occult

This is a book of quotes by the Author arranged by subject and bound together as a book. When I read the description I thought it was a series of Talks like Ouspensky's "Fourth Way" or "The Psychology of Man's Possible Evolution". In this book Burton focuses on the main tenant of the Fourth Way which is the practice of "Self-Remembering". Burton seems well read as he quotes many famous authors who one gets the impression that Burton believes are beyond men numbers 1, 2 and 3 especially Goethe. At times one wonders if Burton is speaking beyond his experience. A very curious quote in the book is "After many years of teaching, I have tired of the novelty of the system except for self remembering."

I have been interested in the teachings of Gurdjieff/Ouspensky for the better part of 20 years, and though I have had friends who have been involved in "The Work," I personally never have been, largely because I'm inclined to believe that the vaunted objective of "waking up" is most likely a chimera, and that the harsh rigorism of these teachings is exploitative of the natural sense of inferiorty and masochism that is latent in most human beings. In addition, I have increasingly tended to find the personalities of both Gurdjieff and Ouspensky, as evidenced by their biographers, repugnant: the former often seemingly insane, the latter insufferably pedantic; and both, evidently, hopeless alcoholics (though certain of their biographers come up with the most ingenious excuses for their behavior). The other thing I find particularly offensive about Gurdjieff and Ouspensky is their quasi-scientific cosmolgy, which contradicts much of what we know about science, and which at the end of the day is just too silly to take seriously.

The one major idea promoted by these teachers, however, which does resonate within me (though it was harped upon more by O. than G), is that of "Eternal Recurrence," and which has meant a great deal to others, too, such as Heraclitus, Nietzsche and T.S. Eliot, to give three examples. For "Eternal Recurrence" seems to me to be a very plausible explanation for the "metaphyiscal" dimension of our plantetary existence, without which the universe would simply have to be recreated anew, moment-by-moment. For me, there seems little reason to doubt that everything we do does indeed possess ramifications sub specie aeternitatis.

The author, Robert Burton, seems to feel this way, too, and his book downplays, without dispensing with, the regrettable cosmological basis upon which the teachings of G. & O. rests, and almost exclusively focuses upon what only might be accomplished in the here and now by simply "remembering ourselves." Unlike Ouspensky and Gurdjieff, there is something Zenlike and essentialist about Burton's book in the sense that it doesn't prominently display such cringe-worthy notions as the coldness of the sun, the consciousness of stones, incomprehensible hydrogen tables, the enneagram -- and all the other Gurdjieffian malarkey that seems so enticing to the half-educated. In fact, contra G. & O, both of whom you can hardly ever quote to the unconvinced without seeming like an unregenerate New Age lunatic, there are even passages in Burton's book that rival Marcus Aurelius in terms of their unpretentious immediacy, fitting for practically everyone except the spiritually ossified.

All things considered, though, as "inferior" human beings, we tend to make saviors out of those who seem to know a little bit more than we do, and at the end of the day I'm inclined to think that the teachings of Gurdjieff, Ouspensky, Burton, et al, have helped precisely nobody to transcend in any meaningful way the horrific eventualities that comprise the fate of everyone who dwells in this vale of tears -- fascinating as those teachings otherwise might be.

But then again, as Montaigne would say, what the hell do I know?

Being intimately familiar with the writings of Mr. Gurdjieff and Mr. Ouspensky, I can say that Robert Burton's teaching is a direct extension of everything those two men practiced and taught. Also, as a 25-year student of Robert Burton's, I know that nothing is easier to misunderstand than a teacher and a school. Mr. Burton's book, Self-Remembering, is a pure encapsulation of how he teaches and how he himself works, and the fact that self-remembering is the hub of practicing the Fourth Way. But, more importantly, this book offers readers an emotional--not just an intellectual--handle for determining whether they see something unique in the idea of self-remembering, and in the idea that an individual cannot work or evolve alone; that a school is necessary for establishing a correct foundation of knowledge, methods, and guidance. Readers may also want to keep in mind that this book was not written originally for publication, but for Mr. Burton's students. It was not intended to persuade anyone of anything, but rather to convey the understanding of a conscious teacher to his students, largely as a reminder to them of how to re-connect emotionally to their own need to make efforts to actually awaken.