Contributors, Sources, and Helpers


Adi DaIn addition to our primary Source — Adi Da Himself — and the Adi Da Up Close staff, we have drawn upon, and are indebted to, hundreds of contributors, sources, and helpers as we created and evolved this site. It is a living example of what Adi Da calls "everybody-all-at-once"! We'd like to acknowledge and express our gratitude to as many of those contributors as possible.

contributorsAdi Da has said to His devotees, "Without your response, Adidam is mere philosophy." Most of our contributors are devotees of Adi Da. They have helped make this site a very full and personal introduction to Adi Da as the Divine Person in living, human form; and a very full and personal introduction to Adidam as a living community of people who have received (and responded to) that Revelation, and whose lives have been transformed by It.

contributorsSome of our contributors are not formal devotees of Adi Da. Many of the non-devotees listed below are professionals who have appreciated Adi Da's contributions in their own area of expertise: art, spirituality, social wisdom, etc. (For a version of this page that lists only our non-devotee contributors, click here.)

Special thanks to all the people and organizations that contributed (and in some cases, created) the more than 1,100 video and audio clips that are in our Audio/Video Library.

Cristina Acidini

 

Dr. Cristina Acidini is the Superintendent of the Authority for Cultural Heritage and State Museums in Florence, Italy.

Dellanna Adams-Bain

 

Dellanna Adams-Bain has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da since 1974. While a devotee, Dellanna obtained her Ph.D. in clinical psychology. She worked professionally as a psychologist for many years and also served Adidam as a consultant in her professional capacity.

Phyllis Addison

 

Lis Addison is an award-winning composer and musician.

Alicia Aguilar

 

Alicia Aguilar is a gifted healer, and has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da since March, 1983. She has a daughter who was born and raised in the community of Adi Da’s devotees.

  • Initiation in Another Realm — Alicia describes her first encounter with Avatar Adi Da. It takes place in another dimension, in her distant home village in the Philippines.

James Alwood

 

Steve Alexander became a devotee of Adi Da in 1984. Since then he has performed a variety of service functions including head priest, and ashram manager, at The Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary. For the last five years, Steve has assisted in the fabrication of Adi Da's Divine Image-Art as well as Murtis and Photographs of Adi Da. He is also a course facilitator for the Adidam Academy.

James Alwood

 

James Alwood has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years, and is the Director of the Laughing Man Institute of the Adidam Academy, as well as a senior instructor in the Academy. He feels the urgency to bring many more devotees to Adi Da, especially focusing on those who are of the disposition and intention to move quickly into the First Congregation. He also feels the keen necessity to particularly enable young devotees to come as quickly as possible in order to rightly serve Adi Da’s world-work altogether.

Megan Anderson

 

Megan Anderson grew up in the Adidam community as Adi Da's devotee. She has served Adi Da in the Editorial Department for many years, and has also served the Adidam Mission as a public speaker.

Albert Aprigliano

 

Albert Aprigliano was classically trained as a pianist at The Juilliard School of Music. For over thirty years, he has been a Manhattan cocktail pianist, serving as house pianist for many high class Manhattan restaurants, and providing accompaniment for numerous cabaret acts.

  • Dedication by Schumann: Piano Tribute to Adi Da video — This is a special video tribute by Albert in honor of his partner's spiritual teacher/guru, Adi Da Love-Ananda Samraj (1939-2008). This piece was written by Robert Schuman to his wife Clara and featured in the movie, "Song of Love", with Katherine Hepburn.

  • Meditation by Massenet: Piano Tribute to Adi Da video — This is a special video tribute by pianist Albert , in honor of his partner's spiritual teacher/guru, Adi Da Love-Ananda Samraj. This piece by Jules Massenet is from the opera, "Thais".

Jane Attardi

 

 

Jane Attardi has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da Samraj since 1976. She has been a principal person involved in sacred and cultural overview of the community of devotees. She has lived and served many years at all of the Hermitages and Sanctuaries established by Avatar Adi Da. Jane also serves in the Art Department as a framer.

  • Exactly That Same Embrace — Jane tells how Adi Da used the circumstance of dancing to reveal to her a lifelong pattern of "masculine" aggressiveness that she used to prevent herself from being vulnerable as a woman.

Marla Baggetta

 

Marla Baggetta is a prolific painter and teacher, whose artwork and workshops are nationally sought after. Contributing to many art publications such as Pastel Journal, she is a signature PSA member and an IAPS Master Circle Recipient. Marla worked as a commercial illustrator for 25 years. After moving to Oregon in 1993, she was inspired by the beauty of the Willamette Valley and began painting landscapes that blend realism and abstraction. Among her numerous awards are Arts for the Parks Annual Juried Exhibition. She has been featured in the Pastel Journal and is included in Pure Color: The Best of Pastel and Sketchbook Confidential II. She is the author of Pastel Step by Step. Her paintings can be found in numerous public and private collections throughout the country. Marla travels extensively throughout the United States teaching painting workshops and jurying shows. More about Marla on her personal website and her landscape painting lessons website.

  • The Meaning of Life — Marla talks about her desperate search for "the meaning of life", and how she Gracefully found Adi Da Samraj.

Aura Bakker

 

Aura Bakker grew up in the Adidam community as Adi Da's devotee. She is a musician, singer, and composer. She received early training and experience in Indian music and jazz. She completed her BA in music at the Maastricht Conservatory of Music in Holland in 2004 after which she moved to London for two years where she performed regularly and found her voice in songwriting. More at her Bandcamp page and her Facebook page.

  • The Heart's Shout video — Music by Aura Bakker. Sung by Aura Bakker. Poem by Adi Da Samraj, from His book of poetry, Crazy Da Must Sing.

  • Light-In-Everybody audio — a song the Celebration of Light-In-Everybody for which Aura wrote the music (along with Adam Weiss).

Frans Bakker, M.D.

 

Frans Bakker, M.D., is a long-time devotee of Avatar Adi Da, and served for a period of time as Adi Da's personal physician. Frans has been a principal public representative of Adidam. He has given seminars worldwide on Adi Da’s Instruction about death and dying.

  • The Fierce Woman — This story takes place at Da Love-Ananda Mahal, then called “Tumomama”. It was during a time of intense consideration of esoteric spiritual practice with just a small group of practitioners. Frans tells the story of Avatar Adi Da’s Instruction to him and the lessons he learned from a visitation by the Goddess Kali.

  • Journey Into Death and Back — In December 1983, two months after Adi Da's arrival at Adi Da Samrajashram (on the island of Naitauba in Fiji), an accident occurred that would have been fatal without Avatar Adi Da's Intervention. The story of that incident is told by two people: Frans Bakker, one of the doctors involved; and Tom Closser, the devotee to whom the accident occurred, who describes his near-death experience, and a profound lesson about how "guilt" can become a self-destructive impediment to growth.

Mary Murfin Bayley

 

Mary Murfin Bayley is a freelance arts writer. She was the dance critic for the Seattle Times from 1997 to 2007.

Jensen Bellin

 

Jensen Bellin grew up in the Adidam community as Adi Da's devotee.

Pamela Bennett

 

Pamela Bennett has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1978. She is a founding member and world-wide coordinator of the Adidam Weather Guild and a regular contributor to the Adidam News Guild. She also does occasional research and purchasing for the Gifting Guild and News Guilds. She serves as a member of the Plastic Arts Guild, which helps grow her skills in painting, drawing, print-making and photography.

  • Ice Cream and Divine DistractionPamela: "I turned my gaze away from the frozen yoghurt toward a most unusual image: a Supremely Attractive Being whose photograph graced the book's jacket. . . in an instant, a shift occurred. There was no granite topped counter and wooden stool with music in the background. There was not a shred of bodily awareness whatsoever. There was only a Bright, Radiant Field of Whitest Light, a tiny point of witness, and the most extraordinary, limitless, astonishing feeling of extravagant and limitless Joy."

  • Divine HealingPamela describes a sudden and dramatic healing that took place through Adi Da's Blessing-Power while she was sitting with Adi Da in meditation, in one of the temples at The Mountain Of Attention.

  • I Could Not See Her Face Pamela describes a miracle that occurred, upon the arrival at Adi Da Samrajashram of two unique gifts for Adi Da.

John Bent

 

John Bent is a longtime devotee of Adi Da Samraj.

  • "Be Fearless!" — John tells the story of Adi Da Samraj's great Blessing Work with His devotee, Tamara Mcphail (who was John's intimate partner from 1999 until her death in 2002).

Justin Berry

 

Justin Berry has been a devotee of Adi Da for several years.

  • Quiet Dogs video — Justin filmed the panoramic view from the porch of Quiet Dogs, one of the retreat quarters at The Mountain Of Attention. Note: Quiet Dogs was burnt to the ground later, in the Valley Fire of 2015.

Dr. Monica Bietti

 

Dr. Monica Bietti is the Director of the Museum of the Medici Chapels. She was formerly with the Superintendency of Artistic Heritage of Bologna and Florence.

Colin Boyd

 

Colin Boyd has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He lives in London, England. He teaches the practice of "Intrinsic Touch Energy", and is the author of The Practice Of Universal Touch, which was inspired by Adi Da's Wisdom.

Matt Braithwaite

 

Matt Braithwaite has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years. He is a professional videographer.

Walter Brew

 

Walter Brew has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years. He is a professional healer, and serves Adi Da at the European Danda (priest, chanting, self-sufficiency and gardening, Danda maintenance and repair).

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes several "Danda Unity Garden Chronicle" video clips, narrated by Walter.

Roger Briggs

 

Roger Briggs is the founder and CEO of Naptech, a company specializing in refurbishing electronic testing equipment for resale. Started with a staff of one (Roger), Naptech is now one of the major companies in this field. Even from the beginning, Roger has always given generously for the support of Adi Da, Adidam and renunciate devotees, and has always been an inspiration to other devotees in this regard.

  • Unimagined Success — Roger's story of living by the Guru's Instruction, and living in the disposition of faith.

Gavin Brown

 

Gavin Brown has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1988. He is currently the primary missionary for the Adidam Mission in the United Kingdom.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip from Gavin, talking about his relationship with Adi Da, and another where he talks about Adidam South Africa.

Steve Brown

 

Steve Brown has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1984, and was personally instructed by Adi Da in the sacred arts, particularly music and theatre. He is the Artistic Director of the First Room Theatre Guild, and he has performed, produced, and directed enactments of Adi Da's Orpheum Trilogy within the First Room Theatre Guild for over 25 years.

  • Special Events — Steve was the host for the November 2014 European Danda Retreat, "Divine Ecstasy Is Natural to You Because I Have Been Born" and the July 2012 European Danda Retreat, "I Have Appeared From the Realm of Light".

  • The Mummery-Cult Of Pairs Set Free — In response to Shakespeare's famous monologue, "All the world's a stage", from his play, As You Like It, Adi Da Samraj wrote the extraordinary poem, "The Mummery-Cult Of Pairs Set Free", which appears in His Happenine Book. Because Adi Da intended this as a direct response to William Shakespeare, reciter Steve Brown is standing before the River Avon in Stratford, Shakespeare's hometown.

Dennis Bumstead

 

Dennis Bumstead has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1984. He received his B.A. in Economics and Sociology from the University of Cambridge in 1966, and his Ph.D. in Social Psychology and Management from the MIT Sloan School of Management in 1975. He went on to a distinguished career that included a professorship at Antioch University and a position as Senior Human Resource Specialist at the World Bank. After retiring, his heart's passion has been to bring Adi Da's Wisdom from Not-Two Is Peace to the world, to help initiate the creation of a Global Cooperative Forum. He has also been an advisor for The Dawn Horse Press, the primary publisher of Adi Da's books, CD's, and DVD's.

  • Divine Love Heals Everything — Dennis Bumstead's story about gathering with Adi Da on Naitauba in 1992, the Divine Love poured out endlessly by Adi Da, and how that Divine Love healed Dennis at a profound level.

Leo Burke

 

Leo Burke is Professor and Director of the Global Commons Initiative at the Mendoza College of Business, the University of Notre Dame. In this capacity he teaches courses on the commons to undergraduates, MBAs and Executive MBAs. From December 2000 through June 2008, he served as Associate Dean and Director of Executive Education. In 2009, he co-founded the Anthroposphere Institute, with Carolyn Lee and Kathy Skerritt.

  • Prior Unity (video) — In this video, Leo talks about the new book, Prior Unity, containing Adi Da's wisdom about world peace, cooperative community, and much more. Prior Unity follows on the wisdom in Adi Da's Not-Two Is Peace, containing excerpts from the earlier book as well as much new material.

Terry Cafferty

 

Terry Cafferty has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since the early 1980's. He is an aerospace engineering consultant specializing in orbiting imaging systems, and has worked for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Hughes Aircraft, and Raytheon. In addition to being one of Adi Da Samraj's patrons, Terry also generously supports the Adidam Fear-No-More Zoo, and is on its Board of Directors. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Adidam Global Ashram.

  • "Let Me Live You. Dissolve In My Current Of Bliss" — Terry tells how, even in the midst of a conventionally "successful" life, he became aware of his own inability to truly love, feel, and be in relationship with others. The crisis engendered by this realization ultimately led him to his Spiritual Master, Avatar Adi Da Samraj.

  • The True Source of Security — Three more stories from Terry. In the first story, Terry learns a lesson about letting go of his tight grip on money as his source of security. In the next two stories, Terry's brushes with death (and the extraordinary Grace that saved him both times) would reveal the True Source of Humor, Security and Eternal Life.

Scott Campbell

 

Scott Campbell is a longtime devotee of Adi Da. He has been the Director of the Sacred Archives of Adidam for 22 years. The Sacred Archives encompasses a vast collection of artifacts that Avatar Adi Da generated during His lifetime, including photographs, audio recordings, video footage, handwritten pages, Adi Da’s art and His personal effects. Over the years, Scott has overseen the gathering and preservation of these treasures that are so precious to Avatar Adi Da’s devotees. He also received a great deal of personal instruction from Adi Da on how these materials should be preserved and used by devotees for all time.

Stuart Camps

 

Stuart Camps has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years.

  • "You Have a Choice to Make" — Stuart: "Just as Adi Da was about to leave the room in the early hours of the morning, He softly whispered, almost to Himself, 'Blessings on those who pass today'."

  • Serving the transition of dying animals — Stuart: "People often wonder what to do when their pet, or another animal, is dead or dying. Adi Da Samraj has given instruction on the death process for humans in His book, Easy Death. The process is essentially the same for non-humans yet there are unique points to consider in serving the death of animals, including whether euthanasia is appropriate."

Marvin Carpenter

 

Marvin Carpenter has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da Samraj since 1975. He works as an insurance broker, and is currently living at The Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary, in northern California.

Ruy Carpenter

 

Ruy Carpenter grew up in the Adidam community as Adi Da's devotee. He spent the last few years before Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi (in November, 2008) serving Adi Da on Adi Da Samrajashram in the creation of His Image-Art.

  • Mummery Documentary video — Ruy appears in this documentary about the making of the first full theater production of Adi Da's epic work, The Mummery, in January, 2000, at The Mountain Of Attention. (Ruy was also an actor in The Mummery.)

Rolf Carriere

 

Rolf Carriere worked with the United Nations and the World Bank from 1971 till 2005, mostly in Asia. His last field postings were as UNICEF Country Representative in Bhutan, Burma, Bangladesh and Indonesia, and he also served for seven years as UNICEF's Head of Health and Nutrition in India. Before his retirement in 2005, he was the first Executive Director of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), a public-private-people's partnership based in Geneva. He is currently Senior Adviser (pro bono) to Non-Violent Peace-Force and to EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program. He recently gave a TED talk (at TEDxGroningen) on the use of EMDR to heal trauma on a global scale.

  • Rolf Carriere on Not-Two Is Peace video — In this video, Rolf describes his experience reading Adi Da's books communicating social wisdom, including The Transcendence of Ego and Egoic Society and Not-Two Is Peace. He also describes his conversation with Adi Da in Cape Cod, Massachusetts (in May, 1996), and his experience of serving as Adi Da's spiritual instrument in the right times and places so as to affect human history in a positive manner.

Pauline Chew

 

Pauline Chew has been a devotee for many years. She received a B.S. in Professional Computer Studies from Pace University, and also studied Computer Technology Applications Development at Columbia University. Starting as a developer in information technology, she has spent the last two decades working for Fortune 500 companies and other major organizations (including UC Berkeley, Apple, Goldman Sachs, and IBM), developing a wide range of business technology solutions.

James Edward Clarke

 

James Edward Clarke is a singer, composer, and producer from Penarth, Wales. He manages the Ty Cerdd recording studios at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff Bay where he produces music in a plethora of styles and genres, from opera to rock to dubstep to pop. James has a first class masters degree in music from Bristol University. He has composed a symphony, Eleutherios: The Turning to Satsang, based on Adi Da's Teaching.

Jacqueline Clemons

 

Jacqueline Clemons has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1998. She is a singer and composer, and has released a number of albums.

