** Mr. Reardon (my philosophy of religion teacher) definition of
certainty:  a firm assent to a proposition because of a motive.

** Another way to say it is:  You are certain because you have reason
to believe your certainty is reasonable and justified.

**  Certainty without motive is faith.  A person who has faith is
faithful, not because he can substantiate his faith through personal
experience or through overwhelming proofs, but  through irrational,
subject reasons (i.e. because he wants and needs to believe).

**  If we tried to relate the concept of certainty with religion, a
direct experience of God would be "overwhelming proof" of the
presence of God that would make simple faith un-necessary.  The
mystic's direct experience elevates him above faith by providing him
with the motive or the reason to have certainty in God.  However,
achieving a mystical sense of certainty and sustaining it on a
permanent level is impossible for most people.  In reality, moments
of pure affirmation generally occur in brief flashes and momentary
glimpses.   The remainder of the time we rely on faith.

**  Therefore faith is a necessary and natural element in life.
Through faith we establish a state of trust in our moments of
certainty.

Certainty in what are we talking about?

> From: steiner@yahoogroups.com
> Reply-To: steiner@yahoogroups.com
> Date: 2 Sep 2004 13:54:43 -0000
> To: steiner@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [steiner] Digest Number 809
>
>
> There is 1 message in this issue.
>
> Topics in this digest:
>
> 1. TALKING POINTS ON CERTAINTY
> From: "Mathew Morrell" <tma4cbt@...>
>
>
> ________________________________________________________________________
> ________________________________________________________________________
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Thu, 02 Sep 2004 04:56:45 -0000
> From: "Mathew Morrell" <tma4cbt@...>
> Subject: TALKING POINTS ON CERTAINTY
>
> ** Mr. Reardon (my philosophy of religion teacher) definition of
> certainty:  a firm assent to a proposition because of a motive.
>
> ** Another way to say it is:  You are certain because you have reason
> to believe your certainty is reasonable and justified.
>
> **  Certainty without motive is faith.  A person who has faith is
> faithful, not because he can substantiate his faith through personal
> experience or through overwhelming proofs, but  through irrational,
> subject reasons (i.e. because he wants and needs to believe).
>
> **  If we tried to relate the concept of certainty with religion, a
> direct experience of God would be "overwhelming proof" of the
> presence of God that would make simple faith un-necessary.  The
> mystic's direct experience elevates him above faith by providing him
> with the motive or the reason to have certainty in God.  However,
> achieving a mystical sense of certainty and sustaining it on a
> permanent level is impossible for most people.  In reality, moments
> of pure affirmation generally occur in brief flashes and momentary
> glimpses.   The remainder of the time we rely on faith.
>
> **  Therefore faith is a necessary and natural element in life.
> Through faith we establish a state of trust in our moments of
> certainty.
>
>
>
>
> ________________________________________________________________________
> ________________________________________________________________________
>
>
> Post to steiner@... the archives of the group at:
> http://www.esotericlinks.com/egroupsearch.html
>
> Recommended books by Rudolf Steiner at:
> http://www.esotericlinks.com/steinerbooks.html
>
> ommended books by Rudolf Steiner at:
> http://www.esotericlinks.com/steinerbooks.html
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>

It's interesting how the Classical Greek's envisioned their place in
the Universe:  with the Earth occupying the middle of the Galaxy,
orbited first by the Moon, then by Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars,
Jupiter, Saturn, according to Aristotle's Geocentric Model of the
Universe.  Both he and Plato's universe was a place where their
distinctive rational idealism dominated over the semi-chaotic Egypto-
Babylonian world view.  The heavens, in the Classical world view,
were "perfect" geometrically and spiritually, moving, as they
apparently did, in exact circles.  The planets were smooth and round,
yet unpredictable. Unlike the stars, they seemed to wander across the
sky as if meandering through the ink black darkness of outerspace.

>
> **  Therefore faith is a necessary and natural element in life.
> Through faith we establish a state of trust in our moments of
> certainty.
>
>
>
>


"...Hope is the sister of Faith.  Shed thy passions and thy errors in
order to study the mysteries of true science and the key will be given
thee;  then a ray of divine light will break from the occult sanctuary
in order to dissipate the shadows of thy future and show thee the way
to hapiness...

whatever may happen in life, never injure the flower of hope and thou
wilt gather the fruits of faith."

Sweet Sarah asked what kind of certainty that we're talking about.
My answere would be that we're just trying to be precise about
certainty in itself, what it means, how it's used, not necessarily
certainty towards any one thing in particular.

Mathew

Does anyone know anything about Saint Teresa?  I have to give a short
talk on Saint Teresa Wednesday night to my philosophy of religion
class, and all I've read of Teresa was a chapter from her book.  Can
someone come through for me?

