Life Between Death and Rebirth
GA 140
21 January 1913, Vienna
8. Between Death and a New Birth
The last time I spoke to you here, I dealt briefly with a significant phase of human life between death and rebirth. This phase cannot be treated as if it were of no importance to our physical existence. We should be clear about the fact that the forces we need for life do not only come from the realm of the physical body. They emanate essentially from a super-sensible world to which we belong between death and rebirth. This can be understood only if we are able to form mental images of life between death and rebirth.
Man is mostly enveloped in a kind of dreaming-sleeping condition. Those who go through the daily routine without thinking about the events they experience are in fact asleep to life, and those who concern themselves with what lies beyond material existence are also those who awaken to physical life. Referring to our earlier considerations, you will remember that spiritual science rightly understood is capable of entering fully into all aspects of human existence. Inasmuch as spiritual science permeates our civilization, humanity will experience an awakening from a sleep of life. Many things that approach the human being appear strange and mysterious, but they represent a riddle more to the feelings than to the dry intellect. A mother standing by the coffin of her child, or the reverse, is such an instance. One has but to concern oneself thoroughly with human existence to realize how people become aware of the riddle of life. People who have lost a sister, a husband, or a wife come to me and say, “I never used to think about death, never concerned myself about what might happen afterwards, but since this relative has been taken from me it is as if he were still here, and this has led me to occupy myself with spiritual science.” Life will bring people to spiritual science. What happens as a result will be richly rewarding because spiritual science can permeate life with certain impulses that it alone can give.
When a person is no longer physically present, the riddle arises as to what happens to him after death. External science cannot supply the answer because it only observes with the eyes, and they, too, decay. The physical brain decays also, and it is clear that it can be of no use for what man experiences without his physical sheath. Yet the mighty questions regarding the beyond remain. In this connection general answers are of little avail and it is preferable to consider actual instances that can penetrate directly into life.
Let us take life on earth as a starting point. Perhaps you will have come across a person who, through a deep inner longing, through his own soul disposition, was driven to spiritual science, whereas another may have become antagonistic towards it. The one became more deeply involved in spiritual science, while his friend developed increasing enmity towards it. Life not only presents us with a maya in nature but also in the immediacy of our connection with others. In fact, what has just been related may be a complete deception. He who has convinced himself that all this is nonsense may, in the depths of his soul of which he remains unconscious, develop a secret love for it. In the substrata love can express itself as hate. One does find such cases in earthy life. When a person has gone through the gate of death, all the secret soul impulses and longings that he has suppressed during his earthly existence rise to the surface and become the content of the period of catharsis. We have observed people going through the gate of death who on earth were enemies of spiritual science and who after death developed an intense longing for it. Such antagonists then strive for spiritual science. Had we during their earthly lives gone to them with a book on spiritual science, they might have dismissed us in anger. After death we can do them no greater service than to read to them. Reading in thought to the dead can have the greatest furthering effect for them.
There are many instances within our spiritual movement in which those connected with a dead person have read to him and thereby helped him. The dead receive what is given with the utmost gratitude, and in this way a beautiful relationship can be developed. This shows what spiritual science can mean quite practically. Spiritual science is not mere theory. It must take hold of life and tear down the wall that separates the living from the dead. Thus can the gulf be bridged. A great deal of good can be done by bringing spiritual science into life with the right attitude. No better advice can be given than to read to the dead because it is a strange fact that immediately after death we are incapable of making new connections. We are forced to continue with the old ones.
The question presents itself as to whether or not the dead are able to find spiritual beings beyond the threshold who could teach them. That is not possible! To begin with, one can only have connections with beings with whom one has had a relationship before going through the gate of death. On encountering a being one has not known on earth, one merely passes him by. On earth, too, one would not recognize a great genius if he were dressed like a teamster. One has contact only with the individuals one has known on earth. One might meet many beings who could be of help, but if there has been no prior connection, they can be of no use to one. Spiritual science is in its early stages and because it has only just begun to have an effect on human beings, the living can perform the greatest service to the dead by helping them in this way. This is an instance of the influence that can be exercised from our world upon the other. But the opposite is also possible—the dead can work into the physical world. To the extent that spiritual science takes hold of life, a cooperation between both worlds will come about. The dead can also influence the living.
People know remarkably little about the world. At most, only what happens in the course of time is grasped. Many think that the rest is of no significance. But what actually occurs is only the smallest part of what is worth knowing. By knowing only what happens externally, one actually remains ignorant of life. In the morning we go to work. Probably we consider the things that happen there as well worth knowing. One day we leave three minutes later than usual and surprising events take place. If, for example, we had left home at the right time we might have been run over, but we have been protected. Or perhaps we have to make a trip and miss the train. Then this very train is involved in a serious accident. What can we gather from such considerations?
There is much that does not happen in life, and yet we should reckon such events among the possibilities. Does the individual know how many such possibilities he escapes every single day? Imagine all the things that could happen from which he is protected! We overlook them because for a cold, abstract view of life they are quite meaningless. But let us consider the effect on the soul of a person who has been saved from danger by an apparent coincidence. A man from Berlin intended to go to America and had already purchased his ticket. A friend advised him not to sail on the Titanic! Picture to yourself the feelings of this man. He did not sail, and then he heard of the sinking of the Titanic. It had a shattering effect on his feelings. What impressions would arise in us if we were able to observe in the course of the day all the things we have been spared! When a person begins to concern himself with spiritual science he develops a far greater sensitivity for the complexities of life, for what happens in the normal course of the day.
Now if we have acquired a sensitivity of soul and are spiritually prepared, at moments such as these we can receive an impression from the spiritual world, a message from the dead that comes as an act of grace. The gates are flung open by the dead. They can speak to those who have developed sensitivity. Important matters can be imparted. The dead person, for example, may order us to accomplish something that he has not done. So the gulf is bridged. When spiritual science penetrates into practical life, and it will do so in the future, we shall be able to communicate in both directions with the dead. It will bring the super-sensible world into the immediate present.
The following question may arise. When we read a spiritual-scientific book in a particular language, can the dead understand this language? During the period of catharsis the dead understand the language they have spoken on earth. It is only later, during the passage into devachan, that they can no longer understand words but only thoughts. A transformation in the intercourse with the dead takes place after a definite period of years. If the one who has remained on earth is sensitive, he will feel that the one who has died is with him and that they think the same. This can last for years and then suddenly one loses the connection. That is the moment when the dead passes into devachan. During the period of catharsis he still remembers earthly life, he still holds onto these memories.
What is an earthly language? Every language has meaning only for earthly life and is closely connected with a person's organization, with the climate and with the formation of the larynx. In Europe we do not speak the same languages as in India. But thoughts are not formed according to earthly conditions. The dead only understand language as long as they are in kamaloca. When a medium conveys a message from the dead in a particular language, it can only come from one who has recently gone through the gate of death.
Fundamentally we are already within the higher worlds every time we go to sleep, for in sleep we enter unconsciously the same realm we enter after death.
