Work of the Angel in Our Astral Body

1 lecture, Zürich, October 9, 1918 (CW 182)

In this much loved lecture, Steiner reveals that the angels―the spirits closest to human beings ―are trying to create images in human astral bodies. Such images are given for the purpose of bringing about “definite conditions in the social life of the future,” related to brotherhood, religious freedom, and conscious spirituality.

Other spiritual beings, however, work in opposition to the angels. If, because of their disruption, humanity sleeps though the angels’ spiritual revelation, the consequences will be dire, leading to the manifestation of sexual aberrations, the misuse of medicine, and the misapplication of mechanical and technological forces.

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.