poster: Gerald Sheinfeld speaker: Gerald Sheinfeld length: 02:17 date added: July 27, 2021 language: English views: 637; views this month: 23; views this week: 7
Part 16 of longtime devotee Gerald Sheinfeld's reading of his book, At the Feet of the Spiritual Master.
[Contains Italian subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
Stanley Hastings talks about his childhood and adolescence growing up in the Adidam community. Like many other young people, as a teenager, he decided to see for himself what the world had to offer. After several years of experimenting, he decided to return to Adi Da and the Way of life He offered — to fully participate again in the life of the community and to serve Adi Da directly.
Club Rat poster: AdiDaUpClose speaker: Chris Tong length: 01:04 date added: July 6, 2021 language: English listens: 966; listens this month: 22; listens this week: 15
On July 7, 1992 (Fiji time), at Adi Da Samrajashram, Adi Da created "Club Rat", a most unusual gathering during the height of a Celebratory period. For those unfamiliar with Club Rat, you can read Chris Tong's story about it here.
Music plays a central role in the story. For this reason, in celebration of the 29th anniversary of Club Rat (on July 7, 2021), Chris has recreated part of the rock song he wrote and performed that evening, Club Rat, so you can at least get a taste of the actual music from that night. (Adi Da had called for an evening of rock music. Club Rat was the opening song of a night of music that would go on to include much more than rock music. . .)
If for some reason, the player above doesn't work, try this player:
Club Rat. Club Rat. The funky place where God is at. Club Rat. Club Rat. The funky place where. . . only skanks and whores walk through its doors. There you find Your Self and lose yourself. When the Lord's in town Everyone gets down. Club Rat. Club Rat. The funky place where God is at. (etc.)
CHRIS: This recreation is just as we presented it to Beloved Adi Da during the Club Rat gathering, except for some improvements due to better musical equipment and technology (e.g., drum machines instead of upside-down, plastic "piss buckets" 😜 — read the full story for more about that! ).
I wrote Club Rat, keeping in mind the intensity and "badness" of the pop rock music Beloved Adi Da was listening to at the time (like Michael Jackson's Beat It).
The lyrics are drawn from Adi Da's instructions to us about Club Rat, such as: Club Rat was to be the most "funky" place ever; participating devotees had to be "skanks and whores" — in other words, no suppressed energy or emotional-sexual complication (so He could work with our entire energy, not just the superficial part we usually show to or share with others socially); etc.
The lyrics also drew on current, ongoing considerations Adi Da was having with devotees at the time, such as His Calling to us to "get down" (He was riffing on the popular 1970's slang phrase, giving it His Own unique meaning): a reminder for us to incarnate whole bodily (rather than being merely a "point" in the head, refusing to "get down" below the head).
The line, "When the Lord's in town" was a reference to Beloved Adi Da visiting the "village" of Qaravi: the area of the island of Naitauba where His devotees lived and where "Club Rat" (Hymns To Me) was located.
[Contains Spanish subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
In this excerpt from an Avataric Discourse, Adi Da speaks about the necessity to become disillusined with mortal life in a positive sense. Positive disillusionment is emerging when one begins to understand and relinquish the stressful and ultimately futile search for personal survival, worldly happiness, and ultimate life fulfillment. Only then can one be drawn into recognizing, learning about, and ecstatically participating in Reality Itself, in relationship to a True Realizer.
ADI DA: The teaching of Truth is for those who are disillusioned in the positive sense, who have been sobered in their lives by grasping the nature of existence and being cured of search.
"You Must Know The Place You Are In" is a video excerpt from the award-winning documentary, Conscious Light, about the life and work of Adi Da Samraj.
Drawing on an extensive archival collection of film, photography, and audio recordings, as well as interviews with students who have lived with Adi Da and who practice His teachings, Conscious Light takes the viewer on a journey from Adi Da's birth, through His thirty-six years of Teaching and Blessing, to the legacy and spiritual relationship that is eternally available to all after His passing.
[Contains Finnish subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
Adi Dan yhteisössä kasvanut omistautuja kertoo nuoruudestaan, jolloin hän päätti tutkia, mitä maailmalla on tarjottavana, kuten monet teini-ikäiset tekevät. Muutaman vuoden jälkeen hän kuitenkin tunsi vahvempaa vetoa Adi Data sekä Hänen tarjoamaansa elämäntapaa kohtaan, ja teki tietoisen päätöksen osallistua elämään Adidamin parissa ja palvella Adi Data henkilökohtaisesti.
