[date unknown]
To Sam
A long time ago in Atlantis, and this was during the Sun Religion, the Winter Solstice which fell on December 21st was celebrated as the birth of the New Sun or Nu Yoel. In that day Yoel, the Sun was regarded as the outward and visible sign of the Eternal Gode and accorded reverence. But it was Gode, the Good Power, Father of all, along that was worshipped.
Yoel logs burned. Round plum puddings that simulated the Lord Sun filled with fruitful blessings were set ablaze to emulate his rays. Gifts were given even as the Lord gave with lavishment.
Old King Cold, the merry Old Soul from the North, appeared at the lighted community Yoel tree set in the village green. His parchment crown, sheepskin beard and flowing robe did not entirely conceal his workaday identity as the blacksmith perhaps, but no matter, there he paraded attended by his musicians playing the flute pipe and bowl or kettledrum. With due invocation he called for his Fidele Tri or Faithful Gift of the Spirit and offered prophecies for the coming year to individuals in the crowd.
Oh! Those singled out for the honor received the best Yoel gift ever, and then the carols!
It all lifted the heart it did and much of joy went into that greeting of “Nu Yoel!” as it sparkled through the crowd. In time it contracted to but one word and again it is offered at this Yoeli Season.
NOEL
O. L. Reiser
[date unknown]
For your puzzlement—from O.L.R.
The Concept of “Spherical Music”
By Oliver L. Reiser
The emerging doctrine of “spherical music” is a rich and creative concept, filled with many applications, some of which are as follows:
1. In the electronic (computer) study of musical forms, the computer system plots various types of tonal configurations (melody and harmony), including the Mercator musical spiral. Here the binary aspect of the octave intervals of the tonal spiral points to a Boolean algebra. That is to say, on the mathematical side, as it is studied by Dr. Andrew G. Pikler, the computer analysis is concerned with the generation of tone-systems by binary logarithms—something never before attempted.
2. On the socio-humanistic side, the concept of “spherical music” relates to the historical evolution of musical scales—from Pythagoras, Huygens, Euler, Mercator, and Helmholtz to contemporary students. This legendary tonal spiral takes us back eventually to ancient China and India, from which Oriental matrix Western culture derived some of its inspiration and structural architectonics.
3. From the study of the historical evolution of musical forms we are led to the possibility of interpreting different human cultures in terms of the basic scale systems they employed, e.g., we may confirm that ancient Chinese peoples utilized the system of 12 Lyus or cycles of fifths, whereas the Hindus employed the Natural Intonations and 22 Sruti scales—and so on down through the centuries.
4. A “spherical music” could be the formative theme for the concept of a planetary music as a kind of world symphony—a “harmonic-union-creation,” as Thomas A. Watson put it—that is, a blend or harmonic synthesis of Oriental and Occidental types of musical systems. Thus a “spherical music” might express a universal music based on a world-level acceptance of a common tonal system, perhaps a scale with 53 tones to the octave, and would accordingly have a unifying impact in a world civilization, once it is established.
5. Such a spherical-planetary music could be broadcast via the newly established global communications satellite systems as something to be created by and shared in by all the peoples of the round earth—a truly global programming, helping to create a world ethos. Carillons from the skies-literally a heavenly chorus—is this the music of the future?
[first page missing]
The British philosopher, C.P. Snow, holds we have two cultures, and for my part, I should call the “truth-oriented” and “ego-oriented” and there does not seem to be any compromise. For years now I have watched one so-called “Buddhist” leader after another go down into disgrace rather than to accept in his personal life karmic principles. One does not have to change human nature and one does not have any joy in watching the constant observation of cosmic laws.
In rapid succession I have met Hon. Roger Hilsman, Dr. Carroll Parrish and Admiral Felt. There has been most satisfactory communion and communication and the Admiral has validated my effort to write a paper on “The Buddhism of Vietnam.” It has been perpetually rejected by everybody heretofore. It is a subject many times discussed with the late Phra Sumangalo. But it is the American propensity to honor individuals and adhere to slogans rather than realities.
Dr. String, University of California, Berkeley. In the middle of the struggle over Free Speech, this man is now in danger of losing his office. In 1963, in full charge of a conference on “Asia” he did not have a single Chinese, and exactly one Asian, in panels which totaled about fifty spokesmen, quite a few from Europe.
I have since had other rebuffs from him on Asian matters. And to show you how ridiculous it is, a story is related:
I rushed back from Southern California to attend a reception for the Hon. Sri Surendra Ghose, deputy leader of the Congress Party in the Indian Parliament. The meeting was called by Dr. Haridas Chaudhuri and the “professors” who give out degrees (?) in the so-called Academy of Asian Studies with which Princess Poon Diskul had been connected while in San Francisco. Imagine the dismay of the audience when the speaker pointed the finger at the writer: “Why, you are the man I came to San Francisco to meet. I travelled five thousand miles just to meet you.” Which was true, and which has further thrown me out of the society of “experts.” But now, those who so have been treated, are increasing in number. I have just met a man who loved in Vietnam among the Buddhists and his conclusions corroborate my own experiences.
The totality of these events has been that at least one “Sangha” has
agreed to participate in a Wesak celebration in Golden Gate Park of this city
where there is a gigantic statue of Lord
Buddha—long discarded by the many non-communicating “Sanghas.” Pressure
is now being
exerted to restore a festival which was held when I was young.
Any reports or suggestions will be graciously received. And one hopes that the turmoil of the day will lead to better understanding.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
University of Pittsburgh
April 22, 1955
Dear Mr. Lewis,
Thank you for your friendly letter. I am happy to see that there is the large area of agreements in our views. I think Lloyd Morain mentioned your interests in an earlier letter. Your thought that there is a basis for an “East-West” unity in the Promise is interesting, because I don’t recall that this was in my consciousness at the time the book was written, though later on I have been concerned, consciously and deliberately with this problem (see card mentioning the 2 later books, and the Preface, where these matters come up for review). Incidentally, a New York publisher is considering re-publishing the Promise in a cheap paperback edition, so it will no longer be “out-of-print.” I hope this can be nailed down soon.
Your own thoughts along these lines are interesting to me. I should be happy
to receive a copy of your paper for the American Academy of Asian Studies when
it is ready. Your reactions to
Mortimer Adler strengthen my own response to his work.
Yours cordially,
O.L Reiser.
International Committee on Scientific Humanism
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
December 24, 1958
Mr. Samuel L. Lewis
772 Clementina St.,
San Francisco, Calif.
Dear Mr. Lewis:
Thank you most cordially for your stimulating letter. I have received a number of comments on the new book, but yours are surely among the most helpful. The problem of integration—cultural as well as intellectual—is indeed varied and complex and your suggestions will prove valuable to me in this most difficult task. Your knowledge of Oriental cultures balances my own Western-oriented training, and I hope someday to do more along the lines you have sketched out.
At the moment, I am in the middle of the Christmas rush, and so I cannot write at length on matters of mutual interest; but I do want to get this word off to you so that you will know that I shall keep your letter before me as a prospectus of future work to be done by us “integrators.”
I am especially happy to have word of our mutual friend, Vocha Fiske. Do give her our Season’s Greetings and very best wishes. She may remember our daughter, and be interested in learning that Karen hopes, next year, to study at the University of Paris. (This year, she is a sophomore at the University of Chicago.)
If any of your friends, who may happen to read the Integration book, should want to write me about anything in it, I should be interested in having their reactions.
Cordially yours,
Oliver Reiser
International Committee on Scientific Humanism
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
October 28, 1960
Dear Mr. Lewis,
Thank you very much for your letter. You certainly do get around—and you are doing a grand service. For some reason I am having more and more contact with Indian people, some of it, perhaps, due to my article in the Hindu Weekly magazine (see enclosed). I wonder if you ever met Julie Medlock who is putting this series with articles together (B. Russel, Stuart Chase, Brock Drisholm, et at have contributed).
Of course, I know of Dr. Radhakrishnan and his work. I think very highly of his book on “East and West.” I should be happy to see the Orient pay more attention to American Philosophy—Peirce, Jones, Denny, etc.
For the Orientals, Peirce is especially important, as you may recognize.
Keep up your good work, and write me whenever you find time.
Cordially yours,
O.L. Reiser
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
April 27, 1961
Dear Mr. Lewis,
Thank you indeed for your interesting letters, keeping me informed of your journeys and experiences. You are doing a splendid job of breaking down walls between “East and West.” Also let me thank you for your efforts in helping to make known my own pantheistic humanism. In time, we should see some benefits from your pioneering efforts. I am asking my publisher to send you a copy of the book to replace one you gave away. Perhaps he (Parker Sargent) can add to the gift.
Cordially yours,
O.L. Reiser
Bombay, March 9, 1962
World Affairs Council of Northern California,
421 Powell St., San Francisco, Calif.
My dear Friends:
I am writing a letter partly in retrospect, sending a carbon to some people very close to me who simply cannot believe my reports. For many years I was a sort of social authority on Asia. Then Mrs. Leila Havens of Piedmont and the famous John D. Barry died. Without sponsors no one paid any attention—that is, with a single exception. That was Guy Talbot, a man now perhaps forgotten who was one of the most indefatigable workers for world peace I have ever met. He had been on associate of Dr. Henry Atkinson as I had also been. But Dr. Atkinson also assigned me to some Asian research. In 1957 I was able to report to his satisfaction, but hardly any non-scientists paid any attention.
I skip the troublesome years and the rejected years. The welcome to India by Chief of Protocol Pannerjee and Vice-President Radhakrishnan was both symptomatic and ominous. Everything has followed according to a pattern or plan, yet in another sense there has been no pattern or plan.
I think no less than five times now I have run into American experts, technicians or advisers in some branch of Food or Agricultural work—outside their presumable posts. This is in addition to those visited in their offices or labs. There is extreme good will between us and now I am welcomed by (Americans) almost as if I were a top official and I am on no payroll at all.
I was most fortunate in meeting in Hyderabad with the top Indian soil scientists. The conference concerned with the fertilizer programs for South India. It is very curious that while a large section of our press is always prating about Russia leading in “science” my own researches—and they are rather careful researches—puts them, at best, in 10th place. If they have not many experts and not much knowledge, why don’t them have representatives present at these meetings?
While we are doing “wonderful things” in space-science and super atomic research we are doing more human wonderful things in facing actual problems of actual people in the actual world. Not exiting, no publicity. What has been true on the Berkeley campus, is reflected, unfortunately, in the press as a whole. I told one editor, if the Russians had sent a single observer, they would have sent a reporter. But when a scientific conference has only Americans and Asians sitting down together, it is not news. I know of at least five agencies doing wonderful things in India, but only the “Peace Corps” gets publicity. When we devaluate our own achievements, how can we expect citizens of foreign states, especially those not too close to us politically, to esteem them.
As I prefer to go back to Delhi and eventually leave India, it is with some satisfaction that at least off the record a growing number of American representatives regard me as a sort of expert and I am so received. For my work has been in fields, not carefully studied yet and there are many of these. There is not a single branch of Agricultural Research or Food Technology where I have either not gotten first hand information from the Asian nationals, or had my proposals accepted.
Today there is such specialization that those even in closely allied sciences, such as Soil Chemistry, Plant Physiology and Plant Nutrition, do not always know what they colleagues are doing, or know. India and Pakistan have nothing like the unifying integration of Egypt. Degrees are conferred on specialists, and the research scholars in some universities are so far ahead of governmental officials, that there will have to be periods of readjustment and recognition before much progress can be achieved. In addition to that, it is evident that the communist countries are progressing so slowly in these fields that they will need help far more than being exposed.
Reports on Soviet Agriculture will no doubt be respected be many of our editors. For they all succumb to the same subjective, constant change of base propaganda emotionalism, which is substituted for hard reasoning or scientific statistics.
1088 Fulton St.
San Francisco, Calif.
December 7, 1962
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
Pittsburgh University
Pittsburgh, PA
Dear Professor Reiser,
There are a number of events in my life which may purport to the promotion of “Project: Prometheus.” The continued excellent rapport between all the scientists I have been meeting points to the need of some common integrating purpose. Earlier events in my life indicated that the Dalton atom, the Mendelian gene and the commonly accepted “soul” were part of the same psychological heritage which is commonly attributed to Aristotle. My own revolt against authoritarianism has not received much encouragement—indeed even many non-A personalities do not join in revolts against vested interests.
My refusal to accepts either the Mendelian nor the Lysenko outlook did not make me popular but I have seen detailed verification of my integrational proposals. More recently a new gene doctrine has been developed which accords with this integrational outlook and I am taking further steps to get such materials in your hands, though the pathway is not too open. It requires increased correspondence.
The integrational outlook absorbs former teachings which fit into niches. I am now facing this in my daily life. In collecting materials for “How California Can Help Asia” and visiting chemical producers of spray materials, they are all hampered by the recent Silent Spring of Rachel Carson. Miss Carson is undoubtedly a scientist but she is not a pope. I delayed making some fixed appointments with one of the larger corporations here until I could make at least a cursory examination of her work.
I am both helped and hampered by the professors in the universities. I am helped by their personal greetings and their antipathy to this work (Silent Spring). I am hampered because so few of them have an integrational outlook. Those who are most advanced in certain sciences have only elementary knowledge of what the public might consider kindred sciences.
I long ago discovered that the logistics of organic chemistry were not the same as those of basic chemistry. I deduced (?) a law: All things in the Universe tend toward a state of maximum stable equilibrium, in which Newton’s Laws and many other laws may be facets. It leaves room alike for absolute and relative reactions, etc.
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
July 6, 1963
Dear Mr. Lewis,
Thank you for your letter of June 30 with your many interesting observations. Of course, I like your holistic approach. Your reference to Korzybski causes me to wonder whether you are going to the “International Conference on G.S.” at NYU this August?
I would like to revise your triad of contrasts, as follows:
Scientists versus Humanists
Analysts versus Integrationists
Provincialists versus Globalists
Specialists versus Generalists
How to convert the first into the second! As you realize, “Prometheus” and “Krishna” could help greatly—if we could get them in orbit.
With best wishes to you in your work and efforts,
Sincerely yours,
O.L. Reiser
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
August 7, 1963
Dear Mr. Lewis,
I am trying to digest your meaty letter. I have the feeling that I don’t know much about Oriental logics to pose judgments on your evaluations, but like to learn!
Your reference to the work of C.L. Kevron reminds me that I have a letter from Paul Reps inquiring whether I could help locate a publisher for a translation. My reply is that while I am much interested in the “Transmutation” evidence and theory, I have no good connections with publishers and could not find tome to get involved anyway. I am trying to find a publisher for my own next (and final) opus—two publishers have already turned it down as involving too much financial outlay (550 pages with 60 diagrams!). Perhaps Reps could interest his own publisher in the Kevron translation.
I did not go to the G.S. meetings in New York. I have had only skimpy reports from two people who did not attend. Perhaps I’ll have more later.
The enclosed article may have some interest. I sent your address to J.M. She seems very busy.
Sincerely yours,
O.L. Reiser.
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
April 5, 1964
Dear Mr. Lewis,
I am sorry to learn from your letter of March 27 the difficulties you have in getting a decent hearing for your ideas. Certainly the problems you are working on are pressing enough, and as you note, your solutions are directed toward the practical, I can only express the hope that your coming projects and interviews will gain a fair consideration. Certainly the “integrational” approach is the right one in all areas.
Your letter to Mr. Vogt is interesting. Of course O think I shall send him one or two reprints and see what happens.
There is one note of encouragement here (in connection with my own work). I learned from the editors of Fortune that there will be an article in the May issue on the topic of “Society and the Radical Revolution” which will have some reference to my own work (the relevant paragraphs were read to me over the phone, for my approval) and the recommendations to the readers that they become acquainted with my work is pretty strong (favorable). So will see what results this will have. (I don’t have reprints or extra copies of this—costs too much!)
Yours with best wishes,
Reiser
June 23, 1964
My dear Professor Reiser:
Thank you for your letter of the 17th. Yes, things are looking brighter and brighter and at the same time, confirming to a certain extent Snow’s The Two Cultures.
As matters stand I shall be coming to Pittsburgh from either Cleveland or Wooster, Ohio. Dates have been established, but no fixed appointments in either place. I have to be in Cleveland next Sunday; I have quite a from friends and acquaintances there.
I shall no doubt be coming in by Greyhound bus and will advise (from Cleveland) the time of arrival.
Agriculture & Science. The reception of the letter to the Ohio State Agricultural Research Station was very warm. It was based on the need of a “Project: Prometheus” approach to both foreign aid and the actual facing the actual problems of actual countries.
Ohio State is one of about ten universities I know personally which is doing excellent work abroad and the people of the Nation are kept in ignorance thereof. What is awkward is that there is so much duplication and so may hiatuses, and no over-all integration station.
On another matter Ford Foundation is taking the first steps toward integrating research and effort abroad, and certainly in agriculture they have already accomplished what our foreign aid people have not even dreamed of, indeed have ignored. So I shall take up seriously there your “Project: Prometheus” either before or after my visit to Pittsburgh.
Philosophy and Education in Pakistan. This has been thrown into my hands on three different levels. In the ease of the University of Islamabad, there was preliminary fortune in that I presented copy of your writings to one Dr. A. A. Siddiqui who is one of the top savants and he will be in charge of both religion and philosophy at the Islamabad University. The only drawback is that he has been ill at times.
Now my god-daughter, Miss K. Khan, has been put in charge of research for Psychology and Education and I have been consulted far more than has been accepted here. Three universities which have Americans in charge of Asian Studies have accepted information; but some of the major ones where Asian Studies are under the direction of Englishmen and Europeans have refused point blank to answer inquiries.
I am not so concerned with that as with an actual project before me. I left in these parts “Muqadimmah” of One Ibn Khaldun who lived in the fourteenth century.
While Muslims have been proclaiming this one and that one as great savants, and while British Arabists have been declaring the person whose works they are translating at the moment as the “greatest’, Arnold Toynbee said that Ibn Khaldun is really the father of scientific sociology. A good deal of his work sounds like drab theology and a good deal of his work also sounds like a forgotten Charles Darwin!
In any event here we have a work by a Muslim recognized and translated in the West and by-passed by all the non-Arabic Islamic world. Yet it contains more elements for what is called or many be called “Islamic Research” than any work I know.
It is not one’s place here to determine the definitions, bounds and boundaries of “Islamic Research,” but it is important to introduce on a larger scale the Integrational Philosophy of “Project: Prometheus” and utilize it to bring at some kind of understanding between the three cultural Islamic worlds—the Arabs, the South Asians and the Malaya-Indonesians, and this thesis will be presented, and is being presented abroad.
Another reason for detailing the above is that Ibn Khaldun is an uncompromising anti-Aristotelian. He arguments against Philosophy and Logic are associated with his intransigent attacks on the Greek savant. A- movements have been restricted not taking into account the great cultures which have appeared from time to time on the Asian continent.
In Ibn Khaldun (it would require further examination) I find the support of a dynamic, energy-universe, as against a “thing”-universe. He would opposed Dalton whole-heartedly and would probably accept contemporary Physics. This is not the only Asian school, which is so oriented, the same being true of most Buddhist teachings.
The report being made to Pakistan will also be sent to the University of California in a Berkeley and should enhance efforts, on my return to the West Coast, of having your Projects being given more serious consideration.
To be followed by letter or wire.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
September 1, 1964
My dear Oliver:
Thank you for your letter air-mailed yesterday and the enclosure. It is needless to say I am in entire accord.
I am not worried, but appalled over the two cultures. At the Humanist meeting I was called down for not agreeing with a Psychologist’s reaction to Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring. I think I wrote I was a “Sudra,” having been a mere working man using spray, equipment, all levels, to be permitted to have any opinion on my own profession.
The other day I called on the chief Entomologist of the California Academy of Sciences and he asked me a question to which I answered: “Where do you think I got my idea?” It is nothing but the reaction of establishments to little known men and little known ideas. The “two cultures” stand out at every moment.
Someday I hope to meet a GS member who can stick to the same level of abstractions in a thesis. Why doesn’t one of them show the weaknesses in “Silent Spring?” Of course I am growing popular both because I hope to do something and because I hold that the negative emotions aroused by uncertainties become more poisonous than the uncertainties themselves.
Than in another direction a “wise-crack” came home. I had been asking: “It becomes tiresome to teach Oriental philosophy to Orientals who teach others who teach teachers who will not permit me to attend classes or seminars.” One of these men has just received a high position at the American University of Beirut and by a complicated grape-vine my own ideas will probably be presented in classroom work there!
But now the University of California, all branches, has become cooperative. I have carried a torch for a lot of little people who have been overlooked. Three times I have “stuck out my chin” so to speak, and each time been successful, benefiting others.
I have heard of Bennett but that is all. Tonight I go to a meeting of people who delude themselves into believing they accept Integration when all they do is to idealize speakers on the subject, But perhaps we have to begin that way. I have at least four projects, or solutions, all based on the theses you advocate.
I have used such approaches in the laboratories before; the scientists liked them, but certain persons rejected them so what I gained from “Science and Sanity” has gone into the “linen closet” but it is still there.
Cordially,
Samuel L. Lewis
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
Sept. 17, 1964
Dear Mr. Lewis,
I have checked with our Personnel Office and learned that Dr. Richard L. Park is out new Dean of the Social Sciences. Accordingly I am sending him your letter with a brief note. From this point on it is up to him and you to establish contact.
The enclosed letter from Harry Custard is from a person with whom you may wish to establish contact. You may write him, if you wish.
Yours hurriedly,
O.L. Reiser.
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
July 31, 1965
Dear Mr. Lewis,
Your letter of July 25, with copy of your letters to “The Temple of Understanding” and Lloyd Morain at hand. Do you have any circular giving information about the “Temple?” Then yesterday the copy of your letter to the “International Council for the Developing Countries…” (long title!) came to my desk. This, too, is a new organization to me. In your last paragraph of the “Council” letter you promote me and Princeton University … was (is) this “pre-cognition” or just a slip? Actually, I am finished here this year … retire at age 70. I would be glad to move on. Anyway, as you may know, our university is bankrupt (financially), our chancellor has resigned, and we are drifting.
It seems to me you ought to have a good case in the courts to win your law suit, but then the details are not clear to me.
And how about the World University at New Delhi? I know nothing about it. Please inform me.
Yours,
Reiser.
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
August 25, 1965
Dear Mr. Lewis,
Thank you for your letter of August 23. I hasten to reply and assure you that my position here, for this next year, is not in jeopardy., And, of course, since this is my last year here, I am not affected, but the people who were brought here, bright “balls of fire,” will be affected and unless we find money before the year is out (Ford Foundation is one possibility), these people will start leaving. Our Philosophy Department is one of the best in the world right now, but it could disintegrate in 2 years. My concern now is what to do after this academic year is over. I have two offers from Arizona—one from University of Arizona and another from the New World University Round Table at New Tucson. This latter seems a bit amateurish. Do you know Dr. Zitko, who heads this latter “World University?” And do you think these several organizations which call themselves World Universities should get together?
On this point: You mention the “New World Universities” at Islamabad. Are there two such in India? You state that may name appears on the brochures, but I have never seen any such brochures. Would you be willing to airmail me your copy, to be returned to you? This could be important to me.
I really have not got acquainted with Dr. Park. I met him by accident (somehow he recognized me), and we agreed to have lunch sometime. This has not materialized, yet. Now he is away the remainder of the summer, until the fall term.
Let me thank you once more for your concern and efforts on my behalf. I wrote a letter to Vocha, hoping that it reaches her before leaving.
All the best to you and mutual friends,
Sincerely yours,
Reiser
[Date unknown, 1965]
My dear Oliver,
You will find enclosed a rather rapidly written copy of “Prolegomena for a Peace Proposal for South Asia.” It is based essentially what I consider your philosophy although this is covered. However it will be followed by conferences in which your name will be mentioned.
The first of these will be with the local congressman. One is interested in me personally because I live in his district and the other because he is on the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House. He has written a rather complete report on the split between Russia and China. I wrote him—and it is true—that I was in with the original conspiracy which brought this about. It was only after two very dramatic events that this was given any consideration whatsoever.
Every step of the way illustrates Lord Snow’s “The Two Cultures.” Despite the fact that I have been an eye-witness or ear-witness to many of the dramas of the day, my presence at most meetings is only a nuisance. Contrast that with an effort to speak to some engineers and salesmen at an agricultural machinery exhibition and one could hardly believe one was in the same world. It is very hard to live in a society to be considered as either an upstart or a superman.
Taking two courses each in Horticulture and Anthropology, it is hard to reconcile the atmospheres with so much of “society.” Anyhow, we are getting ready for the AAAS meetings in Berkeley and if you cannot come I shall keep you informed.
A very encouraging note came in an invitation to join the GS movement by Lloyd and Don. With my next dividend check I shall do this. It seems that I have full cooperation of the professors of the Botany, Anthropology, History and Economics Departments of San Francisco State where Don functions and it is important to have him “in” on my final proposals for Ambassador Goldberg which are based on a blending of GS and Prometheus programs.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
P.S. Please let me know what you are doing. If you get down to Arizona may visit that State.
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
Nov. 17, 1965
Dear Mr. Lewis,
Thanks for your letter and for the “Prolegomena.” I do hope your “Peace Proposal” will help achieve some tangible results. I wish I could attend the AAAS meetings in Berkeley, but I may be in N.Y. at that time. I do not expect to be in Arizona in the near future. The probability is that the head of the World University, Dr. Zitko, will come to Pittsburgh, and I shall see him here.
I am now considering approaching some foundations for a grant to finish a project dear to my heart after I retire here. This project (research and writing) is outlined in an article (Chapter 1) which appears in the Sept. 1965 issue of Systematics. As soon as reprints have arrived, I’ll send you one.
Cosmic Humanism is now supposed to be published in December—a Christmas present for mankind?
Yours cordially,
O.L. Reiser
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
Nov. 29, 1965
Dear Sam,
Thanks for your letter and outline of activities. It is interesting that you should run into a friend of Julie Medlock’s. I have just had a letter from J.M. in which she states that the A.A. will take place in Accra next June or thereabouts, with the hope for a preparatory session in Mexico or S. America this winter.
Your peace plan for India and Pakistan is interesting. I hope it satisfies Hayakawa’s severe standards (he rejected the only article I ever sent for ETC.) Please send me any spare copy, when it is finished.
It is not clear what kind of cloak-and-dagger Federal case is involved in your lawsuit, but doubtless it would involve too much complications to exfoliate.
The World University as planned by Dr. Zitko does not seem to me to de under the rights auspices. Anyway, there are many such proposals. Zitko and his disciples (one or two) will stop off in Pittsburgh next week to see me. If you wish, you may write W.U. in Tucson.
Cordially,
Reiser
772 Clementina St.
San Francisco 3, Calif.
