The History of the German Section of the Theosophical Society 1902-1913

GA 250 — 19 June 1904, Amsterdam

9. Theosophical Congress in Amsterdam

Report by Rudolf Steiner, “Lucifer-Gnosis”, no. 13/1904

From June 19 to 21, the Federation of European Sections of the Theosophical Society held its congress in Amsterdam [...]. The members of the Dutch section had the task of taking on all the work to be done at the venue. And they took on this truly difficult task in a way that must ensure them the full recognition and warmest thanks of the European sections, which were their guests this time. They knew how to organize the three-day proceedings in the most dignified and substantive way, interspersing the actual Theosophical meetings with artistic performances that included musical and declamatory performances. These performances were not organized with outside artists, but by the members of the Dutch section themselves. It is only with heartfelt satisfaction that one can look back on what was offered there. It has testified to the tireless work and successful propaganda of the great spiritual movement in Holland. It already has almost 800 members there.

The proceedings of the congress will now be outlined in a few strokes. - Annie Besant chaired the meeting. She returned to Europe a few weeks ago from an eighteen-month stay in India. It was good that she was able to lead the work of the assembly. Everyone who understands the true meaning of the important spiritual movement embodied in the Theosophical Society knows this. After the death of H. P. Blavatsky, the spiritual leadership of the Society passed to Annie Besant. This must be counted as a good karma for the Society. In everything that comes from this woman lives the power by which the Society must be guided if it is to fulfill its mission. This mission consists in elevating the present civilization to a spiritual life. This civilization has achieved unspeakable things in intellectual and material cultural work. It has enormously expanded the horizons and outer work of humanity and will continue to expand them. But spiritual deepening was bound to suffer. The nineteenth century lacked spiritual direction, it lacked the spiritual life that gave impulses to earlier great epochs of human development. That was the necessary fate of cultural development. For when man's strength is particularly expressed in one direction, it must withdraw from its activity in the other. At present, however, we have again reached the point where spiritual life must be brought into our culture if it is not to become completely externalized, and if humanity is not to lose touch with spiritual experiences. This mission of the Theosophical Society is now fully expressed in everything Annie Besant does and says. The highest task of our time is the innermost impulse of her own soul. Knowledge and will, insight and ideal of our time are united in Annie Besant, to be fertilized by her own highly developed spiritual life as a force emanating from her and to communicate as such to her fellow human beings. Wherever she speaks, the spirit of the audience is raised to the heights of divine knowledge and their hearts are filled with enthusiasm for the spiritual currents of humanity. And so it was when she gave her magnificent opening address at the Amsterdam Congress. She set out the conditions under which the work of the Society must be carried out. The question of the “why” and “wherefore” of the assembly was answered by her in broad strokes. She described the theosophical movement as part of the great spiritual movement that is taking hold of the whole world today. The spiritualization of the whole civilization must be achieved. A glance at this civilization teaches this. In the material, this civilization lives itself out. In a science that seeks to understand the material, in an industry and technology that serves the outer life, in a traffic that makes the material interests of the whole earth more and more common. But all this lacks the spiritual. Our knowledge is a mind knowledge, our commercial prosperity promotes external well-being. But this science on the one hand and material prosperity on the other are only an external form of culture, not its inner life. To everything we have conquered, we must add heart and soul. We must again incorporate the divine ideal into our will; then all externals will no longer be an end in themselves, but only the outer garment, only the form of civilization. The spirit must fill the body of our culture if it is to endure. And to fill this body with the spirit, the theosophical movement has been brought into being. It starts from the oldest thoughts of mankind, from that wisdom which in primeval times raised our race to its present level of consciousness, and which was always effective in all great progress. These thoughts, this wisdom are as old as humanity itself. Only their forms must change according to the different needs of different times. Theosophy does not ascribe the origin of wisdom to an external, accidental development. Rather, it derives it from the brotherhood of the great leaders of humanity. These are the beings who have already in the past reached the high degree of perfection towards which the average human being in the future is striving. Such advanced brothers of the human race use their degree of perfection to help the rest of humanity to progress. Their work is done in secret. It must be done in secret because it is too high to be understood by the masses. They are the guides of divine ideals. From time to time they send their messengers into the world to give it great cultural impulses. The great world religions owe their origin to such impulses; all cultural achievements owe their foundations to them. One such impulse has been sent into the world in recent times, leading to the founding of the Theosophical Society by H. P. Blavatsky and H. S. Olcott. It aims to bring humanity back to the realization that thought is greater than expression, spirit greater than outer form. It seeks to show that science must regain knowledge not only of the sensual but also of the supersensible worlds, that the heart should not cling only to material goods but should open itself to the divine ideal. Above and beyond all the benefits that the individual can derive from our present means of culture stands the general spiritual upliftment of all mankind. All the prosperity for which humanity strives should be sought only to build a dwelling for the spirit on this earth. And this dwelling is only worthy if it is suffused with beauty. But beauty is only possible if it emanates from the spirit. Our material civilization cannot have true art unless it conquers true faith. From the art of the Middle Ages, the faith of medieval humanity shines out to us. Its painters allowed themselves to be inspired by the religious feeling that lived in their hearts. The content of faith gave meaning and significance to the lines and colors of the artists. Theosophy wants to bring to bear a new body of thought, appropriate to the imagination of contemporary humanity. And the new body of thought will be the creator of a new art. That is the task of our time. All nobler spirits feel this. The striving towards it is noticeable everywhere. The Theosophical Society wants to be the leader, the vanguard of this movement. It wants to inspire individual men and women for this goal, which is currently felt so clearly. And with that, it unites the striving for tolerance, for universal love of humanity. These have always been the forces from which the great advances of humanity have emerged. What individual cultural movements strive for, the theosophical current seeks to form into a great unity. It seeks to overcome narrow-mindedness and intolerance. For only in united striving can humanity today achieve its goal. The Theosophical Society does not exist for the selfish pursuit of its members. It is a mistake to join it for the purpose of furthering one's own development. It wants to be there for humanity, it wants to work in its service. One should become a member of the Society only to be a channel through which flows knowledge that promotes human progress. The Society does not grow when its membership increases daily, but when these members grow in confidence and insight into their lofty task with each passing day. The justification of the [Theosophical] Society lies in the change that has taken place in the way people think over the last thirty years. Today, people no longer look down on those who no longer focus solely on the material side of culture. The heart begins to expand, and people have an interest again in those who aspire to the spirit. Our materialism became so powerful because our devotion had become so weak. But the person who is unable to look up to the spiritual heights in adoration closes himself off. Devotion, however, opens the heart and mind. We rise to that which we behold in devotional love and high esteem. The call for such deepening has gone out to those who have united in the Theosophical Society; they are to be good helmsmen for the path that is mapped out for present civilization.