Mathew Morrell
www.kcpost.net

On Sep 5, 2004, at 10:31 PM, Mathew Morrell wrote:

Does anyone know anything about Saint Teresa?  I have to give a short
   talk on Saint Teresa Wednesday night to my philosophy of religion
   class, and all I've read of Teresa was a chapter from her book.  Can
   someone come through for me?

   Mathew Morrell
   www.kcpost.net

Mathew, others know far more than I and hopefully can recall sources.
It seems to me Steiner's somewhat frequent mentions of St. Teresa
indicate her writings are very beautiful, somewhat sensuous while
missing out on a deep/true comprehension, that she choose an "inner
pathway to the spiritual" rather than the outer pathway, thereby
reaching the spiritual within herself rather than the true Spiritual
via Christ Jesus. This isn't to say she was without merit, but perhaps
to highlight some of the differences in these two paths. It seems to me
I also recall Steiner saying something to the effect that her "ecstasy"
and unconscious states may have arisen via her inner deeply
contemplative inner experiences.
Sheila

Thanks LilMiss for the information.  From you I gained two major
discussion points that I can use Wed. night.  1.  She gained
spiritual knowledge through emotional "ecstasies" rather than through
the a more deliberate, thoughtfull path of the Conscious Mind Soul.
2.  Her visions, therefore, tended to be "visual" in nature, which
would fit right into our class discussion (visual mystical
experiencies versus non-visual mystical experiences that don't rely
on the "senses").  Although, in rare instances, she did, to my
knowledge, have non-visual mystical experiences. In these she placed
greater value but could not achieve as frequently as the visual type
like the vision of the hands of Christ, or Christ's wounds, images of
angelic beings, etc.

Thanks.

On Sep 6, 2004, at 12:28 PM, Mathew Morrell wrote:

Thanks LilMiss for the information.  From you I gained two major
   discussion points that I can use Wed. night.  1.  She gained
   spiritual knowledge through emotional "ecstasies" rather than through
   the a more deliberate, thoughtfull path of the Conscious Mind Soul. 
   2.  Her visions, therefore, tended to be "visual" in nature, which
   would fit right into our class discussion (visual mystical
   experiencies versus non-visual mystical experiences that don't rely
   on the "senses").  Although, in rare instances, she did, to my
   knowledge, have non-visual mystical experiences. In these she placed
   greater value but could not achieve as frequently as the visual type
   like the vision of the hands of Christ, or Christ's wounds, images of
   angelic beings, etc.

   Thanks. 

Mathew, this is as I understand it. Steiner spoke often of the two
paths: the inner and the outer. Anthroposophy is the outer pathway, and
therefore the more difficult. It seems to me the old outdated inner
pathway may have promoted the "Bride of Christ" thought process so
often encountered, even in our times, but I'm on shaky ground here.
You're very welcome.

Sheila

Has anyone done any research on insect noise and its effect on human
consciousness.  I say this because these late summer night are filled
with the humming, beating, chiming, sawing, music of millions of
insects.  The ciccadias in particular make loud mating noises
composed of half-notes that cut right through you, affecting the way
you think.

Matthew,

Try this personal experiment. Sit outside just prior to sunset and be
as attentive as possible to the sounds of the insects prior to the
exact time of sunset. You will notice that at the exact time of
sunset the whole area stikes up like a symphony due to the sounds of
insects at this exact moment. Does it affect one's consciousness? It
certainly connects one to the connection between the life of insects
and the course of the sun.

rick distasi



--- In steiner@yahoogroups.com, "Mathew Morrell" <tma4cbt@j...> wrote:
> Has anyone done any research on insect noise and its effect on
human
> consciousness.  I say this because these late summer night are
filled
> with the humming, beating, chiming, sawing, music of millions of
> insects.  The ciccadias in particular make loud mating noises
> composed of half-notes that cut right through you, affecting the
way
> you think.

When we were children we always heard, around the Thanksgiving table
or on Sunday after church, the adults vehemently express their ideas
and opinions about the world, but we never really became upset by
these opinions no matter how strange, alien or discomforting they
seemed to be at the time; we were never offended even if these ideas
were contrary to what our parents believed.  We simple listened with
charmed amusement as the "grown ups" argued back and forth, swatting
mental forms around the table like harmless Ping Pong balls.
Occasionally the Ping Pong Balls became canon balls, and feeling were
hurt.  My grandfather held views that different from my own view--we
used to spar with each over politics--but I never took these sparring
matches personally.

I think, maybe, children have a more profound insight into the nature
of ideas and opinions than adults.  A child knows that our opinions
are meaningless compared to who we are as individuals.  After all you
can talk all you want about opinions or what you believe but it's
what's inside that counts to a child.  For example, you can tell the
whole world how much you love America but be unwilling to break a
fingernail to protect your country from an outside invader.  Or,
conversely, you can talk all you want about women's rights and yet
secretly cheat on your wife.  You can preach the environmental rape
of the planet Earth and yet never even attempt to use public
transportation, walk or ride a bike to work.  High "flutin" opinions
are BS to a child.  They can see through the crap.