Stanley Hastings talks about his childhood and adolescence growing up in the Adidam community. Like many other young people, as a teenager, he decided to see for himself what the world had to offer. After several years of experimenting, he decided to return to Adi Da and the Way of life He offered — to fully participate again in the life of the community and to serve Adi Da directly.
[Contains Polish subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
Prezentowane tutaj video to fragment rozmowy Adi Da ze studentaim z 1976 roku. Jak zawsze Adi Da Samraj nie oferuje studentom ani pocieszenia ani lepszego życia w przyszłości. "Twoje cierpienie jest twoim własnym działaniem". Lekarstwem jest zrozumienie przyczyny cierpienia i poznanie Tego co cierpienie poprzedza.
In this seminal discourse (at the Mountain Of Attention), from the early years of His Teaching Work, Adi Da speaks about the inevitable process of self-revelation and self-understanding that prepares the being for true Spiritual life.
This is a beautiful talk by Adi Da. But it IS very compressed, making quite a few points in a short space, and depending to a significant degree on a familiarity with Adi Da's spiritual teaching. Here are some notes that may help.
Throughout the talk, the technical term, "sadhana" (spiritual practice), is used.
Genuine spiritual practice is not about belief systems, mere rituals, or a little "peace of mind", but rather about actually locating the Divine, through the tangible Transmission of the Spiritual Master.
After a recent illness, a devotee mentions to Adi Da that he notices how the physical suffering of illness was distracting enough that he was not "able" to find Adi Da's Transmission when he is ill.
Adi Da acknowledges this, and responds with three more general points.
1. The illness didn't "make" the devotee lose the thread of practice; rather, he allowed himself to be distracted from God by the illness. When the devotee gets this, and sees how he himself is "doing" the turning away, he'll be able to "do better next time" by not turning away even when ill.
2. Until Divine Enlightenment — in other words, until there is no limit on one's spiritual practice — sadhana (spiritual practice) is always only reflecting back to devotees the remaining limits in their practice: where they are still turning away from the Divine, where they still need to become responsible for not turning away.
In the beginning, the "turning away" is very "crude": even mere physical suffering is enough to distract one from God. (If we find ourselves saying, "what do you mean, MERE physical suffering?" that definitely identifies us as spiritual beginners! :-) ) But as one grows in practice, and ceases to turn away in such a crude manner (as one becomes a "saint", "yogi", "sage", etc.), one discovers that one is still turning from the Divine at an even subtler level of the being (in the mind, the psyche, etc.)
It is only when that "turning away" has been inspected, understood, and transcended in every dimension of the being that Divine Realization occurs.
In this sense, for the genuine spiritual practitioner, physical suffering — along with every other circumstance that reveals to us our turning away from the Divine — is truly a Grace, enabling us to grow in our practice.
3. Where we are turning away is a reflection of what we are identifying with: the body, the mind, the soul, etc. (For example, if physical illness is enough to distract us from God, then the physical body is what we currently are identified with.) God-Realization only occurs when all "identities" less than God are understood and transcended.
In this sense, "there are no winners in God" — the Way is not about seeking, accomplishment, or winning, but rather about surrender to God, sacrifice of self, and ego-death. There's no "one" left to "win"! But the One Who Remains is perfectly, eternally happy.
[Contains Italian subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
By tendency, people are bound to the natural cycle of ups and downs. Neither bodily pleasures nor spiritual pursuits result in True Freedom from this constant phasing. One path merely accentuates the descending (or bodily) experiences and the other, the ascending (or subtle) experiences.
In this Discourse, Avatar Adi Da reveals with absolute clarity how the relationship with the Guru gives freedom from this trap—because the Guru is the Manifestation of the Condition that is Prior to this mechanical cycling, not part of it.
Watching this DVD will transport viewers to a special moment in Adidam history. July 29, 1973, was the day Avatar Adi Da left Los Angeles for a Yajna (sacred journey) through India and Nepal. He returned as “Bubba Free John”, His first spontaneously revealed Teaching-Name. Thus, this was the last Discourse He gave as “Franklin Jones” (Avatar Adi Da’s birth name).
[Contains Italian subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
Opening night gala (July 9, 2015) for Adi Da Samraj, “The Ascent of Orpheus” exhibition at the Bargello National Museum, Florence. Includes opening events and interviews.
For the first time, on April 25, 1972, Avatar Adi Da Samraj invited people to approach Him as Spiritual Teacher at His new ashram center on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles. That evening, Avatar Adi Da first sat in silence for perhaps an hour with those present, Transmitting to them the Sublimity of His Radiant State of Realization. Then, Adi Da spoke.
ADI DA: Are there any questions?
No one replied, so Avatar Adi Da Samraj spoke again.
