123. “Brain — The brain acts as a mirroring ground [1] … [I]t mediates between the spiritual and the physical world just as a radio mediates between the broadcaster and the listener [2]. Most radio stations are broadcasting their programmes 24 hours a day; but the only station we can hear is the one we tune in to. In the same way, the ‘I’ [3] chooses…the thoughts that are relevant to a particular moment [4]. The brain does not produce thoughts [5].” — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY A-Z (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2011), p. 16.

[1] That is, according to Anthroposophical beliefs, the brain receives and reflects thoughts sent down from on high. It is a mirror, not a creative font of ideas. It does not think. [See “Thinking”.]

[2] A different metaphor: The brain is a radio, receiving thoughts from on high.

[3] The “I” is one’s spiritual ego, one’s unique spiritual identity. [See “Ego”.]

[4] The cosmos is full of “living thoughts,” emanating from many, many spirits. [See the entry for “living thoughts” in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.] The “I” decides which stream of thoughts to receive at any given moment. 

[5] From the main man:

◊ “[T]he brain and nerve system have nothing at all to do with actual cognition; they are only the expression of cognition in the physical system.” — Rudolf Steiner, THE FOUNDATIONS OF HUMAN EXPERIENCE (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 60. 

◊ "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, ORDEALS OF THE SOUL, REVELATIONS OF THE SPIRIT (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1983), p. 119.    To the extent that we do any thinking of our own, we do it in our bones and bodies, not in our heads. 

◊ “The head only looks on at all that occurs. The head is really only an apparatus for reflecting what the body does. The body thinks, the body counts. The head is only a spectator.” — Rudolf Steiner, RHYTHMS OF LEARNING (SteinerBooks, 1998), p. 159. 

◊ “As soon as we begin to think with our fingers — and one can think with one's fingers and toes much more brightly, once one makes the effort, than with the nerves of the head — as soon as we begin to think with that part of us which has not entirely become matter, when we think with the lower part of our being, then our thoughts are the thoughts of our karma." — Rudolf Steiner, BLACKBOARD DRAWINGS 1919-1924 (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2003), p. 126.   We might ask ourselves whether a sensible form of education can be based on such concepts. Waldorf education is based on such concepts. [See "Oh Humanity".]

 124. "From the beginning of his work with teachers and physicians [1], Rudolf Steiner always stressed that educating is simultaneously healing, a subtle healing ... [T]hrough anthroposophical knowledge of the human being [2]...a concept that looks for the origin of health is introduced ... In the buildup of the human organism [3], physical body, etheric body, astral body, and ego-organization [4] work closely throughout life ... Soul activity [5] becomes possible because the ego-organization and astral body are only loosely connected with the physical and etheric bodies ... The astral body submerges rhythmically — through inhalation and heart contraction (systole) — into the physical and etheric organism and is released once again through exhalation and heart-expansion (diastole) [6] ... In spiritual activity, the ego-organization, astral body, and etheric body are free of the physical body while active in thinking [7] ... During the day...the ether body is available for body-free thought activity [8]. At night, the etheric body enters once more into the physical body ... At night, the ego-organization and astral body are released completely from [the physical body] and commune with beings in the spiritual world [9]." — Waldorf doctor (and former Waldorf student) Michaela Glöckler, EDUCATION AS PREVENTIVE MEDICINE (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2002), pp. 15-18. [10]

[1] Particularly at the first Waldorf school, opened in Germany in 1919.

[2] See "What We're Made Of"  and  "Our Parts".

[3] In Anthroposophical belief, this process is inextricable from the process of incarnation. [See "Incarnation".] The "human organism" may be understood to include all components of the human constitution, or it may be considered as consisting primarily of the physical parts of a human being. Here, Glöckler says that the three invisible bodies work throughout life to build and perfect the physical organism.

[4] Steiner taught that fully incarnated humans have four bodies: the physical, etheric, astral, and ego bodies. The "ego-organization" is the psychological/spiritual structure of the spiritual ego, including its lowest and highest components.

[5] Steiner taught that humans have both souls and spirits. The former (involved with the astral body) is one's temporary spiritual identity during a single lifetime; the latter (involved with the ego body) is one's permanent spiritual identity through all lifetimes. (Reincarnation is a central Anthroposophical belief.) Here, Glöckler says the soul can be active because the ego and astral body are not tightly bound to, and thus not limited by, the physical body.

[6] I.e., the astral body alternates between close connection with the physical and etheric bodies, and disconnection from them. The spiritual ego is even less connected to the physical and etheric bodies.

[7] Steiner taught that thinking does not actually occur in the brain. Rather, we receive thoughts from the gods, using the brain more or less as a radio receiver. Steiner's followers accept his pronouncements on these (and virtually all other) matters:

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

[8] I.e., it assists in the "thinking" process that is independent of the bodily organ called the brain.

[9] I.e., while the physical and etheric bodies sleep on Earth, the astral body and ego rise into the spirit realm and converse with the gods. 

"This is how we are at night. We are two people in the night." — Rudolf Steiner, BLACKBOARD DRAWINGS 1919-1924 (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2003), p. 102. [See, e.g., "Holistic Education".]

[10] In sum, Steiner and his followers think that Anthroposophical education — or Waldorf education — confers health because of its salubrious spiritual essence. Readers will have to decide whether they think education based on concepts such as we see here — etheric body, astral body, etc. — contains truth or any therapeutic potential.

 125. “The issue is, Will thinking fall prey to the mechanism of the brain? Will ‘the brain thinks’ become reality? ... When the cerebral apparatus dominates thinking, it makes no difference what  we think ... Anthroposophy, for its part, presupposes that thinking does not remain bound to the brain ... It recognizes that when thinking is determined by the brain its loses its autonomy and can no longer act freely....” — Georg Kühlewind, WORKING WITH ANTHROPOSOPHY (Anthroposophic Press, 1992), p. 11.

 126. “[T]he task of the educator is to make oneself a kind of prophet [1] of the child’s future.” — Christopher Clouder, head of the Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship, “Spiritual Dimension and Autonomy” (1998).

[1] Waldorf teachers see themselves as prophets and priests. They can foresee the future, they think, by developing their powers of clairvoyance. They serve their students by serving the gods. 

"The position of teacher becomes a kind of priestly office, a ritual performed at the altar of universal human life." — Rudolf Steiner, THE ESSENTIALS OF EDUCATION (Anthroposophic Press, 1997), p. 24. 

[See "Waldorf Priests".]

 127. “Religious experience, like artistic feeling, has a strengthening effect on the Etheric Body ... Therefore, a religious mood should pervade the [Waldorf] teacher’s actions as well as the subjects of the curriculum [1].” — Richard Blunt, WALDORF EDUCATION: Theory and Practice (Novalis Press, 1995), p. 153.

[1] Waldorf faculties generally accept Steiner's directive that religious feeling, if not religious doctrines, should pervade schooling. 

"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.

 128. “Mathematics [1] is closer to the nature of the human body [2] than writing or reading [3] … [W]hat is most important here is not the shape of the numerals, but what lies behind them [4] … This living reality has much more meaning for the spiritual world [5] than what lives in reading and writing.” — Waldorf teacher Lois Cusick, WALDORF PARENTING HANDBOOK (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2005), pp. 54-55. [6]

[1] Waldorf teachers who follow Steiner believe that mathematics embodies occult spiritual truths. [See, e.g., "Magic Numbers".]

[2] The human form, Steiner taught, is a microcosm of the entire cosmos, the macrocosm. Math helps us to divine the structure, shape, and essence of the microcosm — and through that, the macrocosm. [See “The Center”.]

[3] Waldorf schools usually downplay the importance of reading and writing, especially for the youngest students. Math may also be downplayed in the elementary grades, but the spiritual "meanings" of math, as posited by Steiner, are accorded deep reverence. [See "Mystic Math".]

[4] Steiner taught that numerals and their shapes may manifest spiritual reality. (The written shapes of numerals may have spiritual meaning, but "what lies behind" the numerals is of course more important.)

[5] I.e., math provides an avenue to apprehending the living truths of the spirit realm. Reading and writing are less potent in this regard.

[6] Of all types of math, Steiner said, geometry has the highest spiritual power. 

“Basic geometric concepts awaken clairvoyant abilities.” — Rudolf Steiner, THE FOURTH DIMENSION: Sacred Geometry, Alchemy, and Mathematics (Anthroposophic Press, 2001), p. 92.

 129. “The first mathematicians were priests. Mathematics was not a mere physical science, but a revelation of divinity ... [Math has] an ethical quality ... It manifests order in the world ... One could go even further and say that this is a divine wisdom manifesting itself, and in this sense, mathematics becomes a religious study. In thinking mathematically one is tracing the divine pattern.” — Waldorf teacher Roy Wilkinson, TEACHING MATHEMATICS (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 1994), pp. 2-3.

 130. "The first 666 period saw the birth of Islam, bitter rival of Christianity ... Add 666 to 666 and we arrive at the year 1332 [1]. Around this period, Christian Europe was in the grip of an Inquisitorial Dark Age — its very own Ahriman inspiriation! [sic] ... 1332 plus 666 is...1998!! [sic] ... [I]t's not as if we weren't warned. Steiner must have been turning in his [grave] at the environmental folly that has brought the world to its knees in this century; one which achieved the critical mass of wholesale destruction in 1998 ... [W]ill there be an earth worth inhabiting in the 3rd Millennium? Steiner says there will, and he's been right so far." — Waldorf teacher-trainer Alan Whitehead, ARCHIOS (Golden Beetle Books, 1993), pp. 1-2.

[1] For more on this sort of numerological thinking in Waldorf belief, see "Mystic Math".

 131. “[Waldorf teacher addressing young students:] The stories I am going to tell are very special. They are wonderful stories of strange beings called ‘gods’ and of giants and dwarfs ... These stories were not just made up; they came about in a different way ... As long as Adam and Eve were still in paradise they could see God [1] … Then came the children of Adam and Eve, and their children’s children; they could still see God, but not very often ... The more people became used to living on earth...the less they could see God ... [B]ut very many of them, not just a few, could see the angels ... There were many peoples in the world who worshipped the angel-gods [2], and they had wonderful stories about them. The most wonderful stories were told among people who are called Norsemen ... When these brave, fierce Norsemen had fought a battle, they came home to celebrate their victory with a great feast ... The most important part of the feast was when a man called a ‘bard’ took a harp and sang or recited a poem ... These bards could see the angel-gods better than the others [3]. This is how the stories I am going to tell you came about. They are stories that these wise bards among the Norsemen heard from the angels, from the angel-gods [4].” — Waldorf teacher Charles Kovacs, NORSE MYTHOLOGY, Waldorf Education Resources (Floris Books, 2009), pp. 7-9.

[1] The Waldorf belief system, Anthroposophy affirms the existence of many gods. In Anthroposophy, references to “God” (the one and only deity of monotheistic faiths) generally denote the highest of the gods, or the “Godhead”. [See “God”.]

[2] In Anthroposophy, angels are gods one level higher than humanity. In all, Anthroposophy recognizes nine ranks of gods under the Godhead. [See “Polytheism”.]

[3] I.e., they had reliable clairvoyant abilities. [See the entries for "natural clairvoyance" and "atavistic clairvoyance" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.]

[4] The mythology of the Norsemen, Norse myths, is given great importance in Waldorf education. Steiner taught that Norse myths are truer and more insightful than any others.

"No other mythology gives a clearer picture of evolution than Northern mythology.” — Rudolf Steiner's THE MISSION OF THE FOLK SOULS (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2005), p. 17, lecture synopsis. 

Anthroposophy teaches that we are evolving, under the gods' influence, toward higher and higher forms of spirituality. Significantly, here a Waldorf teacher conveys Anthroposophical doctrines to Waldorf students.

From a Waldorf teachers' guide, written by a Waldorf teacher for Waldorf teachers: 

 132. "[T]here is in the Norse stories a great depth of knowledge [1] and, fragmentary as they are, they are probably relics of old Mystery wisdom [2]. They present a picture of evolution [3], of the creation and development of the human being and his connection with higher beings [4]; they show the human being's struggle with adverse powers [5], the fading of the old world conception [6] and the birth of the ego [7], which leads to new powers of perception [8]; they show the loss of spiritual vision [9] and the consequent catastrophe (Götterdämmerung) [10]; but out of the catastrophe comes new hope and new life emerges [11]." — Waldorf teacher Roy Wilkinson, THE NORSE STORIES AND THEIR SIGNIFICANCE (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 1999), p. 5.

[1] That is, these myths are not mere fabulous entertainments; they are deep and wise accounts, conveying important spiritual truths. Remember, 

"[These] are stories that these wise bards among the Norsemen heard from the angels, from the angel-gods.” — Waldorf teacher Charles Kovacs, NORSE MYTHOLOGY, Waldorf Education Resources (Floris Books, 2009), pp. 7-9. Angel-gods do not lie.

[2] I.e., the myths arise from ancient wisdom about spiritual mysteries, key to understanding the cosmos and its gods. [See the entries for "mystery" and "mystery knowledge" in the BWSE.]

[3] The central narrative of Anthroposophy concerns mankind's evolution to higher and higher stages of spiritual consciousness. Evolution is a central Anthroposophical concept, and remember: 

“No other mythology gives a clearer picture of evolution than Northern mythology." — Lecture synopsis, THE MISSION OF THE FOLK SOULS, a collection of lectures by Rudolf Steiner (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2005), p. 17.

[4] I.e., the good and beneficent gods. [See "gods" in the BWSE.]

[5] I.e., evil gods and/or demons. [See "Evil Ones".]

[6] I.e., the loss of mankind's primal clairvoyant powers and the understanding they provided. In Waldorf belief, this loss is a historical fact. 

"The History curriculum...provides a picture of the changing human consciousness from ancient clairvoyance to the loss of spiritual vision...."— Description of Roy Wilkinson's TEACHING HISTORY, Vol. 1 (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2000), posted at the site for the Rudolf Steiner College Book Store (last confirmed 4/6/2019).

[7] I.e., the spiritual ego, the "I". [See "Ego".]

[8] I.e, intellectual, rational perception is useful for life on the physical plane, Steiner taught, but it is also essentially limited to that plane and thus limiting to the human spirit. [See "intellect" in the BWSE.]

[9] I.e., again, the loss of old clairvoyant powers.

[10] I.e., the horrific consequences of losing clairvoyant connection to the spirit realm. Götterdämmerung, in Norse mythology, is the apocalyptic final battle between gods and their foes, resulting in the total destruction of all. [See "Götterdämmerung" in the BWSE.]

[11] Götterdämmerung gave rise to the possibility of a new beginning, arising from the ashes of destruction. In the Waldorf belief system (Anthroposophy), the new beginning and new hope available today are embodied in Anthroposophy itself — including Waldorf education.

