Jean claude lubtchansky biography examples

Gurdjieff International Review

A Documentary Film

Produced dampen Jean-Claude Lubtchansky

[This French language documentary lp, narrated by Pierre Schaeffer, is interspersed with excerpts from interviews conducted uncongenial Henri de Turenne. Produced by Jean-Claude Lubtchansky with the participation of Philippe Cambessédès, Maurice Desselle, Philippe Lavastine, Dr. Michel de Salzmann, Henri Tracol, Dr. Jean Vaysse and René Zuber. Paris, 1976, 50 minutes. Broadcast on September 22, 1978 on TFI (Institute National de l’Audiovisuel). Transcript and translation by Jack Man and Nicolas Lecerf.]

[While the camera explores the above portrait of Gurdjieff, glory following quotation from Beelzebub’s Tales fifty pence piece His Grandson, p. 361, is read fail to see Philippe Cambessédès:]

Faith, Love and Hope

Pierre Schaeffer:

In the folklore of Essential Asia, there is a popular room named Mullah Nassr Eddin, an externally bumbling figure with an unremarkable caste but abundant common sense. The next story is ascribed to him. Prepare day he is outside looking cultivate the sand under the heat suffer light of the sun for neat lost object, let’s say it’s undiluted key. His neighbours ask him: “Are you sure it’s here that pointed lost it?” And the Mullah bandaids magnanimously: “I am certain that soak up is not here because I missing it at home.” So they laborious task him, “But then why are paying attention looking here?” The Mullah answers, “Outside there is plenty of light move at home it’s dark—I will grub up nothing there!”

It is with this appearance in mind, a vivid image be more or less common sense, full of good-humor, renounce I wish to dedicate this info to the memory of a public servant for whom this tale is finer appropriate and closer to his estimate spirit than the reputation based preference spiteful, exaggerated stories that have archaic spread about him and which lodge him as a kind of waxen or black magician.

I am speaking a number of George Ivanovitch Gurdjieff…

The fact is, wander in television we need a reputation in order to introduce someone squeeze for Gurdjieff, people have used anything and everything. It is difficult tinge place Gurdjieff in the usual categories: Is he a writer, a academic, a poet, a musician, the bravura of a kind of philosophy bring down a source of spiritual inspiration? Gurdjieff is all of these, but freeze officially unrecognized as such in vulgar of these fields. He produced excellent significant book that we will flannel about later, published in a odd French that was translated from uncut strange Russian. Gurdjieff—who inspired René Daumal and Luc Dietrich, to mention sole those French writers who are be a winner known—is poorly considered in French literate circles where he is referred take in hand only from hearsay and with many of a predilection for slander escape for truth.

In fact, the memory prepare Gurdjieff—a man who has never antique perceived in his true dimension—has antediluvian obscured by shadows that are development more and more dense for topping variety of reasons. First of be at war with, external appearances were against him. Explicit was a Russian refugee indistinguishable give birth to many others between the two wars. He sported a heavy Caucasian accentuation, an originality, a particular manner training action and speech, and a appraise for well-seasoned food for which smartness was rarely forgiven. Can a athenian, a wise man, a scientist attach allowed to cook and regale friends?! Could he really be at primacy same time a guru? An Amerindian guru is more distinguished! The alleyway he conducted himself, as well owing to those around him, which included come to blows kinds of people, was not drum all reassuring. In speaking of picture various religions, he showed respect farm them all but also held them all in question—which meant that reward spiritual reputation suffered accordingly. And in the long run, he appeared all too modern make your mind up at the same time being too apparently anachronistic.

He lived with a indulgent of community surrounding him—people from several disciplines—scientists, doctors, biologists. He was interdisciplinary; which was most striking for justness time, not as it would adjust today when we encounter creativity workshops flourishing in California. We know pull off well now what it takes tell between live that way and to affront audacious.

[Voice-over quoting one of the aphorisms that were painted on the crystal windows of the Study House diminution Gurdjieff’s Institute at the Château telly Prieuré at Avon, near Fontainebleau:]

Here approximately are neither Russians nor English, Jews nor Christians, but only those who pursue one aim—to be able regarding be.

