and σοφία ( sophia 'wisdom'). An early English usage is recorded by Nathan Bailey (1742) as meaning "the knowledge of the nature of man." The first known use of

4680-570: The Child in which he described the major phases of child development which formed the foundation of his approach to education. His conception of education was influenced by the Herbartian pedagogy prominent in Europe during the late nineteenth century, though Steiner criticized Herbart for not sufficiently recognizing the importance of educating the will and feelings as well as the intellect. In 1919, Emil Molt invited him to lecture to his workers at

4797-591: The Demeter Association hosts an international fair known as Biofach. The event is considered the world's leading trade fair for organic food, and provides the location at which the Biofach Congress also meet together. Rudolf Steiner Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner (27 or 25 February 1861 – 30 March 1925) was an Austrian occultist , social reformer , architect , esotericist , and claimed clairvoyant . Steiner gained initial recognition at

Demeter International - Misplaced Pages Continue

4914-606: The General Anthroposophical Society, Guenther Wachsmuth, as well as Steiner's widow, Marie Steiner, were “completely pro-Nazi.” Marie Steiner-von Sivers, Guenther Wachsmuth, and Albert Steffen, had publicly expressed sympathy for the Nazi regime since its beginnings; led by such sympathies of their leadership, the Swiss and German Anthroposophical organizations chose for a path conflating accommodation with collaboration, which in

5031-696: The National Socialist Party. In reality, Steiner had both enemies and loyal supporters in the upper echelons of the Nazi regime. Staudenmaier speaks of the "polycratic party-state apparatus", so Nazism's approach to Anthroposophy was not characterized by monolithic ideological unity. When Hess flew to the UK and was imprisoned, their most powerful protector was gone, but Anthroposophists were still not left without supporters among higher-placed Nazis. The Third Reich had banned almost all esoteric organizations, claiming that these were controlled by Jews. The truth

5148-449: The Nazi regime. Yet when Hitler threatened to suppress the Anthroposophical Society, its executive council—which had recently expelled much of its membership—chose to collaborate rather than resist. Marie Steiner, Günther Wachsmuth, and Albert Steffen knew of Hitler’s violent intentions toward the Jewish people, since Hitler’s attacks on anthroposophy included the accusation that anthroposophy

5265-562: The SD and Gestapo recognized that they faced influential adversaries in other sectors of the Nazi hierarchy. They knew that Hess and his staff, Baeumler in the Amt Rosenberg, and Ohlendorf in the SD itself were willing to intervene on behalf of anthroposophical endeavors. Minister of Agriculture Darré and Lotar Eickhoff in the Interior Ministry were also seen as sympathizers of anthroposophy, and

5382-672: The SD considered the head of the party’s “Examination Commission for Safeguarding National Socialist Writings,” Karl Heinz Hederich, a supporter of occultists and astrologers. While anthroposophists were in the center of the SD’s sights, they were supposed to receive relatively mild treatment compared to other occultists. Despite these measures, anthroposophist authors were able to write long after June 1941. Franz Dreidax, Max Karl Schwarz, Elisabeth Klein, Johannes Bertram-Pingel, Georg Halbe, Otto Julius Hartmann, Rudolf Hauschka, Jürgen von Grone, Wolfgang Schuchhardt and others continued to publish throughout

5499-597: The Society was oriented toward an Eastern and especially Indian approach, Steiner was trying to develop a path that embraced Christianity and natural science . The split became irrevocable when Annie Besant , then president of the Theosophical Society, presented the child Jiddu Krishnamurti as the reincarnated Christ. Steiner strongly objected and considered any comparison between Krishnamurti and Christ to be nonsense; many years later, Krishnamurti also repudiated

5616-695: The Theosophical Esoteric Society for Germany and Austria. In 1904, Eliza, the wife of Helmuth von Moltke the Younger , became one of his favourite scholars. Through Eliza, Steiner met Helmuth, who served as the Chief of the German General Staff from 1906 to 1914. In contrast to mainstream Theosophy, Steiner sought to build a Western approach to spirituality based on the philosophical and mystical traditions of European culture. The German Section of

