Eurythmy (pronounced yur-ITH-me) is a form of mystical dancing performed by Anthroposophists and by students in Waldorf schools. 

Here are a number of intriguing statements about eurythmy. Some were made by Rudolf Steiner; others were made by Anthroposophical editors; and one was made by Rudolf Steiner's second wife, Marie Steiner. They are taken from EURYTHMY AS VISIBLE SPEECH (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1984). I am indebted to Maura Kwaten for pulling the quotations together. 

— Roger Rawlings

[What It Is]  "[E]urythmy is actually a visible speech." — p. 23.

[Our Bodies Are Created by Divine Eurythmy]  "The human form is the result of divine eurythmy. Every art may be traced back to its divine source: but because eurythmy makes use of the human being as its instrument it enables us to see most deeply into the connection between the human being and the universe." — p. 13 - lecture synopsis.

[The Zodiac and Planets]  "[W]e pass over to movements representing the possibilities of inner activity, movements which have their origin in the planets. In their sevenfold nature we have synthesized the animal element in man. The nineteen possibilities of sound: the consonants have their source in the Zodiac; the vowels in the dance of the planets. A cosmic activity may be brought to expression by means of human gesture and movement. The word of the heavens is really the being of man. By means of an imitation of the dance of the stars, discovered through spiritual knowledge, we have the possibility of renewing in eurythmy the temple dancing of ancient Mysteries." — p. 18 - lecture synopsis.

[The Zodiac and Planets]  "Exercises based on the moving circles of the Zodiac and Planets and their corresponding spiritual gestures. Such exercises bring the eurythmic movements and postures right down into the organism." — p.18 - lecture synopsis.

[Body and Soul]  "The soul must learn, as far as eurythmy is concerned, actually to live in the body. In eurythmy the whole body must become soul." — p. 20 - lecture synopsis.

[Clairvoyance, Color]  "The experience of colour was natural to humanity in the days of old clairvoyance, but has since been lost ... In the same way every human being has his own particular colour. This colour is of course closely connected with the astral body, which, as we know, changes with every varying emotion." — p.113.

[Lucifer and Ahriman]  "It is deeply interesting to consider such things, for in the breath sounds what really comes to expression is this: I will have nothing to do with Lucifer: everything which is Luciferic must disappear. — And the consonants of force express this feeling: I will hold fast to Ahriman, for if he escapes me he will poison everything: he must be held fast. — Thus the influence of Lucifer and of Ahriman has been implanted into these sounds." — p. 119.

[Magic Cures]  "Now this exercise is most excellent in the teaching of eurythmy from an educational point of view. Indeed, when one has observed in a child the tendency towards jealousy and ambition  — qualities which one wishes to eliminate — one must persuade such a child to do this exercise with special warmth and ardour ... It can also be said that this dance is a remedy against jealousy and false ambition." — p. 190.

[Magic Cures]  "In curative education, this first spiral exercise is specially applicable to children who are the reverse of anaemic, and it can be applied to combat undue egoism." — p. 200.

[Magic Cures]  "But if you form two groups —  the one group of choleric, the other group of phlegmatic children — and make both these groups run the spiral forms, and in such a way that the children must constantly look into each other's eyes, then they will mutually correct each other." — p. 202.

[Body and Soul]  "Yet another thing must be born in mind, and that is the fact that the learning of eurythmy entails an actual transformation of the human organism. Any performance which reveals the slightest trace of struggle between body and soul must be looked upon as unfinished and imperfect. In a eurythmy performance the whole body must have become soul." — p. 238.

[Promoting Anthroposophy]  "If we can feel ourselves as helpers of eurythmy, either in an active or in a more passive sense, then eurythmy will be able to fulfill the mission which it can and should fulfill in the general development of Anthroposophy ... [L]et us build up and develop each separate activity as it should and will be developed if we prove ourselves worthy of the real aims of Anthroposophy." — p. 241.

