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VOLUME 24 ISSUE 2 NUMBER 94

 “My aim from the beginning was to help to enable
The Fourth Way to make the transition to the new World-Time.”

W e live in an interval, a great collective interval. All the forms are

cracking. Everything is loose, blurred, uncertain.
“There are periods in the life of humanity,” says Gurdjieff, “which generally coincide
with the beginning of the fall of cultures and civilizations, when men irretrievably lose
their reason … such periods of mass madness, often coinciding with geophysical cata-
clysms, climatic changes, and similar phenomena of a planetary character, release a very
great quantity of the matter of knowledge.”
Everywhere, as René Guénon foresaw, there is a “reversal of values,” the aberrant legiti-
mizing itself. And everywhere “solidification.” Everywhere Heropass, time, appearing to
dominate the human experience of Space: physical, psychic and spiritual.
Heropass, what Gurdjieff called “the unique subjective,” is seen as “money.” Every
action is tied to the efficient making of money. Heropass is money. So seen, it becomes one
of the bastard gods of the day. The other bastard god of the day is Scientism, the worship
of Science and Technology. These two gods order our life, plunder our resources, suck out
our energy, in the name of “The Information Age,” a low-born age that covets not wis-
dom, or even knowledge, but time-bound information. “Information is power,” “Greed is
good,” shouts Das Man, Heidegger’s mechanical “they-self.”
But this horizontal world-time, however each of us may describe it, is recognized. The
question remains: how to work in the collective interval?
Imagine what it was like for Thomas de Hartmann to have dinner in Essentuki with
Gurdjieff, who spent all of his student’s 1000 rubles on a feast, while the dark hooves of
Soviet anarchy thundered on the steppes. Were we in de Hartmann’s chair—would we
really listen as Gurdjieff explained the difference between mechanical and objective faith?
If it is difficult to work during stable periods, how much more so in uncertain periods?
But given the release of the “matter of knowledge,” now is the most potent time to work.
But we must work with real faith. Not blind faith, as Gurdjieff told de Hartmann in Essen-
tuki but—faith that is the knowledge of feeling.
—William Patrick Patterson

2 The Gurdjieff Journal

 Come, Let Us Gather in Presence

T he morning of July 7, 2023,

in an atmosphere 0f abid-
ing Stillness and deep Silence,
Way—The Way of Transformation in
Ordinary Life, is the first to have been
published on Lord Pentland and
Mr. Patterson’s final book in
2020, Teachers of No-Thing and
Nothing, completing Eating The “I”
William Patrick Patterson, the experiencing of being a student as Parts II and III, lays bare the full-
our Teacher of many decades, under his guidance. ness of response to the deep question
left the planetary body behind Lady Lucy Pentland, wife of that arose for him having distilled
and passed through the final Lord Pentland, and a Fourth Way itself through his persistent efforts
Earthly initiation into, what teacher in her own right, said of Eat- of being-Partkdolg-duty: “What is
to us appears as—the Great ing The “I”, “This is a fresh breath of the self in self-sensing, self-remem-
Beyond. The Work.” Groundbreaking within bering, self-observation?” He gives
The essence of the conscious the category of Fourth Way books, us a deep-dive introduction to his
influence Mr. Patterson transmit- Mr. Patterson willingly and gener- benefactors, both Advaita Vedanta
ted, however, hasn’t gone anywhere ously put on display his person— Masters—Sunyata, whose name was
and forever abides in the hearts of the numerous “I”s, the panoply of given by Ramana Maharshi, lived
his wife, Barbara; his sons John and identifications with their person- with him for a time, and Jean Klein,
Matthew; and his hundreds of spiri- sufferings, that mechanically live the French physician who hailed
tual sons and daughters residing in this three-centered existence. This from the Kashmiri Shaivism lineage.
many parts of the world. book is not a theoretical telling but This book gives us a glimpse into
His deep wish to understand the a demonstration of the transforma- the hidden fullness of the unfolding
meaning of human life led him to tive power of the seminal practices scale and splendor of Mr. Gurdjieff’s
Lord John Pentland, the man that of Self-Remembering and Self-Obser- sacred teaching.
Mr. Gurdjieff appointed to lead The vation as the conscious influence Between the first and final books
Work in America and thus began the being transmitted and resounding and until Mr. Patterson’s final plan-
unfolding of spiritual learning and through the writing itself. It is a tes- etary release, is a tremendous con-
training within undoubtedly one of tament of what is possible for the rest scious and intentional visionary life
the most sacred of human relation- of us when we give ourselves to the force indefatigably dedicated to dis-
ships, that of the Teacher-Student fundamental demand Mr. Gurdjieff seminating, for generations to come,
relationship. His 1992 book, Eating requires—that we must learn to be the light and knowledge of Mr. Gur-
The “I”: An Account of The Fourth sincere. djieff as The Herald of Coming Good

The Gurdjieff Journal 3

and the sacred Teaching of The film, Mr. Patterson began to write,
Fourth Way he brought. Manifest- direct and narrate the first docu- Sayings of Substance
ing his aim to spread the Teaching, he mentary on The Fourth Way, the
first established in 1992 The Gurdjieff award-winning trilogy The Life & One of the most central of the ideas
Journal, the first Fourth Way quar- Significance of George Ivanovitch Gur- of objective knowledge is the idea
terly publication dedicated to being djieff, Parts I, II, III—a tour-de-force of the unity of everything, of unity in
a reminder to Working in the world. in bringing Mr. Gurdjieff to wider diversity.
—G. I. Gurdjieff
Soon thereafter, in 1993, assenting audiences. Additionally, exploratory
to take the role of Teacher, he estab- talks from several of Mr. Patterson’s God is one for all
lished The Gurdjieff Legacy Founda- seminars are available on film, giving But he is three-fold.
tion as its Founder/Director. Thus a taste of the scale of perspective in Men err, because he is seven-fold.
began his intensive teaching activity the explication of fundamental ideas In his totality, he is one-sounding.
leading Work Groups across the U.S., and practices of the Teaching. In his division he is many-sounding.
authoring ten books, traveling on Some weeks before leaving the And in another division
book tours, giving interviews, offer- body, Mr. Patterson said: he is contradictory.
ing numerous workshops, leading My aim from the beginning was He is everywhere in all forms.
weekly Work Days and leading three, to help to enable The Fourth When men see him
sometimes four, annual week-long Way to make the transition to the It depends on their qualities
seminars, including Haida Yoga, a new World-Time. This is what Which part they touch.
conscious work with embodied atten- drove the creativity. To establish, But who touches, if he is ignorant,
tion that begins by first returning to as much as possible what we can Sees in the part he touches,
inner stillness and silence. know about Mr. Gurdjieff and all of him,
And that is not all—Mr. Patter- the Teaching, and also to factual- And not doubting,
son also saw the tremendous need, ize what happened with him in preaches about him.
particularly in the face of the momen- bringing it to the West, all the stu- He sins already
tum of our current age of Artificial dents he encountered and how Because he acts against
Intelligence, for a possibility to make they worked and resisted. That is The laws laid down
Mr. Gurdjieff’s Teaching actively now largely in place in my estima- In the commandments
available to those without in-person tion. It is now to strengthen The of the Most High.
access to a genuine Gurdjieff Teacher Work as much as possible, and The commandment is this:
and Group. Thus, he established The the students involved. The time is I am truth
Online Fourth Way School, the first rightfully chaotic at the moment Your unbelief draws you
and only school of its kind that works but this will pass. It is to keep The Into nearness with me.
directly and individually with each Work as separate as possible from —G. I. Gurdjieff
student in a distance format, now the historical moment we are liv-
reaching many corners of the world. ing through and confronted by, so All the ideas, whether about the
Understanding the power of that when “the Turn” comes, we three centers, about essence and
will be ready. personality, or the four states of con-
CONTENTS sciousness, the different states of
Message from Mr. Patterson........ 2 What follows in this issue is just attention—they all have to do with
a taste of his voice, commemorating wholeness. How can we find the
Come, Let Us Gather in
the scale and depth of his legacy to place of ideas in the whole when we
Presence .................................. 3
us. “Us” are all those who hear the always forget the whole?
Sayings of Substance................... 4 call, vowing to affirm the evolution-
Eating The “I”.............................. 5 —Lord John Pentland
ary octave to wake up. The sacred
Struggle of the Magicians............ 7 impulse of transmission is a Living This Most Great Foundation of the All-
Working with Instability............ 12 Current and through all our efforts, Embracing of everything that exists,
Images of God or Machines?..... 13 The Work continues! constantly emanates throughout the
In deep gratitude and essence whole of the Universe and coats itself
Challenges of Our Technological
love for our Teacher, we offer our from its particles upon planets—in cer-
World-Time............................ 15
Work and this Remembrance. tain three-centered beings who attain
Making of the Gurdjieff in their common presences the capac-
Trilogy..................................... 19 May this our new beginning ity to have their own functioning of
Appropriate the Moment........... 24 be in har­mony both fundamental cosmic laws of the
with all the three embodied sacred Heptaparaparshinokh and the
Spiritual Pilgrimage: Visiting
Blessed Forces sacred Triamazikamno—into a definite
Gurdjieff’s Father’s Grave...... 25
of our common father. unit in which alone Objective Divine
The Fourth Way Is The Amen.
First Way................................. 33 Reason acquires the possibility of
The Meaning of Life................... 36 —Teresa Adams becoming concentrated and fixed.
Letters to The Gurdjieff Director of The Gurdjieff —G. I. Gurdjieff
Legacy Foundation All & Everything, First Series
Journal.................................... 37

4 The Gurdjieff Journal

 EATING THE “I”
THE WAY OF TRANSFORMATION IN ORDINARY LIFE
A discussion with William Telos: In doing these “digs,” what the confusion I felt. So, eyes open now,
Patrick Patterson, author were your tools? I dove into the personal. Yes, the Work
WPP: My only tool was a commit- appears and disappears, but it is always
of Eating The “I”
ment to not invent anything—to write there. The entire book, its architecture

T he interview occurred in the

author’s home in a small town
in Northern California where he
my own suffered truth. You know, “the
truth shall set you free,” yes, but first it
kills you. That is, it destroys the images
and writing, is all from that viewpoint.
To miss that is to, well … miss the book.
Telos: But books on the Work gener-
lives with his wife and two teenage sons. and beliefs you have about yourself and ally avoid the personal.
He is presently at work on a second the world. As Gurdjieff demonstrated, WPP: Yes, the personal is “the devil,”
book, which Arete Communications the truth is a merciless loving. I remem- if it’s identified with. My intention was to
will publish in 1993. ber in college trying to write about myself knowingly ride this devil, not avoid it.
Telos: How can you do this?
Telos: What was your aim in WPP: Think of James Joyce’s
writing Eating The “I”? Stephen Hero and Portrait of the
Patterson: It was a task my Artist as a Young Man. Same mate-
teacher, Lord Pentland, gave me. rial, both personal, but differ-
Telos: You did everything he ent point of view. In Hero, Joyce
told you to do? is identified. In Portrait, he isn’t.
WPP: If that were true, I If the reader believes that in Por-
wouldn’t have needed a teacher. trait it is Joyce speaking—when,
Telos: What is a “teacher”? for example, Joyce has Stephen
WPP: In order to teach, I would write in his diary: “I go to seek the
say the teacher must have realized unconditioned conscience of my
within himself the knowledge he race”—then the reader may know
teaches. Otherwise, what is trans- something about Stephen, but he’s
mitted is only mental, only mem- completely missed Joyce!
ory. I remember, too, Lord Pentland Telos: What are the book’s
once saying “a teacher knows where major themes?
to put the peg in.” That is, the task WPP: Essentially, it is about a
must be just beyond the student’s seeker and his seeking. It is a uni-
capabilities. It must demand a real versal quest for knowledge, for
effort. self-transformation by a fool called
Telos: How long did it take you “Patterson.” Specifically, it con-
to complete this task? cerns a search within the Fourth
WPP: Twelve years of writing Way, so the focus is on the “I”s, the
and rewriting. conditioned and false self-identity,
Personal & Impersonal the “I”- parasites.
William Patrick Patterson Telos: Do you know the work
Telos: Why do you think he
of Robert Bly? His Iron John, for
gave you this task?
with total honesty. After a few hours example?
WPP: It brought me to my knees.
struggle, I had only one banal paragraph. WPP: No. But I did see the Moyers-
Putting on paper my “I”s, my “world,”
Why couldn’t I go deeper? It was like Bly interview.
brought a remorse that literally opened
there was a “taboo” holding me back. Telos: It is uncanny how Bly’s king,
the pores of my skin.
Telos: Did Lord Pentland tell you to warrior, male-mother, and so forth plays
Telos: Could you elaborate?
write without invention? out in your book.
WPP: It was like an “unearthing.”
WPP: No, but once I took my theme WPP: Yes, the roles, the connections
The first “dig,” if you will, took me only
to be the collision of worlds—that is, are there. If Bly is right (and I intuit he is)
so deep. Each successive dig, or rewriting,
between the impersonal world of the then every seeker, regardless of his tradi-
took me deeper. I now understand why
teaching and the personal world of tion, will work within such an archetypal
people write fiction.
the student—I knew I had to have the pattern.
Telos: Why is that?
“force” that comes from that demand. It
WPP: Fiction allows you to look in The “Other World”
was essential, too, that I not presume an
the mirror and keep your faces on. It sets
impartiality, an impersonality, that was Telos: The chapter “Deep Div-
the writer in an asymmetrical position to
not present. We can all make ourselves ing” touches raw nerves, some sections
what he is writing about. He isn’t reveal-
look good with hindsight. I wanted to let particularly.
ing himself so obviously. He can keep his
the reader relive with me the wonder and WPP: Yes, certain perceptions and
lies, his images.

The Gurdjieff Journal 5

 “home run,” so to speak, with the Food
Diagram and he ignores you—
WPP: From the beginning that pat-
tern is there but, yes, it climaxes with the
episode with the Food Diagram. No, he
doesn’t ignore me. He simply “empties
out,” becomes totally impersonal. He
“burns” my “I”s off. His action calls up in
me what happened with my blood-father.
Now I relive (through him, my spiri-
tual- father) that fateful moment where
I cut myself off from my blood-father,
only now it’s observed. That was Lord
Pentland’s great gift to me. Only a master
teacher of his rank would have had the
insight and strength to evoke that.
Telos: You are saying the student
re-lives with his teacher the relationship
he or she had with their own physical
father?
WPP: “Blood-father” comes closer
Eating The “I”, Second Edition to the bone, no? The word has many Eating The “I”, Third Edition
associations, one being ancestral. The
experiences seem to be “off-limits” in spiritual-father is “blood,” too, but of a painter, imagination has been my real
some seekers’ understanding. In Jungian different essence. But, yes, based on my engine. Not imagination as escape (that’s
terms, they deny their shadow and hence experience and observation of others, I false stimulation, a barking dog in the
give it power. In “Deep Diving” I unwit- propose that. dead of night) but imagination as imag-
tingly went to what the Celts called the ing-in, an intuitive seeing, a flash.
other world. Iblis, the Guardian Lover Telos: So you …
Telos: The experience with the Irish Telos: Another idea you explore is WPP: Mechanical imagination, stuck
school girl is difficult to understand. that of “Satan,” of “evil.” in memory and desire, sees nothing new,
WPP: At that moment all I had was WPP: I have never doubted God’s never sees scale. Instead it projects and
what I had been trained to have: the existence, that is, the living reality of introjects, “gets off on itself,” so to speak.
wish to self-remember. That was, literally, goodness and truth. But, like Larry in There’s a lot of that kind of imagination
the saving grace. No one can know what Maugham’s The Razor’s Edge, I’ve often in the book, too, because that’s what I had
tests they will face. One’s only shield and wondered about the nature of evil. I’ve to work through. But creative imagina-
sword is self-remembering. been around the barn many times with it. tion is there, as well. It’s not memory; it’s
In painting Christ on the cross, I got an an immediate recognition. It’s a vertical
Blood-Father, Spiritual-Father intuition of Satan’s possible Gnostic own- vibration, a “bridge” between levels. It
Telos: The father-son relationship ership of this world. In the book I work allows layers of meaning to be intuited.
you explore on many levels. through the viewpoints of Gurdjieff, St. Creativity, as I see it, is the act of try-
WPP: Yes, both that of the blood- Paul, Jung, the Sufis, and Advaita about ing to express many levels through one
father and the spiritual-father. Though Satan’s existence or nonexistence. level. It stimulates this experience in the
the two exist on a different scale, psycho- Telos: And ...? reader, viewer, listener. It’s this “vertical-
logically, the two are very much entwined. WPP: Functionally, as Gurdjieff ity” that gives life; otherwise, the experi-
The separation of the two, I see as part says, whatever puts you asleep, what- ence is “wooden,” one-dimensional. But
of the alchemical process. This has its ever your fixations, those are your “dev- the receipt of a new impression demands
ground in the “rapport” established ils.” Intellectually, I think Ouspensky’s open attention, as free as possible from
between teacher and student. Once a idea that (in terms of transformation) what Heidegger called fore-structure. We
genuine contact is made, the student is we meet Satan between the notes si-do miss the new when the seeing is from
opened up to a new life. The discovery of the lateral octave makes sense. The memory; when any form is insisted
of this is so beautiful. Naturally, in time, Sufi notion that Iblis is God’s guardian upon; when attention is not, therefore
there will be transference. The student lover who protects Him from the impure we refuse the new. Perhaps this is why the
will imbue the spiritual teacher with seems right to me. And the Advaita per- impression of the new at first, as Picasso
the image of his blood-father. The char- ception that there is only Tat Twam Asi said, often “appears ugly.”
acter of this transference will be based (being, consciousness, bliss) and all else Telos: Can you give an example?
on whatever the student’s relationship is superimposition seems absolutely WPP: Well, Lord Have Mercy was the
was with his blood-father. My theory is true. But however we formulate it, and book’s original title. It is part of the Jesus
that old, unconscious patterns will be all other questions of this category, what Prayer and is a call for enlightenment.
enacted. This is what I would say hap- is all important is the wish to be present. Eating The “I” might seem ugly but it
pened with Lord Pentland. Telos: Is imagination a theme? shocks the mind, makes a stop, creates a
Telos: You mean where you hit a WPP: Yes, as a writer and amateur question.

