A practical method of inner work presented in Chapter 48 "From the Author" as the foundation for understanding human mechanicality and beginning genuine self-development. "For one who desires to study human mechanicality in general and to make it clear to himself, the very best object of study is he himself with his own mechanicality; and to study this practically and to understand it sensibly, with all one's being, and not 'psychopathically,' that is, with only one part of one's entire presence, is possible only as a result of correctly conducted self-observation" (48.1209). The method requires two fundamental conditions: first, that one "decide, once and forever, that he will be sincere with himself unconditionally, will shut his eyes to nothing, shun no results wherever they may lead him, be afraid of no inferences, and be limited by no previous, self-imposed limits"; and second, establishing "a corresponding form of 'language'" since established language is unsuitable for such work (48.1210). The practice demands great courage because its inferences "may 'upset' all the convictions and beliefs previously deep-rooted in a man, as well as also the whole order of his ordinary mentation; and, in that event, he might be robbed, perhaps forever, of all the pleasant 'values dear to his heart,' which have hitherto made up his calm and serene life" (48.1210).

Quotes from the 1950 text:

This is why we make the study of the mechanicality of contemporary man the groundwork of a correctly conducted self-observation.

Before beginning to study this mechanicality and all the principles for a correctly conducted self-observation, a man in the first place must decide, once and forever, that he will be sincere with himself unconditionally, will shut his eyes to nothing, shun no results wherever they may lead him, be afraid of no inferences, and be limited by no previous, self-imposed limits; and secondly, in order that the elucidation of these principles may be properly perceived and transubstantiated in the followers of this new teaching, it is necessary to establish a corresponding form of "language," since we find the established form of language quite unsuitable for such elucidations. (48.1210)

As regards the first condition, it is necessary now at the very outset to give warning that a man unaccustomed to think and act along lines corresponding to the principles of self-observation must have great courage to accept sincerely the inferences obtained and not to lose heart; and submitting to them, to continue those principles further with the crescendo of persistence, obligatorily requisite for this.

These inferences may, as is said, "upset" all the convictions and beliefs previously deep-rooted in a man, as well as also the whole order of his ordinary mentation; and, in that event, he might be robbed, perhaps forever, of all the pleasant as is said "values dear to his heart," which have hitherto made up his calm and serene life. (48.1210)

Thanks to correctly conducted self-observation, a man will from the first days clearly grasp and indubitably establish his complete powerlessness and helplessness in the face of literally everything around him.

With the whole of his being he will be convinced that everything governs him, everything directs him. (48.1211)

Location in Book: First appearance: Chapter 48, pages 1209-1211. The concentrated discussion of method, prerequisites, and expected results appears exclusively in "From the Author."

Etymology / Notes: Self-observation represents Gurdjieff's central practical method for beginning genuine work on oneself. Unlike psychological introspection or mere self-analysis, correctly conducted self-observation requires observing one's mechanicality with "all one's being" rather than "psychopathically" with only one part. The emphasis on studying mechanicality as groundwork distinguishes this method from philosophical reflection - it demands empirical observation of one's actual automatic functioning. The warning about "maleficent consequences" from attempts "without proper knowledge" (48.1210) indicates that self-observation is a precise technique requiring proper guidance and understanding, not casual self-examination. The method's goal is not self-improvement but rather devastating recognition: "complete powerlessness and helplessness in the face of literally everything" - a necessary first step toward genuine consciousness. The practice connects directly to Belcultassi's original discovery on Atlantis when he "suddenly sensed and cognized that the process of the functioning of the whole of him had until then proceeded not as it should have proceeded according to sane logic" (23.294), making self-observation the continuation of the original Akhaldan aim.

The biological term consistently employed throughout the text to describe three-brained beings arising, existing, and reproducing on various planets. Rather than using elevated terminology such as "living," "dwelling," or "thriving," Gurdjieff deliberately employs this zoological descriptor to maintain clinical objectivity and cosmic perspective. The phrase "three-brained beings breeding on the planet Earth" appears repeatedly as a standard formulation, positioning humanity within the same biological framework as other planetary species. This linguistic choice serves Gurdjieff's pedagogical method of stripping away human self-importance by viewing Earth beings through the detached lens of a naturalist observer studying species across the universe.

