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[[File:Vassily Kandinsky, 1923 - Composition 8, huile sur toile, 140 cm x 201 cm, Musée Guggenheim, New York.jpg|thumb|300px|
[[w:Wassily Kandinsky|Wassily Kandinsky]]: Composition VIII, 1923, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York]]
'''Thinking''' ({{OHG|thenken}} (8th century)<ref>{{DWDS|denken}}</ref> or ''dankjan'', ''denkjan''; {{Germanic|*þank-ja-}}, from {{Indo-European|*teng-}} "to perceive, to feel, to sense, to have the appearance of, to think"; from this also derived ''thank'', especially in the sense of ''devotion'', ''remembrance'' etc., which makes clear the grateful disposition originally associated with thinking; {{Latin|cogito}} "I think", 1st person sing. of {{lang|la|cogitare}} "to think, to ponder, to be [good or evil] minded") or '''thinking faculty''' ({{Greek|διανοητικόν}} ''dianoetikon'' or {{lang|grc|διανοητική ψυχή}} ''dianoêtike psyché'', from {{Greek|διάνοια}} ''dianoia'' "pondering, understanding, reasoning"; {{Latin|anima rationalis}}) is one of the three fundamental soul forces of man. Through thinking, we experience or form [[concept]]s and [[idea]]s and, with the help of [[memory]], also imaginative conceptions, in which the inner lawfulness of that which initially confronts us without understanding in the isolated perceptions is supposed to reveal itself. Without thinking, perception would remain an incoherent, diffuse aggregate of objects of sensation.
'''Thinking''' ({{OHG|thenken}} (8th century)<ref>{{DWDS|denken}}</ref> or ''dankjan'', ''denkjan''; {{Germanic|*þank-ja-}}, from {{Indo-European|*teng-}} "to perceive, to feel, to sense, to have the appearance of, to think"; from this also derived ''thank'', especially in the sense of ''devotion'', ''remembrance'' etc., which makes clear the grateful disposition originally associated with thinking; {{Latin|cogito}} "I think", 1st person sing. of {{lang|la|cogitare}} "to think, to ponder, to be [good or evil] minded") or '''thinking faculty''' ({{Greek|διανοητικόν}} ''dianoetikon'' or {{lang|grc|διανοητική ψυχή}} ''dianoêtike psyché'', from {{Greek|διάνοια}} ''dianoia'' "pondering, understanding, reasoning"; {{Latin|anima rationalis}}) is one of the three fundamental soul forces of man. Through thinking, we experience or form [[concept]]s and [[idea]]s and, with the help of [[memory]], also imaginative conceptions, in which the inner lawfulness of that which initially confronts us without understanding in the isolated perceptions is supposed to reveal itself. Without thinking, perception would remain an incoherent, diffuse aggregate of objects of sensation.


