# the exegesis of philip k. dick author: philip k. dick language: : english subject philosophy religion science publisher: houghton mifflin harcourt publication date: 2011 publication place: united states media type: print the exegesis of philip k. dick is a 2011 non-fiction book containing the published selections of a journal kept by the science fiction writer philip k. dick in which ey documented and explored ir religious and visionary experiences. dick's wealth of knowledge on the subjects of philosophy religion and science inform the work throughout background to the journal dick started the journal after ir visionary experiences in february and march 1974 which ey called "2-3-74." these visions began shortly after dick had two impacted wisdom teeth removed. when a delivery person from the pharmacy brought ir pain medication ey noticed the ichthys necklace they wore and asked ir what it meant. they responded that it was a symbol used by the early christians and in that moment dick's religious experiences began > in that instant as i stared at the gleaming fish sign and heard ir words i suddenly experienced what i later learned is called anamnesis - a greek word meaning literally "loss of forgetfulness." i remembered who i was and where i was. in an instant in the twinkling of an eye it all came back to me. and not only could i remember it but i could see it. the girl was a secret christian and so was i. we lived in fear of detection by the romans. we had to communicate with cryptic signs. they had just told me all this and it was true > > for a short time as hard as this is to believe or explain i saw fading into view the black prisonlike contours of hateful rome. but of much more importance i remembered jesus who had just recently been with us and had gone temporarily away and would very soon return. my emotion was one of joy. we were secretly preparing to welcome ir back. it would not be long. and the romans did not know. they thought ey was dead forever dead. that was our great secret our joyous knowledge. despite all appearances christ was going to return and our delight and anticipation were boundless in the following weeks dick experienced further visions including a hallucinatory slideshow of abstract patterns and an information-rich beam of pink light. in the exegesis ey theorised as to the origins and meaning of these experiences frequently concluding that they were religious in nature. the being that originated the experiences is referred to by several names including zebra god and the vast active living intelligence system. from 1974 until ir death in 1982 dick wrote the exegesis by hand in late-night writing sessions sometimes composing as many as 150 pages in a sitting. in total it consists of approximately 8,000 pages of notes only a small portion of which have been published besides the exegesis dick described ir visions and faith in numerous other works including valis radio free albemuth the divine invasion the transmigration of timothy archer one brief passage in a scanner darkly and the uncompleted the owl in daylight as well as many essays and personal letters. in pursuit of valis: selections from the exegesis was published in 1991 in april 2010 houghton mifflin harcourt announced plans to publish further excerpts from the exegesis in two volumes. the first 1056 pages long would have been released in 2011 and the second (a volume of the same length) in 2012. editor jonathan lethem described the upcoming publications as "absolutely stultifying brilliant repetitive and contradictory. it just might contain the secret of the universe." the plan was changed to publish the exegesis as one large book. the exegesis of philip k. dick was ultimately published november 2011 **+** dick philip k. (1995.) "how to build a universe that doesn't fall apart two days later." in lawrence sutin (ed..) the shifting realities of philip k. dick: selected literary and philosophical writings. new york: vintage/random house. p. 271 **+** itzkoff dave (april 29 2010.) "publisher to release philip k. dick's insights into secrets of the universe." the new york times. new york. p. c2. retrieved 17 november 2011 **+** "houghton mifflin harcourt acquires the philip k. dick library" (press release.) houghton mifflin harcourt. april 28 2010. retrieved july 21 2012 **+** "philip k. dick revealed with the publication of the exegesis of philip k. dick" (press release.) houghton mifflin harcourt. november 2 2011. retrieved july 21 2012 **+** dick philip k. (2011.) jackson pamela; lethem jonathan (eds..) the exegesis of philip k. dick. boston: houghton mifflin harcourt. isbn 978-0-547-54927-9 **+** exegesis previously unpublished pages from the exegesis posted online by the philip k. dick trust **+** platt charles (18 december 2011.) "dreaming of androids." the new york times. p. 24 **+** hacking the hero's journey beyond thought: the exegesis of philip k. dick tedx talk by richard doyle on the exegesis **+** radio free valis free online webinar on work of philip k. dick with emphasis on the exegesis **+** zebrapedia online effort to transcribe and interpret the entire exegesis // republic of bob