No body's opinion is worth losing a friendship over.  Remember that.
An opinion is simply that, an opinion.

When we were children we always heard, around the Thanksgiving table
or on Sunday after church, the adults vehemently express their ideas
and opinions about the world, but we never really became upset by
these opinions no matter how strange, alien or discomforting they
seemed to be at the time; we were never offended even if these ideas
were contrary to what our parents believed.  We simple listened with
charmed amusement as the "grown ups" argued back and forth, swatting
mental forms around the table like harmless Ping Pong balls. 
Occasionally the Ping Pong Balls became canon balls, and feeling were
hurt.  My grandfather held views that different from my own view--we
used to spar with each over politics--but I never took these sparring
matches personally. 

I think, maybe, children have a more profound insight into the nature
of ideas and opinions than adults.  A child knows that our opinions
are meaningless compared to who we are as individuals.  After all you
can talk all you want about opinions or what you believe but it's
what's inside that counts to a child.  For example, you can tell the
whole world how much you love America but be unwilling to break a
fingernail to protect your country from an outside invader.  Or,
conversely, you can talk all you want about women's rights and yet
secretly cheat on your wife.  You can preach the environmental rape
of the planet Earth and yet never even attempt to use public
transportation, walk or ride a bike to work.  High "flutin" opinions
are BS to a child.  They can see through the crap. 

No body's opinion is worth losing a friendship over.  Remember that. 
An opinion is simply that, an opinion.

----- Original Message -----

From: Demetrue@...

To: jp@...

Sent: Sunday, September 26, 2004 11:05 PM

Subject: Re: Beauty in the skies this Michaelmas

Thanks for this - unfortunately, this computer only has Wordpad and is unable to open Word docs.  Any other way of sending me the document?  Can you cut and paste it into an e-mail?  Thanks, Demetra

----- Original Message -----

From: DoctorStarman@...

To: steiner@yahoogroups.com ; soul_calendar@yahoogroups.com ; deborahtyson60690@... ; kutnys@...

Sent: Sunday, September 26, 2004 9:15 PM

Subject: [steiner] Calendar of the Soul, Week 25 after Easter

The "Calendar of the Soul"

  Rudolf Steiner gave out the 'Soul-Calendar' in 1912, 52 meditative mantras to enable us to experience the 'astral' (soul) events occurring within us and in Nature during the year, starting with the first mantra on Easter Sunday.
   These mantras for each week are well known to many students of Steiner, but the original "Calendar " also had 12 Images of the Zodiac, to be meditated with each month to sense the working of the 'solar' forces in the cosmos, plus a listing of the Moon's phases & position in the signs each night for sensing the 'lunar' forces, and a list of dates of births and deaths of spiritual figures and dates of events on specific days. 
   Here's the Soul-Calendar restored to its complete 'astrosophical' form. 

   The Sun, according to the Doctor, is under the influence of the constellation VIRGO from Sept. 8th to Oct. 12th in our era. Here's a version of the symbolic image of the VIRGIN in the original Soul-Calendar, done from Steiner's sketches & indications:     
                


This week's mantra.
    For those not familiar with the use of mantras: The anthroposophic path uses symbolic images like the above ("Imaginations") to awaken spiritual sight, and mantras ("Inspirations") to begin spiritual hearing. The meaning of the words of a mantra at first sight is not important, but rather reciting it and entering with deeper soul-forces into its inner experience. Also, these mantras were created in the German language and have their rhythms in that, so learning an English version is just a step to using the original; I've kept close to it in translating, so anyone can easily go from English to German.

*  M A N T R A  # 2 5  *

Ich darf nun mir gehören
Und leuchtend breiten Innenlicht
In Raumes- und in Zeitenfinsternis.
Zum Schlafe drängt natürlich Wesen,
Der Seele Tiefen sollen wachen
Qnd wachend tragen Sonnengluten
In kalte Winterfluten.

I now must belong only to myself
And spread glowing Inner Light
Into Space- and Time-Darkness.
As towards sleep draws all natural Essence,
The Souls's Depths shall awaken
And waking, carry the Sun's Glow
Into the cold Winter-flowing.

Interpretation of this week's mantra:
   The season of Autumn is the Michaelmas time, in which we are meant to develop Self (inner)-consciousness instead of the Nature (outer)-consciousness we have in summer. This week, this developing self-consciousness places us in a state where it is necessary to be completely alone, so that the Light which is only within can be shed on the otherwise dark outer world. This is the solar essence we carry within us into the night-time of the year.

