The Eternal Vow that accompanies becoming a devotee

Question: There is a strong all or nothing quality and a rigidity to the culture of Adidam which reminds me of orthodoxy. You either totally surrender or you don't, you either vow for eternity or you don't. What has so attracted me to other Eastern paths has been the open access to Dharma and Sangha. With Adidam the goods, so to speak, are held back (until one commits for eternity) which, for me and possibly others, increases resistance. I can appreciate that the guidelines were clearly laid out by Adi Da. I just think they are counterproductive to attracting participation in the community. I also realize that it is my issue that only I can resolve. I appreciate your willingness to continue to clarify and support this neurotic middle aged Jewish guy in making sense of all of this.

Answer: Actually, there is much more to it! It is exactly not a matter of one day getting up the courage or the will to go beyond one's resistance and sign the vow.

Adidam is a Revelation-based Way. This means (amazingly enough!) that you are not to become a devotee until a miracle occurs: the direct Revelation that Adi Da is the Divine Person. It is the exact opposite of getting up the will to do it. In some sense, you don't choose It; It chooses you. It doesn't "choose you" in the sense that the Divine Person is deciding when to give you this Revelation, and "holding back" until then. No, the Blessing for enabling this Revelation is constant. And as Adi Da has said for years (and spells out the "why" more precisely in the above passage), it is His "meditation" of us (not anything we do per se) that is consequential in terms of actual Realization, and even becoming a devotee.

But even though it is not sufficient or the core of what transforms us, our meditation on Him is essential, to allow Him to do His Work with us. (To use another metaphor of Adi Da's about the "division of labor" between Adi Da and His devotee: Grasp the tail of the Horse; the Horse will then take you — but you must be grasping the tail of the Horse.) So your receiving this always-given Revelation (and becoming a devotee of Adi Da on that basis) depends on It catching you in a moment of sufficient heart-openness, and in the presence of the means for transmitting this Revelation. And when exactly that will happen is a matter of Grace. But just as "chance favors the prepared mind", so Grace favors the person who is steadily immersing themselves in the means for transmitting this Revelation. It is a relationship from the beginning. The Revelation depends on you being open enough to Him that Adi Da can reveal Himself to you.

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