The individual sections were represented by their general secretaries: the English section by Bertram Keightley, the Dutch section by W. B. Fricke, the French section by Dr. Th. Pascal, the German section by Dr. Rud. Steiner. Unfortunately, the general secretary of the Italian section, Decio Calvari, could not be present. Johan van Manen conducted the business of the congress and also gave his report at the meeting on the morning of June 19. His work deserves special mention. He had an enormous workload during the preparations for the meeting and during the meeting itself. One could only admire the willingness to make sacrifices, the prudence and the energy of this member of the Theosophical Society.

On the evening of the 19th, a public lecture was held. Annie Besant spoke about “New Psychology”. She outlined the change that has taken place in the last forty years in the prevailing views on the nature of the mind.

Forty years ago, materialism in men like Büchner and Vogt could claim that the brain secretes thoughts like the liver secretes bile. Since then, people have abandoned the belief that the nature of the mind can be known by studying the workings of the brain. Today we know that such a process would be the same as trying to penetrate the secrets of a Mozart or Beethoven creation by studying the hammers and keys of a piano. The phenomena of dream life have been studied, and those phenomena of consciousness that occur in abnormal states of the physical body have been studied in depth. This has led to the conviction that the spiritual is an independent entity in man, and that the way in which it manifests itself in the ordinary state is only one of its forms. Only this form, this mode of expression, is conditioned by the physical structure of the human senses and the human brain. It must be the nature of the spirit to manifest itself through other instruments in a different way. In this way, experimental science has confirmed the fundamental truth of all deeper religious worldviews, that the spirit in human day-consciousness has only one of its revelations. It has shown that through certain processes (in trance and so on) forms of consciousness arise in man in which he is quite different from his so-called normal consciousness. This also justifies the scientific approach of not seeking the truth only through the form of consciousness that we experience in everyday life, but also by elevating ourselves to higher forms of consciousness in order to get to know the higher worlds.

The other works of the congress were dealt with by forming departments according to the subject matter of the lectures presented. It became clear how Theosophy has already extended its work to all branches of modern spiritual life and also to social ideals. The Theosophists seek to bring the suitability of their goals to bear in all branches of culture, and they also seek the sources everywhere in order to integrate their thoughts and ideals into the aspirations of the present. The individual departments were as follows: 1. Science; 2. Comparative Religion; 3. Philology; 4. Human Brotherhood; 5. Occultism; 6. Philosophy; 7. Theosophical Method of Work; 8. Art.