 133. “The human spirit, making its way into the alien element of earth, cannot at once lay hold upon the body provided by heredity. For years it must labor to remodel the inherited form into a shape more suited to its individual needs and character. With the cutting of the second teeth at six or seven this task is brought to completion [1] ... With the coming of the second teeth significant changes may be noted in the child’s whole being ... If, before the change of teeth, the child has developed wholesomely among adults whose character has provided him with impressions of moral strength; if, between the second dentition and puberty, his teacher has been an artist able to satisfy his need of beauty, the child enters adolescence with a thought capacity powered by a healthy will, armed and enriched by feeling ... A true art of education...founds its practices upon an insight into the changing interplay of body, soul and spirit in the different periods of the child’s development. It sees in the child from birth to the change of teeth a being of wholly different needs than those of the second period, which terminates in puberty....” — Waldorf educator Marjorie Spock, TEACHING AS A LIVELY ART (Anthroposophic Press, 1985), pp. 9-13.

[1] The Waldorf belief system attaches surprising importance to teeth. The child's etheric body is thought to incarnate when baby teeth are replaced by adult teeth. Steiner taught that humans, especially young children, think with their teeth. 

"[T]he child develops teeth for the purpose of thinking." — Rudolf Steiner, EDUCATION (Rudolf Steiner Publishing Co., 1943), lecture 4, GA 307.

 134. “The phrase ‘change of teeth’ is consistently used by Steiner to refer to the time when the primary teeth are lost  and the permanent teeth emerge. This stage of development lasts for approximately the first seven years ... The Etheric and Astral Bodies are not yet born and are held in Etheric and Astral ‘envelopes’ which surround the physical body [1].” — Richard Blunt, WALDORF EDUCATION: Theory and Practice (Novalis Press, 1995), p. 67.

[1] Anthroposophists believe human beings have four bodies that incarnate at different periods. Before a body incarnates, it remains within an invisible sheath. 

"For his etheric body man is enveloped by an ethereal sheath...until about the change of teeth, the sixth or seventh year ... This event represents the 'birth' of the etheric body. After it man is still enveloped by an astral sheath, which falls away at the age of puberty — between the 12th and 16th year. The astral body in its turn is 'born.' Then at an even later point of time the I is born." — Rudolf Steiner, OCCULT SCIENCE - AN OUTLINE (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1963), chapter 7, GA 13.

 135. "Rudolf Steiner describes how, in our development after physical birth, we human beings go through further 'births': 'Just as we are enclosed within the physical sheath of our mother up to the time of birth, we are enclosed in an etheric sheath up till the change of teeth, that is, till about the seventh year.' [1]" — Anthroposophist Michaela Strauss, UNDERSTANDING CHILDREN'S DRAWINGS: Tracing the Path of Incarnation (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2007), p. 51.

[1] According to Waldorf belief, the invisible, "higher" bodies are wrapped in incorporeal "sheaths" until they incarnate or are born.

 136. “Steiner presented the challenging observation that we as human beings are born not once, but four times on our way to adulthood. Three of the four members of the bodily organism, however, are supersensible in nature and not directly accessible to sense perception. Each member of the total human organism requires a period of about seven years to mature and to fully penetrate the physical body.”  — Waldorf educator Henry Barnes, A LIFE FOR THE SPIRIT - Rudolf Steiner in the Crosscurrents of Our Time (Anthroposophic Press, 1997), p. 150.

 137. "As a spiritual entity, like the Sphinx [1], advances through time, it sheds its detritus in the form of hideous astral phantoms; malevolent beings [2] which hang around the fringes of human consciousness waiting to be unwittingly invited in." — Waldorf teacher-trainer Alan Whitehead, WORLD WITHIN, CHILD WITHOUT (Golden Beetle Books, 1993), p. 15.

[1] Steiner generally affirmed the actual existence of spiritual or mythical beings, including the Sphinx.

"The Sphinx is really the being who has us by the throat, who strangles us. When the ether-body expands as a result of the force of the breathing, a Luciferic being appears in the soul. In such an ether-body there is then not the human, but the Luciferic  form, the form of the Sphinx. The Sphinx is the being who brings doubts, who torments the soul with questions." — Rudolf Steiner, 

THE BALANCE IN THE WORLD OF MAN, Lecture 1, GA 158.

[2] While Anthroposophy is largely an optimistic faith, and Waldorf education is often enacted in a gauzy atmosphere of upbeat spirituality, the doctrines propounded by Rudolf Steiner also speak of many evil, demonic beings and forces.

 138. “[A] non-physical record of Christ's life exists in purely spiritual form. Dr. Steiner called this...the Fifth Gospel [1]. He said this 'spiritual document' resided in a larger body of information called the Akashic Record [2] ... Dr. Steiner is quite clear that his research [3] shows the synoptic Gospels are — in part — imagery drawn from the Akashic Records [4]." — Waldorf trainee Bruce Dickson, RUDOLF STEINER'S FIFTH GOSPEL (Xlibris, 2000), pp. 11-13. 

[1] According to Steiner, this additional Gospel “corrects” the four Gospels found in the Bible. Other mystics have made similar claims and produced their own versions of a fifth Gospel. The Rudolf Steiner Press has published Steiner’s version: THE FIFTH GOSPEL - From the Akashic Record (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1995, reprinted 2001). [See “Steiner’s Fifth Gospel”.]

[2] This is purportedly a storehouse of all historical knowledge (including much that is otherwise unknown), recorded on “akasha” — a spiritualized ether or stellar light. To read the Record, you must be clairvoyant. [See “Akasha”.]

[3] I.e., his clairvoyant examinations of the Akashic Record.

[4] I.e., Steiner claimed that the Gospels in the Bible are partly based on the Akashic Record, and he said the “Fifth Gospel” is based firmly on it. (The Synoptic Gospels are the first three books of the New Testament — the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The fourth Gospel, that of John, presents a slightly different vision. Steiner’s Fifth Gospel provides a radically different vision. [See, e.g., “Was He Christian?” and "Sun God".])

 139. "Steiner's original contribution to human knowledge was based on his ability to conduct 'spiritual research', the investigation of metaphysical dimensions of existence [1]… A natural seer from childhood [2], he cultivated his spiritual vision [3] to a high degree, enabling him to speak with authority on previously veiled mysteries of life [4].” — Publisher's note, back cover, EDUCATION - An Introductory Reader (Sophia Books, Rudolf Steiner Press, 2003), a compilation of Rudolf Steiner texts.

[1] Steiner claimed to make an objective study of the spirit realm through his use of “exact clairvoyance”. [See “Exactly”.] Such “research” is fallacious, however, if clairvoyance — “exact” or otherwise — is a delusion. And clairvoyance certainly seems to be a delusion. There is no convincing evidence for the existence of clairvoyance. [See “Clairvoyance”.]

[2] Steiner claimed that, as a young boy, he saw a ghost or disembodied spirit. More generally, he indicated that he possessed clairvoyant capabilities (he was a “seer”) from a young age. [See “What a Guy”.]

[3] I.e., clairvoyance.

[4] Steiner’s teachings, which form the basis for Waldorf education, are “occult” — they supposedly reveal previously hidden spiritual truths. [See “Occultism”.]

 140. “Akasha Chronicle — a chronicle or record that is imperceptible to the ordinary sense, into which are inscribed all events that occur in the cosmos [1]  … [I]t is a ‘cosmic memory’ of all that happens … The initiate [2] can ‘read’ this chronicle … Not only events that took place in the physical world can be unveiled, but also underlying spiritual connections [3]. Rudolf Steiner developed the ability to read this supersensible chronicle [4].” — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY A-Z (Sophia Books, 2011), p. 5.

[1] Many occultists, especially Theosophists, have claimed to be able to read the Akasha Chronicle (or Record), a sort of celestial encyclopedia written on “akasha” — cosmic ether or astral light. They have ascribed their amazing accounts of cosmic history to the wisdom they obtained from the Chronicle. (The Chronicle is invisible to ordinary sight, they say, but it can be read through the use of clairvoyance.)

[2] For an overview of occult initiation, see "Inside Scoop".

[3] Thus, the Chronicle leads to understanding of the eternal and spiritual as well as the merely temporal and physical. In this sense, it ushers initiates to understanding of the deepest truths.

[4] Steiner claimed to study the Chronicle through his use of highly reliable, “exact” clairvoyance. [See “Exactly”.] He asserted that most of his spiritual teachings resulted from his personal clairvoyant investigations, including his readings of the Chronicle. (The Chronicle is “supersensible” in that it lies beyond the reach of our ordinary senses.)

 141. “[W]e should consider what we do in education as a continuation of the work of the Hierarchies [i.e., the gods]. [1]” — Waldorf teacher-trainer René M. Querido, THE ESOTERIC BACKGROUND OF WALDORF EDUCATION (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 1995), p. 85.

[1] Rudolf Steiner gave this charge to Waldorf teachers, and they continue trying to abide by it. They think that they know the gods' intentions, and that they can help fulfill those intentions after children have incarnated on Earth. 

"[W]hat we have to do in education is a continuation of what higher beings [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 birth." — Rudolf Steiner, THE FOUNDATIONS OF HUMAN EXPERIENCE (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 37.

 142. “[T]he Phantom is related, on the one hand, to present-day Saturn, the outermost planet of our solar system [1] and, on the other, to the whole starry cosmos.” — Anthroposophist Sergei O. Prokofieff, THE CYCLE OF THE YEAR AS A PATH OF INITIATION (Temple Lodge Publishing, 1995), p. 264.

[1] Phantoms, specters, and other unseen beings — high and low, good and evil — abound in Anthroposophy. Almost as telling, Anthroposophists believe that the solar system ends with Saturn. They think that Uranus and Neptune are not true members of the solar system.

 143. “[A]dversarial powers [1] and this ‘prince of darkness’ (Ahriman) [2] do not just hold sway in the darkness of the Abyss [3], but also in the wider atmosphere ... [C]ertain Rosicrucian masters [4]...describe these supersensible facts [5]…referring to the ghost spheres of the atmosphere [6].” — Anthroposophist Sigismund von Gleich, THE TRANSFORMATION OF EVIL - and the Subterranean Spheres of the Earth [7] (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2005), p. 30. 

[1] I.e., demons and other opponents of the divine cosmic plan, as outlined by Waldorf founder Rudolf Steiner. [See the entry for “divine cosmic plan” in the BWSE.]

[2] Ahriman is the devil as posited in the religion of Zoroastrianism; he is the opponent of the God of Light, known in Zoroastrianism as Ahura Mazda. Rudolf Steiner affirmed the real existence of Ahriman, and he explained that Ahura Mazda is actually Christ, the Sun God. [See “Ahriman”, “Sun God”, and “Zoroastrianism”.]

[3] I.e., hell or, in Anthroposophy, the gulf separating physical reality from spiritual reality. [See the entry for “abyss” in the BWSE.]

[4] Rosicrucianism is or was a secretive mystical sect claiming to possess occult spiritual wisdom. Steiner taught that Rosicrucianism (as redefined by himself) is the correct spiritual path for modern humans. [See “Rosy Cross”.]

[5] “Supersensible” information is knowledge that is inaccessible to our ordinary senses. Steiner taught that clairvoyance is needed to attain such knowledge, and he claimed to be extraordinarily clairvoyant. [See “Exactly”.] Many Waldorf teachers believe they are clairvoyant. [See “The Waldorf Teacher’s Consciousness”.] There is, however, no reliable evidence for the existence of clairvoyance. [See “Clairvoyance”.]

[6] I.e., ghost-filled segments of the Earth's atmosphere. Steiner taught that we create ghosts or specters through our evil actions and thoughts. [See the entry for “ghosts” in the BWSE.] Here, von Gleich indicates that various layers of the Earth's atmosphere are haunted by "adversarial powers."

[7] Steiner taught that there are nine layers or spheres within the Earth, such as the layer called the “Fire Earth”: 

“The Fire Earth is made essentially of feeling and will. It is sensitive to pain and would cry out if stepped on. It consists entirely of passions.” — Rudolf Steiner, THE INTERIOR OF THE EARTH (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2007), p. 31.

 144. “The earth breathes, [it] takes one breath every twenty-four hours, breathing in during the afternoon, and breathing out in the morning ... The earth obeys also another annual rhythm, breathing out in the spring and breathing in again in the autumn ... [T]hese supersensible facts are of the greatest importance in anthroposophical (biodynamic) agriculture inaugurated by Rudolf Steiner.” — Anthroposophist Stewart C. Easton, MAN AND WORLD IN THE LIGHT OF ANTHROPOSOPHY (Anthroposophic Press, 2023), p. 206.

 145. “[G]ames devised for the purpose of teaching have no place in schools. [The idea] that learning is play, declared Steiner, is the very best educational principle for ensuring that nothing at all is learnt ... Similarly so-called ‘visual aids’ [such as movies and videos]...should be avoided.” — Waldorf teacher Gilbert Childs, STEINER EDUCATION IN THEORY AND PRACTICE  (Floris Books, 1991), p. 102.

 146. “Waldorf education is a form of practical anthroposophy [1] … The first Waldorf school had formidable growing pains and internal dissensions [2] … Very few human institutions run smoothly…and even angels [3] have their disagreements. Learning about all the good things that may be expected to happen in a Waldorf school is a relatively easy matter [4]. Coping with the way things actually turn out is more difficult [5].” — Former headmaster at Rudolf Steiner School (New York City) Keith Francis, THE EDUCATION OF A WALDORF TEACHER (iUniverse, 2004), p. xii.

[1] That is, Waldorf education implements Anthroposophy, applying it to children. (Whether Waldorf schools teach Anthroposophy to the kids is a point of contention. Generally the schools refrain from teaching it in any open or explicit manner. But they usually do convey Anthroposophy in subtle, indirect ways. [See, e.g., “Sneaking It In”.])

[2] Rudolf Steiner was in charge of the first Waldorf school, and most of the faculty members were devoted to him. Nonetheless, rivalries, jealousies, cliques, factions, etc., developed — as they do in most human enterprises.

[3] In Anthroposophical belief, angels are gods one spiritual stage higher than human beings. Angels attend to, and protect, human beings (such as Waldorf teachers and students) — while archangels attend to, and protect, groups of humans (such as the populations of Waldorf schools). Angels and archangels are divine, but they are not perfect. Some may even go bad. These become “fallen angels”.

[4] Francis acknowledges problems and shortcoming in Waldorf education, but he is nonetheless an Anthroposophist deeply devoted to Waldorf.

[5] Waldorf schools may often fall short of their own best intentions. [See, e.g., “Complaints”.] In extreme cases, the schools fail altogether. [See, e.g. “Failure”.]

 147. “The choleric teacher or parent who is given to sudden, violent bursts of fury causes his children to live in a perpetual state of subconscious terror ... The phlegmatic teacher has an equally drastic though more subtle effect on his pupils. Their lively spontaneity is suppressed in his presence ... The melancholic teacher who is absorbed in his brooding fails to set up a reciprocal relationship with his pupils ... The excessively sanguine teacher continually overstimulates his pupils. They are exhausted by his restlessness” — Waldorf educator Marjorie Spock, TEACHING AS A LIVELY ART (Anthroposophic Press, 1985), pp. 123-124.

