Guidance in Esoteric Training

Selected lectures and writings from 1903 to 1922 (CW 245)

Selected from material given by Rudolf Steiner to members of his Esoteric School (1904–1914), this volume features exercises, meditations, and practices for spiritual self-development. In contrast to Eastern methods of inner development, these arise from the Western, Rosicrucian stream, adapted fully to modern consciousness.

Various exercises are given―for morning and evening, for the days of the week, and for the months of the year. Also included are numerous explanations that can deepen and enhance meditative work, including several articles on inner development and the obstacles one faces on the way to true self-awareness.

This enlarged edition contains additional clarification of the exercises, descriptions of future world and human evolution, and advice that Steiner gave later in his life on the nature of breathing exercises and ancient and modern methods of initiation.

This is an invaluable resource for all those who are serious about inner development, regardless of one’s chosen path.

This volume is a translation from German of the book Anweisungen für eine esoterische Schulung (GA 245).

Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925) was born in the small village of Kraljevec, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now in Croatia), where he grew up. As a young man, he lived in Weimar and Berlin, where he became a well-published scientific, literary, and philosophical scholar, known especially for his work with Goethe's scientific writings. At the beginning of the twentieth century, he began to develop his early philosophical principles into an approach to systematic research into psychological and spiritual phenomena. Formally beginning his spiritual teaching career under the auspices of the Theosophical Society, Steiner came to use the term Anthroposophy (and spiritual science) for his philosophy, spiritual research, and findings. The influence of Steiner's multifaceted genius has led to innovative and holistic approaches in medicine, various therapies, philosophy, religious renewal, Waldorf education, education for special needs, threefold economics, biodynamic agriculture, Goethean science, architecture, and the arts of drama, speech, and eurythmy. In 1924, Rudolf Steiner founded the General Anthroposophical Society, which today has branches throughout the world. He died in Dornach, Switzerland.

Matthew Barton is a translator, editor, teacher, and poet, and taught kindergarten for many years at the Bristol Waldorf School. His first collection of poems was Learning To Row (1999). He has won numerous prizes for his work, including an Arts Council Writer's Award and a Hawthornden Fellowship.