I
Investigations Into Life Between Death and Rebirth
Milan, October 26, 1912
It will
be my task here to explain to you some features of investigation of
the spiritual world, and to indicate what the consequences of such
knowledge are for life as a whole. He who has the task of
communicating certain things to his fellowmen from the spiritual
world cannot test too often their exactitude and absolute spiritual
correctness. My aim is to impart something out of such verified
knowledge in regard to the soul's life between death and a new
birth. Lately, I have been able to test the research that can be made
in this field. Particulars of these thorough investigations will be
given in the second part of the lecture. This must be prefaced by
some preliminary explanations pertaining to the attainment of
spiritual knowledge.
A special disposition of the soul is necessary for the acquisition of
spiritual knowledge, one to which the usual disposition in everyday
life on the earthly plane is radically opposed. In external life,
especially in our present day, the soul is in a continual state of
unrest. Throughout the day the soul is constantly exposed to new
impressions, and since it identifies itself with these impressions it
lives in a state of continuous restlessness.
The very opposite must take place if one would penetrate into the
spiritual world. The first condition necessary for ascending into the
spiritual world and for understanding the experiences gained in that
realm is complete inner rest and steadiness of soul. This quietness
of soul is more difficult to attain than we might think. All anxiety,
all excitement and worry must cease in order to obtain inner
calmness. In fact, during the time that we wish to lift ourselves
into higher worlds all interests in outer life must be extinguished.
We should be as if standing at one point, determined not to move, so
that the events of the spiritual world may pass before us. In our
everyday life on the physical plane we go from one thing to another
while the things themselves remain stationary. This is not so in the
spiritual world where we must bring things to us, to the point to
which we are fixed, by means of our thinking activity. We must, as it
were, go out of ourselves, penetrate the things and then bring them
to us from outside. This may lead to alarming experiences for the
soul.
We shall discover that during our normal life on earth we are able to
change things, to correct what we have perceived or done wrongly.
This is no longer so in the spiritual world. There we realize that
things present themselves in a true or false aspect according to the
condition we are in when entering the spiritual world. Therefore, all
preparation for a correct insight into the spiritual world must take
place before entering that realm, because once we have passed the
threshold we are no longer in a position to correct, but are forced
to make the mistakes consistent with our own disposition of
character. In order to avoid making certain mistakes in the future,
we must return to the physical plane, improve our disposition, and
then return to the spiritual world to do better than previously. From
this you will understand the importance of a sound and careful
preparation before crossing the threshold into the spiritual world.
What I have said is closely connected with the present cycle of human
evolution, but conditions for the soul were not always as they are
today. In our time we should fear rather than welcome a too forcible
appearance of a visionary world on entering the realm of the spirit.
When we begin our exercises to rise into the higher worlds it is
indeed possible for visionary experiences to penetrate into us. In
our time there is only one safeguard against making mistakes in the
presence of this visionary world, namely, to say to oneself that to
begin with one can only learn certain things about oneself from these
visions. The appearance of a whole host of visions around us need be
nothing more than the mirroring of our own being. Our own disposition
and maturity of soul, all we think and feel, transform themselves in
the spiritual world into happenings that appear to be objective
realities. For instance, when we see events in the astral world that
seem objective to us, they may be nothing more than the reflection of
our own virtues or defects, or indeed the effect of a headache. He
who seeks genuine initiation, especially in our time, must endeavor
to understand by thinking all that reaches him by way of the
visionary experience. Therefore, the candidate for initiation will
not rest until he has understood what he has encountered in the
visionary world as thoroughly as he understands the physical world.
Now as we approach initiation our soul undergoes the same experiences
as those during the period between death and a new birth. Recently in
my occult research the following question arose. What is the
relationship between the visionary world that one can find through
initiation or as a result of a loosening of the ether body owing to
shock, and the realm in which one dwells between death and a new
birth? It was shown that when we turn our attention to the time
between death and rebirth, we find, that is, setting aside the period
of kamaloca, that we live in an objective world that can be compared
to that of the initiate. This should not be taken, however, to mean
that immediately after death we do not live in a real world. We live
an absolutely real world. We live there with those with whom we were
connected on earth, and the connections are very real. But just as on
earth we receive our perceptions by means of the senses, so after
death we receive them by way of visions.