 148. "I am a missionary on behalf of [Rudolf] Steiner." — An instructor in a Waldorf teacher-training program. [See “Teacher Training”.]

 149. “During this period, spiritual science [i.e., Anthroposophy] experienced a considerable breakthrough [1]. The first Waldorf school, founded in September, 1919, was flourishing, and seeds had been planted for similar schools in Holland and England." — Waldorf teacher-trainer René Querido, Introduction, WALDORF EDUCATION AND ANTHROPOSOPHY, Vol. 1 (Anthroposophic Press, 1995).

[1] As we have seen, Waldorf teachers consider their work to be practical Anthroposophy; their objective is to enact and spread Anthroposophy in the world. As in most other things, they take their guidance on such points from Steiner. 

“One of the most important facts about the background of the Waldorf School is that we were in a position to make the anthroposophical movement a relatively large one. The anthroposophical movement has become a large one.” — Rudolf Steiner, RUDOLF STEINER IN THE WALDORF SCHOOL (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 156.

 150. "[S]cience, social studies, and history theoretically were all explored and integrated into the curriculum, but always on a 'Waldorf' timeline and scale, and never in-depth. Additionally, the information imparted was often not accurate. For example, the children were taught that there were 4 elements — Earth, wind, fire and air, and that the continents were islands floating on the ocean." — A teacher who tried Waldorf before turning to Montessori. [See "Ex-Teacher 5".]

 151. “If [a person] learns systematically to apply his will to his own thinking...it becomes God-thinking, a creative force itself ... Rudolf Steiner’s method of work calls upon man, in the highest degree, to face and outgrow himself.” — Anthroposophist Francis Edmunds, AN INTRODUCTION TO STEINER EDUCATION (Sophia Books, 2004), p. 7.

 152. “The feeling life [1] of the child will be further engaged by [studying] each animal [2] … [W]e help the children see the perfected specialization [3] of each animal species, be it a wing, fin, webbed foot, claw, and so on, in contrast to the blessing and gift of the nonspecialization of the human physical body with its infinite possibilities [4] ….” — Anthroposophist Astrid Schmitt-Stegmann, Introduction to PRACTICAL ADVICE TO TEACHERS (Anthroposophic Press, 2000), p. xiv.

[1] Waldorf schools generally emphasize feelings and the feeling life rather than thinking and the thinking life. Rudolf Steiner taught that feelings bring us closer to spiritual truths than thinking can ever do. Thinking is useful on the physical plane of reality; feelings lead us to the spirit realm. 

◊ "I...want you to understand what is really religious in the anthroposophical sense. In the sense of anthroposophy, what is religious is connected with feeling.” — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press. 1998), p. 45. 

◊ “[T]hinking is oriented to the physical plane. Feeling really has a connection with all the spiritual beings [i.e., gods] who must be considered real ... In the sphere of feelings, human beings cannot liberate [i.e., separate] themselves from the spiritual world.” — Rudolf Steiner, PSYCHOANALYSIS AND SPIRITUAL PSYCHOLOGY (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1990), p. 70. [See, e.g., "Waldorf's Spiritual Agenda"; cf. "Thinking".]

[2] According to the Waldorf belief system, Anthroposophy, man did not evolve from animals. Instead, animals evolved from man — they branched off from the human evolutionary line. [See “Evolution, Anyone?”]

[3] Animals separated from the human line when they attained “perfected specialization” — that is, when they developed physical bodies perfectly suited for a type of physical life (on the ground, in the air, or in the water). They adapted fully to life on Earth, and this prevented them from evolving further (orientation to the spirit realm is required for such evolution). Animals thus represent prior stages of human development. 

“[A]nimals [are] the by-products of human development ... [T]he animal forms represent physically incarnated soul forces which the human being had to dispense with in order to mature sufficiently to receive the [human] ego ... We see then that man is not the result of animal evolution but that he is at the beginning of it … The animal world represents soul qualities which the human being has discarded.…” — Waldorf teacher Roy Wilkinson, MAN AND ANIMAL (The Robinswood Press, 1990).  

[4] Human beings have embryo-like bodies that are capable of infinite development. Likewise, Steiner taught, humans have spiritual capacities that can enable us to rise to almost infinitely high spiritual attainments. Steiner taught that there are nine ranks of gods above us [see “Polytheism”], and we will eventually rise through — and beyond — these ranks [see “apotheosis” in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia]. The universe was created for our benefit, Steiner taught, and we will ascend to the highest reaches. [See "The Center" and "Tenth Hierarchy".]

What can we learn from the following? Perhaps little. Or perhaps quite a lot. [1] 

 153. “[In college] I chose to study psychology and astrology [2] … [Later] I began to study Anthroposophy … I went to work as a Waldorf teacher … After two years, we left to start a Waldorf School in South Dakota [3] … Financial hardships forced the teachers [there] to abandon Waldorf education [4] … I [left] to teach Special Education on the Pine Ridge [Amerindian] Reservation ... After two years I went to work in the public school system … [Later] we found a Waldorf school where I could teach and our children attend ... [Then] I went to work as an insurance agent/financial planner [5] … I found a position [at a Waldorf school] in Kona, Hawaii ... I was forced out due to political differences [6] … My last teaching attempt was at a Waldorf school in Bellevue, Washington. To my dismay I found that the Waldorf school was not following Rudolf Steiner’s indications [7] … I retired and began to devote my time to astrology....” — Retired Waldorf teacher Ron Odama, ASTROLOGY AND ANTHROPOSOPHY (Bennett & Hastings, 2009), pp. viii-xi.

[1] No one teacher embodies all that is right and wrong with Waldorf education. Odama’s life has been in many ways unique. But some common Waldorf threads run through his account.

[2] Psychology is a respectable academic subject. Astrology is a pseudoscience; it is nonsense. Yet Anthroposophy rejects most of the findings of psychology (and other modern sciences) while affirming much of astrology. [See “Astrology”.] Certainly, someone who is interested in astrology might find attractions in Anthroposophy, and vice versa.

[3] The Waldorf movement is messianic; creating new Waldorf schools, and spreading the Waldorf faith, are central impulses in the movement. [See “Mission”.]

[4] Waldorf schools can drift from Anthroposophy, or fail altogether, for many reasons. [See "Non-Waldorf Waldorfs" and "Failure".] The continuous need to raise funds can be a cause of stress and, ultimately, it may lead to compromises that undermine a Waldorf school’s original vision.

[5] Many Waldorf teachers (but by no means all) are peripatetic, moving from school to school, and even moving in and out of the Waldorf system. Odama’s wanderings seem to be an extreme case. Some of his career choices seem high-minded, while others seem almost antithetical to his professed beliefs.

[6] “Politics” inside a Waldorf school are almost always matters of internal debate and dissension, centering on how the school should be run. Disputes often boil down to differing interpretations of Rudolf Steiner’s tenets.

[7] This school may have drifted away from Anthroposophy, or it may have been guided by an interpretation of Steiner’s tenets that Odama could not accept.

 154. “From the beginning, Steiner saw his task as the rescue of humanity ... [S]omething new must be created. But such a new revelation can no longer be received passively from the Gods, as was the case in previous epochs. It must now be created by, in, and through human beings [1].” — Anthroposophist Christopher Bamford, Introduction, ANTHROPOSOPHY IN EVERYDAY LIFE (Anthroposophic Press, 1995), pp. x-xi.

[1] Waldorf education is one of the central efforts through which Anthroposophists attempt to fulfill the will of the gods.

 155. "Before the moment of earthly conception, the yet-to-be-born soul approaches the Gate of Birth [1], and there views a tableau of the life to come. In previous times, souls would immediately descend after witnessing this picture of their karmically-determined future [2]. In our time, in which the world has grown so materialistic and life has become so difficult, more and more souls hesitate for a moment, reluctant to face their destiny. When they do choose to incarnate, they are a little late, and cannot 'mesh' their higher members with their lower bodies [3]. So a moment of hesitation, a little lateness, leads to an incomplete intertwining of body and soul [4], and this in turn can be a prime factor in those learning difficulties and emotional problems that will appear in childhood [5].” — Waldorf educator Eugene Schwartz, THE WALDORF TEACHER'S SURVIVAL GUIDE (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2000), p. 23.

[1] The Waldorf belief system, Anthroposophy, embraces the concept of reincarnation. [See “Reincarnation”.] According to Anthroposophic belief, we pass through a long series of incarnations as we evolve spiritually. After each death on Earth, we pass through a “gate to death” to begin a new life in the spirit realm. Later, passing through a “gate of birth,” we descend to begin a new life on Earth.

[2] Paired to belief in reincarnation is belief in karma — our self-created destiny. [See “Karma”.]

[3] “Higher” members are spiritual parts of the human constitution (spirit and soul); “lower” members are physical parts. Steiner taught that humans have four bodies. Ranked high to low, these are the ego body (with the "I"), the astral body, the etheric body, and the physical body. [See “Incarnation”.]

[4] This formulation (“body and soul “) is only approximate, given that Steiner said we have several bodies, and in we have both souls and spirits. [See “What We’re Made Of”.]

[5] The Waldorf approach to helping children who have various problems and needs is based on the sorts of beliefs Schwartz has outlined. If the Waldorf premises are faulty, then Waldorf therapy will reflect these faults.

 156. “Not only does [a] purifying and ennobling process continue throughout a single lifetime, but through many, as the ego evolves to higher and higher stages of development through successive lives or re-embodiments ... [T]he twin concepts of reincarnation and karma or destiny are central to [Steiner’s] spiritual-scientific system.” — Waldorf teacher Gilbert Childs, STEINER EDUCATION IN THEORY AND PRACTICE (Floris Books, 1991), p. 28. 

 157. "In the early grades when the children were living so strongly in their life forces, I knew I had a real chance to help them work at balancing and harmonizing themselves in preparation for their lives on the earth [1]."  — Waldorf teacher Torin M. Finser, EDUCATION AS A JOURNEY (Anthroposophic Press, 1994), p. 32.

[1] A note by Finser adds: "These deeper, latent issues are connected with karma." — Ibid., p. 236.

 158. “Aware as they [1] became through his [2] lectures...of how spiritual beings [3], especially Michael [4], stood behind their work [5], they could not help but feel that they must devote all that they had in them to the furtherance of this work.” — Anthroposophist Stewart C. Easton, RUDOLF STEINER: Herald of a New Dawn (Anthroposophic Press, 1980), p. 347.

[1] I.e., Anthroposophists.

[2] I.e., Rudolf Steiner's.

[3] I.e., gods.

[4] The Archangel of the Sun. [See "Michael".]

[5] I.e., work as “spiritual scientists,” Waldorf teachers, etc.

 159. “Classses 1 to 4 (Ages 7 to 10)  This first stage should be devoted to aspects of nature-religion, whereby the child should be brought to feel that wisdom is expressed through the workings of the divine in nature.” — Waldorf teacher Gilbert Childs, STEINER EDUCATION IN THEORY AND PRACTICE (Floris Books, 1991), p. 176.

 160. “A youth whose childhood has been touched by the blight of 'critical thinking' [1] will come to the moment of independent insight badly crippled ... Because skepticism has long since robbed him of part of his heart, he will now feel unable to embrace enthusiastically what he has come to understand [2]." — Waldorf educator John F. Gardner, THE EXPERIENCE OF KNOWLEDGE (Waldorf Press, 1975), pp. 127-128.

[1] Waldorf schools generally deplore critical thinking. They want children to develop the ability to think imaginatively and unconventionally — but rational, critical thinking is largely discouraged, especially in the lower grades. 

[2] The Waldorf approach attempts to lead children toward heartfelt, semi-clairvoyant true belief, so that they "come to understand" the sorts of things that Anthroposophists "understand." In practice, this means — when Waldorf schooling works as designed — Waldorf students "understand" or believe in their hearts messages their teachers have subtly but persistently conveyed to them.

 161. "Unconquered hero of the skies

St. Michael —

Against the foe with us arise,

Thine aid we pray the foe to slay,

St. Michael."

— THE WALDORF SONG BOOK (Floris Books, 1992), 

complied by Brien Masters.

 162. “Steiner had exceptional powers, he saw the future, he knew the truth.  If you truly need to learn, you need to study and follow Steiner. Steiner is all anyone ever needs to know.” — a Waldorf school teacher, quoted by a former colleague [http://www.montessorianswers.com/my-experiences-with-waldorf.html]

 163. “Rudolf Steiner's comments [on vaccination]...leave no doubt about the ‘hidden agenda’ behind the plan to vaccinate all the world's children with as many vaccines as possible, thus devastating their spiritual development [1] ... In the future, when more enlightened minds [2] will look back to today and will judge our misguided vaccination zeal, I hope they will be able to say that anthroposophists were among those with the discernment and the courage [to oppose vaccination].” — Waldorf teacher-trainer Philip Incao, “Report on Vaccination”, GATEWAYS (Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America), #34, Spring 1998.

[1] Among other things, Steiner said this:

"The soul will be abolished by means of a medicament...a vaccine which will be injected into the human organism in earliest infancy, if possible immediately after birth, to ensure that this human body never has the idea that a soul and a spirit exist ... Materialistic doctors will be entrusted with the task of driving souls out of human beings.” — Rudolf Steiner, “The Crumbling of the Earth and the Souls and Bodies of Man”, ANTHROPOSOPHICAL QUARTERLY (Mercury Press), Vol. 19, No. 1, 1974.

[2] The word "enlightenment" has many conflicting meanings. For Anthroposophists, "enlightenment" chiefly means embracing Anthroposophic beliefs. Anthroposophy is a proselytizing movement intent on refashioning all human institutions in conformity with Rudolf Steiner's visions. [See, e.g., "Threefolding".]

 164. "I'm glad my daughter gets to speak about God every morning: that's why I send her to a Waldorf school. She's learning stories from the Old Testament ... She's learned that God created the world in seven days ... [S]he's learning it as truth ... That's why I send her to a Waldorf school. She can have a religious experience. A religious experience. I'll say it again: I send my daughter to a Waldorf school so that she can have a religious experience." — Waldorf teacher Eugene Schwartz, “Waldorf Education — For Our Times Or Against Them?” [www.waldorfcritics.org/active/articles/schwartz.html]

 165. “It is often said by Waldorf teachers that there should be no textbooks in a Waldorf school [1]. In various instances in the faculty meetings Steiner recommends a particular textbook, states that most textbooks are inferior, questions whether the teachers couldn’t write their own, and suggests that the class needs a textbook to unite all the students. 'I have nothing against using a textbook, but all of them are bad ... Look for a textbook, and show it to me when I come back' (September 11, 1921).”  — Betty Staley, introduction to FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. xxxii.

[1] Instead of using textbooks, Waldorf schools often have the students create "class books," which they write and illustrate under the guidance of their teachers. This greatly limits students' exposure to non-Waldorf ideas and greatly increases the authority of the teachers — the class books essentially reproduce the teachers' lectures, statements, and drawings.