                                    **********************************
  The Moon positions and phases for the week are listed below along with some of the spiritual figures and events connected with the days.                              

Sunday, September 26th.  Moon Pisces.  Justina, who converted the Cyprian Magicians.  
            Justinianus I, the founder of numerous Churches.

Monday, September 27th. Moon Aries. Cosmas u. Damian, famous medical benefactor of the 3rd Century.
              1825 Opening of the first railway.

Tuesday, September 28th. Moon Aries. Full Moon. 1895 the Natural Scientist Pasteur died.

Wednesday, September 29th. Moon Aries.  Michael (the Archangel).

Thursday, September 30th. Moon Taurus.  Hieronymus, died 420, Christian Church teacher.

Friday, October 1st. Moon Taurus. 1386 Founding of the University of Heidelburg. 
              1847 Annie Besant born.

Saturday, October 2nd. Moon Gemini. Frumentius (spreader of Christianity in Ethiopia in the 4th Century).
             1892 Ernst Renan died.

Dr. Starman

Happy Michaelmas, anthroposophists!

www.DrStarman.net

Post to steiner@... the archives of the group at:
http://www.esotericlinks.com/egroupsearch.html

Recommended books by Rudolf Steiner at:
http://www.esotericlinks.com/steinerbooks.html

ommended books by Rudolf Steiner at:
http://www.esotericlinks.com/steinerbooks.html

Here is one sentence by Steiner:  "Our powers of perception and feeling are in accord with our earlier incarnations."

 

"We live through many embodiments, from incarnation to incarnation.  In each, we learn many things, each full of opportunities for gathering new experiences.  We cannot carry everything over in every detail from incarnation to incarnation.  When we are born again it is not necessary for everything we have learned to come to life in every detail.  But if we have learned a great deal in one incarnation, and then die an are born again, although there isno need for all our ideas to live again, we come to life withthe fruits of our former life, the fruits of what we have learned.  Our powers of perception and feeling are in accord with our earlier incarnations."

 

"Steiner goes on to describe how Goethe in his poem shows us "The highest wisdom, which is a fruit of former knowledge."  He says that Brother Mark, the new leader of the twelve, "has transformed this knowledge into feeling and experience and is therefore qualified to lead others who have perhaps learned more in the form of concepts."" 

Dear Friends,

 

I'm writing with two notes about the listing for today in the Calendar of the Soul. 

 

First:  "Cosmas u. Damian," whose memorial day this is, rather than being a "famous medical benefactor of the 3rd Century," were twin physicians born in Arabia and martyred on this date in about 287 A.D (see www.wf-f.org/StsCosmosDamian.html ).  Stories about these twins show them as selfless faith-filled physician-healers and transcenders of racial divisions.     Josef Beuys, anvant-garde artist and  probably one of the most famous anthroposophists, created a postcard of the World Trade Center Twin Towers where he hand-wrote the names "Cosmos" on one and "Damian" on the other (see http://www.zaunschirm.de/beuys.html or http://inside.bard.edu/blrc/projects/AmericanAge/CosmosundDamian.html ).  

 

Second:  There is an extraordinary gesture (coincidentally? involving the Twins of the Zodiac) appearing in the pre-dawn skies this season -- and this morning (Monday 9/27) is the best chance to see it before the light from the waxing moon obscures it.  If it's a bit cloudy, don't give up:  I discovered this Friday morning amidst considerable clouds;  the five bright stars involved shown through.  Below is a description of the situation, with a chart.  If you have trouble opening or reading this, please let me know. 

 

If you don't get a chance to see this stellar arc today, or this week, persevere;  while the form is at peak perfection now, it will remain for some time to come.   I would be most interested to hear folks' observations or impressions of the sky this season. 

 

                    -- Joe Proskauer 

       

Michaelmas Skies

September 26, 2004

 

Every autumn, the Northern Cross and the Great Square of Pegasus rise in the evening sky like a great sword and shield, culminating between 10pm and midnight, and lowering in the west toward morning.⁺ 

 

Right now, there’s another sword-like shape appearing in the sky – a thing of beauty and harmony that I have never noticed or heard of before.    

 

Around midnight, Orion rises:  the strong, clear, long-known form of the Hunter, the two shoulders and two thighs of his tunic tied with a three-star belt.  Around 3:30am, Venus follows – the brightest light in the night sky now (except the Moon).     

 

Between these two, something new – worth looking for in the early morning sky (around 4 -6am*): 

 

Follow Orion’s belt down to the left to Sirius -- the brightest star in any sky (though outshone by Venus now).  Above Sirius to the east (left -- about 2 hands-held-at-arm’s-length), the next bright star is Procyon.  Continuing up and east is Saturn (nearly as bright as Sirius, with a hint of yellow in its light).  And continuing above and left of Saturn, the brightest stars of the Twins – Pollux and Castor (about 2 fingers-held-at-arm’s-length). 

