seeing faults in other people

It is a common characteristic of human nature that a man sees the faults of others more easily than he sees his own. At the same time on the path of self-study he learns that he himself possesses all the faults that he finds in others. But there are many things that he does not see in himself, whereas in other people he begins to see them. But, as I have just said, in this case he knows that these features are his own. Thus other members of the group serve him as mirrors in which he sees himself. But, of course. in order to see himself in other people's faults and not merely to see the faults of others, a man must be very much on his guard against and be very sincere with himself.

In Search Of The Miraculous Chapter 11

"Man" will believe anything

Our thinking machine possesses the capacity to be convinced of anything you like, provided it is repeatedly and persistently influenced in the required direction. A thing that may appear absurd to start with will in the end become rationalized, provided it is repeated sufficiently often and with sufficient conviction.

Gurdjieff, Essentuki 1918

he was something on a much bigger scale

Dr. Kenneth Walker

Many reactions were possible, but it was impossible to be indifferent to him or to forget that he was there. One could be disturbed by him, dislike him, be scandalized by what he did and said, deem him a charlatan or a wise man, be frightened of him or grow fond of him, and one could do all these things in turn; but it was impossible to neglect him. Whatever he was, he was something on a much bigger scale than one had ever seen before, or is ever likely to see again.

 source: http://gurdjieff.org/walker1.htm

the Teaching is Gurdjieffs

Major Frank S. Pinder

All that Ouspensky had of value, he got from Gurdjieff, and that only with his mind. He had a perfunctory fling at the movements; and even confessed to being lazy.

I've looked over Ouspensky's Tertium Organum and New Model, but have seen none of Nicoll's books. Both men were professional writers and philosophers, plagiarists of 'mystical' writings. Ouspensky, all his great brain, was, for what was real, unintelligent; and it was inevitable that Ouspensky should cut himself and his pupils off from Gurdjieff. It is strange that there can be talk of "Ouspensky's Teaching", and "Gurdjieff-Ouspensky System": the Teaching is Gurdjieff's.

C.S. Nott - Further teachings of Gurdjieff (Chapter "F.S.Pinder")

(Frank Pinder was a mining engineer and a major in British Intelligence who served in the army under Holman for Denikin in the Caucasus. He met Gurdjieff in Tiflis and later joined the Institute in Fontainebleau)

Hidden Brotherhoods of Central Asia

Prince Sabahaddin

The proposed guest was a man whom he had not seen since 1912, but whom he regarded as unusually interesting. He mentioned the name, which I could not catch over the telephone, and said that he had recently come to Turkey from the Caspian region.

I learned that the name of the guest was Gurdjieff, and that the Prince had first met him by chance when he was returning from Europe to Turkey after the Young Turk revolution of 1908. He had met Gurdjieff only three or four times, but knew that he belonged to a group of occultists and explorers with whom he had travelled far and wide. The Prince regarded him as one of the very few men who had been able to penetrate into the hidden brotherhoods of Central Asia, and had always profited by the talks they had had together. He could not, or would not, tell me any more.

J.G. Bennett - Witness p.55

Sensation of Oneself

Wet a handkerchief, wring it out, put it on your skin. The contact will remind you. When it is dry, begin again. The key to everything—Remain apart. Our aim is to have constantly a sensation of oneself, of one's individuality. This sensation cannot be expressed intellectually, because it is organic. It is something which makes you independent, when you are with other people.

Paris Meeting, December 7th 1941

the only teacher of the Fourth Way

But there is a Fourth Way. This is also called Yogism, but it is different because this kind of yogi has a secret by "heredity" - initiate secrets. By this way, with a teacher, a man with the possibility can do the work in six months and then be his own teacher.
I am the representative of the Fourth Way. And I have no concurrent (rival). For instance, ordinary yogis who do not know these secrets lie for three hours a day to learn how to use air. With my secret short-cuts they could do this in five minutes - in fact, like magic, drink the elements they need from air out of a glass.

Gurdjieff and the Women of the Rope p.21

what he really is

Georgette Leblanc

The light that came from the little salon illuminated him fully. Instead of avoiding it, he stepped back and leaned against the wall. Then, for the first time, he let me see what he really is... as if he had torn off the masks behind which he is obliged to hide himself. His face was stamped with a charity that embraced the whole world. Transfixed, standing before him, I saw him with all my strength and I experienced a gratitude so deep, so sad, that he felt a need to calm me. With an unforgettable look he said, "God helps me." 

Georgette Leblanc Journal, November 2nd 1936

Gurdjieff was an enigma

Gorham Munson

To me Gurdjieff was an enigma whom I associate with the stranger figures of the Renaissance rather than with religious leaders. He never claimed originality for his ideas but asserted they came from ancient science transmitted in esoteric schools. His humor was Rabelaisian, his roles were dramatic, his impact on people was upsetting. Sentimentalists came, expecting to find in him a resemblance to the pale Christ-figure literature has concocted, and went away swearing that Gurdjieff was a dealer in black magic. Scoffers came, and some remained to wonder if Gurdjieff knew more about relativity than Einstein.

quoted from "Black Sheep Philosophers" by Gorham Munson

the Highest Caste of Humanity

...(Gurdjieff) said to me: “A man who wishes to change must have the necessary energy. Say he needs one hundred units, but with all his efforts he can only collect ten. He is helpless. Suppose he meets a man who has much more energy than he needs for himself. That man can lend him ninety. Then he will do what he wants. Afterwards he must repay. Now you cannot do anything by yourself, so I must help you. There is a special substance - let us call it “higher emotional energy” that you need. You do not know where to get this substance, but I know. Later you will know too and then you will understand this work. Those who can give this substance to others who need it belong to a special section of the highest caste of humanity.” I said to him: “How can I get the help I need?” He replied – we were talking in Turkish – “When you say Amar (Mercy!) with all your being. Only then can you be helped.”

J.G. Bennett - Transformation (Chapter Help)

sayings of Gurdjieff

saluting America 1924

A man, who was not a pupil, asked Gurdjieff what he was trying to do. “I try to make human beings,” Gurdjieff replied.

Every thinking man - and by man I also mean woman - must be occupied only by this interest - to develop a soul.

He stated clearly that philology was a better route to Truth than philosophy.

In life one must play part, but remember you are playiag part. Only with those with common aim can you be sincere about your inner world. To be sincere with everyone is pathological.

...he said that if people have a common aim, a real aim - not an ordinary life aim - a feeling of brotherly love will arise in them. If they live and work together they will always feel this, whether they love or hate each other. Not even family love can equal this feeling.

the Teaching of the Sufis

The majority of religions live, act, believe in accordance with holy scriptures, precepts and commandments. At the same time there has existed a teaching of learned followers who have tried to put into practice all religions, all sayings, all teachings without infatuation, without faith. They did not worship blindly. Before accepting something they practiced it. What could be put into practice was accepted, what could not be was rejected. In this way a new religion was formed, although the material for it was taken from other religions.
The teaching about which I speak now is the teaching of the Sufis.

This teaching says the following about the angel and the devil: every action of a man, every step, every moment, every movement emanates either from the one or from the other. Emanations from both (result) are equally deposited in the human organism in the form of certain crusts of real tangible matter which one can examine and distinguish whether the crust is of one kind or another. Each crust obeys certain laws, leads to certain consequences. And in the case of man things whispered by the devil have a greater effect.

Gurdjieff Talk "Two Spirits" February 9th 1923