Stories of our history

Seven Circles: Subud Member Remembrances

Following are remembrances provided by Paul Edwards, Lusijah Rott, Amelia Williams, and Rachmart Martin. There are many other Subud members who may have experiences or memories of events at Seven Circles which they would like to share.

All encouraged to do share their stories using the “Comment” box at the end of this article.

A Remembrance by Paul Edwards

I have had the opportunity to be actively engaged for the entire 20-year plus history of the Seven Circles Project. I joined the Seven Circles Board of Directors in the second year and have been an active director ever since, even when living in Vancouver, BC, serving as Board Chair for the last 10 years. 

I was on the first committee to help create a Regional Center and was also Chair of Subud Los Angeles when we finally decided on the property. I was very active working with Halfrid Nelson to find the equipment for the kitchen and to find and transport all the beds for the nine guest rooms. I also chaired the Capital Campaign to raise the money to upgrade the guest rooms.  We raised $300,000 in that successful campaign to remodel all the ensuite bathrooms. 

In 2005, when the Regional Council realized that SCR was serious about buying it they became aware that, if successful, the Seven Circles property might appreciate a lot in value and the Region would have no benefit from that. So, at a Regional meeting in Sacramento, I proposed that if SCR ever sold Seven Circles, the first $50,000 of the profits of the sale would go to Subud California. I talked our other Directors into this idea during a dinner break and then proposed it to the Regional Council when we reconvened. The members of the Regional Council loved the idea, so it was put in the new Seven Circles Bylaws.

Looking back, I feel that taking on ownership of Seven Circles from the Region was the right decision. Despite challenges here and there over the years to grow Seven Circles as a Retreat Center, we have been successful overall for more than 20 years. Seven Circles’ history has been a long and winding road, but I think I can say that the founders of Seven Circles (including some who have already passed away) feel that we have achieved the visions and dreams that we had for our project.  

A Remembrance by Lusijah Darrow (formerly Rott)

The establishment of a Subud owned property that could be used for our own meetings and gatherings was not a new idea. It was a fortunate confluence that this vision drew those with the same goal or idea, including foremost Sharif and Sulfiati Harris. There are so many people to whom I feel great gratitude for their efforts to make this center a reality. You all know who you are. Deep love to you with the hopes that you will be blessed for your tireless commitment.

Others have accurately described the history. I would like to talk about the original vision. My internal impulse was that we have this incredible gift of the Latihan, but as a group were and remain introverted and thus invisible. I felt that the establishment of such a center, in addition to providing meeting space for our gatherings, could also be a place for members to use their talents and abilities to do good works for others. We all do whatever work we do, and I believe many or most feel the importance of the gift of the Latihan in how we work, but it is just people acting independently. As a person who worked in biomedical research, I saw the metaphor of the quantum leap between what single cells can do versus what an organ (or organism) with many, many cells working together can do. There is much bigger scope and capacity on organic level to perform a bigger function.

I saw this center might bring the fruits of the Latihan into broader interaction with the larger community. The center would be Subud, we would have a place that could become a reflection of the practice we have. For me, there was always a big hope that anyone coming into this sacred space would be touched in a profound way, that would help them connect more deeply with Spirit. In my feeling, this goal to start a center served both the primary goals of Subud, creating a space for our own practice and also in line with the goals of Susila Dharma as a public benefit entity.

As this vision was coming into focus, Sulfiati and I were at Bapak’s centennial. I had some powerful experiences during this time in Cilandak, which remain close to me to this day. Among the most important was seeing Bapak in one of the latihans, seeing his smile, feeling the warmth of his approval.

In retrospect, did we accomplish our goals? In part. My vision was that Seven Circles Retreat would always operate as both a Subud center and as a business. I was personally extremely disappointed when the San Joaquin Valley Subud Center stopped meeting regularly at Seven Circles. I also honor the work of the directors, after I needed to step away, to sustain this jewel of a place. I feel that even with the disconnect from the direct linkage with Subud, people who came to retreats at Seven Circles benefited. I feel good about the hand-off to the new owners, who seem to honor our intentions and to continue to maintain this little place as a sacred and precious space.

A Remembrance by Sulfiati Harris

The Seven Circles project was a long saga for the Harrises. We were the first Subud members to move up to this area to help get the project started. I remember coming up here by myself during Ramadan and being met by a Hare Krishna devote, Madon Snell. He knew what fasting was, and how hard it is, and met me there with food. A deeply kind man, and I am so glad it is being sold to someone from that community.

This long saga was marked for me by extremes of happiness and sadness. The beginning was exhilarating. So many of us from all over California came to help transform this old motel, stripping out walls, putting in new wiring and plumbing, excavating pipes with a backhoe, scrubbing and painting and repairing the pool. And wonderful latihans, of course. However, selling the project to Subud California unleashed a torrent of upset and of course this was hard for me.

Here is what I learned: I should never invest so much of my inner life into a project that involves money, especially other people’s money. A project is something on the material level. It is not the Latihan and shouldn’t have a spiritual investment. When I was removed from the project it created a deep internal crisis within me because I had allowed myself to identify with it too deeply.

Now, two decades later, here are some other thoughts about Subud in the world. To me Subud and the Latihan are extraordinary. This contact is one of the ways that can help mankind evolve to a higher level of harmony and open humanity to new vistas. But this will not happen quickly. It is an evolutionary process. Deep changes don’t happen all at once.

Did we meet our spiritual goals? I think we did. Those Subud people who moved here during and after the founding of Seven Circles have been part of the community for a long while and they have enriched it in many ways. I was able to start another community project in 2019 with Amelia Williams at the site of a beautiful K-8 school just up the road in Badger. For this one, all the doors were thrown open for the project. The property was owned by a school district in Tulare County. They are happy to have it open, cared for, and serving the whole community.  We have a 5-year lease to a beautiful facility for a tiny amount a year because the school district wants it to be used for the community. I do want to note that we do not do Latihan there, though Latihan is what provided the spark for the community to come together and fostered its development.

This is all part of the continuum that was started by the “flag in the ground” that was planted by Seven Circles. It seems miraculous to me!

A Remembrance by Rachmat Martin

The establishment of a Subud owned property that could be used by and for Subud Regional, National and sub-groups of the World Subud Family was an idea carried in the hearts of many Subud members for decades. Locating a suitable, available and affordable property became a major objective during the Subud California Regional Congress in 2002 and then under the Administration of the newly elected Committee in 2003 under the leadership of Lusijah Darrow (formerly Rott) as Chairwoman and Sulfiati Harris as Vice Chair.

A search was initiated and with significant help by Sulfiati’s brother Marwan LoMele, a venue that became known as Seven Circles was located in the Sierra foothills town of Badger, approximately midway between LA and San Francisco. These early founders of a Subud California’s retreat center all lived at least a four hours’ drive from Badger. Prior to finding the Seven Circles site, many others including myself would travel to various locations to visit sites for sale that seemed might fit the parameters of suitability, availability and affordability. Thus, we all became road warriors!

