The Unknowable Gurdjieff

by Margaret Anderson

To appreciate the teachings of Gurdjieff we must approach him not so much knowledge as with understanding. Even in the light of the writings of Ouspensky and Orage, which strive to make Gurdjieff's work more accessible, Gurdgieff has been condemned as a charlatan, difficult to understand and impossible to follow.

Margaret Anderson worked with Gurdjieff in France and during that time learnt that if we could follow his doctrines on human evolution, we would be free from hate, madness and war. Her aims in this book are to create an evocation of his philosophy and to convince the reader that Gurdjieff was by no means an imposter. A clear, simple study of his teachings, The Unknowable Gurijieff will banish misconceptions about this great thinker and demonstrate his contemporary relevance to both the individual and society a whole.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Religion, Biography

212 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1962

About the author

Margaret Caroline Anderson, an American, in 1914 founded The Little Review, an influential literary magazine, and edited it to 1929.

She published of the art collection of modern English and Irish writers between 1914 and 1929. The most noted periodical introduced Ezra Pound, Thomas Stearns Eliot, and many prominent British writers of the 20th century in the United States and published the first thirteen chapters of Ulysses , novel of James Joyce.

Beinecke rare book and manuscript library at Yale University now preserves a large collection of her papers on teaching of George Ivanovich Gurdjieff.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margare...

Reviews

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

From Chapter One of The Unknowable Gurdjieff:
"In this book I shall write of what he said when I was there to hear him say it; of what he taught us, how he taught it, and what effect it had not only upon me but upon my friends, since each of us experienced it differently, and each of us has written of it in her own way.
Such a book is far from being a study, a portrait, a treatise, a manual or a document. I should like it to be a sort of primer. The most I hope to accomplish is an evocation; the least, a rectification which will prevent anyone from ever again having the hardihood to call Gurdjieff an imposter. I would call this accomplishing a great deal."

In the Unknowable Gurdjieff, Margaret Anderson recounts the time she spent as a part of The Rope, one of the most fascinating of Gurdjieff's work groups. After meeting with GIG, members of The Rope would rush off to makes notes of that day's meetings. Anderson does a good job with a tough subject: although there was method to Gurdjieff's teaching, he touched on all and everything, bringing into the mix diverse cultures, religions, and languages. Hers was a heady task, indeed.

[Rio · Rating 2 out of 5]

The best of the stuff I’ve read on Gurdjieff, both in terms of clarity and eloquence. Anderson details the entity of her journey with Gurdjieff, and includes quotes and sections of chapters from Jane Heap, Georgette LeBlanc, and Dorothy Caruso. I still don’t really feel like I understand his teachings, but this text at least acknowledges that will be almost impossible for anyone who didn’t meet him, and Anderson’s general portrayal of Gurdjieff is of a much kinder and less punitive man than Solita Solano and Katherine Hulme give. If you have to read anything on Gurdjieff, make it this.

[Amin Rigi · Rating 2 out of 5]

In my opinion, this book is just OK. I read this book because I wanted to know more Gurdjeff's ideas and my local library only had this book. Most of the book is about Margaret praising Gurdjeff. Except for the 4th chapter, The Unknown Doctrine, which is about Gurdjieff's teachings the rest of the book didn't interest me. I copied this 30-pages chapter and will read it one more time in depth with concentration. (I may update this review after that.)

Here is one conclusion after reading this book:

While I really appreciate Margaret's passion, I highly wouldn't recommend this book to people who want to know Gurdjeff's teachings. Margaret, in a way, reminds me of this quote from Carl Jung: “Thank God, I'm Jung, and not a Jungian.”

That's why my next book about Gurdjeff will be one his books -- not one of his followers.

That being said, if you are interested in knowing about Gurdjeff's circle - including Margaret, then this might be the book for you!

[Bayandur · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author keeps on saying she's incompetent to write about Gurdjieff. I totally agree. The main point of the book is "Gurdjieff is Chuck Norris awesome, but you won't get it because you weren't there". Also - "you don't need nothing besides the Fourth Way because it is so, don't study other ways of enlightenment". Et cetera, et cetera. Some bright sparks are present thought - where she cites Gurdjieff directly, instead of commenting on the teaching herself.
A weak work.

[Shashank · Rating 4 out of 5]

[this review was written on amazon initially in 2009]
I particularly like this book because it tries to give the impression of meeting Gurdjieff and always feeling a certain mystery about him. The narrator is not a systematizer or proponent of the work primarily, but more a seeker who found something real that she did not expect. If you want an introduction to the Forth way teachings read: The search for the Miraculous by Ouspensky, Teachings of Gurdjieff by C.S. Nott, and Meetings with remarkable men by Gurdjieff. But if you're looking for a more impressionistic portrait, one that is as much about the narrator as Gurdjieff, this is a great find.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short book but dense with good information and stories. My copy is heavily noted and highlighted which I don't normally do to books.
I like to read these types of works about The Work for perspective and I always get a whole lot more.

[Nathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another rearrangement of hermetic ideals and bizarre propositions. Lots of bifurcations and contradictions. Good, evil, and the like. There are some interesting gems in here though.

[Lysergius · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent biography. Anderson retains a degree of objectivity and does not degenerate into syncophantism.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was written in response to claims by critics that Gurdjieff was an imposter.

Not the easiest book to read, because of how it was written.