[Racism, Technology, Stars]  "If we allow ourselves to receive this aid, we shall be in the position to open ourselves to the spirit in every sphere of activity — in that sphere also which this book illumines with spiritual revelation and human knowledge. Then we shall no longer need to stimulate our slackened nerves by means of decadent negro dances which are hammered into us by machinery, turning us into machines and gradually killing out our finest human qualities: but we shall gain an understanding for a noble art of movement, having its source in the spirit, an art of movement which is the reflection of the Dance of the Stars, and which makes the language of the stars sound visibly within us in purity and truth." — p. 253 - Marie Steiner.

— Compilation by Maura Kwaten

"Eurythmy makes soul and spirit directly visible, ensouls and spiritualizes everything that moves in us. It makes use of everything human beings have developed for themselves during their evolution." — Rudolf Steiner, EDUCATION FOR ADOLESCENTS (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 43.

Anthroposophists usually speak of eurythmy as if it is a totally original development attributable to Rudolf Steiner. But in fact eurythmy grows out of a discernible cultural and religious history. While eurythmy is more sedate and programmatic than many other systems of devotional movement, and even though it was meant to be antithetical to prevailing forms of dance, eurythmy can be located in a long tradition that might best be labeled temple dancing.

A solemn, reverent mood is usually aimed at, and great spiritual profundity is supposed to flow from each movement performed. Eurythmy has virtually no purely artistic value. This is why, for example, THE INTERNATIONAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF DANCE (Oxford University Press, 2004) — a three-volume set of over 4000 pages — has no entry for eurythmy. The value (if any) of eurythmy is spiritual. The "temple" in which eurythmy is performed is any space that Anthroposophists use for holy purposes. The Goetheanum is foremost among these, but Waldorf or Steiner school assembly areas are used similarly.

The focus of eurythmy is the spirit realm and, secondarily, the manifestation of spirit in the physical realm. In particular, eurythmy is meant benefit the "etheric body" — the lowest of the three invisible bodies that Anthroposophists believe true human beings possess. 

"[E]urythmy is spiritually restorative by forming and strengthening the performer's subtle, etheric body." — Robert McDermott, THE NEW ESSENTIAL STEINER (Lindisfarne Books, 2009),  p. 49.

As always, Steiner himself is the best authority to consult concerning Anthroposophical beliefs. He taught that eurythmy prepares us for our next lives, after death. Eurythmy links us directly to the spirit realm, and in a sense our physical bodies exist only so that we may do eurythmy. 

"Consider the art of eurythmy, through which we move the human body. What exactly are we moving? We are moving the human organism by making the limbs move. The limbs, more than any other part of the human body, pass into the life of the next incarnation ... We directly link what precedes birth with what follows death. In a certain sense, we take from earthly life only the physical medium, the actual human being who is the tool or instrument for eurythmy. But we allow this human being to make manifest what we study inwardly, what is already prepared in us as a result of previous lives; we transfer this to our limbs, which are the part of us where life after death is being shaped in advance. Eurythmy shapes and moves the human organism in a way that furnishes direct external proof of our participation in the supersensible [i.e., invisible, spiritual] world. In having people do eurythmy, we link them directly to the supersensible world." — Rudolf Steiner, ART AS SPIRITUAL ACTIVITY (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), pp. 246-247.

Eurythmy, usually described as visible speech, is more aptly described as a physical form of prayer. According to Steiner, it takes us directly into the spirit realm, and — by drawing on our past lives (karma) — it strengthens our invisible etheric bodies, thereby preparing us for our future lives (reincarnation). The purpose, in other worlds, is spiritual and religious. Specifically, eurythmy is meant to facilitate our spiritual evolution, which will ultimately lead us to become God the Father. This is the core of the religious system known as Anthroposophy. [See, e.g., "The Father" and "Tenth Hierarchy".] In "having" students "do eurythmy," Waldorf teachers lead them into a physical enactment of Anthroposophical religious doctrine.

Eurythmy is so central to the spiritual purposes of Waldorf schooling that, when Steiner considered which classes might be pared back in an effort to improve the quality of Waldorf education, he explicitly exempted eurythmy. 

“Sadly, [we can trim] technology and shop, as well as gymnastics and singing. We cannot drop eurythmy...." — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 688. [See "Academic Standards at Waldorf".]