In early 2003, Marwan LoMele identified this old motel that was under bank ownership following a foreclosure. The history of the motel began in the early 1900’s and became known as The Life of Riley, a feature emblazoned onto the huge granite outcropping in the south upper ridge of the property. It can still be seen from Hwy 245 which runs past the front entrance of the retreat center and is one of the gateways to Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park. A Badger Subud community began to form as Marwan found affordable houses to buy for himself, the Harris’s and his brother Bachrun. Joshua Horst simultaneously purchased a large ranch across the street from the Hare Krishna community.

A financial arrangement was reached by Lusijah and Sulfiati and title was passed from the bank to Subud California. The Regional Council created a management board and appointed myself and Joshua Horst as board members with myself as Chair. Sulfiati and Lusijah wrestled with the various points of view throughout the Region on whether this project should be under the auspices of Subud California or whether it should be a separate entity. In the meantime, Joshua and I hired a capable contractor who lived nearby to take on the remodeling of the somewhat decrepit guest rooms and kitchen. We were fortunate to find many capable skilled workers among the Hare Krishna community. Joshua, living nearby, was the primary site improvement overseer.

I helped organize a team of Subud volunteers along with some paid help to reconstruct the old water system from the well into the lodge and guest rooms. Due to the large amount of time required to continue being an active board member, I eventually recruited Paul Edwards to join the Board and assume the role as Chair. At that point I retired from Board service for about 12 years. Paul then lived in Los Angeles so he also began somewhat regular trips to Badger. Sulfiati and Lusijah were stressed to their noble limits in the effort to achieve a 50% buy-in by the Centers of the Region and in stepped Doug Card with the concept of establishing a 501 (C) 3 to raise money primarily from a small number of highly committed and dedicated Subud members in the region.

Lusijah, Sulfiati and Paul have described much of this history. During the effort by Lusijah and Sulfiati to bring enough California Centers on board to purchase the opportunity, Lusijah and Paul requested Marwan to help create a video history of what was then unfolding and this video has been saved and achieved and can be seen HERE.  Featured in the video is the original music of Hamid Camp composed in honor of Bapak and called Seven Circles. I urge everyone to watch the short video and hear Hamid’s beautiful music.

As Lusijah has written, she saw the metaphor of the quantum leap between what single cells can do versus what an organ (or organism) with many, many cells working together can do. She and Sulfiati held the vision to achieve this. Many Subud brothers and sisters heard the clarion call and stepped up to volunteer their time and money to help bring the Seven Circles into physical reality.

The Board’s task became to choose who would manage the Seven Circles operations. Laura Horst and Rifka Several were among the stellar standouts in this role. Sulfiati organized “family camps” in the summer which drew not just Subud children but also children from the local community. Other dedicated warriors in Subud are too many to name, but a few stand clearly in my mind who are no longer in this realm such as Hamid Camp and Joe Knox.

As site managers did their tours of duty, it became clear that the Board needed to find a trained and qualified person or team from either in or outside the Subud community who could manage the day-to-day and season-to-season duties and responsibilities of the Center. It was a very time-intensive process and was a near burn-out by those involved. Finally, a team of two men was found who managed the center in a way that made the Center a thriving operation financially. This team served the SCR Foundation for 8 ½ years.

Unfortunately though, tough challenges arose including summer fires and smoke. Plus, starting in early 2020, the county health department COVID mandates effectively closed business to Seven Circles. The site was severely damaged in the last atmospheric river storm of the season with exceptionally high Badger Creek water that took out the bridges that had been the principal access to the majority of the property including the upper land known as Middle Earth and beyond that, the Upper Ridge. They will have to be re-constructed asap and the effort will hopefully attract volunteer help from others.

This management team gave the board notice that they would be stepping down by October 2022. Having returned to Board Duty several years before, I and the rest of the board debated among ourselves as to whether we had the energy to pursue the challenge of looking for and recruiting another professional site management team. Adding to the urgency, loans were either due or coming due in the spring of 2023. We came to the difficult conclusion that it was time to stand aside and offer to sell the property to an individual or another Foundation.

By grace, one of the members of the Hare Krishna community (Nitya Jones) contacted me (Rachmat) for details of our announced intention to sell SCR. It quickly became evident that he and his wife would be the perfect team to assume ownership and management of Seven Circles. Their goals for the Center were uncannily similar to the goals Subud members had envisioned back in the early 2000’s. In addition, Nitya has all the skill sets, past experience, tools and heavy equipment for restoring the Center not just to its original condition under Subud management but also to carry out some plans that Subud members had been unable to implement, such as creating an area on the property for family camping. He was in the process of selling a home in Three Rivers that he had just finished remodeling.

After months of discussion and with a lot of help from Doug Card and a local real estate broker friend from Santa Cruz who offered to represent both the buyer and seller for half the normal commission, a sales arrangement was agreed to that fit the needs of the SCR Foundation.

As the sales/transfer arrangement was coming together in late January 2023, and Nitya was learning more about the early hopes and plans for the Center and the amount of work that went into making it a stellar place to gather, he asked me what he could do for the Subud community. Being told that the yurt was no longer a latihan hall for local Subud members and that the Lodge was no longer freely open to them, Nitya’s spontaneous response was, “When I and my family are living on site, Subud will always have priority in using the space when desired unless there was a large group using the Center at the time.”

He went on to say, “We are about community building, caring and compassion to all faiths and practices regardless of skin color or ethnic background.” He has communicated that it is he and his wife’s strong desire for their children to have the opportunity to grow up on the SCR land, caring for the landscape and growing edibles and having the opportunity to observe and be a part of many different organizations and groups coming to enjoy their new home which they will continue to develop as a respite for those who come to stay.

I’m confident that Nitya and his wife will be harbingers back to the sincere effort made in our early days by Sulfiati, Lusijah, Laura, Rifka and others to reach out to the local community. They will carry our legacy forward. My sincere prayers go with them.

I personally will continue as my life allows, to support their continuing effort to serve the community in a conscious spiritual manner and look forward to many more Subud Events at this Center.

History of Seven Circles Retreat Center

It has recently been announced that Seven Circles Retreat (SCR), located in the Sierra Foothills and well known to many Subud California members, has been sold to a new owner. It is a timely moment to briefly recap its history, including its connections with Subud. Here is an outline of the founding and development of Seven Circles. The brief history provided here includes remembrances from some of the Subud members who were key participants in its founding and direction.

20 Years of History: 2003 to 2023

Lusijah Darrow (then Rott), when Regional Chair of Subud California, prioritized the idea to create a Regional Retreat Center for Subud California. A key goal was to find a location as equidistant as possible between Northern and Southern California, for broad accessibility by members. The hope was that all of the (then) 14 Subud Centers in California could make use of and come to this new Regional Center for events and meetings. 