December 2, 1965
Prof. Oliver Reiser,
University of Pittsburgh,
Pittsburgh, Penn. 15213
My dear Oliver,
The Psychology of the Volvox
This, of course, is not the exact subject in answering your letters, but there is such a gap between the wisdom of Nature and that subjective “Wisdom of Nature” used by so many metaphysical people that one does not know how to bridge them. The lesson of brotherhood, and if you will, spiritual brotherhood, is found in Nature, at least the Nature of Botany, Zoology and Geology. And I have just written some strong letters calling attention to the fact that assayers and spectro-analysts consider “the least to these my creatures” far more than any of the people of Snow’s “The other Culture.”
And my impressions of the so-called “World University” of Dr. Zitko is not Volvox, but is another of those selective, almost Aristotelian institutions which are selective and eclectic and not integrative. When living cells, or bodies, or person, unite in a larger unit, while they seem to give up their individuality, the creative process, almost Bergsonian, begins to operate. We can see this in the study of several sciences some of which I have studied, some not. But I have everywhere found this the same and when we pass from Objective Reality to Subjective “Reality” we find the G of integrative processes marvelously in accord with this “tertiam quid” or quintessence of living things.
As India and Pakistan must in some way adjust to the world, or to the UN or to life, one keeps this in mind. I do not wish to quote here either scriptures or sages; everybody does that and problems remain.
The cloak-and-dagger intrigue cannot be aired, and one reason is that the facts of the case fall outside the premises of what we accept as logical or real. That is why one has constantly to go back to Keyser, and I am sure AK would agree. Indeed I keep on getting letters from various Asian countries and the writers have such different premises and such different logistics. How are we going to bring them together? A real World University or Project: Prometheus would accomplish that.
Change fits in so well with my present outlook I shall have to go over it carefully. All of it seems strictly Volvox as above.
I am very much amused to that Robert Scheer is accepted. Every analyst is accepted and they oppose each other. I had a running report on everything that went on in Annam-Tonking from 1947 and have corroborating witnesses right in the city. Our informant and friend has lately been memorialized in Penang, Malaysia. He also has a large article in the new “Encyclopedia of Buddhism.” In a few years I believe there will be statues to him all over SE Asia. But you never heard his name. An eye-witness, a key-figure, he will become famous through Prof. Robinson of Wisconsin. This supports the ETC. book review of The Image of Daniel Boorstin.
Everything today goes strictly according to Lord Snow. We have the two cultures, one based on facts and the other based on personality impressions. In the Botany class I am accepted as an authority on Asia. When the professor alludes to a plant, I often describe it; it is accepted as fact and I have become an “expert.” But for the first time I have been called on by a university to tell my personal experience in meeting real people who do not fit into our premises of “Why we behave like Human Beings.” If one thought one was off base for not fitting into social predilections today I find a whole group of Social Anthropologists who do not accept our “Why we behave like Human Beings” who are too busy studying real behavior patterns of real people to have time to propose theories, universal or otherwise. And the fact that I have even proposed a theory based on world-outlook is considered a very good sign and is strictly in accord with Volvox and Project: Prometheus.
The other day one Lottie Von Stahl, a very close friend of my own late friend, Dr. Blanche Baker of this city, gave a talk. She claimed to be clairvoyant and her clairvoyance has been used by many criminologists. She is now working with two departments at the University of California, UCLA and will introduce me. It is amusing because one of the top men at UCLA and I had instant recognition from meeting real people in real Asia. We are neither of us on a list of “experts” fro SE Asia and we know all the top powers there.
There were two sides to our conversation. One is our rejection of all those persons and groups pretending to re[present the psychic sciences. They are all egocentric and seek research money for themselves alone. They are now by-passes by UCLA.
The second is the validity of phenomena. These I accept as real without proposing too much theory. The existence of an Aura is one thing—its explanation as being physical, psychic, neither, both, etc. is another matter. But I mention this because in going to UCLA next I shall bring some of your material. Once I wished to go there to study with the late Prof. Von Reichenbach. His death was a determinant factor in my choosing to go to Asia instead of to his university, In any event I should be able to present Project: Prometheus there.
Besides, my peace proposal are definitely in accord. The acceptance of Prime Minister Sastri and Ayub to go to Moscow stands right across plans of a life-time. Our adherence to Aristotelian analysis even when verbally discountenancing it, is very definitive. Now with two Asian nations asking for my memoirs and the great difficulty of getting interviews here shows how much we belong to Snow’s “he other culture.”
My break with Don Hayakawa came over his acceptance of high orders of abstraction as being Zen Buddhism and there was nothing you can do about it. yesterday I received a letter from Vocha Fiske, returned from Japan; and while writing I was interrupted by a close friend with reports of the whole world of Buddhism and this confusion between high order of abstractions, low order of abstractions and prime facie evidence is one which has prevented the universal recognition of the GS movement.
Still today, having the full cooperation and perhaps confidence of professors in five departments at San Francisco State, where Don is also on the staff, it would be unkind not to recognize him. Beside, the analytical part of my plans are in accord with him and the constructive parts with you. I had to rush a letter from here to resident Johnson and gave him a key of my connection with Ayub. It is smarty business that rejects his and there is an awful amount or smartiness and smugness going around, and this is also true in the letters from abroad. We are all individualists, and we do not readily accept the Volvox position.
At this point I shall write Zitko and enclose carbon and then may or may not resume.
Cordially,
Samuel L. Lewis
772 Clementina St.,
San Francisco 3, Calif.
January 7, 1966
My dear Oliver:
Thank you for you material from Julie. It is a long time since my first involvement in world peace. In 1930 my paper was selected with fifteen others to be read in Paris at a giant peace conference. Long before the dead-line the enthusiastic promoters published the paper of Dr. Alexandra David-Neel insisting that Buddhism alone could bring world peace. I remarked, “The next world war will be between the Buddhists.” Then the Marco Polo Bridge incident.
Even religions follows the Theology-Metaphysics-Science phases of the French Philosopher, Comte. The theologians having failed, the metaphysicians took over. We had the Roerich “Banner of Peace.” All the politicians in the world joined in, including the very scoundrelous characters who were in the forefront of intrigue. They wanted to neutralize churches and art galleries. I wrote that the next war would see the anti-aircraft guns mounted before churches and art-galleries. In a few weeks the Spanish Civil War and the government mounted its anti-aircraft guns before the churches and art galleries. Finis, Roerich’s “The Banner of Peace.”
It is negative reports like these which have pushed one out of a lot of world spectacles, and we are now running into the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion. At the moment one finds oneself in entire accord and concord with it—which does not make one right—and very uncertain of the effectiveness of metaphysical movements. One is even in greater accord with the contemporary work of Anthropologists. Again this does not make one right, only in this age one finds oneself moving not alone any more.
As matters stand, as soon as a family law-suit is settled I should be leaving for Asia and can give more specific reports of the work of Sri Surendra Ghose. His “Would University” had as its financial director the same Mr. Brohi who has been Julie’s “angel” and who is the treasurer of the University of Islamabad. The fighting between Indian and Pakistan has held up both undertakings, that of New Delhi and that of Islamabad. I am therefore extending all efforts to finding methods of bringing about peace. Only my matrices are based on the history, psychology, religions and needs of the people involved and not on some subjective scheme. The history of Eli Culbertson, the bridge expert, also shows what happens when schemes are devised, backed by limited logic and supported by social éclat rather than by any knowledge of the peoples involved.
As you have marked one Dr. Raga Elim in Houston I may write to him, but the very idea of programs, reparative and non-integrating organizations, etc. causes one to be quite chary. If one looks further there are so many “peace” movements and 90% of them are subjective.
I have received in the mail today a long letter from New Zealand. It starts out fine with some important contributions to grass culture and the naming of specific trees for specific purposes. Then it goes into the subject of “consciousness,” especially “cosmic consciousness” and ends up by naming (to me) rather wild leaders of various metaphysical cults which are scattered through the Nation but especially here in California. All of them that I know of are very vague, extremely anti-logical (one does not want A-logic) and lean far, far more on personalisms and personalities than any specific programs.
My own “Project-Garden of Allah” is based on a blending of actual Oriental Philosophies, corresponding principles of Botany (carbon- and nitrogen-cycles), the excellent work of the Ford Foundation in India, and the integration of all the desert reclamation programs contacts—which pretty well cover the earth. No doubt an all-inclusive type of mind is needed but this brings one back squarely to your “Project-Prometheus” with a minor assists, no doubt to “Project: Krishna.”
As soon as the metaphysical people get control of the word “interrogational” they almost deify it. The Tibetans have actually deified the more involved psychological processes and they are worshipped as gods and goddesses in that country—they do not change the Sanskrit words at all, they personalize them. And that is what I see in some movements.
In this city, until the scientists met recently, every effort on my part to introduce schemes to reconcile India and Pakistan were rudely brushed aside and during this period, when now one has been fortunate to make a large number of contacts among the scientists, no less than four Indian leaders have asked for a candid criticism of their country and its present politics and policies. As one has been all over that land, and its neighbors, one can meet the issue. And when the scientists met, this person was able to speak discretely on Indian Village life, presenting orally the same papers which were rejected—a priori—by the “social scientists” on the Berkeley campus.
The whole question of “peace” may be abortive. Scientists are working for peace by mingling with the multitudes, questioning them of their wants, doing research work and cooperating with each other regarding of nationality. This functional peace also corroborates Snow’s “Two Cultures,” the one tending toward internationalism, the other toward extreme analysis, dualism and differentiation.
On the whole there may be sympathy for Julie’s circular but the general criticisms are not necessarily well founded. A personal report of visits to the Berkeley Campus find one so far out of line with the various news reports, and in ever growing sympathy with the new administration. Rigged conferences have been held, given plenty of publicity, but attended by such small crowds as to be pitiable and a portion of those small crowds being outsiders sent by two quite opposed contending factions, neither of which seems to have much of a following on the campus.
Hills is in England, has been financially successful, and his “World University” presents Christianity as the “universal religion.” He has sloughed his Hindu tendencies. This sets him in opposition to his Holiness, the Pope, who has quite a different Christianity as “universal religion,” and already to start with—and God knows how many we may end with—two “Christianities” claiming to be universal and all inclusive. And if there are two such “Christianities” one may be pretty sure there are twenty-two such “Hinduisms” (quite a few in California) all claiming to be the universal religion, all claiming to be working for peace, and all not only ignoring each other but being quite antipathetic.
The “fun” will begin shortly if I were to present this material to the World Federalists, another “universal” group working for “peace.”
If one excepts Elim, whose name suggests an Indian background, all the others are either Aryans or Christians, which is hardly the way to start a universal movement. At least the two referred to above, the one through religions and the Roerich movement were universal ethnographically and otherwise.
Perhaps in one sense the two “gods” of my life—and Julie has written both their biographies, Bertrand Russell and Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, have long advocated meditation and until we study the mind-at-rest we can never find what peace is. The Sufis make much more of the mind-at-rest than any particular or particularizing program. In theory the very divided Buddhists do also. The exclusion of the whole Orient from a “peace movement” is a sign of uselessness from the very beginning.
I may also take this paper to the Research Survey Group at the University in Berkeley. But I hope to go South around the end of the month and visit both the Riverside and Los Angeles campuses. The material itself would come under the University of California, Santa Barbara, which I have not visited.
So long as peace is centered on non-action and war on action, I do not see where or how we can have peace, for man lives by action and the institutionalism of “peace” which excludes anybody is doomed to failure. The integration of “white” and “black” in this land has not included of Mongolians. There is to be another conference on “Asia” here. The last two conferences had no Mongolians of any type, description or character on their agenda and one does not wish to go through another round of martyrdom trying to correct that. But I can easily put this in the hands of my Chinese friends and get their reactions.
One does not know whether it would do any good to write Julie. If enthusiasm gets high, neither insight nor logic are of any accord. The word “wisdom” too often has no connotation. That is why all my “peace” efforts concentrate on the augmentation of good supplies. And for that reason also I have been sympathetic to, but not a participant in family planning.
Faithfully,
Sam
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
July 26, 1966
Dear Sam,
It has long been on my mind to write you the letter I owe you. Actually, I don’t have much to report. We returned from our grand trip to the West Coast quite fatigued. I have been reading and regurgitating. My wife and I want to thank you for your part in what was a wonderful series of experiences—not the least of which was our trip to Chinatown.
Your letter arrived in the same mail with a letter from Gordon Speedie. He is concerned about the same things all of us are. I wish his “complementalism” were explained fully somewhere. As you will also note, he quotes Schenkman (publisher) as saying that Cosmic Humanism will be out soon—it’s about time! Speedie has a somewhat higher opinion of Dr. Zitko than you have. He made a tape-recording (talk) for the WU meetings in Washington which convened yesterday. This is what he refers to in his letter. My own opinion of Zitko is closer to your evaluation than to Speedie’s.
I had two letters from Julie Medlock in Europe (after the folding of the Accra Assembly) but not a word since she went to stay (temporarily) with the Bertrand Russels in Wales. Christopher Hills wrote me that he met J.M. in London recently. The latest activity of Hills is at the London Centre (see enclosed).
Regards to you & Vocha, when you see her.
Cordially,
Reiser
P.S. Our friend Dr. Parks is giving up his administrative work as Dean here and is going to U. of Michigan as Professor of Political Sciences. We never had that talk he indicated we should have.
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
September 13, 1966
Dear Sam,
This is a hasty note to call your attention to the fact that Julie Medlock is not now living at the home of Earl Bertrand Russell in London, as you state in your letter of September 10 to the Center at Santa Barbara—she merely uses this as a permanent forwarding address. In her last letter to me she indicated that she would soon be on the continent, visiting friends near Dusseldorf (West Germany), but that my mail sent c/o the Russels would be forwarded from their place in London.
About her helping Russell assemble material for the trial in Paris—if it comes off—what do you think of this? I have my own views of this, but you haven’t asked me for them. Do you “happen” to know what Hutchins and the people at the Center think of the proposed trial?
Cordially,
O.L. Reiser
Sam—since writing the letter I have just had a letter from J.M. Among other things she says that she is not involved in the Russell (Paris) trial. She is still hoping to visit the Accra Assembly somewhere in Asia—hastily, Oliver
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
Dec. 28, 1966
Dear Sam,
Strange world—I see that Mrs. frost, who wrote me the nice letter (see enclosed copy) and Howard Parsons (whom you “jump” on in a gentle way) both have connections with Challenge, the house organ for Leland Stewart’s “Conference on Science and Religion.”
We, Mrs. R & I, hope the New Year is a good one for you and that you get the travel and make the contacts you have in mind. Say “hello!” to Vocha for us when you see her; we just received a card from her today.
Cordially,
Reiser
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
Jan. 4, 1967
Dear Sam,
This is a hasty note to congratulate you on the “Endowment of the greatest American virtues” (the inheritance) and to express my belief that it could not be put to better use than you will provide. I suppose I told you that Dick park has left Pittsburgh for Michigan. Your proposed trip should be rewarding to all concerned—you and they.
About my own books: only two are still in print: 1. The Integration of Human Knowledge and Cosmic Humanism. The others are all out of print and not obtainable. I am enclosing leaflets covering such of the two still in print.
Let us know how your plans develop.
Cordially,
Reiser
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
March 8, 1967
Dear Sam,
Your several letters (including the belated letter of Feb. 9 on “Making a Will”) arrived this morning. I do wish you would send me a copy of your letter to Lord Russell. I suspect that he will not see it (did you see the article in the NY Times several Sundays back on B. Russell?), and that his American Secretary may (or may not) reply. Let me know.
The other thing of some urgency is your item concerning Vocha Fiske. I didn’t know she was (is) ill and it comes as a bit of a shock. Please tell her we think of her frequently and the good experiences we have shared with her. Hyla joins me in this.
Enclosed is a review of Cosmic Humanism . This chap Henry Pierce and I were on TV together. There are also excellent reviews of C H in the current Humanist and Main Currents in Modern Thought, but I don’t have extra copies.
Let me know how things develop.
Cordially,
Reiser
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
July 17, 1967
Dear Sam,
Thank you for your recent letters keeping me informed of your thinkings and doings. We are glad to learn of your good wealth improvement and how well you like your new location. For my part, I am busy preparing several papers—one a talk this fall in NY City at “Town Hall”—biggest assignment so far.
We had a letter from Vocha Fiske this last week. She too, is recovering, and this we are happy about. Also a letter from Julie Medlock. She may return to Pondicherry (Aurobindo Ashram) this fall, to the “Mother.” With the collapse of the Accra Assembly, she is out of a job.
There has been some discussion in the Humanist as to whether I am “Humanist.” I was irritated with the smugness of Corliss Savant’s letter and was inclined to dash off a sarcastic letter, but decided not to. I wonder if Corliss Savant’s views are agreeable to Lloyd Morain.
Well, don’t give up the ship.
Yours,
Reiser
410 Precita Ave.
San Francisco, Calif.
October 5, 1967
My dear Oliver:
Objectivity Versus “Realism”
I did not send you “The Other.” If I were to claim knowledge of Psychedelics I should be attacked from all sides, so I play coy.
Idries Shah claimed to be the first Sufi teacher to give out that philosophy in London. He was attacked at once by all the “experts,” scholars from Cambridge, Oxford and Glasgow whom we in America adulate and who are feared not only all over the Islamic world but all over Asia. The scholars boycotted Idries Shah but Poet Graves came to his rescue.
By that time the real scholars of Sufism began to come out and although they are not accepted in the world of “Realism,” they carry on their fight against both Idries Shah and the “experts.” So far as America is concerned the “experts” are way, way ahead.
The Cloud-Nine people of the past and the Flower people of the present would love Idries Shah, and so long as we accept only the “realism” of the Scholars and avoid hard facts, Idries Shah will prosper.
There are some forty million disciples of Sufism in the objective world—which has nothing to do with “realism.” You can count noses but we dare not. I don’t mean to say that Sufis are better than other people but that they are, and of course this immediately marks one as a fanatic despite the presidents of India and Pakistan and the whole government of Sudan.
I am busy writing that there are more Vietnamese Buddhists than Jews of all complexions. Do you think “realists” will accept that? Anyhow I sent a friend to Idries Shah. I had received five tearful appeals to help the Jordanian and Palestinian refugees. One came from Idries Shah. My friend went and found a post office box! Good for collecting funds, a thing done so much here. Incidentally when I called on the Jordanian Consul-General, something “realists” would not think of, he pull no tear-jerks at all. So far as he was concerned the situation was well in hand.
I am now contacting several types of scientists and the communication is facile and cordial. They all accept that a man who has been in the field and visited farms, agricultural research stations, universities, should be listened to along with commentaries and news reporters!
Recently a book on India as written by a newswoman, a Mrs. Hobbs, and received considerable attention. Accidentally I came upon a work, A Psychiatrist visits India, a dignified, objective work which did not receive reviews here. This is not wanted by “realists.” “India, India” will be advertised and discussed, A Psychiatrist visits India will be placed in several persons hands by me, but it does not belong to “realisms.”
I am staying home today because the School Department of San Francisco has taken up a project on feeding India. My colleagues have suggested me; besides I am going to the University of agricultural College at Davis, Friday. I already have my contacts and may gain more. As written before, the program for feeding backward Nations comes well within Project: Prometheus. Only India could have the largest harvest in history and a famine at the same time in the same place; this is “realistic” reporting and this is what is discussed in groups interested in “international affairs.”
Some people are now curious that I shall not contribute to the cause when contributing means putting funds available for an “expert” to travel many miles to come here to speak on a subject when I have all the data at my finger-tips. Naturally this will be available for the school department.
I am now compelled to work on real Zen manuscripts and must have them out of the way before submitting my program on the Near East. But now a proposal for a salt-water conversion plant is before the Senate. There will be a salt-water conversion plant when we become interested in Arabic culture. I do not wish to say Arabic culture is above or below, merely that it is. The magazines I get from Asia have all long since concluded that the United States is out to destroy their culture and religion, and oratory on our part only infuriates them more. Only Anthropologists seem aware that there are many cultures and some should be preserved even if only for museum reasons. As above, there are more Vietnamese Buddhists than there are “Jews” of all descriptions but this must not disturb realists. Emerson said, “In a botanist’s garden there are no weeds” and assayers and soil scientists examine for even parts per billion.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
Dr. Oliver Reiser,
Department of Philosophy,
Pittsburgh, University,
Pittsburgh 013, Pa.
June 19, 1968
My dear Oliver:
I am enclosing copy of a letter just written to Julie Medlock. If you wish copy of hers I shall be glad to send it to you. I am also sending carbons to Lloyd, Don and Russ Joyner, for there is not a turning in the road.
It is notable that Julie should seek assistance from Sam when there are so many recognized “Karma Yogins” and “Purna Yogins” here. They always dominate the podiums. They are the “experts.” Sam has had enough of that and how far he can help Julie depends not on him, but on facing reviews by “experts.” Indeed, so far the Aurobindo people have been almost as adept in their rejections as the G.S. people and almost as solicitous to obtain funds from this person. I don’t want to go into these ridiculous situations.
I have been through the Roerich Museum fiasco and seen the same repeated by Zitko and others. Now there is a call for “global consciousness.” It is of two kinds, from the cults who seize the word and the young who have some ideal and idea.
There is such a far cry from “Integration” as used by you and in accord with Calculus and the same word used by analysts and dialecticians as an unconscious gimmick. Sam has a slight surplus now. There are three conventions coming in August, two of which solicit money but not ideas; the other ideas and so one is going to the third. One has had enough of this by-passing and emotionalism and the one outstanding event of the life was being called down at the AAAS for not speaking and being told one had the solutions. This could never happen at the G.S. or “Sri Aurobindo” seminars here unless there is a real change.
One is therefore going to write two articles, but this time keep carbons which will be immediately sent to leading universities where they will be considered—and if considered perhaps even a contribution. One will be on “The General Semantics of G.S” which is on the Denver agenda. And as one rereads AK, there is such agreement but a number of shocks because the same language, down to words and phrases used by Sam were given the coup de grace. One can quote ad nauseum but will not. Peace will never come that way. Nor is peace coming “our” way of conferences of just those types of men abhorred by AK in Science and Sanity. But a “big man” is a big man and a “little man” is a little man, but apparently mostly in a “democracy.”
There is no question that my paper on “The Hippie Problem” is becoming self- evident because of hard facts. As ETC.-psychology is based on the experiments, successful or not of a few select persons, it will have to face pragmatic realities. “We” are pulling more people out of “drugs “by methods which must not be investigated lest….
The conclusions of the ETC. semanticists on “drugs” is diametrically the opposite of those of a number of scientists whose articles appear in “Science.” Even Russ can check on that. Where does it leave us? One who has been trained in Keyser’s “rigorous thinking” has had to observe through the years articles lacking rigor at all. And yet one will try to introduce GS or your work in places where it has not reached: Parts of the Orient (nothing to do with ETC.’s “Asia”); and to the young who are flocking here.
Then there is an anomaly, that the School as devised is by very wealthy men who use “drugs” (whatever that means—never mind Russell, never mind Keyser, a “drug is a drug”), and they are happy over the stand of the scientists and very much opposed to ETC. semantics. In fact as I return to Mill Valley (where Don Hayakawa lives) I go “between two clouds,” that he has never accepted anything from me; and the others look with dismay that I accept Science and Sanity.
The next step is not a threat, it is coming reality; to have someone lecture on non-A Logics. This has been proposed ad nauseum by Sam Lewis and spurned. It may be that Don will see the light, not my person, not my articles, but that there is a need for something more than empty negative non-A verbalizations supposed by nothing, not even by vacuum. The conclusions is Sophistry and that is exactly what we have had.
Here one can be very unfair, and will be. I was living with Gavin; it did not matter what Gavin said. Then Gavin went away and the man, who was a sailor, did the same with me. Finally, exasperated, I turned and said: “When did your wife leave you?” “That was hitting below the bale.” “No, that was the only fair question I have ever asked you. You pounce on a stranger for the troubles close to you.” After that we became friends and there is no doubt that if I hit Don below the belt he might become far more compassionate about the short-comings of others. But I will not do that, only when he reads this he may come to realize that the whole world is full of sufferings and problems and only those whose own houses are in order are capable of “solving” other problems.
For there are not only “unknown” sciences in Asia but some of them can be very effective. The one time when you were here and I mentioned Jagadis Bose in Lloyd’s house, it was not too comfortable for the “Humanists “(who exclude most of humanity). Besides, Bose was a well known accepted scientist and this is not always true of contributors to “ETC.” Only if we are to have Project: Prometheus, it must include not only the efforts of non-Aryans, if must leave the doors open to what may become include in the Science or the future. Merely to accept what Science has already accepted and only what science has already accepted may be “Science” but it is not Science.
I should rather work objectively and impersonally. There is the rise of a totally different kind of consciousness in the young. This seems explicable well within your frameworks. It is sometimes ahead of “science.” So long as Physicists cooperate and psychologists have their separative schools this situation will persist; but in Project: Prometheus it would necessarily disappear.
There is no questions that my work is expanding; that the young either come to my lectures or wish to meet me; that they accept one who has been rejected by editors, this being regarded as a “merit.” The unnecessary wide gap between Asian and Occidental cultures is coming to an end. I may subscribe for a magazine published by my colleagues. They are educated Europeans, who, having had to go through this same spurious rejection, have joined together and, having lived in Asia and studied with Asians, are giving their conclusions to the world. And yet these men are all products also of Western universities and sometimes teachers, too.
After this next phase I may invite some Vietnamese to speak on Vietnam and in addition to give phases of Asian cultures which our English “experts “have never heard of.
Some of the young want to have a class on “Science and Sanity.” Indeed enough are interested. But they will spot at once the departure from such principles in so many of the published articles. They are not fooled nor beguiled by names. The place of Prof. A. Kaplan last year caused resentment, but the cowardly audience choose to pick on Sam Lewis instead of on “Professor” Kaplan and this was permitted. Value-judgments, not logic. And yet Kaplan did not and does not represent “science.”
I should like to see some open, impersonal debates on your own writings. I believe the world will accept them.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
cc- Hayakawa
cc- Morain
cc- Joyner
P.S. I am going to see that GS gets a wider hearing both in real Asia and among the young, regardless.
The University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pennsylvania
Department of Philosophy
June 26, 1968
Dear Sam,
We have been away—in British Columbia and Washington State—didn’t get to California—and when we returned, found three letters from you. I wonder what the “semantics of semantics” will be and whether your paper will be accepted.
Like yourself, I am in touch with Julie Medlock. I gather that most of the physical construction of “Auroville” is still to be done.
Life here goes on as usual. I teach a course on the “Philosophy of Religion” this fall in the School of General Studies. I like to keep in touch with students. I gather that you, too, are a “teacher”—more power to you!
Yours for the moment,
Reiser
July 30, 1968
Dr. Oliver Reiser,
Department of Philosophy,
University of Pittsburgh,
Pittsburgh 13, Pa.
My dear Oliver:
“Silent Spring”; Lysenko vs. Mendel; “What is Vietnam?” “The Water Problem of the Day”; World Food Problems”; “Is Tobacco a Major Cause of Cancer?”