Usually, only the final result of the thinking activity in the form of fully formed [[thought]]s becomes conscious, since the attention is directed entirely towards the object of thinking, but not towards it itself. The conscious [[observation of thinking]], on the other hand, represents an exceptional state, which, however, every thinking person can deliberately bring about with a little practice. He then observes his own spiritual activity - and thus stands at the beginning of [[spiritual perception]] in general, through which he experiences himself as a [[spiritual being]]. This is at the same time a safe starting point for all further spiritual perception.  
Usually, only the final result of the thinking activity in the form of fully formed [[thought]]s becomes conscious, since the attention is directed entirely towards the object of thinking, but not towards it itself. The conscious [[observation of thinking]], on the other hand, represents an exceptional state, which, however, every thinking person can deliberately bring about with a little practice. He then observes his own spiritual activity - and thus stands at the beginning of [[spiritual perception]] in general, through which he experiences himself as a [[spiritual being]]. This is at the same time a safe starting point for all further spiritual perception.  
== The foundations of thought ==
Through the activity of thinking, which grasps the brain and forms it into a reflecting apparatus, the thoughts produced by thinking are made to appear in consciousness. As a rule, therefore, we do not become conscious of the thinking process as such, but only of its result, the thoughts that are the mentally experienced manifestation of this purely spiritual process. Mere having of thoughts, i.e. the presence of finished thoughts in consciousness, which are called up from memory as the result of earlier thinking without any actual actively experienced insight, or which were only more or less passively acquired as knowledge without one's own deeper insight in reliance on an authority, or which even consist only of factually largely unrelated associations of thoughts, is not yet thinking. Real thinking only arises when it is brought forth by one's own effort and progresses self-actively to the immediate clear insight into the present ideal connections. The observation of thinking, i.e. of the spiritual process itself that brings forth the thoughts, furthermore represents an exceptional state, which, however, is accessible to every thinking person with the appropriate training of attention. Insofar as the thinker thereby observes his own spiritual activity, it is the most important and fundamental form of fully conscious spiritual perception, on which all further modern spiritual research can build. In intellectual contemplation, as [[Fichte]] already remarked, intelligence sees itself:
{{LZ|Intelligence, as such, looks at itself; and this seeing itself is immediately united with everything that comes to it[3], and in this immediate union of being and seeing consists the nature of intelligence. What is in it, and what it is in general, it is for itself; and only in so far as it is it for itself, it is it, as intelligence.|Fichte, p. 435}}
Due to the [[ahriman]]ic influence, we today very easily fall into thought automatism, in which ready-made thoughts are combined at will without real thinking being actively involved. Here, therefore, special attentiveness is necessary, especially with regard to the verbal expression of our thoughts. We should therefore pay strict attention not to use common phrases thoughtlessly. In other words, we should not follow the urge of [[meme]]s, which spread very quickly from person to person in our modern information society.
{{GZ|The best way to protect ourselves is to strive more and more to develop clear and precise thinking, to think as precisely as possible, not to simply rush along thinking about things, as is the current social custom. Not jumping over things, but thinking clearly. We should go even further: We should try to be more and more careful not to use common phrases and words. For the moment one uses passable words, which one has not from thought but from the habit of speech, one becomes thoughtless, if only for a brief moment. And these are particularly dangerous moments, because one does not pay attention to it. One should take care to avoid using such words where one does not think enough.|254|177}}
=== Thinking and etheric forces ===
{{See also|Thinking as an activity of the etheric body}}
In thinking, the same [[etheric forces]] are at work that shape the [[physical body]], regenerate it and cause it to grow. In contrast to the physical forces, these are potential-free universal cosmic [[peripheral forces]].
{{GZ|It is of the utmost importance to know that the ordinary thinking forces of man are the refined shaping and growing forces. In the shaping and growth of the human organism a spiritual reveals itself. For this spiritual force then appears in the course of life as the spiritual power of thought.
And this thinking power is only one part of the human formative and growth power weaving in the etheric. The other part remains true to its task in the beginning of human life. Only because the human being, when his formation and growth have advanced, that is to say, have been completed to a certain extent, develops still further, can the etheric-spiritual, which weaves and lives in the organism, appear in further life as a thinking power.
Thus the plastic [[formative force]] reveals itself to the imaginative spiritual view as an etheric-spiritual thing from one side, which appears from the other side as the soul-content of thought.|27|12f}}
== See also ==
* [[Wholeness|Holistic thinking]]


