260.  "In classical and medieval times [1]...the system of the temperaments [2] was widely known, and human beings were classified as sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholic, or choleric [3], according to the predominance of one of four essential fluids, or 'humors' [4]. The humors (blood, phlegm, bile, and gall) were thought to determine a person's constitution, disposition, and behavior. In the early years of the twentieth century, Steiner reclaimed, expanded, and refined this view of the temperaments [5] ... In the anthroposophic view, the human being is made up of four main bodies...the physical body, the etheric body, the astral body, and the 'I' [6] ... If the physical body predominates, a person will have a melancholic temperament; if the etheric body predominates, a person will have a phlegmatic temperament. The predominance of the astral body manifests itself as a sanguine temperament, and the predominance of the 'I' results in a choleric temperament [7]." — Waldorf teacher Roberto Trostli, introduction to RHYTHMS OF LEARNING — What Waldorf Education Offers Children, Parents, and Teachers (SteinerBooks, 2017), pp. 47-48.

[1] Anthroposophists frequently endorse ancient beliefs — they often embrace such beliefs rather than accepting modern scientific knowledge. And yet ancient beliefs were often simply wrong. The stock of human knowledge is far greater today than at any time in the past. Opting for ancient beliefs today often means opting for ancient ignorance in preference to actual, well-founded knowledge. [See "The Ancients - Mistaking Ignorance for Wisdom".] 

[2] Steiner adopted ancient beliefs concerning human temperaments, and these beliefs still prevail today in Anthroposophy — and in Waldorf schools. [See "Temperaments".]

[3] These are the four human dispositions recognized under the system of classical temperaments. To simplify greatly: Sanguine individuals are said to be cheery, phlegmatics are stolid, melancholics are downhearted, and cholerics are prone to anger. [See the entries for "sanguine," etc., in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia (BWSE).]

[4] The "humors" are bodily fluids that allegedly underlie the classical temperaments. So, for instance, a person who is principally influenced by phlegm winds up having a phlegmatic disposition (s/he is stolid, unemotional, passive...). [See "Humouresque".]

[5] Most of Steiner's teachings are like this — they are modified versions of old-time (outdated, obsolete, discarded) beliefs. Few if any of Steiner's doctrines are supported by modern scientific knowledge, although Steiner and his followers have often falsely claimed such scientific support.

[6] Steiner taught that a fully incarnated human being has four bodies, three of which are invisible. In addition to a physical body, a fully incarnated human supposedly has an etheric body, an astral body, and an ego body (housing an "I"). [See "Incarnation".]

[7] Belief in the ancient conception of temperaments has been eliminated almost everywhere in the modern world — except in Anthroposophy and in Waldorf education. Here we find falsehood piled on falsehood: "Temperaments" (an ancient fallacy) are linked to four human bodies (only one of which — the physical body — actually exists). Such things are offered to us by a Waldorf teacher as examples of "What Waldorf Education Offers Children, Parents, and Teachers" (the subtitle of Roberto Trostli's book).

The emphasis Waldorf schools place on the four classical temperaments may seem quaint and innocent. But it has serious consequences. Waldorf teachers often stereotype students according to "temperament" — and they do so at least in part by judging the kids based on body type (i.e., appearance). 

“The melancholic children are as a rule tall and slender; the sanguine are the most normal; those with more protruding shoulders are the phlegmatic children; and those with a short stout build so that the head almost sinks down into the body are choleric.” — Rudolf Steiner, DISCUSSIONS WITH TEACHERS (Anthroposophic Press, 1997), p. 34. 

Everything down to class seating is affected by these false stereotypes. The children are thus judged and segregated in accordance with their "temperaments."

“Following the principle of ‘like cures like’, the children should be seated according to their temperaments. It will be found, for instance, that the phlegmatics get so bored with one another that they wake up; the cholerics will calm one another down since no-one [sic] will be allowed to be the leader [etc.]....” — Waldorf teacher Roy Wilkinson, THE TEMPERAMENTS IN EDUCATION (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2005), p. 45.

Children may be scarred for life by these stereotypes and this segregation. [For more on temperaments in Waldorf education, see, e.g., "The Phlegmatic Sit by the Window".]

 261.  "The discovery [1] that a man's etheric body [2] is feminine, and the etheric body of the woman is masculine, was for Steiner one of the most 'seismic inner soul experiences' [3]. But this polarity is found in the astral body too [4]. Starting with his account of every person's astral body being hermaphrodite [5], with both a male and female half (the 'second half' of the astral body is feminine in a man and masculine in a woman), Steiner...situated the kundalini fire [6] very precisely. According to this, the kundalini fire is 'the activity, initially warmth and light [7], which is kindled in the second astral body [8]'." — Anthroposophist Andreas Meyer in the introduction to a series of Steiner lectures titled KUNDALINI — Spiritual Perception and the Higher Element of Life  (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2019), p. 11. [9]

[1] Steiner made such "discoveries" through his professed use of clairvoyance, which he claimed enabled him to learn many hidden or occult spiritual truths. These "discoveries" constitute the core of the Steiner belief system, Anthroposophy. Waldorf education is based on Anthroposophy, and Anthroposophy hinges on clairvoyance. But clairvoyance is a delusion — it does not exist. [See "Clairvoyance".] This is very bad news for Waldorf education. If there is no such thing as clairvoyance, then Anthroposophy collapses, which means there is no basis for Waldorf education.

[2] The etheric body is the first of three invisible bodies that incarnate during the first 21 years of life, Steiner taught. It is an envelope of formative life forces. [See "etheric body" in the BWSE.]

[3] I.e., Steiner claimed to have been deeply affected by this "discovery."

[4] The astral body is the second of three invisible bodies that incarnate during the first 21 years of life, Steiner taught. It is an envelope of soul forces. [See "astral body" in the BWSE.]

[5] I.e., hermaphroditic — having both male and female sexual characteristics.

Steiner's followers argue that Steiner was an advanced thinker who fully accepted the equality of the sexes. For evidence, they sometimes point to Steiner's teachings about the hermaphroditic nature of the etheric and astral bodies. The implication is that, according to Steiner ,we are all equal, because all of us are both male and female. But critics have detected what they say are distinctly sexist strains in Steiner's teachings and in Waldorf school practices. [See "Gender".]

[6] A concept originating in Hindu teachings, "kundalini" is latent energy that is said to lie coiled at the base of the spine — it may be taken to be creative power generally or the occult power enabling insight into the spirit realm. Theosophists adopted this concept from Hinduism, and Steiner spoke of its openly (as "kundalini fire" or "kundalini light" or simply "kundalini") during his years as a Theosophist. Later, he dropped this terminology, but in his Anthroposophical writings and lectures he retained the concept of a latent spiritual force associated with the spine.

[7] Kunadlini warmth is said to convey love while kundalini light is said to convey wisdom.

[8] I.e., the second half of the astral body.

[9] Defenders of Waldorf education sometimes contend that any esotericism or occultism that may once have been present in the foundational doctrines of the Waldorf movement have long since receded into the past. But in fact Steiner's followers today continue to affirm Steiner's esoteric and occult pronouncements. In the quotation we are considering here, drawn from a book published during 2019 by an Anthroposophical publishing house, we find a credulous discussion of etheric bodies, astral bodies, kundalini, and so forth (implicitly, there are also references to clairvoyance and other mystical concepts). Belief in such things continues to serve as the basis for Waldorf belief and practice today. In other words, the esotericism and occultism that once were present in the foundational doctrines of the Waldorf movement are still present, today, in the foundational doctrines of the Waldorf movement. [See, e.g., "Waldorf Now", "Today", and the pages that follow these.]

 262.  "Religion is [essentially] the inner attitude...people have taken toward the majesty and wonder of the world as a whole. That attitude is the essence of all religion [1]. We [Waldorf teachers] strive to create that attitude in every lesson we give [2]. It is the adjective religious, which is important here, not the noun. The noun religion indicates the way men has exercised their religious propensities [3] at different times and in different places. The educator's task, however, is to educate the religious propensity as such [4] ... What religion [5] the child has or will adopt later, if any, is his business [6]." — Waldorf teacher Alan Howard, YOU WANTED TO KNOW... WHAT A WALDORF SCHOOL IS... AND WHAT IT IS NOT (Rudolf Steiner College Press), p. 26. [7]

[1] As Waldorf representatives often do, Howard soft-pedals the Waldorf affirmation of religion. He defines religion in a hazy, seemingly neutral way. But many people, theists and atheists alike, would dispute his definition. A more common definition would be that religion is the worship of a god or gods, usually entailing a prescribed set of doctrines. The first definition given at Dictionary.com (October 20, 2019) is "a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs."

[2] While Waldorf schools usually deny being religious institutions, in fact the promotion of religion is central to the Waldorf mission. 

◊ "It is possible to introduce a religious element into every subject, even into math lessons. Anyone who has some knowledge of Waldorf teaching will know that this statement is true." — Rudolf Steiner, THE CHILD's CHANGING CONSCIOUSNESS AS THE BASIS OF PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICE (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 94.

◊ "This is what we must carry in our souls as [Waldorf] teachers ... Every word and gesture in my teaching as a whole will be permeated by religious fervor." — Rudolf Steiner, THE ESSENTIALS OF EDUCATION - Foundations of Waldorf Education XVIII (Anthroposophic Press, 1997), p. 65.

Sometimes Waldorf schools seem to promote Christianity; sometimes they seem to promote religion in general. But, in fact, they ultimately promote the religion of Anthroposophy. [See "Is Anthroposophy a Religion?" and "Schools as Churches".]

[3] A key Waldorf premise is that all children are born with innate ties to the spirit realm, and thus all humans have at least a lingering religious propensity. 

"[T]he child encounters difficulties [adapting to physical existence because] he first has to overcome a dream-like yet intensely real awareness of spiritual worlds. This awareness fades quickly in early childhood, but fragments of it live on in the child for a much longer time than most people imagine ... [I]n a Waldorf school, therefore, one of the tasks of the teachers is to keep the children young." — Waldorf teacher A. C. Harwood, PORTRAIT OF A WALDORF SCHOOL (The Myrin Institute Inc., 1956), pp. 15-16. 

In working "to keep the children young," Waldorf schooling seeks to preserve the child's natural religious inclinations. Thus, according to Howard's argument, Waldorf education is fundamentally religious: Waldorf education fosters the "inner attitude" that Howard identifies as the essence of religion.

[4] This is the  task of Waldorf teachers: "to educate the religious propensity as such." In other words, Waldorf education is fundamentally religious. 

“One question that is often asked is: ‘Is a Waldorf school a religious school?’ ... It is not a religious school in the way that we commonly think of religion ... And yet, in a broad and universal way, the Waldorf school is essentially religious.” — Waldorf teacher Jack Petrash, UNDERSTANDING WALDORF EDUCATION  (Nova Institute, 2002), p. 134.

[5] Howard, like Petrash and many other Waldorf teachers, claims that Waldorf schools promote religion in general, not any specific set of religious teachings. This may or may not be a meaningful distinction. Steiner said that Waldorf teachers are representatives of the gods — they continue the gods' work here on Earth. 

◊ “Among the faculty, we must certainly carry within us the knowledge that we are not here for our own sakes, but to carry out the divine cosmic plan. We should always remember that when we do something, we are actually carrying out the intentions of the gods, that we are, in a certain sense, the means by which that streaming down from above will go out into the world.” — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 55.

◊ "We [Waldorf teachers] want to be aware that physical existence is a continuation of the spiritual, and that what we have to do in education is a continuation of what higher beings [i.e., the gods] have done without our assistance. Our form of educating can have the correct attitude only when we are aware that our work with young people is a continuation of what higher beings have done before [the children's] birth." — Rudolf Steiner, THE FOUNDATIONS OF HUMAN EXPERIENCE, Foundations of Waldorf Education (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 37.

[6] But if Waldorf schools lead students toward Anthroposophy, then the religion Waldorf graduates choose will very likely be Anthroposophy or something close to Anthroposophy. The intended effect of Waldorf schooling is a subtle but effective indoctrination in Anthroposophical attitudes and behaviors. [See "Here's the Answer", "Sneaking It In", and "Indoctrination".] When indoctrination is successful, it affects virtually all decisions an individual makes subsequently.

[7] This short book was originally published by St. George Publications/Rudolf Steiner College Press (RSCP) in 1983. As of today — October 20, 2019 — it remains a current offering on the RSCP website.

 263.  "As a surprising reversal, then, of our usual perception of the head as 'more spiritual' and our metabolic processes as 'more physical', we find [in Steiner's teachings] our highest spiritual principle 'vacating the premises' of the head in healthy conditions [1], creating a free space for thoughts to be 'mirrored' [2], whereas this same highest principle really 'gets down to work' in our metabolism and movements [3] and is most fully engaged there. Very simply — and Steiner goes into far more complex, sometimes bewildering detail [4], which requires our alert attention to follow — disorders of the metabolism can arise where, for whatever reason (including a range of traumas), the I and astral body [5] withdraw, allowing lower principles to burgeon unchecked [6]." — Anthroposophist Andrew Maendl and Waldorf teacher Matthew Barton, in the introduction to a collection Steiner texts titled PHYSIOLOGY AND HEALING (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2013), p. xxi.