 166. “In Anthroposophical Waldorf schools, absolutely everything  centers around the task of implementing Steiner's spiritual scientific theories [1] ... Each individual child's education  takes a back seat to the spiritual scientific and cosmic Christian [2] tasks and ideals of the Anthroposophical initiative.” — a former Waldorf teacher [http://waldorfcritics.org/active/articles/baandje.html]

[1] The term "spiritual science," as used by Steiner's followers, primarily means Anthroposophy. Alternative tags include "occult science" and "esoteric science." [See, e.g., "Everything".]

[2] The "cosmic Christianity" of Anthroposophy essentially consists of teachings Steiner drew from Theosophy and gnostic Christianity. [See "Basics" and "Gnosis".] The Christ recognized in Anthroposophy is the Sun God. [See "Sun God".]

 167. “Over and above the physical body, spiritual science [i.e., Anthroposophy] recognizes a second essential principle in Man: it is that which Steiner usually refers to as the ‘etheric body,’ though he sometimes refers to it as the ‘life-body’ or ‘formative-forces-body’ ... [T]he etheric body is accessible to investigation only to [i.e., by] those who have developed the necessary higher organs of perception [i.e., "organs" of clairvoyance].” — Gilbert Childs, STEINER EDUCATION IN THEORY AND PRACTICE (Floris Books, 1991), p. 26.

 168. “A third member of the human being [above the physical and etheric bodies] is the so-called ‘astral body’ or ‘sentient body’ ... [C]reatures which possess a nervous system also possess an astral body, and this includes not only Man but the whole of the animal kingdom.” — Gilbert Childs, STEINER EDUCATION IN THEORY AND PRACTICE (Floris Books, 1991), p. 27.

 169. “Tuba mirum, 

Spargens sonum, 

Coget omnes ante thronum, 

coget omnes ante thronum, 

ante thronum. 

Per sepulchra regionum...  

coget omnes ante thronum [1].”  

—THE SECOND WALDORF SONG BOOK  (Floris Books, 1993), 

compiled by Brien Masters.

[1] Translated from Latin, the song says “The trumpet, spreading its awful sound, will collect all before the throne, will summon all before the throne, before the throne. Through the graves of the regions...[it] will drive mankind before the throne.” 

 170. “Our modern, theoretical knowledge does not, in fact, grasp or explain the true being of man [1]. Beneath all that the average human being knows of himself, there live hopes, longings, aspirations, dreams of the might-have-been or the might-yet-be, unused gifts, maybe, that are urging to be realized....”  — Waldorf educator Francis Edmunds, AN INTRODUCTION TO STEINER EDUCATION - The Waldorf School (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2004), p. 4.

[1] The word "Anthroposophy" means, at its roots, knowledge of man. This is what Steiner professed to offer: a true, hidden, occult knowledge of human nature. And this is the basis of Waldorf education.

 171. "Apollonian ... [T]he formative forces emanating from the power of thought ... The opposite of Apollonian is Dionysian, in this context referring to the forces arising in the digestive organs and the will [1]. In Waldorf education, teachers try to organize their lessons in such a way that Apollonian and Dionysian activities alternate to create a balanced and living dynamic [2]." — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY A-Z (Sophia Books, 2011), p. 8.

[1] Steiner's description of human nature and physiology is mystical and divorced from reality. But it is the basis on which Waldorf education is built. [See "Oh Humanity".]

[2] This is what Waldorf proponents often mean when they speak of Waldorf classes are balanced or rhythmic.

 172. “These two gods — Apollo and Dionysus — embody polar complementary forces that work in opposite ways to develop the child and young adult ... Left to themselves, these forces can work one-sidedly on the growing child, with devastating consequences. Allow the sculptural, formative, centripetal, linear forces of Apollo to exert too strong a grip, and we can see children grow prematurely stiff in carriage and sometimes burdened of soul, like grumpy little gnomes trapped in the confines of precociously sclerotic bodies. Allow the musical, centrifugal, curvilinear forces of Dionysus to rise up too strongly, and we can see children who stay youthful and carefree too long, like flighty Peter Pans or fluid slender sylphs. ... Children overly prone to becoming trapped in the [physical] body need to draw, write, and revel in the details of a subject in order to loosen their ‘I’ a little from the confines of the physical organism. By contrast, children who have difficulty taking hold of the physical organism need to observe, as from a bird’s eye view, what they have drawn or written, or be encouraged to attend to the overall meaning or context of a subject, rather than its details. [paragraph break] Underlying these suggestions is the general maxim: Move, and you excarnate; be still, and you incarnate.” — Waldorf teacher and institute director Douglas Gerwin, introduction to BALANCE IN TEACHING (Anthroposophic Press, 2007), pp. x-xi.

 173. “It may be the case that an [incarnating child] is not successful in choosing its biological parents [1]. But as always, karma...may be relied on [2] … Adoptive or foster parents may be chosen by the incarnating ego for particular reasons [3].…” — Waldorf teachers Gilbert and Sylvia Childs, YOUR REINCARNATING CHILD (Sophia Books, Rudolf Steiner Press, 2005), p. 11.

[1] According to the Waldorf belief system, Anthroposophy, children alternate between lives on Earth and lives in the spirit realm. [See "Reincarnation".] Before descending to a new life on Earth, a child selects the people s/he wants to have for parents, teachers, friends, classmates, and so forth. Usually these choices are successfully enacted, but sometimes an impediment may arise so that, for instance, the child is not born to the biological parents s/he wanted.

[2] I.e., if one of a child’s choices is blocked for some reason, karma will find a solution. (Karma, like reincarnation, is a basic Waldorf belief. [See  "Karma".]) 

[3] I.e., if a child is unable to have the biological parents s/he wants, s/he may arrange to be placed with substitutes of her own choice. Waldorf teachers often consider themselves to be, in effect, foster parents for their students, chosen by the students themselves in order to fulfill their karma. 

Thus, a Waldorf class is a "destiny community ... A class is not a group of children who have been thrown together arbitrarily. The class forms a social context around a teacher to which the children were led by their life's destiny [i.e., karma].” — Anthroposophist Peter Selg, THE ESSENCE OF WALDORF EDUCATION (SteinerBooks, 2010)‚ p. 45. 

Being chosen by destiny to guide a particular group of children is a sacred trust borne by Waldorf teachers. The task can be difficult. As Rudolf Steiner said to teachers at the first Waldorf school, 

"You will have to take over children for their education and instruction — children who will have received already (as you must remember) the education, or mis-education given them by their parents." — Rudolf Steiner, THE STUDY OF MAN (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2004), p. 16. 

Steiner said Waldorf teachers should “take over children” as early as possible in the kids’ lives. Ideally, they might supplant students' biological parents almost from the moment the children arrive on Earth. 

"Given the difficult, disorderly, and chaotic conditions of our time, it might almost be preferable from a moral viewpoint if children could be taken into one’s care soon after birth.” — Rudolf Steiner, WALDORF EDUCATION AND ANTHROPOSOPHY, Vol. 2 (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 69. 

For Waldorf teachers to supplant their students' biological parents is perfectly correct, Steiner indicated, because the students' have chosen their teachers for this role — this is the karma of the students and the teachers and the parents.

 174. “[The] special contribution, the unique substance, mission, and intention of the independent Waldorf School [1], is the spiritual-scientific view of human nature [2] ... It certainly is possible that the Waldorf schools will, gradually or suddenly, distance themselves from this substance [3], because they increasingly fail to understand it, and because they are influenced by the criticism imposed from outside ... [T]he weakening and fading away of the innovative, independent Waldorf schools would be disastrous [4]....” — Anthroposophist Peter Selg, THE ESSENCE OF WALDORF EDUCATION (SteinerBooks, 2010)‚ p. 4.

[1] This is a reference to the first Waldorf school, founded in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1919.

[2] I.e., the spiritual vision developed by Rudolf Steiner, called Anthroposophy. (Steiner claimed that Anthroposophy is a “science” that objectively studies the spirit realm. In fact, however, Anthroposophy is a religion. [See "Is Anthroposophy a Religion?".])

[3] All genuine Waldorf schools have been devoted to Anthroposophy, Selg indicates. But now there is a danger that at least some of these schools may drift away. (This could happen, for instance, in the UK, if Steiner schools there succumb to pressures from school inspectors. [See "Steiner School Crisis".])

[4] Devout Anthroposophists see Waldorf schools as crucial for spreading and “proving” Anthroposophy. Waldorf schools, they believe, work in league with — and on behalf of — the gods. Rudolf Steiner said as much: 

"The Waldorf school must succeed; much depends on its success. Its success will bring a kind of proof of many things in the spiritual evolution of humankind that we must represent … Let us especially keep before us the thought, which will truly fill our hearts and minds, that connected with the present-day spiritual movement [i.e., Anthroposophy] are also the spiritual powers [i.e., gods] that guide the cosmos. When we believe in these good spiritual powers they will inspire our lives and we will truly be able to teach.” — Rudolf Steiner, PRACTICAL ADVICE TO TEACHERS, Foundations of Waldorf Education (Anthroposophic Press, 2000), p. 189.

 175. “Human culture needs to be transformed according to a spiritual vision of the human being [i.e., Anthroposophy]. Every domain of human thought and activity — education, [etc.] — must be renewed on the basis of [the Anthroposophical] understanding of the human being [1].” — Anthroposophist Ronald Koetzsh, “Anthroposophy 101”, http://waldorfcritics.org/active/articles/anthroposophy101.html.

[1] Waldorf schools are just one branch of the Anthroposophical movement, which seeks to remake all human institutions in accordance with the doctrines promulgated by Rudolf Steiner. [See, e.g., "Threefolding".]

 176. “A true knowledge of the child will enable the teacher to understand how the correct education of Soul and Spirit brings health to the physical body, and how incorrect education sooner or later finds expression...in the form or discomfort or disease ... [O]verstimulation of the memory can cause the child to grow lank ... This is bound up with the interaction of the Etheric and Astral Bodies....” — Richard Blunt, WALDORF EDUCATION: Theory and Practice (Novalis Press, 1995), p. 110.

 177. “Rudolf Steiner rose … Clearly enthused by the opportunity to address so large and formidable a gathering [1], he was delighted to be able to bring conferees the good news of what was being done in Waldorf education. More generally, he also understood that the occasion was an opportunity to showcase for the British his anthroposophical ‘spiritual science [2],’ of which the practice of Waldorf education was an important, even primary, application [3].” — Anthroposophist Christopher Bamford, introduction to THE SPIRITUAL GROUND OF EDUCATION, The Foundations of Waldorf Education (Anthroposophic Press, 2004), pp. vii-viii. [4]

[1] This was a conference Steiner attended in 1922 at Mansfield College, Oxford, England.

[2] Steiner claimed that his esoteric system, Anthroposophy, is a science — it enables practitioners to objectively study the spirit realm. In reality, however, Anthroposophy is a religion, relying on faith far more than ascertainable knowledge. The “science” Steiner advocated was the "exact" use of clairvoyance, a faculty that does not exist. [See “Clairvoyance”, "Exactly", “Faith”, and “Is Anthroposophy a Religion?”]

[3] Although Waldorf proponents often say there is little connection between Waldorf education and Anthroposophy, in fact Waldorf is a "primary application" of Anthroposophy. If you cannot embrace Anthroposophy, you are unlikely — in the end — to find Waldorf education satisfactory.

[4] Waldorf education is often promoted as nondenominational and nonsectarian — or, in other words, non-religious. But Waldorf education is rooted in spirituality (Steiner’s “spiritual science” provides the “spiritual ground” of Waldorf education). And the specific form of spirituality on which Waldorf stands is Anthroposophy, the religion devised by Rudolf Steiner. [See “Schools as Churches”.]

 178. “[W]e are interested in what shaped Rudolf Steiner as an educator. Certainly, his native clairvoyant capacities played a role, as did his scientific training [1]. Nor should mention be omitted of the crucial human and spiritual encounters [with individuals who gave him occult initiation]: Felix Kogutsky...with whom he could speak about the spiritual world as with someone of experience; [and] the otherwise unnamed Master.” — Christopher Bamford, introduction to THE EDUCATION OF THE CHILD, Foundations of Waldorf Education (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), a collection of Rudolf Steiner’s teachings about education, p. viii.

[1] Steiner's followers often describe him as a scientist, but he was not. He never undertook any scientific work. He affirmed "Goethean science," which is fundamentally unscientific; and then he established his own "occult science," Anthroposophy — which again is unscientific. [See, e.g., "Is Anthroposophy Science?"]

 179. “Clairvoyance, present in all human beings [in ancient times], started gradually to diminish [1] … This decrease of clairvoyance was due to a change in the four members of the people; the ether body, the astral body and the young ego were pulled gradually into the physical body [2]. They experienced more and more the influence of earthly gravity [3].” — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2008), p. 62. [4]

[1] Rudolf Steiner said ancient peoples had natural clairvoyant powers, which modern people have largely lost. [See the entries for "natural clairvoyance" and "atavistic clairvoyance" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.] But Steiner claimed to possess a new, much more precise form of clairvoyance: He called it “exact” clairvoyance. [See “Exactly”.] Steiner also said he could teach his followers to develop clairvoyant powers like his own. [See “Knowing the Worlds”.]

[2] According to the Waldorf belief system, Anthroposophy, human beings have four bodies, three of which are invisible. [See “Incarnation”.] 

[3] I.e., natural clairvoyance was lost when the invisible bodies (the etheric body, the astral body, and the spiritual ego) were drawn down into the physical body, effectively smothering their psychic consciousness. (They became subject to gravity — they were tied down in physicality.)

[4] Waldorf education grows out of Anthroposophy, which hinges on clairvoyance. If there is no such thing as clairvoyance, then Anthroposophy collapses, which destroys the rationale for Waldorf education. And in reality, there is no such thing as clairvoyance. [See “Clairvoyance”.] Yet many Waldorf teachers, faithful to Steiner’s mystical tenets, believe they are clairvoyant. [See “The Waldorf Teacher’s Consciousness”.]

 180. “A horde offourth grade berserkers rise from the darkness of the hall to stamp onto the stage ... [The child who plays the Norse god] Thor, though one of the smallest in the class, has an enormous voice to match the famous Thor’s Hammer [1] … The bit where Thor...knocks the taunting warriors off their benches in well choreographed waves of destruction, is particularly impressive ... [E]ach festival [celebrated at Waldorf schools] is embedded in a cycle of festivals which...express the inner mood of the spiritual calendar [2] ... [F]estivals are also linked to the intuitive realm of the future. In an age in which traditional forms of ritual and community are fading, the Steiner Waldorf Schools strive to cultivate a new, free consciousness of time, human development and community [3].”  — Christopher Clouder and Martyn Rawson, WALDORF EDUCATION - Rudolf Steiner’s Ideas in Practice (Floris Books, 2003), pp. 12-18.

