Me, a name I call Myself. What is the relationship between me, myself and I? Who am I, anyway? When I am aware of “myself” I hold an image which I tend to feel good about. I like my body overall, and I see that “myself” embodies ways of moving, habits, gestures and attitudes that … Read more
Knowledge vs Understanding Transmitting understanding is not the same as sharing knowledge. What, then, is understanding? And how do we convey it? Many of us sense an urgency towards the end of our lives to pass on what we have learned. In Meetings with Remarkable Men, Gurdjieff addresses the problem of trying to transmit to others … Read more
I’ve been thinking about the interplay between ego, fear and identification around the issue of vaccination. Just to be clear, I’m fully vaccinated. Yet I struggle with my own mistrust of vaccinations. I am not convinced getting the vaccine is the best thing to do. But what interests me is this interplay between ego, fear … Read more
For years I’ve wondered what is meant by Gurdjieff’s “active mentation,” or “three-centered thinking.” That is, thinking with all three centers: the mind, the emotions and the body. The Setup Here is an example of what might be called active mentation: It began with working on a new morning exercise concerning Gurdjieff’s Law of Three. … Read more
How old is the concept of demiurge and can we connect to it? Bennett’s use of the term demiurge preceded Sherborne, where I assumed he had made the term up. I had not read his Dramatic Universe. As his student, I understood he meant demiurge to be a force in the realm of angels. Mr. Bennett also … Read more
The term solioonensius, from Gurdjieff’s book All and Everything, seems to be at work in today’s world. This is one of many words Gurdjieff made up so that readers would come to new understandings without the associations we attach to familiar words. Solioonensius represents the notion of large catastrophic events which affect the human psyche, … Read more
What is meant by the term relaxation in Fourth Way work? Here is another word that we “think” we understand, but do we? Typically, when stressed and tense, we think in terms of taking an external action to address the issue. Exercising, vegging out with a book or a movie, taking a yoga or meditation class. … Read more
In Fourth Way work, sensation is a building block. To use it, one must understand sensation differently than the common definition. The usual way of thinking about sensation is something from outside ourselves that sets off our skin sensors: heat, cold, touch, wind, water, etc. We touch a hot surface and burn our finger. We … Read more
I’d like to share how to work with an inner Theme. Every week on my course at Sherborne House, Mr. Bennett presented themes . However, DONE is my own theme, which came to me unbidden. The Concept of a Theme “Live each moment as if it were your last.” Mrs. Popoff, my first teacher in … Read more
What is my relationship with my moving center, as Gurdjieff calls one’s physical body? Why does Gurdjieff say each center has its own brain? [See the last two blogs on feeling center and intellectual center.] My Relationship to Moving Center I’ve always thought of myself as a Man #1 primarily centered in my physical self. … Read more