What I Think About the Source Family

As horrible as it sounds, I did not like The Source Family when I began reading about them.  They were a bunch of hippies that did drugs in a mansion to me.  What did they do different than any of the other hippies that lived in Los Angeles at the time?  Well reading further I found that I was wrong.  Father Yods life and the life of the commune were something out of a movie.  Jim baker an ex-marine, movie star, bank robber moves on through the teachings of a Yogi to become Father Yod.  All of this starts from a small vegetarian restaurant that is ultra-popular at the time.  They create unrehearsed psychedelic rock music in their garage, which inspires future musicians.  Father Yod creates two communes and then they move to Hawaii.  He dies tragically after hang gliding with no experience.  You can’t make this stuff up if you tried.

I liked how the former members mostly had good things to say about the commune after the fact.  It was a mystical time in their lives where they threw social norms out the window and practiced the teachings of Father Yod.  Members like Isis still incorporate his teaching into their lives and hold it as a great experience.  I do feel that people who were dissatisfied with the commune do not have their voices heard, but its not to the extent that the Anti-cult websites would have you believe.

The aspect I liked most about this commune was the music.  I listen to a lot of music, so the chance to listen to this obscure piece of music history was fascinating.  First, I listened to the album I’m gonna take you home and was somewhat sold.  Father Yod isn’t the best singer, but the feeling he brings to the songs makes up for lack of experience.  I liked other albums like The Savage Sons of Yahowha even better.  The blues rock sound in songs like Fire in the Sky were my favorite.

I’m glad I received this commune to study, as I now see it in a better light than from surface glance.

The Source From Within

Many interviews exist of former members of the source family.  These interviews are after the fact, but allow us to gain insight on how they view/viewed the commune many years later.  These interviews are in the documentaries and magazine articles.  Isis Aquarius is also willing to be interviewed if asked.  I looked at an Interview with two of the Source Family members Isis and Electricity.  When talking about people with a negative outlook on the commune, the interviewees expressed that it was a different time.  It is easy to cast the past in a negative light, because looking back you could contort memories to bad experiences.  Isis compares living on the commune to living in their own reality, where everything was different.  When the former members tried to go back to the earths reality they couldn’t adjust the ideas and thinking they learned from Father Yod.  So, the commune became a negative in their life.  This was different per person as may former members viewed it as some of the best times of their life.  When asked what they learned from the whole experience, they both said they still incorporate Father’s teachings into their daily life.  The commune wasn’t just a period in their life, it was an experience which would change them and allow them to grow to this day.

The Source Family in the Media

Finding online sources for reactions to the source family is difficult. The Source family are in a positive light in today’s media.  Unlike other “cults,” the source family inspired culture after them.  This hippy culture is remembered fondly, and The Source Family are a part of its history.  The music they produced was inspiring to a lot of artists, as Yahowha 13’s albums are sought after as rare pieces of psychedelic rock history.  Most reactions lead to the source family documentary.  The documentary is well received, often compared to an amateur one that came out years before.  It is informative and includes comprehensive interviews from many ex-members.  Many of the former members talk about their experiences in the commune as fond memories.  Many still look up to Father Yod as a figure deserving respect, and incorporate some of his teachings in their daily lives.  The Source Family has escaped major criticism by becoming a cultural icon.  Yet, there are still people who feel the source family is a sinister organization.  Anti-Cult websites express that the documentary is not telling the whole truth.  Based on a blog from a former member, they claim Father Yod would mistreat women in the commune.  Father Yod’s legacy is protected by former members, because they are “brainwashed. “  This “subtle brainwashing” keeps the other family members from exposing the truth about what really went on in the commune.  The Source Family has done a pretty good job of having mostly good press.  If the only negative press they receive is from Anti-Cult websites, they will most likely be remembered fondly in history.

Final thoughts

     Overall, learning about this commune was very, eyeopening. During this time in history, I was aware of the explosion in culture that was found in the LA area, but not to this extent. It was as if it was another religious renaissance, and the California region was a hot bed for a lot of them.
     One action that very much stood out to me was the fact that each one of them had a certain encounter with Father Yod. Each person felt as if meeting them was an outer body experience. Some saw lightening bolts rise from his head, others felt the need to kneel down and kiss his feet. He gave off such an intimidating vibe which his followers respected.
     The restaurant they established, I thought was a brilliant idea. They used all the revenue they made from that restaurant, and put it towards their commune and living situations in the hills of LA. Their restaurant was so wildly popular with celebrities and passerby's, that they usually were well off when it came to house expenses. Because they did not believe in modern medicine, they really did not need to spend excessive money on medicine or hospital bills.
     This commune really was interesting to me. I never ever learned about any type of groups in this way, growing up. So learning about them now is really great.
   

