Abdullah Isa Neil Dougan

Author

1918 – 1987

3

Who was Abdullah Isa Neil Dougan?

Abdullah Isa Neil Dougan was a Sufi Sheikh of the Naqshbandi order. He ran open, Westernised groups, initially based on the fourth way ideas of GI Gurdjieff, with reference to Sufi, Hindu and Buddhist traditions. Through his inner work Abdullah further developed the ideas and subsequently regarded his teaching as Gnostic.

Neil Dougan was born in Longburn, New Zealand, and served in the Mediterranean and North Africa during World War II. Upon returning to New Zealand, he lived an outward life as welder, carpenter, builder and finally potter. Located in the Auckland area, he was married twice and had five children and three step-children. He died in September 1987.

In the late 1950s and 60s Dougan participated in, then led a Gurdjieff group that came under the direction of CS Nott. After a time he questioned some aspects of the approach and concluded that Nott and other Gurdjieff pupils were identified with Gurdjieff’s personality. In his quest for the truth he was led first to the Sufi teaching of Hazrat Inayat Khan and then to that of Ramdas. In 1968 he travelled to Europe and then Afghanistan where he met Sheikh Abdul al-Qayyum of Kandahar and Sheikh Ibrahim Mujaddidi of Kabul and was initiated as a Sufi Sheikh of the Naqshbandi order and given the name Abdullah — ‘Slave of God’. From this time Abdullah became the teacher of the New Zealand groups. Abdullah drew increasingly on his own inner experiences to direct and focus his work and that of the groups. In late 1974 Abdullah undertook extensive travel in India, Afghanistan and the Middle East. During this time he completed a 40-day fast on water alone, then went on to Saudi Arabia via Pakistan and performed the Hajj with one of his pupils.

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Born
1918
New Zealand
Also known as
  • Abdullah Dougan
Died
1987

Submitted
on July 23, 2013

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