The newest Western esotericism was not limited to theosophy alone in its few varieties. Periodically, other teachings appeared, claiming universality in describing the world on the basis of combining scientific knowledge with occult methods. The author of one of these teachings was George Gurdjieff.
George Ivanovich Gurdjieff was born on December 28, 1877 in Alexandropol (Caucasus). His father was Greek, and his mother was Armenian. Despite such a "variegation" of blood, the Gurdjieff family was related to the ancient Byzantine family of the Palaeologus and, surprisingly, to Ivan the Terrible himself.
When George was still a boy, his family moved to Kars, where the future "guru" became a disciple of Dean Borsch, the rector of the Russian cathedral, who, together with Gurdjieff's father, had a tremendous influence on his development. According to the memoirs of Gurdjieff himself, these two people were distinguished by "an indomitable effort to understand clearly the exact meaning of the universal life process on earth, all the external forms of breathing creatures and, in particular, the purpose of human life in the light of this explanation."
Gurdjieff's youth passed in an area, the history and spirit of which by themselves pushed the boy to seek answers to eternal questions. Kars and the surrounding areas, located between the Black and Caspian Seas, have been a springboard for many wars; here the religions and traditions of a great variety of peoples are mixed.
Gurdjieff absorbed a lot, especially from Christian monastic sources. He learned about ancient symbolism, liturgy, rhythmic breathing techniques, and mental prayers. However, despite the wealth of his native land and the religious traditions in which he grew up, George was not satisfied with his knowledge and soon left his father's house to replenish them.
Gurdjieff had not yet turned twenty, and he had already set off on a journey through Asia and to such distant regions as Ethiopia and the Solomon Islands. During these travels, he may have come into contact with the esoteric circles of some Islamic orders, because it is the Sufi writings that are the sources with which many of the positions of his own teaching are correlated. Thus, the enneagram is the central symbol of Gurdjieff's works - of Sufi origin.
In addition to the Sufi esoteric doctrines, Gurdjieff also mastered the teachings of the Vajrayana school, Tibetan Buddhism. Louis Povel in his book Gurdjieff writes the following:
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“Gurdjieff was Russia's main secret agent in Tibet for ten years. He was given important financial positions under the Tibetan authorities and control over the supply of the army. He could play a political role, since they knew that he possessed spiritual powers, and in this country this is most important, especially among the high-ranking clergy. He was the mentor of the Dalai Lama and fled with him when the British captured Tibet."
In fact, little is known about the period of Gurdjieff's life in Tibet and Central Asia (from the mid-1890s to perhaps 1910 or 1912). From the words of Gurdjieff himself, it is only known that he was engaged in archaeological and religious research, studied the practice of Lamaism in tecs and monasteries, where "ancient knowledge" was preserved, and even showed interest in Siberian shamanism (!) As a source from which ultimately developed existing religions.
Obviously, during his travels, Gurdjieff developed a certain view of the world, on the basis of which his teaching was subsequently formed.
Here is how Gurdjieff describes his spiritual journey in his published autobiography:
“Once I decided to give up everything, to retire for a while in order - through active meditation - to take my research on a new path. This coincided with my stay in Central Asia, where, thanks to a chance meeting with a barber, I managed to get into a monastery well known to Muslims.
… I began to collect information, written and oral, among various Asian peoples and related to that highly developed area of knowledge of ancient times, which was formerly called "mekhness", and today - hypnotism. For four or five years it became my main occupation, and I came to unprecedented results."
And here's the main thing:
"I had the opportunity to penetrate the holy of holies of almost all closed organizations, such as occult, religious, philosophical, political and mystical societies, inaccessible to the common man …"
At the beginning of 1916, Gurdjieff appeared in St. Petersburg as a Teacher and adept of "higher knowledge". There he met Peter Ouspensky, who became for him what Plato was for Socrates. Ouspensky describes his first meeting with Gurdjieff in In Search of the Miraculous as follows:
“I remember this meeting very well. We came to a small cafe on a noisy, though not the main street. I saw a man of the oriental type with a black mustache and piercing eyes, who surprised me first of all by the fact that … he was completely out of harmony with the place and atmosphere. I was still full of impressions of the East, and this man with the face of an Indian rajah or an Arab sheikh, who could easily be imagined in a white burnus or a gilded turban, was sitting here … a frightening experience, like a person unsuccessfully disguised, whose appearance embarrasses you, because you see that he is not who he wants to appear, and you have to speak and behave that way. as if you don't see it. He spoke Russian incorrectly, with a strong Caucasian accent, and this accent,with which we are accustomed to associate something different from philosophical ideas, further enhanced the strangeness and unexpectedness of the impression."