[1] This is a description of a pageant staged in a Waldorf school depicting the activities of ancient Norse gods. Rudolf Steiner taught that various pagan gods really exist; his belief system, Anthroposophy, is polytheistic. [See “Polytheism”.] Steiner placed particular emphasis on Norse mythology — the myths of Northern Europe, especially Germany. 

“No other mythology gives a clearer picture of [spiritual] evolution than Northern mythology. Germanic mythology in its pictures is close to the anthroposophical conception of future evolution.” — Lecture synopsis, THE MISSION OF THE FOLK SOULS (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2005), a collection of lectures by Rudolf Steiner, p. 17. 

For this reason, Norse myths are often emphasized in Waldorf schools. [See “The Gods”.] 

As Clouder and Rawson indicate, young Waldorf students are often encouraged to have "fun" by enacting the feats of the Norse gods. Thor was the Norse god of thunder; he wielded a terrible hammer which he used to smash his foes' skulls. 

[2] The Waldorf school year is punctuated by various festivals celebrated by the whole school. [See the section in festivals in "Magical Arts".] While these events are often given innocuous titles such as "Fall Festival" or "Spring Festival," many are essentially religious observances — they “express the inner mood of the spiritual calendar.” [For more on this subject, see “festivals at Waldorf schools” in the BWSE.]

[3] All Anthroposophical institutions, including Waldorf schools, are engaged in the messianic mission inaugurated by Rudolf Steiner. They seek to reform virtually all human enterprises in accordance with Anthroposophical doctrine; they work to “cultivate a new, free consciousness of time, human development and community.” [For more on these matters, see “Threefolding”, “Mission”, and, in the BWSE, the entry for “messianism”.] The objective involves, among other things, saving humanity from the arch-demon Ahriman. 

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

 181. “The equinox is for us a turning point, a change in the relation of light and darkness in the world around us. On September 29th the autumn festival traditionally known as Michaelmas is celebrated [in Waldorf schools]. This festival is named for the Archangel Michael, conqueror of  the powers of darkness, the harvester of the deeds of human souls. It is at this time that the image of Michael with the dragon appears before us as a mighty imagination, challenging us to develop strong, brave, free wills, to overcome love of ease, anxiety and fear.  This demands inner activity, a renewal of the soul which is brought to consciousness in the Michaelmas festival, the festival of the will.” — Karen Rivers, “Michaelmas”, in WALDORF EDUCATION: A Family Guide (Michaelmas Press, 1995), p. 145. 

 182. "The Science of the Spirit [i.e., Anthroposophy] teaches us the art of forgetting ... All memorized matter should disappear from the mind to make room for an actively receptive spirit." — Rudolf Steiner quoted by Waldorf teacher Eugene Schwartz in MILLENNIAL CHILD (Anthroposophic Press, 1999), pp. 150-151.

 183. “When I was a child, I received The Weekly Reader [1] in school regularly [2] … I remember [an article] about ‘The Miracle Fiber of the Future’…about the benefits of asbestos [3]. Forty years ago, Americans were so enthusiastic about asbestos that we put it in our floor tiles, our ceiling tiles, and our house shingles … Today we are spending millions of dollars for its removal. This is the obvious flaw in fact-based education [4]. Whether we were taught about the solar system, the Soviet Union, or computers, much of what we had to learn in school is now outdated [5].” — Waldorf teacher Jack Petrash, UNDERSTANDING WALDORF EDUCATION (Gryphon House, 2002, reprinted 2009), pp. 25-26.

[1] This was a news magazine intended for school children. It was often distributed in American public schools at no cost to the students.

[2] Widely used elsewhere, The Weekly Reader  was generally banned from Waldorf schools.

[3] A naturally occurring mineral, asbestos was used — among other purposes — as a fire-retardant. Eventually, however, asbestos was found to be a carcinogen.

[4] Waldorf education is not “fact-based.” This should give us all pause, since facts constitute what we usually call information or knowledge. Deemphasizing the importance of facts means deemphasizing the importance of knowledge. [See, e.g., "Waldorf Wisdom".]

[5] Knowledge evolves. Old knowledge is replaced by new, better knowledge. This does not mean we should downplay the importance of knowledge (facts, information). Just the opposite. It means we should educate children to know the difference between knowledge and ignorance, and we should equip students with the mental tools to keep abreast of newly evolving knowledge. This is not, however, the Waldorf approach, which essentially devalues modern knowledge. [See, e.g., "Summing Up".]

 184. “[E]ducation must, among other things, concern itself less with actual learning than with developing a flexibility and adaptability of mind [1].” — Waldorf educator Roy Wilkinson, COMMONSENSE SCHOOLING (Henry Goulden, 1975), p. 3.

[1] The chief flexibility aimed at in Waldorf education is the ability to accept the bizarre doctrines of Anthroposophy — which Waldorf teachers consider "commonsense." For most people, however, the downplaying of "actual learning" must be considered a severe fault in Waldorf schools. "Actual elarning" is what is usually called education.

 185. “When a school is based on a spiritual conception of the human being [as Waldorf schools are], a more diverse set of values become important [1] … Sometimes the important spiritual lessons at a school are not actually spoken; they simply are lived [2] ... And yet, there are times when spiritual matters need to be addressed more specifically [3].” — Waldorf teacher Jack Petrash, UNDERSTANDING WALDORF EDUCATION (Gryphon House, 2002), pp. 138-142.

[1] Waldorf schools downplay brainwork and ordinary knowledge. [See, e.g., “Waldorf’s Spiritual Agenda” and “Academic Standards at Waldorf”.] Instead, emphasis is placed on developing the whole child as conceived in Anthroposophy. This is done, for instance, by assisting in the incarnation of each student’s three invisible bodies, and by helping kids to fulfill their karmas. [See “Holistic Education”, “Incarnation”, and “Karma”.] 

[2] Waldorf teachers try to be spiritual models and guides for their students (they think their job entails conveying "important spiritual lessons"). They rarely teach the kids Anthroposophical doctrines in so many words, but they convey these doctrines indirectly — by living them and by nudging kids to live them. [See “Sneaking It In” and “Indoctrination”.]

[3] In Waldorf schools, spiritual matters are addressed chiefly through the teachers' Anthroposophical convictions. As Steiner once said, 

“As far as our school is concerned, the actual spiritual life can be present only because its staff consists of anthroposophists.” — Rudolf Steiner, EDUCATION FOR ADOLESCENTS (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 60. 

Steiner generally instructed Waldorf teachers to keep Anthroposophy hidden in the background. But, he added, sometimes Anthroposophy must be brought explicitly into the classroom. 

“You need to make the children aware that they are receiving the objective truth, and if this occasionally appears anthroposophical, it is not anthroposophy that is at fault. Things are that way because anthroposophy has something to say about objective truth ... Anthroposophy will be in the school when it is objectively justified, that is, when it is called for by the material itself.” — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 495. 

 186. "You are not an initiate, and therefore you cannot understand the kind of energies we're dealing with here." — A Waldorf teacher, explaining why a student's parent cannot understand Waldorf practices. [See "Moms"]

 187. "This is an essential 'technique' of Waldorf education; at every seven-year developmental phase [1] the teacher works intensively with one of the child's higher bodies [2], slowly weaving its activities together with the member worked on in a previous stage of growth [3]. What is distinctive about the Waldorf method is that it perceives the validity of each approach in the course of time, as a particular 'higher member' is dominant in effecting growth and maturation [4].” — Waldorf educator Eugene Schwartz, WALDORF EDUCATION: Schools for the Twenty-First Century (Xlibris Corporation, 2000), p. 35.

[1] Steiner taught that humans develop in seven-year-long stages. Waldorf education adheres to this conception. [See “Most Significant”.]

[2] In Waldorf belief, children wind up with four bodies, three of which are invisible. The physical body emerges, of course, at the moment of physical birth (age 0). Thereafter, according to Waldorf lore, the “etheric body” incarnates at age seven, the “astral body” incarnates at age 14, and the ego body with the “I” incarnates at age 21 (the end of childhood). [See “Incarnation”.]

[3] I.e., as each new body incarnates, Waldorf teachers “weave” its actions into the actions of the previously incarnated bodies.

[4] I.e., Waldorf schools apply different educational approaches during each of the seven-year-long stages. This is what distinguishes the Waldorf method. But if belief in the three “higher bodies" is fallacious, then the Waldorf method is fundamentally misguided. (And belief in the three higher bodies is indeed fallacious. These bodies are found in occultism, nowhere else.)

From a Waldorf teachers’ guide, giving a Waldorf interpretation of stories found in the Old Testament:

 188. “Many people, and also giants, now lived on the earth but humanity had become wicked ... The story [1] refers to the sinking of the continent of Atlantis ... Noah, or Manu, as he is known elsewhere [2], was the leader of the sun-oracle of Atlantis [3] ... He was the most advanced leader and he was obviously still in touch with the creators of the Earth, the Elohim or Spirits of Form [4] ... Noah gathered together people sufficiently mature [5] and, knowing that the catastrophe was coming, emigrated to the center of Asia ... Here he set up a cultural or mystery center from which the early Post-Atlantis civilizations were inspired [6].” — Waldorf teacher Roy Wilkinson, COMMENTARY ON THE OLD TESTAMENT STORIES (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2001), pp. 24-25.

[1] I.e., the story of Noah and the Flood. According to Rudolf Steiner, the Flood mentioned in the Bible was actually the deluge that sank Atlantis. [See "Noah" in the BWSE.]

[2] I.e., in other religions and/or mythologies. In Hindu mythology, the Manu was the archetypal first human, the father of the human race. In Theosophy, a Manu is the father or director of a race, especially a root race. In Anthroposophy, Manu is Noah, the occult initiate who led humanity out of Atlantis.

[3] I.e., a center of occult knowledge on Atlantis.

[4] In the Hebrew Bible (which Christians call the Old Testament), “Elohim” is a name for God. The word is plural in form, but is understood to be singular (there is one God). In Anthroposophy, “Elohim” is understood to be plural, referring to many gods (Anthroposophy is polytheistic). Here, the gods in question are “Spirits of Form” — gods who played an important role in the creation of the Earth (they helped give it form).

[5] I.e., sufficiently evolved.

[6] In Waldorf belief, we currently live in the fifth cultural epoch since the destruction of Atlantis: the fifth period of the Post-Atlantean great epoch. [See "Epochs".]

 189. "Steiner tells us that human life on Atlantis existed from 50,000 years BC until approximately 10,000 years BC, when it was engulfed by an enormous tsunami and disappeared into the present Atlantic Ocean. Many people managed to flee from the disaster, led by Manu and his seven Holy Rishis. They migrated along the present Mediterranean to the east….” — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2008), pp. 49-50.

Waldorf teacher Charles Kovacs' book ANCIENT MYTHOLOGIES presents Atlantis as an historical reality. Here are excerpts from the beginning of the first chapter of ANCIENT MYTHOLOGIES, published for use by teachers in Waldorf fifth-grade classes. A Waldorf teacher is addressing Waldorf students:

 190. "This year you will hear some stories of people who lived a long, long way back in time at the very beginning of history ... [T]he people who told some of these stories lived a long time ago; so long ago that we would have to count back 10,000 years to reach the time they lived on earth ... Today, stretching between Europe and America there is an enormous wide ocean ... But 10,000 years ago there was an enormous island in the middle of the Atlantic ... Where there is now only the endless water of the ocean, there was once a great continent and it was known as Atlantis. But it is no longer there. Atlantis has disappeared and you will hear how this happened." — Charles Kovacs, "Atlantis and Manu", ANCIENT MYTHOLOGIES (Wynstones Press, 1990; reprinted 1999 and 2008), pp. 10-11.

Note: Calling reports of Atlantis "myths" does not, in Anthroposophy, suggest that the reports are fictitious or untrue. In Anthroposophy, myths are accepted as conveying truth.

“Actual facts concerning the higher Spiritual Worlds lie at the foundation of all myths.” — Rudolf Steiner, UNIVERSE, EARTH AND MAN in their Relationship to Egyptian Myths and Modern Civilization (Kessinger Publishing, 2003), p. 94

 191. "At the age of 11 children begin to develop a sense for what is historical, and this is the right time to present pictures of the civilizations mentioned which stretch from Atlantis* to the present ... From about the age of 11 then, a picture of the progressive civilizatons is presented. To learn about the early ones...we must rely on myths [which Anthroposophy says are true.]" — Waldorf teacher Roy Wilkinson, THE SPIRITUAL BASIS OF STEINER EDUCATION (Sophia Books, Rudolf Steiner Press, 1996), pp. 63-64.

"* Spiritual science [i.e., Anthroposophy] confirms the existence of this continent...." — Footnote by Wilkinson.

 191. “He [Rudolf Steiner] attacked the theory that fairy tales derived only from popular imagination, and described times, before the awakening of the intellect, in which man regularly found himself in a special [clairvoyant] condition between waking and sleeping. In this special state, visions arose in many forms [1] ... [People said] ‘everything around us is bewitched spiritual truth.’” — Anthroposophist Werner Glas, SPEECH EDUCATION IN THE PRIMARY GRADES OF WALDORF SCHOOLS (Sunbridge College Press, 1974), pp. 47-48. 

[1] Steiner taught that all fairy tales are true, at the level of clairvoyant insight. This is why fairy tales are given such prominence in Waldorf schooling. 

“Fairy tales are never thought out [i.e., invented]; they are the final remains of ancient clairvoyance, experienced in dreams by human beings who still had the power ... All the fairy tales in existence are thus the remnants of the original clairvoyance.” — Rudolf Steiner, ON THE MYSTERY DRAMAS (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1983), p. 93.

 192. “Much of what we today regard as faith content [i.e., matters of faith] was knowledge in earlier times. Some people sought this knowledge by developing ‘hidden powers of the soul,’ as Steiner calls them, and today we are not aware how much of what we today regard as knowledge has been discovered through older paths of knowledge [predominantly, clairvoyance].” — Agnes Nobel, EDUCATING THROUGH ART - The Steiner School Approach (Floris Books, 1991), p. 164.

 193. “Young children are not yet un-linked from their spiritual connection [1] ... [I]nnate spiritual awareness shines in little children [2] … For their continued spiritual development, children need only a little outward instruction [3]. According to Rudolf Steiner, they simply need to be taught in a balanced three-dimensional way, one that develops the head, heart, and hands [4] to preserve their innate religious awareness.” — Waldord teacher Jack Petrash, UNDERSTANDING WALDORF EDUCATION (Nova Institute, 2002), pp. 134-135.

[1] I.e., they are still in touch with the spirit realm where they lived before their recent incarnation on Earth. [See, e.g., “Thinking Cap”.]

[2] According to Waldorf belief:

Children are born with an “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 [to preserve their ties to the spirit realm].” — Waldorf teacher A. C. Harwood, PORTRAIT OF A WALDORF SCHOOL (The Myrin Institute Inc., 1956), pp. 15-16.

