Introduction to the Gurdjieff Work by Jacob Needleman


Introduction to the Gurdjieff Work
Title : Introduction to the Gurdjieff Work
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 1596750294
ISBN-10 : 9781596750296
Language : English
Format Type : Paperback
Number of Pages : 57
Publication : First published August 1, 2009

The Gurdjieff tradition, commonly referred to as "The Work,” describes people’s day-to-day lives as completely mechanical, conducted asleep. Gurdjieff's intent, as with many sacred traditions, was literally to aid in one's awakening. The tools for doing this are many, but integrated. The various methods of "The Work" are intended to specifically integrate a person’s physical, emotional, and intellectual centers into a fourth way of consciousness. Like Zen, Gurdjieff’s work is structured as an oral tradition emphasizing the relationship of teacher to student. But there have also been extensive writings on his views, and this short, pocket-sized book is one of the most useful. A clear, concise summary of Gurdjieff's life and teachings, this is the first book to describe the actual practices of the tradition. It provides comprehensive resource information for readers who wish to pursue further inquiry, including a reading list and a summary of the most important published music from the Gurdjieff vault.

Introduction to the Gurdjieff Work Reviews

  • Lawrence

    This tiny book of necessity barely scratches the surface of the subject of
    G. I. Gurdjieff and his spiritual teaching, which I originally became curious about through
    Antares' (author of
    Tanah Tujuh: Close Encounters with the Temuan Mythos)
    mythopoeia on the subject of
    Jorge Luis Borges' A Bao A Qu, and then later became reinvested in through the discovery that King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp studied in the Gurdjieff lineage. The book describes Gurdjieff's teaching as miraculous and revelatory, but frustratingly, fails to describe what makes it so, especially what sets it apart from other, older teachings. Needleman describes Gurdjieff in some ways as a kind of
    Aldous Huxleyan perennialist, and in other ways as a complete spiritual revolutionary.

    Regardless, Needleman seems to be clearly a believer in the Gurdjieff Work, and thus, I don't feel like I've gained any information from reading this book about the degree to which Gurdjieff may or may not have really been onto something (if that even has a definitive answer). But it's enough to keep up the mild flame of my intrigue, and in fact, Needleman's list of further reading (and listening!) at the end was, to me, the most enticing part of his book. Maybe it'll be enough to get me to finally take
    Meetings With Remarkable Men off my shelf, and see if Gurdjieff, through the medium of his own words, looks like the real deal!

  • Barry Paul Clark

    Love a tiny book that also gets me on a path towards the absence of self 🥰