Sulfiati Harris, then Vice Chair of Subud California, took the initiative to find potential properties for the Regional Center. Several places, including one in Kings River and one called Sequoia Lakes near Badger were viewed, but not selected. Then, Marwan LoMele, who had already moved to the Badger area, suggested that an old motel, called Riley Lodge, was becoming available.

The owners of the Riley Lodge used the slogan “THE LIFE OF RILEYto attract visitors. They painted this on the rocks on the hillside, as can still be seen nearly a century later. (photo by Rachmat Martin)

Lusijah and Dainuri Rott initially purchased this property in August 2003, to ensure no other buyer acquired it. Subud California then purchased it from the Rotts, reimbursing them for the down payment of $175,000. Rachmat Martin was the first Chair of the new Board of Directors. Other early directors were Lusijah Rott, Paul Edwards, Halfrid Nelson, Dainuri Rott, Rifka Several, Joshua Horst, and Doug Card.

As people moved to the area to support site development, the San Joaquin Valley Subud Center grew as well. For a glimpse of life at Seven Circles during these early years, see the wonderful video made by Marwan LoMele, available on YouTube HERE, which features music written and sung by Hamid Camp, an interview with Lusijah Darrow and Paul Edwards, plus footage of Subud adults and children at the Center.

Above: Some of the key contributors at the Center in January 2005: (back) Doug Card, Halfrid Nelson, Joshua Horst, Paul Edwards (front): Lusijah Rott, Rachmat Martin

However, as the Subud California Regional Council learned more about the project over the next year, the majority felt they could not handle an entity that was quite different from a local Subud center. After many meetings, the founding group decided to buy back Seven Circles from Subud California.

Doug Card had incorporated Seven Circles as a nonprofit in 2003, and then applied for and received the 501(c)(3) tax exempt status in 2004. So, all was in place for it to operate independently when Subud CA was ready for the transfer. SCR purchased the property from Subud CA in November 2005, and has operated it since then. Sulfiati Harris was the first manager, and subsequent Subud member managers have included Halfrid & Larry Nelson, Rifka Several, and Laura Horst.

Significant investment of time and resources by both Subud members and contractors improved the facility, including upgrades to guest rooms and kitchen, and modernizing the water delivery system. (Left: back hoe at work at Seven Circles)

One significant addition to the facilities was the installation of the yurt as a capacious additional meeting space, as well as a fine location for latihan during Subud events. (photo of yurt from the center website)

Early on, the SCR Board realized that it could not be financially successful operating only as a Regional Center for Subud California, so realigned the marketing efforts to become a public Retreat Center for many types of groups, which also included Subud meetings and gatherings. The onsite management team, led in the last 9 years by Chris Caldwell, focused successfully on marketing and hosting events to achieve this goal. 

However, mandated closure due to the COVID pandemic resulted in loss of the income necessary to continue, and a new owner was sought and secured. The property is now operating as the Sierra Sage Retreat.

During this time of transition to the new ownership, Rachmat Martin has been a key local resource and member of the Board of Directors. For a glimpse at what is happening under new management, see the Center’s website HERE. To read remembrances from some of the Subud members who were founders of Seven Circles, go HERE.


Who are They?

A fascinating article about Skymont and Subud was published in the February issue of ‘Subud Voice’ (found HERE). The article, originally published in “Virginia Life,” included this photo from 1971 without identifying the Subud members. However, when the photo was posted on the Subud CA Facebook page, members Hanafi Libman, Leonard Dixon, and Hamidatun Karapetian (who took the photo) jumped in to identify the Subud brothers, sisters – and babies!

Above left to right:  Rosanna Arquette, Ralph Davila, Insiah Waite and baby Waite, Insiah Libman and baby Mas Libman, Luzita Davila and baby Hartwell Davila, Mardiningsih Arquette and baby David Arquette;  and at bottom front, Alexis Arquette.

Hanafi Libman adds these details:  “David Arquette and Hartwell Davila were born on the same day, September 8th, 1971. Mas Libman was born a few weeks later on October 12th.  Mardi had David in a little baby carrier while helping at Mas’ birth along with a few other Skymont ladies. We had our own Subud midwife in residence, Anne Holliday, who delivered several babies at Skymont.  Mark Holliday, her husband, was a remarkable chiropractor, who treated us all there as well.

Building a Rental Business at the Santa Cruz Center

Many Subud California centers have created enterprises through the rental of their space, a process that develops and changes over time. Here is the engaging story of the evolution of the rental enterprise at the Santa Cruz Cente

by Rachmat Martin

The group has learned a great deal about what kind of outside groups and events are compatible with our space and our personal preferences. Over several years, beginning in the late 1980s, and after some trials and errors, we dialed in on how best to accomplish the goal of increasing the income of the center. This experience has turned out to be a marvelous process of discovering and learning about a greater role of Subud in this community. The extension of our Center into the local community and beyond as a rental space exists as an evolutionary outcome of the historical use of the center by the Subud group in tandem with the needs of the local community.

In the 1970s, the Santa Cruz Center was a vibrant center made up of many enthusiastic young families such as the Martin’s, Bean’s, Fletcher’s, Van Tyle’s, Troxell’s, Horst’s, Goonetilleke’s, and Kelly’s. These growing families’ primary outside activity was spending uncountable hours at the new Center. Many, many months of week-end work parties transformed the old school building into a Subud home. The group grew to have about 125 members by about 1980 with at least 75 of these reasonably active. Around this time, the group took on the expenditure and labor of adding significant new space to the south hall to accommodate the large attendance at latihan of both men and women. Little did we know that this enlarged hall would later meet the size requirements of many grateful workshop leaders.

South Hall at the Santa Cruz Center

By the late 1980’s, the nature of the group had noticeably changed. The former young children of the 1970’s were now teenagers and the parents were busy attending to them as well as in some cases starting or running businesses to support large families. Some members had to move out of the area to find work. The social use of the center by its members gradually declined. By 1987, it became clear that our zenith had passed along with our founder.

We had been, for many years, the largest contributing group of members to the Region, for a short time exceeding even the much larger Los Angeles group. As income from local member contributions decreased, we wondered how to keep up our support of the Region. In the early 1990’s, some of us began to consider generating more income for Subud by renting the center to outside users.

This was not an entirely harmonious process as there were some members who felt strongly that the space should be used only for latihan and that others who did not live their life with the grace of the latihan would negatively influence our space energetically. We also made some mistakes by allowing a couple of “Rave” events and a few wild weddings, creating angst with our closest neighbors and also our own membership. We found trash on the property, dents in the walls, stains on the carpets, not to mention the disturbance to the otherwise peaceful atmosphere. Apparently, we had to learn the hard way!

We’ve had to attend to the inevitable problems of maintaining an old building, and we’ve sometimes had to call upon the CA Region for monetary help. In the late nineties, we realized that the old school light fixtures had to go. We replaced them with Italian-style hanging lamps that contributed a look of elegance that the halls deserved. Some of our members pitched in by purchasing a few of these.

