The History of the Esoteric School 1904–1914, Volume One

GA 264 — Berlin

To A.W. Sellin in Hamburg

August 15, 1906

Dear Director!

Today I also have something to say about your exercise. It is right to continue it in the same way until about August 23. Then it would have to be shaped in the following way. You begin your morning meditation with

1. breathing exercise.¹ Before you begin to take the usual breathing breaths, imagine, as vividly as you can, a plant that you know well. You must know it in every detail, so that the imagination can be a very exact one. You keep this image as the only content of your consciousness in mind for the duration of the eight breathing-strokes that now follow.

You now do the following:

Inhalation – retention – exhalation, so that the three intervals relate to each other as 1:4:2 (in feeling), so if the inhalation lasts 2 seconds, for example, the retention lasts 8 seconds and the exhalation 4 seconds. (If you cannot breathe in this order, normal breaths can be inserted in between, but the presentation of the plant must not be interrupted.) While inhaling and during the first half of the retention, meditate with the plant in mind:

“Your death, my life“

During the second half-breath and while breathing out, meditate on

“My death, your life”

(The meaning of these words will gradually become clear to you on its own).

This is done over the course of seven breaths.

On the eighth, you try to put your consciousness into the plant itself as much as possible, as if you were in the plant and looking at yourself from the outside. (As if you had gone out of yourself and were standing in front of yourself); in doing so, you meditate on yourself.

When inhaling and half exhaling:

“My death - your life”

on the second half-breath and exhalation:

“Your death - my life”

Do this only once.

Then follow:

Active thinking at the point between and slightly behind the eyebrows (nasal root) and meditate:

I am

Active thinking at the inside of the larynx and meditate:

It thinks.

Lively thought of arms and hands, meditating:

She feels.

Lively thought of the whole body, meditating:

It wants.

Warm greetings,

Dr. Rudolf Steiner
Berlin W 30, Motzstrasse 17