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Books > Religion & Spirituality > Alternative belief systems > Syncretist & eclectic religions & belief systems > Post-renaissance syncretist / eclectic systems
Book Four of the Law of One is the last of the books in the Law of
One series. Book Four explores in great detail the archetypical
mind which is the framework provided by our Logos or sun body to
aid each of us in the evolution of mind, body, and spirit. Tarot,
astrology, and ritual magic are three paths offering the study of
the archetypical mind, and in Book Four a study of that rich
resource is undertaken using the tarot, also uncovered on the
nature and purpose of the veil that we experience between the
conscious and the unconscious minds and the process of "forgetting"
that occurs during each incarnation in our third-density
experience. In Book Four the path of the adept becomes more clear
as Ra elucidates the adept's use of experience to balance its
energy centres and penetrate the veil of forgetting.
Speaking towards the end of the catastrophic Great War, Rudolf
Steiner reveals the spiritual roots of the crises of our times.
Since 1879, he says, human minds have been influenced by backward
angels, 'spirits of darkness', who - following their defeat in
battle with Archangel Michael - were forced out of the heavens and
'fell' to the earth. This war in the spiritual worlds had
consequences, and it is essential that people today are
sufficiently awake to the retrogressive influences around them. In
a positive sense, we can choose freely to engage with the spirits
of light, who seek to emancipate human beings from bonds of race,
nation and blood. In this extraordinary series of lectures, Rudolf
Steiner throws light on hidden aspects of world affairs. With the
Bolshevik Revolution having just taken place, he discusses events
in Russia and humanity's attempts to build theoretically perfect
social orders. Steiner also speaks about the roles and spiritual
backgrounds of significant individuals, such as the mystics Johann
Valentin Andreae, Vladimir Soloviev and Saint-Martin, the American
and British politicians Woodrow Wilson and Lloyd George, and
world-historic figures including Charles Darwin and Johann Wolfgang
von Goethe. The new edition of this classic work features a revised
translation, notes and extensive appendices by editor Frederick
Amrine, plus a new introduction by Christopher Schaefer.
Speaking to audiences in Denmark, Germany and France, Rudolf
Steiner discusses a wide range of topics: from positive and
negative human soul capacities, true self-knowledge and karma, to
changes in human consciousness, from ancient times to the modern
era - all in the context of the incarnation of Christ on earth. The
lectures illustrate the diversity of Steiner's approach when
speaking to different audiences. Reflecting on the polymath
Novalis, for example, he is urgent about the responsibility of
spiritual science to help humanity awaken to the new age. A few
months later, talking of Hegel and deploring the fact that an
interest in spiritual matters often fails to be accompanied by an
equal interest in logical thought, Steiner uses a dispassionate,
philosophical tone. But throughout the lectures he is consistent in
his view that spiritual science does not reject conventional
science. Trained philosophical thinking leads to different
conclusions than materialism, he says, but there is nothing in the
field of spiritual science that need be rejected by rigorous
scientific thought. Although the lectures were given to a variety
of audiences, ideas recur from different perspectives and in
different contexts, with strong thematic links binding them
together. These include the relationship between philosophy and
science; the nature of clairvoyance; Christ's presence in the
etheric realm; reincarnation and karma; the mystery drama The
Portal of Initiation; Christmas and its symbols; and the
transformation of consciousness that occurred when Christ
incarnated physically on earth. In the final lectures, Rudolf
Steiner speaks inspiringly about the Christmas festival,
contrasting the feeling of inwardness that people used to
experience with the hectic cultural environment of modern cities.
However, this does not lead Steiner to be nostalgic about the past.
Rather, he states, we should seek to recreate a mood of inwardness
in a new way, appropriate to our modern age and consciousness.
These lectures give us the tools to bring such a contemporary
spiritual approach to our lives.
This title contains a series of 8 lectures, given in Ojai,
California in 1955, from one of the 20th century's greatest
philosophers and teachers. Krishnamurti confronts the typical
grasping and confused mind which lies at the root of all violence
and suffering. Though offered over fifty years ago, the ideas in
these talks are fresh, relevant and offer an enduring message for
today as Krishnamurti discusses a world in which booming
productivity and scientific advancement should promise a happy
future, but don't.He points also to the ongoing escalation of war,
competition, envy and territoriality despite gains in education,
religious ecumenism and the technologies of self-improvement. He
asks his listeners to consider that all apparent progress is simply
another illusion. In their brilliantly clear essays, his focus is
singular, with no glib answers to eternal questions. To read this
book is to venture into the unexplored assumptions that govern our
lives. The workings of the mind are so simple and obvious in J
Krishnamurti's explanations, yet so enormously challenging to
confront. Like other classic texts, such as religious scriptures,
the words ring true. The issues addressed include: the nature of
violence; the problem of change; the conditioning of the mind; how
to achieve "peace"; the nature of worship and spiritual practice;
and how to really listen.