Tom Closser

 

Tom Closser has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He currently lives in Northern California.

  • Journey Into Death and Back — In December 1983, two months after Adi Da's arrival at Adi Da Samrajashram (on the island of Naitauba in Fiji), an accident occurred that would have been fatal without Avatar Adi Da's Intervention. The story of that incident is told by two people: Frans Bakker, one of the doctors involved; and Tom Closser, the devotee to whom the accident occurred, who describes his near-death experience, and a profound lesson about how "guilt" can become a self-destructive impediment to growth.

  • Everything Bows To The Divine Lord — Tom: "There were very full arrangements of flowers on both sides of His seat. The flowers literally bent toward Him, obviously acknowledging His Presence as were the other devotees in the room."

Gary Coates

 

Gary Coates has been a member of the architecture faculty at Kansas State University since 1977, where he is also Victor L. Regnier Distinguished Professor. Coates is nationally and internationally recognized as a leading voice in the movement to create socially, technologically and ecologically sustainable buildings, cities and bioregions. He has received more than 40 research, demonstration and service grants and has been a keynote speaker, lecturer and workshop leader at more than 90 professional and scholarly conferences in this country and Europe. Coates' publications include a half-dozen research monographs, more than a dozen book chapters, and some 70 papers published in professional journals. He has edited and authored five books, including: Resettling America: Energy, Ecology and Community (1981); Erik Asmussen, Architect (1997); and The Architecture of Carl Nyrén (2007).

  • The Rebirth of Sacred Art: Reflections on the Aperspectival Geometric Art of Adi Da Samraj — "For nearly forty years the artist, scholar and spiritual teacher Adi Da Samraj (1939-2008) was involved in the production of a highly diverse and unique body of artistic work, ranging from Zen-like ink brush paintings to multiple exposure photography, videographic suites synchronized with music and, most recently, monumentally scaled abstract geometric images generated by digital technology. Adi Da’s purpose in all of this work was to create images which would enable the fully participatory viewer to experience a taste of the inherently blissful state of nondual awareness that he asserts is our native condition once we transcend the presumption and experience of being a separate 'subjective' self perceiving a separate 'objective' reality."

  • Audio/Video Library — Gary speaks about Adi Da's image-art in this video.

Dennis Coccaro

 

Dennis Coccaro has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1979. He received a B.A. degree in English with a minor in education. He has been an instructor for Adidam since the mid-1990's, serving primarily in New York City, and the East Coast of the United States. He is also Cultural Services Manager and Mission Manager for the community of devotees there.

  • He is Here! — After years of searching and practicing world religions, Dennis discovered Adi Da Samraj in 1979, when he heard a radio broadcast-interview which featured some of Adi Da's early devotees. A profound and beautiful relationship to His Spiritual Master ensued.

  • The Relationship to Adi Da After His Lifetime video — This video begins with longtime devotee, Anthony Costabile, describing how the relationship to Adi Da is manifesting after the end of Adi Da's human lifetime. Then at 2:29, Adi Da also speaks on this subject. This is an excerpt from a talk He gave on April 16, 1995, "Love is How I Got To Here". You can read a transcript of much more of this talk here. The talk is also available as a CD here. At 6:43, Dennis talks about the direct relationship to Adi Da after His lifetime.

Jonathan Condit

 

Jonathan Condit has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He was also Adi Da's senior editorial assistant for many years. He received his Ph.D. in music, writing a dissertation on Korean music. He was ordained as a Buddhist monk, and practiced in that capacity until the moment when he recognized Adi Da as the "Maitreya Buddha".

  • Adi Da's Teaching as Transmission video — This video clip includes: Commentary from Jonathan; an excerpt from an Avataric Discourse by Adi Da ("My Teaching is a Direct Transmission of Me") on October 28, 2005; and commentary from Megan Anderson of the Adidam Editorial Department.

  • Creating a New Spiritual Tradition video — Jonathan tells the story of the moment when Adi Da "captured his heart", while he was an ordained Buddhist monk. At the time, Jonathan had an immediate recognition of Adi Da as "Maitreya Buddha". He describes how his recognition deepened over time: "All the premonitions of a 'great being to come' [Maitreya] are unbelievably pale in comparison to the actuality of Avatar Adi Da."

  • On the Future Publication of Adi Da's Word (video) — Jonathan tells a humorous story about the future publication of all Adi Da's Teaching that has yet to be published.

  • Recognition Of Me Is Liberation: Overview (video) — Jonathan provides an overview of the new book, Recognition Of Me Is Liberation. His overview includes audio excerpts of Adi Da speaking on the subject of recognition.

  • The Silver Hall (video) — The Silver Hall is a set-apart hall in Adi Da's home on Naitauba, Fiji. Adi Da uses this hall for the purpose of "Transmission Sittings" during which He Initiates his mature devotees into the Spiritual dimension of the relationship to Him. The Silver Hall continues to be used for this very special purpose, after Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi. Interviewed immediately after a Silver Hall Sitting, Jonathan describes his experience of Adi Da's Spiritual Transmission.

  • The Making and Organization of The Aletheon (video) — This two-part series is presented by Jonathan and includes extraordinary footage of Avatar Adi Da working on The Aletheon.

  • The Mummery Documentary — Jonathan was featured in a documentary about the making of the first full theater production of Adi Da's epic work, The Mummery, in January, 2000, at The Mountain Of Attention. (Jonathan was a production consultant.)

Alan Corne

 

Alan Corne has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He has also been a professional musician and drummer for many years, and has played extensively in Adi Da's Company both for Sacred Celebration offerings, and in intimate circumstances of various kinds.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip created by Alan that is set to "Celestial Spheres", a piece he composed and performed.

Anthony Costabile

 

Anthony Costabile has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1975. With an M.A. in Education, he has been a professional school teacher and administrator. He is the Director of the Adidam Midwest Center in Chicago. He has served as a writer and lecturer, producing monographs, educational materials, and numerous articles about Adi Da Samraj and the Reality-Way of Adidam, including his recent CESNUR paper, "The Restoration of Spiritual Culture", and his article, "Disciples, Fools, and Enlightenment". Mr. Costabile has lived in Adidam sanctuaries in California, Hawaii, and Fiji. He travels internationally, speaking about Adi Da Samraj, introducing Adi Da's Wisdom-Teaching to a variety of public audiences, and leading public retreats (most recently, in April, 2013). He is currently doing a series of public lectures and courses based on Adi Da’s ultimate Revelatory Work, The Aletheon.

  • The Book Landed on the Floor in Front of My Feet — In 1974, Anthony was a young seeker, living in the Denver/Boulder area, and given to browsing spiritual bookshops. As he was browsing in the yoga and spirituality section of one of those shops, Adi Da's Knee Of Listening suddenly "fell" off the shelf, landed on the floor in front of his feet, and changed his life.

  • The Call To Be Love (And To Live As Love In All Relations) — Anthony's article about the ordeal necessary to earn emotional-sexual self-understanding.

  • The Relationship to Adi Da After His Lifetime video — This video begins with Anthony describing how the relationship to Adi Da is manifesting after the end of Adi Da's human lifetime. Then at 2:29, Adi Da also speaks on this subject. This is an excerpt from a talk He gave on April 16, 1995, "Love is How I Got To Here". You can read a transcript of much more of this talk here. The talk is also available as a CD here. At 6:43, another longtime devotee, Dennis Coccaro, talks about the direct relationship to Adi Da after His lifetime.

  • I Felt You Above and Beyond and Everywhere — Anthony describes his reception of Adi Da's Transmission.

  • Daji Megan Fear-No-More — Anthony writes about Daji Megan. Until the early 1980's, a German Shepherd named Megan lived with Adi Da at The Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary. Adi Da loved him dearly, and it soon became obvious that Megan wished only to serve his Spiritual Master as devoted friend and protector. He did so for nearly eight years. Daji Megan's burial site is at the entrance to Fear-No-More Zoo, a tangible sign of his guardianship.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video of Anthony being interviewed by Never Not Here TV; and a video he narrates about an upcoming retreat at The European Danda.

  • Devotee Books — Our Devotee Book section includes Anthony's book, Avataric Revelation and the Restoration of Spiritual Culture.

Paula Crema

 

Paula Crema is an artist who is well-known for her exquisite mother of pearl, bronze and silver table sculptures.

  • Audio/Video Library — In this video clip, Paula speaks about the exhibition of Adi Da Samraj's image-art at the Cenacolo di Ognissanti, in February, 2008.

Bruce Czopek

 
Bruce Czopek has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years, and was the manager of the Da Love-Ananda Mahal Sanctuary from 2003 to 2011. He also maintains a blog and paints.
  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Da Love-Ananda Mahal that Bruce helped to create.

Jym Daly

 
Jym Daly has been a devotee of Adi Da for a number of years. He is one of the founders of Fidget Feet, Ireland’s foremost Aerial Dance Theatre Company.
  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a number of experimental video clips created by Jym.

Catherine Dames

 
Catherine Dames became a devotee of Adi Da Samraj in 1985. She has had a particular interest in animal welfare, and was the founder of and national organizer for Animal Aid in England. She was active in animal welfare projects from 1977 to 1984. As a devotee, Catherine has served as a priest and educator. She lives in the European Danda, in Holland.
  • I Knew He Was the Divine Being in Human Bodily Form — Catherine: "At a certain point into the video, I felt a strange but very pleasant feeling between my eyebrows, as if an electric charge was plugged into that spot. When I looked at the Guru, I felt completely overwhelmed with Joy. His bodily expression of total Happiness and Freedom were such as I had never seen before in any man or woman."

 

 
Dennis Dardzinski is a longtime devotee of Adi Da. He is a contributor to the Adidam Academy's "Easy Death" classes, as "a 'sensitive' who is able to communicate with the recently deceased."
  • "She Is With Me" — A story of the illness and death transition of Cathy Lewis, as told by Cathy, her intimates, and other friends (including Dennis).

Ram Krishna Das

 

Ram Krishna Das is a learned singer of Indian ragas.

Nina Davis

 
Nina Davis was Adi Da's first devotee. She met Him in 1961, while they both were attending Stanford University. Over the years, Nina has served Adi Da's work of liberating all beings (including His Own Re-Awakening in September, 1970) in a wide variety of ways (some of which Adi Da writes about in His autobiography, The Knee Of Listening).
  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes several videos (here and here) of Nina remembering the early days in Adi Da's development of the culture of Adidam.

Laura deBaun

 
Laura deBaun has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1988. She is a California-licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. For many years, she has been caring for Holy Sites at the Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary.

Andre Decio

 
Andre Decio has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years.
  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video of a Darshan Andre attended, and which he writes about.

  • The Divine IS Everyone and Everything —Andre: "Let me try to tell you about the deepest yearning of the human heart, and how it was fulfilled beyond measure, by the truth of all."

Andre Decio

 
Colin Decio is a distinguished British composer and concert pianist. He is the winner of the John Ireland Chamber Music Prize and the Birmingham Midland Institute Composition Prize. One of his works for full orchestra, Cosmic Mandala, was inspired by Adi Da's teaching about death, after death, and the nature of Reality. For more about Colin, visit his website.

Brian Deschamp

 

Brian Deschamp is a former Senior Advisor to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.

  • Audio/Video Library — In this video, Brian talks with great fondness about hosting Adi Da's visit to the United Nations, in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1996, and how Adi Da's Blessing (and being Adi Da's "instrument" for conducting that Blessing in the right time and place) helped serve his work with the United Nations. He also discusses the uniqueness of Adi Da's Teaching and Revelation in the history of the world's great spiritual traditions.

Margaret Dempsey

 
Margaret Dempsey has been a devotee of Adi Da since 2014. She was a teacher of kundalini yoga, and the author of Female Kundalini. She was the organizer of the Kundalini UK Conference 2013.
  • The Baby on My Shoulder — Margaret: "One night, I had a dream. I was standing in my kitchen, looking out to sea, and I had a baby on my shoulder. Because of how the baby was positioned, I couldn't see the baby's face, so I leaned back a little to look — and got the shock of my life when I recognised it as the face of Adi Da when He was a baby."

Ashoka Dhar

 
Ashoka Dhar is the first female dhrupad singer in India. She is the oldest disciple of the Late Ustad Nasir Aminuddin Dagar Sahab of the great Dhrupad Maestro (one of the senior Dagar brothers). She lives in Kolkota, where she teaches at the Ustad Moinuddin Dagar Dhrupad Ashram. She was blessed to make a pilgrimage to Adi Da Samrajashram and receive the Darshan of Bhagavan Adi Da Samraj.

Rishabh Dhar

 
Rishabh Dhar is a master dhrupad player. He lives in Calcutta, India, and is the son of the first lady dhrupad singer in India, Ashoka Dhar. Rishabh travels around the world giving concerts and workshops. He has been a visiting faculty member at many universities (including London University), and has worked as a composer and producer in the television and film industry.
  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes an interview with Rishabh, where he talks about living in the house of his music Guru for twenty years; and his time with Adi Da Samraj.

Margaret Dickow

 

Margaret Dickow has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years.

  • A Gift of LifeMargaret tells the story of her eleven-year-old niece's miraculous recovery from a skiing accident, through the Grace of Avatar Adi Da.

Mary Anne diFranco

 

Mary Anne diFranco is a nutritionist. She has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1999.

  • A Sphere of Love and Compassion — Mary Anne tells of being drawn in meditation into a Sphere of love and compassion, which purified the difficulties in her relationship with her intimate partner.

Douglass Dixon

 
Douglass Dixon has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years.
  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes several videos from Douglass.

Elaine Dixon

 

Elaine Dixon is a musician, composer, and singer. She has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years.

Angelo Druda

 

Angelo Druda has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He is a certified practitioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine, a member of the Australian Natural Therapist Association, and a senior educator in Mate Moce, the Ministry established by Adi Da Samraj to instruct human beings about the death process, and serve their transition. He is the author of The Tao of Rejuvenation and The Easy Death Workbook.

  • "Send Him My Love and Blessings" — Angelo Druda tells a miraculous story of the Blessing-Power of Avatar Adi Da Samraj — the Power that transcends space and time, body and mortality — to serve Bernie Kelly's passing, and communicate the Love of the Divine Heart to the need of the human heart.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video of Angelo being interviewed by Scott Morrow of The Blue OK about his book, The Tao of Rejuvenation.

Byron Duckwall

 

Byron Duckwall has been a devotee of Adi Da, a concert cellist, and a musical composer for many years.

Dennis Duff

 

Dennis Duff was one of Avatar Adi Da's earliest devotees. He provided the funds for the purchase of The Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary. In the early years, Dennis was one of Adidam's principal missionaries. More recently, Dennis became one of Adi Da's patrons and a supporter of His Image-Art. He is the former CEO and owner of a nationwide internet marketing company in the United States.

  • Growth as a Patron — Dennis's story about commiting to being Adi Da's patron and learning how to do that.

Bill Dunkelberger

 

Bill Dunkelberger is a retired U.S. Army lieutenant-colonel, experienced in writing strategic military estimates and in intelligence operations. Bill is a veteran of the Vietnam War, where he led an intelligence battalion. He was the devotee principally responsible for the flow of news to Avatar Adi Da during the Kosovo war. He is also a course instructor in the Adidam Academy.

Nick Elias

 

Nick Elias has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years. He is a freelance photographer and a videographer who has made many of Adidam's introductory videos over the years.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes several video clips from Nick about Adi Da's life and work. He also provided camera work for a documentary about the making of the first full theater production of Adi Da's epic work, The Mummery, in January, 2000, at The Mountain Of Attention.

Paul Embling

 

Paul Embling is a devotee of Adi Da Samraj from New Zealand. Some of Paul's music can be found here.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a slideshow of photos of Adi Da set to music composed by Paul.

Gilbert Evans

 

Gilbert Evans has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years, and is a longtime resident of Adi Da Samrajashram.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Gilbert describing the damage wrought on Naitauba by Cyclone Tomas, in March of 2010.

Simon Llewelyn Evans

 

Simon Llewelyn Evans is a musician, composer, and singer currently living in Victoria, Australia.

Tom Evert

 

Tom Evert has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. A world-class dancer, teacher and choreographer, Tom Evert is the founder and artistic director of DANCEVERT, a nonprofit performing arts and educational programming organization, in which he is joined by his co-director, wife, and dancer, Susana Weingarten. His critical acclaim and maturity as a performing artist developed while performing and touring nationally and internationally with the Paul Taylor Dance Company for eight years (1977-1985). He has served on the faculties of universities, as well as professional companies, art centers and private studios.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a number of video clip of Susan Weingarten and/or Tom Evert choreographing and performancing dances based on the Wisdom of Adi Da (here and here).

Kathleen Ewart

 

Kathleen Ewart has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1979. She has lived and served Adi Da mainly on Naitauba, Fiji since 1986. Her principal services have included transcribing Adi Da Samraj's spoken communications and tending the most sacred holy sites established by Adi Da.