Perhaps a decade later, our regular renters began complaining about the noisy heaters. And, more seriously, our roof was sagging. Further examination showed that the roofs over both halls were in danger of collapsing! So we cordoned off first the south hall and then the north hall and, after negotiations with the CA Region for the funds, we launched into the roof repair project. At the same time, we replaced the old industrial-type heaters with high efficiency, multi-stage, quiet, central heating systems.

Now, looking forward, we see three improvements that will be needed. Both halls still have the original windows, now antiques. New double-paned windows would cut down on energy usage and provide good sound-proofing from traffic on the nearby road. The parking lot is in need of resurfacing as well. And thirdly, because the building’s roof is well-positioned for maximizing the use of the sun, solar panels make sense. After eight years or so, the savings in electrical bills would be realized and thereafter might provide income by selling energy back to the grid.

It seems that owning a home is synonymous with a pretty steady stream of updates and improvements. But we feel we’ve been rewarded by the fact that many groups are attracted to our space. We have an eclectic blend of groups using our center, including yoga, breath-work, continuum movement, cranial-sacral classes, psychodrama, men’s and women’s circles, spiritual teaching sessions, the Mankind Project, Brazilian singers, tango dancers, African drumming, and others.

We noticed that if we keep the space very clean, orderly, and free of clutter as well as with a visually pleasing blend of flowers inside and outside, a well-cared-for landscape, and an off-street, safe and secure parking area for up to 60 cars, we had a winning formula. In the last several years, we have received calls from out of the area, out of state, and even Canada from group leaders looking to come to the Santa Cruz area. They had heard from the spiritual grapevine or from our website (http://www.subudcenterrental.com) that we had a place for groups wishing to hold their event in a quiet, country setting that included a consciously maintained sacred space.

Gradually, the virtues of the Santa Cruz Center have made it a well-regarded, semi-rural place for holding meetings, classes, and workshops. We have been in business long enough that word-of-mouth is our best advertising. We already know what kinds of groups like our space, and plan to continue with what works.

So now, with close attention paid to both our regular and new renters by our current rental co-coordinators, Ralph Davila and Rachmat Martin, plus a good rental website, the Center does a pretty good job of selling itself. Word has gotten out!

NOTE: this rental overview was first prepared in 2012 and is now updated for the Subud CA Blog.

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Early Days at Subud Sacramento

by Mark Penwell

When Helissa and I arrived in Sacramento in August of 1967, Subud Sacramento consisted of three men and three women.  Latihan was held in the home of Ernie and Maulina Pendergast in a small room upstairs.  Ernie and Maulina were an elderly couple who had been involved in the Gurdjieff movement. They were in Combe Springs, England when Bapak was invited there by John Bennett, who was the leader of a large Gurdjieff group there.  As I recall, this became the first introduction of Subud outside of Southeast Asia, and Ernie and Maulina were opened then.

Right after Combe Springs, Bapak went on the first of his many world tours, preceded by John Bennett to prepare for Bapak’s visits.  San Francisco was an obvious place for Bapak to visit, but after that, he came to Sacramento.  So Bennett came, then Bapak, after which about a hundred people were opened here in Sacramento.  However, by the time Helissa and I arrived, most had moved on.

The two other men in Sacramento didn’t come regularly and eventually disappeared.  For about a year or more, it was just Ernie and I, and the three women and Helissa. Eventually some Subud members from other places moved to Sacramento.  At one point when we had about 12 members, it became difficult to do the latihan in that small room. Ernie had been a member of the Odd Fellows Fraternal Order in Sacramento who owned a very large, multi-storied building in the downtown area.  The Odd Fellows organization was no longer active, but they were renting rooms and halls in the building.  Ernie still knew the person in charge of that, so we worked out a deal for the group to rent two of the halls twice a week. We did latihan there for many years.

We didn’t, during that time, function as a Subud Center in the manner of having a committee, business meetings, etc. I collected the donations and paid the rent.  Helissa and I went to Council Meetings and Congresses.  We also visited the San Francisco, Marin, and Berkeley groups often, and got to know their members.  Because of that, some moved to Sacramento, having learned that we now had a “group” instead of just a couple people, and a large place to do latihan. In addition, Sacramento was much more affordable than the Bay Area.

In 1987, the Odd Fellows had to sell the building and we ended up in a small, prefab building at a park that was just an open room. We had to have simultaneous latihans, since there was no place for people to wait while others did latihan. There was a floor to ceiling curtain that could be pulled across to divide the room, but the men and women could hear each other during latihan, and this disturbed some.

In 1994, someone found a building in East Sacramento that belonged to an Interfaith organization that had a large room for latihan and a smaller one where people could wait. While we were at the Interfaith building, we began having meetings discussing the possibility of finding a building of our own. We had a small but stable membership, and it seemed like the next logical step to take.

Next installment: Sacramento finds a house

About the author: Mark Penwell was opened in Sacramento in 1967 and is still part of the Center.  He became a helper in 1975.  Over the years he served as treasurer, vice chairman and chairman of the group.  He and his wife Helissa attended many National and Regional Congresses, as well as two International Congresses: Cilandak in 1971 and Toronto in 1979.  He still attends latihan once a week, but became inactive as a helper in 2004 upon retiring from his career as a school psychologist.

 

 

 

The Early Days of Subud San Diego: 1966-1970

By Ruben Andrews

August 1966: There was a Monday/Thursday evening Latihan in Balboa Park in the House of Friendship which was upstairs from the Cafe Del Rey Morro. The group was composed of several older folks: Herbert and Jeanie Gregg, Patricia Novlan, Anne Blackburn, Richard Simons, Rainer Gartenmen and a growing group of young people.

It was the Summer of Love and Psychedelics. Young men and women, mostly under 25 years old, lined the hallway, waiting outside the Latihan. After the Latihan, Rainer Gartenmen would meet with the men. Rainer would ask in his thick German accent, “Dos anyvone ‘ave any quvestions?” When no one spoke up, Rainer would say, “Vell, if you did ‘ave a quvestion, it might be dis.” And he would proceed to ask and answer his own question.

Soon, the Latihan moved high in an upstairs corner of the House of Hospitality, a huge exhibition hall in Balboa Park where there were often dog shows, flower shows and the occasional Bonzai Plant Show. The Latihan was held in two rooms off a balcony overlooking the exhibit floor. The muffled sounds of the Latihan were audible to the exhibitioners below. We wondered if the Latihan had an influence on the activities below and we joked conversely, that the Bonzai Plant Show might stunt our growth.

The group was growing. Having opened a window of perception to the spiritual, many young people became interested in Subud because of an experience with drugs.  Leonard Enos brought many of his circle of friends from the nearby town of Jamul. Mark Frye and Sherill East chanced upon a 33 rpm record in the Thrifty Drugs record bin of Steve Allen’s interview with John Bennett discussing Subud and the 6th dimension. Friends brought friends. There were about a half dozen older members and 50 young, newly opened members.

The Helper in the Men’s group was Herbert Gregg. Then Harris Nelson and Mark Frye were appointed. The women helpers were Rohanna Novlan, Anne Blackburn, Jeanie Gregg and a newly appointed Diana Frye.