These and many such questions I have long felt could be solved by the applications of the matrices of “Science and Sanity” flanked by Cassius Keyser’s “Rigorous Thinking” and your own efforts. These and similar problems are being by-passed and emotional pressures substituted which leave the situations high in the air. “The Population Problems” are being faced more rigorously and those who dare not criticize Dr. Chandrasekhar show in this one direction a rigor which they do not in other directions.
Jurisprudence and Dialectics think they solve by the piling up of examples. There is no room for dissent, there are no exceptions. And so the Semanticists must reject Lord Snow, because they do not like to be classed with the nonscientists. Yet “ETC.” has had as anti-scientific articles as any publication I have seen in recent years, and you cannot touch the “generals.” It is a pity, a great pity. With all the solutions in sight, these problems continue and will continue until faced by other groups of savants who may even use the same Logistics as AK did.
Julie Medlock. I am here faced with crowds of band-wagon people. I was surprised when Julie asked me not to cooperate with these band-wagon people who recently pell-melled into Zitko and now are very silent and trying to pell-mell into her and will leach her if they have the chance. I have had to write her practically for while I now have the cooperation of the great America virtue, $$$$$, there are a number of red-tape measure which cannot be by-passed.
With the discovery that “Glory Roads” is now being studied in universities and colleagues (it as written before the rise of the “generals” who have taken over Semantics) it will be placed in the hands of wealthy social reformers and perhaps also to retiring Senator Kushel who is really interested in the above problems and their solutions.
Zen: Asian Versus Semantic. The Grand Master of Korea is in the vicinity and I am hoping he will come to this house Sunday. The Asian Zen is about as far from ETC.-Zen as you can imagine. There is already an International School of Meditation which has been approved by Sufis, Hindus and Japanese, but this is not “American-International” which is generally a legal-fictitious term utilized by promoters, and accepted by society. American-International has been and generally is, very exclusive. And yet this is the stuff ETC. is compelled to accept as existing even though in opposition. As to Realities, that is different. Realists don’t have to accept realities.
Sheila is a disciple who is planning to go to India as soon as possible. When she comes here next she will have access to Julie’s files. She and her wealthy colleagues have already the Auroville material. They are collecting objective data on the new types of cooperatives and an exchange is needed and thank God it will be without the intervention of nuisance “experts.” She is trying to get one of her wealthy friends either to go or become more interested.
Indian Philosophy. Sheila was with me Saturday night—I am sorry Daniel Hoffman could not come. We met with Indian savants and were able to discuss a number of problems with real non-Aristotelians whose very existence is a barrier to promotional-semantics, or ETC.-ism. They told our common friend that it was the first time they had met an American who could discuss deep or passing problems on their levels, We talk about “levels”; it is a nice semantic word until it has to be operational. The exclusion of Non-Aristotelians, persons and views from the ETC-society will be a laughing stock to the future, and even now to the young.
Tomorrow I am meeting a publisher and editor who are interested in an American who has lived in Asian, met many Asians and been accepted by Asians as knowledgeable in their cultures. Of course I am not the only “Sarkhanian” but we all get the same treatment, and most of them are working for their sustenance and cannot be as free as Sam.
American Philosophical Movement. All copies of all letters to you and to others are now being fed to the Philosophical Department of the University of California. And I shall be able to discuss this also with Dr. Huston Smith of MIT when he visits Berkeley shortly. We are going to place cards on the table and try to utilize American brain-power to solve the problems as above, and I think it can be done, even easily done.
One of my efforts will be to bring the philosophers and scientists closer together, especially in consideration of the problems listed-above.
Social Acceptance. Sunday I may put on a “thing.” Every week more and more young to my classes Asia philosophies as presented and accepted by Asians. Sunday night for the first time three women of mature age came, and another from another source and all of them were convinced that this person knows more about Asian philosophies than most “experts.”
There are already rumors that I shall be joined in the first efforts to put on a Thing in Golden Gate Park by others, and I am pretty sure this will happen ultimately. Oriental Philosophy is something more than brilliant essays by living and dead Englishman. And I noticed that Sri Aurobindo has attacked Karl Jung without mentioning his name and yet the Aurobindo movement in this country is almost entirely controlled by Jungians! No wonder Julie does not concur.
It is also quoted evident that the Hippies—who are human beings and not guinea-pigs, dissent from ETC. on the subject of their existence and their outlooks.
Well, you have the problems above. This was written early in the morning owing to my having run out of other types of typing paper.
I shall upheld a freedom in which dissenters are permitted to present their views before being given the boot. And now with the first interview with an editor and publisher coming up I am quite willing to stand or fall. Sooner or later the experiences of the little man who was there will be considered alongside of the dialectics of the big man who was not. And some day we shall have a Cosmic Humanism which includes the people of the world rather than the thoughts of the important and self-important.
Actually I am in excellent fettle and not mad at anybody.
Faithfully
Samuel L. Lewis
410 Precita Ave.
San Francisco, Calif.
September 7, 1968
Dr. Oliver Reiser,
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pa.
My dear Oliver:
I have been so busy that I wrote Julie at 11 o’clock last night and was back at it at 6 this morning. All these things came together but I have no feeling that “realists” will accept them:
a. Notice of the coming winter session of the AAAS to meet at Dallas and this will include a session on “The Cosmic Sciences.” I do not know what some of our “sanity” colleagues are going to say about that!
As things stand I feel I may be coming East and if so would cross Texas one way or another. Besides, there will be a great deal of attention to Desert Reclamation Research. Things are happening here; the young accept where their elders do not and the young are coming to my aid. And there will be two men going over the “Project: Prometheus” stuff here and the way things are going I shall have to choose between “Project: Prometheus” and “How California Can Help Asia” and no nonsense—facts, referents, references, all solid stuff.
b. I have been trying for months to get the Auroville people to get the proper import permits. The chief trade adviser of the Indian Consulate here is a friend of mine; the chief collector of customs in Bombay is a friend of mine, but I can’t get the import permit or number and they have been warning and warning and the warnings go unheeded.
c. A group of my disciples—young, of course, will soon be en route to India and it would appear that more and more may be going. But hard facts do not influence hard hearts. Older people mealy-mouth, “Do unto others” and they use that as substitute for human kindness and consideration.
d. A few of us had a preemptory meeting for a campaign to raise funds. We have already had twice the amount pledged and on its way and we have not even had a business meeting. This sudden influx of money and the possibility of its being in large amounts changes the whole outward picture. It would appear that volunteer workers may soon be paid. The reaction was totally unexpected. People who will simply not accept my backgrounds either in the sciences or in the Asian culture but just want money for their own efforts have now to face some real outward realities. I can only contribute to those who will accept my own researches in “Project: Krishna” and “Project: Prometheus.” There is more and more attendant successes on university campuses and with the young. I do not intend to try to reach the “experts,” i.e. Snow’s non-scientific culture. I do know this will be my last semester at the University of California here.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
P.S. One of my epic poems, ejected, rejected and snubbed by older people is now being published by the young (of course) and may be out soon.
September 8, 1968
Dr. Oliver Reiser
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 13, Pa.
The Objective Realization of Projects
My dear Oliver:
This letter is being written on a Sunday morning, very early, anticipating a week of financial and legal transactions which may pull one out of a fairly comfortable position to one where one can work with others as a team and also as a leader. The position is almost ridiculous: older people insist that Sam has nothing to gives to the young—they do not belong to the young themselves; and the young are clustering around him in rolls of Pied Piper and Sage. And for the anti-Aristotelians one has only Irish-logic that is shillelaghs and money, which they understand.
It is very peculiar that two persons who could have very helpful and with whom there should be, and I believe there will be, mutual cooperation are also close to you, i.e. Lloyd and Julie. A Freudian would seize the situations at once. Lloyd should have adopted children—it would have given him outlets and vistas which he has not had.
The situation is “complicated” because a whole craft of a new type of associates is in the offering. They have already declared, “These people do not belong to Sri Aurobindo. We are Sri Aurobindo’s people.” At the same time their leaders especially are those given the “humanist” (?) treatment by the “generals” of Semantics.
I am not going into that situation directly any more. This letter is more concerned with Project: Krishna and Julie. In the financial opportunities before me I am going to seek some money for real round-table discussion of real Indian Cosmic Psychology, and no more intellectual nonsense of Mr. Super big and the compulsion of pygmies and peasants to listen. As the people of Pondicherry wail, it is time for somebody to present Indian Cosmic Metaphysics. I have. It works. It is accepted now by Prof. Huston Smith of MIT but hardly yet by “humanists” who slam down on peasants and pygmies and that day is over, forever.
Indian Cosmic Metaphysics—and I have to use some very poor English equivalent: has the “super-worlds” of “mind,” “intelligence” and “love.” Mind is above the manifest. Intelligence is above and beyond analytical mind. Love is above and beyond intelligence (but not always separate) and Cosmic Unity is above and beyond and yet absolutely penetrating the others. This is the simplest way to put it.
Our dualistic, Aristotelian culture does not understand interpenetration. Love operates in the physical as gravitation, adhesion, cohesion and keeps the cells of the body together.
An exceedingly particularized, analytical selectivity has made a certain derivative aspect of this Love appear as the whole. There is nothing wrong in it, but the traditional dualistic habit means that analysts are adding to confusion by adopting the words—just the words—of Integration, which is Intelligence (Vijnanavada) and Love and spreading endless confusion nut only, thank goodness, to their own kind.
A New Race is manifesting to whom Intelligence and Integration are as natural as analysis, separation and dialectics were to the old. But older people, seizing the words, and lacking the Intelligence, are endeavoring, as did Dr. Zitko, to adopt the symbols without any serious understanding of the realities beyond the symbols. And it has never occurred to the analysts, that in making emotional appeals they have failed to touch the hearts of really more advanced persons who have in addition to Intelligence and Love, that great virtue, money.
Auroville. I am now compelled to manifest my own Auroville which may (or may not) be called The Garden of Inayat. We are seeking no further outside help. We have the money, the Intelligence, and such mutual Love as I have not yet seen in a group. This person is the Guru-Murshid and the others are disciples. But we shall never be near one large new type of commune and in touch with others and our efforts can lead to adaptation of principles.
Lloyd knows and knows very well that Sam did a lot or research in this field years ago. But he has so far, other than by a nod, given any opportunity for expanded expression due to travels and life’s experience. I believe, however, he will get on the band-wagon. The evidence is so great and the appearance of semantic articles in other publications will impel him to be honest, subjective and impersonal.
Now the grand dreams of Sri Aurobindo have met with no opposition or criticism. But the seizure by analysts and dialecticians of the verbal terms of Integration and Cosmic Love are hardly impelling or compelling. Jesus Christ has said, “A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another.” This Love is not subject to any discourse intelligently by analysts, dialecticians and dualists. But they are the one class of people who seem totally incapable of grasping these principles and the one class who cannot let go.
We have to send Julie Love, Compassion, Sympathy, Gentleness, Tenderness and all those beautiful principles of “eternal” life which she has missed. It is only after that, and then that we shall be able to help. All Sam has asked for are the proper import license numbers and he has gotten—never mind, any Freudian would understand. If we can get that license number and go through channels we can bring Julie everything on the physical plane that she wants and more.
The career of being a Pied Piper is accompanied by one of being father, mother, grandfather, and spiritual teacher. I am no longer concerned with the asinine, egocentric rejections of older people. The facts do not interest them; they are passing away.
This society and especially the religious portion, has give everything but love, tenderness, sympathy, compassion. These are the realities of the universe when one goes deep. These are the general characteristics of Rama, Krishna, Buddha, Jesus and Mohammed. When we read about them it is mostly in analytical works. In Project: Krishna was have to become them, whether as if acting in a drama, or by methods which our traditions have ignored.
It has been said, “The eyes are the windows of the soul.” They are. Like Paul Brunton who was once my “guru,” Sam presents the method of Eye, Breath, and Heart, actually. You can call it subjective or objective, but people who will not examine pooh-pooh. The “anti-inquisitionists” (?) will not look through new types of telescopes, so to speak.
From actual experience, every level presented in Indian (and perhaps other) scriptures and traditions has been realized in this life by this person. The last month, beginning with Dr. Huston Smith and again climaxing in Sant Keshavadas, it was demonstrated. In the same mail with a dualistic letter from poor Julie a beautiful non-dualistic letter was received from Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. This week I have to again function to try either to bring the Buddhists together or to re-substitute the teachings from (and of) Lord Buddha instead of a flock of sectarian, egocentric, non-demonstrable theological and metaphysical hodge-podge. Lord Buddha himself said nothing should be accepted blindly but must be based on experience. Even “religion” in a sense must go through the theological, metaphysical and scientific phases of A. Comte.
One heals by love, tenderness, by compassion. The nature of mankind is not changed fundamentally by any prevailing ignorance or egocentric outlook. The New Race is here—Bulwer Lytton, H.G. Wells, Sri Aurobindo and others predicted. Evolution does not stop with the physical; it includes the psychic. But the psychic is not a word, it is content. The word has been seized, the content ignored. And beyond the psychic there is another tremendous sphere., the super-universe of Heart. Perhaps Sri Aurobindo has grasped it but the analytical, dualistic, dialectical people who use his name and quote him while maintaining differences and distinctions, only add to confusion. Tongues and egos divide, hearts unite.
We have to bring Reiser and Aurobindo together but also Whitman and Krishna. Working every day all the time, now the external result seems to be the attraction of funds. Oh, how the promoters love … the funds! But one cannot compassionate even to promoters. Only now we are going to illustrate. Having the money, the advanced disciples, the skills, the land, everything, we may have to illustrate our own Auroville. This is not what Sam wanted; he wanted to push Whitman’s “Passage to India.”
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
910 Railroad Ave
Novato, Calif. 94947
December 5, 1968
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Dept. of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh
My dear Oliver:
The Center letter arrived at a most appropriate time. The situation is this: There are a number of people who propose and a number who do. There is also now a world movement which may or may not fit into schemes called “world movement,” which exclude 80% or more of biological humanity. We are putting into practice—and I mean putting into practice—Project: Prometheus and Krishna. I am not going to discuss these here. They have been taken up many times in the past. But I am sending a copy of this letter to Edward Cornish in Washington.
Julie Medlock. I expect to have back one of my disciples who has been to Auroville, to get some side of a report. There are so many literary people who praise this and other schemes no end but whose efforts stop there. I am concerned with getting Julie small machines, fertilizers, and other materials and equipment she may need. I find both Indians on the whole and well meaning starry-eyed Americans often inept at getting and doing. But this is the world as it is., and there are the human beings as they are.
California Communes. These are growing in importance and activity. It has taken some time to get persons involved accept that Whiteman & Lewis investigated this field very thoroughly years ago and later. Hard facts, material facts, etc. are often the last things accepted by dreamer-schemers. yet the time is different and there are some valid establishments at the moment and more plans, often as not properly financially supported.
Cloud 9. Dialectic idealism, sexual promiscuity, scrounging and parasitism. All of these seem increasing as communal efforts go forward. It is not necessary to comment.
The Garden of Inayat. We are showing by example. We are doing. We are not theorizing. I don’t think a single serious mistake has been made. We are all so honest, hardworking, mutual cooperative and combine lofty idealism with hard work. And enjoyment.
Youth. One has written mocking letters, saying, Sam’s efforts to become a Pied Piper have failed miserably—only the young respond. They do. This is in marked contrast with the news items which may follow.
The minor is that pseudo leaders and pseudo idealists caught in a mélange of psychedelics, promiscuous sex and financially irresponsibility are causing harm to themselves. But they also attract newspaper and radio-TV publicity and give “establishments” apparently valid arguments against and World Future Society. This of course is fallacious, but Logic is based on personalities and not premises.
This can be seen in the fracas on the campus of San Francisco State College. The only principal involved is “US First.” Students are not interviewed. Outsiders found on the campus and presenting themselves as leaders of movements are given plenty of time by radio-TV and the press. All of these demands have been met elsewhere within California State, tax-supported educational institutions.
The San Francisco State College was originally for teachers and still is basically a pedagogical institution. Sciences are taught largely to prepare teachers in the respective fields. There is one of the best musical establishments in the whole world—you don’t hear about that. There are also excellent facilities for dance and art instructions.
Gradually the business administration courses expanded and also the Humanities. These included the so-called Social Sciences, and one doubts whether any of the revolt leaders are enrolled other than in the Humanities and Social Sciences. There is an excellent anthropology-psychology department, illustrating the application of your own principles of Integration. I have been told that not a single student in this sector absented himself during the trouble. This sort of thing never becomes public.
In fact, I am busy now writing more on the constructive approach to publishing the real work of our very grand educational institutions. If I am given any opportunity I shall hammer this home, supported by facts, data, public, and private information. This is in strict accord with Cassius Keyser’s “rigorous thinking.”
Now, the semanticist humanist, Dr. S.I. Hayakawa is heading the San Francisco State College. He is breaking all the principles and teachings of Alfred Korzybski which I knew he would once coming into power. This is so evident both to the professors and regents who are not in accord with each other.
I must say at this point that so far he has acted very admirably against some well-planned conspiracies. I must add that a non-student revolutionary organizer told me in person what he was planning to do on the campus. You cannot warn through the press, nor through any of those persons belonging to Lord Snow’s “humanist literary culture.” They are all too egocentric. Within 2 days, this revolutionary, not student, was on television and interviewed by press and radio. Nobody asked him about the courses he was enrolled in or how long he had been on campus.
It is this sort of thing which gets to the very heart of what is called Humanism. How inclusive is it? In the last month I have had most successful interviews with Vietnamese and Hindus respectively, but try and tell most of the public the elements of conversation. As a nation completely dominated by the literary humanist’s approach, we are only concerned in personalities and excitements and we are getting them.
While all this melodrama was going on the San Francisco Chronicle gave half a page to “great scientific discovery.” The subject was the Olmec pyramids near Vera Cruz in Mexico. The discoverers of these pyramids had already presented this in full in classrooms in a (two) previous semesters. These were adjoint sessions of the archeological and anthropological departments of the University of California at Berkeley and the San Francisco State College above referred to. This confirms Sam’s constantly repeated statement, “It takes two years for scientific work to become public; it takes two minutes for a small campus brawl to become a “world event.” In other words as television becomes more decadent they picture live dramas even if they have to concoct them themselves, and they do.
From all this you can see I am very busy, but in excellent health. The brochure will be passed along to my colleagues. It fits in perfectly to what we (Sam and a flock of young people) are either doing of endeavoring to do here.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
410 Precita
San Francisco 94110
February 21, 1969
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh
My dear Oliver; In re; The A Priory Rejection.
Have you seen the article on page 625 of Science 14 February? The title is “Beings from outer Space—Corporeal and spiritual.” This type of writing is easy, because with the rise of so-called anti-Aristotelianism, for all practical purposes, logic and logistics have been suspended and questions are decided by the importance of persons involved. This seems to be the norm of all dialectical systems whosoever, whatsoever, wheresoever. I have the greatest admiration for Hudson Hoagland and would accept almost without question any paper from him on Rachel Carson’s The Silent Spring. This was Hoagland’s world, not Carson’s But the dialectical portion of society has taken her most seriously and left him in limbo. Now, he has invaded your territory. I think you are well able to take care of yourself, but in any event I have written Science and have made copies for Russell Joyner and Vocha Fiske.
Self-important people do not seem to realize that the a priory rejection is worse than the two-edged sword, cutting not only both ways but every way. Now that Dr. Hayakawa is on the carpet, my protest against his incessant a priori rejections are beginnings to take root and sprout.
I have just had multigraphed a small portion of “The Awakening of Faith,” a most important Mahayana scripture. This is one of the many, many papers snubbed by Don. A man who berates the inheritance of his own ancestry and who is faced by relatively insoluble family problems is hardly fit. In the opinions of some of us, to be a great educator; may be an educator at all.
ETC has presented articles on Zen only from the non-oriental Alan Watts and the late Aldous Hurley. They were important, ergo…. They both took psychedelics, so they lost their importance….
In the last week Sam has been asked either to write articles or make speeches on what Asians call Zen. (totally different from ETC Zen) and now several institutions in this vicinity have asked Sam to speak before them on what he calls Asian-Asian philosophy. My work is expanding in every direction, audiences are increasing in quantity and quality and your projects Prometheus and Krishna are going ahead full steam so far as I am concerned.
Now you are caught? In the a priori rejection matrix of a VIP or are you?
With kindest regards.
Samuel L. Lewis
Novato, Calif.
February 28, 1969
Dr. Oliver L. Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, 15213
My dear Oliver:
On the Future of Project: Krishna (and Prometheus)
Today I shall be roving all over the map in this general vicinity, appearing in San Francisco in the afternoon—to address the young in the Haight-Ashbury District—and back to Marin to the College to attend a meeting where Senator Church will address the audience. I have a question for Senator Church.
We have intervened in the affairs of Asian peoples, rightly or wrongly. But we have made no efforts to understand their points of view. Going over the reports of the Royal Asiatic Society I find a (to me) splendid article on Buddhist Logic. It not only goes into some details but shows how this Logic might be applied to various problems. It is exactly the kind of thing I have tried in vain to get before the G.S. people and others. All are great in one thing: A Priori Rejections.
Having studied first non-Euclidean geometry under Keyser direct and Russell indirect, I came to the former’s “Doctrine of doctrines.” He applied it first to Mathematics, then among others to economic doctrines and religion. All my outlooks have been determined by that, including what I am vain enough to call a “world view,” a view which has been invariably accepted by Asians, and almost as invariably rejected by Americans.
We cannot see because we will not see that there are other ways to look at life, and approach, if not solve, problems. I find the same sort of rejections from the U.S. people and the presumably religious people, in both cases a narrowing outlook and, while using certain words, adamantly leaving no room for alternative approaches even to the consideration of problems. So I am saving a small amount of money by withdrawing dues and contributions to certain organizations.
From the beginning I have seen in Vietnam only “A Connecticut Yankee at King Arthur’s Court” in operation. Until Prof. Nottingham came here, the strange absolute, adamant refusal to examine Vietnamese points of view, along with the rejection of all possibilities of entity in the Chinese, Indian and thus Indo-Chinese points of view puts us back exactly in the Euclidean world, complicated by the appropriation of the phrase “non-Euclidean” by persons and groups who are so obviously Euclidean that the situation is most confused. And as the dominant figures have not stilled Mathematical Philosophy even on low Algebraic levels, we have only confusion compounded with mountains of egocentricities and the universal acceptance by quite inimical (to each other) groups: I Do Not Like You Dr. Fell.
This seems to be held in common by the GS people and the so-called dabblers in “scientific” religion, etc.
I have not seen a single change from “The enemies of our foreign policy are these: Jesus Christ, Dale Carnegie and Oswald Spengler, but the greatest of these is Spengler.” The possibility of huge civilizations having non-Euclidean psychologies is ruled out, a priori (this being part of the metaphysicians who proclaim their very, very private “scientific method”). And in this Buddhist logical approach, the very question of the existence and persistence of ego-substance is approached in manners remarkably similar to those of the late Cassius Keyser.
I cannot make a finality here until I again confer with my Vietnamese friends, but I am putting one copy of this into the hands of a young editor. I am now in touch with several young editors and presenting to two of them “Project: Krishna” materials, ruled out a priori by our G.S. associates and by their opposite numbers, in so-called societies for the “scientific” study of religion (?).
Krishna, First phase. Until recently I had to face that hard fact (of course rejected) that in this country I have never been permitted to lecture on this subject and in India I was compelled, sometimes for permission to enter certain meetings. Oh, I can give all the facts and data but that does not impress important people.
I am now giving instructions in a number of dances which fulfill the premise of Project: Krishna however you may look at it. Not only that, it is winning the friendship and even adherence of an ever growing number of the young. I began with the theme, Dance of Universal Peace, and it was recognized as fully and absolutely by the late Ruth St., Denis as it has been rejected absolutely and fully by “important” people.
I think I told you, in my last visit to the Berkeley campus, the whole question of the recognition of “experts” in Indian if not Oriental philosophies was put in my hands. Being an integrationist from the mathematical and Reiserian points of view I have no intention of knocking down idols and demi-gods, but merely using them in their proper places.
The second phase after the dance has been the psychological use of Krishna-methods to help the young with problems. That this has been successful can be seen both from the response of the young and the number of speaking and writing requests at this hour. Besides, one element in growing popularity has been the mountain of rejections, mostly a priori, by important and self-important people, all neatly compartmented in very small cults, many of which call themselves “Integrational” and “Universal,” but still small and narrow.
I shall use the D.D.T. complex as one example of how the Korzybskian and then the Reiserian points of view are restricted, not coming from the “right person.” I have been a professional spray operator. I was compelled in my profession to conduct experiments which even some of the large research corporations have not. It is curious that Dow Chemical and Dupont accepted the reports of such experimentation and Calspray would not. But what is to the point is that all the platform speakers on this subject, including persons in all walks of life, could get up and be heard, and by piling facts (only on their side) and a priori rejecting even the possibility of facts on other sides, this problem—really an easy one—has remained unsolved.
There is no Rigor and disputants do not want Rigor. They want to be heard. This is called “Free Speech.”
The latest articles deal with the functions and limitations of mind and how this affects scientific research. The non-scientists, the editors who control the channels of communication have blocked the possibility of a Krishna approach, but not the young and new ones.
This morning I go over autobiographical notes for one editor to begin with an then with others. It is an age of honest objectivity and that is the cause of the “generation gap.” It is as simple as that.
That Project: Krishna is demonstrable is accepted by the young and a priori rejected by others. They dare not look. But even the cynical writer of the article in Playboy has described Sam as having a Buddha-like appearance—something I could not possibly know—shows there is something here. And this afternoon the next step.
But in general I find a great welcome now on the various campuses, a totally different reception, but have not gone to San Francisco State. And following the agenda for the Spring Session of the University of California, I shall be permitted to present my points of view and experiences in certain fields. So one is optimistic. One has never been able to tell if one is right or not because previously one has been denied the floor and the platform. But this is the general attitude. As written before I have too many colleagues today in the same situation and combining we are gradually making ourselves felt—among the young, of course.
At this writing everything—far more than the contents of this letter, appears very bright as if Spring were here.
Cordially,
Samuel L. Lewis
March 17, 1969
My dear Oliver:
I am in an utter state of bewilderment. The week began with a surprise telephone call from Russell Joyner asking me to call off my barbs on Don Hayakawa. It is an extreme anomaly that this man who racially is a blend of East and West has adamantly and absolutely turned his back on the cultural achievements of perhaps even a majority of mankind who come from Asia. And the latest materiel on Buddhist Logic is too important to be forever excluded from our culture.
This exclusion of all real non-A cultures from our own is stupid. I have had to go on an errand to see if we can introduce Korean culture here. It may take some months but I think there are Koreans and I think they have made some small contributions to art, etc. But when it comes to “important” people they are excluded. Vietnam is a parallel which I shall not repeat.
In as much as the G.S. movement is in the hands of those who have never delved into mathematical philosophies they do not know the relations of (f)A, to (f)non-A and they cannot be reached. The fact that they do not know is not important; the fact that they cannot be reached is important. Most of the “Science and Sanity” is not so much dead as smothered.