I would like to pose the following question. Can someone who is not yet able to see with super-sensible perception nevertheless know about these things? A sleeping man, of course, does live. He is somewhat like a plant. You may recall that a scientist, Raoul Francé, writes that plants are endowed with feelings and are able to admire. Yet plants do not have a soul element. The sleeping human organism is on par with the plant. The rays of the sun have to fall on the plant if it is to live. The earth is covered with plants because the sun has called them forth. Without the sun there are no plants and during the winter they cannot sprout forth.
When man sleeps, where is his sun? What lies in the bed we also cannot envisage without the sun. This sun is outside the man's ego. There the ego has to work on the sleeping organism as the sun does on the plant. But it is not only the sun that plays a part in bringing forth and sustaining vegetation. The moon does also. Without the influences from the moon there would be no plant growth either, but the effect of lunar influences is completely ignored by scientists.
The light of the moon influences the plant. The lunar forces determine the width of the plant. A plant that grows tall and thin is little influenced by the moon. Even the whole cosmos is involved in the growth of plants. The ego works into the physical and etheric bodies as the sun influences plant growth. Similarly, the astral body is related to the moon. The ego is the sun for the physical body, the astral body is spiritually its moon. Our ego creates a replacement for the influences of the sun, and our astral body for those of the moon. This justifies what the initiate means when he says man has been formed as an extract of the forces of the cosmos. As the sun is the central point of the plant world and rays forth its light in all directions, in the same way light must permeate the physical and etheric bodies. The sunlight is not only physical, it is also of a soul-spiritual nature separated from the cosmos and become the “I” or ego. The human astral body contains an extract of the light of the moon. The greatest wisdom is contained in these matters.
If the human ego were still bound to the sun, man would only be able to alternate between sleeping and waking like the plants. If there were only the solar influence we would never be able to sleep during the day. We would sleep only at night. But our whole cultural life depends upon an emancipation from these conditions. We carry our own sun within us and the ego is an extract of the solar influence. The astral body in man is an extract of the lunar influence. So during sleep we are not dependent in the spiritual world on the cosmic solar influence. Our ego does what the sun would do otherwise. We are illumined by our own ego and astral body.
Ancient occult vision penetrated to this point only occasionally. Spiritual science gives us the following picture of the sleeping man. Above him shines the sun, his ego, without which he could not be as a plant during sleep. Above him shines the moon, his own astral body.
Now, we can also picture that during the autumn when the sun's influence decreases, vegetation withers. In a man who is awake the astral body and ego are within the physical and ether bodies. The return into the body is to a certain extent like the setting of the sun and moon, and it also marks the end of the plant-like existence. The vegetative condition that prevails to revivify our forces during sleep is much less active during waking life. The vegetative growth-forces wane as man awakens. Inasmuch we are plant-like, we die every morning. This throws considerable light on the interplay between soul and body. Some people feel active and stimulated shortly after waking. Those are the ones who are able to live more strongly in the soul sphere. People who tend to live more in the bodily nature often sense a certain fatigue in the morning. The less tired a person is in the morning, the more active he can be. Yet our waking life may be compared to the dying process of the plants in winter. Each day we draw death forces within our organism. They accumulate and because of this process we eventually die. The fundamental reason for death lies in the sphere of consciousness. From this we can gather that the conscious activity of the ego within our daily life is the destroyer of our physical and etheric bodies. We die because we live consciously.
Many attempts are being made to explain the nature of sleep. Sleep is supposed to be a condition of exhaustion and is said to exist to dispel tiredness. But sleep is not really a condition of exhaustion. The small child, for instance, sleeps more than anyone. Sleep is a part of the whole of life. It is inserted in the rhythm of falling asleep and waking up. Similarly, as we see nature wither in winter, so something dies in us during our waking life.
When we go through the gate of death, we leave our physical and etheric bodies behind and our ego and astral body now emerge as sun and moon that have nothing to illumine. Nevertheless, the ego and the astral body can continue their existence in spite of the fact that they have nothing to illumine. When they permeate the body, consciousness arises. In the spiritual world also, man has to permeate something if he is to acquire consciousness, otherwise he would exist without consciousness.
Into what does man enter after death? He plunges into the spiritual substance that is present without earthly participation. Since the Mystery of Golgatha man must always penetrate into the Christ-substance of the earth that has come about through the deed on Golgatha. We have learned to know the Christ as the Sun Spirit. The ego has emancipated itself from the light of the sun. Then the mighty Sun Spirit descended to the earth, and thereby does the ego of man penetrate into the substance of the Sun Spirit. Man experiences this plunging into the Christ-substance when he has gone through the gate of death. Because of this he is able to develop consciousness after death. In nature this stage will be accomplished when the earth has reached the Vulcan condition. As the sun shines from above downward on the earth, it conjures forth the carpet of vegetation. Now assume the sun were to shine on the earth with strength to bring forth the plants, but the earth was unable to bring them forth and instead reflected the sunlight back. Then the sunlight would not be lost but would shine out into cosmic space and bring forth a supersensible vegetation. This does in fact occur, not physically but spiritually. Because the Christ united himself with the earth, every individual who has united himself with the Christ is able to experience after death the repercussions of what he has grasped consciously on earth. Thus we can understand that on earth man must acquire the capacity to develop consciousness after death. He must carry over from his physical body the forces that develop consciousness.
The bodily nature was most strongly illumined during the Greco-Latin period. Then the saying, “Rather a beggar on earth than a king in the realm of the Shades,” had reality. At that time to dwell in the underworld meant to lead a miserable existence. Before the birth of Christ life after death was little developed. We, on the other hand, belong to an age that is characterized by the fact that such forces are no longer exercised on the bodily nature. Man, inasmuch as he sleeps, is on the decline. The bodily nature has been on the downgrade since the time of Christ. The vegetative forces were most strongly prevalent during the Greek epoch. At the end of the evolution of humanity the bodily nature will be most barren. In earlier epochs men were clairvoyant and the soul was highly developed. Through the soul-spiritual decline the bodily nature rose to its peak as expressed in the beauty of Greek art. But as we go into the future all striving for beauty is faced with a pitfall in that external beauty has no future. Beauty must become an inner quality and in this way must it reveal its character.
Insofar as this withering process increases, the inner nature of the sun and of the moon will become ever more glorious. Those who cultivate spirit and soul through spiritual science have a greater understanding of the future than those people who seek to revive the Greek games. The more a person leaves his soul-spiritual nature in unconsciousness, the more miserable is the destiny he will encounter between death and a new birth. The decay of the body has nothing to do with life after death, but if nothing of a soul-spiritual nature has been developed, then there is nothing to carry over into the spiritual world. The more a person has opened himself to receive a spiritual content, the better he will fare after death. Mankind will learn increasingly to become independent of what is bound to the physical body.
Spiritual science will not keep its present form. Words can scarcely express what it wishes to convey. In spiritual science more will depend on how things are said, rather than on what is said. That is an international element and can live in any language. One will accustom oneself to listen to how things are expressed. In this way one can enter into contact with the dweller of devachan. Today we are gathered together and speak of spiritual science. We will go through the gate of death and continue to develop in a number of future incarnations. Then we will have thoughts independent from the earth-bound language of today. The spirit will enter into our life and we will be able to communicate with the dead.