Gurdjieff expressed ideas that illuminated in a new way the questions about the relationship of man with the universe, about the levels of consciousness, death and immortality, and about the possibilities of self-realization. Imbued with his ideas, Ouspensky gathered a group of Gurdjieff's followers, who began to meet in secret in Moscow until the revolution.
After the establishment of the dictatorship of the proletariat, the disciples, led by Gurdjieff, left Russia, making an intricate journey through the mountains to the Essentuki in the Caucasus and then, when the wave of revolution and civil war reached there, to Tiflis. But Tiflis too soon had to leave, and only after a few years of wandering, Gurdjieff settled in Paris. Here Georgy Ivanovich founded the Institute for the Harmonious Development of Man, for which he bought a castle near Fontainebleau.
Ten years, from 1923 to 1933, were spent on hard work with students at the institute. During these years, Gurdjieff tested and tested the system of learning, self-observation, exercises aimed at "reconciling" the three main functions of a person: thinking, feeling and physical activity.
Gurdjieff loved to demonstrate the achievements of his students by arranging public performances - real ballets. Here is a short description of one such "ballet" performed in New York in 1924:
“It made a fantastic impression. Everyone danced in their own way. The orchestra played strange music, in which the drum beat predominated … Gurdjieff conducted the dancers, giving the signal to start the movement, and then suddenly stopping him. The dancers froze like statues. They seemed to be under hypnosis … We were told that such a dance can lead to a high degree of concentration and for this reason was practiced by Eastern mystics … This dance helps to understand the purpose of all body functions, while in ordinary life a person has no more than than about a quarter of them. For example, according to Gurdjieff, a person who has mastered this science can regulate blood circulation and the work of the glands as easily as swinging a hand or swinging a leg."
However, there was also a less attractive element in Gurdjieff's system. Louis Povel, one of the most consistent students of Gurdjieff, in his book "Gurdjieff" admits that as a result of long training in this system, he was practically blind in one eye and was so exhausted that he went to the hospital for medical help. He also describes two American girls who brought themselves to a similar state:
“They were extremely emaciated. One of them talked about how she felt her veins vibrating, constricting around her throat and heart. The blood seemed to barely run in these bodies. Their faces were gray and their eyes seemed hypnotized. They held on to their last breath, ready to plunge into the abyss of death. Death, in fact, has already bent over them, fascinated by it."
In addition to working with students, Gurdjieff was engaged in lecturing in Europe and America. Thanks to these trips, he managed to form several more groups of followers. George Gurdjieff died in Paris on October 29, 1949. The anniversary of his death is still celebrated with a funeral service in the Russian Orthodox Church.
Gurdjieff left very few works, so his influence on European thought and culture was essentially nil. However, due to the fact that his name is very often associated with occult systems that developed both in the USSR and in the Third Reich, let's try to figure out what this man preached with the face of an “Indian Raja”.
According to Gurdjieff, man lives in a very insignificant place in the universe from the point of view of the possibility of his evolution. Self-realization of a person is as difficult as possible due to the rigidity of the physical laws that govern our planet. So, although a person is “designed” with the potential to increase the level of his being, the chance that any particular individual will be successful in this field is extremely small.
“You don't understand your own situation. You are in jail. All you can want for yourself if you are a sane person is to be free. But how do you get free? It is necessary to dig a tunnel under the wall. One person cannot do anything. But if, let's say, there are ten or twenty people, if they work in turns and one is guarding the other, they can finish the tunnel and free themselves. Moreover, no one can be released from prison without the help of those who were released before. Only they can say which way of escape is possible, and can get tools, files, whatever may be needed. But a single prisoner cannot find these people or come in contact with them. Nothing can be achieved without organization."
