"The process of evolution, of that evolution which is possible for humanity as a whole, is completely analogous, to the process of evolution possible for the individual man. And it begins with the same thing, namely, a certain group of cells gradually becomes conscious; then it attracts to itself other cells, subordinates others, and gradually makes the whole organism serve its aims and not merely eat, drink, and sleep. This is evolution and there can be no other kind of evolution. In humanity as in individual man everything begins with the formation of a conscious nucleus. All the mechanical forces of life fight against the formation of this conscious nucleus in humanity, in just the same way as all mechanical habits, tastes and weaknesses fight against conscious self-remembering in man."
— Gurdjieff, from ISOTM
INTRODUCTION
Regarding the perennial World Religions, however, I personally find, a.) there is an influx of “transcendence” available to oneself from association with a religion (or as Gurdjieff says, a contact with “B” influences), and b.) the Fourth Way Path suffers from a certain of lack of “vertical scale”, or of being mentally stuck in a two-dimensional plane, when one attempts to follow the system’s ideas without being personally associated with a Religion. It’s debatable if Gurdjieff thought his ideas should be studied outside of a Religious context. And although Gurdjieff was skeptical of contemporary religions, he probably thought of himself as a Christian, even calling his system “esoteric Christianity”.
Be that as it may, the Higher Bodies can be called “Fourth Way”, or “Buddhist”, or “Christian” interchangeably, because their actual system of formation consists of pure mechanics. The building of the Higher Bodies is a science, a science that uses knowledge of the system of Hydrogens, as well as an understanding of the Food Transformation Chart (the chart in Ouspensky’s Fragments which deals with foods and the transmutation of energies). The mechanics involved are a science, but they are also an art form, in that the mechanics relate to not one but two different spheres: the physical - or material sphere, and also the conceptual - or idealistic sphere.
To be specific, the structure of each Higher Body relates in one sense to the idea of “Hydrogens”, which I think of as material in nature — all Four Bodies consist of Hydrogens. Then in another sense, one should hopefully look at the Second, Third, and Fourth Bodies as also non-material — as spiritual in nature, as relating to a higher plane, or rather to that of their corresponding Planetary (astral), Solar (mental), or Starry (divine) worlds.
The Ray of Creation itself is often misunderstood, specifically in trying to comprehend the meaning of its various levels — especially the higher ones. To get some sense of the Awesomeness of the Higher Worlds (rather than simply seeing them just as planets or the sun), it might be easiest to start by understanding that the Astral World correlates with a fully developed Astral (second) Body. An Astral Body is a Body which expresses and makes manifest the Higher Emotions proceeding from the Higher Emotional Center. The Centers of the developed Astral Body have been purified and adapted, so as to channel the emotions such as faith, hope, love, patience, generosity etc. etc. etc. These higher emotions belong to the next World above the Earth on the Ray of Creation, the Planetary (or Astral) World. Therefore, it is helpful to think of the Astral World in terms of Emotions — specifically the Higher or Spiritual Emotions.
Thus, to summarize, my process of coating the Bodies starts with the long-term practice of the First and Second Artificial Shocks, and then finally culminates in the methods using breath and contemplation Gurdjieff mentioned. His method of contemplation (I believe) is the Conscious fusion of Hydrogens (material) with Higher Emotions and Thoughts (conceptual) at definite positions in the body.
All the while, specific lifestyle changes can be made, which gradually harmonize oneself with the Higher Cosmoses, as one’s goal is to live in conjunction with either the Earth, Sun, or Milky Way, — i.e. the Meso-, Deutero-, & Macrocosmoses. The higher one perfects one’s Being and Knowledge (and perfects one’s Bodies) the higher one relates toward the levels of the Ray of Creation. And the more one is harmonized with the higher Worlds, the more one can assimilate Knowledge & Being from those levels.
“In order to remember himself more and more deeply, a man must believe in the existence of Greater Mind and he must begin to think psychologically apart from thinking literally. He must feel another reality of himself than that derived from life or parents.”
— Nicoll, COM p. 932
INITIATING AN APPROACH TO THE BODIES: ONE’S MOTIVATION
As with the actual Gurdjieff Work itself, approaching the work of creating Higher Bodies requires a certain state of mind. One might say that in relation to the Gurdjieff “Work”, Higher Body formation and the search for immortality would be called the “Great Work”. Gurdjieff is clear that Man is not born with Higher Bodies ready-formed; Man has to create them himself. Man has only one body; a body consisting of a lot of mixed up Hydrogens — high and low — along with a lot of conflicting desires and thoughts. Certainly Man as he is can have spiritual thoughts and emotions. And this is perhaps how a Man, on the level of the Earthly Plane can begin to separate into two, or into also having a second Body, which is on the level of the Planetary World.
It is interesting to contrast the two natures, that of a physical body with that of an Astral Body; and it is important not to conflate the Astral Body with some sort of physical body double. A physical body generally exists to provide food, shelter, and self-preservation for itself, along with the eventual propagation of its species. An Astral Body however lasts as long as the Planetary World, and can even outlive the Earth itself. It isn’t concerned with its survival in an Earthly environment. Nor with the mundane aspects of survival: of career, possessions, and status. An Astral Body expresses itself differently from the Earthly Body. An Astral Body by nature would not be harmful to others; it would exhibit generosity; it would be patient; it would by nature have compassion for all; it would be long-suffering and understanding. It would have a unified Will in order to express these qualities. It would be conscious enough not to react negatively if someone insults it. These are the qualities which differentiate an Astral Body from a physical body.