The Infinite Wisdom of the Akashic Records is an extraordinary book filled with unparalleled tools for transformation. Accessing the Akashic Records is one of the most powerful paths to self-awareness and personal change currently available. Lisa carefully and lovingly guides you through the Akashic Knowing Wisdom Prayer System, a five-step system with three vibrational keys to directly and easily access your Akashic Record. You will also become skilled at:
The art of formulating questions to receive life-enhancing answers.
Releasing karma, soul contracts, and vows that bind you to negative life patterns.
Gaining clarity about personal situations by practicing exercises.
Learning new healing tools from the Akashic Lords to assist you in further releasing old issues and aligning with your life purpose.
Author Lisa Barnett has gathered all her most successful techniques, strategies, shortcuts, and wisdom into this one book so you can do it yourself--anytime, anywhere.
"The butterfly flutters above and over the earth, borne on the air
and shimmering with light...We ought really to see them as nothing
other than beings of light, joyous in their colours and the play of
colours. All the rest is garment and luggage." - Rudolf Steiner
Truly poetic and deeply esoteric, these lectures by Rudolf Steiner
have been gathered here in a single volume for the first time, with
an in-depth introduction that traces and explains the stages of
butterfly metamorphosis. The emergence of the butterfly from its
pupa is one of the most moving phenomena we can encounter in
nature. In this creature's visible transformations, we can
experience a revelation of spirit. The butterfly, says Rudolf
Steiner, is "...a flower blossom lifted into the air by light and
cosmic forces". It is a being that develops from and through light,
via a process of incorporation and internalization. By gazing into
the world of these special and rarefied creatures, we can intuit
that they, "...ray out something even better than sunlight: they
shine spirit light out into the cosmos".
An exploration of the cosmic origins of human beings and the
evolutionary laws which govern their development. Armin Husemann
applies musical principles as a method of gaining insight into the
structure of the human body and the forces that work on it. He
draws on our experience of music and explain the physiological and
anatomical relationships in the body, as well as illuminating the
spiritual influences which determine physical development. Drawing
on artistic exercises set out by Rudolf Steiner to develop a better
understanding of these influences, the book explores the cosmic
origins of human beings and the evolutionary laws which govern
their development.
"The being whom we call Christ once walked the earth in flesh and
blood at the beginning of our era. He will never again return in a
physical body, for that was a unique event and will not be
repeated. But He will come again in an etheric form in the period I
have mentioned. People will learn to perceive Christ by virtue of
growing towards him through this etheric perception." Many
contemporaries were unaware of Christ's incarnation on earth at the
beginning of the modern era. And today, says Rudolf Steiner, many
remain ignorant of the most important event of our time: the
appearance of Christ in the etheric - or life - realm of the earth.
Fundamentalist and millennial groups await a second physical
incarnation, while atheists and materialists deny spirit
altogether. Nevertheless, an incisive transformation is taking
place in the human soul that will lead to an emerging clairvoyance.
Just as Paul perceived Christ at Damascus, so may every human being
experience Him today. Also available as an Audio Book
During the refounding of the Anthroposophical Society as the
General Anthroposophical Society at Christmas 1923/24, Rudolf
Steiner also reconstituted, as the School of Spiritual Science, the
Esoteric School he had led in three classes from 1904 to 1914, at
the same time extending its scope by adding artistic and scientific
Sections. However, owing to his illness and later death in March
1925, he was only able to make a beginning by establishing the
First Class and the Sections. The actual step from the Esoteric
School to the School of Spiritual Science was nevertheless an
exceptional one. The Esoteric School from Helena Blavatsky's time
had been secret. Its existence was known only to those personally
invited to participate. In contrast, the existence of the School of
Spiritual Science was stated openly in the public statutes of the
General Anthroposophical Society. From the Christmas Conference
onwards, Rudolf Steiner worked within this publicly acknowledged
framework. The Class Lessons comprise a complete spiritual course
of nineteen fundamental lessons given between February and August
1924, several lessons given at other locations, and seven further
lessons from September 1924 which take up the themes of the first
part of the nineteen lessons in a modified form. This authentic,
accurate and high-quality bilingual edition - with English and
German texts printed side by side - is published in conjunction
with the School of Spiritual Science at the Goetheanum. A compact
four-volume clothbound set, it features plates with Rudolf
Steiner's handwritten notes of the mantras and reproductions of his
original colour blackboard drawings. The translations of the
mantric verses have been reworked by a committed group of
translators, linguists and editors, expressing subtleties of
meaning, grammatical accuracy and poetic style whilst retaining the
original sound and metre of the German mantric forms. Three
versions of the existing English translations are also included.