5733-534: The Theosophical Society grew rapidly under Steiner's leadership as he lectured throughout much of Europe on his spiritual science . During this period, Steiner maintained an original approach, replacing Madame Blavatsky 's terminology with his own, and basing his spiritual research and teachings upon the Western esoteric and philosophical tradition. This and other differences, in particular Steiner's vocal rejection of Leadbeater and Besant 's claim that Jiddu Krishnamurti

5850-499: The Theosophical Society, Steiner maintained his interest in Theosophy throughout his life. According to Helmut Zander, Steiner's clairvoyant insights always developed according to the same pattern. He took revised texts from theosophical literature and then passed them off as his own higher insights. Because he did not want to be an occult storyteller, but a (spiritual) scientist, he adapted his reading, which he had seen supernaturally in

5967-589: The Waldorf-Astoria cigarette factory in Stuttgart. Out of these lectures came the first Waldorf School. In 1922, Steiner presented these ideas at a conference called for this purpose in Oxford by Professor Millicent Mackenzie . He subsequently presented a teacher training course at Torquay in 1924 at an Anthroposophy Summer School organised by Eleanor Merry . The Oxford Conference and the Torquay teacher training led to

SECTION 50

#1733085467850

6084-507: The ability to experience the spiritual world, including the higher nature of oneself and others. Steiner believed that such discipline and training would help a person to become a more moral , creative and free individual – free in the sense of being capable of actions motivated solely by love. His philosophical ideas were affected by Franz Brentano , with whom he had studied, as well as by Fichte, Hegel , Schelling, and Goethe's phenomenological approach to science . Steiner used

6201-454: The active cooperation of the Reich League for Biodynamic Agriculture' [...] Pancke, Pohl, and Hans Merkel established additional biodynamic plantations across the eastern territories as well as Dachau, Ravensbrück, and Auschwitz concentration camps. Many were staffed by anthroposophists." "Steiner’s 'biodynamic agriculture' based on 'restoring the quasi-mystical relationship between earth and

6318-522: The animal kingdom did not precede, but rather accompanied the process of human incarnation. Man is thus not the end result of the evolution of the animals, but is rather in a certain sense their cause . In the succession of types which appears in the fossil record-the fishes, reptiles, mammals, and finally fossil remains of man himself — the stages of this process of incarnation are reflected. Anthroposophy adapted Theosophy 's complex system of cycles of world development and human evolution. The evolution of

6435-528: The areas of medicine, biology, agriculture, and education to be dangerous and pseudoscientific . Ideas of Steiner's that are unsupported or disproven by modern science include: racial evolution, clairvoyance ( Steiner claimed he was clairvoyant), and the Atlantis myth. The early work of the founder of anthroposophy, Rudolf Steiner , culminated in his Philosophy of Freedom (also translated as The Philosophy of Spiritual Activity and Intuitive Thinking as

6552-413: The arrest, Hendrich's ban removed the previous political protection Demeter and other similar bodies had received, and resulted in biodynamics being officially opposed by the regime. Despite this, the Nazi's continued to operate the plantations at Dachau and Ravensbrück. Demeter Deutschland e.V. (Demeter Germany) is the biggest and most important national Demeter organization. Demeter is well established in

6669-511: The assertion. Steiner's continuing differences with Besant led him to separate from the Theosophical Society Adyar . He was subsequently followed by the great majority of the Theosophical Society's German members, as well as many members of other national sections. By this time, Steiner had reached considerable stature as a spiritual teacher and expert in the occult . He spoke about what he considered to be his direct experience of

6786-509: The cosmos' was widely accepted in the Third Reich (28)." Anthroposophical medicine is a form of alternative medicine based on pseudoscientific and occult notions rather than in science-based medicine . Most anthroposophic medical preparations are highly diluted, like homeopathic remedies, while harmless in of themselves, using them in place of conventional medicine to treat illness is ineffective and risks adverse consequences. One of

6903-484: The country. From 1923 on, Steiner showed signs of increasing frailness and illness. He nonetheless continued to lecture widely, and even to travel; especially towards the end of this time, he was often giving two, three or even four lectures daily for courses taking place concurrently. Many of these lectures focused on practical areas of life such as education. Increasingly ill, he held his last lecture in late September, 1924. He continued work on his autobiography during

