Lecture II

By this you will be able to see in what the deceptive nature of materialist consists. There is nothing in everyday life that does not make an impression on the brain. Just as every step makes an impression on the earth, and you can prove that each of your steps has made its impression, you can also prove that all that is willed and thought makes its impression, has its influence, on the brain. But that is only the trace, it is only what is left behind of the thinking. Thinking takes place indeed in the etheric body; in reality everything you perceive as thinking is nothing but the etheric body's inner activity. So long as we remain in the physical body we need this physical body for thinking. It is very easy to see why the materialist does not arrive at the true. The materialist says: For heaven sake, can’t you see that you must have a brain if you are to think? And if you see this, you can also see that it is your brain which actually does the thinking. And if you see this, you can also see that it is your brain which actually does the thinking. This conclusion is about as clever as to say: I can prove that this track on the road has been made by the ground itself. I shall remove part of the ground and you will see that without it you are unable to walk. The ground is indeed a necessity—it is also necessary to have a brain to be able, when in the physical body, to think.