— Roger Rawlings

In Anthroposophic belief, eurythmic gestures have astrological associations.

“Twelve particular constellations, known as the zodiac...have a particular formative presence in our universe. Their relative movements can be experienced as an ever-changing dance or conversation ... Out of his spiritual research, Rudolf Steiner...recognized the living quality of the zodiac circle. He experienced it speaking or singing to us, and perceived that a specific consonant...sounds out of each sign of the zodiac ... Likewise, each of the planets sings to the earth with a different vowel quality.” — Cynthia Hoven, EURYTHMY (HeartSong Press, 2012), pp. 29-30.

Steiner himself said, 

"[Ancient] human beings, feeling transported into the Zodiac, incorporated into themselves from zodiacal constellations the twelve consonants, and from the movements of the planets past the fixed-star constellations, the vowels." — Rudolf Steiner, THE ARTS AND THEIR MISSION (Anthroposophic Press, 1964), lecture 5, GA 276.

Here is the list of astrological associations 

for consonants and vowels

as reported by Hoven on p. 30 of EURYTHMY:

In Theosophy, drawing largely from Eastern traditions, dance is generally seen as a metaphor for the interplay between mortals and gods, the created and the creators. At the literal level, dances are performed in temples and elsewhere to depict the universal spiritual drama and also to elevate the individual soul. The results can be considerably more energetic than most eurythmic performances, although the goal of spiritual progress is the same.

◊ “All ritual, whether Confucian in the East, Vedic in India, or ecclesiastical or magical in the West, reminds us that such stylized behavior can transform the participant, enabling him or her to lose the ego-self and become something greater, an ideal whose role is being acted out as by a performer in a great dance.” — Robert S. Ellwood, THEOSOPHY: A Modern Expression of the Wisdom of the Ages (Quest Books, 1986), p. 143.

◊ “The theme of the Dance Recital was an emotional interpretation of the aspirational outpourings of the Soul, and the ecstatic identification of these with the very Soul of the Universe itself — the merging of the individual soul in God. Every movement, every gesture, every pose, each song, expressed an aspect of such union, so that the whole Dance became an intricate yet beautifully rhythmic symbol of a soul’s awakening to its Divinity. Yet, emotional in texture though this particular Dance undoubtedly was, it had a very high intellectual content, appealing no less to the mind than to the emotions themselves. — George S. Arundale, Shrimati Rukmini Devi and C. Jinarajadasa, THEOSOPHY AS BEAUTY (Theosophical Publishing House, Adyar, Chennai [Madras] India, 1936), No. 208.

Eurythmy fits many elements of these descriptions: stylized movement, the use of such movement to express profound meaning, the transformation of the dancer, perception of and approach to higher spiritual states, the soul's awakening (a term Steiner used as the title for one of his mystery plays), the expression of high intellectual content, the identification with God, and so on.

"Anthroposophists believe the movements [of eurythmy] are a sign language with spiritual significance that help the child communicate with the spirit world." — Whats Your Views.

Here is an item from the Waldorf Watch News:

Eurythmy is a form of dance emphasized in Waldorf schools. Indeed, it is often required for all students. A modern variant of temple dancing, eurythmy is meant to make direct connections to the spirit world. 

"In having people do eurythmy, we link them directly to the supersensible [i.e., supernatural] world." — Rudolf Steiner, ART AS SPIRITUAL ACTIVITY (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 246-247. 

Waldorf schools and their proponents push eurythmy hard, although the kids at the schools often hate it:

"◊ i went to a waldorf school and i HATED eurythmy. It seemed too hippyied out. We got into Tai Chi later which seemed to make more sense. But looking back on it I see how the concept of moving together and grace is a helpful skill to have.... 

“◊ lol yeah it isn’t exactly everyone’s favorite subject, especially when they make you do it through high school, which they didn’t at my school… I mean, did you see the looks on those kids faces in that video? 

“◊ yeah, I mean, long ago at Waldorf schools it would have been the tradition to try and force them into their gender role. They even used to go as far as trying to make left-handed children write/draw with their right hand. But I didn’t have either of these experiences, and I am a Waldorf lifer.... 