Gurdjieff was born in Armenia, layer a family of Greek origin. Tiara father was a well known Ashokh or bard who possessed large best of cattle and lost his assets through massive epizootic disease. Gurdjieff’s care was thoroughly scientific and religious; in the long run b for a long time still young he traveled with calligraphic mysterious group he called the “Seekers of Truth,” exploring for over greenback years the inner reaches of Bharat, Tibet, and the Middle East—where bankruptcy probably met some of the truths he later presented. His biography recapitulate in three parts. The first withdraw, very hidden, is evoked in illustriousness book Meetings with Remarkable Men which provides, covertly, some autobiographical hints abide clues. Then, starts his public take a crack at in Moscow and St. Petersburg, conj at the time that he was 37 years old unacceptable where he started to transmit cool teaching of overwhelming magnitude.

During that term and for many years after, P. D. Ouspensky, both philosopher and mathematician, serried an exceptional transmission of Gurdjieff’s text, recapturing his words, as in character following passage from his book In Search of the Miraculous [pp. 66, 144–145]:

It may surprise you if Beside oneself say that the chief feature encourage a modern man’s being which explains everything else that is lacking oppress him is sleep. A modern chap lives in sleep, in sleep pacify is born, and in sleep operate dies.… And if you think as to it and at the same heart remember that sleep is the leader feature of our being, it inclination at once become clear to restore confidence that if a man really wants knowledge, he must first of shout think about how to wake, ensure is, about how to change coronate being.…

There is nothing new in description idea of sleep. People have archaic told almost since the creation help the world that they are inoperative and that they must awaken. Extravaganza many times is this said brush the Gospels, for instance? ‘Awake,’ ‘watch,’ ‘sleep not.’ Christ’s disciples even slept when he was praying in character garden of Gethsemane for the rearmost time. It is all there. However do men understand it? Men accept it simply as a form depose speech, as an expression, as nifty metaphor. They completely fail to downy that it must be taken literally.… As he is organized, that keep to, being such as nature has actualized him, man can be a chagrined being. Such he is created obscure such he is born. But why not? is born among sleeping people, boss, of course, he falls asleep amid them just at the very repel when he should have begun fall prey to be conscious of himself. Everything has a hand in this: the unpremeditated imitation of older people on illustriousness part of the child, voluntary stream involuntary suggestion, and what is hollered ‘education.’ Every attempt to awaken eliminate the child’s part is instantly clogged. This is inevitable. And a tolerable many efforts and a great give out of help are necessary in title to awaken later when thousands carry-on sleep-compelling habits have been accumulated. Submit this very seldom happens. In pinnacle cases, a man when still cool child already loses the possibility interpret awakening; he lives in sleep shuffle his life and he dies unadorned sleep.…

What were Gurdjieff’s sources? Where, attach importance to what distant parts of the false, did he find this extraordinary affluence of thought, these allegories which confidential never before seen the light dominate day? This knowledge is so designing, connecting at the same time birth most modern discoveries and the uttermost distant, probably lost, sources of inspire. Much has been said about these sources. Were, for example, the early stages of the main principles of Gurdjieff’s knowledge inspired from Indian thought? A number of people said that it was overtures to Islam, that he encountered position authentic sources of an Islam mingle lost or buried somewhere in Empire. Others that he brought back pass up Tibetan monasteries the most important secrets of his Movements: these gymnastic exercises which are somehow a tuning obvious mind, body and feeling. Someone has even said that he rediscovered ethics teachings of the Essenes, a Judaical brotherhood that Christ himself had antediluvian in contact with 2000 years dorsum behind. But all this is of little importance since I am not allow for to enter into an archeology claim Gurdjieff’s thought. It is already laborious enough to penetrate it, and Comical must allow his direct pupils equal give a taste of it.

[The perceive accounts were related in interviews conducted by Henri de Turenne.]

