Left-handedness

52 Weeks of Steiner – Week 24  (This is part of a weekly serial started on Michaelmas 2023. To see the other entries, please see the post linked HERE and scroll down to the bottom for individual links)

It was asked whether children should be broken of left-handedness.

Dr. Steiner: “As a rule, yes. Left-handed children, while they are still young, can be trained to use the right hand in all school work. It would be right not to do this only if it could have harmful effects—which would only seldom be the case. The child is not a sum, but a complicated potency. If you try to bring about symmetry between right and left in the children, it can lead in later life to feeble-mindedness.

“Left-handedness is quite definitely a karmic phenomenon, a phenomenon of karmic weakness. To take an example: An individual who has overworked in his previous life on earth, and has overexerted himself not only physically, but altogether—in his intellect and soul-life also—and who, as a result, comes into the next life with a marked weakness, is not in a position to overcome this weakness. Consequently what is normally built up strongly becomes weak, and left leg and left hand are called upon for assistance, are used as a substitute. The predominance of the left hand leads to the use of the right instead of the left frontal convolution of the brain in speech. If it is given way to too much, a weakness will remain for the following (third) earthly life. If not, the weakness adjusts itself.

“If you try to make a child do everything, writing and drawing, equally well with the right and left hands, this will lead to weakness of character in later life. The attempt to make children able to work with both hands equally well is the most extreme form of dilettantism. It is connected with the complete ignorance today of the true nature of the human being.

Rudolf Steiner
Faculty Meetings, May 25, 1923
via Handwork Indications

I’ve kind of fallen into a rabbit hole over here with the Handwork Indications lecture compilation edited by Hedwig Hauck. With two “lefties” in my immediate family, this passage fascinates me.

My husband, who is left handed, was forced to use his right hand in the lower elementary years, but as soon as the teacher wasn’t looking, would switch back to his left. The result was that he became pretty much ambidextrous. Another push in the direction of ambidextrousness was that as a tradesman, most tools are made for right handed people. In a way I suppose those early years of force probably helped him as an adult tradesman. He certainly isn’t lacking in any weakness of character, that’s for sure. There must have been some cosmic compensation along the way, ha ha.

The connection to karma is really sitting with my. My other leftie is often very phelgmatic, laid back, loves relaxation, food, quiet and routine. Can’t you just see that as providing a bit of rest from an overworked previous life? I just need to work out what “If it is given way to too much, a weakness will remain for the following (third) earthly life. If not, the weakness adjusts itself.” means. I might dig out faculty meetings so I can see if there is more written around this excerpt that might provide more detail.

Also, had to look up dilettantism. What a great word!

Merriam Webster defines it as: a person having a superficial interest in an art or a branch of knowledge :  A DABBLER

Vocabularly.com has a great little write up about it
“Though dilettante might sound like a nice French word, don’t use it on your friend who thinks he can play the guitar after several short lessons. A dilettante is an amateur, often one who pretends to be very knowledgeable.

The meaning of dilettante has changed since it was borrowed from the Italian in the mid 1700s. Originally, it meant “lover of the arts,” but began to take on a negative slant as the idea of doing something as a professional took hold strongly during the 18th century. A dilettante was a mere lover of art as opposed to one who did it professionally. Today, the word implies you’re pretending to be more of an artist than you’re interested in or capable of being, so if you call your friend who likes to paint a dilettante, it’s like you’re calling him or her a poser.”

Isn’t language amazing?

Until next time,
Marina