"We live in [a time when] human beings must become independent. But on what does this depend? It depends on people's ability...to become self-assertive, to not allow themselves to be put to sleep [in their thinking]. It is the antisocial forces that require development in this time, for consciousness to be present. It would not be possible for humanity in the present to accomplish its task if...these antisocial forces did not become ever more powerful; they are indeed the pillars on which personal independence rests. At present humanity has no idea how much more powerful antisocial impulses must become." -- Rudolf Steiner (Dec. 12, 1918)
Rudolf Steiner's profound and practical insights and indications concerning what happens when human beings meet and interact with one another are scarcely known and studied seriously by few. But, despite having been worked with but scantly in the last hundred years, these indications and insights could easily provide the basis for a widescale reawakening of our own, perhaps latent, capacities to listen, speak, and understand one another at a higher level, as beings of soul and spirit. This volume, edited and compiled by Gary Lamb, provides a succinct yet thorough overview of Steiner's many remarks and insights into the mysteries of social encounter, as well as offering helpful commentary and contextualization.
Using Steiner's words, and his own thread of commentary running throughout, Lamb shows how spiritualized conversations and interpersonal dynamics attained through rigorous self-development practices provide the necessary soul-spiritual substance and forces necessary for the overcoming of evil in modern life.
Author Biography:
Rudolf Steiner (b. Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner, 1861-1925) was born in the small village of Kraljevec, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now in Croatia), where he grew up. As a young man, he lived in Weimar and Berlin, where he became a well-published scientific, literary, and philosophical scholar, known especially for his work with Goethe's scientific writings. At the beginning of the twentieth century, he began to develop his early philosophical principles into an approach to systematic research into psychological and spiritual phenomena. Formally beginning his spiritual teaching career under the auspices of the Theosophical Society, Steiner came to use the term Anthroposophy (and spiritual science) for his philosophy, spiritual research, and findings. The influence of Steiner's multifaceted genius has led to innovative and holistic approaches in medicine, various therapies, philosophy, religious renewal, Waldorf education, education for special needs, threefold economics, biodynamic agriculture, Goethean science, architecture, and the arts of drama, speech, and eurythmy. In 1924, Rudolf Steiner founded the General Anthroposophical Society, which today has branches throughout the world. He died in Dornach, Switzerland. Gary Lamb has worked in several occupations over the years, including building construction, farming, carpentry, high school teaching, manufacturing, fundraising, magazine publishing, and more. He cofounded and edited of The Threefold Review, an independent magazine for the study of social issues in the light of Anthroposophy. He is currently co-director of the Center for Social Research (CSR) in Hawthorne Valley, New York. He does research through the Ethical Technology Initiative. Gary Lamb has worked in several occupations over the years, including building construction, farming, carpentry, high school teaching, manufacturing, fundraising, magazine publishing, and more. He cofounded and edited of The Threefold Review, an independent magazine for the study of social issues in the light of Anthroposophy. He is currently co-director of the Center for Social Research (CSR) in Hawthorne Valley, New York. He does research through the Ethical Technology Initiative.
