Within earthly life it is indeed highest bliss to overcome it, to overcome sense-life through spiritual life. Desire seeking to destroy what pertains to the Earth still takes on the form of desire. Nevertheless it is a noble form of desire if the element of desire contained in this aspiration is overcome.

Source: https://rsarchive.org/Lectures/19050512p01.html

Rise and progression now consists in people overcoming physical love. The separation into the two sexes was necessary for the intellect to develop in man. He was thereby split into a lower and a higher nature. But what the two sexes have in common must now be overcome again. It is a stage of ascension when man sacrifices the forces of physical love and transmutes them into higher forces. By sacrificing these lower powers, the higher can appear in him.

Source: 1906-05-06-GA266A

In the age of materialism it is exceedingly difficult to maintain in true and right perspective, this concept of compassion or love. Many of you will realise that in our materialistic times this concept is distorted, in that materialism associates the concept of 'love' so closely with that of 'sexuality' with which, fundamentally, it has nothing whatever to do. That is a point where the culture of our day abandons both intelligence and sound, healthy reason. Through its materialism, evolution in our time is veering not only towards the unintelligent and illogical but even towards the scandalous, when 'love' is dragged into such close association with what is covered by the term 'sexuality'. The fact that under certain circumstances the element of sexuality may be associated with love between man and woman is no argument for bringing so closely together the all-embracing nature of love or compassion, and the entirely specific character of sexuality.

So far as logic is concerned, to associate the concept of, say, a 'railway engine' with that of a man being 'run over', because engines do sometimes run over people, would be just about as intelligent as it is to connect the concept of love so closely with that of sexuality — simply because under certain circumstances there is an outward association. That this happens today is not the outcome of any scientific hypothesis but of the irrational and, to some extent, unhealthy mode of thinking prevailing in our time.

Source: https://rsarchive.org/Lectures/19120514p01.html

It shows that in a time not all that far ahead, possibly as early as the seventh millennium, all women will be infertile on earth. The withering and crumbling of human bodies will go so far that this will happen. Just think — if the relationships that can only come into their own between the inner life and the physical body were to continue unchanged, people would no longer find anything to do on earth. The fact is that women will no longer be able to have children, even before the earth has gone through all its stages. Human beings therefore have to find a different way of relating to earthly existence. The final stages of earth evolution will make it necessary for them to do without physical bodies and yet be present on earth. Existence holds more mysteries than people would like to think when they base themselves on the primitive ideas of modern science.

Source: https://rsarchive.org/Lectures/19171007p01.html

Connection between the sexual energies and the abilities to transform what is lower within us to a higher state of being.

The purification and illumination of the astral body, which results in the reformation of the astral body is fundamental to preliminary esoteric development.

This development is stunted and frustrated by desires of a physical or sexual nature and the forces required, for the purification, reformation and illumination of the astral body are corrupted and dissipated through the fulfillment of such thoughts, feelings and activities as those pertaining to our lower nature.

These forces of our lower nature are what we must sacrifice in order that higher forces might be enkindled within our nature.

This is the universal sacrificial animal, put to death upon the altar of the temple as a sacrifice to the Gods, we must sacrifice this animal self, and out of its force forge a new being.

The forces which become the generative forces are born out of the Astral body, they are light and become bound, corrupt by descent into generation and into body, they must be liberated and redeemed, by Will and Wisdom. When they are won and cultivated to refinement, through the methods of anthroposophy they become again a part of our spiritual vestment, they are woven into new formations within the Astral body.

These forces enliven and strengthen us.

Dr. Steiner tells us in plain english that we fashion the higher out of the lower forces. There isn't another interpretation, and yet people will choose to ignore such statements because it is uncomfortable, and conflicts with their beliefs.

He states clearly that actually when we resist an immoral thought and impulse we increase in strength, we are granted astral forces or increase.

Updated:

PART 1 - The astral body as it exists today is composed of that part which has been acted upon and conditioned by the I, and that part which has not been acted upon and conditioned by the I. The part that has been properly conditioned and acted upon by the activity of the I is called spirit-self (or manas) , this is part of the astral body has been totally spiritualised or 'spirit filled', by the activity of the incarnate I- being or I.

See Man's bodily principles, Man's higher triad, Human astral body

Each human being consciously or unconsciously is already participating in this process, through spiritual science and initiation exercises we make this process conscious, and it occurs more deeply and rapidly than would be the case if left to evolution (and the process of reincarnation).

This process of purification and 'ordering' of the astral body, which results in the transformation of the astral body is fundamental to esoteric development, and to the healthy development and growth of the total human being. This process of purification or Catharsis means that through the activity of the I, certain thoughts, feelings and impulses that arise within the human being and his astral body, are in a sense corrected by the corresponding moral impulse. Each time the I consciously resists these lower impulses and acts to correct them, through what may be termed 'Strength of Will and Moral Thinking', he (the Astral body) is strengthened.

