Celebrating Adi Da’s Jayanti: A Holy Day of Divine Birth

 

Today, we honor the Jayanti of Avatar Adi Da Samraj, a day marked by profound spiritual significance. I had the privilege of being and celebrating with Him November 3, 1997 in Naitauba, Fiji, and that sacred time continues to instruct me.

 

On this day, we celebrate Adi Da’s birth, which was an event of unprecedented magnitude. Adi Da Samraj, born as Franklin Albert Jones, on November 3, 1939, at 11:21 AM (EST) in Jamaica, New York, was the Conscious Incarnation of the Divine Reality Itself—the timeless Consciousness that is the Source and the very Life of all that exists. His birth was foretold by ancient prophecies as the coming of a Bringer of Light, appearing when humanity was lost in darkness.

 

From the very moment of His birth, Adi Da was confronted by the fragility of the human condition. Like many infants, His life was threatened by the umbilical cord wound around His neck. But unlike other infants, He was fully aware of what was taking place. While the doctors worked to keep His body alive, He remained perfectly Conscious and Free of all concern—Self-Aware as the Divine Reality. He recalls that in that Divine State, untouched by the drama of His human birth, He was moved to regard the people lying in nearby hospital wards, Blessing them and healing them.

 

Adi Da’s parents, Frank and Dorothy Jones, named their son with an esoterically auspicious name suggesting freedom (“Franklin”) and brightness (“Albert”). This name encapsulates the essence of His Divine purpose:

Adi Da’s birth is not just an ordinary human birth, resulting from an immeasurable chain of causes and effects (karma). His Coming into the world was the Conscious Incarnation of the Divine Reality, intended for the Divine Liberation of all humankind. In His own words:

 

Adi Da always worked to bring the “Brightness” of the Divine Reality into the “room” of the world. On Adi Da Jayanti (“Jayanti” is Sanskrit for “Victorious”), we celebrate the Gift of God Present—a Gift for humankind to recognize, enjoy, and Realize. Adi Da’s Divine Presence is no longer a question mark for humanity to ponder or doubt but is always directly accessible, right here, right now.

Adi Da acknowledged February 18, 1939, as the date of His Divine Avataric bodily conception. This date coincided with significant events such as Maha Shiva Ratri, the Hindu festival celebrating the marriage of Shiva and Parvati. On this day, the revered Indian saint, Upasani Baba, prophesied the appearance of an Avatar in the West—a vision that would be fulfilled by Adi Da. This conception marked the beginning of His Divine mission and was seen as a miraculous intervention in the world to re-establish true spiritual life.

Adi Da’s work, “Not-Two Is Peace”, extends His transformative vision into the realm of global peace and cooperation. The message is not merely that humanity should resolve the world’s urgent crises, but that we must do so in a radically new way. This book calls us to uncover an entirely new disposition within ourselves—a fundamentally different consciousness—from which to engage the grave global challenges arrayed before us.

 

Adi Da argues that humanity must grow beyond the fundamental orientation of searching for solutions to the world’s problems. The traditional approach of trying to find or create unity out of divided interests is no longer workable. Instead, what we desperately need is a new paradigm, summarized by the principle of “prior unity”.

 

Prior unity is not just a philosophical concept or ideal. It is the structure of existence itself, as ancient seers have declared and even modern physics has demonstrated. To experience and presume prior unity obviates the search to “cause” or “create” unity or peace. The work becomes one of enacting and magnifying the prior unity that is already the felt reality. This approach enables the inherent prior unity of people to manifest on all levels of the world stage.

 

Adi Da proposed a practical means for manifesting this prior unity: a “Global Cooperative Forum”. This forum would serve the common interests of all humankind, operating on the basis of the new paradigm of prior unity, granting it a unique and inherent moral integrity. Fundamental global matters would be approached as one living process rather than as a multiplicity of competing issues. Participation in the forum would depend on people’s ability to set aside personal, national, religious, ethnic, or other forms of identity to accomplish the work at hand, unified by the paradigm of prior unity.

 

As we celebrate Adi Da’s Jayanti and reflect on His profound teachings, let us be inspired to embrace the principle of prior unity and work together to create a world where peace and cooperation are realized not just as goals but as the very foundation of our shared existence.

 

For more information on Adi Da’s vision and work, visit da-peace.org.