  • Reality as Happiness as Avatar Adi Da Samraj — Her account of recognizing Avatar Adi Da Samraj as All-Pervading Happiness.

  • Naitauba, Naitauba — Composed and sung by Kathleen, singing in Adi Da's voice about the Spiritual purpose of the island of Naitauba.

  • "Just Happy and Free" — Kathleen Ewart describes how Adi Da used the circumstance of dancing to instruct her in the Master-devotee relationship and the inherent ecstasy of surrender to the Guru.

Petrus Faller

 

Petrus Faller has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1994. He lives in Freiberg, Germany and runs several companies: Booja-Booja, a British gourmet company whose vegan and mostly raw ice cream desserts and organic vegan truffles have received 45 awards in the past decade or so; and The Green Gorilla Surfs In Peace, a line of natural clothes, bags, caps, and perfume.

Keith Ferrone

 

Keith Ferrone is the director of the Florence Dance Company. He has collaborated with Adi Da (using Adi Da's Image-Art) in his production of Quattro Maggiore ("The Four Seasons"), and has continued to use Adi Da's Image-Art (after Adi Da's death) in the more recent work, Divina.com.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a couple of video clips (here and here) of Keith Ferrone talking about these productions.

Solo Finau

 

Solo Finau has been a Fijian devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years, and is a longtime resident of Adi Da Samrajashram.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Solo describing the damage wrought on Naitauba by Cyclone Tomas, in March of 2010.

Angela Fine

 

Angela Fine is a musician, composer, and singer. She became a devotee of Adi Da in 1997.

Tanja Fleischmann

 

Tanja Fleischmann is the head of Fleishmannfilm, which does professional camera work for Dutch national television, promofilms, and artshow registration. musician, composer, and singer.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes DaPlastique video clips (here and here) for which Tanja did the camera work.

Da-vid Forsythe

 

Da-vid Forsythe has been a devotee of Adi Da since the mid-1970's. He was in a Ph.D. program in neurophysiology and behavior at Princeton University, with the intention of pursuing a career in science, when he came across the Teaching of Adi Da Samraj. He has lived and served on Adidam's Sanctuaries for many years. For many years now, he has been living and serving at Adi Da Samrajashram. (Da-vid's born name is David. It was during the time of the story below that Avatar Adi Da reshaped his name to "Da-vid", acknowledging his devotion. His name, now hyphenated, it means one whose life — "vid" — is in Da, or one whose real life is given by Da.)

  • "Try the Suppository" — Much of the Work Adi Da does with His devotees involves their emotional character alone (without involving their sexuality). Da-vid's story is a beautiful illustration of how Adi Da works with some common male character liabilities that negatively impact Spiritual growth.

Peter Frank

 

Peter Frank is the Senior Curator at the Riverside Art Museum and an art critic for Angeleno Magazine. He is an occasional contributor to The Huffington Post. He was a long-time critic for LA Weekly, a past editor of Visions Art Quarterly, and an art critic for The Village Voice and The SoHo Weekly News in New York. He was the Co-Curator of "Transcendental Realism: The Art of Adi Da Samraj" at the 2007 Venice Biennale, and the Moderator of the Art Panel, "Orpheus in the Modern World", at "Orpheus and Linead", the exhibition of Adi Da's image-art at the Sundaram Tagore Gallery in Beverly Hills, CA, 2011.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Peter Frank talking about Adi Da's image-art. He is also featured in this video clip.

Naamleela Free Jones

 

Naamleela Free Jones is Avatar Adi Da's youngest daughter. Naamleela has been trained as a sacred musician since the age of five, concentrating in both Western and Indian classical music. While travelling in California, Hawaii, New York, and Europe, she received training from numerous sources and influences; she received a master certificate in music production from the Berklee College of Music Online. She has composed and performed piano preludes for the Florence Dance Company productions, Divina.com and Not-Two Is Peace. More recently, she has taken up a new direction in her life: religious studies. In 2015, she received her B.A. in religious studies summa cum laude from U.C. Berkeley. (She was selected as the "most distinguished graduate in Religious Studies" in the class of 2015.)

Tamarind Free Jones

 

Tamarind Free Jones is one of Adi Da's daughters. She has been studying North Indian Classical vocal and instrumental music under Maestro Ali Akbar Khan since 1993, and has performed in many of the Ali Akbar College of Music's concerts and festivals. She also teaches supplementary classes at the college and mentors new students.

Ben Fugitt

 

Ben Fugitt has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He currently lives in Hawaii.

  • Look the Fire in the Eye — On September 17, 1979, a hot and dry day, fire threatened the Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary. Ben, then a devotee caretaker of the Sanctuary, noticed the initial tuft of smoke, and sprang into action. He soon discovered that the fire was out of control, and heading on a direct line for the Sanctuary. He never anticipated the adventure Adi Da would involve him in that day.

Michael Gabriele

 

Michael Gabriele has been a devotee of Adi Da since the late 1990's. He lives in Rhode Island, and at various times has been a writer, a musician, and an artist.

Alaya Gernon

 

Alaya Gernon was just beginning the process of returning to being Adi Da's devotee when Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi occurred in November, 2008. She is now a devotee, and is the manager of the Publicity and Public Relations Program in the Mission Division of Adidam.

  • No Doubts Whatsoever — Alaya: "Suddenly, Adi Da Himself appeared in the room, life size. He was sitting right in front of me. . . And then — suddenly, it was Ramana Maharshi sitting in front of me!"

  • Suddenly a Foot and Thumb Appeared — "The Murti changed to simply light as it often does for me. Suddenly, within the Murti, a foot and and thumb appeared. The thumb then extended and burst into my third eye."

  • "What Is This Photograph?"Alaya tells of an extraordinary Revelation one of her non-devotee treatment clients received (in June, 2015), while looking at a photo of Adi Da, in which he saw Adi Da blinking and breathing in the "photo".

  • That Photograph Again — Alaya tells the story of a little girl who receives an extraordinary Revelation from Adi Da.

Stuart Gibson

 

Stuart Gibson is Secretary to the State Hermitage Museum International Advisory Board and a UNESCO senior expert consultant on museums and museology. He was the Director of Adi Da's 2007 Venice Biennale solo collateral exhibition.

Bill Gottlieb

 

Bill Gottlieb is the former editor-in-chief of Rodale Books and Prevention Magazine Health Books, and the author of five books on health and healing, including the 1.5 million-copy bestseller, Alternative Cures (Rodale, 2000). Click here to visit his website.

Martin Goulding

 

Martin Goulding became a devotee of Adi Da Samraj in 1984. He has a passion for history, culture and the spiritual process.

George Greer

 

George Greer was trained as a US Navy pilot and an engineering psychologist. He has a Ph.D. in psychology and led a professional career as a senior manager for one of the giant U.S. aerospace companies. He has served as a senior manager for Adidam and has been a principal Adidam missionary in the United States.

  • He is Certainly The First — George's "take" on Adi Da's description of Himself as the "First, Last, and Only" seventh stage Adept.

Alex Grey

 

Alex Grey's portrait of Adi DaAlex Grey is a renowned artist, and the author of Transfigurations and Sacred Mirrors and The Mission of Art. His work has been included in the album art of such popular rock groups as Nirvana and the Beastie Boys and a book of songs by the Talking Heads. Healers, body workers and "new age" figures including Matthew Fox, Joan Borysenko and Deepak Chopra have all used his work to describe the dimensions of body, mind and spirit. Grey's artwork has been exhibited worldwide, including Stux Gallery, the New Museum in NYC, and the Grand Palais in Paris.

  • Only the Divine Presence — Alex writes about the profundity of his encounter with Adi Da, and about his subsequent painting of Adi Da.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Alex Grey talking about Adi Da's image-art.

Ian Griffin

 

Ian Griffin is head of Executive Communications. He has extensive experience writing speeches for senior executives at Silicon Valley technology companies such as Hewlett Packard and Sun Microsystems.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip in which Ian gives a presentation to the National Speakers Association (NSA) 'Pro-Track' class, in which he discusses the importance of Adi Da's book, Not-Two Is Peace. Ian also plays the role of interviewer in a video series in which Meg McDonnell talks with her father, Dr. Robert McDonnell, about working together on her book, Tasting the Moon: Adventures in the Meaning of Life.

Laine Griffith

 

Laine Griffith is a Kauai resident and a music professor.

Katya Grineva

 

Katya Grineva is a world-renowned concert pianist. She has played throughout the United States, Guam, Europe, South America, Africa, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Australia, and the Philippines. She is the only female solo pianist to have performed in the distinguished Carnegie Hall Isaac Stern auditorium a record 14 times. Katya has acquired a reputation as a pianist of exceptional romantic/poetic expression; the New York Times describes her playing as "liquid...dreamlike." Ms. Grineva has been a soloist with the Acadiana Symphony, the ARS Nova Musicians Chamber Orchestra, the Manhattan Virtuosi Orchestra and the European Philharmonic Orchestra in France. She has given a private concert for former President George H. W. Bush. Her recitals have captivated audiences at the Laurier Society in Paris and in one of the most prestigious concert halls in Paris, Salle Gaveau. She has played for Adi Da at the Mountain Of Attention, and received His Blessing.

Katya (as she dedicated one of her Carnegie Hall concerts to Adi Da): It is my privilege to give this concert in honor of Adi Da Samraj. I was very fortunate to perform for Him four times during His life. Every time it was a very deep and profound experience and led to an incredible artistic inspiration and spiritual awareness. I love Him with all my heart.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes two clips from a June 12, 2009 tribute concert Katya gave at Carnegie Hall, which she dedicated to Adi Da.

Emily Grinnell

 

Emily Grinnell grew up on a dairy farm on the coast of Massachusetts, and studied creative writing as well as receiving eight years of fine arts training at several art schools. She became a devotee of Avatar Adi Da Samraj in 1975, at the age of 24. She lived and served at Adi Da Samrajashram for ten years, participating in hundreds of hours of considerations of the practice of the Way of Adidam in Adi Da Samraj's personal company. Over the years she has focused her energies in the Sacred fine arts of painting, design, and decorations, as well as priestly services, service to Adidam's Sacred Archives, and writing.

  • Extraordinary Eyes — Emily describes how Adi Da used the circumstance of His own dancing to reveal Himself as the Divine Person to her.

Ben Grisso

 

Ben Grisso grew up in the Adidam community as Adi Da's devotee. He spent the last few years before Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi (in November, 2008) serving Adi Da on Adi Da Samrajashram in the creation of His Image-Art.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Ben offering a testimonial to the life and work of Adi Da Samraj, and describing working with Adi Da on His Image-Art.

Terence Gross

 

Terence Gross is a multi-award winning film director and writer with credits that span US and UK feature films, commercials, television documentaries, high-end promotional films, and multi-media. He has worked with some of the greatest actors and sports personalities of our generation and has been critically acclaimed for his unique visual style. He wrote and directed the award-winning Hotel Splendide (starring Daniel Craig and Toni Collette) and directed The Day The World Ended (starring Nastassja Kinski and Randy Quaid). His clients have included Sony Columbia, BBC, Discovery Channel, HBO, and the UK Department of Transport. For more, visit the website of his production company, The Wild Night Company.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a documentary directed by Terence on the making of the first full theater production of Adi Da's epic work, The Mummery, in January, 2000, at The Mountain Of Attention.

Rosa Guilfoyle

 

Rosa Guilfoyle is a musician, composer, and singer. She has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years.

Eileen Haight

 

Eileen Haight (aka Eileen Mulvihill) began reading the Teaching of Adi Da in 1973. She became His devotee in 1980. A member of Adidam's Mate Moce Guild (whose members serve the dying and their death transition), Eileen presently lives and serves in the devotee community of Trinidad, California. She is the author of Alzheimer's Caregiver: The Choice of Love.

Eija Halme

 

Eija Halme grew up in Finland, but has lived abroad since 1988, and is currently living in the Netherlands. She has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1989. She helps promote retreats at the European Danda, and has co-hosted events for Adidam Finland.

  • 35 Years With My Master — Along with Jasmine Wynant, Eija hosted this event in Helsinki, which featured James Steinberg as guest speaker.

Lyn Hart

 

Lyn Hart is an administrator and businesswoman. She has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1989.

  • He Is Alive — Lyn tells of being contacted psychically and instructed by Avatar Adi Da over a period of several years before she had any idea of Who He was or that He was alive in this world.

Peter Harvey-Wright

 

Peter Harvey-Wright has been a devotee of Adi Da and a professional actor and producer for many years. (For more, visit Peter's IMDB page.) He is the Manager of the Media Department of the Adidam Institution, and is a member of Da Orpheum (The First Room Theatre Guild).

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a clip in which Peter provides the introductory narrative (with his distinctive Australian accent); and a documentary about the making of the first full theater production of Adi Da's epic work, The Mummery, in January, 2000, at The Mountain Of Attention, featuring Peter as the producer of The Mummery.

Stanley Hastings

 

Stanley Hastings grew up as a devotee of Adi Da Samraj. Stanley has always been passionate about Avatar Adi Da's Art work and has served Adi Da personally in His Art process in many different capacities. At the present time, Stanley manages the fabrication process of Adi Da's Image-Art, and is one of the spokespeople for Adi Da in this area. Stanley is the Co-Director of Da Plastique, the group that presents Avatar Adi Da's Art to the public.

  • Suffering the Pain of Mankind — A story of Stanley touching Avatar Adi Da Samraj's body and being given a vision of His vulnerable non-separation from the world of universal human suffering.
  • Image-Art Testimonial (video) — This video appreciation of Adi Da's Image-Art begins with a testimonial from Stanley. Then, at 9:34, we hear various art professionals express their appreciation of Adi Da's Image-Art. This is followed (at 13:14) by a slideshow of photos drawn from some the Exhibitions of Adi Da's Image-Art, from 2001-2009. The video concludes (at 18:58) with a slideshow of photos of Adi Da creating His Image-Art from 1998-2008.

Daniel Hebert

 

Daniel Hebert has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He also has acted in and directed Adi Da's The Mummery Book, as a member of Da Orpheum (The First Room Theatre Guild) for many years.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a documentary about the making of the first full theater production of Adi Da's epic work, The Mummery, in January, 2000, at The Mountain Of Attention, featuring Daniel as actor in and director of The Mummery.

Anne Henderson

 

Anne Henderson has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da since 1976. She has served Adidam as a writer, editor, educator, and public speaker since 1982, and as a chronicler of Bhagavan Adi Da's Life and Spiritual Work between 1993 and 1999. In addition to being part of the teaching staff at the Adidam Academy, Anne currently hosts and directs the Adidam Study Group program and serves the Third Congregation of Adidam.

  • A Laser-Like “Beam” of Energy Shot Out of My Heart — Anne describes an amazing event that occurred when she was giving a public presentation about Adi Da.

  • Everything Looked Like LoveAnne describes how, one night in January, 2013, Adi Da was suddenly in the room, transforming it and her with His Love — and she was instantly, Gracefully relieved of a reactive pattern that she had suffered for decades.

  • A State of Absolute Freedom — Anne: "I was sitting at the dining room table in the late morning. Suddenly, there was what Bhagavan Adi Da would call a 'transformation of view'. . ."

  • Adidam Academy — We have a page that lists the Academy courses offered by Anne.

Terry Henry

 

Terry Henry is one of the founders of this site. He has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1999. He is currently the CEO of the Adidam Institution.

Chandira Hensey

 

Chandira Hensey has been a strong supporter of Adi Da and His Mission through her blogs, videos, and personal communications.

Lex Hixon

 

Lex Hixon (1941 - 1995) was a religious scholar, mystic, and radio interviewer who extensively explored the great religious traditions. He received a Ph.D. in comparative religion at Columbia University in 1976 and lectured at the New School of Social Research. He hosted the show, "In the Spirit", on WBAI from 1972 to 1989. He founded Free Spirit Journal, and documented his explorations in nine books and many articles.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes the 1974 film, A Difficult Man: The Miraculous Activities and Radical Spiritual Teachings of Bubba Free John. Lex introduced the film, speaking about the spiritual traditions of the past and Adi Da's new spiritual offering.

Keith Ferrone

 

Sophia Hoadley is a New Zealand devotee of Adi Da.

Lex Hixon

 

Gregory Hoblit is the Emmy Award-winning executive producer of such well-known television series as Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law, and NYPD Blue. He also directed several major movies, including Primal Fear (1996, with Richard Gere), Fallen (1998, with Denzel Washington), Frequency (2000, with Dennis Quaid), Hart's War (2002, with Bruce Willis), and Untraceable (2008, with Diane Lane).

