It seems that Rudolf Steiner did not drink wine. At least, this is what I have been told. Let us pick up here again the principle developed in the eighth lecture which suggests that one is what one eats, or rather, one is composed of what one digests (see question 31: What is the content of the Agriculture Course?). The result of this is that food has an influence on the physical as well as the psychological and even spiritual state of an individual, and thus a collective influence on social functioning. From this perspective, what is the specific role of alcohol? Steiner talks about it on various occasions, specifically in his lectures pertaining to Christianity (wine indeed occupies a central place in the Eucharist during mass). For him, alcohol contributed to a growing independence from the cosmos and to self-awareness. In this sense, its effect has been positive over the last few millennia as it helped mankind to develop greater autonomy of thinking. But today, the situation is different. Mankind has become so autonomous that we are disconnected, cut off from nature and the cosmos.
In the course of evolution, it has had a mission. Strange as it may seem, it had the task, as it were, of preparing the human body so that it might be cut off from the Divine, in order to let the personal ‘I am’ emerge. Alcohol has the effect of severing the connection of the human being with the spirit world (Gospel of St John, p. 95, GA 103–092).
Or again, Steiner described how alcohol acts as a kind of interior imitation of the sun, affecting the ‘I’ (From Comets, pp. 216f). For this reason he believed that a person can more easily mobilise the forces of their ‘I’ if they abstain from alcohol. ‘The one who seeks the initiation must attain the greatest peacefulness. This excludes the use of any stimulant, especially alcohol’ (Kosmogonie, p. 203).
These are the ideas which explain why certain uncompromising biodynamists have looked down upon the application of biodynamics to vine-growing. I would like to make two remarks, however. First of all, this apparently posed no problem for Steiner who gave specific, practical advice on vine-growing (vine behaviour, issues surrounding phylloxera, and so on). Secondly, the grape has an extraordinary concentration of cosmic forces. And, in addition, Steiner explains the important role of the transformation brought about by fermentation, a process which concentrates even more fruit forces and makes them available to human beings. Wine could be an exceptional food in this sense … Yet, in the end, it is a great irony of history that biodynamics is developing mostly in wine today, and can, therefore, reach the general public.