I am Brahman is an inspired quest into the heart of the non-dual
reality. This deeply personal journey discovers the essentials in
religion, science and art which all point to the Advaitin truth
that consciousness itself is the basis of all existence. This short
but visceral journey includes mystical experiences in India and
goes deeper than ever before to describe what it is like to
experience Brahman - the great Oneness of which we are a part.
Rather than just another descriptive book about non-duality I am
Brahman takes wings and carries the reader from the banks of the
Ganges into the poetry of the soul. Here is what science has been
looking for and the theology to unite all faiths. Maurice Anslow's
book pulls together the searchings of a lifetime and deserves to
become a modern spiritual classic.
In the aftermath of the devastating First World War, Rudolf Steiner
gained a reputation as a leading social thinker. One mainstream
reviewer of his book Towards Social Renewal referred to it as `...
perhaps the most widely read of all books on politics appearing
since the war'. Steiner's proposals for the reconstruction of
Europe and the rebuilding of society's crumbling social structure
were thus publicly discussed as a serious alternative to both
Communism and Capitalism. Steiner's `threefold' ideas involved the
progressive independence of society's economic, political and
cultural institutions. This would be realised through the promotion
of human rights and equality in political life, freedom in the
cultural realm and associative cooperation in economics or
business. In this carefully assembled anthology of Steiner's
lectures and writing, Stephen E. Usher gathers key concepts and
insights to form a coherent picture of social threefolding. Apart
from fundamental lectures on the theme, the volume also features
the full content of Steiner's unique Memoranda of 1917. The
original texts are complemented with the Editor's introduction,
commentary and notes.
Emil Bock lectured widely on Rudolf Steiner after the Second World
War, and during the course of his research he uncovered many
previously unknown aspects of Steiner's life. The Life and Times of
Rudolf Steiner brings together the two volumes of this insightful
work, which were previously available separately, in one
comprehensive book. Part one introduces the great range of people
who surrounded and influenced Steiner. Bock tracked down the
mysterious 'Felix the herb gatherer', from Steiner's youth, and
describes the Viennese social circles and coffee houses frequented
by Steiner in his student days. He also details Steiner's meeting
with Friedrich Nietzsche, and the various literary, artistic and
eccentric people from Steiner's time in Berlin. Part two reveals
some of the themes and ideas in Steiner's work - the early years of
Jesus, the Christmas festival and the break from the Theosophical
Society to the Anthroposophical Society - as well as exploring the
nature of destiny. Bock also examines the circle of people around
Steiner at this time and, using Steiner's ideas on karma and
reincarnation, draws interesting parallels with Rome, Byzantium,
Ephesus and the Grail Castle.
Growing into the daily use of these meditative prayers makes us
conscious of how we stand in great world rhythms. We learn to
follow the alternation of waking and sleeping, the ordering of the
seven days of the week, and the course of the seasons, as gifts of
heavenly powers gradually become known to us. This is a small,
elegant guide to aid meditation.
In this title, time-honoured rules of ethical and spiritual conduct
are presented along with warnings against pitfalls of psychic
development. There is no shortcut to wisdom, no instant
enlightenment, for inner unfolding cannot be induced artificially.
While the path toward conscious union with our inner divinity
demands the utmost devotion, fidelity, and perseverance, it is also
'bright with joy, and lighted with the fires of the spirit'. This
book reproduces the first two sections of "Fountain-Source of
Occultism", so that the seeker may have readily to hand an inspired
vision of the path before him.
In listening to the changing language of the year, said Rudolf
Steiner, we can rediscover our individual nature. These meditative
verses, one for each week of the year, help to awaken a feeling of
unity with nature while simultaneously stimulating a discovery of
the self. Through intensive work, Steiner's unique meditations can
lead to a feeling of oneness with the world. This budget-priced
pocket version features Owen Barfield's pioneering translation -
'paraphrased for an English ear' - based on more than 50 years
studying the text. As Barfield argues, no simple translation can
convey the 'thrust' of the verses. In his words: 'It is this
quality which the version that follows especially aims to suggest -
at the expense, where necessary, of close reproduction.'