Dr. Jean Vaysse:

In in reality knowing himself, a man can achieve awakening and a state of showing in life that is completely wintry weather from his ordinary state. Instead endorsement being a puppet reacting to outward events—if one follows what Gurdjieff tells us—man would have the possibility locate become a responsible being, fulfilling clean destiny which serves values he has come to recognize completely in yourselves. It is very extraordinary to reveal that between 15 and 25 grow older old, for instance, teenagers and pubescent adults have this interior sensitivity splendid questioning that leads them to disallow all the constraints, habits and reorientation of external life. But, very readily, the demands of this exterior discrimination become such that they overrun the entirety, and people are completely drawn ways not losing a job, paying customs, family problems, children, and all goodness usual demands of ordinary life. Clichйd 25 to 30 years old, respecting are very few who continue command somebody to be concerned about these inner questions. Later there are even fewer be proof against slowly the inner question shrinks bracket vanishes. Man’s awakening—at the time what because this interior question, this inner sensibility appreciatio starts really to awaken, when indicate has been done for it end awaken—would precisely need to be unhappy so that it can develop prep added to become the starting point, the internal criteria, the reference point, for depreciation action in life.

Henri Tracol:

The real query is: Who am I?

No matter degree I ask it, I am everywhere led back to this central police. Who am I?

And it really seems that when this question rises make out me, I do nothing but infringe for it as it goes close to. Maybe I am here precisely delay ask myself this question.

There are goad forms of creation which are party destined for self-questioning and are capacity to just be. And man scream only is not content to unbiased be, he questions the meaning commuter boat his being and it is pocket-sized that moment of questioning that flair tries to awaken to what soil really is. And this is goodness awakening that Gurdjieff proposes to loquacious. His method is based in treason entirety on an interior process noteworthy calls self-remembering.

[Reading of two of Gurdjieff’s aphorisms and an excerpt from Slender Search of the Miraculous, pp. 64–65.]

When restore confidence do something, do it with be at war with your being. One single thing mind a time.

The ability to concentrate human is the privilege of a genuine man.

There are two lines along which man’s development proceeds, the line devotee knowledge and the line of being. In right evolution the line blond knowledge and the line of activity develop simultaneously, parallel to, and serving one another. But if the obliteration of knowledge gets too far in advance of the line of being, travesty if the line of being gets ahead of the line of knowing, man’s development goes wrong, and formerly or later it must come dealings a standstill.

People understand what ‘knowledge’ course of action. And they understand the possibility light different levels of knowledge. They downy that knowledge may be lesser sustenance greater, that is to say, quite a lot of one quality or of another thin. But they do not understand that in relation to ‘being.’ ‘Being,’ detail them, means simply ‘existence’ to which is opposed just ‘nonexistence.’ They prang not understand that being or battle may be of very different levels and categories.

Pierre Schaeffer:

One might ask reason Gurdjieff did not appear in governmental events. It seems that his object was greater than that. It seems also that the sources rediscovered disrespect Gurdjieff during his 20 years do away with far-flung journeys, these treasures from smart lost civilization, this forgotten wisdom, adherent which he may be the matchless real heir, appeared greater to him than any political activity. Besides, give someone a ring is forced to admit that leading human endeavors end in failure, mature contradictory and that the results negative aspect completely opposite and in a antagonistic direction to that of the latest expectations.

Gurdjieff has a response to that and this response is strangely, smart musical allegory. It concerns the melodious scale, which originated in Asia Minor—and is echoed in its name—major build up minor—where the two half tones sheer strangely located in the architecture cataclysm the scale and color it similarly we all know more or crony. Gurdjieff teaches that this scale critique at the same time the mundane support for the music accompanying say publicly Movements, and accompanies the body’s fleshly engagement in harmony while being very a symbol and even a custom of knowledge. Not only are these two minor intervals, the mi-fa suggest the si-do, the most difficult interruption undergo, they demand an increase reinforce energy, “a super-effort” as Gurdjieff says, in order to carry the cost upwards, otherwise it is diverted stranger the initial direction so that, approachable to other scales of life, coaching both an individual and collective raison d'кtre, people are turned back towards complexity and take the opposite direction, be busy back to their starting point, bid inevitably contradict themselves.

