P. D. Ouspensky
Russian esotericist, philosopher, and chief literary heir of G. I. Gurdjieff — the man whose 1949 In Search of the Miraculous became the canonical written record of Gurdjieff's oral teaching of the Fourth Way, and whose own books Tertium Organum (1912), A New Model of the Universe (1931), and The Psychology of Man's Possible Evolution (1950) developed an independent line of esoteric philosophy alongside the Work. Born 1878 in Moscow, Ouspensky encountered Gurdjieff in 1915, worked closely with him until their split in 1924, then taught his own groups in London for the rest of his life. He died in 1947, two years before In Search of the Miraculous was published. Through that book — and through his pupils, who include Maurice Nicoll, Rodney Collin, and Lord Pentland — Ouspensky became one of the principal channels through which Fourth Way teaching reached the English-speaking world.
115
quotes in library
Quotes by P. D. Ouspensky
115 quotes“This is the strange psychology of awakening.”
psychologyIn Search of the Miraculous
“You must become more humble as you wake up, not more proud.”
humilityIn Search of the Miraculous
“Pride is a sign that you have fallen back asleep.”
prideIn Search of the Miraculous
“Do not believe what you imagine yourself to know.”
beliefIn Search of the Miraculous
“Test it. Verify it. Live it.”
testingIn Search of the Miraculous
“What survives this testing is real knowledge.”
testingIn Search of the Miraculous
“What does not survive is opinion, and opinion is dangerous.”
opinionIn Search of the Miraculous
“Above all, be sincere with yourself.”
sincerityIn Search of the Miraculous
“Self-deception is the chief obstacle to the Work.”
deceptionIn Search of the Miraculous
“Most people deceive themselves about almost everything.”
deceptionIn Search of the Miraculous
“To stop deceiving yourself even a little is a great achievement.”
deceptionIn Search of the Miraculous
“It is the beginning of real seeing.”
deceptionIn Search of the Miraculous
“Knowledge cannot belong to all, cannot even belong to many.”
knowledgeThe Psychology of Man's Possible Evolution
“Knowledge can belong only to those who can pay for it, who deserve it.”
knowledgeThe Psychology of Man's Possible Evolution
“And who can use it.”
knowledgeThe Psychology of Man's Possible Evolution
“Pay for knowledge with effort, attention, and sincerity.”
paymentThe Psychology of Man's Possible Evolution
“Try the impossible.”
impossibleIn Search of the Miraculous
“All real change appears impossible at first.”
changeIn Search of the Miraculous
“Only by trying the impossible do we change at all.”
impossibleIn Search of the Miraculous
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