Quotes from the 1950 text:

Higher being-bodies, or as they are called on some planets of that solar system, souls, arise in the three-brained beings breeding on all the planets except those before reaching which the emanations of our 'Most Holy Sun Absolute,' owing to repeated deflections, gradually lose the fullness of their strength and eventually cease entirely to contain the vivific power for coating higher being-bodies. (3.61)

As a result, the three-brained beings breeding on that planet can see freely everywhere, whatever the 'Kal-da-zakh-tee,' and they can also move not only over the planet itself but also in its atmosphere and some of them occasionally even manage to travel beyond the limits of its atmosphere. (3.61)

The tension in all the planets acts also on the common presences of all beings arising and breeding on them, always engendering in the beings, besides desires and intentions of which they are not aware, the feeling called 'sacred Iabolioonosar,' or as your favorites would say, the feeling of religiousness. (34.623)

Location in Book: First appearance: Chapter 3, page 61. Recurs throughout the text with 124 total appearances, establishing it as one of Gurdjieff's most consistent terminological choices.

Etymology / Notes: From the biological/agricultural term for animal reproduction and population maintenance. Gurdjieff's consistent choice of "breeding" over more anthropocentric alternatives ("living," "dwelling," "inhabiting") serves multiple pedagogical functions: it maintains Beelzebub's cosmic objectivity as an observer studying species across the universe; it creates clinical distance that prevents sentimental identification; it emphasizes the biological and mechanical nature of unawakened existence; and it deliberately deflates human vanity by positioning Earth beings within the same zoological framework applied to all planetary life forms. This linguistic strategy reinforces a central teaching method throughout the text - the use of unglamorous, deflationary vocabulary to puncture human self-importance and create the psychological conditions necessary for genuine self-observation.

The first and highest kind of being-Reason, synonymous with objective Reason, which is "proper only to the presence of a higher being-body or to the common presences of the bodies themselves of those three-brained beings in whom this higher part has already arisen and perfected itself" (39.770). Pure Reason represents the cosmic faculty that operates when the perfected higher being-body becomes the "center-of-gravity-initiator-of-the-individual-functioning of the whole presence of the being" (39.770). The term is distinguished from the second kind of being-Reason called Okiartaaitokhsa (available to those with coated Kesdjan bodies) and from the third kind which is merely automatic functioning based on habitual reactions to external stimuli.

Quotes from the 1950 text:

This sacred determinator of 'pure Reason' is nothing else than a kind of measure, i.e., a line divided into equal parts; one end of this line is marked as the total absence of any Reason, i.e., absolute 'firm-calm,' and at the other end there is indicated absolute Reason, i.e., the Reason of our incomparable creator endlessness. (39.769)

The first highest kind of being-Reason is the 'pure' or objective Reason which is proper only to the presence of a higher being-body or to the common presences of the bodies themselves of those three-brained beings in whom this higher part has already arisen and perfected itself, and then only when it is the, what is called, 'center-of-gravity-initiator-of-the-individual-functioning' of the whole presence of the being. (39.770)

In very rare cases, certain of these favorites of yours who have reached responsible age, become possessors of genuine pure-Reason, proper to three-brained responsible beings. This usually proceeds there thus. For instance, it happens that immediately after the separation from his mother's womb one of the newly arising beings finds himself for the process of his subsequent formation among such surrounding conditions, where for some reason or other all kinds of those abnormalities ... do not touch him and do not influence him automatically maleficently, and in consequence of this the germs which are in him for the possibilities of acquiring pure-Reason, have not the time during the process of his subsequent formation to become atrophied to the very root. (40.816)

Location in Book: First appearance: Chapter 19, page 197 (as "Pure Objective Reason"). The formal definition as the first highest kind of being-Reason appears in Chapter 39, pages 769-770. Recurs in Chapters 24 (page 344), 40 (page 816), 43 (page 1069), and 48 (page 1236), appearing approximately 10 times total throughout the text.

