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.