“◊ I went from a public school to Waldorf in 8th grade. I got kicked out of my first Eurythmy class for laughing to death and causing 'disturbance' to the environment and degrading her [i.e., the eurythmy teacher] by doing so. I was told what it was all about. Couldn’t stop laughing tho’, and I still do.... 

“◊ best eurithimist teenagers are brazilian. period.... 

“◊ WHERE’S MY GODDAMN WALDORF SALAD!?!?!!....

"◊ ....I find that most students in the school don’t understand the subject until later when reflecting on it. In our school during the Waldorf Week of interviews it is then that the seniors begin to talk about Eurythmy that I feel they begin to appreciate it. Out of my observation though, very few students like me appreciate it as of now. I’m currently a junior....

“◊ I do eurythmy at my school, and I find it totaly pointless. not at all educational. sorry for those who like it, this is just my opinion, most of my school also agree with me.... 

“◊ the waldorf education system loves to parade its successfuly schools around but dont be fooled, i went to a waldorf school that was horrible and i have heard stories about other bad ones, i transfered into the high school after going to public school and the students discluded me and talked down to me because i didnt have their ‘supirior’ education. College time came and 3 of the 14 people in my class dropped out of college, 2 more flunked out.” 

[8-14-2011 http://educationonlineusa.net/2011/08/03/education/eurythmy-and-waldorf-education-excerpt-from-eurythmy-dvd-viedo/]

Curative Eurythmy

Steiner's followers believe eurythmy has great healing powers. Here is some of what is said about "curative eurythmy" at anthromedia.com:

"Eurythmy therapy is a movement therapy based on specially modified eurythmy movements geared to the sick organism. Eurythmy therapy treatment is useful as prophylaxis where a tendency to illness exists, but is chiefly used in acute and chronic conditions.

"These include: internal medicine, psychiatry, paediatrics, gynaecology, psychosomatic medicine, neurology, surgery, ophthalmology, orthopaedics, special needs education....

"Eurythmy therapy began in 1921. It was developed by Rudolf Steiner and Dr. Ita Wegman MD as an autonomous movement therapy based on the movement art of eurythmy. Eurythmy therapy, in distinction to artistic eurythmy, works with movement directed towards the body, the effect of which is comparable to a medicine.

"...Eurythmy therapy exercises geared to the individual clinical picture lead to balance in the patient’s body, soul and spirit constitution....

"The eurythmy therapist will have completed a eurythmy training and a supplementary training to become a eurythmy therapist. The basic training allows him to develop proficiency in the movement art of eurythmy and to use his own body as a sensitive movement instrument. The separate training to become a eurythmy therapist enables him to apply eurythmy movement in ways specifically appropriate to different illnesses. It develops the capacity to form a therapeutic relationship with the patient and to cooperate with the doctor...."

Another item from the News:

February, 2013

Currently featured at the Rudolf Steiner College Bookstore:

[HeartSong Press, 2012.]

"Drawing from decades of experience as a performer, teacher and therapist, Cynthia Hoven offers new and inspiring insights into how the practice of Eurythmy can awaken our creative spiritual powers and lead to a deeper understanding of the meaning of life and our place in the universe."

◊

Waldorf Watch Response:

Eurythmy is meant to express, through movement and gestures, the inner or spiritual meaning of language. At traditional Waldorf schools, all students are required to perform eurythmy.

Steiner said that doing eurythmy puts us in direct contact with the spirit realm. 

"In having people do eurythmy, we link them directly to the supersensible world." — Rudolf Steiner, ART AS SPIRITUAL ACTIVITY (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), pp. 246-247. 

Done properly, with reverence and soulful seriousness, eurythmy is the physical enactment of Anthroposophical doctrine; it is prayer in motion. The dancers are meant to be communing directly with the gods. As a former Waldorf teacher has written, 

"Anthroposophists believe the movements [of eurythmy] are a sign language with spiritual significance that help the child communicate with the spirit world." [See "Whats Your Views".] 