== Literature ==  
== Literature ==  
{{Glomer-Suche|Denken}}
 
*''[[Johann Gottlieb Fichte]]'s sämmtliche Werke''. Herausgegeben von J.H. Fichte, Erster Band, Verlag von Veit und Comp. Berlin 1845 [https://archive.org/details/johanngottliebf27fichgoog/page/n10 archive.org]
*''[[Johann Gottlieb Fichte]]'s sämmtliche Werke''. Herausgegeben von J.H. Fichte, Erster Band, Verlag von Veit und Comp. Berlin 1845 [https://archive.org/details/johanngottliebf27fichgoog/page/n10 archive.org]
* [[Paul Asmus]]: ''Das Ich und das Ding an sich. Geschichte ihrer begrifflichen Entwickelung in der neuesten Philosophie'', Verlag C. E. M. Pfeffer, Halle 1873 {{MDZ|11163813-5}}
* [[Paul Asmus]]: ''Das Ich und das Ding an sich. Geschichte ihrer begrifflichen Entwickelung in der neuesten Philosophie'', Verlag C. E. M. Pfeffer, Halle 1873 {{MDZ|11163813-5}}
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* Martina Maria Sam (Hrsg.): ''Rudolf Steiner. Herzdenken: Über inspiratives Erkennen'', Rudolf Steiner Vlg., Dornach 2014, ISBN 978-3727453007
* Martina Maria Sam (Hrsg.): ''Rudolf Steiner. Herzdenken: Über inspiratives Erkennen'', Rudolf Steiner Vlg., Dornach 2014, ISBN 978-3727453007
* Andreas Neider: ''Denken mit dem Herzen: Wie wir unsere Gedanken aus dem Kopf befreien können'', Verlag Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 2019, ISBN 978-3772527241; eBook {{ASIN|B07T1MHRH9}}
* Andreas Neider: ''Denken mit dem Herzen: Wie wir unsere Gedanken aus dem Kopf befreien können'', Verlag Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 2019, ISBN 978-3772527241; eBook {{ASIN|B07T1MHRH9}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Einleitungen zu Goethes Naturwissenschaftlichen Schriften'', [[GA 1]] (1987) {{Schriften|1}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Einleitungen zu Goethes Naturwissenschaftlichen Schriften'', [[GA 1]] (1987) {{Lectures|1}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Grundlinien einer Erkenntnistheorie der Goetheschen Weltanschauung'', [[GA 2]] (2002), ISBN 3-7274-0020-X {{Schriften|002}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Grundlinien einer Erkenntnistheorie der Goetheschen Weltanschauung'', [[GA 2]] (2002), ISBN 3-7274-0020-X {{Lectures|002}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Wahrheit und Wissenschaft'', [[GA 3]] (1980), ISBN 3-7274-0030-7 {{Schriften|003}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Wahrheit und Wissenschaft'', [[GA 3]] (1980), ISBN 3-7274-0030-7 {{Lectures|003}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die Philosophie der Freiheit'', [[GA 4]] (1995) {{Schriften|4}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die Philosophie der Freiheit'', [[GA 4]] (1995) {{Lectures|4}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Theosophie. Einführung in übersinnliche Welterkenntnis und Menschenbestimmung '', [[GA 9]] (2003), ISBN 3-7274-0090-0; '''Tb 615''', ISBN 978-3-7274-6151-4 {{Schriften|009}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Theosophie. Einführung in übersinnliche Welterkenntnis und Menschenbestimmung '', [[GA 9]] (2003), ISBN 3-7274-0090-0; '''Tb 615''', ISBN 978-3-7274-6151-4 {{Lectures|009}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]], Daniel Hartmann (Hrsg.): ''Theosophie. Die Textentwicklung in den Auflagen 1904-1922 in vollständiger Lesefassung'' (Rudolf Steiner Studien), Rudolf Steiner Verlag, Dornach 2009, ISBN 978-3-7274-5329-8
* [[Rudolf Steiner]], Daniel Hartmann (Hrsg.): ''Theosophie. Die Textentwicklung in den Auflagen 1904-1922 in vollständiger Lesefassung'' (Rudolf Steiner Studien), Rudolf Steiner Verlag, Dornach 2009, ISBN 978-3-7274-5329-8
* [[Rudolf Steiner]], Christian Clement (Hrsg.): ''Theosophie – Anthroposophie. Ein Fragment'', [[SKA]] Band 6: ''Schriften zur Anthropologie'', Rudolf Steiner Verlag 2016, ISBN 978-3-7274-5806-4
* [[Rudolf Steiner]], Christian Clement (Hrsg.): ''Theosophie – Anthroposophie. Ein Fragment'', [[SKA]] Band 6: ''Schriften zur Anthropologie'', Rudolf Steiner Verlag 2016, ISBN 978-3-7274-5806-4
