Good and Evil in Beelzebub's Tales to His Grandson, Part I: Overview

 Part I of a seven-part series

In reviewing Gurdjieff’s comments on good and evil, a significant part of his opinion on this matter is exposed in chapter 44 of Beelzebub’s Tales to his Grandson.

The chapter is another inner allegory couched in Gurdjieff’s standard vehicle: a metaphysical treasure hunt. The uncovering of lost, ancient knowledge results in a revelation. In this case, the lost knowledge of the teachings of Makary Kronbernkzion, inscribed on two elephant tusks, preserved since the time of Atlantis. They became separated and their significance was forgotten. 

One of these tusks was eventually buried and had to be dug up (an abstract reference to Gurdjieff’s adage “bury bone deeper,” indicating to us that we need to dig to understand the meaning of this chapter.) The device is simple enough: he has concealed the old folk saying, “you have to put two and two together” in his description of the elephant tusks. That is to say, what he’s trying to impart in this chapter ought to be obvious to anyone who thinks about it a bit. 

The passages are encrypted and embedded in a series of stories about family relationships and genealogy, echoing Gurdjieff’s emphasis on the need for an awareness of membership in clan (a typical feature of traditional societies) and the respect for one’s heritage. The passages about the various angelic beings eager to pass judgment on whoever it was who corrupted humanity, along with the discovery — to their horror — that it was not only one of their own, but one of their best — is a recapitulation of the overall theme of the book, that is, the fallibility of even the highest being-bodies. 

It’s also a cautionary tale about the rush to judgment; because Makary Kronbernkzion is, we’re told, not ultimately to blame for the misinterpretation of his discoveries. This is a micro-encapsulation of the guiding principle behind Gurdjieff’s discourse on good and evil: “a being-world-view with diverse aspects.” 

In attempting to blame Makary Kronbernkzion for the objectively pathetic state of man’s awareness and his obsession with good and evil, the angelic host inadvertently engages in the exact same behavior they’re condemning. We find, in other words a fable embedded in the very action of the angels themselves. They’re forced, in the end, to seek a reversal from God himself for the consequences of their previous decisions, which were in error. This is an indicative of the need for ”help from the higher.” The fact that they can’t undo their previous judgment, but only ask for amelioration, is a cautionary tale reminding us that no matter what else, we remain responsible for our actions. That the amelioration of punishment is granted is a reminder that there is always hope. 

There is, furthermore, a powerful and explicit irony in the situation: as Gurdjieff remarks of “our ALL-MOST-GRACIOUS-CREATOR, he “only thought a little and then consented to command that this deserving soul should continue to exist on the holy planet until the future results of his evil deed should be revealed.” This neatly puts the whole question of good and evil back into play on a much higher level. From this one remark alone, we can presume that Gurdjieff is not telling us that good and evil don’t exist ( one of the vulgar interpretations of the text) but, rather, that they aren’t what we think they are. As with the entire allegory of purgatory, the ideas of good and evil turn around the question of personal responsibility.

May you be well within today.

Lee

Lee van Laer is a Senior Editor at Parabola Magazine.