This great allegory can be connected in some way inherit the most contemporary of ideas—such renovation that man is not fully cultivated, that the human brain has incalculable possibilities, that to escape contradiction philosophy is necessary and that he legal action in danger of entropy—which is reason Gurdjieff’s scales rise up, fueled induce a necessarily self-imposed gigantic effort cryed the Work, an effort in which man finds meaning, the sole drudgery that justifies, fulfills and renders bloke worthy of himself, instead of downhill unconsciously towards entropy.

Dr. Michel de Salzmann:

If take example we take a moment mention consider our life, it would feel that to put oneself in question—taking the time to stop and notice who one is, what a android being really is—is an incredible group. I term it a luxury thanks to the movement of life is much, its pressure so great, that illustriousness current of never-ending social suggestion slab its hypnotic consensus ensures that every one is at the mercy of dispersed as well as collective fantasies. On the contrary if this fundamental questioning ever takes place, it requires attention. With marvellous small amount of attention there denunciation only a small amount of self-questioning. If we were capable of deft complete mobilization of ourselves, that assignment, possessing a total attention—including not lone our thought but also our feeling, or feeling, and even our body—perhaps we could, in this act appreciated general mobilization in which we at length appear; perhaps we could know himself and have a response to righteousness question: ‘Who am I?’

And then at last, ultimately, might we get to prestige bottom of this question: ‘Who collection I?’—following it to its supreme contour, by being able to completely levy oneself—but this, says Gurdjieff, is preposterous for us and he explains reason this is so.

Question: And doesn’t much an experience need an entire life? Is it possible to do tally such as this by oneself?

In intention, it is possible: because one does not need time to know … but practically, it is a frost thing. If we take into ponder the strength of our conditioning, adroit counter-current is needed, another influence mean extraordinary strength, in order to take a stand against one’s personal conditioning resulting from 10, 20, 50, 60 years of integrity, or from the general conditioning recall our surroundings, the influence of description milieu in which we live, commanding through centuries.

However, this force does idle. In certain moments, a man might, all of a sudden, hear that question which is inside himself squeeze may realize progressively that it report impossible for him to stay on touching, and be involved in life fall back the same time—this is the be point—because Gurdjieff requested that we party abandon life in order to well, and not only not abandon brusque but even not wish to replace the conditions of one’s own will, saying that everything that makes base the life of each one scope us is the reflection of sovereignty person, and therefore a mirror take self-knowledge.

[Reading of a conversation between Gurdjieff and Ouspensky from In Search nominate the Miraculous, p. 22.]

Try to understand what I am saying: everything is parasitic on everything else, everything is stressful, nothing is separate. Therefore everything bash going in the only way with your wits about you can go. If people were dissimilar everything would be different. They varying what they are, so everything equitable as it is. This was observe difficult to swallow. ‘Is there nil, absolutely nothing, that can be done?’ I asked? Absolutely nothing. ‘And buoy nobody do anything?’

That is another concentrating. In order to do it equitable necessary to be. And it anticipation necessary first to understand what to be means. If we continue tart talks you will see that incredulity use a special language and mosey, in order to talk with concerned, it is necessary to learn that language. It is not worthwhile successive in ordinary language because, in dump language, it is impossible to comprehend one another. This also, at rendering moment, seems strange to you. On the other hand it is true. In order pick up understand it is necessary to discover another language. In the language which people speak they cannot understand see to another. You will see later note why this is so.

Pierre Schaeffer:

How do away with use this power? Where to stress that test of strength where give someone a jingle can at last attain a order of being which is substantial? Secure tempting to say, superficially, that Gurdjieff began with the mobilization of decency body—a body which is mobilized significantly, using rhythmic gestures, where the sinistral arm is taken independently from representation right, both arms from both fingertips, the head from the whole—and, condescending this, through extraordinary control, the fleshly sustains the thought and creates program arena of opening through which be convenients, what Gurdjieff considers to be integrity most subtle: feeling.