Thus, the Waldorf emphasis on eurythmy is one clear indicator of the religious nature of Waldorf education. How important is eurythmy in Waldorf schools? 

"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.

For some of Steiner's teachings about eurythmy, you might consult EURYTHMY - An Introductory Reader (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2006). Especially interesting is the chapter on "eurythmy therapy," in which Steiner makes claims for the curative, medicinal effects of eurythmy. Waldorf students who become ill are often prescribed particular eurythmic exercises for their supposed health-restoring powers.

 Quote of Note

from the Waldorf Watch News,

December 18, 2019:

[Floris Books, 2019.]

Astrology has been important in Anthroposophy from the beginning, and it remains so today. According to Anthroposophical doctrine, astrological influences have guided human evolution on Earth. Our progress has occurred as various constellations of the zodiac, gaining ascendance in sequence, have beamed their influences down to us. Here, for instance, is a summary of human history (and the human future) since the sinking of Atlantis, according to Anthroposophical teachings. According to these teachings, humanity's forward steps have occurred under the auspices of the zodiacal constellations:

"The post-Atlantean sequence of cultural epochs   Cancer: the first post-Atlantean cultural epoch [1], that of Ancient India, arose in the constellation of Cancer. Here the task was to develop the etheric body [2] ... Gemini: in the next, the Ancient Persian cultural epoch, we start to deal with the inevitable confrontation of the forces of darkness...in the conflict between Ahura Mazdao, god of light, and Ahriman, spirit of darkness [3] ... Taurus: the third post-Atlantean age, the Egyptian-Chaldean, comes under the sign of Taurus. Mankind's progressive conquest of the earth is seen inwardly as the development of the sentient soul [4]. Aries: there follows the fourth, or Greco-Latin epoch ... Here the intellectual (or mind-heart) soul is formed [5] ... Pisces: the single event of the previous epoch...the deed of self-sacrifice carried out by the Sun-Being, Christ...continues to shine ... The descent of the human being into matter persists, however, in this cultural epoch [6] ... Aquarius: the sixth cultural epoch, ruled by Aquarius, belongs to the Russian impulse of brotherly love [7] ... Capricorn: the seventh, or American cultural period, coming under Capricorn, will close the cycle of post-Atlantean evolution [8]." — Anthroposophist Werner Barfod, THE ZODIAC GESTURES IN EURYTHMY (Floris Books, 2019), pp. 81-82. This is a translation of a German text published in 2018 by the Anthroposophical publishing house Verlag am Goethenanum. [9]

◊

Waldorf Watch Footnotes:

The following gets a bit convoluted. But this is typical of Anthroposophical doctrine. If you become deeply engrossed in Waldorf education, you will probably need to grapple with such thinking sooner or later.

[1] Steiner taught that human beings once lived on the continent of Atlantis. [See "Atlantis".] He said we currently live in the Post-Atlantean Epoch (the age following the destruction of Atlantis). The Post-Atlantian Epoch, Steiner said, is the fifth epoch (or "great epoch") that humanity has undergone on the Earth. [See "great epochs" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia (BWSE).] In turn, this great epoch consists of a succession of shorter eras that Steiner called "cultural epochs." [See "cultural epochs" in the BWSE.] The first cultural epoch was the Ancient Indian Age, which occurred under the influence of the constellation Cancer. [For an overview of Steiner's teachings about human evolution, see "epochs" and "evolution" in the BWSE; also see "Matters of Form".]

[2] Steiner taught that our history is purposeful and, to a large extent, planned. The stars and constellations embody various gods who guide us in fulfilling the divine cosmic plan. [See "divine cosmic plan" in the BWSE.] So, each epoch or era has a planned "task" or purpose. During the first cultural epoch after Atlantis went down, the task for humanity was to develop the etheric body. [See "etheric body" in the BWSE.] This invisible body, Steiner taught, is the first of three such bodies that humans now possess, in addition to the physical body. The etheric bodies of children today incarnate around age seven, Steiner said. [See "Incarnation".] Here we are told that the etheric body was developed during the Ancient Indian Age. 