Etymology / Notes: The term combines "pure" (indicating freedom from contamination by automatic reactions or subjective influences) with "Reason" (the cosmic faculty of conscious awareness and understanding). Pure Reason exists on a sacred scale of measurement established by cherubim and seraphim at the beginning of creation, ranging from "absolute firm-calm" (total absence of Reason) to "the Reason of our incomparable creator endlessness" (39.769). This sacred determinator measures not only gradations of Reason but also determines "the degree-of-justification-of-the-sense-and-aim-of-their-existence" and "the further role of each separate Individual in relation to everything existing in our great Megalocosmos" (39.769). On Earth, beings with Pure Reason are extremely rare, especially in recent centuries, because the germs for acquiring pure Reason become atrophied during childhood through the maleficent influence of contemporary education and abnormal social conditions (40.816). These rare individuals who do develop Pure Reason always possess conscience and therefore can never become "important" in conventional society, which is why "the beings with Pure Reason there never have had and never will have the possibility of taking part in the societies of beings who are formed of important and power-possessing beings" (43.1069). The term is essentially synonymous with "objective Reason" but emphasizes the pristine, uncontaminated quality of this cosmic faculty when properly developed.

The taboo against openly discussing sexuality with children, which Beelzebub identifies as a harmful psychic fixation inherited from the Middle Ages concept of "bon ton" (proper etiquette). According to Beelzebub's analysis, this prohibition on honest sexual education drives children's natural curiosity underground, creating systems of ignorance, shame, and secretive exploration that can have deadly consequences. He presents this fixation as having become so deeply organized in the psyche that it passes by heredity from generation to generation, making contemporary beings too weak-willed to overcome the abnormal notion that discussing the "sex question" with children is "indelicate." The "maleficent" aspect refers to the prohibition itself, not the subject matter - Beelzebub argues that the silence and shame cause harm, not children's natural curiosity about sexuality.

Quotes from the 1950 text:

I think that thanks merely to this one fact which I have related to you out of thousands of other observations of mine, you can already clearly picture to yourself that such a phenomenal ugliness could not exist among the rising generation if the notion was not prevalent there that it is exceedingly "indecent" to talk to children about the "sex question."

This notion of "decency" came down to contemporary civilization by inheritance from the beings of the epoch called the "Middle Ages."

These candidates for Hasnamusses of the Middle Ages, having been among the chief agents in the destruction of the real meaning of the teaching of the Divine Teacher Jesus Christ, then also devised and introduced into everyday existence, as a regulation, the maleficent invention which they called "bon ton." And this maleficent invention then became so strongly fixed in the psyche of the majority that it became organized for them and began to pass by heredity from generation to generation, so that now your contemporary favorites, who have become completely weak-willed, are unable, however they may try, to overcome such an abnormal psychic fixation as, in the given case, the notion of the indelicacy of talking to their children about the "sex question." (42.1035)

Now I ask you, how should she have called this quadruped being, since it actually was a bull?

Really, "beefsteak"? - as advised by the "esteemed" headmistress of this "esteemed higher educational institution," which existed there specially for the "education of children" according to the barbarous system of theirs existing there to their misfortune also at the present time. (42.1040)

Location in Book: Extended discussion spanning Chapter 42, pages 1030-1041. The term is introduced at page 1030 and developed through the tragic story of Elizabeth, a 13-year-old Russian boarding school student.

Etymology / Notes: Beelzebub illustrates the deadly consequences of this taboo through Elizabeth's story: she was publicly humiliated by her headmistress for calling a bull by its actual name while on a school outing, being told she should have said "beefsteak" or "something that is very good to eat when we are hungry" instead. The psychological trauma of this absurd shaming - combined with being expelled from the institute and banned from all similar institutions in the Russian Empire - led Elizabeth and her friend Mary to hang themselves in the school's woodshed. Beelzebub's psychoanalytic investigation revealed that Elizabeth, having grown up on her father's estate surrounded by nature, experienced psychological "chaos" when the joyful sight of a beloved farm animal (which children had secretly fed bread) was met with incomprehensible cruelty from adults enforcing arbitrary "decency" rules. The term represents Gurdjieff's critique of how Victorian-era sexual panic created reality-denying systems that literally tortured and killed children over nothing, demonstrating that the question itself is "maleficent" only because of the toxic silence surrounding it, not because of any inherent harm in honest discussion.

The sacred process of sexual climax or orgasm, described by Beelzebub as "the special sensation required for the completion of the sacred process Almuano, which normally arises in adult people at the end of what is called copulation" (42.1006). According to Beelzebub's account of ancient texts he encountered, Nature concentrates "all the ends of the nerves created by Nature for the special sensation required for the completion of the sacred process Almuano" in the genital organs (42.1006). The term appears within Beelzebub's explanation to his young Persian friend of how childhood masturbation develops: because these nerve endings designed for adult sexual climax exist from birth, children who experience itching from accumulated substances discover the pleasant sensation prematurely, leading to the "maleficent habit of onanism." This "sacred process" framing serves within Beelzebub's narrative to justify Moses's creation of circumcision rituals as preventive measures against premature activation of these nerves.