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes the 1974 film, A Difficult Man: The Miraculous Activities and Radical Spiritual Teachings of Bubba Free John. Gregory was the producer and director of A Difficult Man. It was his first film, and it jump-started his career. Steven Bochko (who would eventually co-produce Hill Street Blues with Hoblit) "had seen and admired Hoblit's documentary, A Difficult Man, about the Northern California Guru Bubba Free John, and later hired him to produce Paris, then Vampire." (p. 252, Todd Gitlin, Inside Prime Time)
Tom Jacobs
 

Tom Jacobs has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1983. He is currently a resident of Adi Da Samrajashram. He manages the shipping and travel of goods and pilgrims from over the world who come to Adi Da Samrajashram on retreat. He also manages the island's fruit tree resources: the pruning, harvesting, replanting, etc.

  • He Is God — Tom's story about how he found Adi Da: "There was a Force like an enormous bolt of electricity entering through the top of my head and pinning me utterly to the ground. I was beside myself, and just ran outside through the snow, up the hill and to Robin's house. I just burst open her front door. She was standing in the kitchen. I yelled: 'He is God!' She looked at me and said: 'yes, I know.' "

  • Interview with Tom Jacobs — On February 24, 2013, Tom was featured on a popular Dutch TV program, De Reunie ("The Reunion"), which is seen by two million viewers. The interview explores Tom's life as a devotee of Adi Da, and then explores a tragedy on Tom's early life (the trauma of which was completely relieved by Adi Da, as Tom describes).
Theo Cedar Jones
 

Theo Cedar Jones has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 2001. He is a rock musician (the frontman, guitarist and lyricist of the group, Swaybone) and an avid advocate of Adi Da Samraj and His wisdom about world peace.

  • "This is the God for me!" — In this radio interview (with Aaron Joy), Theo describes how he became Adi Da's devotee; how Adi Da transformed his entire manner of singing and his craft of songwriting; and the creative challenge of communicating Adi Da's Presence and Teaching through the medium of rock.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes many video clips from Theo.

Aaron Joy

 

Aaron Joy is a music critic, author, and interviewer, and a devotee of Adi Da. He runs the blog talk radio station, Roman Midnight Music: CD Reviews and Interviews.

  • "This is the God for me!" — Aaron interviews rock musician, Theo Cedar Jones. Theo describes how he became Adi Da's devotee; how Adi Da transformed his entire manner of singing and his craft of songwriting; and the creative challenge of communicating Adi Da's Presence and Teaching through the medium of rock.

Karl Kaiser

 

Karl Kaiser owns a software company in Florida and has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da since 1999. He serves the Adidam Mission in Florida.

  • "My Self Is In My Heart" — The story of a young boy's remarkable relationship with Avatar Adi Da over the course of several years, as told by his father (Karl).

Hellie Kalogeros

 

Hellie Kalogeros has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1972.

  • A Bargain With God — Hellie tells an amazing story of a little girl making a bargain with God, and how — years later — God appeared in person and kept that bargain.

  • A Dream Encounter — Hellie's amazing "time travel" story illustrates how the devotee's relationship with Adi Da is literally prior to time and space.

  • Saving a Life in Future Time — Adi Da teaches devotee Hellie Kalogeros the Heimlich maneuver so that she can save the life of her child a few days later.

  • The Turning of the Flowers — Hellie: "Suddenly, in a vase just outside Beloved Adi Da's bedroom door on a small table about twelve feet away from me, one flower magically broke off its stem and literally flew across the room and landed directly at my feet!"

Vinod Karki

 

Vinod Karki is a devotee of Adi Da originally from Uttar Pradesh in northern India. He has served Adi Da's Work in Gurgaon, India, and was blessed to make pilgrimage to Adi Da Samrajashram for Adi-Guru Purnima in 2007 and 2008.

Michel Karman

 

Michel Karman is world-renowned as a master printer. His services are in great demand by many well-known photographers including Helmut Newton, Sally Mann, Nan Goldin and Greg Gorman. Recently, The Corbis Collection invited Michel to hand-select and print 75 of the archive's most striking (some never before) images, and give them new life in a special limited-edition presentation, "The Living Lens: 75 Limited Edition Prints from the Bettmann Archive."

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Michel Karman talking about Adi Da's image-art.

Ross Keen

 

Ross Keen, D.O., is a licensed Osteopathic physician in New Zealand. He is also trained in Naturopathy, kinesiology, Rolfing, acupuncture and numerous forms of massage. He has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1992.

Crane Kirkbride

 

Crane Kirkbride has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1974, and has also been Adi Da's patron for many years. You can read more about him on his website.

Bill Krenz

 

Bill Krenz has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years. He has lived and served Adi Da for many of those years on Naitauba, where he currently manages the Naitauba Organic Farm.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes several video slideshows Bill put together on the work of the Naitauba Organic Farm, and another video of an unprecedented 200 frigate birds surfing the Naitauba winds just as Tropical Cyclone Bune was forming.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library also includes a video clip of Bill describing the damage wrought on Naitauba by Cyclone Tomas, in March of 2010.

Michele Krueger

 

Michele Krueger has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years. She is the Lake County Coordinator for California Poets In The Schools. She also is the manager of the Adidam Bookstore at The Mountain Of Attention.

Rachel Kuhn

 

Rachel Kuhn grew up in the Adidam community as Adi Da's devotee.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Rachel offering a testimonial to the life and work of Adi Da Samraj.

Donald Kuspit

 
Donald Kuspit is one of America’s most distinguished art critics. Winner of the prestigious Frank Jewett Mather Award for Distinction in Art Criticism (1983), given by the College Art Association, Professor Kuspit is a Contributing Editor at Artforum, Sculpture, New Art Examiner, and Tema Celeste magazines, the Editor of Art Criticism, and on the advisory board of Centennial Review. He has doctorates in philosophy (University of Frankfurt) and art history (University of Michigan), as well as degrees from Columbia University, Yale University, and Pennsylvania State University. He is Professor of Art History and Philosophy at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, and has been the A. D. White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University (1991 - 1997).
  • The Female Nude in the Art of Adi Da Samraj — "It is a rare artist who can convey, convincingly, the sense of being face to face with the source of being. Adi Da can clearly live in the depths without succumbing to their pressure, bringing back pearls of art to prove it."

Victor Lagasse

 

Victor Lagasse has been a devotee of Bhagavan Adi Da since 1975. He is a professional arborist and landscaper. He has lived and served for extended periods on three principal Sanctuaries: Adi Da Samrajashram in Fiji, Da Love-Ananda Mahal in Hawaii, and the Mountain Of Attention in northern California.

  • Recognition of the Master — Victor: "I saw Bubba alternatively become Swami Nityananda, Swami Muktananda, and Ramana Maharshi. ... I remember feeling very deeply that this was a relationship that had gone on for aeons of time. He had been my Master, and I His devotee for aeons of time."

Ervin Laszlo

 

Dr. Ervin Laszlo is the founder of the Club of Budapest World-Shift Network.

  • Audio/Video Library — In this video, Laszlo talks about the "Deeper Level" that Adi Da is "plugged into" and from which the wisdom in Adi Da's book Not-Two Is Peace comes, and with which all others can resonate and connect, enabling world transformation. He also talks about the timeliness of Adi Da's call for a Global Cooperative Forum.

Lassi Lammassaari

 

Lassi Lammassaari has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1998.

  • The Room Exploded Into Brightness — Lassi: "I sat down to read the book. I felt like I was breathing in something nectarous from the pages. I totally relaxed. In the next instant, the room exploded into Brightness."

Mike LaTorra

 

Michael LaTorra is a devotee of Adi Da. For many years, he worked as a technical writer for a variety of companies in California and Texas, ranging from small (a Silicon Valley start-up) through medium (100 employees) to large (Fortune 500 size with thousands of employees). He now writes and teaches in Las Cruces, New Mexico, where he is a professor in the English Department at New Mexico State University. He is the author of A Warrior Blends with Life: A Modern Tao. He serves as President and Abbot (Rev. Michael "Gozen" La Torra-Sensai) of the Daibutsuji Zen Temple (the Zen Center of Las Cruces). He is also on the Board of Directors of the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technology and Humanity+.

  • Audio/Video Library — In this video, Mike gives the talk, "Where's Heaven?", one of 14 talks by speakers of different religious faiths at the Religion and Transhumanism Conference in Oakland, California, on May 10, 2014. He distinguishes different kinds of "heavens". He introduces Adi Da's "seven stages of life" framework, the Cosmic Mandala (as a "map" for helping to answer the talk's title question), and other esoteric concepts helpful in understanding our ultimate potential.

Dina Lautman

 

Dina Lautman has been a devotee of Adi Da for over 25 years. She has spent significant time in Naitauba, Fiji at Adi Da’s principal Hermitage Sanctuary, Adi Da Samrajashram, where she received direct guidance from Adi Da, both in practical life wisdom and esoteric spiritual practice. Now based in New York, she also travels extensively throughout the world presenting Adi Da's spiritual teachings about right life, including diet, sexuality, meditation and conductivity. Recently, she has been focused on raising awareness about the benefits of the raw vegan diet by promoting Green Gorilla raw treats across the U.S. and around the world.

  • Diet and Climate Change — In this episode of the radio show, A Better World, host Mitchell Rabin conducts a Round Table discussion on the relationship between diet and climate change. He raises the tremendous possibility for both personal-planetary transformation and spiritual growth. Joining Mitchell are Abel Slater and Dina Lautman.

Carolyn Lee

 

Carolyn Lee, Ph.D., graduated in 1970 from Sydney University with a Bachelor of Arts. She received Ph.D. for a dissertation on secular polyphonic music in Spain, 1450-1530. She was subsequently appointed St Leonard's Research Fellow at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland, and senior lecturer in Music in the National University of Ireland. She has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da Samraj since 1985. She has been serving the publication of His Teaching and chronicling His life and work, authoring books that include The Promised God-Man Is Here and Adi Da.

  • Another Reality Was Unveiled — As someone with an academic career in the humanities, Carolyn was familiar with the highest intellectual and artistic achievements of Western civilization. But she was quite unprepared for what happened in her first meeting with Adi Da Samraj.

  • "Find Me Always Present": The Development of Sacramental Worship and Holy Sites in Adidam — In 1978, Avatar Adi Da introduced His devotees to the realm of sacramental worship as a means to enter into Communion with Him whether He was physically present or not. In this excerpt from her book, The Promised God-Man Is Here, Carolyn relays Adi Da's Instruction on the secret behind sacramental worship: if we actively "bring our body-minds to Him" wherever we are, His Revelation will be granted.

  • Hurricane Iwa — Adi Da's unusual Work (in November 1982) with changing the force of a major hurricane.

  • Garbage and the Goddess, Part 1 — Newcomers to the Mountain Of Attention during the first half of 1974 found themselves entering a place of Divine Power. They became immersed in a sea of energy, visions, and other psychic experiences, awakened through contact with the Spirit-Force of Adi Da Samraj. But, as their stories show, what was fundamentally occurring was the utter and overwhelming Revelation of Real God — and, therefore, of the true Nature and Power of Avatar Adi Da.

  • Garbage and the Goddess, Part 2 — Aniello Panico describes his personal experiences of the "Garbage and the Goddess" period: "I felt the Divine Force — literally, tremendous Light and Force — Coming Down and Filling my entire body, Consuming me, as if it was turning every part of me inside out."

  • Related Books by Devotees — Carolyn has written several books about Adi Da and Adidam: The Promised God-Man Is Here, The Avatar of What Is: The Divine Life And Work Of Adi Da, and Adi Da: The Promised God-Man Is Here.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a clip in which Carolyn relates a wonderful story from 1983. While in Adi Da's physical Company in Fiji (five hours from any hospital), a devotee has a near-fatal accident.

Cathy Lewis

 

Cathy Lewis became a devotee of Avatar Adi Da Samraj in 1974 when she was in her early twenties. For two decades, she served Adi Da as a missionary and cultural leader. She was well-known for her devotional relationship with Avatar Adi Da, and she inspired many others in their practice of Adidam.

  • "She Is With Me" — A story of Cathy's illness and death transition, as told by Cathy, her intimates, and other friends.

Jack Lewis

 

Jack Lewis has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He now lives and serves at Tat Sundaram in Northern California.

Sukey Lewis

 

Sukey Lewis was born and raised in the Adidam community as Adi Da's devotee. In 2015, she received a Master's Degree in Journalism from the University of California. She is now a journalist and radio producer in Richmond, California. She has worked with KALW, The Contra Costa Times, Richmond Pulse, and Richmond Confidential. She is now aradio producer and reporter with KQED in San Francisco, where you can hear her on the radio.

  • "She Is With Me" — A story of the illness and death transition of Cathy Lewis, as told by Cathy, Cathy's daughter Sukey, the rest of Cathy's family, and other friends.

Ren-ai Lindley

 

Ren-ai Lindley has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1991. She has lived and served at Adi Da Samrajashram for many years, principally working with Adi Da's Art. She currently lives in New Zealand.

Caroline Lindsay

 

Caroline Lindsay has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a musical video clip in which Caroline contributes her vocal accompaniment.

Paul Litchfield

 

Paul Litchfield has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. His wife, Jane Yang, is also a devotee of Adi Da and has been a Chi Gong Master for over 35 years. She developed a unique style of Chi-Gong she calls Wu-Ji Chi-Gong. She trained Paul in Wu-Ji Chi-Gong, and together, at their Chi Gong Therapy Centre in Melbourne, Australia, they offer their clients both hands-on and distance healing treatments.

  • The Graceful Touch of My Master — Paul tells the story of his time with Adi Da on Naitauba, during October and November, 2008, up to and beyond the day of Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi, including his sittings in the Silver Hall.

Elizabeth Lowe

 

Elizabeth Lowe has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. She was born in Vienna of Jewish parents just as Hitler entered the city in 1938. Her parents fled with her to the United States shortly thereafter. Throughout her life she had been troubled by the appalling human suffering caused by oppression and had been socially active to alleviate such suffering in any way she could.

  • "That is My Work" — Elizabeth tells the story of being washed through Adi Da's Power: "I suddenly found myself kneeling in front of His feet on the chaise, with my head buried between His knees. I was weeping and then screaming with enormous force, my hands resting on His Divine legs for strength and reassurance. I could hardly believe my own ears as the screams seemed to fall out of me into the chaise and the ground below, filling the air with the horror that has always resided in me. There was no particular content — just generalized agony over the horrors of the world."

Ray Lynch

 

Ray Lynch is a longtime devotee of Adi Da and a Billboard award-winning New Age composer. More at his website. "My relationship with Adi Da Samraj over more than 25 years has only confirmed His Realization and the Truth of His impeccable Teaching. He is much more than simply an inspiration for my music, but is really a living demonstration that perfect transcendence is actually possible. This is both a great relief and a great challenge."

John Mackay

 
John Mackay is a jazz pianist, composer, and organist. He has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He studied composition and arranging throughout the 70's with various well-known teachers in Toronto. John moved to the U.S. in the 80's. While in Boston, he worked with Cab Calloway and Leon Marion, among others. John now lives in the Los Angeles area. He has released a number of recordings in the past few years, mostly original compositions, including jazz and sacred vocal music. John's two most recent piano trio recordings have garnered rave reviews and feature him as both a composer and a fine interpreter of other works. More at his website.

In the experimental Adidam album, Danavira (The Hero Of Giving), John drew from a wide variety of musical genres — from Gregorian Chant to Christmas carols — in creating new forms of Adidam devotional music.
  • Rejoice — a choral piece that draws from the modern tradition of atonal choral works (Charles Ives and others).

  • Interlude — a short instrumental piece drawing on the classical music tradition, with symphony clarinetist Bill Somers playing.

  • There Is Only Light— draws on the Qawwali tradition of Sufi devotional music (exemplified by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan). Read Adi Da's appreciation of the Qawwali musical tradition here.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes an audio clip from John's album (with Naamleela Free Jones), Bach In Time.

  • When All Is Gone To Love — Our audio/video library includes this song, which is arranged and mixed by John, and on which he plays piano and flute.

Patrick Mahoney

 

Patrick Mahoney has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da since 1974. He has served within the devotee community as educator for both Avatar Adi Da's children and devotees in general. He has also devoted significant time and energy to the care and preservation of Adi Da's Empowered Hermitages.

  • "Where Have You Been???" — Avatar Adi Da has described the various stage of development we go through in our lives with Great Compassion, and also with Great Humor. In fact, like many sages and wise men, the often obvious twinkle in His Eye and His Spontaneous Humor are Signs of His Free State. Patrick found Avatar Adi Da's Humor the very thing that attracted him in the first place.

Miki Malinka

 

Miki Malinka has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1998, and currently lives on Adi Da Samrajashram.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip introducing the Ancient Walk-About Way, for which Miki was the video editor.

Connie Mantas

 

Connie Mantas, R.N., is a long-time devotee of Adi Da. She participated in "The Garbage and The Goddess" period with Adi Da. She was a registered nurse at the time, and still practices nursing today. She has assisted in the birth of many devotees' children over the years.

  • A Cosmic JourneyAdi Da takes Connie on a guided tour through the various dimensions of the Greater-Than-Material Reality.

  • Crazy Wisdom and a Pregnant Woman — A story about Adi Da Samraj infusing Connie with Spiritual Force by forcefully pressing her belly when she is seven months pregnant.