During this process of purification of the astral body, the I must so act upon and face every single desire thought impulse that has been impressed and stored within the astral body [and is part of one's Individuality and karmic package]. Every desire or thought is faced again through this process of astral purging.

This is essentially the process of Karma Loka [kamaloka], that generally the human being experiences after death, whereby he experiences the 'burning out' or exhaustion of the forces which he has bestowed through his thinking, feeling and willing activity during life on Earth upon material desires and urges.

This astral bottle becomes the alchemical vessel within which the corrupt material or corrupt forces are cleansed by the fire, or a kind of astral combustion. As an I being, we inhabit this astral vessel, that this burning out of or combustion of the corrupt forces of the desire nature must occur within, and the greater the desire life of the individual, the more intensified this experience of astral purgation is. [re Purgatorio in Dante's Divine Comedy]

When we practice meditation and initiation excercises, this process of catharsis is stimulated within us whilst we are incarnate in a body upon Earth. The exercises and anthroposophical literature are written with an exactly planned order and structure so as to stimulate the processes of catharsis or astral purging).

Note: see oa Initiation exercises , Development of the chakras, Kundalini

Every time that, as I beings, we give our thoughts and forces to desires of a material nature, we are creating experiences that we must face during catharsis. And the greater force of the desire bestowed, the greater will be the intensity of the experience during the purging and cleansing of the astral body. The greater the force of the desire, the greater the 'will force and moral fortitude' that is required to redeem it.

This is one of the reasons why the individual is guided through religion, anthroposophy and philosophy to find constructive outlets for the forces that arise through his generative function.

See eg Charter of Compassion, Sources of spiritual science

When the life is correctly ordered, and these forces applied to constructive activities,

• Not only do we prevent the increase of corrupt astral content that we have to purge,
• But we are in the process of purging the existing content stored within this Astral body, and strengthening our being through the reclaiming of the forces previously bestowed upon the world of desire by our previous thoughts, feelings and actions.

These forces are claimed through 'moral thinking and strength of will' and ennobled through the contemplation of spiritual knowledge, through meditation and specific initiation excercises, through artistic expression, through character development and improvement, through moral thought and action, through meeting the responsibilites and necessities of our life pattern and karma, through self sacrifice and community participation, through any dedication which results in inner growth we raise these forces up within ourselves and build this vestiture of our I, which is our astral body. We gradually develop our purified astral body into what is termed the 'pure, chaste and wise Virgin Sophia'. This is the fulfillment of the processes of astral catharsis, it means it has been totally cleansed, ennobled and correctly developed.

This entire process also develops the organs of supersensible cognition. At this stage we are enabled to cross the threshold of the invisible veil (that separates the astral plane from our view) and are initiated, by the illumination of our astral being by the inflowing of the Holy Spirit.

Contemplating the above, is it any wonder that there are not more human beings today endowed with Supersensible perception?

And then:

PART 2 - The above development is stunted and frustrated by desires of a physical or sexual nature and the forces required, for the purification, reformation and illumination of the astral body are corrupted and dissipated.

This occurs through the fulfillment of such thoughts, feelings and activities as those pertaining to the desires arising in our lower nature. These forces of our lower nature are what we must sacrifice, and offer up in order that higher forces might be enkindled within our nature. This is the sacrifice of the animal nature with us is the universal sacrificial animal, put to death upon the altar of the temple as a sacrifice to the Gods, we must sacrifice this animal self, and out of its force forge a new being.

see also: Sacrifice (and suffering)

The forces which become the generative forces and substances arise in the astral body. These forces act upon the etheric body to stimulate the generative processes through the nervous and endocrine glandular systems, they begin as astral and etheric force or light, and through the kind of overshadowing, activating and stimulating the glandular structures, these forces become organised into the biochemical compounds that are involved in the generative process.

These intermingled astral and etheric forces forces which have been bound into formations as biochemical substances (various hormones and precursors) and those forces which, as a karmic heredity we have received as a generative endowment, are those which must be liberated and redeemed, by 'Will and Wisdom or Moral thinking'. When these forces are won and cultivated they enliven and strengthen us.

Rudolf Steiner tells us in plain english [well actually it was German] that we fashion the higher out of the lower forces, and it occurs in somewhat the manner described above.

Celibacy - abstinence

Andrei Belyi quoting Rudolf Steiner

The following extract is by Andrei Belyi in the essay 'The Man, Rudolf Steiner' taken from the book 'Meeting Rudolf Steiner' (classics from the Journal of Anthroposophy, No 75 of Fall 2005)

[sexuality]

The way in which Steiner dealt with the problem of the sexes was markedly chaste. His formulation of the question was far removed from Freud's. Professor S. N. Bulgakov said to me once, "Steiner's ideology is sexless." That is not true. Steiner never closed his eyes to the significance of the sexes.

