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The
First Disciples
by Richard
Pugh
From The Dawn Horse
Magazine. Vol 1, No. 2. December 1975
Bubba
has often used the term “theatre”
to describe the continually changing activity of the human
appearance, the “highs” and “lows” of the individual and the
continuous round of birth and death. Yet in the midst of
this apparently persisting flux he speaks of a process that
is prior to and inclusive of all changes, all bodies, forms,
appearances and disappearances the way of “only God, the way
of Understanding. The way of Understanding is a radical
process, founded in consciousness, that upsets and appears
to contradict, and in fact, outright offends the God
negating life of the usual man and the cultural influences
of his social magic.
Bubbas appearance is a living
demonstration of the Divine lived and communicated
perfectly, in spite of the resistances and obstructions
imposed upon life by men in this world. However, at times
even his Community has shown signs of somehow not quite
believing that this process of Understanding could, and in
fact actually was, taking place. Often the content of
discussions and conversations centered around ignorant
interpretations and mere opinions as to what was really
going on in the theatre of Bubba’s company. Bubba would
often remark, sometimes in an amusing context of lament, and
at times more soberly, that there would never be anyone
truly involved in the process of Understanding, or that he
would never have more than resistive students to work with.
He often complained about the futility of his being here and
how no one was really interested in living his demands, and
that he might just as well “be posted on the dark side of
the moon.”
Then early last spring Bubba began
occasionally mentioning that there were signs of student
sadhana possibly maturing in some people. Towards the end of
the summer an intensive four day program of study was
created, “The Dissolution of Vital Shock,” designed to
assess, refresh, and clarify the specific stages of student
sadhana. Bubba worked very closely with people, continually
giving lessons and instructions in the paradoxical ways
unique to his Teaching. For some the effects of this
particular period of time saw intensification and quickening
of their sadhana. It was also a time when Bubba began to
specifically talk about wanting to begin working with
disciples. He said that he expected his first disciples to
appear at least by next spring, or possibly by Christmas,
and that soon his work relative to student sadhana would be
completed.
Then, in late October, there was an
announcement at Persimmon that everyone should be in the
Satsang Hall that evening, even if it meant mothers had to
bring their infants, indicating that something new was about
to be announced. As is often the case with the frequent, and
abrupt changes Bubba creates, no one really knew what to
expect. But at seven o’clock Billy Tsiknas and Nina Jones
came into the hall and Billy said, “Today Bubba came into
the office and gave us a list of his disciples. They are
Bruce Burnham, Lena Burnham, Dennis Duff, Nina Jones, Sal
Lucania, Frank Marrero, Tom Riley, and Billy Tsiknas.”
Little else was said; the gathering ended and people went
back to their evening functions. Thus, with almost no
“theatre at all, there was the simple announcement of one of
the most significant events that has happened in the
Ashram.
This event signifies a long awaited
and crucial turning point in the affairs of the Ashram. It
means that the Divine Siddhi has been communicated and is
known as a living process by this initial group of
disciples. To view this transition as just another
moment of Bubba theatre would be to miss the joyous and
profound significance it represents in Bubba’s work. The
establishment of a few who are fixed and stabilized in this
conscious process of Understanding means that at last what
had always existed as a possibility has now become a living
expression and foundation for Bubba’s full communication and
the establishment of the way of Understanding in the
world.
The functions of spiritual life
take place in the form of a relationship! It is the
relationship between the disciple and his Siddha Guru. It
doesn’t take place at the level of some philosophy or some
technique that you apply to yourself. It is a relationship,
and it appears only where it is alive, only where it is
actually functioning in life. Therefore, many of the same
functions that exist between lovers exist between the Guru
and his disciple.
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