External cultural life goes to its downfall. A time will come when the skies will be filled with airplanes. Life on earth will wither, but the human soul will grow into the spiritual world. At the end of earth evolution man will have progressed so that there will no longer be a sharp division between the living and the dead. The earth will go over into a spiritual condition again because man will have spiritualized himself. This will give you a basis for a correct answer when people ask, “Death and birth repeat themselves but will this always continue?” There will not be such a difference between living and dying because for human consciousness everything will be spiritualized. The upward development of the whole of mankind leads to the condition that will be experienced on Jupiter.
In speaking about life between death and rebirth we open up a far-reaching realm. There, also, everything is subject to change and transformation, including the intercourse of the living with the dead. We shall gradually penetrate further into the nature of man's existence, into the interplay between his bodily and spiritual nature.
Zwischen Tod und Neuer Geburt
Hörernotizen
Als ich das letzte Mal hier vor Ihnen sprechen durfte, berührte ich in einer kurzen Weise jenen bedeutungsvollen Abschnitt im menschlichen Leben, der verfließt zwischen Tod und neuer Geburt. Es geht nicht an, diesen Abschnitt im menschlichen Leben so zu behandeln, als ob er für das physische Leben gleichgültig sei. Wir müssen uns klar sein darüber, daß die Kräfte unseres Lebens nicht allein aus der Welt kommen, in welcher wir uns mit unserer physischen Leiblichkeit befinden, sondern daß die Kräfte unseres Lebens ganz wesentlich aus den überphysischen Welten kommen, denen wir allein angehören zwischen Tod und Geburt. Und wir können im Grunde genommen nur wissen, wie es sich hier verhält, wenn wir uns Vorstellungen bilden können von dem Leben zwischen Tod und Geburt.
Eigentlich ist der Mensch im allgemeinen in einem gewissen Traum- oder Schlafleben befangen. Jene Menschen, die durch das physische Dasein, wo sie ihr alltägliches Leben führen und über nichts nachdenken, hindurchgehen, gleichen in der Tat Schläfern des Lebens; und die, welche sich bekümmern um das, was über das physische Leben hinausliegt, was hereinwirkt in das physische Leben, das sind Menschen, die auch für das physische Dasein aufwachen. Wir können anknüpfen an die Betrachtungen von dazumal, die uns zeigen können, wie Geisteswissenschaft, wenn sie im richtigen Sinne verstanden wird, geeignet ist, in das gesamte menschliche Dasein einzugreifen. Wir werden sehen, daß die ganze Menschheit, wenn Geisteswissenschaft allmählich immer mehr eindringen kann, auch so etwas erleben wird wie ein Aufwachen aus einer Art von Lebensschlaf. Viele Dinge dringen an den Menschen heran, die zunächst unbekannt und rätselhaft erscheinen, rätselhaft viel mehr für das Gefühl als für den trockenen Verstand. Rätselhaft in gewissem Sinne ist der Augenblick, da eine Mutter an dem Sarge ihres Kindes steht oder umgekehrt. Wenn man sich ein wenig gründlicher zu beschäftigen hat mit dem menschlichen Leben, wird man schon gewahr, wie Rätselvolles im Leben dem Menschen aufgeht. Es kommen oft Menschen zu mir, deren Schwester, deren Mann oder Frau gestorben ist. Sie sagen: Ich habe früher nicht nachgedacht über den Tod, mich nicht bekümmert um das, was danach folgen wird, aber seit mir dieser nahestehende Verwandte weggenommen ist, ist es mir, als ob er noch da ist, und da bin ich getrieben worden zur Betrachtung der Geisteswissenschaft. — Durch das Leben werden die Menschen zur Geisteswissenschaft gebracht, und sie vergilt reichlich, was da durch sie geschieht, denn Geisteswissenschaft kann das Leben durchdringen mit Kräften, die nur von ihr kommen.
Wenn der Mensch nicht mehr für physische Sinne da ist, entsteht zunächst die Rätselfrage: Wie ist es dann mit dem Menschen nach dem Tode? Äußere Wissenschaft kann keine Antwort geben, weil sie nur konstatiert, was Augen sehen, die ja zerfallen. Auch das physische Gehirn zerfällt; und es ist klar, daß es nichts nützen kann für das, was der Mensch erlebt ohne physische Hülle. Und dennoch liegen die Fragen gewaltig da, welche sich auf das Jenseits beziehen. Im Grunde genommen nützen zur Klärung dieser Fragen allgemeine Betrachtungen gar nicht so viel wie einzelne konkrete Fälle, welche schildern, wie dies oder jenes sich ausnehmen mag. Das kann unmittelbar eingreifen in das Leben.
Ausgehen können wir vom Leben hier. Sie werden vielleicht da oder dort den Fall erfahren haben, daß jemand durch seine innere Sehnsucht, durch seine Seelenverfassung zur Geisteswissenschaft getrieben wird, aber ein anderer, der wird ihr immer feindlicher. Der eine wird immer tiefer da hineingehen, sein Freund immer feindlicher der Geisteswissenschaft werden. Das Leben bietet aber nicht nur in der Natur eine Maja, sondern auch da, wo es unmittelbar unsere Seele berührt im Verhältnis zu den Menschen. Gerade was jetzt erwähnt worden ist, kann eine völlige Täuschung sein: Der Mensch, der sich eingeredet hat, alles das sei Unsinn — in jenen Seelentiefen, bis zu denen er mit dem Bewußtsein nicht hinunterdringt, entwickelt er eine geheime Liebe dazu. In den Untergründen kann Liebe dasjenige sein, was auflebt als Haß. Solche Dinge kann man im physischen Menschenleben finden. Wenn der Mensch durch die Pforte des Todes getreten ist, wirken auch alle geheimen Seelenkräfte und Sehnsuchten nach, das, was er im physischen Leben unterdrückt hat, tritt auf als der Inhalt der Läuterungszeit. Wir sehen Menschen durch die Pforte des Todes gehen, die hier Feinde der Geisteswissenschaft waren; nach dem Tode entwickeln sie die intensivste Sehnsucht darnach. Solche Hasser streben dann nach der Geisteswissenschaft. Dann stellt sich folgendes ein: Wären wir ihnen im Leben mit einem geisteswissenschaftlichen Buch gekommen, da hätten sie uns angefahren; nach dem Tode können wir ihnen keinen besseren Dienst tun, als wenn wir ihnen vorlesen. Man liest in Gedanken den Toten vor; das kann die förderndste Wirkung für den Toten haben. Wir haben viele Beispiele innerhalb unserer spirituellen Bewegung, wo die Angehörigen hingestorben sind und die Zurückbleibenden ihnen vorgelesen und sie gefördert haben. Und die Toten nehmen das, was ihnen geboten wird, mit der innigsten Dankbarkeit an, und es kann sich ein wunderschönes Zusammenleben entwickeln. Da merkt man, was Geisteswissenschaft in der Praxis bedeuten kann. Geisteswissenschaft ist nicht bloße Theorie; sie soll eingreifen in das Leben, sie soll hinwegnehmen, was sich wie eine Wand auftürmt zwischen Lebenden und Toten; überbrückt wird die Kluft. Wenn man mit der rechten Gesinnung Geisteswissenschaft ins Leben bringt, kann man viel nützen. Keinen besseren Rat gibt es, als den Toten vorzulesen. Denn es ist eine Eigentümlichkeit, daß wir unmittelbar nach dem Tode nicht neue Beziehungen anknüpfen können, wir müssen die alten fortsetzen.