[3] Waldorf schools scrimp on ordinary instruction, real education, especially in the lower grades — they think kids don’t need it. Things improve a little in higher grades; more “outward instruction” occurs. But often the improvement is slight. Waldorf schools have historically had low academic standards. [See, e.g., “Academic Standards at Waldorf”.]

[4] Waldorf schools minister to the whole child. But the Waldorf concept of human wholeness is occult: A whole child has several bodies (most of which are invisible), s/he comes to Earth with a karma, s/he has a significant astrological identity, and so forth. [See “Holistic Education”.] The more attention Waldorf teachers devote to these fantasies, the less they attend to genuine education.

Occult Anthroposophical doctrines are often woven into the lessons taught at Waldorf schools. The following is from a Waldorf teachers' guide: 

 194. “In early civilizations the mass of people lived in a child-like state and were guided and directed by personalities who in some respects were more mature, i.e., the priests and kings [1]. These in turn were guided by spiritual beings — gods [2] — and were what is known as ‘initiates,’ by which is meant that they had direct experience of a supersensible world [3].” — Waldorf teacher Roy Wilkinson, TEACHING HISTORY, Vol. 1. (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2000), p. 4.

[1] “Maturity,” in the Anthroposophical sense, is primarily a matter of spiritual evolution. Steiner taught that some individuals, nations, and even races are more highly evolved than others, and the evolved ones have a natural claim to leadership. [See the entry for “evolution” in The Brief Waldorf/Steiner Encyclopedia.]

[2] Just as the unevolved or childlike masses are led by more-evolved priests and kings, the priests and kings are in turn led by spiritual beings who have evolved to still higher states: gods. Anthroposophy posits the existence of multitudinous gods, and Steiner taught that gods — like humans — are evolving. [For an overview of the nine ranks of gods described by Steiner, see “Polytheism”.]

[3] “Supersensible” phenomena lie beyond the reach of our ordinary senses — they are supernatural or spiritual. To perceive such phenomena, Steiner taught, a higher form of awareness is needed: clairvoyance is required. “Initiates” are highly evolved individuals who have developed clairvoyance and thus have “direct experience” of the supernatural. Here, these conceptions (multiple gods, occult initiation, "direct experience of a supersensible world") are stated not as ancient beliefs but as factual realities. How these matters are presented in Waldorf classes is left for individual Waldorf teachers to decide, but this is the sort of guidance they receive. [For more on Anthroposophical initiation, see “Inside Scoop”.]

 195. “A step on the path to super-sensible perception [1] is a heightened knowledge of, and sensitivity to, colour. In good esoteric schools [2], colour instruction has always been a high priority, due to informed clairvoyant (clear-viewing) perception being based on fine colour discrimination [3].” — Waldorf teacher and teacher-trainer Alan Whitehead, CHOIRS OF COLOURS - Primary Painting, Sculpture, Drawing; A Rudolf Steiner Approach (Golden Beetle Books, 2004), p. 48. [4]

[1] I.e., clairvoyance. Attaining clairvoyance is an important goal for Steiner's followers. Many Waldorf teachers believe they are clairvoyant, and many others accept the pronouncements of their colleagues who claim to be clairvoyant. 

"Not every Waldorf teacher has the gift of clairvoyance, but every one of them has accepted wholeheartedly and with full understanding the results of spiritual-scientific investigation [i.e., the disciplined use of clairvoyance] … And each Waldorf teacher applies this knowledge with heart and soul….” — Rudolf Steiner, WALDORF EDUCATION AND ANTHROPOSOPHY, Vol. 2 (Anthroposophic Press, 1995), p. 224.

[2] I.e., schools that convey, or base their work on, esoteric spiritual teachings.

[3] 

"[C]olours...are windows through which we can ascend spiritually into the spiritual world.” — Rudolf Steiner, ART AS SEEN IN THE LIGHT OF MYSTERY WISDOM (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2010), p. 111. 

Spirits are perceptible in colors, Steiner taught.

 “[S]piritual beings, called gods or devas, now reveal themselves through the colours. The astral world...is a world of beings who speak to us through colour.” — Rudolf Steiner, FOUNDING A SCIENCE OF THE SPIRIT (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1999), p. 14. 

As we become more attuned to subtle variations of color, Steiner said, we become more clairvoyantly sensitive. [See “Mystical Colors”.] The links between clairvoyance and color discrimination are found, for instance, in the examination of auras. 

“[S]piritually perceptible colors, which surround an active human being like an egg-shaped cloud, constitute that person’s aura … Within the aura, streams of different colors present a true and ever-changing picture of our inner life….” — Rudolf Steiner, THEOSOPHY (Anthroposophic Press, 1994), p. 161. [See "Auras".]

[4] Whitehead is one of the minority of Waldorf teachers who openly and explicitly convey esoteric Anthroposophical teachings to their students in class. [See “Out in the Open”.] Most Waldorf teachers prefer a more subtle approach. [See “Sneaking It In”.]

 196. “Senses — there are twelve senses [1]. The lower four are: touch, life, movement, balance [2] … The middle senses are: warmth, sight, taste, smell [3]  … The upper-senses [sic] are: 'I'-sense, thought, language, hearing [4].” — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY A-Z (Sophia Books, 2011), p. 107. [5]

[1] Most Anthroposophical descriptions of the human constitution arise from mysticism, not science. Steiner posited twelve senses because he deemed twelve a spiritually significant number — he often divided phenomena into twelve parts and then claimed to discern influences flowing into each part from one of the constellations of the zodiac. (There are twelve constellations in the zodiac, as usually conceived.) Astrology is crucial in Steiner's teachings. [See, e.g., “Astrology”.]

[2] These, according to Steiner, are the “physical” senses. They are “lower” than the other senses because they are tied to the lowly physical body. Touch sense is associated with Libra, life sense with Scorpio, movement sense with Sagittarius, and balance sense with Capricorn.

[3] These are the “soul” senses. The soul is higher than the physical body, Steiner taught, so these senses are higher than the physical senses. Warmth sense is linked to Leo, sight to Virgo, taste to Pisces, and smell to Acquarius.

[4] These are the “spirit” senses. The spirit is higher than the soul, so these senses are the highest of all. “I” sense (or ego sense) falls under Aries, thought sense under Taurus, language sense under Gemini, and hearing under Cancer.

[5] Steinber’s occult doctrines about human nature are fundamental to Waldorf education. [See “Oh Humanity”.] For thumbnail descriptions of the twelve senses posited by Steiner, see The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.

 197. “It should be understood by any school or institution seeking affiliation with AWSNA [the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America] that Waldorf Education is based on Anthroposophy, the philosophy initiated by Rudolf Steiner. Waldorf is a trademark name in the United States and is reserved for independent schools which meet the membership standards established by AWSNA ... Only schools which have been accepted as Sponsored or Full Members of AWSNA may represent themselves as Waldorf schools or use the words ‘Waldorf’ or ‘Rudolf Steiner’ in their names or subtitles.” — Why Waldorf Works, as of 11-22-2011 [http://www.whywaldorfworks.org/02_W_Education/faq_starting.asp].

 198. "[P]rimal memory is experienced and then slowly lost [1]. It enlivens many an early game or even transfigures it [2] ... [Later] the incarnation of the soul into the physical body [3] is the subject of countless games ... The children are playing at becoming incarnated. [4]” — Waldorf proponent Heidi Britz-Crecelius, CHILDREN AT PLAY - Using Waldorf Principles to Foster Childhood Development (Park Street Press, 1996), p. 105. 

[1] According to Waldorf belief, children arrive on Earth with memories of their previous lives in the spirit realm. Waldorf teachers try to delay the maturation of young children so these memories may be preserved. "[I]n Steiner’s view...childhood is a time of contracting consciousness.... [The child] loses his...dream-like yet intensely real awareness of spiritual worlds. This awareness fades quickly in early childhood, but fragments of it live on ... [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. [See "Thinking Cap".]

[2] Waldorf schooling includes lots of time for children to simply play. One justification is the belief that when children exercise their imaginations in play, they are enacting spiritual conditions. Steiner taught that imagination is a precursor to, or an early form of, clairvoyance. [See "The Waldorf Curriculum".]

[3] I.e., the earliest games harken back to life in the spirit realm. Somewhat later games reenact the process of incarnation on Earth.

[4] Steiner taught that children are "born" several times, as their various bodies incarnate. The physical body incarnates at age 0 (the moment of physical birth), the etheric body incarnates at age 7, the astral body incarnates at age 14, and the "I" incarnates at age 21 (the end of childhood). Waldorf education is keyed to these "births." [See "Incarnation", "Most Significant",  and the entries for "birth" and "childhood" in the BWSE.]

 199. “Childhood is commonly regarded as a time of steadily expanding consciousness.... Yet in Steiner’s view, the very opposite is the case: childhood is a time of contracting consciousness ... In mastering the world of physical perception the child encounters difficulties in that 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 educator A. C. Harwood, PORTRAIT OF A WALDORF SCHOOL (The Myrin Institute Inc., 1956), pp. 15-16.

There is more (or less) to the thinking behind Waldorf schools — Anthroposophy — than is commonly recognized. Anthroposophical discourse may seem, to outsiders, nearly impenetrable. 

 200. “Rudolf Steiner’s gift of anthroposophy, the result of his own spiritual synthesis [1], recovered a host of lost truths of destiny [2] buried beneath the sediments of scientific determinism [3]. His spiritual perception [4] uncovered a wealth of soul-strengthening nutriments [5] available to all who delve beneath the surface of biography [6]. Those who examine biographical time will begin to detect the presence of lawfulness. [7]” — Waldorf educator William A. Bryant, JOURNEY THOUGH TIME (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2006), p. 2.

[1] Anthroposophy is, at root, an amalgam of prior religions, especially Theosophy (itself an amalgam) and gnostic Christianity. [See, e.g., "Basics" and "Gnosis".]

[2] I.e., karma. [See "Karma".] Steiner taught that peoples of the past generally understood spiritual truths, such as the reality of karma ("lost truths of destiny") better than modern humans do. 

[3] Anthroposophy fundamentally opposes modern science and the determinism of natural scientific laws. [See, e.g., "Science".]

[4] I.e., clairvoyance. (But if "spiritual perception" or clairvoyance is a delusion, then Steiner's teachings become empty. [See "Clairvoyance".] The implications for Waldorf education would be profound. It would lose its reason for being. [See, e.g., "Summing Up".])

[5] I.e., Anthroposophy is meant to nourish the soul.

[6] The "surface" shows only apparent facts accessible to the physical brain and the physical senses. To know ourselves, we need to delve deeper. Ordinary biography is superficial; Anthroposophists think Steiner's spiritual synthesis goes far below the surface. [See "Oh Humanity".]

[7] I.e. peering below the surface to find the true patterns expressed in the events of life (played out in "biographical time"), we find that life is actually ruled by spiritual laws, such as the law of karma.

 201. “Ahriman [1]: An adversarial being...an opponent of the Sun God [2] ... Also called Satan, Ahriman represents one aspect of the Dragon [3]. Ahriman's influence leads to materialistic thinking [4] devoid of feeling, empathy, and moral conscience. Ahriman helps inspire science and technology [5] ... [Ahriman] limits human cognition to what is derived from sense perception [6], hardens thinking (materialistic thoughts), attacks the etheric body [7] by way of modern technology, and hardens hearts...." — COSMOLOGY REBORN - Star Wisdom, Vol. 1, edited by Joel Park (Lindisfarne, Anthroposophic Press, 2018), p. 244.

[1] Rudolf Steiner's followers identify Ahriman as a demon or oppositional god. [See "Ahriman".]

[2] Rudolf Steiner's followers identify Christ as the Sun God — the god worshipped by ancient peoples as the divinity residing on the Sun. [See "Sun God".]

[3] Drawing from Steiner's interpretation of the Book of Revelation, Anthroposophists employ the image of the Dragon as a supreme embodiment of evil. The Dragon fights against the Sun God, Christ, and it engages in battle with the Sun God's champion, the Sun Archangel, Michael. [See "Michael".] Sometimes the Dragon is identified as Ahriman, but sometimes it is thought to incorporate other evil forces as well. (Whether evil truly exists is debated among Anthroposophists. Often, Steiner's followers deny the reality of evil. This is consistent with some of Steiner's teachings. But on numerous occasions, Steiner spoke of evil as a grave and imminent reality. [See "evil" in the BWSE.])

[4] According to Anthroposophy, "materialistic thinking" is not simply thinking that centers on the possession of material objects. It is thinking that derives from the physical organ, the brain; it is thinking that finds truth only in the physical realm of existence; it is thinking that is devoid of spirit. [See "Materialism U."]

[5] Steiner and his followers generally deprecate — and fear — modern science and technology. [See "Spiders, Dragons and Foxes".]

[6] Steiner advocated "supersensible" perception (clairvoyance), which does not depend on sense perception. [See "clairvoyance" in the BWSE.]

[7] This is one of three invisible bodies that, in Waldorf belief, incarnate before a child reaches adulthood. Waldorf teachers try to assist in the successful incarnation of these bodies. [See "Incarnation".] 

 202. "In a book about the history of human consciousness Rudolf Steiner must certainly be mentioned [1]. This clairvoyant initiate, philosopher and man of science [2] knew a thing or two about this ongoing process [3] ... After having studied Rudolf Steiner's anthroposophy for many years, I get the impression that the spiritual world once again is trying to make itself manifest in the physical world through Rudolf Steiner's contribution ... A century has passed since Steiner's life on earth [4]. Honesty compels us to say that only fragments of his inspiration have materialized [5] after this relatively long span. Yet his many attempts to pave the way to the spiritual world and his enormous energy are still felt by many people who have opened up to spiritual matters. Everything Steiner has said about the seven main chakras [6] is of immense value today." — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, THE INNER RAINBOW - An Illustrated History of Human Consciousness from Ancient India to the Present Day (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2014), pp. 89-90.

[1] Some Anthroposophical books, written for Antroposophical insiders, treat Steiner as one of the greatest spiritual masters of all time. [See "Guru".] Other Anthroposophical books, written for general audiences, discuss Steiner more moderately, in order to seem reasonable rather than zealous. This book is of the latter sort.

[2] Steiner had little claim to being considered a philosopher or man of science. He was, on the other hand, a self-proclaimed clairvoyant and occult initiate. [See, e.g., "Occultism".] Note that in using the term "clairvoyant initiate," van Oort slips a bit and reveals his zealous devotion to his master.

[3] I.e., the ongoing evolution of human consciousness — principally as described by Rudolf Steiner. [See "evolution of consciousness" in the BWSE.] 

[4] Born in 1861, Steiner died in 1925. [See "Steiner, Rudolf" in the BWSE.]

[5] I.e., only some of his initiatives have taken hold — principally in Waldorf education and biodynamic agriculture. [See the entries for these terms in the BWSE.]

[6] According to Steiner, these are incorporeal organs that enable humans to heighten their consciousness and attain clairvoyance. 

