An important book on liberating ourselves from the state of “waking sleep” in which we live our lives, as taught by one of the most influential spiritual teachers of the 20th century As the closest pupil of the charismatic spiritual master G. I. Gurdjieff (1866–1949), Jeanne de Salzmann was charged with carrying on his teachings of spiritual transformation. Known as the Fourth Way or “The Work,” Gurdjieff’s system was based on teachings of the East that he adapted for modern life in the West. Now, some twenty years after de Salzmann's death, the notebooks that she filled with her insights over a forty-year period (and intended to publish) have been translated and edited by a small group of her family and followers. The result is this long-awaited guide to Gurdjieff's teaching, describing the routes to be traveled and the landmarks encountered along the way. Organized according to themes, the chapters touch on all the important concepts and practices of the Work, including: • Awakening from the sleep of identification with the ordinary level of being • Self-observation and self-remembering • Conscious effort and voluntary suffering • Understanding symbolic concepts like the Enneagram • The Gurdjieff Movements, bodily exercises that provide training in Presence and the awareness of subtle energies • The necessity of a "school," meaning the collective practice of the teaching in a group Madame de Salzmann brings to the Work her own strong, direct language and personal journey in learning to live that knowledge of a higher level of being, which, she insists, “you have to see for yourself” on a level beyond theory and concept. De Salzmann consistently refused to discuss the teaching in terms of ideas, for this Fourth Way is to be experienced, not simply thought or believed.

As the closest pupil of the charismatic spiritual master G. I. Gurdjieff (1866–1949), Jeanne de Salzmann was charged with carrying on his teachings of spiritual transformation. Known as the Fourth Way or "the Work," Gurdjieff’s system was based on teachings of the East that he adapted for modern life in the West. Now, some twenty years after de Salzmann's death, the notebooks that she filled with her insights over a forty-year period (and intended to publish) have been translated and edited by a small group of her family and followers. The result is this long-awaited guide to Gurdjieff's teaching, describing the routes to be traveled and the landmarks encountered along the way. Organized according to themes, the chapters touch on all the important concepts and practices of the Work, including: · awakening from the sleep of identification with the ordinary level of being · self-observation and self-remembering · conscious effort and voluntary suffering · understanding symbolic concepts like the Enneagram · the Gurdjieff Movements, bodily exercises that provide training in Presence and the awareness of subtle energies · the necessity of a "school," meaning the collective practice of the teaching in a group Madame de Salzmann brings to the Work her own strong, direct language and personal journey in learning to live that knowledge of a higher level of being, which, she insists, "you have to see for yourself" on a level beyond theory and concept. De Salzmann consistently refused to discuss the teaching in terms of ideas, for this Fourth Way is to be experienced, not simply thought or believed.

Feelings of Being is the first ever account of the nature, role and variety of 'existential feelings' in psychiatric illness and in everyday life. There is a great deal of current philosophical and scientific interest in emotional feelings. However, many of the feelings that people struggle to express in their everyday lives do not appear on standard lists of emotions. For example, there are feelings of unreality, surreality, unfamiliarity, estrangement, heightened existence, isolation, emptiness, belonging, significance, insignificance, and the list goes on. Ratcliffe refers to such feelings as 'existential' because they comprise a changeable sense of being part of a world In this book, Ratcliffe argues that existential feelings form a distinctive group by virtue of three characteristics: they are bodily feelings, they constitute ways of relating to the world as a whole, and they are responsible for our sense of reality. He explains how something can be a bodily feeling and, at the same time, a sense of reality and belonging. He then explores the role of altered feeling in psychiatric illness, showing how an account of existential feeling can help us to understand experiential changes that occur in a range of conditions, including depression, circumscribed delusions, depersonalisation and schizophrenia. The book also addresses the contribution made by existential feelings to religious experience and to philosophical thought.