Cheech Marrero

 

Cheech Marrero has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1972.

  • The "Bright" in the Darkness: How Adi Da Found Me — In 1967, Cheech was imprisoned at Rikers Island Penitentiary, awaiting trial for a crime he had not committed. At a plea bargaining session, he was told that if he pled guilty, he would receive "only" 20 or 30 years, instead of life without parole. Cheech was at the lowest point of his life. He decided to end it all. Just as he was about to do it, a miracle occurred.

  • Herbie the Goat — Cheech: "There was no way anyone could have witnessed the incident between me and Herbie. Adi Da was revealing again that He knew everything about me."

  • Personal Testimony — An illustration of Adi Da’s free and compassionate Work with emotion and sexuality. Cheech's story is on knowing how to have sex, but not how to love. Adi Da gifted him with self-understanding of this core pattern.

  • Cheech is also featured in a video dialog with Adi Da, from the DVD, Enter Into Unlimited Profundity.

Frank Marrero

 

Frank Marrero has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He is an elementary school teacher and a father. For more, visit his website.

  • Holy Cat Grotto Initiation — Frank tells of the day in 1979 when he was initiated into the heart-relationship with the Divine Power and Person.

  • A Fasting Success Story — Interrupting the daily dietary regimen with an extended fast is a part of the dietary practice of Adidam. Frank recently completed an eleven-day fast. He felt it was so successful in terms of balance, energy, cleansing, and ease, that he wanted to share the details. As Frank puts it: "Being a regular faster for 43 years, the nuances here are long-considered and hard-won, and perhaps useful to others (personalized though they may be)."

  • Loss of Intimacy and Inappropriate Behavior — Frank tells the story of a lesson he learned as a teacher at Adidam's Big Wisdom Free School, about using Adi Da's wisdom about relationships and intimacy to address children's inappropriate behavior.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes many video clips from Frank.

Keith Marsden

 

Keith Marsden has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da since the early 1980's. Keith was a Ph.D. research engineer in metal physics in the 1960's and did the original metal testing and electron microscopy for the British-French collaboration on the Concord supersonic aircraft. Keith presently lives close to the Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary in Northern California.

Barbara Marx-Hubbard

 

Barbara Marx-Hubbard is the founder and executive director of The Foundation for Conscious Evolution. Called by Buckminster Fuller "the best informed human on the concept of futurism", Barbara is an internationally known lecturer and the author of several books, including Emergence: The Shift from Ego to Essence. She is the co-creator of an intentional cooperative community in Santa Barbara.

  • The "Adi Da Frequency" — Barbara describes how she found Adi Da, and how she draws upon the 'Adi Da Frequency' to help her work in creating a better and more conscious future for humanity.
   

Shasta McBride grew up in the Adidam community, and formally became a devotee of Adi Da in 2005. She is a writer, and the author of The Shop Girl Sonnets. She writes an art column for the LA Art Scene Examiner. She is the Adidam Cooperative Forum representative for the greater Los Angeles region and maintains the blog, The Basket Of Tolerance Film Series.

Eileen McCarthy

 

Eileen McCarthy became Adi Da's devotee in 1978. She has lived at and served Adi Da at Da Love-Ananda Mahal and Adi Da Samrajashram, and now lives in the Chicago Ashram.

  • Personal Testimony — An illustration of Adi Da’s free and compassionate Work with emotion and sexuality. Eileen tells the story of how, as an emotional-sexual being, she was self-suppressed and hidden. Adi Da gifted her with self-understanding of these core patterns.

  • I Experienced a Most Sublime and Embracing Calmness — Eileen describes her reception of Adi Da's Transmission.

Daisy McCrackin

 

3000 Miles to GracelandDaisy McCrackin is an actress and a singer-songwriter. She has appeared in well-known television series (including Cold Case, Angel, and The Division) and movies (including 3000 Miles to Graceland, Halloween: Resurrection, and Atlas Shrugged: Part 1). She released her first EP, The Rodeo Grounds (Aeronaut Records) in 2009, and her next album, God Willing in 2011. She spent time in the Adidam community while she was growing up (see below).

  • Audio/Video Library — Daisy's song, "Miracle", is the soundtrack to a video on the ballet, Not-Two Is Peace.

  • On her time in the Adidam community: "From an early age I was searching for meaning in life. . . I became very drawn to a teacher named Adi Da Samraj, and I had begun to seriously study his books. My parents had studied with him in the past before I remember. So there was actually somewhere to go — to the Ashram [The Mountain Of Attention] where I saw Adi Da Samraj and got to live in an Ashram culture, on a sanctuary similar to the Ashrams in India. An Ashram is different from the regular world because, rather than exist to satisfy the ego, it is purposed solely to spiritual practice, and to understanding yourself. It was intense. I have great memories of it. I cooked in the kitchen for about 200 people (vegetarian food, of course). It was not glamorous, but I was so happy! My friends and I would run off in afternoons to swim in a small lake on the Sanctuary. I found it to be a wonderful, cooperative community where the arts are practiced and treated as a sacred act. I made a lot of great friends who I am still close with and it was a healing, powerful time in my life. Best thing I ever did."

Meg Fortune McDonnell

 

Meg Fortune McDonnell has been Adi Da's devotee for many years. She has worked as a writer and editor, international speaker, stage and film producer, school teacher, priest, war-time vigil correspondent, fine art photographic subject, event manager, dance teacher, personal assistant, legal aide, book indexer, caterer, and street performer. She is the author of Tasting The Moon: Adventures in the Meaning of Life.

  • Perfect Love Touched My Heart — In the following excerpt from her book, Tasting The Moon: Adventures in the Meaning of Life, Meg describes what occurred the first time she sat with Adi Da (then named "Bubba Free John").

  • Tasting The Moon: Adventures in the Meaning of Life — Meg's listing in our "devotee book" section.

  • Interview with Meg McDonnell — In this hour-long interview (with Ed Reither of Beezone), Meg talks about her book, Tasting the Moon: Adventures in the Meaning of Life, and her relationship with Adi Da.

  • Readings from Tasting The Moon — In this seven part video series, Meg reads excerpts from her book, Tasting the Moon: Adventures in the Meaning of Life.

  • Tasting The Moon — In this five part video series, Meg talks with her father, Dr. Robert McDonnell, about working together on her book, Tasting the Moon: Adventures in the Meaning of Life.

  • The Mummery Documentary — Meg was featured in a documentary about the making of the first full theater production of Adi Da's epic work, The Mummery, in January, 2000, at The Mountain Of Attention.

Jain McFetridge

 

Jain McFetridge has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years.

Mel McMurrin

 

Mel McMurrin is a professional singer, who has covered a wide variety of styles from jazz (opening for George Benson with the a capella sextet, Corner Market); Indian style (in San Francisco Shakespeare Festival’s "As You Like It"); classical (as Figaro in a PBS national broadcast of Mozart’s opera) and avant-garde (with George Coates Performance Works). He has recorded with Ray Lynch, The Bobs, The Choir at St. Ignatius, The Bungee Jumpin’ Cows, and Jaya. He has done commercial voice-over for Schwab, Novell, Gallo, Lincoln-Mercury, and Siemens. More at his website. Mel is also a member of the First Room Theatre Guild of Adidam and a key performer in performances of The Mummery Book, and has collaborated in numerous musical Sacred Offerings for Adi Da.

  • Paramahansa — Based on a traditional chant, combined with the Way of Adidam. Sung by Mel.

  • When All Is Gone To Love — Our audio/video library includes this song, for which Mel provides backup vocals.

John Metcalfe

 

John Metcalfe is a New Zealand devotee who served Adi Da as His dentist from 1991 until Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi in 2008. He visits Adi Da Samrajashram Sanctuary in Fiji two to three times a year to be on retreat and to serve resident devotees and Fijians with dental work.

  • Everything Was Love-Bliss Radiance John was once so overwhelmed by Adi Da's Transmission of Love-Bliss that he completely forgot he was there to do some dental work for Adi Da!

Elizabeth Midwikis

 
Elizabeth Midwikis graduated with a BA from Louisiana State University in interior design, and was a commercial interior designer for many years. She is now retired from that profession, and is a contemporary painter and printmaker. She lives in southern California and Kauai, Hawaii.
  • Feeling Without Limitation — Elizabeth: "As I sat in the church, I was feeling Beloved Adi Da throughout my body and radiating beyond my body, by His grace. My eyes ran tears for the entire funeral service; but I was deep in the Heart, feeling everyone and their profound sorrow and suddenly I noticed: there was no problem! Waves of deep love and sorrow flowed through me, seemingly radiating to everyone and beyond."

Marylu Miller

 
Marylu Miller has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da since 1998, and received His Darshan in Los Angeles in 2000. She works as a homeopath, and serves the Adidam community of devotees as her area's Radiant Life Clinic representative.
  • A Descent of Blessing — Marylu describes the Blessing she received at the time of Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi.

Nick Milo

 
Nick Milo was the keyboardist for the band, Tower Of Power, from 1988 to 1999, and recorded several albums with the band. Starting in 2001, Nick began working with Joe Cocker, and was Cocker's music director and keyboardist until his passing in December, 2014. Nick has composed music for television (including film scores for the Discovery Channel). You can read more about Nick on his website.
  • The Universal World-Prayer (video) — Composed by Jacqueline Clemons and Nick, and sung by Jacqueline Clemons, this soulful rendition of Adi Da's prayer for world peace, "The Universal World-Prayer", was sung many times at The Parliament of the World's Religions in Cape Town, South Africa, in December, 1999. In this video clip, the song provides the soundtrack to a slideshow of pictures of Adi Da.

Trish Mitchell

 

Trish Mitchell is a member of the Editorial Staff for this site. She has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1991. Trish has been a radio producer, editor, and newsreader for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and a producer, presenter, and acting Executive Producer for SBS Australia. She lives in Australia.

Daniela Morena

 

Daniela Morena has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1986. She has worn many hats and has done a 360 change twice in her career, living on three different continents. She currently heads Italian Sorrisi and teaches Italian language. She also facilitates using "The Coaching Game", a coaching tool for life and work solutions. Daniela lives in Singapore.

  • This Is Home!Daniela: "Suddenly, the room around me dissolved in a bright cloud. There was light everywhere, only light. The boundary of my skin, separating my body from the surrounding environment, was no longer there. My heart skipped a beat from the emotion, as my brain formulated these words: Finally! Finally what I have been longing for! This is Home!"

  • The Divine Force That Brings an End To "me" Daniela: "It took me about two steps into the room. . . then IT hit me full frontal. My mind shattered. My knees gave way. My body started shaking and my teeth were clattering. What I saw was Adi Da's fiery, 'Shiva the Destroyer' Form. I was in a state of absolute Shock."

  • He Is the Heart, Infinite and Blissful Daniela: "As I focused on the right side of the heart, I 'saw' a space apparently very tiny, but also limitless, which looked extremely bright. Something in me instinctively recognised it as "the heart on the right", that Adi Da had often spoken about. And there I saw, to my utter amazement, my Beloved Guru, seated in all His Glory. He was magnificent! He was Supremely Attractive. He was the Heart, Infinite and Blissful."

  • Adi Da "Heard" My Thoughts — Daniela: " As my mind receded in the wake of my heart's upsurge, I saw Adi Da looking right at me. He had a definitely amused look on His Face. . . He had 'heard' my thoughts!"

June Mori

 

June Mori has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years, and is a longtime resident of Adi Da Samrajashram.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of June describing the damage wrought on Naitauba by Cyclone Tomas, in March of 2010.

Sara Morin

 

Sara Morin has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1992. She lives in Vancouver, British Columbia. She worked for Indian Affairs as an Administrative Assistant in Intergovernmental Affairs, which involved policy between First Nations of BC, the Provincial and Federal Governments. She is bi-lingual French and English and enjoys painting.

Flo Morrissey

 

Flo Morrissey is a singer and songwriter from London. Flo was featured in the Fall, 2015 Teen Vogue article, The 20 Artists That Should Be on Your Radar Right Now, and her first album has received glowing reviews from such eminent forums as London's Guardian.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes Flo's cover of "Love Comes To Here In Time" (words by Adi Da, music by Naamleela Free Jones), which she recorded as a tribute to Adi Da.

Carmen Morrow

 

Carmen Morrow studied film/video at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design. She has been an assistant editor on many recent box office movies, including X-Men: The Last Stand, The Pink Panther 2, and Red Rising Hood, as well as assistant editor on the TV show, Reckless. For more, visit Carmen's IMDB page.

Scott Morrow

 

Scott Morrow is the founder of The Blue OK, a virtual cafe where he has conversations with people who "have information or tools that benefit the human family. And the non-humans too."

Ati-Dasya Nadikanta

 
Ruchiradama Nadikanta has been a senior formal renunciate (as a member of the Ruchira Sannyasin Order) and personal server of Adi Da Samraj since 1974. She served Adi Da Samraj directly for near forty years, and was trained by Him personally as a priest and personal emissary for the communication of His spiritual teaching, His literary works, His artistic works, and His instruction to humankind on the creation of world peace.
  • Ruchiradama Nadikanta was present in the room with Adi Da at the moment of His Passing. She tells us: "The purpose...we have as a collective...[is] to Realize the Divine Revelation that Beloved [Adi Da] has given us, which is the Absolute Reality of His Always Present, Eternal Presence and the fact that He is Here exactly as He has always been, which is such a profoundly miraculous Secret that it surprises me every moment. But He has been Revealing this to me so strongly."

  • The Miracle in the Garden: The Empowerment of Earth-Fire Temple Earth-Fire Temple at The Mountain Of Attention was Empowered during the "Garbage and the Goddess" period in 1974, as a result of a miraculous event, described by Ruchiradama Nadikanta.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Ruchiradama Nadikanta offering a testimonial to the life and work of Adi Da Samraj. It also includes a multi-part video series that chronicles Ruchiradama Nadikanta's Sacred Worldwide Walkabout in 2012. It also includes a multi-part audio series of recitations by Ruchiradama Nadikanta from Adi Da's Not-Two Is Peace. It also includes a video of Ruchiradama Nadikanta speaking about the exhibition of Adi Da's art, The Ascent of Orpheus.

Nahshon Nahumi

 

Nahshon Nahumi has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years.

Aaron Nakagawa

 

Aaron Nakagawa has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years, and is a longtime resident of Da Love-Ananda Mahal, where he is the head priest. He is also a musician and composer.

Jim Newcome

 

James Newcome has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years, and is a longtime resident of Adi Da Samrajashram.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Jim describing the damage wrought on Naitauba by Cyclone Tomas, in March of 2010; and another video Jim created to celebrate Adi Da's book of poetry, Crazy Da Must Sing.

Matthew Nicholson

 

Matthew Nicholson is a musician and composer. He has released music as Function Ensemble and Outshine Family, as well as his own name. Since 2003 he has provided original music composition in various forms of media. His work can be heard in films, trailers, advertising, documentaries, and art installations. In 2015, he completed a commission for installation at the Bargello National Museum in Florence, Italy: a twenty-minute composition played continuously as the background music for The Ascent of Orpheus, a three-month exhibition of Adi Da's art in the Bargello. More on his website.

Anthony Costabile

 

Dean Nugent as been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He is the Cultural Service Manager for the Adidam New Zealand region, and serves the Adidam Mission there. He is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Education at Auckland University of Technology, where he has helped develop programmes of study for university teachers, community adult educators, and high school teachers. He has also written and edited a number of textbooks for teachers.

Katsu Okhi

 

Katsu Okhi has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1973.

  • Personal Testimony — An illustration of Adi Da’s free and compassionate Work with emotion and sexuality. Katsu's story about having a body-negative, sex-negative, fearful, and self-suppressed point of view. Adi Da gifted her with self-understanding of these core patterns.

Achille Bonito Oliva

 

Achille Bonito Oliva is an internationally acclaimed art critic and historian, and a teacher at La Sapienza University in Rome. He has curated numerous thematic and interdisciplinary exhibitions in Italy and abroad, including Adi Da's exhibit at the Sundaram Tagore Gallery in New York City, September, 2010. Bonito Oliva was the Director of the 39th and 45th Venice Biennale. He has been awarded various prizes and recognitions, including the Valentino d’Oro, an international prize for art critics. He has authored and edited many essays and books on art, including Alighiero Boetti: Delivering Art to the World, Art Tribes, White and Other: In Any Case, Art, and Luca Pignatelli.

  • Commentary at the Inauguration of the Exhibition of Adi Da's Art at the 52nd Biennale di Venezie — Oliva delivered the following remarks at the opening of Adi Da's Art Exhibition at the Venice Biennale in 2007: "I believe that art should always be a surprise. It must create, even in the critic, not emotion, but a sense of insecurity. When one views Adi Da’s art, it is easy to see 'pop art', 'op art', all the possible linguistic, ethnological, and iconographic references — but, in the end, the final work is always a surprise. With Adi Da’s work, I did not simply find myself in front of a new personal iconographic universe but rather in front of images that returned me to an experience of 'epiphany'."