Let us consider the following instance. Suppose after death we meet
someone in the spiritual world who died before us. He is there for us
in reality, we stand before him, but we must be able to perceive him,
must establish a relationship to him in the visionary world, just as
in the physical world we would establish a connection with someone by
means of our eyes and ears. Now, however, we encounter a difficulty
that exists in the experience of the initiate and also in the life
between death and rebirth. As previously explained, the world of
visions presents at first only a reflection of ourselves. When a man
meets us in the spiritual world a vision appears, but to begin with
this vision only reflects the measure of affection or antipathy that
we felt towards him on earth, or it reflects some other connection
that we may have had with him in the past. We can therefore find
ourselves in the presence of a person in the spiritual world and yet
perceive nothing more than what was within our own soul before death.
It may happen that we meet a person in the spiritual world but remain
cut off from him because of our feelings or affection or dislike that
envelop us like a visionary cloud. Such meetings after death are
accompanied by deep feeling, by a real inner experience, and this is
most important. We might feel, for example, that we have not loved
someone on earth as much as we should have done and now after death,
notwithstanding that we are in his presence and wish to love him
more, we find that we can only bring as much affection as we had for
him on earth. This is true in spite of our earnest desire to love him
more and make amends for what we failed to do on earth. We experience
this sense of limitation, this total incapacity to develop further
one's inner powers, as an immense weight on the soul after
death.
This leads me to some of my recent research. The early experiences
during the kamaloca period consist in essence of what the soul has
received in its relations with its fellow men before death. After a
certain time after death, for instance, we can no longer ask
ourselves how we should love a person. We can then only ask ourselves
how we loved him during earthly life, and as a result how we love him
now. This condition gradually changes as after death we develop the
faculty to sense the working of the beings of the spiritual world, of
the Hierarchies, on the visions that surround us. Therefore, the
situation that I have characterized is only altered as a result of a
feeling that develops little by little. Beings of the Hierarchies are
working on the mist that surrounds us; they shine upon this mist as
the sun's rays irradiate the clouds. We have to take a certain
number of memories of our life before death with us. They surround us
like a cloud and on the basis of them we must develop the faculty to
receive the light of the Hierarchies. Generally speaking almost every
soul in our time is prepared in this way to receive the influences of
the higher Hierarchies. Today every person who dies and enters the
spiritual world will reach the stage where the Hierarchies illumine
the cloud of his visions.
The influence of the Hierarchies, this light-giving that occurs in
the course of time, is also gradually altered. It changes in such a
way that we experience little by little how this breaking-in of the
light of higher Hierarchies could dim our consciousness. Then we
become aware that the preservation of our consciousness depends upon
certain specific things that happened before death. For instance, the
consciousness of a person with an immoral soul disposition is more
easily dimmed. It is therefore of the utmost importance that we cross
the threshold of death with moral strength, for moral consciousness
will keep our soul open to the light of the Hierarchies. Recently I
have been able to examine the state after death of people with moral
sentiments and also the state of those with an immoral disposition of
soul, and in every case it could be established that a person with a
moral disposition of soul was able to preserve clear, radiant
consciousness after death, whereas those with an immoral soul
constitution sink into a kind of dim twilight consciousness.
One might well ask what it matters if after death a person should
fall into such a sleeping consciousness because then he would not
suffer. He would even escape the consequences of his immorality. This
argument will not hold because, with such a dimming of consciousness
that is the result of immorality, the most terrible conditions of
fear are connected. There is no greater fear after death than this
darkening of consciousness.
Later, after a certain span of time has elapsed, one has quite other
experiences. One compares, for instance, a variety of people during
the period between death and rebirth, and one finds that during the
later phase after death, in addition to the moral disposition the
religious soul disposition plays a part. It is simply an
unquestionable fact that souls deficient in religious thoughts
experience a dimming of consciousness as a result of this deficiency.
