When Work Makes You Worse

To work on oneself from the conviction of sin puts the Work into negative parts of centers, and to work in a negative way can lead to a worse state of oneself than not to work at all. Some tend to take the Work in this heavy way. But no one can fathom the delight people take in making themselves miserable and in enjoying their negative states.

You all know and have often heard me say that negative parts of centers create nothing. When I first heard Mr O. say that negative parts of centers cannot create anything, and that people who try to work in a heavy dreary, negative way, could only make their inner state worse than it was—then I think I experienced almost another moment of consciousness.

Maurice Nicoll, “Note on How to Work on Oneself" in Psychological Commentaries on the Teaching of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky (Vol. 5, p. 1743)