Gurdjieff Practice Book 2 E-Book

Bruno Martin

• Herausgeber: BoD - Books on Demand
• Kategorie: Ratgeber
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Seitenzahl: 196

Beschreibung

From the rich wealth of experience of his work with people, Bruno Martin inspires with his new practice book to deepen and strengthen the conscious inner "work on oneself". The foundation of these insights is based on the methods of G I. Gurdjieff and John G. Bennett, which he has adapted and further developed to meet today's needs. The new exercises in this Gurdjieff Practice Book 2 can lead "seekers of truth" into previously unrecognized experiences of connection with themselves. From this conscious "self-remembering", a harmonious unfolding of one's own being can take place, for one's own good and for the good of the community. The exercises in this new practice book not only expand the existing spectrum of ways of inner work, they can also serve as "food for the soul".

Leseprobe

Acknowledgments

For my beloved wife Nana Nauwald - and many thanks for your creative impulses!

A special thank for my spiritual mentor John G. Bennett, whose lifelong creative work with Gurdjieff's practical as well as theoretical teachings inspired me to go deeper.

I owe the refinement and adaptation of the exercises for today's use to all those who have attended my seminars over the course of many years. This has enabled me to learn again and again how to present the exercises in such a way that they can be understood by others.

Inspiring impulses from other teaching systems and many remarkable people accompanied my path. My heartfelt thanks go to all these people!

Contents

Foreword

1. Self-Observation/Introspection

2. Living in the Present Moment

3. The Miracle of Mindfulness

4. Attentive Perception

5. Two Lives

6. What is Inner Work?

7. The three Levels of Experience

8. Self-Remembering

9. The Problem of Ambiguity

10. Expectations as an Obstacle

11. Intention

12. The Correctness of an Action

13. The Body as an Instrument of Transformation

14. Breath

15. Being Present

16. Food for the Soul 1

17. Harmonious Development

18. Consciousness

19. Creative Action - Yes, I can

20. Love is more than anything else

21. Meditation

Exercise program

List of exercises in the exercise section

It should move, act creatively, First form, then transform; It only seems to stand still for moments. The eternal continues to work in all: For everything must decay into nothing, If it wants to persist in being.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1748-1832 German poet and scientist

Foreword

Since the publication of my Gurdjieff Practice Book a few years ago, many new practical approaches have been developed through my regular seminars. The first book explains the main features and basics of the Gurdjieff teachings, supplemented with many further developments and a series of inner exercises. This new book is intended to deepen all these topics and provide new impulses for "working on yourself". These topics have been well received in my seminars and there have been many conversations and discussions about them, so I think that this new material can also help you on your path, even if you do not attend seminars.

I realize that self-study, self-observation and self-remembering - the three basic pillars of Gurdjieff's teaching - are not easy to do when you don't have direct feedback from a community or group that meets regularly. But this applies to everything we learn in life. We get suggestions and help from a teacher and fellow learners at a training, but ultimately we have to carry out the teaching program ourselves, practice at home, read, deepen and much more. Nobody can do that for us.

What I liked about Gurdjieff's teaching from the very beginning is that he did not want people to be led by a master, guru or a fixed group, but to gave us enough material to work with his teachings independently.

The help provided by a group can transfer additional energy to the individual participants in the short term. The joint effort in the »Movements« is also a significant support for learning about oneself more quickly and working on oneself in a targeted way. However, not everyone who is interested can take advantage of this opportunity or would prefer to do something themselves without becoming dependent on a group.

So this book goes in two directions: Firstly, as a new stimulus and exercise program for everyday life and secondly, it provides those who have attended seminars or already practice some of the exercises from the first practice book with further exercise material. I am aware that all published exercises can also be used in a different context by exercise instructors (f/m) without referring to the source. For many decades, these exercises were only passed on in groups or seminars of students in the "Bennett line" of Gurdjieff's work, but never published in writing.

Today, I can say from many years of practical experience that there is no reason not to pass on these valuable exercises, because "the work protects itself". The person who did not delve deeply enough into this inner work has only touched the surface, and if the understanding of the matter has not matured through experience, no one can reach the quality of the inner reality. It takes years of working with this path to be able to use it for oneself or to communicate it to others.

When we embark on the path of inner transformation, we come into contact with a »second life« that we can continue to strengthen through this work. This topic is discussed in the fifth chapter.

In this book, I focus more on self-observation with the help of various thematic suggestions. This allows you to take turns working on certain aspects of the exercise theory. I encourage you to spend some time focusing on a suggested topic. If it is right for you, then move on to the next topic. Other suggestions relate to breathing exercises or meditation. In Part 2 you will find exercises and some additional inner exercises to complement the 14 main exercises in the first book.