In the scientific section, a paper by Dr. Pascal on the “Nature of Consciousness” was read first. The author had subtly succeeded in combining the basic theosophical ideas with modern concepts. Ludwig Deihard (Munich) followed with a suggestion. He pointed to the various states of consciousness that have been established experimentally (multiplex personality), explained them lucidly and called on those who had developed higher states of consciousness within themselves to also put their experiences at the service of the basic theosophical concepts (reincarnation and karma). This was followed by a stimulating discussion of the “Development of a Second Personality” by Alfred R. Orage (Leeds). The two presentations followed on nicely from what Annie Besant had presented in her lecture on “the new psychology”. From the proceedings of this section, it can only be stated that Emilio Scalfaro (Bologna), Arturio Reghini (Italy) and Mrs. Sarah Corbett (Manchester) delivered papers on important questions of space, matter and other topics. The abundance of what was presented can hardly be covered in a short summary, especially since lectures were held simultaneously in different rooms and it was only possible for individuals to attend a part of them. The works will also be published in a detailed congress report (yearbook of the congress) and will thus be accessible to everyone. Therefore, only a few of them will be reported on here. In the section on comparative religion, the following was presented: “The Religion of the Future - a View of Vaishnavism” by Purnendu Narayana Sinha (India).

In the section on “human brotherhood”, there was a treatise on the communal life among so-called primitive peoples by Mme Emma Weise (Paris). Works of this kind are important for the theosophist because they point to a time when the principle of brotherhood was a natural law of the soul in human tribes. Progress has necessarily led to separation and to selfishness. But this is only a transitional epoch. Seclusion must give way to selfless devotion, to ethical brotherhood, again, at a higher level, to what was once innate in man at a lower level. The social coexistence of people was the subject of the lectures by D. A. Courmes (Paris) and $. Edgar Aldermann (Sacramento, Cal.).

In the “Occultism” section, Annie Besant spoke about the “Essence of Occultism”. She pointed out H. P. Blavatsky's saying that occultism is the study of the universal world spirit in all of nature. The occultist recognizes that everything that can be perceived in the world is based on a universal spirit; and that the world of appearances only gives the forms, the expressions of this hidden (occult) world spirit. We find this conviction expressed in all major world religions, and occultists find the real foundations of religions confirmed by their own experience. The intellectual science can only recognize the outside of the world. It speaks of forces and laws. The occultist sees behind these forces and laws. And he then perceives that these are only the outer shell for living entities, just as the human body is the shell for the soul and spirit. From the lower forms that lie behind the forces of nature, to the exalted world spirits, which he addresses as logoi, the occultist pursues the spiritual realm according to his ability. But in order to recognize this world as a reality, he must go through a careful training. He must achieve two things. First, he must expand his consciousness so that it can encompass higher worlds, just as the ordinary conscious mind dominates the physical world. Second, he must develop higher senses that can perceive in these worlds, just as eyes and ears perceive in the physical world. The first goal, the expansion of consciousness, depends on man learning to control his thoughts. In ordinary life, man is controlled by his thoughts. They come and go, dragging the consciousness hither and thither. The occultist must be master of the course of his thoughts. He regulates their course. It is in his power to decide which thoughts to admit and which to reject. This goal can only be achieved through the most diligent self-education. Once you have prepared yourself in this way, you can begin to develop the higher senses. As long as a person is still under the influence of his passions, desires and instincts, the possession of higher senses can only be harmful to him. A pure, selfless life is a matter of course for the occultist. The personal desires he cherishes of his own accord take shape in the higher worlds. Man himself is the author of these forms. If he begins to see these forms, he is exposed to the danger of mistaking his own personal creations of desire and longing for objective realities. These products of his body of desire and longing are hidden from the average person. If they are not to become the source of serious errors and illusions for the developed higher senses, they must fade from view. The occultist must personally be without desire. There is a further danger that man may mistake the fragments of higher worlds that present themselves to his open eyes for exhaustive realities. The occultist must learn to recognize all this. What particularly hinders the development of occult abilities is the haste and rush with which some disciples want to advance. These stem from personal impatience and restlessness. But the occultist must develop complete inner calmness and patience. He must be able to wait until the right moment of inspiration has come. He must wait patiently until he is given what he should not take in greed. He must do everything to enable the voices from the spiritual world to speak to him at the right moment; but he must not have the slightest belief that he can force these voices. He who is lifted up in pride because he believes he knows more than others cannot become an occultist. This is why occultists speak of the heresy of separatism. If a person wants something for himself, if he does not want to possess everything in community, then he is immature for occultism. Every separation, every striving for personal self-interest, even if it is of the highest spiritual nature, kills the occult senses. The dangers of the occult path are great. Only patience and selflessness, willingness to make sacrifices and true love can make the occultist.

