Charles Stanley Nott: Teachings of Gurdjeiff, A Pupils Journal?

Gimpy

The Living Force
Anyone else heard of this book? I just picked it up at a used bookstore over the weekend.

From the back cover:

Drawn from Notts hundreds of pages of notes and diaries, this book is both an exceptional record of the sayings of and doings of Gurdjieff and the profound impact of his teachings on his young pupil: and a fascinating personal account of life at the Chateau du Prieure in Fontainbleau at that time.

Used book stores are wonderful!
 
Good book, how did you find it?

One of the first 4th way books that I read after ISOTM. His second book is very good too.

Curiously one of the things I got from both books is that you really have to be careful what conclusions you make when reading book on the 4th way.

Just a couple of examples:

It has been reported in some books that Orage said he found Beelzebubs tales unintelligible. No date is given to this statement.
In Notts book there is an entire section or Orage's talks on Beelzebubs Tales, there is also a fascimile of 160 pages of Orage meeting notes on BT's. So at some point for Orage Beelzebubs Tales became intelligible. But if we don't read Notts book we don't find this out and therefore are lelt with the idea Orage could not understand the Book.

Notts Second Book.
a)
Fritz Peters appointed G's successor. Nott describes how this is done in a room full of senior pupils to shock them.

b)
Gurdjieff tells Orage's group they are 'Candidates for madhouse and must stop seeing Orage'. Nott is with Orage in NY at this time and tells how this is a 'shock' given to Orage's group. Those who were disturbed stay in beginners group, others are organised into Mesoteric group.

So, it takes a lot of reading around to make sense of the singular jigsaw pieces that we find reported.

Some interesting potraits of Ouspensky painted in 2nd book. Warm individual, but very cold and serious in group work. Couldn't understand G's method of shocks and why the concentration on the 'movements' and concludes that G has gone mad as a hatter. Nott says that no-one intellectually understands the system better than Ouspensky, but in terms of being that some of Orages group had progressed further!
 
I read this book a few years ago and found it a pretty good retelling of Gurdjieff and the groups he was teaching. Nott gives a personal account of the challenges in organizing Work groups for those in the groups as well as Gurdjieff. The biggest impression the book left on me is how patient and understanding G. was with anyone who was making sincere efforts in the Work. Often, only G's "harsh" manner of dealing with those who do not meet with the minimal requirements and efforts are focused on. But Nott left me with the sense that G knew better than anyone how difficult this Work was and gave much support to those who made super efforts to get over their programs.
 
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