The Rudolf Steiner Archive

Above all, I must express my satisfaction at being able to greet you once again in Berlin. I know full well that my absence, my all-too-frequent absences, cause some disruption. But you will understand, from a theosophical point of view, that today's work is necessary at the most diverse points in the German-speaking world – and is necessary in other ways as well. Right now we are at a very important stage of the development of the Theosophical movement, and each and every one of us must contribute to the development of occultism and Theosophy wherever we feel we can contribute. I hope that you will therefore also understand this matter, that I am not always able to work only in the place that is, after all, in a certain respect the starting point of my theosophical work; but circumstances have made it necessary for a temporary absence like the last one to occur more often, and we can hope that somewhat different times will arise for Berlin in the future. For my part, I will endeavor to be here as much as possible. However, I cannot neglect the comprehensive task of our Theosophical development during this time and ask you to be understanding in this regard.

Obituary for Countess Brockdorff

The next thing we have to do today is to remember the departure from the physical plane of one of our very dear members. Countess von Brockdorff, who, as especially the old members of the Theosophical movement in Germany know, devoted so much strength and devotion to this Theosophical movement in Germany, departed from the physical plane on June 8, after a physically agonizing ordeal. The older members of our group, and I myself in particular, are aware of the beautiful and devoted work of Countess von Brockdorff. At times when the Theosophical cause in Germany was often on the verge of dying out, it was the couple, Count and Countess Brockdorff, who, time and again, knew how to keep this Theosophical movement in Germany afloat in their loving and, at the same time, extraordinarily appealing way for the widest circles. Those who still remember the quiet and extremely effective way in which the countess knew how to gather individual minds in her house to send out individual rays of light will fully appreciate her work.

If I may first say a few words about how I myself came to be part of the circle in which Countess Brockdorff was active, inspiring in the broadest sense in theosophical and other intellectual matters, I would just like to say that one day a lady said to me whether I would like to give a lecture on Nietzsche in Brockdorff's circle. I accepted and gave a lecture on Nietzsche. The countess then took the opportunity to ask if I would like to give a second lecture in the same winter cycle. This second lecture - I think it was the 1901 winter series - was about the fairy tale of the “Green Snake and the Beautiful Lily”. Even then, the countess had the desire to take up again what had been dormant at the time - the actual theosophical activity.

The countess's work was extremely difficult because she became more and more rooted in the theosophical life with which she had come to various theosophical experiences.

It was difficult to continue the spiritual life under the name of Theosophy. Therefore, she had initially limited herself to her Thursday afternoons, but then felt the need to return to actual Theosophical activity and invited me - I was not even a member of the society at the time - to give lectures at the association, which took place during the first winter and were about German mysticism up to Angelus Silesius. An outline of this is given in the book 'The Mysticism of Modern Spiritual Life'. The following winter I gave the lectures on 'Christianity as a Mystical Fact'. This led to the creation of a kind of center for the gathering of theosophical forces in Germany, from which a foundation was laid for the actual founding of the section.

Now, when one thinks of the dear Countess Brockdorff, it must be emphasized that the Theosophical cause was repeatedly kept afloat by her extraordinarily sympathetic manner and work. The Countess had little sense for certain organizational issues and currents in the Theosophical movement. It was less her thing. She had less sympathy for it. But a certain basic tendency of her heart formed to work in the direction of the theosophical movement. She did this in a way that was truly rare in a human being, borne of the fullest devotion and extraordinary love.

It was probably her health that made it necessary for her to retire to her country residence in Algund near Meran at a time when we were forced by circumstances to develop a tighter and more cohesive organization in Germany. And, as was often the case, even this peace was not truly rest for the good countess. She soon began to suffer from ill health, and she went through difficult times in terms of her health in the last few years.

Objectively speaking, the history of the Theosophical Society in Germany in the 1890s and early 1900s will be linked to the name Brockdorff, as the achievements of the countess and the count cannot be praised enough. The older members will still remember our good count when he was still at the side of the companion he has now lost in the physical plane. But the members also know how deeply rooted the theosophical sentiment was, with which peace will be won from the theosophical world view. But even those who may have been younger members and did not know Countess Brockdorff will, in view of what she achieved for the Theosophical movement in Germany and particularly in Berlin, gratefully remember it, and look back with a certain – essentially Theosophical – emotion on the last days that brought physical death to the much-admired and beloved member. I ask you to honor the honored member by rising from our seats.

Report on the Paris Congress

Now it is my turn to speak briefly about the congress of the European section that took place at Whitsun in Paris and that coincided with my presence in Paris. It was not just a matter of attending the congress, but I also spent four weeks in Paris giving lectures and tried to cover the various fields of Theosophy and occultism in these lectures. These lectures – I may say this objectively – have aroused some interest. In the end, it was no longer possible to finish the lectures in the small venue. The French section has earned our special thanks by providing us with their club venue for these lectures.

I am particularly gratified by the fact that one man in particular took part in these lectures from start to finish, and he has achieved extraordinary things for the occult and spiritual movement in our time: namely Edouard Schur, whom you may also know from 'Lucifer'.

So our French congress took place at Pentecost. This congress, like all congresses of this kind, kept our French comrades and colleagues busy for a long time. Anyone who is able to look behind the scenes of such a congress and see what needs to be done will know that it is not without reason that we look back with gratitude on everything the French Section has achieved over many months, just as the English Section did last year. However, I have to add a bitter pill sweetened by joy by informing you that we will have the congress in Germany next year. I believe that the German Section will be able to take on the burden of this congress as the fourth of these sections. I hope that we will be able to welcome many friends from abroad here next year.

If I am to speak of the participants in the congress that began on Saturday, July 2 and ended on Wednesday, June 6, I have to mention President-Founder Olcott, who made the long journey from Adyar to Paris especially for the congress and who was the chairman of the congress this year. Then I can only give you a few of the names of the participants in this congress that may interest you. I can tell you that on the part of America, only one member was there – that is natural, because America does not belong to the European section – our member [Bernard]. Of foreign members, I would like to mention an Indian who is currently planning to give lectures in England: [...]. He will give lectures on Vedanta philosophy. Then there was a personality, a representative of the area north of India, who spoke in a few words during the congress, in a way that gave an idea of the shades of the theosophical view in this area.

Among the European participants, mention should be made of Mr. Mead, Mr. [Keightley], Secretary General of the European Section, [Kate Spink], then Misses Cooper-Oakley, then, from the English Section, Miss [Ward] and several other members who can hardly be known in Germany by name.

Our Scandinavian member [Arvid Knös] represented the Scandinavian Theosophical Society at the congress in an exceptionally pleasant manner. The Dutch section was represented by our friend [W. B. Fricke]. The French section was present in person. Then there was Pascal, the secretary general of the French section, who was not very active due to poor health and could only devote a little time to the work of the Theosophical Society. The main work of the French section lies with the three siblings: Monsieur and [Mesdames Blech], who have ensured that there is now a beautiful headquarters in France and who had a lion's share in the preparation of the congress. In addition, Mr. Ostermann, who lives in Alsace for most of the year and who has greatly supported our work through his activities, made it possible to give lectures in Strasbourg and Colmar. In Strasbourg, he had an audience of about 700 people. He supports the theosophical cause wherever he can.

From Spain, there was Monsieur [Rafael Urbano]. From Italy, there was our friend Professor Penzig, a professor in Genoa, who is also the Secretary General of the Italian Section. The German members Fräulein von Sivers, Baroness v. Bredow, Mr. Kiem; also from Cologne, Miss Scholl, Mr. and Mrs. Künstler, Miss Noss, Miss Link – Cologne, now Bonn. A lodge has recently been established in Bonn. From Hamburg there were: Miss Wagner, the sister of Günther Wagner, who could not be present. Then from Darmstadt: Mr. Kull, from Munich: Countess Kalckreuth, Miss Stinde and [Miss Stucky]. From Stuttgart: [Carl Kieser], from Regensburg: Mr. [Feldner]. Those are more or less the German members who were able to attend. So that was the list of participants.

The congress was opened by an exhibition held in the rooms of the French headquarters at [Avenue de la Bourdonnais 59] on the afternoon of June 2. In a series of partly symbolic and partly other images, the French section endeavored to make the artistic part of our congress. It is to be hoped that this part in particular will be developed more and more. It is certainly true that the French section did well to only allow works by French artists. Whether this can continue to be the case to this extent will have to be carefully considered. The artistic element was relegated to a mere secondary meaning by the fact that the congress was held in a large room at [14 Rue Magellan], but the smaller exhibition in the rooms a little way away could only be considered for those who could spare a quarter of an hour to look at the pictures. Nevertheless, just consider what it would cost such a congress committee to gather a larger number of images from all over France in order to organize the congress to the satisfaction of the members.

The opening of the congress by President Olcott took place the next morning, and was preceded by a very pleasant performance of the “Ode to the Sun”, which was written and composed by our French member [Edmond Bailly] and which introduced the congress in a very beautiful and dignified way. Then there was an address by our friend Dr. Pascal, the Secretary General of the French Section, in which he welcomed the assembled members (over 400 in number). Of course, the members of the [affected] country provided the main support. The number of German members has grown somewhat compared to the number that could be represented in Amsterdam and London. I can say that we had a very favorable number in Paris.

Then our president Olcott gave his speech, which he first delivered in English and then repeated in French. This opening speech – allow me to give you an objective report – probably belongs to a current in the theosophical movement that, I would say, no longer stands on the ground of the original intention of the theosophical movement. I do not wish to hide my views and convictions from the members of the German Section, but I would ask to be allowed to speak openly about the matters at hand during a relatively difficult period in our development. It is not a matter of in any way touching on the merits and virtues of President Olcott, but for me it is only a matter of speaking to the German members in a completely unbiased and honest way.

The speech that our president gave more or less culminates in expressing the aspiration that is prevailing in a large part of our society today, the aspiration to push back occultism. Within society, more superficial studies than can otherwise be found today, and in particular, as is often emphasized, the ethical direction, the moralizing direction, have come to the fore. I do not want to say that the theosophical movement today is already shaping itself similarly to a society for ethical culture. But there is clearly a certain turning away from actual occultism and a limitation to what is in the first principle, to an external study, to the results of scientific research, such as hypnotism, suggestion and so on; as I said, there is a reluctance to deal with the great occult problems, which we in Germany tried to place at the center of the movement. There is a tendency to push them more into the background.

I am not going too far when I note that there was a tendency in the speech to let the esoteric element in society recede somewhat. It is self-evident that within society every person can have their own opinion, and that the president must also have and can have his own opinion. However, I must say that for many members, what the president says carries more weight than what anyone else says. But what he says must not be taken democratically. I myself would not be dissuaded at any moment from the path I have taken, and which actually does not go in the direction that appears to be official, but emerged as the opinion of an individual in the opening speech of the congress. I do not want to say – I do not actually want to say what I am saying – that I myself [...] consider it right for the Theosophical movement to be gradually pushed aside by occultism, but that I consider the cultivation of the great aspects of occultism and esotericism to be the basic nerve that should make up the Theosophical movement.

I can also say that at the congress, where I had the opportunity, I never hesitated to speak about this view. I said that in Germany it could not be about anything other than the cultivation of esotericism and occultism, although sometimes I was all alone. But it seemed necessary to me not to hold back what I consider to be the main focus of the movement.

Recently, our German section has been accused – including by German members – of spinelessness and all sorts of other things because we did not engage with their matters, which were not worth the trouble, because we could not go along with this line. Where it will be a matter of objective opposition, we will hopefully not shrink from making that opposition. I am not saying that our president expressed his personal opinion as president, but that he did not actually fully observe the custom that a president should observe: namely, to speak in generalities and in a kind of greeting, that is, to speak in a comprehensive manner, so that he may have gone too far in a way that can very easily create the danger of also giving a certain impression in society. That would have to be avoided at all costs.

The next item on the congress agenda was the individual speeches of the general secretaries and then also of the representatives of other individual nations. There was a colourful mix of languages, as each person gave their welcome address in their own language, in keeping with the true spirit of an international congress.

Dr. Pascal spoke for France, [W. B. Fricke] for the Netherlands, [Arvid Knös] for Sweden and Norway, Penzig for Italy, and I for Germany. The British section – and this was a cute scene: the of the English section is our member [Kate Spink], who spoke in such a way that Miss [Ward], who has a good voice and is good at speaking, stood behind her and spoke those words that were to be considered the greeting of the English section.

The last thing was the announcement that our friend Johan van Manen, who for years has been the de facto secretary of the Federation's congress and has always organized this congress in an extremely busy and active manner, and who has devoted himself so intensively to this work that he had to take a vacation next year to recover, so that we will have to do without a permanent secretary. Fräulein Stinde from Munich has therefore been elected as secretary for the German work, and she will represent Johann van Manen next year.

That was the first morning. Then came the first afternoon, which was dedicated to one of the two discussions that were held. The questions were as follows. The first question was: “To what extent is the Theosophical Society purely a group of seekers after truth? And a group of students? Or is it a group of propagandists or of followers of some system?”

The second question was this: “Whether the Theosophical Society has no dogmas or whether any authority exists in it, and what the value of that authority is?”

The third question was: “Whether the moral character of individuals should influence admission to the Theosophical Society?”

This last point about admitting [morally questionable] individuals was not even included on the agenda. To approach this question would be a difficult experiment. It would then come about that members would be thrown out of the society under some form or other. We would be holding heresy trials.

A number of prominent figures spoke on the first question, and here two stages in particular emerged clearly in the discussion. If I am to characterize what lies dormant in the bosom of our society, I would say it in the following words: There is a group that is mindful of the purpose of the original society and desires that true occultism be practiced. But then it is necessary that those who know something can say it in some way. Then the others will listen first. It is in the nature of the facts that one cannot immediately control and test everything that someone who has progressed as a teacher proclaims. There will always be those who say: This is uncontrollable, anyone can make something up.

Then there is the other current, which says: There must be no authority in the Theosophical Society, no dogmas, only what everyone - and the word has been repeated in all variations - can understand in the sense of common sense, can be taught.

In Germany, there is someone who wanted to trace everything back to common sense. Even Fichte has risen to a pamphlet, because who has that kills gods. [...] You could also have a vote in the Reichstag on what should be valid as common sense. Then you could also come to vote on mathematics and so on.

There are those who know what is important and that what is true does not require the approval of others. There are those who understand the teachings and those who do not yet understand them. Therefore, it is necessary that there is a certain trust, a certain personal relationship between those who teach in society and those who receive it. This is so obvious that it should not be discussed. But there is a current in society that only talks about what everyone knows and everyone can talk about. That was the question that was discussed that afternoon and about authority in the sense that a certain field must be created in the theosophical movement for those who, from their own experience, from higher experience, can teach occultly. The Russian friend Miss Kamensky stood up for this, then Miss Winters, then myself. But then we are more or less finished with those who advocate this view. In fact, however, there is a very strong sentiment in favor of the other [current] within the Theosophical movement, and Messrs. Mead and [Keightley] have vigorously advocated this direction. That is a true report, and I think I have given you such a true report.

The evening was filled with two lectures. Mr. Mead spoke about the religious spirit. What he said was from the circle of his studies, which for years have been in the field of esoteric fraternities, which developed outside of Christianity in the first centuries of Christianity, namely the great fraternities of Egypt, which bear the name of Hermes Trismegistus, and he sought to show that the receptivity of those great brotherhoods has been able to achieve a wisdom that is capable of forming a complete harmony between research on the one hand and the demands of reason on the other. He showed how, at that time, there were currents existing alongside Christianity, and his tendency was to show how these have eliminated a personal master, how they have limited themselves to regarding the actual spirit as the actual inspirer and, instead of what is understood as initiation, namely the fertilization of one spirit by another that is further along, to set self-initiation, which in this sense is the actual initiation.

That same evening, Monsieur Bernard, who had been in India for two years, gave a lecture on “The Problems of the Present Hour”, on those problems that Theosophy is dealing with in the present hour, how the goal of brotherhood is made the high goal of the Theosophical movement, how difficult it is to understand and interpret this correctly, and how those who believe they are living this brotherhood can fall into all kinds of aberrations. In a more moralizing way, he tried to explain how this moral-ethical aspect of the movement should be fulfilled.

On Monday morning, the actual sectional work began. Now we had sections working in two halls next to each other. I can report little about this. The main event was a lecture by Mrs. [von Ulrich], a member of the Italian section. She spoke about old [Slavic] myths and legends; she tried to extract the occultism of such primitive peoples.

Then I myself spoke about “Theosophy in Germany 100 years ago”. It is not for me to give further details of my own lecture. The Spanish Section was discussed in terms of [Louis Desaint].

Another example: a lecture was given on [Henri Bergson] in order to put the relationship of modern scholars with Indian occultism into perspective. Mr. Whyte from England gave a lecture in which he discussed interesting relationships within the oriental esotericism referred to by the name Mahayana. Then something else was read about a group under the title “Yoga from Algiers”. Then there was a reading about... that was a lodge work, the result of all members together.

The afternoon of that Monday was filled with questions. The question: to what extent propaganda could be a goal for the movement, and whether directives should be given to individual lodges for joint work. The latter could be useful if there is time for those who can do such a thing.

Then came the question: why the Theosophical Society has not grown beyond 13,000 members. In relation to this question, those who believe that 13,000 members is already a very respectable number for the spiritual current worldwide will be right. And if we were to gradually shed the occult character of the Theosophical movement, the number of members would also decrease considerably, but our culture makes it self-evident that with the expanded concepts of occult knowledge, the number of members of the Theosophical movement will continue to grow.

Monday evening was filled with musical soirées organized by members of the Society in France, and which, with a rich program, earned all credit for the musical achievements of our French comrades. Then the evening was closed with a [r&ception du soir], a kind of hospitality with tea and other things.

Of the next day – Tuesday – I would like to highlight, of the work that was given, a treatise by [Edmond Bailly, who also wrote the “Ode to the Sun”], with discussions of certain [mantric type, from the English language of the gods [...1] – Then we heard a talk about Mozart's “Magic Flute”, then a suggestion from Dr. Pascal (France) and then a suggestion from Miss [Ward] that people in different countries should gather evidence to support what is written in Blavatsky's “secret doctrine” and to confirm it with new scientific discoveries. She expected a lot from the fact that this enormous treasure of science, which has been created over time, will be collected and used to support the secret doctrine.

Then a member of the French Society, [Commandant D. A. Courmes], spoke about what needs to be done in the Theosophical movement to cultivate the material side of Theosophy, the mutual support in a spiritual and material sense. No specific proposals were made. But there should be a suggestion in this direction to consider to what extent members can help each other on this issue.

Then there is a lecture by [Frederick Bligh Bond] that will be of interest to those who favor a more materialistic elaboration of the basic theosophical ideas. He has tried, by combining certain pendulum movements, to draw figures [...] that come about when one pendulum swings to one side and crosses another pendulum. This creates interesting vibrational relationships. Our friend Gysi in Zurich tried to cut out an ordinary piece of a tree and let a drop of liquid dye fall on it and then let it run into the channels. It turned out that one piece of wood gave the shape of a butterfly, another piece the shape of a flower. You can get beautiful shapes out of it. This is better because it is reality that lives on the astral plane, while the pendulum movement is more of a game.

On Tuesday afternoon, the congress was closed at four o'clock. The president had become indisposed and could not attend the closing of the congress. The congress was closed by an address from our French friend Pascal and by addresses from the various general secretaries. At the opening, not only the general secretaries spoke, but also the others. It was interesting to hear India and Persia, then to hear the member from Spain speak, or rather, I can almost say, to see him speak. I was reminded of the Viennese university lecturer Unger. He once said: “The individual nations differ in many ways, including their speakers. And while the Latin souls have speeches that have a harmony between gesture and speech, the Germans have no gestures. The Spaniard spoke with his head, with his hands and feet. He spoke warmly. He also spoke in a discussion; there he said that one must have theosophy in one's heart and mind, then one can also express it with the appropriate gestures. Kamensky spoke in Russian. Then a Czech speaker took the floor. The approximately ten members in Prague were represented by him. They belong to us in Germany. The next day, everyone gathered for an excursion to Meudon. You can see the city from a nearby point outside. The congress was closed.

It has been decided to hold the congress in Germany next year, and we have endeavored to invite the friends of the world to join us.

Regarding the Leadbeater case

We have been discussing this for a little too long, but I still have to discuss one more matter that I feel is necessary to discuss, which is somewhat related to the things I told you about as difficulties of the Theosophical movement. I remind those who were at our general assembly that our friend Hübbe-Schleiden, together with Mr. Deinhard, said that our movement is going through a severe crisis. I have already said that this crisis does not consist of an action by Hensoldt and Bresch, but that we have now fully entered into this crisis through a certain event.