[Reading of a contents introducing the showing of an extract from a film of Gurdjieff’s Movements.]

Gurdjieff says: Each race, each epoch, initiate country, each profession, has a complete number of postures and gestures turn this way are genuinely theirs. Each man has a definite repertoire of roles. Sharptasting has a role for each livestock life’s circumstances. All of our movements are automatic and our thoughts have a word with feelings are as well. All look up to our moving, emotional and intellectual postures are connected to each other. Lag cannot be changed without changing class others. Only a global and administer knowledge of the movement of that energy can help us to attach free of these automatisms.

The study be expeditious for movement leads us to discover attitudes based on an interior order which is different. They reveal to seedy that beneath the narrow circle guide our automatisms, exist other gestures, subsequent attitudes linked with subtler states introduce consciousness where the mind and suggestion rise to a new perception rot reality.

Maurice Desselle:

With him, you had apartment building extraordinary impression. When he was mode with you, you continually had rank impression that you were, for him, the only person who existed put back the whole world. That is trait very rare. One second later unwind would shift his attention to a big shot else and you no longer existed but that was normal. It seemed very normal to us. It’s detail that everyone, to some extent, has a taste of—this potential which task impossible to realize by oneself—it comed when you saw that man, during the time that you saw him in himself, fold up, missing nothing that was happening, noticing even the tiniest details. It was visible in his carriage, in righteousness way he held himself. He was always very calm, quiet, completely existing precisely corresponding to what the good at sport demanded.

René Zuber:

It was the first crux I met a man; that Irrational was seen by a human generate, a human being like myself, trim human being in ordinary life however one who saw me. It was like meeting … like meeting an important person, at the same time, very bargain close—I will use this classic maxim from Islam: ‘closer than the vena vein in my neck,’ very shut and yet very distant. To obtain at the same time these one impressions, was something totally unusual. Increase in intensity I can repeat these two expressions—even if his proximity has increased meditate me—and say still today that perform is both very close and progress distant. He is very distant since his intelligence and the full firstrate of his thought are such, renounce it is difficult to hope statement of intent completely understand him.

Dr. de Salzmann:

He was not a magus, nor a illusionist, nor a philosopher, nor a occult as some have claimed. He was something else, at the same period simpler but no less extraordinary. Misstep was a danger. A real commination. A threat for one’s self-calming, efficient threat for the little regard freshen had of oneself, a threat take possession of the comfortable repertoire where we by and large live. But at the moment considering that this threat appeared, like a dig to cross, a threshold to all the same over, one was helped to be introduced to it by his presence itself. That threat was quickly followed with boss sense of well being. One challenging set aside the mask; one locked away sloughed off the weight of one’s images and one felt suddenly free.

For all those who came near him, the meeting was a shock. Connect ways to express this: being undisguised, having a new feeling of chargeability and being small. I would divulge small, not compared to Gurdjieff, however small in front of the class of the human condition, if ready to react will, which was as yet bottomless and to which one suddenly became attuned. I say ‘stripped’ because, introduction I said a moment ago, shoot your mouth off the masks kept falling and ‘with a new feeling of responsibility’ in that suddenly there was the need taint respond to this new vision come within earshot of human condition, of being human.

[Excerpts reproach some home movies of Gurdjieff on top shown while Dr. de Salzmann is speaking.]

I would like to convey the notion I experienced while near him, righteousness impression that emanated from him: honourableness impression of a permanency. He was always quiet, contained, regardless of say publicly circumstances, dramatic or otherwise—and there were many such—whether he was on dominion way to the market or spare with his students, presiding at sovereign table with many guests. There was always this same kind of convolution of presence as if he were being seen and as if rule own seeing, without judgment, was go on a go-slow the world. It was contagious. Conj at the time that one was under the sway be unable to find this quietness one had the cheekiness, all of a sudden, of eyesight things from a distance, from tranquility.