Die Frage drängt sich auf: Könnte der sogenannte Tote nicht drüben geistige Wesenheiten finden, die ihn belehren könnten? Das geht nicht! Zunächst kann man nur Beziehungen haben zu Wesen, mit denen man verbunden war, bevor man durch die Pforte des Todes schritt. Begegnet man einem Geist, den man auf der Erde nicht kannte, so geht man an ihm vorbei. Wenn man hier einem großen Genie begegnet, das die Kleidung trägt eines Fuhrmanns, so erkennt man es auch nicht. Zu den Wesen, die man hier als Menschen kannte, hat man Beziehungen. Wenn man noch so vielen Wesenheiten begegnete, die einem helfen könnten, aber zu denen man keine Beziehung hat, sie nützten einem nichts.
Da Geisteswissenschaft am Ausgangspunkte ihrer Entwickelung steht, die Menschen erst damit beginnen, sie auf sich wirken zu lassen, können die Lebenden den Toten einen großen Dienst erweisen, indem sie diese Hilfe ihnen angedeihen lassen. Da haben wir ein Beispiel, wie von unserer Welt eingewirkt werden kann in die andere Welt. Aber auch das Umgekehrte ist möglich: Die Toten können auch hereinwirken in die physische Welt. Wenn Geisteswissenschaft immer mehr die Welt ergreift, wird von beiden Welten aus in Gegenseitigkeit gewirkt werden. Die Toten können auch auf die Lebendigen wirken. Der Mensch weiß ja ungemein wenig von der Welt, er weiß nur, was im Verlauf der Zeit hier geschieht. Viele meinen, daß das andere keine Bedeutung habe. Dasjenige, was geschieht, ist eigentlich nur der allergeringste Teil desjenigen, was wissenswert ist, und man bleibt eigentlich ein Nichtswisser im Leben, wenn man nur das kennt, was geschieht. Wir gehen morgens an unser Geschäft; wir werden vielleicht das alles für das Wissenswerteste halten, was uns da aufstößt. Einmal gehen wir drei Minuten später weg als gewöhnlich; da tragen sich vielleicht unerwartete Ereignisse zu: es könnte sein, daß, wenn wir zur rechten Zeit fortgegangen wären, wir überfahren worden wären; nun sind wir davor geschützt worden. Wir mußten vielleicht eine Reise machen und verpaßten den Zug: gerade diesen Zug traf ein großes Unglück. Was entnehmen wir einer solchen Betrachtung?
Es gibt viel im Leben, was nicht geschieht, was wir aber zählen müssen zu den Möglichkeiten des Lebens. Weiß denn der Mensch, wie vielen solchen Möglichkeiten er den Tag über entgeht? Was könnte alles geschehen, wenn wir dem nicht entgingen! Wir übersehen es, weil es für die trockene Lebensbetrachtung keine Bedeutung hat. Versuchen wir auf die Seele hinzuschauen, die durch scheinbaren Zufall solchen Gefahren entronnen ist, wie sie empfindet! — Ein Berliner zum Beispiel wollte nach Amerika fahren; er hatte schon das Billett. Ein Freund sagte ihm: Fahre nicht mit der Titanic! — Malen Sie sich die Gefühle desjenigen aus, der zurückgeblieben ist, als er vom Untergang der Titanic erfuhr! Das hat erschütternd auf sein Gefühl gewirkt. Welche Gemütsimpressionen könnten wir haben, wenn wir in der Lage wären, den ganzen Tag zu beobachten, wovor wir bewahrt werden, was alles hätte geschehen können! Wenn die Menschen einmal beginnen, sich mit geistigen Angelegenheiten zu befassen, bekommen sie viel mehr Empfänglichkeit für die Kompliziertheit des Lebens, für das, was sich zwischen den Tageszeiten abspielt. Der Fall kann eintreten, daß, wenn wir drei Minuten früher fortgegangen wären, wir überfahren worden wären: haben wir seelische Empfänglichkeit, sind wir geistig vorbereitet, so können wir in einem solchen Augenblick eine Impression aus der geistigen Welt aus Gnade erhalten, eine Mitteilung von einem Toten. Da werden die Tore dann von den Toten durchbrochen; da läßt sich erkennen, daß zu Menschen, welche sich Empfänglichkeit anerzogen haben, die Toten hereinsprechen können. Es können wichtige Dinge zu uns dringen: zum Beispiel, daß der Tote einen Befehl gibt, etwas auszuführen, was er nicht getan hat. So wird die Kluft überbrückt. So werden wir, wenn Geisteswissenschaft praktisch wird, mit den Toten hinüber und herüber verkehren. So kann Geisteswissenschaft lebenspraktisch werden; sie wird hereinholen die übersinnliche Welt in die unmittelbare Gegenwart.
Folgende Frage kann sich nun ergeben: Wenn wir ein geisteswissenschaftliches Buch in die Hand nehmen, so lesen wir in einer bestimmten Sprache. Verstehen die Toten diese Sprache? — In der Läuterungszeit verstehen die Toten die Sprache, die sie hier gesprochen haben; erst beim Übergang ins Devachan hört die Sprache auf, dann geschieht es in Gedanken. Nach einem bestimmten Ablauf von Jahren tritt eine Veränderung ein in dem Verkehr mit den Toten. Wenn Empfänglichkeit vorhanden ist beim Zurückgebliebenen, empfindet er: Der Tote ist bei dir, du denkst, wie er dich denkt. Das kann Jahre um Jahre dauern, dann tritt der Moment ein, wo man den Zusammenhang verliert; das ist der Augenblick, wo der Tote ins Devachan übergeht. In der Läuterungszeit hat man noch die Erinnerung an das Erdenleben, der Mensch hängt noch an diesen Erinnerungen,
Was ist eine Erdensprache? Jede Erdensprache hat nur Bedeutung für das Erdenleben; und sie hängt innig zusammen mit der Organisation des Menschen, mit dem Klima, damit auch, daß der Kehlkopf anders ausgebildet ist. Was in Europa gesprochen wird, wird nicht in Indien gesprochen. Gedanken aber sind nicht an die physische Organisation gebunden; Gedanken sind nicht nach irdischen Verhältnissen gebildet. Die Toten haben nur so lange Verständnis für die Sprache, als sie im Kamaloka sind. Wenn durch ein Medium Kundgebungen kommen und in eine bestimmte Sprache gegossen sind, können diese Mitteilungen unmittelbar gegeben werden nur von Menschen, die vor kurzer Zeit gestorben sind.
Wir sind im Grunde genommen immer schon in der höheren Welt drinnen, wir gehen im Schlaf unbewußt hinein, wir leben, während wir schlafen, in derselben Welt wie nach dem Tode. Die Frage möchte ich jetzt stellen: Kann derjenige, der noch nicht mit hellseherischem Blick sehen kann, derjenige, der noch nicht als Scher beobachten kann, kann der dennoch wissen, wie sich die Dinge verhalten?
