January 16, 2007

May The Source Be with You

Posted by process on January 16, 2007 10:57 AM

Process announces the forthcoming publication of...

The Source: The Untold Story of Father Yod, YaHoWha 13 and the Source Family
By Isis Aquarian, with Electricity Aquarian
featuring 150 color and black and white images and a CD with rare recordings

The Source tells the spectacular true story of the early ‘70s Los Angeles magickal commune The Source, their enigmatic spiritual leader, their famous vegetarian restaurant, and their indelible contribution to the canon of psychedelic music.

Not long after the Manson murders paralyzed Los Angeles and the National Guard forced thousands of hippies off the Sunset Strip, The Source Family was born. The group quickly grew into a thriving Aquarian tribe of over a hundred beautiful, mysteriously serene young men and women who strolled Sunset Boulevard in velvet robes and low-cut diaphanous gowns, lived together in a mansion in the Hollywood Hills, and ran the enormously popular Source restaurant, serving vibrationally pure organic vegetarian cuisine to movie stars and rockers such as John Lennon, Warren Beatty, Marlon Brando, and others.

The Source restaurant and commune were conceived by the charismatic health food visionary Jim Baker. A former war hero and judo champion turned Nature Boy,” Vedanta monk, restaurateur and disciple of guru Yogi Bajan, Baker eventually fused his own eclectic experiences into the Western mystery tradition and evolved into Father Yod, and ultimately, “YaHoWha,” a powerful white magician adept and spiritual leader to the group of young people who lived strictly devoted to his teachings, channeled wisdom, and philosophies of natural birth, living, and dying.

Father looked not unlike Moses, rode in a chauffer-driven Rolls Royce, had a mischevious, sometimes corny sense of humor, and 14 "spiritual wives." He was flagrantly outlandish, and in a city of celebrities, he was the focus of wild rumors and much speculation, some of it particularly unsavory. He surprised many by suddenly morphing from hip health food restaurateur into mystical leader of what some considered a cult.

Still, as controversial as he was to some outsiders and the press, Father was, by inside accounts, a sincere and deeply caring patriarch, who had not only clearly manifested God consciousness, but taught his sons and daughters that they and all mankind have God consciousness within them, and the challenge of the coming age is for man to recognize this divinity within himself and his innate connectedness to all of creation.

Music was an integral part of family life, and in the pre-dawn hours, after deep meditation when the ascending currents were strongest, the family musicians would gather to make cosmically inspired music, producing their own limited-pressing records, which sold for $1 through the restaurant.

These now highly collectable recordings are treasured by music critics and connoisseurs in all parts of the world, many who consider YaHoWha 13 “one of the most righteous kick-ass American psychedelic bands of all time.”

Sky Saxon, singer of the seminal garage band The Seeds and a Source Family member still devoted to the teachings of YaHoWha, collaborated with Japanese label Captain Trip in 1998 and produced a deluxe 13 CD box set of the original Source Family records and some unreleased material. The Source Family Foundation is currently working with Swordfish records in the UK to re-release individual records as both limited pressing LPs and CDs, which you can find here.

Isis Aquarian, one of Father's women and designated Family Historian and Keeper of the Records, is now 65 and lives in Hawaii. She spent seven years writing this book with the help of Family brother Electricity Aquarian, offering readers an intimate insider’s perspective into this vital utopian social experiment; an exploration that pushed the boundaries of reality and possibilities for a better world far beyond the ordinary person's wildest imaginings.

The Source features many color and black and white photos, artwork, letters and other original documents culled from the massive Source Family archive, illustrating the group’s rise and untimely demise after a hang gliding accident precipitated Father’s sudden “leaving of the body.” The book also includes first-hand stories from several family members, original recipes from the restaurant, and a bonus CD with an extremely rare recording of YaHoWha 13 playing live at Beverly Hills High School in 1973….!

The Source will be available in August 2007.

Source Family Official Website.

Listen and download Source Family music here.

Buy Source Family LPs and CDs here.

Watch video (taken and manipulated by Neuralsurfer.com) from Don Como’s great forgotten documentary Aliens from Spaceship Earth (narrated by Donovan!), which includes footage of Father Yod, the family, and Isis and Astral Aquarian speaking about Father “leaving the body” and showing images and film of his final flight.

Articles on The Source Family, Father Yod and YaHoWha 13

Yahowha 13 "God and Hair" review By Byron Coley for Blastitude

YaHoWha 13 band member interviews of Djin, Sunflower, Octavius and Pythias, by Gary Bearman

Dusted magazine’s feature on the family and Evan Well’s feature-length student documentary of the Source Family, available here.

...

Share a link to this entry:

...

[ Edit ]