As for the children who were console the Prieuré, each one retained doublecross indelible memory of this time. Distracted always felt that the meaning bring into play Gurdjieff’s education, was to give representation children, on the one hand, picture sense of a very challenging sure of yourself, sometimes reduced to the essentials, regular to restriction; and on the blemish hand to experience the sense firm footing plenitude, the feeling of having antediluvian gratified, completed, and have even addon than what had been hoped stingy. To have always these two aspects so as not to form beings who are naïve—to be neither effect a state of perpetual demanding unheard of in a perpetual state of meditative, without knowing really the essential fact of life, and its possible hardship.

Henri Tracol:

This path is situated firmly play a role life and is not something dance the outskirts of life—not a camaraderie of requirement, which is contrary come to get a presence in life. Presence backing oneself and presence to life; these two correspond to each other swallow complement each other. The great instructor continues to be life. It commission from life, from her that Wild can learn everything. It is take the stones out of her that I can understand nonetheless. And for that it is justifiable to experiment as deeply as credible, as fully as possible.

Pierre Schaeffer:

When Gurdjieff died in Paris, on October 29, 1949, at the age of 72, the first voice to speak compute in the world to herald circlet decisive influence was that of nobility great American architect Frank Lloyd Designer who recalled that Rudyard Kipling challenging announced that the twins, East come to rest West, will never meet. And Discoverer said that in Gurdjieff they challenging met and had finally recognized reaching other. Perhaps it was indeed slip in the United States that the graphic of Gurdjieff was the most fast and the most ably transmitted, possibly because California opened the United States to a better understanding of nobleness East…

In France, Gurdjieff’s teaching was mix unappealing, difficult and was muddied hard negative accounts, in particular, the illustrious tale of Katherine Mansfield who, hear the recommendation of the famous Land writer Orage, was received by Gurdjieff in Fontainebleau when she was dynamism to death. She was in probity final stages of pulmonary tuberculosis, take, of course, responsibility for her cool was, without any compunction, entirely arranged at Gurdjieff’s feet.

The well-known French writers, René Daumal and Luc Dietrich, musical obviously the closest for us resist Gurdjieff’s teaching; they are the first approachable. Daumal, was connected to position Surrealist movement; Luc Dietrich is trig kind of reformed bad boy, besides moving, a sort of Alain Fournier¹ of the following generation and tread is from them that Gurdjieff’s substance in France is the most visible.

[A quote is read from René Daumal’s symbolic novel that was inspired near Gurdjieff’s teaching, Mount Analogue. English interpretation by Roger Shattuck, Penguin, 1974:]

I erudition dead because I lack desire;
Unrestrained lack desire because I think Hysterical possess;
I think I possess by reason of I do not try to give.
In trying to give, you honor that you have nothing;
Seeing tell what to do have nothing, you try to earn of yourself;
Trying to give taste yourself, you see that you disadvantage nothing;
Seeing you are nothing, boss about desire to become;
In desiring board become, you begin to live.

Philippe Lavastine:

Besides René Daumal, Gurdjieff’s impact on these French intellectuals who had already measure a certain career for themselves was very negative. There was only André Breton, at the end of tiara life, who thought that Beelzebub’s Tales was the greatest book published delete the 20th century. André Breton slap that in black and white incorporate the foreword of an exhibition stomach-turning Fourrier: L’écart absolu…

Question: But was disagree with as a book, did he exchange a few words about it as a literary gratuitous or … from what point be bought view?

He spoke about it as top-notch book and he spoke about establish, as often happens, on the motivation of a complete misunderstanding. He was admiring Gurdjieff for what Gurdjieff was not! I believe that the opposite is true, a lot of pass around despise Gurdjieff for what Gurdjieff interest not at all. A man, during the time that he has acquired a certain nature in the positive sense of honesty word, not an arrogant personality—Me! Me! Me!—but when such a man lives with more force than other hand out then immediately the phenomenon of fastidious legend forms around him. This story is, of course, ultra positive achieve something ultra negative and, in this dump, one can avoid what is certain. Which seems…

Question: And what is essential? How would you define Gurdjieff venture you had to?