I would now like to talk about this event that led to a major crisis. There was something like a black shadow operating in the background of the whole Congress mood, and those who, like the General Secretaries, had to deal with what belonged to the background had to deal with these difficult circumstances – some more than others. They know that Mr. Leadbeater is one of those personalities who have been most appreciated by a large number of Theosophists all over the world in the past years, and that the Leadbeater books are among the most popular literary works of the Theosophical movement. Recently, Leadbeater had given effective lectures for the Theosophical movement throughout America and Australia. You also know – the members of the Berlin branches know this best – that this veneration of Leadbeater was even greater outside of Germany than within Germany. They know that some outsiders, like [Schouten Beek] always said, “But Leadbeater says it differently.” So you can imagine that it was significant for certain members - though not surprising for occultists - when, after May 16, the various general secretaries received word that on May 16, President Olcott felt obliged to convene a committee consisting of English, American and French members to discuss Leadbeater, so that Leadbeater had now resigned or would have been expelled. It is a hard blow when one of the pillars of the Theosophical Society is now being excluded after serious accusations by the section in which he has otherwise worked successfully.

Now it is, I might almost say, an insurmountable difficulty to speak about the reasons that led to the exclusion of Leadbeater. You know – and this is a problem that I have emphasized time and again – that there is a boundary between what is called black and white magic that is as easy to break as a cobweb, and that it is very easy for highly developed personalities to fall away through all kinds of impossible arts.

This is indeed a fact that is understandable to the occultist, but of course in no way defensible – and at present has found no other solution than that which lies in the exclusion of Leadbeater. If I am to speak in generalities in order to clarify the serious case at hand, I must relate it to a number of contemporary conditions.

You must not forget that occultism leads people up to higher levels of spiritual life, that people must consciously go through what they have unconsciously gone through in the past.

I have guided you through the sublime mysteries of the past in a variety of ways. I have not yet spoken of the degenerations of the mysteries because I did not consider it necessary. But there are also degenerate mysteries that have dragged down the sacred teachings, which shine into the depths of the universe, to the basest level. There are mysteries that have degenerated into the most savage sex cult and the most savage abuse of the sexual organs, and the one that on the one hand leads to the most sublime can, if abused, actually lead to the most terrible. You will often have heard that this is symbolically expressed by the great teachers of ancient Egypt, that it is compared to words - Osiris, the male; Isis, the female principle - that sexual images are evoked to describe that which rises to the highest region of the spirit. It is the same with a person who rises above all teachings. It is just as easy for him to fall into the swamp.

Now, in Leadbeater's case, it is still the case that he has come to excesses that are extremely condemned by morality. He started out from priests who described the difficulties of life with an awakening sex drive and offered help, so that the view has developed that one must counteract what there was of excess in this area. He combined this with all kinds of practices that are called practices, which are mixed into his educational system. It is difficult to continue talking about this. This is an ugly case of a slide that the occultist has to understand, who condemns himself only within his own karma of life.

We must not forget that he has achieved an infinite amount. What he has achieved will be won. What he has done wrong will have to be worked off again through him. The outsider has no right to judge his fellow man, because karma is the incorruptible and just judge. That is why we do not interfere in personal matters either.

Olcott did not consider it appropriate to ask the General Secretary of the German Section about this question. So the German voice was not considered. I do not wish to call this an accident, because it would have been difficult for the occultist to take a definite position. Leadbeater is of the opinion that he has done the right thing and that, in terms of cultural development, he has done good with what he has done. But those who have judged him are of the opinion that he has done something bad, which is punished in the most severe way according to the laws of various countries, with the exception of Italy.

We have here a case that signifies a crisis, a difficulty within the Theosophical movement. And perhaps those who are just joining the Theosophical movement today or have only been part of it for a short time and are superficially familiar with what is going on in the Theosophical movement will say to themselves: If such things can happen in the Theosophical such things can happen in the theosophical movement, if a person who has written books that have brought countless students can fall into immorality and be accused of it, then stay away from us if it is such a dangerous thing. Others will become frightened when they hear that even someone so advanced can fall into such a state. Those who are more advanced will say to themselves: however many people fall away, it cannot harm the theosophical movement. It will show who has only joined the theosophical movement for the sake of its reputation when they fall away because of such events. Those, however, who recognize the significance and greatness and value of the Theosophical Society will join together more closely. They will experience the strangest things, especially in the fields of occultism and esoteric life. Not only those who have done something not quite right for the ethically thinking person leave the movement. There can also be reasons for this when the Theosophical movement and the members of the Theosophical movement are spoken about, when judged from points of view that are only able to put the Theosophical movement in a miserable light, - because of its assumptions. Our culture suffers from an evil that is the evil of many hideous dark sides of culture. It is the evil that is connected with sexual life. The one who has open eyes and can see into the miserable swamp that humanity is sailing into, who is a versatile one, can be a good and an evil to a certain extent. Those who have entered the white path ascend the good side of culture, those who have entered the black path ascend the reprehensible side, the evil side, so that everything they can hear from either side, about the evil sides of occultism, is nothing more than the grotesque, the caricature of occultism.

Of course, people can say that what our poets and artists achieve, the atrocities that are created in these directions, is already bad enough. There is no longer any need to ban occultism. They would simply have to cross out the occult, although it is so necessary because humanity would have to perish if it did not have it. I already said to our members in Paris: The case of Leadbeater can be settled by a simple analogy. He should not be excused and nor should he be defended: Where there is much light, there is also much shadow; where there is strong light, there is also black shadow. Now, occultism needs the light of the cultural movement. But it has black shadows. So it will be a matter of the Theosophical movement, despite its severe crisis, despite its severe impairments, gradually overcoming its shadows to a real fertilization of the light it has to practice.

It was not my intention to tell you about this somewhat painful event in the Theosophical movement just for the sake of being here one day longer. But I also had to tell you at the same time – and that is my duty – that in my own opinion such an event cannot affect the momentum and impetus of the Theosophical movement. Even if it should prove to be the case that persecutions may arise from a misunderstanding of the actual crux of the matter and from a mere looking at the dark sides of those who lead the Theosophical Society in the various crises that the Theosophical Society will experience in the near future, we must not waver for a moment if we recognize the greatness and cultural significance of the Theosophical Society. We will also overcome the Leadbeater crisis. But those who do not know what is at stake will fall away. They know that great tasks are knocking at the doors from all sides, which we know to be the doors of the culture of the future. See how the world is in flames, both physically and morally. Consider how the ground begins to shake underfoot, not only in the East but also in Europe, and understand the profound role that the realization of spiritual forces plays. Anyone who thinks this way will also look at the Leadbeater case differently. The storm rages and claims its victims. It is a great sacrifice, as will become apparent from the consequences that the Leadbeater case will have. In the next issue of 'Lucifer', I will give an account of the Leadbeater case and everything connected with it. At the same time, I apologize for the fact that “Lucifer” appears so irregularly, but the next issue will be published on the 31st. You will then be able to form an accurate judgment from reading about the case, the discussion of which is met with almost insurmountable difficulties.

This would have brought me to the end of my arguments.

Report in the “Mitteilungen für die Mitglieder der Deutschen Sektion der Theosophischen Gesellschaft (Hauptquartier Adyar), herausgegeben von Mathilde Scholl”, No. IV/1907

At half past ten, Dr. Rudolf Steiner, the General Secretary of the German Section, opened the fourth ordinary General Assembly. The first item was the [the] determination of the votes. Represented were:

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Not represented: Bremen, Stuttgart I, Charlottenburg. Similarly, the section members who did not belong to a branch had not exercised their right to appoint representatives.

Mr. Selling was elected secretary. He read out the minutes of the General Assembly of October 22, 1905, which was approved by the Assembly.

Regarding Item II, the report of the General Secretary, Dr. Rudolf Steiner first warmly welcomes the members present in the theosophical sense and then says the following about the course of the movement in the past year:

"During my travels and lectures, it has become clear to me that the actual effective basis of our Theosophical movement does not lie in mere talk of universal love of humanity and the like, but that the real reason that drives most people to Theosophy consists in the desire to gain knowledge of the treasure of wisdom that is Theosophy. And this is entirely justified. Morality is the result of wisdom. Just as it is certain that the yearning to develop into a noble humanity lives in man, so it is certain that the worn-out phrases of duty and mere moral admonitions have proved ineffective. Just as a stove needs real fuel, not just admonition, to radiate warmth, so too must man receive such an impulse to act morally. This real firing is the occult wisdom.

Of course, there was no lack of resistance and obstacles of various kinds to the spreading of this wisdom. The opposition that arose in the process of bringing this wisdom out can be characterized as a lack of understanding on the one hand and complacency on the other. If many people do not want to know anything about what they do not see for themselves, it is certainly true that people do ask themselves: Can we understand these occult things with ordinary logic? But if they really wanted to look into it, they would soon see that the teachings of Theosophy contradict logic just as little as the teachings of ordinary natural science.

Others would like to participate in the ennobling of morals, but they want to remain in the same place where they are, they want to help with what they have already achieved. But Theosophy consists in the pursuit of self-perfection. To understand this, one needs tact, a sense of not being called upon to help, and the realization that one really has something to give.

Few scholars today still belong to the Theosophical movement, that is, few of those people who are convinced of the infallibility of their own views; for there can be nothing more infallible than today's science. Most of them are people who are in the prime of life, driven to the Theosophical movement by the longing for the powers that flow from the wisdom teachings. This longing for security and strength is growing despite all the resistance that lies in our time, as the gratifying increase in membership shows us. If scholarship is still dismissive, this should not make us unjust to the merits of that scholarship, but should spur us on to conquer the culture of the present and its scholarship for our theosophical movement. Under the influence of our present-day culture, almost all our scholars think much more materialistically than they themselves suspect.

As a symptom of the obstacles that this materialistic way of thinking poses to our views, I would like to point out a representation that a biologist who starts from the view that everything in the world is based on a materialistic foundation has recently given about the nature of movement. The scientist in question said that he could not imagine the deeper causes of the movement of a billiard ball other than that in the collision, very small particles of one ball were transferred to the other, thereby causing the movement. So, for a modern scientist, the problem of movement is presented as a kind of tiny passenger transferring from one train to another. In an age when such a materialistic view of life dominates science, it is understandable that a spiritual movement has a particularly difficult time.

Without going into all these things in any more detail, I would just like to emphasize that the Theosophical movement is the only movement that is built entirely on freedom.

However, it does not work without any authority; but authority is understood in a completely different sense than in the laboratory, where the only authority is the person who understands chemistry.

In contrast to all earlier intellectual movements that used external means of power to assert themselves – I am only recalling the Church here – the theosophical movement is a completely free movement that is built only on the spirit. Without invoking external powers for support, which would be a failure for any intellectual movement today, without propaganda in the usual sense, because the theosophical movement does not agitate, it presents itself. Everyone must approach it of their own free will. What it offers people is not an external organization, agitation in the sense of the old power organizations. In theosophy, it can only be about an organization to help people find what they are seeking within themselves. Without polemics, even without polemics against those who attack us, let us do positive work.

Sometimes we have been told that we should reject the attacks against us, so sometimes a correction is certainly necessary, but in general, everything can be recognized by its fruits. We want to do positive work that leads up to the higher worlds; fighting does not help anything, it can at best straighten something out on the physical plane. But on the higher planes, only positive work can help.

You have received a report about this year's international conference in Paris. The most important thing we brought home for the German Section is a great deal of work: preparing for the next conference in Germany. Next year we will welcome the representatives of the individual sections to Germany. Negotiations for the next conference are, after all, part of the program of today's general assembly.

In addition to the lectures that have been given everywhere, something new has been added: lecture cycles – not only in Paris but also in Leipzig and Stuttgart; one will soon begin in Munich. Such cycles are of great value; they allow the foundations of the Theosophical worldview to pass before the soul.

But we should also remember at this point the members who have left the physical plane this year. In particular, we would like to remember our esteemed member, Countess Brockdorff, whose unassuming but all the more admirable work at a time when few in Germany were willing to stand up for Theosophy. In honor of the deceased, we want to rise from our seats.

Over the past year, our movement has gained some excellent new members, in particular Ms. Wolfram from Leipzig. This deserves special mention because she is the kind of member the Theosophical Society could only dream of. Furthermore, I would like to announce that our long-standing and valued member Mr. Günther Wagner has decided to swap his residence in Lugano for one in Berlin in order to provide assistance here. With his help, we will be able to accomplish many things that have been left undone in recent years.

Let us hope that through the combined efforts of all, the Theosophical movement will flourish and develop in the coming year.

Miss von Sivers, as secretary of the German Section, then gives the following report on the course of Theosophical life in the past year:

There are 24 branches, compared to 18 in the previous year, and 3 centers: Regensburg, Elberfeld and Esslingen.

Eleven members have left and seven have died, while 232 have joined, compared to 131 in the previous year, an increase of 214. The total number of members is 591, compared to 377 in the previous year.

The names of the new branches are: Basel, Bonn, Bremen, Frankfurt a.M., Heidelberg, Munich II, St. Gallen. The DTG (Berlin branch) has disbanded.

The treasurer's report by Mr. Seiler follows.

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According to the auditor's report, Mr. Tessmar, the treasurer is discharged.

Fräulein von Sivers then read out and translated a welcoming letter from the English General Secretary, Miss Kate Spink.

Since there are no reports from delegates about work in the branches, the Secretary General remarked on this point that it is desirable that the branches should recognize it as their duty to publish such reports in Fräulein Scholl's “Mitteilungen”.

Thereupon, a new member of the board was elected to replace Mrs. Lübke, who joined the section in England because she moved there. Mrs. Wolfram from Leipzig was proposed and elected unanimously by acclamation.

Item III is the discussion about next year's congress of the Federation of European Sections. Dr. Steiner takes the floor and says something along the following lines: “The General Secretariat and the Board propose to hold the congress in Munich. The reasons for this are purely practical, since the appropriate forces for the long and demanding work are only available in Munich. Whitsun seems to be the most suitable time.”

In response to a question from Mr. Hubo as to how the organization of the congress was planned, Dr. Steiner said that all previous congresses should be seen as attempts. The task of the German congress should be to bring everything into intimate harmony with each other, so that works of art, music and speech interact and sound atmospherically with the rest of the arrangement - striving in its intended effect to recall the ancient mysteries. To this end, a performance of a mystery play is also planned. Whether all this can be realized depends, of course, on the circumstances. Dr. Steiner also announced that Miss Stinde has been elected as secretary of the International Congress Committee for this year, replacing Mr. van Manen, and that Countess Kalckreuth has been elected treasurer of the International Congress Committee. All inquiries from German members, including payments, are to be addressed exclusively to Miss von Sivers, and she alone will contact Miss Stinde.

The following have been elected as additional members of the German committee:

Miss Scholl,
Baroness von Gumppenberg,
Mr. Günther Wagner,
Mr. Arenson.

To cover the costs of the congress, which amount to between 4,000 and 5,000 marks, it is proposed that a list of voluntary contributions be circulated as soon as possible and that Mr. Selling be authorized to accept payments.

The Secretary General then requested the authority to greet the General Secretaries of the other Sections on behalf of the General Assembly. The meeting agreed.

Regarding Item IV, “Final settlement of the matter of the Library of the German Theosophical Society”, the General Secretary reported that the matter had taken a gratifying turn, namely that Graf Brockdorff had transferred all rights to the library to Mr. Günther Wagner. After a lengthy debate, Mr. Günther Wagner in turn transferred these rights to the German Section.

The General Assembly has passed the following resolution:

"The German Section takes over the library of the former German Theosophical Society on the basis of the transfer of the rights that Count Brockdorff held over it to Mr. Günther Wagner. The Section's Executive Board will act as a library commission and transfers to Mr. Günther Wagner the measures for the desirable installation of the library and its further administration.” At the request of Mr. Tessmar, Mr. Günther Wagner is appointed by the German Section as the lifelong custodian of the library in recognition of his generous actions.

Item V: Motions from the floor.

Mr. Hubo: The costs for the “Mitteilungen” should be covered by an annual contribution of 50 pfennigs per member.

Dr. Steiner notes that the proposal is not possible in this form because the previous year's General Assembly decided to make the mandatory delivery of the “Mitteilungen” free of charge. It might therefore be necessary to take the decision to increase the contribution. After a lengthy debate, in which members Scholl, Wolfram, Hubo, Ahner and Wagner took part, Mr. Hubo withdrew his proposal. Mr. Hubo then proposes: In view of the fact that the costs of the German Congress will amount to at least 4500 Marks, based on previous experience, voluntary subscriptions are required and a registration list is to be circulated immediately. It is pointed out once again that subscriptions can only be made to Fräulein von Sivers.

There is no material on the agenda for Item VI, “Miscellaneous”, whereupon Dr. Steiner closes the business part of the meeting and announces that the Theosophical part of the General Assembly will begin at four o'clock.

Died on February 17, 1907

In what I am going to say today, I do not intend to give an appreciation of Olcott's invaluable services. He was not only the long-standing president of the Theosophical Society, but also a co-founder of the Theosophical movement. Through his great organizational and administrative talent, which was extraordinary, he made the Society what it is today. The spiritual current can, however, be traced back to H. P. Blavatsky, who, through the peculiar organization of her soul, offered the opportunity to the great Masters of Wisdom and Harmony of Feelings to let their wisdom flow into the movement. Olcott was their faithful companion and that was the real half of the work in this case.

You have to be clear about how the work of the entire movement, which we call theosophical, is actually to be understood. It became necessary at a certain point in the nineteenth century. It became necessary for some of that spiritual wisdom, which had previously only been at home in the innermost circles, in closely guarded occult brotherhoods, to be brought into general human culture.

The Masters cannot stand directly in front of humanity; and for reasons that cannot be discussed here. They need tools. And H. P. Blavatsky was such a useful tool.

Gratitude will be the feeling that the members of the Society must maintain for Colonel Olcott. The selfless love that is maintained beyond death gives him wings and facilitates his ascent.

The President-Founder has been granted the right to make a personal proposal for his successor. The Vice President takes over the business in the meantime and initiates the election process. Everyone can vote for whomever they want. The President's proposal is not binding. The election will not begin before May 1. No ballot that is submitted before May 1 May is therefore invalid. During the month of May, all members will have to elect the new President of the Theosophical Society. Sinnett is the acting Vice President until the election.

I will not make use of what I now want to say, so I will not say anything about it, although it has been mentioned in other sections.

If we had been informed by Olcott that he was proposing Annie Besant, we would all have elected Annie Besant. But Colonel Olcott's proposal occurs in connection with psychic phenomena. It has been communicated in a communiqué sent to all the general secretaries that on the last day of Olcott's life, the two masters appeared to him on his deathbed and expressed their wish that Mrs. Besant should succeed Colonel Olcott.

They have left it to me to discuss this matter, precisely because I believe I know something definite about these things. However, I am in the special position of not being able to say much about these matters. We would be in a difficult position if we were to refer to this communiqué. We must therefore treat it as if it were not there. We must take it as if it were only Colonel Olcott's personal wish. We will ignore the content of the matter and discuss only the formalities. We must not care whether Olcott was advised by a Schulze, a Müller or a Mahatma. He may have been advised by a Mahatma. This is an administrative act, and it is true that the Masters do not concern themselves with administrative matters on the physical plane. On the other hand, we would be in a strange position if we opposed the Masters' pronouncements. So we simply have to write the name we want on the ballot paper. For those who live an occult life, the Master's pronouncement would be absolutely binding. Olcott may have taken advice. That is his business as an esotericist, but not the business of the Society. So for us there is only a wish of the Society's meritorious President. If we took it as a Master's wish, we Theosophists would be in a very difficult position.

If the Adyar communiqué were correct, then the president would be appointed; and then we would not need to elect him. I would like to urge you to do whatever you can to help ensure that little or no mention is made of this matter. But it should be recognized that the German Section at least understands that these things do not belong in public, and that if they must be discussed at all, they should be treated as an intimate family matter in the Society. We can only serve the true, great cause if we not only try to remain silent about this matter, but also try to maintain that silence in such a way that the matter does not become public, so that it can never appear in our newspapers. Just think of the shock that could be caused to our society if it became known in the world that the Theosophical Society has the President appointed by extrasensory means. This appointment is to be considered as non-existent. This is difficult because it can be read everywhere and because there is discussion about whether it should be considered valuable or not. The only thing to do is to ignore it. The high [wisdom teachers] have nothing to do with the administrative affairs of the society. The content is provided by wisdom, the framework for which people have to provide and form.

