I awake in order to be whole
NOW is always here
This brief moment in time when there is the possibility to BE
QUESTIONS…
Have you ever had the feeling that you are just going through the motions of life, or wondered if this is all there is?
Does life seem repetitive? As if the same day repeats itself over and over again?
Do you ever find yourself mindlessly scrolling on your phone, with no awareness of yourself or your surroundings?
Do you feel disconnected? As if life is happening without your active participation?
Are you worried about how much depression, addiction and anxiety there is in our society?
G.I. Gurdjieff
George Ivanovich Gurdjieff was born in 1866 in Armenia. As a young man, he became haunted by the question “What is the sense and aim of life on earth and of human life in particular?” He traveled throughout Asia and near East in pursuit of answers to this question. His early life is depicted in a mixture of historical and allegorical forms in his book Meetings With Remarkable Men which was later adapted for a movie by Peter Brook. He began teaching in Russia in 1912 ,but due to the turmoil of the Russian Revolution, he and his students sought a new center for his Work, finally settling in France until his death in 1949.
Gurdjieff was exposed to ancient esoteric teachings in the East and wished to share this knowledge with those in the west, particularly Europeans and Americans who shared a similar question. The ‘Fourth’ Way, also known as the Way in Life, can help a person on a spiritual path utilize the conditions of everyday life to “work on oneself.” His written works include Meetings with Remarkable Men, All and Everything, and Life is Real Only then when I AM.
The Teaching
Mr. Gurdjieff’s teaching, although born over 100 years ago, continues to be relevant for humanity today. In this time now, when human attention is weak, and egoistic greed has all but consumed our society, the collective yearning for a real spiritual existence may begin to stir.
The longer one practices the teaching of G.I. Gurdjieff, the more aware one becomes of the immensity of its potential. Mr. Gurdjieff refers to our habituated behaviors as a kind of ‘waking sleep’. And that much of our lives are lead without participation of conscious attention. In witnessing HOW the automatic nature of personality ordinarily dictates emotions and actions, an inner freedom begins to appear.
Rooted in awareness, sensation and attention, Work on oneself can create a capacity to consciously choose the inner attitude and experience one wishes to align with. As awareness of oneself grows, so does the understanding that we all exist and suffer in similar ways, and we become closer through a cognizance of a shared humanity.
Mr. Gurdjieff advises that we need to develop an ‘inner’ ear; one that can feel and sense the subtle energies which animate one’s being.
In the pursuit of understanding, and with the help of Gurdjieff’s teaching, like concentric circles, one crosses multiple thresholds of self revelation…….an initiation into the esoteric nature of being human.
The GUrdjieff Foundation of Oregon
The Gurdjieff Foundation of Oregon was founded in Portland in the late 1990s. It is a diverse group of people, each of whom carries a question, and a search for a deeper meaning of life. We have each been touched by this teaching in unique ways, and feel called to undertake a personal journey toward a more conscious experience of life. Although we come from different backgrounds, professions, and walks of life, we share a common wish to support one another on this mysterious journey .
The larger Gurdjieff Foundation was created shortly after Gurdjieff’s death under the leadership of his most senior student, Jeanne deSalzmann. Major centers were soon established in Paris, London, and New York. Over time, many other centers were formed throughout the world.