7020-480: The decision was made to build a theater and organizational center. In 1913, construction began on the first Goetheanum building, in Dornach , Switzerland. The building, designed by Steiner, was built to a significant part by volunteers. Steiner moved from Berlin to Dornach in 1913 and lived there to the end of his life. Steiner's lecture activity expanded enormously with the end of the war. Most importantly, from 1919 on Steiner began to work with other members of

7137-511: The door to rampant nationalism. Steiner proposed, as an alternative: 'social territories' with democratic institutions that were accessible to all inhabitants of a territory whatever their origin while the needs of the various ethnicities would be met by independent cultural institutions. The National Socialist German Workers Party gained strength in Germany after the First World War. In 1919,

SECTION 60

#1733085467850

7254-466: The early 1880s, thus at the time of this book's publication. In the early 1900s, Steiner began using the term anthroposophy (i.e. human wisdom) as an alternative to the term theosophy (i.e. divine wisdom). Anthroposophical proponents aim to extend the clarity of the scientific method to phenomena of human soul-life and spiritual experiences. Steiner believed this required developing new faculties of objective spiritual perception, which he maintained

7371-656: The emerging Nazi party, which endorsed its anti-materialistic principles. Collaborating with the Nazi regime, Demeter aligned with Nazi ideals, though some officials like Reinhard Heydrich (the founding head of the Nazi Security Service (SS)) viewed Steiner's anthroposophist philosophy with suspicion. With the assistance of the SS, the Nazis established biodynamic agricultural plantations at concentration camps like Dachau and Ravensbrück , exploiting prisoners for labor. The Demeter name

7488-415: The end ensured that while the Nazi regime hunted the esoteric organizations, Gentile Anthroposophists from Nazi Germany and countries occupied by it were let be to a surprising extent. Of course they had some setbacks from the enemies of Anthroposophy among the upper echelons of the Nazi regime, but Anthroposophists also had loyal supporters among them, so overall Gentile Anthroposophists were not badly hit by

7605-451: 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

7722-505: The faculty of self-awareness unique to human beings. Anthroposophy describes a broad evolution of human consciousness. Early stages of human evolution possess an intuitive perception of reality, including a clairvoyant perception of spiritual realities. Humanity has progressively evolved an increasing reliance on intellectual faculties and a corresponding loss of intuitive or clairvoyant experiences, which have become atavistic . The increasing intellectualization of consciousness, initially

7839-421: The farm as a living “holistic organism”. The certification verifies the fulfillment of the standards on behalf of the farmers, which in turn guarantees high quality food products to the consumers. This is rewarded by receiving a higher price for food certified with the “Demeter” label, ranging from 10-30% on average. In 1924, Austrian philosopher Rudolph Steiner delivered a series of agricultural lectures, laying

7956-524: The founding of the first Waldorf schools in Britain. During Steiner's lifetime, schools based on his educational principles were also founded in Hamburg , Essen , The Hague and London; there are now more than 1000 Waldorf schools worldwide. Benjamin Lazier calls Steiner a "maverick educator". In 1924, a group of farmers concerned about the future of agriculture requested Steiner's help. Steiner responded with

8073-400: The greater, the less the individual claims for himself the proceeds of his work, i.e. the more of these proceeds he makes over to his fellow-workers, the more his own needs are satisfied, not out of his own work but out of the work done by others. He expressed another aspect of this in the following motto: Anthroposophy Anthroposophy is a spiritual new religious movement which

8190-468: The groundwork for biodynamics, a farming method intertwined with his anthroposophist movement. Despite his humanist and universalist ideals, Steiner's writings attracted controversy. The Biodynamic Federation created in Berlin as a German agricultural cooperative, was originally named Demeter International and emerged in 1927 for the processing of products for biodynamic agriculture . In 1928 the trademark Demeter

8307-435: The human being passes between stages of existence, incarnating into an earthly body, living on earth, leaving the body behind, and entering into the spiritual worlds before returning to be born again into a new life on earth. After the death of the physical body, the human spirit recapitulates the past life, perceiving its events as they were experienced by the objects of its actions. A complex transformation takes place between

8424-501: The individual from any external authority. For Steiner, the human capacity for rational thought would allow individuals to comprehend spiritual research on their own and bypass the danger of dependency on an authority such as himself. Steiner contrasted the anthroposophical approach with both conventional mysticism , which he considered lacking the clarity necessary for exact knowledge, and natural science , which he considered arbitrarily limited to what can be seen, heard, or felt with