So I wish you, dear reader, that your knowledge, wisdom and development continue to grow and that your life is filled with joy!

Bruno Martin, spring 2024

The world has to be created anew every moment. That is why every moment is an opportunity to shape the world differently. This is how intelligence works.

If there is no reshaping, we are condemned to blindly participate in the construction and maintenance of our habits.

Intelligence enables us to help the world and ourselves to enter the unknown future.

Anthony G. E. Blake in: Intelligence Now

1. Introspection/Self-Observation

"Self-study is the work or the path that leads to self-knowledge... The main method of self-study is self-observation."

G. I. Gurdjieff

A theme is more than just an idea to think about. It offers one of the many aspects of practical wisdom that can be experienced through personal observation. Only this direct experience can give life an additional quality. Let your soul touch you. Observation in this context means perception. Allow the idea that there is neither an observer nor something to be observed. Our normal thinking is too dualistic to express and understand something that exists beyond this duality.

The aim of the exercise program is to work towards a different understanding of life, so that life becomes richer and takes on a deeper quality. There are no rules or commands, the themes must be discovered in action, in the general situations of everyday life. You should take one hint to heart: You are taking a risk when you carry out the program: it can change your life.

Sometimes your insights can be an epiphany, an "aha" moment that leaves you in no doubt. Let the suggestion work on you, learn to first make an experience before you make a judgment.

One prerequisite is important: you should approach these topics with a serious attitude. This means that all the energy you invest in them is used deliberately, with the intention of really engaging in inner work.1 It is more harmful to pretend that you are working. Looking attentively into the world again and again can be exhausting, but it is a gratifying effort because it fills your life with strength.

Perhaps make a notebook to write down keywords and observations so that you can see later what you have discovered or what you have forgotten. You can then supplement these observations with further insights. This way you can check your work progress.

In addition to the topics, there are specific inner exercises that can contribute directly to the development of your being. These exercises have a profound effect. Use them responsibly. These inner exercises have been tried and tested by many people over decades and have passed the practical test.2 If done correctly, these exercises are safe; you only have to take the risk of changing your consciousness yourself.

Inner exercises in a group or under the guidance of experienced people have a stronger effect. So don't be discouraged if you work alone, it will simply take a little longer for deeper experiences to emerge.

In my seminars we practice a lot with the Movements, dance and movement forms choreographed by Gurdjieff.3 The Movements are very helpful tools for self-observation and self-awareness and other important aspects of holistic development. However, they can only be done in a group because their complex choreography require a group of people. If you were able to experience the Movements in a group, you may have made notes of the movement sequences. With the published music, you can then practice some of the movements at home, but not experience the whole movement, which is usually very varied, for example each row makes different arm movements and step sequences, there are often offsets between the rows, etc.

This type of group work also has its limitations because people only meet sporadically to do these exercises. But for most of our lives, we are on our own. That's why the exercises I suggest in my books are essential building blocks for self-development. The "work on yourself" with the help of self-observation and various other exercises is an indispensable basis, because otherwise the Movements fall flat as a "dance exercise", as they also bring about inner processes if they are carried out with intention and attention. Insight into larger contexts and the understanding of new thoughts, such as the seven lines of work, which I explain in the chapter "Harmonic unfolding", are an equally important part of inner work.

Experience has shown that few people have enough willpower or stamina to stick with something for a long time. It is very difficult to work without guidance and new impulses from a teacher or a group. But it is possible if you make the decision to listen to your "higher self". Moreover, there is a real freedom because you alone have given yourself the impetus to do this work! Perseverance is a matter of will. Inner work is not stress, it is a self-imposed task that is "pleasurable" in the sense that you can accept yourself more and more as a whole person.

You should also assume that many of the things suggested here have no immediate effect - real inner changes are not tangible in a material sense. This can be unsettling. Inner work acts like a homeopathic remedy. First comes the so-called initial aggravation - in the case of the exercise program, possibly frustration or anger because nothing concrete or tangible happens at first. However, the "remedy" continues to work and changes gradually occur. The exercises are applied "quantum physics": Something that was probable suddenly becomes something real and conscious, and this has also changed in the process.

When you bring more knowledge into your life in the form of "quanta of consciousness", you strengthen your inner being. This not only has an effect on your mind and being, but also on your physical well-being. You begin to understand that your inner growth depends on your own intention, the desire to work on yourself. There is no external master or guru involved - only the "real you". As a result, this work does not create new dependencies, but expands your possibilities for self-responsible action.

