The Struggle of the Magicians

The scenario for Gurdjieff's ballet, set in a bustling Eastern market town alive with merchants, dervishes, fakirs, and people of every Asiatic nationality. The story follows Gafar, a wealthy and jaded Parsi merchant, whose interest is captured by the mysterious and compassionate Zeinab — a meeting that sets in motion the central drama between forces of white and black magic that gives the ballet its name. Gurdjieff conceived this work as a vehicle for his sacred gymnastics and movements, intending it as both artistic spectacle and practical demonstration of esoteric ideas. Though never fully staged in his lifetime, the scenario represents a key expression of his teaching in dramatic form — using the contest between two magicians as an allegory for the inner struggle between conscious and mechanical forces in the human being.