One cannot free oneself from the impression one gains in observing
the state of men who have had only materialistic thoughts. Shortly
after death their consciousness is dimmed, extinguished. This fact
demonstrates that materialistic thoughts, however convincing they
might appear to be, do not further human development after death.
I have thus described two phases of existence after death. In the
first, one sees the effects of moral principles, in the second, the
consequences of religious ideas. This is followed by a third period
that would mean a dimming of consciousness for every soul were it not
for certain cosmic measures that prevent this darkening. In
investigating this third phase the total evolution of the whole of
humanity through the various cycles of development will have to be
considered. In pre-Christian times men could not acquire on earth
what would have given them a consciousness in this third period after
death. That they nevertheless had a consciousness during this third
period was due to the fact that since the beginning of earth
evolution certain spiritual forces were bestowed on man that enabled
him to preserve his consciousness. These forces, which were inherited
by man from the beginning of the world, were preserved by the wise
guidance of initiated leaders. We must bear in mind that in
pre-Christian times all the various peoples of the world received the
influences of the Sanctuaries of Initiation, and there were many ways
in which the spiritual life flowed forth from the Mysteries to the
people.
These impulses became even weaker as human evolution approached the
Mystery of Golgotha. An external proof of this can be seen in the
advent of the great Buddha in pre-Christian times. A careful
examination of the teachings of Buddha will not reveal any real
information about the nature of the spiritual world. In fact, the
spiritual world is characterized negatively in the teaching of
Nirvana, and yet it is true that Buddha demanded of one who sought
entry into the spiritual world that one should free oneself from all
attachments to the physical world. But in the whole of Buddha's
teachings we do not find any detailed description of the world of the
spirit as we do, for instance, in the teachings of the Brahmans that
still contain the traditions of ancient times. It must be emphasized
that the facts referred to manifested themselves in various peoples
until the time the Greeks experienced the meaning of the Mystery of
Golgotha. Because during the period of Greek civilization
consciousness was dimmed between death and rebirth, the Greeks, who
knew this, experienced the spiritual world as the realm of the
shades. On earth man could create beauty, art, harmonious social
conditions out of his own forces, but he was unable to acquire in the
physical world what would give him a light during the third phase of
life after death.
This is connected with the fact that in the Greek epoch mankind had
reached the point in evolution when the ancient sources of tradition
were exhausted. He could not procure by dint of his own powers in the
physical world the forces needed after death to maintain the
consciousness described. At this point in evolution mankind had to
receive from without the impulse by means of which he could gain
consciousness during this third phase. Man had lost the power of
inheriting the consciousness between death and rebirth, but he could
regain it by turning his thoughts to what had occurred at the Mystery
of Golgotha. The matter stands as follows. What could be experienced
during the Greek epoch during the Mystery of Golgotha has illumined
men's consciousness in the third phase between death and
rebirth. Understanding the Mystery of Golgotha is the impulse for
consciousness in the third period after death.
If we now consider the Greco-Latin period, we can say that for the
first phase after death the moral disposition of soul was the
determining factor; for the second, the religious inclination; but
for the third, the understanding of the Mystery of Golgotha was of
prime importance. He who had not acquired this understanding suffered
an extinction of consciousness in the third period after death, just
as the Greeks experienced it previously. The Mystery of Golgotha
signifies the re-enlivening of man's consciousness precisely
during the middle period between death and rebirth. The ancient
spiritual heritage that mankind had lost was restored to him through
this event, and so the Christ event had to occur because of the
conditions that prevailed in the lives of men. As evolution
progressed mankind continually received new powers. During the first
stage of Christian evolution it was the understanding of the Mystery
of Golgotha as recounted by those who had lived at the time, and as
transmitted by means of tradition, that gave the power to maintain
consciousness in the third phase after death. Today, as a result of
the further development of man's faculties, a new relation is
again necessary, both to the Mystery of Golgotha and to the Christ
being.
