Healing resources

See this phrase translated!

Did you feel that?


Slokum "meets" Leary

A personal account of Leary's attempt to minister to his son in jail

S I HAVE mentioned elsewhere, I spent the winter of 67/8 in New York City, living most of the time in a communal arrangement with a crew of various people who called themselves Teepee Town Tribe. This came from the style of naming one's crew (not really in the latter day street gang sense...) for some feature of common experience easy to grasp. Furthir Tales of an Intrepid Spirit a recollection of my friend and spirit guide, Luke, provides background for this account. (I've provided a link back to this page for your convenience and a sense of continuity. There was a fellow in our circle of regulars whom I shall call Bryan. He stayed over at the Teepee Town flat in the East Village on an occasional basis. Bryan had spent a good deal of time at Millbrook when the people gathered in Central park had been there, as extras playing the "Indians" in a Cowboy western film. He was a likeable guy, not very talkative, fairly easy to get along with. One day, early in the cold months of 1968, his best friend in New York City came by our flat, asking if we'd seen Bryan, that it wasn't like him to "thin-air it" as he appeared to have done. A friend of mine from Connecticut, Laura, thought he'd gone back up to the Hitchcock estate in Millbrook, after people had been specifically told not to return. This was after the famous bust led by the to-be-notorious G. Gordon Liddy. Laura suggested we go up to the estate, she and I. She knew the care-taker of the manor house and thought it would be safe for her to pay a search-and-find visit. I was game. So we hopped in her car, and she drove up the Thruway from Manhattan, that morning. What followed is still vivid in my memory. At one point along the road that the entrance gate to the 2000 acre estate fronted on, I felt a distinct "rush" of energy, like waves washing through me. Laura - not her given name, I don't recall what her name was - turned to me with a knowing smile, and said, "Did you feel that?" Of course, I did was my reply. She said, "Everytime I bring someone up here, they all say the same thing - everyone feels the rush about here. Pretty strong field of energy, huh?" We were still a mile from the gates! WAS RAISED to be skeptical of my feelings, to "worship" - almost, the scientific method, as it is taught in the Western world. This method had led to the experimetal approach to the nature of consciousness and the use of psychotropic substances, plants, roots, leaves, seeds, and now chemicals to study these alternate states of awareness. By the time of this episode, many of the early seekers had found Western thought inadequate to express what they were seeing and feeling, and were employing the language of "eastern" mysticism to describe their "trips". The academic community had withdrawn from the use of LSD, and Congress had placed it on a controlled substance list in 1966. What troubles me most about this, is that many who had participated in legitimate "research" were forever changed in their thinking about the supremacy of the nations of Europe and the West. For them, their experience hadn't been sanctioned off-limits when it occurred. Yet, since the official proscribing of LSD, these early consciousness pioneers have had to endure calumny and derision, as if they were no different than "irresponsible youth, who drink alcohol to excess, and then go joy riding... I, myself, feel fortunate that I was guided in my journey by those who had the chance to explore the inner worlds while it was still "legal" to do so. For them, LSD was never just another all-night party...now, you can see a model of the "suspect" molecule, and gather more information! Laura and I reached the main house without being turned away or detained in any way. She was quite familiar with the mansion and the land around it. We walked through some doors into a porch like enclosed space between what I'd guess is the main part of the building and the guest quarters. This passageway was enclosed and had French windows and doors on the opposite side from which we had entered. The doors opened out onto a terrace which was elevated above the grounds the other side of a low wall. Stuck onto the window pane in the left lowest corner of one of the doors was a hand lettered sign, left - no doubt - by some of the previous tenants of the mansion. Open the window to see what the sign said.... What a way with words someone had! In the years since that afternoon, I have seen that message apply to much more then one house where some of the people didn't - or wouldn't - house-break their dog...funny house the simple facts of life carry the most impact... Laura knew the caretaker of the house, so we went to the kitchen to find her, where we found her baking brownies. We didn't get a definite fix on the where-abouts of our friend and Leary's son. The suggestion was made by the housekeeper that perhaps the two fellows we wanted to find were camping out near the gazebo at the center of the estate. Laura looked at me and said let's go back to the city. After we left the estate she told me she was sore tempted to drive out to the gazebo and look for Bryan and Jack. But she was certain, that once we got there, I wouldn't want to leave it was so beautiful...which would have resulted in a tresspassing charge. So, we drove back to Manhattan After a short while, the residents of 77 E.2nd street got confirmation of events. Our friend Bryan and Tim Leary's son, had been arrested for trespassing at the Milbrook estate and were in Duchess County Jail lock-up. When Leary called a press conference at the jail, we decided to be there in support of our friend, and what we considered to be justice. A caravan was organized. About a dozen people left NYC early the next morning. When we got to the Duchess County Jail, a small media "circus" was already present. We got out of our cars and formed a circle on the lawn of the Jail building. We began chanting Aum, or OM as it has come to be known. This comes from various yoga disciplines, and is believed to help focus ones thoughts/mind/spirit. We were doing our best to lend our spirit to positive outcome of the events at hand. One of the Educational foundations that had been instituted by Leary, Richard Alpert and others was also legally constituted as a religious entity with the same visitation rights for its clergy as Catholic, Baptist, or what have you. In this sense Leary was a registered minister. He had called the press conference to draw public attention to the outcome of his attempt to visit his son under the rubric of the church to which they belonged. As that day went down, he was refused, and his lawyers immediately sued. (OF course, the powers that be had "other fish to fry," and Dr. Tim was in "the belly of the beast" before long...he, himself has written of that whole ordeal...) As we were OM-ing, we stood in a circle on the lawn holding each other's hands, doing the rhythmic breathing and chanting with our eyes closed, as was the form this group exercise took among us previously. We weren't at it but maybe five minutes when I felt a sudden "rush" of energy - not unlike the experience I'd had in the car on the way to the Hitchcock estate outside of Millbrook. A quick glance around showed me everyone still chanting with eyes tightly shut. A second glance to the street followed. What I saw was a small car braking to a stop at the curb. on the passenger side of the car was a brightly glowing look of a middle-aged man, whom I immediately recognized as Dr. Leary. I have seen that look and felt the same energy on other faces since then, but that instant was my first personal encounter with such charismatic intensity. Gurus I've met had it, Bobbie Kennedy had it (...I would meet him in Tucson but a few months in the future). As soon as Leary grinned upon looking at us, I announced Dr. Tim is here, an everybody stopped OM-ing and opened their eyes and gave him a rousing cheer of support. Even though Leary was not successful in his mission that day, his son and our friend were released. Frankly, I don't recall if Bryan was one of the 17 people who drove to Arizona that spring or not. The world was turning, and most of the 17 Teepee Town trib-ers were on their paths within another year. Leary went on to go to prison, escape, be on a TV program with the by then world famous G. Gordon Liddy who ended up in federal prison for HIS own reasons. Suffice it to say, I will never forget the look on Leary's face as he got out of his car, that day! "When in the course of human events..." A Declaration of Evolution

Who was Frank Olson, how did he die,
And why is this link on this page?
Don't go here if you are "faint of heart"