MothMoth && thethe FlameFlame Adventures With Spiritual Adepts of our Times Autobiographical account of artist, entrepreneur & spiritual wayfarer Arran Stephens Moth & the Flame Table of Contents Ch a p t e r p a g e * INTRODUCT I ON BY ARTHUR STE I N , PHD I-iii ** DED I C A T I ON & PREF A CE I-V I 1 BEG I NN I NG OF THE BE A T 1 2 HE A RT OF LI GHT 10 3 Gli MMER I NG S 20 4 THE FA CE OF A PRO P HET 29 5 SEE I NG is ABOVE All 35 6 MOTHER IND ia ! 47 7 SA W A N AS HR A M 51 8 BI RTHD A Y OF LI GHT 55 9 Naa M IN I T ia T I ON 62 10 THE Mas TER ’ S SON 67 11 KA RM A , HE ll , SI DDH is A ND HE ali NG 71 12 AS HR A M VI GNETTE S A ND CH A R A CTER S 79 13 Slapp ED INTO THE BEYOND 86 14 MU si C -Mas TER 89 15 INDORE A ND UJJ ai N 92 16 BA ROD A 98 17 MI R A OF CH I TTOR , CH is T I OF AJMEER 102 18 Villa GE DA NT al & THE LORD OF PETRO L 110 19 WE S TERN RA J as TH A N TOUR 114 20 THE LOTU S FEET 122 21 THE ANC I ENT LEG A CY 125 22 THE LA ND OF FI VE RI VER S 134 23 TWO TOWE ls 153 24 THE CROWN OF LOVE 158 25 HI M ala Y A N RETRE A T 166 26 FI R S T WE S TERN IN I T ia TE S — THE BROC ks 170 27 HE lp ER OF THE HE lpl E ss 175 28 THE Val E OF Kas HM I R 179 29 HA R I DW A R A ND Ris H ik E S H 186 30 RA J P UR Dia R I E S 192 31 SE pa R A T I ON ’ S NOO S E 210 32 THE VE L VET STEE L 214 33 IND I FFERENCE & REDEM P T I ON 217 34 BA C K TO THE WE S T 222 35 THE GO L DEN LOTU S 227 36 BA B A RA M Dass 233 37 ‘Tis Pil GR I M A GE ENOUGH 235 38 RA J I A ND MA T A J I 238 39 DEV lali , SA T A R A A ND POON A TOUR 242 40 THE CO S M I C Pal M 247 41 ARR A NGED MA RR ia GE 250 42 SEED S OF TR A N S FORM A T I ON 260 43 AS CET I C TO HOU S EHO L DER 264 - 1 - Moth & the Flame - Table of Contents CH ap TER pa GE 44 N EW AGE ENTRE P RENEUR I NG 266 45 Gli M ps E S FROM THE ‘72 TOUR 270 46 T H I RD Pil GR I M A GE 282 47 MA N A V KENDR A A ND BEYOND 284 48 UN I TY OF MA N 291 49 A Pai R OF SHOE S 299 50 THE Las T DA R S H A N 301 51 THE SUN SET S 305 52 THE Bli ND MEN & THE EL E P H A NT 308 53 MI R A GE I N THE DE S ERT 311 54 INNER QUE S T I ON S 317 55 DI V I NE DA R S H A N 321 56 Hal F -CONF I RM A T I ON 333 57 CA UGHT I N THE HONEY 335 58 AN S WER S FROM A TRUE Dis C ipl E 338 59 DE S T I NY ’ S WR I T 343 60 DA RNER S OF THE NI GHT 345 61 ROHT ak TOUR 349 62 HE al ER OF All WOUND S 354 63 THE MI RROR , THE Las ER & Mas TER JI 357 64 FU ll CONF I RM A T I ON 361 65 Rak H I —PROTECTOR 363 66 ONE HE A RTBE A T 368 67 SO A M I JI & AGR A 370 68 KI R pal ’ S Will 375 69 THE WORM & THE ANT S 381 70 LOTU S III 383 71 DA R S H A N I N VA NCOUVER —1983 385 72 PA R A D is E —LO S T & REG ai NED 392 73 WHEN Was I LE ss BY DY I NG ? 397 74 THE SOU L OF LOVE 403 75 MI RROR OF THE HE A RT 413 76 EVERYWHERE , THE SA ME EYE S 419 77 THE POET Sai NT DE pa RT S —1989 422 78 WI TH THE NEW Mas TER 427 79 FU ll CI RC L E 433 80 GA THER I NG OF THE WA Y S 440 81 A WEDD I NG A ND A FUNER al 445 82 Visi ON FOR THE FUTURE 452 83 HE A RT S TR I NG S I N UN is ON 457 84 DI V I NE INTERCE ssi ON S 459 85 SH ali M A R 467 86 SO S -ECO L OGY CENTRE 479 87 MOTH IN ORB I T 484 88 App END I X - THE INNER JOURNEY 488 GL O ssa RY OF TERM S 497 - 2 - Moth & the Flame Foreword by Arthur Stein Each human life can be seen or experienced in many ways as an ongoing journey. And what an exciting journey of discovery Arran Stephens has been on. Beginning in his teens he struggled to find meaning and purpose in his life. As told in his autobiographical Moth & the Flame, his early odyssey took him from a pristine area of his native British Columbia to Los Angeles and New York City, where he explored the venues of the artist and the zeitgeist of the times. We relive with him the turbulence of the sixties and learn of auspicious encounters with Allen Ginsberg, Eden Abhez, and others on the leading edge of the counterculture. Arran also goes through a period of inner despair, and emerges determined ‘to begin anew.’ Then, fueled by an intense yearning, he embarks on a painstaking search to find a genuine spiritual mentor. After some promising leads and false starts, he learned of, and in 1967, first met the great Indian sage and mystic adept, Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj. That first contact awakened a deep inner recognition and triggered several profound mystical experiences which over time transformed his life. Now over forty years later, Arran remains deeply involved in the study and practice of an age-old, yet contemporary spiritual path—not as a monastic recluse—but as a civic-minded family man and highly successful pioneer in several natural foods enterprises. Moth & the Flame is very much in the tradition of earlier books written by seekers who have turned inwards and eastward to discover their spiritual roots, such as Paul Brunton’s Search in Secret India, Julian Johnson’s The Path of the Masters, Irene Tweedy’s Chasm of Fire, and Andrew Harvey’s Journey to Ladakh. In Moth & the Flame, the reader is introduced to the teachings of the Masters of Sant Mat which go back more than five hundred years to Kabir and Guru Nanak. The twentieth century witnessed several great Masters in this tradition, beginning with Hazur Baba Sawan Singh (1858-1948). It was Hazur’s spiritual successor, Sant Kirpal Singh (1894-1974) who provided guidance and directed Arran to keep a journal(s) detailing that which he saw, heard and experienced within Sawan Ashram in Delhi and during his travels with the Master. - i - Moth & the Flame - Foreword Arran weaves his varied experiences and the teachings of his spiritual mentors into the tapestry of his own struggles and growth. The pages overflow with picturesque descriptions of life in India, including details of trips to the pristine Himalayas, to the dusty byways of rural villages and hubbub of crowded cities, and to shrines and pilgrimage centers. One gets a feeling for the rhythms and oasis-like serenity of ashram life, where one can develop his/her meditation practices individually and/or by sitting in the company of thousands at large public satsangs. And one gets an eye-witness account of several significant international and interfaith gatherings, including the historic Unity of Man conference convened by Sant Kirpal Singh. Some of Arran’s accounts reveal things which defy explanation by ordinary standards of understanding. There are miraculous healings and the sudden appearance of the ‘radiant form’ of the Masters to individuals many thousands of miles away in their times of need. And there are many examples of the ‘extraordinary within the ordinary,’ which reveal the wisdom and very practical side of these spiritual teachers in daily life. You will learn of the daily activities of great spiritual teachers and their interactions with people of all walks of life—from presidents and princesses to simple rural dwellers. You will sense the humility and compassion of these selfless servants of humanity, as well as accounts of their access to inner spiritual dimensions. You will meet Raghuvacharya, renowned among the yogis of Haridwar, who, late in his lifespan of one hundred thirteen years, became an advanced practitioner of the inner path.