If we seek to understand the essence of the soul in our time, then we
must realize that the deepest part of man's nature can
penetrate today to a knowledge of the ego. Such a comprehension was
not possible in former times. Among human beings at large we find
this drawing-near to the ego in the grossest forms of egoism. It
manifests itself in a wide variety of degrees until we reach the
stage of the philosopher. In studying contemporary philosophy you
will find that a secure standpoint is only reached when the human ego
is spoken of. In pre-Christian times, when man attempted to gain
knowledge of the world he turned his attention to outer phenomena; in
other words, in order to philosophize he went out of himself. Today
man looks inward, into himself, and only there, when he finds the
ego, does he encounter a firm point of reference. I need only mention
the great Fichte and the contemporary philosopher Bergson. Both agree
that a man only finds a measure of inner peace if he discovers the
ego. The reason for this lies in the fact that in earlier times
humanity could not come out of its own powers to a knowledge of the
ego. This experience was bestowed upon him during the Greco-Latin age
through the Mystery of Golgotha. The Christ gave mankind the
certainty that a spark of the divine dwells in the human soul. It
continues to live in man, in him who has not only become flesh in a
physical sense, but who has become flesh in a Christian sense, and
that means to have become an “I.” The possibility of
recognizing the divine in a human individuality, namely, the Christ,
is being ever more obscured in our time. This is due to the fact that
the man of today penetrates increasingly into his personal ego and
seeks to find the divine spark ever more in himself. We have seen
that in the nineteenth century this way of viewing the ego was
intensified to the point that the divinity of Christ was denied. The
divine was understood merely as something abstract in the whole of
mankind. So, for example, the German philosopher, David Friedrich
Strauss, contended that one should not recognize the single
historical Christ, but instead acknowledge the divine nature that
animates the whole of humanity. Then the Resurrection signifies only
what is manifested in all mankind as the awakening of the Divine
Spirit.
This is the reason why the more man seeks the divine within himself,
the more he will lose the understanding of the Mystery of Golgotha.
The whole tendency of modern thinking is to seek the reflection of
the divine exclusively in man. Because of this, ever greater
obstacles prevent recognition that the Divine was incarnated within
one personality. This has real consequences for the life between
death and a new birth. If already in the Greco-Latin period man was
not able by his own strength to maintain his consciousness in the
third period after death, then it is all the more difficult in our
time due to the general and philosophical egoism that prevails. In
our present age, during the third phase after death the soul creates
even greater obstacles for itself in its cloud of visions than during
the Greco-Latin epoch.
If one considers the evolution of humanity in more recent times
without prejudice, one must acknowledge that St. Paul said, “Not
I, but the Christ in me.” But modern man says, “I in me,
and the Christ as far as I can admit Him. The Christ is only valid
inasmuch as I can acknowledge Him through my own powers of
reasoning.”
In our present period there is only one way of maintaining a
clear consciousness during the third phase after death, that is, by
carrying certain memories from the previous life into our existence
after death. In fact, during this period we would have to forget
everything unless we were able to hold on to one particular
recollection. If we have experienced on earth an understanding of
Christ and the Mystery of Golgotha and have established a
relationship to them, this will implant into us thoughts and forces
that maintain our consciousness during this period after death. The
facts clearly show that there is the possibility of remembering after
death what has been understood on the earth in relation to the
Mystery of Golgotha.
Once we have gained ideas and feelings about the Mystery of Golgotha,
we shall be able to remember these after death, and also what is
connected with them. In other words, after death we must carry our
consciousness across an abyss, and this is done by means of the
understanding of the Mystery of Golgotha that we have gained on
earth. With this knowledge gained out of our memory during this
period, we shall be able to cooperate in the correction of the faults
that we bear in our soul as a result of our karma. If, however, we
have not developed an understanding and deep realization of the
words, “Not I, but the Christ in me,” then our
consciousness is extinguished and with it the possibility of
improving our karma. Other powers must undertake the correction of
our defects that ought to be corrected by us in accordance with our
karma.