 

These five form a clear arc -- like part of a spiral.  The spaces between them appear to grow regularly from left to right -- from Castor to Pollux to Saturn to Procyon to Sirius – like a 'growth-measure’ in projective geometry, or the increasing distances between the leaves going down the stem of an annual plant.  Indeed, Saturn is sitting at a point in the arc where the distances between it and both pairs of stars adjacent to it create nearly exact Golden Ratios! 

 

This form comes about as Saturn passes between the two pairs of bright stars – the closely paired Twins and the two more widely spaced ‘dog stars,’ Sirius and Procyon.  Venus did this in early September.  Saturn, which moves much more slowly, seems to be placed most directly on this arc for about two weeks beginning at the autumn equinox (Sept. 22).  Michaelmas is at the center of this period, on Sept. 29th.  But the general form continues to be visible through the Orionid meteor shower (Oct. 19-23) and beyond.  Where will Saturn be during the Leonid meteor shower in mid-November, or the Geminiids in mid-December? 

 

Right now*, the Twins are rising with Orion around midnight, Saturn around 1am, and Sirius (the lowest of the stars in the arc, and the last to rise) around 2am.  So the best viewing of the stellar arc is from around 3am to 6 – depending on the clouds, of course.  (Venus rises around 3:30am, so you might want to look after 4 or 5 to see her as part of the display.  She passes very close to Regulus on the morning of October 3^rd.) 

 

Because the moon is so near to full (it will be a fully full “Harvest Moon on Sept 27^th and 28^th), its light might drown the light of even these bright stars;  it would be prudent to try looking after moonset – 5:30am tomorrow morning (Sept. 27^th).  The Moon crosses the arc itself on Oct. 7th;  it will be a half-moon by then, so it may leave the brightest stars visible.  Dates after that may offer better viewing, as the Moon wanes.  (A little patience may be rewarded.  All these stars are bright, and things can change quickly.  As I mentioned, I discovered this form on Friday morning – when it was cloudy and nothing else was visible.) 

 

And stay for the sunrise. 

 

* The times above are for the end of September.  Stars will rise about a half-hour earlier each week, and Venus about a quarter-hour later.  (The planets regularly move against the stars from night to night – counter-clockwise in the northern hemisphere -- except when they are making their retrograde loops.)  Since the sun is rising later as well, the best time for seeing this new curve of bright stars would get later by about a half-hour each week in October.  The later in the morning or the month, the higher overhead the curve will climb. 

 

And -- Jupiter is joining Venus in the morning sky:  it’s now rising in the twilight about 6:30am;  in mid-October, it will be well above the horizon by that time, and Mars will be joining too.  The tip of the spiral, Castor, will be near the zenith.  Saturn will also be high overhead in the center of the spiral.  From Saturn, follow a nearly straight line (or a very gentle curve) toward the eastern horizon through Regulus (the Heart of the Lion), Venus, Jupiter, Mars -- and the place where the sun will rise. 

 

 *                     *             *        *        *             *                     *

 

Here’s a slightly distorted chart of the stellar arc now appearing between Orion and Venus, shown for about 5am. 

 

 

 

 Notes on the stars mentioned above (from various sources):   

 

⁺  The Northern Cross and the Great Square of Pegasus

 

In the evening sky, the ‘Great Square’ of Pegasus and the Northern Cross -- Cygnus, the Swan –

rise toward their culmination, passing through the zenith between 8pm and midnight.  As the Swan descends from about 8:30 on, Pegasus continues to rise.  As I first noticed last autumn when Mars, at its brightest,

was between them, these two forms make a striking pair:  an open, containing field (perhaps a shield?),

and a strong sword-like directional force—peripheral and centrifugal aspects of four-squareness. 

The mythological figures present a contrast as well, in consonance with the movements of their constellations these evenings:  Pegasus bore poets (or the ill-fated Bellerophon, who fell while seeking to join the gods) aloft;  the swan-form was often adopted by a god descending to visit mortals on the earth.  The rising Pegasus and descending Cygnus may seem in harmony with a theme of Michaelmas:  the inward re-arising of the human spirit before the nature-dying of winter. 

 

Orion

 

Not only do the character and image of Orion resonate with the ‘courage and form’ sung of in a Michaelmas song, but his story resonates with Michaelmas as well.  He is a mighty hunter, a giant.  Instead of a dragon, he does battle with a Scorpion – a powerful one, since it is sent in some versions by Apollo (to prevent his sister Artemis from marrying Orion), and in others by the earth goddess (responding to Orion’s claim that there is no beast he cannot beat).  Orion fights bravely, but is unable to pierce the Scorpion’s thick armor.  In one version, the Scorpion poisons and kills the demi-god Orion (just as he was about to leave the realm of land for the realm of his father Poseidon, god of the sea).  In another, Orion prevails, but Apollo then tricks Artemis, challenging her to hit a distant object in the sea with her arrow;  she does, and kills Orion.  Artemis prevails upon Zeus to place Orion in the sky so she (and we) would remember him through time.  The Scorpion is placed in the opposite side of the sky:  whenever Scorpio starts to rise, Orion is sinking in the west. 

