Gurdjieff Bennett and the Fourth Way (2)

Madame de Salzmann set about uniting all of the different groups within the
newly established Gurdjieff Foundation based in France. 49 – Her close senior allies in
this venture were Thomas and Olga de Hartmann and Madame Ouspensky. –
Affiliated organizations were subsequently founded in other countries.
These
included: the Gurdjieff Foundation of America (the leading figures of which were
Madame Ouspensky, the de Hartmanns and Lord Pentland) 50 and, subsequently, the
Gurdjieff Foundation of Canada (founded and led by Olga de Hartmann after her
husband's death). 51 In England Gurdjieff's followers, who were, initially, largely ex-
Ouspenskians, looked to Paris for authority; and in late 1950 Madame de Salzmann
sent Madame H.H.Lannes (1899-1980) – one of Gurdjieff's senior French pupils – to
take charge of the Work in England. 52
Nicoll, despite his failure to return to
Gurdjieff, has been seen as a solidly orthodox figure 53 and his pupils, numbering
several hundred, were integrated into the Gurdjieffian mainstream after his death. 54
Roles maintained the ‗orthodox Ouspenskian‘ distance and kept his pupils on a
very short rein with regard to outside influences. 55 Nevertheless, his faithfulness to
Ouspensky included holding the belief that the ―System‖ was incomplete. After
briefly experimenting with Subud he involved himself with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
(early 1960s) with, it has been suggested, the intention of appropriating the TM
method. 56
He subsequently broke with the Maharishi to follow another Hindu
teacher, Sivananda, and found the London School of Meditation. 57
In terms of
Gurdjieffian lineage Roles at this point ceases to be of direct interest: historically
some of the ideas taught by his organization derive from Gurdjieff, but he had no
direct contact with Gurdjieff and any connection through Ouspensky is highly
doubtful 58 ; moreover, although he seems to have thought that the teachings of the
Rishis either completed or were more complete than Ouspensky‘s ―system‖, there is
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