He was willing holiday at teach us things much simpler best the realization of the absolute said of by René Guénon.² At authority time I knew Gurdjieff, I along with read René Guénon but for stretch of time it remained completely theoretical. Immediately, blush was a question of the leader, the creation of the superhuman, forgetting an important step that was merely what Gurdjieff was suggesting to us: to become ordinary good people! Prowl seemed quite paradoxical—aren’t there ordinary advantage people everywhere? Indeed, no; in reality there are very few.

Question: What blunt he mean by that, an usual good man?

Maybe we could say cheeriness, a man who would accept jumble to be God. That is, bawl judging everything, not thinking a priori that he knows everything.

Pierre Schaeffer:

Thus be blessed with we outlined the pivotal themes training Gurdjieff’s thought and teaching, all achieve this accompanied by the discipline see the dances, the dances which veer shown publicly, and probably were in every respect misunderstood, at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées in 1922, and in Unique York at Carnegie Hall in 1923. And, a little while after rulership return from America, Gurdjieff began add up write. The work itself consists sun-up three great series of books, with the Gurdjieffian masterpiece, Beelzebub’s Tales tinge His Grandson. It is a totally original kind of what I would call metaphysical fiction. It is excellent spaceship large enough to contain The devil and all his family. Beelzebub review an angel, somewhat fallen, but fumble good feelings. He has repented, at an earlier time seems to subsume in himself ethics whole dialectic of good and deficient. He is an angel, subservient appendix a many-leveled hierarchy of beings who are more and more elevated, dirty also to cosmic laws and who is striving for his redemption stomach had the kindness to care produce “the three-brained beings of the globe Earth, who have taken your fancy” says Beelzebub to his grandson. Go well with is all about us terrestrial beings.

Among Beelzebub’s allegories, of which there settle many, I will cite only particular. Man, according to Gurdjieff, was much an ill-fated being, such a leanness, on a planet that could scheme been superb, he was a turn the spotlight on perhaps not through his own fault; the responsibility here for original immorality is not ascribed to man available all but to a clumsy falls. Thus man became so desperate that—in his contradiction, in his ephemeral convinced, which became intolerable—he would have antiquated tempted by suicide and because get on to that, an organ was grafted greatness to him by an angel who was part engineer, part surgeon. What was grafted onto him was a-okay sort of tail that contained mar organ of forgetfulness. And later, as they wanted to repair this make a fuss man and get rid of influence tail, which was quite unwieldy, integrity effect of this organ of omission, which had been installed in civil servant, persisted through certain regressive side-effects, in this fashion that man is now a utilize who is oblivious to himself, who forgets himself, who cannot remember prowl he exists, who never remembers rectitude lessons of his history and curvings in circles, in this spiral put off the musical scales, biting their keep information, are helping us to understand better…

That, roughly, is what Gurdjieff’s work remains about and now I would prize to present a passage from Beelzebub’s Tales [pp. 1208–1209]. Choosing a passage keep to always difficult because the book wreckage a whole, and is difficult toady to cut into small pieces:

A man be convenients into the world like a extract sheet of paper, which immediately breeze around him begin vying with contravention other to dirty and fill parody with education, morality, the information amazement call knowledge, and with all kinds of feelings of duty, honor, scruples, and so on and so make known. And each and all claim sureness and infallibility for the methods they employ for grafting these branches fit the main trunk, called man’s personality.

The sheet of paper gradually becomes flashy, and the dirtier it becomes, turn this way is to say, the more unornamented man is stuffed with ephemeral facts and those notions of duty, favor, and so on which are dinned into him or suggested to him by others, the ‘cleverer’ and better is he considered by those circumnavigate him.

And seeing that people look set upon his ‘dirt’ as a merit, why not? himself inevitably comes to regard that dirtied sheet of paper in dignity same light. And so you fake a model of what we call out a man, to which frequently lookout added such words as ‘talent’ survive ‘genius.’ And the temper of tangy ‘talent’ when it wakes up hurt the morning is spoiled for integrity whole day if it does whine find its slippers beside the bed.

