A Gurdjieff Genealogy
Tracing the Manifold Ways the Gurdjieff Teaching Has Travelled
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/ijsnr.v4i1.49Keywords:
Gurdjieff, Ouspensky, new religious movement, esotericism, spirituality, religious groupsAbstract
This article examines the diverse routes that G. I. Gurdjieff’s (c.1866– 1949) work has traversed, from the time of the very first Gurdjieff-based groups established in his lifetime in England, America and France, to the new groups that formed around the world after his death. Focus is inevitably paid to the dramatic changes made by Jeanne de Salzmann after Gurdjieff’s death, when she took the reins from Gurdjieff and restructured groups, forming a network of orthodox, hierarchical “Foundation” groups that taught Gurdjieffian principles and exercises in a formalized manner. These Foundation groups and their core practices will be examined. Not all of Gurdjieff’s followers amalgamated into this network; an assortment of Gurdjieff-based groups remain outside of it. These can be considered “independent” and “fringe” groups, and will also be considered. An indepth study of the existence and development of these Gurdjieff-centred groups has never before been attempted, and is crucial to an appreciation of the influence and relevance of Gurdjieff today. It is primarily through these groups that Gurdjieff’s work has been carried on, expanded, modified, preserved, and/or assimilated with other religio-spiritual teachings.
References
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Collin-Smith, Joyce. 1988. Call No Man Master. Bath: Gateway Books.
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de Salzmann, Jeanne. 1981. “Foreword” in Life is Real Only Then, When “I Am.” New York: E. P. Dutton.
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Patterson, William P. 1996. Struggle of the Magicians: Why Uspenskii left Gurdjieff. Fairfax, CA: Arete Communications.
Patterson, William P. 1999. Ladies of the Rope: Gurdjieff’s special Left Bank Women’s Group. Fairfax, CA: Arete Communications.
Peters, Fritz. 1976. Boyhood with Gurdjieff and Gurdjieff Remembered. London: Wildwood House.
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Pogson, Beryl. 1961. Maurice Nicoll: A Portrait. London: Vincent Stuart.
Pogson, Beryl. 1994. The Work Life. York Beach, MA: Samuel Weiser.
Ravindra, Ravi. 2004. Heart Without Measure: Gurdjieff work with Madame de Salzmann. Sandpoint, ID: morning Light Press.
Rawlinson, Andrew. 1997. The Book of Enlightened Masters: Western teachers in eastern traditions. Illinois: Open Court.
Segal, William. 2003. A Voice at the Borders of Silence. Woodstock, New York: Overlook Press.
Speeth, Kathleen R. 1989. The Gurdjieff Work. California: And/Or Press.
Tolley, Dorine. 2008. The Power Within: Leon MacLaren a memoir of his life and work. Sydney: Dorine Tolley.
Tolley, Dorine. 2013. Personal Communication. 17 February.
Toomer, Jean. 1975 [1923]. Cane. New York: Liveright.
Washington, Peter. 1993. Madame Blavatsky’s Baboon: Theosophy and the Emergence of the Western Guru. London: Secker and Warburg.
Webb, James. 1980. The Harmonious Circle: The lives and work of G. I. Gurdjieff, P. D. Ouspensky and their followers. London: Thames and Hudson.
Wellbeloved, Sophia. 2003. Gurdjieff: The key concepts. London: Routledge.
Zuber, René. 1980. Who are You Monsieur Gurdjieff? London: Penguin Arkana.
Amin, Kamal. 2004. Reflections from the Shining Brow. Santa Barbara, CA: Fithian Press.
Azize, Joseph. 2012. “G. I. Gurdjieff’s piano music and its application in and outside ‘The Work’ today.” In Handbook of New Religions and Cultural Production, edited by Carole M. Cusack and Alex Norman, 271–295, Leiden, Brill.
Beekman Taylor, Paul. 2001. Gurdjieff and Orage: Brothers in Elysium. York Beach, Maine: Weiser Books.
Beekman Taylor, Paul. 2004. Gurdjieff’s America: Mediating the Miraculous. UK: Lighthouse Editions.
Beekman Taylor, Paul. 2008. G. I. Gurdjieff: A New Life, Utrecht. Netherlands: Eureka Editions.
Bennett, J. G. 1962. Witness. London: Hodder and Stoughton.
Bennett, J. G. 1997. Witness: The story of a search. New Mexico: Bennett Books.
Blake, Anthony. 2013. Personal Communication. 28 February.
Blom, Gert-Jan. 2004. Harmonic Development: The complete harmonium recordings 1948–1949. Netherlands: Basta Audio Visuals.
Collin-Smith, Joyce. 1988. Call No Man Master. Bath: Gateway Books.
Cusack, Carole M. 2011. “An enlightened life in text and image: G. I. Gurdjieff’s Meetings With Remarkable Men (1963) and Peter Brook’s Meetings With Remarkable Men (1979).” Literature & Aesthetics 21(1): 72–97.
de Hartmann, Thomas and Olga de Hartmann. 1992 [1964]. Our Life with Mr. Gurdjieff. London: Arkana Penguin Books.
de Ropp, Robert S. 1992. Warriors Way. Nevada City: Gateways.
de Salzmann, Jeanne. 1981. “Foreword” in Life is Real Only Then, When “I Am.” New York: E. P. Dutton.
Friedland, Roger and Harold Zellman. 2006. The Fellowship: The Untold Story of Frank Lloyd Wright and the Taliesin Fellowship. New York: Regan.
Fripp, Robert. 2000. “Letters to the Second Guitar Craft (U.S.).” Stopinder 1(2): 7–24.