Dan Andrews was selected Chairman. An initial meeting was planned and Herb and Jeanie Gregg offered their house in National City. Herb commented that he believed the new members were not serious and would not come. Despite this prediction, the committee mailed postcards and to Herb’s surprise, nearly 60 people crowded into his house.

Misconceptions thrived. Many of us knew that following the path of drugs would lead to darkness. One member, CJ, said that Latihan would save him from any condition and behavior. Another member told him this was an error and he must correct his own behavior to experience any progress. Despite this advice, CJ’s room became filled with his oil paintings – canvases depicting human bodies and skeletons burning in fields of red, orange and yellow flames. He died shortly after.

Though many of us had our own experiences, we were not completely without external guidance. Nurdin Young appeared from Santa Barbara. His calm, quiet manner provided an indication of what authentic progress and receiving might be. Lucas (Latif) Marotti arrived after the 1967 Tokyo World Congress with stories of Subud in Asia and Indonesia. Luqman Glascow came to San Diego during Ramadan in December 1968 and instructed us how to practice the fast. As he was explaining the discipline required, he passed a drinking fountain, bent over and took a drink. “OOOPS! Oh well! One slip-up, first day.” In 1968, Bapak came to the Miramar Hotel in Santa Monica and some, having no idea what to expect, took this opportunity to see Bapak.

The older men members soon left and new members came. Herbert and Jeanie Gregg moved to Ashland, Oregon. Jayana and Laura Emory came from Salt Lake City. Steven Schriber, a professor at San Diego State University, and his friend Herbert and their riend, Carol (Celeste) Serrian, were opened.

After Latihan, some of us would have coffee and chat at the International House of Pancakes on 4th and Washington where Jeanie, the waitress, would take our complicated orders and join the conversation. Occasionally, there would be a picnic on the grass in Balboa Park where families with youngsters would throw the football and aura Emery would lead a sing-a-long on the guitar.

By 1970, the group had moved to a shingle and wood frame cottage on 6th and Pennsylvania. It was built as a small meeting hall – probably in the 1920’s. There was one large room, a small stage, one bathroom and a small kitchen. A soundproof wall was added for simultaneous Latihans. Hernando and Hadjah Garcia came from Mexico City with Halima Jacobs and their one year old, Ricardo. Luquman and Halimah Clark came from Morocco, where he was stationed in the military.

Though not always the case, Subud San Diego generally enjoyed a place apart, where controversy passed by without effect and people came to visit, recover and regenerate. In 1970, Leonard Enos published “Key to the American Psilocybin Mushroom”, a how-to-book on growing hallucinogenic mushrooms. The last chapter took a radical departure as an introduction to Subud. This caused a stir. The National Helpers were concerned that readers would get the wrong idea. The men helpers were asked to intervene. Mark Frye and Ruben Andrews met with Leonard and he readily agreed to refer any inquiries to the National Helpers – and that was the end of that!   to be continued….

Interview with Oswald Lake: Finding Subud

Interviewed by Halimah Martin and Halimah Collingwood

In this Interview,  nonagenarian, Oswald Lake, former CA Regional Chair and USA Chair, who is now part of Subud Santa Cruz, tells the story of how he came into Subud:

Asa and I spent two years in the desert in Eastern Washington at an Atomic Energy Plant. Our first child, Johnny, was born there.

After I got my regular Army commission, I realized that I had to make the decision to either keep the commission or keep Asa. And I always teased her: “I kept the wrong one.” I left the Army.

We didn’t want to go back to St. Louis so we moved to Santa Monica, California in 1952. We bought a house. Larry was born in Santa Monica. The house wasn’t right, so we bought a second house, later selling the first one. We did some remodeling. Johnny and I would go there on weekends and work on it. We finally moved in and William was born in February. In March of 1954, Johnny drowned in the swimming pool of a neighbor’s yard. We didn’t even know the pool was there because the house was up on top of the hill. So our number one son was gone. He was 2 ½ years old.

It affected both of us in different ways. For example, I was talking to an Episcopal priest in Santa Monica. I found out later that he had lost a child, too. I said, “How do you get over this?” He said, “You don’t. You get around it.” Wow! And I have used that (philosophy) in more situations. When I have a problem, I don’t try to get over the problem, I get around it.

Asa, on the other hand, was still looking for an answer to “why?” And she never really did get it, but she kept reading and searching and looking for some other source of religious…I don’t know what you call it.

A professor moved in next door to us. He taught at Santa Monica City College and had a wife and four kids. They were nice people. His name was Bill Jones. He was also searching. So Asa and Bill would yackety-yack back and forth: “Oh did you read this book…?” Asa and Bill had actually attended a couple of Gurdjieff meetings and decided that wasn’t for them. I babysat, and it wasn’t for me either. So Bill went to a Hollywood bookstore and asked if any new spiritual books had come in. He was told that they had a new book by John Bennett called Concerning Subud. Bill bought the book, read it, and almost screamed, “I found it!” He and Asa tried to find out where Subud was in Los Angeles and finally found it. This was in 1959. They got hold of Earl Robinson, the contact in Los Angeles.

In those days, probationers’ meetings were not held on a latihan night, they were held separately. So I babysat. I hadn’t read any of this book. Asa and Bill and a couple of others went to a place near downtown for the meeting. The rule in those days was if the wife wanted to be opened, the husband had to give his permission. While I’m reading in bed and the kids are asleep, Asa says, “Honey, I don’t care what you say, I’m going to join Subud.” I said, “You’re going to join what?” She gave me Concerning Subud. I threw it on the night table and there it sat.

I think the probationer meeting was every two weeks. Latihan was on Monday and Thursday. Later, on a Wednesday night, she said, “I signed you up for the next probationer meeting.”

Anyhoo, at that next meeting there were 5-6 people from our little area in Santa Monica, friends, and so forth. I had a station wagon so we took a load and went there with me driving. We walked into this empty house with a bunch of those hard wooden folding chairs and all kinds of people – I mean hippies, beatniks, who knows what – all kinds of people…strange. Pretty soon a man stood up wearing a suit and tie and started talking. That was Earl Robinson. Then, a woman stood up and talked. She was nicely dressed and she wasn’t a hippie – Mary Coddington.

Afterward, it was open for questions. People would stand up and answer the questions. There were members there, too. They had coffee and pamphlets, brochures and things you could buy. Husein Rofé’s book wasn’t out yet. There were 5 or 6 of us all walking out and Earl said to me, “What do you think about us?” I said, “I don’t know what in hell they are talking about.” He says, “Are you coming back?” I said, “Oh yes.” I got the answers to my questions and then I sat for two weeks between meetings. I read the book. I didn’t know what they were talking about. But I knew from within that it was important. So who got us into Subud? Asa did, or I did or what? I don’t know.