6 The Gurdjieff Journal

 Interview
Struggle of the Magicians
William Patrick Patterson gives accused both Uspenskii and Nicoll of The Dramatic Universe in four vol-
an interview on his second book, “stealing my teaching.” I believe he umes and, as he admitted, kept updat-
Struggle of the Magicians, which would have said the same of Bennett had ing and revising it. What’s that tell us?
explores the teacher-student relation- Gurdjieff known what he would do after Gurdjieff’s book is called what?—All
ship as seen through the lives of G.I. his death. and Everything. Don’t the titles of their
Gurdjieff and P.D. Uspenskii. In 2013 Telos: Uspenskii accused Bennett of books reflect the difference between
the book was fully expanded to include being “a criminal.” What did he mean? them? In Struggle I document these dif-
significant new material, and pub- WPP: He believed Bennett was ferences in detail.
lished under the title, Georgi Ivanovitch “stealing the teaching.” Interesting, yes? Telos: But didn’t Uspenskii and
Gurdjieff: The Man, The Teaching, His As early as 1927, having been in the Bennett step-down the teaching,
Mission. Work no more than four years, Ben- willy-nilly?
Telos: How did you come to write nett was talking about making his own WPP: Yes, but in their own fash-
Struggle of the Magicians? “contribution” to the teaching. Brilliant ion. Uspenskii was faithful to what he
WPP: I had started on another as he was, it shows a certain character received. He was a man of great integ-
book, Law of the Sun, Law of the Moon, of mind. rity. But his personality and intellectu-
but there was the recurring feeling that Telos: So what is the net effect of ality seeped in as well. And, of course,
I should first clear up for myself the Uspenskii’s break? he could never stomach All & Every-
relationship between Gurdjieff and thing. With Bennett, well, as he said
Uspenskii. Until you know where of himself, you “get much dross with
you’ve been, you can’t know where the gold.”
you are going. Telos: So what do you
Telos: But haven’t there been sev- recommend?
eral detailed biographies of Gurdjieff? WPP: First, recognizing why and
WPP: Moore’s and Webb’s biog- where Uspenskii, Orage, Bennett, and
raphies, good as they are, did not Toomer became confused and what
deal in any depth with the question I followed on from that confusion.
believe is central to the Work—why This I detail in Struggle of the Magi-
did Uspenskii leave Gurdjieff? cians. (And I wish to make clear: We
Telos: Why central? all make mistakes. Any student can
WPP: Its influence is funda- see his or her own problems magni-
mental. Uspenskii broke the octave fied in these four men.) Secondly, we
of transmission between teacher and must ask ourselves the question—
student and started a ‘new line.’ Is it who is Gurdjieff? Finally, what role
genuine? If it is, which is what Uspen- does he play in my life? We separate
skii’s pupil Rodney Collin believed, the messenger from his message at
that is quite extraordinary. Gurdjieff 1917 our peril.
Telos: But don’t we see the same Telos: Well, who was he?
thing with Jesus and St. Paul? WPP: The result is that now we WPP: Gurdjieff was a man with a
WPP: Yes, but St. Paul was not a have an ‘Uspenskii line,’ ‘Nicoll line,’ mission. As Frank Pinder, a no-non-
direct pupil. One has to believe that he ‘Bennett line,’ and out of that a total sense English mining engineer who
was divinely inspired. Uspenskii had no splintering. had known Gurdjieff from the Tiflis
such contact. Telos: But they were all students, days, said, “Gurdjieff came to strike a
Telos: So is the Uspenskii line students who Gurdjieff hoped to train big doh.” Why? Because as Gurdjieff
genuine? to be “helper-instructors” to help in was saying at the Prieuré in the 1920s,
WPP: Near the end of his life stepping-down and establishing the “Unless the ‘wisdom’ of the East and
Uspenskii admitted, “I taught too early.” teaching. the ‘energy’ of the West is harnessed
The real issue is not Uspenskii’s teaching WPP: But not to start their own and used harmoniously, the world
too soon but his breaking with Gurdjieff, lines. That’s absurd. will destroy itself.” His mission was
breaking the line of transmission. For as Telos: How would you differentiate to bring to the West an ancient teach-
great a man as he was, he still didn’t see Gurdjieff from Uspenskii and Bennett? ing specifically calibrated for our time
it. It shows you the strength of buffers. WPP: Take their books. The real that would bring us to a level where we
Because of Uspenskii’s break, Bennett title of In Search of the Miraculous—the could receive and integrate the wisdom
could justify leaving Gurdjieff yet con- title Uspenskii gave it—is Fragments of of the East. Gurdjieff took Jesus Christ
tinuing to study, practice and ultimately an Unknown Teaching. What does this to be “the Divine Teacher” who, as he
teach the Fourth Way. The same with say? That he only had, only understood, says, “Revealed the power of the All-
Nicoll. Near the end of his life, Gurdjieff a part of the teaching. Bennett wrote Lovingness and All-Forgivingness of

The Gurdjieff Journal 7

our Creator.” But he also realized that mind labeling. was the Son of God, and the only son.
Christianity had, as a positive histori- Telos: Why is that? As a political matter, this shut the door
cal force, played itself out—that, col- WPP: What is it in us that makes in the face of the two threats to the early
lectively, it was a sinking ship. A new everything ordinary? What is it that Church: paganism and Judaism. So the
teaching (‘new’ in the sense of reformu- always ‘downsizes’ everyone and every- earthly nature was erased, the spiritual
lation, new emphasis) was needed. So, thing? Always there is this unconscious exalted. Hence, Christianity’s irrational-
those who insist on wedding the teach- tendency to see and interpret people ity and excesses. What’s important is
ing to Christianity don’t understand the and life from our own level. It’s particu- that we recognize these two natures and
divorce going on between Christianity larly hard for head types, the mentally work so that they are reconciled and har-
and society is, alas, permanent. There is seized, shall we say, to get any ‘loft’ in monized; for if there is a war within us,
no going back. Only through the work their perceptions, to allow intuition to there will be a war outside us.
of self-transformation—direct work on function. The formatory mind always Telos: So when the earthly is
personality and essence—will we return ‘grounds’ everything, makes it into an thrown out?
to the sacred, the religious. The day of object, sucks out the dynamism, the WPP: That happened with the film
dogmas, creeds, ritual, mysticism, eth- originality. of Meetings, didn’t it? When a spiritual
ics, and philosophy is over. That’s scary. Telos: But doesn’t Gurdjieff say that figure is idealized, sanitized, he and
Christianity was a great source for good he was a kaphir—“one born without what he stood for is falsified. Something
that held the Western world together, anything holy in them.” important is lost.
gave it boundaries, behavior, direction, WPP: Yes, and he includes most Telos: So that Gurdjieff has an
hope, and faith. New Age religions, Europeans, and by extension, Ameri- earthly side is a plus, not a minus.
nationalism, and certainly globalism or WPP: Exactly. That he was lowborn
corporatism, can’t replace it. should give us all hope, not shame.
Telos: Why do wisdom and Telos: Are you suggesting that we
energy have to be harnessed and used worship Gurdjieff?
harmoniously? WPP: Absolutely not! My position
WPP: Wisdom without energy is simply that because we have not seen
deflects and deadens, turns into supersti- his originality, we have not really appre-
tion—what we see in the East. Energy, ciated his uniqueness and the ancient
without the perspective and restraints teaching he brought.
that wisdom gives, must fractionalize, Telos: Didn’t Gurdjieff fail in his
which in time leads to hatred and vio- mission?
lence and, ultimately, barbarity. We WPP: Yes and no. Yes, in terms of
are getting a taste of this now. It’s like what he had initially envisioned as he
a student who comes into a new level described it in the First Series. But no, in
of energy and breaks with his or her that through a stupendous effort, quite
teacher. They don’t have the wisdom to unnatural to him, he sent the teaching
support the energy with clarity and so into the future through a Legominism.
it must psychologize, become personal, Telos: You mean to where we are
with the result that all the insights and now?
experiences the student may have had WPP: I believe possibilities now are
now are skewed. Gurdjieff 1921 right for us to see who Gurdjieff really
Telos: But who was Gurdjieff? was and to appreciate and divine the
WPP: From the time he first met cans, in that category as well. But depth of his teaching. Gurdjieff was a
Uspenskii in 1915 until his death 34 remember, this wasn’t something some- very religious man in the true sense. We
years later, Gurdjieff never once contra- one said about him—he said it himself. have to begin to understand that. Oth-
dicted his message or his mission. And why did he do that? This is what erwise, we prevent a sense of the sacred
Telos: But who was he? we must ask ourselves. from informing our practice, our life.
WPP: I believe there was no doubt Telos: In Struggle you quote Gur-
in Gurdjieff’s mind that he was an ava- Two Natures djieff as speaking of All & Everything as
tar, a Messenger from Above. His book Telos: Well, to understate matters, a bible. What do you make of that?
The Herald of Coming Good—well, what would you say that his life is what one WPP: The King James Bible is abso-
is a herald? A messenger. Only if we would expect from a Messenger from lutely beautiful, we don’t need another
allow ourselves to see Gurdjieff as he Above? (the revisions are the product of the
saw himself can we begin to understand WPP: In terms of expectations, contemporary mindset). That’s already
what forces were in play. hardly. But expectations are condi- been done. What Gurdjieff created was
Telos: We have to take him as he tioned, and by what? Gurdjieff is very a “Work Bible.” Its demands are inten-
took himself? close to us temporally. Remember all the tional. It’s a Legominism to be worked
WPP: Gurdjieff is an original. other Messengers exist for us now only with, deciphered. But, I may add, to sim-
There’s no category to put him in. as idealized figures. A tenet of the teach- ply study the book and not see the neces-
People have tried to characterize him ing is that man has two natures. This sity for group work is spiritual pride for
as a ‘Crazy Wisdom Master’ or ‘Ras- was also one of the big debates in the which one ultimately pays a bitter price.
cal Guru,’ but this is just the formatory early Church. They decided that Jesus Wagner’s Albrecht is an example. Those

8 The Gurdjieff Journal

 who delude themselves with cyber- left Gurdjieff. Soon, working through woke up suddenly with the recognition
Gurdjieff groups are another. the material, getting it down on paper, that the missing element in this was
Telos: What do you think of the I saw I was writing about their relation- Gurdjieff himself!
revision of the First Series? ship. They are archetypal figures—I Telos: Gurdjieff was missing?
WPP: I’ve never read it. It strikes had always felt that. In explaining their
me like putting an escalator in the Great relationship to myself I was also explor- Who Was Gurdjieff—For Himself?
Pyramid. I am frankly at a loss here for ing the spiritual teacher-student rela- WPP: Yes, in the sense of who Gur-
a suitable explanation. In any event, tionship. So new dimensions began to djieff was for himself. Everyone has
what is now termed “the classic edition” appear. opinions of who Gurdjieff was—but
is still in print and will remain so. Telos: You seem to have a faculty who was Gurdjieff for himself?
Telos: Would you read the revised for making sense of plain facts. Telos: And you are saying he took
version? WPP: I’ve been told that. If you himself to be a Messenger from Above?
WPP: Only as a scholarly investi- really focus on the material, you can go WPP: Yes. That was the great flash
gation. I don’t want a single comma of behind it, as it were, to what produced that came to me. With that I knew why,
Gurdjieff’s writing changed. I want to those facts. Then the material, the peo- deep down, they all left. They couldn’t
“come to Jesus” not St. Paul. ple and events, really begin to live. It see Gurdjieff on that level. Orage, who
Telos: Who is Gurdjieff for you? becomes like a play, a wild dance. was closest to Gurdjieff, put it suc-
WPP: For years I wrestled with all Telos: Why did you write Struggle of cinctly—“I didn’t have the absolute
the conflicting images I had of Gur- the Magicians in a time line? faith.”
djieff. He wouldn’t stay still. He was WPP: To make it as objective as Telos: But what if he’s not a
too alive. I couldn’t come to any satis- Messenger?
fying resolution. How can one level see WPP: Whether he is or not, that
another? Finally, I had to admit I didn’t was how he saw himself, what he acted
know who he was. I don’t know—that’s from. The deeper question is: why do
what I came to. we all so consistently reduce him to the
Telos: How can you write about ordinary, to the known? What are we
what you don’t know? afraid of? When I speak in this way I
WPP: The authors of many of the often find there is a palpable resistance
books about Gurdjieff start with the to even considering the question. Peo-
assumed premise that they do know. ple become irritated, even angry. And I
They never seem to question the level am referring to people who have been
of their own understanding. Implicit in the Work a long time.
in their writing is the assumption that Telos: Are you saying we should
they know Gurdjieff well enough to worship, lionize Gurdjieff?
pass judgment on him and the teach- WPP: No, not at all! He, himself,
ing he brought. They measure him by warned against that. In India when peo-
and ascribe to him their own standards ple meet, they say “Namaste,” meaning
and beliefs. At best, they only see a “I honor the light within you.” I think
more powerful version of themselves. we should honor and revere the light
They don’t open themselves to the within Mr. Gurdjieff, if that is our expe-
extraordinary in Gurdjieff. Everyone rience. How is it we so readily accept
presumes they know him, can under- the teaching—but not the teacher.
stand and pass judgement on him. But Gurdjieff 1924 Telos: Can we honor a man who
this is only a self-serving, self-calming seems to have, at least from the ordi-
presumption. possible. My intention was to gather nary perspective, rather heavy feet of
Telos: Why so? all the relevant facts, events, and points clay?
WPP: Because by doing so, they of view and to present them as they WPP: Gurdjieff speaks of man as
absolve themselves of any sense of happened. I let their lives, voices and a two-natured being. When we ideal-
responsibility to dive deeply into actions speak for themselves. I con- ize, as has been done with all Messen-
uncharted waters. They stay within the fined my own insights and interpreta- gers, we sanitize them, trivialize their
12-mile zone. They keep their distance tions to footnotes and two essays at the sacrifice and suffering; we make them
but write as if they are up close. end of the book. Readers are thus free unreal. But all bodies, by the virtue
Telos: So you began with not to come to their own conclusions, based of their being bodies, have an earthly
knowing— not on whim or hearsay but the facts. nature. And all Messengers have occu-
Telos: So at what point did Gur- pied a body.
The Gurdjieff Question djieff come into focus for you? Telos: Still, it’s true: there is some-
WPP: Yes, but it wasn’t conscious. WPP: I could see from their words thing that recoils from taking Gurdjieff
I’d given up on knowing who Gurdjieff and actions how Uspenskii, Orage and so seriously.
was. It wasn’t a decision. I just wore out Bennett took Gurdjieff. As great seek- WPP: In the last chapter of the
my questioning. I hadn’t wrestled with ers as these men were, they were, after First Series, the once exiled and now
the Gurdjieff Question for many years. all, very much like ourselves. They are redeemed Beelzebub is rewarded with
Instead, my focus was on why Uspenskii comprehensible. One early morning I horns of five forks; that is, he is brought

The Gurdjieff Journal 9

to the reason of what Gurdjieff calls usual way, that is, that the Messengers only one possible interpre- tation. This
“the Sacred Podkoolad,” very rare in the are born in the embryo of a boy. creates room for intellectual intuition,
Universe. Interestingly, for Beelzebub to WPP: That is the usual perception, objective reason, to function.
grow horns other members of his tribe right? The way most of us would think Telos: Was Mr. Gurdjieff actualized
must donate active elements from their about it, if we weren’t thinking about it. from above?
own horns. I wonder if this has some- But Gurdjieff says “body” doesn’t he? WPP: If he was, when would it have
thing to do with a hidden reason why And he speaks of a “‘definitized’ con- happened?
we find the question of Gurdjieff’s iden- ception.” This might suggest that into Telos: I don’t know.
tity so difficult. the body—not an embryo or baby— WPP: Does it seem logical that if it
but of a body already formed and living happened, he would not speak about it
Messengers from Above— comes the actualization of a Messenger in his Legominism?
Function & Definition from Above. Telos: In the Gobi Desert?
Telos: Let’s go back to the Telos: But you can read it the first WPP: No, for there [reading from
evidence— way as well. the Third Series] it speaks of “…what
WPP: Gurdjieff defines the words WPP: Look, Gurdjieff has written a has become of that full-sensing of the
‘Messenger from Above’ in this way: Legominism. That is, this is a conscious whole of myself…?”
[reading from All & Everything] work by a conscious being. Every word Telos: Then where?
“… genuine Messengers from Above is therefore conscious, intentional. The WPP: Possibly the artillery range
sent for the purpose of aiding the three- distractions and associations aren’t that at Kars.
brained beings in destroying in their Telos: So you are saying that Gur-
presences the crystallized consequences djieff, the Messenger from Above, was
of the properties of the organ Kund- actualized in the body of the boy Gur-
abuffer.” (Emphasis added.) djieff during a love-spat duel at an artil-
Telos: So the mission of a Messen- lery range?
ger is to aid and to destroy—right? WPP: I am asserting nothing. I am
WPP: Mr. Gurdjieff says that he simply responding to your questions
has written the First Series “to destroy, based on the material that comes from
mercilessly…” (Notice where he puts Gurdjieff’s own hand. You have to pon-
the comma, how it magnifies the word der it.
destroy.)
The Second Series, he says, is to The Importance of History
“provide material” and the Third Series Telos: But why should I? What’s all
“to assist,” that is to aid. this history have to do with the teach-
Taking only what he wrote, what ing? With my individual work?
he intentionally forwarded to us in his WPP: Stalin had history rewrit-
Legominism, and studying it in this way, ten. Why? History makes for legiti-
answers begin to appear as to who he macy. Most people, even many in the
took himself to be. With this as a start, Work, believe that Uspenskii was a
everyone who has read All & Everything “co- founder” of the Fourth Way. Thus,
the three times he suggested, is in a his ‘line’ becomes legitimate. The same
position to answer the question of his with the so-called Bennett and Nicoll
identity for themselves. ‘lines.’ And so all their students who
Telos: Gurdjieff speaks of the now are teaching in their name, and not
‘birth’ of Messengers from Above in an Gurdjieff’s.
unusual way. Telos: There’s only one line?
WPP: Yes, he writes, for example, WPP: Yes, there’s only one line:
“The actualization of this Sacred Indi- Gurdjieff’s. This point can’t be empha-
vidual [Saint Moses] proceeded there Gurdjieff 1936 sized enough.
in the planetary body of a boy.…” And Telos: If that is accepted, does that
earlier he says: “our Cosmic Highest at all. If Gurdjieff is being vague, he invalidate these other teachers?
Most Very Saintly Individuals some- means to be vague. WPP: Not at all. It simply puts
times actualize within the presence of Telos: But why be vague? them in their place and returns the
some terrestrial three-brained being, WPP. This is a Work Bible, remem- focus to Gurdjieff. Thus refocused, we
a ‘definitized’ conception of a sacred ber? Nothing is going to be handed to can now begin to see what Uspenskii-
Individual.” A few paragraphs later you. You must work to grasp it, use Bennett-Nicoll deleted or added to the
he writes: “Ashiata Shiemash had his comparative logic, challenge your ready- teaching. With Gurdjieff accepted as
conception in the planetary body of a made answers. That’s part of what he the source, then we have a means of
boy.…” What do you make of this? wants us to recognize and act upon. By comparison.
Telos: It was hard to take in. being vague, he creates space for your Telos: But teachings aren’t static.
WPP: Let me read it again. [He conditioned answer to appear. If you are They need to grow if they’re to live.
does so.] observing yourself and not identified WPP: Exactly. Uspenskii-Bennett-
Telos: I see that I first take it in the with your answer, then you will see it is Nicoll made substantial contributions to

10 The Gurdjieff Journal

 the Work. But what was their emphasis cooked it. Why? should speak at the conference. With
and why? What did they add? What did Telos: We don’t want to pay, to be the exception of a few people at Bognor
they not teach? For example, Uspenskii responsible in any way? Regis, the result was much the same.
and Nicoll rejected Gurdjieff’s Legomin- WPP: Yes, that’s it. We want to Admittedly, the issues and viewpoints
ism, Uspenskii even saying “it sticks in take. Not give. But this is impossible. raised in the book are new, though
my throat.” Bennett was like a hum- According to the Law of Reciprocal they’ve been underfoot the whole time.
mingbird. He was all over the place, Maintenance, we are going to pay, one The new always takes time to assimilate.
dipping into and combining this teach- way or another. Telos: So your intention is what?
ing with that, trying to bring an esoteric Telos: How will we pay? WPP: In researching and writing
teaching into the business world of all WPP: That’s an individual matter. the book, I came to see old answers in a
places, and all with this very contempo- But, generally speaking, I suspect the new light. This brought another level of
rary ‘democratic spirit.’ Then we have Teaching may be increasingly leveled, recognition. Four ideas are fundamental.
some calling themselves teachers today reduced to just another set of percep- One, Gurdjieff brought this teaching to
who have either gotten their teaching tions and practices, interesting in their the West so that, if practiced by a suffi-
from the books or never studied with day, but now fully absorbed by ‘guru- cient number of people, the world would
any direct student of Gurdjieff’s. Hence, types’ who appropriate and mix every- not destroy itself. Two, the Fourth
the resulting deviations and misconcep- thing up, using what they can glean of Way has only one legitimate line and
tions. One even rejects Gurdjieff and the practices as part of their ‘transfor- that stems directly from Mr. Gurdjieff,
totally accepts Uspenskii, while all the mational technology.’ Or perhaps the period. To speak of an Uspenskii, Nicoll,
time posing, even advertising, as con- effort to assimilate the Work into the or Bennett line (and, by extension, all
veying the teaching of both men. Mt. Athos esoterica will be successful. their latter-day derivatives) is absurd.
Telos: So, in effect, knowing the Three, the Legominism Orage called “a
history allows us to “separate the fine kind of bible for the future”—which Mr.
from the coarse?” Gurdjieff worked so hard to manifest—
WPP: I like that. But there’s some- is for us now, today. The emphasis must
thing else as well. Why do so many be on Gurdjieff and his writings, not on
teachers and teachings try to assimilate Uspenskii-Nicoll-Bennett and sons. And
Gurdjieff’s teaching? Because it’s still four, if the Work is to endure, then there
alive. It has power to transform. If the is a need for the entrance and support
teaching isn’t protected and defended, of the sacred into the Work. We need to
then its distortion or assimilation is open it up and let it act on us. We live at
assured. To protect and defend it, one a time when we, and all of organic life,
must know the teaching, its history, are no longer cosmically needed. We
and that of he who brought it. My own have fulfilled our unconscious function.
teacher, Lord John Pentland, under- The cosmos is very efficient and merci-
stood this in a very deep way. less. Either we begin to fulfill another
Telos: How will this help my per- function or human life on this planet
sonal work? will become as extinct as many forms
WPP: Gurdjieff says we must of animal and plant life have already
honor our father and mother, that we become. We need to pass from the Law
can’t be right with ourselves until we of the Moon to the Law of the Sun.
do. We have to dig deep to understand Telos: What does this mean?
our story and its primary figures, physi- WPP: All around us organic life
cal and spiritual. We have to give shape Gurdjieff 1947 is becoming extinct at a tremendous
to our lives. That gives force. rate—why? Because it is no longer
Telos: I’m still confused about Bognor Regis needed, cosmically speaking. We have
where Gurdjieff’s identity fits in. Telos: Do you find much agree- lived under what might be called the
WPP: Say through your own study ment with your point of view? Law of the Moon. Nature, under this
you come to the insight that Gurdjieff WPP: I was invited to speak at the law, could not afford to have many
is a Messenger from Above in the body recent All & Everything Conference at people to consciously develop. Now,
of a kaphir. That would give you a per- Bognor Regis. I declined at first because the purpose of organic life fulfilled, we
spective you’ve never had and thereby I am fully committed to the preserva- have the potentiality of either destroy-
open you up to a new level of apprecia- tion of the Work and I wasn’t sure of ing ourselves or living under the Law of
tion and understanding. the conference’s intent and direction. the Sun.
Isn’t the present situation some- Several weeks before the conference, I Telos: What is that?
thing like this: A bunch of idiots some- spoke of the underlying ideas in Strug- WPP: Collectively, it can’t be
how find themselves at this nourishing gle of the Magicians to a group of older known until enough people develop
feast that awakens their taste buds and Gurdjieff students from various ‘lines.’ consciously. But we can now, thanks
senses and gives them a feeling of self as Surprisingly, very few really understood to the fulfillment of our unconscious
they’ve never had before. But their only the questions I was raising or their function, choose—to live consciously
interest is in the feast—they don’t care importance for their own work and the or not. Gurdjieff gave us the keys. We
about the source of the food or who Work itself. This convinced me that I must rightly value them and him.

The Gurdjieff Journal 11

 Working with Instability
T he time we live in is one of
instability. One that is grow-
ing, not lessening. The surface of
especially the esoteric, this eclecticism
results in the hybridization we see with
pseudo teachings that create the inner
With this spiritual friendship as
an anchor, the student can weather the
instability and in so trusting, become
life as we have known it continues, barrier that Gurdjieff speaks of by mix- embodied, a real will and a self-integra-
but underneath one senses a fragility, ing and matching concepts and prac- tion developing, false personality weak-
an imminent pulsation to pull apart, tices, covering it with psychologisms ening and essence growing, a Kesdjan
fracture. Everywhere a feeling of with- and proclaiming it as something new body is created—all founded on a spiri-
drawing, a taking cover, as before the and better suited to the time. Another tual stability equal to any challenge. To
onslaught of a storm. Will it pass in the give a practical means of realizing this,
night sky? One can’t know and so lives Gurdjieff introduced the ancient and
in the instability of unknowing. The seminal teaching of The Fourth Way.
search then, understandably, is for sta- “The teaching whose theory is here
bility. Something that we can depend being set out,” he said, “is completely
upon, trust, that will get us through this self-supporting and independent of other
time. lines [of spiritual development] and it
The time could be framed in many has been completely unknown up to the
ways but nothing strikes so directly at present time.” [Emphasis added.]
its heart as what was pointed out early Fundamental to the message Gur-
on: “The present period of culture is, djieff brought was that no matter how
in the whole process of the perfecting dim or sparkling the surface of one’s
of humanity, an empty and abortive life may be, everyone not authentically
interval. And this is because, in respect of working for self-development is in the
the development of the mind, that chief way of involution. Those called to this
impeller to self-perfection, the people teaching enter the way of evolution. The
of our civilization cannot transmit by former is a descending octave, the lat-
inheritance anything of value to their ter ascending. Living in the first we live
descendants.” [Emphasis added.] as bioplasmic machines automatically
When we in the West who live by receiving and transmitting energies.
the mind, and value it to the point of In the second we learn how to develop
worship, read that the mind is the chief body, emotions and mind harmoni-
impeller to self-perfection we imme- ously and so cease to be a machine and
diately reject it. Several years before genuinely live and not be lived by our
writing about the present period, Mr. Throughout the oppression and fear of the Nazi conditioning. By studying and prac-
Gurdjieff put it more succinctly to John occupation of Paris, Gurdjieff and his students ticing the teaching, a new ascending
Bennett when he visited the Prieuré— steadfastly met at his Paris apartment. octave is created within oneself. One
“With too much knowledge,” he feature is the belief one can be their learns to balance between these two
warned, “the inner barrier may become own teacher and so put together their currents, one ascending and evolving,
insurmountable.” very own self-made teaching. So doing, the other descending and involving.
How to understand what Gurdjieff they encase themselves more deeply in Creating a conscious context for these
is saying about “mind” and “knowl- their own world, giving rise to an “eso- two currents creates a finer and finer
edge”? One way might be to ponder teric I,” filled with concepts and fleeting vibration which allows a receiving and
the difference between self-knowledge experiences but empty at heart. transmitting of higher energies which
and knowledge, and about the rea- But the primary feature of a time in turn allows the creation of new bod-
son of knowledge versus the reason of of instability is the unconscious rejec- ies beyond the physical. It is in essence
understanding. tion of self-knowledge, for it in itself is a sacred and religious work one is called
Knowledge certainly is one of the destabilizing—the very opposite of the to, a way of spiritual evolution that is a
main reasons people are attracted to the stability one wants. But to come to true help for oneself, others and God.
teaching of The Fourth Way. The rich- self-knowledge one must first be seri- —William Patrick Patterson
ness of its ideas, their scope and scale, ous and sincere enough to see through
gives a perspective and a meaning to the self-image one takes oneself to be, Notes
human life that is unique. More accu- observing impartially all the various “I”s 1. The present period of culture.
rately, it was unique, for a dominant with their motives, agendas and dreams. G. I. Gurdjieff, Meetings with Remark-
trait of the time is its eclectic nature. No doubt experiencing that I am not able Men, 8.
That various fields of knowledge begin who I have thought myself to be only 2. With too much knowledge. John
to become permeable and influence increases my sense of instability, vulner- Bennett, Witness, 121.
one another is all to the good, but when ability, which is one of the main reasons 3. Completely self-supporting. P. D.
it comes to spiritual teachings, and a teacher, a point of stability, is essential. Ouspensky, Search, 286.

12 The Gurdjieff Journal

 Images of God or Machines?

M r. Gurdjieff says we are

“images of God.” But he
also says we are “machines.” How
memory, which is based on our expe-
riences, real and imagined, some of
which we remember, much of which we
I and everyone keeps referring to? We
commonly take this to be the unchang-
ing, indivisible center of all my experi-
could we be both images of God and don’t. The most fundamental condi- ence. Given our life experiences and
machines? The gulf between the two tioning happens between our birth and how we interpret them, the “Story of
seems so immeasurable that the contra- about the age of nine years. Our parents, I,” the world each of us creates, is who
diction looks irresolvable. for example, are our primary male and we take ourselves to be. On one end
It is difficult to think of ourselves female images. The difference between of the human spectrum are the mega-
as being a machine. Something in me father and mother we take in very early. lomaniacs among us falling totally in
just rebels at the thought. I associate One feeds and comforts and the other— love with themselves as Masters of the
the word to the machines I know, those well, what does the other do? The image Universe (albeit, in miniature form, if
made of plastic, iron or steel. But if we is there but how we experience and confronted); on the other end the pro-
modify the word machine with bio- thereby relate to what will be called fessional victims forever tarring them-
plasmic—that is, that we are bioplas- “father” develops more slowly. selves with guilt and self-loathing. The
mic machines—that is more digestible. But what is it that is perceiving and rest of us? If we sincerely observed our-
But, still, something in me rejects this. receiving these images of mother and selves, wouldn’t we find ourselves, given
Bioplasmic or not, I don’t feel like a father and all the succeeding ones? We the moment, yo-yoing somewhere
machine. take the images in sensorially, instinc- along that spectrum?
tively, and then through feeling and, as Now what about this world-time
What Is a Machine? the head brain develops, mentally. we live in as a conditioning agent? Cer-
Before examining this “I” that we tainly there have been many world-
so strongly identify with, let’s first focus Three Bioplasmic Brains times before us. Just a quick journey
on the meaning of the word machine Now, exploring the idea of our back in time shows us that our ancestors
itself. What is a machine? It is that being bioplasmic machines, let us say lived in a hunter-gatherer world-time,
which has been created to do some- that each of these—instinctive, feeling which was succeeded by the agrarian,
thing, to accomplish a given task or and intellectual—is a bioplasmic brain. and then, in the early 1800s, came the
tasks. It is programmed to perform as That is, the machine is composed of industrial, followed in the early 1900s
it is meant to perform as efficiently as three different brains, each operating by mass production and scientific man-
possible. and processing impressions at different agement which established the modern
Now, are we programmed? With speeds and refining different qualities of industrial world-time. With the 1940s
this word, too, something immedi- energy. Each of these brains is conditio- came computers, then semiconductors
ately rebels—we don’t like to think ned by experience. At one and the same and the breaking of the DNA code in the
of ourselves in this way. But if we say time, then, I can say feeling-wise, I like 1950s, followed by microprocessors and
“conditioned,” that is more accept- someone, mentally be impressed with artificial intelligence and biotechnology.
able. It’s a primary term of psychology them, but instinctively distrust them. And now we are in the nanotech with
and sociology. So there is agreement So, then, which brain is the most pow- the cloud. These, and many other dis-
that we are conditioned by our hered- erful, which brain am I? coveries and inventions, are the founda-
ity, our parents, peers and society, and So you get some sense of the ques- tions of the world-time we live in now,
by the world-time, the context in which tions involved. . . . which I call the Technological.
we live. The conditioning involves our Now, what is this “I” that you and

The Gurdjieff Journal 13

 The Son of Man Man,” we who are potentially “The Sons at least before the day of the digital
The Technological world-time has of God.” camera, there are two images: a nega-
given birth to many marvels, but most Sons always challenge fathers and tive image, one yet to be developed, and
primary and threatening is the “Son so Technology challenges us to awaken a positive image, one which is develo-
of Man,” that is, binary computeriza- to a new level of ourselves or to suffer ped. To be developed, the image has to
tion and robotization. Its exponential the consequences. We must strive to first pass through a solution, exposed to
acceleration of power has many experts understand the essence of Technology. light, then dried. With time, like magic,
predicting that human intelligence will As it is a part of us, to understand it we the negative image becomes positive.
be totally outstripped by the year 2020. must first know our own essence. The positive image is not different from
This, they believe, will very shortly lead What are we? Are we bioplasmic the negative. It was latent in the nega-
to a human-machine interface in which machines or not? If we deny this ques- tive, like the tree in the seed; it only has
the human brain is ported into robots. tion, then we begin on too high a level; to be developed. And so, as long as we
This is not a sci-fi fantasy. that is, we assume our oneness, that we remain undeveloped, we remain nega-
So while we revel in all the pow- have free will, an ability to do. We need tive images, that is, machines. Devel-
ers of computation, communication to know whether or not, and in what oped—truly awakening to our real
and travel worldwide—and potentially way, we are machines. But to know self—we cease to be a machine and, to
interstellar travel—that Technology ourselves as machines—what is it that the degree that this is consciously real-
offers us, there is, as with everything, a will know it? Computers and robots ized, become an image of God.
downside—that is, that Technology will can never truly know what they are. As with developing a negative
render human beings nothing but bar Self-consciousness they can never have. image—where is the solution? Where
codes, worker ants, in a great and inter- Self-consciousness is only possible for a is the light? The light and the solution is
locking and self-regulating computer- human being. the seminal, esoteric and sacred teaching
ized and roboticized world in which that Gurdjieff brought to the West called
the “oil” of this time will be electricity Observing Our Machine The Fourth Way. The teaching begins by
to run the machines and water to cool But our consciousness has become admitting the very danger that confronts
them down. so identified with the working of our mankind—that man is a machine. We
Should this happen, human beings three brains—intellectual, emotional are bioplasmic machines in terms of our
will lose what is most precious and and instinctive—that it is one with identification with the mechanicality of
unique—our possibility to evolve, them; there is no differentiation. If we our three centers—mental, emotional,
to spiritually awaken. If we remain can rightly learn to observe ourselves instinctive. Our consciousness, as we’ve
at the machine level and so identify impartially we will see that our func- said, has been so attracted by the activity
with machines we will simply want to tioning is that of a machine. And as we of these centers that it has lost itself in
become better machines, to do it faster, suffer this—and what is suffering we them. We only cease to be machines
better, more accurately, yet because will come to see is our self-image, the when we learn to observe impartially the
we do not run on electricity and can “I-of-the moment” we take ourselves truth of the facticity of our mechanical-
only be programmed to a point, we to be—our consciousness, that which ity, our conditioning.
will never overcome the “Son of Man” we truly are and why we are images of But how to see this if I am a
in any of its myriad forms. Thus, we God, separates from the functioning machine? How can a machine see itself?
will be self-reduced to the level of a of the machine. All things gross and It can’t. But the consciousness which
machine—just cogs in a vast wheel subtle appear and disappear within we fundamentally are can. Each of us
of production, used as nothing more the context of consciousness, but con- has a certain small amount of free-
than a part of the raw materials and sciousness is not these impressions, it dom to choose. If we choose to become
resources—and thus forfeit spiritual is only their receiver. And so, through awake and have the knowledge to do
self-transformation. serious and unflagging work on our- so—then an inner space will be created
To understand the challenge we face selves we can be that which we truly are and the consciousness that is our true
we must first understand Technology, and not that which we have been hyp- identity will gradually separate from
its essence—what it is in itself. It is not notized into being, we gradually cease the mechanical activity of the machine.
something alien but a part of us. Aristo- to be a machine. I Am is something far This knowledge is fundamental to The
tle defined man as “the rational animal.” greater. So, in awakening to a true con- Fourth Way. And it is why The Fourth
Technology is simply our rational part sciousness of self, it is realized that I am Way is the teaching for this Technologi-
developed to an extraordinary degree. both a machine and not a machine. As cal world-time.
Back in the hunter-gatherer world- Gurdjieff titles the most esoteric of his
time, the First Man (or woman) obser- three series of books, Life Is Real Only —William Patrick Patterson
ved lightning striking a tree and igniting Then, When “I Am.” Speaking about his book Spiritual Sur-
it. Over and over she or he observed Now, how to do this? vival in a Radically Changing World-
this—the Gita says that intelligence is a Images . . . the mind lives in images, Time at the Ukazoo Bookstore, Towson,
feminine attribute you know—and sud- either those of perception or memory. Maryland, in January 2009.
denly an intuitive leap was made and Our senses are like a camera constan-
two sticks were rubbed together and tly recording the environment, either
presto—a spark of new life. The First consciously or not. If we think of these
Observer was the rational part and from images being recorded on a kind of bio-
there to here simply gives us “The Son of plasmic camera film, then as we know,

14 The Gurdjieff Journal

 THE CHALLENGES
OF OUR
TECHNOLOGICAL
WORLD-TIME

I t isn’t the end of the world but

it is the end of a world-time.
Everything is flushing to the sur-
world-time, who would disagree that
the world we now enter is radically dif-
ferent from all that preceded it?
home, being fully and well employed,
marrying and having kids and sending
them to college, and retiring with pen-
face, all that has been held down, dis- The older ways of seeing and doing sion and savings and Social Security
regarded, rejected, despised. In a word, things, of thinking and feeling and adequate to let you enjoy the golden
“the animal” is on our doorstep and valuing, are all being redefined, refor- years is all a dream of the past.
in the boardrooms and halls of Con- mulated and readjusted to fit within World-times of the past— the
gress…. Yet we live at a time of phe- the matrix of this new Technological Hunter-Gatherer, Agricultural, Indus-
nomenal scientific and technological World-Time. It’s not over the horizon trial, Post-Industrial—all demanded of
advances which are linking up the but right there on the very Blackberry, humankind to change or be marginal-
whole world, shortening distances, iPad and iPhone we hold in our hands. ized. The Technological World-Time is
physical and psychological, bringing The new dream of this Technologi- no different. Jobs, relationships, mar-
new medical discoveries. cal World-Time is still to fully emerge. riage, children, spirituality, religion—it
However we describe this new But the dream of owning your own is all changing, and radically so. And we