The week was also complicated by three material situations all of which offer increased emoluments and more and which compel one to act on a crowded program. As the only real “virtues” of the moment are having more moneys and more followers, I can say there is every promise of each. The invasion of Hippie land has been entirely successful but not in the news. Perhaps if there is a riot or arrest there will be.
The determination to write a paper on Pakistan was followed almost immediately by drama. The hard, hard fact that I have lived in Pakistan and may have met some of the dramatic personae of the moment is of no import to dominant cultural pattern. The opinions of the mighty are to be discussed and the facts of others ignored. Thus Lord Snow’s “The Two Cultures.” It is notable that the leading local commentators are well aware of this. They see everything in the hands of Snow’s “literary humanist” people and there is no way out. These control all avenues of communication and they see to it that problems are kept unsolved. Scientists have yet no chance, least of all from these masquerading as “champions of science.”
Into this the materiel from Prof. Bahm. This sent me so high I can never thank you enough. The real integration of real American traditions and real Asian cultures! The very theme, thesis and approach is so wonderful and the fact that another American has gone to Asia and learned from Asians and really learned! And that he has high regard for James, Emerson, Dewey, etc.!
Now suddenly, among a whole lot of other things—and I am now talking figuratively either—a surprise invitation to visit Harvard and Cornell as guest speaker! I have not at this moment any ability to get on my feet. I have just written to Penn about a delayed visit. It will become very awkward if I continue to get invitations while here there has been nothing but sneers, barbs and rebuffs from “establishment” people and one no longer cares.
Now my own people have control of a local publication and more. I cannot see what has been gained by refusals to accept the hard realities either of my having studied with Cassius Keyser or mingled with all sorts of people in Asia but this is Julie Medlock’s story too. There is something radically wrong here and it is pictured in “Science and Sanity” and in Lord Snow’s “The Two Cultures” and our blind rejection of Spengler.
And it is not pleasant now to get applause from the young by saying that no matter what the facts are, no matter what the knowledge is, the seniors will not listen—they reject because they will not listen. But this is no longer true on some of the campuses here. We have to have fact gathering occasionally in the non-sciences as well as in the sciences.
It is not surprising what lies behind the invitation to Harvard. Just before I left India I was on the podium at great gatherings; here I am not always permitted even to sit in the back row. But this day is over. We are going to have Integrational-Integration and not some analytical term, “Integration” which sees the same gang on the podia with the same worn-out clichés.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
cc-Morain
P.S. We have now had on the TV the complaints of students who are never interviewed by the press, etc. who are the “silent majority” because the press and investigators ignore them. Last week we crossed the Berkeley campus. We saw a lot of police. The campus was very quiet, very usual. In the early afternoon there was an outside invasion—it becomes “world news.” Nobody writes on the achievements and one is tired, tired, so many meetings with so many professors and they don’t count. And we have, I believe, a marvelous educational set-up.
410 Precita Ave.
San Francisco 94110
March 26, 1969
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
Pittsburgh 13, Pa. 15213
My dear Oliver:
A glorious spring is manifesting. The weather is beautiful. All the early planting is done. An ever-growing number of young people visit each of my homes and various projects. The financial outlook is the best of my life; I am depending on no one, although it would be much better to operate communally or cooperatively. The doors are open for this.
Cosmic Humanism (con’t.)
I believe I have already written you on Buddhist logic and the strange refusal of our putative colleagues to consider it at all. In going over Journal of Royal Asiatic Society I have come upon the name of “Nicholas Rescher” who bas evidently been connected with your university. Do you know him?
The problem of making philosophy a science was impressed upon me early in life. I do not wish to repeat old matters. The strange refusal of a number of schools to accept the universal outlook—universal in any sense—is leading straightway to a new outlook, an outlook which is found to dominate. The day of cultists, separatists, self-centered dialecticians is over. Already in Art studies a few years back, the universal outlook was stressed. It has to be stressed in the true sciences. Cosmic humanism could and should do this for philosophy.
By “Cosmic humanism” I do not mean some cult dominated by the names of important people. We have been invited to an Indian picnic next month. My paper on “The Religion of the President of India” has been rejected by all the different, self-important separative cults. I do not see what has been gained by refusing to accept the most obvious facts.
In a few weeks The Oracle will appear. I am hoping by that time to have a man to man talk with Russ Joyner. Although I have been invited to visit Harvard and Cornell for a short visit, I should much prefer to take a leisurely trip, to pick up the pieces and integrate American-American philosophies. This is what my friends of The Oracle are also planning to do.
Our Sunday party here was a glorious success. Cooked a curry dinner for about 100 people. Two delegations from Sonoma State College to the north came separately. One students, the other teachers. They each separately stressed the need for cosmic humanism. This is an exceedingly well-integrated institution, no outbreaks, and many of the demands presented on other campuses have already been instituted and operating successfully. No police, no newsman, no TV, and no riots.
The next morning a young man presented me his personal problems, asked him his ambition he told me he wished to become a college professor—he already has senior standing—when I asked him the subject, he said, “General Semantics.” But he has no empathy for those who have taken over this movement and operated it as a private cult. I am now willing and perhaps quite capable of helping any scholar who will study and follow up that work of the late Cassius Keyser, and also what you are doing.
Have you any suggestions here? I did not think of Pittsburgh at the moment. We discussed several campuses, especially in western states. Indeed, we may be sending one or more persons to Albuquerque soon.
Sunday was actually the celebration of 5 birthday parties jointly. Our old friend Gavin Arthur was the “king” of the occasion. He placed in my hands The Other Side, by James A. Pike. Cultism, separatism, egocentricity has made this and other books outstanding pieces of literature, and to me, junk. Perhaps I am over-emotional here, because the learned Bishop Pike has by-passed almost entirely the work done in France and in the Orient. I can only see in The Other Side a weak repetition of Sir Oliver Lodge’s earlier efforts. The situation is exactly as I presented it in the university recently, “Are you using your terms analytically, ecstatically or synthetically?” The professor apologized. Important people will continue to sensationalize their private experiences, experiences which even millions may have had.
I am called here to accept in toto your own efforts, to apply thus to actual or pseudo phenomena. When we can do that, we shall have a Science.
There’s lots more. I am working on the thesis that Cosmic Humanism is integrative and integrational and not based on making the facts and fantasies of certain individuals square important and more glaring experiences of lesser known persons considered as unworthy of human consideration. I think that day is over. I think we’re going to have real Cosmic humanism.
Sincerely,
Samuel L. Lewis
Faculty of Arts and Sciences
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
March 30, 1969
Dear Sam,
Thank you for your letter and report. I get the impression that a “Cosmic Humanism” has better prospects on the West Coast than here in the East (Pittsburgh anyway). Yes, I know Dr. Rescher. He is an expert in modern mathematical logic and his stuff is very technical. There is no interest in G.S. in philosophy in our universities, the interest in Semantics is related to Cornop’s and Tarski’s contributions. The G. Semanticists have little or nothing about the fine work being done in language analysis by people in logic, though I see that Harry Maynard does quote Wittgenstein.
I think students who have your kind of interest and ask for advice on what universities to attend should be advised to stick to the West Coast universities. I don’t know of any Eastern universities that have a cosmopolitan interest and “out West” you do have the interest in Oriental philosophy and religions.
Well, you certainly have an interesting life where you are!
Give my regards to Vocha, whenever you see her, or write her.
Ever yours,
Oliver
April 9, 1969
My dear Oliver:
Sometimes life is full of wars and battles and sometimes life seems comparatively free from them, but the overall picture of the moment is so favorable that one is liable to create—and one has created—wrong impressions if there is pessimism hinted.
You are entirely right and I am finding today better and better relations in and around the universities. It was rather a shock to find hat practically none of the “experts” on Asian culture is a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society. It is also with regret one may have to make a decision which will place Asian-American relations on the same footing as European-American relations so far as cultures are concerned.
At the Hindu students picnic not only did not “experts” appear but the diplomatic representatives of India again spoke in most favorable terms. My next step has been to place in their hands they the only one of my epic poems which has been published and I am enclosed one to you now but perhaps also for a different reason.
You have affirmed the Psi-layer and I think we must accept this objectively. Many do not accept it. And when a fameuse like Bishop Pike writes on his communication with his son this is intellectually dishonest because Oliver Lodge did the same thing years ago and no acknowledgement has been made. There are too many “fameuses” in the way; “experts” and they have had too much weight to make honest objective studies effective.
I may also send you copy of The Oracle, the publication of which has been delayed. Some of my auguric poetry is in it. This should not be called “prophetic.” The term “prophet” had a certain meaning with the Greeks, and the presumably parallel Hebraic “Nabi” was not exactly parallel. The Arabs confused these terms and the confusion has increased. William English Welling in his The Meaning of God in Human Experience said: “The prophet is the mystic in control of the forces of history,” a definition I accept.
Much harm has been done to psychic research in the blind acceptance of predictions of earthquakes. The persons so announcing have in no case taken a universal attitude but attribute almost miraculous powers to limited cliques. There are now a few young people who seem possessed of powers or faculties but they have been unable to break through walls:
a. Of those who reject psychic potentialities.
b. Of those who accept but limit it to their kind.
If anything occurs along the line of your writings reports will be sent.
There is now some concern over Auroville. There is full agreement over the principle that more advanced personalities with “higher” faculties will manifest. We have plenty here and now. But to confine their activities to any project dominated by an existing political group does not provide proper outlets for the “soul.” One has seen so many projects starting with enthusiasm and smashing on the rocks of contending personalities.
We are both researching into “communes” and trying to establish one ourselves. But much of the trouble in this world comes from the hard fact that both individuals and organizations would rather “die” than benefit from the examples of those who succeed, My understanding of Sri Aurobindo is based on the early manifestation of types he calls “over mind” and “super mind.” There is no difference here; but the “over mental” and “super mental” types are not those who confine themselves to areas and arenas marked out for them by seniors in age but inferiors in “spiritual” evolution.
Saturday we begin a seminar on the mystical experience. The question is whether we are going to be confined to books or to actualities. The hard actuality of the Moghul Emperor Akbar is a rock upon which many founder, rather than accept real events and real personalities. It was the little known elements which determined radioactivity and the whole course of modern inorganic science. The same could happen to the psychological and social sciences if the persons involved became objective. We are still in Lord Snow’s two groups and I would like to see us all in “Science and Sanity.”
Another hard fact which I am no longer going to try to impress is the constant increment both of my audiences and income. It has not solved my personal problems but it does bring up new outlooks. My secretary will be visiting New Mexico in May and much may come of it. I shall be buying more of your books soon and also semantic literature. I am now going ahead regardless of any and all personalities. The universities are open to me, as you suggested, and more and more and more.
I am proposing, have already proposed, that just as in politics equal time is given to contending groups; that when campus outbreaks occur equal time be given to both professors and students as to commentators, regents and agitators. I think this will help clarify if not solve a lot of confusion.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
April 17, 1969
My dear Oliver,
Thank you for your chart. One is having a fine time in real open discussion seminars at the University and among those scheduled for Saturday is one concerning Ouspendky. Rationally it is most difficult to discuss sanely anything that pertains to a higher dimension and the real obstacle is that people who may actually be sub-Euclideans are posing as “anti-Euclideans.”
There has been another delay in the publishing of “The Oracle.” If this is successful there is not the slightest doubt that they will accept something from you. We are also beginning to touch the minor radio stations, at least.
All the events of the last month point to a change, from the strange “only in America” acceptance of “experts” on subjects with which the public is not acquainted, “experts” who themselves have no valid background. Holding firm I am now gaining friends in the what should be a simple field: the teaching of Asiatica by Asians and by Americans who have studied under Asians. But the Americans who have studied under Asians have uncovered the same roadblocks of “experts.” So we are stuck all over the continent.
It is still a small phenomenon but the total of my audiences has increased very slowly and almost imperceptibly but now perceptibly every week this year. I have been offered both in San Francisco and Marin County larger halls at no costs. One thing is evident, one is attracting audiences and one follows the principle to which I think all semanticists should hold, of offering referents always. This has gotten me in severe personality clashes for I always give names and events to support every contention.
My income from all sources is also increasing and I am going to see Russ Joyner as soon as possible both to refurbish my libraries and to encourage certain studies. Why, even at San Francisco State under the temporary (or more permanent) tutelage of Don Hayakawa, I am “in” with professors of philosophy. This is a new departure and a welcome one. But next week to the Berkeley campus.
Cordially,
Samuel L. Lewis
April 29, 1969
Dr. Oliver Reiser
University of Pittsburgh,
Pittsburgh, 13, Pa.
My dear Oliver:
This is written under such circumstances that it is evidence there may be something in the universe like Emerson’s “Law of Compensation” and a legend is already arising because one has too long been a scapegoat and from that very background one is becoming more and more acceptable to the young.
Both following and general audiences are increasing, slowly it is true, but most definitely. And also with that but for quite different reasons, the income. It is easily the highest in my life and it is chiefly a question of what is to be done with it.
New Mexico. Both my chief secretary, Mansur Otis Johnson and myself have to visit this State in May and June respectively. Our original plans did include a visit to the University but now I have been sent for to assist or associate with a new type of “commune” which is really integrative and spiritual however we define these terms. The impetus seems to have come from the followers of Lama Govinda Anagarika who was recently here but the policy is to be all-inclusive and not carefully selected operating under the verbiage of “universal,” “integrative,” etc. I have seen their brochure but not until after they sent for me, promising air-fare to begin with.
I am not too happy over it. I liked the Sri Aurobindo approach with its hypothetical assumption that there was coming to this world a “generation” with higher faculties. I find multitudes of the young so exactly as Sri Aurobindo predicted. But his so-called “disciples” in this country got into the Zitko fiasco instead of working with Julie, while pretending.
It is the young themselves who are doing the organizing, the “Coming Race” of Bulwer Lytton and H. G. Wells, and I believe, of Sri Aurobindo. They do not want politicians even if they are connected with the U. N. and they do want meditation and similar devices and disciplines in line with the general “spiritual” schools of both Asia and non-Asia. It is very startling and at a time when I am thoroughly swamped.
But to make it most “involved,” no sooner had one agreed to this when a similar summons came from Seattle, Wash. although in this case the persons involved may visit this city.
This has come at a time when your very suggestions are coming to manifestation on an already overcrowded calendar. My visit to the Berkeley campus was overwhelming. I found “cubby-hole” professors in the non-sciences doing exactly what the “cubby-hole” professors in the laboratory sciences are doing on the same or other campuses. My visit to the Alumni Association was short and beautiful but when I reached home it was like when I went to Reno—the Jack-Pot hit me!
Project: Prometheus. There is a book review in the latest issue of Science where this word has been used or appropriated by a physicist turned writer. He has been criticized on all fronts and one agrees. Dialectics and egocentricity have no part in real Science, no matter how the world is misappropriated.
Besides this there is every evidence, going over the last issues that Meta-linguistics is becoming a Science and the dream of Alfred Korzybski is coming true but not because of those who were his immediate but non-laboratory followers.
When I came back from Berkeley there was a report on Plant Protection using all the devices and Prometheus approaches on which I worked for years. With all the “only in America” experts against me I had from the beginning the Entomology and Plant Protection Departments on the Berkeley campus with me or I with them and it is wonderful that the reports in Science come from the very departments I have been in contact with and are using the very basis I had outlined to them on the “solution” of the World Food problems.
There have been many ambitious programs for Desert Reclamation and all ignoring the worlds of bugs and microorganisms. I have both literature and brochures and have sat with the top Entomologists of the Rand-McNally world (the term “real” means anything). I have presented the Project: Prometheus Approach both under its name and otherwise and 90% of the scientists (lab workers) I have met accept it while 90% of the non-laboratory “experts” reject it.
I am therefore having one of my colleagues go over all the recent issues of Science to note or copy all items in according Project: Prometheus on all fronts including Meta-linguistics.
Vocha Fiske is in this house now and we are also taking her to Novato where our “commune” is now rather successfully operating. We are going to have a big affair Sunday and I am inclined to believe as many as 200 people will own. All my meetings are being better attended, the doors are opening, and one has to be very much alive.
San Francisco State. It is remarkable that one is now on excellent terms with professors of Philosophy there and is involved in two separate projects with two of them. I don’t want to write more here. The day of acceptance or rejection by personality rather than knowledge is done for. People want knowledge, information, facts and when they have it even war may be stopped.
Cordially,
Sam
Garden of Inayat
910 Railroad Ave.,
Novato, Calif. 94947
May 5, 1969
Mr. Oliver L. Reiser
c/o Dept. of Philosophy,
Pittsburgh Univ. Pittsburgh 15213
My dear Oliver:
This is a special report due to the fact the Vocha is here. She has been intermittently in my two homes, and I am about to leave now for San Francisco and she for Oakland. She has seen Lloyd and as soon as it can be arranged will call on Russ. She has looked at and seen what one’s presumable “friends” have for years a priori rejected. One has to be “compassionate” in that one still upholds philosophies in agreement with them but has never stood either for any system of so-called “logic” based on personalities and a priori rejections (although this has been common in the passing culture).
Vocha saw Sam put on a combined May Day and Wesak ceremonial with a number of dances and rituals, all choreographed by him, and the chief other element was to have a Puja by Buddhists. Vocha said she counted over 70 in one dance but there was probably a total of 150 persons as at least 30 came with the Buddhist group and others came later or left early.
There was not a hitch in the program but the type of “psychologizing” was not different from what I had previously offered as “solutions” for “Salinity in the Indus Valley,” for “Silent Spring” and for “How America Can Help Asia.” I think I told you the last is now on its merry way for Professors are discovering something very simple, very elementary and not-news: What each other is doing!
As promulgator of Project: Prometheus and Project: Krishna you might find this very simple and presumably authentic but I have had to fight my way to get each professor recognize the others and in some fields, like Algaeology, there are such gaps the whole world is suffering. Algaeologists have hardly been recognized.
Re “Silent Spring” science had a refuse on the conclusions of professors on the Berkeley Campus of the University of California, almost exactly in principle what I have been adverting, but having been a professional spray operator (and therefore a peasant) I have only on one occasion but permitted even to express my views before “experts,” many of whom haven’t the slightest ideas of what they are talking about.
Now DDT is getting all the blame. I am not defending it but the search for the “devil” is still the essential of our culture. I have seen the merits of DDT at home and abroad but so long as the chemical companies hire salesmen instead of scientists, the wrong emphasis that they begin with naturally turns against them.
Of course we do not need DDT and I have piles of stuff for alternatives. The absolute and adamant refusal of ETC. ever to consider anything I have proposed is now going to turn against them unless the “Generals” of Semantics become human beings and I know Vocha is going to do all she can to bring this about.
The days before this May party The Oracle appeared with a large space given to this person, another to an article by this person; two articles by life-long friends, two more by my chief secretary, Mansur Johnson (friend of Prof. Huston Smith of M.I.T.) and the main art work which I esteem as excellent, by my housekeeper, Fatima Jablonsky. The distribution of this paper will make one better known, or notorious. But I have been also approached by two young editors and am preparing
Mansur for a visit by to New Mexico and the next on my agenda is to prepare him for visits to our colleague there, for something more is coming out and we are going to end this “only in America” English-and-European expertism in “Oriental Philosophies.” I defend no religion but I do defend the right of its advocates to speak for it and shall protest against this “only in America” careful selection of spokesman for exotic faiths.
Dr. Zukair Hussein of India died and I have had to run into a whole lot of “only is America” experts on “Asian Culture” who absolutely rejected any paper or reference to his very existence! I think this day is over.
(More people were turned away at the recent Indian film festival than naturally took part in the “world news” of Berkeley campus protests (generally led by outsiders)).
Now Vocha understands that one has applied parts of “Science and Sanity” never referred to in ETC. or if so in derision, and when it comes to integrative outlooks and solutions, she saw one operate at the celebration utilizing integration, with a firm hand and with almost perfect response. (I did not find even a small detail to complain about.)
The next “devil” is Environment. Environment has misplaced the devil and no nonsense. It is here also one has failed with the “generals” of Semantics and I hope they will reconsider before too late. For in taking note of my present following they are heirs to huge sums of money. Like the Pirates of Penzance, they are nearly all children of wealthy parents who have “gone wrong.” I can hardly find a poor person among them, one from the slums, etc. excepting the “Jude the Obscure” type. It is not “environment” and in going over “Science and Sanity,” especially the parts that are neither taught nor read, I have found the exact words I have used and these apply to many of the problems of the day. Only here one has the whole culture, no more “devil,” just environment.
When last in college I broke this word down into heat, light, meteorological and similar facets and also the wrong use of terminology, for “space” might mean one of several things and there were differentials in other factors which were ignored. The work of Steinmetz in one field and Einstein in another arose out of differentials which Korzybski clearly saw if he did not detail them. So we are stuck because those in charge of avenues of communication are unable to understand.
In the Orient only engineers are used as salesman for motor equipment of all sorts and I have had long conversations with such persons, learning about their backgrounds and their eclectic and integrative psychologies Sooner or later I shall be permitted to express myself, certainly now with the young.
But I shall be forced to write to Julie at Auroville, for now between Mansur and myself we are learning more and more about similar plans in this country—the young, not the respectable “Zitkos,” are going ahead and sometimes they have capital and do not need to go a begging to “save the world.” We shall know more about this later.
The President of India has died and the ceremonials will consume the few minutes I have today. Written in rush but with greatest hopes.
Samuel L. Lewis
410 Precita Ave.
San Francisco, Calif.
May 24, 1969
My dear Oliver:
I hope this finds you well. My own health is in excellent condition partly due to the change in the attitudes one meets and partly due to the hard physical work at the “commune” we have in Novato. The change in attitude is due in part to the “new age” type of young who are honest, objective and fact-gathering. But also due to the ever growing number of excellent letters and personal contacts with professors and instructors. I now have quite a few proper contacts both at U.C Berkeley and San Francisco State. Both of these institutions have been the site of dramas but the real work going on, at Berkeley in particular, is never made public.
I have still to write to the Alumni Association but the hard fact is that one cannot write an article without finding some new and important discovery. And these discoveries take so much time to get to the public attention. The froth is determining the beer and the waves the ocean.
Do you know The Art of Awareness by J. Samuel Bois? This book suggests I might get in contact with Dr. Baxter Geeting at Sacramento. Some of us visited Davis and Sacramento recently but so many little occurrences took place that it will require further visits.
My chief secretary, Mansur Johnson, is off to New Mexico to study communes and also to try to meet Professor Bahm. But everything is moving in one’s private life. And the total of my audiences every week this year has increased so I am now addressing over 200 persons although there must be a let-down for the summer.
Vocha Fiske has been here and her response was remarkable. She discovered that all one’s words and thoughts are actually exemplified in actions and also in the response of human beings to those actions. Neither the actions nor the responses please those who would be leaders of humanity. But there are now several new editors.
The word “environment” is the devil. All the new editors but one come from very well-to-do families. They have no proper outlet for their élan vital. Their “souls,” so to speak, want expression. One has had one interview after another and today rejections are fortunes, not misfortunes for one cannot fulfill obligations or requests.
One of my young disciple is planning to go to Denver to try to get a degree on G.S. there and I shall see that he becomes acquainted with your work. The same also applies to my God-daughter who has been successful in obtaining one scholarship after another. Her career is remarkable and at the moment it would appear she may move from Cornell, to U.C., Santa Barbara.
I have been fairly successful right in the middle of the Haight-Ashbury district and there are rumors of expansion.
Now one has to oppose the traditional attitude toward words and especially the term “integration.” I have lost faith in the Sri Aurobindo movement which has fallen into the hands of traditional politicians. This has happened so many times. There is no room for the young “at the inn.” So they are coming out on their own. More and more and especially in the west. I believe America and not India will usher in the New Age. The young are not moved by noblesse oblige and in that there is hope.
Faithfully.
Sam
San Francisco, Calif.
June 25, 1969
Dr. Oliver L. Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15213
My dear Oliver:
Project “Prometheus” and the DDT Complex
Early hopes that General Semantics or something like it might be used to settle certain really important problems have long been dashed, but that does not mean that we cannot find some means to face dispassionately and “logically” a number of problems of the day, especially those involving scientific disputes. Present situations reveal that a number of analysts and Aristotelians have been very successful in adopting the terms of integrational philosophies, both of the East and West. And there is hopeless confusion by these persons, some of them very important or self-important, stealing vocabularies and spreading chaos.
I had been a professional spray operator and had some knowledge of Organic Chemistry and wrote at least one paper on the difference between the logical methodology in organic and inorganic chemistry and from field work offered at least one very objective report to Dupont Chemical which they had to accept, although previously other reports were also accepted. The difference between the receptivities of scientists and industrialists on the one hand and dialecticians who proudly proclaim themselves as being “pro-science” is not only stupendous but is keeping the public in the dark.
While my researches had been toward the use of biological controls when I went into another field, “Desert Reclamation,” I learned that most of these projects failed because sentimentalist were using Aristotelian Logistics and did not have the full integrational outlook common to many geologists. And I do not see any full solutions of food, desert reclamation and parallel problems without the complete Project: Prometheus approach.
Before stopping my desert reclamation researches I gave a full report to Prof. Allen of the University of California in Berkeley who was as open as the dialecticians (of all schools) were closed. But since then I have visited the Desert and Dry Lands Reclamation projects at Riverside and have at least a glimmering of what is going on at Davis. But in order to write “exciting” articles—which is the order of the day, it is so easy to inflame the public and so difficult to inform them. And so I, although a quondam professional spray operator have had to watch all kinds of people with all kinds of “credentials” getting into frays, there is little evidence of Keyser’s rigorous thinking excepting by Entomologists and Ecologists. Plenty of noise.
The refusal of the dialecticians of all camps (by whatever name they are known) to consider Indian systems of logistics helps leave unsolved problems which are just as much problems of obscuration minds as of objective validity. For so long as we uphold that “a thing is a thing is a thing,” we cannot think through. And when we enter into the field of radioactive phenomena we are failing reactions which are both vibrational and atomic at the same time. The atomic and molecular changes may or may not be dependent or independent on the radionic changes and certainly there have been fall-out measurements which I must temporarily accept as valid.
But today the logistics of the fall-out phenomena is being applied willy-nilly to after-effects of DDT, and without any clear logic, to an ETC series of verbal conclusions not based on anything in particular.
Roughly speaking—and it is very rough—the spray poisons may be depending on contact or stomach narcosis. The chemistry involved in each case is different. But the newspaper logistics are all denials that “to every action there is an equal and opposite reaction” and carbon-chlorine, carbon-sulphur and other changes are discussed assuming at the sometime, there are and there are not radical chemical changes.
While one reads a good deal about saturated and unsaturated fats, often written by people who do not know these terms, the possibility of closed and open chains, of the types of compounds used, is left up in the air. And it is now assumed that out of DDT comes a violent compound which continues on ad nauseam affecting bodies and things without itself being changed at all. The logistics—if such they can be called—miscued by dialecticians of all campus—presumes absolutism and we are in an age, which as Toynbee has declared, you have to find the Devil to solve the problem and if you don’t you must create one.
