I think it's right to associate some of Steiner's indications with pratyahara. Our senses perceive the prior thoughts of divine beings (ie they are like memories of divine thoughts) as the world of nature. But in the life of the soul, we are participating in "world building" only we don't perceive it, to begin with, because we are too busy doing it. It is a sort of "embryonic" state of consciousness not unlike the forgetfulness of childhood. We don't remember our earliest moments because all of our spiritual resources are bound into physical processes and hence none remain for reflective consciousness.
I don't know how useful or accurate it can be to quantify my own development or measure it against another person's but in my experience, a thorough understanding of these ideas can bring about, quite naturally, the experience that you described.
can you elaborate on this a little?
I think it's right to associate some of Steiner's indications with pratyahara. Our senses perceive the prior thoughts of divine beings (ie they are like memories of divine thoughts) as the world of nature. But in the life of the soul, we are participating in "world building" only we don't perceive it, to begin with, because we are too busy doing it. It is a sort of "embryonic" state of consciousness not unlike the forgetfulness of childhood. We don't remember our earliest moments because all of our spiritual resources are bound into physical processes and hence none remain for reflective consciousness.
I don't know how useful or accurate it can be to quantify my own development or measure it against another person's but in my experience, a thorough understanding of these ideas can bring about, quite naturally, the experience that you described.