Rudolf Steiner and the ‘Guardian of the Threshold’, Part I

The concept of an adversarial ‘guardian’ can be found in various areas of culture, ranging from myths and religions to works of literature and deep psychology. Often this adversary is deeply connected to a protagonist. The adversary challenges, tests, or even helps the main character. With his idea of the ‘guardian of the threshold’, Rudolf Steiner presents a unique approach to this archetype. This article sets out to give an overview of all of Steiner’s statements about the ‘guardian’. Tensions within the ‘guardian’ concept are identified and discussed. For example, there is tension between statements claiming that the ‘guardian’ is inside or part of the human being and statements claiming that the ‘guardian’ is independent of the human being. A novel interpretative perspective is suggested, namely that humanity itself may be understood in a certain way as a ‘guardian’ of the spiritual world. Overall, this article attempts to systematize the fundamentals of Steiner’s ‘guardian’ concept and hence lays a ground for more in-depth studies. One such study will be provided in a follow-up to this article.

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