George Ivanovich Gurdjieff
G. I. Gurdjieff was a mystic born in Alexandropol, Armenia at the Russian/Turkish frontier, in the late 1800s. He began a spiritual search at a young age, connecting him to teachers throughout Asia. Gurdjieff brought his teachings to the West in the early 1900s, sharing his methods with people from all walks of life. He provided a remarkable set of ideas, practical psychological methods, and inner practices to help those with an aim for spiritual transformation and service.
Of particular interest to him was the challenge of how to share the wisdom of the East with Westerners, and he began a number of schools, including the Gurdjieff Institute at the Prieuré at Fontainebleau near Paris, France.
In addition, an important part of his methodology included work with ancient sacred dance, (Gurdjieff Movements) accompanied by music. Scores for this music were produced by a collaboration between Gurdjieff who provided the melodies he collected at remote temples, and Thomas de Hartmann, who would improvise on these melodies.
His teachings come to us today through direct transmission from his many students. For the Millers River Educational Cooperative, these students became our teachers, especially J. G. Bennett, Irmis Popoff, Pierre Elliot, and Mrs. Stavely. Gurdjieff also shared his ideas through a series of writings including:
Beelzebub’s Tales to His Grandson: An Objectively Impartial Criticism of the Life of Man,
Meetings With Remarkable Men,
Life is Real Only Then When I Am, and
The Herald of Coming Good