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Rudolf Steiner's Path of Initiation and the Mystery of the Ego

and the Foundations of Anthroposophical Methodology

Paperback
November 2013
9781906999551
More details
  • Publisher
    Temple Lodge Publishing
  • Published
    22nd November 2013
  • ISBN 9781906999551
  • Language English
  • Pages 62 pp.
  • Size 6" x 9"
$21.00

2 lectures by Sergei O. Prokofieff, Bologna, March 31 & April 8, 2011

A special conference took place in Bologna in spring 2011, marking the hundredth anniversary of a unique lecture Steiner delivered to a philosophically trained audience in the same city. In his key exposition, Steiner had given a concise description of the spiritual-scientific theory of knowledge as well as a brief outline of the anthroposophic path of training.

In his contribution to the 2011 congress, Prokofieff tackles two principal aspects. On the one hand, he describes how Steiner’s Bologna lecture contained the essential foundations for a new “science of the human ego” (the human “I”). On the other hand, Prokofieff states that Steiner was the first person to transform this theory into a practical path of knowledge, following it to its very conclusion. Thus, the words of Steiner’s lecture were based entirely on personal experience.

Together with a transcript of Steiner’s full Bologna lecture, Prokofieff’s lecture is reproduced here in an expanded version. In addition, this volume features Steiner’s important “summaries of essential points,” in which he develops and connects some of his key thoughts with further aspects of Anthroposophy, especially in relation to their Christological foundations.

C O N T E N T S:

Foreword by Sergei O. Prokofieff

PART ONE: SERGEI O. PROKOFIEFF
RUDOLF STEINER’S PATH OF INITIATION AND THE MYSTERY OF THE EGO

Lecture in Bologna, March 31, 2011

PART TWO: RUDOLF STEINER
THE FOUNDATIONS OF ANTHROPOSOPHICAL METHODOLOGY

1. Lecture in Bologna, April 8, 1911
- The Psychological Foundations of Anthroposophy
- A Spiritual-scientific Mode of Perception Based upon Potential Psychological Facts
- The Experiences of the Spiritual Researcher and the Theory of Knowledge

2. Two Summaries of Essential Points from the Lecture in Bologna
- Theosophy and Modern Cultural Life
- A Statement about Theosophy at the Fourth International Philosophy Conference

Rudolf Steiner

Rudolf Steiner (b. Rudolf Joseph Lorenz 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. Steiner termed his spiritual philosophy anthroposophy, meaning “wisdom of the human being.” As an exceptionally developed seer, he based his work on direct knowledge and perception of spiritual dimensions. He initiated a modern, universal “spiritual science” that is accessible to anyone willing to exercise clear and unbiased thinking. From his spiritual investigations, Steiner provided suggestions for the renewal of numerous activities, including education (general and for special needs), agriculture, medicine, economics, architecture, science, philosophy, Christianity, and the arts. There are currently thousands of schools, clinics, farms, and initiatives in other fields that involve practical work based on the principles Steiner developed. His many published works feature his research into the spiritual nature of human beings, the evolution of the world and humanity, and methods for personal development. He wrote some thirty books and delivered more than six thousand lectures throughout much of Europe. In 1924, Steiner founded the General Anthroposophical Society, which today has branches around the world.

Sergei O. Prokofieff

Sergei O. Prokofieff (1954-2014) was born in Moscow, where he studied fine arts and painting at the Moscow School of Art. At an early age he encountered the work of Rudolf Steiner and quickly realized that his life would be dedicated to the Christian path of esoteric knowledge. He wrote his first book, Rudolf Steiner and the Founding of the New Mysteries, while living in Soviet Russia, and it was published in English in 1994. After the fall of Communism, he helped establish the Anthroposophical Society in Russia. In 2001, he became a member of the Executive Council of the General Anthroposophical Society at the Goetheanum in Switzerland. More than 30 of his books have been translated into English. Sergei Prokofieff passed away in Dornach, Switzerland.