Founding of the First Waldorf School - Waldorf Research Institute

of teachers, I shall then add the external aspect — a task isestablished. We create something ahead of its time in theforming of a body of teachers, something which mankind willhave to attain in the future, a new form of group, no longerbound by blood ties — we have spoken of that — but by ourcommon aims.Dear friends, the past separates us; we come from verydifferent corners of the world, from very different parts ofthe world, but the future unites us, and this is the conditionfor establishing a body of teachers: We who form the body ofteachers make the school our common concern. This is theaim to which we want to dedicate all our energies. The futureunites us; the past divides us in many cases. I would like toadd an anecdote. There were some personalities in Dornachwho had great difficulties with each other. When RudolfSteiner was asked about this, he said: “Well, if you knew therelationship that existed between them in the past, in a formerincarnation, you wouldn’t be surprised if they now attackedeach other with weapons.” Dear friends, I am relating nothingto you but what I have acquired through my study of spiritualscience and what I have observed in my social experiences.What has been described is a goal, an ideal, a distant goal.And it is important that all of this live in the consciousnessof each one here, even when he returns to his own group ofteachers, where the reality looks very different. The tensionbetween the goal in thought (Zielgedanke) and the externalreality is something that modern man must endure; that ishis test in life. But thoughts are realities, feelings are realities.Children sense immediately what kind of feelings the teacherhas for the Child. Grown-ups, too, have a very fine sense forthe disposition of another person. If you carry these thoughtsand bring them to life within you, they become realities.64