My understanding about chief feature is this: That each of us has an inherent central “feature” which is at the core of who we are and how we manifest. Everyone’s chief feature is unique. Gurdjieff called it chief fault. It was suggested to me by Mr. Bennett as the tint of glass through which I … Read more
Mr. Bennett gave the STOP! exercise sparingly. Sometimes it came during meals on our course at Sherborne. I would be talking with tablemates, or distractedly looking for the salt, or trying to get Jack’s attention. Suddenly the chatter would be rent with Mr. Bennett’s deep voice commanding STOP! Everything would freeze. My movement, my voice, … Read more
Why is not knowing so hard for me? There were technical questions about lymph nodes and blood cells I needed answered. Michelle is asking me to give up wanting to understand what is happening inside of her. My suspicion is this is hard for me because “knowing” is comfortable. It makes me feel safe, grounded. … Read more
I was nervous, my head a stick of cotton candy. I did not want to be performing in front of an audience. What if I didn’t know the movement and messed up? How was this going to work anyway, with so many of us in the room? Mick … Read more
1972- Sherborne House, Thanksgiving: Before the plates emerged from the Servery, Mr. Bennett stood. Together we invoked the prayer that he had created, imprinting in us one of Gurdjieff’s primary principles, The Law of Reciprocal Maintenance. All life is one, and everything that lives is Holy. Plants, animals and Man— all must eat to live and … Read more
Gurdjieff developed a theory he called Reciprocal Maintenance. Reciprocal Maintenance has to do with organic life on earth, including humans, being food for the cosmos. I’m learning to understand what this means via eating. Last summer during a seminar I listened to a recording of JG Bennett suggesting an exercise. Be present to the first … Read more
Gurdjieff said, “Make the work your own.” But he didn’t say how to do that. I think I just got a clue what this means from an experience at a recent work event at Claymont. I’ve practiced the morning exercises given by Mr. Bennett for many years. Over that time I’ve come to appreciate that … Read more
Last week I had a glimpse of what Gurdjieff means by “Bearing the Sorrow of Our Common Father.” If you can’t connect to the word Father, use a word that connects you to that which is beyond us, yet offers Help. Finding myself in an unusually sensitive state following a silent workday at Claymont, I … Read more
Self-observation is a phrase people in Gurdjieff’s Fourth Way use, meaning to observe how one really is. (Or isn’t, as the case may be.) I’d like to tell the story of a recent moment of self-observation. To set my story up, I need to go back to last summer, when the notion of “listening” arose … Read more
How do I Work on myself? I’ve taken the phrase, “work on oneself” for granted for so many years. My first teacher, Mrs. Popoff, told us about the three lines of work—work on myself being the first line. She gave us “tasks” like brushing your teeth with your non-dominant hand, or “remembering yourself” as you … Read more