"[E]sotericists call these formations chakras (wheels) or 'lotus flowers' ... One of the first things to occur when an esoteric student begins practicing [spiritual] exercises is that the light of the lotus flowers intensifies; later the flowers will also begin to rotate. When this happens, it means that a person is beginning to have the ability to see clairvoyantly ... The organ in the vicinity of the larynx has sixteen 'petals' or 'spokes'; the one near the heart, twelve; and the one near the solar plexus, ten." — Rudolf Steiner, HOW TO KNOW HIGHER WORLDS (Anthroposophic Press, 1994), pp. 110-111.

 203. “Sophia: Part of the Divine Feminine Trinity [1] comprising the Mother (counterpart of the Father), the Daughter (counterpart of the Son), and the Holy Soul (counterpart of the Holy Spirit) [2] ... To the Egyptians, Sophia was known as Isis [3] ... In the Book of Proverbs, attributed to King Solomon, Sophia's temple has seven pillars (Proverbs 9:1) [4]. The seven pillars...represent the seven great stages of Earth evolution (from Ancient Saturn to Future Vulcan) [5]". — COSMOLOGY REBORN - Star Wisdom, Vol. 1, edited by Joel Park (Lindisfarne, Anthroposophic Press, 2018), p. 249.

[1] Essentially, the Divine Feminine Trinity is the often-overlooked feminine aspect of the Godhead. (COSMOLOGY REBORN is a controversial text. Not all Anthroposophists subscribe to all of the teachings put forward by the authors of this book.)

[2] These "counterparts" are the inextricable female aspects of three apparently male divinities. [See "God" and "Trinity".] Sophia is the counterpart of the Holy Spirit; she is the Holy Soul. 

[3] Isis was the ancient Egyptian goddess of fertility. [See the discussions of Isis in "Goddess".]

[4] "Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars." — Proverbs 9:1, King James Version. (There are no further references to the pillars in the verses that follow.)

[5] This is a questionable interpretation, alien to Hebrew teachings. The "seven great stages of Earth evolution" are progressive incarnations of the solar system, as described by Rudolf Steiner. [See "Matters of Form".] Sophia is described in Anthroposophy as unspoiled spiritual enlightenment; she is the capacity for, and the enactment of, clairvoyance. She is, then, central to the Anthroposophical vision: Anthropo-sophia. [See "Anthroposophia" in the BWSE.] In this sense, Sophia is the god(dess) who presides over Anthroposophical gatherings and enterprises, such as Waldorf schools. When Waldorf teachers pray to the divinity who, they believe, guides and protects them, they are effectively praying to Sophia (or Anthroposophia).

 204. “Sleep is by no means merely the annulment of the day. In earlier epochs people knew this very well ... [F]or them it was the portal of entry to those higher spheres from which they felt they derived their being [1] ... The hygiene of sleep needs to become a direct concern of education [2] … What is absorbed through observation and thought by day sinks into deeper strata at night ... Rudolf Steiner attached particular importance to this. Thus the [properly designed school] lesson, in its organic structure...includes the fact of sleep bringing order into the life of soul [3].” — Waldorf educator Francis Edmunds, AN INTRODUCTION TO STEINER EDUCATION - The Waldorf School (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2004), p. 94. 

[1] I.e., they believed that during sleep they entered the spirit realm. Anthroposophists today believe something similar. Steiner taught that, at night, the astral and ego bodies leave the physical and etheric bodies and travel into the spirit realm — literally, not merely in dreams. 

“[W]e go to sleep at night, setting forth with our Ego and astral body, leaving behind the body of our waking life....” — Rudolf Steiner, MAN AS A PICTURE OF THE LIVING SPIRIT (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1972), GA 228. 

[See entries in the BWSE for “sleep”, “etheric body”, “astral body”, and “I”.]

[2] I.e., Steiner’s teachings about sleep (“the hygiene of sleep”) are important for Waldorf teachers. According to Anthroposophical belief, one’s sleep experiences are almost more real and significant than one's waking experiences. 

“When first we fall asleep, we recapitulate briefly the pictures of our earlier incarnations; this happens, Rudolf Steiner affirms, even when we take a nap ... It is through these pictures that our individuality, our eternal ego, works across time into space.” — Waldorf teacher Audrey E. McAllen, SLEEP - An Unobserved Element in Education (Hawthorn Press, 1986), p. 41.

[3] Waldorf education is essentially religious [see “Schools as Churches”], concerning itself with such matters as “the life of the soul.” Waldorf teachers would like to help steer their students’ sleep experiences, just as they seek to gain spiritual wisdom through their own dreams. Steiner taught that Anthroposophists can gain control of their dreams, so that the results are accurate images of the spirit realm. 

“[T]he eternal is experienced in the dream ... [This is] the essence of the dream in the light of spiritual science [i.e., Anthroposophy].” — Rudolf Steiner, SLEEP AND DREAMS (SteinerBooks, 2003), p. 86. [See "Dreams".] 

One corollary is that, in seeking to understand their students, Waldorf teachers often rely, at least in part, on the dreams they have about the kids.

 205. “When first we fall asleep, we recapitulate briefly the pictures of our earlier incarnations [1]; this happens, Rudolf Steiner affirms, even when we take a nap ... It is through these pictures that our individuality, our eternal ego [2], works across time into space. Our karma of the present life [3] is imbedded in our muscles, which are, spiritually speaking, ‘condensed organs of the musical forces of Inspiration.’ [4]” — Waldorf teacher Audrey E. McAllen, SLEEP - An Unobserved Element in Education (Hawthorn Press, 1986), p. 41.

[1] I.e., previous lives. Reincarnation is a crucial concept in Anthroposophy. [See "Reincarnation".]

[2] I.e., our spiritual ego, our "I". [See "Ego".]

[3] Karma is another crucial concept in Anthroposophy. [See "Karma".]

[4] Inspiration, which Steiner said is a form of clairvoyance, is "imbedded in our muscles," not in our brains. When the rational brain is turned off during sleep, clairvoyant powers are awakened. [See the entry for "inspiration" in the BWSE.]

 206. “The paths trodden by children night after night, the depth of the spiritual world into which they immerse themselves [1] is of immense importance to the success of our education [2]… 

"Only so far as a child is able to carry his or her earthly experiences during waking life into the nightly world of sleep, is the child approachable through Waldorf education [3]… 

"The Waldorf curriculum replaces the effects of form-creating spiritual beings [4]. That is how the high value placed upon the significance of sleep should be understood which Rudolf Steiner indicated… 

"[Waldorf teachers] stimulate children’s’ feeling nature before they are dismissed from the lesson [5]. The conclusions that were formed can now further work on the limbs during sleep in that part of a person into which the astral body and the 'I' withdraw [6]. What is experienced by the waking day-consciousness is processed in the metabolic regions and altered through the mediation of the planetary energies of Mercury and Venus [7]. Through this a transformation now begins to take hold. Namely, during the night the etheric body unfolds its activity in the head … The astral body, with its faster and more unsteady rhythm, has gradually withdrawn from this region. The events perceived during the day now appear as images in the conceptual activity of the head which children find before them the next morning [8].” — Waldorf teacher Nina Kuettel, “Sleep as a Task of Waldorf Education”, May 6, 2015, The Online Waldorf Library.

[1] In Waldorf belief, human beings enter the spirit realm during sleep. Specifically, Rudolf Steiner taught that the astral body and the “I” enter the spirit realm while the physical body and the etheric body remain on Earth. [See entries in the BWSE for “sleep”, “etheric body”, “astral body”, and “I”.]

[2] I.e., Waldorf education. Waldorf teachers attempt to steer their students toward healthful sleep experiences, so the children will be susceptible to Waldorf influences the next day.

[3] I.e., Waldorf education works only when kids are adequately prepared by their sleep experiences. Waldorf education is irrational; it approaches children through the irrational parts of consciousness, such as those active in sleep. Rationality is harmful for children. 

“You [Waldorf teachers] will injure children if you educate them rationally....” — Rudolf Steiner, THE FOUNDATIONS OF HUMAN EXPERIENCE (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 61.

[4] I.e., the work of Waldorf teachers is an extension of the work performed by the gods previously. 

"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 [the gods] have done ... [O]ur work with young people is a continuation of what higher beings have done before birth." — Rudolf Steiner, THE FOUNDATIONS OF HUMAN EXPERIENCE (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 37.

[5] I.e., Waldorf lessons are designed to stimulate the emotional, intuitive parts of students' consciousness. (This stimulation may often come as the climax of a lesson, at or near the end of the lesson.)  

[6] The astral body and “I” are the two higher “bodies” possessed by human beings. The effects of Waldorf education are imbedded not in the brain but in the “limbs” (i.e., the metabolic-limb system posited by Steiner — see the entry for “metabolic-limb system” the BWSE).

[7] The Waldorf belief system includes belief in astrology. [See, e.g., “Astrology”.] Here, the effects of Mercury and Venus (i.e., the gods residing there) are affirmed. 

[8] The child is prepared for the next day’s classes through the activity of the etheric body in the head. The higher astral body has its activities elsewhere. Rudolf Steiner frequently downplayed the importance of the head and its chief organ, the brain. 

◊ “[T]he brain [has] nothing at all to do with actual cognition [i.e., clairvoyance]....” — Rudolf Steiner, THE FOUNDATIONS OF HUMAN EXPERIENCE, p. 60. 

◊ "Within the brain there is absolutely no thought [i.e., the brain doesn't think]...." — Rudolf Steiner, WONDERS OF THE WORLD (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1963), lecture 7, GA 129. 

Waldorf education similarly devalues brainwork. Largely for this reason, Waldorf schools have long been known for low academic standards. [See “Academic Standards at Waldorf”.]

 207. "Children's first drawings follow a cosmic movement [1] that knows neither outside nor inside [2] … Soul processes find their expression in the realm of colour [3] … The drawings illustrate transitions and overlapping of the most varied realms of perception [4].” — Anthroposophist Michaela Strauss, UNDERSTANDING CHILDREN'S DRAWINGS: Tracing the Path of Incarnation (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2007), p. 71. [5]

[1] Waldorf teachers often study the pictures produced by their students, seeking clues to the kids’ spiritual condition. Steiner said children arrive on earth retaining ties to the spirit realm where they lived before earthly incarnation. The youngest children have the freshest awareness of the “cosmic movement” of the gods and evolution — the kids’ “first drawings” tend to have the deepest meaning.

[2] I.e., spirituality flows through all things, inner and outer. Early drawings by very young children presumably flow in the same way, mixing perspectives, shapes, insides and outsides, etc.

[3] See, e.g, “Mystical Colors”.

[4] In the Waldorf belief system, Anthroposophy, there are multiple forms of perception beyond what our senses and brains can attain. True perception, Steiner taught, is clairvoyance — which must be cultivated and disciplined. Precursors to clairvoyance, or stages of it, are imagination, inspiration, and intuition — which are emphasized in Waldorf education. [See the entries for these various concepts and terms — Anthroposophy, clairvoyance, imagination, etc. — in the BWSE.]

[5] The nature of kids' drawings changes as the children proceed along the “path of incarnation”. [See “Incarnation”.]

 208. "Asuras: Fallen Archai [1]...from the time of Old Saturn [2], whose opposition to human evolution [3] comes to expression through promoting debauched sexuality and senseless violence among human beings. So low is the regard that Asuras have for the sacredness of human life...they do not hold back from the destruction of the physical body of human beings. In particular, the activity of the Asuras retards the development of the consciousness soul [4]." — COSMOLOGY REBORN - Star Wisdom, Vol. 1, edited by Joel Park (Lindisfarne, Anthroposophic Press, 2018), p. 244.

[1] Steiner taught that there are nine ranks of gods. Archai are gods three steps higher than humanity. [See "Polytheism".] As fallen Archai, the Asuras are demons or oppositional gods. [See "Evil Ones".]

[2] This was the first incarnation of the solar system, when human life began (in a distinctly prehuman form). [See "Old Saturn".]

[3] In Anthroposophical belief, the purpose of life is to evolve to higher and higher stages of consciousness. [See "evolution of consciousness" in the BWSE.]

[4] Anthroposophists believe this is the third and highest component of our souls or soul natures. It connects us objectively to the outer world. [See "consciousness soul" in the BWSE.]

 209. “My wife and I worked as dorm parents in a Steiner School for special needs children in Scotland … At the Scottish school, many of our fellow volunteers were Germans who had been educated in the [Steiner] system. One of them told me that in her teens she was surprised to learn that the Greek gods were not historical figures, so thoroughly did the curriculum meld myth and history [1].” — Andrew Sprung, “The Times Leaves Out the 'Waldorf' in Waldorf School Portrayal”, October 23, 2011. [2]

[1] Accepting Rudolf Steiner's preachments, many Waldorf teachers treat myths as true clairvoyant reports, and they may convey this belief to their students. 

◊ “Factual realities in higher spiritual worlds underlie all myths. The aim [in my lecture] today was to show you how such a reality is the basis of the Osiris myth.” — Rudolf Steiner, UNIVERSE, EARTH AND MAN in their Relationship to Egyptian Myths and Modern Civilization (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1987), p. 62. (Osiris was the ancient Egyptian goddess of fertility. Osiris was later reflected in Greek mythology, Steiner taught.)

◊ "Myths...are the memories of the visions people perceived in olden times ... At night they were really surrounded by the world of the [ancient] gods of which the legends tell. Odin, Freya, and all the other figures in Nordic mythology were...experienced in the spiritual world with as much reality as we experience our fellow human beings around us today.” — Rudolf Steiner, THE FESTIVALS AND THEIR MEANING (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1998), p. 198. (Odin was the highest Norse god; Freya was his wife.)

◊ [A Waldorf teacher addressing students:] “The stories I am going to tell are very special ... These stories were not just made up [i.e., they are not fiction] … They are stories that [the] wise bards among the Norsemen heard from the angels, from the angel-gods.” — Waldorf teacher Charles Kovacs, NORSE MYTHOLOGY, Waldorf Education Resources (Floris Books, 2009), pp. 7-9.

[See the entry for "myths" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia. Also see "Oh My Word" and "The Gods".]

[2] See Xpostfactoid and “Dorm Dad”.

 210. "Rudolf Steiner places the development of mankind in the overall development of the universe from Old Saturn to the future Vulcan [1]. Mankind is the supporting axis [2] throughout this amazing sequence ... Man is not a final product [3], but was involved from the start in the creative processes of the hierarchies [4]." — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2008), pp. 20-23.

[1] These are incarnations of the solar system (or incarnations of the "universe" as sometimes described in Anthroposophy). Old Saturn was the first stage of cosmic evolution for our solar system; Future Vulcan, usually described as the final stage, lies far in the future. [See entries for "conditions of consciousness" and "planetary conditions" in the BWSE. Also see "Vulcan".]

[2] I.e., the entire "universe" centers on man — it exists so that mankind may exist. [See "The Center".]