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Achille speaking (as curator of the exhibit) at the opening of Adi Da Samraj's solo exhibition, 'Orpheus and Linead', at Sundaram Tagore Gallery, New York, on September 9, 2010.

Brian O'Mahony

 

Brian O'Mahony has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years.

Roger Ohlsen

 

Roger Ohlsen is a longtime devotee of Adi Da who was also a professional opera singer. He was a Juilliard-trained tenor (American Opera Center) who sang with City Opera in New York City for thirty years. He is also a voice teacher and a master of Reiki healing.

  • Singing Opera with Adi Da — During His years of face-to-face Teaching Work, Bhagavan Adi Da used singing opera with His devotees as a skillful means that drew those present into selfless feeling-ecstasy. Longtime devotees Aniello Panico and Roger Ohlsen describe what that was like.
 

Nicole Ortega

 

Nicole Ortega first became aware of her devotional relationship to Avatar Adi Da at the end of 2008, soon after Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi. She is a recent graduate of the University of Alabama.

  • An Ecstatic Falling into Him — Nicole tells the story of how she discovered Bhagavan Adi Da. While doing so, she recounts two remarkable dreams. In the first, the whole human condition is revealed to her in a kind of metaphor. In the second dream, Adi Da appears to her, and connects with her directly and personally, correcting a false, cultic view of Him that she had previously held.

Dimitrios Otis

 

Dimitrios Otis is a poet living in Vancouver, British Columbia.

 

Wayne Owens came to see Avatar Adi Da Samraj while He was visiting Los Angeles in May, 2000.

  • True Water — Wayne tells the story of how his very ill brother received Adi Da's Grace, in response to Wayne's prayers.

Neeshee Pandit

 

Neeshee Pandit has been a devotee of Adi Da since 2008. He is on the staff of the Hermitage Editorial Department. He was a resident of Adi Da Samrajashram for a time, and is currently living near Da Love-Ananda Mahal Sanctuary, in Kauai, Hawaii. More at his website.

  • He Is Satisfaction — Neeshee (19 at the time of writing): "I was sitting at home one day in such a state when a remarkable event occurred. An unbelievable Energy descended upon me and I began shaking. Its Thickness enveloped my entire body and it was vibrating with an unspeakable intensity. I swooned in ecstasy. . . . Adi Da's Spiritual Invasion of the body-mind is Satisfaction, Happiness, and Love."

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Neeshee describing his finding Adi Da after having practiced Buddhism.

Aniello Panico

 

Aniello Panico has been a student and devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1972. Aniello was also instrumental in the establishment of the Dawn Horse Press, the publishing house responsible for the publication of Avatar Adi Da's Teaching. Now in his 80's, and having spent considerable time in Adi Da's Company, Aniello wants to share a lifetime of enjoying the wisdom, energy, blessings and love of Adi Da Samraj — an enjoyment so profound that he considers himself the "luckiest man alive!".

Judith Parkinson

 

Judith Parkinson is a longtime devotee of Adi Da. She was a resident of Adi Da Samrajashram for many years.

  • Are You the One? — Judith was the illustrator for the booklet, Are You the One?, which provided instructions for children.

  • The Mountain Of Attention — Judith provided information about the "esoteric anatomy" of The Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary.

 

Marilyn Peverall has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years.

Christine Phippen

 

Christine Phippen has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. She serves the Adidam Mission fulltime in New Zealand. She is also a Paduka and Murti pujarist, and is a member of the Organic Gardening Guild.

Kevin Pinkstone

 

Kevin Pinkstone has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1998. He was born in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, in 1974. In 1992, he finished a Diploma in Outdoor Education in Newbury, Berkshire, and went on to instruct in outdoor activities such as kayaking and climbing and also to lead adventure expeditions.

  • The Heart Hears and Sees the Truth — Kevin tells of how he found Adi Da: "It was beyond anything that I had ever dreamed possible. I had asked God for a teacher — and He had come Himself!"

Jeff Polson

 

Jeff Polson has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1974. He is a master jewelry maker, having created many sacred articles and adornments for both Adi Da and devotees. For more, visit his website.

  • No Fish Is To Die"No Fish Is To Die" — Jeff tells of the lessons he received about mortality and compassion from Adi Da, while caring for the Master's fish.

Andrea Portera

 

Andrea Portera is a premier composer from Florence. His official catalog consists of over 100 works, including chamber music, symphonic pieces, and theater and ballet. His music has won many awards, and has been performed by famous orchestras and chamber groups.

  • Not-Two Is Peace — Andrea was the primary composer for the multimedia ballet event, Not-Two Is Peace (both the 2012 and 2013 versions), based on the wisdom communicated by Adi Da's book of the same name. This series of clips provides excerpts from the July 22 and July 23, 2012 performances.

Otto Probst

 

Prof. Dr. Otto Probst has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He teaches piano at the Konservatorium Wien Privatuniversität in Austria.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of an improvisation that took place in July 2008 on the island of Naitauba. On this occasion, Otto and John Wubbenhorst were playing for Adi Da while He was working on His Divine Image-Art.

Ute Posegga-Rudel

 

Ute Posegga-Rudel has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da for many years. For more, visit her Reconnective Healing website, and the section on her site about the Teachings of Adi Da Samraj.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes several video clips from Ute (here and here).

Simon Pritchard

 

Simon Pritchard became a devotee of Avatar Adi Da Samraj in 1984. Since then, Simon has served Adi Da as a principal missionary and mission manager in the Britain, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales area, and has spent much time in Avatar Adi Da's Company on retreat in Fiji. More about Simon on his website.

Ted Progler

 

Ted Progler has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1976. He was a long term practitioner of the "Original Daoist 8 Limbs (or Schools) of Chinese Medicine", wherein Chi Gong is the 2nd School. Ted apprenticed with Lao Ge (aka Charles Belyea), the lineage holder of Original Medical Daoism in the United States and co-founder of the Five Branches University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. From early 2001 until the Divine Mahasamadhi of Adi Da Samraj in late November 2008, Ted was instructed directly by Adi Da in His "Systems-Based Approach to Health & Healing" and His Right Life Yogic Conductivity practices. Ted now only practices and teaches Adi Da's "Systems-Based Approach to Health & Healing", which is a subset of Right Life Yogic Conductivity.

In Ted's depth research and practice of human health and healing over 35 years, it is his personal proclamation that, just as Adi Da Samraj "completed" the Spiritual Dharmas of the Great Traditions of Spirituality, so too did He "complete" the Wisdom practices of human health and healing with His Systems-Based Approach to Health and Healing. The Systems-Based Approach to Health and Healing of Adi Da Samraj is the most fully integrated Health and Healing Systems for human beings, fully integrating how to cooperatively participate with all scales and forms of Reality existence for the purpose of supporting fullest Divine Realization Practice. If you are interested in receiving information about the Systems-Based Approach to Health and Healing of Adi Da Samraj, please email Ted at tprogler@gmail.com.

  • Fluid Force,Fat Water: The Da Chi Gong Leela In this audio clip, Ted tells a leela about a gathering with Adi Da during the "Dancing Down the Light" gathering period. In the gathering, Ted gave Adi Da a description and demonstration of his Chi Gong practice. Adi Da then talked extensively about Chi Gong, Da Chi Gong, and the larger context of energy conductivity with the devotees who were present.

Celia Rabinovitch

 

Celia Rabinovitch is an artist, writer, and teacher. Her paintings have been exhibited in solo shows in Canada, the U.S.A. and Europe, including Quattro, a four person international show in Vienna, Austria (2000) the Florence Biennale (1999) The Grotto Cycle, California Institute of Integral Studies (2003); Industrial Romance, University of San Francisco and Gallery, Winnipeg, YYZ, Toronto; Emily Carr Institute; Plug-In and the Winnipeg Art Gallery. Her book, Surrealism and the Sacred: Power, Eros, and the Occult in Modern Art (2002), uncovers new territory between the history of art and the history of religions. She has taught art and cultural and art history at Stanford University, U. C. Berkeley, The California College of Art and the San Francisco Art Institute, the University of Colorado, McGill University and as a Visiting Artist at Syracuse University (1990). Currently she is Professor and Director of the School of Art, the University of Manitoba.

Laren Rackell

 

Laren Rackell has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip from Laren, in which he describes his process of making sculptures of Adi Da.

Pien Rademakers

 

Pien Rademakers is a gallerist who runs the Galerie Pien Rademakers in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The gallery translates her passion for art into carefully composed exhibitions. Its focus is international photography, and also the works of new, talented artists.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip in which Pien expresses her deep appreciation for Adi Da's Image-Art, and her personal commitment toward seeing it get wider distribution.

Flick Rahke

 

Flick Rahke has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1975.

  • "No, You Are Meant For Another"Flick: "So when Swami Muktananda asked for questions from the audience, I stood up, bowed, and asked him if he was to be my Guru. He tilted his head and looked at me with a little smile as he said: 'No, you are meant for another.' "

Antonina Randazzo

 

Antonina Randazzo has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1977. Her principal service has been sacred music. She has studied North Indian Classical music with Maestro Ali Akbar Khan in San Rafael, California, and with Nivedita Sen, from the Allahabad University in India.

Madhuka Ranmathu

 

Madhuka Ranmathu was born in Sri Lanka and migrated with her family to the United States in 1995. In her spare time, she serves Adi Da’s library at the Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary and has also served Adi Da in His Divine Image-Art Work. Madhuka was fortunate to participate in the Silver Hall process in Adi Da’s Company in 2008.

Carol Raphael

 

Carol Raphael writes for EnlightenNext magazine (formerly, What Is Enlightenment?).

  • The Heart Was Released From Images: The Art of Adi Da Samraj (pdf, 2.4MB) — "Brancusi said that 'one arrives at simplicity in spite of oneself by approaching the real sense of things.' What Adi Da is doing, though, is not really simple, either visually or metaphysically. His imagery is both highly complex, in terms of its composition and its execution, and startling pure or uncomplicated at the same time. Remarkably, he is attempting to transmit the totality of pure consciousness by means of the specificity of the manifest world — and he's succeeding."

Dennis Regan

 

Dennis Regan lives in Sydney, Australia and has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1984, when he read Adi Da's book, Scientific Proof of the Existence of God will soon be Announced by the White House!.

  • There Is No "Other" — Dennis describes the Blessing he received at the time of Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip from Dennis.

Ed Reither

 

Ed Reither is the creator of The Beezone, and is a strong advocate of Adi Da's Teaching.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library contains many audio and video clips from Ed. The video clips include: conversations with Frank Marrero about the seven stages of life; and interviews with devotees.

Brad Reynolds

 

Brad Reynolds is an artist and author and the creator of Heart Light Productions. He has been a strong advocate of Adi Da for many years.

Karen Richardson

 

Karen Richardson has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1996. She is an editor, researcher, feminist, social activist and adult educator, and lives in a small town in cottage country, in Eastern Ontario.

  • Beyond, Beyond Karen: "There was no religious upbringing, but as a young girl, one day I found myself looking up at the sunny spring sky and just 'knowing' that something wonderful is going to happen in my lifetime — not only to me, but to the whole world."

Andrew Riddoch

 

Andrew Riddoch has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1986. He has served Adi Da in the Dawn Horse Press and as a videographer for many years. He is now living in the Adidam community in Auckland, New Zealand.

  • Aham Da Asmi — Andrew was the videographer for this beautiful video from Adidam India.

  • Mummery Documentary — Andrew was the AV designer for this documentary about the first full theater production of The Mummery Book in January, 2000.

Anne Rogers

 

Anne Rogers has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da since the early 1970's. She lived and served in Adi Da’s household for many years.

Fred Rohe 

 

Fred Rohe has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da for many years. He has been a natural health pioneer and author for decades. His store, New Age Natural Foods, opened in San Francisco in 1965 and is credited with being the prototype natural foods store. More at his website, Natural Health Yellow Pages.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes 12 video clips from GlobalPeaceCentral.org, which Fred created to help communicate and promote Adi Da's wisdom about world peace.

Teresa Romero

 

Teresa Romero has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da for many years.

Lynn Rosencrans

 

Lynn Rosencrans has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da for many years. She lives at Adi Da Samrajashram.

Max

 

Max Rykov has been a devotee of Bhagavan Adi Da Samraj since 2009. He graduated from the University of Alabama in 2011, and lived for two years at The Mountain Of Attention, where he worked in the Adidam Library. He now creates stage productions for community groups and events, as well as hosting a monthly radio show. More at his website.

  • Never Has God Revealed Himself So Fully —Max (20 at the time of writing this story): "My interest in God became dormant, and did not re-emerge until later in high school, when I became heavily interested in philosophy. I intuitively felt that there was something greater in life; that all the answers were available, but I had no idea how to access them. . . . I yearned for God, but all I got from books was knowledge, not the Divine Itself."

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a number of video clips from Max.

Zoe Sander

 

Zoe Sander has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1973. She has served Adi Da at four of His Hermitage Sanctuaries, predominantly at The Mountain Of Attention in Northern California and Adi Da Samrajashram in Fiji. She has served as a priest of many of the Holy Sites on these Sacred Sanctuaries. She has been a proofreader of His literature, a copyeditor for many Adidam publications, and a transcriber of Adi Da's discourses. She also served for several years in the sacred archives of Adidam.

  • Zoe was one of the original founders of the Adi Da Up Close site, contributing much time and energy to editing the first materials that appeared on this site. She decided to help in this way "after reading some stories on the web that communicated a profound misunderstanding of Avatar Adi Da's unconventional methods of Teaching. As His devotee, I am passionately committed to communicating the truth about His Heroic Work to Liberate ordinary (and Spiritually unqualified) people like us, despite our obsessions with 'money, food, and sex'. I hope the stories on this site give you a feeling for what it is like to be His devotee, and for what an extraordinary Blessing it is that such a Spiritual Master is alive in our lifetime."

  • Glossary — Zoe contributed much effort to getting the Adi Da Up Close Glossary up and running.

  • Growth as a Patron — Zoe interviews devotee Dennis Duff about his experience as one of Adi Da's patrons.

Roger Savoie

 

Roger Savoie is a philosopher, writer, and translator. He is the author of many books, and has written for such prominent magazines as La Revue 3e millénaire. Click here to visit his website.

Jack Schmitt

 

Jack Schmitt has been a devotee of Adi Da since April, 1993. He ran a successful telephone business in Austin, Texas, for many years and is now retired and living with his wife in Texas. He has served the Adidam Midwest Mission in a variety of ways and also helps the Mate Mote Guild (Adidam’s death and dying ministry).

  • A Gift of Healing — Jack describes a sudden and dramatic healing that took place through Adi Da's Blessing-Power in one of the temples at The Mountain Of Attention.
Eleanor Seeley  

Eleanor Seeley is a longtime devotee of Adi Da. She lives in Trinidad, California, and serves the Tat Sundaram Hermitage. She is a photographer and sculptor. Click here to visit her website.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a Sacred Camel Gardens video clip created by Eleanor.

Canada Shannon

 

Canada Shannon has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1973. She has taught adults, young people and children, serving their academic, cultural, religious, and artistic education for over thirty years. Over the past ten years Canada has authored courses for the the Adidam Academy, the Global Cooperation Project, and the Vision of Mulund Institute. She lives in Northern California near The Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary.

  • Garbage and the Goddess — Canada provides a description of the Garbage and the Goddess Period of Adi Da's Work with devotees.

Canada Shannon

 

Steven Shapiro has been a devotee of Adi Da since 2001. He is the manager of the Adidam Mission in Lake County, California, and he is a member of the Mate Moce Guild.

  • Every Cell in My Body Relaxed Steven: "As I watched the video with Adi Da, every cell in my body relaxed and lined up as one. Nothing fancy, just home. Utterly home."

Michael Shaw

 

Michael Shaw has lived and served closely around Avatar Adi Da Samraj for many years. From teaching horsemanship to Adi Da's daughters, to managing Adi Da Samraj's household and travels, Michael has regularly served within the Divine Guru's intimate sphere. Michael has participated in several of Avatar Adi Da's principal Teaching Revelations.

Gerald Sheinfeld

 

Gerald Sheinfeld has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He accompanied Adi Da on His 1973 trip to India. For more, visit his website, Stories of the Spiritual Master.

  • How I Found My Teacher video — Gerald tells a wonderful story about how he found his Guru, Adi Da Samraj and his immediate recognition of Adi Da's unique state of Freedom, Happiness, and Liberation. Gerald speaks about how that recognition of Adi Da has the capacity to awaken others to that state of Prior Unity.

  • Testimonial from a Longtime Devotee video — Gerald's testimonial to Adi Da, at the tribute that occurred on Adi Da Samrajashram, on the First Anniversary of Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi.

  • Wordless Spiritual Recognition — Gerald tells the story of how an Indian sadhu recognized Adi Da spiritually, without ever exchanging a word with Adi Da.