Ein schlafender Mensch lebt ja noch, er ist so etwas wie eine Pflanze. Sie erinnern sich wohl daran, daß ein Repräsentant der Wissenschaft, Raoul France, schreibt, die Pflanze habe Gefühle und könne etwas verzehren; ein Seelisches ist aber in der Pflanze nicht vorhanden.* Von demselben Wert wie die Pflanze ist der schlafende menschliche Organismus. Dringend nötig ist, damit sie lebt, daß Sonnenstrahlen auf die Pflanze fallen. Wir sehen die Erde mit Pflanzen bedeckt, weil die Sonne sie hervorruft; die Erde wäre nicht bewachsen ohne Sonne: während der Winterzeit können die Pflanzen nichts hervorsprossen lassen. Wenn der Mensch schläft, wo ist da seine Sonne? Was im Bett liegt, können wir uns auch nicht denken ohne Sonne: diese Sonne ist in dem, was als das Ich des Menschen heraußen ist; das Ich hat da zu arbeiten am schlafenden Organismus wie die Sonne an der Pflanze.
Nicht nur die Sonne hat eine Beteiligung an der Hervorbringung und dem Dasein der Pflanze, auch der Mond; ohne Einwirkung des Mondes wäre das Pflanzenwachstum auch nicht vorhanden. Doch die Einwirkung des Mondes gehört überhaupt nicht zu dem, was Gelehrte beachten.
Das Mondenlicht wirkt auf die Pflanze. Mondeneinfluß hat Bezug auf die Breite der Pflanze; eine Pflanze, die schlank in die Höhe wächst, hat wenig Mondeneinfluß. Der ganze Kosmos ist beteiligt am Pflanzenwachstum. Und das Ich ist beteiligt am physischen und Ätherleib wie die Sonne am Pflanzenwachstum — der astralische Leib wie der Mond: es ist dieselbe Beziehung. Das Ich ist die Sonne für den physischen Leib, der astralische Leib ist sein Mond, aber ein geistiger. Wir sehen unser Ich den Ersatz bilden für die Sonneneinwirkung, unsern astralischen Leib für die des Mondes. Darin liegt die Rechtfertigung für das, was der Seher meint, wenn er sagt: Der Mensch hat sich als ein Extrakt aus den Kräften des Kosmos herausgebildet. Wie die Sonne im Mittelpunkt des Pflanzensystems ist und ihr Licht so hinbreitet, daß überall Licht ist, so soll das Licht des Ich den physischen und Ätherleib durchleuchten. Das Sonnenlicht ist nicht nur physisch, es ist auch seelisch-geistig; als letzteres löste es sich los vom Kosmischen und wurde Ich. Ein Extrakt des Mondenlichtes ist der menschliche astralische Leib. Es ist alles sehr weise eingerichtet. Wenn das Menschen-Ich noch immer an die Sonne gebunden wäre, könnten die Menschen auch nur so wie die Pflanzen zwischen Schlafen und Wachen wechseln. Dem Einfluß der Sonne nach würden wir niemals schlafen können bei Tag, würden immer schlafen müssen bei Nacht; aber das ganze Kulturleben beruht auf dieser Emanzipation. Wir tragen unsere eigene Sonne in uns: das Ich ist ein Extrakt der Sonnenwirkung; das, was im Menschen als astralischer Leib lebt, ist ein Extrakt der Mondenwirkung. So sind wir im Schlaf in der geistigen Welt nicht angewiesen auf die kosmische Sonnenwirkung; unser Ich verrichtet, was sonst die Sonne tut; wir werden beschienen von unserem eigenen Ich und Astralleib. Nur alte okkulte Anschauungen dringen bisweilen hier durch. Geisteswissenschaft gibt uns dieses Bild von dem schlafenden Menschen: Über ihm leuchtet die Sonne, sein Ich — und ohne das könnte er schlafend nicht wie eine Pflanze sein. Über ihm leuchtet der Mond: sein eigener astralischer Leib.
Nun stellen wir uns vor, daß mit dem Herbste die Sonne ihre Wirksamkeit verliert, das Pflanzenwachstum dahinstirbt. Beim wachen Menschen sind Astralleib und Ich im physischen und Ätherleib drinnen, gewissermaßen ist beim Hineingehen in den Leib Sonnen- und Mondenuntergang: da hört auch das rechte pflanzliche Leben wieder auf. So tätig wie im Schlafe das pflanzliche Leben zur Wiederherstellung der Kräfte ist, so rege ist es nicht beim Erwachen. Es welkt das Pflanzenwachstumsmäßige, wenn der Mensch aufwacht; als Pflanze sterben wir ab am Morgen. Dadurch erklärt sich sehr vieles, was zwischen Seele und Leib des Menschen sich abspielt. Manche Menschen fühlen sich bald nach dem Erwachen sehr angeregt; das sind solche, die mehr im Seelischen leben können. Die mehr im Leiblichen leben, spüren leicht am Morgen eine gewisse Müdigkeit. Je weniger man sich am Morgen ermattet fühlt, desto leistungsfähiger ist man. Doch unser waches Leben ist wie das Hinsterben der Pflanze zur Winterzeit. Jeden Tag bringen wir Absterbekräfte in unseren Organismus hinein; die summieren sich, und weil das so ist, sterben wir. Der Grund des Todes liegt im Bewußtsein. Wir können daraus entnehmen, wie das bewußte, vom Ich durchzogene Tagesleben der Aufzehrer ist vom physischen und Ätherleib. Wir sterben, weil wir bewußt leben.
Den Schlaf zu erklären, bemühen sich die Leute viel. Schlaf wäre ein Ermüdungszustand, Schlaf sei da, um Ermüdung fortzuschaffen. Schlaf ist aber kein Ermüdungszustand, denn ein kleines Kind schläft am meisten. Schlaf ist etwas, was sich eingliedert in das Gesamtleben, in den Rhythmus von Einschlafen und Aufwachen. Wie wir zur Winterzeit die Natur hinsterben sehen, so stirbt etwas ab in uns, während wir leben und wachen. — Wenn wir durch die Pforte des Todes gegangen sind, lassen wir unseren physischen und Ätherleib zurück: da könnten uns Ich und astralischer Leib erscheinen wie Sonne und Mond, die nichts zu bescheinen haben. In der Tat ist jedoch der Zustand möglich, daß Ich und astralischer Leib fortleben, auch wenn sie nichts bescheinen können. Wenn sie in den Leib untertauchen, wird Bewußtsein hervorgebracht; in der geistigen Welt muß der Mensch auch in etwas untertauchen, daß er bewußt werde, sonst wäre er ohne bewußtes Leben.