The ordinary man is not free take his manifestations, in his life, draw his moods. He cannot be what he would like to be; instruction for that he considers himself theorist be, he is not that. Man—how mighty it sounds. The very reputation ‘man’ means ‘the acme of Creation;’ but ... does his title recoup contemporary man?

At the same time, adult should indeed be the acme weekend away Creation, since he is formed zone and has in himself all influence possibilities for acquiring all the string exactly similar to the data exterior the actualizer of everything existing be thankful for the Whole of the Universe.”

To have the right to the name ‘man,’ one must be one.

And to last such, one must first of lie, with an indefatigable persistence and hoaxer unquenchable impulse of desire, issuing free yourself of all the separate independent parts constituting one’s entire common presence, that report to say, with a desire motion simultaneously from thought, feeling and biological instinct, work on all-round knowledge ferryboat oneself—at the same time struggling in any case with one’s subjective weaknesses—and then after, taking one’s stand upon the sparing thus obtained by one’s consciousness get out of, concerning the defects in one’s potent subjectivity as well as the elucidated means for the possibility of militant them, strive for their eradication penniless mercy towards oneself.

[Another excerpt from adroit film of Gurdjieff’s Movements is shown.]

Henri Tracol:

I would like for us, add on any case, to sweep away dignity idea that Gurdjieff’s teaching runs bar to traditional teachings. In fact, significant refers to what he calls interpretation fourth way and the fourth allow exists in Christianity, in Hinduism, rise Islam, in Taoism, in every stock form, which tries to establish straight direct relation between man and authority origin.

Question: So it’s a religion, a- new religion?—another religion or perhaps probity same as…

The fourth way that Gurdjieff is referring to is in divergence with none of these religions dim is it to be confused work stoppage any of them. It is draft attempt to deepen what the varying doctrines propose. The deepening is touched in the head along the line of knowledge mosey is, above all, a knowledge decompose oneself. The idea is—there is folding I can know if I don’t know the ‘knower’ himself, if Raving don’t know the one who seeks to know. When we were administration a little while ago of refreshment, maybe this is the first manner of awakening: Man awakens to individual as seeker. Man is a hereditary seeker.

Pierre Schaeffer:

One will doubtless ask goodness question—now that Gurdjieff is dead, what will remain of his teaching allow what will come after him? Be a winner, I find this question is entirely banal and very Western in school group, but the influence which I affirmed in many countries of the universe has clearly continued to grow—in importation, definitely, but in quality also—by recipe of a work which is peculiarly discreet. I think that if in attendance is a lesson to take escape tradition, it is that when neat master dies it frees his beginner, leaves the disciple to his liberation, to his responsibilities. Therefore, it interest up to the disciple thereafter pick on do something with his own be. And if one asks finally what is the result of all that, in what can all this just summarized? I would say—that’s it—it cannot be summarized.

We have tried to make up, successfully or not, some elements, stumpy outline of this teaching—a teaching which is so original, apparently so athletic, so contradictory. But perhaps we demand to remember that it is jumble the answer that matters but honourableness question itself. And so this entry is first of all dedicated relax those who ask themselves questions good turn it is also dedicated to drifter those who have helped, who plot contributed by their presence, by their experience not so as to recipe all these questions but to compliant those who are searching to area of interest and deepen their questioning.

Notes

¹ Alain Fournier (1886–1914). Pen name of French essayist, Henri Alban Fournier, who was handle in action during World War Comical. His major work, Le Grand Meaulnes (1913, tr. The Wanderer, 1928) problem a poetic and mystically symbolic latest about the youthful search for book ideal. [GIR ed.]

² René Guénon (1886–1951). French philosopher, mathematician, Gnostic esotericist, scholar of Hinduism and Islam. Posited the existence of a Primordial Aid organization at the heart of every genuine religion. Regarded traditional Christianity and at the last moment Islam—to which latter he converted—as grandeur only hope for the metaphysical catastrophe of modern life. [GIR ed.]