 

 

In ancient Egypt, this constellation represented the soul of Osiris, and Sirius was the soul of Isis. 

 

Sirius

 is the brightest star (-1.46^m) in the night sky. In 1841[?] Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel deduced that Sirius was actually a double star. In 1862 Alvan Graham Clark discovered the companion, which is called Sirius B, or affectionately "the Pup". The visible star is now sometimes known as Sirius A. The two stars orbit each other with a separation of about 20 AU and a period of close to 50 years. In 1915 astronomers at the Mt. Wilson Observatory discovered that Sirius B was a white dwarf, the first to be discovered. Interestingly, this means that Sirius B must have originally been much the more massive of the two, since it has already evolved off the main sequence.

 

Historically, many cultures have attached special significance to Sirius. Sirius was worshipped in the valley of the Nile long before Rome was founded, and many ancient Egyptian temples were constructed oriented so that light from the star could penetrate to their inner altars. The Egyptians based their calendar on the heliacal rising of Sirius, which occurred just before the annual flooding of the Nile and the Summer solstice. In Greek mythology, Orion's dog became Sirius. The Greeks also associated Sirius with the heat of summer: the name Sirius is derived from Seirios meaning "the scorcher." This also explains the phrase "dog days of summer".

 

There are a few unsolved mysteries regarding Sirius. Firstly, it has been suggested that there is a third very small companion star, but it appears that this has not yet been definitely confirmed. Secondly, ancient observations of Sirius describe it as a red star, when today Sirius A is bluish white. The possibility that stellar evolution of either Sirius A or Sirius B could be responsible for this discrepancy is rejected by astronomers on the grounds that the timescale of thousands of years is too short and that there is no sign of the nebulosity in the system that would be expected had such a change taken place. Alternative explanations are either that the description as red is a poetic metaphor for ill fortune, or that the dramatic scintillations of the star when it was observed rising left the viewer with the impression that it was red. A third mystery is a suggestion that the Dogon tribe of Africa knew about unseen companion star(s) before they were discovered in the 19th century. This is a source of speculation for UFO enthusiasts and was the subject of the book The Sirius Mystery by Robert Temple.

Procyon

 

is the brightest star in the Lesser Dog, Canis Minor.  It’s name means ‘first dog’ or ‘before the dog,’ since it rises about 20 minutes before the other dog star – Sirius, the brightest star in Canis Major. 

 

Astronomers have been watching its pulsations since 1986. So when scientists recently announced that the most sensitive observations ever made of the star show nothing of the sort, it created controversy. 

 

Canis Minor in total is consists of over 40 stars, however only four other main ones. 

 

Saturn

 

Roman god of agriculture, concerned with planting seeds, transformed from the Greek Kronos -- youngest of the Titans, and father of many gods. 

 

Saturn is still rising especially high in the sky for observers in midnorthern latitudes.  It’s rings are also still tilted beautifully for telescope observers. 

 

Pollux and Castor

 

are the two brightest stars in the constellation of Gemini:  These stars mark the heads of the twins, with there bodies heading southwards below. 

 

The constellation is of the Twins is often drawn in two ways, one with a rectangular body, the other as two ‘stickmen’ holding hands.  Gemini is one of the original 48 constellations as well as one of the 12 Zodiac patterns.  It lies on the ecliptic and the summer sun passes through the constellation.  

 

Within Greek mythology the constellation represents the twins Castor and Pollux, also known as Dioskouroi, "Zeus's sons".  The mortal Castor and the immortal Pollux were fathered by Zeus, after Leda was seduced by him while he was disguised as Cygnus the Swan.  The twins were very affectionate towards each other and they were amongst Jason’s Argonauts aboard the Argo Navis.  Castor was a skilled warrior and horseman, while Pollux was an unbeatable boxer.  (Castor means ‘The Horseman’ and Pollux means ‘The Pugilist’.)  During their adventures the twins helped save the ship during a storm; for this reason they became protectors of the sailors, who believed to see them on the masts during storms.  Egyptians called the Twins, Horus the elder and younger. Horus the younger was the son of Osiris.  Horus is often portrayed as a falcon-headed man. 

 

                                                                                                Joe Proskauer

                                                                                                JP@...

 

----- Original Message -----

From: Demetrue@...

To: jp@...

