Gurdjieff presents as yet another old white man whose language, culture and message are woefully out of date in today’s world. Say it ain’t so, Joe! Well, from where I sit it is and it isn’t. First, Gurdjieff’s dad was Armenian, and his mom was Greek. He grew up in the Caucasus, so he certainly … Read more
I was reminded the other day that there is an energetic awareness I need to heed. I was holding my husband accountable for not setting up a side-trip he’d wanted to tack onto an already planned vacation. We’d had most of a year to extend our itinerary, but never got around to it. Once or … Read more
Cynthia Bourgeault, a Christian Wisdom teacher, invited her students to, among other things, “fast completely from the story of yourself.” She suggested this as an Ascensiontide practice, lasting for the period between Easter Sunday and Pentecost, forty days. The entirety of her message and the Invitation she threw down was inspiring. But I was not sure … Read more
We’d been on the rooftop in the restaurant lounge of a fancy hotel celebrating a friend’s birthday. The six of us included a couple who did volunteer work with the homeless in a food kitchen and with a transport service. Her career had been in social work and his as a lawyer. They split their … Read more
I put money in the bucket an old black man in a white shirt, black pants, and vest, held out at a stop light. He’d been there other days, too. I recognized the uniform from other locations in Asheville and in Charles Town. I have no idea if this money really feeds the homeless as … Read more
The Jesus Prayer work weekend was held recently at the Claymont Society for Continuous Education. This was the first seminar in a series proposed by my husband Jack, based on the Four Prophets morning exercise. He suggested that Claymont could host events delving into the inner work that each of these prophets represent. In the … Read more
How do I even approach paying the debt of my existence as Gurdjieff exhorts us to do? I’ve never been clear on how to see my way there. Recently, I sense that space between being aware of myself and losing awareness is the chasm to work within. It doesn’t matter how far apart or close … Read more
The space between remembering and forgetting, in Gurdjieff terminology, is usually supposed to be filled with “remembering oneself.” At least I thought so and worked at this for some twenty years at Claymont following my Sherborne course. One day I went to see Pierre Elliot, our teacher at Claymont. It was after a very intense … Read more
On Easter Sunday morning, the priest spoke about the blood and body of Christ being real. I heard him and knew that for him it was a big deal and the difference between Catholic and Protestant religions. The Catholics believe the host and wine turns into literal blood and flesh. The Protestants believe the communion … Read more
Law of Three Why is Denying Force holy? Gurdjieff teaches about the Law of Three, sometimes referring to it as Holy Affirming, Holy Denying, Holy Reconciling. Bennett, in Deeper Man, digs into the law as triads, breaking down and reconfiguring the interactions between Active, Passive (or receptive) and Reconciling forces. I’ve studied triads, experienced moments … Read more