Abode/ Abodia – spiritual community and a home for the message of Love, Harmony and Beauty…

I arrived at JFK airport on January 22nd, 1976, the night of the worst blizzard of that winter. I had packed up all my belongings, and with a small inheritance from my grandmother, had bought myself a one way ticket to the US from England. Aged 22 I had lived most of my life in a small village in the south of England(not counting the time spent at University in Wales), but at 17 had found my way to a meditation camp in the Alps, which was run by Sufi teacher Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan, who my mother met at one of his meditation programs in the UK. Five summers and camps later a group of friends that had set out to find land for a residential Sufi community were able to report the purchase of land in upstate New York.

I arrived with three phone numbers acquired from friends at the summer camp who lived in New York. None of them knew to expect me – what was I thinking! The only arrangement I made to help me find my way was to be sure that my flight would arrive in the daytime – but, lo and behold that flight was delayed for 7 hours and I arrived close to midnight. Only one of the three numbers answered my call and I spoke with Salik Shwartz’swife, a complete stranger, who told me I needed the “Conka” (I later found out the word was “Khanaqah”) and gave me a number to call.

 The person who answered the phone started giving me directions to the Port Authority bus terminal, but half way through somehow realized that this was beyond my capacity, and ended up saying – stay where you are, don’t move – we’re coming to get you but it may take a while because the roads are bad, the vehicle is undependable and we may need to get gas..” I stayed and was eventually taken to the Khanaqah on 13th St.  - a haven from the alien world outside, full of sirens and screaming, where I stayed for a week until I could get a ride to New Lebanon with the bread van from “Reza Quality Bakery”, on roads of pure ice amidst landscapes of snow and icicles…

It was a journey of faith, motivated by a call to a new life, an experiment in living that would combine the inspirational Sufiteachings and training with all the discoveries that can take place in a community setting….

I was given the choice between sharing an open attic space with a number of others, or moving into a closet off the library – being English I chose the closet. And my life indeed changed in a deep way. Three times a day a cracked bell summoned us to prayers in the meditation hall. On Tuesday evenings we had “Gatha classes” – a series of programs arranged so that each person could steadily move forward from beginners to more advanced teachings. On Thursday evening the Message Class was attended by all. The Sunday Universal Worship service was led by a number of “Reverend Cherags” on a rotational basis. Here I received training as a minister or Cherag in the Universal Worship Service and participated in the rotation.

Healing Circles were offered twice a week and some years later after losing all my possessions and nearly my life in a fire I received training as a conductor in the Sufi Healing Order and went on to become the Healing coordinator for North America for seven years.

Sufi Alchemical retreats were offered as an intense method for spiritual transformation, and hands on training was also available here in the community.

Pir Vilayat officially lived at The Abode Community for many years, but in truth his real home seemed to be at the airport. He swooped in like an eagle at regular intervals, a catalyst for change who brought weather changes as well as stirring up our lives. He offered group retreats and in the early days, “darshan” in which he was able to see into people’s souls and encourage them to unfurl their potential.  I experienced this as a great blessing.

The “hidden agenda” of a spiritual community includes the process of being ground down like semi-precious stones in a tumbler – we had to learn how to make decisions with fifty to a hundred others – we had to navigate controversies around pets,parking, diet – we had the vegetarians versus the carnivores. We had to make major decisions about spending and fine-tuning our financial arrangements and how to manage the work that needed to be done…

We navigated a kind of microcosm of life in which people lived in families, or couples, or were single and seeking relationship(or not). When relationships failed, sometimes people left, but more often they continued, working through their emotionalpain within the bubble of the community. There were also many joyful marriages. In the early days we had a resident doctor and midwives. Babies were born here. Children went to school here and played in the abundantly beautiful natural setting. We all swam in the pond and tried to decide whether it was ethical to feed the fish or the occasional duck. 

Friendships became deep. Over the years we developed work crews on the farm, in the kitchen, the bakery, taking care of housekeeping…etc. Subcommittees were formed to screen newcomers, provide housing, manage apprentice-ship programs, oversee building programs.

We worked hard to restore and maintain our historical Shaker buildings. Electrical wiring was brought up to code, a new septic system was installed, basements needed to be jacked up and re-built, roofs were repaired, walls re-painted. Discussion about the correct historical hue needed to preserve the integrity of our buildings ran side by side with the vote over blue or yellow and our houses were all lovingly named with Divine qualities from the Arabic language of our Sufi tradition.

–We had cottage industries and hosted programs by spiritual leaders from many traditions. Omega Institute, offering short term, residential programs in a variety of spiritual and new age topics was started at the Abode – the inspiration of Pir Vilayat, directed by Dr. Rechtshaffen. Later when the demand outgrew our capacity and Omega institute moved out to Rhinebeck, Aegis was started up to take its place, developing relationships with many of the leading spiritual and religious teachers of our time.

Many travelling musicians from around the world and from different ethnic groups were welcomed with enthusiasm. We held concerts and formed a choir…it was rich life!

Over the years, naturally many changes took place –the credit system of the earliest days soon gave way to the more traditional rent-paying, which allowed a more dependable income on which to base a budget. Some people built their own houses and were offered hundred year leases for the land under them. Apartments were created in some of the Shaker buildings and the various projects were sometimes shifted to different areas. People came and went. I lived at the Abode for seventeen years, receiving an indefinable amount of training in interpersonal relations as well as spiritual practice. Eventually it was my turn to be the director, and when I exhausted my capacity for that it was time to leave.

But the Abode has never left me. Returning for re-unions, re-connecting with the people who shared these experiences together there is always the feeling of family, closeness, friendship and love and an abiding respect for the sacredness of the land.

May it always be so.

… I cast my vote for the newly formed nonprofit “Friends of South Family” to fulfill their purpose in taking over the management of this place and encouraging its potential into the future. I see that ongoing classes, Universal Worship, healing circles, retreats, as well as a variety of spiritual programs, celebrations and gatherings can still happen here and that the farm may still fulfill the original purpose of providing food during hard times. Climate Crisis is already here now and unfortunately Pir Vilayat’s sight, as outlined in the article by Puran Bair is painfully accurate though the timing may be a little different than we originally thought. The Abode Land may be a refuge, a sanctuary for wildlife, a place for humans to learn how to respectfully engage with Nature and how to get along with one another. A place where the voices from the past, as well as those of the future can be heard and honored.