I. Inner Evolution and Outer Possibilities for Development

Let us assume that we have such a child. It grows up. We take care to ensure that it develops regularly up to the age of seven, we make sure that it eats and drinks well, that it becomes chubby. This is taken care of quite well. The child looks well-fed. We continue to ensure that the child is well-fed from the age of seven, but now we begin to disregard the rules by which the education of the child from the age of seven should reasonably be governed. We now begin to disregard these rules and make the mistake, for example, of succumbing to materialistic prejudices and saying that we want to see to it that the child comes to intellectual judgment as early as possible, that he learns to have his own judgment as early as possible. This is the case today because of our materialistic way of thinking. I have often given this example.