He said, "The spiritual forces at work in sexuality ..." or "The spiritual forces inherent in sexuality ..."

He merely emphasized that sex is not in itself these "forces," but is only the form in which they make their appearance. He stressed that it is dangerous to confuse the source of these forces and the form in which they are manifested. From this arise sexual aberrations.

He compared the forces of sex with the branches that stretch themselves heavenward, and their outward form with the roots of the tree. Indulging one's interest in sexual problems he considered idle curiosity that lays the roots bare. He never denied the roots themselves.

But he stressed that the ascetics as well as the followers of sexual philosophy have an exaggerated interest in the bared roots. The tree that is planted roots uppermost dies. The transformation of the powers of sex takes place through the intensification of the functions of that part of the tree that is above the earth, the foliage, which also provides nourishment for the roots.

The foliage is consciousness.

Steiner's seemingly abstract idealism is very concrete. He stood for the transformation of the spiritual forces within sex through the powers of the I, for shifting the focal point of sexuality. The true evolution of sex is its transformation.

[relationships]

In daily life he was free and independent, and he welcomed all independence. It was whispered that he destroyed marriages. This criticism, like any distortion, was not altogether unfounded. The falsity of middle-class marriage that is no marriage at all, but an arrangement upon a sexual or economic basis, made him indignant. Ungenuine middle-class marriages burst at every seam when they came in contact with anthroposophy. He did not take people who separated out of a love of freedom and drag them back by the ears into marriage. Every true marriage he greeted with enthusiasm.

An example of his independent attitude in matters of love: A married man complained that when his wife had asked Steiner whether she should return to her husband, she had been advised against it. Later the Doctor said to this man,

"I know that you have been angry with me because I did not say to your wife, 'Go back to him'.

But please think it over. Could I really have said that! You still love her, but your wife asked.

If you love, you do not ask."

Thereupon the husband, an admirer of the Philosophy of Freedom, understood him. His reproach against the Doctor changed into warmest gratitude.

In his kindness, the demands he made upon himself were unending. "Compassion has its limits," Mariya Yakovlevna said to him. But he replied:

"No, compassion has no limits."

Of love he said:

"It is a giving faculty. The more one gives, the more one has to give."

Every true love, according to his words, has the quality of infinite extension.

He extended himself.

Daskalos

in the book by Markides: Homage to Sun (HTS), 1987 - based on visits summers 83-84-85 and period 85-86

... for the advanced mystic food is nothing more than a necessity in keeping the body alive. Sexuality, too, is not an end in itself, but a means for cooperating with the Absolute in the process of creation.'

I pointed out that to me what he had said about sexuality sounded like a doctrine for the ascetic life.

Not so: the ascetic aims to subdue his desires, whereas the advanced master has transcended his desires.

I am not at all suggesting that sexual desire should be suppressed. It is a need for you. I cannot demand that you abstain. You are at a phase of your existence when sexual pleasure is a necessity.

I am not urging you not to cook delicious gourmet food which you have a craving for. ...

You may say that pleasures of the flesh are illusions. For those who need them, however, they are good and beautiful illusions that can create harmonious relationships between human beings, men and women. I am not underestimating physical desires. But as for myself, I am not enamored of them.

A true mystic .. overcome[s] the illusion and passion for ownership. Our real possessions are not the amounts of material things we own, but what we have stored within ourselves. Attachment to material objects, therefore, is an impediment to one's spiritual advancement.

I do not have to own flowers in order to enjoy them. When I enjoy beautiful flowers, the gardens of the whole world are mine. I need not own them. What I possess in reality is what I can behold, not what I own. The moment that you grab something and call it "mine," you are a very poor man. The moment you open your palm and say, "everything is mine," without restricting what is yours to what is in your hand, you are truly a rich person.

Discussion

Celibacy is an almost universal expectation amongst the mystery schools of old, and the true ones of today.

Initiates slay the dragon as the archangel Michael, plunging the serpent into the abyss, with a lance through its heart. ("Michael lend my thy sword, that I may be armed to vanquish the dragon in me".)

It seems as though Dr. Steiner wished to direct the minds of his pupils towards that which is true (Spirit and spirit knowledge) more so than to focus the attention upon that which is not true (the knowledge of maya, or illusion, which is knowledge if the bodies of things).

Everything that is a physical occurrence has as its source of animation and existence a spiritual reality, without which it cannot exist.

Anthroposophy pertains to the religious inclinations of the human being and towards that which is moral.

That which is immoral, of which the unrestrained impulses of the lower nature are.. do not pertain to the religious impulse in man and in fact are its antithesis.