"From the very beginning, observation, or 'recording,' must be based upon the understanding of the fundamental principles of the activity of the human machine. Self-observation cannot be properly applied without knowing these principles, without constantly bearing them in mind. Therefore ordinary self-observation, in which all people are engaged all their lives, is entirely useless and leads nowhere.”

"Observation must begin with the division of functions. All the activity of the human machine is divided into four sharply defined groups, each of which is controlled by its own special mind or 'center.' In observing himself a man must differentiate between the four basic functions of his machine: the thinking, the emotional, the moving, and the instinctive. Every phenomenon that a man observes in himself is related to one or the other of these functions. Therefore, before beginning to observe, a man must understand how the functions differ; what intellectual activity means, what emotional activity means, what moving activity means, and what instinctive activity means.”

in: P. D. Ouspensky In Search of the Miraculous, p.106

Attention is the interface between the actual and the possible. With attention, I can stand on the border between the two worlds. Only with attention is it possible for me to choose.

The present moment consists not only of what we are aware of, but also of what has already become a part of us through our will and our decisions.

If you sit down to an inner exercise with your own time constraints and hold your attention for this period of time, an energy transformation will take place within you and contribute to the growth of your being. This is not an instant harvest, but is similar to a fertile seed within you that will materialize over time, and when the time is right, you can reap the rewards.

from: John G. Bennett, collection of quotations Fallen Leaves, 1979

1 See chapter 8

2 This applies to the exercises in this book as well as in the first practice book

3 Described in detail in the first practice book.

2. Living in the Present Moment

"My wonderful magical power lies in fetching water and chopping wood."Zen wisdom

If the "present moment is all we have", as one of my teachers, John G. Bennett, put it, we have to ask ourselves: What is the present moment? Is it a snapshot with a photo we take at a nice relaxed ball game by the sea with children or friends - or a terrible event, like the collapse of the office towers by the terrorist attack of 9/11, which we were able to witness almost "live" on television?

Bennett also says that the "present moment" can expand or contract. This means that the term is not about a second of time, but rather about an alert presence, a conscious perception of life in the "now". The Zen insight of the opening quote sums up that people should be awake in everyday life, present in what they are doing and aware of themselves in the process - not just in retreat, in a protected space where everyone meditates in silence. Of course, this kind of contemplation helps us to calm down inwardly and to regenerate. But it is only in everyday life that it becomes clear whether we are "with ourselves", regardless of what distracts us.

The more intense the experience of this state is, the more time becomes irrelevant: we are centered in ourselves with full attention and experience the moment as a timeless dimension. We are with ourselves. And as a result, we "dwell in the moment", as the German poet and philosopher Johann Wolfgang von Goethe put it. I find to dwell as a very beautiful expression for being consciously present, which is not dependent on the clock. The deeper we are rooted in our being, the deeper and more timeless our experience is.

The decisive factor here is whether we have an attentive, conscious experience or whether the experience happens unconsciously, unnoticed by our waking consciousness, so to speak. Perhaps something sticks in our brain cells so that we remember it later, but only a conscious experience leaves an impression on our inner being.

Hui-neng (638-713), one of the founders of Zen, said: "There is neither attainment nor realization". I would interpret this sentence as "living in the present moment". However, it does not mean that we do not make any effort or practice to gain realization. But the search for self-knowledge does not come through a compulsive desire to recognize oneself. Rather, it is an opening to the possibilities offered by an inner awareness, be it when chopping wood or mopping the floor.

The topics in this chapter are intended to provide suggestions for strengthening your powers of attention so that your own experiences leave deeper, more intense traces in your being.

3. The Miracle of Mindfulness

"Mindfulness is an attentive observation, an awareness that is completely free of motives or desires, an observation without any interpretation or distortion."

Jiddu Krishnamurti (1895-1986)

Around 2500 years ago, Gautama Buddha taught mindfulness as an essential element of his teachings. He said in a lecture: "Mindfulness is the path that leads to liberation from death; heedlessness is the path that leads to death."

Over the past twenty years, mindfulness training has found its way into many commercial enterprises, where it is offered in seminars for managers. No wonder: when employees are more mindful in their work, fewer mistakes are made, and when they are more relaxed and mindful, productivity also increases. I experience time and again how little mindful people are in general. A young man helped us paint a bathroom. Not only did he not tape the edges with painter's tape (although he said he would) so that the paint didn't get into places where it didn't belong, but he also left everything untidy, didn't wash the brush... Forgivable, because he wasn't working on mindfulness - but people who practice this also do similar things… Mindfulness and attention are often used synonymous, but they are "siblings". Mindfulness requires attention. However, both have different qualities, but they belong together :

Mindfulness is defined from a Buddhist background as a receptive, non-judgmental observation and awareness of what is going on inside and outside in the present moment without having any immediate reaction to it. For me, it also involves paying attention to something or someone, paying attention to as much as possible, being mindful of something or someone (be it things, plants, animals or people). Mindfulness is a sensitive alertness, empathy and a keen sense of a situation.

