Gurdjieff
Inner Alchemy
"In observing himself a man notices that self-observation
itself brings about certain changes in his inner processes. He
begins to understand that self-observation is an instrument of
selfchange, a means of awakening. By observing himself he throws, as
it were, a ray of light onto his inner processes which have hitherto
worked in complete darkness. And under the influence of this light
the processes themselves begin to change.
There are a great many
chemical processes that can take place only in the absence of light.
Exactly in the same way many psychic processes can take place only
in the dark. Even a feeble light of consciousness is enough to
change completely the character of a process, while it makes many of
them altogether impossible. Our inner psychic processes (our inner
alchemy) have much in common with those chemical processes in which
light changes the character of the process and they are subject to
analogous laws."
(Read in this regard Osho′s comments on witnessing and on Satyam, Shivam, Sundram)
"Two hundred conscious people, if they existed and if they found it necessary and legitimate, could change the whole of life on the earth. But either there are not enough of them, or they do not want to, or perhaps the time has not yet come, or perhaps other people are sleeping too soundly."
(Thus spake Gurdjieff in Ouspensky′s In Search of the Miraculous)- Gurdjieff on Internal and External Considering
- Picture of Gurdjieff in Paris
- Gurdjieff′s "I Am" exercise
- Feel "I Am" - an exercise from the Vigyan Bhairav Tantra.
- Osho on Self-remembering, a method of Gurdjieff′s Fourth Way
- Osho′s Way is also a Fourth Way
- In his book Beelzebub′s Tales to His Grandson Gurdjieff writes, that "the greatest ′intentional suffering′ can be obtained in our presences by
compelling ourselves to endure the displeasing manifestations of others toward ourselves".
According to Gurdjieff, ′Conscious Labor′ (an act where the person who is performing the act is present to what he is doing, is not absentminded during the act, or is ′remembering himself′.) and ′Intentional Suffering′ were the basis of all evolution of man. Actually, ′Intentional Suffering′ is one example of ′Conscious Labor′.
Perhaps Osho refers to the same when he claims that you can enjoy suffering. - Osho on the much needed two hundred conscious people:
"It is a heavy load. One single enlightened man cannot carry it; two hundred is the minimum. But from where to bring those two hundred people? They have to be born amongst you; you have to become those two hundred people.
(Osho - The Hidden Splendor #14)
And your growth is so slow. There is every fear that before you become enlightened, the world will be gone. You are not putting your total energy into meditation, into awareness.
It is one of the things that you are doing, amongst many; and it is not even the first priority of your life. I want it to become your first priority."