Over one hundred years ago in Russia, G. I. Gurdjieff introduced a spiritual teaching of conscious evolution—a way of gnosis or “knowledge of being” passed on from remote antiquity. Gurdjieff’s early talks in Europe were published in the form of chronological fragments preserved by his close followers P. D. Ouspensky and Jeanne de Salzmann. Now these teachings are presented as a comprehensive whole, covering a variety of subjects including states of consciousness, methods of self-study, spiritual work in groups, laws of the cosmos, and the universal symbol known as the Enneagram. Gurdjieff respected traditional religious practices, which he regarded as falling into three general categories or “ways”: the Way of the Fakir, related to mastery of the physical body; the Way of the Monk, based on faith and feeling; and the Way of the Yogi, which focuses on development of the mind. He presented his teaching as a “Fourth Way” that integrates these three aspects into a single path of self-knowledge. The principles are laid out as a way of knowing and experiencing an awakened level of being that must be verified for oneself.

This book is mainly based on the seven Hermetic Principles of Reality and Being as described in the Hermetic text “The Kybalion: A Study of the Hermetic Philosophy of Ancient Egypt and Greece” and it could be considered its commentary. The seven Laws of Reality can be considered as the essential principles of all the western and eastern spiritual wisdom traditions and can be employed in order to realize one's real nature of Pure Being and change one’s life conditions and circumstances. In final analysis, Truth is always found to be the same whether stated in modern scientific terms or in the language of ancient religion or philosophy, the only difference being in the form of presentation, always bearing in mind that no human formula will ever be able to describe every side of it. Part one of the book describes the seven Hermetic Laws or Principles which govern Reality: the Principle of Mind, the Principle of Cause and Effect, the Principle of Vibration, the Principle of Correspondence, the Principle of Polarity (or Opposites), the Principle of Rhythm (or Cyclicity) and the Principle of Gender. Part two offers many useful methods that can be employed in order to realize one's nature of Pure Being and change one’s conditions and circumstances by working with the seven Hermetic Laws of Reality.

To be one, whole in the face of life, is all that matters. So long as I remain conscious of this, I feel a life within me and a peace that nothing else can give. The words are Madame de Salzmanns, from the final page of her book The Reality of Being. I read them and feel good. For a moment I experience the peace that passeth understanding. At that same moment I realize my incapacity and my non-comprehension and I feel bad. Stabbed in the heart by the sword of gnosis I want to run away, fall back into complacency. I see how I am, divided. Do I care? So long as I remain trapped in passivity, nothing new can appear: no Newness, no New Man, no New World. Do I really wish to explore the Unknown? Or am I only an armchair adventurer, a dreamer vicariously gaining the experience from anothers travels? How can I know myself? My journey to inaccessible places begins with seeing that I am two: I wish, I do not wish. The act of seeing itself is the appearance of I. Not the ordinary I that is deeply afraid and wishes only for security, but the real I, pure, uncontaminated by fear, grounded in love. Without it I will never know what is true, never enter a world entirely new. Her words convey deep meaning, far deeper than we ordinarily realize. To discover the New World requires knowing how to measure. Without the science of measures I cannot go far. It is my measure, the measure both of my capacity and of the quality of my moment of work. Knowing the code of measures, I can decipher the reality of who I am. This book provides the keys to the code.

Chad Eastham, with his typical wit and wisdom for teens, brings much sought after advice on girls’ favorite topics including dating, love, friendship, and other important stuff. Chad shines some much-needed light on these major issues for teens. Rather than let their feelings navigate them blindly through their tumultuous adolescence, Chad offers clarity, some surprising revelations, and answers to some of their biggest questions: How do I know who to date? When should I start dating? How should I start dating? Is this really love? And, Why do guys I like just want to be friends? Packed with humor that adds to the sound advice, this book will help teens make better decisions, have healthier relationships, and be more prepared for their futures. Just a few things girls will learn include: Five things you need to know about love; Eight dumb dating things even smart people do; Ten reasons why teens are unhappy; and Ten things happy teens do. Any teen can live a happier, healthier life: they just need to hear The Truth. Meets national education standards.