Self-Knowledge: Inner exercises for the unfolding of consciousness

Learning by Doing…
door Tsenne Kikke - maandag 8 december 2025 20:27

"The highest thing a person can achieve is the ability to do." - G. I. Gurdjieff, Aphorisms

What does Gurdjieff mean by the ability to "do"? We do all kinds of things all the time: we work, we drive, we cook, we eat, we watch TV, we have sex, we think, we surf the Internet, we exercise, we practice yoga, we meditate.... But if we look closely, most of the activities happen to us without our conscious awareness. Most of our time we live 'automatically', driven by unconscious desires and ideas about life. The conscious "I" is hardly involved in these activities. But how can one convey to a sleeping person that he or she is asleep? One can only shake the person awake or frighten like an oyster - and this is the core of Gurdjieff's teaching. His significant insight is that a person can "do" only when his "real I" has become the central pivot of his life, and this requires conscious work. Above all, a person must realize that most of what he thinks is conscious action is more or less automatic.

Those who study Buddhism are familiar with the concept of "not-me," that is, being empty of "I". "Not-me" is only the other side of a coin and does not contradict the "I-concept" in Gurdjieff's system. For in order to become open to the spiritual force that the "I" symbolizes, we must first become empty of all normal ego- or rather personality-related habits of thought and life. When we normally say "I", we actually mean our "personality" and our body. We say: "I am in pain", "I feel good", "I think", "I drive a car". But this personality, which is "I" is not the "real I". The materialistic thought as formulated by René Descartes in the 17th century, "I think, therefore I am", leads to a self-deception.

This usual "I" has been formed in the course of childhood through the parental home, education and many other societal influences. In bright moments, some behavior that suddenly seems strange to us makes us wonder, "Is this really me?" or "I don't know myself like that yet". Depending on the circumstance, my behavior may even be completely frightening: "I don't usually get abusive, not so violent. I'm usually a patient person!".

But this is not the "real me". Most of the feelings, thoughts, physical sensations and perceptions are personality patterns that are shaped from the outside, they do not originate from the true being. This assertion would be simplified, of course, if it were all that constituted "me". For there is still a layer within me that I can actually call "my essence". This being consists of certain traits, characteristics, abilities and behaviors, not all of which are determined by the outside world. They are my "own being".

This is where the difficulty begins: How can I distinguish between what is self-determined and what is determined by others? And who am "I" really? "Am I" at all really? If you don't have the desire to figure this out, you probably won't begin a DIMschool exercise program that could lead you to an answer. If you have the feeling that you are not "yourself", you only react almost like a robot to the impulses that come into you from inside and outside, and you want to live more according to the core of your being, the real you, then a targeted exercise program can bring you closer to this goal. But you must seriously decide for it!

If the assertion is true that most people have to acquire "the ability to do", i. e., the ability to act consciously, how can you then carry out an exercise program on your own? Isn't that asking too much? I think it is possible because practice gradually brings you into contact with your being. Even if the decision to exercise may not be made by your real self, it can be decided by the 'representative' of that self, your intellectual center. It may also arise from a feeling or need to do something, to make "more" of your life. In this sense, this program already puts you in contact with the decision, with the "ability to do". A self-deception would be if you think that just because you have practiced for a while, you are already able to act from the core of your being. No matter how, without starting with it, nothing can develop.

All those who have experience with inner exercises know that it is somewhat more difficult to do a series of exercises all by yourself, rather than in conjunction with an exercise group. In an exercise group, there is generally a stronger "energy field" built up, so that each exercise has deeper effects. In this respect, of course, a combination of group and private exercise would be optimal. If you have the possibility to do the exercises together with a partner or friends, not only the exercise is strengthened, but also the motivation to stay with it.

If you are one of the many people who have practical experience, be it with yoga, meditation or other spiritual techniques, you will have no difficulty in tuning into an exercise on your own and making it as intense as possible through your previous experience. You can easily remember the sequence of most exercises because the individual steps have certain points of reference in the body, for example, "traveling" with the inner attention from the upper arm to the hand. If you have no or little experience with exercises, then I advise you to first read all about the theory on which Gurdjieff's teaching is based.

When you decide to begin the exercise program, sit down, become still inside and make your decision. Each day, write down all observations, sensations, insights and feelings that arise before, during and after the exercise. Also write down when you have the exercise "left out". Be honest with yourself: did you just find an excuse or could you simply not because of another requirement? Also, look closely at your excuses, you may see a pattern in them. You are only doing it for yourself, no one is controlling you. After a while, a sitting exercise you do in the morning also works into your day. If you review the notes a month later, you can better assess your practice progress.

- To be continued in Eclecticus...

"Vind mensen, die in zichzelf zowel de motivatie als de aangeboren drijfveer hebben om aan hun Innerlijke Zelf te werken, en we zullen hen gidsen."

- DIMschool vzw, de énige gespecialiseerd in Zelfkennis, zijnde: het kennen van het Zelf -
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