In was taucht der Mensch unter nach dem Tode? Er taucht unter in geistige Substanz, die da war ohne irdisches Zutun. Nach dem Mysterium von Golgatha muß der Mensch immer untertauchen in das, was durch das Mysterium von Golgatha gekommen ist als die Christus-Substanz der Erde. Wir haben den Christus kennengelernt als Sonnengeist. Vom Sonnenlicht hat sich das Ich einmal emanzipiert. Dann ist der große Sonnengeist auf die Erde heruntergekommen: dadurch taucht das Ich des Menschen unter in die Substanz des Sonnengeistes. Der Mensch erlebt dieses Untertauchen in die Christus-Substanz, wenn er durch die Pforte des Todes gegangen ist, und dadurch ist der Mensch nach dem Tode in der Lage, Bewußtsein zu entwickeln. In der physischen Natur wird diese Stufe erreicht, wenn die Erde beim Vulkanzustand angekommen ist. Scheint die Sonne von oben auf die Erde herunter, so können wir sagen: die Sonne zaubert das Pflanzenwachstum hervor. Wenn aber die Sonne scheinen würde auf den Erdenplaneten mit ihrer Kraft, das Pflanzenwachstum zu erzeugen, und die Erde wäre unfähig, Pflanzen hervorzubringen, könnte aber das Sonnenlicht zurückstrahlen, dann würde das Sonnenlicht sich nicht verlieren, sondern in den Himmelsraum hinausgehen und übersinnliches Pflanzenwachstum erregen. Das findet nun statt, nicht physisch, aber geistig. Dadurch, daß der Christus sich mit der Erde vereinigt hat, wirkt er so, daß der Mensch, der sich mit ihm verbindet, nach dem Tode die Rückwirkung erlebt von dem, was er hier bewußtseinsmäßig erfaßt hat. So begreifen wir, wie der Mensch gerade auf der Erde sich erwerben muß die Möglichkeit, auch nach dem Tode Bewußtsein entwickeln zu können, und wie er mitbringen muß vom physischen Leibe her die Kräfte, die das Bewußtsein entwickeln. In der griechisch-lateinischen Zeit ist die physische Leiblichkeit am meisten bestrahlt worden. Da hat das Wort Realität gehabt: Lieber hier ein Bettler sein als ein König im Reiche der Schatten. — Damals war das Leben in der Unterwelt ein elendes Dasein. Es war das Leben nach dem Tode vor der Geburt Christi wenig entwickelt. Wir dagegen gehören einer Zeit an, die dadurch merkwürdig ist, daß solche Kraft auf die Leiblichkeit nicht mehr ausgeübt wird. Was der schlafende Mensch ist, geht in der Tat allmählich einem Niedergang entgegen. Seit Christus geht die Leiblichkeit des Menschen dem Untergang zu. Am stärksten war das Vegetabilische entwickelt in der griechischen Zeit; am dürrsten wird die Leiblichkeit am Ziele der Menschheitsentwickelung sein. Anfangs waren die Menschen hellsichtig, die Seele war sehr entwickelt; durch den geistig-seelischen Untergang stieg die Leiblichkeit bis zur Höhe der griechischen Schönheit empor. Aber alles Schönheitsstreben hat gegen die Zukunft hin einen Haken: äußere Schönheit hat keine Zukunft; die Schönheit muß eine innere sein, in ihr muß das Charakteristische sichtbar werden. In demselben Sinn, in welchem sie dem Abdorren entgegengeht, wird die Sonnen- und Monden-Innenheit immer glorreicher werden. Mehr von der Zukunft verstehen jene, die Geist und Seele pflegen durch Geisteswissenschaft, als diejenigen, welche die griechischen Kampfspiele wieder heraufführen wollen. Je mehr der Mensch sein Geistig-Seelisches in Unbewußtheit läßt, einem desto elenderen Schicksal geht er entgegen zwischen Tod und neuer Geburt. Daß der Körper verdorrt, hat mit dem Leben nach dem Tode nichts zu tun; aber wenn der Mensch nichts Geistig-Seelisches entwickelt hat, dann hat er nichts hineinzutragen in die geistige Welt. Je mehr er sich darauf eingelassen hat, sich zu durchdringen mit spirituellem Inhalt, desto besser geht es ihm nach dem Tode. Die Menschen werden immer mehr und mehr lernen, unabhängig zu werden von dem, was an den Leib gebunden ist.
Geisteswissenschaft wird nicht immer die Form behalten, die sie heute hat. Die Sprache kann ja nur in äußerst dürftiger Weise ausdrücken, was sie möchte. In der Geisteswissenschaft wird es mehr darauf ankommen, wie man etwas sagt, als was man sagt. Das wird international sein, das kann in jeder Sprache leben. Man wird sich gewöhnen, auf das, wie man etwas sagt, hinzuhören; dadurch tritt man mit den Bewohnern des Devachan in Beziehung.
Heute sitzen wir zusammen und reden über Geisteswissenschaft. Wir werden durch die Pforte des Todes gehen, uns weiter entwickeln durch mehrere Inkarnationen: dann werden wir Gedanken haben unabhängig von der heutigen Erdensprache; das geistige Leben wird hereinragen in unser Leben, wir werden uns mit den Toten unterhalten können. — Das irdische Kulturleben geht seinem Niedergang entgegen. Einst wird die ganze Luft durchsetzt sein von Luftfahrzeugen, das Erdenleben wird veröden. Des Menschen Seele aber wächst hinein in die geistige Welt. Am Ende der Erdentwickelung ist der Mensch so weit, daß ein vollkommener Unterschied nicht mehr sein wird zwischen Lebenden und Toten: ganz ähnlich werden leben die Lebenden und die Toten. Die Erde wird wieder übergehen in ein Geistiges, weil die Menschheit sich vergeistigt haben wird. Eine solche Betrachtung kann Ihnen eine Anleitung zur richtigen Antwort geben, wenn die Leute fragen: Es gibt Tod und Geburt und so weiter, soll das immer dauern? — Es ist dann gar kein so großer Unterschied zwischen Leben und Sterben; alles vergeistigt sich für das menschliche Bewußtsein; dieses Hinaufleben der ganzen Menschheit führt jenen Zustand herbei, der auf dem Jupiter durchlebt wird.
Es ist ein weitgreifendes Gebiet, das wir betreten, indem wir über das Leben sprechen zwischen Tod und einer neuen Geburt. Alles unterliegt auch dort einem Wechsel, einem Wandel — auch der Verkehr der Toten mit den Lebenden. Wir werden allmählich noch weiter eindringen in die Art und Weise, wie der Mensch dieses sein Wechselleben führt innerhalb der Leiblichkeit und Geistigkeit.
Between Death and Rebirth
Audience notes
When I last had the opportunity to speak to you here, I briefly touched upon that significant period in human life that flows between death and rebirth. It is not possible to treat this period of human life as if it were irrelevant to physical life. We must be clear that the forces of our life do not come solely from the world in which we find ourselves with our physical bodies, but that the forces of our life come essentially from the superphysical worlds to which we alone belong between death and birth. And we can only really know how this is when we can form ideas about life between death and birth.