[3] Ahura Mazdao (or Ahura Mazda) is the chief god in Zoroastrianism. He is the Sun God, the same god whom Steiner identified as Christ. [See "Sun God".] In Zoroastrianism, Ahriman is the enemy of Ahura Mazdao — Ahriman is the devil. [See "Ahriman".] Steiner taught that Ahriman really exists, just as the Sun God really exists. Here we are told that during the second cultural epoch, the Ancient Persian Age, mankind began dealing with the confrontation between the forces of good, embodied in the Sun God, and the forces of evil, embodied in Ahriman. The Ancient Persain Age occurred under the aegis of the constellation Gemini, we are told.

[4] I.e., during the Egypto-Chaldean Age — under the sign of Taurus — mankind made further progress in mastering the physical plane of existence (our "progressive conquest of the earth"). The inner reflection of this progress was our development of the "sentient soul." Steiner taught that in addition to several bodies, humans have several souls or soul components and several spirits or spirit components. [See "What We're Made Of".] The sentient soul is the first of three souls (or soul parts) humanity has come to possess. This soul forms feelings and concepts. [See "sentient soul" in the BWSE.]

[5] Here we are told that the mind-heart soul (also called the intellectual soul or the mind soul) was developed during the Greco-Roman cultural epoch, overseen by Aries. This soul, receiving feelings and concepts from the sentient soul, mulls over these constructs. Only after we developed this soul, Steiner taught, did humans become capable of rational thought. [See "intellectual soul" in the BWSE.] Bear in mind that the Anthroposophical attitude toward intellect is ambivalent at best. [See "intellect" in the BWSE.] We did not become truly aware or conscious, Steiner taught, until the third soul or soul part developed. [See "consciousness soul" in the BWSE.] 

[6] Steiner taught that the most important event in human history upon the Earth occurred during the fourth cultural epoch. This event was the incarnation, ministry, crucifixion, and vindication of the Sun God (Ahura Mazda or Christ). [See "Turning Point of Time" in the BWSE.] According to Steiner, this enormously important event ("the deed of self-sacrifice carried out by the Sun-Being, Christ") still shines during the fifth cultural epoch — our own period. [See "Anglo-Germanic Age" in the BWSE.] During our age, overseen by Pisces, humanity has progressed even further in its mastery of the physical plane ("the descent of the human being into matter"). Descending into materiality is dangerous for us, but — Steiner taught — it will strengthen us for our future re-ascent into spirituality.

[7] Ruled by Aquarius, we will evolve to the sixth cultural epoch, which Steiner denominated the Russian Age. Brotherly love — which Steiner said is an impulse of the Russian soul — will blossom. But racial conflict will also reach a crescendo before being consigned to the past. [See "Russian Age" in the BWSE.]

[8] Under the rule of Capricorn, we will evolve to the seventh and final cultural epoch of the Post-Atlantean Epoch: the American Age.  [See "American Age" in the BWSE.] This developmental stage will take us into a titanic conflict, the War of All Against All — a necessary, cleansing crisis that will winnow away much of what is low and vile among the human population. [See "All v. All".] The survivors of this conflict will then be able to evolve into the next great epoch, the sixth — the Epoch of the Seals. [See "Sixth Epoch (Seals)" in the BWSE.]

[9] Note that all of this mysticism, entwined with astrology, is presented in a book about eurythmy — a form of spiritual dance devised by Steiner. [See "Eurythmy".] Steiner indicated that eurythmy gives visible expression to his teachings (Anthroposophy) — teachings such as those we have been reviewing here. Students in Waldorf schools are often required to perform 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.

By ordering students to perform eurythmy, Waldorf schools seek to connect them directly to the supernatural or spiritual world(s):

"In having people do eurythmy, we link them directly to the supersensible [i.e., supernatural] world." — Rudolf Steiner, ART AS SPIRITUAL ACTIVITY (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), pp. 246-247.

The supersensible realm, lying beyond the reach of our ordinary senses, is the realm of the gods and the astrological powers flowing outward from the gods, Steiner indicated. [See "Astrology".]