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
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
Mrs. Popoff introduced me to the practice of morning ablutions sometime around 1971. Living weekends at her home in Long Island, I worked to earn money towards the second Basic Course at Sherborne House in England and attended group meetings Monday evenings. Tuesday mornings I returned to school in New Jersey. Jack, my boyfriend, lived … Read more
I am speaking of blending an emotional feeling with a separate physical sensation. Recently, I have realized that I’ve never given real attention to nor fully practiced the art of blending. In fact, I kind of skipped over practicing blending as such. I practiced sensation in the early days until I could call it up … Read more
In Dramatic Universe, Volume 3, Bennett speaks about the stages of life. Of particular interest is what he has to say about the final stage of life. He puts the notion of “retirement” on its head, recommending that during this stage, one “retires” to a less outwardly active life. Dedicating part of each day to … Read more
Who is J.G. Bennett, G.I. Gurdjieff, and what is Claymont? These names have loomed large my entire adult life. For most people they have not. So here goes: G.I. Gurdjieff was a Greek-Armenian mystic who brought the “wisdom of the East” to the West. Basically, he spent his youth searching for the answers to questions. … Read more