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Abstract
“For an exact study, an exact language is needed.” These words, spoken by Gurdjieff, display one of his fundamental ideas regarding self-observation. Throughout several iterations of teaching style, Gurdjieff consistently emphasized the importance of his “universal language”. In the Tales, Gurdjieff cites this language as one of two prerequisites for “properly conducted self-observation.” Despite all this, Gurdjieff failed to directly explain this special language of his. Interestingly, little work has been done to verify Gurdjieff’s statements or apply them to his written works. This paper will assemble into one whole the scattered anecdotal and written remarks of Gurdjieff. It will then correlate Gurdjieff’s theory of language with examples from the Tales, showing that Gurdjieff did in fact demonstrate, in a written work, that which he had been describing all along.
Short biographical note
A member of Two Rivers Farm in Aurora, Oregon, Trevor Stewart has been practicing with Gurdjieff’s writings, movements, sittings, and music since the age of eighteen. He presented at the A&E 2018 Conference in Portland, Oregon, and runs an independent ongoing study group for Beelzebub’s Tales. He also spent two years in an intensive Zen Monastic setting. Trevor runs a design and build construction firm in Portland, Oregon.