[Interpretive paraphrase by R.R.]:   Rudolf Steiner taught that, contrary to common belief, the lower portions of the physical body (below the neck) are more "spiritual" than the upper portions (above the neck). He taught that when a person is healthy, her/his divine essence vacates the head, leaving it an open receptacle, whereas the divine essence remains fully present and active in the metabolism and limbs. Steiner's teachings on these matters are complex and can bewilder even his staunchest followers, but in general we can say that — according to Steiner — sickness occurs in the metabolism when — perhaps due to injury — the invisible "I" and astral body vacate the lower portions of the physical body, thereby allowing low (physical, materialistic) forces to run amok. 

[1] I.e., in a healthy human being, the highest constituent of spirituality (one's divine essence, one's spiritual potential) is absent from the head.

[2] Steiner taught that the head or brain does not produce thoughts. Instead, when the head functions as it should, it is a mirror or receiver that gathers thoughts sent down from the gods on high. [See "brain" in the BWSE; also see "Thinking".]

"Within the brain there is absolutely no thought; there is no more of thought in the brain than there is of you in the mirror in which you see yourself." — Rudolf Steiner, WONDERS OF THE WORLD (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1983), p. 119.

[3] Steiner taught that the metabolism and limbs constitute a single bodily system — the "metabolic-limb" system. [See "metabolic-limb system" in the BWSE".] Perhaps needless to say: Modern medicine and science recognize no such system.

[4] Critics would argue that Steiner's teachings are "bewildering" because they are so deeply erroneous. (Note that none of the matters discussed by Maendl and Barton, paraphrasing Steiner, is consistent with modern medical knowledge.) In any event, it is generally true that grasping Steiner's meaning can be a challenge — his statements are often involuted, self-negating, gnostic, and nebulous. And there is another factor. Producing bewilderment may well have been part of Steiner's goal, so long as his stunned audience extended to him the benefit of the doubt. Flimflam men rarely want to be clearly understood.

[5] These are, according to Steiner, the third and fourth bodies that incarnate during the first 21 years of human life. A completely incarnated human being, Steiner taught, has a physical body, an etheric body, an astral body, and an "I". [See "Incarnation".]

[6] I.e., illness is often the result of malfunctioning or withdrawal of the I and the astral body. The causes of physical illness, in other words, are often to be found in nonphysical factors. This is why Steiner made such pronouncements as the following: 

“With pneumonia, the cause is always in the astral body; pneumonia can occur in no other way.” — Rudolf Steiner, THE TEMPLE LEGEND (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1997), p. 60.

A Waldorf teacher explains the real reason for educating children:

 264.  "[F]rom a spiritual-scientific point of view [1] child education consists mainly in integrating the soul-spiritual members [2] with the corporeal members [3] ... Rudolf Steiner maintained that there is a spiritual law which, when expressed in terms of human development, means that various bodily, psychic or spiritual faculties operative during certain periods of life undergo changes, metamorphoses, and re-appear later during other periods as quite different in character [4] ... Human spirit and soul members hidden as they are from direct investigation by ordinary senses and sense-instruments [5], are nevertheless also inter-related through the medium of time [6], but these inter-relationships may only be apprehended by means of spiritual cognition, supersensible research [7]." — Waldorf teacher Gilbert Childs, STEINER EDUCATION IN THEORY AND PRACTICE (Floris Books, 1998), p. 68. [8]

[1] I.e., the Anthroposophical point of view. Anthroposophists, like Theosphists, call their belief system a "spiritual science."

[2] I.e., the various parts of the soul and the spirit. [See "soul" and "spirit" in the BWSE. Also see "Our Parts".]

[3] I.e., the various parts of the physical body.

The most important point to absorb is this: A Waldorf teacher tells us, here, that "child education" is not primarily concerned with teaching children anything — it is not primarily concerned with giving students information or helping students to develop various skills. Instead, "child education" from a Waldorf perspective "consists mainly" of "integrating the soul-spiritual members with the corporeal members." In other words, real education (giving students information and helping them to develop various skills) takes a back seat in Waldorf schools. 

Gilbert Childs' statement reflects the underlying reason for the often poor quality of Waldorf schooling — the low academic standards that usually prevail in Waldorf schools. [See "Academic Standards at Waldorf".] Waldorf schools have other — esoteric — priorities. [See, e.g., "Spiritual Agenda".]

[4] Anthroposophy, like Theosophy, teaches that evolution occurs though a long sequence of recapitulations — as we evolve, we return to prior stages but at a higher level, with higher capacities. [See "recapitulation" in the BWSE.] According to Waldorf belief, this process also plays out at the individual level, as a human being gradually develops throughout her/his life: "various bodily, psychic or spiritual faculties...re-appear later during other periods as quite different in character."

[5] I.e., we cannot perceive them using our ordinary senses. Clairvoyance is required. [See "clairvoyance" in the BWSE.] 

[6] I.e., the "members" and their "inter-relationships" change over time.

[7] "Spiritual cognition" is clairvoyance. "Supersensible research" is the disciplined use of highly trained clairvoyance to study the spirit realm. So Steiner taught, anyway. Virtually all of Anthroposophy — and, through it, virtually all of Waldorf education — hinges on the existence of clairvoyance. If there is no such thing as clairvoyance, then there is no real basis for Anthroposophy, and thus there is no real basis for Waldorf education. And the truth is that there is almost certainly no such thing as clairvoyance. [See "Clairvoyance".]

[8] This passage is one Waldorf teacher's exposition of the purpose of childhood education. Other Waldorf teachers have put the matter somewhat differently, although they generally agree that teaching kids real knowledge about the real world is not the purpose. Here are a few examples:

◊ “[T]he purpose of [Waldorf] education is to help the individual fulfill his karma.” — Waldorf teacher Roy Wilkinson, THE SPIRITUAL BASIS OF STEINER EDUCATION (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1996), p. 52. [Anthroposophy gives much attention to human karma or destiny. See "Karma".]

◊ “A Waldorf school is...an organization that seeks to allow the spiritual impulses of our time to manifest on earth in order to transform society....” — Waldorf teacher Roberto Trostli, “On Earth as It Is in Heaven”, Research Bulletin, Vol. 16 (Waldorf Research Institute), Fall 2011, pp. 21-24. [Anthroposophy is a revolutionary movement, aiming to reform human institutions in accordance with Rudolf Steiner's teachings. See "Threefolding".]

◊ “Waldorf education strives to create a place in which the highest beings [i.e., the gods]...can find their home....” — Waldorf teacher Joan Almon, WHAT IS A WALDORF KINDERGARTEN? (SteinerBooks, 2007), p. 53. [Anthroposophy is polytheistic. See "Polytheism".]

◊ “The success of Waldorf Education...can be measured in the life force attained. Not acquisition of knowledge and qualifications, but the life force is the ultimate goal of this school.” — Anthroposophist Peter Selg, THE ESSENCE OF WALDORF EDUCATION (SteinerBooks, 2010)‚ p. 30.

 265.  "In our work with children [1], it is important to recognize that the soul of a growing child has come down to earth [2] from a previous incarnation [3] ... We are not only traversing our individual path [4], but we are deeply connected with our colleagues, the staff, the children, and their families. It is not a matter of our reaching a higher stage of development [5] for its own sake. Once we have reached a certain stage on the inner path [6], we have to remember to take our brothers and sisters with us [7] ... The path for the teacher who enters the Grail Castle [8] is a lonely, individual path to transform ordinary thinking into spiritual communion [9]. Then the transformed thinking can become a resource for the transformation of the school [10]." — Waldorf teacher Betty Staley, in CREATING A CIRCLE OF COLLABORATIVE LEADERSHIP, edited by Waldorf teacher Roberto Trostli (Waldorf Publications, 2014), pp. 118-119.

[1] Written by a Waldorf teacher, this piece is addressed to Waldorf teachers.

[2] In Waldorf belief, children lived in the spirit realm before descending to Earth for their new lives on the physical plane of existence.

[3] In Waldorf belief, human beings reincarnate: Each of us has had many previous lives, alternating between existence in the spirit realm and existence on the physical plane. [See "Reincarnation".]

Waldorf education is intimately linked to Anthroposophy, the spiritual system Rudolf Steiner propounded. Anthroposophy pervades true Waldorf schools (those schools that are most faithful to Steiner's teachings) like a rarefied ether, coloring everything that occurs within. Thus, when true-believing Waldorf teachers look at their students, they see them through the lens of Anthroposophy — they see them in terms of such Anthroposophical doctrines as reincarnation.

[4] True-believing Waldorf teachers aim to move forward on the path of Anthroposophy while also assisting their students and others to move along or at least toward that path. The assistance the teachers provide does not necessarily entail overtly teaching students and others the doctrines of Anthroposophy as such, but it means pointing potential recruits in the direction indicated by Rudolf Steiner. Although Anthroposophists often speak of freedom, Steiner's system essentially recognizes only one true path forward, the path that Steiner himself laid out, the path of Anthroposophy. [See "Freedom". Also see, e.g., "white path" in the  BWSE.]

[5] According to Anthroposophy, the purpose of life is to evolve to higher and higher stages of spiritual consciousness. [See "evolution of consciousness" in the BWSE.]

[6] I.e., the meditative spiritual path leading to higher stages of consciousness. [See "Knowing the Worlds".]

[7] This is the ultimate purpose of a true Waldorf school: to enable teachers, students, and everyone else associated with the school to move toward — and then along — the path of Anthroposophy. Another way to put this is that the ultimate purpose of a true Waldorf school is to spread Anthroposophy to all potential converts in the vicinity.

[8] This is a reference to the legend of Parzival, a knight who sought the Holy Grail. [See "Parzival" in the BWSE.] The Parzival legend is given enormous importance in Anthroposophy. Steiner taught that the search for the Grail represents the search for occult wisdom. [See "The Grail".] Parzival's journey, then, symbolizes the Anthroposophical quest, the effort to follow the true path toward higher and higher spirituality. For Steiner's followers, reaching the Grail Castle — the citadel that houses the Grail — means attaining spiritual initiation. [See "initiate, initiation" in the BWSE.] But even then, the aspirant's work is not finished: There is additional effort to be made within the Castle itself, striving to convert one's own initiation into a shared spiritual awakening ("the teacher who enters the Grail Castle" works to foster "spiritual communion"). Those who will partake of this communion include, of course, the teacher's students (kids enrolled in a Waldorf school — even if the kids don't really understand what is happening to them and thus can partake only in a tentative, childish manner).

[9] I.e., the Waldorf teacher who has attained heightened consciousness helps to transform the entire school, helping everyone associated with the school ("our colleagues, the staff, the children, and their families") to travel the same occult path — toward and into Anthroposophy. The transformed Waldorf school becomes, then, a sort of Anthroposophical temple. [See "Schools as Churches".] Parents should send their children to Waldorf schools only if this is what they want for their beloved offspring.

 266.  "[Mistletoe as a treatment for cancer is] our spearhead among medicines [1] ... [T]he study of mistletoe [stands] for what the entire anthroposophical medical system can strive for: To move from internal recognition to a genuine dissemination of anthroposophic medicine [2]." — Anthroposophist Harald Matthes, 2014, quoted in "Das vermeintliche Mistel-Wunder: Der Masterplan der Anthroposophie" {The Supposed Mistletoe Miracle: The Anthroposophy Master Plan}, by Christian Honey, MedWatch, 2019 [translation by R.R., leaning heavily on Google Translate].

[1] Rudolf Steiner taught that mistletoe can be used to cure cancer.

"When the mistletoe is prepared in such a way that [the] superabundant etheric quality which it has taken from the tree [on which is grew] is administered to a person under certain conditions, by injection...we gain the following information: that the mistletoe, as an external substance, absorbs what is manifest in the human body as the rampant etheric forces in cancer. Through the fact that it represses the physical substance, it strengthens the working of the astral body, which causes the tumour, or cancer, to disintegrate and break up.” — Rudolf Steiner, “An Outline of Anthroposophical Medical Research: Abridged Report of Two Lectures” (Rudolf Steiner Publishing Co., 1924), GA 319. [See the entries for "etheric body", "etheric forces", and "astral body" in the BWSE.]

Steiner attributed mistletoe's claimed potency to its extraterrestrial origins.

 “[M]istletoe does not belong to our earth, it is alien." — Rudolf Steiner, THE APOCALYPSE OF ST. JOHN (Anthroposophic Press, 1993), p. 99.

Christian Honey puts the matter this way:

"Steiner considered mistletoe to be a 'plant-animal of the moon' having special powers. He claimed to recognize this in the 'aura' of the parasite. Mistletoe is special because of its origin on an ancient celestial body that consisted of Earth and Moon combined. According to Anthroposophical cosmology, our solar system evolves through 'planetary stages of development.' Today's planets exist in the fourth of these stages. Steiner said that mistletoe comes from an earlier stage, when Earth and Moon were a single body. This 'moon body' was 'like a peat bog, soft and alive.' According to Steiner, plants that grew there had physical feelings and were therefore part plant, part animal. Today's mistletoe is one of them." — "Das vermeintliche Mistel-Wunder: Der Masterplan der Anthroposophie".

[2] I.e., the study of mistletoe as a cancer treatment is the most important initiative in Anthroposophical medicine: If the value of mistletoe as a cancer treatment can be proven, then Anthroposophical medicine in general will gain stature and be far more widely used.

The problem is that most "studies" that find value in mistletoe cancer treatments have allegedly been poorly designed, while most well-designed studies have tended to show that mistletoe is ineffective as a cancer treatment.

"Proponents of anthroposophic medicine make two claims about mistletoe. Firstly, they claim that regular injections of mistletoe extract improve the natural course of cancer by slowing down or stopping tumour growth. Secondly, they say that such extracts improve the quality of life in patients with cancer. Many clinical studies of mistletoe exist, but their findings are inconsistent. Most of them are methodologically weak, and the less rigorous they are the greater the likelihood of a positive result ... [N]either of the above two claims is supported by good evidence ... A wide range of serious adverse reactions have been noted ... [M]istletoe extract may enhance the proliferation of some cancers ... [M]istletoe has been tested extensively as a treatment for cancer, but the most reliable randomised controlled trials fail to show benefit, and some reports show considerable potential for harm." — Edzard Ernst, British Medical Journal, 12/23/06 [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1761165/].

If the future of Anthroposophical medicine hinges on the value of mistletoe as a cure for cancer, then the future of Anthroposophical medicine would appear to be bleak.

 267.  "The present generation of children are already the third 'screen generation.' The first screen generation came from the public availability of television [1]. The second generation were exposed to all channels being open for twenty-four hours a day, so the effect was greatly intensified. Nowadays, with the third generation, everything is available instantly on mobiles [2] ... The media become a huge 'sensory disintegration machine,' which suppresses our will to observe for ourselves [3] ... If we want to do something for truth in education, we really need to make our kindergartens and schools strictly media- and screen-free [4]." — Waldorf school doctor Michaela Glöckler, TRUTH, BEAUTY AND GOODNESS (Waldorf Publications, 2019), pp. 11-12.

[1] Anthroposophists and Waldorf educators have long been averse to electrical gadgetry, including modern media such as movies, radio, and television. Their worries center on a terrible demon called Ahriman. [See "Ahriman".] 

"Whatever the merits of certain inventions, they show the face of Ahriman. Under such headings one could consider all sorts of mechanisms but in particular such appliances as television, radio, cinema and the thousand and one things dependent on electricity." — Waldorf teacher Roy Wilkinson, RUDOLF STEINER - An Introduction to his Spiritual World-view, Anthroposophy (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2005), p. 131.

Rudolf Steiner taught that we must resist Ahriman, or we may lose our souls.

"The human being is thus in danger of drifting into the Ahrimanic world, in which case the [human] spirit-soul will evaporate into the cosmos. We live in a time when people face the danger of losing their souls ... That is a very serious matter. We now stand confronted with that fact." — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 115.

The "Ahrimanic world" is, Anthroposophists believe, the soulless portion of the cosmos ruled by Ahriman.

[2] Glöckler's concern here has largely shifted from televisions to computers and computer screens (including the tiny computers known as smart phones or "mobiles").

[3] To paraphrase and explain: Electronic media present only artificial images of reality, not reality itself. Our senses "disintegrate" as we are sucked into virtual realities rather than remaining alert in actual reality; we become passive viewers of false images, not active observers of the real phenomena of the world and cosmos. Our senses, our minds, and our agency (our ability to act on our own) are damaged, Anthroposophists contend.

[4] The Waldorf attitude toward electronic media is uncompromising. As Glöckler recommends, many Waldorf schools have "media policies" under which use of electronic gadgets (TVs, computers, smart phones) is all but banned. [See "media policies" in the BWSE.]

Waldorf worries about electronics stem from a more fundamental Waldorf/Anthroposophical fear of modern technology in general. Rudolf Steiner taught that technological devices such as steam engines promote the incarnation of demons. His followers see the same terrible effects arising — in more acute form — from the more advanced technologies that have developed since Steiner's death in 1925.

"[W]hat has been said here [against] the steam engine applies in a much greater degree to the technology of our time... The result is that the demon magic spoken of by Rudolf Steiner is spreading more and more intensively on all sides ... It is very necessary that anyone who aspires towards the spiritual should realise clearly how the most varied opportunities for a virtual incarnation of elemental beings and demons are constantly on the increase." — Georg Unger, "On 'Mechanical Occultism'" (MITTEILUNGEN AUS DER ANTHROPOSOPHISCHEN ARBEIT IN DEUTSCHLAND, nos. 68–69, 1964). 

Numerous Anthroposophists have argued that computers are the primary carriers of demonic evil in the contemporary world. Their fears are perhaps most vividly (if turgidly) presented in the booklet THE COMPUTER AND THE INCARNATION OF AHRIMAN, by David B. Black. Published by the Rudolf Steiner College Press in 1981, the booklet has remained in wide circulation throughout the Anthroposophical community, and it is today preserved at the Rudolf Steiner Archive:

"The computer is special because of its relation to the spiritual being here called 'Ahriman.' In the latter parts of this book, Mr. Black attempts to make clear the exact nature of the relation between the computer and the being Ahriman." — https://wn.rsarchive.org/RelArtic/BlackDavid/DB1981/CmpAhr_index.html.

Rudolf Steiner taught that Ahriman is the lord of cold, deadly intellectuality that, he said, is draining spirituality from the modern world.

"Intellectuality flows forth from Ahriman as a cold and frosty, soulless cosmic impulse.” — Rudolf Steiner,  ANTHROPOSOPHICAL LEADING THOUGHTS (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1998), p. 98.

In his booklet, David B. Black argues that computers enable Ahriman to incarnate on Earth.

"[T]the computer has taken a giant step in furthering its ability to imitate the human being. In particular, the technical basis for a separate, incarnating consciousness has been laid — but a consciousness of a purely intellectual, mechanical (albeit self-aware) nature [i.e., Ahriman's consciousness]. With the achievement of the store program computer [i.e., the computer having a built-in operating system], it begins to be possible to talk in terms of a (macrocosmic) incarnation vehicle capable of sustaining the being of Ahriman." — David B. Black, THE COMPUTER AND THE INCARNATION OF AHRIMAN, p. 33.

Black's thesis has been repeated, and extended, by other Anthroposophists. So, for instance, we find statements such as these:

◊ "[I]nformation and computing technologies [spread] evil over the Earth in an immense spider's web. And fallen spirits of darkness [i.e., fallen angels, demons]...are active in this web.” — Richard Seddon, THE END OF THE MILLENNIUM AND BEYOND (Temple Lodge Publishing, 1996), p. 24.

◊ "When we consider computer technology, it is apparent...that we are dealing with an externalized ahrimanic doppelgänger [i.e., an incarnated double of Ahriman] ... The computer is a cold machine with a very high level of intelligence and an uncompromising will ... [A] large proportion of humanity's powers of attention are now bound to machines with the help of the consciousness technologies of the internet and computers ... Those who will seek to introduce the Antichrist as the Christ are...seeking to exploit electricity and the Earth's magnetism in order to generate [evil] effects throughout the world ... [T]he spirits of darkness had to leave the etheric realm and therefore have an ever greater interest in keeping human consciousness away from this sphere. At present, they achieve this primarily through those machines that imitate consciousness processes within the human organism, processes that are bound to the senses and based on electrical currents, and ultimately, therefore, based on the ahrimanic doppelgänger." — Andreas Neider in the introduction to a collection of Steiner lectures, THE ELECTRONIC DOPPELGÄNGER (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2016), pp. 8-18.

There are, of course, rational reasons to limit the amount of time kids spend staring into electronic screens. But these reasons do not include fear of demons or Ahrimanic doppelgängers. And, in fact, even rational worries about the use of electronic gizmos are often overblown. See, e.g., "The Kids Are All Right", SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN (November, 2019, Vol. 321, No. 5), by Lydia Denworth: "New findings suggest that the angst over social media is misplaced...", p. 45. Previous studies have indicated that watching TV does not necessarily rot kids' brains, and playing violent computer games does not automatically turn children into mindless mass-killers. Likewise, Denworth argues, spending hours in electronic social exchanges does not generally turn youngsters into spaced-out, self-hating zombies:

"[Researchers Andrew K.] Przybylski and [Amy] Orben measured the percent of variance in well-being that was explained by social media and found that technology was no more associated with decreased well-being than eating potatoes. Wearing glasses was worse. 'The monster-of-the-week thing [i.e., the current fear of social media] is dead in the water,' Przybylski says." — "The Kids Are All Right", p. 46.

Of course, watching too much TV is not good for anyone, just as spending too much time on the Internet is a bad idea. But too much of anything is bad for us. That's what "too much" means. And it is a long stretch to go from being concerned about electronic media to thinking that such media are bringing demons to Earth and preparing the way for the triumph of Ahriman. Anthroposphists' fears of such things are, quite literally, too much.

Waldorf schools often proclaim that they help students to become free. But the Anthroposophical concept of "freedom" is very different from what most people mean by this word.

 268.  "For [Rudolf Steiner], freedom consists in the bond of the human being with the spiritual world, that is, with the Whole. Thus, what he calls freedom is in fact a religious concept [1]. To be free is to feel connected to the Whole, to the Cosmos, to God [2]. It is important to know this because, when Steiner-Waldorf schools proclaim that their practices lead to freedom, they are in fact referring to this circumscribed concept. What Steiner-Waldorf teachers call educating for freedom actually means connecting the human being to the Whole, to the Cosmos, to God, etc. This is not at all the concept of liberty that arose in the Enlightenment, which is based on the idea of self-awareness [3]. It is indeed the exact opposite." — Former Waldorf teacher Grégoire Perra, "Le Stockmeyer: une pédagogie des mathématiques anti-kantienne" {The Stockmeyer: an Anti-Kantian Pedagogy of Mathematics}, on Perra's website La Vérité sur les écoles Steiner-Waldorf {The Truth About Waldorf Schools}, July 26, 2019. (Translation by R.R., leaning heavily on DeepL.)

Freedom or liberty, as usually conceived in modern societies, is the ability to choose for oneself from a wide array of potentially positive options. The Waldorf/Anthroposophical approach militates against such freedom. In Anthroposophy, there is essentially only one correct choice, one decision that we can "freely" make: It is to choose Anthroposophy. If you choose Anthroposophy, you will be rewarded by evolving to higher and higher levels of spiritual fulfillment. If you fail to choose Anthroposophy, you will eventually lose your soul; you will be ejected from humanity's upward trajectory; you will be consigned to perdition. So, really, you have no choice. The only sane option is to fall in line behind Steiner. Thus, the Waldorf/Anthroposophical approach is prescriptive; it compels one to move in a single, ordained direction; it abolishes true freedom. [4]

[1] Steiner's followers almost always deny that Anthroposophy is a religion, although in fact it is.  [See "Is Anthroposophy a Religion?"] Likewise, Waldorf schools almost always deny that they are religious institutions, although in fact they are.  [See "Schools as Churches".]

[2] This is largely freedom from, not freedom for. According to Anthroposophical teachings, we need to free ourselves from faults (errors, illusions, misdeeds) that hinder us on our spiritual quest — faults that prevent us from feeling connected "to the Whole, to the Cosmos, to God." In other words, our "freedom" consists of overcoming faults that prevent us from accepting Anthroposophy, the marvelous spiritual system that would enable us to feel connected to the Whole, the Cosmos, or God. (Anthroposophists do sometimes speak of God. [See "God".] By in fact Anthroposophy is polytheistic, postulating the existence of a vast number of gods. [See "Polytheism".])

Most people, probably, would agree that overcoming faults is important. But doing so does not constitute true freedom or liberty. At best, it clears the decks: It removes obstacles that may impede us as we attempt to understand reality and, on that basis, attempt to make the best decisions for ourselves, our families, and our communities. But in the Anthroposophical vision, overcoming our faults leads directly and necessarily to the embrace of Anthroposophy. Our faults prevent us from seeing that Anthroposophy is the Truth. Overcoming these faults leads us to accept Anthroposophy as the Truth.

[3] The Enlightenment was a movement in the 17th and 18th centuries emphasizing rationality and individualism. It spawned both the American and French Revolutions. The conception of freedom arising from the Enlightenment consists of political or personal independence and autonomy. This is epitomized in freedom of action: It is freedom for. Knowing oneself, and comprehending one's own goals and intentions, an individual is empowered to opt for one or another of the choices that life affords, many of which are potentially good. In Anthroposophy, by contrast, there is no such array of good options. Anthroposophy ultimately recognizes just one good choice, one option: It is the option of "freely" choosing to walk the Anthroposophical path. [See, e.g., "white path" in the BWSE.] It is the option of becoming an Anthroposophist.

[4] See "Freedom". (And for the Anthroposophical conception of democracy, see "Democracy".)

269.  "Rudolf Steiner [said]...'[W]e have need of a principle of initiation [1] so that the primeval connection with the spiritual worlds [2] may be renewed. The task of the anthroposophic world movement is to supply this principle [3]' ... [Steiner added] that secret connections [4] exist between what happened in the third post-Atlantean cultural epoch (the Egypto-Chaldean epoch) and our own fifth post-Atlantean epoch [5] ... On another occasion, Anthroposophy is alluded to [by Steiner] as the new Isis wisdom [6] for the new era ... Again, a deep connection was established between the Isis Mystery [7] and the Grail Mystery, the latter being a Christianized revival of the Egyptian Mysteries [8], just as the Parzival figure [9] acts as 'a model for our spiritual movement'. [10]" — Anthroposophist Hella Wiesberger, RUDOLF STEINER'S ESOTERIC TEACHING ACTIVITY (SteinerBooks, 2019), pp. 122-123.

[1] Initiation, as understood in Anthropsoophy, means gaining entree into the inner circles of occultism, so that one acquires secret or hidden spiritual wisdom. [See "initiation" in the BWSE.]

[2] Steiner taught that ancient people had innate awareness of, and connections to, the spirit realm. They possessed natural clairvoyant powers, which humanity has generally lost in modern times.

