The 1970s and its spiritual influences, part one

Exposure to the works of Alan Watts, sometime in 1969, initiated a process of purging myself of rigid mental pictures born from reading popular metaphysical literature of the time. And, likely set the stage for the development of new forms of conditioning with a new set of mental images adopted to represent what was reality. This despite the reinforcing and deconditioning “message” also expressed by J. Krishnamurti. I would say that after a good healthy entry into the stream of awakening, via exposure to a wide range of spiritual traditions and practices, that for a good decade plus the adoption of a frame of reference (and “story”)  offered by Franklin Jones (Adi Da Samraj)  was not really serving “awakening” and “realization”.  For all that time, I chose to live in his dream environment and looked at all other spiritual vehicles and influences as limited compared to his teachings.

During my high school years (the last years of the ’60s), I gobbled up books on metaphysics and the occult.  Flying saucer books were fun also!  So, by my senior year in high school, I had basicly dumped my old atheistic outlook and now carried around this picture in my mind of a universe of mysterious astral planes and forces that operated beyond this “material world”.  I was addicted to books about Edgar Cayce.  Reading Ruth Montgomery was a lot of fun also, thrilling my imagination with all sorts of things not at all viewed as possible in my previously dreary mental world of dismissive reductionism.

By the very beginning of the 1970s, I was practicing two types of meditation.  First, a basic zazen form of sitting.  Alan Watts was sharing his thoughts on a monthly basis now, through mailings of his Alan Watts Journal, and reading his handwritten essay “The Art of Meditation” was a great introduction for that form of practice.  (For me, anyway.)  “Sitting quietly, doing nothing”, or as Watts emphasized, without expectation or a search for experiences, was something I enjoyed doing on  a regular basis.

Then, there was experimentation with a practice that clearly was goal oriented or a search for experiences.  But, what the hell, I wanted to travel to exotic lands!  So, I was exposed to “surat shabda yoga” in my late teens (in Eureka, California, of all places!) and even though I never joined the Ruhani Satsang, got Initiated by Kirpal Singh, or took those classes Bruce Avenell was offering, I had obtained the details of the practice and started in with that.

This practice really amped up the electricity!  Focusing internally on the “light and sound current”, somewhat on a regular basis (like the zazen), seemed to have some amazing side effects in late 1972: a series of clear out of the body experiences over a two or three month period.  All these events took place upon awakening from a night of sleep and started off with sleep paralysis and overwhelming (and loud) currents of energy and a sense of bodily expansion.  When there was a feeling of intense pressure in the center of my brain (as this current overwhelmed my body), I felt tangible seperation from the body.  (One time I could feel my arms, comfortably resting under the covers, actually raising up and amazingly I saw their new energetic form.)

Alan Watts died in November 1973, but he had apparently written something that would sure catch my eye not long after!!  I noticed a Foreward he had written to a book called “The Knee of Listening”.  The book was written by a young guy named Franklin Jones, who was seen on the cover sitting bright eyed and talking to disciples.  Now, immediately I felt an inner tension, probably cognitive dissonance.  For I was definitely in alignment with Krishnamurti’s thoughts regarding Gurus and here was some young guy, from America, becoming a Guru and receiving words of praise from Alan Watts.  Curiousity won out after several examinations of the book on the shelves at the Humboldt State University bookstore, so I bought the damn book!  (And, also Jones’ “The Method of the Siddhas”, a compilation of his early talks before disciples.)

Now, I was not uninformed about eastern traditions.  I had already taken endless courses in Buddhism and Hinduism at HSU.  (Dr. Bazemore’s classes.)  So, I knew something about the role of Gurus in other traditions, and despite the cries of warnings offered by Krishnamurit, I decided to open myself up to this scene and see what I could find out. 

To be continued……