[3] I.e., we have evolved from cosmic stage to cosmic stage. We were present in germinal form at the beginning of the process, and we are still evolving. [See the entry "evolution of consciousness" in BWSE.]

[4] The "hierarchies" are the nine ranks of gods described by Steiner. [See "Polytheism".]

"The seven developmental stages of our solar system, from Old

Saturn, in the far-off past, to Vulcan, in the distant future."

[ANTHROPOSOPHY, pp. 48-49.]

 211. "Steiner describes the origin of our solar system ... The first [incarnation of the solar system] is called Old Saturn ... [T]he process of creation is started with a spherical shape, having the density of 'warmth'...and the size of the present orbit of Saturn. The spiritual basis of the human physical body is created [during this period] ... Old Saturn develops into a second phase, which Steiner called Old Sun. The spiritual basis for the ether body [1] is added ... In the third stage, called Old Moon, the spiritual basis of the astral body [2] is added ... The fourth stage is called Earth ... [A] fourth element is added [during Earth]: the human ego [3] ... The stage called Earth... is not yet our earth ... Initially it is a coagulation of all the present planets, including the sun. From this mass the present planets free themselves, one after another, until our earth is free and starts its own development. The various stages of the Earth stage are indicated by: Polarian era [4], Hyperborean era [5], Lemuria [6] and Atlantis [7] ... [T]he development of our solar system will continue ... The present solar system is said to be developing into the new Jupiter [8]. After this stage two more stages are to follow: the new Venus [9] and finally Vulcan [10]." — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2008), pp. 48-50.

[1] This is the first of three invisible bodies that, among human beings today, are "born" after the physical body is born. So Steiner said, anyway. [See "Incarnation".] Waldorf education is keyed to this sequence of "births." The ether body or etheric body is an envelope of life forces. It incarnates at around age seven.

[2] This second invisible body is an envelope of soul forces. So Steiner said, anyway. It incarnates at around age 14.

[3] This third invisible body — not to be confused with the "ego" discussed in the worldly discipline of psychology — is a spark of divinity (an envelope of spirit forces) that confers true selfhood. So Steiner said. It incarnates at around age 21.

[4] This was the first period of evolution during the Earth stage, according to Steiner. [See "Polaria" and "Polarian Epoch" in the BWSE.]

[5] See "Hyperborea" and "Hyperborean Epoch" in the BWSE.

[6] See "Lemuria" and "Lemurian Epoch" in the BWSE.

[7] See "Atlantean Epoch" and "Atlantis" in the BWSE.

[8] More properly, in Anthroposophy, this future stage is called Future Jupiter. [See "Future Stages".]

[9] More properly, this future stage is called Future Venus. [See "Future Stages".]

[10] More properly, this stage is called Future Vulcan. [See "Future Stages" and "Vulcan".]

 212. “The story [Hansel and Gretel] portrays spirit and soul descending into a physical body and ascending again, enriched, to the spiritual world ... The story could also be looked upon as an initiation process. Soul and spirit  are engaged in developing higher organs [i.e., organs of clairvoyance].” — Waldorf teacher Roy Wilkinson, THE INTERPRETATION OF FAIRY TALES (Harry Goulden, 1984), pp. 13-14.

 213. “When establishing the first Waldorf School in Stuttgart [Germany], Steiner replaced the function of the head teacher with the collective work of the teachers [1] on deepening an understanding of the nature of the human being [2]  … This daunting task requires the school to have an organizational structure that enables such research [3] to be practiced and supported. Hence the formation of what is known as the College of Teachers ... The role of the College of Teachers is to carry responsibility for the education in the school. This includes appointing and deploying staff, research and developing the curriculum [4]….” — Waldorf teachers Christopher Clouder and Martyn Rawson, WALDORF EDUCATION - Rudolf Steiner’s Ideas in Practice (Floris Books, 2003), pp. 112-114.

[1] Some Waldorf schools have no formal administrative structure — they are run collegially by the teachers. But other Waldorf schools have more-or-less traditional administrations, including administrative officers.

[2] In Waldorf belief, the “nature of the human being” is a mystical concoction, bound up with invisible bodies (the etheric, astral, and ego bodies), stages of incarnation, the effects of karma and astrology, and so on. [For a primer given by Waldorf founder Rudolf Steiner, see "Oh Humanity".]

[3] The “research” performed by Anthroposophists is the use of clairvoyance to study the spirit realm. Some Waldorf teachers believe they are clairvoyant, and thus they undertake Steineresque clairvoyant “research.” But more generally — and prosaically — the research done by Waldorf teachers sitting in their gatherings largely consists of reading and discussing Rudolf Steiner’s books and lectures.

[4] In typical Waldorf schools, the “college of teachers” is a central committee consisting of senior faculty members, although in some schools junior faculty members may also be involved. The group is a "college" in that (a) it is collegial, and (b) the members gather to study the occult teachings of Rudolf Steiner, as if in an Anthroposophical college.

 214. “Rudolf Steiner gave us the methods in the field of spiritual science, or anthroposophy, and some of their results [1]. He inaugurated heart-warming, practical adventures in many areas of culture — for example, education, agriculture, medicine, science, art, social theory, and religion. He has shed real light on the reality and accessibility of Christ [2].” — Waldorf educator John F. Gardner, YOUTH LONGS TO KNOW (Anthroposophic Press, 1997), p. 210.

[1] Anthroposophical "methods in the field of spiritual science" largely consist of the use of clairvoyance to explore the spirit realm. It is, in other words, a fantasy, a delusion. [See, e.g., "Clairvoyance".]

[2] The Christ of Anthroposophy is Ra, the Sun God. [See "Sun God".]

 215. “To secure consistent quality of content, Rudolf Steiner College became organized around the worldview underlying Waldorf education [1] ... [T]he chief objective of the college program was training [Waldorf] teachers ...  [A]ny such training had to begin with a year spent on the world-view underpinnings of the method: ‘It mattered enormously whether [the students] could connect with Anthroposophy.’ [2]” — Ida Oberman, THE WALDORF MOVEMENT IN EDUCATION (Edwin Mellen Press, 2008), p. 252.

[1] The "worldview" — mainly consisting of Rudolf Steiner's occult preachments — is Anthroposophy. [See the entry for "Anthroposophy" in the BWSE.] Waldorf teacher training varies from one training program to another, but usually it is deeply rooted in — and devoted to — Rudolf Steiner’s occult teachings. [See "Teacher Training".] Rudolf Steiner College has been a leading Waldorf training school, although in 2017 it suspended its matriculated training program. 

“RSC [i.e., Rudolf Steiner College] is re-evaluating our offerings and designing more flexible educational opportunities.” [See the Waldorf Watch News for September 26, 2017.]

[2] Rudolf Steiner said that Waldorf teachers must be committed Anthroposophists. 

“As Waldorf teachers, we must be true anthroposophists in the deepest sense of the word in our innermost feeling.” — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 118. 

Waldorf teachers in the modern era have often — if not always — taken this message to heart. 

"Waldorf teachers must be anthroposophists first and teachers second." — Waldorf teacher Gilbert Childs, STEINER EDUCATION IN THEORY AND PRACTICE (Floris Books, 1991), p. 166.

 216. “Flying Saucers  Technically described as U.F.O’s, or unidentified flying objects. There is general agreement about the saucer shape with three spherical support beneath. Sound evidence can be found for the existence of these unheralded objects.” — George Riland, THE STEINERBOOK DICTIONARY OF THE PSYCHIC, MYSTIC, OCCULT (Rudolf Steiner Publications, 1973), p. 85.

 217. “In anthroposophy, alcohol is looked upon as having been an aid for the human ‘I’ [1] to further find its way into the physical body [2]. The ‘I’ as the fourth sheath [3] of man had to develop a stronger grip upon the other three sheaths: the astral body, the ether body, and the physical body [4]. Thus the ‘I’ continued its descent from the world of spirit down to the earth. When alcohol is used the four sheaths initially loosen up, getting less united. After alcohol is used, however, the four sheaths telescope together in a more firm way than ever before … As to the use of alcohol in our own age, Rudolf Steiner tells us that whoever tries to get in touch with the spiritual world through spiritual science [5] had better not use alcohol for it shuts down the way to this world…. [6]” — Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, THE INNER RAINBOW - An Illustrated History of Human Consciousness from Ancient India to the Present Day (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2014), p. 43.

[1] In Anthroposophy, the “I” is the spiritual ego. [See “Ego”.] It may also be considered the fourth of the bodies that fully incarnated humans possess. [See “Incarnation”.]

[2] Steiner taught that alcohol was useful at a previous stage of human evolution — it helped the “I", coming down from the spirit realm, to “find its way into the physical body.”

[3] The term “sheath” is used, here, as a synonym for “body.” (Some Anthroposophists would dispute this usage. [See the entry for “sheath” in the BWSE.])

[4] The four bodies (three of which are invisible) are the physical body, the etheric body (a constellation of formative forces), the astral body (a constellation of soul forces), and the “I” (the spiritual ego). [See the entries for these terms in the BWSE.]

[5] The term “spiritual science”, as used by Steiner and his followers, applies primarily to Anthroposophy.

[6] Although Steiner indicated that alcohol is generally not beneficial at our current stage of evolution, we have reason to believe that he partook at least occasionally. 

“Steiner himself as a child brought with him into the world a vestigial relic of the old clairvoyance [the natural clairvoyance Steiner said ancient peoples possessed]. Biographies and his own autobiography bear witness to it. And it is credibly reported of him that he took deliberate steps to eliminate it, not even rejecting the help of alcohol, in order to clear the decks for the new clairvoyance it was his destiny both to predict and to develop.” — Owen Barfield, “Introducing Rudolf Steiner” (TOWARDS, Fall-Winter, 1983). 

Some critics would argue that alcohol could account for at least some of Steiner’s strangest visions, which he indeed attributed to his “new” clairvoyance. [See “Exactly”.] Using alcohol to suppress "old clairvoyance" in order to exercise "new clairvoyance" would seem, in any case, a dubious proposition. [Concerning old and new clairvoyance, see "natural clairvoyance", "atavistic clairvoyance", and "exact clairvoyance" in the BWSE.]

 218. "The important educational factors in the first years of life are learning to eat...and learning to sleep [1] ... Until the change of teeth [2], the child lives in an organism [3] in which there lives a replica of the spiritual world. [4] The archetype of the physical body as the Word of the Zodiac [5], the impress of the planets on the life organs — lungs, liver, heart, etc. [6] — and the movements they made during the embryonic period [7], this is the content of the body of formative forces [8], which is imbued with life from the cosmic ether [9], which the soul-spirits of children draw to themselves in the moon-sphere [10] before their birth.” — Waldorf teacher Audrey E. McAllen, SLEEP - An Unobserved Element in Education (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2004), p. 33.

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Plain-English paraphrase: Two things very young children need to learn are how to eat and how to sleep. Until the child's baby teeth fall out, the child's organism contains within it a replica of the spiritual world. The physical body is molded by the spiritual authority (The Word) dwelling in the stars. The organs of the physical body are molded by the planets. The embryo was molded by the motions of the planets during the embryo's life within the womb. The etheric body consists of these formative forces, which receive their life from the ether that fills the cosmos. The soul-spirits of children draw in these forces as they descend through the moon-sphere on their way to birth on the Earth.

Anthroposophical writing is often quite bad — obscure, convoluted, even ungrammatical. This is a tradition begun by Rudolf Steiner himself (drawing from the earlier mystics whom he mimicked). The evident assumption is that obscure statements may seem deep. But they don't. They only seem confused.

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[1] Eating and sleeping are usually considered natural processes that occur almost automatically. But in these matters, as in so much else, Rudolf Steiner's followers — Anthroposophists, including many Waldorf teachers — take a different, esoteric view.

[2] I.e., the loss of baby teeth, replaced by adult teeth. In Anthroposophical belief, this event signifies the incarnation of the etheric body, the first of our three invisible bodies. [See "baby teeth", "teeth", and "etheric body" in the BWSE.]

[3] According to Steiner, the human constitution consists of many parts not recognized in conventional science of medicine. [See "What We're Made Of" and "Our Parts".] In children, the most important parts are the four bodies that incarnate during the first 21 years of life: the physical body, the etheric body, the astral body, and the ego body. [See "Incarnation".]

[4] Rudolf Steiner taught that children come to Earth bearing the imprint of the spirit realm. Humans beings, he said, are microcosmic replicas of the universe, the macrocosm. [See "The Center".] Young children retain ties to the spirit realm, he said, and their bodies bear the imprint of that realm at least until age seven or so (when baby teeth are replaced by adult teeth, and the etheric body incarnates). Steiner taught that above the physical world there is the soul world and, above that, the spirit world. [See "Higher Worlds".]

[5] Astrology is a key element in much Anthroposophical lore. [See "Astrology".] The "Word of the Zodiac" is the expressed formative effect of the stars and their gods. The foremost of these gods for us is the Sun God, the embodied Word of God. [See "Sun God".]

[6] I.e., the astrological effect of the planets and their gods upon the developing organs (lungs, liver, etc.).

[7] I.e., the movements of the planets during the period when a developing child was still an embryo. In Anthroposophy, astrological influences are believed to have especially great effect upon embryos.

[8] The "body of formative forces" is the etheric body, which consists of forces that help shape the physical body.

[9] This, according to Anthroposophical teachings, is the universal etheric medium. Drawing from nineteenth century science, Steiner taught that the cosmos is filled by an "ether." [See "ether" and, e.g., "etheric realm" in the BWSE.]

[10] The "moon-sphere," according to Steiner, is the region of space bounded by the orbit of the moon. Here, a Waldorf teacher tells how children gather astrological forces from the moon-sphere as they descend from the spirit realm to be born upon the Earth.

 219. "The melancholic, being the person most given up to the contracting polarity, as it works into the mineral realm, will tend to occupy the least extension in space. He will shrink into a point.” — Waldorf teacher Magda Lissau, THE TEMPERAMENTS AND THE ARTS (The Association of Waldorf Schools of North America, 2003), p. 165.

When compiling a list like this, it's hard to know where to stop. The list could go on almost interminably. But perhaps I'll knock off here.

What you've seen, above, are not necessarily the most revelatory statements ever made about Waldorf education and Anthroposophical beliefs. These are just the quotations I was able to gather fairly readily. If you poke around, you could doubtless come up with others, perhaps including some that are even more head-spinning.

Advocates of Waldorf education usually pick their words with great care; they usually rationalize and dissemble, trying to make their practices and beliefs seem as reasonable as possible. But, once you know what to look for, you should easily locate statements that reveal the real (occult, mystical, incredible, false)  thinking on which Waldorf education is built.

I urge you to look. The truth about Waldorf is almost inconceivable (clairvoyance, fairies, Atlantis, ancient gods, invisible bodies, astrology, karma...), but it is the truth about Waldorf. That is to say, it is the set of falsehoods that Rudolf Steiner preached and that his followers believe.

(Believe it or not.)

— Compilation and commentary by Roger Rawlings