Originally posted in German on 25th March 2025
by Heinz Grill
It was already written in the first article on this topic on 2nd March that spirituality, meditation or yoga cannot be carried over directly into daily working life, because any spirituality lives on another plane and needs a practical form so that it is suitable for comprehensive integration. How can this spiritual insight and meditative content be worked into a practical expression?
Those practicing need to develop a relatively comprehensive consciousness capable of forming mental pictures, which they establish in various areas and planes of life. In general, both the development of consciousness with spiritual content, to a comprehensive level, with unfolding of real insight as well as the scientific shaping of professional life, with its natural practical expertise, must be achieved.
The following thoughts and mental pictures can serve as orientation so that this integral synthesis can be achieved:
1. Is the profession in which the person is working therapeutic, educational, social, administrative, economic or technical? In every case people will need a solid professional knowledge, for example as a teacher in their subject area and in their ability to perceive the children. The pursuit of good professional expertise with a quick, sound and well-founded ability to form judgements characterises a good professional basis. Practical skills are also increasingly important. Dentists need sensitivity in the way they treat their patients, as well as a solid and practical dexterity, and they must be firmly grounded in their judgements for diagnosis, as well as decisions about what measures to take. If dentists were to claim that they could resolve the problem of their patient’s caries with spiritual energy and are unable to provide any sound treatment, they would not only be bad dentists, but also frauds.
The pursuit of specialised professional knowledge is also important in social and technical professions because it gives a closeness to the material and strengthens individuals in a practical logic that is accompanied by a natural and sensitively trained ability to perceive. For example, a good economist very quickly realises when a company has a good and seamless economic awareness that avoids wasteful expenditure and calculates with clear future perspectives.
2. It is favourable if those striving for a synthesis of spirituality and professional life, have a certain knowledge of the various traditions of their professions, have studied or have even had experience of historical processes of development and can picture a clear vision of where their profession could or even should lead in the future. As a result of the strong mechanisation and digitalisation of all technical processes in professions, people themselves are becoming machines or at least operators of machines and in this way are losing many of the living possibilities of the professional environment. The digitalised human being, however, cannot represent a good vision for the future. A mental picture must indeed be developed in a practical way, of how a profession can remain relational, lively and yet not stuck in old conservative ways.
3. A very relational mental picture is developed when the courage to think in a way that brings the need of real living and societal values into the consideration. For example, someone who is working in a sales department sees that a customer will not be able to put the product to good use, for example if she wants to buy a pair of shoes that does not suit either her nature or her life, the salesperson must learn to politely speak to the customer and perhaps even talk her out of buying the product. The relationship that develops between buyer and seller in this way is of higher value than a quick sale, a purchase made just for the sake of increasing business carries with it a small loss of honour to being human. People should not sell just for the sake of doing business but they should do business that supports further societal and relational development. A company that chooses this ideal for itself will enjoy a good customer base.
4. Spirituality and, above all, the manner in which individuals practice meditation, in a relational, objective way, needs a particular elaboration. Under no circumstances should spirituality become a form in which exercises, mantras or quickly acquired forms of wisdom are consumed, and it must not also contain the so commonly declared need for beauty and energy in its centre. If those seeking spirituality drive to an energy spot, to a place in which they hope for spiritual energy, this may offer them a nice opportunity to escape their general nervous tension for some time. However, they still lack the conscious work on a thought content and the aimed active practice, to bring these thoughts into daily life. The various activities in the cultivation of certain spiritual content and the repeated engagement in flexible, fully conscious activity with the most diverse feelings that house this spiritual content, with time give a heartfelt depth to the experience and prepare the spiritual student for the first steps of synthesising the content with life. Practitioners must, to a certain extent, be so deeply connected with the content learnt that they do not just outwardly pay lip service to them but radiate them from within in strong and light-filled dignity. The depth of spiritual striving, which is not only intellectual, but has a comprehensive transforming effect right into the life of the feelings, provides the possibilities for the synthesis of a more subtle upper world with a visible sense world.
5. The synthesis between spiritual content and economic, societal or scientific forms of life is achieved by the human consciousness, which must practice forming comprehensive mental pictures and thoughts with content. It is not possible for a synthesis of spirituality and life to take place without an intensive activity of building up by the consciousness. A connection between a spiritual law, that constitutes a moral, higher value for life, and scientific research or a life-related activity requires that connecting link of the human self. The following thought can be considered: If someone wishes to integrate an anthroposophical spiritual-life right into everyday life, they can visualise the following mental picture. Rudolf Steiner looks at all these trains of thought and observes the earthly activities with alert eyes. How does he feel? Does his face show joy in the activities or does it cause him to painfully grimace? Another example of mountaineering can be observed, when a route created by someone who has in the meantime died is restored. The creator of this route can no longer outwardly be consulted with a telephone call because with his soul he is no longer residing in the world. However, a mental picture can be formed of how he perceives his routes with his feelings from the world beyond and whether he agrees with a certain form of restoration or rejects it. In any case, the synthesis of spirit and world includes the soul world out of the region of the afterlife in every kind of consideration. Musicians must for example put themselves in the shoes of composers when they interpret their piece of music. If they develop it further or vary it then they must put themselves in the shoes of the creator so that they can do them justice with a worthy connection and not unnecessarily move into mundane separation from world creation. A synthesis of spirit and life emerges with growing dignity towards the many arts and sciences that have developed to date. In the spiritual field, it is by no means a form of dependence if the teacher is observed closely and sensitively, because he can bring his silent blessing for the activity or he can draw back with his spiritual force due to false interpretations.