Sent: Sunday, September 26, 2004 11:05 PM

Subject: Re: Beauty in the skies this Michaelmas

Thanks for this - unfortunately, this computer only has Wordpad and is unable to open Word docs.  Any other way of sending me the document?  Can you cut and paste it into an e-mail?  Thanks, Demetra

----- Original Message -----

From: DoctorStarman@...

To: steiner@yahoogroups.com ; soul_calendar@yahoogroups.com ; deborahtyson60690@... ; kutnys@...

Sent: Sunday, September 26, 2004 9:15 PM

Subject: [steiner] Calendar of the Soul, Week 25 after Easter

The "Calendar of the Soul"

  Rudolf Steiner gave out the 'Soul-Calendar' in 1912, 52 meditative mantras to enable us to experience the 'astral' (soul) events occurring within us and in Nature during the year, starting with the first mantra on Easter Sunday.
   These mantras for each week are well known to many students of Steiner, but the original "Calendar " also had 12 Images of the Zodiac, to be meditated with each month to sense the working of the 'solar' forces in the cosmos, plus a listing of the Moon's phases & position in the signs each night for sensing the 'lunar' forces, and a list of dates of births and deaths of spiritual figures and dates of events on specific days. 
   Here's the Soul-Calendar restored to its complete 'astrosophical' form. 

   The Sun, according to the Doctor, is under the influence of the constellation VIRGO from Sept. 8th to Oct. 12th in our era. Here's a version of the symbolic image of the VIRGIN in the original Soul-Calendar, done from Steiner's sketches & indications:     
                


This week's mantra.
    For those not familiar with the use of mantras: The anthroposophic path uses symbolic images like the above ("Imaginations") to awaken spiritual sight, and mantras ("Inspirations") to begin spiritual hearing. The meaning of the words of a mantra at first sight is not important, but rather reciting it and entering with deeper soul-forces into its inner experience. Also, these mantras were created in the German language and have their rhythms in that, so learning an English version is just a step to using the original; I've kept close to it in translating, so anyone can easily go from English to German.

*  M A N T R A  # 2 5  *

Ich darf nun mir gehören
Und leuchtend breiten Innenlicht
In Raumes- und in Zeitenfinsternis.
Zum Schlafe drängt natürlich Wesen,
Der Seele Tiefen sollen wachen
Qnd wachend tragen Sonnengluten
In kalte Winterfluten.

I now must belong only to myself
And spread glowing Inner Light
Into Space- and Time-Darkness.
As towards sleep draws all natural Essence,
The Souls's Depths shall awaken
And waking, carry the Sun's Glow
Into the cold Winter-flowing.

Interpretation of this week's mantra:
   The season of Autumn is the Michaelmas time, in which we are meant to develop Self (inner)-consciousness instead of the Nature (outer)-consciousness we have in summer. This week, this developing self-consciousness places us in a state where it is necessary to be completely alone, so that the Light which is only within can be shed on the otherwise dark outer world. This is the solar essence we carry within us into the night-time of the year.

                                    **********************************
  The Moon positions and phases for the week are listed below along with some of the spiritual figures and events connected with the days.                              

Sunday, September 26th.  Moon Pisces.  Justina, who converted the Cyprian Magicians.  
            Justinianus I, the founder of numerous Churches.

Monday, September 27th. Moon Aries. Cosmas u. Damian, famous medical benefactor of the 3rd Century.
              1825 Opening of the first railway.

Tuesday, September 28th. Moon Aries. Full Moon. 1895 the Natural Scientist Pasteur died.

Wednesday, September 29th. Moon Aries.  Michael (the Archangel).

Thursday, September 30th. Moon Taurus.  Hieronymus, died 420, Christian Church teacher.

Friday, October 1st. Moon Taurus. 1386 Founding of the University of Heidelburg. 
              1847 Annie Besant born.

Saturday, October 2nd. Moon Gemini. Frumentius (spreader of Christianity in Ethiopia in the 4th Century).
             1892 Ernst Renan died.

Dr. Starman

Happy Michaelmas, anthroposophists!

www.DrStarman.net

Sheila, you know, I am not sure what lecture.  A good guess would be the karma and reincarnation.  I got this out of "Start Now" a book of soul and spiritual exercises by R.S. edited and introduced by Christopher Bamford.  It is the BEST book by the way in case you don't have it.  I just started it and can't put it down.  Much luck on your endeavors, Chantel

Did Steiner make a distinction between Jovian and Terrestrial
planets, Terrestrial planets being the four "inner" planets which are
mainly composed of minerals, and Jovian planets that are gaseous in
nature, almost phantasmal in appearance like Jupiter, Uranus,
Neptune.  Pluto may or may not be a Jovian planet.  Astronomers have
their doubts wheather Pluto is a planet at all.

Mathew
www.kcpost.net

 

This is just my opinion and good folks can disagree.