Not only out of my conscience, but also out of my knowledge, I had to give you this advice: to ignore the communiqué.

Dr. Steiner on the election:

The members are concerned with nothing other than the statutes when they proceed to the election. After that, the president has the right to propose his successor, and the members have to confirm this through their election.

The statutes are incomplete.

The statutes should be interpreted as I have communicated them. However, others are of the opinion that only [illegible]

The president's proposal was preceded by many important details.

I therefore felt justified in confiscating everything that these [illegible] brought into the election matter.

We are dealing with two different things: what happens in the administration is our human activity. This has nothing at all to do with the higher individualities behind the Theosophical movement. The individualities we address as the Masters of the Wisdom do not interfere in anything that happens on the physical plane. The Theosophical movement is under the guidance of such spiritual individuals. Therefore, one must strictly separate. One does not have to defend the truth before the physical forum. It would be nonsensical to practice democracy towards the ancient teachings, just as little as towards mathematics. One is responsible to one's spiritual guide for spiritual things. In administrative matters, we cannot call upon the masters.

I will tell you later how it is with the manifestations. I cannot do that now.

A member sent a letter to the individual lodges stating that it was impossible to elect Mrs. Besant. There then follows a point and a proposal that everyone is equally entitled.

The discussion about the manifestations should be postponed until after the election. Various magazines have announced that the president did not just make the suggestion to elect Annie Besant of his own volition, but that the masters appeared at his bedside and told him to nominate Mrs. Besant as his successor. This nomination has been firmly rejected by the German section. Other sections have behaved similarly. The German Section has so far taken the view that this cannot be of influence, but must be regarded as if a Mr. Müller had given advice.

The Leadbeater affair: Circulars have been issued by Adyar which shed new light on the Leadbeater affair. So far, the German Section has not taken a different view from that recently issued by Adyar.

The Dutch and Italian Sections have received letters dated January 21, asking them to proceed with the election after Annie Besant was nominated by Olcott.

We will have to face severe struggles in the near future. Strong spirits have turned against the Theosophical movement, and they are finding their tools on the physical plane as well.

Report by Rudolf Steiner in Lucifer-Gnosis no. 34/1907

It was the task of the German Section of the Theosophical Society to organize this year's congress of the “Federation of European Sections”. It is therefore more fitting that here, from within the circle of the organizers, there is less talk of what has been achieved and more of what has been intended and striven for. For the organizers know only too well how little of what was achieved has been achieved, and how much has been achieved that could not be achieved on such an occasion. Therefore, the following should only be understood as a description of the underlying ideas.

Munich was chosen as the venue: the time was the days of Pentecost, May 18, 19, 20 and 21. The questions that the organizers asked themselves in their preparations were: How can the task of the Theosophical movement be expressed within the current spiritual life through such a congress? How can it give a picture of the ideals and aims of the theosophical work? Since the event is naturally limited by the circumstances, it can only provide a limited answer to these questions. It now seems particularly important that the comprehensive character of the theosophical movement be emphasized on such occasions. First of all, the focus of this movement is the cultivation of a worldview based on knowledge of the supernatural. And at such a congress, people come together who, in the spirit of such a worldview, work across all national borders and other human differences on spiritual ideals that are common to all of humanity. Mutual inspiration in the best sense will be the most beautiful fruit of such events. In addition, it will be shown how the theosophical work should really be integrated into the whole of life in our time. For the spiritual foundation of this movement cannot be called upon to express itself only in thoughts and ideas, in theories and so on; rather, as a content of the soul that has emerged in our time, it can have a fertilizing effect on all branches of human activity. Theosophy can only be grasped in the right sense if we set it the ideal of inspiring not only the imagination and the human soul, but the human being as a whole. If we wish to interpret its mission in this sense, we may recall how, for example, the world view of the corresponding time found expression in the buildings and sculptures (e.g. the Sphinx) of the Egyptians. The ideas of the Egyptian worldview were not only thought by the souls; they were made visible in the environment of the human eye. And think of how everything that is known of Greek sculpture and drama is the worldview of the Greek soul, shaped in stone and depicted in poetry. Consider how in medieval painting Christian ideas and feelings were revealed to the eye, how in the Gothic period Christian devotion took form and shape. A true harmony of the soul can only be experienced where the human senses are reflected in form, shape and color and so on as an environment, which the soul knows as its most valuable thoughts, feelings and impulses. Out of such thoughts arises the intention to give a picture of theosophical striving in the external form of the event at a congress. The room in which the meeting takes place can reflect the theosophical feeling and thinking around the visitor. According to our circumstances, we could not do more than sketch out what might be considered an ideal in this regard. We had decorated the assembly hall in such a way that a fresh, stimulating red formed the basic color of all the walls. This color was intended to express the basic mood of the celebration in an external view. It is obvious that some people will object to the use of “red” for this purpose. These objections are justified as long as one relies on an esoteric judgment and experience. They are well known to the esotericist, who nevertheless, in accordance with all occult symbolism, must use the color red for the purpose in question. For him, it is not a matter of what the part of his being feels that is devoted to the immediate sensual environment; but what the higher self experiences in the spiritual realm while the external environment is physically seen in red. And that is the exact opposite of what the ordinary sensation of “red” says. Esoteric knowledge says: “If you want to attune yourself in your innermost being as the gods were attuned when they gave the world the green plant cover, then learn to endure ‘red’ in your surroundings as they had to.” This indicates a reference to the higher human nature in relation to “red” that the genuine [esotericist] has in mind when he presents the two opposing entities of the creative world ground in the occult symbolism in such a way that, downward, the green as a sign of the earthly, upward the “red” as a sign of the heavenly (elohistic) creative powers. Much more could be said about the reasons for opposing this color, and much could be said in refutation of these arguments. However, it may suffice here to make this brief comment: this color was chosen in accordance with occultism.

On the walls (on both sides and at the back wall) were placed the so-called seven apocalyptic seals in a size appropriate for the room. They represent certain experiences of the astral world in pictures. There is a story behind them. At first, some viewers may mistake such pictorial representations for ordinary symbols. But they are much more than that. Anyone who simply wants to interpret what is depicted in them symbolically with the mind has not penetrated the spirit of the matter. One should experience the content of these seven pictures with one's whole soul, with one's undivided mind; one should shape it inwardly in one's soul in terms of form, color and content, so that it lives inwardly in the imagination. For this content corresponds to very specific astral experiences of the clairvoyant. What the clairvoyant wants to express in such images is not at all an arbitrary symbol, or even a straw-thin allegory, but something that is best illustrated by way of comparison. Take a person who is illuminated in a room by a light in such a way that his shadow is visible on a wall. The shadow is in some respects similar to the person casting the shadow. But it is a two-dimensional image of a three-dimensional being. Just as the shadow relates to the person, so what is depicted in the apocalyptic seals relates to certain experiences of the clairvoyant in the astral world. The seals are, of course, in a figurative sense, silhouettes of astral processes. Therefore, they are not arbitrary representations of an individual, but anyone who is familiar with the corresponding supersensible processes will find their silhouettes in the physical world. Such things cannot be invented in their essential content, but are taken from the existing teachings of the secret scientists. A student of these matters may have noticed that some of our seals correspond with what he finds in this or that work, but others do not. The reason for this is that some of the imaginations of occult science have already been communicated in books; but the most important part – and the true part – may only now, in our time, be made public. And part of the theosophical work must consist in handing over to the public some of the material which has hitherto been kept strictly secret by the appointed custodians. This is demanded by the development of the spiritual life of our time by the exponents of occult science.

It is the development of humanity, the expression of which in the astral world must form one of the most essential foundations of occult knowledge, which is expressed in these seven seals. The Christian esotericist will recognize them in a certain way in the descriptions of the “Revelation of St. John”. But the form they presented in our festival hall corresponds to the secret-scientific spiritual current that has been the dominant one in the West since the fourteenth century. The mysteries of existence, as they are reflected in these images, represent ancient wisdom; the clairvoyants of the various epochs of humanity see them from different points of view. Therefore, according to the necessary developmental needs of the times, the forms change somewhat. In the “Revelation of St. John” it is “set in signs” what is to happen “in brief”. Those who know how to read a secret-scientific form of expression properly know that this means nothing other than a reference to the secret-scientific signs for certain imaginations that can be experienced in the astral world and that are related to the nature of man as it reveals itself in time. And the Rosicrucian Seals also represent the same. Only very sketchily, with a few words, shall the infinitely rich content of the seals be interpreted. Basically everything - even the seemingly most insignificant - in these pictures means something important. The first seal represents man's entire evolution in the most general way. In the “Revelation of St. John” this is indicated with the words: “And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; and in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about upon his chest with a golden girdle. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like brass glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the rushing of many waters. And he had seven stars in his right hand; and out of his mouth came a sharp, two-edged sword; and his face shone like the bright sun.” In general terms, such words point to the most comprehensive secrets of human development. If one wanted to present in detail what each of the deeply significant words contains, one would have to write a thick volume. Our seal depicts such things. Among the physical organs and forms of expression of the human being, some represent, in their present form, the downward stages of development of earlier forms, and have thus already passed their peak. Others, however, represent the initial stages of development and are, as it were, the rudiments of what they are to become in the future. The esotericist must know these secrets of development. The organ of speech represents an organ that will be much higher and more perfect in the future than it is at present. By pronouncing this, one touches on a great secret of existence, which is often also called the “mystery of the creative word”. This gives a hint of the future state of the human speech organ, which will become a spiritual organ of production (procreation) when the human being is spiritualized. In myths and religions, this spiritual production is indicated by the appropriate image of a “sword” coming out of the mouth. In this way, every line and every point in the picture signifies something that is connected with the secret of human development. The fact that such pictures are made does not merely arise from a need for a sensualization of the supersensible processes, but it corresponds to the fact that living into these pictures - if they are the right ones - really means an arousal of forces that lie dormant in the human soul, and through the awakening of which the representations of the supersensible world emerge. It is not right for the supersensible worlds to be described only in schematic terms in theosophy; the true path is to awaken the imagination to the images presented in these seals. (If the occultist does not have such images at hand, he should verbally describe the higher worlds in appropriate images.) - The second seal, with the appropriate accessories, represents one of the first stages of development of humanity on earth. In its primeval times, humanity on earth had not yet developed what is called the individual soul. What was still present at that time, and what is still found in animals today, is the group soul. Anyone who can follow the old human group souls on the astral plane through imaginative clairvoyance will find the four types of group soul represented in the four apocalyptic animals of the second seal: the lion, the bull, the eagle and the man. This touches on the truth of what is often so dryly allegorized in the interpretation of the four animals. The third seal represents the secrets of the so-called harmony of the spheres. Man experiences these secrets in the interval between death and a new birth (in the “spirit land” or what is called “Devachan” in the usual theosophical literature). However, the account is not given as it is experienced in the “spirit realm” itself, but rather as the events of this realm are reflected in the astral world. It must be noted that all seven seals are experiences of the astral world; however, the other worlds can be seen in their reflections in the astral. The angels blowing trumpets in the picture represent the original spiritual beings of the world phenomena; the book with the seven seals indicates that the mysteries of existence are “unsealed” in the experiences illustrated in this picture. The “four horsemen of the Apocalypse” represent the stages of human development through long earth cycles. The fourth seal represents, among other things, two pillars, one rising from the sea and the other from the earth. These pillars hint at the secret of the role played by red (oxygen-rich) blood and blue-red (carbon-rich) blood in human development, and how this blood changes in line with human development from distant primeval times to distant future times. The letters on these pillars point to this developmental secret in a way known only to the initiated. (Old interpretations of the two letters given in public writings or in certain societies remain only a superficial, exoteric interpretation.) The book in the cloud points to a future state of man in which all his knowledge will be internalized. In the Book of Revelation we find the significant words: “And I took a little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up...”

The sun in the picture points to a cosmic process that will take place at the same time as the marked future stage of humanity; the earth will enter into a completely different relationship with the sun than it currently does in the cosmos. And everything is depicted in the picture so that all the arrangements of the parts, all the details and so on, correspond exactly to specific real processes. The fifth seal represents the further development of man in the future in a cosmos in which the conditions just indicated will have occurred. The future human being, who will have a different relationship to the sun than the present one, is represented by the “woman who gives birth to the sun”; and the power that he will then have over certain forces of the world, which today express themselves in his lower nature, is represented by the “sun woman” standing on the beast with the seven heads and ten horns. The woman has the moon under her feet: this points to a later cosmic relationship between the sun, earth and moon. The sixth seal represents the evolved human being with even greater power over the lower forces of the universe. The way the image expresses this is reminiscent of Christian esotericism: Michael holds the dragon bound. Finally, the seventh seal is that of the “Mystery of the Grail”, as it was in the esoteric current beginning in the fourteenth century. In the picture there is a cube, representing the world of space, from which the world serpent arises from all sides of the cube, insofar as it represents the higher forces living out in the lower: From the mouth of the snake comes the world line (as a spiral), the symbol of the purified and refined world forces; and from this arises the “holy grail,” which is confronted by the “dove.” All of this points - and quite appropriately - to the mystery of the creation of the world, of which the earthly one is a lower reflection. The deepest mysteries lie in the lines and figures and so on of this seal. Between each two seals a column was inserted. These seven columns could not be executed in plastic form; they had to be painted as a substitute. But they are definitely intended as real architectural forms and correspond to the “seven pillars” of the “true Rosicrucian temple”. (Of course, the arrangement in Munich does not quite correspond to that in the “Rosicrucian Temple of Initiation”, because there each such column is duplicated, so that when one walks from the back wall towards the front, one passes through fourteen columns, two of which are always facing each other. This is only a hint for those who know the true facts; for us, only a general idea of the meaning of this column secret should be awakened). The capitals of these columns represent the planetary development of our solar system. Our Earth is, after all, the fourth embodiment in a planetary developmental system, and in the ways it is configured it points to three future embodiments. (More exact details about this can be found in the articles in this journal headed 'From the Akasha Chronicle'. The seven successive embodiments of the Earth are referred to as the Saturn, Sun, Moon, Earth, Jupiter, Venus and Vulcan states. In the representations commonly used in esoteric studies, the Vulcan state is omitted as being too far in the future, and for reasons that would take us too far afield to discuss here, the Earth's development is divided into a Martian and a Mercury state. (These reasons can also be found in the essays on the “Akasha Chronicle”. These seven embodiments of the earth: Saturn, Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter and Venus are now expressed in esotericism by seven column capitals. The inner life of each of these states of development is depicted in the forms of these capitals. Here, too, the intention is that one should not delve into the forms of the capitals intellectually, but entirely through the feelings, in a truly artistic experience and in the imagination. For every line, every curve, everything about these forms is such that when you immerse yourself in them, you awaken dormant powers in your soul; and these powers lead to ideas about the great mysteries of the world that underlie the cosmic and related human development of the earth. Anyone who might criticize the design of such columns should consider that the Corinthian and Ionic columns, for example, also emerged from the embodiment of the secrets of existence, and that such facts are only unknown to the materialistic way of thinking of our time. From the way the motives of world development are expressed in these column capitals, one can gauge how esotericism is to have a fruitful effect on art. The ancient columns, too, are born out of esotericism. And the architecture of the future will have to present to people what the esoteric worldview of Theosophy can give as a hint today.

In Munich, for example, an attempt has been made to sketch out an interior in the spirit of the Theosophical worldview; of course, only some of the relevant information could be provided, and even that only in general terms, and above all not in the precise order that would be most appropriate. But the aim was only to evoke a sense of what was important. The esoteric symbolism of the room in which we were meeting also included two columns at the front of the hall. What they signify can be seen from the description of the fourth seal, which also contains the two columns. They point to the mystery of blood and contain the “mystery of human development”. The color of the pillars is connected with the blood secret. One is red; the other is a deep blue-red. Esoteric science writes four deeply significant sayings on these two pillars. When the human soul immerses itself in these four sayings in meditation, then entire secrets of the world and of humanity well up from their depths. Many books would have to be written to exhaust the full meaning of these sayings, for not only is every word significant, but so is the symmetry of the words, the way they are distributed among the four sayings, the intensifications that lie within them, and much more, so that only long, patient devotion to the matter can exhaust what lies within. The four sayings of the “Pillar of Wisdom” in English are:

In pure thought you find
the self that can sustain itself.

When you transform thought into image,
you experience creative wisdom.

If you condense feeling into light,
you reveal the forming power.

If you reify will into being,
you create in the world's being.

We tried to express the fundamental mood that we wanted to express in our “inner space” in the program book that was given to visitors. After the significance of the red color in esoteric symbolism has been discussed above, there is no need to say anything more about the red cover of this book. On this cover (in the upper left corner) there is a black cross entwined with red roses in a blue oval field; to the right of it are the letters: E. D. N. - J. C.M. - P. S. S. R. - These are the ten initial letters of the words by which true Rosicrucianism is summarized in a single sentence: “Ex deo nascimur, in Christo morimur, per spiritum sanctum reviviscimus.” The cross symbol, entwined with roses, expresses the meaning of Rosicrucianism in an esoteric way. In view of the relationship that our event has established with Rosicrucianism through such things, it seems necessary to point out serious misunderstandings that are brought to it. Here and there, people have tried to form an idea of Rosicrucianism based on historical tradition. Of those who have formed an opinion of it in this way, some at present look upon it with a certain benevolence; but most look upon it as charlatanry, enthusiasm or something of that kind, perhaps worse. It may readily be conceded that If Rosicrucianism were what it appears to be to those who know of it only from historical documents and traditions, it would certainly not be worthy of the attention of any rational man. But at the present time no one knows anything about true Rosicrucianism who has not approached it through the medium of occult science. Outside the circle of occult science there are no authentic records of it, for the name stands for the spiritual current mentioned here, which has set the tone in the Occident since the fourteenth century. Only now may we begin to communicate to the public some of the secrets of Rosicrucianism. In drawing from this source in Munich, we naturally did not want to present it as the only true source of the theosophical movement, but only as one of the paths by which spiritual knowledge can be sought. It cannot be said that we gave preferential treatment to this source, while the theosophical movement should take all forms of religion and paths to truth into equal consideration. But it can never be the task of the theosophical movement to study the diversity of religions as an end in itself; it must reach the unity of religions, their core, through their forms; and we did not want to show what Rosicrucianism is, but through Rosicrucianism we wanted to show the perspective to the one core of truth in all religions. And this is precisely the true mission of the Theosophical movement. In the program book one finds five drawings. They are the motifs of the first five of the seven capitals mentioned above, transposed into vignette form. In these five drawings, too, there is something of what is called “occult writing”. Those who immerse themselves in the line forms and figures with all their soul will inwardly perceive something of what are known as the important states for [the] realization of human development (Saturn, Sun, Moon, Mars and Mercury states).

This should describe the intentions of the conference organizers in preparing the framework within which the festivities were to take place. The venue for the event was the Tonhalle (Kaim-Säle), which seemed particularly suitable for this event.

The description of the proceedings of the congress must be preceded by the expression of the deepest satisfaction felt by all the participants at the presence of Mrs. Besant. The much-admired woman had just returned to Europe after spending two years in her field of activity in India; and Munich was the first place where the European members were able to greet her again and hear her powerful speech. The German committee of the Congress had invited Mrs. Besant to preside over the honorary committee; and so the esteemed leader gave the assembly its consecration and lent it the mood that her whole being communicates to all those around her and to whom the magic of her words reaches.

The visit to the congress was a thoroughly satisfying one. We had the great pleasure of welcoming many members of the other European sections, as well as those of the Indian section. The members of the German section were present in large numbers. The British section was officially represented by its General Secretary, Miss Spink; the French section by its General Secretary, Dr. Th. Pascal; the Dutch section by its General Secretary, Mr. Fricke; the Italian section by its General Secretary, Prof. Dr. Penzig; the Scandinavian section by its General Secretary, A. Knös; and the Hungarian section by its General Secretary, D. Nagy.