The Gurdjieff Journal 15

 the Crouch’s guard
with a relentless secrecy
while living a life of
regal splendor verging
on that of the 1 percent
and .01 percent .
Fed up with it all,
one could, like Leon-
ard Knight, withdraw
to the desert like the
Fathers of old. Knight
spent almost three
decades mixing earth,
water and straw to
cover the 150-foot-
wide face of a three-
story hill lying between
the Salton Sea and the
squatter community
of gravel and weeds
known as Slab City in
California’s Imperial
Valley. Knight then
painted his adobe-
clad monument with
candy-colored pas-
toral scenes and large
biblical citations and
The crucifixion for tourists at the Crouch’s theme park, The Holy Land Experience admonitions—“Jesus
Is The Way,” “God
are as well. The younger change with will determine our future and that of Never Fails,” and “God Forgives Sin-
zeal, the older often grudgingly, but our children. What can stand against ners.” Knight, a New Englander who
all unknowingly as to its real meaning. technology? spent most of his life doing odd jobs in
Looking back, we can see its oncoming Viewed from a religious frame of the Midwest for years, lived in a nearby
signaled with electrification, auto and reference the Ten Commandments broken-down truck braving the desert’s
plane travel, cybernetics, information still apply, but are they strong enough blistering heat and fierce windstorms.
theory, computers, mass media, hallu- to withstand the pervasiveness and Greeting a growing stream of the curi-
cinogenic drugs, the pill, micro-proces- demand of a technological mind-set? ous and strumming his guitar, Knight
sors, artificial intelligence, laptops, the And how much longer will contempo- preached universal goodwill while joy-
internet. rary Christianity, in the form of Catho- fully leading tours of what he called
Many welcome technology’s pow- lic, Protestant or the Evangelical, be a “Salvation Mountain.” Knight, 80 years
ers and marvels. Others are deeply dis- strong and influential force? Catholi- old, hearing and eyesight failing and
mayed. Martin Heidegger, considered cism, long hobbled by its views on sketchy memory, is in a rest home now
by many the greatest philosopher of the homosexuality, childbearing and a male and, despite the best efforts of an ad hoc
last century, long warned about tech- priesthood, is suffering continuing sex group of Knight’s friends and support-
nology and in his last years declared— scandals and a lack of priests to perform ers, his dearly beloved mountain’s days
“Only a God can save us now.” What watered down rites. Protestant versions look to be numbered, its paint fading,
he saw was that mankind was in “the are bifurcated by views on homosexual- cracking and peeling in the relentless
transition to a technicized animal, which ity. The Evangelical mega churches are desert sun.
begins to replace the instincts, which routinely felled by Jim Bakker-Tammy
have already grown weaker and less Faye-Jimmy Swaggart-like sexual The “New Age” Withers
refined by the gigantism of technicity.” hypocrisy, and those with prosperity If the traditional or idiosyncratic
pitches often succumb to prosperity forms of spirituality cannot stand
Technology Challenges itself. Paul and Janice Crouch, whose against being encapsulated by tech-
Human Identity Trinity Broadcasting Network is the nology, then what about the New Age
What does it mean to be a human world’s largest Christian television net- teachings? They lost their cutting edge
being? What is the sense and signifi- work, drape themselves in a soft bibli- back in 1985 with both Bubba Free
cance of human life on Earth, if any? cal prosperity syrup, all the while urging John aka Adi Da Samraj and Bhagwan
Is there a God? Do we have a soul or viewers to give generously so as to reap Rajneesh aka Osho being outed by dis-
do we have to develop a soul? Our new the Lord’s bounty in return. In 2010 the ciples in the same year, one in April, the
technologized world-time challenges us Crouchs collected donations pegged at other in September. Several years ago
with these questions. How we answer $93 million. How the monies are spent the New Age’s only magazine, Andrew

16 The Gurdjieff Journal

 Cohen’s What Is Enlightenment?, went the extent it sees human life as having man to a “standing reserve” [mankind
belly up, the question no longer being no meaning beyond itself. The existen- as a human resource, like silver and
of interest. Buddhist magazines con- tialism of Jean-Paul Sartre is among the copper] to accommodate it in its need
tinue, but beyond their peace and love definite and unwavering formulations to ever expedite. “Expediting is always
message, the sunyata teaching, though of this viewpoint of no God, no soul, no directed from the beginning toward
Americanized, for most remains a Truth—Nothingness in Being. But what furthering something else, i.e. toward
foreign installation. The ecumenical is this but a sophisticated, philosophi- driving on to the maximum yield at
Parabola, the best and oldest of its kind, cal thought form? Who but a few could the minimum expense.” Thus, enfram-
has fallen to asking for donations to live this without succumbing to becom- ing gives a knowing, defining and valu-
survive. Yoga magazines flourish but ing a human machine, just a technicized ing—all within technology’s image and
mostly with pages of food and beauty algorithm? matrix—which “threatens man with
tips and trips sprinkled with downward Martin Heidegger remains for many the possibility that it could be denied
dogs, cat-cows, pigeons, and cobras. the most relevant philosopher for our to him to enter into a more original
The Wayne Dwyers-Deepak Chopras time. His 1927 magnum opus Being and revealing and hence to experience the
hang on through expensive weekend Time concerned itself with examining call of a more primal truth.”
seminars and a constant outpouring the inauthentic being-in-the-world of The human ground upon which
of books and tapes, skimming the tops Das Man (the mechanical man) con- technology acts is our abandonment
of various teachings and adding a psy- trasted to authentic being which brings of being. “Forgottenness of being is
chological or quasi-scientific coloring. the moment of vision— “That Present not aware of itself; it presumes to be
But weekend seminars and captivating which is held in authentic temporality at home with ‘beings’ and with what
words only lead the naïve to think they [time] and which thus is authentic itself.” is ‘actual,’ ‘true to life,’ and certain of
are engaged in real transformation. The Where Being and Time focused ‘lived-experience.’ For it only knows
rash of contemporary self-convinced on the question of being and Being, it beings. But in this way of the presenc-
nondualists, long on Advaita talk, all wasn’t until 1936 with his Contribu- ing of beings, beings are abandoned by
presumably believing they speak from tions to Philosophy that Heidegger spoke being. Abandonment of being is the
the pointless point of view, consider about Das Man losing his being to tech- ground of the forgottenness of being.”
all duality delusion, so, really, why the nology. An easier entry into this per- The materialistic reign of inau-
concern, dude? spective is his 1953 essay “The Question thentic being ever growing, technology
Concerning Technology.” Technology entrances us with calculation as vali-
The View from Philosophy is not neutral, he warns. Its essence lies dation, accompanied by an unprec-
Viewed from a secular perspective, in the enframing of all life (picture the edented acceleration and the claim of
psychology has little to add except phar- frame of a painting). Technology’s des- massiveness, which, as Heidegger says,
macology and social readjustments. tining [destiny] (see Notes on his use “dissembles and disguises the inner dis-
Philosophy has become scientized to of language) is one that would reduce integration by divesting, publicizing,

Matthew Patterson

The truck where Leonard Knight lived. It has no running water or electricity and is painted in the same style as his monumental work, Salvation
Mountain.

The Gurdjieff Journal 17

and vulgarizing of all attunement [of Notes precedes essence.” No human nature
being]. The desolation that is herewith 1. Only a God can save us now. “Inter- belies man’s existence. How one acts
created corresponds to the growing arti- view with Martin Heidegger.” Der determines one’s identity. One lives
ficiality of every attitude and together Spiegel, 1966. within society’s rules and laws or
with that the disempowering of the 2. The greatest philosopher. Heidegger’s not. Very akin to Aleister Crowley’s
word.” (As he has said elsewhere, “Lan- only rival is Ludwig Wittgenstein, dictum: “Do what you wilt.”
guage is the house of Being. In its home who focused on language, and is 9. That Present. Martin Heidegger, Being
man dwells.”) most commonly famous for his first and Time. Translation by John Mac-
What is necessary, if we are not book, Tractatus Logico-Philosphi- quarrie and Edward Robinson (New
to become bar codes and worker ants cus, which ends with: “All the rest York: Harper & Row, 1962), 387.
enframed in a soulless technology, is a is silence.” Heidegger explored the 10. The Question Concerning Tech-
“great turning around in which beings silence. nology. Martin Heidegger, Basic
are not grounded in terms of human 3. How much longer. Judaism is not Writings (New York: Harper & Row,
being, but rather human being is mentioned as its numbers are insig- 1977), 287–317.
grounded in terms of being.” nificant, though interestingly in 11. Destining. Here the word ‘destiny’
He speaks of: terms of political and social influ- is used not as a noun, something
ence it is quite the opposite. fixed, but a verb, an energy. To
One who does not remain a spectator 4. Transition to a technicized animal. speak as directly as possible to his
but who is himself the Moment, per- Martin Heidegger, Contributions to experiencing and to shock mechani-
forming actions directed toward the Philosophy (Bloomington, IN: Indi- cal reading and listening, Heidegger
future and at the same time accepting ana University Press, 1999), 68. uses words in new ways.
and affirming the past, by no means 5. Paul and Janice Crouch. Erik Eck- 12. Forgottenness of being. Heidegger,
letting it drop. Whoever stands in the holm, “Family Battle Offers Glimpse Contributions, 80. From Basic Writ-
Moment is turned in two ways: for Inside a Lavish TV Ministry,” New ings, “Letter on Humanism,” “Man
him past and future run up against York Times, 5 May 2012. is the shepherd of Being.” 210.
one another. Whoever stands in the 6. Salvation Mountain. For those 13. Dissembles and disguises the inner
Moment lets what runs counter to interested in helping to preserve it, disintegration. Heidegger, Contribu-
itself come to collision, though not to Dan Westfall has created an email tions, 85–86.
a standstill, by cultivating sustaining address, salvationmountaininc@ 14. Language is the house of Being. Hei-
their strife between what is assigned gmail.com A nonprofit board is degger, Basic Writings, “Letter on
him as a task and what has been given being established. Humanism,” 193. Consider tech-
him in his endowment. To see the 7. Bubba Free John. William Patrick nology’s effect on language, the
Moment means to stand in it. Patterson, Adi Da Samraj—Realized texting, etc.
or/and Deluded (Fairfax, CA: Arete 15. Great turning around. Heidegger,
The question is: how to do this? Is Communications, 2012). Contributions, 129.
there something we have forgotten that 8. Sartre. Jean-Paul Sartre was a pupil 16. One who does not remain a spectator.
precedes the abandonment of being? of Heidegger’s. Sartre’s Being and Martin Heidegger, Nietzsche, Vol. 1
—William Patrick Patterson Nothingness divests human life of (New York: Harper & Row, 1979),
any higher importance. “Existence 56–57.

An insolent robot in the premiere of R.U.R. at

the National Theater in Prague, January 25,
1921. The robots have no soul or emotions, Foxconn’s Shenzhen factory workers in China assemble the latest iPhone. “When you have more
making them cost-effective. They realize their than 900,000 workers you are going to have people with mental-health problems, from romantic
efficiency, revolt, and kill all the humans. But breakup and feeling fraught and overwhelmed, to clinical depression, to some who could be
they can’t reproduce! psychotic,” said Eric Caine, chair of the department of psychiatry at the University of Rochester.

18 The Gurdjieff Journal

 the making of
the gurdjieff trilogy

W e interviewed William Patrick

Patterson during his nation-
wide speaking tour introducing
I’d never been much interested in
Egypt, believing, as most people do,
that Western civilization began with the
outside Cairo] like one possessed, hop-
ing to find, with the help of my map of
pre-sand Egypt, an explanation of the
Gurdjieff’s Legacy, the concluding Greeks. But seeing the Sphinx, the Great Sphinx and of certain other monuments
installment of his film trilogy. Pyramid and then going up the Nile to of antiquity.” Remember now that he
Thebes, modern-day Luxor, and see- is in search of the origin of esoteric
The Gurdjieff Journal: Viewing the ing the Temple of Man, Karnak and the knowledge and believes it to be the Sar-
sheer scale of the video trilogy of Gur- Valley of the Kings … well, I stood in moung Brotherhood, which existed in
djieff’s life and teaching—one that is awe of the immense scale, intelligence Babylon about 2,500 bc; then in com-
shot on-site in Egypt, Russia, Turkey, and deep esoteric understanding that ing upon the map of pre-sand Egypt he
France, London and America—is truly once existed. immediately breaks off his search and
a monumental experience. Just how TGJ: What impressed you the goes to the Giza Plateau.
long has it taken to complete the trilogy most? TGJ: But why would he need an
The Life and Significance of George Iva- WPP: The whole of it. So to con- “explanation of the Sphinx”?
novitch Gurdjieff? tinue … when I returned to America WPP: Exactly. The Rosetta Stone
William Patrick Patterson: A few I reread the chapter in Meetings with had been discovered and deciphered
lifetimes or a few seconds depending Remarkable Men where Gurdjieff sees in the 1820s and every Egyptologist of
on one’s perspective. We began shoot- the map of pre-sand Egypt. I’d been that day (as well as most of this day)
ing the first video, Gurdjieff in Egypt, reading that book for decades and never believed the Sphinx dated from the time
December 1996, finished Gurdjieff’s asked myself the obvious question: what of the Great Pyramid, about 2,750 bc.
Mission in 2002, and completed the did he see on the map? So why does Gurdjieff need an “expla-
third video of the trilogy, Gurdjieff’s TGJ: Why not? nation”? Because that is what he saw on
Legacy, in February 2003. WPP: Often the obvious is what the map!
TGJ: Where did the idea come is most hidden. Anyway, Gurdjieff TGJ: Couldn’t he have seen some-
from to do a video? doesn’t say directly but later gives the thing else?
WPP: I was on my way to a meet- answer when he says that he had been WPP: What else? The Sphinx
ing in Israel and decided to make a “spending all my free time walking is the primordial symbol of esoteric
stopover in Egypt. among these places [the Giza Plateau knowledge.

The Gurdjieff Journal 19

 TGJ: Pre-sand Egypt. What are we story. unknown up to the present time.” The
talking about in terms of time? TGJ: Necessary? Most people know emphasis is mine.
WPP: The time was 7,500 bc and the story don’t they? TGJ: You lost me.
before. That was when Egypt was green. WPP: To some extent. But I believe WPP: Bennett was introduced to
Then I came upon a video by John the emphasis has been … well, let me the teaching three times. In Constanti-
Anthony West, a member of the Gur- say it, wrong. nople in 1921. At the Prieuré in 1923.
djieff Society in England, whose premise TGJ: Wrong? And in Paris in 1948. From what Ben-
was that the Sphinx dated from pre-sand WPP: The film of Meetings with nett reports in Witness, Gurdjieff had
Egypt. He had read Sacred Science by Remarkable Men, as beautiful and com- high hopes for his spreading and car-
Rene Schwaller de Lubicz, the great her- pelling as it is in many sections, gave rying on the teaching. Instead, Bennett
metic Egyptologist, in which de Lubicz only a part of Gurdjieff’s life. James hopped from the Work to Subud to
says that the erosion we see on the Webb’s biography of Gurdjieff shows Catholicism to Idries Shah to Hindu-
Sphinx is not caused by wind or sand but prodigious research but is fanciful at ism and then into some eclectic combi-
water. West has done a lot of pioneering times and biased throughout. James nation of all these which he called The
and innovative work with geologists to Moore’s biography is much better, but I Fourth Way. His actions show he never
establish the true date of the Sphinx and find his vision conventional and limited realized that “the teaching . . . is com-
is still carrying on the struggle. and the language is too self-referential. pletely self-supporting and independent
TGJ: With this insight why didn’t TGJ: What about Bennett’s Making of other spiritual lines.”
you write a book about it rather than do a New World? TGJ: You mean he shouldn’t have
a video? WPP: This is his best book in my kept searching?
WPP: I’ve written a number of opinion. But his focus as to the origin WPP: Yes, he, like a good many
books so that would not be a challenge. of the teaching is Sufi. He, like Ouspen- people who enter the Work, didn’t real-
More importantly, I believe, as never sky, has had a significant influence on ize the search was over. He had found
before, we need to build bridges to framing the public view of the teaching. what he had been searching for. Some
young people and young people seem Just as Ouspensky believed the teach- people, you know, are perennial seek-
to be more influenced by video and film ing was only fragmentary—his view was ers. They ‘collect’ teachings and teachers
than books. Then, too, I have groups based solely on the Russian period of but remain aloof, uncommitted. It’s one
and groups need projects and what bet- the teaching, and when presented with form of what I call esoteric egoism—but
ter project to jump into than something Gurdjieff’s Legomonism he thought it to continue to what I was saying before
none of us knew anything about. was rubbish—Bennett, too, never seems about the making of the trilogy.
TGJ: Did you plan a trilogy from to have realized what Gurdjieff says in TGJ: Let me see if I understand
the outset? Search, that “The teaching whose the- what you are saying. Namely, that
WPP: No, not at all. Creating a ory is here being set out is completely Ouspensky’s and Bennett’s views have
video was—and is—a many faceted self-supporting and independent of other largely framed the teaching—Ouspen-
project. Our aim was to meet profes- spiritual lines and it has been completely sky in terms of it being fragmentary and
sional standards so what
we did technically would
not take away from the
tremendous and unrec-
ognized story we had to
tell of Gurdjieff’s search
in Egypt and Abyssinia.
TGJ: Unrecognized?
WPP: Yes, most peo-
ple believe that the origin
of the Fourth Way is in
Central Asia—basically
Sufi or dervish, either
that or Russian Orthodox
Christianity.
TGJ: Why is that?
WPP: Let’s get into
that later and focus on
the trilogy first. So, as I
was saying, we just hoped
we could complete the
first video—we had no
idea of doing a trilogy.
But then on completing
Gurdjieff in Egypt it just
seemed right and nec-
essary to tell the entire The Temple of Edfu, 10 miles south of Thebes, on whose walls hieroglyphs speak of the Seven Sages.