[3] As devised and promulgated by Steiner, Anthroposophy looks backward, drawing "wisdom" from ancient belief systems, but it also looks forward with the goal of creating new, higher spiritual awareness.

[4] Much spiritual knowledge is secret or hidden (occult), according to Steiner. Anthroposophy aims to pierce spiritual mysteries or secrets. [See "Occultism".]

[5] Steiner taught that humanity once lived on Atlantis, but we destroyed that continent through our wickedness. [See "Atlantis".] Since then, we have evolved through a series of "post-Atlantean" cultural periods or epochs. The ancient Egyptian and Chaldean civilizations occurred during the third of these periods. Our own civilization has arisen during the fifth of these periods (often called, in Anthroposophy, the "Anglo-Germanic Age").

[6] Isis was the ancient Egyptian goddess of fertility. Steiner associated her with Mary, the mother of Jesus. [See "Goddess".] "Isis wisdom" is wisdom possessed by, or wisdom about, Isis.

[7] In Anthroposophy, a "Mystery" is a secret body of spiritual wisdom. The Isis Mystery, then, is the secret meaning of Isis and her pronouncements and actions. Essentially, this is the mystery of the origins of life (as embodied by the procreator of life, Isis): 

"[W]ith anthroposophy the time has come when the veil of the physical worlds should be lifted so that we once again perceive the spiritual origin of the physical world." — "Isis", in ANTHROPOSOPHY A-Z, by Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2011), p. 62.

[8] The Grail Mystery, in Anthroposophy, is the secret meaning of the mythic search for the Holy Grail, a search undertaken by King Arthur and his knights. In Anthroposophy, the Grail itself is deemed to symbolize occult wisdom, especially the occult wisdom of ancient East (including Egypt). [See "Holy Grail" in the BWSE.]

[9] For Anthroposophists, Parzival (Perceval) is the most important of the knights who sought the Grail. [See "Parzival" in the BWSE.] Parzival is accorded great importance in Anthroposophical discourse, and in Waldorf circles. [See, e.g., "He Went to Waldorf".]

[10] Anthroposophists describe their own quest as scientific — they endeavor to use "exact" clairvoyance to obtain objective knowledge of the spirit realm. [See "Exactly" and "Knowing the Worlds".] Hence, they refer to Anthroposophy as a "spiritual science." [See "spiritual science" in the BWSE]. But, in fact, Anthroposophy is a religion: It is a mystical system involving belief in a vast number of concepts having no basis in verifiable reality (spiritual worlds, Atlantis, Isis, the Grail, etc.). [See "Is Anthroposophy a Religion?"]

 270.  "Etheric forces [1] first have to make the body [2] develop. But when this is done [3], these forces begin gradually to be liberated [4], and then they become the carrier of our thinking development [5] ... Our spiritual awareness is the result of an 'out of body' activity of our etheric constitution [6]. In sleep we do not think, because the entire etheric forces are engaged to regenerate brain and sense organs [7]." — Waldorf school doctor Michaela Glöckler, TRUTH, BEAUTY AND GOODNESS (Waldorf Publications, 2019), pp. 14-15.

[1] According to Steiner, these are forces that originate in the etheric realm — a postulated supersensible region (beyond the reach of our senses) that exists within the universal spiritual ether. [See "ether", "etheric forces", and "etheric realm" in the BWSE.] 

[2] I.e., the physical body. Steiner taught that, in human beings, the first 21 years of life see the gradual incarnation of three invisible bodies that supplement the physical body. [See "Incarnation".] The first invisible body, the etheric body, works to shape, develop, and preserve the physical body — or so Steiner said. [See "etheric body" in the BWSE.]

[3] Throughout life, Steiner taught, the etheric body preserves the physical body from dissolution. But the work of the etheric body shaping the physical body is, in a sense, complete around the time a child reaches age seven. At that stage, the etheric body becomes fully incarnated, and the pattern of the physical body is largely established. 

[4] I.e., the etheric forces are no longer fully engaged in developing the physical body, so they become free for other work.

[5] True thinking, Steiner taught, does not occur in the brain — it occurs outside the physical body and its physical organ called the brain. The brain, Steiner indicated, acts essentially like a radio receiver, receiving thoughts that come from the gods. [See "Thinking".] The liberated etheric forces tune the radio, as it were, making the radio receptive. But the sort of thoughts received and developed within the brain have limited value — they are intellectual or "materialistic" thoughts, thoughts that apply only at the physical level of existence (and thus they are quite different from true cognition).

“The brain is an instrument for purely intellectual apprehension. Intellectualism and materialistic thinking are one and the same, for all the thinking that goes on in science, in theology, in the sphere of modern Christian consciousness — all of it is the product of the human brain alone, is materialistic. This manifests itself, on the one hand, in the empty formalism of belief; on the other, in Bolshevism [sic: emphasis by Steiner] ... [T]he materialistic brain represents a process of decay: materialistic thinking unfolds only through processes of destruction, death-processes, which are taking place in the brain.” — Rudolf Steiner, THE FESTIVALS AND THEIR MEANING (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1996), pp.147-148.

True cognition, according to Steiner, is clairvoyance. [See "clairvoyance" and "living thoughts" in the BWSE.]

Parents considering Waldorf schools for their children should consider carefully whether they agree with Steiner's views about the brain, brainwork, intellect, and clairvoyance. These views prevail in all true Waldorf schools — schools that base their approach on Steiner's preachments. So, for instance, a Waldorf teacher recently wrote this:

"[T]he brain...mediates between the spiritual world and the physical world just as a radio mediates between the broadcaster and the listener ... The brain does noy produce thoughts." — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY A-Z (Sophia Books, Rudolf Steiner Press, 2011), p. 16.

Can real education occur in a school that embraces such ideas?

[6] According to Anthroposophical teachings, the etheric body with its etheric forces is always outside the physical body, although it is engaged with that body. We become aware of the spirit realm due to our "out of body" experiences (experiences that occur outside the physical body). We have such experiences through our etheric body and other, higher invisible bodies — the astral body and the "I". [See "astral body" and "I" in the BWSE.]

[7] During sleep, Steiner taught, the astral body and the "I" leave the physical body and ascend to the spirit realm. [See "sleep" in the BWSE.] The etheric body, on the other hand, remains attached to the physical body — the etheric body spends the hours of sleep refreshing the physical body's brain and sense organs, which become exhausted during the waking hours. (Radios can burn out.)

 271.  "As we look at our present situation, we can become discouraged. We see Luicfer and Ahriman as powerful, opposing forces; but that is semblance. It looks like a perfect partnership with Ahriman reigning supreme in the upward stream [of human development]; Lucifer is at home in the downward stream. In both poles they reach for each other. Lucifer is fond of illusion and can continue work on Ahirman's false images in thinking. Ahriman loves selfishness of the will and like self-interest to prevail. What have we to set against this as ordinary people? We are not smarter than Ahriman, nor wiser than Lucifer.

"But Christ stands in the middle. Christ, the Lord of Creation, has handed some control over man and of the earth to Lucifer and Ahriman. They are essential to our development, but they become negative when they extend their territories, which, of course, they do. Then we, the earth, and our culture become ill." — Anthroposophical doctor Edmond Schoorel, "The I, the Self, and the Body; Steps Going Up and Steps Going Down", in THE JOURNEY OF THE "I" INTO LIFE, edited by Nancy Banning (Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America, 2012), p. 41. 

The first thing to note about this quotation: It comes from a book published by a leading Waldorf educational association. Quotations like this carry us into the Waldorf mindset. 

In this instance, we are introduced to the Waldorf view of two mighty demons, Ahriman and Lucifer. According to Waldorf founder Rudolf Steiner, Ahriman and Lucifer seek to derail human spiritual evolution. Ahriman tries to lure us into excessive incarnation in the physical realm. [See "Ahriman".] Lucifer seeks to lure us into false forms of spirituality. [See "Lucifer".]

Ahriman and Lucifer may destroy us. However, Steiner said, when Christ intervenes, the temptations offered by Ahriman and Lucifer may be converted into useful gifts. Interposing between the two arch-demons, Christ holds them at bay, thus protecting us. [See "The Representative of Humanity".]

According to Steiner, Christ is the Sun God, a solar divinity who descended to Earth, incarnating in the body of a human being named Jesus. [See "Sun God" and "Was He Christian?"] Anthroposophy recognizes a vast number of gods — unlike Christianity, Anthroposohy is a polytheistic religion. [See "Polytheism.] As an incarnate god upon the Earth, Christ was an avatar — indeed, he was the most important of all avatars.

“The greatest avatar being who has lived on earth, as you can gather from the spirit of our lectures here, is the Christ — the Being whom we designated as the Christ, and who took possession of the body of Jesus of Nazareth when he was thirty years of age.” — Rudolf Steiner, THE PRINCIPLE OF SPIRITUAL ECONOMY (Anthroposophic Press, 1986) lecture 2, GA 109. [See "Avatars".]

There is much more we could say about all this, but perhaps the most important point has already been made. This is the sort of thinking that underlies the Waldorf movement. Unless you can accept and affirm such thinking, you probably should send your children to a different sort of school.

 272.  "The human being has twelve senses. The more obvious ones are recognized because of their specific organs; the others go unrecognized because their organs are less directly formed ... The senses can be grouped thus:

"Will Senses: touch, life, movement and balance

"Feeling Senses: smell, taste, sight and temperature ...

"Cognitive Senses: 'I,' thought, speech and hearing."

— ENTRY POINTS - A Guide to Rudolf Steiner’s Study of Man, edited by Elan Leibner (Waldorf Publications, 2017), pp. 82-83.

Most of these putative senses are indeed unrecognized by science. Their "less directly formed" organs are, according to Steiner, incorporeal (which science would say means they don't exist). 

Steiner said the 12 senses are associated with the 12 signs of the zodiac: They respond to astrological forces (which science would say is bunk). The astrological connections of the 12 senses postulated by Steiner are more or less as follows: 

touch - Scorpio

life - Aquarius

movement - Sagittarius

balance - Capricorn

smell - Libra

taste - Virgo

sight - Leo

temperature - Pisces

'I' - Aries

thought - Taurus

speech - Gemini

hearing - Cancer 

Steiner waffled a bit on these identifications [see here], but these are more or less what he said. Sometimes. [See, e.g., Rudolf Steiner, MYSTERIES OF THE SUN AND THE THREEFOLD MAN (transcript, Rudolf Steiner Archive), lecture 2, GA 183.] 

Of course, many of these "senses" (life, "I", thought, etc.) do not exist. Nor is astrology for real. But the main point for us to absorb is that Steiner's followers today embrace his arcane, occult teachings on such matters, as evidenced in the book quoted here, released recently by a Waldorf press.

The Waldorf movement is an extension of Anthroposophy, the occult religion created by Rudolf Steiner. [1] Not everyone who works in Waldorf schools is a faithful adherent of Anthroposophy, but adherents tend to exercise considerable power in these schools [2]. As a result, mystical Anthroposophical concepts tend to be present — waving like flags of warning — in the written works of leading Waldorf figures. This remains true today, in the 21st century, long after Rudolf Steiner's death [3]. Here, for instance, is an odd but perhaps innocuous-seeming statement published recently by a Waldorf school doctor:

 273.  "Under the aspect of truth [4], we need to understand that on the astral level [5], truth is a goal. Truth is something we are longing for, a real self-understanding [6] ... Our consciousness is changing [7]. That is the astral quality of truth." — Michaela Glöckler, TRUTH, BEAUTY AND GOODNESS (Waldorf Publications, 2019), p. 20.

Statements like this may contain appealing elements. Certainly truth is a highly desirable goal; certainly self-understanding is highly important. But consider the other elements, both those that appear on the surface of such statements and those that lurk below the surface. Do you agree that truth has an "astral quality," for instance? Do you believe that there is an "astral level" of existence above the earthly level? [8] Do you believe that humans have astral bodies? [9] Do you agree that human consciousness is evolving ("our consciousness is changing") through a series of planetary conditions? [10] Unless you agree with such Anthroposophical beliefs, the doctrines underlying Waldorf education are unlikely to satisfy you in the long run.

[1] See "Anthroposophy" in the BWSE. Also see "Is Anthroposophy a Religion?" 

[2] See "Waldorf schools" and "Waldorf teachers" in the BWSE.

[3] Steiner was born in 1861 and he died in 1925. [See "Steiner, Rudolf" in the BWSE.]

[4] I.e., on the question of truth. Appearances or "aspects" can be deceiving, of course. Steiner said that maya or illusion rules on the physical plane of existence. [See "maya" in the BWSE.] But, Steiner said, there are higher planes or higher worlds. [See "Higher Worlds".]

[5] The "astral level" of existence, according to Steiner, is the level of the soul. The "astral world" is the soul world, according to Steiner's teachings — it is a "higher world" that exists above the physical world. [See "astral world" in the BWSE.]

[6] In Anthroposophical belief, understanding the cosmos means understanding oneself, and vice versa. Steiner taught that the human being stands at the center of the created cosmos. The cosmos, he said, is a macrocosm that reflects the human being, the microcosm. [See "The Center".]

[7] The central narrative of the universe, according to Anthroposophy, is the evolution of human consciousness. [See "evolution of consciousness" in the BWSE.] Steiner taught that we began our evolution "on" Saturn (or "during" Old Saturn), when we were essentially comatose. We evolved to life "on" the Sun (Old Sun), when we were essentially immersed in deep, dreamless sleep. We then evolved to life "on" the Moon (Old Moon), when our consciousness rose to the level of dreaming sleep. Now, on the Earth (Present Earth), we have ordinary, waking consciousness. In the future, Steiner said, we will evolve to life "on" Jupiter, Venus, and Vulcan; our consciousness will rise to higher and higher levels (essentially, levels of clairvoyance) as this evolution occurs. [See "historical narrative of Anthroposophy" in the BWSE.]

