Adi Da Up Close
Audio/Video Library

In this rare historical footage from 1973, Adi Da speaks about the relationship with the Guru in Satsang (the Company of the Awakened One) as the Way of Truth, and Reality Itself.

Adi Da: "During My 'Sadhana Years', whenever My Guru asked Me to do something, I would do that. The rest of the time, I would sit there and be absorbed in Him. And there was nothing else I could do. The Guru is sufficient — and the devotee of the Guru is one who knows that."

Tags: DVD  

An audio excerpt from Adi Da's talk, "I Will Do Everything". This talk, and the talk, "Guru, Faith, and Divine Communion", are now available on a CD from the Dawn Horse Press.

In this excerpt, Adi Da describes the structure of egoic patterning, and how the principle of change is non-use of past patterns (rather than psychoanalysis, etc.) by doing what is inherently right instead.

In these two talks (“I Will Do Everything” and “Guru, Faith, and Satsang”), Adi Da beautifully illuminates the nature of the relationship to the Spiritual Master. This sacred relationship to the Guru is the direct means by which the Divine Principle becomes operative in one's life.

As feeling-attention is magnified toward the Spiritual Master —through the force of attraction, of love, of devotion — the reactive forces and habits that drive one's egoic life begin to lose their force, and the Divine becomes the Mover and Principle of one's life.

Tags: CD  

Excerpt from a talk given by Adi Da on June 18, 1976, at The Mountain Of Attention.

Adi Da describes how, through the Grace of His Company, the devotee becomes increasingly aware of suffering and its nature. Increasingly, Grace reveals that suffering is the result of the devotee's own activity.

Consequently, the Way of Adidam [called "The Way of Divine Communion" in this 1976 talk] involves a life of counter-egoic activity, that focuses on devotion to the Divine Presence of the Guru, rather than working on one's tendencies. Over time, the act of devotional surrender to the Divine (and the Happiness associated with that surrender) replaces the act of self-possession (and the suffering associated with that self-possession).

Devotees describe the beneficial impact of sacred music on their practice of the Way of Adidam, during the Celebration of Da Purnima on Adi Da Samrajashram, in July, 2014. The music was performed by John Wubbenhorst and Peter Van Gelder (sitar), on many different occasions.

John writes: "It was a very full Celebration of Da Purnima at Adi Da Samrajashram in Fiji. Peter Van Gelder (sitar) and myself (bansuri flute) came for music service and we were very busy every day. Each morning we would sit for several hours practicing the most refined compositions from Peter's music guru Ali Akbar Khan and we would chose what we felt would be the best gifts for our Guru, Adi Da, that day. Almost every day there would be offerings and also many chanting occasions. It is very tangible the difference between playing at Adi Da Samrajashram and playing music anywhere else. The island is so full of Beloved Adi Da that as soon as we would start to play, we would feel the music coming from a deeper place and that would in turn help everyone to drop into deeper communion with Beloved, which would then allow the music to be deeper — and on and on."

Tags: music  

"The Avon Lady" is a classic talk given by Avatar Adi Da in the early years of His Teaching-Work. In this humorous and penetrating discourse, Avatar Adi Da offers basic instruction regarding the nature of seeking and the Awakening Function of the True Guru.

In this audio excerpt entitled “There Is Already No Dilemma”, Avatar Adi Da describes the human egoic drama of separation, suffering, and seeking. All pleasures, distractions, and experiences reinforce that same drama of the apparently separate self. But the True Guru does not support the search, does not promise any fulfillment of that search. That is the uniqueness and the invaluable quality of the True Guru. Adi Da compares the True Guru to an unusual elevator – where one steps in, expecting to go up (toward Spiritual attainment or some other fulfillment), but instead the bottom drops out. This is why the search begins to fall apart once there is recognition of the True Guru. Then the real Spiritual process can begin.

Tags: CD  

In this video clip from the 1988 talk, "What Is Your Intention?", Adi Da criticizes the "do-it-yourself" approach to spirituality that is popular in the world today, and speaks about why a teacher is necessary.

The full talk is available on the DVD, The Commitment To Real-God-Realization.

For more on this subject, read our article, Why Great Spiritual Realization Requires a Spiritual Transmission Master.

Tags: DVD  

Excerpt from Adi Da's talk, Guru As Prophet - available on a double CD from the Dawn Horse Press. This talk is also published in the book, My "Bright" Word. A course, My "Bright" Word, is also available from The Laughing Man Institute.

