Sense of life

The sense of life or life sense is one of the twelve physical senses that Rudolf Steiner spoke of in his theory of the senses. Through the sense of life we perceive our general inner physical condition. The perception of inner organ activity, which normally remains largely unconscious, is today referred to in medicine as visceroception (from Latin: viscera and recipere "to take in"). It is mediated by corresponding visceroceptors, which are receptive to stimuli from the visceral system and the thoracic cavity. In this way, hunger, thirst, urge to urinate or visceral pain, for example, are perceived. The so-called "intuitive" gut feeling is also related to this.

Since disturbances of the body's activity are often also expressed in more or less specific pain experiences, one can also speak of the sense of pain. Tissue damage and injuries caused by mechanical, thermal and chemical effects are registered by the free sensory nerve endings of corresponding nociceptors (from Latin: nocere "to harm"), which are present in almost every tissue of the human body.

Literature

• Antonio Damasio: Selbst ist der Mensch. Körper, Geist und die Entstehung des menschlichen Bewusstseins. Siedler, München 2011, ISBN 978-3-88680-924-0
• Rudolf Steiner: Anthroposophie. Ein Fragment aus dem Jahre 1910, GA 45 (2002), ISBN 3-7274-452-3 English: rsarchive.org German: pdf pdf(2) html mobi epub archive.org
• Rudolf Steiner: Anthroposophie – Psychosophie – Pneumatosophie, GA 115 (2001), ISBN 3-7274-1150-3 English: rsarchive.org German: pdf pdf(2) html mobi epub archive.org
• Rudolf Steiner: Das Rätsel des Menschen. Die geistigen Hintergründe der menschlichen Geschichte, GA 170 (1992) English: rsarchive.org German: pdf pdf(2) html mobi epub archive.org
• Rudolf Steiner: Geisteswissenschaft als Erkenntnis der Grundimpulse sozialer Gestaltung, GA 199 (1985) 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.