#83: Benjamin Byfield, Meditative Monkey: Fusing the work of Gurdjieff and Movement Culture

Benjamin Byfield @meditativemonkey is on the Passive Hang! Ben is a dear friend of mine, who runs the Meditative Monkey, a Movement Studio based in Central Coast, Australia. You may recognise him from some of the Passive Hang video logs and previous episode #48 - he is a regular accomplice to movement workshops, and we’ve spent many nights discussing movement and beyond.

Ben is considerate, thoughtful and dedicated to the practice and the people he supports. Using the physical practice as a foundation, Ben is committed to guiding others into self-transformation, heavily drawing from the work of the Movement Culture and Gurdjieff’s Fourth Way. The Fourth Way identifies the human centres of the body, intellect and emotions, studying the self through self observation and self remembering. Ben discusses practical tools on how he fuses these teachings into the physical experience he creates at Meditative Monkey.

We cover Ben’s own evolution of physical practice, and how it led to the creation of Meditative Monkey, sharing how he organises classes and content within the class. We have a valuable discussion on how to introduce the movement practice to beginners - particularly around the idea of setting and holding integrity to standards.

Ben’s studio is a must visit if you’re in New South Wales or around Sydney. You can get in touch by sending him a message @meditativemonkey or www.meditativemonkey.com.au

#movement #movementculture #meditativemonkey #thepassivehang