Cosmic Laws
"Gurdjieff focused on two main cosmic laws, the Law of Three and the Law of Seven.
- The Law of Seven is described by Gurdjieff as "the first fundamental cosmic law". This law is used to explain processes. The basic use of the law of seven is to explain why nothing in nature and in life constantly occurs in a straight line, that is to say that there are always ups and downs in life which occur lawfully. Examples of this can be noticed in athletic performances, where a high ranked athlete always has periodic downfalls, as well as in nearly all graphs that plot topics that occur over time, such as the economic graphs, population graphs, death-rate graphs and so on. All show parabolic periods that keep rising and falling. Gurdjieff claimed that since these periods occur lawfully based on the law of seven that it is possible to keep a process in a straight line if the necessary shocks were introduced at the right time. A piano keyboard is an example of the law of seven, as the seven notes of the major scale correspond exactly to it.
- The Law of Three is described by Gurdjieff as "the second fundamental cosmic law". This law states that every whole phenomenon is composed of three separate sources, which are Active, Passive and Reconciling or Neutral. This law applies to everything in the universe and humanity, as well as all the structures and processes. The Three Centers in a human, which Gurdjieff said were the Intellectual Centre, the Emotional Centre and the Moving Centre, are an expression of the law of three. Gurdjieff taught his students to think of the law of three forces as essential to transforming the energy of the human being. The process of transformation requires the three actions of affirmation, denial and reconciliation.
How the Law of Seven and Law of Three function together is said to be illustrated on the Fourth Way Enneagram, a nine-pointed symbol which is the central glyph of Gurdjieff's system." (Source Wikipedia)
Law of Seven
"Gurdjieff's cosmology is based on the model of a musical octave and has antecedents in the musical and geometric harmonies and proportions elucidated by the Greek philosopher Pythagoras and his followers, as is shown by the quotation from Plato's Republic given above . He is given credit for discovering that the interval of a diatonic, 7-tone scale is rooted in the ratio 2:1, that of the fifth in 3:2, that of the fourth in 4:3, and that of the whole tone in 9:8. Followers of Pythagoras applied these ratios to lengths of a string on an instrument called a canon, or monochord, and thereby were able to determine mathematically the intonation of an entire musical system. The Pythagoreans saw these ratios as governing forces in the cosmos as well as in sounds. Plato, in the Timaeus describes the soul of the world as structured according to these same musical ratios. Further connections to ancient Egypt and their Ennead of the gods may also be inferred since Pythagoras is said to have studied with the Egyptian priests.
The Hermetic philosophers of the Middle Ages also drew heavily on the Pythagorean Music of the Spheres to formulate their models of the universe. The Divine Comedy written by the poet Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) is an allegorical narrative of the poet's imaginary journey, firstly, through hell and purgatory, guided by Virgil, a symbol of reason and subsequently, through the nine circles of heaven, guided by Beatrice, a symbol of the Mother Goddess. Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) described nine Ranks of Angels. Robert Flood, an Elizabethan Alchemist, also depicted the universe as a Divine Monochord. ...."
"Gurdjieff's unique contribution to the tradition of the Hermetic philosophers was to stress the importance of the discontinuities in the ratios of the notes of the octave. The intervals between mi-fa and si-do only comprise a half tone, while the rest of the intervals are a full tone apart. This is illustrated by the arrangement of a piano keyboard where the missing black keys denote the half tone discontinuities.
Gurdjieff maintains that as the energy and matter of the universe transform up and down the cosmic scale, it requires an extra push or shock when it reaches the shortened intervals in order to continue its transformation. The requirements of these shocks are of critical importance in relation to the higher evolution of humans beings.
The shock at the si-do interval is filled by the Will of the Absolute. The three Laws of the second note of the Ray of Creation are the direct manifestation of His Endlessness and this is called the Theomertmalogos by Gurdjieff in Beelzebub's Tales. This is the Law of Three in its first manifestation and it supplies the first shock and indicates that all shocks require the three forces to be present. (Source Endlesssearch)
Law of Three
"The Law of Three, called Triamazikamno in Beelzebub's Tales, is one of the fundamental laws of the universe and is a direct manifestation of the triune nature of His Endlessness as it is expressed in the universe. Gurdjieff defined the triune nature of His Endlessness as three forces - Active, Passive and Neutral. The three Laws of the second note of the Ray of Creation are the direct manifestation of His Endlessness and this is called the Theomertmalogos by Gurdjieff in Beelzebub's Tales. It is the basis of all the structures and processes within the universe and man.
The most important structurally related application for humans is with the formation of an harmonious interrelatedness of the three centers of human consciousness, Intellect, Body and Emotions, in a state known as All-Brains-Balanced-Being-Perception. Gurdjieff called this aspect of the Work and its related repetoire of exercises 'Conscious Labor.'
Gurdjieff defined the process of interaction of the three forces as the "harnel-miatznel," where the higher blends with the lower in order together to actualize the middle, and thus to become either higher for the preceding lower or lower for the succeeding higher.
The most important process related application of the Law of Three in the Work is with the transformation of energies for our Being by the exercise of the two Conscious Shocks. Gurdjieff called this aspect of the Work 'Intentional Suffering.' In Beelzebub's Tales, the following prayer describes the process of "harnel-miatznel" as it is used in transforming energies for our Being.
- Holy-Affirming,
- Holy-Denying,
- Holy-Reconciling,
- Transubstantiate in me,
- For my Being." (Source Endlesssearch)
Fourth Way enneagram
"The Fourth Way enneagram is a figure published in 1949 in In Search of the Miraculous by P.D. Ouspensky, and an integral part of the Fourth Way esoteric system associated with George Gurdjieff. The term "enneagram" derives from two Greek words, ennea (nine) and gramma (something written or drawn), and was coined by Gurdjieff in the period before the 1940s[1].
The enneagram is a nine-pointed figure usually inscribed within a circle. Within the circle is a triangle connecting points 9, 3 and 6. The inscribed figure resembling a web connects the other six points in a cyclic figure 1-4-2-8-5-7. This number is derived from or corresponds to the recurring decimal .142857 = 1/7. These six points together with the point numbered 9 are said to represent the main stages of any complete process, and can be related to the notes of a musical octave, 9 being equivalent to "Doh" and 1 to "Re" etc. The points numbered 3 and 6 are said to represent "shock points" which affect the way a process develops. The internal lines between the points; that is, the three-point figure and the six-point figure, are said to show certain non-obvious connections, although here very little elucidation is offered." (Source Wikipedia)
References
- "Google Ngram Viewer". books.google.com. Retrieved 4 January 2020.