Anthroposophy and Ecofascism 25

Continuing my commentary on paragraph 7 of Peter Staudenmaier's 'Anthroposophy and Ecofascism':

Staudenmaier's footnote does not actually have directly to do with the statements in this paragraph; it refers to a chapter called "The Occult Origins of National Socialism" in the book The Fascist Revolution: Toward a General Theory of Fascism by George Mosse. If this is as much as Staudenmaier has read on the issue of Theosophy as presented by Blavatsky (as his footnotes imply) then he is indeed woefully unprepared to discuss the subject knowledgably.

An unsubstantiated claim, and one which I would oppose on the strongest terms, is the claim that the authoritarian pattern established by Blavatsky and Besant carried over into anthroposophy. In fact, it was on the point of authoritarianism that the anthroposophists broke with the Theosophical society . Steiner described his position and the events surrounding this break in detail in several places . ( See “Die Trennung von der Theosophischen Geselschaft” [The separation from the theosophical society] in Lindenberg, Christoph. Rudolf Steiner: Eine Biographie. Stuttgart : Verlag Freies Geistesleben, 1997, pages 484-504.) Peter Staudenmaier appears not to have read anything on this matter beyond a small number of his favorite secondary sources, most of which are not noted for going into any depth on this or other matters.

It is further implied that Steiner adopted party-line Theosophical doctrine as the basis for his activity as the General Secretary of the German Section. Steiner himself was quite clear on his relationship to Theosophy as it was understood in the Theosophical Society:

>“No one was left in uncertainty of the fact that I would bring forward in the Theosophical Society only the results of my own research through perception. For I stated this on all appropriate occasions. When, in the presence of Annie Besant, the German section of the Theosophical Society was founded in Berlin and I was chosen its General Secretary, I had to leave the foundation sessions because I had to give before a non-theosophical audience one of the lectures in which I dealt with the spiritual evolution of humanity, and to the title of which I expressly united the phrase “Eine Anthroposophie.” Annie Besant also knew that I was then giving out in lectures under this title what I had to say about the spiritual world.

"When I went to London to attend a theosophical congress, one of the leading personalities said to me that true theosophy was to be found in my book Mysticism ..., I had reason to be satisfied. For I had given only the results of my spiritual vision, and this was accepted in the Theosophical Society.

"There was now no longer any reason why I should not bring forward this spiritual knowledge in my own way before the theosophical public, which was at first the only audience that entered without restriction into a knowledge of the spirit. I subscribed to no sectarian dogmatics; I remained a man who uttered what he believed he was able to utter entirely according to what he himself experienced in the spiritual world. Prior to the founding of the section belongs a series of lectures – which I gave before Die Kommenden, entitled Von Buddha zu Christus. In these discussions I sought to show what a mighty stride the Mystery of Golgotha signifies in comparison with the Buddha event, and how the evolution of humanity, as it strives toward the Christ event, approaches its culmination. In this circle I spoke also of the nature of the mysteries.
... [The importance of Christ] was by no means taught in the Theosophical Society. In this view I was in direct opposition to the theosophical dogmatics of the time, before I was invited to work in the Theosophical Society. For this invitation followed immediately after the cycle of lectures on Christ here described.

"... Thus the thing evolved up to the time of my first attendance at a theosophical congress, in London, in the year 1902. At this congress,... it was already a foregone conclusion that a German section of the Society would be founded with myself – shortly before invited to become a member – as the general secretary.
All that was interesting in what I heard [in discussions with Theosophists] stirred me deeply, but it had no influence upon the content of my own views.

Steiner, Rudolf. The Course of My Life. New York: Anthroposophic Press, 1951. Pages 297-298.

If Peter Staudenmaier would like to argue to the contrary that anthroposophy has an authoritarian dogmatism inherited from Theosophy, he should support such an argument with citations to both historical accounts and primary sources that demonstrate this. Simply asserting it is insufficient. And if he would like to argue that Steiner followed Theosophical doctrine to the letter (or even in spirit) during his years as a member of the Theosophical society this would have to be demonstrated from a comparative study of the relevant primary literature (by my estimation some 80 to 100 rather dense volumes). I am not aware of anyone who has put in the time for such a study (several years by conservative estimates) who has not found substantial points of difference between anthroposophy and Theosophy in precisely the area where Staudenmaier is claiming their similarity. There is simply no evidence that Staudenmaier has anywhere near the depth of understanding of Theosophical doctrine or of anthroposophy necessary to successfully advance his hypothesis.