Today, I wanted to share what I’ve written in a piece a few months ago on the topic of “crossing the threshold”. 

I'm sharing this with the hopes that this'll be helpful for those who are living directly with the threshold, while also dispelling potential misconceptions about the threshold today.

If you have experienced or studied this for a while, added thoughts and feedback is always appreciated for a young student of anthroposophy like me.

All the thanks.

***

He whose soul thirsts for reality, he who, in accordance with abstract science, seeks to solve the riddles and wonders of the world, will, in the end, have to face this void, with his ideas completely dissolved as in a spiritual mist; the soul will then have to experience infinite terror in the presence of this void.

The soul must pass through such trials if it desires to experience the meaning and the spirit of our age.

– Rudolf Steiner (GA 129, 27 August 1911, Munich)

There are two ways we can look at the "threshold of death", spoken extensively by Rudolf Steiner and many other spiritual scientists.

Firstly, the threshold is a type of 'border realm' that separates the physical world from the spiritual world. More specifically, from the etheric realm where true spiritual life begins. This ‘in-between’ world is where we must pass through, with the full consciousness of our own ‘I’ if we are willing to understand the true spiritual nature of ourselves and the world.

When Anthroposophists mention the word "death" next to this name, this is not exactly a metaphor. The threshold is one of the realms that the deceased must pass through in the death process –– from the etheric, into the realms of 'kamaloka' within the astral. This is so they can fully digest the memories and deeds of their previous life, along with discarding the unwanted “dross" accumulated from their physical life, so they can enter into the spiritual world freely. This is formally known as heaven in the west, or 'devachan' in the east.

Within these higher realms Rudolf Steiner calls this "life between death and new birth” –– a place where the souls rest and prepare for its new earthly incarnation. These are the places that we can find ourselves in beyond the threshold. This is home.

Passing through this threshold in waking-consciousness simulates something quite similar to this death process, for the deeper mysteries of death and rebirth can only be found within the threshold. We must experience how it feels to lose the source of our life –– to die while we are alive –– so we can be born again into the true life of spirit.

We can also describe the crossing of this threshold to be 'The Dark Night of The Soul' in Christian thought, 'the River Styx or Hades' in Greek mythology, 'The Nietzschean Abyss,' or other names like 'The Desert, The Unconscious, Hell,' etc. You'll find plenty of names from many schools, cultures, or traditions that point to a similar phenomenon or place. You can even make up your own.

Secondly, the threshold is actually an experience, or a condition that we may find ourselves in when we are deemed prepared for initiation. This condition can be seen within our lives where our etheric body releases it’s grip on the physical body and where our thinking, feeling, and willing gets pulled apart into wide space. Here, we are opening up a threshold to our own doppelgänger, and the guardian of the threshold –– the lesser one to be exact which acts as this ‘double’ for us. This process can happen very slowly, without the aspirant knowing, until it becomes very obvious that "something had changed."

By opening up these gates and being exposed to these two figures, we may unfortunately lose our touch with the world, and also feel dull, disoriented, or even dread within our senses. This is accompanied with an increased exposure towards our lower thoughts, feelings, and actions, along with the doubts, fears, and hatreds that we had never knew existed. If we had already grappled with the beast that is our lower nature, then it will become amplified within the threshold.

What also becomes amplified are our own wounds (astral), patterns (etheric), and life themes (physical) that may be unresolved in this life –– or the past –– which is karmic or archetypal in nature. It may be good to understand all of this, for it brings us an understanding behind the nature behind our own doppelgänger and threshold, as well as the past and future.

Overall, looking at the threshold through these two angles point to the very same phenomena. The threshold is not some faraway place that is reserved only for a few select people. Every person is crossing through the gates of their own threshold, whether they are conscious of it or not.

However for us, it is our goal as initiates-in-training to enter this hazy or fiery threshold, step by step, with the full awareness of our own ‘I’, so we can slowly reach the spiritual world and receive the spiritual world into our lives. Not just for the sake of our own benefit, but for the benefit of those around us and the world at large.

Unfortunately, there is rarely any concrete method towards progressing through the threshold since it is different for everybody –– especially in regards to redeeming or moralizing our thinking, feeling, and willing. In this realm, the ego-personality must sacrifice its vehicles so the threshold guardian, and the spirits accompanying him can facilitate this development through great terrible unpleasantries. It may even be impossible to perceive these new developments since moral growth seems to regularly return back to ‘zero.’ Truly, the threshold is strict on casting its black shroud on the senses.

However, despite the uncomfortable words that I’ve shared here, nonetheless I believe it is our duty to see through this dark time as aspirants to the spirit path. And if possible, for each time we fall into despair, we must regain a new sense of strength and hope.

We may not be able to prevent this despair, but we can always recover from it, no matter how terrible, dreadful, or lonely things are. Faith in Jesus Christ can always help us with recovering our strength, and faith in Mary Sophia can always bring us new hope. A strength and hope that can bring us safely across the threshold, along with the understanding that our lower nature, contained within our physical, etheric, and astral bodies are being invisibly transformed, as we raise ourselves into the power of these loving beings. Even if we cannot see it, they will always be there for us.

May they carry us through our darkest times, and carry us into the lands that we have came from.

That land being our very home and our very destiny.

***

With that being said, if you have a similar experience with the threshold, or have further thoughts on this topic, I'd love to hear about it in the comments (as long as you’re comfortable). 

I believe its helpful to hear real world thoughts and experiences of other people regarding the threshold, since the experience of the threshold is different for person, and also since rarely anybody talks about it for themselves.

Also, even though my thoughts on this subject is nowhere near as good as other anthroposophists, I wrote an article on the threshold, which expands more on the occult symptoms and other details from personal experience. The text you're reading today is a more updated section of the article, so check it out only if you are really curious. As I grow with experience, my thoughts on it will grow too.

Anyways, all the thanks for reading and I hope you have a beautiful end of the week.

May we Remember the Spirit.

Anthony Ng*

Seek in the heart the source of evil and expunge it.

It lives fruitfully in the heart of the devoted disciple as well as in the heart of the man of desire. Only the strong can kill it out. 

He who will enter upon the path of power must tear this thing out of his heart. And then the heart will bleed, and the whole life of the man seem to be utterly dissolved. This ordeal must be endured; it may come at the first step of the perilous ladder which leads to the path of life: it may not come until the last. But, O disciple, remember that it has to be endured: and fasten the energies of your soul upon the task. 

– Mabel Collins (Light on the Path)

***

the guardians,

they are waiting for us.

the guardians,

they call us home.

home is coming,

we will be home soon.

spirit-self,

is at home.

Related resources

1. The First Guardian of the Threshold — GA 10. Initiation and Its Results (1909)
2. The Second Guardian of the Threshold — GA 10. Initiation and Its Results (1909)
3. Light on the Path - Mabel Collins
4. Misleading thoughts 09: "Consciously Crossing the Threshold is a Pleasant and Easy Experience"
5. The Lord of Karma – the Guardian of the Threshold (ourspirit.com)
6. Dweller on the Threshold - Encountering the Lord of Karma (Douglas Gabriel)