What is meant by “The First Class?

by Herbert Hagens Princeton, New Jersey

Rudolf Steiner founded the General Anthroposophical Society in 1923 at a Christmas conference held in Dornach, Switzerland. At the same time he announced the establishment of a School of Spiritual Science. “The General Anthroposophical Society looks upon the School of Spiritual Science as the center of its work” (Society Statute 5). The School is organized in several departments (called “Sections”) and is headquartered at the Goetheanum in Dornach. The Sections cover various fields of spiritual activity in the sciences and arts.

But there is one Section that stands out: the General Anthroposophical Section. The word “general” (in German: allgemein) is meant to be understood as “common to all.” Everyone who becomes a member of the School belongs to the General Anthroposophical Section. The mission of the School of Spiritual Science is the pursuit of research.

Rudolf Steiner also clarified how the task of the “First Class” relates to the Society and the School: “In general…it will be necessary for human beings to get to know the spiritual world first in the form of ideas. This is how spiritual science is cultivated in the General Anthroposophical Society. However, there will be people who want to participate in portrayals of the spiritual world that progress upwards from the form of ideas to manners of expression that are borrowed from the spiritual world itself. There will also be people who want to get to know the paths to the spiritual world in order to tread them with their own souls. The three Classes of the School will be for them.”1 This points to Steiner’s definition of anthroposophy: “Anthroposophy is a path of knowledge, to guide the spiritual in the human being to the spiritual in the universe.”2

Unfortunately, Rudolf Steiner died before he could develop all three Classes. But he did manage to

1) Rudolf Steiner, Constitution of the School of Spiritual Science. Forest Row: Rudolf Steiner Press, 2013.

2) Rudolf Steiner, Anthroposophical Leading Thoughts. London: Rudolf Steiner Press, 1985 complete 19 Lessons for the First Class. The initial group to hear the esoteric lessons were those members of the Anthroposophical Society who were admitted to the School by Steiner and his colleague Ita Wegman. The process of applying for membership remains under the direction of the Leadership Council (Vorstand) at the Goetheanum.

The author Thomas Meyer has written a concise description of Rudolf Steiner’s endeavor known as the First Class: “Today, meditation is often spoken about, both inside and outside of the anthroposophical movement. The path of meditation that Rudolf Steiner made available to humanity at the end of his life is the quintessence of all his prior presentations…He touched upon and listened to the intentions of the true spirit of our time, which in Spiritual Science bears the name of Michael. This is a path of self-knowledge from which world knowledge can be gained.”3 The lessons and mantras of the First Class introduce the seeker to the initial steps that go beyond “the form of ideas.” They are very much a schooling for those who feel called upon to follow a path of modern initiation.

The course of the First Class consists of 19 esoteric lessons that Rudolf Steiner gave between February and August 1924. He repeated some of those lessons in other places and also in Dornach. The first official version of the lessons was published in 1992. Other editions have appeared since and are available to the public.

The institution known as the School of Spiritual Science continues today with the Goetheanum as its center. The Leadership Council is responsible for guiding and coordinating the work of the First Class of the General Anthroposophical Section as well as the other Sections. The leadership also appoints the Class holders, who are assigned to conduct Class lessons in many countries around the world. Members of the General Anthroposophical Society all have the opportunity to apply for membership in the School. Rudolf Steiner emphasized three important conditions for those who yearn to participate with others in the life of the School: 1) that they regard themselves as true meditants; 2)that

3) Rudolf Steiner, The First Class Lessons and Mantras (T. H. Meyer, ed.). Gt. Barrington: SteinerBooks, 2017 they take working with esoteric content with utmost earnestness; and 3) that they have the will to become respresentatives of the anthroposophical cause.

For further information about the First Class and the School of Spiritual Science please contact a local group or branch of the Anthroposophical Society. People can also check with the Society’s main office in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The booklet entitled A Way of Serving offers an excellent introduction to the General Anthroposophical Section (available from SteinerBooks).