Q. What do Waldorf teachers believe about incarnation? What are the invisible bodies that Rudolf Steiner discussed?
A. The Waldorf curriculum is built around the idea that human beings have four bodies: the physical body plus three invisible, non-physical bodies that provide us with various powers and capabilities. The three invisible bodies are (going from lowest to highest) the etheric body, the astral body, and the ego body or "I". Steiner taught that these bodies incarnate at different times, on a fixed schedule of seven-year-long stages. We are born with a physical body; the etheric body arrives at about age seven; the astral body at about age 14; and the "I" at about age 21. These beliefs are considered so important that, from one point of view, the entire purpose of Waldorf education is to assist children to incarnate their three invisible bodies. The implication is profound. If these invisible bodies are figments of the imagination — if, that is, they do not exist — then Waldorf schooling is a vast waste of time.
Here are sample statements made by Steiner's followers, touching on the matters we are discussing:
◊ “Perhaps the most original and significant component in Steiner’s educational philosophy is its conception of child development in seven-year stages.” [1]
◊ “Waldorf education is based upon the recognition that the four bodies of the human being develop [i.e., incarnate] and mature at different times.” [2]
◊ “[F]rom a spiritual-scientific [i.e., Anthroposophical] point of view child education consists mainly in integrating the soul-spiritual members [i.e., the non-physical parts of one's being] with the corporeal members [i.e., the physical parts].” [3]
The "integrating" mentioned in the third quotation occurs as the invisible bodies incarnate, one by one, during the seven-year-long stages of childhood. The Waldorf teacher's role, seen in this context, is to assist students to receive their new bodies in a spiritually wholesome manner.
[1] Anthroposophist Robert McDermott, THE ESSENTIAL STEINER (Lindisfarne Press, 2007 ), p. 396.
[2] Waldorf teacher Roberto Trostli, RHYTHMS OF LEARNING: What Waldorf Education Offers Children, Parents & Teachers (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), pp. 4-5.
[3] Waldorf teacher Gilbert Childs, STEINER EDUCATION IN THEORY AND PRACTICE (Floris Books, 1998), p. 68.
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