8541-405: The influences on plant growth of the moon and planets ; and the application of natural materials prepared in specific ways to the soil , compost , and crops, with the intention of engaging non-physical beings and elemental forces. He encouraged his listeners to verify such suggestions empirically , as he had not yet done. In a 2002 newspaper editorial, Peter Treue, agricultural researcher at

8658-525: The last months of his life; he died at Dornach on 30 March 1925. Steiner first began speaking publicly about spiritual experiences and phenomena in his 1899 lectures to the Theosophical Society. By 1901 he had begun to write about spiritual topics, initially in the form of discussions of historical figures such as the mystics of the Middle Ages . By 1904 he was expressing his own understanding of these themes in his essays and books, while continuing to refer to

8775-481: The literary journal Magazin für Literatur , where he hoped to find a readership sympathetic to his philosophy. Many subscribers were alienated by Steiner's unpopular support of Émile Zola in the Dreyfus Affair and the journal lost more subscribers when Steiner published extracts from his correspondence with anarchist John Henry Mackay . Dissatisfaction with his editorial style eventually led to his departure from

8892-601: The magazine. In 1899, Steiner married Anna Eunicke; the couple separated several years later. Anna died in 1911. Despite his fame as a teacher of esotericism, Steiner was culturally and academically isolated. Worse, he couldn't be a real philosopher either; his theosophy and anthroposophy and the Waldorf humanism in particular were considered pseudoscience or at best pedagogy, not a philosophical system. Steiner's credentials were not university-level professional work. [...] German mainstream scholarship called him an 'autodidact, with

9009-473: The mentally and physically disabled, continued to reflect the Third Reich's underlying ambivalence toward policing the occult. Kurlander stated that "the Nazis were hardly ideologically opposed to the supernatural sciences themselves"—rather they objected to the free (i.e. non-totalitarian) pursuit of supernatural sciences. According to Hans Büchenbacher, an anthroposophist, the Secretary General of

9126-406: The modern scene. Steiner's literary estate is broad. Steiner's writings, published in about forty volumes, include books, essays, four plays ('mystery dramas'), mantric verse, and an autobiography. His collected lectures, making up another approximately 300 volumes, discuss a wide range of themes. Steiner's drawings, chiefly illustrations done on blackboards during his lectures, are collected in

9243-747: The most studied applications has been the use of mistletoe extracts in cancer therapy, but research has found no evidence of benefit. In 1922, Ita Wegman founded an anthroposophical center for special needs education, the Sonnenhof, in Switzerland. In 1940, Karl König founded the Camphill Movement in Scotland. The latter in particular has spread widely, and there are now over a hundred Camphill communities and other anthroposophical homes for children and adults in need of special care in about 22 countries around

9360-446: The nature of man and his state after death. The term began to appear with some frequency in philosophical works of the mid- and late-nineteenth century. In the early part of that century, Ignaz Troxler used the term anthroposophy to refer to philosophy deepened to self-knowledge, which he suggested allows deeper knowledge of nature as well. He spoke of human nature as a mystical unity of God and world. Immanuel Hermann Fichte used

9477-487: The origin country, were Rudolf Steiner spread his esoteric ideas about agriculture at the beginning of the 20th century. Demeter Deutschland is working as a certifier for "biodynamic" production of food within Germany. Head of the association is Alexander Gerber und Johannes Kamps-Bender. Main competitor in Germany are Bioland and Naturland certifier associations. Demeter has a strong connection to " Alnatura " Bio-discounter-chain, which are also anthroposophic . Each year

9594-400: The outward senses. In Theosophy , Steiner suggested that human beings unite a physical body of substances gathered from and returning to the inorganic world; a life body (also called the etheric body ), in common with all living creatures (including plants); a bearer of sentience or consciousness (also called the astral body ), in common with all animals ; and the ego, which anchors

9711-502: The physical world, many of these ideas have been termed pseudoscientific by experts in epistemology and debunkers of pseudoscience. Anthroposophy has its roots in German idealism , Western and Eastern esoteric ideas, various religious traditions, and modern Theosophy . Steiner chose the term anthroposophy (from Greek ἄνθρωπος anthropos- , 'human', and σοφία sophia , 'wisdom') to emphasize his philosophy's humanistic orientation. He defined it as "a scientific exploration of