Quote from the 1950 text:

On account of this itching children begin, unconsciously at first, to rub or scratch these places. Later, as there are concentrated in these parts of the organism all the ends of the nerves created by Nature for the special sensation required for the completion of the sacred process Almuano, which normally arises in adult people at the end of what is called copulation, and as, especially at a certain period when according to the providence of Great Nature there proceeds in these organs of children a process of preparation for future sex functioning, they experience from this rubbing or scratching a certain peculiar pleasant sensation, they therefore begin intentionally - having instinctively realized from which of their actions this pleasant sensation is evoked in them - to rub these places even when there is no itching; and thus the ranks of the little "Moordoortenists" on the Earth are always increasing by leaps and bounds. (42.1006)

Location in Book: Single appearance: Chapter 42, page 1006, within Beelzebub's extended explanation to the young Persian friend about Moses's anti-masturbation measures.

Etymology / Notes: The term appears to be one of Gurdjieff's original coinages with no apparent derivation from known linguistic roots. Almuano represents Beelzebub's characteristic elevation of sexual functions to cosmic significance - what most beings simply call "orgasm" becomes a "sacred process" with cosmic implications. The grandiose terminology serves a specific rhetorical purpose in this passage: by framing orgasm as a sacred cosmic process meant only for adults, Beelzebub establishes the theoretical justification for Moses's genital cutting rituals as prevention against premature activation of this "sacred" function. Beelzebub attributes this understanding to ancient manuscripts including a "very ancient Chaldean manuscript" (42.1003), Moses's book Tookha Tes Nalool Pan (42.1004), and "an also very ancient papyrus" (42.1006) - though whether "Almuano" is a term from those sources or Beelzebub's own cosmological language remains ambiguous. The irony is palpable: elevated "sacred process" language deployed to rationalize non-consensual surgical intervention on children's bodies to control their future sexual behavior.

Tookha Tes Nalool Pan was a book written by the Great Moses, whose title "in contemporary language means 'the quintessence of my reflections'" (42.1004). This work contained Moses's research and thoughts on the disease called Moordoorten (onanism) that had spread widely among the youths and children under his care during the journey from Egypt to Canaan. The book provided the theoretical foundation for the practical religious rites Moses subsequently created to address this problem.

Quotes from the 1950 text:

These researches of his led this incomparable sage later to write a book under the title of Tookha Tes Nalool Pan, which in contemporary language means 'the quintessence of my reflections.' (42.1004)

As regards just what measures the Great Moses took for eradicating that evil, I learned not from the aforementioned book Tookha Tes Nalool Pan, but from the contents of an also very ancient papyrus.

From the contents of this papyrus it could be clearly seen that the Great Moses gave practical effect to the thoughts set down on this question in the book Tookha Tes Nalool Pan, by creating for his people those two religious rites, one of which is called 'Sikt ner chorn' and the other 'Tzel putz kann.' (42.1006-1007)

Location in Book: First appearance: Chapter 42, page 1004. Referenced again on pages 1006-1007 in the same chapter.

Etymology / Notes: The term appears to be composed of ancient language elements, possibly Aramaic or Hebrew-influenced construction, reflecting Moses's historical and cultural context. The book served as the theoretical basis for Moses's creation of the religious rites Sikt ner chorn (for boys) and Tzel putz kann (for girls), demonstrating the practical application of his philosophical and medical investigations into human physiology and behavior. However, the text's presentation of these practices reflects deeply problematic ideology: Gurdjieff portrays non-consensual genital modification of infants (circumcision and possibly female genital cutting) as enlightened "sacred wisdom" designed to prevent childhood masturbation. This reveals Gurdjieff's sex-negative worldview, which advocates permanent bodily alteration of children to control their future sexual behavior—a position modern readers may find ethically troubling in its complete disregard for bodily autonomy and consent. The framing of such practices as medical necessity and spiritual advancement, rather than acknowledging them as control mechanisms imposed on vulnerable children, represents one of the text's most disturbing passages.