20 The Gurdjieff Journal

 The Galata Bridge in Constantinople 1922, was a gateway to the West, toward all of Europe.
Bennett because he believes it is deriva- its religion was composed of the same what is conventionally presumed.
tive in origin—mainly Sufi. Right? principles and ideas that constitute true TGJ: What do you mean by that?
WPP: That’s good enough for now. Christianity.” So the esoteric Christian- WPP: Many of Gurdjieff’s students
TGJ: So what is your viewpoint? ity Gurdjieff is referring to is a Chris- who wrote about him, and certainly
WPP: Let me just clear up another tianity that existed before the birth of all of his critics, speak about him from
strand of thought. In Search when Gur- Christ and before the ancient Egyptian their point of view. Everyone levels him
djieff is asked “What is the relation of religion as we know it—that is, a pre- to fit their ideas and beliefs. No one
the teaching to Christianity as we know historic Christianity. speaks of his mission—that he came to
it?” Gurdjieff replies: “I don’t know TGJ: That really is a revolutionary give humanity a teaching that would
what you know about Christianity”— statement. save it from destroying itself. Everyone
Ouspensky puts the word in italics, not- WPP: Yes. And what it means is seems to unconsciously think he came
ing that Gurdjieff emphasized the word. that The Fourth Way predates all the to awaken and liberate him or her. I
This indicates that Gurdjieff is speak- religions we know. Thinking in a lin- wanted to give the point of view that is
ing of a special form of Christianity. “It ear way, just because Gurdjieff intro- rarely recognized—Gurdjieff’s.
would be necessary to talk a great deal duced the teaching in St. Petersburg in TGJ: Isn’t that a bit presumptuous?
and to talk for a long time in order to 1912, people have thought that Sufism, WPP: Of course. And his view can’t
make clear what you understand by this the Cabala, and so forth have all pre- really be known. But by carefully con-
term. But for the benefit of those who dated The Fourth Way. But it is just the sidering what he says and how he lived
know already, I will say that, if you like, reverse. As Gurdjieff says, we see the I think we can shine a needed light on
this is esoteric Christianity.” What does world topsy-turvy. We go into all this in his life and teaching and clear up some
that tell you? Gurdjieff in Egypt. misconceptions.
TGJ: That the Work is esoteric TGJ: Was there any overriding TGJ: How so?
Christianity. structure you followed? WPP: Once he rediscovered the
WPP: That’s what it told Boris WPP: The trilogy runs on three fundamental ideas and principles of the
Mouravieff and his latter-day follower tracks. The first is the historical, the teaching in Upper Egypt and Abyssinia
Robin Amis. But Gurdjieff is not refer- second is the people in Gurdjieff’s life, he realized that over time elements of
ring to the Christianity we know but the and the third is the major tenets of the the teaching had drifted northward. So
Christianity we don’t know. teaching. he then made a series of journeys to the
As he says later in Search, “It will TGJ: So the trilogy tells the history Hindu Kush, Siberia and Tibet to col-
seem strange to many people when I say of the Work, as well as giving the major lect these elements. He then reformu-
that this prehistoric Egypt was Chris- aspects of the teaching? lated the teaching for modern times and
tian many thousands of years before WPP: Yes, but the history and its brought it to the West. As mentioned
the birth of Christ, that is to say, that interpretation differ at points from previously, the teaching, paradoxically,

The Gurdjieff Journal 21

is as old as it is new. carpets. where Thomas de Hartmann met
TGJ: Why did he want to bring the TGJ: Why so much money? Gurdjieff?
teaching to the West? Why didn’t he WPP: He doesn’t say but I think WPP: Yes, we found that but it’s
just stay where he was and introduce the answer is obvious—he wanted to be a gambling casino now, so we didn’t
the teaching there? dependent on no one. But let me con- shoot it. In Constantinople we stayed
WPP: Because he realized that tinue. The plan was on schedule until in the Pera district, the European quar-
humanity was approaching a crucial 1917 and the shock of the Russian Revo- ter, and found Yemenici Street and the
shock point in its history. For as he says, lution. It drove him eventually to Tiflis townhouse where Gurdjieff set up the
“Unless the ‘wisdom’ of the East and in the Caucasus where he tried to again Institute. Of course we shot that, as well
the ‘energy’ of the West are harnessed set up the Institute. But the uncertainty as the Galata Bridge, the street life and
and used harmoniously the world will of the times and governmental red tape the train station from which Gurdjieff
destroy itself.” made it impossible. So he left for Con- left for Europe.
TGJ: That sounds ominous. stantinople where he again opened and TGJ: You say a second track of the
WPP: Yes, but who took that warn- closed the Institute. Now what did he do? videos relates to Gurdjieff’s students.
ing seriously? Now, given 9/11, it’s a TGJ: Why didn’t he go to Greece? WPP: Yes, we show the reasons
different world, no? He saw that the He was part Greek, knew the language that Ouspensky left Gurdjieff were not
West was where the power was and so and so forth? the ones he speaks of in Search. And we
in 1911 he took a 21-year vow to live an WPP: The power that will determine follow their relationship through the
artificial life. Why? In order to intro- the fate of the world lies in Europe and years from Ouspensky’s final break with
duce and establish the teaching in the America. So, though he didn’t speak the him in 1924, a last meeting, and then
West. This is where the second video of languages, know the customs, and had what happened to Ouspensky at the
the trilogy, Gurdjieff’s Mission, begins… no friends and little money—his million end of his life. We shot at his estates—
his coming to St. Petersburg in 1912, Russian rubles were virtually worthless— Lyne Place in England and Mendham in
then to Moscow, on to Constantinople, Gurdjieff stepped off into the future. He America—and his grave site.
France, England and America. We fol- went to Europe in 1921 and a year later TGJ: What about Orage?
lowed his path shooting all the way. opened his Institute in France. WPP: This was a much more intri-
TGJ: Why did he first go to St. TGJ: When you shot in Russia and cate relationship. Jessie Dwight played
Petersburg? Constantinople did you come upon a larger part than is generally consid-
WPP: I assume because it was the anything interesting in terms of the ered. In short, Orage wanted his woman
most cosmopolitan city in Russia, right Work? and the teaching, too. Also, Gurdjieff
on the edge of Europe. He was flu- WPP: In St. Petersburg we found put a lot of pressure on him in terms
ent in Russian, knew the customs and the street—Pushkin Street—where of money. Orage never seemed to real-
had friends there. His plan was to form Gurdjieff lived, the apartment on Lit- ize—at least he never said—that Gur-
groups, then establish the Institute for einy Street where Ouspensky lived and djieff used money as a teaching device.
the Harmonious Development of Man, The Stray Dog café, a haunt of Ous- He saw how fixated Westerners are
train helper-instructors, and then dis- pensky and the intelligentsia and the about “making dollars” and used it.
seminate the teaching to the major capi- art world. It was closed by authorities Remember, he came to Russia with
tals of the world. He had brought with in 1915 and had just reopened several a million rubles, all of which he had
him a million rubles, two collections months before we arrived. earned himself. He obviously didn’t
of Chinese cloisonné and many rare TGJ: What about the restaurant want money to be a factor.
TGJ: Going back to the origin of
the teaching for a moment … what is
the proof that the teaching comes from
prehistoric Egypt?
WPP: No proof other than what
Gurdjieff says. Do we believe him or
not? If we don’t, why are we following
someone who we don’t believe? I could
speak for a long time on all the facts that
point to the origin of The Fourth Way
being in prehistoric Egypt, but let me
just say this: the question is what came
first—sacred science or religion? If you
go to the Temple of Edfu, about 30 miles
up the Nile from Thebes, you find that
its walls, which date back to the Pyra-
mid Age, speak of Seven Sages who came
from the Homeland of the Primeval
Ones, an island that sank during a cata-
strophic flood. The Seven Sages intro-
Nazi troops occupy Paris on June 14,1940.
duced a high civilization and religion to
Egypt. This is a perfect match with what

22 The Gurdjieff Journal

 what was the root cause of you consider important?
the conflict and the answer WPP: What is important is that the
will be fundamentalism— trilogy is a Work project of seven years
Christian, Jewish, Moslem. duration. We didn’t do it as a commer-
With that the new world cial venture. It was our tribute to Mr.
belief becomes scientific Gurdjieff and his teaching.
materialism. TGJ: Well, as a Work project, it was
TGJ: Isn’t it already certainly better than digging a ditch.
here? WPP: No, not at all. To act with
WPP: The founda- intention and not for any personal
tions are already in place. reward but for our Being is of real
A general de facto dec- value. The making of a trilogy was sim-
laration is just awaiting ply more demanding and complex and
the demise of modern ran into years, not hours.
religions. TGJ: Were you surprised that each
TGJ: What will hap- of the videos won a Gold Award for
pen to the Work? biography at WorldFest?
WPP: In my view it WPP: Absolutely! That each won a
Madame de Salzmann, Gurdjieff and two students study a can easily make the transi- Gold Award at such a prestigious inter-
map, searching out a route to their trip’s destination. tion because it’s a sacred national film festival was more than any
Gurdjieff says in the First Series. If we science. It can accept much of scientific of us conceived. And that the last two
look at Egyptian religion, which I hold materialism and be accepted by it. It videos won Special Gold Jury Awards
sprang from The Fourth Way, we see its can provide the necessary scale and the for Outstanding Excellence … well, you
focus was on Being and self-transfor- means of moving beyond a strict and have to have a great deal of help, and
mation and immortality. The Egyptians limited scientific viewpoint. we did.
believed you have to make a soul and TGJ: What will it take for that to TGJ: What kind of help?
there was no differentiation between the happen? WPP: What number Man do you
spiritual and the not spiritual. All was WPP: Whether the Work makes the take Mr. Gurdjieff to be?
spiritual, if there was self-remembering. transition depends on how it responds
TGJ: But the Egyptian religion and positions itself.
devolved into animal worship, didn’t it? That is the impetus for
WPP: Yes. Originally, animals were the trilogy. Gurdjieff
chosen to depict certain attributes of bequeathed to us a
Being. But then, as you say, it devolved. great legacy in terms of
That was why when Judaism occurred his Legomonism All &
about 1,100 bc, they banned all images. Everything, his music,
But then, over time, it rigidified into movements and sacred
some 500-plus laws that dictated all dances, and exercises.
human behavior. And, of course, they It’s for us to commit
had the idea of “the chosen people.” As ourselves to it, make it
Gurdjieff said, “Moses told them that, live. That’s the point
not God.” And remember: Judaism of the third video Gur-
doesn’t believe in an afterlife. djieff’s Legacy.
TGJ: Christianity does. TGJ: Well, that’s a
WPP: Yes, and so does Islam. lot to think about.
All this is contemporary religion, not WPP: Yes, to
sacred science. In the past, as Gurdjieff ponder.
said, real religion consisted of two parts. TGJ: Is this the
One part taught what is to be done— first trilogy ever done
that’s the exterior part. And the other on Gurdjieff and the
part taught how to do what the first part teaching?
teaches—that’s the esoteric part. When WPP: Yes, and to
the esoteric part is lost then religion my knowledge, Gur-
devolves as it unfortunately has today djieff in Egypt was the
and becomes all words, prohibitions first video ever made
and self-calming, which then rigidifies about his search. And
into orthodoxy and fundamentalism. Gurdjieff’s Mission and
TGJ: That seems to be what we see Gurdjieff’s Legacy are
today. the first to cover the rest
WPP: Exactly. Religion is on its of his life. So the trilogy
deathbed. After the current warring in tells the whole story. In the last year of his life, Gurdjieff went to the newly opened
the Middle East ends people will ask TGJ: What else do cave of Lascaux where he saw the Great Stag.

The Gurdjieff Journal 23

 Probe interprets and lives the present though I
don’t know it.
But I’ve been given the knowledge
of how to appropriate the moment.
victim is a negative way to get through
life. You make everybody feel sorry for
you. So they give you the big piece of
steak. But you don’t see it. To see it is to
Initially, it’s a denial, a “No” to the his- appropriate the moment, to consciously
Appropriate torical, hypnotic, socialized world that live it. And so to take responsibility for
The Moment we are born into and which envelopes
everyone. Then saying, “Yes” to myself,
what I’m seeing. Not to judge it. Because
it’s all mechanical. I didn’t choose to be
my essential self, freeing it by giving my one way or another. It’s the way life is

T his is a day of self-exploration.

Or, to be more exact, a day of
selves exploration. The idea that
attention-energy-time to it. Now, there’s
a “clearing” and what has been con-
cealed is suddenly unconcealed. I begin
living me. But when I bring the light of
my intelligence into the darkness of the
mechanicality, of what is always going
I’m an individual, an indivisible I, is to see things I’ve never seen before. If I on, which is me, me, me, however I play
the great historical belief of mankind. am sensitive, and interested, I’ll see lit- that out. If I can do that impartially,
And it’s not true. But it continues, and tle things, supposedly, like the way I’m something incredible will happen.
will continue because most people are breathing, my posture, the tempo with But it takes a long time to be
too hypnotized to recognize the truth. which I move. All things having to do impartial about what I see about myself,
They have not been given the knowl- with the body and its two centers. Then because there’s always the voice that
edge of how to verify that they are not says “I’m going to change that,” “I’ll
one. Everyone is living in the imaginary take a vow.” Or, “I know that now,
world, sacrificing, suffering, glorifying don’t have to see it again.” We all have
and dying. great lawyer-“I”s.
It’s amazing when you think about
it. Five thousand years of mankind that A Turning Point in the Work
we know about, and it is still an esoteric But eventually I will see it enough
truth that only a small number of people times that I will know that it’s an uncon-
are called to verify. Everyone here has scious feature of myself and so I will do
verified they’re not one self but many otherwise, not from the head but from
selves, not one I, but many “I”s. And, having appropriated the moment. That
yes, we are many selves, but don’t we takes a real strength. The more we come
think we’re still an indivisible I? We’re to that, the more we deny ourselves, we
still concerned with not really trust- create a space in which our true self can
ing, of being told to do something in emerge. And the true self isn’t an idea,
the Work and still making up our own there’s no individual “I” as we know
mind. Or putting it aside, forgetting. “I”s, as we know selves. The individual I
In the Work, it’s a ladder that we’re is something we don’t know yet, because
on. And each step demands that I see that happens at the top of the ladder,
more and more of myself. Yet with having gone up each of its steps by first
every step there is a resistance, “I’ve the “radio station,” the formatory mind, saying, “No,” “No,” and “No” again,
come through so much.” “I’ve seen so is heard, sometimes changing stations, and only then “Yes.” And so arriving at
much,” “I don’t want to see anymore,” but almost always talking to me about the end of the ladder and recognizing
and “I don’t need to do otherwise.” me. And so it is with eight billion peo- there’s never been a ladder. It’s all the
Whatever the strongest “I”-of-the- ple, eight billion radio stations talking past living the present.
moment wants or doesn’t want, that’s about their “I”-of-the-moment. And so we’ve entered The Fourth
what is done or not done. We have been called to awaken, to Way working to free ourselves of all
evolve, to not simply receive energy, pro- the hypnotism of modern life, now so
A Science of Being cess and transmit it, but to do so con- besotted with technology eating all our
But how to verify everything the sciously. And for that to happen I have to attention and time. More and more, by
speaker has said. Because in the Work appropriate the moment. I have to make seeing it and doing otherwise when I Am
we believe nothing, ever! It’s not a it mine. I need to have the wish and is strong enough, we free ourselves of
dogma; it’s not a belief system. It’s a sci- will-to-be. But being who I am, an ego- everything that has lived us. When the
ence of being that comes from ancient tistical group of cells, it becomes a will- moment is appropriated, we step out
Egypt. Only not the Egypt we know but to-power. Because deep down isn’t that of psychological time and into physical
prehistoric Egypt. And it brings to us what everyone wants? Power. Power over reality. Space and time changes. Objects
self-remembering and self-observation. situations, over others. And how do we become dynamic. And with duration
What happens when we remember get it? All sorts of ways. A great smile is there’s a silence and a sound of silence.
ourselves? Isn’t it an event of appropria- a good one. A great personality. Flattery, People can be interacted with and silence-
tion? (The word I borrow from Martin as Mr. Gurdjieff says, will get you every space-beingness remain because one lives
Heidegger.) I’m appropriating the time, place. And of course it’s true because it in physical reality, not the moon world.
the space, the situation impartially. falls right in line with what I’m doing Let’s have faith of consciousness.
Before that I’m appropriated, lived by with myself most of the time. Either flat- —William Patrick Patterson
my past, the self-judgment that secretly tering myself or playing the victim. The

24 The Gurdjieff Journal

 SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE
VISITING GURDJIEFF’S FATHER’S GRAVE

Ivan Ivanovitch Gurdjiev, known as Ashokh Adash

L ike so many who have read

Mr. Gurdjieff’s Meetings with
Remarkable Men, I read this pas-
From Meetings with Remarkable Men
to Fontainebleau to search out the Café
Henri IV where Gurdjieff often went
to write Beelzebub’s Tales and where he
sage many times but I never con- Owing to circumstances of my life not and Ouspensky last met in 1931. It’s
nected with the thought of dependent on me, I have not personally on a small side street and is now a gay
visiting his father’s grave myself seen the grave where the body of my bar and restaurant and the view of the
as he bid. But one day the idea dear father lies, and it is unlikely that I famous royal château is now blocked.
came alive to visit Gyumri, for- will ever be able, in the future, to visit We had a good meal there and a great
merly Alexandropol, where his his grave. I therefore, in concluding this wine. The next morning we drove to the
father is buried. chapter devoted to my father, bid any of Prieuré des Basses Loges located at the
And so in late September of last my sons, whether by blood or in spirit, corner of avenue Général de Gaulle and
year I set off not only to visit the grave to seek out, when he has the possibility, rue Bezout. I’d last walked its grounds
but also to make a film of the trip so this solitary grave, abandoned by force in 1997 when on our way to Egypt to
that others might share in my expe- of circumstances ensuing chiefly from make the first film of the trilogy, Gur-
riences and, hopefully, be inspired that human scourge called the herd djieff in Egypt. The front door was then
to make their own pilgrimage. I had instinct, and there to set up a stone with closed off with cement blocks and all
Teresa Adams come along as the vid- the inscription: the windows were shut tight. I finally
eographer; she had previously shot I AM THOU got inside by entering through the coal
many of the scenes of the film trilogy THOU ART I, chute. The Prieuré is a national monu-
The Life & Significance of G. I. Gurdjieff. HE IS OURS, ment and by law the façade cannot be
We flew from San Francisco to WE BOTH ARE HIS, changed. It was sold a few years after my
Paris, hiring a car and driving to Avon. SO MAY ALL BE visit. The new owner had put a parking
We arrived about one o’clock and FOR OUR NEIGHBOUR. garage underneath and apparently sold
checked in at the Ibis Hotel on avenue much of the property, as a line of heavy
Franklin Roosevelt. Tired from the trip, G. I. Gurdjieff shrubbery now cuts off most of the spa-
we just drove around Avon to get our cious grounds. As Teresa and I looked
bearings. Later in the evening we drove about, the owner himself emerged, a

The Gurdjieff Journal 25

 The Paradou (left) is in
extreme disrepair (below)
and likely will be torn
down.