The opening of the congress took place on May 18 at 10 o'clock in the morning. It began with a musical introduction. Emanuel Nowotny played the Toccata in F major by Johann Sebastian Bach on the organ. - Thereupon the Secretary General of the German Section had to greet the participants on behalf of the German committee. He greeted Mrs. Besant and emphasized the importance of the fact that the Munich Congress was honored by her visit. After welcoming the representatives of the other sections and the German visitors, the speaker expressed words of love, appreciation and thanks for the founder-president H. S. Olcott, who died in February. The extensive mission of the Theosophical movement in the spiritual life of the present day was also pointed out in this opening address, and the necessity emphasized that the cultivation of spiritual life must form the basis of the Theosophical work. After that, the representatives of the European sections and the other fields of work spoke: from England (Mr. Wedgwood), from France (Dr. “Th. Pascal), from the Netherlands (Mr. Fricke), from Italy (Prof. Penzig), from Scandinavia (Mr. A. Knös ), Hungary (Mr. D. Nagy), Bohemia (Mr. Bedrnicek), Russia (Miss Kamensky, Mrs. Forsch, Miss N. v. Gernet), Bulgaria, Belgium (and others).

As at previous congresses, each speaker spoke in their national language.

Mrs. Besant then took the floor to greet the German section and emphasize the nature of the Theosophical movement, as well as to point out in a few forceful sentences the spiritual life and its fundamental importance for society.

The Saturday afternoon was devoted to lectures and talks by Mr. Alan Leo, Dr. Th. Pascal, Michael Bauer, Mr. James Wedgwood and Miss Kamensky. Mr. Alan Leo read his paper on “Astrology and Personal Fate”. The esoteric nature of astrology was discussed and free will was clearly explained in relation to predetermined fate, showing the way in which planetary forces influence human life. Dr. Th. Pascal presented the results of his long inner research in the theosophical field in a thoughtful essay. It was stimulating to follow the subtle arguments of intimate trains of thought. Michael Bauer spoke about the relationship between nature and man. This very meritorious leader of our Nuremberg branch showed in his warm-hearted and spirited way how the inner essence of nature and man's own inner being are interlinked in their depths. Mr. Wedgwood read his paper on “The Value of the Theosophical Society.” He explained how the study of occultism elevates man to an awareness of his higher destiny by giving him a knowledge of his place in the world process. It depends on the perspectives that occultism gives to the human soul. (No summary of the contents of the individual lectures and papers will be given here, as these will appear in detail in the “Congress Yearbook”. Miss Kamensky read her fascinating paper on “Theosophy in Russia” that same afternoon. Her brief but meaningful remarks showed how many Theosophical ideas are to be found in Russian literary and intellectual life. The work was a prime example of how to seek out those seeds in a nation's intellectual life that only require spiritual light in order to grow into Theosophy in the right way.

The first day of the conference ended with an evening of artistic performances. Johann Sebastian Bach's “Prelude and Fugue in B minor”, performed by Emanuel Nowotny on the organ, opened the evening. After that, Marie von Sivers recited the monologue from the beginning of the second part of Goethe's Faust, “Des Lebens Pulse schlagen frisch lebendig...”, as an example of a poem written for esoteric reasons. The two members, Ms. Alice von Sonklar and Ms. Toni Völker, performed Robert Schumann's “Pictures from the East” on the piano, which seem very suitable for promoting a mystical mood. Miss Gertrud Garmatter then sang two songs by Schubert, “An die Musik” and “Die schöne Müllerin”, in her charmingly sensitive way, and Miss Toni Völker concluded the evening with her beautiful artistic performance on the piano: “Pastorale and Capriccio” by Scarlatti.

On Sunday, May 19, the morning session was opened by the atmospheric Trio in E-flat major by Johannes Brahms (1st movement), played by Miss Johanna Fritsch (violin), Marika v. Gumppenberg (piano) and Mr. Tuckermann (French horn). Mrs. Besant then gave her momentous lecture: “The Place of Phenomena in the Theosophical Society”. She explained the role phenomena played in the early days of the Theosophical Society through H. P. Blavatsky, and how important they were in a time of doubt about higher worlds. She emphasized how the observation of phenomena related to higher worlds can never be dangerous if approached with the same spirit of research that is applied to observations in the physical world. She emphasized how little good it would do for the Theosophical Society if, for fear of the danger posed by psychic powers, it abandoned the pursuit of the goal of “studying those forces in the world and in man that are not accessible to sensory observation” to other societies.

It would be quite impossible to convey the manifold content of this lecture within the framework of a short report. Therefore, as with all earlier and later lectures of the congress, reference must be made to the “Yearbook” of the “Federation of European Sections”, which will appear following this lecture.

The second lecture of the morning was Dr. Rudolf Steiner's lecture on “The Initiation of the Rosicrucian”, in which the method of attaining knowledge of supersensible worlds in the sense of esotericism, which has set the tone in the West since the 14th century, is discussed and at the same time the necessity of these methods for the present period of human development is shown.

On Sunday afternoon (5 p.m.), Edouard Schuré's “Sacred Drama of Eleusis” was performed. The German organizers considered this performance to be an especially important part of the congress. It impressively demonstrated how theosophical ideas and sentiments can be expressed in true, high art. Edouard Schuré is the great French artist and writer who, through his works in so many directions, communicates the theosophical spirit to our contemporaries. Schuré's works “Les Grands Initiés” (“The Great Initiates”) and “Sanctuaires d'Orient” (“The Sanctuaries of the Orient”) are completely theosophical in the noblest sense of the word. And Schuré's theosophical way of looking at things is fully transformed into a vital creative power when he works as an artist. Within him lives that relationship between imagination and fantasy on which the basic secret of all high art is based. Edouard Schuré's truly mystical drama “The Children of Lucifer” is a shining example of how a world view striving towards the heights of knowledge can be fully realized in artistic form. Only a mind of this kind could have undertaken what Schuré did, to resurrect the “sacred drama” of Eleusis in the mind and eye of the modern man. This drama leads us to the door of that ancient time, where knowledge, religion and art still lived in one, where imagination was the faithful witness of truth and the sacred guide to piety; and where the reflection of imagination fell on this imagination in a transfiguring and revealing way. In Edouard Schur there lives a modern artistic soul, in which the light of that mysterious time shines, and so he was able to recreate what the priestly sages showed the audience in the “Drama at Eleusis” in Greece's distant past: the deep mystery of the world, which is reflected in the meaningful events of Eros' seduction of Persephone and her abduction by Pluto; of the pain of Demeter and the advice she to go to Eleusis, to seek advice from the “Goddess of Transformations”, Hekate; of Triptolem's initiation by Demeter as a priest in Eleusis; of Triptolem's daring journey into Pluto's realm to free Persephones; and of the emergence of a “new Dionysos”, who arises from Zeus' fire and the light of Demeter through the sacrifice of Triptolem. The congress organizers attempted to present the drama, which was inspired by Schuré, to the visitors in German. This was made possible by the dedicated work of a number of our members and by the beautiful, loving support of Bernhard Stavenhagen, who created a wonderful musical accompaniment to the Schuré drama. Stavenhagen preceded each of the four acts with a musical introduction that atmospherically prepared the audience for the dramatic action. With true congeniality, this important composer has immersed himself in the basic motifs of the mystery and rendered them musically. This musical performance was received with great enthusiasm by the participants of the congress. The willingness of the members of the German Section to work on this performance can be gauged from the fact that all the roles were played by members. Miss Fräulein v. Sivers played Demeter, Miss Sprengel played Persephone, Miss Garmatter played Eros, Mrs. v. Vacano played Hekate, Mr. Stahl played Pluto; we were delighted to have the collaboration of our member, the excellent actor Mr. Jürgas, who created an impressive figure in the role of Triptolemus; Baroness v. Gumppenberg, Dr. Peipers as Zeus, and Miss Wollisch as Dionysus. These are only the main roles; the choruses that are part of the plot were also composed of members. Special recognition must be given to our esteemed member, Mr. Linde, who took on the laborious task of creating the decorations.

The morning of Monday was introduced by the recitation of Goethe's poems “Song of the Spirits over the Waters” and “Prometheus”, by Richard Jürgas, whom the participants now got to know as an excellent reciter, just as they had been introduced to his acting skills the night before. Then the participants had the great joy of hearing the second lecture by Mrs. Besant, in which she spoke about the relationship of the Masters to the Theosophical Society. Drawing from her rich spiritual experience, she described the relationship of great individuals to spiritual progress and the way such individuals participate in the progress of the Theosophical Society. It is also impossible to give a brief overview of the wide-ranging content of this lecture in just a few words. Here too, we must refer you to the publication of the Yearbook. After this lecture, our member Frau Hempel delighted the participants with an excellent display of her vocal art. This was followed by a lecture by Dr. Carl Ungers, who spoke very interestingly about working methods in the theosophical branches and explained the relationship of the non-clairvoyant theosophist to the messages of the clairvoyants, showing how the writing “Theosophy” by Dr. Rudolf Steiner can provide a basis for shaping this relationship in the right way. Later that morning, Mrs. Elise Wolfram gave her lecture on the occult basis of the Siegfried saga. She showed subtly and vividly how the deeper spiritual development of Europe is expressed in the myth, how Germanic and even older mystery wisdom took shape in Siegfried. The lecturer's subtle interpretations were well suited to allowing the audience to enter into the mysterious life of part of the Nibelungen saga.

In the afternoon, Mrs. v. Gumppenberg read Mr. Arvid Knös's essay, “Absolute and Relative Truths”; then Dr. Rudolf Steiner gave his lecture, “Planetary Development and Human Development”. He described the development of the earth through three of its present forms, and then pointed to the connection between the development of the earth and that of man. He also showed how one could know something about the future of development.

The evening was again devoted to purely artistic performances. The Sonata in G minor by L. van Beethoven was performed by Chr. Döbereiner (cello) and Elfriede Schunk (piano). Afterwards, Gertrud Garmatter's excellent vocal performance could be heard again (two songs: “Weylas Gesang” by Hugo Wolf and “Frühlingslaube” by Franz Schubert). This was followed by solos for viola da gamba with piano, firstly “Adagio” by Handel and secondly “Aria con variazione” composed by A. Kühnel in 1695. Both pieces were performed by Chr. Döbereiner (viola da gamba) and Miss Elfriede Schunk (piano). A brilliant performance on the piano by the Italian member Mr. Kirby concluded the evening.

On Tuesday morning, the program began with: “Adagio from the Violin Concerto” by Max Bruch, op. 26, performed by Johanna Fritsch and Pauline Frieß. After that, Mr. Richard Jürgas recited some poems full of intimate feeling and mystical moods by our dear member Mia Holm. The rest of the morning was taken up with a free discussion on the topic: The necessity of cultivating occultism within society. Mr. Jules Ägoston from Budapest, Bernhard Hubo, Ludwig Deinhard, Dr. [Carl] Unger, Michael Bauer, D. Nagy, Mr. Wedgwood, Miss Severs and Mrs. Elise Wolfram took part in the discussion. The discussion was introduced by Jules Ägoston, who emphasized the necessity of maintaining the spiritualist experiment; following on from this, Bernhard Hubo developed a contrary point of view based on his many years of experience; Ludwig Deinhard discussed the necessity of acquainting theosophical circles with scientific experiments to penetrate the deeper foundations of the soul. It is impossible to report here on the rich and varied addresses of the above-mentioned speakers. Nor is it possible to do so with regard to the stimulating points of view that Mr. Nerei from Budapest gave in the afternoon during the discussion on “educational issues”. Following these points of view, Dr. Rudolf Steiner also spoke about education. — Mrs. Douglas-[Sheild] spoke about the relationship between “Theosophy and Christianity”.

The closing act of the congress took place on Tuesday at nine o'clock in the evening. It began with the spirited and heartfelt Adagio in D major by our dear member and head of the Stuttgart lodge I: Adolf Arenson, which was performed by Mr. Arenson himself (piano), Dr. Carl Unger (cello) and Johanna Fritsch (violin). This was followed by: “Tröstung” by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, performed by Hilde Stockmeyer, “Ave verum” by Mozart performed by Gertrud Garmatter, the recitation of a poem by Mrs. Ripper, solos for violin by J. S. Bach, by Johanna Fritsch and Pauline Frieß, and variations on the chorale “Sei gegrüßet, Jesu gütig>, for organ by J. S. Bach, by Emanuel Nowotny. The Congress then drew to a close with short closing addresses by the representatives of the individual sections: Mr. Wallace spoke for the British section, Mlle Aimée Blech (representing Dr. Pascal, who had to leave earlier due to his state of health) for the French section, Mr. Fricke for the Dutch section, and Prof. Dr. Penzig for the Italian section. Mrs. Besant then addressed some deeply moving words to the participants, and finally Dr. Rudolf Steiner gave the closing address, in which he thanked the participants, especially those from foreign sections, for coming, and also expressed his warmest thanks to all those whose dedicated work had made the congress possible.

And these thanks must be expressed to many, especially Miss Sophie Stinde, who, as secretary of the congress, has done tireless and important work; Countess Pauline Kalckreuth, who has worked tirelessly on all the preparatory work and tasks. We have these two to thank above all that we were able to pursue the intentions described above at all, and that we were able to achieve what has been achieved. Adolf Arenson took care of the musical part of the program. Our dear member Clara Rettich devoted herself selflessly to the task of painting the seven apocalyptic seals according to the occult instructions given to her; in the same way, Karl Stahl took on the task of painting the seven pillars in the perimeter of the hall. It is impossible to mention all the numerous workers individually by name. But it should not go unmentioned that dear members had set up a buffet in an adjoining room and did the necessary work, which greatly enhanced the convivial get-together, through which members were to come together.

Dr. Rudolf Steiner was authorized at his request, and indeed unanimously and out of the enthusiasm of the audience, to express the thanks of the congress to Monsieur Edouard Schure, the poet of the “Drama of Eleusis” and Bernhard Stavenhagen, the composer of the musical part.

The sculptures by our highly talented member, the sculptor Dr. Ernst Wagner, who strives for the highest artistic goals, were an excellent artistic presentation for the congress. The sculptures he provided for our exhibition were set up in the area around the main hall, and, for their inwardness, had an atmospheric background in the red wall of the hall. The following works of art were present: Portrait bust, Woman praying, Portrait bust, Relief for a sepulchral chapel, Bust, Sepulchral relief, King's child, Resolution, Sybille, Relief for a sepulchral niche, Portrait bust, Pain, Christ mask, Mask “Death”, Bronze statuette. Besides these works of art, only the interesting symbolic painting “The Great Babylon” by our member Mr. Haß, which was hung above the boardroom, and a carpet by Ms. Lehmann, which showed a fascinating utilization of mystical ideas in the applied arts, and finally a relief depicting Colonel Olcott by M. Gailland, and a sketch “H. P. Blavatsky” by Julia Wesw-Hoffmann.

The exhibition of a series of artworks and reproductions of such artworks that have a special connection to theosophical thought took place in the adjoining room. Here one could see: etchings by Hans Volkert; reproductions of two pictures by Moreau; reproductions of two pictures by Hermann Schmiechen; a statuette “The Master” by [Heyman]; a picture “Out of Deep Distress” by Stockmeyer; reproductions of various pictures by Watts; three reproductions of works by Lionardo; pictures by Kalckreuth the Elder, by Sophie Stinde (landscapes); by Haß (After the Storm, Fairy Tale. The King's Daughter, The Storm Cloud, Five Fir Tree Studies); a reproduction by the painter Knopf.

The next Federation Congress will take place in Budapest in 1909, two years hence, at the kind invitation of our Hungarian members.

The following events also took place after the congress: a public lecture by Mrs. Besant in Munich on “exertion and destiny” on 27 May; two public lectures by Dr. Rudolf Steiner in Munich on “Bible and Wisdom” on 23 and 24 May; and a “Course in Theosophy” based on the Rosicrucian method by Dr. Rudolf Steiner, which began on Wednesday, May 22 and included 14 lectures (lasting until June 8).

Photographs of the seals and pillars described above were provided by our member Mr. Kuhn, and will soon be available from Miss Marie von Sivers (Berlin W, Motzstraße 17).

It should be noted here that the first two yearbooks of the Federation (containing the communications, lectures and papers of the Amsterdam and London congresses) have been published. Those of the third (Paris) and fourth (Munich) congresses will follow shortly. The content of the books will be discussed in detail in the next issue of this journal; however, the importance of the books for every theosophist should be pointed out here, and their purchase is strongly recommended.

A group photograph of the Munich conference participants in the festival hall has been obtained by our member Otto Rietmann and can be obtained from Mr. Otto Rietmann (photographer in St. Gallen, Switzerland, Rorschacherstraße).

[We have not seen each other here for a few weeks. You know that this is because of our congress, which took place at Pentecost. These congresses will indeed] establish a kind of connection between the different nations within Europe, also in relation to our theosophical cause. The Munich congress, which is the fourth – after Amsterdam, London and Paris – should, in a certain respect, be a stage in the development of our theosophical movement.

I do not intend to give a proper report of the congress today, but just a few remarks for those who were unable to attend. It should show one thing that I have emphasized over and over again in relation to our Theosophical cause: that Theosophy should not be just a matter of personal brooding and introspection. The theosophical cause should intervene in practical life, should be a matter of education, a matter of becoming familiar with all branches of practical existence. Only those who have a deeper understanding and a deeper concept of the actual impulses of the theosophical cause already know today what possibilities this theosophy will offer in the future. It will be the harmony between what we see and look at and what we feel inwardly. For those who can see more deeply, an important reason for the absent-mindedness of today's people lies in this disharmony between what is and what Theosophy wants. Not only Theosophists have felt this, but also other important natures, such as Richard Wagner.

In earlier times, every door lock, every house, every structure was a structure of the soul. Soul substance had flowed into it. In ancient times, the work of art belonged to human feeling and thinking. The forms of Gothic churches in ancient times were in keeping with the mood of those who made the pilgrimage to the churches. They were their own soul mood. The pilgrim to the church felt the forms as a folding of hands, as the old Teuton felt a folding of hands in the growing together of the trees. In those days everything was more familiar to people. You see this wonderfully expressed in Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci. The gathering of the whole village in the church was nothing other than the expression of the entire soul life of the village. The whole ether currents gathered at the place where the church stood. The materialistic age has fragmented all this. Those who cannot contemplate life do not know this. But the seer knows that when you walk through a city today, there is almost nothing but things that concern the stomach or the obsession with cleanliness. Those who know how to follow the secret threads of life also know what materialistic culture has brought to this division.

The recovery of the outside world arises from the fact that it becomes an imprint of what our innermost soul moods are. You can't immediately reach for the most perfect, but an example of this was given in Munich. The theosophical worldview was expressed in the room. You saw nothing but theosophy. The whole room was decorated in red. There is often a great deal of confusion about the color red, but the red could not be mistaken in its deeper meaning.

The development of humanity is an ascending and descending. Look at the original peoples. They have green in nature. And what do they love most? Red. The occultist knows that red has a special effect on the healthy soul. It releases the active forces in the healthy soul, those forces that inspire action, those forces that are meant to move the soul from the comfort into the discomfort of doing. A room with a holiday mood must be papered in red. Anyone who paperes a living room in red shows that they no longer know a holiday mood and profane the red color. Goethe has said the most beautiful words about such things: “The effect of this color is as unique as its nature. It gives an impression of both seriousness and dignity as well as of grace and charm. It does the latter in its dark, condensed state, and the former in its light, diluted state. And so the dignity of age and the loveliness of youth can be clothed in one color.”

These are the moods that are triggered by red; moods that can be proven in an occult way. Look at the landscape through a red glass and you get the impression: this is what it must look like on Judgment Day. Red makes you happy about what man has achieved in his development. Red is an enemy of retarding moods, of sinful moods.

Then there were seven column motifs for the time when Theosophy could also build a building. The motifs of the columns are taken from the teachings of the initiates, from ancient times. Theosophy will have the opportunity to give architecture truly new column motifs. The old columns actually no longer mean anything to people. The new ones relate to Saturn, the Sun, the Moon, Mars, Mercury, [Jupiter], Venus. [These] principles were expressed in the capitals.

Between the columns we had placed the seven apocalyptic seals in a Rosicrucian way. The Grail seal has been revealed to the public for the first time.

Theosophy can also be built. It can be built in architectonics, in education and in the social question. The principle of Rosicrucianism is to introduce the spirit into the world, to do fruitful work for the soul. We will also succeed in elevating art to a mystery art, for which Richard Wagner had such a great longing. An attempt has been made in Edouard Schur's mystery drama, which Edouard Schur has tried to recreate the mystery plays (of antiquity).

What underlay the [whole of the congress arrangements] was the intention of crystallizing theosophy into the structure of the world. The program booklet showed the festive color red and bore a black cross entwined with roses in a blue field. Rosicrucianism passes on what Christianity has given to the future. The initial letters on the program booklet reflect the basic ideas.

