Shaibei wrote: ↑Tue Apr 20, 2021 6:16 pm
It seems, as Schopenhauer has already pointed out, that German idealism is imbued with Spinoza. So at least philosophically, one can find a connecting line that goes from Spinoza to Hegel, and from there to Steiner.
This is generally the case. With Hegel philosophy reaches its final frontier - thinking reaches its own foundations. Further than this, intellectual thinking can't penetrate. Beyond the intellect we already need a higher form of cognition, the first of which is Imaginative or picture consciousness. This has been known in the esoteric streams. As far as the philosophical disciplines, Goethe instinctively explored the Imaginative cognition but could not yet encompass it in full clarity. This was the task of Steiner. On one hand he had to continue beyond the threshold that Hegel reached. On the other he integrated the genius of Goethe, now in a lucid way. But Steiner integrated a third stream. He was initiated in the Rosicrucian stream. Little is known about this because he didn't speak much of it. He only referred to 'The Master' without any details. In certain sense it was Steiner's mission to unite the secret esoteric stream with the stream of the more exoterically developing science and purely intellectual philosophy.
Rosicrucianism itself is the stream of esoteric Christianity where much of the developments of what is known today as the contents of spiritual science, took place. The stages of higher cognition have been already well known to them. What was the true merit of Steiner was the actual
bridge the he built between philosophical and the esoteric cognition. The Philosophy of Freedom (PoF) embodies this bridge. This was Steiner's most important contribution to evolving humanity. In previous times, in order for one to become an esoteric student, quite specific soul qualities were needed, which only those karmically prepared had. Through PoF there's a path that requires nothing but unprejudiced and sound thinking. Whoever has penetrated into the depth of PoF can find the transition to the higher forms of conscious in a completely natural way, as a lawful evolution of thinking. Of course this doesn't mean that we become some completely 'mental' types through this. No, by saying that it's a thinking path it's meant that we can develop gradually through the metamorphosis of thinking cognition
without the need for blind belief. Otherwise, the very essence of any genuine spiritual path is the harmonization and development of thinking, feeling and will. Unless the 'three horses' are tamed, it's impossible to have clear experience of the higher realms.
There's another important stream of Esoteric Christianity that runs parallel to Anthroposophy. It is more oriented towards the practical application of the higher knowledge and is related with the future mission of the Slavonic people. It's more appropriate for those souls who are already instinctively united with the impulse of Love but need the practical aspects. Spiritual science is approachable by the Western mind, which first need to understand and only then to apply in practice. In any case, both streams will unite and complement each other in the not too distant future.
Shaibei wrote: ↑Tue Apr 20, 2021 6:16 pm
You see in Steiner's esoteric theories the peak of spiritual development.
The peak is always relative. As I said above, spiritual development proceeds in quite complicated ways. There are different streams that develop different aspects and are united at certain points. To souls with different constitution I would speak quite differently than here. But in a forum like this, where thinking souls are gathered, the path that goes through development of the spiritual activity concealed in thinking is the most appropriate. As it is seen, this is not easy. The habits of the intellectual age are that thinking is used only for the
contents of thinking. In order for thinking to become a spiritual path a shift of focus is needed. Thinking becomes an organ of perception for spiritual reality. As long as the focus is on the contents of thinking itself, we live in the phantom world of abstract thoughts which Kant recognized. When thinking is experienced as actual spiritual activity within the One world, it is no longer a 'copy' of some supposed world outside our personal bubble but a lawful reality that touches and feels its way through the One spiritual world.
Anyway. About the peaks - it's all about what each individual soul needs regarding its stage of development. What we need to learn today is different from what will be needed few centuries from now. In Steiner's words:
Rudolf Steiner wrote:It would be well, if especially from our Anthroposophical standpoint, as I have often told you, if it were recognised consciously and thoroughly, that even what is said now, even what we acquire as ever such advanced knowledge about Spiritual things, that must not be grasped as a sum of absolute dogmas. We must be quite clear that those who come after us, in future times, will see greater than we ourselves can. On this rests the true Spiritual evolution of mankind, and everything of a hindering nature in the Spiritual progress of mankind rests finally on the fact that human beings will not admit this. They like to have truths presented to them, not as the truths for one definite epoch of time, but as absolute timeless dogmas.
Shaibei wrote: ↑Tue Apr 20, 2021 6:16 pm
But at least as for what goes on in the Middle East, it does not seem to me that you are deeply familiar with Kabbalah for example. You may have a vague idea of what Kabbalah means, but you will agree with me that vague concepts do not build theories.
You are correct. I have very general idea of Kabbalah. I can say that I've learned enough to see how in its
depths it is in complete harmony with what we can experience today through the higher stages of consciousness. I emphasize on the
depths because unfortunately the Kabbalah is very misused today. Just as Astrology, in the wider circles, it is largely reduced to purely intellectual framework for divination. One can read whole books on Kabbalah today that speak in purely psychological manner without a single word of the fact the Sephiroth are actual domains of the Spiritual World.
For me it is enough to feel the deep reverence for this ancient knowledge of the Hebrew sages and see how they developed it as prophetic science of what today can be experienced in full consciousness. My diagrams in the Deep M@L post practically contain hidden in themselves the Tree of Life. It's the same Depth structure.
The four eons correspond to the four Worlds, which are connected with 9 hierarchies (man being the tenth) of spiritual beings.
Yesod is related to the Astral world, the world of Imaginative consciousness, the Moon sphere (mentioned
here). Tiphereth is the Sun sphere, the Spiritual World, Devachan - world of Inspirative consciousness. Kether encompasses the outer spheres, world of Intuitive consciousness.
I've absorbed from the Kabbalah just enough for myself. As said, especially the modern treatments easily become lost in intellectual abstractions. It's very difficult to make transition to higher consciousness in meditation while holding these dead structures. It's still possible to meditate deeply on the Sephiroth because they point at spiritual realities. But the truth is that most of what we see in our age as Kabbalah is the product of entirely intellectual fabrications.