Life ether

The life ether (also word ether, Sanskrit: Prana, occasionally also called atomistic ether by Rudolf Steiner) is the highest etheric state. It only came into being during the development of the Earth together with the solid earth element. Today it has a formative effect through all elements down to the earth element. It imprints the mineral into the organism and can further form it into mineral-solid forms, as it happens especially in the bone system.

Connected with the life ether is that which in Persian tradition was called Honover, and which in the Gospel of John is called Logos - the creating world word.

The life ether does not show itself directly to sensual perception, but only indirectly through its formative effects in all living things. Of our outer senses, however, the sense of smell corresponds to it, through which it reveals itself indirectly. In our inner experience it is the life ether that gives our thoughts their inner meaning.

While in perception man kills the light ether (cf. → colour perception process) and the warmth ether, he cannot kill the sound ether and the life ether. This is what is meant by the words of Genesis, that man, having eaten of the tree of knowledge, should not also eat of the tree of life.

The life ether is significant for man's life after death, because the [[life panorama] that man experiences shortly after death as a review of his past earthly life is inscribed into the world life ether, so that man can always have the review of his last earthly life between death and new birth:

„And we take with us an extract from our etheric body ... so that we can always establish a connection between ourselves and this tableau of life entered into the general life ether.“ (Lit.:GA 133, p. 137)

The life ether is thus also closely connected with the world memory in general, with the Akasha Chronicle.

Literatur

• Rudolf Steiner: Der irdische und der kosmische Mensch, GA 133 (1964), English: rsarchive.org German: pdf pdf(2) html mobi epub archive.org
• Rudolf Steiner: Innere Entwicklungsimpulse der Menschheit. Goethe und die Krisis des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts, GA 171 (1984), ISBN 3-7274-1710-2 English: rsarchive.org German: pdf pdf(2) html mobi epub archive.org

References to the work of Rudolf Steiner follow Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works (CW or GA), Rudolf Steiner Verlag, Dornach/Switzerland, unless otherwise stated. Email: verlag@steinerverlag.com URL: www.steinerverlag.com. Index to the Complete Works of Rudolf Steiner - Aelzina Books A complete list by Volume Number and a full list of known English translations you may also find at Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works Rudolf Steiner Archive - The largest online collection of Rudolf Steiner's books, lectures and articles in English. Rudolf Steiner Audio - Recorded and Read by Dale Brunsvold steinerbooks.org - Anthroposophic Press Inc. (USA) Rudolf Steiner Handbook - Christian Karl's proven standard work for orientation in Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works for free download as PDF.