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Drei Schritte der Anthroposophie. Philosophie – Kosmologie – Religion'', [[GA 25]] (1999), ISBN 3-7274-0252-0 {{Schriften|025}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Drei Schritte der Anthroposophie. Philosophie – Kosmologie – Religion'', [[GA 25]] (1999), ISBN 3-7274-0252-0 {{Lectures|025}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Der Goetheanumgedanke inmitten der Kulturkrisis der Gegenwart'', [[GA 36]] (1961), ISBN 3-7274-0360-8 {{Vorträge|036}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Der Goetheanumgedanke inmitten der Kulturkrisis der Gegenwart'', [[GA 36]] (1961), ISBN 3-7274-0360-8 {{Lectures|036}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Fachwissenschaften und Anthroposophie'', [[GA 73a]] (2005), ISBN 3-7274-0735-2 {{Vorträge|073a}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Fachwissenschaften und Anthroposophie'', [[GA 73a]] (2005), ISBN 3-7274-0735-2 {{Lectures|073a}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die befruchtende Wirkung der Anthroposophie auf die Fachwissenschaften'', [[GA 76]] (1977), ISBN 3-7274-0760-3 {{Vorträge|076}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die befruchtende Wirkung der Anthroposophie auf die Fachwissenschaften'', [[GA 76]] (1977), ISBN 3-7274-0760-3 {{Lectures|076}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Westliche und östliche Weltgegensätzlichkeit'', [[GA 83]] (1981), ISBN 3-7274-0830-8 {{Vorträge|083}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Westliche und östliche Weltgegensätzlichkeit'', [[GA 83]] (1981), ISBN 3-7274-0830-8 {{Lectures|083}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Bewußtsein – Leben – Form '', [[GA 89]] (2001), ISBN 3-7274-0890-1 {{Vorträge|089}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Bewußtsein – Leben – Form '', [[GA 89]] (2001), ISBN 3-7274-0890-1 {{Lectures|089}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die Beantwortung von Welt- und Lebensfragen durch Anthroposophie'', [[GA 108]] (1986) {{Vorträge|108}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die Beantwortung von Welt- und Lebensfragen durch Anthroposophie'', [[GA 108]] (1986) {{Lectures|108}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Anthroposophie – Psychosophie – Pneumatosophie'', [[GA 115]] (2001), ISBN 3-7274-1150-3 {{Vorträge|115}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Anthroposophie – Psychosophie – Pneumatosophie'', [[GA 115]] (2001), ISBN 3-7274-1150-3 {{Lectures|115}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Erfahrungen des Übersinnlichen. Die drei Wege der Seele zu Christus'', [[GA 143]] (1994), ISBN 3-7274-1430-8 {{Vorträge|143}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Erfahrungen des Übersinnlichen. Die drei Wege der Seele zu Christus'', [[GA 143]] (1994), ISBN 3-7274-1430-8 {{Lectures|143}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die okkulten Grundlagen der Bhagavad Gita'', [[GA 146]] (1962), Zweiter Vortrag, Helsingfors, 29. Mai 1913 {{Vorträge|146}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die okkulten Grundlagen der Bhagavad Gita'', [[GA 146]] (1962), Zweiter Vortrag, Helsingfors, 29. Mai 1913 {{Lectures|146}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Der menschliche und der kosmische Gedanke'', [[GA 151]] (1980), Erster Vortrag, Berlin, 20. Januar 1914 {{Vorträge|151}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Der menschliche und der kosmische Gedanke'', [[GA 151]] (1980), Erster Vortrag, Berlin, 20. Januar 1914 {{Lectures|151}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Vorstufen zum Mysterium von Golgatha '', [[GA 152]] (1990), ISBN 3-7274-1520-7 {{Vorträge|152}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Vorstufen zum Mysterium von Golgatha '', [[GA 152]] (1990), ISBN 3-7274-1520-7 {{Lectures|152}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Wie erwirbt man sich Verständnis für die geistige Welt?'', [[GA 154]] (1985), ISBN 3-7274-1540-1 {{Vorträge|154}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Wie erwirbt man sich Verständnis für die geistige Welt?'', [[GA 154]] (1985), ISBN 3-7274-1540-1 {{Lectures|154}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Menschenschicksale und Völkerschicksale'', [[GA 157]] (1981), Vierzehnter Vortrag, Berlin, 6. Juli 1915 {{Vorträge|157}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Menschenschicksale und Völkerschicksale'', [[GA 157]] (1981), Vierzehnter Vortrag, Berlin, 6. Juli 1915 {{Lectures|157}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Der Zusammenhang des Menschen mit der elementarischen Welt'', [[GA 158]] (1993), ISBN 3-7274-1580-0 {{Vorträge|158}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Der Zusammenhang des Menschen mit der elementarischen Welt'', [[GA 158]] (1993), ISBN 3-7274-1580-0 {{Lectures|158}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Kunst- und Lebensfragen im Lichte der Geisteswissenschaft'', [[GA 162]] (2000), ISBN 3-7274-1620-3 {{Vorträge|162}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Kunst- und Lebensfragen im Lichte der Geisteswissenschaft'', [[GA 162]] (2000), ISBN 3-7274-1620-3 {{Lectures|162}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Zeitgeschichtliche Betrachtungen. Das Karma der Unwahrhaftigkeit – Erster Teil'', [[GA 173]] (1978), ISBN 3-7274-1730-7 {{Vorträge|173}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Zeitgeschichtliche Betrachtungen. Das Karma der Unwahrhaftigkeit – Erster Teil'', [[GA 173]] (1978), ISBN 3-7274-1730-7 {{Lectures|173}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die geistigen Hintergründe des Ersten Weltkrieges'', [[GA 174b]] (1994), ISBN 3-7274-1742-0 {{Vorträge|174b}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die geistigen Hintergründe des Ersten Weltkrieges'', [[GA 174b]] (1994), ISBN 3-7274-1742-0 {{Lectures|174b}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Wie kann die Menschheit den Christus wiederfinden?'', [[GA 187]] (1995), ISBN 3-7274-1870-2 {{Vorträge|187}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Wie kann die Menschheit den Christus wiederfinden?'', [[GA 187]] (1995), ISBN 3-7274-1870-2 {{Lectures|187}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Perspektiven der Menschheitsentwickelung'', [[GA 204]] (1979), ISBN 3-7274-2040-5 {{Vorträge|204}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Perspektiven der Menschheitsentwickelung'', [[GA 204]] (1979), ISBN 3-7274-2040-5 {{Lectures|204}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Menschenwerden, Weltenseele und Weltengeist – Zweiter Teil'', [[GA 206]] (1991), ISBN 3-7274-2060-X {{Vorträge|206}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Menschenwerden, Weltenseele und Weltengeist – Zweiter Teil'', [[GA 206]] (1991), ISBN 3-7274-2060-X {{Lectures|206}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Initiationswissenschaft und Sternenerkenntnis'', [[GA 228]] (2002), ISBN 3-7274-2280-7 {{Vorträge|228}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Initiationswissenschaft und Sternenerkenntnis'', [[GA 228]] (2002), ISBN 3-7274-2280-7 {{Lectures|228}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Das Initiaten-Bewußtsein. Die wahren und die falschen Wege der geistigen Forschung.'', [[GA 243]] (2004), ISBN 3-7274-2430-3 {{Vorträge|243}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Das Initiaten-Bewußtsein. Die wahren und die falschen Wege der geistigen Forschung.'', [[GA 243]] (2004), ISBN 3-7274-2430-3 {{Lectures|243}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die okkulte Bewegung im neunzehnten Jahrhundert und ihre Beziehung zur Weltkultur'', [[GA 254]] (1986), ISBN 3-7274-2540-7 {{Geschichte|254}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die okkulte Bewegung im neunzehnten Jahrhundert