A being-function (also called "Nammuslik") representing the "feeling-of-patriarchality" defined as "love of family," which is one of the two fundamental being-impulses "on which objective being-morality is chiefly based" (37.687). This being-feeling existed in Russian beings before they began imitating everything European, and "made the beings of that large community famous among other beings of the whole of this planet in respect of their morality and the patriarchality of their family foundations" (38.711). Beelzebub expresses admiration that French beings could "preserve in their presences those data for the two being-impulses on which objective being-morality is chiefly based, and which are called 'patriarchality,' that is, love of family, and 'organic-shame,' in spite of the fact that they exist in the sphere of conditions of ordinary being-existence there which have now become quite abnormal" due to Paris being the center of contemporary culture (37.687).

Quotes from the 1950 text:

One must simply even be astonished, that the majority of beings of the community France could, although without the participation of their consciousness, nevertheless preserve in their presences those data for the two being-impulses on which objective being-morality is chiefly based, and which are called 'patriarchality,' that is, love of family, and 'organic-shame,' in spite of the fact that they exist in the sphere of conditions of ordinary being-existence there which have now become quite abnormal, thanks to the fact that their capital, as I have already told you, has, to their misfortune begun to be considered, and really is, the contemporary 'chief-center-of-culture' for the whole of that ill-fated planet. (37.687)

It may be noted, for example, that, indeed, in all the beings of that large community Russia, only one or two centuries ago when, before they had yet begun to imitate everything European, these two being-functions still obtained which are called 'Martaadamlik' and 'Nammuslik' or - as these being-feelings are still called - the 'feeling-of-religiousness' and the 'feeling-of-patriarchality.'

And it was just those same being-feelings which a couple of centuries ago made the beings of that large community famous among other beings of the whole of this planet in respect of their morality and the patriarchality of their family foundations. (38.711)

Location in Book: First appearance: Chapter 37, page 687. Recurs in Chapter 38, page 711-712 (discussion of Russia and Turkey); Chapter 42, page 991 (ironic use regarding European hypocrisy).

Etymology / Notes: Derived from "patriarch" (Greek "patēr" = father + "archē" = rule), but Gurdjieff uses "patriarchality" to mean authentic family love and cohesion rather than mere male dominance. The term represents genuine being-morality contrasted with European civilization's corruption of family structures. Beelzebub ironically notes that in contemporary Europe, any "slightly cunning man" may be accounted "a very 'honorable man' and the 'patriarchal father of a family'" despite having "seven times seven 'illegal wives'" on the side (42.991), demonstrating how the external appearance of patriarchality masks complete moral bankruptcy. True patriarchality existed in pre-European Russia and traditional Persian culture, where family relationships involved genuine mutual devotion rather than superficial legalistic arrangements combined with systematic betrayal.

Extremely comfortable "couch beds" invented by the Tikliamishian civilization that combined sleeping, lounging, and toilet facilities in a single piece of furniture. As Beelzebub explains: "These 'wonder beds' were so adapted for this purpose that a lever by the side of the bed had only to be touched lightly to enable one instantly, in the bed itself, to perform this same indispensable need freely and of course very 'cosily' and also with the greatest so to say 'chic'" (42.959). The beds became known by the saying "if you wish to enjoy felicity, then enjoy it with a bang" and were so luxurious that if compared with contemporary American "seats of ease," the latter "may be called a 'child's toy'" (42.958). However, these wonder beds led to widespread diseases among users (Kolbana, Tirdiank, Moyasul, Champarnakh), which revolutionaries used as propaganda against the "parasitic bourgeois," ultimately causing "great and momentous events" including the violent destruction of both the beds and their users (42.959-961).

Quotes from the 1950 text:

The beings of the Tikliamishian civilization invented a certain kind of 'comfortable couch bed' which could be used for sleeping as well as for what is called 'lounging' so that while lying on this 'wonderful contrivance,' and without manifesting the slightest being-effort whatsoever, they could perform this same inevitable being-need for which the contemporary beings of the continent America have invented their 'seats of ease.'