In the above sense I also feel compelled to make the distinction that I believe all people can gain from the practice and study of Anthroposophy, Religion, Philosophy etc even those who do not practice abstinence and chastity, however the deeper teachings relating to them and the true path of Esoteric initiation and development is definitely a distinct and different story altogether and these do teach and require abstinence and chastity of the candidate.

Edited Version:

The topic of chastity, and how it relates to the average individual, is an important one, and there is no 'one size fits all' pattern or universal recommendation.

However one can say it is safe to start with the encouragement of the gradual ennobling of the thought, feeling and will life of the individual - from whatever stage in their overall development that they are currently at - through whatever branch of channel of moral teaching: be it religion, philosophy, or the love that comes through wisdom via spiritual science.

[When we open up ourselves and commit to spend emotional and mental energy on this, we listen to and let ourselves be guided by the voice of our own conscience. A voice that becomes ever clearer once one finds one's higher self with meditation and initiation exercises].

Regarding 'renunciation', see the quote 1908-10-26-GA107 on Astral world:

With the smallest renunciation that we take upon us, we make a step forwards in the sense that we evolve upwards to the good side of the astral world on the path of sacrifice. When one renounces the most insignificant thing, it is an inculcation of something that contributes essentially to experiencing the good side of the astral world. Hence, in esoteric traditions so much weight is laid on the test carried out by the pupil of denying oneself this or that, the exercise of renouncing.

An important aspect is that suppression of desires does not really work, because the elementals will resurface. Rather the process requires starvation of elemental energies, and this is best done by transmutation: to put something better in place of an old urge or habit. See Bardon's IIH step 2 astral.

Discussions on topics of sexuality within a spiritual scientific context and community.

Here is a thought that might not be entirely accepted in the wider community, but worthy of consideration none the less.

Anthroposophy which is intended to ennoble, inspire and spiritualise the human being .. what exactly does it have to do with the teachings regarding sexuality?

That which is related to the enkindling of desire and to the fulfillment of the impulses of the desire nature, which anthroposophy is supposed to metamorphose within the the human being and ennoble, is essentially the antithesis of Anthroposophy or of religious instruction.

It really seems to me to be an absurdity, quite obscene. These peddlers of corruption ought to have their tables in the temple upturned, and be expelled, as Christ did in the Gospels to the money changers. Let us think about it this way.. would we expect to see the pornographers in their houses of corruption and in their visual gospels of lust and depravity to encourage morality and biblical virtue? Such a thing is as absurd as intermingling the ideas of sexuality with anthroposophy.

.. none of this is said in a sense of judgement against those who hold contrary view or opinions, or against those who live in a different manner .. but I believe there is a great risk for a kind of cancerous corruption of ideology to enter into the last sacred institutions that we have in this world, and the anthrophosophical movement is one of those sacred institutions that must be preserved from this corruption, in my humble opinion.

Response on the last statement:

My view is that sexuality, just like anything which is part of human nature and experience, is to be positioned and understood from a spiritual scientific perspective. This is useful and required for education, and so that every individual can give sexuality 'the right place' based on such understanding.

I agree that today this intention and perspective does not always come across as pure as this intention, when the topic is raised, because of how our souls and minds are influenced and maybe already corrupted by mainstream culture and media in this respect.

Hence, sexuality is enlarged to a much bigger and more important topic than it should be, given its right place in the context of the whole human being and it's task for spiritualization.

Also, in a way the more (mental) energy one gives to a topic, the larger it becomes. And in that sense it is a bit perverse to focus tremendously on matters of the lower astral and physical bodies, only .. without placing them immediately in context of the whole, because they can not be considered on their own.

What do you think, does that make sense?

This is something that is indeed apparent in threads and discussions on matters of sexuality, they are put forth as relevant. For sure they are, as example children are struggling with gender confusion - to give just one example. But at the same time media and culture is almost promoting the sensation of the current transgender phenomena, as if feasting on it. Whether that is judged as perversion or ignorance is a matter of perspective, imho, because contemporary culture is blind and ignorant in many ways and on many or most matters, and this is no different.

One could say that the sensational aspects do speak to the lower drives of the audience and population worldwide. And those people are withheld, or not ready or interested, in the bigger picture. This is no different than pornography, or other additions such as alcohol which is also societally embedded (and culturally promoted) whereas it is a force working against spiritual development.

Another thought that occurred, thinking about the above threads on anthro forums, was the question: what are people really after, or looking for. Is it a moral ethical judgement, a physiological understanding from a spiritual scientific perspective, an explanation so as to understand and accept (by 'giving it its place')?

Maybe our task, or the position in general, could be to draw the big rectangle of the whole frame, point out what matters most, and then include the physical sexuality in that bigger frame, so it has its place.

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