This is Wolff’s first book, which he penned using the pseudonym “Yogagñani.” Here is a description of this work, as taken from its marketing material: “In compact form this volume brings to the reader a statement of the problem of Life which Yoga solves, the principles upon which that solution is based, and a concise statement of the seven principle technical, forms by which those principles are applied practically.” (163 pages)

A promotional sheet with a synopsis of the book’s ten chapters. (2 pages)

This is a set of study questions for the book Yoga: Its Problems, Its Purpose, Its Technique; the questions cover the preface and all ten chapters. There are two versions of the first and last pages. (15 pages)

According to the introduction, this book—which Wolff penned using the pseudonym “Yogagñani”—is “designed to serve two purposes. In the first place, the rational ground for belief in the reality of reincarnation together with evidences supporting the validity of the teaching will be elaborated. After that there will be a discussion of what might be called the technique of Reincarnation.” (81 pages)

This is a manuscript (with editing notes and hand-drawn figures) of an unpublished book titled “Death and After.” The last chapter of this draft was revised (beginning with the last paragraph on p. D 243); the revised portion is in the following file. Here is a brief synopsis of this work: After introducing the “problem of death,” Wolff considers the philosophical meaning of death, life and consciousness, birth and death in relation to life, and the constitution of man according to the arcane schools. The next four chapters respectively address the planes of consciousness and Being; the constitution of man in relation to the planes of consciousness, Kama Loka; and Devachan. In the final chapter Wolff discusses mediumship and spiritualism. (249 pages)

The attached file contains a revision that Wolff made to the last chapter (Chapter X) of his book manuscript titled “Death and After.” The pages of this document are numbered D 245-D 258 and contain no editing notes; this indicates that they are from another (final?) draft of the book. The beginning sentence in this document corresponds to that in the last paragraph on p. D 243 of the original draft above. (14 pages)

This is Wolff's original outline for the first five chapters of his manuscript of “Death and After”; a transcribed copy of the outline follows the original. (6 pages)

This is a transcribed copy of Wolff’s book manuscript titled “Death & After”; it incorporates the revisions to Chapter X noted above. (124 pages)

A book with this title by Yogagñani was offered for sale in Yoga: Its Problems, Its Purpose, Its Technique as well as Re-embodiment, or Human Incarnations; it is also advertised in a brochure for the Rama Sangha Open Study Class, Chicago Branch. The manuscript has not been found, and it may have been a document meant for study; if so, it likely followed Wolff’s (three) lecture outlines with this title as found under the Lecture, Notes & Outlines tab of the Wolff Archive.

After Wolff’s “First Fundamental Realization” on August 7, 1936, he began a journal that chronicled his experience and reflections during the one-hundred-and-one days that followed. Several years later, Wolff had the journal typed into manuscript form with the title “From Point-I to Space-I.” The manuscript included a foreword written by his wife, an introduction dated February 20, 1939, a two-part addenda consisting of a remark titled “Two Years Later” (and dated January 30, 1939) along with a glossary of various terms found in the work. Wolff also added an appendix to Chapter LLII on “The High Indifference” that he dated January 19, 1939 and placed at the end of the manuscript. This document would be published five years later with the title “Pathways Through to Space,” but without the foreword or introduction. These last two items are available here. (13 pages)

When the manuscript titled “From Point-I to Space-I” was complete, the first individual outside of Wolff’s immediate family to read it was J. William Lloyd. Lloyd is among those listed in Maurice Bucke’s book Cosmic Consciousness as one whom had experiences similar to that of Wolff. After reading the manuscript, Lloyd wrote Wolff a letter of evaluation, which is presented here in its original form followed by a transcribed version. (8 pages)

Wolff’s journal of the one-hundred-and-one days following his August 7, 1936 “Fundamental Realization” was first published in 1944 by Richard R. Smith as “Pathways Through to Space: A Personal Record of Transformation in Consciousness.” Attached is the publisher’s preface to this book, the publication of which was subsidized by Wolff. (2 pages)

This three-page essay was written in response to a letter from Meade Layne, and it has been extracted from Wolff's correspondence with Mr. Layne. In this note, Wolff addresses a serious misinterpretation that may arise from his claim in Chapter XLIX of Pathways Through to Space that death brings a “radical interruption of the continuity of self-consciousness and the individual, as individual, [may prove] to be no more than a mortal being.” (3 pages)

This file contains some marketing material for the 1944 Richard R. Smith publication of Pathways Through to Space, as well as a number of reviews forwarded by the publisher (including a letter regarding the book that was found in the archive). (11 pages)

There are a number of reviews missing from this record, as described in Chapter 21 of the 2014 draft of Doroethy Leonard's biography of Wolff:

By August of 1945, Smith had arranged for several reviews of Pathways. For example: The Business Economic Digest wrote: A remarkable personal experience of transformation in consciousness, dedicated to those who having found the emptiness of life external hunger for the life that is everlasting (quote taken from a front page). N.Y. Times had nice review July 5, 1944, The Biosophical Review, had a lengthy review. Other reviews were: Indianapolis News; San Francisco Call Bulletin; New York Herald Tribune; Milwaukee Journal, and Publishers Weekly.

