Reflections on Centenary Events

Concerning the Anthroposophical Movement

By Alan Thewless

Approaching the centenary of Rudolf Steiner’s last works, thoughts naturally turn to the contributions made by this great soul for the progress of human-kind.

In this article, a particular focus relates to the final months of Rudolf Steiner’s life and to the period following his final public address, given on September 28th, 1924. His words given then are known as the “Last Address.” Following this inspired Address, Rudolf Steiner, suffering from the illness that would lead to his death on March 30th, 1925, brought a remarkable series of Letters and Leading Thoughts referencing the guiding spirits of anthroposophy and the spiritual tasks facing humanity. These Letters and Leading Thoughts began to feature in the ‘Members’ News Sheet, Was in der Anthroposophische Gesellschaft vorgeht , from 17th February, 1924, but from 24th August, 1924, onwards, their referencing of the Being, Michael, became so focused that these contributions became known as the Michael Letters . Their continuance from the bedside of Rudolf Steiner constituted a momentous final deed, an invaluable gift in the form of a rendering, not only of core teachings, but also an expression of the life of anthroposophy, the new-born science of the spirit. Here became facilitated, for the human soul, a closeness to the Michael thought life so movingly described in the “Last Address.”

It is in the “Last Address” that we are brought to the mystery of how spiritual beings, through long ages, assist souls who carry a deep and intimate connection with the Michael Stream as it works actively in evolution. Also of how these souls, after passage into the spiritual world at death, work lovingly in concert within the planetary spheres for the aims of human kind.

We know [for I often have spoken of these things] how, when man has gone through the gate of death, he enters the world of the stars. What we are accustomed to call “stars” in the external, physical sense are no more than the outer sign and symbol of spiritual worlds which look down upon us and take their share and part in all the deeds of the evolution of mankind.

In respect of the spiritual guiding powers working with and inspiring human beings, furthering the ever- deepening human journey, Rudolf Steiner speaks of Elijah, Lazarus-John, Raphael, and Novalis, and of individuals intimately involved in the spiritual stream that flows through anthroposophy. The words spoken by Rudolf Steiner in the “Last Address” concerning these things belong to the most intimate annals of anthroposophy.

It is not the aim of this article to explore in depth the nature of the “Last Address” other than to say that the words spoken there have immediate import with regard to the spiritual forces that are carried through them. The same extraordinary quality also holds true for the content of the Michael Letters and Leading Thoughts . It is the aim of this article to look at the cosmic context in which this period of Rudolf Steiner’s creative output is placed; and to view this in relation not only to the present time, that of our centenary appreciations, but also in relation to the stream of history flowing from the central Mystery of Christianity: the events of Golgotha. To see how the cosmos of stars and planets, “…take their share and part in all the deeds of the evolution of mankind .” This is a theme that will be followed in relation to the culminating period of Rudolf Steiner’s life. Furthermore, we will be able to look at an important detail that appears towards the end of the “Last Address” related to what Rudolf Steiner speaks of “… t he work that shall be accomplished at the end of the century, and that shall lead mankind past the great crisis in which it is involved .”

In the lecture entitled, The Reappearance of Christ in the Etheric , given on the 24th November, 1917, Rudolf Steiner speaks of the powerful forces at work throughout history via the starry axis of Gemini/ Sagittarius, characterizing these in relation to the strongly contrasting forces of the daily round, namely the forces of midday and of midnight. In this respect, it is remarkable to see the correlation between this axis and the central moment in human history that we know as the ‘Mystery of Golgotha.’ At this time, as the cosmos looked in wonder at events enacted on the Earth, transformative events occurred for both the cosmos and the Earth. Jupiter and Pluto aligned themselves perfectly opposite each other along the axis between Gemini and Sagittarius, and specifically along the 17th degree of both constellations (Jupiter 17° Gemini, Pluto 17° Sagittarius, equal sidereal constellations). These things are mentioned here because of the correspondences with this axis that are evident also in the period of Rudolf Steiner’s life that we are now concerned with; a period that constituted a culminating phase of Rudolf Steiner’s life’s work. Within the context of the drama of the cosmos such correspondences call to mind the accompaniment of spiritual beings in the affairs of humankind, as referred to previously (see initial quote). They are an outward expression, within the ‘script’ of starry and planetary relationships, of spiritual activity. Such correlations in themselves are only possible through the work of Michael, who retains for us a connection between the cosmos and the human being and whose presence was so powerfully felt in the “Last Address” and in the last period of Rudolf Steiner’s life on Earth.