Ginsburg, Seymour B. 2005 Gurdjieff Unveiled: An Overview and introduction to the teaching. London: Lighthouse Workbooks.
Gold, E. J. 1977. Autobiography of a Sufi. Nevada City, CA: Gateways Books & Tapes.
Gold, E. J. 1978. Secret Talks With Mr G. Nevada City, CA: IDHHB.
Guillon, Ricardo. 2004. Record of a Search: Working with Michel Conge in France. Toronto: Traditional Studies Press.
Gurdjieff, G. I. 1964 [1950]. All and Everything First Series: Beelzebub’s Tales to His Grandson. New York: E. P. Dutton.
Gurdjieff, G. I. 1976. Views From the Real World. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.
Gurdjieff, G. I. 1981. Life is Real Only Then, When “I Am.” New York: E. P. Dutton.
Gurdjieff, G. I. 2008. Transcripts of Gurdjieff’s Meetings 1941–1946. London: Book Studio.
Howarth, Dushka and Jessmin Howarth. 2009. It’s Up To Ourselves: A Mother, A Daughter, and Gurdjieff. New York: Gurdjieff Heritage Society.
Kherdian, David. 1998. On a Spaceship With Beelzebub: By a grandson of Gurdjieff. Rochester, VT: Inner Traditions.
Landau, Rom. 1935. God is My Adventure. London: Ivor Nicholson and Watson.
Lannes, Henriette. 2002. Inside a Question: Works of Henriette Lannes pupils of G. I. Gurdjieff. London: Paul H. Crompton.
Moore, James. 1991. Gurdjieff The Anatomy of a Myth A Biography. Shaftsbury, Dorset: Element.
Moore, James. 1994. “Moveable Feasts: The Gurdjieff Work.” Religion Today 9(2): 11–16. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13537909408580710
Moore, James. 1999. “Neo-Sufism: The case of Idries Shah” Religion Today 3(3): 4–8. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13537908608580605
Needleman, Jacob and George Baker. 2005 “Gurdjieff Tradition.” In Dictionary of Gnosis and Western Esotericism, Vol. 1, edited by Wouter J. Hanegraaff, Antoine Faivre, Roelof van den Broek, and Jean-Pierre Brach, 450–454. Leiden: Brill.
Nott, C. S. 1969. Further Teachings of Gurdjieff: Journey through this world. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.
Nott, C. S. 1978. Teachings of Gurdjieff: A Pupil’s journal. an account of some years with G. I. Gurdjieff and A. R. Orage in New York and at Fontainebleau-Avon. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.
Ouspensky, P. D. 1949. [1912] Tertium Organum. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
Ouspensky, P. D. 1971. [1931] A New Model of the Universe. New York: Vintage Books.
Ouspensky, P. D. 1977 [1949]. In Search of the Miraculous: The teachings of G. I. Gurdjieff. San Diego, CA: Harcourt Inc.
Patterson, William P. 1996. Struggle of the Magicians: Why Uspenskii left Gurdjieff. Fairfax, CA: Arete Communications.
Patterson, William P. 1999. Ladies of the Rope: Gurdjieff’s special Left Bank Women’s Group. Fairfax, CA: Arete Communications.
Peters, Fritz. 1976. Boyhood with Gurdjieff and Gurdjieff Remembered. London: Wildwood House.
Petsche, Johanna J. M. 2011. “Gurdjieff and Blavatsky: Western Esoteric Teachers in Parallel.” Literature & Aesthetics 21(1): 98–115.
Petsche, Johanna J. M. 2012. “G. I. Gurdjieff’s piano music and its application in and outside ‘The Work’ today.” In Handbook of New Religions and Cultural Production, edited by Carole M. Cusack and Alex Norman, 271–295, Leiden, Brill. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/9789004226487_013
Pittman, Michael S. 2012. Classical Spirituality in Contemporary America: The confluence and contribution of G. I. Gurdjieff and sufism. New York: Continuum.
Pogson, Beryl. 1961. Maurice Nicoll: A Portrait. London: Vincent Stuart.
Pogson, Beryl. 1994. The Work Life. York Beach, MA: Samuel Weiser.
Ravindra, Ravi. 2004. Heart Without Measure: Gurdjieff work with Madame de Salzmann. Sandpoint, ID: morning Light Press.
Rawlinson, Andrew. 1997. The Book of Enlightened Masters: Western teachers in eastern traditions. Illinois: Open Court.
Segal, William. 2003. A Voice at the Borders of Silence. Woodstock, New York: Overlook Press.
Speeth, Kathleen R. 1989. The Gurdjieff Work. California: And/Or Press.
Tolley, Dorine. 2008. The Power Within: Leon MacLaren a memoir of his life and work. Sydney: Dorine Tolley.
Tolley, Dorine. 2013. Personal Communication. 17 February.
Toomer, Jean. 1975 [1923]. Cane. New York: Liveright.
Washington, Peter. 1993. Madame Blavatsky’s Baboon: Theosophy and the Emergence of the Western Guru. London: Secker and Warburg.
Webb, James. 1980. The Harmonious Circle: The lives and work of G. I. Gurdjieff, P. D. Ouspensky and their followers. London: Thames and Hudson.
Wellbeloved, Sophia. 2003. Gurdjieff: The key concepts. London: Routledge.
Zuber, René. 1980. Who are You Monsieur Gurdjieff? London: Penguin Arkana.
Published
2013-09-07
Issue
Section
Articles
How to Cite
Petsche, J. (2013). A Gurdjieff Genealogy: Tracing the Manifold Ways the Gurdjieff Teaching Has Travelled. International Journal for the Study of New Religions, 4(1), 49-79. https://doi.org/10.1558/ijsnr.v4i1.49