Actually, human beings in general are caught up in a kind of dream or sleep life. Those people who pass through physical existence, where they lead their everyday lives and think about nothing, are indeed like sleepers of life; and those who are concerned with what lies beyond physical life, what influences physical life, are people who are also awakening to physical existence. We can pick up on the thoughts from back then, which show us how spiritual science, when understood in the right way, can influence the whole of human existence. We'll see that when spiritual science gradually becomes more and more accepted, all of humanity will experience something like waking up from a kind of life sleep. Many things come to people that at first seem unknown and mysterious, much more mysterious to the feeling than to the dry intellect. In a certain sense, the moment when a mother stands at her child's coffin, or vice versa, is mysterious. If one has to deal with human life a little more thoroughly, one already becomes aware of how mysterious things in life dawn on human beings. People often come to me whose sister, husband, or wife has died. They say: I didn't used to think about death, I didn't worry about what would happen afterwards, but since this close relative was taken away from me, it is as if he is still here, and I have been driven to study spiritual science. Life brings people to spiritual science, and it richly rewards what happens through it, for spiritual science can permeate life with forces that come only from it.
When a person is no longer there for the physical senses, the riddle arises: What happens to the person after death? Outer science cannot provide an answer because it only states what the eyes see, and the eyes decay. The physical brain also decays, and it is clear that it cannot be of any use for what a person experiences without a physical shell. And yet the questions relating to the hereafter remain enormous. Basically, general considerations are not as useful for clarifying these questions as individual concrete cases that describe how this or that may appear. This can have a direct impact on life.
We can start from life here. You may have experienced here and there that someone is driven to spiritual science by their inner longing, by their state of mind, but another person becomes increasingly hostile to it. One person will go deeper and deeper into it, while their friend becomes increasingly hostile to spiritual science. But life offers a Maya not only in nature, but also where it touches our soul directly in our relationships with other people. What has just been mentioned can be a complete deception: the person who has convinced himself that all this is nonsense — in those depths of the soul which his consciousness cannot reach, he develops a secret love for it. In the depths of the soul, love can be what revives as hatred. Such things can be found in physical human life. When a person has passed through the gate of death, all the secret forces of the soul and all the longings continue to work, and what was suppressed in physical life emerges as the content of the period of purification. We see people passing through the gate of death who were enemies of spiritual science here; after death, they develop the most intense longing for it. Such haters then strive for spiritual science. Then the following happens: If we had come to them in life with a spiritual science book, they would have attacked us; after death, we can do them no better service than by reading to them. One reads to the dead in one's mind; this can have the most beneficial effect on the dead. We have many examples within our spiritual movement where relatives have died and those left behind have read to them and encouraged them. And the dead accept what is offered to them with the deepest gratitude, and a beautiful coexistence can develop. This shows what spiritual science can mean in practice. Spiritual science is not mere theory; it should intervene in life, it should remove what stands like a wall between the living and the dead; the gap is bridged. If you bring spiritual science into life with the right attitude, you can do a lot of good. There is no better advice than to read aloud to the dead. For it is a peculiarity of human nature that immediately after death we cannot form new relationships; we must continue the old ones.
The question arises: Couldn't the so-called dead find spiritual beings over there who could teach them? That is not possible! At first, one can only have relationships with beings with whom one was connected before passing through the gate of death. If you encounter a spirit whom you did not know on earth, you pass by him. If you encounter a great genius here who is dressed as a carter, you do not recognize him either. You have relationships with the beings whom you knew here as human beings. Even if you encountered many beings who could help you but with whom you have no relationship, they would be of no use to you.
Since spiritual science is at the beginning of its development and people are only just beginning to let it work on them, the living can do the dead a great service by allowing them to receive this help. Here we have an example of how our world can influence the other world. But the reverse is also possible: the dead can also influence the physical world. As spiritual science increasingly takes hold of the world, there will be mutual interaction between the two worlds. The dead can also influence the living. Human beings know very little about the world; they only know what happens here in the course of time. Many people think that the rest is meaningless. What happens is actually only the smallest part of what is worth knowing, and one remains essentially ignorant in life if one knows only what happens. We go to work in the morning; we may consider everything we encounter there to be the most important things worth knowing. Once we leave three minutes later than usual; then unexpected events may occur: it could be that if we had left at the right time, we would have been run over; now we have been protected from that. We may have had to take a trip and missed the train: that very train was involved in a serious accident. What can we learn from such a consideration?
There is much in life that does not happen, but which we must count among the possibilities of life. Does man know how many such possibilities he misses every day? What could happen if we did not escape them! We overlook them because they have no significance for a dry observation of life. Let us try to look into the soul that has escaped such dangers by apparent chance, and see how it feels! — A Berliner, for example, wanted to travel to America; he already had his ticket. A friend said to him: “Don't travel on the Titanic!” — Imagine the feelings of the man who stayed behind when he heard of the sinking of the Titanic! It must have been devastating. Imagine how we would feel if we could spend the whole day observing all the things we are spared, all the things that could have happened! Once people begin to concern themselves with spiritual matters, they become much more receptive to the complexity of life, to what happens between the hours of the day. It may happen that if we had left three minutes earlier, we would have been run over: if we are spiritually receptive, if we are spiritually prepared, then at such a moment we may receive an impression from the spiritual world, a message from a dead person. Then the gates are broken down by the dead; then it becomes apparent that the dead can speak to people who have cultivated receptivity. Important things can reach us: for example, that the dead give a command to carry out something they did not do. In this way, the gap is bridged. Thus, when spiritual science becomes practical, we will communicate with the dead back and forth. In this way, spiritual science can become practical for life; it will bring the supersensible world into the immediate present.
The following question may now arise: When we pick up a spiritual scientific book, we read it in a certain language. Do the dead understand this language? — During the period of purification, the dead understand the language they spoke here; only when they pass into Devachan does language cease, and then communication takes place in thoughts. After a certain number of years, a change occurs in communication with the dead. If the person left behind is receptive, they feel that the dead person is with them, that they are thinking the same thoughts as them. This can last for years, then the moment comes when the connection is lost; that is the moment when the dead person passes into Devachan. During the period of purification, people still have memories of their earthly life and are still attached to these memories.
What is an earthly language? Every earthly language has meaning only for earthly life; and it is intimately connected with the organization of the human being, with the climate, and also with the fact that the larynx is differently formed. What is spoken in Europe is not spoken in India. Thoughts, however, are not bound to the physical organization; thoughts are not formed according to earthly conditions. The dead only understand language as long as they are in Kamaloka. When messages come through a medium and are cast into a particular language, these messages can only be given directly by people who have died recently.
We are basically always already in the higher world; we enter it unconsciously when we sleep, and while we sleep we live in the same world as after death. I would now like to ask the question: Can someone who cannot yet see with clairvoyant vision, someone who cannot yet observe as a specter, can they nevertheless know how things are?
A sleeping person is still alive, he is something like a plant. You probably remember that a representative of science, Raoul France, writes that plants have feelings and can consume something; but there is no soul in plants. The sleeping human organism is of the same value as a plant. In order for it to live, it is essential that the sun's rays fall on the plant. We see the earth covered with plants because the sun brings them forth; the earth would not be covered with vegetation without the sun: during the winter, plants cannot sprout. When humans sleep, where is their sun? We cannot imagine what lies in bed without the sun: this sun is in what is outside as the human ego; the ego has to work on the sleeping organism like the sun on the plant.
