Fernando Pessoa and the different readings of his life and work

Abstract

Fernando Pessoa life and work, its biographies, perspectives or readings. Lines of force of his path: the innate genius and Occultism and Initiation. Difficulty of identifying and understanding his esoteric writings and notes unpublished in life, undated and so prone to be seen as contradictory. His sources of occultism, who were the authors more read and annotated, what subjects and levels he investigated deeper and related more, with whom may he have discussed, what were his main aspirations and projects. His place or contextualization in the Portuguese Spiritual and Literary Traditions. All his Occult search, unpublished in life in great part, manifested to us today in his multiple poems and texts, culminated in life in his genial work, "Orpheu" and the heteronyms being the most remarkable, in his esoteric poems published in reviews, in his most accomplished poem Mensagem, in his defense of freedom of Secret Associations and on his inner attainments and initiation, from which some hints were given in his autobiographical notes, especially the last one, some parts beings reproduced here, with extracts of other relevant texts.