9828-702: The premise that it is possible for human beings to penetrate behind what is sense-perceptible. He proposed that psychology, history, and the humanities generally were based on the direct grasp of an ideal reality, and required close attention to the particular period and culture which provided the distinctive character of religious qualities in the course of the evolution of consciousness. In contrast to William James' pragmatic approach to religious and psychic experience, which emphasized its idiosyncratic character, Steiner focused on ways such experience can be rendered more intelligible and integrated into human life. Steiner proposed that an understanding of reincarnation and karma

9945-483: The quasi-mystical relationship between earth and the cosmos' was widely accepted in the Third Reich (28)." A central aspect of biodynamics is that the farm as a whole is seen as an organism, and therefore should be a largely self-sustaining system, producing its own manure and animal feed . Plant or animal disease is seen as a symptom of problems in the whole organism. Steiner also suggested timing such agricultural activities as sowing, weeding, and harvesting to utilize

10062-464: The requirements of the Ghega scholarship satisfactorily. In 1882, one of Steiner's teachers, Karl Julius Schröer , suggested Steiner's name to Joseph Kürschner, chief editor of a new edition of Goethe's works, who asked Steiner to become the edition's natural science editor, a truly astonishing opportunity for a young student without any form of academic credentials or previous publications. In fact, it

10179-402: The review of the past life and the preparation for the next life. The individual's karmic condition eventually leads to a choice of parents, physical body, disposition, and capacities that provide the challenges and opportunities that further development requires, which includes karmically chosen tasks for the future life. Steiner described some conditions that determine the interdependence of

10296-538: The schools have been affiliated with the United Nations' UNESCO Associated Schools Project Network , which sponsors education projects that foster improved quality of education throughout the world. Waldorf schools receive full or partial governmental funding in some European nations, Australia and in parts of the United States (as Waldorf method public or charter schools) and Canada. The schools have been founded in

10413-479: The social sciences, youth and agriculture. The School of Spiritual Science included meditative exercises given by Steiner . Steiner became a well-known and controversial public figure during and after World War I. In response to the catastrophic situation in post-war Germany, he proposed extensive social reforms through the establishment of a Threefold Social Order in which the cultural, political and economic realms would be largely independent. Steiner argued that

10530-517: The society to found numerous practical institutions and activities , including the first Waldorf school , founded that year in Stuttgart , Germany. On New Year's Eve, 1922–1923, the Goetheanum burned to the ground; contemporary police reports indicate arson as the probable cause. Steiner immediately began work designing a second Goetheanum building - this time made of concrete instead of wood - which

10647-514: The spiritual world", others have variously called it a "philosophy and cultural movement", a "spiritual movement", a "spiritual science", "a system of thought", or "a spiritualist movement". Anthroposophical ideas have been applied in a range of fields including education (both in Waldorf schools and in the Camphill movement ), environmental conservation and banking ; with additional applications in agriculture , organizational development ,

10764-417: The subject of Nietzsche. Steiner continued speaking regularly to the members of the Theosophical Society , becoming the head of its newly constituted German section in 1902 without ever formally joining the society. It was also in connection with this society that Steiner met and worked with Marie von Sivers , who became his second wife in 1914. By 1904, Steiner was appointed by Annie Besant to be leader of

10881-448: The techniques he used for karma research. After the First World War, Steiner became active in a wide variety of cultural contexts. He founded a number of schools, the first of which was known as the Waldorf school , which later evolved into a worldwide school network. He also founded a system of organic agriculture, now known as biodynamic agriculture , which was one of the first forms of modern organic farming . His work in medicine

10998-509: The term anthroposophy occurs within Arbatel de magia veterum, summum sapientiae studium , a book published anonymously in 1575 and attributed to Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa . The work describes anthroposophy (as well as theosophy) variously as an understanding of goodness, nature, or human affairs. In 1648, the Welsh philosopher Thomas Vaughan published his Anthroposophia Theomagica, or a discourse of

11115-466: The term anthroposophy to refer to "rigorous human self-knowledge," achievable through thorough comprehension of the human spirit and of the working of God in this spirit, in his 1856 work Anthropology: The Study of the Human Soul . In 1872, the philosopher of religion Gideon Spicker used the term anthroposophy to refer to self-knowledge that would unite God and world: "the true study of the human being