In 1973, Pathways Through to Space was republished by Julian Press. Dr. John C. Lilly, who was instrumental in the release of this second edition, provided an introduction to the book, and Wolff wrote a new preface. Both of these documents may be accessed here: an original copy of Lilly’s piece is attached, as well as a transcription of Wolff’s preface, which he produced using a reel-to-reel audio recorder (this recording may be found under the Audio Recordings tab of the Wolff Archive). (4 pages + cover)

This file contains several advertisements for the Julian Press publication of Pathways Through to Space, as well as a number of reviews of this work. (10 pages)

This file contains a Russian translation of the Julian Press edition of Pathways Through to Space. (159 pages)

The main text of part 1 in this manuscript was completed toward the end of March 1937, just after Wolff finished “From Point-I to Space-I” (Pathways Through to Space); Wolff then penned parts 3 and 4, followed by part 2. He recommended reading the book in this order. Wolff notes that the footnotes for the main text of part 1 were added in 1944. Wolff’s intent in this four-part treatise was to restore the office of philosophy to “A Way of Realization” as opposed to simply a monitor of physical science. Toward this end, Wolff lays the groundwork for a school of philosophy that he labels “Introceptualism”—a term he coined to emphasize that his philosophy is based on the recognition of a function of consciousness that implies a way of knowledge that differs from both empirical and conceptual knowledge. A good portion of the text focuses on the shortcomings of the philosophical schools that were prominent during Wolff’s academic days, and Wolff argues that these defects may be overcome by the recognition of “introceptual” knowledge. In addition to this systematic philosophical focus, Wolff also presents and comments on fifty-six aphorisms on “Consciousness-without-an-object” (a term that is fully meant to denote “and-without-a-subject”). The final section of the work contains a psychological critique of mysticism. The typed, double-spaced manuscript found here lacks a table of contents and was cobbled together from collected fragments as follows:

1. Title page to p. 478 – has a few editing notes that may be in Wolff’s hand
2. p. 479 (part 3, chap. 6) to p. 750 (part 3, chap. 2) – a photocopy with edits and notes that were not made by Wolff
3. p. 751 (part 4, chap. 1) to p. 918 (part 4, chap. 4) – a “clean” copy

(924 pages)

This file contains a clean copy of parts 1 and 2 of Wolff’s manuscript of “The Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object.” It is typed on onion skin paper. (333 pages)

This page contains—in Wolff’s own hand—the beginnings of a table of contents for parts 1 and 2 of the manuscript of “The Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object.” (1 page)

This is p. 919 of the manuscript of “The Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object,” and is titled “Chapter V: Mysticism and Sex.” This chapter was not included in any subsequently published versions of this work, nor is known whether there were any additional pages in this chapter. (1 page)

In 1970, a group of Wolff’s students published a mimeographed version of the manuscript “The Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object” using the trade name “Phoenix Philosophical Press.” Bound in a white cover on which the title and author’s name were embossed in gold lettering, a copyright notice is made in the name of James A. Briggs (Wolff’s stepson). The particular volume collected was the personal copy of Peggy DeCono, and it has some notes on the back of the text pages. These notes have been left in the scanned copy of the book, which some readers may find valuable. The text includes a one-page erratum addendum that does not include all the errors in this published version of Wolff’s manuscript. (414 pages)

Additional errata for the 1970 publication of “The Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object.” (2 pages)

In 1973, Julian Press published Parts 1 and 2 of Wolff's manuscript “The Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object” with a slight change in the subtitle, which now reads “Reflections on the Nature of Transcendental Consciousness” as opposed to “A Discussion of the Nature of Transcendental Consciousness.” The cover page is shown here. (1 page)

Two early reviews of this edition of The Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object. (3 pages)

In 1980, a group of Wolff’s students published parts 3 and 4 of the manuscript “The Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object” using the trade name “Phoenix Philosophical Press.” Bound in a blue cover with an image of Wolff’s mandala embossed in gold, a copyright notice is made in the name of Helen Briggs (Wolff’s step-daughter-in-law). The volume includes an introductory essay by Mael Melvin titled “Infinity and Consciousness,” and a drawing of Wolff’s visage by John Flinn. (305 pages)

In 1994, Pathways Through to Space and parts 1 and 2 of The Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object were published in one volume by the State University of New York Press. The preface is a slightly edited amalgamation of those in the Julian Press editions of these works, and an index has been added. (cover image)

In 1995, an extensively edited version of parts 3 and 4 of The Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object was published by the State University of New York Press. It should be noted that Wolff was expressly opposed to any editing of this work, and in fact, a dispute over editing led Wolff to withdraw the manuscript from publication in the mid-1970s. This book contains an editor’s foreword by Ron Leonard. (cover image)