These 'wonder beds' were so adapted for this purpose that a lever by the side of the bed had only to be touched lightly to enable one instantly, in the bed itself, to perform this same indispensable need freely and of course very 'cosily' and also with the greatest so to say 'chic.' (42.958-959)

Well then, thanks to the fact that many of these diseases then called 'Kolbana,' 'Tirdiank,' 'Moyasul,' 'Champarnakh,' and so on... were widely prevalent among the majority of those using these exceedingly comfortable 'couch beds,' those beings from among them in whose common presences the data for Hasnamussian properties had... already previously begun to be crystallized more intensely than usual, and among whom were those called 'revolutionaries,' observing this particularity, decided to take advantage of it for their own purposes... Thanks to that peculiar inherency of theirs called 'suggestibility'... there was gradually crystallized in each of them the periodically arising factor which actualizes in their common presences that strange and relatively prolonged 'psychic state,' which I should call the 'loss of sensation of self'; in consequence of which, as also usually happens there, they set about destroying everywhere, not only these 'wonder beds,' but also the existence of those beings who used them. (42.960)

Location in Book: First appearance: Chapter 42, page 958. Discussed extensively through pages 958-961.

Etymology / Notes: The term "wonder beds" reflects the same ironic naming pattern Gurdjieff uses throughout - calling something "wonderful" that actually causes harm. The beds represent the recurring human pattern of using technology to eliminate effort and maximize comfort, leading to physical degeneration and social catastrophe. The Tikliamishian wonder beds parallel contemporary American bathroom innovations, demonstrating that civilizations repeatedly "civilize themselves" into physical weakness and moral decline through excessive convenience. The saying "if you wish to enjoy felicity, then enjoy it with a bang" became both the beds' nickname and an ironic prophecy - the "bang" ultimately being revolutionary violence rather than comfortable elimination. The episode illustrates Gurdjieff's teaching that technological solutions to basic biological functions invariably produce unforeseen consequences, and that what begins as luxury for the wealthy eventually triggers social upheaval affecting all beings.

Selnoano was the ancient name for one of the epidemic diseases that result from specific cosmic processes affecting three-brained beings on Earth. During periods of planetary Chirnooanovo (cosmic displacement), Earth beings experience abnormal reactions instead of the normal "remorse of conscience" that occurs on other planets. These abnormal reactions manifest as "specific processes, called the 'reciprocal destruction of Microcosmoses in the Tetartocosmos,' which processes, when proceeding in them, they themselves look upon as what are called among them 'epidemics' and which in ancient times were known by the names 'Kalunom,' 'Morkrokh,' 'Selnoano,' etc., and in present days by the names 'Black Death,' Cholera,' 'Spanish influenza,' and so on" (42.959).

Quote from the 1950 text:

But there on your planet, thanks to the common presences of your favorites having become so odd, from a variety of causes both proceeding from outside of them and arising through their own fault, the result of the action of this common-cosmic actualization does not proceed in them as it proceeds in the presences of the three-brained beings arising on other planets during 'Chirnooanovo'; that is to say, instead of this remorse of conscience, there usually arise there and become widespread certain specific processes, called the 'reciprocal destruction of Microcosmoses in the Tetartocosmos,' which processes, when proceeding in them, they themselves look upon as what are called among them 'epidemics' and which in ancient times were known by the names 'Kalunom,' 'Morkrokh,' 'Selnoano,' etc., and in present days by the names 'Black Death,' Cholera,' 'Spanish influenza,' and so on. (42.959)

Location in Book: Single appearance: Chapter 42, page 959.

Etymology / Notes: The term appears to be one of Gurdjieff's original coinages with no apparent derivation from known linguistic roots. It is presented within Beelzebub's explanation of how cosmic processes affect planetary beings differently due to their abnormal development, resulting in physical epidemics rather than spiritual awakening. The term represents Gurdjieff's cosmological framework where what humans perceive as natural disasters or diseases are actually manifestations of deeper cosmic laws and the consequences of humanity's deviation from normal three-brained being development.

Morkrokh was the ancient name for one of the epidemic diseases that result from specific cosmic processes affecting three-brained beings on Earth. During periods of planetary Chirnooanovo (cosmic displacement), Earth beings experience abnormal reactions instead of the normal "remorse of conscience" that occurs on other planets. These abnormal reactions manifest as "specific processes, called the 'reciprocal destruction of Microcosmoses in the Tetartocosmos,' which processes, when proceeding in them, they themselves look upon as what are called among them 'epidemics' and which in ancient times were known by the names 'Kalunom,' 'Morkrokh,' 'Selnoano,' etc., and in present days by the names 'Black Death,' Cholera,' 'Spanish influenza,' and so on" (42.959).