und ihre Beziehung zur Weltkultur'', [[GA 254]] (1986), ISBN 3-7274-2540-7 {{Lectures|254}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Aus den Inhalten der esoterischen Stunden, Band I: 1904 – 1909'', [[GA 266/1]] (1995), ISBN 3-7274-2661-6 {{Schule|266a}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Aus den Inhalten der esoterischen Stunden, Band I: 1904 – 1909'', [[GA 266/1]] (1995), ISBN 3-7274-2661-6 {{Lectures|266a}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Esoterische Unterweisungen für die erste Klasse der Freien Hochschule für Geisteswissenschaft am Goetheanum 1924'', [[GA 270/2]] (1999),  ISBN 3-7274-2700-0 {{Vorträge|270b}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Esoterische Unterweisungen für die erste Klasse der Freien Hochschule für Geisteswissenschaft am Goetheanum 1924'', [[GA 270/2]] (1999),  ISBN 3-7274-2700-0 {{Lectures|270b}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Allgemeine Menschenkunde als Grundlage der Pädagogik'', [[GA 293]] (1992), Neunter Vortrag, Stuttgart, 30. August 1919 {{Vorträge|293}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Allgemeine Menschenkunde als Grundlage der Pädagogik'', [[GA 293]] (1992), Neunter Vortrag, Stuttgart, 30. August 1919 {{Lectures|293}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Geisteswissenschaftliche Sprachbetrachtungen'', [[GA 299]] (1981), ISBN 3-7274-2990-9 {{Vorträge|299}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Geisteswissenschaftliche Sprachbetrachtungen'', [[GA 299]] (1981), ISBN 3-7274-2990-9 {{Lectures|299}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Konferenzen mit den Lehrern der Freien Waldorfschule 1919 bis 1924'', [[GA 300]] a-c (1995), ISBN 3-7274-3000-1 {{Vorträge|300}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Konferenzen mit den Lehrern der Freien Waldorfschule 1919 bis 1924'', [[GA 300]] a-c (1995), ISBN 3-7274-3000-1 {{Lectures|300}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die gesunde Entwickelung des Menschenwesens. Eine Einführung in die anthroposophische Pädagogik und Didaktik.'', [[GA 303]] (1978), ISBN 3-7274-3031-1 {{Vorträge|303}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Die gesunde Entwickelung des Menschenwesens. Eine Einführung in die anthroposophische Pädagogik und Didaktik.'', [[GA 303]] (1978), ISBN 3-7274-3031-1 {{Lectures|303}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Meditative Betrachtungen und Anleitungen zur Vertiefung der Heikunst'', [[GA 316]] (2003), ISBN 3-7274-3160-1 {{Vorträge|316}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Meditative Betrachtungen und Anleitungen zur Vertiefung der Heikunst'', [[GA 316]] (2003), ISBN 3-7274-3160-1 {{Lectures|316}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Heilpädagogischer Kurs'', [[GA 317]] (1995), ISBN 3-7274-3171-7 {{Vorträge|317}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Heilpädagogischer Kurs'', [[GA 317]] (1995), ISBN 3-7274-3171-7 {{Lectures|317}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Vorträge und Kurse über christlich-religiöses Wirken, V'', [[GA 346]] (2001), ISBN 3-7274-3460-0 {{Vorträge|346}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Vorträge und Kurse über christlich-religiöses Wirken, V'', [[GA 346]] (2001), ISBN 3-7274-3460-0 {{Lectures|346}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Vom Leben des Menschen und der Erde. Über das Wesen des Christentums'', [[GA 349]] (1980), ISBN 3-7274-3490-2 {{Vorträge|349}}
* [[Rudolf Steiner]]: ''Vom Leben des Menschen und der Erde. Über das Wesen des Christentums'', [[GA 349]] (1980), ISBN 3-7274-3490-2 {{Lectures|349}}
* ''[[Beiträge zur Rudolf Steiner Gesamtausgabe]]'', Heft 63: ''Rudolf Steiner über den Atomismus. Zwei Aufsätze aus dem Frühwerk'' {{BE|063}}
* ''[[a:Beiträge zur Rudolf Steiner Gesamtausgabe|Beiträge zur Rudolf Steiner Gesamtausgabe]]'', Heft 63: ''Rudolf Steiner über den Atomismus. Zwei Aufsätze aus dem Frühwerk'' {{BE|063}}


