The Rudolf Steiner Archive

The Balance in the World and Man,
Lucifer and Ahriman
GA 158

Steiner explains that the human being is constantly influenced by Lucifer and Ahriman. These beings have access to almost every part of the human being. For example, the luciferic beings can enter the etheric body with our breath. Only in the center of the heart is there a space that cannot be reached by either Lucifer or Ahriman, and it is from this tiny spot that the human being must maintain his balance and thus his true humanity in the face of these cosmic opponents.

These are lectures nine, ten, and eleven from the lecture series entitled, The Human's Connection with the Elemental World, published in German as, Der Zusammenhang des Menschen mit der Elementarischen Welt. Kalewala. Olaf Asteson. Das russische Volkstum. Die Welt als Ergebnis von Gleichgewichtswirkungen. This is the uthorized translation from shorthand reports unrevised by the lecturer. Lecture I was translated by Dorothy S. Osmond, while lectures II-III, were translated by Mary Adams.