Naturally, every man returns through a new birth to earth, but it is
of importance whether the consciousness has been extinguished or
whether it has remained intact across the abyss. If we reach this
period after death with a knowledge of the Mystery of Golgotha, we
are able to look backward and remember that with all that is
essentially human in us, we have come from God. We also experience
that we have been able to save our consciousness because of our
understanding of the Mystery of Golgotha, and that we can develop our
consciousness further as we behold this Spirit now drawing near to
us. Then we reach a point during this third phase after death when we
can remember and say to ourselves that we are born out of the Spirit,
ex Deo nascimur. One who has reached a certain stage of
initiation never experiences the truth of the words, “I am born
out of the Divine Spirit,” as powerfully as when he transposes
himself to this particular point. At this moment every soul who has
developed an understanding of the Mystery of Golgotha experiences it.
The significance of the words, ex Deo nascimur, is realized
when one knows that their full depth will only be experienced when
the soul has reached the middle period between death and rebirth.
When one knows these facts objectively, one would wish that more
people in our time knew that the essence of these words can only be
understood as characterized above. This saying has been made into a
motto within our spiritual-rosicrucian movement precisely in order to
awaken what should live within the soul between death and a new
birth.
It would not be difficult to interpret this explanation as a
preconceived opinion in favor of the Christian way of life. If this
were the case, such a view would be entirely unanthroposophical.
Spiritual science takes an objective position towards all religious
creeds and studies them with equal interest. The facts that have been
given here about the importance of the Mystery of Golgotha have
nothing whatever to do with any form of denominational Christianity.
They are simply objective occult realities. Yet the accusation has
been levied against our Western spiritual movement that we speak out
of a marked preference for Christianity as compared with other
religions. Here, however, the Mystery of Golgotha is treated in the
same way as any tangible fact in natural science. To say that the
Mystery of Golgotha ought not be placed as a unique event in the
evolution of humanity because other religions would not be able to
acknowledge this fact shows complete misunderstanding. Let us
consider the following. Today we have the sacred religious books of
India and a modern Western world-conception. Today in the West we
teach the Copernican system, and no one would suggest that we ought
not to teach the Copernican theory because it is not contained in the
sacred books of India! For the same reason no one can object to the
teaching of the Mystery of Golgotha because it is not to be found in
the religious writings of the ancient Hindus.
From this we see how unfounded is the reproach that the explanations
here given about the Mystery of Golgotha come from a preference for
Christianity. We are concerned with objective facts, and if you
should ask why I will never modify in the slightest the importance
attached to the Mystery of Golgotha, then the above reasons will
provide the answer.
We do not study spiritual science for the sake of curiosity, nor from
an abstract desire for knowledge, but in order to provide the soul
with a necessary form of nourishment. By means of an understanding of
the Mystery of Golgotha, we give the soul the possibility of
developing those feelings that it will need in order to cross the
abyss between death and rebirth as just described. One who has
understood that the soul after death can suffer a loss of
consciousness, so heavy to bear in all future cycles of time, will
seek every opportunity to bring the Mystery of Golgotha to the
understanding of his fellow men.
For this reason the understanding of the Mystery of Golgotha is one
of the most important facts that we must learn through the study of
spiritual science.
The more progress we make in our present epoch, the more will the
various religions be obliged to accept the facts we have presented
today. The time will come when the followers of the Chinese, Buddhist
and Brahman religions will find that it is no more contrary to their
religion to accept the Mystery of Golgotha than it is to accept the
system of Copernicus. In the future it will be considered a kind of
religious egotism if this fact is not admitted by religions that are
not Christian.
You will notice that in our considerations we have reached the
Mystery of Golgotha although our starting point was the conditions
between death and rebirth. One can give but a few indications in
relation to an area such as we have dealt with here, but I wished at
least to impart to you some of the results of my most recent
research.
As the next lecture will be related to the present one, we probably
will make a brief review of what has been said here, and then pass on
to further considerations.
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