research & reviews not as a belief system, but as a conception worthy of being weighed and pondered? Without something like this, we are left with the damagingly simplistic (and materialistic) heaven/hell-carrot/ stick moralistic world stories of conventional and fundamentalist religion. Or we are left with wishful thinking’s focus on the benign being/unconditional love aspects of the NDEs that gave us Dr. Alexander’s book title, Proof of Heaven—a title he reportedly protested, and a heaven which his experience and that of numerous others did not really suggest.3 As already mentioned, the reports of NDEs indicate existence extending for a few hours after heart/brain death and never go beyond a perceived point of no return. They are nothing like the many hundreds of years described by Rudolf Steiner, nor do they likewise tell of rhythmic sojourns to the reaches of the cosmos in the cause of purification and renewal, sojourns full of meaning-imbued exchanges between orders of beings, between the living and the dead—and they are not hallowed by the clear implication, as promised by scripture, that human beings carry the cosmos and are its and the Creator’s reflection. In addition, they miss the balancing and essential notion (as expressed by anthroposophist Eugene Schwartz in a talk on life between death and rebirth at Anthroposophy NYC in January of this year) that for all its wonders, the spiritual world is more or less bureaucratric in function in that the only place where the rubber figuratively meets the road—the field of action where change is actually possible for us—is where the rubber literally meets the road—here on earth! The public discourse truly needs a rescue. We should not doubt that there are significant portions of it where the participants are mature and desperate enough in the flood of excesses and evils to listen with unprejudiced, unspoiled ears. We need to get closer to the gathering places of that discourse than the good pages of the likes of being human and Lilipoh. Fortunately, opportunities are everywhere in today’s interconnected environment if we make the commitment. Will the balancing, positive forces come to meet those who make their move? If it is a question of turning death into life, they are interested. Walter Alexander (walter@wawrite.com) is a medical writer, a writer and contributing editor for Lilipoh, and a former public and Waldorf school teacher. He has long been active at Anthroposophy NYC, for a number of recent years as co-president of its Council.
3 There was a recent strong attack on Dr. Alexander’s claims and reputation in Esquire (www.esquire.com/features/the-prophet) and a sharp rebuttal of the attack, as well, at www.selfconsciousmind.com. 42 •
being human
Peter Selg’s Rudolf Steiner A review by Bruce Donehower Rudolf Steiner 1861–1925; Lebens und Werkgeshichte, by Peter Selg; Verlag des Ita Wegman Institut, 2012; three volumes, 2,148 pages. By the time this particular book review appears, most anthroposophists already will be aware of the publication of Peter Selg’s monumental biography of Rudolf Steiner. The book appeared in 2012, published by Verlag des Ita Wegman Instituts. Written in German, of course, the three-volume hardcover edition of slightly more than 2000 pages has been discussed and reviewed in several publications, and an English language summary of the existing reviews has appeared on the Internet (follow this shortened URL: goo.gl/5pZxH). Understandably, readers in the English-speaking world are confronted here with the odd situation of reading another review of a book written in a foreign language. I have been told that a translation of the work is planned or is in process; however, even assuming that funds are available to pay for translation and publication of a work of this heft and magnitude, it will no doubt be some little time before a full community of English readers can independently assess the work. Thus having noted the Quixotic nature of this assignment, I feel that it is important nonetheless to shine the spotlight of attention brightly on Peter Selg’s work, for this is a biography I would hand to any person who approached me with the question: “Who was Rudolf Steiner?” The comprehensiveness of the biography (its scope and attention to detail, its inclusion of relevant and illuminating texts from Steiner’s autobiography and Gesamtausgabe (Collected Works, or GA), the specificity with which it details the chronology of Steiner’s development) makes it an important touchstone for anyone who desires a thorough overview of Steiner’s life and accomplishment. I am grateful that Peter Selg assumed the challenge of this project and that he has risen to that challenge with such devoted attention and intelligence. In addition to offering a comprehensive overview of Steiner’s life, the book also