Diagram 1 below shows the relationship of Jupiter and Saturn at the time of our first Easter, plus the track of Saturn through the period between the Baptism and the events of our first Easter. Saturn’s inclusion is important due to his role as ‘karmic witness’ to the Mystery of what was unfolding in this period of three and one third years; for Saturn is the great chronicler of humanity’s mission, a mission that shone forth anew via the events of Christ’s ministry.

At the time of the events of Golgotha, Jupiter, working in the realm of Gemini shows how high spiritual beings worked to fructify the living/healing principle that would gradually, once more, build the bridge between Earth and Heaven — with Gemini the task is always to find the third element, the bridge spanning extremes. As he faces Pluto, there is immediate contact with the heavenly body that reveals the truth of physical existence, of the body and of matter. At Golgotha, matter and the human body experienced once more their true foundation in the Creative Word (the atom is but a false witness of what underlies matter). The Body was then freed from the forces of Death. In Pluto, discovered in 1930, there is revealed what Rudolf Steiner referred to as the ‘Resurrection Body,’ the totally spiritualized human body. The powerful dynamic of the Gemini/Sagittarius axis, however, was spoken of by Rudolf Steiner even before the discovery of this heavenly body that is now referred to as Pluto, and confirms what Rudolf Steiner was indicating with regard to the strong forces that operate along this axis. Pluto moves extremely slowly and has not yet completed an orbit since its discovery in 1930. It appears at a time, spoken of by Rudolf Steiner as significant, in relation to esoteric Christianity:

Diagram 1

Let us see how this heavenly body, of such profound import, features during the unfolding of the science of the spirit as brought forward by Rudolf Steiner. This is taken up in Diagram 2 , which as a further development of the first diagram shows, in red, an image of spiritual activity indicated in the sphere of Pluto, as aligned with the destiny of anthroposophic work in the early 20th century. The key point here is the intimate relationship that exists between the strong axis, featuring at the beginning of our era, and the same rare axis featuring in the last years of Rudolf Steiner’s life.

With personal effort that is always necessary in order that cosmic details may touch our heart’s appreciation, there appears in the cosmic picture a synchronicity between the events of our first Easter and those working at the time of the unfolding of anthroposophy.

And with the following, Diagram 3 , the axis: 17 degrees Gemini/Sagittarius, is shown once more only now in relation to our present times. Here it is important to remember that because of Pluto’s slow movements, taking nearly 250 years to circle the zodiac of stars, Pluto’s alignments with this axis are extremely rare, yet they are able to span motifs of meaning that bridge crucial stages of human and world development. In this sense we take up, as shown in diagram 3, rare correlations that are indicated between Pluto’s tracking of Saturn’s movements during the years of Christ’s ministry and events of anthroposophic developments in the 20th century. Additionally the diagram shows correlations that exist with the spiritual drama unfolding in our times. These are referenced in Pluto’s movements leading up to and beyond its opposition to Saturn’s position at the Mystery of Golgotha. With this there is a marked intensity around the years 2032 to 2037. The span of years between 2009 and 2037 is important in that Pluto is moving opposite to its positions between 1912 and 1952.

When a planet faces, via opposition, a significant area in the cosmos, as is found here with Pluto, it becomes an important period of recollection and acknowledgement of what shone forth in the realm being faced. This brings a perspective that highlights the spiritual demands that correlate with the 2030’s of our present century.

Regarding this final study, what immediately speaks to our soul is the cosmic identification of the importance of anthroposophy in our present complex and intense times. These rare planetary relationships are but outer indications of the urgent concerns of spiritual beings that are working through the planetary relationships described. What is always clear in relation to Pluto is that we are obliged to penetrate to the essence of things, even to the extent that all else must drop away in order that the essential spiritual truths remain. The crisis that Rudolf Steiner pointed towards in

his ‘Last Address,’ as featuring at the end of the 20th century, is one that bears the hallmark of Pluto where all that is not true must fall away if we are to make the human future possible, as nurtured within the intentions of spiritual being since Ancient Saturn. In relation to the cosmos, however, our task is to realize that behind the seemingly abstract and cold realm of the stars there exists nevertheless the profound accompaniment of spiritual beings and of the deep souls who follow human progress. The above article shows primary elements of a study that includes much additional detail. It gives a basis also to research further correspondences.