Start Now!: A Book of Soul and Spiritual Exercises

Rudolf Steiner

Jun 2002 · SteinerBooks

About this ebook

Meditation instructions, meditations, exercises, verses for living a spiritual year, prayers for the dead, and other practices for both beginning and experienced practitioners--Start Now! has become the classic, indispensable text and reference for all those who are serious about the practice of Rudolf Steiner's spiritual science.

Start Now! is an inspiring guide to the practical aspects of Anthroposophy. It offers the most extensive collection available of Steiner's spiritual instructions and practices, including meditation instructions; mantric verses; daily, weekly, and monthly practices for developing one's soul qualities; karmic exercises and meditations for working with the dead, with the angelic hierarchies, and with our guardian angels.

CONTENTS:

• Introduction by Christopher Bamford (background and context)
• Prologue - Framing the Work (including Steiner's early "Credo")
• Meditation Instructions and Explanations
• The Way of Thinking
• The Way of Reverence & Its Fruits
• Developing the Chakras, or "Lotus Flowers"
• Six Essential Exercises
• The Backward Review, or "Retrospect"
• Living the Year Spiritually (including the complete "Calendar of the Soul")
• Meditations from the Esoteric School
• The Rosicrucian Path
• The Christian-Gnostic Path
• Working with the Dead
• The Foundation Stone Meditation
• Meeting the Guardians
• Bibliography & Further Reading

Start Now! may be the most unique and comprehensive spiritual guidebook available and will prove a lifelong friend and help along the way. No one who is serious about spiritual practice--whether a beginner or an advanced student--should be without this book!

Ratings and reviews

You will find at the philosophyoffreedom website a free online study course on the “Philosophy of Freedom”. It is Rudolf Steiner's most important work, and the one that will endure the longest, because it describes his path to freedom. When asked, “What will remain of your work in thousands of years? Steiner replied: “Nothing but the Philosophy of Freedom. When asked which of his books he would most want to see rescued if catastrophe should come upon the world, Steiner replied: “The Philosophy of Freedom”. When a student asked if he could attend Steiner's private esoteric training group, Steiner replied: “You don’t need to! You have understood my Philosophy of Freedom!”

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. Christopher Bamford is Editor in Chief for SteinerBooks and its imprints. A Fellow of the Lindisfarne Association, he has lectured, taught, and written widely on Western spiritual and esoteric traditions. He is the author of The Voice of the Eagle: The Heart of Celtic Christianity (1990) and An Endless Trace: The Passionate Pursuit of Wisdom in the West (2003). He has also translated and edited numerous books, including Celtic Christianity: Ecology and Holiness (1982); Homage to Pythagoras: Rediscovering Sacred Science; and The Noble Traveller: The Life and Writings of O. V. de L. Milosz (all published by Lindisfarne Books). HarperSanFrancisco included an essay by Mr. Bamford in its anthology Best Spiritual Writing 2000.