Yeshayahu Ben-Aharon

Yeshayahu (Jesaiah) Ben-Aharon (1955-) is a philosopher and social activist working in the tradition of Rudolf Steiner's anthroposophy. Ben-Aharon's work focuses on the evolution of consciousness and how spiritual ideas can support social processes of transformation.

Early life and education

Ben-Aharon grew up in the Israeli kibbutz Giva't H'aim, co-founded by his parents in 1933.[1] His father, Yitzhak Ben-Aharon (1906-2006), was a leader of the Israeli labor party and labor union.[2] Dr Ben-Aharon received his MA and PhD in Haifa University on Edmund Husserl’s concept of ‘the I’[1]

Spiritual-social initiatives and ideas

In the 80's and 90's Ben-Aharon was active in Israelis civil society introducing spiritual-social ideas and initiatives. In 1982 he founded an anthroposophical kibbutz in Harduf.[3] According to historian Isaac Lubelsky, Dr Ben-Aharon 'was the living spirit behind the foundation of the Harduf Kibbutz, which is perhaps the most prominent Anthroposophical center in Israel'.[4] Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi writes that Ben-Aharon's work to introduce ideas from Rudolf Steiner into social life in Israel in the 1990's led to anthroposophy gaining 'the status of a respectable scientific-philosophical approach'.[5]

In 2002 Ben-Aharon co-founded with peace activist Nicanor Perlas the Global Network for Social Threefolding which sought to actualize the social ideas of Rudolf Steiner.[6]

Spiritual science and the transformation of consciousness

A central element in Ben-Aharon's work is the question of how to establish a methodology for the transformation of human consciousness adequate to the present. Ben-Aharon has claimed that a number of scientific and philosophical authors and artists should be seen as symptoms of an evolution of consciousness, and he has brought this in relation to the idea of creating a spiritual science.[7] Deleuze & Guattari, Foucault, Derrida, Badiou and Levinas are philosophers Ben-Aharon claims give expression to such a transformation.[8] In Cognitive Yoga Ben-Aharon presents his own work based on Rudolf Steiner's ideas of how to transform and spiritualize consciousness. This book has been described as 'a most extraordinary book—probably the most extraordinary book that has been written within anthroposophy since the original work of Rudolf Steiner'.[9] Other publications of Ben-Aharon treating questions of spiritual science has received criticism from Andreas Neider who claims it to be inadequate[10] and Franz Hofner who considers it to be the result of a personal projection[11].

In many of Ben-Aharon’s publications, the concept of the Event is related to the anthroposophical perspective of the Second Coming of Christ, understood as a universal, spiritual event that inspires many of the novel ideas and social impulses of the 20th and 21st Century.[12] According to Johannes Lauterbach, Ben-Aharon's later work should be understood as an attempt to unite the social-activist element with spiritual transformative practices, and on this basis create a community.[13]

Publications

References

  1. ^ a b Stöckli, Thomas. 'Turning to the living spirit. Interview with Dr. Jesaiah Ben-Aharon', Das Goetheanum, No. 7/2001, Dornach, Switzerland
  2. ^ Joffe, Lawrence (5 June 2006). "Obituary Yitzhak Ben-Aharon". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
  3. ^ McKanan, Dan. Eco-Alchemy: Anthroposophy and the History and Future of Environmentalism, University of California Press, 2018. Page 108.
  4. ^ Lubelsky, Isaac. ‘Theosophy and Anthroposophy in Israel: An Historical Survey’ in Shai Feraro & James R. Lewis (Ed.), Contemporary Alternative Spiritualities in Israel, Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2017. Page 147
  5. ^ Beit-Hallahmi, Benjamin. Despair and Deliverance, State University of New York Press, 1992. Page 41
  6. ^ Uhlenhoff, Rahel. Anthroposophie in Geschichte und Gegenwart, Berliner Wissenschafts-Verlag, 2011. Page 679.
  7. ^ Ben-Aharon, Yeshayahu. The Event in Science, History, Philosophy & Art, Temple Lodge Publishing, London, 2018. Page 116.
  8. ^ Eftestøl, Torbjørn & Hugo, Aksel. ‘Review of The Event in Science, History, Philosophy & Art’, in RoSE - Research on Steiner Education Vol.4 No.1 2013, p. 208-210. http://www.rosejourn.com/index.php/rose/article/viewFile/149/168
  9. ^ Adams, David. ‘Making Yourself New’ - review of ‘Cognitive Yoga’, in Being Human, spring 2018, page 30-42: https://www.rudolfsteiner.org/fileadmin/user_upload/being_human/bh-articles/adams/bh20-adams-review-of-ben-aharon.pdf
  10. ^ Neider, Andreas (November 1994). "Das Jahrhundertereignis oder: Wie gehen wir heute mit übersinnlichen Erfahrungen um?". Die Drei: 946–947.
  11. ^ Hofner, Franz (November 1994). "Eine Projektion?". Die Drei: 947–950.
  12. ^ Eftestøl, Torbjørn. 'Anthroposophy and the Second Coming of Christ. A presentation of the work of Yeshayahu Ben-Aharon'. Being Human, February 2018. Page 6
  13. ^ Lauterbach, Johannes. 'Die Michael-Bewegung seit Rudolf Steiners Tod'. Zeitschrift Gegenwart, Nr. 2/2021.

Ben-Aharon’s website in English and Hebrew

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