Why is there suffering, sickness and death? Why is no corner of
human life and society immune from egotism, fear, tyranny, betrayal
and guilt? What was God thinking when he allowed evil to come into
existence? Drawing on the worldview of Rudolf Steiner, the author
explains that the roots of evil lie with angelic beings. Schroeder
discusses evil's prehistory in heaven and shows how the polarity of
two kinds of evil, with good as a balance between them, manifests
itself in earthly history, and in the areas of education, work,
human relationships, sexuality, religion and technology. With the
increased influence of evil in today's world, Schroeder considers
how prayer, meditation and angelic guidance through reincarnation
give us the possibility to overcome evil in all its forms.
The author developed this booklet from talks that were held for
members of the Anthroposophical Society. These became occasions for
many to question potential membership of the First Class in a more
conscious way, and for some to take the decisive step of entering
the Michael School. 'This experience gave rise to the occasion for
printing this lecture separately for interested individuals, as a
stimulus to consider their relationship to the Michael School on
Earth against the background of the karma that guides human beings
in their present incarnation to anthroposophy. In this sense, the
present text may well be an aid for some interested individuals to
grasp to its full extent the unique significance of the
establishment of the Esoteric School - carried out as it was by
Rudolf Steiner based on the Michael Spirit - so as to gain the
courage and will to become a member out of full inner conviction.'
(From the Preface)
These messages are not only of historical significance, but address
many issues confronting us today: the growth of psychism, our
spiritual development, the need for brotherhood and altruism, and
the role of theosophists and the Theosophical Society in the modern
world. An essay by Kirby Van Mater provides the historical setting.
Sketching important events from the founding of the Society to H P
Blavatsky's death in 1891, it gives the reader a better
understanding of the major currents affecting H P Blavatsky and her
lifework.
The point, line, plane and solid objects represent the first three
dimensions, but a kind of reversal of space is involved in the
ascent to a fourth dimension. Steiner leads us to the brink of this
new perspective-as nearly as it can be done with words, diagrams,
analogies, and examples of many kinds. In doing so, he continues
his lifelong project of demonstrating that our objective, everyday
thinking is the lowest rung of a ladder that reaches up to
literally infinite heights. The talks in this series and the
selections from the question-and-answer sessions on many
mathematical topics over the years are translated into English for
the first time in THE FOURTH DIMENSION. They bring us to
tantalizing new horizons of awareness where Steiner hoped to lead
his listeners: Topics include: * The relationship between geometric
studies and developing direct perception of spiritual realities *
How to construct a fourth-dimensional hypercube * The six
dimensions of the self-aware human being * Problems with the theory
of relativity * The Trinity and angelic hierarchies and their
relationship to physical space * The dimensional aspect of the
spiritual being encountered by Moses on Mt. Sinai
Ernst Marti devoted his life to researching the 'etheric realm' - a
subtle area that exists between the physical and spiritual. Taking
the numerous statements and references by Rudolf Steiner as his
starting point, Marti develops our understanding of the etheric
world in various fields - from the theory of knowledge to the
natural world, through to music, the realm of colours, eurythmy and
medicine. In doing so, he proposes exciting bridges from the
ancient and medieval worldview to the present and future of natural
and spiritual science.The Etheric explores the fourfold realm of
the ethers. Giving an overview of their cosmic origins in the
evolution of the earth, Dr Marti shows how the ethers work in
phenomena of warmth, light, sound and organic life. He brings a
contemporary understanding and insight to the classical elements -
fire, air, water and earth - as the media through which ethericity
manifests and works in the world. Four physical forces are also
explored which, as opposites to the ethers, have a constant
tendency to break down and annul what life-giving ether creates.Dr
Marti then studies the shadow aspects of the ethers connected to
what he terms the 'sub-natural' forces of electricity, magnetism
and nuclear force. Given that the author was unable to complete
this book in his lifetime, his pupil and colleague Irmgard Rossmann
edited the final version in the spirit of her teacher. It is
published here in two volumes, with this first focusing on 'The
World of the Ethers' and the forthcoming volume on 'The World of
Formative Forces'.
A seer "sees" more than meets the eye. Ordinary seeing reveals the
visible world through one's perceptions of light patterns that we
interpret as "the world." Higher seeing perceives patterns and
relationships that are invisible to the physical eyes, yet are
nevertheless present in our world. This is truly a form of
perception, but through the eyes of the soul, or heart. All seeing
is a form of cognition, or knowing, and, likewise, higher sight is
a form of higher cognition. These two kinds of perception go
together. To be a seer is to use the eyes of the soul together with
one's physical eyes -- being able to move from one to the other,
letting go of one for the other. For those who wish to develop
faculties of higher knowing and seeing, The Seer's Handbook is a
unique, practical, and extensive guide, filled with exercises,
meditations, and insightful commentary.
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