Angels Speak

A year after the burning of the first Goetheanum, during the eight days of the Christmas Conference 1923/24, Rudolf Steiner, together with the 800 people present, laid the Foundation Stone “in our hearts” as a meditation. Every day at ten o’clock in the morning, and on the last day also in the evening—nine times in total—he spoke the verses, invoking the angelic hierarchies, allowing their voices to sound for us in the spirit. The Foundation Stone is thus a purely spiritual text, not intended as information, but as meditation.

The all-encompassing relationships of the cosmic ordering of the spiritual world, described by Rudolf Steiner in his written works and lectures, are united in seed form in the Foundation Stone Meditation. In this book, some sixty meditative passages about the role of the angelic hierarchies in cosmic and human evolution have been selected from Rudolf Steiner’s works, with the aim of shedding new light on the words of the Foundation Stone. Here the cosmic speech of the hierarchies resounds as the primal source of anthroposophy, revealing their dynamic, radiant, ever-renewing creative work with humanity and the Earth.

This book is intended for all who seek a deeper relationship to the Foundation Stone Meditation as a path of awakening.

CONTENTS

Preface
The Foundation Stone Meditation
Introduction

CONTEMPLATIONS FOR THE FIRST PANEL    

The soul in the limbs
The soul in the depths of the soul
The Father Spirit
Seraphim – Cherubim – Thrones
The spirits of the elements

CONTEMPLATIONS FOR THE SECOND PANEL  

The soul in the beat of heart and lung
The soul in the balance of the soul
The Christ-will
Kyriotetes – Dynameis – Exousiai
The spirits of the elements

CONTEMPLATIONS FOR THE THIRD PANEL    

The soul in the resting head
The soul in stillness of thought
The Spirit
Archai – Archangeloi – Angeloi
The spirits of the elements

 CONTEMPLATIONS FOR THE FOURTH PANEL    

The Spirit-light of the world
Darkness of night
Day-radiant light
Light divine
That good may become

About the Author

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.