‘From time to time in the history of humanity, extraordinary individualities appear, carrying with them great tasks which are difficult to assess. Through this lens, the events around Kaspar Hauser (1812-1833) can be seen as signposts to one of the most important mysteries of modern times, which will radiate far into the future. Kaspar’s appearance and the essence of his being are deeply connected with the question of the identity of the human being itself.’ – From the Foreword This book offers a unique, creative approach to the mystery of Kaspar Hauser – the teenage boy who was found abandoned on the streets of Nuremberg, barely able to walk, speak or write. Introducing the subject with a historical overview, Eckart Böhmer goes on to offer multiple artistic approaches to comprehending the enigma of Kaspar Hauser’s brief and tragic life. He presents poems from his cycle I not human, I Kaspar, a short story entitled ‘Crossing the Border’, and a play about Hauser’s mentor, ‘Feuerbach or an Example of a Crime Against the Human Consciousness Soul’. These are followed by transcripts of two lectures held during the Kaspar Hauser Festival in New York, which reflect on esoteric research carried out in the last twenty years. The volume concludes with short meditations followed by an interview with the author on his biographical connections to the theme. Inspired by the Kaspar Hauser Festival in Ansbach and the Kaspar Hauser Research Circle, this valuable book offers many imaginative gems for deeper contemplation.

On Whit Monday 1828 a strange youth, barely able to speak and hardly able to walk appeared in Nuremberg. This new case of a 'wild man' excited widespread curiosity, and many prominent figures wanted to test their pedagogical and medical theories on such a promising subject. Who was he? Was he, as many claimed, the rightful heir to the Grand Duchy of Baden, or was he simply an ingenious fraud? This book examines the many ramifications of this fascinating case, and offers many insights into the social, political and intellectual life of Biedermeier Germany.

In 1828 a teenage boy was discovered on the streets of Nuremberg. Barely able to walk, he clutched a letter in his hand. This youth, Kaspar Hauser, who couldn't properly speak or write, was soon to become an international phenomenon known as "the Child of Europe." The story of Kaspar Hauser presents many mysteries. According to his account, the young boy spent most of his life confined in a darkened space. Unable to stand up, and with no knowledge of his captors, he was fed a diet of bread and water. Eventually released from this macabre prison, he survived an assassination attempt only to be stabbed to death in 1833. Why was a child kept in such squalid circumstances? Who were his parents? Who was responsible for such a cruel attack on childhood? Who murdered him? In this seminal work Peter Tradowsky addresses these questions through the insights of Anthroposophy. His analysis reveals some of the secrets of Kaspar Hauser's short life, and the occult significance of his incarnation, spiritual nature and individuality.

From his appearance on the streets of Nuremberg in 1828 to his disturbing murder only five years later, the enigmatic story of Kaspar Hauser has stirred feelings of love and admiration in countless people. He has been celebrated as the subject of films and plays, popular books and academic studies, yet even today – almost two hundred years after his death – he continues to arouse opposition and hatred from his detractors, who dismiss him as an opportunist and a fraud. In the first English-language edition of this classic text – the original, comprehensive attempt to illumine the mysterious life of Kaspar Hauser from a spiritual-scientific, anthroposophical perspective – historian Karl Heyer gathers the basic facts of the life and death of the ‘Child of Europe’, exploring his remarkable abilities and character. With impressive clarity, he goes on to study Hauser’s fate in relation to the mission and destiny of Middle Europe, focusing on the roles of the House of Baden and key political actors such as Napoleon and Otto von Bismarck. His original research leads to some shattering conclusions with significant consequences for Europe’s future. Heyer was initially drawn to the subject through a private conversation with Rudolf Steiner. That seed matured forty years later into intensive research and the first publication of this book in German in 1958. ‘For me’, said Heyer, ‘it represented the high point of my writing and a kind of crowning of my life’s work.’

"Star Wisdom is scientific, resting on a solid mathematical-astronomical foundation and a secure chronology of the life of Jesus Christ, while it is also spiritual, aspiring to the higher dimension of existence, expressed outwardly in the world of stars. The scientific and the spiritual come together in the sidereal zodiac that originated with the Babylonians and was used by the three magi who beheld the star of Bethlehem and came to pay homage to Jesus a few months after his birth." -- Robert Powell, PhD Each volume of Star Wisdom includes articles of interest on star wisdom (Astrosophy) and a guide to the correspondences between stellar configurations during the life of Christ and those of today. The guide comprises a complete sidereal ephemeris and aspectarian, geocentric and heliocentric, for days throughout the year. According to Rudolf Steiner, every step taken by Christ during his ministry between the Baptism in the Jordan and the Resurrection was in harmony with--and an expression of--the cosmos. Star Wisdom is concerned with heavenly correspondences during the life of Christ. It is intended to provide a foundation for cosmic Christianity, the cosmic dimension of Christianity--a dimension that has been missing from its two-thousand-year history. Readers can begin on this path by contemplating today's movements of the Sun, Moon, and planets against the background of the zodiacal constellations (sidereal signs) in relation to corresponding stellar events during the life of Christ. This opens the possibility of attuning, in a living way throughout the year, to the life of Christ in the etheric cosmos. Star Wisdom, volume 6, features a variety of articles that, although historical in many cases, are relevant to the present time, beginning with Joel Matthews' foreword, which focuses on the social and spiritual significance of the eclipse of 2024 ("the gateway out of the Age of Eclipse and into Apocalypse"), as well as eclipses of recent years and another that will occur in 2045. Joel Park also brings part 3 of "The Sacrifices of Jesus and Christ," with a comprehensive view of several millennia of past and coming times of transformation. He also brings part 4 of "Returning to the Origin of the Houses: Practical Application and Summary," which aligns the Houses and Tarot. Julie Humphreys' article, "The Bull Hurls a Thunderbolt," discusses Uranus as it passes through the cusp of Aries and Taurus in June, in sync with the human biographical seven-year periods of life. Also included is a lecture by Rudolf Steiner, "Individual Spirit Beings and the Constant Foundation of the Universe," from Secret Brotherhoods and the Mystery of the Human Double, discussing the influences of secret brotherhoods and the transition of human culture to a new era. Krisztina Cseri's article, "One Hundred Years after the Karma Lectures by Rudolf Steiner," illumines "karmic relationships from an astrological point of view." Robert Powell's "Classics in Astrosophy" series revisits the concept of a lunar calendar for farmers and gardeners. The ephemerides for this volume cover not only the months of 2024, but also most of the months during the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ, from December ad 29 to June 33, which may be used in conjunction with The Visions of Anne Catherine Emmerich. Illustrated in color and black and white.

From Lolita to The Sixth Sense, the figure of the child in cinematic works has been a contested site of symbolism and controversy. Childhood and Cinema examines how the child in film has ultimately been used to embody the anxieties and aspirations of modern life. Vicky Lebeau investigates how films use children to probe such themes as sexuality, death, imagination, the terrors of childhood, and hope. The book ranges over the whole history of Western cinema, from the Lumière brothers’ 1895 Feeding the Baby to Walt Disney’s animation classics to Truffaut’s L’enfant sauvage and recent works such as Capturing the Friedmans and Kids. The figure of the child in film, Lebeau argues, is fundamentally ambivalent—always hovering on the edge between hope and despair, vulnerability and violence, or pleasure and trauma—and it ultimately offers a unique way of thinking about the significance of cinema itself. By turns engaging, thought-provoking, and informative, Childhood and the Cinema challenges us to reconsider the child figure as a conduit for critical reflection on what it means to be human.