These are the stages of our evolution, according to Anthroposophical teachings.

[See  Rudolf Steiner, THE TEMPLE LEGEND (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2009), p. 357.]

[8] See "astral plane" and "astral world" in the BWSE.

[9] See "astral body" in the BWSE.

[10] See "planetary conditions" in the BWSE.

 274.  "[Rudolf Steiner said] 'Everything the child learns about the plant, the animal, the minerals, the sun, the moon, the mountains, the rivers, must actually be cast in [mythic] form until the end of the 9th year, so that the child unites with the universe. The universe and the child, the child and the universe, thus become one during these years of the child's life.' 

"The Waldorf teacher must convey everything in the form of tales and legends. The world must appear to children, until the age of 9, as a place governed by miraculous workings such as are found in fairy tales, myths, and legends. The problem with this process is that the teacher thus instills in the students a magical-religious vision of the world. It is a matter of producing a mystical union between the child and the universe, as Rudolf Steiner stated explicitly. For the teacher does not express himself through the plot of a story, where the fiction would be identifiable by the children as such, but in lessons about actual phenomena. It is therefore not surprising that this pedagogy often induces in the minds of students a total confusion between the real and the imaginary, between the rational and the supernatural." — Former Waldorf teacher Grégoire Perra, "Le Stockmeyer: tout transformer en légende", on his website La Vérité sur les écoles Steiner-Waldorf {The Truth About Waldorf Schools}, July 26, 2019. (Translation by R.R., leaning heavily on DeepL.)

Waldorf education is fundamentally religious. [See "Schools as Churches".] Some parents want a religious education for their children — but they should understand that the religion in Waldorf schools is Anthroposophy. [See "Is Anthroposophy a Religion?"] Ultimately, Waldorf education serves as a subtle, indirect indoctrination in the precepts of Anthroposophy. [See "Indoctrination".] And, as Perra indicates, much of this indoctrination takes place through the use of mythic tales and the application of mythic thinking to the actual phenomena of our world. [See "Sneaking It In".] Young Waldorf students are shepherded into a mythic/Anthroposophic mindset that may color their perceptions and thoughts for the rest of their lives. Early indoctrination is the deepest and longest-lasting.

 275.  "The etheric world is a bi-dimensional (points, lines and surfaces) world that builds layer upon layer all the various surface membranes of living organisms. These membranes produce niches for organs to develop and exercise their functions in harmony with the whole. These organ volumes, the basis of the astral body, are the resonance of the Planetary Spheres in us. Directed by the Planetary Spheres' morphic fields, our stem cell differentiate in various loci and generate organs following the lines of force. We exist in a living cosmos and the Planetary Spheres of influences reverberate in our inner cosmos." — Yvan Rioux, THE SEAT OF THE SOUL - Rudolf Steiner's Seven Planetary Seals (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2018), p. 220.

Anthroposophical thought and discourse have changed little since Steiner's day. To outsiders, such thought and discourse may seem bizarre, but if you become involved in Anthroposophical institutions such as Waldorf schools, you may have to contend with them sooner or later. [For a primer, you might consult The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia: see such entries as "etheric realm", "astral body", and "planetary spheres". But don't expect all the fogs to lift and all the mists to disperse. They are inherent in Anthroposophy, where they are taken for wisdom.]

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Present-day Anthroposophists do not simply parrot Steiner (although essentially all of their beliefs derive, directly or otherwise, from Steiner's teachings). Steiner taught that Anthroposophy is a living body of spiritual wisdom that may develop and expand over time. He claimed that his own teachings are virtually irrefutable (they are based on his claimed power of "exact" clairvoyance — clairvoyance that is extremely reliable). Still, he did not claim to be utterly omniscient. And he offered his followers the flattering possibility that they might make their own spiritual discoveries — they, too, might become great spiritual savants.

In general, we can say that Anthroposophists conceive the physical world to be a manifestation of forces flowing from higher worlds. The etheric world (or etheric realm) consists of life forces that mold and shape physical realities. In particular, the human "etheric body" (an envelope of living forces) sculpts the human physical body — the etheric body vivifies inert matter, conferring the archetypal model that gives the physical body its shape and structure.

(This may or may not make sense to you. It is almost entirely unsupported by modern science. But for now we are only trying to understand what Anthroposophists believe. We may leave the question of truth for a different, more important discussion.)

Above the etheric body, Anthroposophists believe, is the astral body — an envelope of soul forces. Whereas the etheric body is largely oriented to the physical realm, the astral body is oriented to the spirit realm. When we sleep at night, Steiner taught, the physical body and the etheric body remain on the physical plane while the astral body and a still higher body — the "I" — ascend into the spirit realm. Among true human beings, Steiner taught, the etheric body incarnates around the age of seven, the astral body incarnates around the age of 14, and the "I" incarnates around the age of 21. (Things are different for people who are not true human beings, Steiner taught. But perhaps this, too, is a subject we should leave for another time.)

The "planetary spheres," according to Steiner, are the regions of outer space defined by the orbits of the planets. (Steiner often taught that the planets do not orbit the Sun, but sometimes he spoke differently.) The sphere of Venus, for instance, is the region of the solar system bounded by the orbit of Venus. Note that the spheres of planets near the Sun are subsumed by the spheres of planets that are farther out. Thus, the sphere of Mercury resides within the sphere of Venus — and the spheres of Mars, Venus, and Mercury reside within the sphere of the Jupiter, and so forth.  The main point in all this is that gods live in or around various planets and stars, according to Steiner. So, the planetary spheres effectively represent a hierarchy of gods — the gods of outer planets stand higher than the gods of inner planets.

All of the planetary gods direct their influences toward us, Anthroposophists believe. Indeed, human beings are central to the cosmos, Anthroposophists believe. A true human being is a small embodiment of the entire cosmos (our "inner cosmos" reflects the outer cosmos) — or, to turn this around, the starry cosmos is really just an enlarged reflection of the human being, who stands at the center of everything.

Now, remember, different Anthroposophists may have slightly different ideas about some of these things. (Not all Anthroposophists would agree, for instance, that the ether world is two-dimensional.) But, by and large, these are beliefs shared — in one form or another — by Anthroposophists generally. 

But, Anthroposophists would insist, these are not "beliefs" — these are Truths. These are things Rudolf Steiner saw with his exact clairvoyance, and they are things that Anthroposophists see now, with their own clairvoyance. Anthroposophy is not a belief system, Anthroposophists insist — it is a spiritual science.

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If you want to delve further into any of these subjects, you might visit the following pages (in addition to that invaluable resource, The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia):

Re. exact clairvoyance — see "Exactly".

Re. higher worlds — see "Higher Worlds".

Re. invisible human bodies — see "Incarnation".

Re. planets and their spheres — see "The Planets".

Re. hierarchies of gods — see "Polytheism".

Re. our central place in the cosmos — see "The Center".

Re. the "science" of Anthroposophy — see "Steiner's 'Science'".

Re. people who aren't human — see "What a Guy"  (scroll down to "Worst Thing")

And re. truth — see "Truth".

 276.  "Indeed, in these schools [i.e., Waldorf schools], misleading state officials is commonplace. For example, I witnessed that, when a teacher is scheduled to be inspected in class, s/he will commonly be replaced by another teacher who has the [necessary] skills or qualifications. Then the students are asked to 'play the game' when the inspector is present, and to act as if the teacher who conducts their class [this day] is their regular teacher. Similarly, it may happen that there are health and hygiene inspections. I remember one time when the inspectors had to check how the children ate in the canteen. However, in this school, the children did not eat in a canteen, but in classrooms with their teachers who watched them and made them recite their prayers before meals. For this inspection, the teachers were notified 24 hours in advance, so we organized three successive meal services in a canteen for the students, so that everything appeared normal. In the evening, during a faculty meeting, teachers congratulated themselves that their students had 'played the game.'

"These various circumventions of the law make students participate in acts of defiance against outsiders perceived as hostile. They subtly teach the students that the rules and laws of the society at large are deficient — this is likely to strengthen their students' feeling of living in a world apart. Anthroposophists view anything that does not belong in the 'milieu of Anthroposophy' as 'the outside world,' so to the students the general society in which they live becomes, for them, an alien place!" — Former Waldorf teacher Grégoire Perra. [See "He Went to Waldorf" — scroll down to "Concealment Vis-à-Vis Institutions".]

Here is a portion of the story of cosmic/human evolution, as taught by Rudolf Steiner and accepted by his followers. Steiner taught that the first incarnation of the solar system was a globe of warmth called Ancient (or Old) Saturn. The writer of the following summary is a Waldorf teacher (who, like Steiner, affirmed astrology):

 277.  "In Ancient Saturn the human body was not physical as we understand it today. We can think of it as a prototype, malleable and flexible, still existing only in spirit. It had to be formed, shaped and worked into, so that it would be capable of bearing and using the gifts that it would eventually receive. Thus the various capacities were implanted into it in embryo form.

"At this stage the members of the highest Hierarchy [i.e., gods of the highest ranks] functioned from outside the globe of warmth in the region we now call the zodiac. Ancient Saturn had an 'atmosphere' of spiritual beings. One has to image their influence radiating from the whole circle [of the zodiac] but differentiated according to the direction from which it comes. That is to say, the influence was modified by the forces of the different regions of the zodiac.

"These hierarchical influences laid the foundation for the form of the different parts of the [human] body, i.e. head, throat, heart, lungs, etc. Remnants of this knowledge were still current in the Middle Ages when it was considered [or known] that Aries (the Ram) and the head were connected; Taurus (the Bull) and the throat; Leo (the Lion), the heart, etc." — Roy Wilkinson, RUDOLF STEINER: An Introduction to his Spiritual World-view, Anthroposophy (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2005), pp. 189-190.

We will consult the same Waldorf teacher about other stages of cosmic/human evolution, below.

For more on Ancient (or Old) Saturn, see "Old Saturn" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.

Here is a continuation of the story of cosmic/human evolution, as taught by Rudolf Steiner and accepted by his followers. After the solar system incarnated in the form of Ancient Saturn, it withdrew from existence for a brief rest. It then reincarnated as Ancient Sun. The writer is a Waldorf teacher:

 278.  "Ancient Saturn...dissolved ... A new sphere had to be created [to replace it] ... Before this [new sphere] could be constituted there was a period of rest, known as pralaya, the equivalent of human sleep...

"The warmth of Saturn split into light and smoke (or gas). The reconstituted sphere was, however, smaller [i.e., Ancient Sun was smaller than Ancient Saturn] and forces were left outside it which became the basis for the present planet Saturn [i.e., the planet Saturn today is a remnant of Ancient Saturn]. Its extent [i.e., the size of Ancient Sun] was from the present Sun to the orbit of Jupiter, and, because light was a feature of it, it is known as Ancient Sun or the Sun-condition. It was a radiant gaseous body. The Kyriotetes [gods six levels higher than humanity] were the chief guides of this phase ... One could say that at this stage the human being was in a sort of plant stage. [Also] in Ancient Sun there was another kingdom, the prototype mineral world.

"Thus at this stage there were two kingdoms of nature [the human kingdom and the mineral kingdom] but not as we know them now.

"It must be borne in mind that through their activity the higher beings also evolved [i.e., the gods assisting human evolution were themselves evolving]." — Roy Wilkinson, RUDOLF STEINER: An Introduction to his Spiritual World-view, Anthroposophy (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2005), pp. 190-191.

 For more on Ancient (or Old) Sun, see "Old Sun" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.

After the solar system incarnated in the form of Ancient Sun, it withdrew from existence for a brief rest. It then reincarnated as Ancient Moon. The writer of the following statement is a Waldorf teacher:

 279.  "The Dynamis [gods five levels higher than humanity] transformed Ancient Sun to Ancient Moon and were now the chief agencies [i.e., the gods most involved in our evolution]. The gaseous substance of Ancient Sun was condensed to something of a liquid consistency [i.e., Ancient Moon was mostly liquid]. The contracted sphere extended as far as the orbit of Mars and it is known as Ancient Mars or Ancient Moon [i.e., the sphere of Ancient Moon reached out as far as the present orbit of Mars]. Again a residue of forces were left outside which manifested later as the planet Jupiter [i.e., the planet Jupiter we see today is a remnant of Ancient Sun, just as the planet Saturn we see today is a remnant of Ancient Saturn]...

"As far as the development of man is concerned, the astral was now incorporated into the combined human physical and etheric bodies [i.e., we now had, in nascent form, the basis for three of our four bodies: the astral, etheric, and physical bodies]. The Dynamis now gave of their own essence together with the etheric released by the evolving Exusiai [gods four levels higher than humanity] and the human-being-to-be was therefore now endowed with a third principle [the astral principle]...

"One could say that the human being was now at the animal stage. Not all the substance received the astral [i.e., not all the substance of Old Moon took in the astral principle; some of the astral was left over] and there was therefore now a prototype plant world as well as the mineral [i.e., there were now three kingdoms of nature: the human, plant, and mineral kingdoms]." — Roy Wilkinson, RUDOLF STEINER: An Introduction to his Spiritual World-view, Anthroposophy (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2005), pp. 191-192. 

