This volume contains 185 "Leading Thoughts," many of which are accompanied by letters to the members. The overlap is great between this book and two others entitled The Life, Nature and Cultivation of Anthroposophy and The Michael Mystery. These two books are also titled Letters to the Members.

A comparison of the contents of the above-mentioned three books reveals that they are related to each other in these ways:

• All of The Michael Mystery is contained in Anthroposophical Leading Thoughts.
• About one fifth of The Life, Nature and Cultivation of Anthroposophy is contained in Anthroposophical Leading Thoughts.
• Almost all of Anthroposophical Leading Thoughts is contained in The Life, Nature and Cultivation of Anthroposophy and The Michael Mystery taken together.

GA 26 Selections ...

Anthroposophical Leading Thoughts

This book is a collection of short essays by Steiner for the members of the Anthroposophical Society. They were written near the end of Steiner's life and in a way summarize, in highly concentrated form, the whole of anthroposophy. Each essay ends with a short summary of its contents and these are known as the “leading thoughts.” The leading thoughts are mantras and can be used quite fruitfully for meditation.

The Life, Nature and Cultivation of Anthroposophy

This book is a collection of 18 letters written to the members of the Anthroposophical Society in 1924. These letters first appeared in a supplement to the German language periodical “Goetheanum Weekly” and in the English language version “Anthroposophical Movement.” This book is also known as Letters to the Members, I.