Edgar's and George's culture/context

    Even though Edgar Cayce and George Gurdjieff were born around the same time, they were born in entirely different parts of the world, Edger in the United States and George in Armenia, shortly after moving to Kars, Turkey. This ensured that they had many different experiences and exposures to different cultures.

    George I. Gurdjieff, from a young age, was exposed to a variety of cultures and religions because of where he spent his childhood, in Kars, Turkey. The land of Kars belonged to many cultures throughout the Previous centuries, including Armenians, Turks, Persia, Ottomans, Russia, Byzantines, and Mongols. The origin of this land is disputed; it is between Armenian, Turkish, and Georgian origins. The article "Kars Fortress Stands as a Monument to a Turbulent Past" by Richard F. Selecer (2021) explains "the Kingdom of Armenia, which in ad 301 became the first state in the world to adopt Christianity as its official religion." As well, the Armenians built the first fortress in Kars Due to the threat of the Muslims. From this point, The Byzantines took over, eventually passing it to the Turkish Empire. Then, it is juggled between the Turkish and the Georgian Empire, passing through the Mongols into the hands of the Ottoman Empire. At the end of the Ottoman-Persian War, Kars was on the border of the Ottoman, Turkish, and Persia (Selcer, 2021). After about 50 or so years, The Russians tried to take the Kars from the Turks but failed. They tried again and succeeded about 20 years later, only to turn around and return it to the Turks. The Russians retook Kars in 1878. George and his family moved to Kars shortly after it was retaken (The Gurdjieff Legacy Foundation). According to "A Day in Kars: Exploring Turkey's Eastern Frontier." Larrance K states, "Kars is one of the only cities in Turkey to have been controlled by the Russians."

    The exposure to these cultures greatly affected George's knowledge in terms of languages and culture. Although George is ethnically Greek on his father's side and Armenian on his mother's side, it should be no surprise, with the city he grew up in, that George knew as many as ten languages, not all of which he learned where he grew up, he learned during his travels to find his purpose/meaning. The languages George knew include "Armenian, Pontic Greek, Russian, Georgian, Turkish, and other dialects of the Asian and Middle Eastern countries he traveled to" (Shvangiradze, 2023). As George got older, his curiosity about life and Asian culture grew, and he left his home in his early adult years to travel the world and satisfy his curiosity.

    Throughout Edgar Cayce's life, he lived in many states, including Kentucky, Alabama, and Virginia. Within his lifetime, he lived through WW1, the great depression, and most of WW2, some of which he did predict, which is explained in The Edgar Cayce documentary (2005). Growing up, Edgar lived in a typical Christian American home. They lived and worked on a farm in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Living on a farm is commonly known to teach hard work and a good work ethic, even though it was not until age 16 that his uncle gave him a job on the farm (Sugrue, 2015, p55).   His family attended church, and the first time Edgar attended a church was at the age of ten; the story the preacher read that day got Edgar hooked on the bible (Sugrue, 2015, p41). After that one time, he wanted to do and know anything he could about the subject. Not only was church a big part of his life, but he also cared so much for his mother. Throughout the first few chapters of his biography, There is a River (2015) by Thomas Sugrue, and everyone seems to tell him that he needs to stay with his mother until he is married, "'You’ve got to stay with your mother,’ he said. ‘That’s a son’s first duty…” (p74).   

    There were only a few events of the world that truly affected Edgar’s life. Those events were when Adlai Stevenson was elected vice president, and the stock market crash started the great depression. When Adlai Stevenson was elected as vice president, Edgar and his father attended a celebration. While he was there, he witnessed a shooting between two civilians. “But when one man pulled a gun from his pocket and shot another man who was only ten feet away from where he stood with his father” (Sugrue, 2015, p54). The Great Depression shut down Edgar’s biggest dream, his hospital, where he would give readings and help the people who needed it. According to Edgar Cayce’s Website, A.R.E., in the article titled “History of the Edgar Cayce Hospital,” the hospital was only open from February of 1929 to around October of the same year when the stock market crashed. The Great Depression shut down Atlantic University, another organization Edgar founded (Ellwood, Robert, 2024).

    Both of these men had very different lives and experiences. Geroge was widely exposed to other cultures, while Edgar lived a typical American life and mainly stuck to his family’s culture/beliefs. These men share their determination to fulfill their life’s purpose once they know it. One of the main differences between these men was that Edgar knew from a child what he wanted his life to revolve around. George did not know that early in life. George needed to travel to answer many questions before he knew what he wanted his life to be about.

 

Ellwood, Robert (2024, March 18) Cayce, Edgar. Encyclopedia of Religion. https://www.encyclopedia.com/environment/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/cayce-edgar

History of Edgar Cayce Hospital, Edgar Cayce’s A.R.E. (2023, August 21). Edgar Cayce’s A.R.E. https://edgarcayce.org/about-us/tour-the-campus/history-of-hospital/

Shvangiradze, T. (2023, June 26). George Gurdjieff: Mostly the man, but mainly the myth. TheCollector. https://www.thecollector.com/george-gurdjieff-man-myth/

Selcer, R. F. (2021, December 15). Kars Fortress stands as a monument to a turbulent past. HistoryNet. https://www.historynet.com/kars-fortress/

SpaceDocument. (2015, May 20). Edgar Cayce Documentary [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Duh02wdMgA

Sugrue, T. (2015). There is a river: The story of Edgar Cayce. TarcherPerigee.

The Gurdjieff Legacy Foundation — The Teaching for Our Time. (n.d.). Gurdjieff’s Early Years. https://gurdjiefflegacy.org/70links/early_years.htm

Lawrence, K. (2021, June 20). A Day in Kars: Exploring Turkey’s Eastern Frontier. Sailingstone Travel. https://sailingstonetravel.com/kars-guide/