I went to see her in Paris in February 1980. It is amazing how little we know about the forces which resist and oppose whatever we undertake. Perhaps anything serious must have a serious opposition at its own level. For me, meeting Madame de Salzmann was serious. Even with all my good intentions, I arrived at the door of Madame de Salzmann’s apartment almost an hour late, out of breath, drenched and thoroughly chagrined. But Madame was completely calm and collected and took me into the living room. Before I could say anything at all, she said, “It is important not to give in to reaction. I have a meeting very soon; but I shall see you. They can wait.”

When I next went to see Madame de Salzmann, she asked what I was working on. I did not know. I suppose the fact was that I was not working on any damn thing. If I were sincere with myself, I had to say that I just dreamt, and sometimes dreamt of working. She said, “You see this side, the mechanical side, and you know that something exists on the other side. What can make the connection between the two? Sometimes it is possible to place oneself in the middle.” She said, “You can read in Hinduism or Buddhism what this opening means; or you can read it in Mr. Gurdjieff’s books. It is the same thing. There are different levels of energy. And
one can sometimes be in a truer current. She reiterated the need for an inner connection between the centres; not only as an idea but in experience.

On one occasion, there was a feeling of great substance and profundity in the exchange at a group meeting with Madame de Salzmann. What she said did not affect me as much for the ideas as physically, as if what she said had a measurable weight. I remember her saying, “You don’t love yourself enough, the Self that needs and wishes to emerge.” She spoke for about fifteen minutes. It was like the sound of very fine crystal. Understanding is so clearly a matter of slow, methodical work that just asking a question means nothing. Besides, what would one pay for the answer, with what kind of currency? She said, “You need a knowledge which is not a book knowledge. Then the head can be informed by reading books where you recognize your experiences. What is needed is direct perception.”

Madame de Salzmann said to the group at lunchtime, “What do you serve? There is something in you—a higher energy—which is worthy of respect. Without this you serve only your pleasures. This is not to say that you should not look after the needs of the body or of the mind. Unless you respect and serve the finer energy in you—which is not you—work here has no sense.”

“There are three forces—of the body, mind and feeling. Unless these are together, equally developed and harmonized, a steady connection cannot be made with a higher force. Everything in the Work is a preparation for that connection. That is the aim of the Work. The higher energy wishes to but cannot come down to the level of the body unless one works. Only by working you can full fill your purpose and participate in the life of the cosmos. This is what can give meaning and significance to your life. Otherwise, you exist only for yourself, egotistically, and there is no meaning to your life.”