The Prieuré is cut off from

the former grounds by a line
of thick shrubbery. The arc
in the foreground marks the
location where a fountain
has been removed.

friendly man, and after some talk he

allowed us to see the ground floor. He
had made the château into condomini-
ums and, for some reason, the magnifi-
cent circular staircase had to be moved
leftward from its original position in
front of the main entrance.
Behind the château property, past
the tall heavy shrubbery and up on the
hillside the Paradou still remained,
surrounded by weeds, many chest
high. The front door was locked, but Istanbul, looking across the Golden Horn to the Pera
we found the back door was missing. district and the Galata Tower (above). Nearby,
Inside there was graffiti and trash scat- is 13 Yemeneci Sokak (right), the now renovated
tered everywhere, the floors strewn with townhouse that was the site of Gurdjieff’s Institute
for the Harmonious Development of Man.
glass from the broken windows, which
let in the rain. A narrow spiraling stair- on it — that left us blank. Finally, they
case connects the three floors. This was took pity on the dumb Americans and
the home of Mr. Gurdjieff ’s family. It’s drove us to the gate of the cemetery.
only a matter of time until it will fall Teresa got her camera equip-
down or be torn down. ment out and filmed me walking the
long pathway to Mr. Gurdjieff ’s grave.
Police Escort His grave is not beneath the large dol-
I didn’t expect to have any trouble men fronting the grave, as many people
finding the Avon Cemetery, but, though suppose, but beside it. The large dol-
it had only been 16 years, I could not men marks the grave of his wife, Julia
remember the location. And so we tried Osipovna, and faces the smaller dol-
one set of streets after another, asking men in the rear, the site of his mother’s
innumerable people, many not speak- grave. A bed of flowers has been planted
ing English and those who did giv- that marks the grave’s perimeter. I did
ing wrong directions. Finally, totally some watering and, not having brought
frustrated but by no means giving up, flowers and the flower shop next to the
we spotted a police station. The two cemetery closed, I “borrowed” some
policemen didn’t speak English and from an adjoining grave, first giving a
asked if we spoke French. We didn’t prayer for that deceased.
and they both threw up their hands and Having paid our respects to our
exclaimed —“Impossible!” They went Teacher, we now flew to Istanbul. We
into a lot of motions and mouthings — had been there in 2000 for the mak-
it was really quite funny looking back ing of the second video of the trilogy,

26 The Gurdjieff Journal

 Aerial view of
Tbilisi, Georgia
(left)

Tbilisi, the
Rustaveli Theater
(right) and the
entrance (below)

Tbilisi, Sione Cathedral, woman

kneeling in wholehearted prayer
Gurdjieff ’s Mission. We took rooms in One could watch the dancing without
the Pera district at the Pera Rose hotel charge when we were last here, but no
just down from the main square. Given longer.
the name, we hoped this might be the
site of the Black Rose café where Gur- A Sympathetic Driver
djieff and Ouspensky met to work on We then left for Tbilisi, Georgia.
his ballet scenario, The Struggle of the As our cab driver proved, Georgians
Magicians. If it was, it was there in name drive like maniacs with many mano-
only. But not far away is 13 Yemeneci a-mano moments. We took rooms in
Sokak near the Galata Tower, a three- the Old Town at Hotel City, a small
story townhouse Gurdjieff rented that hotel at 7 Abesadze Street. In the main
became the site of his Institute for the square is a large white tower with a
Harmonious Development of Man golden St. George standing atop. We
when he first arrived in Istanbul in asked for an English-speaking driver at
July 1920. It was burnt out when I had the rental agency and up drove Nikoloz
last seen it but had now been restored. Mirotadze, a good-looking athletic
That evening we walked a few blocks young man in his late twenties. He
up from our hotel to Istikal Cadessi, a drove us around Tbilisi to the Didubay Rustaveli Theater where his ballet sce-
long and wide street teeming with peo- District, the Tbilisi Railway Station nario had been performed. By this time,
ple, the various performers circled with where Gurdjieff had once worked, and Nikoloz wondered what this excursion
onlookers. Koumbaradji, where Gur- to 22 Nikolas Street (now Ivane Javakh- was all about and when we told him he
djieff lived for a time, is just off Istikal. ishvili Street) where Gurdjieff had said he had read Meetings with Remark-
It’s a steep sloping side street, but we rented rooms for himself and the de able Men and had long been interested
had no address. Not a long walk away is Hartmanns and Stjoernvals and where in just who this Gurdjieff was. It was,
the building where Gurdjieff and Ous- he had again established his Insti- as Gurdjieff said, “a noticeable coinci-
pensky went to see the dervish dancing. tute. We then drove to the still active dence,” one of many we were to have.

The Gurdjieff Journal 27

 Kars, Turkey, looking up to
the Citadel from the center
of the city

Kars, as seen from the Citadel (right), in the

foreground, the tenth century Armenian Church of
the Holy Apostles, now the Kars Military Cathedral.
The Cathedral interior, now a mosque (below).

walk up to the hilltop. The views of the

city and surrounding countryside shim-
We then drove to what we were told Georgian and English spoke Russian, mered in the sunlight. What we really
was the Saint Karapet Church on the drove us over the Caucasus Mountains wanted to see was the artillery range
edge of the Old Town. Entering, we to Kars, where Gurdjieff grew up. It was where Gurdjieff said he had come to
found a small, beautiful wedding tak- a six-hour trip through beautiful ter- “the full sensation of himself.” Driv-
ing place and filmed it, as it seemed rain. In Kars (the word means snow) ing about we stopped at a small café
another good omen. But it was actually we had booked rooms at the Kars Otel with outdoor seating looking toward
the Sione Cathedral (named for Mount on Halitpasa Caddesi. The first place we the castle. There we found a fellow
Zion in Jerusalem). So the next day visited was the Kars Military Cathedral who thought he knew where the artil-
across the river we searched for the real (Church of the Holy Apostles) situated lery range had been. The café’s owner
Karapet but it was closed. On our last below the large, imposing castle known sat down with us and brought out a
evening, we went to Nikoloz’s apart- as the Citadel, which overlooks it and recently published book, Kars: An Illus-
ment where he lives with his mother, the city. The church, which served as trated Story, that showed old engrav-
who also had a degree in English, and the cathedral for the Armenian Apos- ings and photos from the 1800s and
his wife and daughter. He had invited tolic Church, has been made into a contemporary photos of the sites. We
his uncle and some friends over and I mosque, as have many churches in Tur- did a lot of comparing between then
gave a talk on Gurdjieff and The Fourth key and the Middle East, but the carv- and now and, after making a number of
Way, which he translated. ing on the facades depicting the twelve mistakes, finally found where we think
apostles dating from tenth century still the artillery range was located. The next
Kars & Ani exists. We then drove to the base of the day Nikoloz drove us to Ani, City of a
The next day, Nikoloz, who besides castle and took the very long and steep Thousand Churches, about an hour or

28 The Gurdjieff Journal

 Cathedral of Ani (right),
church of the Holy Mother
of God. Ani, Turkey, once
the capital of a medieval
Armenian kingdom, rivaled
Constantinople, Baghdad and
Damascus.

so east of Kars. The high wall surround-

ing the city is imposing and inside its
gates are the remains of many ancient
churches, some still standing, like the
Cathedral of Ani, Church of St. Greg-
ory, and others being reinforced, such
as the Church of the Redeemer. On the
edge of Ani there is a steep but sloping
cliff leading down into the valley and
river below. There were many caves on
the cliff wall across the river and also
on our side. I knew Gurdjieff had writ-
ten that he had lived among the ruins
of Ani in a hut, but in Egypt he and The church of the Holy Redeemer in Ani
Professor Skridlov had lived in a cave. I was largely intact until 1955, when the
entire eastern half collapsed during a
couldn’t resist, so I made my way down storm.
the long hillside, slipping and falling
now and then, with Teresa screaming English. He took us to the museum and
behind me, but filming all the same. home of Sergei Mercourov, Gurdjieff ’s
When I reached the cave I sat in a half- cousin and a famous sculptor. Mercou-
lotus and sent Mr. Gurdjieff a prayer. rov’s home has many sculptures, even
Upon returning to Kars, we looked up hillside across the river. Driving on for one he did of Lenin. The museum also
at the sky and were greeted by a long many miles we finally came to a Gyumri shows scenes of Gyumri from long ago,
shimmering rainbow, which suddenly road sign and thought we were about which gave a real feel for what Gurdjieff
appeared and as quickly vanished. We to enter the city, but it was actually a experienced.
all took it as another good omen. half-hour or more away. In Gyumri we
Kars lies very close to Gyumri, but took rooms at the Alexandrapol Hotel “You’ll Never Find It!”
the border is closed because of the non- Palace at 70 Mayakovskuistr, built in We then walked with Armen to
acceptance by the Turks of the genocide the style of Tsarist Russia. It is easily the Avetik Melik-Sargsyan’s home. He had
they perpetrated on the Armenians, most opulent hotel I had ever stayed at. been suggested to us as a contact earlier
and so Nikoloz had to drive us back to The next day, up bright and early, we by Michael Pittman, a friend of his, but
Tbilisi. There, a driver who had driven asked the desk clerk how to get to the in reading about Sargsyan’s exploits on
all the way from Yerevan, the Arme- old cemetery. We told her we were on the internet we had questions. A heavy-
nian capital, 190 hundred miles away, a spiritual pilgrimage and were making set man with a mustache, it turned out
picked us up and we made our way to a documentary so that it might inspire he was not interested in the teaching but
Gyumri. The terrain is very mountain- others to do the same. She told us to only in the factual history of Gurdjieff ’s
ous. The winding road snakes between wait and made a call. Within minutes, a life. Showing us his library in the adjoin-
mountains on both sides before it turns tall, good-looking young man appeared, ing room, he laid out an old map detail-
into a soft and flattening desert-like only 24 years old it turned out. He said ing the streets of what was then known
vista. Along the way we stopped at the his name was Armen Hovsepyan and as Alexandropol, noting that the map
mid-10th century monastery where he was from the tourist office. By this showed the street where Gurdjieff was
Gurdjieff stayed for three months as an time, we were low on funds and told born. Teresa asked whether she could
acolyte of Father Yevlampios. Its name, him he didn’t have to show us around, take a photo of it. “No!” he answered
Sanahin, means in Armenian “this but he insisted he wanted no money. brusquely. He said he didn’t have time
one is older than that one,” referenc- He had attended the University of Utah to take us to Gurdjieff ’s father’s grave
ing the Haghbat monastery on the high on scholarship, and spoke excellent as he had appointments that day. We

The Gurdjieff Journal 29

 Armenia. Sanahin Monastery (left &
below), now within the limits of Alaverdi
city, was founded in the middle of the
10th century. Over three centuries were
built more than 20 churches and chapels,
annexes, sepulchers, bell-towers, an
academy, book depositories, refectories,
galleries, bridges, numerous dwellings and
other monumental structures.

asked if he could at least point on the badly neglected and overgrown with
map showing the cemetery where we weeds. Silvy said originally only a red
might find the grave. He said, “No, not stone marked the grave with the name Notes
possible.” Then, suddenly he changed “Adash.” In 1972 two men had come 1. Ivan Ivanovitch Gurdjiev. Gurdjieff’s
his mind and said he could take us from Russia and hired her husband, a father’s full name appears in his-
after his next appointment. Teresa and stone mason, to make a gravestone with torical documents at the National
I looked at one another. Something the inscription in Russian that reads Archive of Armenia.
didn’t feel right about him and so we what Gurdjieff gives in Meetings —“I 2. Le Prieuré. Why the Institut Gurdjieff
said we would find it ourselves. “You’ll Am Thou….” Later, sometime after didn’t purchase the Prieuré (it had
never find it without me!” he roared. 2005, two small black marble plaques the money given the sale of Armonk)
“It’s impossible!” I told him nothing with the inscription were put on the but instead bought a large man-
was impossible and the three of us all gravestone, one in Armenian and one sion in Paris seems a strange lack of
left. We got in a cab with a driver named in English. When Silvy and the men vision and valuation. Worse, though
Carin, a pleasant but nervous young left, Teresa and I meditated and prayed, a national landmark, the Prieuré was
man who spoke some English and never Armen looking on. lived in for many years by gypsies
had a moment when a cigarette wasn’t I felt the grave could easily be and trashed. See “The Trashing of
dangling from his lips. improved by first pulling up the weeds the Prieuré,” Telos, Vol. 5, No 1.
The cemetery is on the outskirts and then having it cemented over so no 3. Mr. Gurdjieff ’s grave. At the
of town in a poor dusty area. We had weeds could grow. I envisioned white Prieure, turn right at rue Bezout
a photo taken by someone who had rocks on one side and red on the other (road D138) and going up the hill,
visited the grave that showed the sur- with the black stone in between, the turn right just before the traffic
rounding graves. We hoped this would colors symbolizing the three forces, circle onto D137, going through
be enough to go on. Some grave work- and then the rocks edged with a basalt the forest. After crossing the rail-
ers were by the gate and Armen showed stone border. I knew some friends from road tracks, D137 turns into rue
them the photo and asked them where the Gurdjieff work from Baltimore had Gambetta. Go approx 230 meters
we could find Gurdjieff ’s father’s grave. been there before us and were now in and turn left onto rue du Souvenir
A long discussion ensued, each of the Yerevan, so the next day we went there which ends at the Cimetière d’Avon.
men having a different opinion. Hearing and arranged for them to do the job. (This is just one way to get there.)
all the commotion, it was really quite The cost turned out to be $1,190 and 4. Father’s grave. From the cemetery
funny, one of the cemetery caretakers, was well worth it. gate count 72–76 steps. At the fork-
a woman, climbed down from a large It was a tremendous experience for ing of the pathway, go right. The
grave near the entrance. Silvy was small, both of us and we hope all of you who grave will be on your left. If you
with a strong face, she had been there, have read this will consider doing as can’t find it, as by now all the cem-
we learned, with her now deceased hus- Mr. Gurdjieff asks. etery workers know where it is, just
band since 1965. She quieted the men —William Patrick Patterson say “Gurdjieff?”
and took us straight to the grave. It was Teresa Adams

30 The Gurdjieff Journal

The Gurdjieff Journal 31
m those around him by the
how to be restrained in the
at the same time conducting
ses of others.
SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE
djieff
his Meetings with Remarkable
MR. GURDJIEFF’S
her. His father was an amateur
sia as Ashokh Adash. Gurdjieff
m as a “highly honorable and
FATHER’S GRAVE
hich conditions the whole of
WILLIAM PATRICK PATTERSON
MR. GURDJIEFF’S FATHER’S GRAVE

.” Despite misfortunes which

a true poet.”
with poetic images and high
WILLIAM PATRICK PATTERSON

of “Gilgamesh,” the “Flood

SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE

ights.” He told Gurdjieff “the

o create for himself an inner

different to ordinary fears. In

er would force him to get up,
ld spring water and then run
would later say, “If it had not
vercome all the obstacles and
my travels.”
Gurdjieff writes: “Owing to
have not personally seen the
d it is unlikely that I will ever
re, in concluding this chapter
her by blood or in spirit, to
ry grave, abandoned by force
man scourge called the herd

Like many others, I’ve read

d yet Gurdjieff ’s admonition
k as speaking directly to me.
ather” and read these words
nd I knew I was being called
ge. I AM THOU,
rson THOU ART I,
HE IS OURS,
WE BOTH ARE HIS.
n. ARETE SO MAY ALL BE
g FOR OUR NEIGHBOR.
ations

A remarkable man is one who stands out from those around him by the resourcefulness of his mind, and who knows
how to be restrained in the manifestations which proceed from his nature, at the same time conducting himself justly
and tolerantly towards the weaknesses of others.
—Georgi Ivanovitch Gurdjieff

O f all the remarkable men written about in his Meetings with Remarkable Men, the very first Gurdjieff speaks
about is his father. His father was an amateur poet and bard well known throughout Transcaucasia as
Ashokh Adash. Gurdjieff deeply loved and respected his father. He saw him as a “highly honorable and honest
man [who had] that trait in his psyche which conditions the whole of Our Common Father’s commandments for
man.” Despite misfortunes which befell him, Gurdjieff says, he “retained the soul of a true poet.”
As Gurdjieff grew up, his father filled him with poetic images and high ideals by reciting by heart the
ancient legends of “Gilgamesh,” the “Flood before the Flood” and the “Thousand and One Nights.” He told
Gurdjieff “the fundamental striving of every man should be to create for himself an inner freedom towards life.”
He taught him to be inwardly strong and indifferent to ordinary fears. In the frosty early mornings, for exam-
ple, his father would force him to get up, go to the well outside and splash himself with cold spring water and then
run around naked. Of this special training, Gurdjieff would later say, “If it had not been for this, I would never
have been able to overcome all the obstacles and difficulties that I had to encounter later during my travels.”
—William Patrick Patterson

32 The Gurdjieff Journal

 The Fourth Way Is The First Way
P D Uspenskii reports in In
Search of the Miraculous that
when Mr. Gurdjieff is asked in Rus-
plexus, the lower spine. Then all three
centers at once.
Originally, adepts worked with all
And with what words does he open the
Institute?

sia as to the origin of The Fourth Way, three centers in order that there would The program of the Institute, the
he declares—“It is esoteric Christianity.” be a harmonious development. Not power of the Institute, the aim of the
These words Uspenskii puts in italics, as a separate development of the body, Institute, the possibilities of the Insti-
they were emphasized by Gurdjieff. the heart, or the mind—but all three at tute can be expressed in few words:
Unequivocally then, The Fourth once. the Institute can help one to be able
Way is esoteric Christianity. But what to be a Christian. Simple! That is all!
exactly does this mean? It is a question Perspective of Linear Time It can do so only if a man has this
that in all my time in the Work, since The Fourth Way is so called only desire, and a man will have this desire
1970 onward, I have never heard really because from the perspective of linear only if he has a place where constant
examined. I intuit this is because there time it occurred after the three classical desire is present. Before being able,
has been an unconscious bias about ways of body, heart and mind. In fact, one must wish.
contemporary religion, especially Chris- given the omnipresent power of the Thus there are three periods: to
tianity. Gurdjieff felt the same way. merciless Heropass, The First Way, as wish, to be able, and to be.
The Christianity he is speaking about is time went on, was broken up into three
not the contemporary Christianity we separate ways. About the teaching, Gurdjieff says
know. About love, Gurdjieff writes, it is “completely self-supporting and
As he says in the First Series of All “Christianity says precisely this, to love independent of other lines and it has
& Everything (Originally titled with all men. But this is impossible. At the been completely unknown up to the pres-
the letters in ALL capitalized, the way same time it is quite true that it is neces- ent time. [Emphasis added]
he intended), after sacred Individuals sary to love. First one must be able, only The Fourth Way is The First
removed the organ Kundabuffer and then can one love. Unfortunately, with Way, one of the foundations of eso-
the properties of that organ were not yet time, modern Christians have adopted teric Christianity, along with the Trin-
crystallized, the three-brained beings the second half, to love, and lost view of ity, prayer, rituals and exercises of
were aware of these three holy forces of the first, the religion which should have attention.
the Sacred-Triamazikamno: preceded it.” This is esoteric Christianity that we
practice. It is the original way of har-
the first, ‘God-the Father’; Gurdjieff Initiated Four Times monious development and the original
the second, ‘God-the-Son’; and In Gurdjieff’s quest for and discov- religion.
the third, ‘God-the Holy Ghost.’ ery of esoteric knowledge—in 1888 at16 The Fourth Way is the Religion of
years of age he had experienced “the Wholeness.
The Holy Trinity was known that whole sensation of myself” and then
far back. later saw the map of pre-sand Egypt and Body, Heart & Mind
As to the Christianity Gurdjieff went straight to Egypt. While there he The three classical separate ways
is referring to, he says, “The Christian was initiated four times into the ancient of spiritual transformation came after
church, the Christian form of wor- Egyptian religion. Given the blueprint and not before The Fourth Way, which
ship, was not invented by the fathers of of the teaching, he realized that over works with each of the three all at once.
the church. It was all taken in a ready- time parts had migrated northward and From the perspective of linear time—
made form from Egypt, only not from so he went to Tibet and Central Asia The Fourth Way was, as Mr. Gurdjieff
the Egypt that we know but from one and with these was able to reformulate says, “completely unknown up to the
which we do not know…prehistoric the ancient esoteric teaching for mod- present time”—most people believe
Egypt was Christian many thousands of ern times. that it came after and not before the
years before the birth of Christ, that is to Realizing that “Unless the ‘wisdom’ three ways. This is another example of
say, that its religion was composed of of the East and the ‘energy’ of the West Gurdjieff saying that we see everything
the same principles and ideas that con- could be harnessed and used harmoni- “upside down.”
stitute true Christianity.” ously, the world would be destroyed,” This way of seeing began after the
He then says, “The Christian Gurdjieff took a 21-year vow in Sep- organ Kundabuffer was implanted. So
church is—a school concerning which tember 1911 to live an artificial life and what was once whole began to be per-
people have forgotten that it is a in 1912 went to Russia to form The ceived partially through one or another
school.” It had prayers, rituals and exer- Institute for the Harmonious Develop- of the three centers, and so rather than
cises with attention. For example, he ment of Man. The Russian Revolution working harmoniously on all three
asks, “When you pronounce the word and then problems in Tiflis and Istan- centers at once they were worked with
‘I’ aloud, have you noticed where this bul forced him to go to Europe in 1920. independently. Hence, the devolution
word sounds in you?” We can move the He finally succeeded in opening the into the three classical ways of body,
sound by moving the attention. Let the Institute in the fall of 1922 in France. heart and mind.
word sound in the head brain, the solar In All & Everything, First Series,