Not only the sun has a part in the creation and existence of plants, but also the moon; without the influence of the moon, plant growth would not exist. But the influence of the moon is not at all considered by scholars.
Moonlight has an effect on plants. The influence of the moon is related to the width of the plant; a plant that grows tall and slender is less influenced by the moon. The entire cosmos is involved in plant growth. And the I is involved in the physical and etheric bodies like the sun in plant growth — the astral body like the moon: it is the same relationship. The ego is the sun for the physical body, the astral body is its moon, but a spiritual one. We see our ego as replacing the influence of the sun, our astral body as replacing that of the moon. This is the justification for what the seer means when he says: Man has developed as an extract from the forces of the cosmos. Just as the sun is at the center of the plant system and spreads its light so that there is light everywhere, so the light of the I should illuminate the physical and etheric bodies. Sunlight is not only physical, it is also soul-spiritual; as the latter, it detached itself from the cosmic and became the I. An extract of moonlight is the human astral body. Everything is very wisely arranged. If the human I were still bound to the sun, human beings would only be able to alternate between sleeping and waking, just like plants. Under the influence of the sun, we would never be able to sleep during the day and would always have to sleep at night; but the whole of cultural life is based on this emancipation. We carry our own sun within us: the I is an extract of the sun's influence; what lives in the human being as the astral body is an extract of the moon's influence. Thus, when we sleep, we are not dependent on the cosmic influence of the sun in the spiritual world; our I does what the sun otherwise does; we are illuminated by our own I and astral body. Only old occult views sometimes penetrate here. Spiritual science gives us this picture of the sleeping human being: above him shines the sun, his I — and without that he could not be asleep like a plant. Above him shines the moon: his own astral body.
Now let us imagine that with the arrival of autumn, the sun loses its effectiveness and plant growth dies away. In the waking human being, the astral body and the ego are inside the physical and etheric bodies; in a sense, when we enter the body, the sun and moon set, and the true plant life ceases. As active as plant life is in sleep in restoring its forces, it is not so active upon awakening. Plant growth withers when the human being awakens; as plants, we die in the morning. This explains much of what takes place between the soul and the body of the human being. Some people feel very stimulated soon after awakening; these are people who are able to live more in the soul. Those who live more in the physical realm easily feel a certain tiredness in the morning. The less tired one feels in the morning, the more productive one is. But our waking life is like the dying of a plant in winter. Every day we bring forces of death into our organism; these accumulate, and because of this we die. The reason for death lies in consciousness. From this we can deduce how the conscious, ego-filled daily life consumes the physical and etheric bodies. We die because we live consciously.
People try hard to explain sleep. Sleep is said to be a state of fatigue, and that it exists to remove fatigue. But sleep is not a state of fatigue, because a small child sleeps most of the time. Sleep is something that is integrated into the whole of life, into the rhythm of falling asleep and waking up. Just as we see nature dying in winter, something dies within us while we live and are awake. When we pass through the gate of death, we leave our physical and etheric bodies behind: there, our ego and astral body could appear to us like the sun and moon, which have nothing to illuminate. In fact, however, it is possible for the ego and the astral body to live on, even if they have nothing to illuminate. When they submerge into the body, consciousness is brought forth; in the spiritual world, human beings must also submerge into something in order to become conscious, otherwise they would be without conscious life.
Into what does man submerge after death? He submerges into spiritual substance that was there without any earthly intervention. After the Mystery of Golgotha, man must always submerge into that which came through the Mystery of Golgotha as the Christ substance of the earth. We have come to know Christ as the Sun Spirit. The I once emancipated itself from the sunlight. Then the great Sun Spirit descended to the earth, and through this the human ego submerged into the substance of the Sun Spirit. Human beings experience this submergence into the Christ substance when they pass through the gate of death, and through this they are able to develop consciousness after death. In physical nature, this stage is reached when the Earth has reached the volcanic state. When the Sun shines down on the Earth from above, we can say that the Sun conjures up plant growth. But if the sun were to shine on the Earth with its power to produce plant growth, and the Earth were incapable of producing plants, but the sunlight could be reflected back, then the sunlight would not be lost, but would go out into the heavenly space and stimulate supersensible plant growth. This is now taking place, not physically, but spiritually. Through Christ's union with the earth, he works in such a way that human beings who connect with him experience, after death, the repercussions of what they have consciously grasped here. Thus we understand how human beings must acquire the ability to develop consciousness after death while still on earth, and how they must bring with them from their physical bodies the forces that develop consciousness. In the Greek-Latin period, physical corporeality was most highly esteemed. Then the saying was true: Better to be a beggar here than a king in the realm of shadows. At that time, life in the underworld was a miserable existence. Life after death was little developed before the birth of Christ. We, on the other hand, belong to a time that is remarkable in that such power is no longer exerted on physicality. What the sleeping human being is, is in fact gradually declining. Since Christ, the physicality of the human being has been heading toward destruction. The vegetative was most highly developed in the Greek period; physicality will be at its most barren at the goal of human development. In the beginning, people were clairvoyant, the soul was highly developed; through the spiritual and soul decline, physicality rose to the height of Greek beauty. But all striving for beauty has a drawback when it comes to the future: external beauty has no future; beauty must be internal, its characteristic features must be visible. In the same sense in which it is withering away, the inner nature of the sun and moon will become ever more glorious. Those who cultivate the spirit and soul through spiritual science understand more about the future than those who want to revive the Greek fighting games. The more a person leaves his spiritual and soul life in unconsciousness, the more miserable a fate he faces between death and new birth. The fact that the body decays has nothing to do with life after death; but if a person has developed nothing spiritual and soulful, then he has nothing to carry into the spiritual world. The more he has allowed himself to be imbued with spiritual content, the better off he will be after death. People will learn more and more to become independent of what is bound to the body.
Spiritual science will not always retain the form it has today. Language can only express what it wants to say in an extremely limited way. In spiritual science, it will be more important how something is said than what is said. This will be international; it can live in every language. People will become accustomed to listening to how something is said; in this way, they will enter into relationship with the inhabitants of Devachan.
Today we sit together and talk about spiritual science. We will pass through the gate of death, develop further through several incarnations: then we will have thoughts independent of today's earthly language; spiritual life will enter our lives, we will be able to converse with the dead. — Earthly cultural life is heading toward decline. One day, the entire air will be filled with flying machines, and life on earth will become desolate. But the human soul will grow into the spiritual world. At the end of the earth's development, human beings will have progressed so far that there will no longer be any difference between the living and the dead: the living and the dead will live in a very similar way. The earth will once again become spiritual, because humanity will have become spiritualized. Such a consideration can give you guidance toward the right answer when people ask: There is death and birth and so on, will this always continue? — Then there is not such a great difference between life and death; everything becomes spiritualized for human consciousness; this upward life of the whole of humanity brings about the state that is lived through on Jupiter.
We are entering a vast territory when we speak about life between death and a new birth. Everything there is also subject to change, to transformation — including the interaction of the dead with the living. We will gradually delve deeper into the way in which human beings lead this changing life within physicality and spirituality.