Toward Awakening: An Approach to the Teaching Brought by Gurdjieff

Toward Awakening provides a clear, chapter-by-chapter summation of the major points of Gurdjieff's teachings. In accessible language, author Jean Vaysse first expresses the meaning and possibility of an inner life, then follows a logical exposition of the path to be traveled in order to move in that direction. That process, he explains, begins with an exposition of the key ideas of the structure of humans, the practices of self-observation” and self-remembering,” the concept of presence, and the dual roles of essence and personality in determining the overall nature of each individual. The author outlines the obstacles to awakening, as well as the first steps toward awakening. Missing in most books about the Gurdjieff teaching is the key role played by sensation, a topic that Vaysse covers with a clarity based on his personal experience.