To Fathom The Gist: Vol 1 Approaches to the Writings of G. I. Gurdjieff
This book was written to explain, as clearly and concisely as possible, how to discover meaning in The Tales, Gurdjieff’s masterpiece. Most readers find it very difficult to read and many abandon the book as a consequence – perhaps not having appreciated that Gurdjieff spent more time writing this book than he did doing anything else. Clearly, if he did want the book to be read, he would not have devoted many years to writing it.
To Fathom the Gist: Volume II the Arch-Absurd
This volume of To Fathom the Gist examines in depth how Gurdjieff wrote The Tales. If we know how he wrote the book, we will be better able to read and understand it.” It examines the three ways of reading the book that Gurdjieff recommends. It gradually becomes clear that Gurdjieff provided extensive advice on how to read his book, that the reader usually ignores. Remarkable though it may seem, we really do not know how to read well – and in order to truly appreciate The Tales, we need to have that skill.
This volume also provides original perspectives on The Tales by examining the 1931 Manuscript (the earliest edition of The Tales) and comparing it to Gurdjieff’s final version. In some areas of the book, the differences are revealing. It proceeds further to analyze the 1992 revision of The Tales in depth, providing what is likely to become the definitive analysis of that version of The Tales. Finally, the book investigates the Arch-absurd; Beelzebub’s assertion that our Sun neither lights nor heats. The meaning of this assertion is examined in depth.
The Searchable Index to G. I. Gurdjieff's Beelzebub's Tales to His Grandson
This ebook provides a productive means for searching through, reading and pondering Beelzebub’s Tales To His Grandson by G. I. Gurdjieff. It is likely to prove useful to anyone who studies The Tales in-depth, since the indexes and lists it includes may be thought-provoking. Words (including neologisms) that the compiler considered important or significant are organized into a comprehensive set of categories and arranged within those categories. There are about a hundred such categories covering everything from names of people and places to psychic states.
It could be thought of as a “digital concordance” as it includes the full text of The Tales and an index of every word used in The Tales, along with the frequency of its occurrence.
The 1931 Manuscript of Beelzebub's Tales to His Grandson
This book is a thoroughly edited version of the original 1931 manuscript of Beelzebub’s Tales to His Grandson by G. Gurdjieff. The text is, for the most part, unchanged from the original manuscript that was published in a limited edition in 1931 under the direction of A R Orage. However some editing to the text has been done to remove obvious typographical errors and to harmonize the spelling of Gurdjeiff’s many invented names and neologisms to align with the later published version of this classic literary work. In addition, a full index is provided, almost to the level of a concordance. It documents all changes to the neologisms and all edits, aside from typographical corrections made to the text. The attraction of this publication lies in the fact that although Gurdjieff approved this original edition for publication and hence regarded his writing effort as almost complete, he subsequently made significant changes to many parts of it, and hence reading The 1931 Manuscript at times feels as though one is reading a different book, but one that nevertheless bears the mark of its author.
The Herald of Coming Good: First Appeal to Contemporary Humanity [with Notes]
The Herald of Coming Good was first published in 1933, apparently as a prelude to the publication of Gurdjieff’s three series of books under the common title of All and Everything. It was written in the obtuse and difficult style of Beelzebub’s Tales to His Grandson. As such, it is a mysterious publication. It pretends to be a marketing vehicle for attracting people to the Work, with registration blanks for readers to fill in, should they wish to subscribe to the books of the First Series. The casual reader is unlikely to make much sense of it, but serious readers of Gurdjieff’s writings may find its contents valuable.
This version of the book has been “translated” into American English and also includes a rendering of the prospectus for Gurdjieff’s Institute for the Harmonious Development of Man. As an djuncta to the book, there are some notes about The Herald made by the editor of this publication. They do not constitute a complete analysis. Nevertheless, they may prove useful to the reader.