According to Austrian metaphysician Rudolf Steiner, the task of humanity in this epoch is to comprehend the relation of good and evil; especially, the human choice between good and evil, and the challenge of evil to make humanity more aware of spirit-consciousness. In our present age, we are to experience the negative counterforces in order to move through to greater development. Steiner stated that the ‘forces of evil’ exist in the world so that humanity might, at the appropriate time, break through into a ‘life of the spirit.’ The presence of the counterforces gives humanity an opportunity to gain insight into the human condition, as well as the life conditions in this earthly domain. By having some understanding of the intention of opposing forces, a person is better prepared for continuing their own journey. That is, we each can learn from our encounters with negating forces; we can take these encounters as an opportunity to connect more strongly with our own force of will.

A revelation, or renewal, of the inner life of the human being is now of paramount importance. This is the window of time, of opportunity, as humanity finds itself fraught with uncertainties and many unwelcome forces. What is required is nothing less than a human re-evolutionary revival from lower impulses and stunted understanding towards a fuller realization of self. This is time for a ‘reckoning’ with oneself, for there to be any chance of developing our innate human higher faculties. This is not a time for drawing back and retreating into one’s inner cave of darkness and ignorance, like an individualized expression of the medieval ages. Collective ignorance was a state that had to be passed through for there to be a stepping into an individualized self-awareness. 

Humanity is passing through a difficult phase in its development, and of concern is the potential risk of being plunged into deeper states of materialism and automatism. These two states are often in cooperation together, for the deeper we become embedded in material forces then the greater are the influences that can make us act without conscious thought or intention. It can also be said that there are certain forces, or agents, in this current time that are pushing for greater immersion into materialism in order to paralyze or prevent humanity’s spiritual development. In this regard, even the notion of anything ‘spiritual’ has come to be either ridiculed, diluted into commercialism, or hijacked into pseudo-spiritual forms (such as corporate retreats and online guruism). It is important that we now cast a critical eye upon the state of human society and the nature of our times. This is not to criticize but to draw attention – to be aware of its aspects – as if to shine a light upon it. It is necessary to look beyond the ‘scenery of external affairs.’

The non-material, or non-visible, realm does not lie dormant. It is active, constantly. It is what infuses and makes possible the world we know and see. The intangible realm of vital forces is what we often call the ‘spiritual’ dimension for within it lies the conscious intelligences that establish material life. Spiritual matters have long been an abstract thing for many people. Yet they are no longer to remain abstract – they are now to flow into culture not only through ‘spiritual channels,’ but through all manner of ways, including people. The flow and merger between the suprasensory world and the sensory world (the realm of the phenomenal), has always been in operation. Only now, it looks set to increase.

In the Age of Materialism, it is said that people have their orientation outwards and towards the boundary that separates humanity from the lower orders – the animals and plants – rather than the inner orientation towards Source. And it is within the great depth of materialism that represents the final stage of a grand cycle where the world reaches its ‘extremity of separation’ in a period of remoteness from the sacred impulse. Unknowing and blind to this, the materialist believes they experience no loss because progress has given humanity much more than it ever had, and that material progress shall be their salvation.

In the light of current events, I was reflecting that it may help to bring some clarity if we can make distinctions between the various scales of perspective. As I had spoken about previously,[i] different individuals can be physically close to one another yet be experiencing a staggeringly different view of reality. Rather than feel antagonism in this, we need to understand that there are levels, scales, of perspective in operation. For the sake of brevity (and clarity), I shall refer to these as the 2D, 3D, and the 4D perspectives.

An experience and/or sensation that people are having in greater frequency recently is that of being in a ‘different reality’ from other people. I have heard it spoken that someone can be standing right next to another person and yet it feels like both are living in a completely different reality. Is this a new human condition – the ‘split-reality syndrome’? And if so, what are the principal aspects of these different realities?

The act of discernment is an inward one; as such, it requires a disciplined focus. Yet as we have seen, modern societies not only do they not cater to such practices, but they also actively dissuade us from approaching them. The result of this is that people in general do not see – or feel – a need for such a discernment. Modern life keeps us occupied and diverted by other pursuits. 

Decades of expansionist practices and beliefs have brought us to a new threshold. It is not yet the threshold between human and spirit, as some would have preferred, but a threshold of exhaustion.

It is always necessary to critically question our assumptions and the information that informs our social behaviour. In this talk, I will cast a glance over how current social manifestations have been redefining our social patterns and relations. I will also be examining these patterns from the perspectives of mass psychology, mental intoxication, and a reprogrammed solidarity.