Quote from the 1950 text:

But there on your planet, thanks to the common presences of your favorites having become so odd, from a variety of causes both proceeding from outside of them and arising through their own fault, the result of the action of this common-cosmic actualization does not proceed in them as it proceeds in the presences of the three-brained beings arising on other planets during 'Chirnooanovo'; that is to say, instead of this remorse of conscience, there usually arise there and become widespread certain specific processes, called the 'reciprocal destruction of Microcosmoses in the Tetartocosmos,' which processes, when proceeding in them, they themselves look upon as what are called among them 'epidemics' and which in ancient times were known by the names 'Kalunom,' 'Morkrokh,' 'Selnoano,' etc., and in present days by the names 'Black Death,' Cholera,' 'Spanish influenza,' and so on. (42.959)

Location in Book: Single appearance: Chapter 42, page 959.

Etymology / Notes: The term appears to be one of Gurdjieff's original coinages with no apparent derivation from known linguistic roots. It is presented within Beelzebub's explanation of how cosmic processes affect planetary beings differently due to their abnormal development, resulting in physical epidemics rather than spiritual awakening. The term represents Gurdjieff's cosmological framework where what humans perceive as natural disasters or diseases are actually manifestations of deeper cosmic laws and the consequences of humanity's deviation from normal three-brained being development.

A food preparation process used by contemporary American beings that, along with preserving and freezing, removes or volatilizes the active elements originally placed in food products by Great Nature. As Beelzebub observes: "At the present time the beings of this group almost never consume for their first being-food any edible product which still retains all those active elements put into every being by Great Nature Herself as an indispensable requisite for taking in power for normal existence; but they 'preserve,' 'freeze,' and 'essensify' beforehand all those products of theirs and use them only when most of these active elements required for normal existence are already volatilized out of them" (42.946). This process represents the ironic inversion of food's purpose - while claiming to improve or preserve food's essence, it actually strips away the cosmic substances necessary for proper being-existence and the coating of higher being-bodies.

Quote from the 1950 text:

At the present time the beings of this group almost never consume for their first being-food any edible product which still retains all those active elements put into every being by Great Nature Herself as an indispensable requisite for taking in power for normal existence; but they 'preserve,' 'freeze,' and 'essensify' beforehand all those products of theirs and use them only when most of these active elements required for normal existence are already volatilized out of them. (42.946)

Location in Book: Single appearance: Chapter 42, page 946, in Beelzebub's observations of American dietary practices.

Etymology / Notes: The term appears to be a Gurdjieffian coinage, likely derived from "essence" combined with the verb-forming suffix "-ify" (to make or become). The irony is profound: while the word suggests concentrating or preserving essence, the process actually accomplishes the opposite - removing the essential active elements that make food valuable for being-development. This linguistic inversion mirrors the broader theme in Beelzebub's critique of contemporary civilization, where processes claiming to improve life systematically undermine its fundamental requirements. The term may also echo industrial food processing terminology like "fortify" or "purify," which similarly mask the degradation of food's natural properties behind scientific-sounding language. Essensifying represents the culmination of humanity's separation from natural processes, where even the most fundamental requirement - consuming food with its active elements intact - becomes impossible due to mechanical processing that destroys what it claims to preserve.

The deceased friend of Hadji-Asvatz-Troov who created the apparatuses for exact measurement of vibrations, enabling the Bokharian dervish's attainments in knowledge of the laws of vibrations. When Beelzebub expressed surprise at finding so many measuring apparatuses, stating he was "fully convinced that nowhere on the Earth does there exist an apparatus for the exact measurement of vibrations," Hadji-Asvatz-Troov replied: "These apparatuses for our experiments were made by my deceased friend Kerbalai-Asiz-Nuaran, and it is chiefly to them that I am indebted for all my attainments in the knowledge of the laws of vibrations" (41.890). This figure represents the continuation of genuine ancient scientific knowledge through isolated individuals who preserved technical capabilities lost to contemporary civilization.

Quote from the 1950 text:

These apparatuses for our experiments were made by my deceased friend Kerbalai-Asiz-Nuaran, and it is chiefly to them that I am indebted for all my attainments in the knowledge of the laws of vibrations. (41.890)

Location in Book: Single appearance: Chapter 41, page 890.

Etymology / Notes: "Kerbalai" is a title given to those who have made pilgrimage to Karbala (the Shia holy city in Iraq), indicating this was a person of religious significance. The name demonstrates how genuine scientific knowledge in Gurdjieff's narrative survived through spiritually oriented individuals operating outside mainstream academic institutions, preserving capabilities for precise measurement that contemporary scientists lacked.