So “tobacco” causes Cancer, without any how or why and no one seems to have gone seriously into the possibilities of other “foods” or “drugs” being etiologically connected with this violent disease. (I was once a clinical clerk in a medical laboratory investigating this disease, which as above with regard to sprays, prevents any testimony because I was an underling.)
Before I personally would come to any conclusion I should like to see the complete formula, the chains involved, and the changes to these change—or some evidence for the persistence of certain complex molecules before coming to any conclusion. And some day, I believe, we are going to apply Keyser’s rigor (as I have already on a small scale) to problems and be very careful in reaching conclusions, warranted or unwarranted.
I have in my diaries a multitude of data for it was my “fate” to have associated socially with many Entomologists wherever I went and with them there were discussions verboten in “the best circles.”
The continuance of our adherence to “thing-logics” in a time when there is increasing use of radioactive products, produces hyperboles and impossibilities when “we” do not know, in the use of complex organic compounds, whether a thing is a thing is a thing, or any and just what the resulting compounds or products are afterwards. The bland and blind assumption that active molecules do not lose their fervor or poison no matter what happens has to be proved and the deaths of crabs, birds, etc. a la “Silent Spring” has to be studied more dispassionately.
It is funny that I who worked a lot with DDT was ill only from one compound, a lead product, and never from any complex hydrocarbons…. Nor can I remember a single case of illness. Of course we used gloves, masks, etc. when necessary.
I am neither defending nor objecting to DDT but I do object to getting into arenas where the fame and weight of an “important person” is more to the fore than the eye-witness testimonies of whomsoever. I am hoping that before long we can have the proper Logistics from and of the Integrational outlooks transferred from Mathematics and Engineering to all walks of life.
I do not know how clear this is but very gradually one is meeting more and more people. Fortunately or unfortunately, my brother appears to be dying … he may still live long … and this would mean having more than a comfortable income and the ability to get articles out regardless of all the a priori rejections by the literary-humanist portion of our culture.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
cc- Entomology Dept. U.C.
cc- Morain
410 Precita Ave.,
San Francisco, Calif.
June 28, 1969
Dr. Oliver Reiser,
Department of Philosophy,
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, 15213
My dear Oliver:
With the same first name as the inventor of the electrical telegraph, one finds a tremendous number of parallels in our personalities and histories although already I have lived much longer, and there is no sign of flagging, a hard fact disturbing to many critics. My program has to be rearranged which may mean I shall call on Archie Bahm sooner than planned but will write to him first. For there is no question that we are faced with a multitude of problems which we cannot solve because of our refusal to face the egocentric predicament, as presented either by Lord Buddha or the New York Neo-realities. We are trying to solve problems and keep egos and the mere verbiage of anti-Aristotelianism while adhering to the assumed (unwarranted) of the existence of things and personalities, is placing our whole culture on trial. And as there is a growing multitude of egos with the platform, put me in charge and letting it go at that, one is tired of finding De Gaulles facing De Gaulles the world ever, and the younger generations (despite “scientist” Margaret Mead) are disgusted and looking for other ways out.
My affairs have become exceedingly complicated. My brother may be dying with the hard, hard fact (very important in our culture) that it will leave Sam Lewis in a position of some affluence and that he can then do things not on any other basis than that he will have the money to do them. There is nothing noble in it. And I am indeed enclosing copy of a letter which illustrates our present Aristotelian cultures based on the narrow acclamation of carefully selected personalities as the way to and in research. And there are few Curies to test all elements, or Einsteins to apply rigor to the problems faced.
Integration as yet does not have much change but the term has been appropriated, or misappropriated by a number of people, properly called “cultists” for various purposes, all mutually exclusive. And I am harassed in the time-processes not only with family matters but the sudden appearance here of friends from far-off places, including my illustrious (not here) God-daughter. And while she is here I am hoping to present to her materials to take back with her so that there can be some better East-West cultural exchange but so that we might face some real problems of real people on terms other than our own.
Pakistan and India were saved from famine by DDT. The fact that I have been an eye-witness means nothing to self-important peoples who have arguments to cover all situations. The hard fact that there are important Pakistanis (and other Asians) who wish cultural exchange in the psi-field moves neither the proponents of psi-research (who want to do all the leading) nor opponents, who simply do not believe in it. (Facts do not move certain types of mind.) But still more important has been the request that we need a revelation in the use of terms and words, and a number of inquiries which would, if we were really scientific and impersonal, mean a world semantic movement, have been ignored by some of our closest associates—and they want to be leaders!
One of my disciple is now studying Boolean Algebra. One of the big influences in my life came thus: I was moved by Cassius Keyser, partly in person and partly by studying his works, to move into collateral fields and that time I was deeply in love with Algebra. (There may be something Freudian hero for some of my relatives also seemed more in love with this sort of abstraction than with sex.) Independently I was studying Bertrand Russell and was moved by a number of his early works and thoughts which have long since disappeared from public attention. And the constant running into parallels prepared me for “Science And Sanity” for I had read at least 50% of the literature quoted and also have had the lie passed to me publicly and privately that this could be so. Nevertheless I am now retracing through others, as previously written and the day is over when egocentric personalities can control public discussions qua re their personal or social importance.
Soon I shall get into a serious public discussion due to The Art of Awareness by J. Samuel Bois on the one hand and the replies by Amatol Rapoport in the current issue of ETC. on the other. Rapoport is a marked example of a “General of Semantics” highly moved by his ego and not moved by the logic or researches of persons with whom he is not in agreement.
And as the present logistics are failing to solve problems it is time to examine at least superficially the Nyaya and Dignaga non-Aristotelian Logics. The Nyaya Logic has for its virtue the compulsory need of referents demanded also by A.K. but not by many of his disciples; and in this seems more in line with a presumably “scientific” logic. Dignaga goes further in assuming or proving that facts are independent of the personality of the observer—and it was just this by which Einstein was able to resolve the dilemma of the Michelson-Morley experiments. (I read these reports many times before I studied Einstein and hate to have to make this public, but the young are looking for honesty and leadership and they are going to get it.)
I shall continue to harp on the hard fact that the hopes of Luther Whiteman and I have been dashed—problems like that of the Mendel-Lysenko doctrines; the use of “Sprays” for plant protection, including an examination of specifies; the resolution of Vietnam based on the persons and people involved rather than on ideas of foreigners; the so-called “generation gap” the use or non-use of psychedelics (etc.); all these and similar problems are ignored by the presumable disciples of Korzybski and personality cults have displaced potential universal research.
Now my position is getting better and better on the various campuses, and especially—at the moment, Harvard. And in and with Harvard the immense possibility of making better known real non-Aristotelian systems of logic and thought. I shall keep you informed.
Faithfully,
Sam
410 Precita Ave.
San Francisco
Sept. 9, 1969
Prof. Oliver L. Reiser
Dept. of Philosophy
Univ. of Pittsburgh
My dear Oliver:
There have been such changes in outlook and opportunities that it is very often necessary to pinch myself so to speak. The old day of personalisms masquerading as knowledge is over. Not only was my Colorado trip quite successful, but since my return representatives of several institutions of learning have come to this house. There are also very serious movements on foot to have real integrational movements accepting the actual knowledges of Asia and America. Besides, the efforts to have American-American philosophies considered seriously are winning plaudits on all sides.
It is no longer a time for regret or to be concerned with dialectic movements of limited outlooks calling themselves churches, or cults, or humanist organizations, still bound by limitations operating on bases similar to those welcomed in previous generations wherein personalisms and personalities dominated. It is tragically laughable that all through the West there is now fear of dramatic social outbreaks where putative leaders of the semantic movement have roused almost inconceivable criticism and opposition. And along with that fears, justifiable or not.
Recent events lead me to plan a trip to Europe and perhaps the Near East next year. But in the meanwhile I am off on a vacation; I hope with more now doors opening and more opportunities before one. Efforts to become a leader of the so-called hippie communities have now broken out in a mass demand for my personality, the demands consisting exclusively of young people. What will come of this I do not know, but we had a sort of preview this week in this district where one was received very well indeed and there are reasons to believe this sort of acceptance will continue and that the young people will be attracted by anyone offering them actualities, impersonal and objective fashions.
After my vacation I shall again be enrolling at the U. California extension and perhaps elsewhere. I believe in time any campaign toward objective honesty and impersonality will be successful. This week my god-daughter returns to Cornell. So if I do go to Europe, it will be to stop on my return to this country and visit universities etc. feeling that we are today entering an age of integrational, outlooks and objective psychologies and moralities. I have already been approached by several Indian savants seeking real cultural integration and not the private subjective corporationalisms under grand names. There can be no more Zitkos placing ego-personality above objective knowledge, science, and humanitarianism.
I am now involved in several movements, all well within the scopes and Project: Krishna and Project: Prometheus—with excellent response in all directions.
Faithfully and cordially,
Samuel L. Lewis
December 3, 1969
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Dept. of Philosophy
Univ. of Pittsburgh
My dear Oliver:
You have heard of the proverbial “last straw that broke the camel’s back,” but last night the opposite happened, that there was something so encouraging one feels the end of the year is indeed propitious.
One received two apologies from persons who had taken varying views on the use of DDT, in an audience that was almost unanimous against its use but on the two general grounds that is the basis of the :establishment” pseudo-logic:
a. The importance to one of the source of information or mis-information,
b. One’s own emotions.
I have long seen—and see no break in it—between the two cultures of Lord Snow and now the literary-humanists are showing themselves on one question or problem after another to be quite at variance with the laboratory scientists. I do not think that the laboratory scientists are always right and many of them would agree. But the literary-humanists, verbally on the side of “science” against any and all “ghosts” or actualities, are constantly confusing issues. And the worst, of course, is the Vice-President’s attack on the Fourth Estate.
As soon I shall be writing on General Semantics vs “General’s Semantics,” one can only deplore the by-passing of the splendid contributions of Lord Russell (and others to the formulation of the sounder “scientific” logistics. And the current confusion of types, especially where the word drug is used, has made it most difficult both to think through and get your article accepted, or your person accepted, excepting in such publications as Science itself which I find a monument of sanity—sanity both in its dictionary sense and in the way SK (but not the majority of his followers) use the term.
The quasi-identification of the universal “drug” with poison has made it almost impossible to get any clear picture or basis from which to operate. And as General Semantics has always turned down every paper from this person on this subject, one has had to appeal elsewhere, and one is successfully appealing elsewhere, to clean up endless confusions from “respectable” sources, the sources being more important than any “peasant” protesting them.
It is this same nonsense which is going to give us more and more jolts. I have been writing a local columnist for years, anent Vietnam: “Kill them all, the Lord will know His own!” About four years ago my fellow ugly American, Eugene Wagner and I went to a relief dinner for the Tibetans and the proceedings were upset because every Asian diplomat, the hostess and the few Buddhist clerics there all came up and acknowledge us! And nobody else!
Then a woman I have known for years said, “How terrible this napalm bombing!” We both said, with one voice: “It is your fault!” She was taken aback. “How!” “Because we have been lecturing for years on this subject and you have never appeared once in our audience an if we lecture again we can count on your absence.” We did lecture once again and gave up. It was only a matter of time before the public would find out. Now it has. But the basic habit of listening only to important persons rather than to sound sources, or appealing to emotions, remains.
Actually I am now in one of the most ridiculous positions a person could be in—to be able to get the Rabbis to protest Vietnam and the World Buddhist Federation to protest Palestine at the same time! The chances are very heavily loaded that this may be done, just as heavily loaded for it, as the “respectables” are heavily loaded against listening. We do not and cannot listen.
I have spoken twice recently on Vietnamese Buddhism, to small audiences, of course. I am not defending it; I am explaining it. But neither Hawk nor Dove cares. They just want to get at each other. I think I told you that on Moratorium Day I was hosting a Vietnamese in my home and I am planning two more days for Vietnamese—persons, not thoughts about their country by either visitors or commentators! I shall continue to advocate listening to Vietnamese.
The worst part of this is not complaint—it is the reaction, the astounding reaction taking place among the young so that if I have told them I have been refused the floor, etc. they will, and they do and they are accepting almost everything presented by me. This is not a wholesome sign either, but there is apparently no other way out, at the moment.
As a drug is a drug is a drug, we are also seeing the ridiculous volte face anent Marijuana, etc. No deep thinking, no positive logic but power contentions and emotions. Or as I say: “Tomatoes!” You cannot tell older people that around 1800 the Tomato was held in almost the same contempt as certain psychedelics are now!
One of my students is transferring to New Mexico but I do not know whether this will be this winter or in a following semester. However I should be seeing him around Christmas and he will be liaison between Sam and Archie Bahm. I shall soon have other news from New Mexico where a brave new world is arising not very much like Aldous Huxley’s but not entirely different either.
There have been several letters to and from Vocha with the uncertainty of her moving to this region. We shall certainly welcome here.
An interruption. There is something like karma, for now, including the interruption, all the elements of one’s life seem to becoming favorable. This includes the publication of The Oracle which will print, no doubt, “General Semantics vs. General’s Semantics.” We are going to point the way to the use of a universal logistic to the solution of many problems and quasi-problems of the day.
The last arguments I have been in concern the word Ecology. The change in meaning and application of this form follow almost exactly the change in meaning and application of the word “Integration.” This of itself is characteristic and symptomatic.
I have just made some purchases from G.S. including two more volumes of your book on the integrational approach. I shall have good use for much G.S. literature. All trends in both public and private life at this moment show optimism on all fronts.
Faithfully,
Samuel. L. Lewis
cc- Lloyd Morain
cc- Vocha Fiske
December 14, 1969
Dr. Oliver Reiser
University of Pittsburgh,
Pittsburgh, Pa.
My Dear Oliver:
Your brochure with the greetings has so amazed me I can hardly write. The art work stands out in such contrast to the sub-juvenility coming out of Pondicherry that it is almost impossible to realize it. But then, haven’t I met many young Americans who have been to India, and have they not said, “We have the money, we have the land, we have the know-how; we will build our own Shangri-la without any assistance from Hindu superman (self-styled superman of course)”.
I am enclosing a copy of a letter to Vocha, which gives some of the news. But one is involved; one’s destiny is to be involved and ignored, or rather so far. But I have just received a copy of a book manuscript. The author is (Shamcher) Bryn Beorse. While I was physically introduced to him over 30 years ago by my quondam colleague Luther Whiteman, our paths have crossed and re-crossed before, and since, and now, and it looks like it will always be that way. When this book is published, it will take my name and person not only out of ignominy, but into the very opposite direction. After all, my career has consisted in being rejected and having the rejecters gawk every time a great personality came here and we encountered in public. It is ridiculous and risible. Now it is making me a hero among the young even more than my own abilities.
This book by Bryn Beorse definitely opens up the way to my own autobiographical notes which, from direct experience, experience and not dialectics or speculations, or ego-conclusions, brings one into a world of operationalism and not speculations.
To comment on your brochure would for my purposes as well as yours be self-defeating. I am going to show the art-work to my Novato housekeeper who works in the same general genre. Also to my young ward here who has selected a career in the field of the arts. And to others.
I am so busy, busy now with opportunities and cooperating with the young that there is no time to waste ever “old fossils.” The whole relation with the students and teachers at the universities here is now operative and optimistic in all directions. This is a new world, if not the new world.
Most cordially, Hare Krishna,
Sam
Novato,
January 16, 1970
My dear Oliver:
A friend, visiting these parts last week said: “You have not only started the New Year right, you started the New Decade right.” It is certain that slowly but surely more and more young people are being drawn and one now becomes quite indifferent whether those over thirty can get out of realism into Reality.
Tomorrow I attend a group studying Southeast Asia. The professor is a friend of mine and he will look at documents and also listen whereas all the many groups who being to Snow’s “The other Culture” have refused to accept even the existence thereof. It is a sorry tragedy. Now we have Biafra. We are going to have more of this and on and one because only newsmen and “important” people have the right to platforms. Eyewitnesses don’t count. Eyewitnesses don’t count and as I have sadly said, “Genocide is a terrible crime if the Jewish people are the victims.” Actually in the Rand-McNally world there has been plenty of genocide.
Julie Medlock no doubt remains as one of the most sorry of the egocentric’s victims. She did ask me not to show her letter to anybody. But who would have believed anyhow. As Russ Joyner says: “Face should not be allowed to confuse the issues.” So we have issues and multitudes are in danger of near starvation but hardly, I believe, nearly as many as suffered in South Asia. The south Asians, many or not so many were not “Christians,” the Biafrans have either become “Christians” or are nice potentials for “Rice Christianity.”
My friend Bryn Beorse has asked for your address. He intends, I believe, to send you either a copy of his manuscript or a published work. When this gets out, no doubt the many free speech groups will permit an Eyewitness to testify. It is all sad and ridiculous. Snow’s other culture cannot even accept the dictums of Jurisprudence that eyewitnesses are expected to testify. But in news, the importance of the report depends on the importance of the persons making the report. Haven’t the editors won the Vietnam war so many times and so easily? Haven’t they given us rosy reports on the still to be completed Assouan Dam? Haven’t they lead Chinese armies across the Himalayas to conquer India?
I am almost through Marshall Walker’s “The Nature of Scientific Thought.” There is such a gap between the methodologies of it and those common to the press, the literati, the religionists, the anti-religionists and all schools of metaphysics and dialectics. The editors of “Science” are all expressing a rather similar point of view, one you can read, or hear in their presence but hardly to be found in the press, among the literati, the religionists, the anti-religionists and all schools of dialecticians.
Unlike the leaders I was long impressed by Russell’s essays on the misuse of the word “in”; Korzybski’s of the word “is” and Spaulding’s of the word “I.” Egocentrics will have nothing to do with a paper on these subjects but as you suggested, term by term progress is being made within the halls of ivy. There are now a lot of “Archie Bahms” around and I must say not an easy new semester, but a new one where I shall be permitted to speak on all subjects and experiences wherein I have been a participant. The religionists, the anti-religionists, the peace groups won’t like that a bit, but the press will!
The potentialities in “The Dances of Universal Peace” seem tremendous and some persons are trying to open doors. I did not realize that Vocha Fiske was so close to Ruth St. Dennis. I knew them both in roughly the same regions but they were in different social groups. But it has not been surprising. Vocha’s work has been in the speech arts but the general philosophy is not so different from what I am doing and new doing successfully.
The result is that I am being invited to visit several universities. At the moment I don’t know how to arrange it. The purported trip to Istanbul has been changed to Geneva but no data. The visits to the campuses chiefly in New York and Pennsylvania will have to depend on the semester arrangements. We have three different systems in California that I know of and I have been a champion veteran of making visits during intercessions. I probably shall not be alone but except to be traveling with my secretary, Otis Johnson, the friend and pupil of Huston Smith of M.I.T.
Well, this is a morning interlude before hard work. I hope this finds you well and will keep you informed. Regards to Mrs. Reiser.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
410 Precita Ave.
Jan. 30, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Dept. of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh
Dear Oliver:
This is written in a state of considerable bewilderment. My brother is hovering between life and death. His recovery would benefit me a little, his departure would benefit me a lot, in an unfortunate but practical situation. This comes at a time when the world is literally beating a pathway to my doors. There are today so many Christopher Hills, each ignoring the others of course, but many coming for advice or help.
I think I wrote you sometime back that my friend Bryn Beorse has determined to call attention of my work to the world and especially to those who have been profuse with a priori rejections. But since that time at least two other persons are determined to make my personality and work better known, and they are in positions to do something about it.
I do not know about Prof. Gerald, and at the moment have no time to make inquiry. The letters received today look like a combination of plagiarism and “the order of the day.” After all, did not Wallace and Darwin both reach similar conclusions in their parallel research mark, I guess this cannot be stopped.
But I am very much concerned with the very loose use of terms today, and have a fear of the vocabulary stealing by what Lord Snow called “the other culture.” Terms like pollution, ecology, etc. which strictly belong to laboratory science have now fallen into the hands of the literati, and God knows what will happen. It will probably be the same as with Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring,” that everybody except the professionals will be called in to state their piece, to the further detriment of the objective world.
It is only lack of time which prevents me from going ahead with “How California Can Help Asia.” Last week I heard how one of the professors helped prevent starvation is India. Not news of course. This sort of thing never gets into the papers. But it has brought as a valuable contact, and I think it is possible sooner or later that human experience rather than the pompous editorials of important persons will be used to help solve problems.
At least health good and no particular financial problems at the moment. Uncertain as to schedule which will bring as to the Eastern states.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
February 2, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of philosophy,
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, 15213
My dear Oliver:
This month has opened with far more optimism that one has ever had. The young are finding their way to this mousetrap inventor’s hut in the woods, and more and more every week. The total number is not large but it is up to capacity. One criticism has been that I do not want to share with others and the hard fact is that reaching this capacity I welcomes any kind of “spiritual” leader. And it is very easy to distinguish the real spiritual people from those who have assumed authority and leadership—the latter do not recognize others.
I have found that recognition of others is a sure sign of spirituality and universality. There are too many instance and one below may be enough for now. But last night there were two types of mouse-trap inventor seekers: Rhoda, for whom I am especially writing this letter and the carboned diary entry, is going to Auroville, she has been only to one other of my meetings. She has seen for herself and made her own conclusions, but the method of observation seems to be entirely out of line with the “new integrationalists (!) who disdain to examine anybody (else). Anyhow she has been encouraged to go to India and especially Auroville.
And last week when India’s Independence Day was celebrated—by the Indians themselves for a change—there was no representative nor mention of Sri Aurobindo. I don’t think that that is his fault. But the “leaders” have assumed that God is dead and the UN very much alive and while criticisms of God are permitted, it seems by the “New Age tolerant” criticisms of the UN are not.
So it was with considerable negative satisfaction that one reads in the paper today of the increased military activities in the Near East. And this “rejected” person is calling for a conference on the Near East wherein the Arabs who are citizens of Israel will take the land and then the Jewish people friendly to the Arabs and the Arab peoples friendly to the Jews. This “unheard” for method will, of course, upset the establishments but it just might work. Why not give humanity a chance? Why not give youth a chance? We are going to.
For the first time there is a surplus in the treasury here. We can’t very well share it with all the various “New Age?” Integrative? Movements. Why, two more approached this person last week! But there are two who want to [?] on “Toward Spiritual Democracy” and the story of my small but very successful commune is out—via the young people’s underground, of course.
Another type of visitor last night was the delegation sent by a professor from the University California, I think the first professor in Zen out here who has had Zen training. We have had lots of dialecticians and overeducated foreigners, chiefly Britain; we have had “oodles” of dialecticians writing on something they call “Zen” with no referent—but it is only the little people who need “referents,” and all we have is confusion. But there are new real Zen movements; I don’t mean institutions, we have plenty of those, but Movements which require the deeper experiences of life which pass through the satori and end in samadhi, actualities, not words. This is something the literati cannot understand.
You have definitely predicted it and now both my homes are too small. But it is not only that the homes are two small but real integrative movements in Southern California, Massachusetts, and New Mexico have all sent for me while I am waiting for two other projects: the conferences of The Temples of Understanding and the recovery (or death) of my brother.
We now have the full cooperation of a teacher of Indian dancing and she, unlike the Aurobindo people, accepts the work of the Moghul Empire, and the real integration of real Indian and real Islamic culture through the dance. This is so in line with my work. This morning we go forward to establishing the dance secretariat here. And there are so many dances inside one—like poetry before, only here you do not sit around for the audience, the audience comes.
There are now three movements to expand and popularize these dances. Two are in the professional field. The other comes from Baba Ram Dass, the former Richard Alpert of Harvard. I think I told you in his condemnation alike of the establishments and “revolutionaries” I went beyond into the real Indian Cosmic philosophy which is certainly unknown to the UN officials and diplomats in general. He not only presented it to a large overflow audience of young people, he presented this person in no uncertain terms. And if he gets his book published, or continues to draw the large audiences of the young, something is bound to break.
He did quote Meher Baba but not Auroville. Meher Baba was a master of aphorisms, including the most excellent I have ever heard. Of course his followers think that faith in him is enough just as all low level devotees of every faith do. But sooner or later we shall have to accept Buddha’s “Work out thy salvation with diligence.” I gave some of Buddha’s teachings last night; they are all in books and pretty much ignored in this culture, yet.
Next week I shall present Taittiriya Upanishad. The young will listen, the young will absorb, the young will respond. I shall let the manifold “New Ego” oldster each have its separation “integrative, cosmic order.” The world is full of them. But it is a good sign, the old order must perish.
Faithfully,
Sam
Feb. 21, 1970
Dr. Oliver L. Reiser
Dept. of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh
Dear Oliver: in re “Religious Humanism”
Despite some apparently sober notes this is a most encouraging letter. I
recently told my colleagues, it might be worth $3 to subscribe to this
publication, and the first copy alone has so many serious articles that I think
it is an investment well worth its price.
On the back page one reads under “A Resolution”: “To launch a program of action comprising practical measures for the elimination of all forms of discrimination and for the promotion of equality of opportunity and treatment in education, and to integrate it in their educational development plans.”
Verbally I think this is marvelous. verbally, I should like to join in such efforts. Verbally. Verbally.
Next week we hope to have a Vietnamese speak here on his country. The doors are open. There will be a lot of young people here; there always are. The young people are mingling with each other regardless of age or background. They mingle; their elders pass resolutions. They are of course “middle class”; everybody is middle class; that explains, but I don’t know what.
The first steps have also been taken to have a meeting wherein a few Jews including some who have lived in Israel, and a few Arabs, and perhaps a Christian, and others., will convene here. We aren’t going to pass any resolutions. We leave that to others. We are going to mingle. We are going to do what everybody says everybody else should do. We ought to be doing this at Humanist House, but of course….
In the meanwhile, I am preparing to attend a peace conference in Geneva and will carry with me a program which is essentially the same as that which Lloyd and Don turned down, as they always do, or have done. I am not in the least troubled. I will have my own humanism which consists of humanity, and intend to put this into operation. The doors are all open for me—elsewhere, everywhere else. My own summer school is all ready for me. I don’t feel a bit happy about this. There are an ever-growing number of young people following me who would be quite willing to join any extant group if these groups could find a way out of resolution passing into operative endeavors. One after another of the programs worked out in accord with Project: Prometheus (especially) and Project: Krishna to some extent, are coming to manifestation. Sooner or later we are going to have a “scientific” culture based on objective, pragmatic operations and not on dialectic subjectivisms of any kind.
My original plan to go to England a few years ago was to work on the pollution problems. I had all the introductions, but sudden illness changed all plans. Now pollution is in the headlines. Yesterday I received a telephone call anent Thomas Edison, the City, and Pollution. This has been the type of problem I should have wished our friends to consider, and maybe someday they will. I have notes, oodles of them, all kinds of subjects. The only tragedy, if you can call it that, has been the folding up of the paper here which was to have published my article. I am not worrying about that either.
I have now so many invitations to visit campuses and organizations in the northeast of this country, but with my brother’s precarious health may have to return to these parts and make a separate trip later. I am going to that peace conference with a paper substantially the same as that a priori rejected by les fameux. They may of course change their minds. Then I could openly work with the Humanists. But at the moment my dance projects are expanding so rapidly I have little time for anything else.