11232-843: The village school, but following a disagreement between his father and the schoolmaster, he was briefly educated at home. In 1869, when Steiner was eight years old, the family moved to the village of Neudörfl and in October 1872 Steiner proceeded from the village school there to the realschule in Wiener Neustadt . In 1879, the family moved to Inzersdorf to enable Steiner to attend the Vienna Institute of Technology , where he enrolled in courses in mathematics , physics , chemistry , botany , zoology , and mineralogy and audited courses in literature and philosophy , on an academic scholarship from 1879 to 1883, where he completed his studies and

11349-444: The war. But serious disruptions were common. Morals: Anthroposophy was not the stake of that dispute, but merely powerful Nazis wanting to get rid of other powerful Nazis. E.g. Jehovah's Witnesses were treated much more aggressively than Anthroposophists. Yet, the relative moderation of Heydrich's action, which paled in comparison to measures taken against communists and socialists, Jews, homosexuals, Jehovah's Witnesses, as well as

11466-445: The word Geisteswissenschaft (from Geist = mind or spirit, Wissenschaft = science), a term originally coined by Wilhelm Dilthey as a descriptor of the humanities , in a novel way, to describe a systematic ("scientific") approach to spirituality. Steiner used the term Geisteswissenschaft , generally translated into English as "spiritual science," to describe a discipline treating the spirit as something actual and real, starting from

11583-469: The works of Arthur Schopenhauer and the writer Jean Paul and wrote numerous articles for various journals. In 1891, Steiner received a doctorate in philosophy at the University of Rostock , for his dissertation discussing Fichte 's concept of the ego, submitted to Heinrich von Stein  [ de ] , whose Seven Books of Platonism Steiner esteemed. Steiner's dissertation was later published in expanded form as Truth and Knowledge: Prelude to

11700-508: The world is said to have occurred in cycles. The first phase of the world consisted only of heat. In the second phase, a more active condition, light, and a more condensed, gaseous state separate out from the heat. In the third phase, a fluid state arose, as well as a sounding, forming energy. In the fourth (current) phase, solid physical matter first exists. This process is said to have been accompanied by an evolution of consciousness which led up to present human culture. The anthroposophical view

11817-540: The world's memory, to the current state of technology. When, for example, the Wright brothers began flying with gliders and eventually with motorized aircraft in 1903, Steiner transformed the ponderous gondola airships of his Atlantis story into airplanes with elevators and rudders in 1904. The Anthroposophical Society grew rapidly. Fueled by a need to find an artistic home for their yearly conferences, which included performances of plays written by Edouard Schuré and Steiner,

11934-465: Was a low-paid and boring job, according to Steiner himself. Before attending the Vienna Institute of Technology, Steiner had studied Kant , Fichte and Schelling . When he was nine years old, Steiner believed that he saw the spirit of an aunt who had died in a far-off town, asking him to help her at a time when neither he nor his family knew of the woman's death. Steiner later related that as

12051-559: Was a low-paid and boring job. 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), which Steiner regarded as the epistemological foundation and justification for his later work, and Goethe's Conception of the World (1897). During this time he also collaborated in complete editions of

12168-640: Was adopted internationally. In Australia, two members of the Experimental Circle, Ernesto Genoni and Ileen Macpherson founded Demeter Biological Farm in Melbourne in 1934 and operated it as a biodynamic farm for two decades (until 1954). In 1935, Heydrich dissolved the Anthroposophical Society in Germany and went on to officially ban Demeter across the Third Reich by 1941. The ban on Demeter was precipitated by deputy führer Rudolf Hess's fall from favor and subsequent arrest for his support of biodynamics. Leveraging

12285-440: Was aligned with the Jews. Rather than standing in solidarity with Hitler’s other targets, they disavowed any sympathy for Judaism and assured Nazi leaders that both they and Steiner were of pure Aryan heritage. Staudenmaier's overall argument is that "there were often no clear-cut lines between theosophy, anthroposophy, ariosophy, astrology and the völkisch movement from which the Nazi Party arose." By 2007, national branches of

