Stairway to Subud

A spiritual autobiography by Anthony Bright-Paul tracing his journey through Vedanta, the Fourth Way under J.G. Bennett at Coombe Springs, and ultimately to Subud and the latihan kejiwaan of Pak Subuh. First published in 1965, the book documents his years of self-study and practical work within the Gurdjieff-Ouspensky tradition before the arrival of Subud in England, offering a detailed first-hand account of life at Coombe Springs and the profound disruption caused by Bennett's encounter with Pak Subuh. The book frames Subud not as a replacement for the Fourth Way but as its fulfilment — the final step on the stairway between life and the Way, a phrase borrowed from Ouspensky. A second section, added later, includes a collection of testimonies and extracts from other Subud members, and a third section brings the story up to the present. It is addressed to seekers drawn to esoteric traditions across the spectrum — Gurdjieff, Ouspensky, Bennett, Vedanta, Theosophy, Anthroposophy — and to anyone asking what genuine contact with a higher force might mean in practice.