Introductory Events – Gurdjieff and Fourth Way Spiritual Group Work in Columbus OH
Admission is free, and refreshments will be served at the end of each forum.
Take the understanding of the East and the knowledge of the West – and then seek.
– #19, Gurdjieff’s Aphorisms
“Inner evolution,” “spiritual development and growth,” “human potential,” “growth of being.” Seekers hear these and other such concepts which may speak to an inner longing for a practical way of working in life. The multitude of options available to us can seem bewildering; a maze with no clear path, or a curiosity yearning for a practical next step.
From transformative, esoteric teachings and practices he found in the most vital living sources of both eastern wisdom and western knowledge, Mr. Gurdjieff’s Work addresses our human condition with a path for inner development, helping us verify higher truths in a real and constantly changing world.
Gurdjieff’s “Fourth Way” is brought as something we can experience in daily life, not requiring a withdrawal from the practical world as in other traditional ways of the fakir, monk or yogi. To be touched sincerely by a fundamental question could lead the way to a real path:
Who am I?
What is my purpose in life?
What is the larger sense and purpose of human life on Earth?
Do I have a place in the cosmos?
Gurdjieff’s life was wholly dedicated to the pursuit of forgotten knowledge and the means to transmit it in a form accessible to people today.
Some of this wisdom was introduced to the larger public by P.D. Ouspensky’s book In Search of the Miraculous (Fragments of an Unknown Teaching). For many this has been their initial encounter with Gurdjieff’s powerful ideas and some of the legends that have surrounded his name.
Part of a library’s worth of material inspired by Gurdjieff’s ideas or written by him directly, it points to the need to not just leave information on a page, but to seek a community of those who may share our questions and help us take another step.
Sponsored by The Gurdjieff Foundation of Ohio, three introductory forums will be presented at the Ohio Theater, Columbus Association for The Performing Arts (CAPA), Galbreath Pavilion in downtown Columbus. Each forum will explore an introduction to some of the legacy and ideas of Mr. Gurdjieff, including some of the many forms of his Work.
Presenting at CAPA, Galbreath Pavilion, Rehearsal Room #1 in Downtown Columbus:
“What Is My Purpose In Life?” – An Introductory Series
Forum #1: Community At Work
Thursday, November 7th, 2019, 6:30–8:00 pm
Influence & Transmission
Doors open November 7th at 6:30 pm in Rehearsal Room #1 of the Columbus Association For The Performing Arts, Galbreath Pavilion (within the Ohio Theater) where the film “L’INFUENCE D’UN MAITRE” (The Influence Of A Master) will be shown from The Seekers of Truth documentary film series.
The Influence Of A Master, presented locally to the public for the first time, is a look at George Ivanovitch Gurdjieff’s influence on many of his closest and most devoted pupils who preserved and transmitted his immense teaching to current and future generations. It includes rare footage of Movements taught by those who first received them directly, and performed by Foundation groups.
Forum #2: Work With Attention
Thursday, November 14th, 2019, 6:30 – 8:00 pm
Stillness & Movement
What does it mean to work with Movements given by Gurdjieff, which challenge our everyday automatism? In this forum, the experience of moving together in an unaccustomed way can help us know ourselves from new perspectives, and participate in the ongoing work of refining one of our most important human qualities: our attention.
Forum #3: Work With Others
Thursday, November 21st, 2019, 6:30 – 8:00 pm
Reading & Exchange
From Madame Jeanne De Salzmann’s The Reality of Being: “We can do nothing without one another. The exchange we have together is more necessary than our daily bread. We make efforts alone—we struggle alone, suffer alone, respond alone. But a moment comes when exchange is indisputable, when we need to nourish one another with the fruits of our efforts.”
By taking in the ideas as a community, and trying together to understand, we can better help define our most important questions – the beginning of one’s search.
Rehearsal Room #1 of the OHIO THEATER
Columbus Association for The Performing Arts
Galbreath Pavilion
55 E State St, Columbus, OH 43215