In this talk Adi Da distinguishes between the Spiritual (Transmission) Function of the True Guru and the public function of Guru as "prophet" (or critic).

For another excerpt from the same talk, click here.

See also the Adidam Revelation Magazine article, Guru as Prophet.

Tags: CD  

An excerpt from "Guru As Prophet", a humorous and penetrating Discourse from the very earliest years of Avatar Adi Da’s Teaching-Work. Adi Da speaks of the Guru's role as prophet in the world, which is to create "an aggravation, a criticism, an undermining of the usual life". He speaks of how the Guru in the function of prophet is always working to produce a condition in which people's illusions may be undone.

From the CD, Money, Food, and Sex / Guru As Prophet. This talk is also published in the book, My "Bright" Word.

For another excerpt from this talk, click here.

Tags: CD  

An excerpt from "Money, Food, and Sex", a humorous and penetrating Discourse from the very earliest years of Avatar Adi Da’s Teaching-Work. Adi Da criticizes the typical conception of Spirituality as having nothing to do with the realities of day-to-day life and says that taking responsibility for money, food, and sex creates the foundation practice of genuine spiritual practice.

From the CD, Money, Food, and Sex / Guru As Prophet. This talk is also published in the book, My "Bright" Word. A course, My "Bright" Word, is also available from The Laughing Man Institute.

Tags: CD  

An excerpt from "The Avon Lady", a humorous and penetrating Discourse from the very earliest years of Avatar Adi Da’s Teaching-Work. Adi Da explains how there is no search and no dilemma when one is in Satsang (the company of the Guru).

The full talk, "The Avon Lady", is available on the double CD, The Avon Lady / Walking the Dog. The text is available in the book, My "Bright" Word. A course, My "Bright" Word, is also available from The Laughing Man Institute.

For another audio excerpt from "The Avon Lady", press "part 1" above.

For a special article from the Adidam Revelation Magazine on "The Avon Lady", click here.

Tags: CD  

Devotee Meg Fortune McDonnell reads from her book, Tasting the Moon: Adventures in the Meaning of Life. This excerpt is the culminating story in the chapter, "First Encounters," which begins with the startling dreams and unusual synchronicities that drew Meg to Adi Da.

Music courtesy of Naamleela Free Jones, from her CD, Eyes In Other Worlds.

Tags: Meg Fortune McDonnell   Tasting the Moon   First Encounters   devotee book  

James Steinberg discusses the importance of keeping attention on the Guru and staying in relationship to (and Communion with) the Guru.

From the March, 2012 Retreat at The European Danda. For future retreats, visit our Special Events section.

Tags: European Danda   retreat   James Steinberg  

Photographic Image of Avatar Adi Da Samraj.

Soundtrack is "Tasmai Sri Gurave Namah" (I Salute Such a Guru), from devotee Antonina Randazzo's CD, Come To Me.

Tags: CD  

This recording of Above the Clouds was made in November 2010, during a three day, 24-hour-a-day vigil of meditation and puja on the veranda of Aham Da Asmi Sthan, Adi Da's home on the island of Naitauba. Devotee John Wubbenhorst speaks of the sacred occasion of being dropped out into the space of being 'not really there' while the Guru plays the musical instrument (and the instrument that is one's body-mind).

"Above the clouds, There Is Always The Sun — Forever Free Of Earthly Weather. By Tendency, You Are Always Looking At the local weather, and Not At The Sun Itself. That Is What egoity Is About — Always Suffering The Changes Of The local Patterning That Is the body-mind In its egoic Bondage. Instead, You Must (In every moment) Turn To Me . . . "

Avatar Adi Da Samraj, The Dawn Horse Testament Of The Ruchira Avatar

For more stories about "Music as a Sacred Art and Growing in the Relationship To Adi Da", click here.

Tags: Above the Clouds   John Wubbenhorst   bansuri   Fiji  

Ed Reither of The Beezone interviews longtime devotee James Steinberg. James tells how, even though he came to Adi Da because He was "a teacher who can deal with me", nonetheless there were moments when James resisted Adi Da's "dealing" with him. He tells the story of one such moment and how studying the details of the Guru-devotee relationship in the spiritual traditions helped move him into right relationship with his Guru.



Tags: James Steinberg