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Latest revision as of 14:45, 26 March 2021

Wassily Kandinsky: Composition VIII, 1923, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York

Thinking (Old High German: thenken (8th century)[1] or dankjan, denkjan; Germanic: *þank-ja-", from Indo-European: *teng- "to perceive, to feel, to sense, to have the appearance of, to think"; from this also derived thank, especially in the sense of devotion, remembrance etc., which makes clear the grateful disposition originally associated with thinking; Latin: cogito "I think", 1st person sing. of cogitare "to think, to ponder, to be [good or evil] minded") or thinking faculty (Greek: διανοητικόν dianoetikon or διανοητική ψυχή dianoêtike psyché, from Greek: διάνοια dianoia "pondering, understanding, reasoning"; Latin: anima rationalis) is one of the three fundamental soul forces of man. Through thinking, we experience or form concepts and ideas and, with the help of memory, also imaginative conceptions, in which the inner lawfulness of that which initially confronts us without understanding in the isolated perceptions is supposed to reveal itself. Without thinking, perception would remain an incoherent, diffuse aggregate of objects of sensation.

Usually, only the final result of the thinking activity in the form of fully formed thoughts becomes conscious, since the attention is directed entirely towards the object of thinking, but not towards it itself. The conscious observation of thinking, on the other hand, represents an exceptional state, which, however, every thinking person can deliberately bring about with a little practice. He then observes his own spiritual activity - and thus stands at the beginning of spiritual perception in general, through which he experiences himself as a spiritual being. This is at the same time a safe starting point for all further spiritual perception.

The foundations of thought

Through the activity of thinking, which grasps the brain and forms it into a reflecting apparatus, the thoughts produced by thinking are made to appear in consciousness. As a rule, therefore, we do not become conscious of the thinking process as such, but only of its result, the thoughts that are the mentally experienced manifestation of this purely spiritual process. Mere having of thoughts, i.e. the presence of finished thoughts in consciousness, which are called up from memory as the result of earlier thinking without any actual actively experienced insight, or which were only more or less passively acquired as knowledge without one's own deeper insight in reliance on an authority, or which even consist only of factually largely unrelated associations of thoughts, is not yet thinking. Real thinking only arises when it is brought forth by one's own effort and progresses self-actively to the immediate clear insight into the present ideal connections. The observation of thinking, i.e. of the spiritual process itself that brings forth the thoughts, furthermore represents an exceptional state, which, however, is accessible to every thinking person with the appropriate training of attention. Insofar as the thinker thereby observes his own spiritual activity, it is the most important and fundamental form of fully conscious spiritual perception, on which all further modern spiritual research can build. In intellectual contemplation, as Fichte already remarked, intelligence sees itself:

„Intelligence, as such, looks at itself; and this seeing itself is immediately united with everything that comes to it[3], and in this immediate union of being and seeing consists the nature of intelligence. What is in it, and what it is in general, it is for itself; and only in so far as it is it for itself, it is it, as intelligence.“ (Lit.: Fichte, p. 435)

Due to the ahrimanic influence, we today very easily fall into thought automatism, in which ready-made thoughts are combined at will without real thinking being actively involved. Here, therefore, special attentiveness is necessary, especially with regard to the verbal expression of our thoughts. We should therefore pay strict attention not to use common phrases thoughtlessly. In other words, we should not follow the urge of memes, which spread very quickly from person to person in our modern information society.

„The best way to protect ourselves is to strive more and more to develop clear and precise thinking, to think as precisely as possible, not to simply rush along thinking about things, as is the current social custom. Not jumping over things, but thinking clearly. We should go even further: We should try to be more and more careful not to use common phrases and words. For the moment one uses passable words, which one has not from thought but from the habit of speech, one becomes thoughtless, if only for a brief moment. And these are particularly dangerous moments, because one does not pay attention to it. One should take care to avoid using such words where one does not think enough.“ (Lit.:GA 254, p. 177)

Thinking and etheric forces

In thinking, the same etheric forces are at work that shape the physical body, regenerate it and cause it to grow. In contrast to the physical forces, these are potential-free universal cosmic peripheral forces.

„It is of the utmost importance to know that the ordinary thinking forces of man are the refined shaping and growing forces. In the shaping and growth of the human organism a spiritual reveals itself. For this spiritual force then appears in the course of life as the spiritual power of thought.

And this thinking power is only one part of the human formative and growth power weaving in the etheric. The other part remains true to its task in the beginning of human life. Only because the human being, when his formation and growth have advanced, that is to say, have been completed to a certain extent, develops still further, can the etheric-spiritual, which weaves and lives in the organism, appear in further life as a thinking power.

Thus the plastic formative force reveals itself to the imaginative spiritual view as an etheric-spiritual thing from one side, which appears from the other side as the soul-content of thought.“ (Lit.:GA 27, p. 12f)

See also

Literature
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.

References

  1. ↑ Template:DWDS
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