Naamleela reportedly to be Murti Guru

[DirtyPenny]

A commentator at my blog reports that even though this has not been discussed with devotees in the last couple of days or so, it's already known in that community that Naamleela Free Jones, Adi Da's daughter, will be the Murti Guru.

[DirtyPenny]

I lifted a photo of Naamleela from that aboutadidam.org site (Chris Tong's???) and seeing no copyright notice there (or a bottom of page) re: photos other than that of Da, I reposted it here:

http://atiasrama.wordpress.com/2008/11/30/a-big-role-now-for-naamleela-free-jones/

She has her own website:
http://www.herstome.com

[DirtyPenny]

Here's the comment post (i.e. source for Naamleela info):

2 Responses to “Sorry, but no dancing on the grave party here….”
Timothy Horrigan said:
November 30, 2008 at 4:42 am e
I saw a webcast by James Steinberg & Jonathan Condit, who both worked very directly with the Adi Da wherever he was. It sounds like the transition is going smoothly.

From what I have heard in the past, though no one was talking about it today, his daughter Naamleela will be the murthy-guru.

The effect on his devotees’ practice will be much more subtle than what Ataisrama is hoping for, I predict. The Adi Da involved himself very little in the specific details of Adidam’s day to day operations. And Adidam itself is a bottom-up organization which is fairly loosely organized. If the community is not creative, concrete or practical enough for Atisarama or the Lightgate folks, it’s probably not because of anything the Adi Da was or wasn’t doing while he was still in his body.

atiasrama said:
November 30, 2008 at 6:13 pm e
Yes, Naamleela. That makes sense.

Leave a Reply

[Broken Yogi]

Not yet. The general notion in Adidam has for many years been that Naamleela would one day become Murti-Guru, but only after she had become a seventh stage realizer herself (which is the long-stated requirement). Since that has not yet happened for her or anyone else, she can't technically assume that role. However, I would predict that sometime over the next couple of years, she and several others will conveniently "transition" into the seventh stage of life, and most likely that she would assume the role of Murti-Guru. In the meantime, it will be interesting to see how things shake out. There will certainly be some kind of power struggle for "authority", which for the moment probably rests with Sukhamai (Bonnie Beaven). The thing is, Naamleela just doesn't have the kind of powerful personality and drive that either Da or some of the others in the higher ranks of Adidam possess. She's not much into the political games of Adidam, and has coasted by on her obvious family connection and rather sweet disposition. I'm not sure how much she really wants to seize the reigns of this organization and serve that role. I can think of a number of ambitious courtiers within Adidam who have fantasized for quite a long time about becoming Murti-Guru, and I would imagine that some of those fantasizers will reach for the stars during this time. Imagine the scene after Cinderella's ball where all kinds of hopefuls try to fit the glass slipper on their feet. Without Adi Da himself around, it's much harder to say who fits that role, and who doesn't. As far as I know, he gave no acknowledgment of Naamleela as his successor, and certainly none that she had realized the coveted seventh stage. So it should be pretty interesting, from the point of view of dramatic theater, how this succession struggle comes out.

It was generally assumed in Adidam that Adi Da would not die until he had established at least a small group of seventh stage realizers around him, and an appointed Murti-Guru successor. So this sudden death is bad timing for the group as a whole and its future prospects for continuity. No matter how it turns out, because no future successor will have Adi Da's own explicit approval and certification, there will always be some doubt as to who represents his real lineage. This leaves room for some very amusing spiritual politics.

One thing a friend of mine who is still a very active devotee mentioned to me is something Adi Da said about a month ago, about what happens after spiritual teachers die. He said that the teacher becomes an icon, and his teaching becomes a set of beliefs. Seeing as how this has already happened in Adidam long before Adi Da's death, it's a fait accompli. But as always with all things Adidam, a microcosmic example of how these things play out in modern western dress.

[~E~]

Adi Da involved himself very little in the specific details of Adidam’s day to day operations. And Adidam itself is a bottom-up organization which is fairly loosely organized. If the community is not creative, concrete or practical enough for Atisarama or the Lightgate folks, it’s probably not because of anything the Adi Da was or wasn’t doing while he was still in his body.

That's got to be one of the funniest things I've read all week.

~E

[Raimundo]

Sorry, DirtyPenny, but anyone who claims that Adidam is a "bottom up" organization and that Adi Da involved himself very little in daily operations simply has never been a devotee. Nothing could be further from the truth!

Devotees live to please the Guru, period - they are kept constantly informed of "His Circumstance" and are constantly being asked to contribute in every way possible. It's true that in order to get anything done they had to do it behind his back so to speak because he was ALWAYS guilty not only of micro managing but of intentionally messing things up. It was very disfunctional all around and now I am sure they will bring more functionality to it (since it couldn't get any worse).

While it may be true that Naamleela will be the "Murti Guru" that doesn't mean that she will be "calling the shots" like Adi Da was. It's just that the people who were getting things done in spite of Adi Da will now claim the authority they never had and they will do their best to make sure Naamleela has nothing more than a ceremonial role. They got around him, they can sure get around her!

[DirtyPenny]

Yes, I reposted Timothy's remarks about the "bottom up" structure of Adidam to see if anyone else......well, noticed the weird characterization.
Very funny, you're right.

