В поисках П. Д. Успенского. Гений в тени Гурджиева

P. D. Ouspensky's classic work In Search of the Miraculous was the first to disseminate the ideas of G. I. Gurdjieff, the mysterious master of esoteric thought in the early twentieth century who still commands a following today. Gurdjieff's mystique has long eclipsed Ouspensky, once described by Gurdjieff as "nice to drink vodka with, but a weak man." Yet Ouspensky was a brilliant, accomplished philosopher in his own right, and some consider his meeting with the charismatic "Mr. G." the catastrophe of his life. Indeed, in subsequent years Ouspensky tried hard, with limited success, to break away. This book moves Ouspensky's own story center stage, against the backdrop of the Russian Revolution, the dervishes of Constantinople, and a cosmopolitan Europe entre deux guerres. The archetypal encounter it describes echoes that of Don Juan and Castaneda, or perhaps Mephistopheles and Faust. One of the great mystical adventures of our time, it will fascinate everyone interested in the farthest reaches of what it means to be human. The paperback edition includes a new chapter on Gary Lachman's own former work in Gurdjieff's psychology.

P. D. Ouspensky's brilliant work, In Search of the Miraculous, was the first to interpret the psychology of G. I. Gurdjieff, the early twentieth-century esoteric master who still commands a global following today. Yet Gurdjieff once dismissively described Ouspensky as "nice to drink vodka with, but a weak man," and some consider their meeting the overwhelming catastrophe of Ouspensky's life.This book highlights Ouspensky's own passionate mysticism, in stark contrast to Gurdjieff's idea of "man as machine." Ouspensky was an accomplished philosopher in his own right. What attracted him to Gurdjieff in the first place, and why did he later reject him? Had Gurdjieff turned toward black magic? And why did Ouspensky continue teaching the ideas of a man he had repudiated? The answers unfold in a mystical adventure story that will enthrall everyone interested in the farthest reaches of being human. This new edition includes an afterword on the author's own work in Gurdjieff's system. "Little has been known about P. D. Ouspensky, other than that he was a follower of the early twentieth-century esoteric master G. I. Gurdjieff, and that he first disseminated Gurdjieff's unsettling psychology in the classic In Search of the Miraculous." "This biography moves Ouspensky center stage. Against a backdrop of the Russian Revolution, the First World War, and a cosmopolitan Europe entre deux guerres, here is the story of his dramatic spiritual struggle with the man who changed his life and from whom he was never able, finally, to separate. Like that of Castaneda and Don Juan - or Faust and Mephistopheles - it is a tale fraught with insight, humility, courage, and mystery. What happened to turn Ouspensky, the earnest seeker of spiritual wisdom, against his enigmatic teacher? Did he sabotage himself, or did his powerful master derail him?"--BOOK JACKET.