For more on Ancient (or Old) Moon, see "Old Moon" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia. You might also look at "Old Mars" on the same page. Concerning the orbit of Mars: Remember that, according to Steiner, the planets do not really orbit the Sun. See "Deception".

 280.  "[T]he earth (like ourselves) has gone through three previous incarnations...Old Saturn, Old Sun, and Old Moon, and is destined to pass through three further stages, Jupiter, Venus, and Vulcan ... During the Old Saturn incarnation, matter didn't exist, although the first rudiment of our physical bodies developed here and was worked on by several spiritual beings during seven 'cycles' ... On Old Sun we first received our etheric bodies, which, like our physical bodies, are worked upon by several spiritual beings, through a series of seven cycles ... [On] Old Moon...a repetition of the previous two incarnations takes place, resulting in the first appearance of the astral body. Now the [physical] Moon, which had been embedded in the Sun, splits off and becomes an independent body, on which develop certain beings involved in human evolution ... I wouldn't be surprised if the last few pages have taxed some readers' capacity for giving Steiner the benefit of the doubt and left them wondering who could possibly believe this science fiction story. Yet this cosmic history is the backbone of Stener's work." — Gray Lachman, RUDOLF STEINER - An Introduyction to His Life and Work (Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin, 2007), pp. 143-147.

 281.  "[O]n the path of spiritual schooling [1], the human being ascends step by step [2] from physical perception to Imagination, Inspiration and Intuition [3] ... Imagination is supersensible seeing [4]. Here supersensible knowledge appears in picture-form [5]. Inspiration denotes the capacity to comprehend supersensible perceptions in meaningful connections with one another [6] ... Inspiration is also described as 'reading the hidden script' [7]. Intuition is the third and most elevated way of knowing, linking the human being with the very essence of reality [8]. Intuition shows us the essence of the spirit, of the events in our life after death [9], and the spiritual process through which human beings and the world come into existence [10]." — Anthroposophist Edward de Boer, introduction to a collection of Steiner texts, IMAGINATION - Enhancing the Powers of Thinking (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2019), pp. 3-4.

[1] From an Anthroposophical perspective (which informs Waldorf schooling), the proper "path of spiritual schooling" is the one laid out by the founder of both Anthroposophy and Waldorf education, Rudolf Steiner: It is the path of Anthroposophy itself. [See "Knowing the Worlds"; also see the entry for "Anthroposophy" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia (BWSE).] This is a path for adult spiritual aspirants seeking initiation. [See "Inside Scoop".] Children in Waldorf schools are ushered toward this path, but they are rarely taught Anthroposophical tenets overtly. [See, however, "Sneaking It In" and "Indoctrination".]

[2] According to Anthroposophical belief, the central purpose of life is to rise — step by step — to higher and higher levels of spiritual consciousness. [See "evolution of consciousness" in  the BWSE.]

[3] The latter three (Imagination, Inspiration and Intuition) are, Steiner taught, stages of clairvoyance. [See the entries for these terms in the BWSE.] Steiner and his followers capitalize the terms "Imagination", etc., to distinguish these purported levels of spiritual perception from low, earthly mental states designated by the same terms uncapitalized ("imagination", etc.). According to Anthroposophical belief, trained Imagination leads to spiritual truths whereas untrained imagination (as found in Disney cartoons, for instance) produces mere fantasies.

[4] I.e., Imagination is — to use non-Anthroposophical terms — akin to extrasensory perception or second sight. According to Steiner, Imagination is the first and lowest of three forms of clairvoyance. Like the other two forms of clairvoyance (Inspiration and Intuition), it does not depend on our ordinary senses — it transcends our senses, hence it super-sensory or "supersensible".

[5] I.e., it produces true mental pictures conveying spiritual knowledge. Steiner referred to these true pictures as "imaginations." Anthroposophists insist that these true pictures should be distinguished from the fantasies that ordinary, non-clairvoyant imagination produces. Rationalist critics argue that in fact clairvoyance — including "Imagination" — is itself a fantasy, and the products of the claimed use of clairvoyance are fantastical delusions, false inventions, chimeras. [See "Clairvoyance".]

[6] I.e., Inspiration enables the clairvoyant to interpret spiritual perceptions and comprehend them in relation to one another. The process may be compared to reading. When we read, the mind interprets letters to form words, and it understands the words in context with one another as meaningful sentences. Likewise, the clairvoyant using Inspiration interprets supersensible perceptions, combines them to form larger appreciations, and understands these in the broad context of other supersensible knowledge.

[7] Steiner taught that the clairvoyant becomes able to read the "Akashic Chronicle" or "Akashic Record" — a celestial record of all knowledge, inscribed on a cosmic ether called Akasha. [See "Akasha".] The Akashic Chronicle or Record is recorded in a form called "occult script". [See "occult script" in the BWSE.] Through Inspiration, the clairvoyant performs an act of reading (described earlier) that centers on a comprehension of the contents of the Chronicle or Record.

[8] Intuition, Steiner indicated, is unmediated — one immediately grasps the essence of the things observed, without the need for interpretation or cogitation. One's perception is then virtually godlike. Indeed, Steiner said that through the progression to higher and higher levels of consciousness humanity will be deified (we will become gods) and then we will rise through the ranks of the gods (we will become higher and higher gods). [See, e.g., "Polytheism" and "The Tenth Hierarchy". Also see "evolution" and "evolution of consciousness" in the BWSE.]

[9] Reincarnation is a central tenet of Anthroposophy. [See "Reincarnation".] After we die, Steiner taught, we live for a period in the spirit realm, preparing for our next incarnation here in the physical realm. Our alternating lives, above and below, are (or should be) purposeful: They are (or should be) progressive stages in our evolution. Intuition enables us to comprehend the nature of spirit and the pattern of evolution — including the experiences we undergo in the spirit realm after death (and before our next incarnation).

[10] According to Steiner, we and the world came into existence thanks to the cooperative efforts of gods of many ranks. [See "creation of universe/earth" in the BWSE; also see "Genesis" and "Origins".] The "spiritual process" that creates the cosmos and ourselves is the divine cosmic plan of the gods. [See "divine cosmic plan" in the BWSE.] As we evolve, attaining higher clairvoyant consciousness and, indeed, becoming gods, we participate more and more not just as beneficiaries of this plan but also as contributors to, and even authors of, the plan. We thus enable ourselves and the cosmos to "come into existence" in ever more elevated forms, Steiner said.

 282.  "Astral Storm Coming In: The Ninth Grader [1]

"…Teenagers of this age are by their very nature extremists, swinging from giddiness to depression, from dreamy unwareness to acute attention with the space of seconds. However, it is important to differentiate between boys and girls at this age … The girls come into ninth grade ready to dive into and share their burgeoning inner world, while the boys seem somewhat bewildered by all the changes they are undergoing [2] ... Ninth-grade boys can appear to be crude dullards when compared to their female counterparts, by whom they are often dwarfed, sometimes in stature as well as in sheer, overpowering emotional intensity [3].…" — Waldorf teacher David Sloan, “Waldorf and Adolescence”, WALDORF EDUCATION - An Introduction for Parents (Waldorf Publications, 2016), pp. 57-58.

[1] Steiner’s doctrines often lead Waldorf teacher to stereotype children, a harmful practice. Is there really such a thing as the ninth grader (singular)? Or aren’t there many, many — an infinitude — of different kinds of ninth graders (plural)? The answer should be obvious. Human variation is nearly limitless. Yet Waldorf teachers often speak and write of the three-year-old child, the fourth-grader, theninth-grader, and so on. The effect is to jam kids into arbitrary categories, so that individuality is diminished or even lost. The psychological toll for children can be severe.

As for the term "astral storm" — this is a tangential reference to the astral body. ("Steiner termed our feeling, or soul, life as the astral body." — Sloan, p. 57.) Steiner taught that three invisible bodies incarnate during childhood. The second of these is the astral body, which incarnates around age 14. [See "Incarnation".] Kids in the ninth grade undergo this momentous, turbulent, storm-like event. Or so Rudolf Steiner indicated. Seen in less esoteric terms, what we're talking about here is the onset of puberty (a distinctly physical, not "astral," event). And, despite the Anthroposophical tendency to pinpoint this event as occurring, generally, to "the ninth grader," in fact — due to the vast range of human variability — puberty can occur anywhere from age 7 (or even earlier) to age 16 (or considerably later). [See, e.g., "puberty", ENCYCLOPAEDIA BRITANNICA, Feb. 26. 2020.] Thus the so-called astral storm occurs anywhere from third grade (or earlier) to 12th grade (or later). But the astral storm is an esoteric fiction.

[2] Waldorf teachers recognize that there are differences between children, of course. One difference concerns gender. But here Steiner’s doctrines can lead to sexism. [See “Gender”.] Is it really possible to say that all ninth-grade girls are “ready to dive into and share their burgeoning inner world” and that all ninth-grade boys are (or seem) “somewhat bewildered by all the changes they are undergoing”? This is just another, more focused form of stereotyping. The individuality of students tends to disappear in such Waldorf stereotypes. Sexism, like racism — like all types of human stereotyping — demeans and wounds individual human beings, who should all be recognized as invaluably unique individuals. The underlying Waldorf ideology — Anthroposophy — claims to prize human individuality; it places great stress on the human "I". [See the entry for "I" in the BWSE.] But the stereotyping built into the Waldorf approach undercuts — and virtually negates — this.

[3] Sloan takes a little of the sting out of this statement, saying that male ninth graders "can appear" to be dolts. Boys of this age are not really "crude dullads" — they just appear to be. Nonetheless, stereotyping nearly leaps off the page. 

Of course, Sloan is not advocating the cruel labeling or pigeonholing of children. He would doubtless agree that we should not categorize children falsely or hurtfully. And yet the passage we are considering consists almost wholly of stereotypes. Look at it again. Sloan says  "Teenagers of this age are by their very nature extremists" — all teenagers of this age are this way. These teens go "from giddiness to depression, from dreamy unwareness to acute attention with in the space of seconds" — all of them do this. But, Sloan says, we must distinguish between the mindsets of boys and girls — all boys are one way, all girls are another way. Girls are "ready to dive into and share their burgeoning inner world" — all girls are. But boys are not ready to do this; boys "seem somewhat bewildered by all the changes they are undergoing" — all of them are. And so forth. By the end of the passage, we are relieved to find the stereotyping loosen a bit. At the end, we are told that ninth-grade boys (all of them, or perhaps just most of them) "can appear to be" dolts who are "often dwarfed" (not always, but often) by the more-mature girls in the ninth grade. This is a bit better. It is less categorical. But it is still stereotyping, and it is still wrong.

 283.  "The Temptations of the World: The Tenth Grader

"It is not hyperbole to say that dramatic, even radical change takes place between the freshman and sophomore years [1] ... [S]ophomores often return to school in the autumn much fuller of themselves ... Instead of seeing them as neophytes flailing about in the aforementioned ninth-grade swamp [sic], we might picture them as self-assured crew members of a sleek, Greek [2] sailing ship ... They seem more comfortable with themselves [3] ... Yet we teachers have noticed another pattern ... Perhaps it can be traced to this newfound confidence that can border on brazenness. Whatever the reason, many sophomores go 'overboard' ... They get themselves in some kind of trouble — with drugs, sex, stealing, lying.... [4]" — Waldorf teacher David Sloan, “Waldorf and Adolescence”, WALDORF EDUCATION (Waldorf Publications, 2016), pp. 58-59.

[1] A gross generalization is offered here. The tenth grader has undergone a "radical change." (Fundamentally, in Waldorf belief, this change involves the incarnation of the astral body.) This, we are told, is what happens to the tenth grader — as if there were only one such being, one characterization that applies to all kids of this age, one archetype controlling them all.

This, indeed, is why Waldorf teachers tend to stereotype their students, treating all kids of a similar age as if they are all essentially the same. The Waldorf belief system, Anthroposophy, is spiritualistic. All phenomena in the physical world are thought to be manifestations of realities, forces, or beings that exist in the spirit realm. There is a spiritual reason for everything, in other words — all phenomena here below reflect wondrous spiritual actualities up above. Hence, passing from one condition (being a ninth grader, for instance) to another condition (becoming a tenth grader, for instance), means passing from one spiritual state to another. The child entering a new grade is now in a different spiritual zone, affected by different spiritual forces, perhaps indeed supervised by different spiritual beings (different gods).

I'm simplifying greatly. But this, in general, is how Rudolf Steiner's followers think. And this is there how Anthroposophists on Waldorf faculties think. Which means this is why Waldorf teachers tend to stereotype their students: They are imposing on the children abstract — indeed, imaginary — conceptions derived from Rudolf Steiner's woolly spiritualistic imaginings. Not all Waldorf teachers do this, of course — or not to the same degree. But as Waldorf teacher David Sloan indicates, this is how Waldorf teachers tend to operate. The danger is that, looking at their students through the distorting lens of Anthroposophy, they will fail to see their students as they actually are, as unique individuals having widely different qualities and characteristics.

[2] I.e., ancient Greek. 

[3] Here is another way that Waldorf education mischaracterizes students. In Waldorf belief, children move — more or less in lockstep — along a trajectory causing them to recapitulate the cultural evolution of humanity as a whole. [See, e.g., "Out in the Open".] High school sophomores have moved pretty far along this trajectory, but they still have a long way to go. Having risen from the "swamp" of ninth grade, they now sail self-assuredly onto the wide seas leading toward adulthood. 