Faithfully,
Sam
910 Railroad Ave.
Novato, Calif. 94947
March 12, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
Dear Oliver: in re Portal, volume VII
This is written at a most propitious time. Last night my work was televised. We are not going to count too much on it, but before it was done the technicians cross-questioned me considerably both on my private life and philosophy; and also on those adventures, especially in Asia, which our culture has adamantly refused to accept. But the last is not a sore point any longer, because one has met so many “ugly Americans” who have no place on platforms, forums, etc. and are our continued demand for “truth” and facts in scientific research and law courts, coupled with an almost absolute dominance of opinions in other lines of endeavor, has produced the problem of the day.
You should not be surprised therefore, that although the total number of persons in my audiences is still small there has been an increase every single week since the beginning of the year, a real increase in numerical attendance and also in the number that now accept me as “guru.” Secretary Mansur Johnson and I are now ready for our departure to attend the conference of the world’s faiths in Geneva at the end of the month with emphasis on peace. And I certainly will not flinch an inch from the stand that a single dissenter can prevent the successful accomplishment of this goal.
Until the day of departure there can be no private life. I have to host technicians from a television station and not only that, answer questions for which they demand facts, facts and not opinions. Anyhow last night they made a complete recording of my meeting demonstrating that although a purported Pied Piper may wish to attract and lead the young, the rejection of this by all and sundry older people does not hinder such efforts. or am I the only person so engaged or involved.
But I am writing this because in the performance and in the pursuit of goals there is an actual “psychic transformation” and sooner or later persons and organizations who verbalize in this field will have to come to a realization that what they believe can actually happen.
I have already sent you, I believe, copies of an article by a top astrophysicist at the University of California. One is so encouraged by the contemporary writings of the true scientist that one realizes sooner or later philosophers of all types will be facing that scientists have opinions and outlooks arising from their own experiences and endeavors.
At the present moment Vocha Fiske is with me. She was present at the performance, if you want to call it that, last night. She has placed in my hands a small brochure of Cassius Keyser on “Korzybski’s Concept of Man.” This reminded me both of how well acquainted I had been with the original and how much it has conditioned my present presumable thinking. The integration of the philosophies of contemporary science, of A.K. and Reiser, and the points of view in Portal, make me feel we are coming towards a universal outlook. The general honesty and sincerity of these various writers and contributors will become perfected when the people of the western world take a similar attitude toward the endeavors of, the accomplishments and outlooks of copies of other races. This means roughly a greater appreciation is needed for the actual Asiatica of Asians, and what to me Geoffrey Goerer has written in his “African Dances.”
My private affairs at the moment make it imperative to return to this region as soon as possible after my journey abroad, leaving it open when I can visit the eastern states; but fixating for a visit to New Mexico for as long a period as possible at the conclusion of present efforts.
Sincerely,
Sam
March 27, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Dept. of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh
My dear Oliver:
One of the best greetings possible at this time has been the fact that Lloyd Morain called at my home in Novato, California, which is a commune.
It is just happened that my secretary Mansur was already driving Vocha Fiske and myself to this city. This was necessary to give Vocha an introduction to a friend who has been president of the Japan Society, and also trained in Japanese Zen, which is often so different from the varieties of exotics presented as “Zen” in this region. Vocha has a big collection of Japanese art which she wishes to sell.
It also happens that we went to a lecture on the art which is called Zen in Japan, but which has very little relation to much of what passes for Zen in this land. And I had the satisfaction of being permitted to present some of my quite objective experiences in the Far East instituting objectively a program which should never have been barred from the beginning—but now that is over. Everything else is going fine.
Vocha had dinner with my joint family here and she has been very much impressed by the way we conduct ourselves in all things.
At this writing it does not appear that I shall be visiting Eastern states. There are legal and financial complications, largely due to the fact that my three closest relatives are all in the hospital hovering between life and death.
Cordially,
Samuel L. Lewis
Geneva Switzerland
April 4, 1970
My dear Oliver:
The peace conference which I attended here is officially over. There remain some private interviews and the first presentation of suggestions. The first days here were marked by my meeting emissaries from the Vatican with whom incidentally I got along very well, and series of profound apologies from some very important world leaders whom I shall not name.
There have been situations almost like paranoia. Certain persons attached to fame or self-glory simply will not condescend. There are others who actually fear new ideas, and this situation applies to many persons in Lord Snow’s so-called literary humanist groups. These persons are invariably subjectivists and excellent at value judgments, or poor at both value judgments and perceptions.
In the procedures that followed I became known as the man who writes the longest letters and makes the shortest speeches. I spoke as if every word mattered. I always spoke with facts and referents and never called my subjective ideas facts, like so many dialecticians and humanists do. As a result I was called upon to speak even on the subject of birth control. My point of view was somewhat different that either that of those pro and con. But I was allowed to make it, something that has never been permitted in my own San Francisco. I not only make it but it won the good will of the leaders of the conference and a large part of the audience.
Of course on other subjects I was given greater latitude because I wished it. I have taken one of the world’s sorest problems under my wing so to speak. I find that most people, both religious and irreligious, think problems are solved by wishing. The religious people add prayer to it and think it is wonderful and they are wonderful. The non-religious people replace God by the UN or some actual or fanciful group with whom they endow super-human faculties. You can take your choice. The wars continue. The problems continue. And wishes unite in blocking the doors to men of action.
In general the scientists here are quite objective, quite imbued with facts and quite intelligent. Others used oratory and obtuse approaches, wasting time unwittingly.
I was very much amused to overhear a discussion and then was brought into it concerning Korzybski and Hayakawa. To both my amazement and amusement AK was regarded almost as a demigod, a man who could have infused our culture with depth, rationality and understanding. Don is looked at with amazement, how such a man could and would dare to place himself or be placed at the forefront of efforts to wring thoughtfulness and rationality into the world. Many people have been astonished how such a man with much empty backgrounds could attain such prominence in our culture. The Europeans were quite in agreement that this shows certain lack in American culture.
I do not know whether humanists are capable of any ability to apologize like some of the religionists here and one doesn’t care anyhow. Not only was I given the opportunity to speak on every one of pieces but every one has been accepted. This gives self-assurance, and I’m indifferent now to all those movements and organizations that have a priori rejected me in the past. And as I am going forth from here with invitations, there are signs that accomplishments and efforts are not only acceptable but will be accepted.
One of the great cries was the absence of youth. I brought my young secretary with me. There were 3 other young people here also—only that number—among a very large number. Slop sentimentalism was open to youth; hearts and minds were closed. People who cannot or do not listen to each other can hardly be expected to listen to the young. The young were well aware of it, and I became their father confessor. This opens the door for further activity in the future.
Perhaps the saddest note was the news from Julie Medlock. Not a few of her friends occupied the platform. One woman rather recently and one woman just this week left Auroville feeling that Julie is wasting her life and will not confess her disenchantment. Youth simply will not accept outside autocratic dominance. It is a new age with new outlooks and high standards of culture and intelligence. People of highway intelligence and culture are invited to Auroville and made to serve under elder people of lesser intelligence culture, and ability. There was an unfortunate unanimous agreement that at the present time Julie is not amenable to suggestions and has practically closed herself up. I am afraid too many older people expect the rest of the world to listen to them and to accept them, but just them while they don’t have to accept anything from anybody else.
It is exactly here that the young are in revolt. Older people want their own one way streets and also expect traffic on them. Younger people want two way streets (at least) and are indifferent about the traffic—whether it goes one way, two ways, or many ways.
While off-hand I do not know how much this will promote your Projects, at least I am in a for better position with green lights so to speak.
We go to London Monday and feel home is optimistic about the possibilities there. At this writing our return home is bound to the solution of the airport strike. Still on account of legal and family matters, I should be home before the and of the month, perhaps making necessary a separate trip to the eastern parts of the United States.
You will be glad to know that the fame of Archie Bahm is increasing. I have met people of all lands, many great professors of various subjects and also numbers of India’s richest family—in fact they sought me out. I have a lot of contacts in Washington city too. Fortunately, the problems we face are the grace for one to be carried off in elation.
Cordially,
Sam
May 2, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Dept. of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh
Dear Oliver:
This has been a very eventful and dramatic period of my life. You will find copy of a very strong letter to Julie Medlock. There is no need for me to hassle with people and groups adamantly dedicated to one-may trains. Besides that there are now come “world movements.” It is like a big racket. It may be unfortunate.
Now we are invading Cambodia. We don’t know anything about Cambodia. We don’t even want to know. It is very hard to say who is the most obscurant in this. Sooner or later the young are going to dump all the old subjectivists keen on leadership, bombast, and ignorance.
My whole trip could add vastly to Project: Krishna. I do not know exactly what you want, but I think I am ready to supply it. The day is over when wisdom consisted of personality leadership, “right parties.” The young will have no more of this stupidity and nonsense.
Of course it was not only Project: Krishna but also Project: Prometheus that was involved in this journey. My talk with one of the directors at the Arnold Arboretum in Boston was totally out of line with the subject matter in articles by the literati and commentators. There is no question in my mind that we have two kinds of pollution, one physical and one mental, and we are not going to solve the physical pollution until we get rid of the mental pollution. While personalisms dominate, you can be sure problems will increase, and personalisms are going to dominate among the seniors. That, and little else, is the cause of the generation gap: the old must have some personality. It is that simple and that easy.
I expect to go to New Mexico as soon as notification is received and also will contest Archie Bahm. He is also concerned with the subject of campus riots and generation gaps. I think he is one of the best qualified men for such undertakings.
Of course I have financial and legal matters to consider. They are not problems; they are necessities of the moment opening up unlimited doors for future endeavors.
Our present plans are to come to East in the Autumn, perhaps going to Washington and renting a car, then moving to many cities in the whole area between Boston Washington and Cleveland.
Faithfully,
Sam
May 4, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Dept. of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh
My dear Oliver;
I am enclosing herewith a Xeroxed copy of an article which appeared in yesterday’s paper. While the news appears to be exceedingly unfavorable to Julie and her Auroville project, one must remember the source—a newspaperman whom I am sure is prejudiced. On the only occasion when I was welcomed at Humanist House the subject was communes, and one of the most outspoken persons stated he was writing a book on communes to prove that they failed. When he was challenged? How about those that succeed? He shut up.
Unfortunately some of the statements by Peter Divine are true. There is political favoritism. Instead of spiritually superior person being allowed to participate in the directing, the more fact that someone has become an underling of the United Nations, i.e., a UN official, gives him superior status. So instead of the teachings of Sri Aurobindo being utilized, a false opportunism has taken ever. I call it false because there is no opportunity for the marvelous young people to participate.
I am preparing now to go to New Mexico. I have met in New Mexico so many people who have been to Auroville and left. They told no they had the land, the money, the aptitudes, and were not going to buckle to any political supervision either from Indians or from the United Nations. Unfortunately also, there is absolutely no way to convince those persons who believe they are the disciples of Sri Aurobindo, of anything at all. They seem almost universally bent on failure rather than on human consideration to consideration to others.
We have already seen that in the fiasco of Dr. Zitko in Arizona, which fortunately, you avoided.
I would rather have seen Auroville succeed as a human undertaking, or even as a spiritual enterprise, but the blind and adamant refusal to accept even historicity, became coupled with intolerance and such attitudes make it impossible. It is totally contrary to the finest teachings in Indian spiritual philosophies.
I think I had just written Julie before reading this, and I think I had sent you a copy.
The very failure of Auroville, will of course redound to the benefit of true Cosmic Humanism.
Faithfully,
Sam
May 8, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Dept. of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh
My Dear Oliver,
I was glad to receive your chart: Gradual Fusion in Terms of DNA Chains. And also the World Union Focus. I am seizing this opportunity to save time by sending a carbon to Archie Balm, whom I hope to see soon. I am waiting now for a letter from Lama Foundation in New Mexico, setting a date for departure. There is already a summer school there and operations entirely in accord with Project: Krishna and Project: Prometheus, but there is a very very dim view of Pondicherry. All northern New Mexico, and some of the rest of that state is filled with camps, retreats, projects, and experiments in communal outlook. The youth have felt offended by the mother at Pondicherry. It is a long and not very happy story. Briefly, the young feel they are the true representatives of the new Age and the late Sri Aurobindo’s cosmic outlook. They have been ignored or overlooked by the mother at Pondicherry and show so much prowess in an evolved development psychically and spiritually.
My position is no better. One could add to your list great characters like Emperor Akbar, Suleiman the Magnificent, Avicenna, not to say Chinese Sages, but even to dare to propose such things to Pondicherry is to bring down strong dualistic reactions. The young especially have tried this. They have been told where to get off. Now they are telling their elders where to get off. And they mean it. I do not see what is gained by refusing to accept actual reports from other people. And now I feel even worse about it because my financial outlooks are very bright, but I will not contribute one cent to groups that proclaim universality and then refuse to accept anything whatsoever, except money.
Tonight I am giving perhaps my only report on what took place at Geneva. But the story is out, and just as at Geneva the high and mighty were profuse in apologizing for never answering letters or granting interviews; the same thing is starting here in San Francisco, the outlook being dimmed only by the simple fact that one cannot do more than one can do.
I am also interested in that Archie was interested in doing research on campus disorders. I don’t think there have been any campus disorders. I think that what are called establishments have been thoroughly self-confused by their mis-usage of terms, a prime example being Stewart Chase’s self-involvement in his own “the tyranny of words.”
As I am sending a carbon of this to Archie, I hope to arrange some sort of meeting with him at his convenience.
There is no question, and it comes out of my very objective experience in Switzerland and England and my getting a very good preview from right within and behind the campuses, as to what is happening today. But this should be of some concern to these who have unfortunately flattered themselves into believing they are leaders in world movements, whereas in fact they may be showing me aptitude for any sort of leadership whatsoever.
I am about to write some serious letters involving teachings of the deeper aspects of Indian Philosophies. Excepting Pondicherry, I do not think I have been refused anything by anybody or from anybody. The policy of refusals in which they have indulged has resulted in turn in their being refused by others. Thus is nothing noble or objective in hauteur and hypocrisy. I have already sent you a copy of the negative report on the mother.
I am of course most anxious to see Archie’s work. It is easy enough to cooperate, but I can no longer accept the one-way traffic being foisted by other on a growing world, which is seeking solutions of problems by methods other then selecting some personalities and over-acclaiming them.
The present outlook it that we are considering a trip East later in the year, flying to Washington and then presenting by car to wheresoever it is feasible to visit. Up to this point one has had nothing but grand welcomes back. The very problems of the moment show that sooner or later we are going to get out of so-called realism into reality.
Cordially,
Samuel L. Lewis
Box 444,
San Cristobal, New Mexico 87564
May 31, 1970
My dear Oliver:
This afternoon I arrived at this “commune” high in the Rookies where I shall become “guru.” There are several projects on, such as making adobe bricks, having an organic garden, completing a manuscript for publication (at least), building a large residence.
There is no question that the young want some real Oriental philosophies with techniques. They won’t stand for the old egocentric “expertisms” of personalisms which have passed for “Zen” and “Yoga” and what not. Not that the East is better than the West or otherwise. But the day of “Professors Me-Suez Canal” is over. There are still debris but I am no longer worrying. The contrast of my reception at the Royal Asiatic Society with California “experts” on Asia is so marked it will go down in history. Tomfoolery and ego-personalities no longer fool the young.
I am very happy over Archie’s latest and we had a most delightful visit with him. One of my disciples is enrolled at New Mexico U. and already a meeting is planned for me there. There is more than one revolution going on. It leave it to the Euclideans (including a lot of verbal-verbal-verbal “non-Euclidean”) to stick to this left-right-center complex right out of Hegel plus Euclid and some Marx and about as “scientific” as Eskimo logistics. One simply transcends the verbalists and egocentrists and goes on to multi-dimensionalism in the sense that mathematicians and A.K. did, and I am no longer concerned with acceptance by the verbalists. But I shall certainly not close any door in their faces.
Vocha Fiske has been watching me closely and discovered that operationalists and pragmatists must be judged by what they do. And I am openly challenging—myself—now to see whether it cannot be delivered.
We keep on running into New Age young. They are planning an international musical sit-in shortly to be held near Toronto. The peace protests grow and the young listen to me not only for what may be wisdom, but simply because verbalists have so constantly shut the door in my face. This is wrong, too. But pseudo-logic works both ways, most unfortunately.
We have to have operational integrationalism. Those who over evaluate some hero or some schmuck born in India and those who set up verbal heroes have to face that the New Age is not like that. Masses of young people are operating, psychologically in a meta-Euclidean fashion.
On the side my first two efforts in the field of meta-psychology, or integrational-psychiatry, have been so successful I myself have been bowled over. I am no Carl Rogers much less a Fritz Perls but the methods tried so far work and no need of medical or mental diagnosis. I apply aspects of Oriental psychologies which have been barred by verbalists, and of course, the “experts.” This has given confidence.
I shall be writing some “atrocious” articles soon, but so long as “verbalists” block the doors, it is time to go all out. Here I must be tried pragmatically. Good; on accepts.
But I have a whole picture in my mind for an integrational-holistic Project: Prometheus which will also be in harmony with Project: Krishna. I even have the right contacts for it nationally and internationally. Nevertheless I am sending a copy of this to Russ Joyner. Integration and holism are all-inclusive by which I mean just that and not some fanciful words which “important” people use, or misuse.
The biggest farces, of course, have been sub species Philosophical Californicus pseudo-Orientali. But no more capering. We now turn to constructive measures.
Faithfully,
Sam
Box 444
Sam Cristobal, NM 87564
June 8, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
My dear Oliver:
Some time ago I found myself in the awkward position of having to write to Julie that I have been drawn into competition, so to speak, with Auroville. There is no question but that the young in this region are examples of new age outlooks and that either they are in general the type predicted variously by Bulwer Lytton, H.G. Wells, Sri Aurobindo and perhaps many others. But certainly not by self-professional seers. (Or charlatans like Edgar Casey, Alice Bailey, Jean Dixon, etc. etc.) Either these young people are showing superiorities or I am way off the beam. In any event I cannot express my appreciation enough for the introduction to Archie Bahm and as things progress it would appear that we must cooperate more and more and more.
Yesterday, I found myself the object of a pilgrimage of young people, mostly from Santa Fe. As things stand there will be larger pilgrimages each succeeding week. Tuesday afternoon I shall address young people in Santa Fe and Tuesday night in Albuquerque. On my way here I found a certain legend concerning myself already proceeding me, a little more than in the Boston-Cambridge area. I have friends who say the trouble with this age is that there are no legendary figures. I haven’t the slightest doubt whether there is success or not, fame or ignominy, there will be legend.
I have just received another issue of Auroville from which we quote:
the aim
transform reason
into ordered intuition;
let all thyself be light. this is thy goal.
transform effort
into an even and sovereign
overflowing of the soul-strength;
let all thyself be conscious force.
this is thy goal.
transform enjoying
into an even and objectless ecstasy;
let all thyself be bliss.
this is thy goal.
transform the divided individual
into the world-personality;
let all thyself be the divine.
this is thy goal.
—Sri Aurobindo
Stanza 1. I believe more or less in accord with Korzybski and Snow, there are two classes of people: those who believe in operational existence and those who believe in egos. It is so easy to say something. I don’t think there are any people in the world further away from this inspiration of Sri Aurobindo than his so-called followers. In laboratory scientific research and its evaluation, there is a marvelous blending of reason and intuition. I am not going to argue where each comes. But the intuition may introduce broad views.
As to becoming light. At least I see greater and greater light not only in the eyes and from the eyes of my followers, but of so many young people I meet. I do not see such light in and from propagandists or personality worshippers of any group. I understand that light also radiates from my personality but that is a testimony of others.
Stanza 2. At Geneva nearly all the Indian representatives attested that Sam Lewis is an example of integrative yoga which also should be integrity yoga, this from others, from quite prominent personalities.
Stanza 3. The purpose of my work especially in music and dancing manifests—and I say manifests and I repeat manifests—in my young followers who are increasing in number and also in radiance of personality. I don’t think anything I could say or write whacks the followers of Sri Aurobindo more than this. Most of them retain their egocentricities and dualisms and have shadowed faces but they want to lead the world.
Paragraph 4. The followers of Sri Aurobindo at Auroville and elsewhere have refused to admit the historicity of Emperor Akbar, the achievements of the Moghuls or even the careers of living Sufis, including the late President of India. It is this pretense that has lead several young Americans and some not so young who have returned from Auroville saying they would build their Aurovilles here, that they already had all the aptitudes Sri Auroville has announced and pronounced, and having Sri Krishna on their side they properly defied the efforts in Pondicherry who want everybody but Sri Krishna on their side.
Within a few weeks we hope to have visited a number of communes and spiritual centers in this area—young people who believe that the kingdom of God is within and so rely on their own prowess, their own aptitudes, their own zeal, and even their own money. They believe in practice that the kingdom of God is within, and they are not ashamed to use the word “God” or its equivalents—words which do not appear or hardly at all in the literature emanating from Auroville.
There are several notable qualities emanating from these young people, especially love, brotherhood and mutual respect. This is very prominent and more and more prominent; they believe and practice that the kingdom of God is from within and not from the contributions from other people’s pockets. There are notable successes and so far they have been by-passed, but I don’t think this will continue.
One reason is the multitudes of the young people of today are demanding honesty in food and diet. They are not only demanding it but this has become a most successful business enterprise, growing at a marvelously rapid rate.
In addition these young people have either solved or obviated ecological problems that have so aroused the emotionalists who are constantly writing and meeting and yelling and yelping but not doing much. I have already had a sort of cosmic vision which I parody: In the beginning God made the world of silicon and oxygen and iron and aluminum and a lot of little people, who provide the spices for the rather monotonous careers of the majority elements. Indeed, I wrote a paper on this subject which Lloyd and Don ego-centrically rejected. This is the General Semantics of the past. When the time comes I shall enlarge this scheme, based on a better picture and a little more knowledge of chemistry and petrology to say the least. But here we have the ecology well in hand without involving prominent personalities or articles from prominent personalities.
My danger comes in not being able to keep my cool, so to speak, in view of a new and rapidly rising acceptance. I should like to have thrown my efforts and resources whatever they be (Auroville’s) into “University” but their absolute rejection of my external knowledge and perhaps successes in Project: Krishna make this impossible; they have made it impossible.
In this issue the Mother says “Auroville will be the site of a material and spiritual research.” I have just written recently to one of the most prominent Asian philosophers, opening the door to a reconciliation of Asian wisdom and Modern sciences on the theme that they are both derived from the one Nature. This Nature is not a projection such as is misused by existentialists and dialecticians, but is based on the world around us, the rocks, the trees, the grass, the animals, and the human kind. I think this is enough for one communication.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
Lama Foundation
Box 444, San Cristobal,
New Mexico, 87564
June 12, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
Dear Oliver:
Recently I wrote Julie Medlock that unwittingly I had been pulled into competition with Auroville. But in the name of universality this game of selecting and rejecting is over. Auroville will, unless it is proven I am mistaken, go the way of the much heralded “Zitko” fiasco and the Roerich Museum and others. In the name of universality they overstress the prowess of a few persons, often carefully selected, and damn the rest of humanity, even those who have created much.
The beautiful selection from Sri Aurobindo in the last issue of “University” only shows the emptiness of presence. I am sorry, I am very sorry for Julie who has had such a wonderful career, such wonderful ideas. Such abilities, to permit herself to be drawn into a very private undertaking, unless the assumption that Superman (very carefully brainwashed like J. Krishnamurti before) is going to obtain world-leadership.
Last year some enterprising Americans came this way and said: “We are going to build our own Auroville. We have the money the aptitudes and the land.” Evidently they have gone ahead. The countries is spotted with rather successful communes, generally with some quasi-spiritual background; with young man and women devoted to each other and to their respective causes while showing respect to outsiders and considering that God, if there be such a being, is Creator, Father and Lover of all, something it is quite evident is of no particular import to Auroville.
Even here we have some Auroville rejecters. Men who are devotees real Yoga systems and who can work with their hands, hearts and minds. They have rejected to be dominated by politicians and promoters. They agree with Sri Aurobindo with regard to ordered intuition’s something absolutely verboten not only at Auroville but in and by all the promotional schemes of all the “Nietzschean” figures of the age, Machiavellian “Avatars,” “Sadgurus,” “Maharshi,s “etc. who abolish the moral laws and substitute their egos in place thereof; expecting “base” humanity to grovel and sacrifice for them. There are a lot of “them.’
Now there has been Holy Men’s Jamboree in San Francisco, very successful, even financially. This means a lot more young people will come to this person who knows something of the Asian philosophies of the Asians. Not only that, my spiritual dances are taking over, in many places. All of these were offered both to Auroville and others. But one is an outsider. A third degree clerk of the UN stands much higher in their estimation. So I shall waste no more time. Sic transit Gloria Zitkos.
Hard work, integrity, open-heart, spiritual devotion and mutual trust is building successful communes in this area. The persons involved are not idiots. Generally there is good educational background, plus aptitudes, and a willingness to learn. Nobody is supreme leader; all are excellent followers; no pretense, and the innate faculties which man has are given every opportunity to come to the surface.
Sarcastically, perhaps, I say Allah has been favoring us. I see my own income going up. I see the incomes of my colleagues going up. I see the growth of the health food businesses in all their aspects, and perhaps a rise in Naderism.
I have two tremendous things inside of me: one for Project: Krishna which will be tape recorded first; the other for Project: Prometheus of which I give you some idea in the carbon just enclosed. I have no more time for egocentric rejections by whomsoever.
Sunday a group of young people pilgrimaged here to see me. My welcomes at Santa Fe and Albuquerque and further programs have been laid out for me in those places. The so-called Holy Man’s Jamboree in San Francisco was most successful. The young will take from me what their elders have refused even to look at. But all of this will re downed to the benefit of Archie Bahm, no doubt.
I am afraid, sorely afraid, of the interferences of the literati humanists as Snow calls them into problems that should be the providence of scientists. As I have said, no one, not a doctor of medicine is supposed to prescribe for the ills of the human body, and mind; but any prominent essayist, editor, TV commentator, etc. may prescribe anything for the ills of the bodies of rocks, trees, water resources, conservation, etc. etc. etc. A person like myself who has been an adept. in land clearing etc. has had no chance before the important people, whoever they be, but it is not that; everywhere I find myself back in Lord Snow’s premises and in those portions of Science and Sanity which a good “general” of semantics does not even have to read.
Now I am getting the young with me. I am financially quite stable; I am making more and more contacts at the top, too. My secretary and I are planning a trip to all the northeastern states later, in the year, unless something even greater interposes. There is a chance for that too. Much of our work is being televised; the doors are opening everywhere. I believe honesty, integrity, impersonality and knowledge will prevail. Perhaps I am writing forcefully; I think it is necessary.
