The Philosophy of Freedom (Limited Edition)

THE PHILOSOPHY OF FREEDOM

LIMITED EDITION HARDBACK TO COMMEMORATE

THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY OF RUDOLF STEINER’S BIRTH

Rudolf Steiner Press is proud to publish a new series of re-edited, re-typeset and re-designed editions of the classic, authorized translations of Rudolf Steiner’s four fundamental works. Each volume of this series is printed in a limited edition of 1,000 copies and sewn-bound in high-quality cloth, finished with colored end-papers and a marker ribbon.

Given his energetic involvement in practical initiatives and extensive lecturing, Rudolf Steiner had little time to write books. Of those he did write – belonging almost entirely to the earlier years of his work – four titles form an indispensable introduction to his later teaching: Knowledge of the Higher Worlds, Occult Science, The Philosophy of Freedom and Theosophy. Are we free, whether we know it or not? Or is our sense of freedom merely an illusion?

Written in 1894 (CW 4)

Are we free, whether we know it or not? Is any notion of individual freedom merely an illusion?

Steiner tackles these age-old questions in a new and unique way. He shows that, by considering our own activity of thinking, we can realize the reasons for everything we do. And if these reasons are taken from the realm of our ideals, our actions are free, because only we determine them.

The question of freedom cannot be settled by philosophical argument. Nor is it simply granted to us. If we want to be free, we must work through our own inner activity to overcome unconscious urges and habitual thinking. To accomplish this, we must reach a point of view that recognizes no limits to knowledge, sees through all illusions, and opens the door to an experience of the reality of the spiritual world. Then we can achieve the highest level of evolution—we will recognize ourselves as free spirits.

This volume is a translation of Die Philosophie der Freiheit (GA 4) from German by Michael Wilson.

C O N T E N T S:

Foreword by Matthew Barton
Notes on the Translation by Michael Wilson
Preface to the Revised Edition of 1918
Preface to the First Edition, 1894

Knowledge of Freedom

1. Conscious Human Action
2. The Fundamental Desire for Knowledge
3. Thinking in the Service of Knowledge
4. The World of Percept
5. The Act of Knowing
6. Human Individuality
7. Are there Limits to Knowledge?

The Reality of Freedom

8. The Factors of Life
9. The Idea of Freedom
10. Philosophy of Freedom and Monism
11. World Purpose and Life Purpose (The Ordering of Mankind’s Destiny)
12. Moral Imagination (Darwinism and Morality)
13. The Value of Life (Optimism and Pessimism)
14. Individuality and Genius

Ultimate Questions

The Consequences of Monism

Appendix
Notes
Further Reading

About the Author

Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925) was born in the small village of Kraljevec, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now in Croatia), where he grew up (see right). 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.