The students' journey began, Anthroposophists believe, when as youngsters they recapitulated the most ancient of human cultures — the ancient Asian-Indian culture. Thereafter, in stages, they rose through the Persian, Egypto-Chaldean, and Greco-Roman cultures (where they may now still plow the waves, as sleek Greek sailing ships). [See "Epochs".] This is an interesting esoteric conception, perhaps. But as a basis for dealing with real children in the real world, it is essentially useless. It is another instance of Waldorf teachers imposing on children elements of Rudolf Steiner's fantastical spiritualistic creed. 

[4] Because their thinking often includes categories and concepts propounded by Steiner, Waldorf teachers may fall into the trap of seeing only what they expect to see. Yes, many high school sophomores may get into trouble. But the same is true of many high school freshmen, and many seventh graders, and many fourth graders, and many kids (and adults) of all ages. What Sloan says here — the tenth grader often goes overboard — tells us nothing specific or instructive about high school sophomores, since the same is true of all people of all ages (anyone, of any age, can go overboard). Sloan's statement is null, except in terms of the false distinctions laid out in Anthroposophical theorizing. 

Sloan goes on to acknowledge that some kids "fall" before or after tenth grade, but he claims that "the general tendency is for this to happen, if it happens at all, in the student's sophomore year." [p. 59.] This is prejudicial stereotyping. Tarring tenth graders are being particularly prone to "drugs, sex, stealing, lying" is surely unfair. And if Waldorf teachers expect students of a certain age to be especially prone to these errors, their thinking may be biased and damaging to the kids in their charge.

 284.  "The Dark Night of the Soul: The Eleventh Grader

"What happens to eleventh graders? Why do so many...find themselves stricken by a malaise that can be termed a 'dark night of the soul'? [1] ... During this dark night of the soul, it seems clear that eleventh graders suffer. One of the ways this manifests is as a deeply felt crisis of confidence ... Yet I really tried to resist the impulse to somehow make these students' struggles less difficult and less painful. Cruel as this sounds, all the angst in the eleventh grade may be both inevitable and, in a certain way, even desirable." [2] — Waldorf teacher David Sloan, “Waldorf and Adolescence”, WALDORF EDUCATION (Waldorf Publications, 2016), pp. 59-61.

[1] The term "dark night of the soul" is often used to refer to the torment of a spiritual seeker who has lost any assurance of spiritual consolation. By extension, the term may also refer to a loss of faith in God. Eleventh graders may certainly go through such a period of doubt and soul-searching. But so may people of virtually any age. A pensive child of six may have deep, despairing thoughts. An elder approaching death may be tormented by spiritual doubt. Any human, at any age beyond infancy, may have a dark night of the soul. Saying that the eleventh grader is particularly prone to this condition is unfounded. It is another instance of Anthroposophical stereotyping.

Steiner said that the dark night of the soul occurs when "the divine element [in a person] has been slain by the all-too-human" — that is, when one's inner, spiritual nature is overwhelmed by crass, physical, earthly desires and cares. [See BUILDING STONES FOR AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE MYSTERY OF GOLGOTHA (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1962), p. 174.] The cure for this darkness, Steiner's followers believe, is found in developing the clairvoyant ability to perceive spiritual truths beyond the darkness of material existence. This is sometimes referred to as gaining the ability to see the sun at midnight: that is, seeing the Sun God and his realm. "[A]t night...an initiate can dispel the darkness of matter through his powers of inner vision [clairvoyance], to perceive the sun's radiance. Not only the sun can be perceived...but also Christ [the Sun God] and other spiritual beings who dwell in the sun." — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY A-Z (Sophia Books, Rudolf Steiner Press, 2011), p. 116. 

Anthroposophy holds out the promise of such initiation. [See "Inside Scoop".] Indeed, Steiner's teachings center on his instructions to his followers telling them how they might attain clairvoyant powers like those he claimed to possess. [See "Knowing the Worlds".] According to Steiner, the solution to the dark night of the soul is found in embracing Anthroposophy. Waldorf schools generally do not lay out Anthroposophical doctrines, in so many words, for their students. But they seek to lead students — subtly, indirectly — toward Anthroposophy. Ultimately, Waldorf education can be seen as a canny process of Anthroposophical indoctrination. [See "Indoctrination".] 

[2] The Waldorf belief system is fatalistic. Kids move along a predetermined trajectory, and they do so in fulfillment of karma. Importing the concept of karma from Eastern religions, Steiner taught that each human has a self-created destiny that must be played out. [See "Karma".] Preventing people from fulfilling their karmas is almost always wrong, Steiner indicated. So, if eleventh graders are in pain — tough. As Sloan writes, "[A]ll the angst...may be both inevitable and, in a certain way, even desirable." So a Waldorf teacher should "resist the impulse to somehow make these students' struggles less difficult and less painful." Sloan is correct that this may seem cruel. More than that, it may actually be cruel. If an adult can ease a child's suffering, surely s/he should do so. But in Waldorf belief, the sufferings involved in the "dark night of the soul" are constructive because they may lead the sufferer, ultimately, to find the consolations of Anthroposophy.

Steiner spoke of “the longing human soul in its yearning, tormented emptiness.” [See THE SPIRITUAL HIERARCHIES AND THE PHYSICAL WORLD (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 224.] Steiner offered his own teachings as the antidote: “[W]e may point to spiritual science [Anthroposophy] as a bearer of the redemption of human longing ... [S]piritual science now provides what tempestuous but also woeful human beings have sought for a long time.” [Ibid., p. 231.] Students in the eleventh grade are nearing the end of their secondary-school years; they stand near the brink of adulthood. Eleventh-grade students in Waldorf schools are, then, approaching the stage when, as adults, they might be expected to consciously turn to Anthroposophy. So from the Waldorf perspective, spiritual turmoil may be beneficial to these students. Teachers should step back and let the kids undergo their torment, if this will be resolved, finally, in acceptance of the antidote offered by the Anthroposophical guru, Rudolf Steiner.

 285.  "At the Grand Threshold: The Twelfth Grader

"...As contracted and broody as eleventh graders can get, seniors [i.e., twelfth graders] often seem to acquire a new dimension ... They stand poised on a great threshold, straddling both the world of the school that they are rapidly outgrowing and the larger world they can't wait to take by storm ... Their vision seems to broaden as their thinking deepens ... These suddenly larger souls grapple daily with...the challenge, for example, of how both to express their ever-strengthening individuality on the one hand and at the same time to live in community. And they have a passionate yearning for a new brotherhood of humanity that transcends ethnic and national boundaries. [1]" — Waldorf teacher David Sloan, “Waldorf and Adolescence”, WALDORF EDUCATION (Waldorf Publications, 2016), pp. 61-62.

[1] This thumbnail sketch reflects how Waldorf teachers often want to think of their work — this is the triumphant end of Waldorf education, as they conceive it. Yet is this conception anything more than wishful thinking? There is clearly an element of magical thinking it in. Having undergone the astral storm; having confronted worldly temptations; having endured the dark night of the soul — Waldorf seniors "suddenly" become self-assured and eager to "take [the world] by storm." They possess "ever-strengthening individuality" as well as strong social consciences (they yearn for "a new brotherhood of humanity that transcends ethnic and national boundaries"). 

Waldorf education must surely be praised if this is what it produces. But let's pause a moment. Is true individuality likely to come out of an education that so consistently stereotypes children, thereby suppressing individuality? Is an enlightened social conscience likely to come out of an education that has roots in occult racism? [See "Steiner's Racism" and "Embedded Racism".] Are Waldorf grads really likely to have broadened "vision" and deepened "thinking" if their education has actually been a covert form of occult indoctrination? [See "Indoctrination".] Are they likely to thrive in the "larger world they can't wait to take by storm" if the education they have received has been fundamentally unworldly, unrealistic, and indeed irrational? [See "Cautionary Tales" and "Square One".]

What "grand threshold" do Waldorf seniors actually approach? If Waldorf education has worked as intended, it is the threshold of Anthroposophy. The ultimate purpose of Waldorf education is to lead students toward an embrace of Rudolf Steiner's spiritualistic vision — it is not to prepare students for productive lives in the real world. [See "Here's the Answer" and "Spiritual Agenda".]

Some children certainly thrive in Waldorf schools. But others are harmed, sometimes gravely. [See "Who Gets Hurt?"] And even the self-confidence that fortunate Waldorf students develop may prove unfounded. [See "Mistreating Kids Lovingly".] The unrealistic generalizing — in a word, the stereotyping — found in the text we have been examining does not provide much assurance that Waldorf education will be successful, even according to its own lights.

Astrology is woven throughout Anthroposophical belief. So, for instance, here is a new Anthroposophical publication (printed in 2018) connecting the three major bodily systems (as described by Rudolf Steiner) with various planets and their mystical metallic manifestations:

 286.  "As suggested by Steiner, we work with a planetary sequence in order to enter into a better comprehension of the seven metabolic processes or life stages ... [T]he inner planets have more to do with our metabolic pole (Moon/silver — self renewal, Mercury/mercury — the appearance of the physical organs ... and Venus/copper — energizing growth ...) On the other hand, the outer planets stimulate our nerve sense pole (Saturn/lead — sensorial organs, Jupiter/tin — the nerve[s] ... and Mars/iron — the pulses that allow pictures to touch our consciousness). In the rhythmic pole we have an intermediary mix of metals ... Mars/iron ... Sun/gold ... Venus/copper...." — Yvan Rioux, THE SEAT OF THE SOUL - Rudolf Steiner's Seven Planetary Seals (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2018), pp. 226-227.

For more on these matters, see, e.g., "Astrology", "Planets", and "Star Power". (Concerning our bodily systems, see "What We're Made Of".]

P.S.

"Lead [i.e., the metal, lead] results from the unimpeded action of Saturn, tin from that of Jupiter, iron from Mars, copper from Venus, and what is now termed quicksilver from Mercury. Similarly we must recognise a relationship between everything of the nature of silver, all that is silvery...and the unimpeded action of the Moon ... Earth's wealth of metals is the result of forces acting on the earth from without." — Rudolf Steiner, SPIRITUAL SCIENCE AND MEDICINE (Rudolf Steiner Publishing Co., 1948), lecture 6, GA 312.

Students at Waldorf schools are usually required to perform a type of dancing called eurythmy (pronounced "yur-ITH-me"). In essence, this is Anthroposophical temple dancing. [See "Eurythmy".]

"Eurythmy is obligatory. The children must participate. Those who do not participate in eurythmy will be removed from the school." — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 65.

The movements in eurythmy are believed to make the human body more receptive to influences flowing down from the spirit realm (the "supersensible" realm that lies beyond the reach of our normal senses).

"In having people do eurythmy, we link them directly to the supersensible world." — Rudolf Steiner, ART AS SPIRITUAL ACTIVITY (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 247.

Steiner propounded his mystical beliefs a century and more ago, but such beliefs continue to hold sway in the Waldorf movement today. According to Waldorf belief, the physical bodies of eurythmic dancers become receiving-organs for spiritual influences, while the astral bodies and spiritual egos of people who watch eurythmy are stimulated to receive the same influences. (Steiner taught that human beings have four bodies, three of which are invisible.)

 287.  "When people do eurythmy, it is a fact that this has benefits for the lives of both eurythmists and those who watch; both significantly profit from it. In those who are themselves eurythmists, their physical organism is fashioned by the eurythmic movements into a subtle organ of receptivity for the spiritual world, because the movements strive downward from the spiritual world. Eurythmists become receiving-organs, as it were, for the processes of the spiritual world by preparing their bodies for them. In the spectators of eurythmy, all the movements that pertain to their astral body and ego are intensified by the eurythmic motions ... [Watching eurythmy] strengthens the soul by letting it find its way into the supersensible [realm] more vividly." — Waldorf school doctor Michaela Glöckler, EDUCATION AS PREVENTIVE MEDICINE (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2002), p. 211.

Concerning our invisible bodies, see "Incarnation". Concerning the form of medicine traced to Steiner's teachings, see "Steiner's Quackery".

According to Anthroposophy, we now live in the Post-Atlantean Age — the epoch following the sinking of Atlantis. During the prior epoch, we lived on Atlantis. And during the epoch before that, we lived on the continent of Lemuria. 

During our stay on Lemuria, we recapitulated our previous experiences living "on" the Moon. We were scarcely human while incarnated on Lemuria — we had bodies consisting of mist and fire (or so it is said). Here is an Anthroposophical account. (Like much Anthroposophical discourse, the writing we find here is modeled on Rudolf Steiner's turgid, opaque, muddled prose. Reading it takes a bit of persistence. You can decide for yourself whether the effort leads to any compensating reward.)

 288.  "The Lemurian era is [i.e., was] a repetition of the Old Moon on a higher level. The Lemurian continent encompassed the area that presently lies between Africa, Asia and Australia ... The man of mist and fire can be imagined partly as a luminous cloud floating in the ethereal air. Floating rather than walking, he moved forwards, sideways, and backwards and in all directions with the help of organs rather like limbs ... The body of man...still had hardly any intelligence. It was mainly directed by higher beings [i.e., gods] ... [M]an performed the movement described above, alternately in the watery and airy parts of the ethereal Earth. Man...had a luminous upper part and a lower part, which was ...an ethereal liquid, often submerged in the watery substance [of the Earth]. At that time this lower part [of man] had reached the stage that is found in modern times in a different form in fish ... The ethereal, luminous part of man was constantly pulled down by...evil forces... [T]he most important events [of the Lemurian era] occurred on the north edge of the Lemurian continent, where the ethereal world of the Sun still has [i.e., had] a real effect on the ethereal world of the Earth. This is the place which is described in the Bible (Gen. 2) as 'the Garden of Eden'".... — Anthroposophist Kees Zoeteman, GAIASOPHY (Lindisfarne Press, 1991), pp. 84-86.

