Rudolf Steiner's Esoteric Teaching Activity

By Hella Wiesberger

 These accounts by Hella Wiesberger (1920–2014) offer an overview of the nature, background, and history of Rudolf Steiner's esoteric teaching activity. This book is the result of her lifelong study of this aspect of Steiner’s work, including documents she oversaw as an editor of Rudolf Steiner’s Collected Works. Wiesberger’s collegial relationships with certain esoteric students also helped her illumine some of Steiner’s less accessible documents.

Hella Wiesberger’s writings were published over two decades as introductions and commentaries in relevant volumes of Rudolf Steiner’s works, placing them in biographical and historical context. The essays were edited in various degrees for this volume in consideration of more recent context, insights, and knowledge. Also included are commentaries and contributions related to the Esoteric School from Rudolf Steiner, Marie Steiner, and Adolf Arenson, as well as several letters to and from Rudolf Steiner.

We are fortunate to have these records from a devoted and diligent student of Rudolf Steiner and Anthroposophy. They provide valuable insights into the story and substance of Spiritual Science and its esoteric school and teaching.

CONTENTS:
Introduction
Rudolf Steiner in the History of the Esoteric Movement
Rudolf Steiner as a Teacher of Esotericism
Research into Occult History
Rudolf Steiner on the First Section of the Esoteric School, 1904–1914
The Structure of the Esoteric School
The Movement, the Esoteric School, and the Society
Separation of the Esoteric School from the Theosophical Society
The Second Section of the Esoteric School, 1904–1914
Establishing the Cognitive–Ritual Section
Ritual in Rudolf Steiner’s Esoteric Work
The Meaning and Spiritual Origin of the Cognitive Ritual
Esoteric Research into the Hiram–John Individuality
Was Rudolf Steiner a Freemason?
Clarifying Rudolf Steiner’s Connection with Theodor Reuss
The Esoteric School and a New Beginning after the War
Adolf Arenson: A Circular to the Members and a Letter to Albert Steffen
Concluding Remarks

June 2019; SB; 292pp; 23 x 15cm; pb; ISBN: 9781621482413