Rudolf Steiner's Available Written Works

When Rudolf Steiner's lectures began to be published and distributed to members of the Anthroposophical Society, he emphasized that his written works contained the essence of what he had to say about the spiritual science he called anthroposophy. Most of his published lectures were not edited or checked for accuracy by Steiner himself. Even more important, perhaps, is the fact that his lectures were delivered to specific audiences within a specific context (usually to members of the Anthroposophical Society), which greatly influenced the nature and content of what he had to say. Consequently, his more than 6000 lectures provide a substantial supplement to his writings, but they were never intended to replace his written works.

Steiner described his purpose and method in writing:

"An anthroposophic book ... is meant to be received into inner experience. This leads to the gradual awakening of a certain understanding. This may be a very faint, inner experience. But it can - indeed, should - occur. And the strengthened depth gained through the exercises described in How to Know Higher Worlds is just that - a fortifying deepening. This is necessary for progress on the spiritual path; but a properly written anthroposophic book should awaken the spiritual life of the reader, and not merely be a collection of information. Reading it should be more than reading; it should be an experience accompanied by inner shocks, tensions, and resolutions.

"I realize how far the substance and inner power of my books are from always invoking such an experience in the soul of the reader. But I also know that my inner struggle over every page was to attain as much as possible in this way. I do not adopt a style that allows subjective feelings to be detected in the sentences. In writing, I subdue what comes from warmth and deeper feelings to a dry, mathematical style. This style alone can be an awakener, for the readers themselves must awaken inner warmth and feeling. They cannot let those feelings simply flow into them from a description while their attentiveness remains passive....

"Anyone who wishes to trace my inner struggle and effort to present anthroposophy for today's mode of consciousness must do so through the writings published for general distribution. There I define my position in relation to the current search for knowledge. They contain the structure of anthroposophy, which, to my spiritual sight, became more and more clearly defined, though certainly incomplete in many ways" (Autobiography, pp. 283, 287).

Because Steiner made such an effort clarity and precision in his writing, they provide the most effective study material for those who are serious about working with spiritual science, whether alone or in a study group. In writing, Steiner attempted to address the widest public within the broadest context, making the written works uniquely universal when applied to spiritual practice.

Below is a list of Rudolf Steiner's most important writings, chronologically ordered, as they are currently available from SteinerBooks.