A letter from Leadbeater, which was intended for this section, included, among other things, interesting explanations about the astral forms that are evoked by musical works of art. One can characterize a sonata by Beethoven or a piano piece by Mozart by the architecture that the clairvoyant can perceive in the astral space.

In the “Philosophy” section, Dr. Rudolf Steiner gave a lecture on “Mathematics and Occultism”. He assumed that Plato demanded a mathematical education from his students, that the Gnostics referred to their higher wisdom as mathesis and that the Pythagoreans saw the basis of all being in number and form. He explained that they all did not have abstract mathematics in mind, but that they meant the intuitive insight of the occultist, who perceives the laws in the higher worlds with the help of a spiritual sensation that presents in the spiritual what music is for our ordinary sensual world. Just as air, through vibrations that can be expressed in numbers, arouses musical sensations, so the occultist, if he prepares himself by knowing the secrets of numbers, can perceive spiritual music in the higher worlds, which, when a person is particularly highly developed, intensifies to the sensation of the music of the spheres. This music of the spheres is not a figment of the imagination; it is a real experience for the occultist. By incorporating the arithmetics into his own being, by permeating his astral and mental body with the intimate sense that is expressed in the numerical relationships, man prepares himself to let hidden world phenomena have an effect on him. In modern times, the occult sense has withdrawn from the sciences. Since Copernicus and Galileo, science has been concerned with conquering the physical world. But it is in the eternal plan of human development that physical science should also be able to find access to the spiritual world. In the age of physical research, mathematics has been enriched by Newton and Leibniz's analysis of the infinite, by differential and integral calculus. Those who seek not only to understand in the abstract, but to experience inwardly what a differential really represents, will gain a view that is free of sensuality. For in the differential, the sensual view of space itself is overcome in the symbol; for moments, human cognition can become purely mental. To the clairvoyant, this is revealed by the fact that the thought form of the differential is open to the outside, in contrast to the thought forms that a person receives through sensory observation. These are closed to the outside. Thus, through the analysis of the infinite, one of the paths is opened by which the higher senses of the human being open to the outside. The occultist knows what happens to the chakra between the eyebrows when he develops the spirit of the differential within himself. If the mathematician is a selfless person, he can lay down what he has achieved in this way on the general altar of human brotherhood. And the seemingly driest science can become an important source for occultism.

In the same section, Gaston Polak (Brussels) spoke about symmetry and rhythm in man. It was interesting to hear these discussions about the way in which the human being can fit into the general great laws of the world. A paper by Bhagavän Däs (Benares) on the “Relationship between Self and Not-Self” was read. Since this paper will soon be available in book form, a summary can be dispensed with here, which would also be rather difficult due to the subtle form of the thought processes.

In the section on the “method of theosophical work”, the remarks of Mrs. Ivy Hooper (London) were of great importance. She emphasized that the essential thing for the theosophist is not the dogmatic forms in which the spirit, the spiritual life is expressed, but this spirit, this life itself. It is commendable that this has been stated with such clarity. We can express the spirit with both Christian and Oriental symbols if we only preserve this spirit. Where Christian symbolism is better understood, the Theosophist may make use of it. For one can be a good Theosophist without knowing anything of the dogmas in which spiritual wisdom was necessarily taught in the beginning. The Theosophical Society is meant to be the bearer of this wisdom, but it should change the forms according to necessity. Buddhist formulas and oriental dogmas must not be confused with the theosophical spirit. Theosophy has no dogmatics. It only wants to be spiritual life.

A section on “Art” showed how the Theosophical worldview can also bring light to this area. Jean Delville (Brussels), for example, developed something spiritual in his lecture on the “Mission of Art”. Ludwig Deinhard (Munich) took this opportunity to present a treatise by the German painter Fidus, in which the latter expresses his Theosophical view of the secrets of art.

On Tuesday afternoon, with a brief address by Annie Besant and expressions of thanks to our Dutch Theosophists from the attending General Secretaries, the congress concluded. That evening, Dr. Hallo gave a public lecture on the human aura, illustrated with slides.

An exhibition of works of art of particular interest to Theosophists had been organized and could be viewed during the entire duration of the congress.

London was chosen as the venue for next year's congress.