Stars and the Significance of the Zodiac by Rudolf Steiner with Journaling Prompts

If we look up to the stars, we can say that something streams from them that can be perceived by the human being’s sense organs here on earth.  But what we behold when we gaze at the stars is not of the same nature as what we perceive on the earth in the mineral, plant and animal kingdoms.  In reality it proceeds from beings of intelligence and will whose life is bound up with those stars.  The effects appear to be physical because the stars are at a distance.  They are not in reality physical at all.  What you actually see are the activities of beings of will and intelligence in the stars.  I have spoken to you of the ingenious description of the sun given by astrophysicists.  But if it were possible to journey to the sun it would be found with amazement that nothing of what is to be expected from these physical descriptions exists.  The descriptions are merely a composite picture of solar phenomena.  What we see is in reality the working of will and intelligence which at a distance appears in the light.

“This excerpt is presented in its original form to preserve the depth and nuance of Rudolf Steiner’s language.  While some phrasing may differ from modern conventions, its meaning and essence remain intact.”

Let us try for a moment, consider space alone, and out of the whole visible heavens let us consider the regions that comprise the zodiac.  Let us consider the directions to which we look in the heavens when we turn, for instance, towards Aries (Ram) in the zodiac; then Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces.  All we have to note, in the first place, is that the space that lies before us as our visible universe is divided in this way.  The signs merely denote the boundary of a certain section of space. 

Now we must not imagine that these directions of space can be treated in such a manner that one might say; ‘There is empty space, and I just draw a line somewhere into it.’ Such a thing as mathematics calls ‘space’ simply does not exist; but everywhere are lines of force, directions of force, and these are not equal, they vary, they are differentiated.  We can distinguish between these twelve regions by realizing that if we turn in the direction of the sign of Aries, the force we experience is a different one than it would be had we faced the sign of Libra or Cancer.  In each direction the force differs. The human being will not admit this as long as he lives merely in the world of the senses; but as soon as he ascends to the imaginative life of the soul, he no longer experiences the directions in space as the same when facing Aries or Cancer, but feels their influence upon him as greatly differentiated.

People are unaware what a specialized thing the sun is.  The sun is not really the same when in the course of a year or day it shines onto the earth from Taurus, or from Cancer, or the other constellations. In each case it is different.  It is comparative nonsense to speak of the sun in general terms—albeit, pardonable nonsense.  We should really speak of Aries-sun, Taurus-sun, Cancer-sun, Leo-sun, and so on.  For the sun is a different being in each case.  Moreover, the resultant influence depends both on the daily course and on the yearly course of the sun, as determined by its position in the vernal point.

The sun maintains its power through the fact that it comes into connection with the different regions of the universe.  It also means something different for the earth if the sun’s light is strengthened or weakened by the other planets of our planetary system.  And here different relationships arise in regard to the different planets; the relationships to the ‘outer planets’—Mars, Jupiter and Saturn—are different from those to the ‘inner planets’—Mercury, Venus and moon.

It is clear that our metabolic forces still retain a certain connection with the rhythm of our daily life.  The forces of form have solidified.  Now consider the animal instead of the human being.  Here we shall find a much more complete dependence upon the macrocosm.  The human being has grown out of or beyond this dependence.  Ancient wisdom therefore referred to the zodiac or ‘animal circle’, not to the ‘human being circle’, as corresponding to formative forces.  These forces manifest themselves in the animal kingdom in a great variety of forms, while in the human being they manifest essentially in one form encompassing the whole human race; but they are the forces of the animal kingdom, and as we evolve beyond them and become the human being, we must go out and beyond the zodiac.  Beyond the zodiac lies that upon which we, as human beings, are dependent in a higher sense than we are upon all that exists within the zodiac, that is, within the circle of the fixed stars.  Beyond the zodiac is that which corresponds to our ego. 

With the astral body—which the animal also possesses—we are fettered to a dependence upon the macrocosm, and the building up of the astral vehicle takes place in accordance with the will of the stars.  But with our ‘I’ or ego we transcend the zodiac.

Here we have the principle upon which we have gained our freedom.  Within the zodiac we cannot sin, any more than can the animals; we begin to sin as soon as we carry our actions beyond the zodiac.  This happens when we do things that make us free from our connection with universal formative forces, when we enter into a relationship with regions exterior to the zodiac or the region of fixed stars.  And this is the essential content of the human ego.

You see, we may measure the universe in so far as it appears to us a visible and temporal thing, we may measure its full extent through space to the outermost fixed stars, and all that takes place by way of movement in time in this starry heaven, and we may consider all this in its relation to the human being; but in the human being something is being fulfilled that occurs outside this space and outside this time, outside all that takes place in the astral.  Beyond the latter this is no ‘natural necessity’, but only what is intimately connected with our moral nature and moral actions.  Within the zodiac we are unable to evolve our moral nature; but in so far as we evolve it, we record it into the macrocosm beyond the zodiac.  All that we do remains and works in the world.

Now the stars we see may be further away from or closer to the moon.  Looking at the stars we see the moon pass through the starry heavens.  But whilst some constellations are positioned in such a way that the moon always passes through them, it does not pass through others.  So if you consider Hercules, for instance, the moon does not pass through the Lion at given intervals.  Twelve constellations have the special characteristic that they form the path taken by the moon and also by the sun.  We may say, therefore, that the twelve constellations Ram, Bull, Twins, Crab, Lion, Virgin, Scales, Scorpion, Archer, Goat, Water Carrier and Fishes mark the path of the moon.  It always passes through them and not through the other constellations.  We are thus always able to say that at any particular time the moon, if it is in the sky, is in one constellation or another, but only a constellation that is part of the zodiac.

Now I want you to consider that everything there is by way of stars in the sky has a definite influence on the earth as a whole and specifically also on the human being.  The human being truly depends not only on what exists here on earth but also on the stars that are there in the heavens.

~ Excerpt from ‘Cosmos as the Source of Life,'  Chapter 2 of Agriculture: An Introductory Reader by Rudolf Steiner.  Original texts compiled with an introduction, commentary, and notes by Richard Thornton Smith.

Note: This excerpt is from Rudolf Steiner’s original text and does not include commentary or notes from the editor.

 

 

 

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Journaling Prompts for Self-Reflection

 

Cosmic Connection

Rudolf Steiner speaks of the influence of the stars as not merely physical but as the working of “beings of will and intelligence.” How do you perceive the relationship between humanity and the cosmos?  When reflecting on their influence, do you feel a deeper connection to the stars?

Zodiac Forces

According to the excerpt, the zodiac signs represent different regions of force in the universe.  Do you notice any personal connection to the qualities of specific zodiac signs?  How might the direction you face when observing the sky influence your mood or mindset?

Beyond the Zodiac

The text suggests that, as humans, we transcend the zodiac by developing our egos.  In what ways do you feel you have moved beyond the influence of the zodiac in your personal growth?  How do you integrate your sense of freedom into your relationship with the Cosmos?

The Moon’s Journey

Steiner shares the twelve constellations that mark the moon’s path, the zodiac.  How does its journey through the zodiac and its cycles affect the rhythms and patterns of your life?

 

 

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