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The Collected Works of Rudolf Steiner
Series
14
Read Description
Four Modern Mystery Dramas
The Doorway of Initiation • The Trial of the Soul • The Guardian of the Threshold • The Souls Awaken (CW 14)
Paperback
September 2023
9781855846586
More details
- Publisher
Rudolf Steiner Press - Published
26th September 2023 - ISBN 9781855846586
- Language English
- Pages 570 pp.
- Size 6" x 9.25"
$45.00
Written 1910 to 1913 (CW 14)
“We see [in the mystery dramas] direct encounters of someone (Johannes) with their own double—or Doppelgänger. We see the appearance of beneficent spiritual beings on stage, such as the Guardian of the Threshold—and adversarial ones, such as Lucifer and Ahriman, experiencing how the latter two beings work and reveal (or do not reveal) themselves. We experience many forms of spiritual deceptions, trials, and breakthroughs. We experience elemental nature beings (in the fourth play) and the presence of those who have died.” — Richard Ramsbotham (introduction)
Rudolf Steiner’s four modern mystery dramas are powerful portrayals of the complex laws of reincarnation and karma, transporting us to landscapes of soul and spirit where suprasensory beings are visible, active, and influential. Through perception of those hidden worlds, we are given tools to comprehend the background of the struggles we face in everyday life—both in human relationships and in our attempts to practice spiritual development.
Written from 1910 to 1913—during periods of intense inner and outer work—the dramas present powerful testimonies to Steiner’s artistic creativity. By manifesting soul and spirit forms on stage, they foreshadow a dramatic art of the future.
Steiner planned for all four mystery dramas to be performed in August 1923, but this was rendered impossible after the first Goetheanum was destroyed by fire on New Year’s Eve 1922. The dramas were eventually performed together for the first time in 1930, and since then they have been staged regularly, in many languages, throughout the world.
This fresh rendering into English by Richard Ramsbotham also features his extensive introduction.
This volume is a translation from German of Vier Mysteriendramen (GA 14).
C O N T E N T S:
Introduction by Richard Ramsbotham
1. The Doorway of Initiation: A Rosicrucian Mystery through Rudolf Steiner
2. The Trial of the Soul: Life Pictures in Dramatic Scenes
3. The Guardian of the Threshold: Soul Events in Dramatic Scenes
4. The Souls Awaken: Spiritual and Soul Events in Dramatic Scenes
Significant Events in the Life of Rudolf Steiner
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.
