Theosophy : An Introduction to the Spiritual Processes in Human Life and in the Cosmos

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Summary: A difficult read, yet profound.
Review: By applying the rigours of the scientific method to the inner world of one's thoughts, Rudolf Steiner brings his vast knowledge and intellect to bear on describing in outline the stages and cycles of development that have been undergone by the Cosmos in the course of its continuing development. Deliniation is made between the natures of the physical body, growth body, passion body, and Ego. Then ensues a discussion of the relationship of the "I" inner-world to the external manifest world in which we find ourselves. Concluding this work is a brief description of how an individual may come to know the realities described through a process of inner self-transformation. The contents of this book are worthy of extended study by anyone that considers themselves a philosopher, scientist, or seeker of truth.

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Summary: Much Needed Wisdom for American Culture
Review: The wisdom in this book is exactly what is needed in America today. In this book, Steiner takes care to scientifically explain his knowledge of human spiritual existence, as he himself has observed it. It is a great help in bridging the gap, so prominent in our culture, between science and spirituality. It is a little difficult to get through in terms of its ease of readability, but don't let that hinder you. The book is written that way on purpose so that as you work through it (re-reading sentences sometimes more than twice) it expands your mind to allow it to accept more complex concepts. I recommend it for everyone.

Rating:
Summary: Much Needed Wisdom for American Culture
Review: The wisdom in this book is exactly what is needed in America today. In this book, Steiner takes care to scientifically explain his knowledge of human spiritual existence, as he himself has observed it. It is a great help in bridging the gap, so prominent in our culture, between science and spirituality. It is a little difficult to get through in terms of its ease of readability, but don't let that hinder you. The book is written that way on purpose so that as you work through it (re-reading sentences sometimes more than twice) it expands your mind to allow it to accept more complex concepts. I recommend it for everyone.

Rating:
Summary: From the Mineral Body to the Spirit Self
Review: There are strong marks of the German philosophical tradition in this text, which was originally published in 1910 and revised a number of times until its last version in 1922. Steiner's approach to what he calls "Theosophy" is less baroque than that of either Blavatsky or Besant, although his general conceptual structures have strong family resemblances to their work. His basic model of the human being is triadic with the physical body (emerging out of the ancient mineral domains) being the lowest, the soul body being the middle and mutually connecting dimension, and the spirit body being the eternal and post-personal dimension. He stresses a kind of epistemological or experiential model in which the whole triadic self moves through reincarnations to gain as much knowledge of the real non-subjective world as is possible. Throughout, the concern is with helping the physical self find its way past the delusions of incomplete sense experience into those forms of sense awareness that are open to the occult world. The soul is personal in nature and has the difficult task of bringing consciousness into the body while simultaneously allowing the spirit into both its own consciousness and into its vehicle the body. The soul gives human beings the possibility of finding the depth-sensations behind things (not in a supernatural realm but right here and now). This soul is the center of our experience of the "I" and moves with us after the death of the body. However, the soul is not ultimate and can be defined as the locus where the spiritual world manifests itself in individuals. When we develop the "spiritual eye" we are in a position to go beyond our subjective perceptual distortions and the maya producing desires that twist the real into unreal shapes. There is a strong sense of realism and of German-style vitalism in the book, as well as a theory of knowledge that is deeply Kantian, namely, that our finite categories shape just how we experience things in "this" world." Unlike Kant, however, we have access to things as they really are but only through a kind of seeing that must correspond to the nature of what is seen. Steiner laces the book with helpful, if rather stock, analogies that help the reader to envision the spiritual journey into the increasingly real and eternal laws of the world. This book is a little dense-pack at the beginning, especially where he deals with the causal relations among body, soul, and spirit, but overall it is more readable than much of the literature that usually comes out under the name "Theosophy." Steiner's writing has an almost earthy tone when compared to the air-like quality of, say, Blavatsky. One feels more grounded in, and appreciative of, the world of sensation and pain and pleasure. Above all, this book is deeply commited to the ideal of spiritual growth and is far less elitist than many tomes of its kind. Steiner clearly believed that most people could access the spiritual realm by acquiring the right kind of discipline in the task of thinking. This book is very well worth reading as an overview that also contains some very well argued positions, in particular, concerning the various dimensions of the archetypes.

Rating:
Summary: Occultists you need to read this
Review: This book accomplishes admirably a view of the world that is not only "new age" but lucid and coherent. He gets around some of the knottier problems of the theology of the soul in very intersting ways. This book is so close to what I have been slowly discovering, that it helped me remove some of the blocks I had concerning spiritual principles. As always verify the truth of this stuff for yourself. But, if you are a beginning occult student who is looking for someone who is trying to help you, this book is a great place to start.

Rating:
Summary: Occultists you need to read this
Review: This book accomplishes admirably a view of the world that is not only "new age" but lucid and coherent. He gets around some of the knottier problems of the theology of the soul in very intersting ways. This book is so close to what I have been slowly discovering, that it helped me remove some of the blocks I had concerning spiritual principles. As always verify the truth of this stuff for yourself. But, if you are a beginning occult student who is looking for someone who is trying to help you, this book is a great place to start.

Rating:
Summary: STIMULATING AND THOUGHT PROVOKING
Review: This work by Steiner covers the fundamentals of spirituality and mankind's place in the cosmos. Chapter One deals with the essential nature of the human being as body, soul and spirit, beginning with the physical bodily nature and concluding with the higher spiritual aspects of our being. The picture that emerges is one of the human being in an evolving process of becoming, where the agent of transformation is the "I". Chapter Two covers destiny and the reincarnation of the human spirit, while Chapter Three discusses other dimensions of consciousness like the soul world, the spirit world and their connection with the physical world and includes with a section on thought forms and the human aura. These worlds are not to be considered spatially, but are states of consciousness, qualitative spaces of inner relationship. Chapter Four discusses the individual's spiritual path and encourages the acquisition of spiritual knowledge with the emphasis on thinking and proving truth for oneself. Steiner sees the first step in this path of knowledge as the assimilation of scientific spiritual concepts. He asks the reader not to "believe" what he says, but to "think" it. It is not a question of belief but of experience. Here his thoughts correspond with those of Jung as explained in Stephan Hoeller's great book The Gnostic Jung And The Seven Sermons To The Dead - that mankind has a need of religious experience, not of belief. Unlike a major portion of Eastern thought which believes in the dissolution of individuality, Steiner's view is that spiritual growth does not take place at the expense of individuality, but through its enhancement. A similar idea can be found in Thomas Troward's beautiful book The Creative Process In The Individual. I would also like to recommend the following works for those interested in spirituality: Cosmic Consciousness by R M Bucke and The Varieties Of Religious Experience by William James. Theosophy is a thought-provoking book that ought to be studied rather than read. The book concludes with a thorough index and a short biography and photograph of Rudolf Steiner. It has stimulated my interest to investigate his other works.