We were scheduled to be opened in three months. The group that was ahead of us got opened. When it was our turn, after three months, they said no, Bapak was coming back to the U.S. for a second trip. He was here in 1958 and he was coming back for a ’59 trip. It was decided we would be opened when Bapak was here. Poor Ibu (Sumari, Bapak’s wife). For years afterward, she’d say, “Oh Los Angeles – 200 people!” I don’t know if it was 200, but it was a large group. We’d collected people from various groups of probationers in different California locations over a period of 4-5 months.

They had to rent a bigger hall and they had scheduled us to be opened not all at once but in smaller groups on different nights. They gave us notice about when each of us would be opened. The trouble was, we had a carload of people from Santa Monica. So we all arrived on one day. This would be the first time we’d been around the latihan. We had never heard it.

There were 25-30 men waiting to be opened that night. Glasses off, shoes off, etc., and someone said “Stand up.” Someone said, “Begin.” I mean, I was quiet but what ensued was screaming, hollering, jumping all around me. It was a shock. I’d read Bennett’s book which describes what can happen in the latihan. I knew what was coming, but it was still a shock.

Bapak was there. We were opened by Bapak. Asa was opened that same night by Ibu. In fact, the membership card they gave out had two dates: 1) the date we were actually opened and 2) the date we were signed up to be opened. Whoever typed up the card didn’t know which of the two dates was correct.

That visit and all those openings marked the start of the Los Angeles group. There were other groups, too, maybe Long Beach. There were enough people to have another center but I forget where. San Francisco was the other big group in California and a few other smaller groups around. Then they decided to make California a corporation. All the groups were part of that corporation. And the name of it was “Subud.” I wasn’t in on the organization and structure at that time. This was before SNA (Subud North America).

When any other group wanted to be official – Subud NY, Subud Washington DC – they had to get our permission to use the word Subud. When Subud North America was formed, it had to get California’s permission. The period that I was chairman of Subud in California was when we changed the name to “Subud California.” And when I was chairman of SNA, we changed the name to Subud USA. This was initiated by Bapak, in about 1969. Mexico had grown and so had Subud in Canada. Originally, Mexico, Canada, and the U.S. made up Subud North America. Mexico and Canada each wanted their own national organization.

After latihan, we would hang out at the Olympian Hotel. When we started having corporate meetings, we’d get together with San Francisco and other groups. Sometimes we’d meet in Cambria, at the Cambria Pines, half way between the two big centers. There we’d meet and talk. When you get Subud people together, they can’t shut up!

Telling the Stories of Subud Palo Alto

Stories from Lusijah Sutherland:

There cannot be a complete history of Subud Palo Alto without mention of Husain Chung and the key role he had in establishing a large and vital Subud group in Palo Alto. He was a well-known leader in the human potential movement in the mid-1960s.  His psychodrama workshops were picked up by the Free U (a consortium of universities that offered free coursework to the community) and were widely attended.

Husain’s work was geared towards connecting with authentic self and soul.  Some participants wanted to know where he “got his juice” and followed him to Subud. Many people were opened; Husain estimated around 200.  The energy of the young people who had come through the Human Institute created tensions with other members.  A former member of Subud Palo Alto shared his perspective: “imagine young people being opened in Subud who had experienced the freedom and authenticity from Husain’s workshops. They were just too wild.” After complaints, Bapak told Husain that people who had been opened could no longer attend his workshops.

Bapak did acknowledge Husain and the influx of new members and also wanted to make sure there was no confusion; latihan was different than psychodrama.  Husain himself and many who came from the Human Institute were hurt by this decision and the ultimate result was the end of the Human Institute. Of those opened, some left, some stayed.  Among the people who stayed are members who have subsequently and continue to fill leadership roles in Subud in both regional and national roles.

Our building, an old renovated barn, was bought from an Asian Christian Church which held our mortgage until early 2000.

By 1975, the center was filled with young families, many with preschool age children.  The Subud House housed a Subud playschool, run by Halimah Van Tuyl, a gifted teacher. This experience certainly helped Subud members in Palo Alto to be better parents. We wanted to do things differently, to be better parents, informed by the latihan. We were all reading books about “I messages” and non-violent communication with our children. I saw fine examples of sensitive interaction between adults and children that was based on honoring of each child. I look back on this 40 years later, as extremely important in supporting how I would parent my children.

What was a group of young people in the mid-seventies has changed over the years as members and families moved away, moved in, and sometimes moved back to Palo Alto.  With the evolution of “Silicon Valley,” the membership became more professional, with members having skills that fit in with the exploding high tech industry. I remember going to Washington DC many years ago for a congress and those from Palo Alto were asked to characterize our group. It struck me then that the group is highly educated, there is a high level of creativity; members are innovative both personally and within the group, good problem solvers.  This is still true today.

The Subud house has been slowly improved over the years from its historic beginnings first as a barn and later a church in old Palo Alto.  The purchase price of the Subud house was around $40,000 in the early 1970s.  With the explosion of high tech driving the average sales price of real estate in Palo Alto today to more than 2 million dollars, we are very fortunate to have this house in one of the nicest parts of Palo Alto.

Stories from Lianne Card

Reynold Bean was chair of Subud California when the current house in Palo Alto was purchased around 1973.

There was a time when the group shrank partially because of the founding of Subud San Jose as a separate group. This was spurred by a large Filipino family, the Icasianos, who were all opened and who had a Victorian house in San Jose where the group first began meeting about 1983.  The San Jose group persisted for a period of about six years. During that time as I remember it, it was the Clarks and the Hills that kept things going in Palo Alto.

Then the San Jose group decided to give up the uncongenial space they were renting in a warehouse and merged back with the Palo Alto group. It was at that time that there was a conscious decision to acknowledge that the members lived in a wider geographical area than just Palo Alto. That was when the name Subud Santa Clara Valley was used for the group. This followed the practice of other groups taking the names of their counties e.g. Butte County, Marin County, and San Joaquin County.

After the fall of Saigon at the end of the Viet Nam war, Subud throughout the world sponsored the immigration of Vietnamese members. Many Vietnamese members settled in San Jose and for ten or fifteen years were a significant part of our group population. I have fond memories of Saturday morning latihans with as many as five elderly Vietnamese women in traditional dress attending. And our potlucks were wonderfully diverse with noodle dishes and Susan Trinh’s papaya salad.

Stories from Lalia Helmer

After paying off the original mortgage in 2000 and securing several loans from Subud CA, Subud Palo Alto proceeded with a series of renovations to the interior and exterior of the house. The most recent renovations have enabled the group to rent the house to several groups that offer music lessons, Spanish language, yoga and similar events. This greatly increased the revenue available for the maintenance of our house as well as provided the group with funds that could support charitable projects and to increase our support to Subud CA.

The Founding of Subud Mexico  

With so many members having visited Puebla and other parts of Mexico for the 2014 World Congress, this history of Subud Mexico from its founding in 1957, including details of a number of visits by Bapak, will be of interest to many. It gives a fascinating glimpse into the spread of Subud throughout the world.