However, in order to be mindful, you need to pay attention. I can focus it, direct it towards something. It is the ability to notice something, to perceive it, to act in a concentrated and deliberate manner. With trained attention, I also have the ability to look inwards, for example to perceive my own body, feelings and thoughts - and at the same time to perceive myself and the world around me. Mindfulness alone is not enough for this. Attention can be selective, concentrated, extended, divided and sustained in any situation, sometimes even to everything at the same time.

Both definitions are ultimately about attentive perception of internal and external processes. And in my experience, this also means that self-perception cannot be separated from perception of the outside world. Try to find out for yourself how you can make these insights fruitful for you. When I am immersed in deep meditation, I naturally more or less switch off my perception of the outside world and am only with myself.

Intuition also has to do with inner awareness. "She must have the sixth sense," I often hear someone say when my wife says something that happens shortly afterwards - be it the reaction or action of a person or an event in the immediate environment. The comment about the "sense" is true, but it is not the sixth sense, it is all the senses through which the smallest changes can be perceived in a state of attention and mindfulness. People who work in therapeutic and healing professions and artists often have this kind of "sixth sense", which is made up of heightened attention and mindfulness , whereby intuition can also be a "supersensory" ability.4 Every human being has this sensory ability,5 it is not limited to professional groups. In principle, it is possible for everyone to be sensitive, because mindfulness and attention can be trained.

How do you feel when you trace these qualities within yourself? Do you see yourself as a person who is mainly attentive and mindful in everyday life? Do you feel the need to be both attentive and mindful?

Refined mindfulness in general and conscious, expanded attention in particular can lead to a quality of life of wellbeing in all realities.

Jiddu Krishnamurti (1895-1986) said: "In promoting mental development, the focus should not be on concentration, but on attention."

Conscious walking

As you walk through a forest, notice the path you are walking on. Feel the stones on the path, the sun (or the rain...) shining through the leaves or needles of the trees, the sky above you, the diverse colors of the forest, the green moss and the decaying branches lying around. Consciously breathe in and out through your nose, feel how the "life energy" of the air flows into you and all your cells. Perhaps you can also perceive what it feels like to 'swim through a sea of air'.

You can intensify this exercise by taking medium-sized pebbles in both hands and moving them up and down your arms for a few minutes while walking. You will also become aware of your body, not just your surroundings. This is a simple way to train your attention.

Increased mindfulness in all areas of life can lead to an alertness from which life can be lived with increasing serenity and a deeper understanding of its peculiarities.

Attention and mindfulness have yet another "magic quality": the more we intensify them, the wider and richer in experience our outer and inner world becomes. Training the "transformational qualities" of mindfulness and attention can become the key that opens the treasure chest in which the possibilities of personal realization are waiting to be discovered.

However, if attention is focused too much on satisfying personal needs and there is little awareness of other people and the environment, then not only does the inner world shrink - the outer world also becomes smaller, despite the accumulation of "miles and more". This lack of mindfulness also has the astonishing effect of changing the perception of time: it becomes "less", rushing by instead of expanding and growing in its own essence. Being aware of this and developing the "magical qualities" that can turn "nothing into everything" is not only wise in terms of a creative and intense life. Living mindfully and attentively also nourishes the source from which the life flow of wisdom springs.

The Miracle of Mindfulness

The Buddhist mindfulness teacher Thich Nhat Hanh quotes Buddha's teaching on the four foundations of mindfulness: "When walking, the practitioner must be aware that he is walking. When sitting, the practitioner must be aware that he is sitting. ... No matter what posture the body is in, the practitioner must be aware of this posture."

And Thich Nhat Hanh adds: "Mindfulness of the posture is not enough. We need to be aware of every breath, every movement, every thought and feeling, everything that is in any way related to us."6

Try this for a week, not easy…

The world today is largely made up of people dominated by other people's Attract attention, be it in education, business, politics or religion. In the midst of all this attention-seeking Activities benefit the individual person a passive role, It only reacts to what comes from outside. This is involuntary attention. What interests us here, is voluntary attention, where we take the initiative ourselves.7John G. Bennett

4 See my book The Wonderland Effect (in German) for more details.

5 Even a blade of grass does have 30 sensors to perceive its environment, as researchers found out!

6 Thich Nhat Hanh: The Miracle of Mindfulness

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