Michael Sheppard

 

Michael Sheppard is a classical pianist who trained at the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, where he studied with Leon Fleisher and Ann Schein. As one of two 2003 Classical Fellows of the American Pianists Association he toured Southern Asia and the Middle East in collaboration with the Cultural Programs Division of the United States Department of State. Upon his return he made his Kennedy Center debut. Michael has received critical acclaim as a grand interpreter of transcriptions of operatic tunes as well as American musical theatre in addition to the traditional piano repertory.

Douglas Short

 

Douglas Short has been a devotee of Adi Da for a number of years. He recently lived at The Mountain Of Attention, where he served as the manager and head chef at First People Kitchen.

Rajesh Shukla

 

Rajesh Shukla is an art critic and the author of several books, including Contemporizing Buddha, Hindu Tantra Yoga, and Concerning The Spiritual In Art: An Indian Modern Art Perspective. He received his B.A in Fine Art and Philosophy from Allahabad University in 1993. He took Sanyasa for two years, and studied the six systems of Indian philosophy, focusing specially on Vedanta from the Sankaracharya of Puri, Swami Nischalananda Saraswati. He was the winner of the Lalit Kala Academy Scholarship Award for art criticism in 2005. He is currently working on a book, Buddhist Tantra Yoga. He lives and works in Delhi, India.

  • The Ancient Walk-About Way of Adi Da Samraj — "Adi Da is the one and only artist whose art is beyond idiom. Adi Da is postmodern in this sense, because he knows the very locus from where things appear. Images are things, and they appear on the surface, carrying multiple messages of the locus. In this sense, Adi Da does not express, rather he creates. His images appear ‘as it is’ — an expression of Reality Itself."

David Simon

 

David Simon has been a devotee of Adi Da for a number of years. He has worked in the Marketing Department for the Dawn Horse Press. He currently lives in Florida.

Askold Skalsky

 

Askold Skalsky has taught English and German at Hagerstown Community College. In 2005, he was honored by the Maryland State Arts Council for his poetry, which has appeared in numerous small press magazines and journals, including Southern Poetry Review, Oregon East, Northeast Corridor, and Chiron Review. Skalsky's work has also been published in Canada, England, and Ireland. It incorporates many themes from his childhood in the Ukraine. Skalsky wrote the introduction to Adi Da Samraj's The Mummery Book, A Parable of the Divine True Love, about which he said, "It was an honor to be asked to write the introduction to this highly original experimental work in the vein of James Joyce and Gertrude Stein."

  • Transcendental Realism and Radical Narrative in Adi Da Samraj’s The Orpheum — A paper by Askold Skalsky, Professor of English, presented at the 2009 CESNUR Conference, Salt Lake City, Utah, June 11-13, 2009. "At this critical moment in world history, Adi Da Samraj (1939-2008) provides a radical perspective in his literary trilogy The Orpheum, showing that the presumption of a separate “I” is an illusory category that distorts human consciousness and very language itself by falsifying the prior unity of reality."

Abel Slater

 

Abel Slater has been a devotee of Adi Da for over 25 years. He has spent significant time in Naitauba, Fiji at Adi Da’s principal Hermitage Sanctuary, Adi Da Samrajashram, where he received direct guidance from Adi Da, both in practical life wisdom and esoteric spiritual practice. Now based in New York, he also travels extensively throughout the world presenting Adi Da's spiritual teachings about right life, including diet, sexuality, meditation and conductivity. Recently, he has been focused on raising awareness about the benefits of the raw vegan diet by promoting Green Gorilla raw treats across the U.S. and around the world.

  • Diet and Climate Change — In this episode of the radio show, A Better World, host Mitchell Rabin conducts a Round Table discussion on the relationship between diet and climate change. He raises the tremendous possibility for both personal-planetary transformation and spiritual growth. Joining Mitchell are Abel Slater and Dina Lautman.

Dan Sleeth

 

Dan Sleeth has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1983. He has worked for many years in the field of human services as a mental health provider. Dan earned a MA in general psychology and in counseling. After receiving his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, he wrote The Integral Ego as a vehicle for considering the non-dual perspective possible in the clinical therapeutic setting. Dan has served Adi Da in many different capacities, including public outreach, regional manager, and ashram manager, as well as through his writing and advocacy.

Julie Lockwood Smith

 

Julie Lockwood Smith has been a formal devotee of Adi Da since June 20, 2009. She currently lives in Alaska, and works for the Alaska Department of Natural Resources. She received a law degree from the University of Michigan Law School in 1992, and a degree in Integral Studies from JFK University in 2008.

  • His Name Was Written on the Banks of the RiverJulie: "I had only gone a few steps when I saw, directly in front of me, the word DA written on the banks of the Tanana River. I was stunned. How did Bhagavan's Name get there?"

 

 

Elizabeth Solliday has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years.

  • This Is Not The End Of Anything — Elizabeth tells of her final visit with Adi Da's bodily human form, during the Vigil period immediately after His Divine Mahasamadhi.

Bill Somers

 

Bill Somers is a longtime devotee of Adi Da, and has been a resident of Adi Da Samrajashram for many years. He was a principal clarinetist in a symphony orchestra before he left the world of professional music to serve Adi Da. Among other functions, he has served Adi Da as a cultural server and retreat manager on Naitauba.

  • I Realized That I Was "Playing for God" — In the early 1980's, Bill had already realized what he had held to be his life's ambition: to be principal clarinetist in a symphony orchestra. But this accomplishment was not enough for him, after all; his heart was not satisfied. And that was a good place to be! It led him to his Spiritual Master.

  • Ripples in the Deep of Feeling — Bill writes about the Silver Hall Transmission.

James Steinberg

 

James Steinberg is a religious scholar. He has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da Samraj since 1973. He has been personally schooled by Adi Da in the entire Great Tradition of humankind's religious and spiritual literature. He is a sought-after speaker and radio program guest. He is also the author of the books, Love of the God-Man and Divine Distraction, both about the Guru-devotee relationship (on which he is a world authority). James has been Graced to live with Adi Da Samraj in His Island Hermitage, Adi Da Samrajashram in Fiji, and at The Mountain Of Attention Sanctuary in California. He has represented Adi Da Samraj in meetings with spiritual luminaries worldwide, and is a regular visitor to India in completion of a variety of Sacred projects. James attended Harvard University and the University of California, Berkeley, graduating in 1972. He has two daughters and lives in California.

Mark

 

Mark Stewart has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He is the president of Mark Stewart Home Design, one of the foremost residential design firms in North America and throughout the world, and the recipient of several prestigious honors including Home Magazine's "Well Crafted Home", the Easter Seals/Century 21 sponsored Lifetime Homes series, and the M.A.M.E. Award for excellence in design.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes Mark's brief video tour of the "Truth For Real" Bookstore and Reading Room (which is also a Video Viewing Room) in Portland, Oregon.

Leroy Stilwell

 

Leroy Stilwell is one of the founders of this site. He has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1977. He lived and served at Adi Da Samrajashram, Naitauba, Fiji for most of the time since 1986, and is now living in Northern California.

Bill Stranger

 

Bill Stranger has been a devotee of Adi Da since October, 1973. Bill is currently the director of DharmaCafé. He has served Adi Da in a broad range of capacities, including groundskeeper, minister, missionary, educator, public speaker, writer, administrator, multi-media producer/director, and diplomat. He has represented Avatar Adi Da at a variety of public forums, including the Bay Area Interfaith Council (of which he was a co-founder), the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Ethics, the Parliament of the World's Religions, the 1999 Hague Appeal for Peace, the Synthesis Conference hosted by His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, in Dharmasala, India, in 1999, and both the Paradigm Conference and the State-of-the-World Forum of the Gorbachev Foundation, which were held in 2000.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video of Bill being interviewed by Scott Morrow of The Blue OK about DharmaCafé.

  • The World's Greatest Unpublished Spiritual Book — At the current time, Adi Da's masterpiece, The Scapegoat Book, remains unpublished. However, in 2008, The Dawn Horse Press invited Bill Stranger to write an introduction to The Scapegoat Book. Here is that introduction.

 

Ron Strauss has been a devotee for many years. He is a nutrition educator and consultant (with more than 35 years of research and practice), and a professional violinist.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes an audio clip on which Ron is playing the viola, on a track of Antonina Randazzo's album of devotional music, Fall Into My Heart.

Lisa Paul Streitfeld

 

Lisa Paul Streitfeld is an art critic, curator, performance artist and novelist who delivered a paper, "Applying the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle to 21st Century Art", at the 2009 International Association of Art Critics (AICA) Conference in Dublin. She has written on metaphysics and contemporary art for The New York Times, The Hartford Courant, Art New England, and the international avant-garde. As regular reviewer (2000-2005) for Southern Connecticut Newspapers, she interpreted a 21st century icon, the hieros gamos, subject of her forthcoming four volume critical study.

  • Modernist (R)evolution in Chelsea: The Premiere of Adi Da Samraj — Lisa: "Sundaram Tagore Gallery's New York premiere of the self-proclaimed avatar Adi Da Samraj (1939-2008) filled a vacuum existing in the art world expectantly awaiting the rise of the New since the tumult of the market fall. Curated by the Italian critic Achille Bonito Oliva, Orpheus and Linead celebrates a joyous union of opposites that polarized 20th century art into objective/nonobjective, abstract/figurative."

  • (R)evolutionary! — This is an excerpt from an informal note Lisa published on her blog/memoir, Critical Trilogy: A Critic's Millennial Journey, on October 19, 2010.

JoAnne Sunshine

 

JoAnne Sunshine is a longtime devotee of Adi Da and has devoted many years to studying and practicing the art of sacred devotional singing in the company of Avatar Adi Da Samraj. JoAnne has written compositions for Broadway star Laura Theodore, opera singers Crane Kirkbride, Mel McMurrin, and Elizabeth deBrine. Crane Kirkbride commissioned the song “I Am Who You Are”, which was first produced by Ray Lynch and subsequently by John Mackay. She recorded and sang “I Am With You Now” with Ray Lynch, a devotional song familiar to many devotees.

  • I Am Who You Are — JoAnne wrote this exquisite piece (produced by Ray Lynch), here sung by Crane Kirkbride in operatic style (from his devotional album, An Infinite Well).

  • Da Om, Om Da — This audio excerpt is track 5 on JoAnne's CD, Da Hridayam. Da Hridayam is a collection of devotional chants from longtime devotee, JoAnne Sunshine. These new chants invoke the Divine via the Names and Declarations of Divine Realizer Avatar Adi Da Samraj. The CD beautifully explores a vast array of cultural styles and instruments. It is uplifting, absorbing, and inventive — a sublime celebration.

Charles Syrett

 

Charles Syrett has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1980. He is a mapmaker by profession, and the owner of Map Graphics, which makes street maps, some of which you may actually have in your glove compartment or telephone directory. His company also makes maps for websites, CD-ROMs, PowerPoint presentations, etc. His clients are from all over the world, and have included Comcast , L.L. Bean, Oracle, and Reader’s Digest. Charles has also put his mapmaking skills to good use in his service to Adi Da, mapping the Adidam Sanctuaries in support of the ongoing process of Sanctuary development.

  • From Dead-In-The-Water to Alive, By Grace — Charles tells the story of how his invoking Adi Da's Grace through the Devotional Prayer of Changes and participating in a Prosperity Puja resurrected a "dead-in-the-water" business opportunity, the very morning after the Prosperity Puja took place.

Helene Tavernier

 

Hélène Tavernier is half of the French band, Angel Factory. Hélène grew up in a family of classical musicians and learned cello. When cello met computer, or more precisely, when Maurizio Fasolo of Pankow fame (the group providing the Florence Dance Company with electronic music over recent years) heard her duo play live in Lille, Hélène was invited to listen, improvise, then set her vocal melodies to the pieces Maurizio had prepared for Divina.com.

  • Hélène TavernierDivina.com (video) In this multi-modal performance (featuring the Florence Dance Company dancing against a projected backdrop of Adi Da's Image-Art that was constantly changing), Hélène Tavernier's role was to take texts from Dante and Adi Da Samraj, compose music for them, and then sing them (variously in Italian, French and English).

Sally Taylor

 

Sally Taylor is an Australian-trained physician who became a devotee of Adi Da Samraj in 1976. During Adi Da's Teaching Years, she participated in many of the emotional-sexual "reality considerations". In addition to her medical expertise, she serves the culture of Adidam by helping devotees with their practice.

  • Participation in Adi Da's considerations about the emotional-sexual dimension of life (video) Sally talks about her voluntary participation in Adi Da's considerations about the emotional-sexual dimension of life, the instructions she received, and the profound benefit she has derived by being "grown up" beyond childish patterns of self-suppression, shutting down of the life force, promiscuity, and limitations on love.

Robin Temple

 

Robin Temple has been a Dutch devotee of Adi Da since 1985. After graduating from Bristol University in England, Robin did postgraduate studies in education. He is one of the instructors at the Adidam Academy.

  • Audio/Video Library — A story from Robin about his recent retreat on Adi Da Samrajashram, useful insights that he received about his egoic patterning, and a release from self-concern that Gracefully (Acausally) occurred.

Lynne Thompson

 

Lynne Thompson is a member of the Editorial Staff for this site. She is a devotee of Adi Da and a resident of New Zealand. She also teaches Nia (a non-impact physical conditioning program), and works for her local Arts Council organizing art events and promoting artists.

  • Everything Has Changed and Nothing Has Changed — "I was fortunate to be able to get on a plane and head over to the Island [Adi Da Samrajashram]. I consider this Auspicious Occasion to be the most profound in my life, even as I am still struggling to find words to correctly explain what that means."

  • Audio/Video Library — A special thanks to Lynne for doing the bulk of the data entry for our audio/video database.

  • Today's Quote From Adi Da — And further thanks to Lynne for doing the bulk of the work in locating and entering quotes for our "daily quotes" database, available on our home page.

Chris Tong

 

Chris Tong, Ph.D., is one of the founders of this site, and has been been a devotee of Adi Da since 1989. He is also the founder of The Practical Spirituality Press, and the director of The Institute for Real God, The COTEDA Institute for Global Accord, and FIRM (The Foundation against Intolerance of Religious Minorities). He was formerly a professor of Computer Science and a leading researcher in Artificial Intelligence. (You can read more in his biography and personal statement.) He has made many contributions to this site, including:

  • Chris is responsible for custom-programming all the technical features of this website, including pop-up glossary entries, the associated glossary database, and the automatically generated Glossary page; event pages that are automatically "in synch" (in real time) with the Adidam.org event pages (like here and here); the searchable Audio/Video Library, and its associated database and features ("most popular videos this week", selection of videos by year, etc.); pictures that enlarge in place (as pop-ups) and videos that play in place (as pop-ups); integration of the site with Facebook; the "Today's Quote from Adi Da" feature and database; the "Today in Adidam History" feature and database; the automatic generation of the Adidam Celebrations page from the Adidam History database; etc.

  • The Significance of Recognition in the Way of Adidam This article explores such issues as: recognition as a Revelation, not a belief (part 1); determining whether one has recognized Adi Da as the Divine Person (part 1); recognition as the primary requirement for becoming a devotee and for growing in the Way of Adidam (part 2); how the recognition capability is associated with spontaneous growth in the practice of Adidam (part 3); the difference between a moment of recognition and the moment-to-moment recognition capability (part 4); how moments of recognition are Adi Da's gift to us, but the recognition capability is our gift to Him (part 4); and the "recognition consideration" for prospective devotees, whose successful conclusion (the Revelation Itself) dissolves all questions or doubts they may have about becoming Adi Da's devotee (part 5).

  • An Overview of Adi Da's Crazy Wisdom and "The Way That I Teach" This introductory article includes the following key points: the longstanding spiritual tradition of Crazy Wisdom; how "Crazy Wisdom" is often misunderstood from a conventional viewpoint; how participation always has been completely voluntary; Adi Da's unique form of Crazy Wisdom, which He called "the Way That I Teach"; why Adi Da's "Teaching Years" were necessary and what historical period the "Teaching Years" covered; and why the useful consideration for prospective devotees is not "Did He or didn't He?" but "Is He or isn't He?"

  • The Offering of Perfect Happiness: The Divine Incarnation, Life, and Work of Avatar Adi Da Samraj All the great Spiritual Masters have been not only teachers, but Transmission Masters: they literally transmit their Spiritual Realization to their devotees, communicating a state that is happier than the usual worldly destiny. The greatest of all Spiritual Masters are the Divine Incarnations, those rare occasions when the Divine appears in Its own "dream" as a character, as a tangible means that every one can easily access for Transmitting the greatest Realization of all — the Divine State of Perfect and Eternal Happiness — which coincides with awakening from the "dream".