Most cordially and respectfully,
Sam
June 20, 1970
My dear Oliver:
We are still high up in the Rocky Mountains. There is tremendous activity going on here. A troupe of young actors is now on these grounds and they are putting on a spiritual drama tonight. I do not know the contents and this letter will be posted before we see the play. But there is tremendous activity all through the upper reaches of the Rio Grande Valley.
It would seem that the pioneer spirit has not entirely disappeared. There are a few differences, however. One is the growing world outlook among the young people; although it superficially may resemble certain established organizations, these people would not accept a fixed leadership or organization over them. There is no use trying to convince people like Christopher Hills or Dr. Zitko or others that there might be a world outlook in the hearts of many young people, and this outlook objects to any restrictions put on it by intellectuals or emotionalists who are older in age and sometimes in book learning but hardly otherwise.
While I have not yet the full report of what happened at the Holy Men’s Jamboree in San Francisco, certain of the Indian representatives are in this region and they are attracting considerable numbers of the young people. The chief character in these operations is quite in opposition to the work of Sri Aurobindo. His weakness or strength lies in the fact that he demands devotion and yoga disciplines, and these devotions and yoga disciplines are certainly semantically sound. Whether they achieve what they claim is another matter.
It is certainly true in this region as in California that what the young people are seeking in yoga or its alternatives, actual practices with minima of explanations and philosophies.
My own work is expanding at a rate more than consonant with my abilities. I now have at least four groups in this valley and undoubtedly will plan to return here next year.
Most favorable letters have been received from the Boston and Washington areas; it is still in the plans to fly to Washington and then probably rent a car. We would then be able to cover the triangle between Washington Cleveland and Boston—all places included.
But there is quite a different reason for writing. In England we called on one Mr. F. Clive-Ross. Mr. Clive-Ross has been very active in two different fields: A. the furtherance of interest in the whole psi-world. This is such a tremendous domain one cannot write about it in detail now. But it is certain I shall also be writing in this same general area, that being one of the reasons for going to Washington.
We called on Mr. Clive-Ross just after the death of my brother; it seemed plausible with an increased allotment to return to England say in 1972 with a small dance group. And while my allotment is not great enough to pay for more than one other person, the response to my work shows increased interest and respect and also an actual income from external sources (even Lloyd Morain is now aware of my activities. I am not going to ask anything from him but at least I am sure he will not stand in my way any longer.)
But the core of the discussion with Mr. Clive-Ross was a pilgrimage to those very places mentioned in your table of contents, covering exactly the same geography and motifs. I thought you would be glad to know and that is the reason for this very hurried answer at this busy time.
Faithfully,
Sam
June 22, 1970
My dear Oliver:
This is a surprise letter, never intended. But Christopher Hills showed up here at Lama rather unexpected yesterday. And also he gave a copy of his latest book on “Christ-Yoga.” I do not know what he means at all.
He is a nice affable, tallish man but wishing to lead humanity does not endow men with the qualities of leadership. And then on top of that to pump for democracy and voting democracy at that!
We have here a successful commune. This whole countryside is spotted with communes and social experiments. They are real but that does not make them necessarily valid or superior. Only they are and they are made up of human beings. The country is also being visited by “spiritual gurus” which may mean anything and the fact that the term is used may or may not imply.
It seems today there are multitudes of organizations using the term “Christ” which have in common that they desire to abrogate or abolish the Sermon on the Mount. I am not necessarily pumping for the Sermon on the Mount but if I were to use the term “Christ” I certainly would. The whole thing reminds me of French politics of another day—and this does not extend only to the French, where the term “socialists” was used by a lot of groups having all kinds of meanings. And, of course, we had the “National Socialists.”
I notice that in his “Christ-Yoga” Hills quotes A.K. and a lot of people of all kinds of levels, who have in common that they manifested more or less as historical personages. Then he pumps for the word “science” without is methods or context.
I said briefly we had Dr. Zitko and we are going to have more Drs. Zitko who are going to try to be social Napoleons and will pass by after a splurge and leave nothing—like the Roerich Museum. But why do they bring the word “Christ” and add “yoga,” a word used entirely out of context—which is not surprising.
Well we have another “Worlds”-group by a few select, generally self- selected personalities with drums and trumpets and no depth. He is a “nice” man but hardly a deep one with all his seeming erudition. The world has so many “Sadgurus,” “Messiahs,” “Avatars,” etc. today, and they will go on and on and splash and in the end the world will pass them by and get back to humanity.
Faithfully,
Sam
410 Precita Ave.
San Francisco, Calif
July 12, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
Dear Oliver:
It is all right for an Emerson to say that if a man made a better mousetrap, though he lived in the midst of the woods, the world would beat a footpath to his doors—that is beautiful. But if it actually happens!!
And it did happen and I had no time to see Archie at Albuquerque and I had to return here. It is fortunate that the physical and other (real) excursions in the Rockies has restored my vigor again and I am able to work incessantly.
Dale Woelfl has been the chief editor of Science. I do not recall a single instance when he did not answer my mail. He did publish two communications but as there is a general agreement among many scientists (I mean human beings, not the symbols of the literati), this was not necessary. I finally turned to him again over the problem of pollution, half or more of which are semantic and not objective and received a beautiful reply. One does not get such replies from the literati who are (mis) informing the public so much.
I am therefor changing my schedule a little to participate in scientific discussions by scientists who permit questions and even speeches. Although this is a theme in “Science and Sanity” and comes out further in Lord Snow, we are going downgrade rapidly because the literati and especially the editors and commentators are worming their way into all discussions whether they know anything or not and a mere “peasant” hasn’t a chance. Woelfl has moved to Seattle and I have asked my friend Bryn Beorse to call on him. Bryn is one of the most remarkable persons I have ever met.
In the meanwhile I notice that the common view of the scientists who are scientists regarding spray-”poisons” is the same outlook I have always had. But having been a mere professional spray operator my views were never permitted inn “public.” It is tragic and laughable.
Last night was spent with a newly found friend. He is a professional publisher. He had dedicated his fortune to certain aspects of Oriental-Oriental philosophies—i.e. those that Asian people hold, but he had never found and exponents in this land. Then he happened upon a colleague. They have had a successful summer school in Asian-Oriental Philosophy—no more “brand” names. But in the meanwhile things have been happening on a large scale, too large for me to detail. I can only assure you that we are going to have real America-Asian culture relations and we are sooner or later going to recognize the Chinese, Arab, and Indian cultures of the Chinese, Arabs, and Hindus as do the Israelis and Russians—at least.
I happened upon a dramatic troupe not far from Santa Fe, on the Albuquerque side and sooner or later I shall have them meet Archie if they have not already. We are going to have real cultural exchanges with real humanity and I think soon. This troupe expects to present dramas from the Indian Epic poems comparable to the Passion Play. This is a new age of objectivity and no longer “brand names” as experts.
My new colleagues wish to establish a “commune” and organic garden in Arizona. The venture into New Mexico has been entirely successful. If it had failed, we would have struck headlines. Even locally my two small organic gardens are prospering though I have not been on hand. Lloyd has visited Novato. I do not know if he were impressed or not. I gave myself three years, this is the second. We use organic fertilizers only. There is a small past problem into which I have had no time to look but neither in New Mexico nor in San Francisco have I encountered this.
Then my colleagues are going more and more into Organic Foods and prospering, really prospering. And we are having a joint meeting here tonight between them and the Korean Zen Master who has no degrees from European universities, you can be sure. But I now have a growing number of successful colleagues in Europe and England who learned their Asian philosophies from Asians in Asia and I believe there will be more of this.
The attendance at my meetings slowly increases and this is particular true of the dances. The heritage from Ruth St. Denis goes on and I am quite unconcerned with the non-response of older people. I have to obtain a dance secretary. Prosperity as well as adversity has struck my secretariat. But everything is moving.
The there is the subject of peace. Inasmuch as peasants are of no avail, even if eye-witnesses, it is going to be awkward when I make some remarks about Vietnam. there is an article by ten congressman in “Coronet” as to how to stop future Vietnams. They, the congressman in Washington are going to ??? Vietnam started because the State Department and press refused to interview my later friend, Robert Clifton. His entire story was substantiated by the late Secretary Dulles’ appointment secretary. The two presumably opposite reports agreed to the smallest detail!
Now I am facing the same for the Near East and may be able this week to bring together a Jewish rabbi from Palestine, an American rabbi, at least one President minister and the impossible-dissent Israeli Jews and actual Arab citizens of Israel, and others together, at least to get them to meet each other—no Nixon, newsmen, commentator, or politician otherwise. And, of course, all the “humble” people who have had “peace awards” will stay away. But I don’t want to write further because writing itself is not accomplishment.
My publisher friend is going to Europe and is accepting the actual introductions from us to those who know, etc. Then he may accept my autobiography. And then we prepare to come east again—not a dull moment and all the young accepting everything from me, whether justified or not. I see nothing standing in the way of Project: Krishna and Project: Prometheus.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
410 Precita Ave.,
San Francisco, Calif.
July 16, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
Dear Oliver:
Project: Prometheus and Present Day Problems
Last night I want to a meeting at the Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco on “The Death of Lake Erie.” One of my disciples, who is a marine biologist, was with me who was born in Detroit. I have lived a little in Detroit and more in Cleveland and my first hand experiences, though few, enables one to understand what is going on.
I found the audience both sympathetic and intelligent. The film itself was MC’d by an emotional top ranking “commentator” with the emphasis that “we are all to blame.” We are not all to blame, at least in the philosophy I hold derived from Cassius Keyser and his “Human Worth of Vigorous Thinking.” The loose use of words is to me as dangerous as the actual destruction of our ecology.
A few years ago I had planned to go to England to study modern methods of sewage disposal. We have something like that going on in Oakland, California, and we have a different system in San Jose, California which has adapted the Milwaukee (Milorganite) process. But I have long since learned that a “peasant” must not interfere with the “debates” of the prominent. Besides, the very cordial letter from Dale well, now in Seattle, has made me optimistic, that a person with some background may be heard if he has something to offer.
The complete lack of any sound system of logistics today is even more dangerous to me than the destruction of environments. In studying Dewey years ago I found that while he was verbally logical he used the words “I” “we” “they” loosely from the standpoint of the fixed, variable, multi-ordinal, etc. as taught by Alfred Kiribati and ignored by the most prominent of his followers and successors. And this disregard of terms and of Lord Russell’s “confusion of types” has made it most difficult to resolve and so to solve problems.
I have been enough time in land reclamation and now my gardens are doing well, considering I gave three years to the San Francisco and Novato projects (now in their second year); the Lama Foundation an New Mexico with which I am cooperating is doing excellently; and I may be sent for to go to the Tucson area in Arizona.
In traveling around the earth of Rand-McNally, I found that where graduates of California Universities were operating they had excellent overall pictures and were sometimes doing much. This does not belittle other universities; there were more Californians and communication was easier. But I must say that Ohio state, Kansas State, Colorado State, Tennessee, and Wisconsin were also doing top-level jobs, not advertised, of course. Only what Russians attempt (not do, but attempt) is given publicity.
I have found roughly speaking most pollutions is due to sewage and factories but we have to break the latter down. Sewage can be converted. I learned this first while studying Marine Engineering while working in the shipyards during the war; there large ocean limes have systems of conversions which in the end proved to be economically profitable.
During my lifetime I found three in dependent sewage systems for one part of San Francisco. This was a dangerous discovery or un-covery. The person, not the sewage disposal outlets, was dangerous!
There is a remarkable parallel between the recovery of industrial wastes and certain aspects of Indian philosophy and logistics (excluded from our culture.)
Blames are verbal, not objective and one knows better than to combat the press, the radio-TV and the emotional dictators, but now I am hoping to get out of the emotional-egocentric controls by the very personalities so deplored by A.K. but so ignored by the many types of “semanticists” who have nothing in common but the use of this word. I believe there can be a breakdown into Pollution A, Pollution B, Pollution … N, but I have enough sense to keep them apart now until my friend, who wants my materials, will accept them.
I shall have to rebuild my Keyser and scientific libraries. New I am in position to do this. And the constantly growing number of followers, adherents, friends, and allies, makes every moment of my life most interesting.
Cordially,
Samuel L. Lewis
cc-Joyner
cc-Bahm
410 Precita Ave.
San Francisco, Calif.
July 16, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
My dear Oliver:
I have your pictures in re Projects: Prometheus and Krishna.
Now I have reached the first stage of American sainthood. By my own efforts both directly and indirectly my sources of income have increased and there are many signs of increasing further. Then I met a man who was on the outlook for the Asian philosophies of Asians and by a strange series of experiences he met one of my colleagues. When I met him he told me he was a professional publisher but I find also he is a sort of “Lloyd Morain” when it comes to investments but unlike Lloyd he gave me an open interview and wants … everything.
I have before me the May copy of “History of Religions” and I am sending them a copy of this because I have found that there is no use for an unknown American to submit anything … but checks—that is different. There is an article on “A Comparison of Theravada and Zen Buddhist Meditational Methods and Goals.” Now down at Lama I presented … not lectures but practices of a resume of all Buddhist meditative methods from the first Jhana to the “highest” Mahamudra. No subjectivities, practices.
Last Sunday we greeted my Korean Zen Master—not a graduate of any prominent Western University. I passed tests for him wherein I became a “Zen-shi.” I have also been accepted as a “Thien” by Vietnamese. We did nothing to advertise and the place was jammed so much so I softened on the collection. We also had a group of Asian-Esoteric Buddhists with us, no nonsense. And also in the audience the professional publisher above who is interested in realties, not subjectivities and views of “important” personalities.
I did allude to my paper on Vietnamese Buddhism being rejected thirty three times. I gave it up when I met Vietnamese, but it will now be published as soon as I wish. Fortunately there are professionals on the Berkeley campus who now realize quiet differently.
In the same History of Religions is a review: “Semantics of the Qur’an,” a consideration of a Japanese scholar’s ideas. Well, we have let every Englishman, German, Swede, Bulgarian, and Italian write, why not Japanese? I have seen endless tomes of actual untrammeled Arabic manuscripts but since the fighting in the Near East Muslims, especially Arabs are quite unwanted in our “East-West” colloquia. Democracy and Science!
My own small amount of paginations into Arabic archaeology bring up quite different answers from a “fameuse” Japanese but I know enough to keep out of the way of les fameuses—noblesse oblige. But either I or colleagues expect to go on an Islamic archaeological trip next year—money is now not a factor, but time. I am hoping, of course, that Project: Prometheus will not exclude Arabic views on Arabian culture.
Because of changes in my private affairs I thought I would raise my ante to the University of California from the expected fifty ($50) dollars a year, but a thousand, but the way things are looming it may be larger.
We had our first preliminary meeting of bringing “peasants” together, one Rabbi, favorable Israelis, dissident Israelis, Palestinian Arabs who are citizens of Israel and a few Christians—we may be able to interest one Protestant leader—to work out peace programs for the “Holy land.” One thing is absolutely evident: if one keeps away from “experts”—I am already an Alim (maybe more) in Islam. I had to type the whole of Sepher Ha Zohar one time and look up parallel passages in the Talmud which unfitted me from company with “les respectable,” etc. Now it is coming out.
Had to act rapidly whether to put all money and resources in a peace program for S.E. Asia or the Near East and have jumped into the latter. The very fact that important people have turned me down at every point (excepting a few at the University of Chicago) is making me a hero among the young. I don’t like it this way. But so many cards in my hand and the needs for action so pressing I stop at this point.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
Copy: “The History of Religions”
cc: Archie Bahm
July 20, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
My dear Oliver:
This is a sort of evaluation letter. One has already crossed the obstacles that stood in one’s path which have been mostly, if not entirely, the refusals of egos in powerful places to grant interviews, to let one speak freely on subjects of which one may have inkling, and of efforts of over-advertised persons and organizations to try and make the public believe that they alone had answers. It is not only step by step that I have been able to carry on, but now have to face the potentially awful consequences of becoming a hero to the young just because I have been blocked and blockaded.
Project: Prometheus. The other night I went to meeting at the Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park where “The death of Lake Eric” was the subject. The totally different series of opinions and reactions of persons in the audience from those generally advertised gives one hope. I remarked that it is almost impossible for a person of my caliber and background to relate of changes in Pittsburgh and London due to some objective honest efforts to deal with pollution complexes.
There is in San Francisco a group known as the Commonwealth Club. There I met a man who had very similar backgrounds and was receiving very similar treatments. He had a certain advantage of age, and there was a resemblance also in his being short and cute. His knowledge of what I felt were the real water and pollution problems was to me stupendous. Unlike me he was given the opportunity to speak whenever he wished. Everybody applauded and smiled, but no one would ever dream of doing anything. It was just like the story of Mark Twain’s “Puddinghead Wilson.”
I am no longer concerned with this bizarre and other uncalled for situations:
Change in status. My income has slowly but steadily gone up. Now there is an effort among my followers to raise additional funds. But there is on the horizon a very wealthy editor who is apparently going to give me backings at least in the form of permitting my views to be presented, which is all I have ever wanted, but which I have not yet obtained.
In addition to that, as you yourself suggested or surmised, there is a slowly, constant increment in the friendship from, in, and with University professors, especially from in and with those of the Berkeley campus. In fact what is written above and below is now favorable with that “uniformly accelerated velocity.”
Holy Man’s Jamboree. I don’t know whether you have ever heard about such events. A number of years ago I used to irk those verbally in charge by asking who was preventing me from attending. I can assure you, this is not nonsense. At Geneva, people could not understand why I was not permitted, not even permitted to attend sessions at the University of Hawaii and Claremont (California). It is old hat to refuse to accept my presence. Now I received five separate communications from persons totally disconnected with each other about a presumable Holy Men’s Jamboree at Boulder, Colorado. Something has happened.
Zitko—Auroville. The same persons were involved in these two endeavors, and now we seem to be having the same thing from our good friend Christopher Hills. It is as if God selected only certain persons for certain enterprises and rejected everybody else. I notice everywhere the same process of a very carefully chosen Boards of Directors, the self-selected Platonic Guardians of The New Age. But I also notice the same laws of Truth, Justice, and Karma which struck the Roerich Museum in New York, and the now hush-hushed attempts of Dr. Zitko in Arizona.
I also notice the same verbal emphasis on Prajna and the same active emphasis as if the United Nations were the supreme work of God in this day and age, making it unnecessary for man to rely on Prajna. But the awkward situation of a complete reversal that Lewis should be sought out more and more, despite his rejections from the elite (or because of them), leaving the solution of problems still in the hands of personality rather than accepting the universal approach which alone can make anything either democratic or divine.
At this writing the outlooks are so propitious that I am in the reverse awkward situation from and of the past. Unlike the proponents of the United Nations, I am very busy trying to get Israelis and Palestinians and others to sit together with all promise and no rancor, and certainly reject any program from anybody that would restrict any forum to certain personalities only. And would not permit all of humanity to have its say where humanity itself is concerned.
In any event we are rather successfully getting some Israelis, Palestinians, Arabs, and others together. And when you add to this the simple fact that doors in Washington and elsewhere are now open to me, I hope to see something more than paper Project: Krishna and Project: Prometheus.
In fact it is my intention now to publish every letter sent to prominent persons so that if they fail to acknowledge them they are going to be put on the spot. What is more, this very threat is setting me up as a hero, where objectivity is needed, where impersonality alone can lead to discoveries from either the world within or the world without.
I am hoping to see Russ Joyner after this letter, and Vocha will get a copy. But I am pin-pointing at nobody. It is of course a regret that the word Semantics is so misused, and that problems which could easily be solved if they were impersonally resolved, remain.
Faithfully,
Sam
August 14, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
My dear Oliver:
Things are happening so rapidly that I am actually dizzy at this point. We feel that Project: Krishna is absolutely valid. In fact, we cannot accept the ignoring of human beings and especially successful efforts of human beings by those who claim universality and yet wish to reject or ignore what others are doing. Indeed at this writing I am being approached by so many groups or persons, each claiming to be spreading spirituality, universality, and world outlooks. Claiming.
Much more is going on than what I have written to you, much more. I am now surrounded by an ever growing number of young people who come, first accepting the dances, and then the philosophies, and then the outlooks.
The sermon for the week was from Science. They have uncovered many things about which I have been complaining. To me it is a sad story that the problems of the day are not, in fact perhaps cannot, be faced by those known as “semanticists.” The publisher who will accept my articles, is expected to arrive early in September. I am no longer concerned by rejections. In fact, the young love it when I tell them who has rejected my former efforts. The number of meetings I give each week is increasing, and the attendance of each one of them also is increasing.
Also my finances seem to be improving, so that we expect to fly to New York sometime in September, pick up a car, then go to Cornell, and then after that to Pittsburgh. We will keep you advised on this matter.
Cordially,
Sam
August 22, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
My dear Oliver:
This may be one of the last letters written before a radical change in my life. Indeed, at present there is a high probability of my coming east, presumably late in September, with a new secretary. In fact, almost every aspect of life is changing, and from what the world would say, for the better.
Although financially I have security, a number of young people have come to realize that I have been taking on tremendous burdens, and along with that the being ejected or re-jected, chiefly a priori, by “establishments.” This latter thing alone is now making me a here among the young at a time when both my dances and prowess of Oriental Philosophy of the Orientals, is growing. Indeed, every time I meet a Hindu, a new friendship is established, and sooner or later the totally inexcusable policy of not examining Indian logistics, will turn into a farce. When I tell young people that a “problem” is a confused situation which must be “solved” by the proper people, they laugh.
My present day relations with scientists only support Snow’s theses. I am totally satisfied with what scientific scientists say of my work. But I am giving up all side-interests to work for Peace—not the nonsensical “peace with justices” but the ending of the use of arms and force to settle disputes. I had to decide whether to throw my resources into the Vietnams situation or that of Palestine. Inasmuch as friendship has been restored with one of the top retired Generals—a 3 star general that—I decided to support his attitude. According to the logistics of the day, knowing the “right” people is more important that knowing facts, or being an eye-witness. Fortunately, too, eye-witnesses of the Vietnamese complex, have moved into this district.
I think I told you, recently friendship has been established with a very wealthy publisher who wants everything I can given him. He will be back to his home perhaps early in September. He has already employed one of my secretaries at a very good salary, and the secretary has been succeeding in all endeavors. Another secretary has now a very good job with a group of young man who started to film my “Dances of Universal Peace.” This has become a world undertaking. There has been success in raising funds although it may be some time before the materials are ready for exhibition. I am giving these people introductions to real Asians whom the various representatives of what are called “establishments” have refused, and often adamantly refused to accepted that I know these people. It is becoming utterly farcical.
As you suggested, a totally different career is occurring on University campuses. Now it is the departments of Philosophy that are sending for me! There is such a difference between the science of laboratory research technicians and of the press and literati, they cannot be reconciled. It is only a question as to which group will dominate in the battle against actual pollution.
I have been very much stimulated in re-reading Manhood of Humanity by Alfred Korzybski. As I told you before, I read the first edition at the request of Cassius Keyser. Re-reading, I consider this a great book, both from the literary and philosophical points of view. Vocha Fiske toll me that the AK of that time was a very active, stimulated and stimulating, writer. I feel it may be necessary to revive Korzybski and get his actual teachings before the public. I think it can be done; I believe it will be done. I am leaving it up to the present controlling monopolists whether “they” will accept this or not.
The first efforts to a Peace scholarship for the University of California have met with some success. There are possibilities also that we may reach some rather wealth people. I now have contacts in high and low places all over the world; as I call it the world of God and Rand-McNally—not the “world” of Dialecticians, “realists,” religionists, humanists, and subjectivists in general. But my efforts toward peace mean that. They do not mean self-proclamation. In fact it is the young people around me who are doing everything, and they are getting along beautifully with each other, regardless of all the high and mighty, all the dialecticians, all the establishments.
I do not know whether poor Julie will answer me. Their refusal to examine my “Dance of University Peace”; their censoring of actual history, even more than a “Marxist-Leninist” does, and their non-recognition of rival-Indian movements, is taking its natural course. There are now two types of Shangri-las arising. I do not mean two Shangri-las, but two whole types. One is by rival groups of Indian origin who have monies and young people and who are doing things themselves, into asking other to do for them. They even have “ins” at some of our universities. And then there are the non-religious group that believe more or less in communes of collective endeavors. They also have lands and monies, though I am not convinced of the practical sides of their natures.
Of course, communes are only news when they foil or have marijuana or sex, otherwise you do not hear of them. This is tremendously big subject into which I do not wish to go now, caught between the two great projects of real Asia- American cultural exchanges and real peace in the Near East.
Very few people ever took the trouble to look at my plans. There are three Californians who could not express themselves publically because of their connections. The other person was Gunnar Jarring, the man who is in charge of the peace negotiations. There is the pattern there which has dominated my life, and I think it is coming to an end. Lovers of power and self-confusion are gradually being removed from the scene by the young. There has been no great change in circumstance to alter my original plan which Jarring so admired and which “important people” would not even look at. But now we are doing and succeeding in doing, and I will keep you informed.
Thus Project: Krishna and Project promotions are coming into life and I think they will advance and advance and advance.
Cordially,
Sam
Novato, Calif.
August 27th, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser,
Pittsburgh University
Pittsburgh, Pa. 15213
Dear Oliver:
Things are happening so rapidly in my life. One does not know what is in a name but Samuel Morse was hounded by everybody and then when he reached the top he sued and won every single case. I am saving nobody, partly from a sense of humor, but it is tragic humor.
I am enclosing copy of letter to Julie. I see nothing but destruction at Auroville. This country and particularly this State is now being filled with Shangrilas and Shambalas and some of them quite well healed. And often so successful that they cannot possibly be “news.” But mostly in dire competition with each other—i.e. those who depend on “gurus “and “mahatmas, although the most successful also have a real spiritual-cosmic outlook.
The idea that you can have a private, exclusive university is prevalent only in this country but it is prevalent and the young want none of it. The most successful church I know, very rapidly growing and absolutely not-news is composed of young people.
No “peace” organization ever lets me speak but now with Gunnar Jarring in the news, the man who said that my proposals were by far the best he had ever encountered I am letting a few have it. Besides it is only weeks until the editor who wants my things will have returned and everything looks lovely.
Then the invitations to the East Coast, better and better. My dance classes, better and better. My relations with the universities, better and better. The Universality of California knows something of my program for several of its alumni who have done things, real accomplishments, have had the same coup de grace from Lord Snow’s, “the other culture.”
The joint Arab-Israel-Palestinian American dinners! Way out and overflowed and oversubscribed. ETC. by which I mean ETC. and not ETC. ETC. would have nothing to do with realities. Or maybe someday it will. Anyhow copy to Lloyd.
Faithfully,
Sam
Sept. 22, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
My dear Oliver:
This is a day of transitions. My next letter will be to Gunnar Jarring, who gave me hours in consideration of a plan for Palestine. The only group which has ever let me speak on this subject in this region has been the Jesuit University of San Francisco. Otherwise not a single so-called peace organization, or free-speech so-called, or non-verbal verbal group, has ever granted me the floor. And on that occasion the chair declared the meeting over after I spoke—saying all the problems; had been solved; of course they were.