My dear Theosophical friends,

It is with great satisfaction that I greet you again today, after our long break. Hopefully we will be able to start a very good winter campaign with this evening.

It is gratifying to note that we have had to enlarge this room as well by expanding our branch. And above all, it is even more gratifying that we have been able to enlarge it. If, during these winter lodge evenings, the rooms have been made a little more airy and perhaps a little more pleasant, these evenings will also be a little more pleasant, and this is what is most desirable in the interest of our spiritual movement.

Our spiritual movement should indeed penetrate deeper and more intensely into the overall spiritual life of our time with each passing year. And the larger our little groups become, which we are gathered in the various German cities, the more we will also succeed not only in absorbing theosophical ideas into ourselves, but also in letting them flow into the hearts of our contemporaries. All the more will we solve the task that we can recognize as our most beautiful within our spiritual movement.

Today I do not need to speak to you about these tasks. You all know them. It is only a wish that we all have in common that we may succeed in making further progress in our work during this winter.

Before we move on to the subject of our consideration, I would like to briefly touch on a few things from the movement, namely the fact that Mrs. Annie Besant has indeed been elected president of the Theosophical Society, which you will have learned from the “Mitteilungen”. We can combine this announcement with another event related to our current president, Mrs. Besant: On October 1, our current president turned sixty. It may well be said that this celebration of the sixtieth birthday of our esteemed president, after whom our lodge is named, must also be, in a sense, a celebration of our lodge. On this occasion, we recall that Mrs. Besant has taken on the rather heavy burden of the presidential duties of the Theosophical Society at this time and that she, who has always, wherever possible, whole strength anyway, so to speak, has taken on something that was needed at that moment, and which actually requires a great deal of human strength in itself, in order to add to her already considerable efforts.

Nevertheless, we must welcome the fact that it has turned out this way, in line with the remarks I was allowed to make before the election. We can think of the way in which Mrs. Besant has devoted her energy to the Theosophical Society and movement for eighteen years now. We understand this way of working best when we remember what the foundations of this theosophical movement actually are.

When we speak of the foundations of the Theosophical Society, the members naturally first notice the three principles of our Theosophical Society. Firstly, to establish the core of a general brotherhood; secondly, to seek the core of wisdom in the various religions; and finally, thirdly, to contribute to the dissemination of those insights that relate to the higher spiritual worlds.

If we now ask ourselves whether our society has anything special in the cultivation of the first sentence, in the cultivation of universal human brotherhood, compared to other societies, we have to say that anyone who looks around the world with an unbiased eye will know that this cultivation of humanity, in the broadest sense of the word, is an item on the program of many contemporary societies and that, so to speak, today in the very broadest circles this ideal is recognized as such that every noble person must strive for. And if a particular society takes up this ideal as its banner, many people in the world will ask themselves: Why should we join this society when we can satisfy this ideal in a completely different way and in other communities? And the second point, to seek the core of the wisdom teachings in the various religious creeds, is an ideal that is already being cultivated by many circles of scholars and many individual scholars today. If we want to look at the matter from a purely scholarly point of view, then we cannot say otherwise than that at least in the circles with a scholarly education, this ideal is also striven for, and that with the means of scholarly research, which, by the very nature of things, is not supposed to be inherent in the cultivation of a society. Nevertheless, we would fail to recognize the very nerve of our Society if we did not want to hold fast to these two great ideals. If we were not clear about the fact that, in the sense of what we have come to know as esoteric Christianity, the Theosophical Society prescribes for us precisely the all-embracing ideal of brotherhood and, on the other hand, that we, the great, deep, far-reaching peace that should spread throughout the world like an emanation of this universal brotherhood, a new social force, can best be achieved by us making peace right down to the core of our soul, right down to the hearts of human beings. But as long as we cannot make peace in terms of external institutions, in terms of external deeds, in terms of law and morality, we will never seriously achieve this general peace in the world, because what ultimately divides people are their thoughts, their beliefs. So, what we call general brotherhood, will you never achieve if we do not make peace in the beliefs? And how can we make peace if we cannot see what common core of truth is in the most diverse religious beliefs? By finding harmony in our beliefs, we will also bring about world peace. It is therefore clear that this must be our great ideal.

But these ideals are also recognized outside the Theosophical Society. They are recognized by all those who look at life with some degree of impartiality. At least the first principle is recognized in its formulation, as it is also presented to us, by all people today who think more or less nobly. And the second principle is also recognized by those who have emerged from limited fanaticism. What, then, distinguishes us from them, and what entitles us to be a special society if these ideals are not special? The following: It is true that universal brotherhood is the highest humanitarian ideal; it is true that peace and harmony should be established even among the religions. But there is only one means to this great end. This means, this way, this path is what makes the Theosophical Society special. And it is only because it believes that these two great ideals can be achieved with this path alone that it has its right to exist. And this means is to make the secrets of the higher spiritual world accessible to people.

Someone may acknowledge the general ideal of brotherhood. But if he does not stand on the ground of the study of the spiritual secrets of the world, he tries to introduce it into the world with inadequate means, and he also studies the inadequacies in the religious creeds if he does not see what underlies them in the spiritual worlds as the basis, let us say, of the very right in the formulation of these ideals. But you would be convinced, if you could only follow the course of time, how the means used outside the theosophical current will never achieve this ideal. On the other hand, through the study of the spiritual world itself, the fulfillment of the first two ideals will arise as a matter of course.

Therefore, the history of our movement since 1875 has shown that those who have joined it have essentially always done so because they knew that within this society they could find something of the facts of the spiritual worlds in their true form. This exploration of the occult world was at the cradle of the Theosophical Society. It is the thing that will always keep the members united. If we were to lose this exploration of the supersensible world, then we would have no reason for the Theosophical Society to exist. Therefore, our main task must be the cultivation of occultism. A great many occult truths have come into the world through the Theosophical Society and are still coming into the world.

The theosophical movement is properly understood only by those who work in this spirit. Whether he follows this or that path or method in detail, those who consider the cultivation of occultism in society to be the main thing are of the same nature. That alone could be the point of view from which Mrs. Besant's presidency was justified. They have had this point of view from the beginning, and it will be a matter of learning within society that occultism itself is something that unites us. All the various objections that could be raised against Mrs. Besant's presidency were swept aside by the only sentence that she wrote in the various documents she sent to the public before the election. This sentence was so genuinely written in the sense of the occultist's attitude that one can see – whatever one may otherwise think of her – this sentence is written from the heart and from the attitude of an occultist. And that was the sentence, which of course today can only be understood by people with an occult mind-set, that she can refer to the approval of her master and that she prefers this single approval of her master to the vote of the entire majority, which might result from a vote in the democratic sense. That is the occultist's attitude, that is standing on the ground of truth. Truth is recognized and not found by voting on it.

While this is difficult in our time for the great masses outside - who must go the opposite way - it must increasingly become the attitude of the occultist. What we have recognized as truth, we have recognized, even if the whole world opposes us. Therefore, by appealing to the spiritual powers that stand above us, our own judgment must count for more than any other. At the same time, professing this attitude requires a certain courage, a great courage, especially today. It also takes courage within the Theosophical Society. Those who do not have this courage cannot be true occultists. However, those who have this attitude in the background know very clearly that, no matter what obstacles may stand in the way of our movement, no matter what may be done to us, this movement must find and follow its path.

Therefore, it is best for us to work on our current, which we recognize as the right one, to work properly. What we are able to advance is more important to us than what we are supposed to fight against, even within society. That Mrs. Besant stands precisely on this ground, which characterizes her as an occultist, is shown by a small example, which may nevertheless be symptomatic. Just at the last annual meeting in London, Mrs. Besant, who was presiding, was strongly attacked from various sides.

It might seem strange that only her opponents spoke at this meeting and that none of her friends stood up to try to defend her. That might seem a little strange. It no longer seems strange when it becomes clear that Mrs. Besant had asked her friends not to defend her at this meeting, whatever might happen. This is a symptom of an occultist gathering. In short, we can summarize ourselves: in the fact that Mrs. Besant stood on solid ground when she entered society, that gave society a firm basis when it was founded; that she never left that ground and that she will therefore be a guarantee that she will not leave this ground as a leading figure, that is important. Therefore, we can only welcome with great satisfaction that Mrs. Besant, so close to her sixtieth birthday, has taken on the burden of the presidency, in addition to all her other work. We can only hope that the Theosophical movement will continue to be maintained in the ways in which it must be maintained if it is to contribute to the further development of the spiritual life of humanity.

In this sense, we will celebrate the sixtieth birthday of Mrs. Annie Besant. And we are clear in such moments that the occultist knows that thoughts, feelings and sensations are not something unreal, but something real, that they are forces and that each of us can work through our thoughts, sensations and feelings. Let us resolve, from this moment on, to direct the thoughts and feelings we have for our President, thoughts of love, devotion and friendship, to him. Then we, each in our own place, will be able to be the helpers that this President needs. That is the best way to celebrate the festival, by making the thoughts that are otherwise only expressed at such festivals the basis of our actions. Let us say to ourselves: We want to send our thoughts, feelings and sensations of help. This is something we had to remind ourselves of in the Besant Lodge.

Report in the “Mitteilungen für die Mitglieder der Deutschen Sektion der Theosophischen Gesellschaft (Hauptquartier Adyar) herausgegeben von Mathilde Scholl”, No. V1/1908.

At 11:30 a.m., the Secretary General of the German Section, Dr. Rudolf Steiner, opened the fifth ordinary General Assembly.

The first item on the agenda was to determine the voting rights of the various lodges and their representatives.

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Not represented were: Basel, Charlottenburg, Düsseldorf (Blavatsky branch), Esslingen a.N., Frankfurt a.M., Regensburg. - Similarly, the section members who did not belong to a branch had not exercised their right to appoint representatives.

The votes are distributed as follows:
Dr. Steiner 1
Mr. Kiem 6
Ms. von Sivers 5
Ms. von Bredow 1
Mr. Tessmar 1
Mr. Korth 1
Ms. Mücke 1
Mr. Bedrnicek-Chlumsky 2
Mrs. Peelen 2
Dr. Noll 2
Miss Scholl 3
Dr. Peipers 2
Mr. Ahner 2
Mrs. Wolfram 1
Mr. Jahn 1
Dr. Vollrath 1
Mr. Wagner 4
Ms. Stinde 2
Countess Kalckreuth 2
Baroness Gumppenberg 4
r. Arenson 5
Ms. Völker 5
Mr. von Damnitz 2
Mr. Eggers 1
Ms. Knoch 1
Ms. Stryczek 1
Mr. Kolbe 1
Mr. Walter 1
Scharlau 1
[total] 62

The secretary of the meeting, Mr. Selling, reads the minutes of the General Assembly of October 21, 1906, which is approved by the meeting.

Item II:

1. Report of the General Secretary [Dr. Steiner]: “The Fifth General Assembly is hereby opened. Before we enter into this morning's proceedings, which must of course be governed by the strict spirit of the law of the statutes, it may be permitted to greet you all most cordially in the name of the spirit of harmony and true Theosophical unity.

You have gathered again after a year to reaffirm this spirit of harmony and the spiritual, inner harmony that flows from Theosophy, and to experience it together once more during a few days together. Not only what we negotiate on such occasions [on a business level] is taken into consideration, but also the fact that we are together at all, that our thoughts touch each other even more intimately through direct contact than they could otherwise. This must also be counted among the things that come into play at such a gathering as ours. We must gain strength from such gatherings to be able to work ever more strongly, ever more vigorously, and ever more correctly in all parts of the area in which we have succeeded in spreading the Theosophical life and thought within the realm of the German language.

We can say that in the years since we have had a German section, the Theosophical thought and life within our Central European region have spread in a very gratifying and, considering the opposing factors, extraordinarily satisfying way. It is not at all unnecessary to watch with a watchful eye how, not only on the surface of our present life, but one might say in those regions that are today considered by some to be deeper, precisely the forces and powers opposed to ours prevail and how hostile waves beat against our Theosophical activity.

When the Theosophist looks at his environment with his spiritual senses, which, as it should be, are refined for all human life, he soon sees these thoughts that are opposed to the actual Theosophical life and the Theosophical world view. But perhaps it is better that we are able to let the waves of these hostile powers approach us, where we can then watch them closely and, without further engagement with them, without worrying about them, we are able to do our work. It is particularly satisfying to note that in the five years of the German Section's work, this truly peaceful and peace-loving, indeed the only peace-loving, thought has spread at least a little. The Theosophical Society cannot do its work by always saying that it is there to establish brotherhood, to make peace, to introduce good into the world, not by fighting hostile powers, but by doing positive work, by purely absorbing what flows to it from the spiritual worlds and letting it flow into the world again.

It is also a much more beautiful feeling when there are hostile powers all around, and one says nothing to these hostile powers, but simply asserts within the surging waves what one is able to do oneself. We are not really here to fight, nor to fight with words, but to do, to create, and as long as the Theosophical Society is at the present stage of development, the only deeds we can do, and perhaps the best deeds we can do, will be our words imbued with the innermost essence of the spirit. But more and more we will absorb the consciousness that such words we speak, such thoughts we harbor, such seemingly outwardly invisible actions are the seed for real future deeds, for real future events.

There are many parties, many currents and societies to promote this or that good. They all can hardly avoid spreading what is good according to their belief and fighting the opposing evil. The Theosophical Society should distinguish itself from the other societies by the fact that it can endure when hostile forces approach it from all sides, that the members of the society do not care about them, not even in words, but quietly do their work.

It is possible that we will not always be able to keep it that way; it is possible that especially the spirit that has entered into many occult circles, including those that call themselves theosophical, will sometimes force us to take a stand. It is not always possible to realize in the outer world that which is the highest ideal; but we will never be in any doubt that if we should be compelled to fight for our spiritual world-view, that fight would mean lost time. Perhaps we are forced to sacrifice lost time, to do lost work; but then we have the consciousness that these things do not belong to the main issues of our striving.

This is what, according to the intentions of the spiritual world, should flow more and more into our German, Central European, Theosophical movement; that is precisely what I would like to imbue with a spiritual greeting wish that we may work in harmony with such a spirit within the framework of the Society, within which we seek to spread the Theosophical World-View.

But it can happen to us, and it has happened to us many times in the course of these five years of work, that people who may call themselves Theosophists have attacked us and caused real discord. We have experienced it time and again, and it has occurred in the vast majority of cases, that we have remained silent in the face of all such attacks, as was emphasized in the previous year from the same place and at the same time; and we have had to experience it time and again that precisely those who attacked us, those who opposed us even from the theosophical side, subsequently reproached us: Yes, what is it then, that there is so much discord in society? Theosophy is supposed to make peace. Most of the talk about it, the ones who have previously caused the discord. This is actually an experience that we have made.

There are people who say that they are striving to establish the best non-sectarian theosophy. If any society really strives to spread a completely non-sectarian theosophy, then it is certainly the one that is attempting this in our context. Nevertheless, it is often said that Theosophy, when it vigorously advocates the occult life from any side, wants to create a sect. And people who have no understanding of the difference between sects and sectarianism and true, high freedom, which must prevail within the framework of such a society, very often speak of cult formation, and in such a way as if they had the privilege, the patent, to appear cult-free.

As I said, even if some excesses have occurred or will occur in the Theosophical Society, our attitude, our realization should be that we consider any resistance as a waste of time, even if we are forced to defend ourselves. The only thing that brings fruit is to do positive theosophical work. The idea that Theosophy is a fact has become more and more widespread. Let us emphasize that it is a fact and not a set of principles, not a set of program points. It is not theosophy to say that one wants to found a society of a certain nature; it is not theosophy to say that one has this or that principle. Rather, what is a fact is theosophy, the spiritual life that is being poured out into the world today through a number of people who are united. This positive inflow from the higher planes is what matters. That is the picture and everything else is the frame. No matter how much we argue about the best constitution for society, it is all about the best frame. But it is not the frame that matters, but that there is a picture in the frame, and that we learn to have the picture first, not the frame. This thought, which has a touch of artistic sensitivity, is something one would like to see spread in the Theosophical Society. In time, the best framework will arise by itself if the way in which the framework is designed is the same as the way in which the framework for a good picture is chosen. The one who wants a beautiful frame and then gets a picture for it will usually go astray; but the one who is able to gain the idea of the framework from the content of the picture will go the right way.

Therefore, we need not be afraid if the theosophical condition has to change here and there. As long as there is life and a picture, the frame will change and adapt to the picture. It differs from other pictures in that it is a living and not a dead picture, and as such a living picture, it will also have to constantly renew its frame.

No one who lives in the spirit of theosophy will be able to entertain any wrong thoughts about the frame. It is good if we call this truly peace-making attitude, which does not arise from the demand for peace but from the self-evident result of peace, the result of the high teachings that flow through the theosophical movement , and if we all imbibe the idea at the beginning of our gathering that Theosophy is not meant to be an abstract wisdom but a concrete one, through which we understand the world in the right sense. And why not of a concrete, rather than abstract, nature? Because in Theosophy we seek the wisdom by which the world itself came into being, not thoughts that we form, but thoughts that the divine beings had when they built the world. We seek to appropriate the same wisdom that formed the world in the Theosophical Society. The gods first created the world according to the concepts we seek in Theosophy. That is why Theosophy is a true and legitimate bearer of its name. If we imbibe these truths in this field, then we are not merely theoretical seekers of truth. To seek the thoughts of God means to seek God's own mind, to seek rest in the soul of God, not the rest of inactivity but that which arises from the true rhythm of life and is therefore the true source of work on the physical plane, which is to be the realization of the higher planes.

That is the spirit in whose name, as was said at the beginning of these remarks, you may be greeted today. This concrete spirit was the eternal thought of God, which is to shine forth in the individual human souls that unite in the Theosophical Society. It is this spirit that arises as a spark in every soul, and to which I too would like to extend my greetings.

Break

"My dear Theosophical friends! Our movement within Central Europe has increased in a very satisfying way. The current way of working, which has been carried on in the same spirit as before, has undoubtedly proven itself.

The past year not only brought us the lecture cycles that were held in Munich, Kassel, and Hannover, but also a wealth of activities that were more international in nature. On the occasion of our Munich Congress, and even before that, a plethora of administrative tasks became necessary due to the fact that we were able to elect a new president of the Society as a result of Colonel Olcott's passing.

Since many of the members who are present here were also present in Munich, and we commemorated the immense and unspeakable merits of our president-founder at the time, today it is enough just to bring the memory of him back to our dear friends, to him who administered and led the Theosophical Society with love and devotion for so long. There is no need to repeat the words that bring to each of us an awareness of the fruitful and beneficial work that Colonel Olcott has done during his term of office, which has lasted as long as the Society has existed.

In particular, the German Section, which was to go some way under Olcott's leadership, and which from the outset pursued the definite plan of fully and freely integrating itself into the general Society, was often able to feel how the spirit of truly Theosophical freedom could flourish in it through Olcott's way of understanding his task as President of the Society.

In some circles, there is talk of centralization in Adyar and even of Adyar's tyrannical and authoritarian domination. But anyone who has followed the matter here in Germany will have to say that there can be no question of any influence on free thought and thought here. That every Theosophical field may flourish and work on its own ground, under its own conditions, is what Colonel Olcott also regarded as his motto. This principle, which may have been less pronounced in the past but can now be stated as a summary, 'that one lets the right thing happen in the right place', has become more and more established in practice under Colonel Olcott's leadership.

Those who had the profound satisfaction of knowing Olcott personally knew that he was, so to speak, the self-evident president of the Society. The matter-of-factness that does not deny anyone their right because no one thinks that it could be any different is a beautiful trait that will become more and more evident in the Society.

As the German Section, we also feel that at our first General Assembly after the passing of our president-founder, our thoughts and our love will continue to belong to the spirit of this extraordinary man. We feel that we will always belong with him, because theosophical communities are communities that extend far beyond the physical plane. We feel united with him and express these our feelings as the German Section by rising from our seats.

The death of Colonel H. S. Olcott meant that a new president had to be elected. It cannot be my task to summarize the many debates and resolutions that took place during the preparation period and during the presidential election. We note the satisfying result that Mrs. Annie Besant emerged from the election with an overwhelming majority.

But even if the discussions regarding her election were lengthy [and took up a lot of time of the kind that was previously described as wasted time in the non-business part of the General Assembly, the business part, it would be far from my heart to repeat these words] – a summary would have to be given if it were not for the pleasing fact that, basically, these discussions have not affected our German section. The election in Germany went off in a calm and orderly manner and produced an almost unanimous result. Only 20 votes out of 600 were cast against Mrs. Besant.

