The Encounter

It was a cold and rainy night in St. Petersburg. Ouspensky was walking back to his apartment after giving a lecture on the meaning of life. He was feeling restless and dissatisfied with his own answers. He wondered if there was more to reality than what he could perceive with his senses and reason.

He passed by a cafe and noticed a man sitting at a corner table. The man had a dark beard and piercing eyes. He seemed to be observing everything and everyone with a keen interest. Ouspensky felt a strange attraction to the man. He decided to enter the cafe and approach him.

"Excuse me, sir, may I join you?" Ouspensky asked politely.

The man looked at him and smiled. "Of course, please sit down. I have been expecting you."

Ouspensky was startled. "How do you know me?"

The man chuckled. "I don't know you, but I know of you. You are a seeker of the truth, are you not?"

Ouspensky nodded. "Yes, I am. But how do you know that?"

The man leaned forward and whispered. "I know many things that you don't know. I know the secrets of the universe, the laws of nature, the mysteries of the soul. I know the way to awaken from the sleep of ignorance and illusion. I know the path to the real I."

Ouspensky felt a surge of curiosity and excitement. He sensed that the man was not lying or exaggerating. He felt that the man had something to offer him that he had been searching for all his life.

"Who are you?" Ouspensky asked eagerly.

The man smiled again. "My name is Gurdjieff. And I am here to teach you."