sarva bhutesu ratna rupena sangsthita nastasvai namastvai
namastvai namo nama," he chanted soulfully.

If I could have followed his words down the corridors of time, I would
have seen him--

Ya devi...

Dramatically increasing the cost of public meditation lectures and
seminars.

... sarva bhutesu...

Charging one thousand dollars a person for weekend desert trips (1987).

... ratna rupena...

Increasing his advertising budget from hundreds (1977) to hundreds of
thousands (1987).

... sangsthita...

Requesting that manditory tuition--which took the place of the
voluntary Money Club--be paid in hundred dollar denominations to avoid
"low vibe" tens and twenties. Suggesting that followers hold off on
tax payments until "later." Raising monthly tuition from one hundred
dollars (1982) to approximately thirty-five hundred dollars (1993).

... nastasvai...

Driving a Renault LeCar (1979), a BMW (1981), a 911 Porsche (1982), a
928 Porsche (1983), a turbo Carerra Porsche (1984), a Bentley (1991).
Keeping seven cars at his New York property: three Mercedes Benzes, two
Porsches and two Range Rovers (1991).

... namastvai namastvai...

Renting the Del Mar castle, complete with turrets, a walk-in fireplace,
and a full-court basketball-game-sized living room (1982). Renting in
Malibu what he claimed was Goldie Hawn's house (1983). Spending roughly
nine hundred dollars per night for a hotel suite where his dog enjoyed
a room of its own (1988). Buying a house on Conscience Bay in Old
Field, New York, for about nine-hundred-fifty thousand dollars (1988).
Buying a house in Tesuque, a suburb near Sante Fe, New Mexico, for
about eight-hundred-seventy-five thousand dollars (1990). Spending
approximately one million dollars on each house for electronic security
systems and renovations (1991). Renting Sting's house in Malibu Colony
for about twenty-five thousand dollars a month (1992).

... namo nama.

I spent many happy hours with Atmananda, in the plushly carpeted
meditation room, watching the Pacific Ocean as I listened to him sing
and talk about his dreams. Deeply believing that millions would be
made happy, I refused to acknowledge that millions would soon be made.
And though I never chanted the money mantra, I helped my housemate who
did.

8. Fast Leader

In the fall of 1980, Atmananda spoke with the Stony Brook disciples,
who were still in New York, "on an inner level." He also spoke with
them on