[The others did not vote.

Thus we may well disregard the things that took place outside of our section and indulge in the satisfaction that Mrs. Besant, whose work has been devoted to the Society for many years, will continue to serve the Theosophical Society in the new form of the presidency. The Theosophical Society will thus be preserved in its historical tradition. Mrs. Besant's personality is a sufficient guarantee and basis for this. It also enters into a new phase, as the discussion has shown how necessary it is to steer the Society in the right direction.

Last year, in relation to Mrs. Besant, we not only had to report her election as president, but also her 60th birthday.

Since it was not possible to call an extraordinary meeting on such an occasion, I took the liberty of welcoming and congratulating Mrs. Besant on behalf of the Section, with the intention of seeking indemnity from today's meeting.

I wrote to Mrs. Besant at the time, which in German translation reads something like this:

“The German Section of the Theosophical Society is permitted to send its warmest love and appreciation. The members see in your tireless devotion to the ideals of the Society, in your noble cultivation of the motives of spiritual life, a spiritual example that works to give the present a spiritual ferment. The Society has taken a direction such that the members will count it an honor if they can work in harmony with the President. It is their most fervent wish that they might contribute as much as possible to shaping your high office in a way that corresponds to your views. From the heart of the members, the Secretary General of the German Section of the Theosophical Society would like to express this.”

The Theosophical Society owes its existence to the fact that, since its foundation through the mediation of Annie Besant, a great deal of occult wisdom has been imparted to the educated world. When Mrs. Besant took on the office of president at such an advanced age, in addition to the other tasks she has so far performed abundantly in the past, those who understood the importance of the Society's progress had to welcome this as a satisfying fact.

Another task that fell to us in the international arena was the holding of the Munich Congress. You were able to get an idea of our intentions from the decoration of the congress hall, the images of the seals and columns with which the hall was adorned, and the nature of the entire program. They were intended to make a start, to make Theosophy more than just a collection of abstract dogmas, and to give it influence over the life that surrounds us. No one can be under any illusion that the way in which we have achieved harmony in relation to the overall design of the congress was more than a weak beginning compared to what lives as Theosophical thought. But everything has to start somewhere. If the German Section has only shown what intentions could prevail at such a congress, shown how the life that lives in the soul can also be expressed in form, in art and in being together, then what the German Section could contribute on this occasion has been done. From such inspiration, the strength can arise that will gradually make it possible for the Theosophical Society to not only be a place for the dissemination of these or those dogmas, but to intervene deeply in the whole life of the human being. [A more detailed description of the congress is not necessary. It has been sufficiently given in the “Mitteilungen”. The only thing] that still needs to be noted is the fact that the cost of the congress, which was estimated at 4,500 marks, has been greatly exceeded. The congress has become all the more beautiful as a result. It is to be mentioned here with deep gratitude that on this occasion in particular such a profound understanding has been shown, especially in the German Section. We needed a lot of money; but it turned out that where Theosophical life is concerned, there is also understanding and a willingness to make sacrifices. Therefore, there is no deficit to report. [It is also the case that he has completely balanced himself, which was very gratifying considering that the estimate had to be exceeded by a great deal.]

No less emphasized should be the deeply satisfying fact that those who could have done so have worked in an incredibly dedicated manner. Everything that had to be done was done by our dear friends in Munich in a way that was not only dedicated but also thoroughly understanding, so that what we did was the most beautiful expression of what is called Theosophical unity and harmony. There was no one who was not willing to do the most demanding spiritual work alongside the most menial manual labor, which is necessary at such a congress. People who had never done such work in their entire lives carried large items that were needed for one purpose or another; others hammered, others painted large columns; in short, it was all dedicated work. Donations ranging from the thousand-mark note to the ten-pfennig piece were collected. The administration, which had been taken over from Munich, was prudent in everything except the work that showed how real achievement, real cooperation, makes people harmonious. We brought it to the point where the deeply satisfying performance of the Mystery Drama of Eleusis could take place. If you knew what had to be done to make it happen, from the translation from French to the sandals on the feet of the actors, who were all members and had to undergo weeks of rehearsals; if you knew how it went, how beautifully and harmoniously everything went, how the work was carried by the community spirit and the devotion of feeling, then you could appreciate the practical value of having everyone bound together by a common bond of work. Just as the plant harmoniously reaches towards the sun, so people become harmonious when they are ruled by the same feelings.

[This was demonstrated during the rehearsal of the Eleusinian Mysteries. We were able to take this satisfying and practical insight home with us, which is what it means to practically ground life and work. Working together brings you together, it makes people of one mind and one soul. There is no more arguing.]

We owe it to the good spirit of the corps of contributors to our Munich Congress that everything turned out as it did. The spirit of harmony really did live in the Munich working community during all these preparations, and in this respect it could, to a certain extent, serve as a model for the way in which people in the Theosophical Society can work together and collaborate in general. It is to be hoped that the somewhat different kind of work that the German Section has been trying to do for five years will not only be recognized in the International Theosophical Society [- but this is not necessary -] but will also have a somewhat fruitful effect. The International Theosophical Society can only flourish if each Section contributes to the altar of common, Theosophical, international activity. [The work that has been started must be continued. The Basel and Nuremberg lodges have requested lecture cycles.]

It hardly needs to be said that the warmest thanks of the German Section of the Theosophical Society go to Edouard Schuré, the author of the Mystery Drama. But it should be emphasized that we are greatly indebted to Bernhard Stavenhagen, the famous pianist and subtle composer, who, in the midst of his busy and demanding workload, took it upon himself to donate the musical part of the dramatic performance to us at my request. The deep impression that this composition made on all those present will remain in their memories. The beautiful harmony of the musical creation with the mystery was felt by all."

Rudolf Steiner then remembers the deceased members in a beautiful way: Miss Eggert and Mr. Wirschmidt, whose memory the assembly honors by standing up.

Secondly: Fräulein von Sivers, the secretary of the German Section, then gives the following report on the membership movement and the organizational structure of Theosophical life in the past year:

Number of members: 872, compared to 591 in the previous year. 303 new members joined, compared to 231 in the previous year. 12 members left, 2 were transferred to other sections, and 4 died. The addresses of 19 members could not be determined and as a result have not been included.

The members are spread across 28 branches, compared to 24 in the previous year, and 1 center. The names of the new branches are: Kassel, Düsseldorf (Blavatsky branch), Elberfeld, Esslingen a.N.

Thirdly: This is followed by the treasurer's report, Mr. Seiler.

Fourthly: After the report of the auditors, Mr. Tessmar and Ms. Motzkus, the treasurer is discharged.

Item III: Mr. Bernhard Hubo's resignation from the board has made it necessary to elect a replacement. After Dr. Steiner had emphasized the dedication and sacrifice with which Mr. Hubo had devoted himself to the Theosophical cause and announced that his efforts to persuade him to retain his office had been unsuccessful, the election of a new board member was initiated. Mr. Tessmar was elected.

Points IV and V: suggestions from the Heidelberg and Weimar branches, which had the purpose of launching a greater propaganda for what the Theosophical Society wants, gave rise to a longer discussion in which members Wolfram, Arenson, Bedrnicek-Chlumsky, Stockmeyer and Ahner participated.

Dr. Steiner remarked:

“I can well understand that friends who are somewhat removed from the matter believe that they can do something through the press by having articles printed in it. But anyone who has experience in public life and can make observations knows what “press” means today. It pains me to have to say that. [I myself see the press as something that can be loved, that corrects one's own mistakes. But we must also look at things impartially. [illegible] Sometimes they have given us reports not in the capital city press, but in the provincial towns. If we had been supposed to make use of these papers, we would have been on very shaky ground. [illegible] the people in the press themselves belong to those who must first understand what Theosophy wants. Consider that all over the world, since the modern discovery, and especially in the field of intellectual life, there is tremendous competition. That is the worst, the most corrupting thing there can be. But another question is this: do we as Theosophists have anything to gain from it? We have tried to get our articles not only into the daily press but also into weekly magazines. A new magazine has been started. It is called “Der Morgen” [The Morning]. It is not clear why the gentlemen found it necessary to found a magazine. I do not want to talk about the subordinate press, but this magazine in particular can be used to study the morals of magazines. In a much-discussed matter, it managed to publish a sensational article, and to report things that pointed to individuals. It appeared to be acting as a prosecutor, as if it wanted to intervene. I don't want to condemn anything here, anyone could report it wrongly. Above all, the newspaper felt the need to have a correction sent to it, from which it can be seen that there is not even a shadow of truth to it. The lawyer refuted point by point that the facts reported by the magazine not only appear to be untrue, but [illegible] appears. [illegible] So if something like this is possible in exclusive magazines, then it is a symptom. And I could give you many such [examples]."

After Dr. Steiner had explained the reasons at length, he concluded by asking the theosophical movement to at least do the good deed of not publishing reviews in newspapers and magazines for propaganda purposes, since, as experience has shown, this can only lead to destruction, not good,.

Since the discussion of these proposals concludes all the items on the agenda, Dr. Steiner closes the business part and announces that the factual, theosophical part of the General Assembly will begin at four o'clock.

Report in the “Mitteilungen für die Mitglieder der Deutschen Sektion der Theosophischen Gesellschaft (Hauptquartier Adyar), herausgegeben von Mathilde Scholl”, No. 8/1908

At around 10:45 a.m., the meeting is opened by the General Secretary of the German Section, Dr. Rudolf Steiner.

The first item of business is to determine the voting ratio of the various lodges, and their representatives who are present are introduced:

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The minutes of the General Assembly of October 20, 1907 are read by Mr. Selling and declared verified by the Assembly in terms of wording and content.

In order to determine the holders of votes, the names of the holders and the number of votes are read.

[Point] IT. Report of the Secretary General [Dr. Steiner]:

"First of all, it is my duty to extend a very warm welcome to you here as attendees of our seventh General Assembly of the German Section of the Theosophical Society. I am very aware of the significance of this welcome and of this General Assembly. We are entering the seventh year of the German Section of the Theosophical Society, and for anyone who has penetrated the spirit and meaning of the basis of theosophical work and the theosophical worldview, the word “seven” as an expression of deep and comprehensive world events will not fail to make a corresponding impression: Not from some superstitious notion, but from ever-increasing knowledge, man learns the meaning of the sacred seven, and he learns that not only out there in the great universe, not only in nature and in the spiritual world around us and independent of us but he also learns to recognize that in a corresponding way, this number seven signifies a law even where man himself is the active agent, where he himself has to intervene with his decisions, his views, his work. And when he allows what runs as a law through the world - and also through the world of his own thinking and creating - to come before his soul, such a coming before the soul probably leads to many feelings – above all, the feeling of responsibility for the fact that we have to recognize how we, in a development that is entering its seventh period, have to see a growing and developing, a lawful process. Therefore, it seems to me, we must enter our seventh year with this strong sense of responsibility. It will be no surprise if it is said here in view of this that many things will be decided in the seventh year of our work with regard to destiny and karma, to the next karma of the Theosophical Society. And it will also come as no surprise when it is said that perhaps some of the obstacles and dangers, some of the trials of fate, that will confront the German Section will fall precisely within this period. We will see some of the fruits during this period; but we will also see some obstacles and difficulties arising during this fateful period. Therefore, today we want to consult with ourselves in particular and urge ourselves – each of us urge himself – to enter into this seven-year period conscientiously. It is with this feeling that I greet you today, and I do so in the name of the spirit that brings us together in our work and allows us to work together: in the name of that truly fraternal love that should unite the members of the Theosophical Society everywhere. We should not be guided merely by what is said at a distance in a tone that appeals to the affairs of world affairs, but we want to take what has been said very seriously and then we will certainly decide to learn something from what has been said in order to carry something of what we have learned over into the future. More and more, we must learn to let go of all our personal desires and personal affairs, our views and attitudes, and even our personal opinions and our personal thoughts, as members of the whole of humanity, within theosophical work. The more objectively we devote ourselves to what flows to us from the foundations of the occult world current, the more we will work in the spirit of what the founders of this world current wanted. It is only right, then, to say a few words of retrospect in this welcoming address, which can give us a starting point for the introspection that we need.

We look back to the day when we were able to greet our esteemed Misses Besant at the first General Assembly, and we may well ask ourselves: under what stars were we then? Since we are talking about the affairs of the Section, it goes without saying that a great deal of Theosophical work has been done in Germany, and to great credit, even in earlier times and before the founding of the German Section. But it may also be assumed, for those who are interested in the history of things, that these great merits, predating the founding of the German Section, are known. But perhaps some of the things that could help us understand the spirit of the stars under which we stood at the founding of the German Section can be said. After all, many things have changed since then. The number of members has grown enormously. We were a small group at the time when we were able to found the German Section under such auspicious circumstances. But how did this small group come together? It is fair to say that those who were able to work within this small group at the time experienced a kind of inner connection with the way they linked their destiny with the affairs of the German Section, which was expressed outwardly in the success of the Theosophical work. What was it that lived in the people who founded the core of the German Section at that time? Something lived in them that was perhaps most succinctly expressed by the words: These people wanted to position the theosophical work in such a way that occult sentiment and occult work would be clearly taken as the basis of the society. This was automatically associated with the idea that in the inmost hearts of these people, who were involved in forming the German Section, anything that could be described as “propaganda” or “agitation” was far removed, just as these words are understood in the world at large. If I may refer to my own experiences, if only to illustrate a point, I have to say that two years before the founding of the German Section could be considered, there was a small group centered around Countess Brockdor ff, when the members of the German Theosophical movement felt no sense of unity, were scattered here and there, and that, above all, there were only a few in this small group who even considered a Theosophical current as such. Only a few were there when it became clear that we were entering the official channels of the Theosophical Society. But there was a small circle, and to them I was able to give the lectures that were expressed in the book 'Mysticism'. And in the second year, the lecture cycle that was expressed in the book 'Christianity as Mystical Fact' was able to follow. It may perhaps be said in all modesty at this very moment that those lectures on 'Christianity as a Mystical Fact', which were given to perhaps 20 people at the time, have now been translated into a foreign language, so that what we had in mind as the subject matter is beginning to bear fruit. And it may be mentioned that it was precisely this circle that provided the impetus for the founding of the German Section, at least the actual impetus for the work, which even then had the basis for lastingness within it. And then we always worked under the principle of “not engaging in propaganda”; rather, we said what we had to say and did not seek to impose our convictions on anyone. Those who voluntarily wanted to come should come. It is one's duty to stand by what one has to say before the world, but one should not impose one's convictions on anyone. The other person is a listener who comes when something compels him to do so. If anything else is practiced within a society based on occultism, it cannot flourish. This is the experience on which all spiritual societies are based – and this is also the inner freedom under the influence of which theosophical work alone can flourish. – And if we look back at what has happened in the German Section during this time, it may be said that here too we recognize the lawfulness that we were already able to hint at with the number seven. This law, which also works in every human being, is different from that of the “three”. We can remember at this moment, for example, that the seventh year of life is an important moment for a child's life in general, and it is also an important moment for a spiritual child to enter the seventh year of life, and in a certain respect this lawfulness, which expresses itself in the three years that follow, certainly prevails.

When we observe the child during the first three years, we can clearly see how it is exposed to impressions from the whole world and how much more passive it is than is usually thought. Then, in the third year, we can see a very noticeable change. Anyone who does not merely look at a concrete being like our Society in terms of mere words and intellectual concepts, but looks at it in terms of its ability to function, in terms of its inner strength, and looks back on the first three years of our existence, knows that many things can be compared to the infancy of a child. It was so, and that is only natural. This organism, which presented itself to the world as the 'German Section', developed in a certain passive way at first. And now we see how it has matured in the last three years, how it has come into this position, so to speak, through everything we have been allowed to achieve – we know it very well – through the help of the spiritual powers on which the theosophical movement is based; we saw this emerging everywhere as the individual work of the branches. Just as everything comes to life and independence develops in the child, so working groups developed everywhere in our ranks. Something has really happened that can be compared to the development of a child between the ages of three and six. It is something similar to what the parents of a child observe when the child grows into the seventh year, when all the beautiful signs, all the beautiful soul things emerge. We could feel this entering into the seventh year when we worked together in such beautiful harmony, in such a beautiful theosophical spirit, as karma gave us the good fortune to do in the courses in Munich, Basel, Cologne, Hamburg, Nuremberg, Stuttgart, Leipzig and so on. We can say that wherever a smaller number of members came together for such theosophical endeavors, or wherever more than 300 were present, as in Stuttgart, a spirit flowed through the hall that is created when so many people have the same spiritual concerns in their souls. In this positive work, little was reflected on abstract sentences, little of what was achieved was preached; it was all based, so to speak, on the world of spiritual facts. But just as all plants growing in different parts of the earth strive towards the sun, because they are irradiated by the common sun, so it is also with the theosophical work, where everything develops towards the one spiritual sun - and that is what has come to us in such a beautiful way in recent years. And in another way, we may say that the unfolding of what we have worked on as the German Section can be compared to what happens to a child between the ages of three and puberty.

Before that, it is quite different; but when the seventh year approaches, you can see how those around the child want to listen to what the young human child has to say. And in this sense, we may perhaps consider it that our work has already been heard in the choir of the great Theosophical work, has been able to expand to Hungary, Scandinavia, Holland; and we had the joy of being able to have a lecture cycle in Kristiania that was also carried by the same spirit. So the friends who wanted to hear the child's utterances, which went beyond mere babbling, also came.

This, however, points to the great laws that prevail in such an organism, as they do in the whole universe. We also see that the greatest mistakes are made in the outside world because someone has in mind that a child must be a certain way; if it is not so, it must be drummed into it. People may have all kinds of fine, grand ideas about how a section should be; but these are unrealistic thoughts of the individual. Once a section has reached a certain age, it must develop its own ideas about growth; for that alone can be the basis for future work, that we take the fruits, or better the germs of the past and bring them to fruition. It is in this spirit that I would like to greet you at this hour. It is with this sense of responsibility that we will find the way to continue working in the spirit in which we have worked so far.

This already indicates what needs to be said about the general progress of the Theosophical work: that the independent work of the Theosophical centers has developed more and more vigorously. Those who know nothing of the facts might believe that something like autocracy prevails among us. But anyone who is familiar with the facts knows how great the joy is when, somewhere or other, an independent center springs up, as in Stuttgart or Nuremberg, with work that comes from the members themselves. We will not decentralize ourselves into the opinions of individuals. We know what it means to be a growing individual movement. Wherever work grows in harmony, work grows more easily, because real work gets along with real work. It is not necessary to say anything more about how significant theosophical work emerged in such phenomena, which came to light in the last lecture cycles, in the lectures of our dear Dr. Unger and our esteemed Fräulein Völker in Stuttgart or our esteemed Mrs. Wolfram in Leipzig. And it will increasingly become the case that the other things will join the core of work and expand more and more. In this way we shall make more and more headway through positive work. All this has happened particularly clearly in the last year – and much would have to be said if I wanted to hint at everything that some of the members have really achieved in the last year. But since so many members have flocked together in the various places where courses have been held, the vast majority know what has happened in the last year.

Now it is still my duty to pay special tribute at this moment to those dear members of our Society who have left the physical plane during this year.

We have Mrs. Agnes [Schuchardt], a lady who has lived in theosophical pursuit for many years. She has been a member of the Theosophical Society for a long time, and although she was already confined to her bed when the German Section was founded, she was still very much connected in her soul to what was happening internally and externally; and many a letter she wrote to me showed how she followed what was going on with heartfelt concern.

Secondly, Franz Vrba, who joined the Theosophical Society as a member of the Prague branch and who left the physical plane after a relatively short period of membership.

Furthermore, we have two particularly moving cases from our Munich branch. One is Otto Huschke. The name Huschke is inseparable from the development of Theosophical work in Germany. And among those who offered their hand when the German Section was to be founded was Huschke. He was already deeply involved in the Theosophical movement and in occultism. It was always a pleasant duty for me when I came to Munich to visit the always sickly and immobile gentleman and to see what kind of occult needs and occult aspirations prevailed within the four walls of this gentleman. It may well be said to be particularly painful that Mr. Huschke's death occurred at the same time as his daughter, Miss Huschke, also left the physical plane. They shared everything they had in life, theosophically, as far as possible. Miss Huschke was also a dear member of the Munich Lodge, and above all, one of the most ambitious members. Otto and [Hilde] Huschke lived together and left the physical plane together a few hours apart, and will continue to live together theosophically in other worlds.