The Diggers vs. The Source

A commune we’ve spent a lot of time talking about in class are the Diggers. The Diggers were active in the Haight-Ashbury area of San Francisco, California during the Hippie Movement and Summer of Love. During this time the nuclear family was changing; the birth control pill was introduced in 1960 and the sexual liberation movement was well in effect. Young people were leaving their homes to live on the streets or couch surf with strangers.

The Diggers were a group of people heavily invested in the arts and social justice. They rejected capitalistic culture in favor for a more communal and socialist way of living. “Garbage yoga” was a practice developed by The Diggers. They dug through dumpsters for edible food that they would then share with the community. During this time this was a relatively safe practice; restaurants and grocery stores threw away massive amounts of food that they weren't allowed to sell or re-use. They also held free concerts and performed street theater.

While their views could be seen as progressive for that time, their division of labor was still sexist to say the least. Men were the face of the movement - meeting, greeting and getting people to join. While women actually collected foods and goods. After a time, this group fizzled out and broke apart into different naturalist and Hippie movements.

The most striking differences between The Source Family and The Diggers are the way they were organized and ran. The Source Family had Yod, while The Diggers existed in a more egalitarian bubble. This doesn’t mean that things were equal between sexes; both groups had division of labor based on gender. Men would often be headed with the evangelism and recruitment. Women would generally work in gathering and preparing food, as well as clothing and other necessities.

Music and arts were also an important part of both groups; self-expression was both encouraged and celebrated. Overarching themes of health, wellness and clean resourceful living defined The Source Family and The Diggers. Unlike The Diggers, The Source Family wasn’t interested in social justice issues, much less issues that were outside of their commune. Everything was done for the family’s betterment as opposed to the betterment of society.

The Diggers weren’t religious - another large difference between the two groups. Another difference being that The Diggers don’t exist anymore; they were very much part of the times. A handful of members of The Source Family still keep in touch, and in fact, some live near each other in Hawaii. The way of life Father Yod led his followers to believe still holds power over some of these people. It has become their way of life, as opposed to something they were once a part of.

Sources:

The Source: The Untold Story of Father Yod, YaHoWha 13, and The Source Family (2007) by Isis Aquarian, Electricity Aquarian and Erik Davis

The Source Family (2012) a Process Media documentary

Isis: The Voice From Within

Very early on in the Source Family’s existence, a woman named Isis Aquarian was made family archivist. She has directly and indirectly been responsible for most of the documentation on the Source Family. She was also interviewed in the 2012 documentary on the family.

Isis Aquarian has seen it as her role and duty to teach the legacy of the family and Father Yod. Even today, she is still dedicated to making his way of living and it’s benefits known. In the documentary on the group, it was clear that the Source Family is still at the core of her life. Her children were conceived with member(s) of the group, and even 30+ years after Father Yod’s death, she is still brought to extreme emotions when recounting upon him and his teachings.

In the media, we hear about new religious movements, with a major focus being the movement’s leader. Whether they are using old ways, or new ways, one stark characteristic stands out in these leaders. They have an amazing ability to speak to the core of people.. But that usually isn’t a good thing. Via manipulation, exploitation of vulnerabilities, and isolation, these leaders completely alter the not just the lives of their followers, but their minds.

I reached out to Isis to see if she’d be willing to talk with me about her time in the family. However, after watching the documentary and seeing how she’s remained unwaveringly devoted to the Source family for decades, I could not find the courage speak with her.

Sources:

The Source: The Untold Story of Father Yod, YaHoWha 13, and The Source Family (2007) by Isis Aquarian, Electricity Aquarian and Erik Davis

The Source Family (2012) a Process Media documentary

Media Portrayal of The Source Family

It has been difficult to find media depictions of the Source Family. Of those that I have found, many have been influenced by people who to this day believe in the movement. However, the documentary titled after the group, The Source Family, was produced by an outside party and presents an unbiased look at the group. This movie was a combination of original films taken by the family’s archivist and a series of interviews with still living members of the family.

I found this movie enlightening, particularly the implication of the existence of this original footage. Many new religious movements have written and oral accounts of the experiences of their members, but Father Yod was determined to exceed this. Isis Aquarian was given the role of family archivist very shortly after the formation of the Source Family. In this role, over the course of years, Isis recorded the happenings of the family -- to such a degree that there exists recordings of the events leading up to his death. From this initial, thorough, and extreme documentation, it is clear to see his absolute belief in himself and his teachings.

Sources:

The Source: The Untold Story of Father Yod, YaHoWha 13, and The Source Family (2007) by Isis Aquarian, Electricity Aquarian and Erik Davis

The Source Family (2012) a Process Media documentary