Thanks for the brilliant discussion/report Broken Yogi. The part about the fantansizers (of being Murti Guru) contenders is very helpful.

I met Elizabeth and Bonnie in one fell swoop, one day, and I have to tell you one of those two was normal, ordinary, etc. and the other one a complete weirdo! The one that Conrad mentions as having the power is the one who was the weirdo (from my perspective, of course).

[RandomStu]

There will certainly be some kind of power struggle for "authority", which for the moment probably rests with Sukhamai (Bonnie Beaven).

Yes, historically, the succession struggle after the death of a charismatic, autocratic guru has often been fierce and dramatic. The Hare Krishna movement began a descent into chaos almost immediately after the founding guru died with unclear instructions as to succession. Muktananda died with 2 clearly chosen successors... and I think it took about a year for them to fight like cats and dogs and create a schism. It's good of Da to wait to die till after the US election; it gives us all a new power struggle to follow.

I'm not sure if I've got my jargon correct, or that my understanding of Da's system is accurate. But it seems to me that to lead the org, someone is supposed to be a "7th level" realizer... and there's NO way to clearly identify who is or isn't. When Da was alive, his word was law, so a devotee's level of realization was precisely whatever Da said it was. With Da now dead, anyone without exception can claim to have attained any level, and there's no clear way for anyone to confirm or deny.

I also think about the fragmentation in Mormonism. To the extent that some Mormons believe that God speaks directly to them... anyone can claim to have a mission from God and break off into a new sect. The main Mormon church survived by downplaying these individual revelations of the followers, in favor of an autocratic hierarchy, such that the revelations of the current "prophet" and his minions trump anyone else's claims. So the question is whether Da left a clear and strong enough power hierarchy to keep the org going... and also whether those within the top level of the hierarchy have enough motivation to remain united in recognizing a successor, rather than battling for it with each other.

Some of this is a function of how highly the guru is glorified and worshipped and served, based on the teaching. In some Buddhist/Zen traditions, the leader is seen as a teacher who points to Truth for his students, and provides guidence and encouragement. Since the Zen Master isn't seen as a God-man who must be served and obeyed unconditionally, the job has less appeal for power- and status-seekers. Students are generally independent enough to question the Master's words when necessary, denying the leader anything close to absolute power over masses of flunkies.

(In the Zen school I practice with, the Masters generally get paid little enough that they need to also have real jobs. There's an obvious downside to this... it leaves the teachers with less time and energy to devote to formal Zen teaching. On the other hand, the great virtue is that it makes the job of Zen Master less appealing to wealth-seekers, thus avoiding some of the ugly politics of rising in the org.)

Sure, succession struggles in Buddhims and Zen also turn ugly sometimes. But in a Guru-group like Da's, the leadership role isn't just a job for someone dedicated to helping the followers. It's a power position that offers plenty of perks like a flow of cash and power and unquestioning followers. That makes the upcoming struggle for Da's successorship likely a fiercer affair. Perhaps some of the campaign strategists for Obama and Hillary and McCain are now looking for new work, and the candidates for Murti Guru could hire them to do the polling and design the attack ads etc. A series of primaries or town hall debates may be called for.

Stuart
http://stuart-randomthoughts.blogspot.com/

[Anomalous Poster]

It is sad and shocking to hear this news. A few things. I don't know how it can be explained that he keeled over just like that. It has no sign of deliberate dying. I wonder what transpired in the final two minutes. They called it "natural causes" but is a heart attack such? I don't think so. I wonder if his sister went out to Fiji. Most don't know but his old church in Franklin Square, not far from me, had been in the news several times in the last month. It was about a preacher and immigration status, but I found it uncanny that this obscure church repeatedly showed up in the news. Then, the timing of the Jones Peoples' Church fiasco. It must be the thirty year anniversary and the media was full of these archival films. I was very drawn by the history of that movement; interestingly about 1000 people died at Jonestown, about the same number of Da's devotees. Then, the Mumbai mayhem, and in the middle of all this, Adi Da keels over dead. They will probably try to come up with things to say that would suggest he knew it was coming, such as just finishing a project, but still, it's grasping at straws. And the normal decay also is not very easy to accept in the schema. Can anything save belief at this point at Naitauba? I see about half leaving within 6 months. I can't see Murti Gurus pulling this off, unless they could genuinely bring down a force, which they cannot. His lack of successorship and lack of 7th stagers also argues against his foreknowledge. I think one day Naamleela might write a book about her father, long in the future after things pan out. It is so hard to assess the man. He was not simply tragic, nor simply great. He was a great awakener for many people. I owe him everything.

[DirtyPenny]

That makes the upcoming struggle for Da's successorship likely a fiercer affair. Perhaps some of the campaign strategists for Obama and Hillary and McCain are now looking for new work, and the candidates for Murti Guru could hire them to do the polling and design the attack ads etc. A series of primaries or town hall debates may be called for.

LOL! All you would really need are the Obama Field Organizers. I know many of these youngsters, now spread out over the USA looking for new work.

You have great background information and analysis in your post Stuart and hopefully is helpful in giving Adidam readers here some picture of something different they can create in the way of a practice environment.