The passing of our dear Mrs. Doser from the physical plane is a fifth case. Mrs. Doser was also one of the oldest members of the German Section. In a very special way, she allowed into herself what could come from the resources of the occult world movement – and everyone who knew her or came into close contact with her will have felt deep in their hearts, on the one hand, the nature of this wonderful woman, who was so tender and devoted, and, on the other hand, her being filled with a deep striving for spiritual love. The last days of her life were filled with a serious illness, which she bore in a truly wonderful way. But she was a person who, despite everything, had something in the depths of her consciousness, the blissful anticipation of living towards a new world. She lived in such a way that she faded away on the outside of her life, as it were – but this allowed her inner spiritual life to become ever richer and richer; and I am sure that those personalities who were closest to her in life will also fully recognize these feelings as theirs. A number of members made it possible for Mrs. Doser to visit the sunny south, for which she longed so much; and it was really touching to see how she could perceive the spiritual power in the physical sun. And it will remain unforgettable for me that in Capri, a few hours before her death, this soul of Frau Doser addressed a few lines to me, from which emerges the longing to overcome the mood and the narrow space of the physical plane: “I want to get out, board a ship tomorrow - out into the wide sea.” It was a feeling that the soul was freeing itself from the physical body.

I have a painful case to mention in the death of Fritz Eyselein. Many of you who were at the Theosophical lectures know that in Fritz Eyselein a personality came among them who, so to speak, early in the development of the German Section, fell into an unfortunate state of mind that made it impossible to help him. It is neither necessary nor perhaps even tactful to go into what needs only to be hinted at, and which therefore can no less enable us to give our dear Fritz Eyselein the most beautiful feelings of love and friendship on the other side.

Now we have to mention a personality who took leave of the physical plane last year and who had been at the head of the Munich Lodge for many years: Fräulein von Hofstetten. Based on her extensive life experience, she was able to take over the leadership of this lodge in an appropriate manner. This lady, who had also been in poor health for a long time, whose body had only been held together by a lively mind for a long time, also had a lively striving in every direction, and she was always there when something needed to be done, even if she had just undergone an operation; and anyone who got to know the beautiful outer and inner life of Fräulein von Hofstetten will give her the best of love on the other plane.

Another member who was more interested in the Theosophical Society from afar and passed away from the physical plane is Mrs. Fähndrich. We will also remember her with love and respect beyond the physical plane.

Now I have to mention our dear Mrs. Rothenstein, who belonged to the Heidelberg Lodge for a short time and was taken from us after a short time by a treacherous illness. She was a beautiful, self-contained nature, deeply and earnestly devoted to our cause. We will also send her our feelings of love.

In saying this, I have commemorated those who are no longer with us in the physical sense, but who are always with us in spirit.

The assembly honors the memory of the persons mentioned by standing up.

A report on the membership movement is given by Miss von Sivers according to the most recently received lists: “The number of members is 1150 compared to 872 in the previous year; 336 have joined compared to 303 in the previous year. 25 have left or transferred to other sections, 23 could not be found and therefore deleted, and 10 have died.

Nine new branches have been established: Bern, Eisenach, Mannheim, Wiesbaden, Pforzheim, Strasbourg, Zurich, Bielefeld and Malsch.

The current number of branches is 37, compared to 28 last year. In addition, there is the Regensburg center with 4 members. The Charlottenburg branch has been dissolved.

Mr. Seiler presents the cash report with the annual accounts and balance sheet:

The total income amounted to 5643.27 marks
The total expenditure was 5478.58 marks
which leaves 164.69 marks
With cash assets of 2020.45 marks
and a stock of furniture worth 168.90 marks
results in total assets of 2354.04 Marks.

After the report of the auditors, Mr. Tessmar and Ms. Motzkus, the treasurer is discharged.

At the request of Mr. Arenson, the entire board is then discharged.

[Point] III. Election of the board:

Dr. Steiner remarks: “Since the majority of the board has a proposal to make to you, and since I, on behalf of the majority of the board, have to present this proposal to you here, it had to be considered whether it was not necessary for the internal reasons for the proceedings to introduce this proposal into the agenda before dealing with item III. This had to be done in the interest of conducting business properly.

Therefore, I will now make a proposal and at the same time give the reasons for it. The point is that we are already learning to apply in one case what arises from a correct understanding of such a great law, as I was allowed to describe earlier in terms of the number three or seven. Those of you who are here today as delegates will be aware that you are taking on a certain responsibility for the future in everything that happens today, as we enter our seventh year. Those who have been able to follow not only what has taken place in the German Section, which has been mainly beautiful and harmonious, but who are also able to follow what is happening in the great Theosophical Society of the world, will sense that there are certain conditions of life, especially for such a society. Anyone who does not operate according to maxims and concepts that are conceived before experience, but who lets experience itself speak, how such a spiritual organism has gradually developed, like the German Section of the Theosophical Society, will say to themselves that we are basically at a completely different point today, entering our seventh year, than we were when we laid the foundation for our German section under the auspices of our much-admired Misses Besant. At that time we had a “tabula rasa” before us. We had to create something out of abstract principles so that we could proceed favorably in one way or another. If what I am about to say has been said at the first General Assembly, instead of being said at the seventh, it would have been complete nonsense. But anyone who knows that something that would be nonsense at one time may be a necessity at another time will probably deal with the board's proposal now.

The Theosophical Society is in a completely different position than societies that are not based on occultism. This is not to say that the Theosophical Society as an external society is an occult, an esoteric society. But the basis on which it is built can only be an occult one. You can discuss ethics and historical morality in any other religious society, in any society for ethical culture. But the Theosophical Society would be robbed of its task if the occult life, which emanates from the great Masters of wisdom and of the harmony of sensations, could not flow through it. Then it would no longer be an instrument, as it should be. Friends have often rightly hinted to me that a certain discrepancy rooted in the conditions of life and in depth comes to light in the external institutions and structures of society. This was not considered when the German Section was founded, but it comes into consideration when so many years have passed and after a long period of work. When one's heart and soul are bound up with such work, one not only has love and enthusiasm for the task, but one has a certain sense of responsibility, which may be characterized as follows: Over the past few years, we have created a theosophical treasure out of what was a 'tabula rasa' when we founded the society. At that time there was nothing; now there is a good deal of theosophical work; and we not only have the duty to continue our work, but we would be failing in our duty if we did not want to take care to continue to cultivate this treasure and not let it be endangered. Because the work that has been done must not be endangered, it must be said that We are here as committed custodians of the work accumulated over the past few years, and we have to guide it into the future.

Now, the facts give rise to the necessity for a certain stability of conditions, for stability of conditions. How necessary stability is could be seen especially by someone who oversees the great Theosophical Society. It would be very easy for us to miss what is now a necessity. How stability was present when our dear Olcott was at the head of the Society – and how that stability was already threatened when a new president had to be elected. And anyone with insight knows that the president who was elected was the only possible one – that he was the one who had to be elected according to common sense. From this case alone, we can gauge the good fortune of a society built on an occult foundation, when, above all, the principle of stability is taken into account. It was not necessary to draw attention to this, even three years ago. Today is the time, and in three years the right time could be missed. Our society has grown enormously again, and there is no reason to believe that this growth will not continue. But such growth in breadth can also have something dangerous about it. For a small circle, this is not an issue. Today, the members number almost 1200. The Society continues to grow; imagine that a certain fact were to occur, that, say, 1500 new members join, and then one person – and this can be done by just one person – would call upon 1500 people to give the German Section of the Theosophical Society a completely different character. Today, we have the duty to guard the spiritual treasure we have acquired. It must not be allowed that our entire treasure trove of work is wiped out by a majority stepping in and trampling on all our work because they have no understanding for it.

Where there should be stability in the work, there must be stability in the leadership. Therefore, the members of the board wanted to make the following proposal to you, which at the same time creates stability in the board and, on the other hand, compensation for the growing number of members. It is quite natural that for someone who only 'counts' members, a member who joins after seven years is just as much a member as another who has been a member for a long time and for whom membership means something that is connected to their experience in society. Therefore, it is only natural that the forces in society should not only be 'counted', but also weighed properly. In this way, stability can be expressed just as variability is expressed when the size of the association grows through new members. For this reason, the members of the board make the following proposal:

§ 8 of our statutes reads:

"The administration of the entire management is in the hands of an executive committee, which is responsible to the annually convened general assembly. The executive committee consists of the general secretary, the treasurer and at least twelve members. Two of them, as well as the general secretary and the treasurer, should live at the location of the section's headquarters or in the neighborhood. The executive committee is newly elected every three years at the general assembly.

It is now proposed to add the following to this sentence of the statutes:

If a member of the board has been re-elected repeatedly so that they have been in office for seven years, they shall from then on be the non-removable holder of that office for life.

The board consists of 15 members for the 1908 to 1911 term of office; it is increased by so many people every three years that the increase in the number of members by 100 corresponds to a new board member.

So if after three years the Society has grown by 300 members, not 15 but 18 members of the board will be elected. This will enable those who have served on the board for seven years to truly be custodians of the accumulated treasure. It must be clear to you that it is relatively easy to care for a small society. As the society grows, so does the obligation of those who lead it to enter into all kinds of commitments. These can only be entered into by those who are also able to carry out what has been entered into; so that as the society grows, the holder of an office is able to maintain his or her responsibility in a continuous manner. Thus, the fact that a member of the executive committee has been in office for seven years, whether continuously or with intervals, and becomes the irrevocable holder of that office at the end of the seventh year, creates a core that continues to develop, and the opportunity to express what is joining from outside.

But there is something else. The Executive Council is an organization that represents the Central Leadership so that what is beneficial for the individual German branches can be expressed without restriction. But Theosophical work depends on the innermost individuality of the individual branches being able to unfold. Wherever we have branches, there are different living conditions; and it is only healthy if these living conditions are also taken into account. Therefore, on the other hand, the board of directors must be supported by an organization based on the individuality of the individual branches; and this would be expressed in the following:

"In addition, the board of directors is assisted by an Areopagus, in which, as an advisory board to the board of directors, the individuality of the branch work is to be emphasized. Each branch elects a number of members to this Areopagus, corresponding to 1-50 : 1; 51-100 : 2; 101-150 : 3 and so on Areopagus members.

This 'Areopagus' would act as an advisory body for the autonomy of each lodge. How the lodge chooses its Areopagus member is entirely up to it. But the members of this Areopagus will have the task of bringing the individuality of their branch to bear in the character of the entire German section. You can't just vote if you want to bring out individuality. Voting accomplishes nothing. That can never be the principle of a society that works out of its own inner necessity. How can a member living in Berlin know what the living conditions are like in a branch in Stuttgart or Basel? Therefore, the Areopagus should be a body that brings out the individualities of the various branches – a representative body with which communication takes place from lodge to lodge – and with the central leadership.

These amendments are hereby submitted for adoption.

The debate begins:

Dr. Fränkel believes that the decision is too important to be voted on immediately, and therefore requests that the vote be postponed and an extraordinary general assembly be convened to discuss the matter.

Dr. Steiner: “This meeting is a primary assembly; there is no obstacle to voting today. The delegates have voting rights. They have been informed of the matter in advance. The executive committee is making this proposal here so that the important point in time is not missed. It is important that the delegates can form an opinion on this. It could, after all, be that someone wanted to wipe out the work that had been done before by a mass entry of 1,500 members. The organization of the Society is a free one; no one is condemned to participate in a certain way. It is not work over a territory into which man is drawn, but a working community – and the work done so far must be protected against surprise attacks.

Pastor Wendt is in favor of accepting the proposal.

Dr. Fränkel asks for a measure so that the Section members can also meet in order to elect a representative to the assembly.

Dr. Steiner: “The board is not standing in the way of the section members. However, if they want to be heard in the section, they have to meet themselves and report their representative.”

Dr. Vollrath is not given the floor for reasons that will be communicated later.

Mr. Hubo supports the board's proposal regarding the Areopagus as well.

Dr. Steiner: “The proposal is intended to be a unified one. If one or the other is not adopted, the proposal would have to be considered as not having been made. The creation of new offices prevents centralization and furthers individualization, since it takes into account what the individual says. If the General Secretary has something to do that particularly concerns the Basel branch, he will consult the members based in Basel so that the Basel lodge receives what the Basel lodge needs. This is precisely how all the members' opinions are given as much weight as possible – not just as a majority, nor just according to the ratio of votes at a particular point in time, but in proportion to how the members have remained loyal. It is precisely this that counteracts the free mobility of forces in a certain abstract sense."

Mr. Wagner proposes that the section members should also be able to elect one member to the Areopagus for every 50; then they would have a mouthpiece to be heard. Dr. Steiner: ”There is the possibility that the section members organize themselves without the slightest change. I said two years ago that if the Section members had organized themselves and created a real board, they would be regarded as a real branch. So that is the essence of what Mr. Wagner said.

Dr. Fränkel says that since the members of the Section are not organized, he only wanted to make a request to that effect.

Dr. Steiner: “If a member of the Section makes a suggestion to that effect, the Executive Council will naturally do what it can to help such an organization. So far, nothing has been done by the members of the Section.”

Dr. Fränkel: “Then I would like to make a suggestion today.”

Dr. Steiner: “That can be done in the future.”

Herr [Hübener] is unsure whether the new provision should apply from today and could be applied immediately to the members of the board who have perhaps already been in office for seven years.

Dr. Steiner: “This arises from the fact that this proposal was put before the election of the Executive Board. The next election will then already be subject to the institution of this paragraph. This point was moved to third place so that the new election would be subject to this paragraph.”

The proposal of the Executive Board will now be put to the vote by roll call and adopted by all but two votes, those of Mr. Lauweriks.

The meeting now proceeds to the election of the new committee. During the election of the General Secretary, the Vice President, Mr. Adolf Arenson, proposes that Dr. Steiner be re-elected by acclamation. The meeting responds with unanimous applause. Dr. Steiner is elected. Dr. Steiner expresses his sincere thanks to the meeting.

Mr. Seiler is unanimously re-elected as treasurer.

The meeting now proceeds to the election of fifteen members of the executive council, which is carried out by ballot. After the votes cast have been recorded, the meeting is adjourned until 4 p.m. and then reopened at 5 a.m. Dr. Steiner first announces a letter from Mrs. Besant. She sends the General Assembly her warmest greetings, follows the work of the German Section with great interest, is satisfied with it, and sends her wishes that the German Section may become a leader in the pursuit of occult matters.

The election results are then announced. The following have been elected:

Mr. Wagner with 90 votes
Mr. Arenson 93
Dr. Unger 9%
Mr. Kiem 85
Mr. Hubo so
Dr. Grosheintz 80
Mr. Bauer 83
Mr. Kolbe 70
Mr. Tessmar 67
Miss von Sivers 92
Miss Scholl 88
Miss Stinde 86
Mrs. Wolfram 74
Mrs. Smits 69
Mrs. Noss 77

Dr. Steiner warmly welcomes those elected.

Proposals from the plenary session:

The proposal [Nitzsche] to “donate vegetarian spit houses and vegetarian sanatoriums with brochures for Theosophical propaganda” is rejected after a short debate.

Mr. Schwab would like to see reports in the “Mitteilungen” on the progress of the Theosophical movement abroad.

Dr. Steiner notes that this can be entered in the golden book as a “suggestion”. Such reports would be desirable; so far nothing has been done because it requires a lot of work and no one has been available for it yet. “The moment the material is provided to us by friends, the suggestion can be considered.”

Miscellaneous:

Dr. Steiner: “It is now my duty, which I find difficult, to make an announcement on behalf of the members of the board who met yesterday at the regular board meeting, about a member who actually represents a ‘first’ case within our German section. Yesterday at the board meeting, it became necessary to address a proposal that arose from the bosom of one of our lodges and which related to – and this has not happened before – the fact that a former member of our German section should no longer be considered a member.

It is my job – as the mouthpiece of the board, so to speak – to communicate the fact to you and to discuss the reasons why it was decided to continue to no longer consider Dr. Vollrath a member of the German Section. The board had to consider this motion, which originated from our Leipzig lodge, and there was no way to keep the matter from being discussed. If we want to look at the matter objectively and in the right light, it really must be viewed very soberly and, so to speak, realistically. All members of the executive committee who decided that Dr. Vollrath should no longer be considered a member of the German Section are well aware that this does not remotely constitute a court session about Dr. Vollrath – that he has not been slighted in any way. The matter is to be understood in such a way that the executive committee of the German Section had to approach the request of our Leipzig lodge and consider it. If you want to examine this question and form an opinion about it, we will have to go into the matter in more detail.

As many of you know, Dr. Vollrath was, in times past, a very active and leading member of the so-called 'International Theosophical Society' in Leipzig, against which we – as we have often stated – do not have any hostile feelings; rather, we believe that, despite all that is being done there, the people are mistaken. We have not opposed anything, but have always believed that we should let the forces play freely. We work in a positive sense. If the others believe that they have a right to proceed as they do, then they may answer for it; we just do not want to have anything to do with it and not be imposed upon by any opinion from any side. Dr. Vollrath was a contributor to this society.

But now I would ask you to please consider that I would have much preferred it if the decision could have been avoided. But it is necessary to consider some things that have made this decision so meaningful. There is one thing in which the work of the German Section differs greatly from that of others: it is completely free of all propaganda and agitation; it does not impose an opinion on anyone, but wants to let everyone approach freely – so that as many people as possible are offered the opportunity to come to Theosophy. It is the basic nerve of our conviction that the moment we abandon this principle, our work is completely worthless. All the attempts at understanding that were made with the members of other German societies were of no help. But why should those who want to work differently not work in their own way? We have not done the slightest thing to interfere with the work of others. A lot has happened. For example, people came from there who declared that they wanted to join our society. Of course you can join, they were told. Thereupon the people asked us to hold a meeting with their representatives. I said to Miss von Sivers, I needed someone who had been there. Miss von Sivers went along and knows how everything happened. What came out of it? The people said, “Yes, we don't like your statutes!” — That is not necessary, I said — you don't need to join. It was a long discussion, and the result was that the other side wrote a pamphlet; and the course of the meeting was incorrectly related. I have never seen such a brilliant ability as that used there to present something as it did not happen. The most incredible things were said against us. I said: Let them write the pamphlet! It is not important for us to defend ourselves, but to work. We could have defended ourselves – against every point – but then people would have said: There should be peace between the Theosophists! You see how Theosophists can attack each other. At the time, I also said that those who had first caused discord were the ones who complained the most about the discord. What is meant by this is that the way in which things are handled is so different between the other societies calling themselves 'theosophical' and what is the basic nerve of our way of life within our society.

Now, although Dr. Vollrath has been with our society for quite some time, he has never managed to even entertain the desire to embrace our way of thinking theosophically. But that is my opinion, and I cannot get into discussions about it. He simply could not understand what we wanted in the German Section. He carried over the whole way of thinking, all the airs and graces, from one society to the other. Of course, when someone is obsessed with an idea, it seems quite natural to them to act accordingly. So it should not be judged, but made clear what is important.

At our congress in Munich, we attached the seals and pillars, and we then had the seals and pillars duplicated in a folder with a red cover. Now, read the preface that was written about it, which was intended to suggest the very peculiar position of such a thing. - What does Dr. Vollrath do? He had just opened a 'Theosophical Central Bookstore'. He had come to see me beforehand and asked for my advice. I told him that if you open a bookshop, the most important thing is that you understand the business, that you are a capable bookseller; then, above all, make sure that you set up the bookshop in such a way that it is profitable. Dr. Vollrath asked if he could publish my work; I said: Of course, there would be no objection to that. In short, these were things that naturally had to be said to Dr. Vollrath, since he was our member. What happens next? One day, Dr. Vollrath wrote a note—anyone with a little feeling will know what I mean—in an incredible red, in which he wrote that his bookstore would take care of the distribution of this folder and that it would be particularly suitable as a Christmas gift. He sent out these flyers and forced me to declare: Anyone who is capable of doing something like that, I can't possibly have anything further to do with. — At the time, Dr. Vollrath also prepared a brochure that was something incredible in my opinion. For example, if you use the phrase, 'Theosophy should penetrate life!' That does not yet mean that the matter has emerged from the phrase; because, of course, it can also be a phrase. Dr. Vollrath then said: 'Yes, I did want you to help me; but you don't have time for me!' – Even if I had a lot of time, I would consider it a matter of course for someone who is running a business to stand up for themselves.

