List of Discordian works

Principia Discordia is a Discordian religious text written by Greg Hill (Malaclypse the Younger) and Kerry Thornley (Omar Khayyam Ravenhurst). It was originally published under the title Principia Discordia or How the West was Lost in a limited edition of five copies in 1965.[2]

One of the most influential of all Discordian works, The Illuminatus! Trilogy is a series of three novels written by Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson purportedly between 1969 and 1971,[3] and first published in 1975. The trilogy is a satirical, postmodern, science fiction-influenced adventure story; a drug-, sex- and magic-laden trek through a number of conspiracy theories, both historical and imaginary, which hinge on the authors' version of the Illuminati. The narrative often switches between third and first person perspectives and jumps around in time. It is thematically dense, covering topics like counterculture, numerology and Discordianism.

In a 1980 interview given to the science fiction magazine Starship, Wilson suggested the novel was an attempt to build a myth around Discordianism:

We felt the [Discordian] Society needed some opposition, because the whole idea of it is based on conflict and dialectics. So, we created an opposition within the Discordian Society, which we called the Bavarian Illuminati [...] So, we built up this myth about the warfare between the Discordian Society and the Illuminati for quite a while, until one day Bob Shea said to me, "You know, we could write a novel about this!"[4]

Zen Without Zen Masters is a book by Camden Benares (The Count of Five), published in 1977, of koans, stories and exercises of a Discordian nature. It includes tales of several early Discordians including Hill (as Mal) and Thornley (as Omar and Ho Chi Zen). "Enlightenment of a Seeker" from this book is also present in Principia Discordia as "A Zen Story".[5][6][7] There are references to this story in The Illuminatus! Trilogy, as well.

Zenarchy was first self-published by Thornley, under the pen name Ho Chi Zen, as a series of one-page (or broadsheet) newsletters in the 1960s,.[8] A selection of the material was later reedited and expanded by Thornley and republished in paperback by IllumiNet Press in 1991. The book describes Thornley's concept of Zenarchy "a way of Zen applied to social life. A non-combative, non-participatory, no-politics approach to anarchy intended to get the serious student thinking." [9]

Summa Universalia was another work by Malaclypse the Younger, purported to be a summary of the Universe. It was excerpted in the first edition of Principia Discordia but never published. It was mentioned in an introduction to one of the Principia editions, and the work was quoted from in the first edition.[10][11]

The longest known fragment of the text is the Myth of Ichabod (alluded to as the "Myth of Starbuck" in the 4th edition of the Principia) which was circulated independently.[12]

In addition to Summa Universalia, Principia Discordia also included selections from Kerry Wendell Thornley's writings, which he named The Honest Book of Truth. These sections are clearly marked, and are subtitled in parody of the bible's books.

The Honest Book of Truth was for a long time not available to the general public, but a copy of it was published in Historia Discordia.

Selections from this work can also be found within The Illuminatus! Trilogy.[13]

Apocrypha Discordia was compiled by Rev. DrJon Swabey, later known as His Holiness The Rev. DrJon, and published in 2001. Steve Jackson and Reverend Loveshade had previously considered publishing a book by the name suggested by Russel Dalenberg on the usenet group rec.games.board.[14][15] The book contains material by both original and later Discordians and is illustrated by Pope Phil Wlodarczyk III. It was translated into German as Apocrypha Diskordia[16] and because of it DrJon with Adam Gorightly were chosen to write an "outroduction" to a hardback edition of Principia Discordia.

The Black Iron Prison was an effort to create an updated, modern book that would function as Principia Discordia did when released. The collaborators stated that "while the original Principia Discordia holds important messages and philosophies, we wondered if some of the humor and language might be dated and lost on a younger generation of Discordians. We wanted to crystalize some of our favorite themes from the Principia, those of radical free will and self-emancipation." The goal was to encourage "critical thinking and self awareness" in the reader.[17] The Black Iron Prison has influenced Discordian communities in various parts of the world.[5]

Liber Malorum is the 2007 anthology put together by Sean Scullion and released on Paganarchy Press. Self-described as 'The Greatest Slice of collaborative magical fiction since the Bible', it gets increasingly Discordian as the reader journeys through the pages. It tells the story of innocent and heartbroken Bernadette who, upon trying to discover why her boyfriend left her, finds herself in a bizarre world of 'Witchcraft, Discordianism, Anarchy and Apples'. Liber Malorum features notable contributions from Ramsey Dukes, Jaq D. Hawkins, David Blank, Orryelle Defenestrate and others. Significantly to Discordians, there are 23 contributing authors in total.

Ek-sen-trik-kuh Discordia: The Tales of Shamlicht by Reverend Loveshade with "foreplay" or foreword by S. John Ross was published in 2012 by Anaphora Literary Press.[18] The controversial book reportedly was inspired by an investigation by the FBI with portions of the book having been previously seized. Ek-sen-trik-kuh Discordia includes blurbs (short reviews of the book) by R. Crumb, Sondra London, Alan Moore, Rev. Ivan Stang, Robert Anton Wilson (who saw an early draft), and others.[19][20] It was listed in January 2013 in both the print and online version of the New York Review of Books.[20] The book was soon pulled from publication after allegations of plagiarism were made on amazon.com and sent to the publisher. An editor denied the claims which did not specify what material was allegedly plagiarized.[18][21] The publisher stated, "In part, I took the book out of print because I was receiving harassing phone calls and emails with threat of harm via “discordian” jakes, and my phone was infected with a virus with a Discordian flavor."[22]

Historia Discordia was compiled by Adam Gorightly with foreword by Robert Anton Wilson.[23] It is a compilation of early Discordian photos, tracts, art collages, and more including works by Discordianism founders Greg Hill (Malaclypse the Younger) and Kerry Thornley (Omar Khayyam Ravenhurst).[24] Among other things, it contains the long-missing The Honest Book of Truth and the first edition of Principia Discordia.[25] It was reviewed on goodreads.com, and features a blurb by famed comic book writer Alan Moore.[24]

Principia Entropius is a gathering of material from early Discordian message boards of the 1990s. Brenton Clutterbuck describe the book as "a terrible mess that makes one’s head hurt", but also as "a rare and valuable (historically if not creatively) snapshot of Discordianism in the 90s".[5]

The Prankster and the Conspiracy: The Story of Kerry Thornley and How He Met Oswald and Inspired the Counterculture focuses on Kerry Thornley AKA Omar Khayyam Ravenhurst, co-founder of Discordianism. It was written by Adam Gorightly, self-proclaimed "crackpot historian." It is reviewed on Goodreads.[26]

Chasing Eris by Brenton Clutterbuck includes interviews and the author's travels in America, South America, Australia, and Europe to meet Discordians. It is reviewed on Goodreads.[27]