Prior and Only, Not Progressive and Developmental
and yet there is seemingly a Yogic Process
The Paradox of Adidam
Adidam or The Way of the Heart has never been a progressive way, even from the beginning. However, the description of the practice and the manner in which Adi Da Revealed it started with the Yoga of Consideration, a seemingly developmental way of the Stages of Life.
In the following 1987 talk Adi Da equates ‘hearing’ and level 1.3 practice with the Fourth Stage of Life.
Practice in the Context of the Fourth Stage of Life – 1987
In March of 2006, Adi Da called for the elimination of all such references to wording – in his literature – that made references to ‘progressive’ or ‘stages of life.’ In a presentation by the editors to a gathering of devotees it was said:
“One of his big focuses right now is purifying the language of his text of anything that is leftover, sort of speak, from the Yoga of Consideration – all the years of teaching he did. He said, “because of the nature of the work he was doing at that time he had to teach about the Way regarding the Stages of Life but in fact, Adidam has nothing to do with the Stages of Life, except the Seventh Stage.”
From this focus, Adidam has nothing to do with the first six Stages of Life. In the presentation, the editor speaking said they were instructed to go through The Dawn Horse Testament with a “thick black felt pen” and remove anything smacked of the progressive approach or practicing the Way of Adidam in the context of the Stages of Life. The emphasis being of course that the Way of Adidam is not practiced in the first six stages of life, period.
This new emphasis was aimed at changing the ingrained misunderstanding that within Adidam the levels of practice had something to do with the Stages of Life, which they don’t – and in fact never did.
Adi Da was getting down to a level of fine details where he is asking the editors to remove words like ‘become’ or ‘purified’ – “the devotee is purified.” Statements such as “your ego pattern will be purified” which is in the present Dawn Horse Testament will not be changed to “your ego pattern will become obsolete through non-use.”
Words like develop, become and progressive will be eliminated so no confusion can be made about Adidam being an Only Seventh Stage Way.
Now the paradox is that there are beginning stages to the practice. However, what Adi Da is addressing is the UNDERSTANDING within which the practice is engaged. All one has to do is read the Knee of Listening or critically read the literature during the teaching years, and you’ll only read ONLY, ONLY, ONLY in-between the lines of a seemingly developmental yogic process. The same progress occurs
In this new approach, Adi Da didn’t eliminate references to student beginner and stages of listening and hearing. What he is pointing out that needs to be eliminated are phrases such as “Adidam in the context of the Fourth Stage of Life.” Wherever the literature referred “more and more ego-transcending” would be changed to “inherently ego-transcending”.
This process of clarifying Adidam as a Seventh Stage Way has always been going on. In earlier periods Adi Da would eliminate the use of many phases such as ‘Radical.’ He changed the use of “Radical” and “Gone to the Root” to “At the Root” and “Priorly ego-transcending”.
These changes in 2006 were Adi Da’s emphasis that Adidam and The Way of the Heart was a Seventh Stage Way, ONLY. Yes there, paradoxically, was a ‘Process’ that did involve a ‘seemingly’ progression’ but in fact, there was no progression. There was only ONE THING going on, actually two! Either you were transcending ego and ‘in the Witness Position’ or you were not, either – or. Nothing in-between and nothing in the middle.
Either one is practicing ‘ego transcendence,’ or you are not. It’s always “you can’t get there from here” paradox.
“The Process of Awakening or Enlightenment seems to be confusing since it rests on a paradox which makes the approach rather serious and at the same time completely absurd. To attain freedom from something that is unnecessary to begin with is completly crazy. Why bother with it to begin with?”
The following two videos represent two examples of the changes addressed in the editorial presentation. The first video (1987) describes the ‘progressive and developmental’ Way of the Heart – no longer being treated in the literature. The second video (2005) represents The Seventh Stage Way of Adidam, which is now the only address in Adidam’s publications.
1986 Practice
2005 Practice
PARADOX
Devotee confesses a form of realization
ADI DA SAMRAJ: It doesn’t sound like Realization to Me.
DEVOTEE: By Your Grace Lord, I have Realized it.
ADI DA SAMRAJ: Yes. Several curious choices of his words. And several paragraphs, which could be used as a matter of convention of course, but in his case? Naaaahhhh! [laughter] Well, it seems like you just illustrated the paradox that you all seem to have agreed to.
DEVOTEE: Contradiction.
ADI DA SAMRAJ: I mean, I’ve been listening to your expressions the last few nights, and we’ve of course discussed various things about this. My impression, as I said, is that you are paradoxically on the one hand saying you’ve Realized all of these, all of this, and yet you haven’t. Which says something about you, and it may be interesting to “consider”. But Realization being what It is, it would seem that either It is or It isnt. But paradoxically you all claim both.
Editor giving presentation to community on the changes in The Dawn Horse Testament
March 3, 2006