One of the obstacles facing those who want to free themselves is that humanity exists on this planet for a specific purpose and this goal will not be achieved if more than a few percent of people reach the higher levels of being - the flow of substance from a higher level to a lower one. will be sharply violated.
Gurdjieff called the main driving force of the universe the Absolute. An infinite number of "rays of creativity" originate from the Absolute. One of these rays gave birth to all planetary systems, all stars and galaxies. The steps in the ray of creativity differ in the number of laws. At the level of the Absolute, there is only one law - the unity of the will to create; on the next - three laws; on the next six, and so on. Our Earth is governed by forty-eight laws. The only place in the creative ray where it would be even more difficult to fight for liberation is the Moon, which is ruled by ninety-six laws.
Since we live under forty-eight laws, we are very distant from the will of the Absolute. If we free ourselves from half of these laws, we will be one circle closer. Etc. Moving to the Absolute, freeing ourselves step by step from the mechanical laws that restrict us, we go along the path of self-realization.
Of these laws of the universe, the most important (because it concerns all events, regardless of where they occur) is the law called Gurdjieff's Law of Three. This law says that every phenomenon of being is the result of the action of three forces, which can be called active, passive and neutralizing. These forces are present everywhere, even in the very first stage of the ray of creativity, where they unite, which is reflected in many world religions: Brahma-Vishnu-Shiva or Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Creation depends on the combination of these forces - nothing can exist if all three are not present in it.
The next law is the Law of Seven. This law governs the sequence of events. He argues that any act of creativity is non-linear. The Law of Seven explains why, when something begins, it cannot continue indefinitely: why the downpour weakens and winter gives way to summer. The seven notes are a kind of symbol of this law.
The unity of the Law of Three and the Law of Seven is represented by the diagram, which is central to the teachings of Gurdjieff, the enneagram.
ENNEAGRAMis a circle divided into nine equal parts. Moving in a clockwise circle and numbering the points, we can then outline a triangle by connecting points 9, 3, and 6. This triangle represents the Trinity or the Law of Three. He implies the whole creation as a manifestation striving to be re-absorbed by the Absolute, or unity; then we can see the trinity saved: 3 tends to go back to 1, that is, in mathematical terms, 1 is divided by 3, which is a repeating series 33333333…. Other points on the circle are connected in such a way that they are the desire of all seven points on the ray of creativity to return to unity: a unit divided by seven is a repeating series of numbers 142957 … that does not contain multiples of three. Thus, both laws are represented on one symmetric diagram in a way that reflects their independence,as well as their ratio. The enneagram can be used in the study of any processes, if they are presented in the entire sequence of events.
Now about how Gurdjieff imagined human psychology.
The human condition, in which almost every one of us is, is significantly different from our usual idea of him. The difference between what a person thinks of himself and what he really is is most clearly manifested in a person's ideas about his personality, responsibility for his actions and free will, although this applies equally to other significant human qualities … When a person says "I", he refers to himself as a whole. And every person who says "I" assures that he speaks of himself as a whole, as existing hour after hour, day after day. “The illusion of unity or immutability is created in a person, first of all, by the sensation of his own body, by his own name, which in normal cases remains the same, and thirdly, by a multitude of habits,which are instilled in him by education or are acquired by imitation. Always having the same physical sensations, always hearing the same name and noticing in himself the same habits and inclinations that he had before, he believes that he always remains the same."
In reality, however, the psychological structure and function of a person is better explained by looking at his behavior in terms of many “I's” than as one “I”. These "I" are very numerous: an adult can have up to several thousand of them. At one moment there is one “I”, and at another - another “I”, which may or may not be in good relation with the previous “I”, since between these “I” there is often an impenetrable wall, called a buffer … Some "I" form groups: there are subpersonalities, consisting of "I" according to professional functions, and others - made up of "I" to serve oneself, and still others - for family and family situations. According to Gurdjieff, it is necessary to gradually weaken the action of the buffers and to acquaint the “I” with each other.