  • The Need for a Spiritual Transmission Master Many people experience some kind of spiritual or unitive Revelation sometime in their life. (As Adi Da puts it: "Everyone receives the Shock of God. Everyone. There is no being from the mosquito to Man who does not receive the Shock of Divine Intervention.") But a moment and a memory is not the same thing as permanent Realization of what was Revealed in that moment. Realization requires many years (or lifetimes) of self-transcending practice on the basis of that Revelation. For that reason, one must have access to the Revelation on an ongoing, even moment-to-moment basis. That is the function of the Spiritual Transmission Master.

  • Is Adi Da Still Spiritually Active After His Human Lifetime? — The answer: Very much so! Chris's article considers Adi Da's Own words about this, as well as the experiences of devotees (and non-devotees) after His human lifetime.

  • The Necessary Artfulness in Taking Up Disciplines in the Way of Adidam Response to a frequently asked question about whether people who are not yet devotees should take up any of the disciplines of the Way of Adidam. Touches upon some of the subtleties facing both prospective devotees and current devotees in engaging disciplines, such as engaging the disciplines egoically or egolessly.

  • A Framework for Exegesis: Understanding Adi Da's Word in Context — To rightly understand Adi Da's Teaching Word, we must know exactly when He wrote or spoke it, and the context in which He wrote or spoke it. And to pin down that context, it is useful to evaluate the talk or essay or passage along seven different dimensions, which are presented and described in this article.

  • Adidam and Postmodernism — Chris describes Adidam as a post-postmodern tradition. Like postmodernism, Adidam rejects all egoic viewpoints as limited. But this is because it identifies the ego as the source of all limited viewpoints (which postmodernism fails to do). The profoundly consequential implication is that there is a Viewpoint that is not limited: if one transcends the ego perfectly, then "limited viewpoint" is also transcended in the Prior Unity that is revealed.

  • We Are Consciousness ItselfThis article is for helping the reader better understand the free ebook, We Are Consciousness Itself, (particularly the terminology, which is unconventional), and appreciate its implications.

  • Lawsuits, Countersuits, and Media Circuses: The Details — Chris presents the basic facts, which are pretty straightforward. Two lawsuits were filed, and out-of-court settlements reached. The Marin County Superior Court dismissed the primary lawsuit.

  • On the 1985 Beverly O'Mahony lawsuit — The one major lawsuit against Adidam was brought by Beverly O'Mahony, Brian O'Mahony's wife at the time (1985). In this interview with Chris, Brian speaks candidly about that time, the lawsuit, the media circus that ensued, and what to make of it all decades later.

  • The Devotee Feeds the Guru, and the Guru Feeds the Devotee — Chris's story of how he found Adi Da.

  • Club Rat — Chris tells the story of how Adi Da created a most unusual evening, and how He used music to open Chris's heart.

  • Surrender at the Master's Feet — In this compilation, Wes Vaught, Antonina Randazzo, and Chris describe the extraordinary Grace of touching (or being physically close to) Adi Da's Feet, traditionally held to be the most sacred "part" of the Spiritual Transmission Master's body.

  • The Mummery Book: excerpts (9 tracks) The Mummery Book (Book One of The Orpheum) is a sacred theatrical enactment that combines acting, images, and music. Much music has been written for The Mummery Book over the years, often completely new with each year's performance. Here is just a small sample, composed and sung by Chris for Adi Da at the 1995 performance of The Mummery Book on Naitauba, Fiji.

  • Spiritual Recognition of Adi Da: Some Initial Stories — In this article, Chris provides stories of spiritually sensitive people (from a variety of cultural traditions) who have recognized Adi Da in spiritual terms.

  • Money and "Spiritual Legitimacy" — Chris's introductory article addresses a couple of common, but mistaken notions about money and spirituality: someone who is "spiritual" should have nothing to do with money (making it, using it, etc.); and any spiritual or religious organization that makes money a requirement rather than a "pass the basket" voluntary matter could not be spiritually "legitimate".

  • Incorruptibility — This article explores the nature of incorruptibility, and, in contrast with some fourth to fifth stage Realizers, why we would expect the body of a seventh stage Realizer to not be incorruptible, because no connection with the physical body (or subtle body) remains after the moment of death.

  • The Way of the Bone: The Addict's Revision of Adidam vs. the True Way — In the relative quiet after Adi Da's Passing, we may finally have the space to feel a fundamental error many of us may have been making in our practice of the Way of Adidam.

  • Before It Was The Mountain Of Attention — Before it became The Mountain Of Attention, the land now associated with this Sanctuary had served as a popular hot springs resort called Seigler Hot Springs (Seigler Springs, for short). Here is a brief recount of that history, along with an album of historical photos.

  • The Sign of Open Hands — Chris answers a question about why devotees often have their hands raised.

  • The Dawn Horse in Adidam (editor) — Chris drew on many Adidam sources over the years to create this article about Adi Da's Dawn Horse Vision and Dawn Horse iconography in Adidam.

  • Chris's responses to some frequently asked questions.
  • Related Books by Devotees — Chris has written the nine-book series, The Practical Spirituality Series, which forms a bridge between the conventional western world view and the view of Adidam.
Kyle Truscott  

Kyle Truscott has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years.

Ineke van Amerongen

 

Ineke van Amerongen has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. She currently lives in the European Danda, in Maria Hoop, The Netherlands.

  • Audio/Video Library — Ineke appears in this video, where she provides an introduction to the European Danda.

Frans van den Bossche

 

Frans van den Bossche has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He has been a long-term resident of Adidam's Sanctuaries in California, Hawaii, and Fiji. He has served Adi Da as a principal editor since 1980. Frans now divides his time between Melbourne and Fiji, and continues to provide editorial services for Adi Da's Teaching publications.

  • The Teaching Work Begins (event) — Frans was one of hosts for this special four day retreat (April 25-28, 2013), that coincided with the celebration of the beginning of Adi Da's Teaching Work on April 25, 1973.

Maja van der Veer

 

Maja van der Veer has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. (She was born on November 3, Adi Da's birthday.) She lives in The European Danda, The Netherlands. She was the illustrator for Adi Da's book for children, What, Where, When, How, Why, and Who To Remember To Be Happy.

Jasper van Laar

 

Jasper van Laar is the manager of the Dutch website, Yoga Online, and the head of the film production company, Way Media. He lives in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes DaPlastique video clips (here and here) for which Jaspar did the production work.

Wes Vaught

 

Wes Vaught was one of Adi Da's earliest devotees. He now works as a healer.

Toni Vidor

 

Toni Vidor has been devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1974. She was the eldest child of well-known film director King Vidor. After college, she rejected the life offered by her parents’ wealth and fame. From the late 1940's to the early 1970's (when she met Adi Da), she was an equestrian and a healer, as well as a pioneer of alternative living. For more visit her website.

  • "An Immense Burden Had Been Lifted from Me" — Toni tells a story of the impact of Adi Da's Transmission on her: "When it was finally over, I felt as if an immense burden — eighty tons of whatever it was I had been carrying around all my life without even realizing it — had been lifted from me."

  • Related Books by Devotees — Toni has written an autobiography, Beyond The Illusion, in which she describes her many years as Adi Da's devotee.

  • Audio/Video Library — Toni Vidor talks about meeting Adi Da for the first time, and the profound impact of His Spiritual Transmission. She describes her mission to India to find (at Adi Da's request) the elusive "mercury bead", said to possess rejuvenative qualities and provide healing, and how she Gracefully fulfilled Adi Da's seemingly impossible request. She talks about her experience of Adi Da's relationship and play with non-humans. In responding to Adi Da's requests that she heal particular sick animals, she describes a fundamental lesson she learned: if oriented properly, the devotee healer is merely a conduit for Adi Da, and Adi Da does the healing, with an efficacy and speed not otherwise possible.

Jack Vigushin

 

Jack Vigushin is a longtime devotee of Adi Da Samraj.

  • "Direct Her to Me, Above" — Adi Da's detailed Instructions to Joan Vigushin, and her intimate partner, Jack, for serving her death transition.

Lynne Wagner

 

Lynne Wagner became a devotee of Avatar Adi Da Samraj in 1974. She lived in the Hermitages and Sanctuaries of Adidam and served Adi Da personally for nearly twenty years. Her career as an elementary school teacher started with the first Adidam private schools, and included years in public elementary and secondary schools, where she specialized in the arts and English for second-language learners. She received Adi Da's direct Instruction in the traditions of Eastern and Western spirituality and sacred art, and started painting Indian miniatures under His Guidance. Lynne now creates original fine art portraits and figurative paintings.

Ann Walsh

 
Ann Walsh attended university in the U.S. and Europe. Her education brought her to a point of profound disillusionment and despair. She was desperately seeking a source of Living Wisdom, studying everything from the occult to parapsychology to the various alternative and traditional religious offerings. Then she read The Knee Of Listening, Adi Da’s autobiography, and became His devotee in 1975. Ann has lived and served at three of Avatar Adi Da’s Hermitages and Sanctuaries.

Leslie Waltzer

 
Leslie Waltzer came to Bhagavan Adi Da in 1975, when she was 29 years old. Over the course of her time as His devotee, she has seen Adi Da on many occasions. She is the business owner of a graphic design company in the San Francisco Bay Area, and has served Adi Da over the years principally through book, print and website design and in service to the Adidam Mission. She raised two children and taught art to many children in the Adidam community.
  • Praise to the Guru, Body of Light — Leslie came to Bhagavan Adi Da in 1975, when she was 29 years old. Just after Adi Da's Divine Mahasamadhi, she went on retreat at Naitauba. This is her story of what happened while she was there.

David Ward

 

David Ward has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj for many years. He is an artisan who works with a unique medium: tree branches, creating stick art in many forms (including wall-mounted sculptures). His contributions to contemporary interior design have been recognized in the national media (for example, this article in The San Francisco Chronicle) and are showcased in numerous luxury homes across the nation. He lives and works in an artistic spiritual community near Nevada City in Northern California.

Don Webley

 

Don Webley was born in Jamaica and came to the United States to study physics. He is now a medical legal consultant. He has been a devotee of Adi Da Samraj since 1980. He has written several introductions and commentaries to Adi Da's books and is helping to make Avatar Adi Da's Art known in the world.

  • A conversation with Adi Da Samraj about His uniqueness as a seventh stage Adept Realizer — Don was the first devotee to speak extensively to Adi Da Samraj about the Uniqueness of His Teaching and His Realization. He recounts that 1993 conversation with Adi Da Samraj, when He openly Confirmed that He is the "First, Last, and Only Seventh-Stage Adept".

  • Beyond All Doubt — As a child in Jamaica, Donald Webley recalls feeling that there was something lacking, something without which real happiness was not possible. An unexplained experience of Bliss moved him to spiritual practice and eventually to Avatar Adi Da.

Susana Weingarten

 

Susana Weingarten has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. She was born and raised in Mexico City. She studied modern dance techniques at the school of Ballet Nacional de Mexico and later in the school of Ballet Independiente de Mexico, where she danced professionally and toured Mexico and Central America. She moved to New York City to continue her dance training with Takako Azakawa, Kazuko Hirabayashi, Louis Falco, The Alvin Ailey Dance School, and Carol Rioux. She appeared with Linda Diamond and Dancers at the Symphony Space and Lincoln Center Annex in New York City. Currently Susana is the co-Director of DANCEVERT, along with husband and world-class dancer Tom Evert. She oversees the artistic, marketing/publicity and general aspects of the company, as well as choreographing her own works for solos, duets, and large group works individually and in collaboration with Tom and other musicians. More on her website.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a number of video clip of Susan Weingarten and/or Tom Evert choreographing and performancing dances based on the Wisdom of Adi Da (here and here).

Greg Wells

 

Greg Wells is a devotee of Adi Da. He was born into a large family of eight children in one of the worst ghettos in Philadelphia. He has an MBA, and has been a mechanical engineer, school principal, a minimum wage parking lot attendant, and a computer consultant, and is a father of four grown sons. Since becoming of devotee of Adi Da Samraj in 1990, he has lived in Washington DC and New Zealand, and is presently living on Adi Da Samrajashram.

  • How Total Satisfaction Found Me Greg's insightful account of how he finally found God in the Person of Adi Da Samraj, and came to understand that Adi Da was the Spiritual Master he had been looking for since he was a small boy.

Kenneth Welsh

 

Kenneth Welsh is a renowned actor. He spent seven seasons at Stratford, playing among many other roles, the title role in Hamlet. The next twelve years he spent in New York, where he appeared on and off Broadway. His film credits include The Freshman, Legends of the Fall, Crocodile Dundee II, The Day After Tomorrow, Absolute Power, The Aviator, and Margaret's Museum. On television his credits include starring roles in Empire Inc, Love and Hate, And Then You Die, Hiroshima, Edison, Smallville, Law and Order, The X-Files, and Twin Peaks. He has won six Geminis and one Genie (the Canadian equivalent of the Oscars and the Emmys).

  • Kenneth Welsh: An Appreciation — Kenneth Welsh, a renowned, prolific Canadian actor known for his memorable, unhinged villain from Twin Peaks, in addition to roles in such hit films as The Day After Tomorrow and The Aviator, has died (on May 5, 2022) at the age of 80. Ken was a devotee of Adi Da, and will be greatly missed by all those in the Adidam community who knew or appreciated him. This article is an appreciation of Ken.
  • Not-Two Is Peace: Recitations — Ken recites selected chapters from Adi Da's book, Not-Two Is Peace.

Tom Williams

 

Tom Williams was a former Presbyterian minister. He has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1982.

  • Coming Home: The Spiritual Odyssey of a Former Clergyman Tom: "My story is about how I moved from being an ordinary person to someone who was given the greatest gift in the world. This is the story of how I fell in love with God. And I wouldn't trade this life for anything in the world. There's nothing that compares to being in communion, in love with God."

Felix Woldenberg

 

Felix Woldenberg grew up in the Adidam community as Adi Da's devotee. He has been formally trained as a dhrupad singer.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes an audio clip from Felix's album with Naamleela Free Jones, Da Naama Mantra.

Michael Wood

 

Michael Wood (Mulund) has been a devotee of Avatar Adi Da since the earliest years of Beloved's Work in Los Angeles. He was a corporate attorney at the time he was introduced to Avatar Adi Da, and he was the principal attorney for Adidam for over 25 years.

  • The Teaching Years Were Fruitless — Mulund presents Adi Da's communication about how His "Teaching Years" [the period of His early Work with His devotees] were "fruitless": They demonstrated the fruitlessness of all the different forms of human seeking, both conventional and unconventional.

Nara Wood

 

Nara Wood grew up in the Adidam community as Adi Da's devotee. She is an artist and watercolorist; for more, visit her website.

  • Audio/Video Library — Our audio/video library includes a video clip of Nara offering a testimonial to the life and work of Adi Da Samraj.

  • RadianceOur Adi Da Samrajashram page features a painting of Naitauba by Nara, one of several she has done.

Bill Worden

 

Bill Worden has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1997. Prior to becoming a devotee, Bill had been a ski instructor, a commercial fisherman in Alaska and California, co-owner of an art nouveau / art deco company, and a poker dealer at casinos in both South Lake Tahoe, Nevada, and San Pablo, California. He maintains the blog, Steps on the Path.

  • My First Years with Adi Da — Bill: "An energy started to descend into me. The energy seemed conscious. It was intelligent. It moved steadily. It wasn’t affected by anything I did. It must have taken about thirty seconds to go all the way down my body. It was the most amazing thing to feel. I felt love as I have never experienced it. It was pure love."

John Wubbenhorst

 

John Wubbenhorst has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. He leads the musical group, Facing East, which continually experiments with new musical possibilities that often seamlessly combine Eastern and Western musical traditions.

Jasmine Wynants

 

Jasmine Wynant maintains the Adidam Finland Facebook page, and hosts Adidam events in Finland. She also sings vocals and plays guitar for the band, Vicky Lovecat.

  • 35 Years With My Master — Along with Eija Halme, Jasmine hosted this event in Helsinki, which featured James Steinberg as guest speaker.

Jane Yang

 

Jane Yang has been a devotee of Adi Da for many years. She is a Chi-Gong Master of the Wu Ji Chi Gong style school. She has been privileged to study with a number of great Chi-Gong Masters over the last forty years, and is very grateful to them all.

  • Going to the Source — Jane's story of how she came to acknowledge Avatar Adi Da Samraj as the ultimate source of power and healing central to all of Chi-Gong.

  • The Five Reality-Teachings (in Mandarin) — Devotee Jane Yang translated Adi Da's The Five Reality-Teachings into Mandarin. Here is her 2008 recitation of that translation. Consideration of "The Five Reality-Teachings" is one of the core practices of The Transcendental Spiritual Way of Adidam.

Steve Zerlin

 

Steve Zerlin is a brilliant and versatile bassist, fluent with many styles. He is accomplished as a jazz musician on both electric and acoustic bass as well as having adapted the bass to Eastern modalities as a member of Facing East. He has toured India as well as extensively throughout the USA with many top artists including Jack DeJohnette, Dennis Chambers, Carl Filipiak group, Paul McCandless and others. He was cited in Jazz Times magazine (April 2004) for his unique style and abilities.

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