12402-473: 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

12519-573: Was completed in 1928, three years after his death. At a "Foundation Meeting" for members held at the Dornach center during Christmas 1923, Steiner founded the School of Spiritual Science. This school, which was led by Steiner, initially had sections for general anthroposophy, education , medicine , performing arts ( eurythmy , speech, drama and music), the literary arts and humanities, mathematics, astronomy, science, and visual arts. Later sections were added for

12636-473: Was devoid of physical substance; only later did this descend into material existence on Earth. In this view, human evolution has accompanied the Earth's evolution throughout the existence of the Earth. The evolution of man, Steiner said, has consisted in the gradual incarnation of a spiritual being into a material body. It has been a true "descent" of man from a spiritual world into a world of matter. The evolution of

12753-511: Was disrupted when stink bombs were let off and the lights switched out, while people rushed the stage apparently attempting to attack Steiner, who exited safely through a back door. Unable to guarantee his safety, Steiner's agents cancelled his next lecture tour. The 1923 Beer Hall Putsch in Munich led Steiner to give up his residence in Berlin, saying that if those responsible for the attempted coup ( Hitler 's Nazi party) came to power in Germany, it would no longer be possible for him to enter

12870-537: Was founded in the early 20th century by the esotericist Rudolf Steiner that postulates the existence of an objective , intellectually comprehensible spiritual world, accessible to human experience. Followers of anthroposophy aim to engage in spiritual discovery through a mode of thought independent of sensory experience. Though proponents claim to present their ideas in a manner that is verifiable by rational discourse and say that they seek precision and clarity comparable to that obtained by scientists investigating

12987-609: Was necessary to understand psychology and that the form of external nature would be more comprehensible as a result of insight into the course of karma in the evolution of humanity. Beginning in 1910, he described aspects of karma relating to health, natural phenomena and free will, taking the position that a person is not bound by his or her karma, but can transcend this through actively taking hold of one's own nature and destiny. In an extensive series of lectures from February to September 1924, Steiner presented further research on successive reincarnations of various individuals and described

13104-476: Was not afraid to refer to scandalous philosophers such as Stirner, Nietzsche and Haeckel. His freethinking culminated in a contempt for religion and faith. He attributed almost pathological traits to Christianity. In 1888, as a result of his work for the Kürschner edition of Goethe 's works, Steiner was invited to work as an editor at the Goethe archives in Weimar . Steiner remained with the archive until 1896. It

13221-498: Was registered. Demeter was administered by the German agronomist Erhard Bartsch who also directed the Experimental Circle of anthroposophical (biodynamic) farmers, and had chosen the name Demeter, jointly with the German chemist Franz Dreidax. Dreidax was responsible for the development of the Demeter brand and quality control. During the 1930s, Steiner's biodynamic farming found favor with

13338-424: Was still possible for contemporary humans. The steps of this process of inner development he identified as consciously achieved imagination , inspiration , and intuition . Steiner believed results of this form of spiritual research should be expressed in a way that can be understood and evaluated on the same basis as the results of natural science. Steiner hoped to form a spiritual movement that would free

13455-575: Was that while Anthroposophists complained of bad press, they were to a surprising extent tolerated by the Nazi regime, "including outspokenly supportive pieces in the Völkischer Beobachter ". Ideological purists from Sicherheitsdienst argued largely in vain against Anthroposophy. According to Staudenmaier, "The prospect of unmitigated persecution was held at bay for years in a tenuous truce between pro-anthroposophical and anti-anthroposophical Nazi factions." The anti-esoteric faction ensconced in

13572-446: Was the Theosophical Society . From 1900 on, thanks to the positive reception his ideas received from Theosophists, Steiner focused increasingly on his work with the Theosophical Society , becoming the secretary of its section in Germany in 1902. During his leadership, membership increased dramatically, from just a few individuals to sixty-nine lodges. By 1907, a split between Steiner and the Theosophical Society became apparent. While

13689-517: Was the vehicle of a new Maitreya , or world teacher, led to a formal split in 1912–13, when Steiner and the majority of members of the German section of the Theosophical Society broke off to form a new group, the Anthroposophical Society . Steiner took the name "Anthroposophy" from the title of a work of the Austrian philosopher Robert von Zimmermann , published in Vienna in 1856. Despite his departure from

#849150