To survey human prehistory as described by Rudolf Steiner, see "Old Saturn", "Old Sun", "Old Moon, Etc.", "Early Earth", "Lemuria", and "Atlantis". Students in Waldorf schools are not usually taught this prehistory. But sometimes they are. See, e.g., "Out in the Open".

To get a feel for the sort of thinking that underlies Waldorf education — the thinking embodied in Rudolf Steiner's new religion, Anthroposophy — it is sometimes helpful to simply read passages of Anthroposophical prose without worrying too much, for the moment, about what the words may mean. Let the words roll over you, whether or not they make much sense to you. Immerse yourself, if only for a moment, in the Anthroposophical ethos. Later, you can circle back and dig for explanations.

Here's a sample, chosen very nearly at random:

 289.  "When Virgo's color symphony has played itself out in the world of nature and nature has drawn away the brilliant Maya-veiling while mist rises in dull yellow, Man steps forth as the lord of the Earth. He parts the veil of mist with the G gesture [a motion in the dance form called eurythmy], revealing himself as the spirit in nature, which, without him, would be nothing more than [quoting Steiner] 'frosty empty life.' Human beings should sense [quoting Steiner again] 'how the sensory turns yellow in order that the spiritual may be enabled to live as such in that yellowing, and how the ascent of the spirit accompanies the falling of leaves, how the spiritual is a counter-revelation to the dying down of the sensory' ... Sagittarius is the place to experience spirit! And the essence of all matter is spirit, as Sagittarius reveals." — Anthroposophist Hedwig Erasmy, COSMIC AND HUMAN EVOLUTION - As Reflected in Rudolf Steiner's Poem Twelve Moods (Mercury Press, 2003),  p. 268.

To dig into some of the Anthroposophical beliefs that protrude from this passage, see, e.g., "Astrology", "Eurythmy", "Mystical Colors", and "Neutered Nature". You may also find it helpful to consult such entries as "Virgo", "Sagittarius", "maya", and "veils" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.

 290.  "I will refer to basic observations, which link the outer appearance of human nature, illness, and remedial substance to their inner origins. Such views have been renewed for modern thinking by Rudolf Steiner ... A special form of iron is found on all continents: meteorites literally fall from the skies to the earth every year. This meteoric iron is a cosmic pure metal with a crystalline pattern not seen in earthly iron ... [Remember] the inner strengths of iron: courage and will power to fight ... The cosmic side of iron is traditionally connected with Mars, the god of warfare, and his red planet. Paracelsus wrote that iron is a universal force present in the planet Mars, in the metal, in the function of the gall bladder and the bile, and in plants permeated by the force of iron, such as the stinging nettle ... As a medication to boost the body defenses in flu and similar viral infections, we use iron phosphate in its homeopathic form." — Anthroposophic doctor Bertram von Zabern, "The Healing Gift of Iron", posted at healthy.net, December, 2000.

 291.  "[Rudolf] Steiner sets forth the origin of all infectious diseases. What are their causes? The frame work [sic] of the ego...fractures into small pieces. These pieces manifest themselves in and on the body as infections. Bed sores develop from weak egos, they are infections. The treatment recommended by Dr. Steiner for infections can either be...Formica Bath Solution or...Rosemary Oil ... These compounds cause the ego to return to its frame work and usually in a few weeks, seven or eight, or sooner, health is restored. Face infections, young or old, are an indication for these bathes [sic]. Dr. Steiner speaks of constipation and hypochondria as a defense by the body against cancer. The rosemary bath oil bath [sic] is an indication for these symptoms. Diabetes is the inability of the ego to metabolize sugar. If one has a strong ego then no diabetes. Again Dr. Steiner recommends the rosemary baths. This bath will strengthen the ego and in some cases may prevent amputations and death after the disease is contacted [sic] ... These rosemary baths should be taken certainly in the AM soaking for an hour and it would not hurt also to do the same in the PM. I say this from my own experiences." — Roy C. Bell, DDS, JD, "The Origin, Definitive Diagnosis, Prevention and Treatment of Cancer, Infection and Alzheimer's Disease", Rudolf Steiner Archive & e.Lib., downloaded 3/19/2020.

 292.  "[Rudolf] Steiner asserted that a greater disposition to contract infectious diseases comes from bad habits in a previous life. He gives the example of the Hun invasion into Europe that was instrumental in generating leprosy ... Another key element in the reincarnational arena is that a person who is an outright materialist in his or her thinking in one life will be more susceptible to contracting infectious diseases [in] the next life ... Steiner described how the origin of an epidemic can arise also from an astral field debased by untruth. 'Imagine a people which was composed entirely of liars, the astral plane would be populated solely by the corresponding demons and these demons would be able to express themselves in a constitutional tendency to epidemics. Thus there is a certain species of bacilli who are the carriers of infectious diseases; these beings are the progeny of the lies told by human beings; they are nothing else than physically embodied demons generated by lies' [Rudolf Steiner, THE THEOSOPHY OF THE ROSICRUCIAN (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1966), p. 43]." — Josef Graf, "Coronavirus — Meeting Covid-19 head-on with Anthroposophy", Rudolf Steiner Archive & e.Lib., downloaded 3/20/2020.

 293.  "Rudolf Steiner [identified] the seven physiological functions ... Once you understand these you will know which disease is connected to which process ... Planets, everchanging [sic] in the sky, govern all moveable, interchanging func­tions in the body. Breathing is the first life process ... Breathing is associated with the planet Saturn, the most peripheral planet [i.e., farthest from the Sun] ... Steiner called the second process warm­ing (ruled by the planet Jupiter) ... Nutrition is the third process. It is...connected with Mars. Mars is an aggressive Planet, related to destruction. Nutrition has this same quality ... [T]he fourth process, circulation...is done through the cardiovascular sys­tem, governed by the Sun ... The fifth process, maintenance, relates to tissue and cell connections ... This process belongs to Mer­cury ... Sixth, growth and maturation...takes a new impulse, that comes from Venus ... The last process, reproduction...is gov­erned by the Moon ... Sat­urn forces bring the outer world in, the Moon forces take the inner world out." — Anthroposophical doctor Ross Rentea, "The Seven Life Processes", AnthroMed Library, downloaded March 26, 2020.

Astrology is central to Anthroposophy. Note that the solar system discussed by Rentea is the ancient, astrological system: It includes the Moon and the Sun as "planets" while excluding Uranus and Neptune — and the Earth. Rudolf Steiner himself affirmed the astrological view of the solar system, listing the seven "planets" as enumerated by Rentea (including the Moon and the Sun). Steiner many numerous unscientific claims about these spheres. He asserted, for instance, that Saturn is the farthest planet from the Sun. 

To shift our focus to reality, we should recollect that the real solar system has eight planets (or nine, if we count Pluto). And, of course, neither the Moon nor the Sun is a planet. [For Anthroposophical teachings on these matters, see "Astrology" and "Planets".] 

Medical care based on astrology is — to put the issue mildly — unlikely to be effective. It is based on ancient superstition; it is disconnected from reality. [See "Steiner's Quackery" and "Summing Up".]

 294.  "Although every disease is created by the ahrimanic and the luciferic forces, what we experience as disease is actually the healing of the 'real' disease [the errors in a past life being rectified through karma] ... A body in balance is a healthy body. It is ruled by the balanced forces of both the luciferic and the ahrimanic, with the Christ in the balancing middle. If we weaken an organ by our eating habits, or weaken the etheric [body] by our thoughts or the astral body by our feelings, in such a way that either of the adversaries gains an upper hand, the connected organs will suffer imbalance, disease or pain ... [A]ll modern medicines will leave the stronger adversary just as strong or even stronger. In cancer this is most obvious, as this disease is a cooperation of the luciferic and the ahrimanic forces, and as such they will both become more powerful from modern radiation and chemotherapy." — Are Thoresen, DEMONS AND HEALING - The Reality of the Demonic Threat and the Doppelgänger in the Light of Anthroposophy (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2018), p. 149. Available in 2019 through SteinerBooks and Rudolf Steiner Press.

 295.  "We carry the laws of the cosmos within us, which direct how we form ourselves. But there is also an aspect of our higher being that is always in communication with the hierarchies [i.e., the gods]. This can express itself in different ways. How can we meet our different children [e.g., Waldorf students] in their different development of self-awareness? ... [W]e can become masters of the physical body, of physical development. But we can also be experts of destiny [i.e., karma]. For ten to fifteen minutes in each faculty meeting we should tead lectures [by Rudolf Steiner] on reincarnation and karma and lectures [by Rudolf Steiner] about life between death a new birth." — Waldorf school doctor Michaela Glöckler, "From Unborness to I-Consciousness; The Three Great Steps of Incarnation", in THE JOURNEY OF THE "I" INTO LIFE, edited by Nancy Banning (Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America, 2012), p. 29.

 296.  "[Waldorf] teachers must place special value on the forming of the child's will and feeling ... The will manifests itself differently in the various members of the human constitution. In the Spirit: Spirit Self [1] is a plurality after death...when it becomes interwoven with other spiritual beings [2]. Life Spirit and Spirit Human [3] exist only as tendencies in present-day humanity during life one earth. After death these three spirit members develop towards the next incarnation [4] ... The will appears in the physical body as instinct ... In the etheric body [5] will appears as drives ... In the astral body [6] will becomes conscious and appears as desires ... The 'I' [7] penetrates the three soul members [8] and lives in them such that the will becomes motive ... The spirit members take up the residue of action ... The Spirit Self takes the action into a wish form ... In the Life Spirit the wish becomes more concrete: the intent to do better ... In the Spirit Human the decision arises out of the intent." — ENTRY POINTS - A Guide to Rudolf Steiner’s Study of Man, edited by Elan Leibner (Waldorf Publications, 2017), pp. 54-55.

Waldorf teachers have a lot to bear in mind.

[1] Steiner taught that a human being has a spirit, a soul, and a bodily nature. Each of these consists of various sub-members. "Spirit Self" is the first of the three subdivisions of spirit. [See "spirit self" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia (BWSE).] Here, the Waldorf teacher is told that the Spirit Self becomes a plural entity when, after death, it resides in the spirit realm.

[2] Primarily, these are gods. Steiner taught that there are numerous gods above us, arrayed in nine ranks or "hierarchies." [See "Polytheism".]

[3] Life Spirit and Spirit Human (usually called Spirit Man) are the second and third subdivisions of spirit. They are higher than Spirit Self and, for this reason, we have not yet evolved to fully possess them. [See "life spirit" and "spirit man" in The BWSE.]

[4] In Anthroposophical belief, humans are born and die many times, alternating — through the process of reincarnation — between lives on the physical plane and lives in the spirit realm. [See "Reincarnation".]

[5] Steiner taught that each human has three incorporeal bodies. The etheric body incarnates around the age of seven. [See "etheric body" in the BWSE.]

[6] This is the second human incorporeal body. It incarnates around the age of 14. [See "astral body" in the BWSE.]

[7] This is the third human incorporeal body. It incarnates around the age of 21. [See "I" in the BWSE.]

[8] In addition to the three spiritual components and four bodies enumerated here, Steiner said that humans have three soul components: the sentient soul, the intellectual (or mind) soul, and the spiritual soul. [See the entries for these in the BWSE.]

 297.  "The particular kind of intelligence mankind developed instinctively in the Ancient Indian epoch would hardly be recognized as 'intelligence' by modern man. It was not concerned with the outside world but with the processes of digestion and reproduction ... In the Persian epoch intelligence was still directed to the inner, organic functions but partly also to the world outside man. This duality is characteristic of the rhythmic system ... The third post-Atlantean civilization flourished in North Africa and the Middle East, in Egypt and Babylon. Now intelligence, having passed through the digestive and rhythmic systems, takes hold of the nervous system which, by its nature, is directed toward the outer world of the senses. A consequence of this is that [awareness of] the spiritual world sinks into darkness ... Since all evolution follows the same laws it is not surprising that the development of the child shows parallels to the three stages that have just been described ... The Indian civilization corresponds to the Bull, the animal with the most highly developed digestive system. The Persian civilization corresponds to the animal with the best developed rhythmic system, the lion. The Egyptian civilization is an expression of the Eagle forces, which work in the formation of the brain and nervous system ... The theme of intelligence is central to the whole Apocalypse. It is the main theme in Rudolf Steiner's last message to anthroposophsts, the Michael Letters. Behind the scenes of the physical world a war is waged for this thing we call 'intelligence' and both the Apocalypse and the Michael Letters try to bring it home to us, that the way we use, or misuse, or do not use at all, the intelligence forces in us, will decide the future of humankind's evolution. For our age, the fifth post-Atlantean period, there is in the Apocalypse no rider or horse." — Waldorf teacher Charles Kovacs, THE APOCALYPSE IN RUDOLF STEINER'S LECTURE SERIES (Floris Books, 2013), pp. 39-43.

That final quotation (#297) is deeply occult, or mystical, or — to be precise — Anthroposophical. Tellingly, it was written by a Waldorf teacher. Like most of the nearly three hundred quotations that preceded it in our review, #297 is an example of Anthroposophical discourse. Few Waldorf teachers would talk this way to their students, at least not in class. But a great many Waldorf teachers believe the sorts of things included in such statements. It's a point we all might meditate upon.

— Roger Rawlings