	Christianity As Mystical Fact Written 1902 (GA 8) Translated, edited, and introduced by Andrew Welburn Afterword by Michael Debus 256 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-436-8 $16.95		Friedrich Nietzsche Fighter for Freedom Written 1895 (GA 5) Foreword by Bernard J. Garber Introduction by Paul M. Allen Translated by Margaret Ingram deRis 224 pages, hardcover Garber Communications ISBN 0-89345-033-2 $18.00
	The Spiritual Guidance of the Individual and Humanity Some Results of Spiritual-Scientific Research into Human History & Development Written 1911 (GA 15) Translated by Samuel Desch 96 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-364-7 $12.95		Nature's Open Secret Introductions to Goethe's Scientific Writings Introduction and essay by John M. Barnes Written 1883 (GA 1) Translated by John M. Barnes & Mado Spiegler 320 pages, hardcover ISBN 0-88010-393-0 $35
	Cosmic Memory Prehistory of Earth and Man Written 1904-1908 (GA 11) Introduction by Paul M. Allen Translated by Karl E. Zimmer ISBN 0-89345-227-0 $16.95		Intuitive Thinking as a Spiritual Path A Philosophy of Freedom Written 1894 (GA 4) Introduced by Gertrude Reif Hughes Translation by Michael Lipson 288 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-385-X $14.95
	Theosophy An Introduction to the Spiritual Processes in Human Life and in the Cosmos Written 1904 (GA 9) Foreword by Michael Holdrege Translated by Catherine E. Creeger 256 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-373-6 $12.95		Guidance in Esoteric Training From the Esoteric School Written 1904-1915 (GA 270) Various translators, revised by C. Davey and O. Barfield (selected writings and lectures from GAs 264-268 & 212, 1903 to 1922) 192 pages, paperback ISBN 1-85584-076-6 $18.95
	Truth and Knowledge Introduction to "Philosophy of Spiritual Activity" Written 1891 (GA 3) Translated by Rita Stebbing Editing and notes by Paul M. Allen 110 pages, paperback ISBN 0-89345-212-2 $8.75		A Study Companion to An Outline of Esoteric Science Clopper Almon 96 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-453-8 $10.95
	How to Know Higher Worlds A Modern Path of Initiation Written in 1904-1905 (GA 10) Translated by Christopher Bamford 288 pp, paperback ISBN 0-88010-372-8 $9.95		An Outline of Esoteric Science Written in 1910 (GA 13) Introduction by Clopper Almon Translated by Catherine E. Creeger 388 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-409-0 $19.95
	Towards Social Renewal Rethinking the Basis of Society Written1919 (GA 23) Introduction by Michael Spence Translated by Matthew Barton Rudolf Steiner Press 144 pages, paperback ISBN 1-85584-072-3 $16.95		The Foundation Stone and The Life, Nature, and Cultivation of Anthroposophy Written 1923-1924 (GAs 260 & 260a) Introduction to Part One by Michael Wilson Various translators 144 pages, paperback ISBN 1-855840-75-8 $16.95
	The Souls' Awakening A Mystery Drama Written 1913 (from GA 14) Introduction by Ruth Pusch Translated by Ruth & Hans Pusch (revised by Ruth Pusch) 192 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-426-0 $12.95		Anthroposophy (A Fragment) A New Foundation for the Study of Human Experience Written 1910 (GA 45) Translated by Catherine E. Creeger & Detlef Hardorp. Introduction by James Dyson Foreword by Robert Sardello 144 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-401-5 $14.95
	Calendar of the Soul Written 1912 (GA 40) Translation by Ruth & Hans Pusch 53 pages, hardcover 4" x 5 ½ " ISBN 0-88010-263-2 $12.95		A Way of Self-Knowledge Meditation & the Soul's Path to Spiritual Experience Written 1912 & 1913 (GAs 16 & 17) Introduction by Friedemann Schwarzkopf Translated by Christopher Bamford 224 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-443-0 $14.95
	Autobiography Chapters from the Course of My Life(1861-1907) Written 1924-1925 (GA 28) Foreword, chronology, and extensive notes by Paul M. Allen Translated by Rita Stebbing (extensively revised and edited) 416 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-466-X $24.95		Mystics after Modernism Discovering the Seeds of a New Science in the Renaissance Written 1901 (GA 7) Foreword by Christopher Bamford Afterword by Paul M. Allen Translated by Karl E. Zimmer (revised) 208 pages, paperback ISBN 0-88010-470-8 $18.95
	Extending Practical Medicine Fundamental Principles Based on the Science of the Spirit Written 1924-1925 (GA 27) by Rudolf Steiner & Ita Wegman, M.D. Introduction by Michael Evans, M.D. Translated by A.R. Meuss 144 pages, paperback ISBN 1-85584-080-4 $16.95		Four Mystery Dramas The Portal of Initiation: A Rosicrucian Mystery The Soul's Probation: A Life Tableau in Dramatic Scenes The Guardian of the Threshold: Soul Events in Dramatic Scenes The Soul's Awakening: Soul & Spiritual Events in Dramatic Scenes Written 1910-1913 (GA 14) Translated by Ruth & Hans Pusch 563 pages, paperback ISBN 1-85584-071-5 $24.95
	Anthroposophical Leading Thoughts Anthroposophy as a Path of Knowledge: the Michael Mystery Written 1923-1925 (GA 26) Translated by George & Mary Adams 224 pages, paperback ISBN 1-85584-096-0 $24.95