However, yet again, Man now doesn’t possess the Astral Body. The question is, how does he initiate the process within his material body to achieve something spiritual, something completely different from his material body, something on a completely different level from ordinary life? The answer is, that he must formulate a Higher Aim, a Goal, which opens the Path to a Higher State. A Man must keep this Higher Aim in his ordinary life at all times, in his consciousness — or conscience — clearly. This Aim must approach a Higher Level, which is far above his daily existence. Perhaps at first this Aim is simply to be more conscious; perhaps it’s something like the desire for knowledge; perhaps it’s in response to meeting a Holy Saint. If a Man has a Higher Aim of some sort, an Aim not relating to the ordinary world, then already there is a division in him between higher and lower, between his physical body and the Astral, between daily mundane existence and a life after death.
The Major Religions all have this Aim, this initiating process within them. Of the two I know, Christianity has the “Search for the Kingdom of God” — or as in the parable, Leaven; and Buddhism has “Bodhicitta” — or “From-Great-Compassion, the-Desire-to-Help-Others-Achieve-Buddhahood”: i.e. the Seed of Buddhahood. These are, like either leaven or a seed, something which one keeps within oneself and one follows throughout life. And as one treasures them and nourishes them, they grow; leading one to blossom into a son of God or a Buddha.
It is this leaven, seed, or aim which gradually transforms a person’s life from one of materialism to one of spirituality. And it is also the Holiness of that same Aim, Leaven or Seed which imbues the Higher Bodies with Holiness. As the ancients said, “It is good in the beginning, good in the middle, and good in the end.”
THE METHOD OF HIGHER BODY CREATION
My method of Higher Body creation is an almost completely internal process; a technique of “contemplation” as I call it. Gurdjieff himself mentions “contemplation” in relation to coating the higher bodies. Most specifically, in his chapter “Hypnotism” he mentions both the breath and “aiësiritoorassian contemplation” in regards to formation of the kesdjan (astral) body and soul. However, the internal structure and energies necessary to carry out this sort of contemplation have to be in place first. Many Fourth Way practitioners will have this in place already, especially people who have been in the Work for years or decades.
My method in this blog is to start at the beginning, starting with the techniques and concepts one needs first to approach greater consciousness; and then to proceed hopefully step by step towards my interpretation of Gurdjieff’s “aiësiritoorassian contemplation”.
“Essence must be taught to develop. The Work does not start from Essence. It starts, in a man having magnetic centre, from those 'I's in him which, wish to work, and they form "Deputy-Steward". This is the first point of Work made in a man. It can break up: or it can become stronger.”
— Nicoll, COM p. 223
THE FIRST CONSCIOUS STEP: REMEMBERING ONESELF
I mentioned earlier that one had to be prepared for the work on Higher Bodies; one had to have certain things established within oneself first. The reason I say this is that some middle and inner parts of Centers can’t even function at all without certain energies, which are specially created. However, fortunately for the Fourth Way folks out there, those special energies are created through Self-Remembering (along with the second conscious shock). I’m not wise enough to know if another person is Remembering Himself in the “proper way”. We are told in the Work that we must constantly reinvent Self-Remembering, to make it relevant to oneself and one’s situation. My feeling, though, is that there might be a way to initially convey the concept of Self-Remembering. And that Self-Remembering has a certain mechanics to it, which one can refer to for inner Work.
Remembering Oneself is the one thing we are told we can do, which has the potential to change us and which is safe for us to do. It is also the one conscious thing we are able to do. Not only that, but it allows several more Higher Energies to come about through transmutation. This in turn eventually allows the inner and middle parts of the Emotional and Intellectual Centers to open up.
In my next few blogs, I want to give my own interpretation of the technique of Self-Remembering. And I want to convey to an extent the Ouspensky/Nicoll teaching of Self-Remembering, along with one or two charts. I want to get a little into the Alchemy that goes along with Self-Remembering. And finally I want to get somewhat into the structure of the “Mind” or Intellectual Center, where most of the work of Self-Remembering takes place, along with much of the rewards.
Q. Is self-remembering the only strength the system hands out to us?
A. It is the only way to reach all the rest, because it is the first thing that is lacking in us. We are always forgetting ourselves from one moment to another, and this state must be changed. One must remember oneself— this is the beginning and the end of the whole thing, because when one has that one has everything.
— Ouspensky, The Fourth Way
If you’re new to Gurdjieff and have read no Fourth Way books, I recommend just picking up Ouspensky’s In Search of the Miraculous. It’s generally hard to understand, but it does give you a sense of what’s miraculous about this system. If you’re familiar with that book already, I recommend reading Nicoll’s Commentary, vol. 1. It does need the context of knowledge of the teaching, but Nicoll’s books are essentially like a textbook of the Fourth Way ideas.
Here is a link to the PDF Commentaries:
