Take the understanding of the East
the knowledge of the West
— and then seek.
Who am I?
What am I here for?
What are my deep possibilities?
G.I. Gurdjieff
Gurdjieff brought to the West a fundamental teaching whose language and concerns have nourished many other teachings and schools. He offered methods, practices, perspectives—a resolutely practical work. He wished to show men and women of our time and place how it might be possible to develop a new integrated awareness and a new sensitivity to conscience.
The Teaching
Gurdjieff’s teaching is both personal and universal, both mystical and practical. It approaches the essential questions: How might I awaken to who I really am? How can humanity reverse the process leading to its seemingly inevitable self-destruction? We recognize ourselves in Gurdjieff’s fundamental teaching. Where to begin but with a transforming search – a work on self. Eternally practical, Gurdjieff’s teaching offers both ancient truth and unique, modern method.
Video of the December 4th-5th Harvard Divinity School Conference, "The Legacy and Teaching of G.I. Gurdjieff," will be available in mid-January. When available, we will post the link here.
The Work in Practice
Gurdjieff chose to express the teaching in many forms
To approach these questions Gurdjieff proposed an elegant system of ideas, and concrete methods based on self-observation, working with others both in meetings and practical activities, working alone in very quiet conditions, carrying out movements exercises and sacred dances, and music. The aim was to touch and develop all the parts of a human being, in the context of the great spiritual traditions of the past, and the amazing scientific developments of the modern era.
We need each other. To know oneself--that ancient advice--we also need to know others and be known by them. We each have possibilities, rooted in essence. We each have inner obstacles best explored and understood when people work together and hear one another. As Gurdjieff put it, "You can't become master of yourself by staying in your room."
During his travels in the Near East and Central Asia, Gurdjieff witnessed temple dances, the dances of Sufi brotherhoods, even dances in remote Christian settings. He saw that engagement of the body, mind, and feeling in dance could support and inspire work on attention, work for presence and being. Through his choreographic genius, Movements became an integral part of the Gurdjieff teaching.
In the 1920s, Gurdjieff collaborated with an exquisitely trained Russian composer, Thomas de Hartmann, initially to compose music to accompany the Movements and, in a later phase, music simply for listening. The result was an extraordinary repertoire, now available both in recorded performances and as printed music. It is music that resonates with the human spirit, its mystery, possibilities, and questions.
A Community
of Seekers
Gurdjieff Society of Massachusetts is devoted to the preservation and advancement of the Gurdjieff teaching as a living influence, a resource for inquiring people in this new century. We encourage a life of inquiry and self-knowledge.
Our monthly newsletter is a comprehensive collection of articles about the teaching, the practice, our writings, and upcoming events. If you wish to receive it, you may subcribe here.
Upcoming Events
Each season, we offer monthly Exchanges around a topic suggested by the Gurdjieff teaching, and monthly open Movements classes with sitting meditation. The 2025 schedule for both offerings is now available.
If you missed The Conference on the Legacy and Teachings of G. I. Gurdjieff (Harvard Divinity School's Center for the Study of World Religions, December 4th and 5th), you may watch the full video, which will be available in mid-January, and view the conference anthology, which will be available in late February or early March. Links will be provided on Harvard's CSWR website and on ours.
Available now, the December 5th recital of Gurdjieff-deHartmann music may be viewed in full here.
Sun, Jan 26Howard St, Cambridge, MA 02139, USAJan 26, 2025, 9:15 AM – 11:30 AMDiscover a new and vital attention and a renewed sense of self through the unique dances of G. I. Gurdjieff and through sitting meditation.
Tue, Feb 11First Church of Cambridge, Harter RoomFeb 11, 2025, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PMWho am I? "Even though man is in a state of sleep and his so-called autonomy is nothing but reactivity, the substances in him are not inert; they live, they vibrate." Join us for this topical exchange.
Tue, Mar 11First Church of Cambridge, Harter RoomMar 11, 2025, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM"What is my understanding of knowledge – the information that floods our daily lives and the kind of knowledge that potentially might be received through oral transmission – true knowledge?" Join us for this topical exchange.
Tue, Apr 08First Church of Cambridge, Harter RoomApr 08, 2025, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM"The evolution of man is the evolution of his consciousness … the evolution of his will … the evolution of his power of doing." Join us for this topical exchange.
Tue, May 13First Church of Cambridge, Harter RoomMay 13, 2025, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PMWe are "controlled not by one but by several minds, entirely independent of each other, having separate functions and separate spheres in which they manifest themselves. " Join us for this topical exchange.