As witnessed and stated by Karimah Towle

The First Steps

1957, in Mexico City, was the beginning when a group of friends interested in the teachings of Gurdjieff as presented by Ouspensky and Dr. Maurice Nicol, decided to meet and work together in a formal way. This group was formed by Toby Joysmith, Edward Wygard, Wita Wygard, Pamela (Lydia) Duncan, Katherine (Melissa) Manjarrez, Juan Martinez del Cerro, and Josefina (Karimah) Towle. The idea was to try and carry out the practice of the exercises as recommended in the “Work” so as to reach a palpable result, in other words, spiritual development.

However, after a time of systematic reading, discussions, and practice, we realized this was insufficient since we had no guidance from an experienced trainer. It was then that Lydia suggested writing to a group led by Dr. Roles and see if someone could actually come and work directly with us. Lydia remembered that she was on very good terms with Stella Kent who had been left in charge of one of Dr. Nicol’s groups after his death. We agreed to write to her in London, asking her if she might consider coming to Mexico to coach us on the proper performance of the exercises and thereby arrive at an understanding of the essence of the “Work.” Stella agreed to come and stay for as long as we needed her.

It was decided to invite others to help meet the expense of her stay, including the boat journey. To this end, we invited Beban Dobbie, Jaime Ribas, Eleanor Lincoln, Peter Morris, and Pauline Guegnier. Subsequently, after each meeting, we decided to contribute a fixed amount to make a fund to defray the needed expenses of the journey and stay.

Meanwhile, we continued working as usual, but unexpectedly, we learnt about Subud through two magazine reports, Time and Paris Match. Both focused almost exclusively, on the “miraculous” cure experienced by Eva (Ilaina) Bartok, thanks to the “powers” of a “saint” or “guru” recently arrived from Indonesia called Pak Subuh –Muhammad Subuh Sumohadiwidjojo.

Almost at the same time, we received three introductory talks by John G. Bennett related to the meaning of Subud. They were the same as those he had given to groups interested in the development of the self, and who, at that time, were following the techniques of Gurdjieff. In that way, we were to learn that Pak Subuh, Bapak, had been the first to receive the latihan kedjiwaan from the Power of Almighty God and that he had become the channel through whom those wishing to experience the process of purification and development by means of the latihan, which allows every person to re-establish their connection with the power of Almighty God. It was in this manner that the Subud latihan spread both inside and outside Indonesia to give rise to what came to be known as the Subud Association.

Following almost immediately, we also received news from Stella Kent, telling us she had been opened in Subud and wanting to know if, in spite of that, we still wanted her to come to Mexico and give us guidance in the “Work” practice. Without the slightest hesitation, we accepted.

In the foreground (from left to right): Melissa Manjarrez, Paloma de la Rosa, Rosa Poy, Hosanna Baron, and Antonieta; background: Beban Dobbie, Lydia Duncan, Barbara Eibenschutz, Stella Kent, Karimah Towle, Aurora Juarez, and Leonor Martinez.
In the foreground (from left to right): Melissa Manjarrez, Paloma de la Rosa, Rosa Poy, Hosanna Baron, and Antonieta; background: Beban Dobbie, Lydia Duncan, Barbara Eibenschutz, Stella Kent, Karimah Towle, Aurora Juarez, and Leonor Martinez. (tap to enlarge photo)

After Stella’s arrival in Mexico, in 1958, she made meanings of certain key concepts in the teachings of Ouspensky and Gurdjieff clear to us. She also spoke briefly about Subud. She suggested we get in touch with J. G. Bennett, in whose Centre at Coombe Springs Bapak was staying, and invite him to come over. With this idea in mind, more people were invited to join our group. Among those who came, was Drinda (Hosanna) Baron, Barbara and Eugenio Eibenschutz, Eric Guegnier, Mary and Chris King, and a good number from the Rodney Collin-Smith group, headed by Samuel Mancera.

Sometime before Bapak’s visit to Mexico, and as a result of our shared interest in the Subud experience through Bennet’s talks, Stella Kent first opened Wita Wygard, then Beban Dobbie, Eleanor Lincoln; Karimah Towle, Melissa Manjarrez; then Hosanna Baron and Pauline Guegnier. This happened during and near the end of 1958. I would like to add that both Lydia Duncan and Edward Wygard had already received the Subud contact in London.

In February 1959, John Bennett and his wife, Elizabeth, arrived in Mexico just before Bapak’s scheduled visit. They stayed in Eleanor Lincoln’s house. In preparation for Bennett’s visit, Toby Joysmith, then manager of the “Librería Británica (the British Bookshop), had invited numerous people from different “esoteric” groups and associations to attend the introductory talks about Subud which would be given by J. G. Bennett as an introduction to Bapak’s coming in March, 1959. After Bennett’s arrival, it became possible for the men who had been waiting, to receive the Subud opening. Those included were: Juan Martinez del Cerro, Peter Morris, Jaime Ribas, Eric Guegnier, Samuel Mancera, Toby Joysmith, Eugenio Eibenschutz and Chris King.

Soon afterwards, many other people who had completed the three-month waiting period and had received the appropriate information, received the latihan, including Paloma and Vicente de la Rosa, Anita Villarreal, Irene e Irma Matamoros, Leonor Martinez, Rosa Poy, Aurora Juarez, Luis Perez Maldonado, Francisco Struck, Juan Abel, Walter and Arcelia Brauer, Erika Brauer, Judith Forgrave, Norma (Halimah) Jacobs, Donald and Dorothy Cordry, Donald Campbell, plus a great many other people.

Bapak’s  First Visit

Finally, in 1959, I had the opportunity to meet Bapak in Mexico, D.F. when he arrived with his wife, Ibu Siti Sumari, his daughter Mbahju Rochanawati, Dr. Anwar Zakir and his wife, Ratna; all staying at the Wygard home. Bapak gave a few talks in the venue of the group in Campeche 1811 and others in a building located on Insurgentes avenue 400 inside a small auditorium. Both Bennett and Dr. Zakir translated from the Indonesian into English and then the translation into Spanish by Edward Wygard and Juan Martinez del Cerro.

When I met Bapak, what impressed me most was his unassuming bearing, his gentleness and affability, and his openness and good disposition towards all of us. His attitude was not that of a sage, a guru, or a special being. I remember that several people arrived to see him at Wita’s home and he answered their questions, though some were rather impertinent, with extreme seriousness and courtesy.

During his stay, about 1,000 people were opened, but only about 100 remained practicing regularly. Those first group latihans were quite violent, noisy and heavy.

Towards the end of his stay, Bapak authorized Wita Wygard and Peter (Albert) Morris to open new members, while the rest of us helpers should wait for six months before being authorized as openers. He also advised us to form a committee, consisting of a president, a secretary, and a treasurer in order to constitute the organizational side of the association.

In that same year, following his advice, the first committee was integrated with Edward Wygard as president. Subsequently, and up to 1971, that task fell to different members in turn: Samuel Mancera, Francisco Struck, Hosanna Baron, Juan Martinez del Cerro, Paloma de la Rosa, Arcelia Brauer, and Mashri Rodriguez.