I can imagine that someone cannot understand such a way of thinking. But then working together must be rejected, and one can only say in this case: 'You are a very nice person, but we cannot work together anymore.' That's all there is to it. Or does the other person have the right to say, 'If you have human love, you must work with me'? It is not acceptable to suppress the intentions of the other person or to impose one's own opinion on him. We cannot be expected to work together with Dr. Vollrath. That is how things were. In addition, there were various other things. - In order to avoid the worst, which could happen, it should be made clear to Dr. Vollrath again and again that he should work in his own way, but also let us work and not constantly disturb us. He went to Leipzig. The Leipzig Lodge now had to make the same experience that it is simply not possible to work with Dr. Vollrath. When I came to Holland, I was asked by someone: What kind of 'Literary Section of the German Section' have you opened in Leipzig? Here honorary members of the 'Literary Section of the German Section' have been appointed! So Doctor Vollrath appoints people as honorary members of the 'Literary Section of the German Section' on his own authority. Where does that leave us? And you will admit that there is no logical way for me to understand this. For me, the logical possibility is excluded. - The Leipzig Lodge tried to work with Dr. Vollrath after all, to appoint him as a librarian. But it has also been shown to be impossible by his way of thinking.

When Dr. Vollrath announced his central bookshop, he used a certain symbolic sign for it. Now, in it, an entwined 'HV' stands for another sign - and instead of the saying 'No religion is higher than the truth', it says: 'Peace is the first civil duty!' I once said to Dr. Vollrath that the only way to get over it would be if he said, 'HV' means 'publishing house'. One day, like many other members, I was surprised - I was in Stuttgart at the time - by a four-page 'open letter' from Dr. Vollrath, in which he provided an explanation for the 'HV' and 'Ruhe ist die erste Bürgerpflicht' (Calm is the first civic duty). Among other things, he said that it had nothing to do with his name, but were only the initials of the two 'pillars' of the Munich Congress, the 'I' pillar and the 'Am' pillar. The designations are nonsense. A more grandiose amateurism was really not possible. But in order to get anything into the 'HV' at all, 'H' first had to be reinterpreted as 'I' - so two 'I's were made out of the 'H' - and then it means 'Jehovah'. And about the saying that every child knows and where it first appeared, you can read in the 'open letter': 'Peace is the first civic duty' is a deeply occult saying that has come to the public for about a century! It is true that in our society dogmas and doctrines, what someone means, are not important, and that everyone represents what they want to represent. But there are limits to everything. Someone cannot just do whatever he wants if he happens to have the means to have something printed and to make people believe that he is a representative of the 'Adyar Society' - because surely it is impossible for someone to appoint people as honorary members of the 'Literary Section of the German Section' on his own authority! And if then, little by little, all the members of the other society are sued, if reports keep appearing about how a resigned member fights so that people are convicted – even to prison – and if that is publicized, what kind of situation will our society's Leipzig lodge find itself in, exposed to all of this! The Leipzig lodge feels that its throat is being choked by Dr. Vollrath!

Of course, the matter was also brought to me. I asked Dr. Vollrath, because something like this must be completely eliminated, and perhaps a way out could be created, that Dr. Vollrath stay in our society, that he visit me, and talk things over with me. I said to him: “You wrote this ‘open letter’. I really do believe that everyone can spread their own opinion. But for me, everything you said about and ‘Peace is the first civic duty’ is just a lot of nonsense. Nothing could be more nonsensical. But I grant every member the obvious right to spread as much nonsense as possible in the world – even if they want to write a pamphlet that the people of Leipzig walk on their heads contrary to all other populations” – Dr. Vollrath said that everyone should be allowed to have their hobbyhorse! – and that even in the face of something like the name ”Jehovah is! I would never have participated in the Vollrath matter for my part if something else had not been decisive for me, and I told him so. Anyone who has followed the course of our theosophical work in recent years must say that if there is any calm and worthy cooperation in the matter, it can be seen as a fact in the German section. Dr. Vollrath begins his pamphlet by saying that he had to “introduce calm as the first civic duty because of the great nervousness that has arisen among Theosophists.” For me, this is something I would rather not even describe. What does it mean when you misrepresent something out of your own power? Dr. Vollrath replied: “I didn't mean our society, I meant the other one.” The thing is, it's impossible to get into a discussion about it; because no one can even realize that a different society is meant. You also have an obligation to look at what you write. Is it possible to work together under such circumstances? I would like to say, can't a person at least breathe freely without the other person opposing him and breathing against him? It is only a matter of creating the possibility of freedom for ourselves. No one is doing anything to Dr. Vollrath. It is not even possible to imagine a society in which a single person should be forced to work with him. I would be the first to object to Dr. Vollrath being put on trial.

That was what made it necessary, little by little, to stop resisting and to take the proposal of the Leipzig Lodge into account and to set an example that it is not the phrase that matters, but the majority, and that nothing bad is being done to Dr. Vollrath by the fact that the Society can no longer consider him as its member. It is simply something we have been forced to do, and we finally had to look at the matter from this point of view: mere talk of brotherhood and love is just a phrase. We must actively love, we must help those who work – not just leave it at love in general, but make love active. Is it not unkind that the Leipzig Lodge wants to work, and if we were to say to this Lodge: We, as the German section, won't deal with it at all – you can drink your own swill!? Are we not obliged to help such a Lodge, which feels its neck is being choked by someone who is using its own name and its own company sign?

To sum up: Doctor Vollrath has not been judged in the slightest; it has only been decided that we no longer regard Doctor Vollrath as our member, since he pushed his things out into the world as “Adyar things”, so to speak. There were only two options: either to send statements around the world every few moments that these are not Adyar matters, or to no longer regard Dr. Vollrath as our member. It is very painful for me that such a case has arisen. I will not get involved in a discussion about what my opinion is, and I will not concern myself with the matter any further. I have dealt with it for as long as it was necessary to hold back the decision. Now the executive council has spoken, and I am the mouthpiece of the executive council. I myself have closed the case of Dr. Vollrath. Of course, everyone can find reasons to present what they intended differently than the other person perceived it. It was my task to inform you of the decision taken by the executive council yesterday, namely that Dr. Vollrath is no longer considered a member of the German Section of the Theosophical Society, and I have been instructed to communicate this to you and to explain the reasons that led to it. That I have done.

Miss [Steinbart] cannot understand how the Theosophical Society can expel a member when that member has devoted his entire life and all his wealth to the service of its cause, and in whom everything he does and says is the purest Theosophy. As a consequence of the decision, she would have to announce her resignation.

Pastor Wendt believes that this man can also change; if we can no longer regard him as our member for the time being, we are still giving him the opportunity to change.

Ms. Schmidt emphasizes that if we want to be Christians, we must still practice brotherhood, and reminds us of the saying: Let him who is without sin among you cast the first stone at her.

Ms. Von Sonklar asks if there is a paragraph in the statutes that allows a member to be suspended, and if this can also happen to another member.

Dr. Steiner: “The point is that we are a society that can take majority decisions and that a society that accepts people can also expel people – and not that anyone who ‘wants to’ can consider themselves a member; otherwise anyone who wants to, and not those whom the others want, could want to belong to the society. It is not a matter of us judging Dr. Vollrath, but of our not understanding each other; and if Dr. Vollrath says that we 'do not understand him at all', that is one reason for it. For the time being, it depends on what the majority of the Society or the relevant body thinks about it. The point is that there is no possibility of working together, and that this reality is expressed in a formula.

Dr. Vollrath (speaks very incomprehensibly): “I represented Theosophy as a worldview and never said that my opinion was the truth itself, but rather what appeared to me to be the truth. I never said that I was speaking on behalf of the Adyar Society. It was just a childish gesture. You can't be classic right away, you just grope. If you are not a businessman, you make such mistakes. I have no method, but say and do what I think is necessary. I did not sue my colleagues, but was sued and had a duty to defend myself so that I would not be pushed to the wall. I took action because I was pushed by Mrs. Wolfram for weeks: 'You have to take action!' So I put myself in a position where I could be sued. A 'Theosophical Society' that expels someone loses its cosmopolitan character. I have not violated the statutes, I have paid my dues. I have always tried to do justice to everyone. Stability consists in striving; on the outside, there is always ebb and flow. A person who is restless cannot properly grasp the moment. If you cultivate the eternal, you must still maintain calm. But the matter should have been discussed with me first."

Mrs. Wolfram: “However, Dr. Vollrath has constantly complained to me that people owe him money. So I told him that if people don't want to give him his capital back, then he just has to sue for it. But there is a world of difference between publishing private letters from his enemies and then the whole thing goes through the Leipzig newspapers. Just someone should try it first, how impossible it is to work with Dr. Vollrath. But he still does not see it. Do you think I have time to hold a meeting every week about a nonsense? Every other week, Dr. Vollrath demanded board meetings. He had a long list of nothing but trivialities; we sat together for hours on those occasions, too, and when we couldn't address everything, he just started crying and screaming. You should experience that just once. In Leipzig, Theosophy is so discredited that people say Theosophy should be banned by the police. I give my lectures. You can experience it that at an invitation people say: “How should I go to this lodge? Haven't you heard what's going on there?” The craziest things are told there; whether it's true or not, it doesn't matter – but Doctor Vollrath is just giving cause for it. In this case, tolerance is just: I can do whatever I want! And then tolerance is nonsense. We have tried for three years to work with Dr. Vollrath; but it is impossible. We know very well that Dr. Vollrath wants the very best, but he just can't do it. He also lacks the understanding to see the matter. How can someone advise him if he doesn't understand? If he wants to learn something, I'm willing to work with him. But he doesn't want to learn anything. Dr. Vollrath says that Theosophy is something that everyone wants and where everyone can work as they please. We revolted because other members also have the right not to have our good name besmirched."

Mr. Hubo: “Since concerns have been raised as to whether the board is authorized to make such a decision, it seems to me, on the one hand, that the board can make such a decision; on the other hand, in view of the facts that have been expressed here, it seems to me that this decision of the board is not only appropriate but necessary in the interest of the German Section. I move that the debate be closed.

The motion is put to the vote and carried.

Dr. Vollrath (very difficult to hear): “There was no order in the library, there were no statutes. I have had statutes sent to me from all the libraries. I did not say that Theosophy is what everyone wants. People will calm down and come to self-control.”

Dr. Steiner: “What is really surprising is that two members have said what would happen to another member if he was not liked by the Society. Just think how we have tried for years to keep the matter to one side. It is very unlikely that something like what happened with Dr. Vollrath will occur again. Those who are concerned that the same thing could happen to them have not been listening carefully; because what has been said has shown that it is quite impossible for the case to recur. It would be really necessary for you to take the time to find out what efforts have been made to prevent the case from happening again. But you have the unchristian lack of love to treat the work of the Leipzig branch in such a way that you say: May you do whatever you want to deal with it; we have 'brotherhood' after all - so drink your own mess! - So Christianity is also becoming a cliché. Of course, someone may believe that Dr. Vollrath's work in Leipzig is worth more than any other work – and also that Dr. Vollrath is a genius and the rest of us are fools. – But we declare that the Leipzig branch has been choked and that its throat must be cleared again. Where is the unchristianity in this, whether the Leipzig branch should not be helped at all – or whether it should be helped by taking action against Dr. Vollrath, that should be considered first.

Miss [Steinbart] asks how long one is still a member if one is excluded in this way.

Dr. Steiner: “Don't talk about being excluded. I had my good reasons for formulating it at the last moment as it is now. I asked the board to use the phrase: The German Section no longer considers Dr. Vollrath to be its member. Of course, he can request that the General Secretariat discuss the case again in a year. But we cannot consider him a member. That is why I had to say this morning that I am not in a position to give Dr. Vollrath the floor. There is no question of the decision not being implemented at this very moment.

Since there is nothing further on the agenda, our business for the day is exhausted, and I hereby declare the official part of the Seventh General Assembly of the German Section of the Theosophical Society closed.

by Alice Kinkel

Budapest, the beautiful Hungarian capital, so richly endowed by nature with beauty and poetry, and so often chosen as a venue for conferences and conventions, now saw the Theosophists of various nations flock to its hospitable walls from European and overseas sections flocked together from different nations, the Theosophists – about 250 in number – had come to attend the fifth congress of the Federation of European Sections of the Theosophical Society in the festival hall of the Pest Lloyd Society.

It should be noted at the beginning of this report that the Hungarian section has admirably fulfilled the difficult task of organizing a congress, and has done its best to make the stay of the Theosophical brothers and sisters in love and warmth in the magnificent city, which was flooded by the Danube, as pleasant and rich as possible. The program, which offered a wealth of spiritual delights, will best confirm this.

On Saturday evening, the participants already gathered for a casual get-together in the halls of the Hotel Bristol, which offered an opportunity to greet and connect with members and was enhanced by the presence of Mrs. Besant and Dr. Steiner. French, Hungarian, English, Dutch, Italian, Russian and German were the languages of the lively conversations and the celebrations of reunions and the making of acquaintances and spiritual brotherhood. The German branches represented included Berlin, Munich, Stuttgart, Leipzig and Regensburg. There were particularly large numbers from the Netherlands (about 35), as well as France, Italy and England.

The program of the first day of the congress went as follows: The introduction was made up of musical performances by an excellent Hungarian male choir, followed by the warm welcoming address in French by the vice president of the Hungarian section, Mr. Stark. To the delight of all of us, Mrs. Besant was elected president of the congress, and the general secretaries of the various sections alternated as vice presidents.

Mrs. Besant's words of welcome to the attendees of the different nationalities, especially to the Hungarian brothers and sisters, were warm and sincere. After her, the representatives of the individual sections did the same – Miss Shaft for England in English and then each in their own national language, which made an equally pleasant impression and beautifully expressed the idea of Theosophy, the union of people of all nations for a common purpose, in a dignified and beautiful way. Miss Kamensky spoke for Russia, Mr. [Blech] for France, Professor Penzig for Italy, Dr. Steiner for Germany, Mr. Ägoston for Hungary, Mr. [Cnoop Koopmans] for the Netherlands. The Scandinavian, Finnish, Bohemian and Bulgarian representatives also addressed the assembly in their native languages. The Secretary of the Federation, Mr. Wallace, gave his report and read the various congratulatory telegrams, including one from Adyar. The morning concluded with Mrs. Besant's keynote address, in which she used all her brilliant theosophical and rhetorical means to emphasize and express the unity of Theosophy, the theosophical great teachers (especially Dr. Steiner and Mrs. Besant ) and the Masters behind the Theosophical movement, with power, warmth and heartfelt sincerity, repeatedly emphasizing her unity and agreement with Dr. Steiner. As an expression of this unity, she invited her students and those of Dr. Steiner to a joint esoteric session with Mrs. Besant that afternoon.

The main points of her lecture were Theosophy itself, its and therefore our task in society and in the outside world. We should be a light on a hill for humanity that shines for others, and we should practice and cultivate brotherhood and patience in society, not criticism. (Mrs. Besant's lecture will probably be printed.)

At one o'clock, after the spiritual delights, we all gathered in the dining room for a festive meal. In the afternoon, we were invited to attend Mrs. Besant's esoteric lecture at the magnificent villa of Professor Zippernowsky, surrounded by a beautiful park, where Mrs. Besant was staying and where we were warmly welcomed.

Tea at half past six was on the program, and at eight o'clock there was a lecture by Dr. Peipers from Munich on “Occult Anatomy and Medicine”. Here too there is a correspondence between microcosm and macrocosm.

Whit Monday brought the lecture by Dr. Steiner, “From Buddha to Christ”, a lecture so powerful, so magnificent, giving such wide and deep perspectives that we have only been privileged to hear in the most intimate of circles until now.

(My notes on this lecture are available to be read at one of the next branch evenings, where the full impact of this powerful lecture can be best conveyed.

The morning closed with the lecture of the French report, “Quelques notes sur l'application de la photographie à l'étude des phénomenes psychiques”, which contained some interesting material.

After lunch, the Dutch group presented their report on “Theosophy and Apparitions” and discussions were held on “Child Rearing” and “Photography”.

In her very beautiful, poetic and rich presentation on “The Mystery of Love - Tristan and Isolde and their Occult Significance and Relationship”, Ms. Wolfram spoke in her enthralling, pleasantly familiar manner.

In the morning, Mrs. Besant announced that Dr. Steiner had been awarded the Subba-Row Medal in recognition of his services to Theosophical literature.

That evening, the Hungarian Section invited us all to a performance at the National Theatre of the play “The Tragedy of Man” (by Madách), which provided us with a wonderful artistic experience.

The third day of the congress was opened by Dr. Unger's lecture on “Theosophical Life Forces”. The impression of his speech may allow me to say: Let us rejoice that we have such a strong, good, spiritual force as a worker in Stuttgart.

After him, Mrs. Windust from Holland gave a lecture in English on the very interesting topic “The Druids, their Symbolism and Mysteries”; unfortunately the lady's voice and manner of speaking were not clearly understandable.

The speech by the Russian Madame Vunkowsky in French about the meaning and correlation of colors, numbers and sounds was very interesting and inspiring. Her demonstrations, which she also supported with music samples in addition to pictures - the lady is a brilliant violin artist - were continued in the afternoon because they aroused so much interest and offered a lot of educational content.

Thereafter, the founding of a theosophical school for the purpose of training teachers and propagandists was discussed, as well as the founding of a theosophical world newspaper, possibly in Esperanto. No decision was reached.

This was followed by a lecture by Mr. Joseph Migray on “Modern Epistemology and Theosophy”.

The evening brought the public, very well-attended, usual beautiful lecture by Mrs. Besant, the content of which can be summarized as the terms and theos[ophical] ideas she set out in her “Study of Consciousness”. (Miss Völker can perhaps say something about the content of the book).

The last day of the congress also had a wealth of beautiful and uplifting things in store for us.

Firstly: the second lecture by Dr. Peipers on the already mentioned topic.

Second: Lecture by Mrs. Besant: “The Christ - who is he?” In it she developed the aspects of the individuality of Christ and his mission for humanity in the present day (the development of the “I am principle”) that Dr. Steiner had already shared with us, essentially in a wonderful way and expression. Before the last joint midday meal, all the participants in the congress were photographed; and as far as I can tell from looking at the test picture, it turned out very well.

At three o'clock, Mrs. [Sheilds] spoke briefly about the “Gospel of John” from Berlin. After her, Dr. Steiner spoke about the unique pictorial works of the Nordic artist and member Mr. [Heyman], which, in a way that is gratifying for occultists, unconsciously depict what has been seen in higher worlds. It may be worth mentioning here that the festival hall was beautifully and very interestingly decorated with pictures by theosophical artists.

In French, Mrs. Kamensky from St. Petersburg read about “La philosophie russe et la theosophie”.

The official closing act was Mrs. Besant's farewell address to those present and the response to it from the head of the Hungarian section.

It had been a wonderful time for all of us, which hopefully furthered the theosophical cause and its mission for humanity.

We can take with us and share two important impressions: the unity and agreement between Mrs. Besant and Dr. Steiner and the beautiful perception of how warmly and intimately Mrs. Besant has approached the Christ principle and how she strives to represent it with all her strength as a principle of the present time. These two beautiful views, which the memory of what we have experienced and which will remain deep in our hearts, can make these content-rich days doubly worthwhile.

The next conference will take place at Easter 1911 in Turin.

The public lecture by Dr. Steiner was very well attended after the official conclusion in the conference hall. The theme was: “On spiritual science - where do these insights into the spiritual worlds come from and what path leads to them in the present?” A powerful and mighty speech that, with sounds and images, knocked on the hearts and minds of the people, on their emotional and sensory lives, as only Dr. Steiner is able to give with such power, intimacy and enthusiasm for his sacred mission.

After the lecture at half past eight, a moonlight excursion was undertaken on foot or by carriage to Blocksberg, Gellert-hegy, which was also attended by Mrs. Besant and Dr. Steiner, and [which, the drive over the Danube, through the world-famous chain bridge], the view from above down onto the wonderful city, resplendent in the almost southern magic of its illumination and natural beauty, captured hearts with poetic feeling. A moonlit walk to the citadel, from where one has a view of the city, both banks, the countryside, the river, the mountains and the heath, spiced up with accompanying gypsy music, awakened the right beautiful and pure feelings to bid farewell in an appropriate spirit and sentiment to a theosophical congress and its participants.

(Dr. Steiner's cycle on “Theosophy and Occultism of the Rosicrucian” took place from June 3 to 12, 1909. These ten lectures, as well as the congress lecture, were handed over to the archive according to my notes.

Unfortunately, I did not write down the public lecture of June 2, 1909.