 

Qabala is a wonderful spiritual tool because it reveals

the location of spiritual shadows.

 

Let's apply this to American politics.

 

John Kerry to be not only and opportunistic machine

but a full blown traitor....both in the 70s and now.

First, look into his face. It doesn't take a Cagliostro to see
he only occasionally departs from the haunting image of 'just
another genderless, talking head.'

 

Clever?...Yes....to the point of demagoguery but more importantly
he lacks that essential soul quality associated with a vulnerable
conscience. Kerry seems blissfully free of both passion and heart,
Bereft of any genuine 'fire in the belly' he lives up to the Qabalistic term

'qliphoth'.....which is but a shell.

Kerry gets his juice from professional victims and survives
politically by simple negativity and doubt...by making all things
pertaining to the US an "error."

His opportunistic grandstanding in the Seventies torpedoed our
"might for right" and served to lead to the wholesale
slaughter of nearly a million Vietnamese after the war...to say
nothing of setting up Pol Pot's evil rampage in Cambodia.

Had we been truly the UNITED States in winning that conflict,
there would have been far fewer human casualties and we would
have established a bright bastion of freedom in Indochina.
(A case in point is what we saw taking root this weekend in Afghanistan,
sporting endless lines of men and women risking life and limb to get
to vote...... for the first time ever!)

Regardless of the rampant left wing cynicism, this war
aint all just about money and oil. It is not even about Iraq or

the Middle East. It's a cosmic power grab chronicled in the texts of
every major religion,... albeit by different names.

There are parasitic forces tempting us from our bravery
and degrading our duty; our heavenly mandate of sacrifice and
promulgation of  'Good' performed in manly and knightly ways.

If this vampirism succeeds, all Life on Earth will cease.

As a man, I see ridding the world of parasitic tyranny is a

chivalrous duty. Chivalry is a religion not unlike the Samurai.
But "Might for Right" is a creed grasped only by practitioners
of TRUE self sacrificial Love, a concept for which the political left

gives lip service but has absolutely no grasp.

Kerry cannot win. ....He MUST NOT win.

Fortunately, Americans are ultimately driven by an innate sense of right
and wrong. I trust us to distinguish between the verbose, reflected specter
of 'lunar light' in contrast to the real thing. True Beings of Light demonstrate
Spirit and self reliance, not social dependency. They display the self generating

Solar Light emanating from yes, the Sun of God.

Remember King Arthur had an effeminate offspring like our slick
friend. Mordred was massaged, oiled and pussified daily by his

mother, Morgan LeFay. This lunar witch was Arthur's sister
with whom he slept. Mordred, the incestual offspring of this union,
ultimately brought down Arthur's solar kingdom which in truth was
initiated by the Christos.

This archetypal gender battle repeating itself once again
on the stage of American and global politics. The I-Ching has a
hexagram ('KUN...The Receptive...with a moving line at the top)
which says:
    "In the top place the Yin (female) element should yield to the light.
    If it attempts to maintain a position to which it is not entitled
    and to rule instead of serving, it draws down on itself the anger
    of the strong. A struggle ensues in which it is overthrown,
    with injury, however, to both sides. Therefore, it is a sign
    that in unnatural contest both primal powers (Male and Female)
    suffer injury."

This gender confusion of Yang in relation to Yin is symbolized in
every religion including the story in Genesis with Adam disconnecting

from his Reason..his Oversoul in order to follow Eve's impulsive Nature

worship.

This sounds sexist...but it isn't. Nor am I suggesting
the masculine principle is somehow 'better' than the feminine.
It's just that each has it's appropriate place within ourselves

and within cosmic order.

It simply means that Reason should guide impulse and emotion

in each of us.... at all times. Reason is "The Head of the House"

Kerry is a Massachusetts 'dandy' who has doubtless been
circumcised with pinking shears.

His politics and demeanor are much like his manicure...
slick...polished and preened strictly for public approval.

A glib wordsmith he is, a knightly warrior he aint....

If he ever did rescue the king's maiden daughter, he
would not have done it for Chivalry ...nor even because it was the
right thing to do. He would have done it to win the king's daughter
.........and to latch onto his estate.

Behold Mordred!

This terrorist thing upon us now is VERY huge.
It may not live up to Rudolph Steiner's 'War of All Against All'
but there definitely is a global religious Jihad/Crusade afoot and it is
also cosmic. It is the struggle between the forces of civilization .....

.....and Chaos itself.

Remember the 'Never Ending Story?'  This drama is unfolding again.

"The 'Nothing'" approaches and there are two options left to us:

1. Fight without quarter.

2. Deny it and choose "peace at any price."

 

I for one, choose the former because the latter is the

sure recipe for "short term pleasure, long term pain."

Hairspray and a razor cuts somehow lose their meaning when

adorning a severed head.

Br. Ron