The spiritual side was organized so as to provide information to those interested in learning about Subud. The helpers would take turns in giving the talks while the rest were present to complement and support. These were to be held once or twice a week and this arrangement allowed Beban Dobbie, secretary to note down in a notebook the names of those attending and those interested in receiving the opening.

Later in 1959, Bob Prestie, a Subud member from the US, had spoken about the latihan to some people in Durango (a state in Mexico) and he informed us about their wish to be opened. Therefore, Wita Wygard, Albert Morris and I traveled to that city in order to tell them about Subud and open those who so desired. There were about 10 men and 6 women.

It must be stressed that the active members of Subud in Mexico City had been deeply impressed because the latihan had touched them profoundly; their expectations apparently fulfilled. They asserted that their experience had been an intense one, never having experienced the like before. Nevertheless, with time, some gave up and stopped exercising, either because that first impact lost its edge or they discovered it was not what they were looking for.

Later on, the Mexico City group translated About Subud by J.G. Bennett and Bapak’s Susila Budhi Dharma, which were published thanks to Paloma de la Rosa who had connections with the Editorial Iztaccihuatl. Upon reading Bennett’s book, many people came inquiring about Subud.

Further Encounters

In 1963, after having already met Bapak personally, we received a second visit. This time he was accompanied by his wife, Ibu Siti Sumari, Mas Usman who was to translate into English, and his wife, Aminah. Eleanor Lincoln received them in her house where the brothers and sisters could consult Bapak about their personal problems. Indeed, many came.

On that occasion, there were about 80 members and among them already practicing for some time, were: Guadalupe (Virginia) Benitez, Esperanza (Leonor) Lopez, Jesus Hernandez, Lydia (Mariamah) Belmont, and Concepcion (Halimah) Lopez. Everyone came to listen to Bapak’s explanations and to participate in the latihan kedjiwaan, the women at Eleanor’s house, and the men at Albert’s. The latihans were particularly intense; the energy felt as great heat.

That same year, from the 8th to the 25th of July 1963, the Second Subud World Congress was held in Briarcliff, New York. I attended as a representative, being the group secretary, as well as Francisco Struck who was then our president. During the sessions, all those present were able to participate, not only the delegates. They questioned, gave opinions, manifested their doubts, etc. I translated everything which took place, word for word while Andres (Yara) Fernandez Gatica took it all down in shorthand which he later transcribed into a typewritten report which I handed in to Edward Wygard.

In the aforementioned congress, we had the opportunity of meeting members from other nations, like Varindra Vittachi, who was then elected, through testing, as the president of the World Subud Council (WSC), as well as Livingston Dodson as president of the International Subud Committee (ISC).

In 1965, the first National Subud Congress in Mexico was held in Puebla (Agua Azul) and was attended by Livingston Dodson. At this congress presided by Edward Wygard, who was both local as well as national president, Yara Fernandez Gatica was elected as the next national president.

Five years after his second visit in 1968, we received Bapak again accompanied by Ibu Siti Sumari, Aminah and Mas Usman, this time staying at Hosanna Baron’s house. Of the talks that Bapak gave us then, I especially remember the emphasis he placed on the importance of practicing the fast of Ramadan as it was a special time of the year when it was possible to receive experiences of a spiritual nature, which were not dependent on whether one belonged to a specific religion. He also tressed the benefits of fasting (prihatin) on Mondays and Thursdays.

On that same occasion, we were visited by several US members who declared that they had received that they should come as they would have a unique experience. And indeed, such an experience did occur…

Bapak was conducting a testing session with some brothers and sisters in the living room while Aminah and myself were making a cake in the kitchen. Suddenly, someone called Aminah, who left, but came back immediately, urging me to leave everything and follow her because Bapak was receiving. We rushed into the living room where many brothers and sisters were assembled. An intense energy filled the room and unexpectedly, he started praying and we all fell on our knees. Many started to weep, including Mas Usman who could no longer keep on speaking. I heard Bapak’s prayer: “Allah, Allah, Allah” and as he finished his prayer, he told us he had just taken us before God. Each on of us felt and saw something different. In that way, Lydia heard: “I am your Guide; I am the Way”; while Wita saw and heard Jesus Christ telling her that she was forgiven, adding “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”

However, even after having had such a profound and significant experience, a number of brothers and sisters allowed other considerations to fill them with doubt, questioning what is received by means of the latihan and eventually give up its practice.

On three further occasions, Bapak again visited us. In 1969, also accompanied by Ibu Siti Sumari, Aminah and Mas Usman; another time in 1972, then with Ibu Mastuti, Ibu Rahayu, Tuti and Sharif Horthy who translated from Indonesian into English. On both these trips they stayed at Hosanna’s.

His last visit took place in 1977. Then Ibu Mastuti, Ibu Rahayu, Muti and Tuti, besides Sharif Horthy came with him. Viviana Lerma and Roberto Garcia organized their stay and all the activities which were staged at the Camino Real hotel. They also visited Luqman Ballesteros at his home as well as the Subud group in Puebla and Yara and Ramona’s home.

Before this last journey of Bapak’s to Mexico, the Subud brotherhood received Mas Prio Hartono who had been named ambassador to the Americas by Bapak at the end of the 1971 World Congress and in that same year he arrived, accompanied by his wife, Rukmiwati and his two youngest children, Harti and Sumitomo, and sharing in our daily lives. He visited all the existing groups, Ayotla, Mexico City, Puebla, some isolated members in Toluca. He gave talks and lived with different families, finally going to live at Hosanna’s. Mas Prio’s visit motivated many Subud members, especially the younger ones, helping them to have greater trust and conviction in their practice of the latihan. His wife, Rukmi, also opened herself to the female members sharing and aiding us in our practice.

In retrospect, considering those first years of Subud in Mexico and the impression made by Bapak, everyone agreed that Bapak was a special being. In those days, there was a great deal of effervescence, of enthusiasm and deep conviction. Nevertheless, through the years, they drew away. One of the reasons for their desertion mentioned quite openly was the creation of an organization, both administrative as well as spiritual. Many had joined because there were no structures, so that when Bapak suggested that these should be formed for the better working of Subud in the world, they left. Besides, the formation of “hierarchies” awoke envies, confrontations, in spite of the fact that if had been made quite clear that those who occupied the different positions were receiving the opportunity to serve and that the function in no way meant a superiority over the rest of the brotherhood; it represented a form of service and a way of achieving an end. Unfortunately, we allow ourselves to be influenced by those apparent differences in levels, added to the very human tendency to feel better than others.

Nonetheless, it can be affirmed that that situation notwithstanding, Subud has continued to renew itself, counting on members who have shown their constancy, a true reflection of their having found the way leading back to Almighty God through the practice of the latihan kedjiwaan, which reminds me of something I received soon after my opening in Subud, “I’m home. I’m home.”