"The true intention of our society seems to be to separate people from the responsibility of their lives and actions. The path of transformation must be exactly the opposite of this; it must make us free, responsible individuals who are able to direct their own lives in accordance with a higher aim."

-J. G. Bennett-

Gurdjieff calls his teaching method "the Work" because it requires from us a real effort that we can do in an invisible and internal way. We are speaking of internal psychological work, a work that requires not only to know the ideas but also to apply them and to experience them in ourselves. This practical application leads us to a personal change that opens us to a new level of knowledge that some have called "knowledge through Being".

The ideas presented in this Work have the power to bring about a genuine psychological and spiritual transformation in the midst of our daily lives. They are tailor-made for those who, without shying away from their everyday responsibilities, need them to imbue their lives with meaning and intention.

Thus, this teaching deals with the possible transformation of oneself, with the exploration ground being ourselves. Gurdjieff´s work offers magnificent perceptions regarding the idea of "knowing yourself" by linking it to personal matters and by making us understand what this idea really implies.

The teaching starts from the basis that before we are able to change anything in us, we must be more conscious of who we are now. Much of this work is based on destroying the ideas and imaginations of who we think we are so as to discover who we really are. All spiritual paths tell us that there exists an extraordinary potential in human beings, but very few people have the courage to bring it about.

The Work provides psychological tools that can raise us beyond confusion and chaos, but if we wish to have a life of a different quality, we must begin by being aware of the kind of life we have now.

A human being is capable of self-development. He is a seed, but this seed can waste its potential for growth. A person can undergo a definitive transformation, real evolution, if he knows what he has to do. Many masters and mystics have acknowledged that human beings are born to participate consciously in their own development, as well as in the development of the Universe. Knowledge and consciousness must have a parallel development to make this metamorphosis possible - the discovery of a new conscience that may lead us to our real destiny instead of remaining in our habitual immature reactions.

Our intention is to transform our present psychological state, made up of attitudes and imitations that we have been collecting throughout years of development and as a result of the lack of consciousness.

The Work shows us the way through all these unconscious behaviors, our attitudes and all the things which we do not acknowledge and that consequently harm us in our daily life. Being honest with oneself is fundamental here, and this is not easy. Somehow we know it, but in this teaching, honesty is even harder because we begin to get glimpses of things in the way we are and behave that are not in accordance with the idea-image that we have of ourselves.

We must step out of the darkness of not knowing who we really are, how we behave and why we do so. The use of attention and energy is very important in this process. Everything that the Work offers is based on practice, on verifiable ideas. It must not be an act of faith or a belief; there must be an effort, a work of real psychological transformation. None of the ideas presented in Gurdjieff´s teaching will be understood if we do not apply them to ourselves. The Work requires psychological effort through consciously maintained self-observation. These ideas cannot change our external life directly. What they will do is to change our inner life and raise our level of consciousness, thus transforming our relationship with life and, consequently, transforming everything around us.