More than ever, we need the help of the transformative ideas and practices of Gurdjieff, Taoism, and other great teachers and teachings. Though books on their own cannot take us very far, we believe that the new and recent books we list here can be of some help in coming to a deeper understanding of the inner and outer work necessary in the quest for self-knowledge and self-transformation.
Click on any of the books listed below. If you would like more information about them, or would like to purchase them, simply click on the title above the cover of the book. The hyperlink will take you directly to a write-up about the book on Amazon.com, or, in some cases, to the publisher's website.
Please note: Many books are being published "about" Gurdjieff, his history, his relationships to his students, and so on. As interesting and even entertaining as some of these "biographical" works are, we do not believe that they are of much help in helping seekers understand and carry out the profound work that Gurdjieff brought to the West. In fact, we believe that the almost obsessive interest in interpreting Gurdjieff's history, actions, and motives that one frequently finds in these books can easily distract people from reading Gurdjieff's own works, as well as those rare books both old and new that actually convey a real sense of the inner work that is required for awakening. We are therefore not including these biographically oriented books here.
Exchanges
Within: Questions from Everyday Life Selected from Gurdjieff
Group Meetings with John Pentland in California 1955-1984.
Until his death in 1984, Lord Pentland was one of the outstanding
leaders of the Gurdjieff Work in America. This book gives a
remarkable insight into his extraordinary ability to translate
Gurdjieff's ideas and methods into the language necessary to help
each student experience herself or himself as a living question
in the face of the unknown.
This is an important
book for anyone interested in in the multi-dimensional ideas and
practices of the great spiritual pathfinder, G. I. Gurdjieff. The
book includes essays by Jeanne de Salzmann, John Pentland, Peter
Brook, Rene Daumal, Jerzy Grotowski, Arnaud Desjardins, and many
others.
B. K. Frantzis studied in mainland
China with one of this century's greatest Taoist masters. This
book, at once practical and informative, is an indispensable
resource for anyone interested in working with the energy
structure of the body through the age-old form of Taoist chi
kung.
The Tao of Natural
Breathing: For Health, Well-Being and Inner Growth, by
Dennis Lewis, shows how we can integrate natural breathing into
our lives to improve our health, increase our energy, and support
our quest for self-knowledge and self-transformation. Click here for more
information on this book.
Healing
Emotions: Conversations with the Dalai Lama on Mindfulness,
Emotions, and Health, edited by Daniel Goleman. "Can
the mind heal the body? How are the brain, immune system, and
emotions interconnected? What emotions are associated with
enhanced well-being? How does mindfulness function in a medical
context? Is there a biological foundation for ethics? How can
death help us understand the nature of the mind?" In the
summer of 1991, ten well-known scientists, psychologists,
meditation teachers and other scholars came together with the
Dalai Lama in Dharamsala India "to grapple with these
questions." This book is a fascinating and informative
record of the conversations that took place during this
event—the Third Mind and Life Conference.
Embarking On the
Way: A Guide to Western Taoism, by Solala Towler. Written in
a simple and non-scholarly fashion, this book gives the reader a
helpful, wide-ranging look at Taoist philosophy and practice, and
includes a safe, powerful "organ balancing meditation."
The foreword is by Chungliang Al Huang.
Relaxing Into Your
Being, by B. K. Frantzis, explores the essence and practices
of the water method of Taoist meditation, first alluded to more
than 2500 years ago by Lao Tzu in the Tao Te Ching. It
also explains the differences between the water and fire methods
found within Taoism. B. K. Frantzis has spent more than 10 years
in China, where he studied with Liu Hung Chieh, one of this
century's greatest Taoist masters.
Opening, by
William Segal, offers important ideas and observations about the
possibility of real transformation, the possibility of
"fulfilling one's role as a true human being." William
Segal, a philosopher and painter, worked with P. D.
Ouspensky, G. I. Gurdjieff, and Daisetz Suzuki.