Gurdjieff Books

1. Views from the Real World Recollections by Gurdjieffs pupils of early talks in Moscow, Essentuki, Tiflis, Berlin, London, Paris, New York and Chicago. Within this book is an essay titled Glimpses of Truth, an account, written by one of his Russian pupils, of a visit to Gurdjieff near Moscow before the revolution. This essay was occasionally read in Moscow as an introduction for people meeting Gurdjieff for the first time, as is related by P. D. Ouspensky in In Search of the Miraculous.

2. Life is Real Only Then, When I Am The long awaited third and final installment of Gurdjieffs exposition published in 1976. This books opens a unique window into Gurdjieffs personal work that is uncommon in other works. The prologue gives a most interesting disclosure of the inner world problems which Gurdjieff had to face and the process of his own spiritual evolution. The final chapter, called the Inner and Outer World of Man is incomplete, and it stops tantilizingly when Gurdjieff is about to disclose the secret for the prolongation of human life.

3. Meetings with Remarkable Men a purported autobiographical description of key moments in Gurdjieffs formative years. Intriguing and colorful. Map of pre-sand Egypt. Gurdjieffs father as Ashokh. It is clear that Gurdjieff wrote this. It is less clear whether it actually happened the way he wrote it. J. G. Bennett, who sought to trace Gurdjieffs sources after his death, claimed that most of these stories weremetaphoricaland the figures alluded to pseudonymical.

4. Beelzebubs Tales to his Grandson Written in an obscure and lengthy style that neutralizes the readers normal cognitive pathways, Gurdjieff paints a galactic canvas unlike normal expository narrative. Gurdjieff spend seven years writing this magnum opusas he himself said, sparing himself neither day nor night, constantly writing and rewriting. It appears that Gurdjieff, having decided to throw open his ideas to anyone who chose to buy his books, wished to safeguard their real significance by making them accessible only to those who were prepared to make a very big effort. In doing this, however he fell between two stools. On the one hand, he was anxious that Beelzebubs should be widely read. On the other hand, he was impelled to write more and more obscurely.

5. Herald of the Coming Good Gurdjieffs first and relatively short narrative reflecting Gurdjieffs initial and somewhat naive enthusiasm. This book would be of profound interest for understanding the development of Gurdjieffs thinking; but, at the same time, it represents an unfortunate episode which he afterwards wished to bury. Only a year or so later he wrote that if any of his readers had by their good fortune failed to read The Herald of the Coming Good, he advised them not to do so.

1. In Search of the Miraculous a cinematic narrative in Ouspenskys own words of his experience searching for the miraculous and finally crossing paths with George Gurdjieff in Russia. Published posthumously and after the manuscript had been reviewed, praised and authorized by Gurdjieff. To this day, In Search of the Miraculous is the best-selling doorway into Gurdjieffs practical, theoretical and philosophical teachings.

2. The Psychology of Mans Possible Evolution the most concise exposition of the core of the Fourth Way. An easy read written in lecture form, read before an audience by Ouspenskys inner circle, with Ouspensky taking notes and revising over a period of 6 years. Save for the historical narrative of In Search of the Miraculous, this would be our #1 pick for best introduction to the Fourth Way. These first two books are the only ones edited by Ouspensky himself. The books below are compilations from meeting transcripts.

3. Conscience The Search for Truth a compilation of five essays based on more of P. D. Ouspenskys talks and answers to questions. Thiscompilationis centered around the development of conscience, although subject range through all Fourth Way ideas. The contrast between morality and conscience was a popular idea to which Gurdjieff periodically returned. In Conscience the Search for Truth, Ouspensky explores Gurdjieffs ideas in depth.

4. The Fourth Way a well indexed and accessible exposition of the Fourth Way, taken from notes of those attending Ouspenskys lectures. this book was not compiled by Ouspensky, but elaborates in great detail on what The Psychology of Mans Possible Evolution outlines. Each chapter is dedicated to a series of related Fourth Way topics, beginning with an introductory compilation of Ouspensky on that topic and continuing with questions and answers from his meetings.

5. A Further Record further notes from Ouspenskys lectures, written in a similar form to The Fourth Way, but including material that was left our from that compilation. This book would not serve as a good introduction to Gurdjieffs ideas, but as an inspiring addition to the books listed above.

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Gurdjieff Books | Gurdjieff Becoming Conscious