Sufism Reoriented - Fifty Years Later (Page 3 of 3)

Shared Work and Life
     Meher Baba’s principles can be most quickly learned and most fully expressed in the context of shared activities with spiritual companions. The work of a spiritual community dedicated to God becomes a field of divine action. Such work helps dissolve the ego and one begins to know the delight of surrendering to God.
It is always in the most basic issues of everyday life that one finds the greatest resistance to spiritual change. When one realizes the tremendous energy required to begin to dissolve the ego, the task can seem impossible. Working alone, the possibility of change seems especially daunting. Fortunately, God has designed the human journey in such a way that no one is alone. Sufis discover that God’s help comes most effectively through companions who share their journey. As one joins in the life of the spiritual community, one’s capacity for change is enhanced. One’s aspiration is linked to that of others; one’s ability to understand, to accept, to endure and to love is amplified. One’s life is nurtured, strengthened and expanded until it is no longer one’s own. It is God’s.
     Sufism Reoriented currently maintains two centres — one in Walnut Creek, California, and one in Washington, D.C. The two centres follow different yet complementary patterns of organization for Sufi work and life:
     The California Centre offers a broad range of shared projects, often on a large scale. The Washington Center provides the opportunity to support and participate in shared residential living.
     The California Centre in Walnut Creek: The Sufi Centre in Walnut Creek, a suburb 18 miles east of San Francisco, serves about 400 members. The Centre occupies a large building that was formerly a restaurant, and earlier, a cultural centre for a Portuguese-American community. It is in a neighborhood zoned for both residential and commercial uses. Purchased by Sufism Reoriented in 1975, this building has been renovated, expanded and remodeled over many years, as the work of Sufism has grown and changed. The Centre contains the principal administrative offices of Sufism Reoriented and multipurpose rooms for Sufi classes and gatherings. The Meeting Room can accommodate up to 400 people. “The Tavern,” a smaller room which can seat up to 90, is used for workshops, group dining, small classes and programmes of music, poetry and drama. Adjoining the Tavern is a full restaurant kitchen and a staging area for food service.
     The Centre includes technical facilities for audio, video and music production. These facilities are used to record Sufi classes, programmes and original music. The Centre holds an archive of original films of Meher Baba and a collection of Meher Baba memorabilia entrusted to Sufism. These objects require special techniques for storage, preservation, care and handling. A reference library on Meher Baba, Sufism and other spiritual subjects is kept for specialized research associated with the preparation of programme materials. The Centre also includes residential accommodations for five members of the staff.
     While there is no formal residential program administered by Sufism in California, all Sufis are encouraged to live near the Centre. Ninety percent live in houses, apartments or condominiums within easy walking distance. A 23-unit condominium adjoining the Centre, fully occupied by Sufi families, has become an informal residential community where companions are able to dine together and regularly share the tasks of maintaining common areas of their living units.
     Searchlight: Books, selected audiotapes and videotapes of Sufi programmes and musical celebrations, videotaped documentaries about Meher Baba and reproductions of paintings of Meher Baba by Sufi artists are sold through a non-profit organization associated with Sufism called Searchlight. Searchlight has a small office, information centre and display gallery in Lafayette, California, about a mile from the Sufi Centre.

The Searchlight operates a bookstore in California and distributes CDs, books, videos and other items of interest to seekers.

     The Meher Schools: The Meher Schools is a separately incorporated, non-profit private school that offers a valuable service to the broader community through its innovative work. The Meher Schools include a private preschool (the White Pony) and elementary school (the Meher School) serving children from many Bay Area cities.
     Founded by Murshida Duce in 1975, the Meher Schools now serve more than 365 children from toddlers through the fifth grade. The Meher Schools are located in a former public elementary school in suburban Lafayette, about a mile from the Sufi Centre in Walnut Creek. The campus includes 17 spacious classrooms arranged on three tiers with garden play-yards at each level, a generous playground, outdoor theatre and sports field.
     The professional staff of the school and parent volunteers are supported by nearly 200 regular Sufi volunteers. Teams of Sufis clean the entire school most weekday evenings. Many support crews help maintain the buildings, grounds, gardens and play areas. They also help prepare classroom materials, serve breakfast and special meals and assist in class programmes in science, social studies, drama, music and art. Volunteers also supplement school staff members in the library and resource centres. The school’s existence, its growth and expansion, have only been possible because of the generous volunteer help it receives.
     Murshida Duce, the founder, hoped that the educational principles embodied in the Meher Schools would help to prepare children to participate in Meher Baba’s New Humanity. The school curriculum and activities foster children’s appreciation of the unity of life and the values of cooperation and harmony, as opposed to competition and individual self-assertion. The school has an active arts programme that includes two children’s choruses, a summer drama camp and an annual fully-staged graduation play, including music and dance.
     While nearly everyone on the faculty and staff is dedicated to Meher Baba, the school is strictly non-sectarian and offers a balanced course of study to prepare children for intermediate school. There is no “religious instruction” and no attempt to offer “spiritual training” to the children, other than to instruct them according to principles of love, honesty, fairness and service to others. The Meher Schools are fully accredited by major educational agencies.
     The Sufi Centre in Washington, D.C.: Patterns of life for Sufis on the East Coast differ from those in Walnut Creek. The central theme in Washington, D.C., is shared residential living. The circumstances of life there permit participants to experience some of the joy and freedom that comes when one is able to share the everyday activities of domestic life with a large coterie of spiritual companions. The Washington Centre serves about 125 people; nearly half live at the Centre complex. Those who live at the Centre share the Murshid’s home. They live and work with others in a unique atmosphere of harmony and beauty dedicated to Meher Baba.
     Classes and Meetings in Washington: During Fall and Spring semesters, typically from October through June, classes and programmes are held six nights a week at the Centre. Sufis in Washington attend regular weekly classes. The curriculum in Washington and in California, planned by the Murshid, is the same. However, differences in space and facilities have dictated a different pattern of attendance in Washington; classes are offered more frequently and to smaller groups of about 60 students. Each class is presented three evenings a week. Participants are scheduled to attend one of the first three evenings as their regular class night. The fourth evening is offered as a make-up class, which anyone enrolled in the course may also attend if they wish to repeat the class. During some seasons, an additional class called “Introduction to Sufism” is also offered.
     Two other evenings each week are reserved for regular programmes of remembrance and celebration of the Avatar. These programmes are often musical evenings in which companions join together to sing Meher Baba’s name. Sometimes, especially when the Murshid is in residence, these evenings offer special programmes of poetry, drama, music or dance in praise of God.
     All the activities of the Washington Sufi Centre are designed to support the possibilities of individuals merging their lives in the life of a larger group. Those who find themselves drawn to participate are offered the opportunity to live beyond the boundaries of the ego and dedicate themselves to God as they blend their lives into a larger whole — living together, dining together, sharing their love for Meher Baba in every activity of daily life.