Gurdjieff also compares modern man - his thoughts, feelings and psychology - to a hired carriage, horse, and coachman. The carriage is analogous to the physical body, the horse to the emotions, the coachman to the mind, and the passenger, whom we call "I", also rides in the wheelchair. This carriage must be managed by a coachman who never understood its structure and who therefore does not wash its parts with kerosene or oil them properly. The horse, says Gurdjieff, never received any special education, but was formed exclusively under the influence of constant blows from the stick and swearing. She always feels tired, and instead of oats she is given only straw, which is completely useless for her actual needs. Never seeing the slightest manifestation of love or friendliness towards itself, the horse is ready to obey anyone,who caresses her a little. The coachman, sleepy, sits on the seat, ready to go wherever he is, as long as he is not forced to exert himself too much, with anyone who gives him a tip, and quite wherever if he is well paid.
Considering this analogy from the point of view of what a person can become, the carriage corresponds to the physical body, the horse to the astral body, the coachman to the mental body, and the passenger to the teacher, who, unlike the occasional passerby, can hire a carriage, actually owns it, contains in good working order and directs this crew.
The common man is a programmable device for doing these things; moreover, the program put into it is subject to the aforementioned physical laws. The development of all four bodies changes the direction of control; the real, permanent "I" or the Teacher gives the command to the mind or emotions, and the body, in turn, obeys thoughts and feelings.
Immortality, Gurdjieff said, has several relative levels, which depend on the psychological work done by the individual. Hence the idea of reincarnation, or "return" follows.
“The idea of return is not absolute and complete truth, but it is the closest possible approximation to the truth. In this case, the truth cannot be expressed in words … How can a person use the knowledge of return if he is not aware of it and if he himself does not change? It could even be said that if a person does not change, return does not exist for him. If you tell him to return, it will only intensify his sleep. Why would a person make any effort when he has so much time and so many opportunities ahead of him - an eternity? That is why the system does not say anything about returning, but only takes this one life, which we know. The system has no meaning or meaning without striving for self-change."
Based on all of the above, it was concluded that the human soul is born in order to win a special, honorable place in the universal hierarchy. The one who succeeded during several "returns" is worthy of Eternity, while the rest deserve only oblivion. A very voluntary philosophy, isn't it?
We can talk for a long time about the peculiarities of the doctrine that George Gurdjieff proposed to the world. However, even this material is enough to notice a certain similarity between what Blavatsky said and what Gurdjieff taught. Again, an attempt to combine Western worldview concepts with Eastern ones; again turning to Tibet as a spiritual center; again the demand for self-improvement under the strict guidance of a higher authority in the person of the Teacher. This is easily explained if we consider that both "mentors" were fulfilling a kind of social order. And the same one.
I talked about the essence of the order above, but something else is interesting here: how tangible is the influence of such theories on the political history of the 20th century?
As for Gurdjieff, he has long been suspected of actively intervening in the process of forming state ideologies in countries such as the Soviet Union and the Third Reich.
For example, modern researchers point out that Joseph Stalin knew Georgy Gurdjieff well. Both studied at the same seminary in Tiflis. Then the young Dzhugashvili actually became a "spiritual student" of Gurdjieff and even lived at one time in his apartment.
In Gurdjieff's book "Meetings with outstanding people", which was read in a narrow circle of his students, there was a chapter "Prince Nizharadze", later almost all destroyed on the personal instructions of the author. This was done because of a certain "scrupulous episode", which he reproduced in the book, Gurdjieff "violated the rules of one of the" brotherhoods "where he was helped and taught."
Apparently, the following fact will clarify this vague indication a little. "Prince Nizharadze" is one of Stalin's pseudonyms, with documents in this name he was arrested during the first Russian revolution. Perhaps the "guru" of esoteric thought did not want to reveal his connections with the "leader of the nations"?..
And if we talk about the ideas of Gurdjieff in the Third Reich, then Karl Haushofer immediately comes to mind - a geopolitician with a racist bias, trained by Gurdjieff and considered one of the teachers of Adolf Hitler. Is there a connection here? I think the answer is obvious …
Ultimately, all European esoteric doctrines that came into being in the late 19th and early 20th centuries formed a bizarre mixture that nourished primarily the ideology of those who risked disrupting the natural course of history in the name of a colossal social experiment. Now we know the result of these experiments, and the emaciated female dancers of Gurdjieff from this day seem to be the ominous harbingers of those millions of emaciated people dying of hunger and cold, driven behind barbed wire in the name of a brighter future for the elite of "initiates."
Pervushin Anton