The third and "principal demonstrating part" of the famous experimental apparatus Alla-attapan, constructed by the great Chinese learned beings Choon-Kil-Tez and Choon-Tro-Pel to investigate the sacred law of Heptaparaparshinokh (40.836). This component consisted of "an ordinary three-legged stand, on the top of which two balls, also of ivory, were fitted one upon the other in a certain way, the upper ball being much larger than the lower one" (40.836). The lower smaller ball contained "a cavity of a special form" where "either the whole of the said Polormedekhtian product named opium or single active elements required for the experiments were placed during the experiments" (40.836). The larger upper ball was bored through diametrically with a perpendicular bore reaching to its center, through which specially prepared bamboos could be moved during experiments. These bamboos, soaked in a complex liquid and moved through the bore, would be "instantly permanently dyed the same color as that ray which had fallen on to it" from the Loosochepana, or "dyed the colors also corresponding to the sound vibrations which touched them" from the Dzendvokh (40.837), thereby demonstrating that light, sound, and opium all follow the same cosmic laws.

Quotes from the 1950 text:

And so, thanks to these two crystals, these great learned beings obtained from the white-ray its positive colored rays and afterwards, with the help of the slab Polorishboorda which was a part of the Loosochepana, any one of these colored rays was directed to the third and principal demonstrating part of this astonishing apparatus, namely, to the Riank-Pokhortarz.

This principal part however consisted of an ordinary three-legged stand, on the top of which two balls, also of ivory, were fitted one upon the other in a certain way, the upper ball being much larger than the lower one. (40.836)

On the lower, smaller ball just opposite that part of the Loosochepana through which the positive colored rays had already passed, a cavity of a special form was made, into which either the whole of the said Polormedekhtian product named opium or single active elements required for the experiments were placed during the experiments.

Now the upper ball was bored right through diametrically, horizontal to the Loosochepana, and on this large ball there was also radially perpendicular to this large bore drilled right through, yet another smaller bore, reaching only to the center and which was just opposite the Loosochepana.

This second bore, drilled halfway through, was made in such a way that the colored rays could be directed as desired either directly from the Loosochepana or reflected from the said cavity of the lower smaller ball. (40.836)

Through the open bore of the large ball, a, what is called 'bamboo,' previously prepared in a special manner, could be freely moved. ... Now the action of the said liquid in which the bamboo was soaked was such that the part of the soaked bamboo on which the colored ray coming directly from the Loosochepana or, after being reflected from the cavity of the lower smaller ball, fell, was instantly permanently dyed the same color as that ray which had fallen on to it.

The uncovered places of these bamboos soaked in the said manner were dyed the colors also corresponding to the sound vibrations which touched them, and which were obtained from what are called strings which were on the middle part of the apparatus called Dzendvokh. (40.836-837)

Location in Book: First appearance: Chapter 40, page 834. Referenced throughout Chapter 40 (pages 834-840) as the experimental chamber where the brothers demonstrated the correspondence between light, sound, and opium.

Etymology / Notes: The term appears to be one of Gurdjieff's original coinages with no apparent derivation from known linguistic roots. The name designates the experimental demonstration chamber as distinct from the Loosochepana (light manipulation) and Dzendvokh (sound generation), completing the triad of components in the Alla-attapan apparatus. The 1950 English edition contains a minor typographical inconsistency in the first instance on page 834, which appears as 'Riank-Pokhotarz' (without the second 'r'); the correct spelling 'Riank-Pokhortarz' (with the 'r') appears in the subsequent three instances and is confirmed by the Greek translation's consistent usage across all four occurrences. The bamboo preparation process involved soaking them in absolute darkness or orange Simkalash light in a liquid consisting of: the white of eggs from the bird Amersamarskanapa, the juice of the planet Chiltoonakh, the excretion of the quadruped being Kezmaral, and specially prepared mercury-amalgam (40.836-837). When thoroughly soaked, these bamboos were inserted into thicker unsoaked bamboos with hermetically sealed ends, then moved through the bore of the upper ivory ball during experiments. The permanent color changes in the bamboos provided visible, lasting proof that different cosmic phenomena (light, sound, active elements of opium) operate according to identical fundamental laws - a demonstration that became famous throughout the Megalocosmos after Beelzebub brought one of these apparatuses to his friend Gornahoor Harharkh on Saturn (40.833).