I was quite happy on my path as a Sikh man and being a teacher of Kundalini Yoga. I had looked into many different spiritual teachers and traditions at the beginning of my journey. I was comfortable with my choice. But ‘spirit finds a way’ if we are open and trust the natural unfolding of our divine nature.
Some people who had attended my yoga classes in Santa Fe were getting involved with a healer/teacher named Deborah King. She practiced classic homeopathy using ultra-potent doses to access and cure deep patterns. She was clear, direct, wise and a great source of inspiration. As a patient, I worked with her taking the mega doses and then discussing the effects with her. It was a strange experience, but I felt it was useful.
About six months later Deborah informed me she had been inviting a core group of people to be part of a new project. A spiritual university offering a unique curriculum on topics we were both qualified and passionate to teach. At her invitation, I agreed to teach in this school. We began organizing and planning. She named this project, the Living School.
After many months and just a few weeks before we were to begin classes, Deborah saw a flyer for Reshad Feild, who was giving a talk the next day. What interested her was the name of his school was the same name she had chosen for her school, the Living School. She decided she had to meet him. The next day she attended his talk. After listening to him speak for less than 2 hours, she decided Reshad was her teacher, she immediately canceled our Living School project, dropped all her students and suggested to them to now follow Reshad. She did all this within hours of meeting Reshad.
The teachers in Deborah’s Living School project were in shock. We had made so many plans and were in the final stages of offering our work to the world. But Deborah was not going ahead with the project. Within a few days, every teacher and client Deborah was working with, decided to get involved with Reshad Feild’s Living School, except me.
I did not want another spiritual teacher. I had found Yogi Bhajan, the teachings of kundalini yoga, and a lifestyle based on values and beliefs I found inspiring. So a few days later when the rest of the group attended another talk with Reshad, I did not go.
Some weeks later I heard they were having a meeting at the Ark bookstore. A truly remarkable place run by an old soul, Jamal Killbride. An unfortunate last name that had nothing to do with his gentle, soulful, and spiritual nature. The meeting was billed as a preparation meeting for when Reshad might return to Santa Fe. At the time he was based in Lucerne, Switzerland, and traveling to teach in England, Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands.
After hearing from my friends how impressed they were with Reshad, I decided to attend this meeting at the Ark. Jamal lead the meeting with zikr (A Sufi version of chanting), some prayer, and discussion about the preparation for Reshad’s return. I enjoying the zikr and all the rest. The group felt inviting, non-judging, and committed to personal development. All was going well until the end when Jamal spoke about how this meeting was only the commitment to a weekly meeting to prepare ourselves to receive Reshad when he would return in about one year.
I just wanted to find out what everyone was so excited about, not commit to a weekly meeting for another spiritual teacher. Plus the weekly meeting was on Thursday night, the same night as my men’s group. A clear sign it was not for me since my men’s group had been an important part of my life for nearly four years. So I decided the weekly meeting to prepare for Reshad’s return was not for me. Besides, I have not met Reshad nor read any of his books.
But Reshad and his school continued to float across my mind. It seemed clear it was not my way, but it still pulled on me. I thought how silly to drop my men’s group after four years, and I had a teacher, Yogi Bhajan. Still, the feeling to learn more about Reshad stayed with me. Finding myself stressed about this split, I called my friend Matthew David to meet for breakfast and share my thoughts and feelings. I met Matthew while attending 12 step meetings. From other interactions we had, I came to trust his steady insight. Matthew listened quietly from that deep place within him. I appreciated his gentle nature and honest reflection. When I was done expressing, complaining, explaining, and fretting, he looked at me and simply said why not go and learn from Reshad. He was right. It was simple. Past all the thoughts, worries, and fears, was a longing. A destiny I could have never imagined was waiting for me.
This is part one of a multi-part blog. Reshad is good at telling stories and creating stories.
Photo of Reshad and me in Santa Fe the year we met in person.