The Gurdjieff Journal 33

Gurdjieff sprinkles an outline of how 587 Discovered how to obtain Kronbernkzion existed on Atlantis and
this esoteric, ancient, sacred and scien- sacred Omnipresent Okidanokh to arrest became full member of the learned soci-
tific teaching of self-development came their future inevitable decay. Knowledge ety of Akhaldan. Created the ‘Boolmar-
about. Here is an outline with page later passed to initiated beings of Egypt shano.’ The title being “The Affirming
numbers describing how The First Way who were the direct descendants of the and Denying Influences on Man.”
came to Egypt. learned members of the Akhaldans. 1133 One of the seven copies of
342 Having passed from one gen- The Affirming and Denying Influences on
Page eration to another, initiates were given Man brought to Grabontzi (Africa).
110 Most of the three-brained the understanding: Every action of man 178 Party-Pythoness prophesy-
beings and likewise most of the beings of is good in the objective sense if it is done ing catastrophe asks all to migrate to
Beelzebub’s tribe then existed only upon according to his conscience, and every Grabontzi (Africa).
Atlantis. 177 Atlantis is
783 In the begin- engulfed.
ning, soon after destruc- 821–22 Knowledge
tion of Kundabuffer, of Heptaparaparshinokh
beings of Atlantis began does not survive, is redis-
to consider the absorption covered a second time
with cognized intention many centuries later.
of these two higher being- 301–02 After loss of
foods as the chief aim of Atlantis, Akhaldans set-
their existence. Second tled in Egypt as did beings
being-food was ‘help-for- of Beelzebub’s tribe.
the moon’; third, ‘help 806 Certain knowl-
for-God.’ edge about the origin
85 All on Atlantis and significance of being-
knew of Anulios. [Modern Exioëhary also survived.
science just discovered it in 303 Several sub-
1970, naming it Toro.] sequent generations after
294 Society of the loss of Atlantis there
Akhaldans formed on existed the ‘instinctive
Atlantis 735 years before conviction’ concerning
second great terrestrial the sense of what is called
catastrophe. Saint Eternal there ‘completed personal
Individual Belcultassi. Being.’
297 Akhaldan— 553 Akhaldan’s
“The striving to become knowledge of castor oil
aware of the sense and passed to beings of Egypt.
aim of the Being of 303 Beelzebub sees
beings.” erection of pyramids in
349 Legomin- Egypt during his fourth
ism created by beings of descent.
the continent of Atlantis. 308–11 The Sphinx
Means of transmitting is like the Akhaldan statue
from generation to gen- in Samlios, which was
eration information about the allegorical emblem of
certain events of long-past Conscience.
ages, through just those three-brained action is bad, if from it he later experi- 312 Third small catastrophe and
beings who are thought worthy to be and ences ‘remorse.’ This understanding later fifth cover Egypt with sands.
who are called initiates. spread over the whole planet under the 106 All changes in the presences of
819, 821 Belcultassi—perceived name of ‘morality.’ three-brained beings began after second
and cognized fundamental sacred cosmic 464 Division of the flow of time misfortune engulfed the chief continent,
law Heptaparaparshinokh. Branch of into seven days of the week made by peo- Atlantis.
almost normal science grew under name ple of Atlantis. 559 Soon after destruction of
of ‘Tazaloorinono,’ meaning ‘the-seven- 827 Investigation of opium, white- Atlantis, Zoostat functioning of their
aspectness-of-everywhole-phenomenon,’ ray and sound as three of the seven being-consciousness began to be divided
which became so widely known that it ‘diversely-subjectively-propertied-active- into two—the first is called ‘conscious-
was not included in a Legominism. elements.’ ness’ and the second, ‘subconsciousness.’
293 Saint Eternal Individual Aso- 802 Before loss of Atlantis the With this division, hypnotism and sug-
ochilon existed four centuries before the three-brained beings had an approxi- gestibility began.
second great Transapalnian perturbation mate understanding of the holy planet 624 After fall of Atlantis cosmic
and fixed Korkaptilnian thought tapes so Purgatory. law of Solioonensus actualized at least 40
they would never be destroyed. 1130–32 Scientist Makary times.

34 The Gurdjieff Journal

 717 Atlantis pearl fishers first pop-
ulated Ashhark (Asia).
211, 822 Hunters from Atlantis
reached the Sea of Beneficence; on the
shores there was already a being from
Atlantis who was a chief member of the
learned society of Akhaldans.
212–13 The Akhaldan stayed in
Asia and was the first chosen chief, or
king, of Gob. The grandson of his great-
grandson was Konuzion.
822–23 The grandson of King
Konuzion sired two brothers who
were the first after the loss of Atlan-
tis to rediscover the law of Heptapara-
parshinokh, and the power to actualize
‘being-Partkdolg-duty.’
827 Opium, white-ray and sound
as three of the seven ‘diversely-subjec-
tively-propertied-active-elements’ are
again investigated by the brothers.

© Arete Communications
831–32 Brothers first on Earth
to constate two of the three chief law-
conformable particularities present
in Heptaparaparshinokh—two of its
Mdnel-Ins. Law of Ninefoldness with
the ‘obligatory-gap-aspects-of-the
unbroken-flowing-of-the-whole.’
867–68 Nirioonossian-World-
Sound discovered by Akhaldan who was
the first king of Gob, and a progenitor of
the brothers. customs, one for men, the other for 3. The Christian Church, the Christian
801 Purgatory—Most beings on women. Active conscious contemplation. form of worship. Ouspensky, 302.
our planet haven’t known of it since near The sacred substances Abrustdonis and 4. Prehistoric Egypt. Ouspensky, 302.
the end of Atlantis’ existence. “Particle of Helkdonis. The active part of that sacred 5. Same principles and ideas. Ouspen-
that Greatness, the blending with which law which they call the ‘Holy Trinity.’ sky, 302.
must sooner or later be the lot of every 1109 Special state of 6. The Christian church is—a school.
already arisen essence.” self-remembering. Ouspensky, 302.
1007, 1106, 1109 From Akhaldans 7. This word sounds. Ouspensky, 304.
to Egyptian high priests to Moses—two These are some of the references 8. Christianity says precisely this, to love
that give a taste of how the esoteric all men. G.I. Gurdjieff, Views from
The Gurdjieff Journal knowledge of The First Way was passed the Real World, 153.
773 Center Boulevard #58 after the sinking of Atlantis to the high 9. Whole sensation of myself. G.I. Gur-
Fairfax, CA 94978-0058 priests of Egypt and also carried into djieff, Meetings with Remarkable
The first journal of The Fourth Way, the Asia by the learned beings of Akhaldan. Men, 205.
intention of The Gurdjieff Journal (est. Everything, subtle and gross, dissolves 10. Pre-sand Egypt. Gurdjieff, Meetings,
1992) is to observe and report upon the under the pressure of Heropass, if not 99.
contemporary world “mercilessly without consciously assimilated and worked 11. Initiated four times. William Patrick
any compromises whatsoever.” Through with. This has led to one-sided ways of Patterson, Georgi Ivanovitch Gur-
original research, timely and provocative
feature articles, essays and reviews, TGJ Hatha yogis, monks and Jnana yogis. djieff: The Man, The Teaching, His
explores the principles, perspectives and And in these one-sided ways the har- Mission (Fairfax, CA: Arete Com-
practices of Gurdjieff ’s Teaching and how mony and wholeness intrinsic to The munications, 2014), 7, 573.
they can be applied to daily life. First Way was lost. 12. Unless the ‘wisdom’ of the East. Fritz
Publisher: William M. Blue Peters, Gurdjieff Remembered (New
Founding Editor: William Patrick Patterson —William Patrick Patterson
York: Samuel Weiser, 1971), 122.
Editorial Director: Teresa Adams 13. 21-year vow. G.I. Gurdjieff, The
Editor-in-Chief: Mary Ellen Korman Notes
Senior Editor: Barbara Patterson Herald of Coming Good, 12–13.
Assistant Editors: Mike Miller, Janet 1. Esoteric Christianity. P.D. Ouspen- 14. The program of the Institute. Gur-
Tamalik McGrath, Amy Angove sky, In Search of the Miraculous, 102. djieff, Views, 152.
Design & Graphics: Henry Korman, 2. God-the-Father. G.I. Gurdjieff, First 15. Teaching . . . completely unknown up
Michael Pierce
Series, All & Everything, 751–52. to the present time. Ouspensky, 286.

The Gurdjieff Journal 35

 Probe
The Meaning of Life

W hat is the meaning of life? What is the meaning of my life? It’s a question
I believe everyone asks at one time or another. Usually, it’s when we’ve hit a gully,
or a wall, or the so-called forward progress is inhibited in some way and we wonder what’s it all
about?
The question is where am I asking that from? What is my state? What is my mood? And, of
course, am I really here, or only partially here, mentally, emotionally or instinctually? This last
question very few people have. But it is the one question that answers everything. And the ques-
tion what is the meaning of life, what is the meaning of my life can only be asked from presence.
For how can something that is not present ask about the meaning of anything?
It’s when I am present—and I’ve been given the knowledge of how to be present—that the
question really authentically arises. Otherwise it’s just an “I,” a mood, talking. So when I am, what
is? That is, what situation do I find myself in? I am and it is. What is it? Now I can experience it,
fully, in all three centers. That’s the meaning of life, to actually live life authentically. And then
what is, and the I am, have a relationship. Not only a waking state relationship, and a self-con-
scious relationship but a subconscious relationship. The two supposed minds, the zoostat of wak-
ing state and subconscious, the gradient begins to lessen. And one is in the conscious mind, which
is composed of waking state and subconscious.
And from that comes integration. The I am and the is, what is around me, the situation, begins
to change. The interpretation becomes fuller and deeper, and there’s livingness. There is an inner
speaking and knowing. And there’s recognition that I’m actually living life as it is. I am is life. And
so a genuine intelligence, consciousness, and conscience begins to dawn, that move me into a
point of view that is not personal.
There is a seeing of what is, and its dimension as the personal identifications, the self-love and
vanity begin to weaken and fall away. No one can say what the meaning of life is because it is. The
question falls away in our living of life, of our receiving and transmitting energies consciously, as
a help for God, as a help for the highest part of myself, and as a help for other people, for life itself.
And so the meaning of life is to accept life and to give life. But that can only be true when I am.
And so I must wish and will to be here.
It doesn’t mean that when I am, suddenly everything comes together, everything is right. No,
I come into real question. Because before that, unknowingly I’ve known. I’ve been living in the
knower, controller, who has no questions, other than how to get what he or she wants. So inter-
estingly enough I come into question. I don’t come into answers. Because the answers are dimen-
sional, like the Ray of Creation. An answer on one level is not an answer on another, though
they’re connected.
Everything has its vibration. There’s a dance. There’s recognition that we are energy. And
energy is always changing, moving, except when we crystallize in self-love and vanity and oh,
woe is me, and all the rest of it, where there is no meaning of life, no meaning of my life. It’s all a
shadow, a game for fools.
We’re living the meaning of life when I am. And the struggle, the influences are to not live, to
not be in meaning. And this is necessary, this is the denying force. This is how we go deeper and
deeper and become more and more intelligent. If there was no denying there would be no move-
ment, no increase in consciousness at all.
—William Patrick Patterson
 Letters to The Gurdjieff Journal
These are among the many letters received responding to our heartfelt call
in the initial edition of TGJ No. 94, to Gather in Presence paying homage to Mr. Patterson.

