The Work idea of the Good Householder

Newcomers to the Gurdjieff Work are always told that they need to be living at the level of the "Good Householder" before beginning this path.  But what exactly is a Good Householder? Do you need to own a house?

No.

 The concept simply means that you're living a responsible, ethical life, managing your resources wisely, taking care of any dependents, earning your living (if necessary), yet without believing that life holds the key to happiness.

For most people, except for the retired, the independently wealthy, or those who are physically sick or disabled, this means having a job. You should be paying your way in life, not being dependent on others unless you have a real condition which prevents you from working, nor should you be in any way a psychological burden to other people. If you have dependents, you should be taking care of them in a responsible way and meeting your obligations as far as you are able to do so.

Clearly, this means that people who are too mentally ill or unstable to work can't be Good Householders. It's not their fault, but they would not be able to practice the Work and shouldn't be admitted as students. For one thing, the Work has deep and far-reaching effects on the student's psychology, and you need to be stable and mentally grounded before you begin. A Work teacher will refuse to take on a student who isn't living at this level, because the Work could harm them, while accepting an unsuitable student could harm the group.

Earning a living - paying your way - unless there are compelling reasons why you can't do so, is a very important principle in the Work, as it is in Christianity, Judaism and Islam. In the early days of the Work there were many wealthy students who didn't actually need jobs, but they paid their way in life and in the Work, and contributed from their resources to the spread of the Work when asked.

What might prevent you from working, in a life sense? In my case, my physical disabilities reached such a point that they affected my ability to work at a job. They didn't impinge on my mental health, but they made it impossible for me to commit to regular, paid work. Consequently, I was entitled to Severe Disability Benefit, and eventually to my State and work pension, and was therefore still able to live as a Good Householder.

But can you be a Good Householder whilst living on unemployment benefits? The answer would depend on why you were in this position.  Perhaps there are simply no jobs at all in your area, or at least none for which you are qualified. Normally, this wouldn't be a lasting situation.  And if you were offered any job at all, even something as mundane as stacking supermarket shelves or collecting parking fees, as a Good Householder in a Work sense you would be expected to take it.

Gurdjieff said, in effect,  that if people were no good in life, they would be no use to the Work.  And the need to pay one's way in life is a basic law of the universe, whatever form that payment takes.

In this respect, contemporary attitudes to being "on benefits" in the UK often militate against this law. Instead of having a right to work, many people think they have a right not to work.

In the US, attitudes are quite different. Social Security benefits are short-term and hard to get. If you are a recovering addict or alcoholic, you're expected to find work as soon as possible, as part of your recovery. Sponsors and counselors will usually advise taking any job you can find, even one you don't enjoy, as a means of regaining self-respect and rejoining society. Working is good therapy.

When the Work was first brought to the West, unemployment was seen as a misfortune, a personal tragedy. Nobody envisaged that future generations might see living on benefits as an acceptable way of life; consequently, it was never mentioned as a possible barrier to working on oneself, although taking responsibility for oneself and one's dependents was always part of being a Good Householder and so was implicit in the conditions we need to fulfill in order to be in the Work.

But a Good Householder, although competent in life, doesn't believe that life holds the answers to happiness, and won't look for real satisfaction in anything material. He or she won't, for example, pursue wealth for its own sake, won't give up time with the family or friends in order to work ever longer and longer hours and accumulate more "stuff".

Nor does the Good Householder think that relationships alone are the key to fulfilment. Someone who's severely codependent, and thinks that the whole solution to life's problems lie in this or that relationship, is doomed to dissatisfaction. No merely human relationship can fulfil our spiritual needs. The Work shows us how to deepen our relationships and live them more fully, but we must not place the demands of life above those of the Work.

Finally, a Good Householder may follow any traditional, religious path, or none. He or she may be an agnostic, yet following the promptings of their own conscience and living ethically in society. On meeting the Work, if they have Magnetic Centre - that part of our psychological makeup which impels us to search for spiritual meaning and eventually leads us to the Work - they will recognize that this is their true path. And, because the Work is practiced in the midst of life and not in a monastery, they can immediately begin to follow it.