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Behind the Cosmic Curtain: The Further Writings of Swami Rudrananda by Swami Rudrananda

Rudi: 14 Years With My Master by John Mann

Swami Rudranada was one of the first Americans to become a Swami and introduced many Americans to Eastern spiritual practices. He was born Albert Rudolph on 1/24/28 and raised in Brooklyn, NY during the depression in impoverishment. His father abandoned the family and Rudi (as he was commonly known) quit high school to work in a textile company to help support his family. He enlisted in the army at age 18, where he was an ROTC instructor at the University of Washington. After discharge he attended night school to get a high school diploma, then recevied a degree in textile engineering at North Carolina State College. He then returned to New York and opened Rudi Oriental Arts, a small (Rudi described it as "no larger than a decent-sized bathroom") Oriental Art store at 184 7th Avenue South near the Village Vanguard (where Rudi washed dishes to help make ends meet). In 1959 Ruid moved into a larger store on the same block. It became one of the major Asian antique stores in the United States, selling Tibetan Thankas, religious paintings from India, statues from Indian and Tibet and ritual religious articles.

Rudi had powerful spiritual experiences at a young age. In his book Behind the Cosmic Curtain he writes of meeting two Tibetan lamas in the park at age 6, who said they would place within him "all the energy and spirituality of Tibetan Buddhism" which would begin to open within him at age 31. In his early 20's he studied Gudjieff work and studied with Pak Subuh, founder of Subud. In search of spiritual teachings, he studied with Hindu master Sri Shankarcharya of Puri. He traveled to India in 1958, where he met Swami Nityanada at his ashram in Ganeshpuri. Rudi wrote, "My first meeting, in India in 1958, with the renowned Indian saint Bhagawan Nityananda was of such depth that it changed the course of my life." After Nityananda's taking Mahasamadhi in 1961, Rudi studied with Nityananda's disciple Swami Muktananda. In 1966, Swami Muktananda initiated Rudi as a Swami into the Saraswati order, naming him Rudrananda, or "bliss of Rudra," a fiery and early aspect of the Hindu god Shiva. He was one of the first Americans to become a Swami. He returned to New York, where he established an ashram in New York City, then also established ashrams in many other cities, including Big Indian, NY, Boston, MA, Bloomington, IN, Cincinatti, OH, Athens, GA, Dallas and Austin, TX. He also established ashrams in Europe. Among his many students were Ram Dass and Adi Da. He drew his teachings from the many sources aforementioned, as well from Kashmir Shaivism.

A very pragmatic teacher, Rudi endeavored to strip away the cultural trappings of Eastern spiritual practice and develop a practice condusive to westerners. He taught that rather than retreat from the world, spiritual students are best served by being active in he world, where they can draw in psychic energy and transform it into fuel for spiritual growth. He said "The third eye is the mouth of the psychic digestive system. From there, energy comes straight down the center line of the body, into the throat and then into the heart center, in the middle of the chest. Once you identify this experience of energy flow in yourself, you consciously work to circulate the force, drawing it all the way down to the sex organs and from there backwards to the base of the spine. Then it rises through the spinal cord and ultimately emerges in the top and back of the head. That is the complete circuit of the psychic digestive system." His work was a form of kundalini yoga. Rudi's classes involved the giving of shaktipat, the direct transmission of spiritual energy from student to teacher.

Rudi taught that a deep personal wish to grow spiritually was the foundation of spiritual practice. He taught that successful spiritual practice required a tremendous ongoing work and effort. He also taught about the importance of spiritual students developing a deep internal state of surrender (openness and acceptance) in their life and work. He wrote of his teachings in Spiritual Cannibalism, published shortly before his death and available online at http://mursshud.org/teachings/writings/rudrananda/rudrananda.html and in Behind the Cosmic Curtain, published in 1984. A brief video of Rudi teaching (administering shaktipat and speaking) can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzcYhRPJUV4.

Rudi died instantly on 2/21/73 when a small airplane he was in crashed into a mountain in the Catskills in New York. The other 3 people on the plane sustained only minor injuries. After his death, several of his disciples continued teaching his methods.