ADI DA: Everyone has understood? QUESTIONER: I have not understood. Explain it to me. ADI DA: Very good. What have you not understood?
[Contains Italian subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
An overview of Adi Da's life and work by Ruchiradama Nadikanta, a long-time devotee. She is a member of the Ruchira Sannyasin Order, the order of fully renunciate practitioners in Adidam.
Otwarcie wystawy w Muzeum Bargello we Florencji poster: Adi Da Video Polska speakers: Tommaso Sacchi, Michael Fleck, Francesca Faggi, Pien Rademakers, Christina Acidini, Giuliano Serafini, Serena Croce length: 07:20 date added: March 11, 2021 event date: July 9, 2015 language: Polish views: 729; views this month: 25; views this week: 20
[Contains Polish subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
Więcej ilustracji ze sztuką Adi Da Samraj znajdziesz na stronie: www.daplastique.com.
Opening night gala (July 9, 2015) for Adi Da Samraj, “The Ascent of Orpheus” exhibition at the Bargello National Museum, Florence. Includes opening events and interviews.
[Contains Polish subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
Dorastając we wspólnocie Adi Da, Stanley opowiada o swoim dzieciństwie i dojrzewaniu w Adidam, opowiada o tym, jak jako nastolatka, podobnie jak wielu innych młodych osób, postanowił na własnej skórze przekonać się, co świat ma do zaoferowania. Po kilku latach eksperymentowania postanowił wrócić do Adi Da i oferowanego przez niego stylu życia, aby ponownie w pełni uczestniczyć w życiu wspólnoty i bezpośrednio służyć Adi Da.
Stanley Hastings talks about his childhood and adolescence growing up in the Adidam community. Like many other young people, as a teenager, he decided to see for himself what the world had to offer. After several years of experimenting, he decided to return to Adi Da and the Way of life He offered — to fully participate again in the life of the community and to serve Adi Da directly.
Adi Da Samrajin Taide: Näyttelyt Italiassa poster: Adi Da Videot Suomi speakers: Stuart Gibson, Achille Bonito Oliva, Teresa Romero, Cristina Acidini, Monica Bietti, Paula Crema, Gary Coates length: 12:23 date added: February 4, 2021 language: Finnish views: 851; views this month: 28; views this week: 24
[Contains Finnish subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
Tämä video on tallenne kahdesta huomattavasta taidenäyttelystä, jossa Adi Dan taideteokset olivat esillä: Venetsian Biennaalista ja Cenacolo Di Ognissantista Firenzessä.
Two important art exhibitions in which Adi Da was invited to participate were the Venice Biennale (2007) and the Cenacolo di Ognissanti in Florence (2008), where His Art was exhibited in the same room as the famous large fresco by Domenico Ghirlandaio of "The Last Supper".
[Contains Italian subtitles. If the CC icon ("Subtitles/closed captions") has a red line under it, the subtitles should appear. If you don't see them, just press the CC icon to turn them on.]
This is a video excerpt from Adi Da's classic talk, "The Bodily Location of Happiness", which He gave on November 28, 1981. This talk was originally published in the book, The Bodily Location Of Happiness. The full talk is available on DVD and on CD, and as an online transcript.
ADI DA: Life is foolishness. This is no time, in any case, to be tolerant of foolishness. The world is mad, and these are dreadful times. Things are not going to be easier in the years ahead. The spiritual process has always been lived in difficult times. Therefore, the spiritual process tolerates no fool. The spiritual process itself will spit you out. It is not an easy attainment, but a profoundly difficult affair. Even what you have listened to today has been heard by only a fraction of the human race in all of history. The opportunity to practice is extremely rare, and the fulfillment of practice is practically unknown.
In some sense you could say this life is hell. . . The nature of this hell is that we are self-possessed. We are born in un-Happiness and we do not transcend it readily. We constantly pursue Happiness through all kinds of incredibly complex means, and we never attain It. . .
If Spiritual Realizers did not turn about and Teach, this would truly be a hell instead of being like a hell. It would truly be a hell if there were no possibility of Enlightenment, if there were no Teaching, no Spiritual Masters, no sacred Way, no sacred community, no capacity for understanding or self-transcendence.
Our multimedia library currently contains 1206
YouTube video clips and audio clips about (or related to) Adi Da and Adidam.[1]
Enjoy! indicates
a video, and
an audio. Special categories of interest include:
Thanks to the many videographers who took the footage, to the many editors who
created these videos and audios, and to the 132
people and organizations who posted these videos and audios on YouTube and other places on the
Web. Special thanks to Lynne
Thompson, who did a lot of the data entry for our audio/video database.
