The Consciousness Studies Program is a September-December morning course based on Goethe's science of aesthetics. Poet, dramatist, and natural scientist J. W. von Goethe (1749-1832) integrated science and art in his quest to fathom the secrets of nature. The program also draws from the work of Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), philosopher, scientist and educator, who founded Anthroposophy, a science of the spirit. His insights have led to worldwide activities in new forms of architecture, education, medicine, art, philosophy and agriculture.
To penetrate what he called "the open secret of nature," Goethe developed a new way of exploring the world that allows one to enter phenomena as a creative participant, rather than remaining an observer. Like the alchemists of old, Goethe perceived nature as a "book" of lawful movements and patterns that could be read and understood through a developed, heightened consciousness. He also recognized the intimate relationship between the human soul and the natural world. The Goethean Studies program has its roots firmly in the alchemical tradition.
Consciousness Studies encompasses inner work, scientific experiments, and exploration in the arts. The inner work involves concentration exercises and the exploration of higher states of consciousness. This is balanced by daily scientific work employing rigorous, systematic observation and practical experiments.
Artistic activity completes the threefold nature of the program by taking the scientific and inner activities into another dimension of aesthetic and personal experience. The weaving together of art, science, and the inner work empowers the individual to explore phenomena beyond their physical parameters.
The program can be of great benefit to teachers, artists, scientists, therapists, and those concerned with ecology and protection of the earth. It offers an alternative perspective to the analysis, abstraction, and reductionism that characterize modern science. Working in a daily rhythm of inner work, scientific exploration and artistic activities also gives the student powerful tools for self-transformation. Focus on natural phenomena inspires awe for the wonders of the natural world and a feeling of harmony with nature's laws. This can develop a capacity to live harmoniously, constructively, and creatively in an increasingly materialistic world.
Today human beings live in a technologically and socially demanding society. Humanity has evolved to a point where individuals can feel that the truth of the statement "I am", is cosmologically significant, yet the postmodern spiritual seeker has no choice but to come into contact with technology, materialism, and larger impersonal macro-economic forces that often have the effect of keeping us asleep in our thinking and willing by cleverly manipulating our feelings and sensations. This conflict generates a tension which causes many questions to arise: "What am I doing with my life?" "Where do my beliefs come from and what can I do about them?" "How can I balance my inner and outer lives in a healthy way?" Consciousness Studies does not explicitly attempt to answer these questions, but instead endeavors to provide practical insight, stemming from anthroposophy, concerning the ways in which individuals can form meaningful relationships to the world that maintain a deep respect for the body, the soul, and the spirit.