After reading the latest Journal issue com- I noticed this new inner state of matureness and
memorating William Patrick Patterson, one is strength. There is a willingness to face uncertainty
moved by the scale of the work he accomplished. and run toward danger. There is also deep grati-
By bringing together samples of the work he did tude to our Teacher after I knew I gained some-
over several decades, it can be seen that he brought thing so important through his teaching.
scholarship and insight to all ages of the Work – I remember one day when I came back home
the origin and history of Gurdjieff’s teaching, the from a group meeting, and I was resting without
life and writings of Gurdjieff and his students, the thinking. I had a clear inner seeing that I was the
deep meaning that the teaching offers to our cur- one setting up barriers not to know myself. I was
rent world, and the question of how the Work shocked by this finding. There was a strong sad-
can continue to guide us in the uncertain future. ness that I finally realized this, but also there was a
He spoke, taught, and wrote at length about the willingness to break through this barrier. A mem-
dangers of our current and future Technological ory came in of a private meeting with Mr. Patter-
world-time, while also showing us the possibility son during a previous seminar. I seemed to want
of escape: Faith of Consciousness is freedom. to hide myself from him as I felt his eyes could
—Elizabeth Widner see through me, and I was not ready to expose
Lowell, MA myself. He smiled with his deep eyes and asked me
a question: “When will you come to me?” I did not
I will never forget Mr. Patterson’s eyes. I am answer as I was not sure how to respond. At that
always wondering what made his eyes so clear, moment, I understood his hopeful smile. How
bright and deep. The gaze is firm and power- much I would like to tell him: yes, I am ready now.
ful with unfathomable strength inside. Each time —Sinyan Berg
I am listening to the streaming Self-exploration Fresno, CA
Probes and looking at his picture, I have a feeling
that his eyes can penetrate anyone and see through The Commemoration Issue of Journal #94 was
my essence clearly. I can feel his deep opening and a magnificent encapsulating of the teaching and
understanding through his eyes, telling the truth to our great teacher’s work and gift to us.
us that no one else can take away. Reading of Mr. Patterson’s unwavering aim
Seven years ago, I started my inward journey entwined with Mr. Gurdjieff’s final words, “Do
with Mr. Patterson’s teaching. That is after deep everything, even the impossible, to develop what
disappointment in seeking truth through exter- I’ve brought,” urges one to make extra efforts,
nal sources. With a glimpse of light manifested to super efforts. To earn my place in this incredible
me, and pointed me in a direction that knowing line of hope requires a renewed valuation of the
myself is what I really need to pursue. Through work and a review of my sincerity. It is seen Mr.
these years, I am getting to learn my own mechani- Gurdjieff’s wish and Mr. Patterson’s aim continue
calness and deepening the understanding of self- to live in us. Through the lineage, Teresa Adams
remembering and self-observation. Teaching is continues to fuel our fire through her efforts in dis-
penetrating in my life with a silent strength that seminating the teaching.
I did not realize until a big shock and crisis came After reading every item in the Journal, one
into my life last year. At the lowest point in my life, reflected on my first meeting with Mr. Patterson
to Work with sincerity became my only choice. A in Santa Barbara in 2007. Sitting in front of him,
year later, there was so much learned from suffer- tears flowed; deep gratitude was felt and the words
ing through understanding myself deeper. Truth expressed, “I’ve come home.”
is able to heal me and lead to a deep appreciation. What was explored through the years has given
The Gurdjieff Journal 37
insight into my life that was hardly ever lived, of Work of Mr. Gurdjieff and Lord Pentland. His
and firmed a determination to continue despite search made it clear that the Work does not end.
moments of questioning and “not knowing.” The His book Teachers of Nothing & No-Thing laid this
value of exploring one’s life story, searching for the out by evoking all three centers: Intellectual, Emo-
meaning of seriousness and sincerity, and working tional and Instinctive and shining a light on the
through the maze of ever present parasitic “I”s has continuation of the path.
given countless rewards. All this was only possible The news of the transition of William Patrick
through the direction of a loving and dedicated Patterson brought some personal sadness for his loss
teacher and teachers in the lineage. at this level, but the reaction to this was the certainty
I’m reminded that to make the teaching live in that he was, as he wished, there for this transition. He
us means I have to pay. And how do I do that? In left this life higher than he found it.
the beginning, eliminating all my illusory beliefs of May God grant him Grace.
God, philosophy, meaning to life, had to be let go —Aaron Hoag
and that took weeks and months. Many attitudes Healdsburg, CA
and remnants of beliefs are still in question. Then
began the arduous reading of All & Everything three The Commemoration issue for William Pat-
times. Little by little, through reading again and rick Patterson brought up many memories. There
again, one gained some understanding of how great was recalling in 1995 when feeling depressed a
the teaching is that Mr. Gurdjieff brought. Fre- friend offered me the book Eating the “I” to read.
quently, only arriving at one of the meanings out of It was devoured with interest. What is recalled
the seven contained in each theme in All & Every- is thinking that Patterson the author was a good
thing, shows me over and over again I don’t know, writer and that I understood what he was writing.
and I’m nothing. But there is hope that with work In many ways knew what he was saying. Now fast
one can become something. What’s to be done? forward many years, the immaturity and delu-
Work on myself through self-observation and self- sion of that belief exemplifies Gurdjieff’s teach-
remembering and thus gain self-knowledge and ing coated with self-love, vanity, and hubris and
through understanding change being. One works as not knowing or feeling the fact. I feel lucky to have
the teacher instructs with faith of consciousness. been under the tutelage of Mr. Patterson. He tire-
The Work is my anchor and my shield during lessly provided conditions from which I and other
these end times that we’re all experiencing. There students had the opportunity to work and slowly
is that underlying knowing that only by working over time receive impressions of both the per-
on oneself can one hope to become something and sonal and impersonal. In my case he was a perfect
grow a Kesdjan body. foil and mirror for the inner black magician who
There is deep gratitude for the gift of our hides the deep yearning of essence — a teacher
teacher and the lineage. who always made himself available to those with
—Sonja Raela a wish for the real. There is a feeling of deep grati-
Aitutaki, Cook Islands tude for his generosity and steadfast devotion to
passing on as best he could the Gurdjieff Work to
The last issue of The Gurdjieff Journal was, others. I feel the need to add that Mr. Patterson
as always, a shock, a reminder to be present. The always strove to do the best he could in regards to
theme of the issue, the story of William Patrick the Work — he was not one for slacking. He was
Patterson’s upward spiral was/is a beacon: How also one who enjoyed a good joke and a glass of
marvelous! Coming to Being can be, not done, but red wine.
lived. —Bruce Freedman
What a wonderful presentation, his evolution Santa Rosa, CA
in his own words and allowing me/us to participate
in the words and the photographs over the years! My life is fleeting. Do I acknowledge this fact?
The feeling is that it was a privilege to Be there in No. Even though I am physically aging and family
this issue from the early days of his teaching and, in and friends have passed. So what next? The dreaded
a sense, live the story of the freeing of a Man. question. Rarely uttered, yet when said aloud, we
The overall impression felt as that he was of Irish ethnicity bless ourselves and say “the fairies
always in question and, for me, simultaneously a are little darlings.”
stable focus. Truly a fitting continuation of the line For me? The Celtic writer, seeker after the truth,
38 The Gurdjieff Journal
 Student of What Is, William Patrick Patterson hon- that were misleading countless seekers, and lead
ored Gurdjieff’s truths and teaching all along The those who heard his warnings to the genuine possi-
Way, The Fourth Way. bility of Self-Transformation.
Offering courage over fear. His honesty prof- Thanks to his efforts, a genuine line of the
fered a counterpoint to this seeker’s doubts. “Faith teaching from Gurdjieff is preserved for this and
in Consciousness” was on offer. Was it noble? Yes, future generations of seekers. Fulfilling Gurdjieff’s
and fully human. admonition to his own teacher, Lord Pentland: To
What more can one aspire to Be? be like St. Paul and “Spread my ideas,” the Jour-
—Anne Stedelin nal, books, video trilogy, numerous talks, probes,
Saint Louis, Missouri online resources and scholarly research represent a
real transmission to the present and future.
After digging deeper into the last Commemora- Then there is his unpublished transmission,
tion Issue one thing has become abundantly clear. that of his BEING. Words fall flat in describing this,
Mr. Patterson was an incredible being. So many but suffice it to say, that just as he offers a heartfelt
of us have been receiving the Journal for years greeting and message of gratitude to his own teach-
and I suspect taking it and its original creator for ers in the opening pages of Eating the “I”, so is that
granted. What a force to produce so much Work same connection transmitted forward to all those
material. Not for personal gain but to share the whom he guided, taught and initiated. That car-
ideas of the Work with all who are interested. In ries a responsibility to heed his admonition: “Gur-
Eating the I telling the world his experience as a djieff bequeathed to us a great legacy in terms of
student, exactly how it happened even if it made his Legominism All & Everything, his music, move-
his person look really bad. “To write my own suf- ments, and sacred dances, and exercises. It’s for us
fered truth.” No one had done that before, or to commit ourselves to it, make it live.”
since. He says the Trilogy video series was a seven- AND WE SHALL!
year Work task, a tribute to Mr. Gurdjieff. No bet- With Gratitude,
ter than digging a ditch. “To act with intention and —Philip Jonathan Angove
not for any personal reward but for our Being is of Sacramento, CA
real value.” He was a doer. Let us honor this man
by doing the one thing he spent his life’s attention Starting with the statement, “My aim from the
on…remembering ourselves. beginning was to help enable the Fourth Way to
—Bob Turner make the transition to the new World-Time,” and
Chicago, IL reading the rest of this issue, there is a sense of the
immense effort directed toward the aim and its res-
Thank you for The Gurdjieff Journal Issue 94: onance with Mr. Gurdjieff’s mission, “Unless the
a moving compendium of the Life and Work of ‘wisdom’ of the East and the ‘energy’ of the West
William Patrick Patterson. Reading through the could be harnessed and used harmoniously, the
collection of articles is a LIVING reminder of the world would be destroyed.” The impression is that
ideas which he illuminated, the history he exca- with the Technological world-time challenging the
vated and the indefatigable labors through which human identity and instability growing, the ques-
he repeatedly differentiated the true teaching from tion “What is the sense and significance of human
so many currents and counter currents within the life on Earth?” has become fundamental, the answer
faux-Work and the New Age. Like a post-modern to which the Fourth Way is giving us the key and
St. George, he rose time and again to slay the drag- practices to explore. There is gratitude for what is
ons of falsehood, obfuscation and spiritual arroga- being given through sharing these sincere questions
tion that continually threatened the teaching. and explorations, deepening the wish to be present
The fearlessness with which he revealed his own and observe the “I”-of-the-moment that is living
misdirections and confusions (most notably in Eat- me.
ing the “I”) afforded a perspective from which he —Anahit Gevorgyan
could then recognize and reveal the same in other Yerevan, Armenia
forms, whether in devolutions of the three ancient
ways, “alternate movements” within the Fourth The Commemoration Issue is a phenomenal
Way, or teachings/teachers within the New Age. tribute to our teacher, Mr. Patterson. It honors his
The resulting effect was to shine a light on the paths incredible sacrifice, commitment, and dedication
The Gurdjieff Journal 39
to disseminate Mr. Gurdjieff’s teaching, The Fourth the thought that the Work would always be avail-
Way. able whenever “I” decided to knock on the door. So
Mr. Patterson leaves us a great legacy and is an I’m grateful to Teresa Adams, and for the way she
extraordinary help for humanity. With the help of structured the article, opening as it does, and then
his many talks, books, films, and Group work, there ending with a new beginning…. It has awakened in
can be a possibility of an understanding, and an me a new resolve. Thank you.
opportunity to work at a level that otherwise could —David Martin
not be possible within one’s lifetime. I am and will Minneapolis, MN
be eternally grateful for having found Mr. Gur-
djieff’s teaching, and the privilege of being a stu- The Gurdjieff Journal commemorating the
dent of Mr. Patterson. legacy of Mr. William Patrick Patterson reso-
—Beth Armstrong nated with deep gratitude in the heart. Through
Costa Mesa, CA Mr. Patterson’s legacy, what he gave his students
and The Fourth Way in general, was truly amaz-
Wow. Issue #94, the Commemoration of Mr. ing. By forging a strong bridge to The Fourth Way,
Patterson, is quite a moving collection of arti- he gave potential students the possibility of self-
cles, interviews, and insights. As a filmmaker and transformation. He wrote books and produced
cinephile, I was naturally drawn first to reread the and directed films all rooted in the linage of Mr.
interview “Making of the Gurdjieff Trilogy.” I’ve Gurdjieff. Founding The Gurdjieff Journal and
long appreciated the group effort of the three films, The Online Fourth Way School are priceless gifts
though it had been many years since reading this for humanity, that will continue to keep Mr. Gur-
interview. Like with everything he did, Patterson djieff’s lineage active and alive. Everything he gave
gives so much more in his responses than a stan- provided current and future students the possi-
dard-issue Q&A. When it was read originally, that bility of a`wakening from the strong global hyp-
wasn’t seen, and really speaks to the need and to the notic influence of mechanicality and sleep. A deep
wish to revisit his corpus and read it all again, for gratitude is experienced for all the super-efforts he
the first time. made over the many years allowing Mr. Gurdjieff’s
—Kurt Carlsen teaching to continue and remain in its original and
  Copenhagen, Denmark pure form. William Patrick Patterson’s energy and
presence are deeply missed, but through his many
When I first saw the cover of Issue 94, I didn’t sacrifices, the incredible gifts and practices he gave
immediately grasp what it was about. Once I did, it us will continue to live on.
was quite a shock. And then the reaction, how can —Howard Ellis
this be? Of course, it immediately became about    Kansas City, MO
me. I have been subscribing to The Gurdjieff Jour-
nal now maybe seven years. I’ve read many of Mr. Thank you for the issue in honor of William
Patterson’s books. I’d tell myself I’ll go to a seminar Patrick Patterson, a unique and special teacher.
some day, but I kept putting it off. Then COVID How fortunate are we who exist in this world, at
struck, and now… this time, to have been brought into contact with
To learn more, I turned first to the article, what he had to give. Whether we received it or not
“Come, Let Us Gather in Presence.” I’ve re-read it is another matter.
several times since that evening. What has sunk in He speaks, in an interview with Telos, repub-
is that the opening meshes perfectly with Beelze- lished in this issue, of people’s propensity to make
bub’s message about death at the end of the First everything ordinary, to “’downsize’ everyone and
Series, and how it can be used to direct us to the everything.” And this is, in many instances, the
“becoming path.” The article confronted me with situation with genuine messengers and teachers
how Mr. Patterson passed, and it eventually made alike. “How can one level see another?” Mr. Patter-
me think of my own death. What would my own son was on a level that many did not come to, and
death be like? Could I face death with “Abiding now it will be our task to not level him, his wisdom
Stillness and Deep Silence”? I can’t imagine, never imparted through so many books, audio, and video
having had that experience in any other moment recordings that are available, and especially not the
of my life. The loss and the shock have opened up personal interactions with his students. He speaks
much for me. I see my own “I”s in this reaction, of history’s tendency to sanitize messengers, to take
40 The Gurdjieff Journal
 out their two-naturedness and transmit only their “knowing.” Never have I met another human being
spiritual nature. Mr. Patterson courageously made with such a singular aim. Yes, we must honor this
sure that his two natures were open information Work.
to the public in Eating the “I”. “No one can know In the name of The Father and of the Son and
what tests they face,” he said. “…all I had was what in the name of the Holy Ghost, may William Pat-
I had been trained to have: the wish to self-remem- rick Patterson attain the Kingdom of Heaven. This
ber.” And in this way, he shows that, in fact, trans- prayer is offered in the hope of honoring Mr. Pat-
formation can occur in ordinary life. Now, we, his terson’s Work and if possible, to aid in his Work.
spiritual sons and daughters, are tasked with car- Our common Work. To honor his memory, which
rying on his legacy. Mr. Patterson said, “Mr. Gur- is a nourishing fire in the heart.
djieff gave us the keys.” Similarly, we have been —Alfred Becker
given a new set. And, now again, we need to make San Francisco, CA
the choice to use them.
—Olivia Moreno Such singularity of purpose and service in the
Barcelona, Spain three lines of Work. This sustained effort — laid out
so fully in The Gurdjieff Journal 94 — has indeed
The issue commemorating William Patrick Pat- already transitioned the Fourth Way “to the new
terson pulls together the entirety of his Work in World-Time.” It is truly the teaching for our time,
this life — Work in terms of The Fourth Way. What and the supporting facts for this have been made
really stands out is the three lines of work — work abundantly available in the life’s work of Mr. Gur-
for myself, work for others, and work for the djieff’s spiritual grandson. Extraordinary.
Work — which due to the law of three and the —Adele Reiner
shock points in the law of seven allow the direc- Toronto, Canada
tion of his original intended aim not to deviate. The
feeling is his life had a fullness, completeness and Thank you very much for the issue commemo-
it went through the full scale. It also creates ques- rating the life and Work of William Patrick Pat-
tions for myself though. Where am “I” in this scale terson. I was fortunate to be his student for several
of self-transformation? What is my obligation and years, and to experience some of the trajectory of
responsibility — in a word — duty? It seems these his exploration of the Teaching, both creative and
questions and their answers in themselves do not historical. Yet, in reading the issue and reflecting
matter as much as they create an opening to wish back on the whole of his Work, several things stand
and to recommit to Being and so enact these same out.
inner octaves of evolution. There is a deep appre- The importance he placed on setting the record
ciation for Mr. Patterson and the authentic line of straight, that there is only one true line of the
transmission of which he was and is a conduit. Teaching: Gurdjieff’s…the recognition he had, that
—Robert Grossman the ‘Fourth Way’ is really the First Way, as it pre-
Sacramento, CA dates other religions…the connections between
that ‘prehistoric,’ esoteric Christianity and Mr.
Issue number 94 of The Gurdjieff Journal was Gurdjieff’s Legominism, as Mr. Patterson lays out
a blessed commemoration of a spiritual warrior. in the Gurdjieff in Egypt film … and also the fact
Such a beautiful shock to read his deeply held aim that he recognized that the Work is in a new, cre-
to enable the Fourth Way to transition to the new ative octave, related to applying the Teaching to
World-Time. And then to read the introductory our Technological World-Time: the importance
message, a vibrant distillation of Mr. Patterson’s of emphasizing Being and evolution as our lives
understanding of the Fourth Way and his keen become relentlessly ‘enframed’ by technology.
observation of “The Information Age.” His wish Mr. Gurdjieff says “we cannot do,” as we don’t
that a new kind of faith will aid us in our Work. usually have a strong enough Being to truly do
I remembered direct impressions of Mr. Patter- consciously and accomplish an aim from start
son’s Being, self-knowledge and sincerity. A living to finish. But when Mr. Patterson says his “aim
model of Working to fathom the gist of Mr. Gur- from the beginning was to help enable the Fourth
djieff’s Teaching. His reminding us that we strug- Way to make the transition to the new World-
gle to value what Mr. Gurdjieff has brought. And Time,” this aim has actually been accomplished.
Mr. Patterson never being afraid to admit to not And this aim took Real Will, by an evolved Man
The Gurdjieff Journal 41
(not in quotation marks). Let’s celebrate his life- justify leaving Gurdjieff and yet continue to study
long super-effort, and ask ourselves: how can we and even teach the Fourth Way. So, we had the
uphold his legacy in the next creative octave of the ‘Uspenskii line,’ the ‘Nicoll line,’ and the ‘Bennett
Work? line,’ and a real loss of force from that splintering of
—Charles Lambert the Work.
Paris, France The strength of Mr. Gurdjieff ‘s mission―to har-
ness the ‘wisdom’ of the East and the ‘energy’ of the
To pick but one crumb of the worthy bread West was weakened. Mr. Patterson’s unique con-
Mr. Patterson brought, he so often highlighted our tribution was to have the clarity to speak about this
blindness to the obvious. In the face of our shallow- and re-focus our attention, so we could see Gur-
ness in assuming and accepting Sufi or other roots djieff as he saw himself, a Messenger from Above,
for the Fourth Way, Mr. Patterson returns Mr. with a profound mission.
Gurdjieff’s own words to us: “Esoteric Christian- As a teacher, Mr. Patterson made the First Series
ity.” We cry out, “But where do we start?” Mr. Pat- the primary requirement for students to study and
terson reminds us, “Mr. Gurdjieff said, ‘Everything understand. In doing so, he brought us to a place
begins with the body.’” As was said in The Gur- where we might feel the weight of Mr. Gurdjieff’s
djieff Journal 94: “…making sense of plain facts.” real message and catch a glimpse of the Work we
Mr. Patterson not only points out the very words must do to follow his path.
we “overlook,” but to take another crumb, he ties —Peter Harris
the psychological — and archetypal — struggles Bolinas, CA
of Mr. Gurdjieff’s highest students with our own
Teacher-student relationship. Mr. Patterson strove This writer read the most recent Gurdjieff Jour-
to transmute and transmit the Teaching brought by nal, in tribute to Mr. Patterson, and which con-
a Messenger from Above. Thank you. tained samples of his writings and interviews, with
—Paul Smith enormous gratitude for his life’s work. Gurdjieff
Berkeley, CA wrote that we could work for ourselves, for others
and for the Work. Mr. Patterson said his aim from
The William Patrick Patterson Commemo- the beginning was to enable the Work to transition
ration issue #94 of The Gurdjieff Journal is quite to the coming new Technological World Time and
inspiring. It covers so many aspects of his remark- to keep it as separate as possible during the collec-
able life. As just one example, the interviews of him tive world interval we are now in. As Mr. Patterson
connected to the publication of his early books said, we are bioplasmic machines and in a Tech-
reveals such a broad spectrum of understanding as nological World Time there will be the need for
to be almost overwhelming. compatible teaching if we are to protect our poten-
There were some concerns when The Gurdjieff tial for spiritual transformation. Mr. Patterson
Journal switched to PDFs only, but the change was wrote there is already considerable evidence that
validated by the new ability to be in full color and traditional, as well as new age teachings, are being
to have easy access via multiple devices. This issue mutilated by the bastard gods of money-time and
is the first one where it feels like a bound hard copy scientism. It was Mr. Patterson’s great foresight to
of this collection of wisdom would be justified. This recognize the urgent need to protect the legacy of
issue is one for the ages. Are there any plans to pub- Mr. Gurdjieff’s teaching from the relativism of our
lish this as a physical artifact? current culture. As the selected writings from Mr.
—George Morrow Patterson’s life show, he worked for many years to
Berlin, Germany preserve the legacy of Mr. Gurdjieff’s life and The
Fourth Way Teaching for future generations, and
In the Commemoration Issue, I was specially the selections also show how well he succeeded.
struck by the Telos interview with Mr. Patterson —Paul Walker
about his second book, Struggle of the Magicians. New York, NY
How well he put his finger on Uspenskii’s break
with Mr. Gurdjieff and the central question it posed I’m writing to thank you for the recent Com-
for the Work. memoration issue, number 94. Receiving this, the
The line of transmission between teacher and first issue of the Journal after our Teacher’s death,
pupil was broken and Bennett and Nicoll could it was oddly a surprise and a shock — but also so
42 The Gurdjieff Journal
 welcome! At this moment in time, what else is there Patterson. I have been a subscriber for over 20
to write of but the man and his mission. How could years, and Mr. Patterson’s words and wisdom
it be otherwise? While it is not possible to cover have been a constant gift, one that has provided
everything, devoting the journal to various writ- me with guidance and insight into Mr. Gurdjieff’s
ings, talks, video productions spanning a lifetime of teaching for the past two decades. The depth and
work, do indeed give a taste of Patrick’s voice and breadth of the body of work that Mr. Patterson
the vast scope of what he contributed. The selec- produced is astounding, and again and again I
tions really give the sense that this is not dogma, have returned to his books and videos over the
fundamentalism or recycled, but the Work, alive, years. Each time I do, I hear, see, and learn some-
breathing and vital. thing new. And so, after taking in the shock of
We hear Patrick demonstrating what it means learning of Mr. Patterson’s passing, I read through
to probe and ponder. To study, to question and this Commemoration issue and once again felt
to put ourselves in ques- the benefit of the gifts he
tion. One recognizes with has given over the years.
gratitude how his efforts I could literally hear his
have prepared us for what Gathering in Presence “voice” in the reprinted
is written of in the tribute Proceeding interviews.
article and to hear this August 19, 2023, 12:00 PM One theme that
moment as the call that it Honoring Our Teacher emerged for me as I
is: the Do of a new octave, William Patrick Patterson read was his prescient
“the evolutionary octave Planetary Body
warnings about technol-
to wake up.” Recognizing January 31, 1937 ogy. Frankly, at the time
July 7, 2023
that we have been given the warnings were writ-
the opportunity and ten I thought them a bit
Invocation
tools to feel the “sacred alarmist, only to watch
Sitting
impulse of transmission,” as they literally came
Reading
we are reminded that it “Upon My Death” to fruition before
is through our efforts, Address to The Tribe my eyes. Another theme
we honor what has been Recitation that strikes me is how he
given. Three Holy Forces stressed that we live in a
The Five Being-Obligolnian Strivings
The image of Patrick’s world time of instability,
Reading
chair and the single red Lord Pentland which he spoke of starkly
rose conveys what can- Original Composition when he says to prepare
not properly or fully be New Song, After Psalm 40 “so that when ‘the Turn’
said: love, honor, remem- Reading comes, we will be ready”
Mr. Patterson
brance, gratitude. The pal- Consecration
in the quote in “Come,
pable sense of how Patrick Mr. Gurdjieff’s Alleluia
Let Us Gather in Pres-
took what he received, Invocation ence.” What struck most
the lineage and the legacy deeply of all is his per-
and carried it forward. So spective that the Work
thank you, TGJ. This issue is a sacred and reli-
really meets the moment. gious work — The First
Gathering at The Study House
And it may also in time, Way. Writing these words
Prieuré -Avon, Sonoma County brings tears to my eyes as I
serve as a fitting beacon for
new seekers, introducing feel the depth of their truth.
the Teaching, Patrick and Gurdjieff Legacy to future I believe what remains for us is to honor Mr.
grandsons and granddaughters of Mr. Gurdjieff. Patterson’s legacy and memory by strengthening
—Deborah Jacobs our efforts to Work. And, as he said at the end of
Cotati, CA the Probe, to have “faith of consciousness.”
—Ann Neubert
It is with deep sorrow and even deeper grati- London, UK
tude that I write in response to The Gurdjieff Jour-
nal issue commemorating the passing of Mr.
The Gurdjieff Journal 43