We have been living in a culture in which problems are complexities to be solved only by the right persons. This is un-sane; the French thought in the same way and they put up DeGaulle to which we objected. So we go around trying to find the right persons and real problems remain unsolved. I have not had a single difficulty with a single scientist for a long long time, but it is impossible to reach the non-scientists, and I have no more time for anymore egocentricity parading as human knowledge.
Last night when I received a very emotional telephone call concerning the complexities in Jordan, I immediately had some of my young followers get on the telephone and report the joint Israeli-Arab-Christian dinners to the media, next of which will be tonight. The churches and so-called humanists are quite in accord in refusing me their platform. And I am totally indifferent about it. Later in the day I shall be going to the University of California and deposit my first contribution for a peace scholarship in the Department of Near East Languages. There Jew, Christian, Muslim, and so-called unbeliever sit side by side in the classroom. Solid facts which can convince anybody but religionists, humanists, and peace mongers, all after their own gains, while human beings murder each other.
Immediately after the dinner tonight I prepare to pack to come East. I do not know my own schedule. I am first visiting Cornell and Columbia Universities, and then go to Boston. Everything is piling up, and perhaps properly piling up. After my return my in situ reports will be published by an editor who wants them. But we have at last aroused some of the local radio and television stations, and one newspaper to solid-hard facts unanimously spurned by the religionists, humanists, and Peace groups so verbalized and only verbalized.
I think I told you that Lama Foundation in New Mexico, with which I am connected, has been recognized by The National Geographical Society and Columbia Broadcasting Company. I am going today to give my first check to the University of California, not only because of the Near East Department but because of great accomplishments by scholars and research teams, either ignored or derided by the religionists, humanists, and so-called peace groups. I have piles of such data. These added to in situ reports will make a dandy book for the future generations, and also contribute to your Projects Krishna and Prometheus.
I have to stop at this point because one of my young followers has arrived who has absolutely succeeded in getting Arabs and Israelis together, considered impossible by the nice people, the so-called religionists, humanists, and peace societies. Written in a hurry.
Faithfully,
Sam
October 1st, 1970
c/o Lonnie Less
27 West 71st St.,
New York, N. Y.
My dear Oliver,
This is written under circumstances so different from those of the past it is almost as if a different person were writing. One received an open welcome in New York City and outward circumstances, such as the death of Gamel Nasser, are also working in my favor. The old day of a priori rejections by (self) important persons is over. But they have also done the favor of adding zest to the editor who wants my materiel. The youth all welcome the reality of an eyewitness over the “realism” of various conflicting camps. And I am unable to foretell my program beyond the immediacy.
Tuesday night I am to speak at Columbia but tomorrow have a meeting with one of the top deans. To commemorate Cassius Keyser will be accompanied by the original peace plan I had for the Near East which so thrilled Gunnery, Jarring and was so smashed by so many (self) important persons and organizations that it will become part of history. We have been so successful in promoting joint Arab-Israel-Christian dinners, so smothered by the orthodox and “humanists” alike.
My host at Cornell just happened to be a professor of philosophy. He has a term leave to marry my Pakistani Goddaughter. His reaction against “semantics” was positively disturbing but as the G.S. “generals” have never accepted anything from me the field is open to revive Keyser and then go on to boost your programs. Have to long distance Boston to fix dates for Harvard and M.I.T. where one shall certainly be more welcome than with the “realists.” Already have had excellent talks with both an Israel and Arab leader and made a most reassuring reports to the Department of Near East Studies at Columbia.
Met some of the Indian cultural leaders too. The day of self-selection of Europeans and Englishmen as spokesmen for the Orient is over. The news of my colleagues is most welcome. We have been able to film and record what no others have ever been permitted to do in certain lands—but when wasn’t I guest of honor at the imperial palaces of Japan and Thailand and had tea in the mansions of the presidents of India and Pakistan—most unwelcome to “realists” and “Peace” and “religious” (and anti-religious) groups. That’s over, over forever.
Expect to see Dr. Bedeau, a former Ambassador, who is at Columbia but will go ahead with or without him, as there are other doors for meeting Gunnar Jarring again. Will let you know more of the successes of colleagues when I return to California.
I think this is enough news for the moment.
Regards,
Sam
October 13, 1970
c/o Lonnie Less
27 West 71st St.,
New York, N. Y.
Dr. Oliver Reiser
c/o Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh,
Pittsburgh 15213
My dear Oliver,
Just had a short visit to the American Society for Psychical research, Inc. On my return from Boston I shall purchase and subscribe. As to membership, this may be decided upon my return to California.
The change in the faculties in human beings and perhaps the psychic revolution that is going on, to become scientific one must become impersonal. Mme. Curie and the physicists which followed her measure the “unusual” in all the chemical elements. I am equally sure that if we measured either the “normal” or the “abnormal” faculties and sensitivities in human-kind we should uncover a lot of latent knowledge which our sense of “racial superiority” has blinded us to.
But there is now a “new humanity” which is evolving in whom not only the sensorium but the latent faculties are coming to the fore. I would join this Society (or any other) which might become impersonal and universal as societies of geologists and horticulture are.
Before leaving San Francisco, completed the lectures on “The Three Body Constitution of Man” according to St. Paul. The Greek works psychikos psyche, etc. are so variously translated—or better, mis-translated, that there is neither sense nor logic.
Several years ago I questioned Dr. Huston Smith of MIT on the parallels between the three-body doctrines of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Christianity. At that time he was not aware of them. We are leaving shortly for Boston, and if he has returned, will take this up further with him.
I notice that dr. Gardner Murphy is one of the leading lights of this American Society for Psychical Research. He remains among those few people who do not follow the Judeo-Christian ethic, but he has always answered all letters and taken one seriously. True, I followed in his geographical footsteps, but in India and Pakistan, seem to have happened upon far more personalities with what we call “unusual” faculties than most Americans are aware of. But most Americans have to lead, they simply have to lead, and this has made me very skeptical of certain forts.
But then, Professors Ian Stevenson is also a leading light in this movement, and he accepted a number of reports from me which all the “good” psychical and metaphysical organizations refused to consider. The situation was worsened because I officially represented Asians with unusual faculties, far deeper and effective than anything coming from our Rhines, Pikes, Garretts, Caseys, etc., etc.
There has been a very awkward situation because the University of Islamabad had a large endowment for psychical and metaphysical research and no effort of mine so far has been taken seriously. Not even money has moved many of those who want to collect funds but still demand personality ego-leadership as if they were chosen ones of a supreme entity. It is laughable and deplorable. I hope this can be changed.
My lectures on “The Three-Body Constitution of Man According to Saint Paul” were completed before leaving Son Francisco and were sent to Washington. There is a possibility of being called to lecture thereon when I reach there; or else they will be published in Arizona.
In the meanwhile contact has been made with some scientists here who have been successful “in the laboratory” both in investigating and changing stages of consciousness. This is far more serious, profound and effective than all the emotionalisms of all “psychedelics” or blindnesses, still worse of such people as religionists and humanists (so-called) who seem utterly unable to investigate.
There is a certain amount of optimisms because of the effectiveness today in getting persons and channels of communication to accept real events which are not in accord with tradition or “establishments.” This is a huge subject and writing about it, which prevent further activities. A large portion of the world outside “scientists” is now willingly to accept facts and events qua re facts end evens without the entanglements of personalities and personalizes.
I recently wrote to one Justine Glass, author of They Foresaw the Future. When I am gone, if not before, these go-called “seers” will not even be considered as amateurs. True, I lost all my original diaries in a fire in 1949 but my poetry which well attests to a foresight which is foresight is evidence enough. And there is memory too. When I look at the famous Nostradamus or the poet Blake, one can see the far more effective direct method, and I have no doubt that the world has been full of “Jude, the Obscure” and we shall-be learning to take them seriously.
The acceptance of the American Society for Psychic Research, Inc. by the AAAS is one of the greatest victories for enlightenment of this age.
(Cannot give you any program. In the midst of all kinds of activities, mostly quite successful.)
Cordially,
Samuel L. Lewis
October 25, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
My Dear Oliver:
It is very hard to convince some people that a world project can never succeed if it is exclusive. The other day I had a long conversation with a very successful Indian yogi. While he has limited his operations to the city of Philadelphia, he has already a thousand followers. Among the things we discussed were reincarnation, and he supported to the hilt my presumption or assumption that a very large number of our younger Americans were Hindus in former lives.
(I remember the occasion when Lloyd Morain spoke on reincarnation and got into a bitter debate with another speaker; both of them belong to groups which would never allow me to speak. But when they came to an impasse, they asked my opinion, and I told them I was totally unfit to speak because I remember my former lives. They immediately adjourned the meeting.) This could not happen today. And, there is a peculiar situation where reincarnation is accepted by all kinds of people with all kinds of backgrounds which would be hard to explain even in a long communication.
Our visit to Massachusetts was totally acceptable. Both Harvard and M.I.T. are interested in our joint Israeli-Christian-Arab dinners and in projects arising therefrom. My young followers and colleagues have been totally successful in the dinners, in arousing public interest, and in establishing funds. These funds will go along with my own peace scholarship for the University of California. Julie has sent me a lot of material which I accept, and I have sent her material which she rejects. You should not be surprised, therefore, that I have been invited to every conference of Hindu spiritual teachers in this country, and the Aurobindo people have not been invited because they are trying to build up their fame by rejecting others.
The rise of ashrams in this country is a tremendous development. The worst Hindu teachers are pointing out our blind spots and our deafness; and so I am not opposed to those with whom I may not otherwise agree, because this blindness and this deafness are the chief facts and factors in the hatreds, mass murders (known as wars) and emotional disturbances that are going on everywhere. The worst Hindu I have met has done something I have met. There is a lot of stuff known as integral yoga, which isn’t yoga at all—just words.
One of the great Sufi saints said, “Consideration consists of showing consideration to others and never in expecting consideration from others.” One has been working starting from scratch and finds that now thousands of young Americans are either coming to me personally or to those Indian teachers who wish to consider themselves as my colleagues and wish me to be considered as their colleague. This is not only a hard fact, but if you read the American papers, or even glance at them, you will find that gurus and ashrams are spreading everywhere.
I have made world surveys, and they have been world surveys. They are not examining into corners and declaring one has made a world discovery.
Project: Krishna, to be correct, should recognize the teachings that there are many stages of consciousness. This is taught more or less in and by the founders of all religions. It is often found in scriptures, and even more so in tradition. The analysis of a mystical experience is as valid as a derivative of infinity expressed in finite terms!
At a meeting of so-called spiritual teachers on the subject of peace, I presented only accomplishments. These accomplishments did not contradict their various programs, but when a group calls itself “World This” or “Universal That” and refuses to recognize accomplishments, it can hardly achieve its end. I certainly will not partake in anything like the old Roerich Museum here in New York proclaiming in the end personalities and not universalities or human brotherhood.
The young people here in America are working for brotherhood, for all-inclusiveness. Personally, I believe the greatest Indian teacher was Sri Ramakrishna. There have been other lights following him. I do not choose to name them, but they all belong to a real, honest Project: Krishna.
I am sorry, but Julie is the only one in the world, plus her colleagues, of course, who have rejected my Dances of Universal Peace. I am all for Project: Krishna and Project: Prometheus, but do not believe these can be accomplished by editorials. If I were not working so hard today for peace in the Middle East I would probably be doing research on and writing on pollution and related problems. I cannot consent that any program verbalizing “integration” can justify its overlooking hard facts, history, or the accomplishments of others.
Faithfully,
Sam
c/o L. Less
27 W. 71 Street
New York, N.Y.
October 26, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
My Dear Oliver:
This is a very serious letter. I wrote yesterday concerning Auroville. This was before completing my mail. I have also received a most welcome letter from a disciple of the so-called “Maharishi Mahesh,” who has made grandiose pretensions and claims, but who has followed these pretensions and claims by achievements.
Unless my informant is downright dishonest, this man has already established a large and successful working “ashram” with far more adherents than the Auroville project has collected in India and both he and his followers have shown this person every courtesy despite my harsh criticisms. There are some people who do accept the wisdoms of India without making emotional claims based on neither study nor discipline.
The Aurobindo people were working with Hills and his grandiose scheme to have “scientists” and “yogis” organized—under himself, of course, as followed by splits and outright opposition in India itself. Madison Ave. devotees never inform the public on such matters. But what happened here was a defensive entente between a large number of Indian “gurus.” Mostly under the impetus of Richard Alpert (Baba Ram Dass), they have called in this person and we have been attracting larger and larger sums of money and growing followers.
It is not a question of merit. People are facts and money or financial stability is, in a sense, factual. My own “Dances of Universal Peace,” derided or rejected by the Aurobindo people to whom they were first offered, are growing in demand, and following that, this alone puts me at my wit’s end. I have not the time nor energy to extend this program. Besides, a wealthy editor wants my autobiography in short form; my articles, especially the rejected ones; and my poetry. This is a monumental opening and could keep one busy for years with financial stability to boot. And our real efforts to bring real peace in the real Near East are making much headway. We are doing while the over-praised United Nations is being looked upon as God-given revelatory, super-church by the Aurobindo people.
These same people were behind the Zitko project. They do not take the young, the New Age young, into account. My own affairs are prospering in every direction. In the field of Organic Gardening alone I have enough to keep me occupied, to keep others occupied, with a growing market and tremendous demand. And no parlor-scientists seem able to prevent plant life.
Our next item is to contact a plant physiologist who is investigating also the psychedelic properties of plants. I received this information from our good friend, Dr. Huston Smith at M.I.T. But Huston does not know about Jagadish Bose. I used to have, and may still have, notes of Bose’s work and think I might find some also at the Indian library here. It should be of importance to a real Project: Krishna and Project: Prometheus.
My work on the “psychic body” is now being reviewed and, if rejected, my own publisher will take it. He has that much faith in Sam Lewis, which is a karmic reaction against some of the narrow-mindedness of the past.
Reviewing the past week’s efforts, there is no doubt that there are Hindus who have been far more successful than Julie in getting funds and followers. Even Jean Dixon predicted that! And there is a possibility of our having a real Indian-American cultural exchange league without benefit of “experts.” (Most of the “experts” deride my being a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society, fellowship gained after a stiff examination.)
(Did not ask Huston Smith about Dr. Radhakrishnan with whom and from whom mutual respect, but he went to Madras and not to Pondicherry.) My own field representative has sent in reports which show the folly of pretending to know Indian wisdom and practicing the opposite of what Sankara and other great men have taught.
Already have plans for Lama Foundation, which has been a recognized by the National Geographic Magazine. Then my own people have already taken films and recordings of music, dances, and ceremonies, the very existence of which has been by-passed or downgraded by the followers of Sri Aurobindo. Thus “integration.” There is no real Integral Yoga based on cosmic experience now organized. The word is stolen just as a lot of other words have been stolen. Honesty is not demanded by Madison Ave. One is very sorry.
The followers of Sri Aurobindo deny the prowess of Bulwer Lytton, H.G. Wells and others who had similar outlooks. And these men were not adept at making false predictions which has been the want of the over-advertised “supermen” and super-women. It is awkward to have people who do not mingle with humanity preach “cosmic humanism” to this one who mingles with all. I am too busy to detail the materials of recently received mail.
I think there will be cosmic-humanism achievements, without omitting, overlooking, or deriding anybody. Every scientist and inventor knows that be cannot by-pass discoveries made previously to his own endeavors. The false “New Age” people are doing just that. And the young are discovering it. The country is being tilled with “ashrams” and “yoga systems.” We may not like them, but there they are.
Faithfully,
Samuel L. Lewis
December 3, 1970
My dear Oliver:
You may have thought I was a great complainer and history is going to recognize this. It seems “destiny” to follow Samuel Morse, something I have long known. Thwarted in one direction I went in another and now have five careers going on simultaneously, all showing signs of success. And none of them built on personality speculation or exclusions of anybody or analytical methods verbalized as “integration” or by some other name.
Last night I spoke at the University of California. It was a very story night, the students were supposed to be cramming and as I walked to the podium there were hardly a dozen there but before I completed a single sentence the hall was packed.
All efforts to promote real cultural exchange show not only progress but funds on the horizon. People who belittled me in the past are new in fund raising campaigns and making offers. This is in real cultural exchange; in inclusive, not exclusive “integrational” endeavors; in the peace programs which originally came largely from this person; in scientific organic gardening cum marketing of vegetables; and in creative writing.
I am to go to Tucson late in January after clearing the slates. I see nothing but Project: Krishna and Project: Prometheus but I do not see them as personality understandings under any Hills or Zitko or other self-imposing messiah. The latest connects with research scientists are so amazing and I find they are working in and with depths of consciousness not yet officially recognized, but the more research (as against parlor and newspaper) scientists I meet the more agreement on a “cosmic” working psychology I find.
Sunday for the first time in my life there was a big party at my ancestral home. Not only my younger relatives but nearly all their friends recognize that there are points of view, strange but true. I have offered a very Project: Prometheus proposal for the clearing of pollution and ecological factors and find socially, that I am among both professional men and concerned researchers who have been afraid to speak and a little stimulation opens them up. The day is over when important or self-important people can insult and think they are accomplishing anything.
The evening at Berkeley objectified some things Russ wants and as one has the advantage of getting around one believes in the end his outlooks will be substantiated. I am again rereading The Manhood of Humanity—first read at its very first publication or before and find it, to me, a most wonderful and readable manuscript. This will now make “Science and Sanity” easy.
Not a cloud on the horizon and busy every day all day but in different projects.
Faithfully,
Sam
December 14, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
My dear Oliver:
I have not heard from you for some time and hope you are well. When “Science and Sanity” came out my collaborator, Luther Whiteman and I wrote a most favorable report. We were “in.” Then “The Tyranny of Words” came out and we wrote a most critical report. We were “out.” No kind of sound logic had anything to do with it. It is why we behave as “human beings.”
The semantic movement might have become scientific if it had accepted the philosophical approach of New York University with its purported, or real solution of the egocentric predicament As a culture we definitely prefer the predicament and so do must “cultures.” Egocentricism is so pleasing.
There is a campaign on now for a billion dollars for “cancer research.” Years ago Nicholas Roerich found cancer did not exist in some parts of India. So he collected millions for “cancer” research and a clinic was established in another part of India and nothing ever came of it. They did not examine the people who never had cancer not sought why. And I was told recently that there is no cancer in several parts of Asia.
But then there is the “egocentric predicament.” One must not trammel over certain personalities even less than over certain institutions. They are super-sacred. Honesty, objective research is wonderful but the researchers do not always have control, especially of the funds. Therefore any Project: Prometheus must suffer until a more objective outlook is attained.
I am now being treated on the campus of the University of California at Berkeley almost like a hero. They accept all objective reports and now on many subjects. My old friend, Bryan Beorse of Keyport, Washington (near Seattle) is even getting some of my earlier poems published. They were given exactly the same treatment by the “famous” as reports on different parts of Asia were given by the elite. But this day is over and instead I fear reactions more than rejections. Next month I have to visit Arizona to a rather well-heeled editor publisher who has already started to print my manuscripts, date of release uncertain. This is a far cry from the past when my name meant a rejection.
The terrible obstacle to Project: Prometheus is that this term, like “ecology” and others have been stolen by the salesmen and those classes of humanity deplored by Alfred Korzybski. The ego is important—not what is said but who said it. The worst situations are around ecology and pollution. The very liquids which are needed for certain purpose are treated by editorial writers as “poisonous.”
Well, I seem about to go into the “ecology” and perhaps mushroom businesses, I find there are many very well oriented people who even see profits in some fields of cleaning up the environment. But there is no place when one can have (yet) impersonal, objective discussions. And objective quantitative chemical analysis is shunned. And the men who could help most are out of work while the editors and “experts” fill the pages. And of course, those “ecology” stickers, adding to the very problems.
Project: Krishna. The situation is even worse, or better. I know of at least five competing “world” organizations in India. Christopher Hills is following in the path of Dr. Zitko, but the approach-scheme is so delightful a lot of people are following. When I say “in India” you can guess how many in California. All either “world” or “galaxy” groups, and going after income-tax exemptions because, because.
My chief colleague came back from India. You may not like the objective report on Pondicherry so I shall not send it. He confirmed even more my optimistic reports on certain places. I hope to present these to the University of California in March—there one can without personality attacks or recrimination report facts.
These “world groups” are even more adept in a priori rejections than the older religious organizations. They accept absolute surrender and will not compromise and they talk about “freedom.” There are going to be more failures just as there have been in the past. And nobody must ever criticize the “important” excepting hard-boiled business men who at least have one form of sanity.
I now have five concurrent careers and making headway in each. But I notice others who have been given the “Jude the Obscure” treatment and are getting together. Real scientists are out of work and their social functions are taken over by promoters and fund-raisers to no end. But now even the press is noticing what we are trying to do.
On the surface my affairs may rise or fall by the bazaar we have next Sunday at Sausalito, Calif. just north of here. But in the meanwhile my former secretary and god-son have gone ahead and been very successful in their promotional plans and so are others. When we have even a phase of objective reporting in the “social” field as in the objective sciences the world will improve.
There is lots more going on, very optimistic but I am overworked, But with the young and universities accepting it does not matter.
Faithfully,
Sam
Dec. 21, 1970
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
My dear Oliver:
This morning I made a sort of report to go to my colleagues in India and made an extra copy (enclosed). I am no longer concerned whether people accept what may seem to be bizarre reports. Yesterday a palmist took up my hand and read it, or read into it, statements and opinions which may well be true.
I am writing you this for another reason. I had very little to do with the arrangement of the Bazaar, and when I asked why the particular day of December 20 was selected, the answer was immediately forthcoming, because it was proximate to the winter solstice. I can prove nothing except the obvious fact that it was totally successful. Far more successful than our dreams.
This morning we put on a men’s dancing class which was well within “Project: Krishna.” I am no longer concerned about the rejection of efforts by peoples and organizations which are consciously or unconsciously egocentric. The hard fact is that we are showing every sign of success, the press and radio are recognizing us, the leaders and followers of a great many groups purporting to follow various Asian paths and disciplines have recognized us, including many who do not recognize each other.
We not only sang carols, we sang Dervish chants, and although plans are afoot to have these recorded bath for tape and phonograph, without an effort on our part radio and television people have also become interested. I am no longer concerned with the rejections of our efforts by sundry egocentric groups which have common claims that they expect to organize and lead the world. The rejection of our efforts by groups which we would have gladly joined under any circumstance or condition only proves that the majority of would be world saviours follow no moral law. We are not out to change them, but we are now out to promote our own efforts, and they seem to be succeeding in every direction.
With best wishes for Christmas and New Years,
Faithfully,
Sam
Novato,
December 24, 1970
My dear Oliver:
It may seem strange on a day when people are verbalizing, “Peace, good-will to man”—whatever that means or does not mean, one is getting ready now to come out because there has not been good-will to men. Worst of the offenders are those very persons who have pretended to be champions in the worlds of communication, and this involves in the end all “realists” of all camps who stay as far from reality as they can and their substitutes have failed.
For years I have been campaigning that we could never win the cold war unless we stopped all other wars. That “we” just can’t do. We all seem to do exactly what Toynbee declares, that American must have some enemy (or enemies) and they have “god” to defend to champion against those enemies. But instead of concentrating against the enemy called “communism” we have been opposing every kind of “exotic” culture.
It is awkward to find the General of Semantics, whose ancestors were Asians declare against all Asian philosophies! The only articles he has over accepted anywhere “close” to this have been by Western men who are lecherers and drunkards. I have kept quiet about this but if we are going to have good in the world we should be permitting others than lecherers and drunkards to be considered in connection with real or fanciful Asian cultures.
This is extremely typical of the passing dominating groups, unconsciously narrow-minded and substituting slogans for depths. An ally of the General of Semantics was a man of Jewish ancestry—nothing wrong in that at all—who kept Muslims from participating in an “Asian-American” conference at Hawaii. All other religions were invited; not Muslims.
We must therefore not be surprised that the people of Pakistan, one of the most “rightish” nations in the world, have voted against SEATO and CENTO by huge majorities. Why should they? We have all kinds of cultural- exchanges, even with enemy communists. But with Muslims? And Pakistan has declared itself an Islamic republic—whatever that means. And I was no more successful in getting any article accepted on the Basic Democracy of Pakistan than with Vietnamese Buddhism. It just is not done.
Now the people have expressed themselves and we are going to have to get out of our smoke-haloed “realism” and accept the humanity of the world, something most dialecticians cannot do (including so-called “humanists.”)
The same is true of those dreamy “world federation” groups who, if anything, are more selective and exclusive than the religionists or humanists. There are, of course, so many “world federations” today, and new ones forming all the time. And getting nowhere.
The success of our bazaar, called in part to promote real peace in the Near East because real peoples; and also to raise funds to help the people of East Pakistan is winning attention. This is face of all the dominant groups in this region who have kept this person from ever speaking to that. It is a huge, ironic situation. And some day some “ethical” people may accept the moral law. But the “ethical” people are even worse than those making no such pretensions.
But we’re are going ahead. The young people are honest and objective without otherwise necessarily being “perfect.” They do not go in for value judgments and they accept facts, especially hard facts. And in this one sees some hope.
The disrupting of SEATO and CENTO may give this person a greater chance. Soon a letter will be addressed to Senator Cooper, the only one who ever lived in Asia and who consorted with Asian-Asians.
With my personal representative going to the Near East with copies of the program which Dr. Gunnar Jarring so admired and which the “good” people almost unanimously a priori rejected, I see a real New Year dawning. We are not playing games with Project: Prometheus and Project: Krishna. You have given as much inspiration and are doing, not talking.
Happy 1971,
Sam
March 31, 1972
Dr. Oliver Reiser
Prof. Emeritus
Department of Philosophy
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh 15213
Beloved One of God,
We felt you would be interested in the enclosed work by Samuel L. Lewis. You are mentioned in it in several places.
Murshid’s disciples are going ahead with plans to publish others of his writings. Within the next few months his lectures inspired by First Corinthians will be published by Omen Press in Tucson, and before the end of the year his three poem trilogy on mystical Judaism, Christianity, and Islam will also be published, Inshallah.
There is much living work continuing here and in other Sufi centers around the U.S., England and Europe. We would be happy to keep you informed of happenings if that is your wish.
At the present time we some of Murshid’s disciples are in Israel and occupied territory doing a survey on the use and abuse of the holy places, and many other activities in the vision of world peace.
As-salaam-aleikhum, Shalom Aleikhum, Peace be with you
love,
Wali Ali
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh 15213
April 20, 1972
Mr. Wali Ali
Mentorgarten,
San Francisco, Calif.
Dear Mr. Wali Ali,
Thank you and your group so much for the copy of Samuel Lewis’s “Toward Spiritual Brotherhood.” I shall read it with interest and pleasure. I am always glad to recall that “Sam” and I met some years back and kept up a correspondence over the years. A am also pleased to see that his trilogy of poems will be published. More fascinating, I think, than his prose.
With the beat wishes to you all,
Cordially,
Oliver Reiser