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Andrew Cohen (spiritual teacher)

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Andrew Cohen (b. 1955) is an American guru, spiritual teacher, magazine editor, author, and musician who has developed what he characterizes as a unique path of spiritual transformation, called "Evolutionary Enlightenment." He sees himself as working in conjunction with others to bring about a new stage of human consciousness and culture. Towards this end, Cohen and his students frequently engage with a variety of spiritual teachers, philosophers, activists, and cultural figures. Many of these encounters, as well as Cohen's writings, are featured in What Is Enlightenment? magazine, which is published quarterly by the international organization he founded, EnlightenNext.

Biography

Cohen was born in New York City in 1955. Raised as a secular Jew, his life was changed by a spontaneous experience of "cosmic consciousness" at the age of sixteen. Haunted by the memory of this event, Cohen abandoned his ambition to become a jazz drummer in order to recapture this revelation. Studying martial arts, then Kriya Yoga, then Buddhism from ages 22 to 30, Cohen eventually met the Advaita Vedanta master H. W. L. Poonja in 1986. After a deep spiritual awakening, and with the encouragement of Poonja (with whom Cohen later parted ways), Cohen began to teach.

In 1988, Cohen founded EnlightenNext, a nonprofit educational and spiritual network committed to creating a new global culture. In addition to small groups of students located in various parts of the world, EnlightenNext has public centers in New York, Boston, London, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Zurich, Paris, Copenhagen, Tel Aviv, and Rishikesh, India. The main center for EnlightenNext is a 220-acre (890,000 m²) retreat venue in Lenox, Massachusetts, where Cohen and his largest body of students currently reside.

Shortly after he began teaching, Cohen began to meet with other spiritual teachers in order to share his experience and to probe more deeply into the nature of enlightenment. In 1991, he founded the magazine What Is Enlightenment?, in order to share and further this investigation. As editor in chief of WIE, he believes that "it is on our shoulders to create the future," and sees the magazine and its associated programs as popular forums for dialogue and inquiry regarding the meaning of spiritual life in the postmodern era. WIE has developed an international speaker’s series called Voices from the Edge, an online multimedia forum known as WIE Unbound, and a partnership with the Graduate Institute (TGI) to offer a master’s program in Conscious Evolution. In 2006, WIE was honored by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences with the Webby People's Voice Award in the Religion and Spirituality category.

Cohen was a featured speaker at the 2004 Parliament of the World's Religions, is a founding member of Integral Institute, and was awarded the 2006 Kashi Humanitarian Award.

Ideas

Cohen’s original spiritual teaching, Evolutionary Enlightenment, is said to be unique for placing the traditional realization of enlightenment in the context of cosmic evolution. By awakening to the timeless "Ground of Being," Cohen maintains, human beings can liberate themselves from selfish motives, or ego, and learn to manifest what he calls the "Authentic Self." This self beyond ego is said to represent humanity at its most wholesome: creative, compassionate, and motivated by an "evolutionary impulse" that is "one with the big bang itself." According to Cohen, when human beings choose to live as the Authentic Self, they can realize their inseparability from the universe and thereby discover a purpose for living that transcends egoism—that is, the "uniquely human" capacity to participate in the evolution of consciousness itself.

Cohen distinguishes Evolutionary Enlightenment from "personal" or traditional enlightenment. In Evolutionary Enlightenment, he teaches, enlightenment is no longer the possession of the individual, but instead becomes the ground of relationship upon which a new culture is created. Cohen argues that the creation of this new consciousness and culture is essential for the survival of the race, and says that it is particularly incumbent upon those individuals who are at the "leading edge" of human development to take this "next step."

To assist those who wish to evolve in this way, Cohen has developed a comprehensive teaching, the essential elements of which include "The Five Tenets" and "Six Principles" of Evolutionary Enlightenment. An interactive teaching model summarizes the perspective offered by these teachings.

Music

In 2001, Cohen re-engaged his passion for drumming and formed the "jazz-funk-fusion" band "Unfulfilled Desires." The band plays original compositions and standards, and performs in Europe and the United States. It has released two CDs: Enlightened Dog (2004) and Live at the Iron Horse (2002).

Criticism

Some ex-members including his mother view Cohen as a charismatic and manipulative cult leader. Several books including Dr. André van der Braak's Enlightenment Blues: My Years with an American Guru and articles have been published which post various allegations including demands for large cash sums and extreme, unquestioning devotion from his students.

His mother, Luna Tarlo, wrote a book called Mother of God about her experience as one of his disciples, and about what she maintains was her struggle to free herself from his control.

Bibliography

Books by Cohen

  • My Master Is My Self (1989), ISBN 1-883929-07-5
  • Enlightenment Is a Secret (1991), ISBN 1-883929-08-3
  • Autobiography of An Awakening, (1991), ISBN 0-9622678-4-8
  • An Unconditional Relationship to Life (1995), ISBN 1-883929-04-0
  • The Challenge of Enlightenment (1996), ISBN 1-883929-14-8
  • In Defense of the Guru Principle (1999), ISBN 1-883929-27-X
  • Freedom Has No History (1997), ISBN 1-883929-17-2
  • Who Am I? and How Shall I Live? (1998), ISBN 1-883929-24-5
  • Embracing Heaven & Earth (2000), ISBN 1-883929-29-6
  • Living Enlightenment: A Call for Evolution Beyond Ego (2002), ISBN 1-883929-30-X

Books about Cohen

  • Tarlo, Luna The Mother of God, SCB Distributors (1997) ISBN 1-57027-043-0
  • van der Braak, André, Enlightenment Blues: My Years with an American Guru, Monkfish Book Publishing (2003), ISBN 0-9726357-1-8

Monographs and articles

  • van der Braak, André, "Verlichting als evolutionair proces: Een studie van Andrew Cohen en zijn leefgemeenschap" (Dutch language) in the book series Religieuze bewegingen in Nederland/Religious movements in the Netherlands nr 29 Sekten, published by the Free University Amsterdam, (1994) ISBN 90-5383-341-2 written when van der Braak was still a follower of Cohen

External links

Critical websites

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