In Search of Being: The Fourth Way to Consciousness

Authors: Gurdjieff, G. I.
Publisher: Shambhala
BISAC/Subject: PHI003000, SEL032000, SEL042000, PHI013000
ISBN: 9780834828506, Related ISBNs: 0834828502, 1611800374, 161180082X, 9780834828506, 9781611800371
Classification: Non-Fiction
Number of pages: 288,
Audience: General/trade
Synopsis: Are we able to say that life is governed by a group of conscious people? Where are they? Who are they? We see exactly the opposite: that life is governed by those who are the least conscious, by those who are most asleep. 

Provocative ideas such as these have attracted generations of thoughtful people to the methods of self-study and inner work devised by Gurdjieff, one of the most radical spiritual teachers of modern times. According to Gurdjieff, the wars raging at this very moment are nothing more than millions of sleeping people trying to annihilate millions of other sleeping people. Contrary to popular belief, there is no such as thing as progress and evolution as long as humanity remains asleep.  

Two hundred conscious people could change the whole of life on the earth, Gurdjieff says. If we want to become those conscious people, we must learn how to change ourselves. With the help of self-knowledge and an understanding of our relation to the universe, we can awaken to a higher level of being—if we wish to change ourselves.  
 

All of Gurdjieff's fundamental principles and methods of transforming the intellect, emotions, and body, in the system known as the Fourth Way, are presented in this book in his own clear, precise words preserved by his closest pupils. 

Arranged in an orderly sequence of passages drawn from two primary source books—P. D. Ouspensky's In Search of the Miraculous, and Views from the Real World, edited by Mme. Jeanne de Salzmann—this material is an indispensable introduction for those determined to undertake the efforts and practices necessary for awakening consciousness. 

All the basic concepts and methods are covered, including: 
  
   • man is "asleep"  
   • we have no unified "I"  
   • the need for self-knowledge  
   • functions of the human "machine"  
   • states of consciousness  
   • levels of being  
   • three centers: moving, emotional, and thinking  
   • personality and essence  
   • the possibility of self-development  
   • self-observation  
   • remembering oneself  
   • conscious evolution  
   • the law of three forces  
   • the ray of creation  
   • the law of octaves  
   • the Enneagram, a universal symbol  
   • the variety of spiritual ways  
   • esoteric Christianity  
   • working in groups  
   • the necessity of schools
Sign up for our literacy platform for reading at home

LightSail includes up to 6,000 high interest, Lexile aligned book titles with every student subscription. Other titles are available for individual purchase.

Watch the power of

Lightsail in action

×

SUPPORT GROWING READERS

Immediately Engage Students
Immediately Engage Students
Simple intuitive design has classrooms reading within minutes.
Exponentially Grow Reading Time
Exponentially Grow Reading Time
Students love the LightSail experience and naturally spend more time reading.
Accelerate Literacy Development
Accelerate Literacy Development
Students reading 25 minutes a day on LightSail are seeing 2+ years of Lexile growth in a single year.

LightSail Education is a comprehensive Lexile and standards-aligned, literacy platform and digital e-book library. Including multimodal learning functionality and featuring books from leading publishers, LightSail holistically assesses and nurtures each student on their reading and writing-to-learn journey, throughout elementary, middle, and high school.

*LightSail offers a 2,000 or a 6,000 title bundle with its student subscriptions. Other titles are available for individual purchase.