Since Subud Voice is now once again available in full to the general public, we no longer publish talks by Bapak or Ibu Rahayu in their entirety, because it is felt that, generally speaking, these are really only comprehensible and of value to people who already practise the latihan.
Bapak always insisted that his talks are “explanations” for people who already follow the latihan. One of his oft-repeated maxims was, “First the experience, then the explanation!”
He compared the latihan to eating a mango. There is no way you can “explain” the taste of a mango to someone who has not tasted one. First, you must experience it for yourself, then you can talk about it.
At the same time, brief quotations from Bapak, the founder of Subud, and his daugther, Ibu Rahayu, are often comprehensible to anyone, and may contain wisdom or advice that is akin to what is said in religion or other spiritual traditions.
So what we will do in Subud Voice from now on is generally suggest a talk which relates in some way to the contents of the issue and include a brief quotation of general interest. Subud members may then go to the www.subudlibrary.net web site to read the talk in its entirety.
SUBUD WILL LAST FOR 800 YEARS…
From Pewarta Vol.14, No.1 November 1979
Copyright © 2007 the World Subud Association. All rights reserved.
Published by Subud Publications International
Code Number : 79 CDK 2
Provisional Translation
Delivered at Wisma Subud Jakarta, Indonesia January 7, 1979…
The fact is that Bapak is only a pioneer in Subud. Bapak is not the one with authority. The only one with authority over you and in your lives is God Almighty who can bring you to heaven. And Bapak has set up this dewan of helpers so that gradually they can learn to feel the certainty and the conviction of their own relationship with Almighty God and their own guidance that they receive from Almighty God.
Bapak is here with you to give you advice and so on. But you have to understand that Bapak is a human being and although now Bapak is fresh and healthy and strong, nevertheless Bapak is a human being like all of us, so that one of these days, after some years, Bapak will no longer be with us. And if by that time we have still not leaved learned to stand on our own feet, how to look after, how to receive for ourselves and how to express in reality what we have received from Almighty God, then Subud will be limited to Bapak’s own life span, the and Subud will begin and end with Bapak.
But that is not the Will of God Almighty. The Will of God Almighty is only that Bapak should be a pioneer, that Bapak should bring to us something which will bring us into contact with God’s Power. And once we have received this, once Bapak has brought us face to face with this, then we can carry it on ourselves. So if the helpers can carry out their duties, if the helpers can put into practice what Bapak has told you, then Bapak has received that Subud will last for 800 years, and only after 800 years will there be some change, will it turn in some different direction. This Subud that Bapak has brought will only last that long, provided that during Bapak’s lifetime the helpers have begun to feel for themselves the reality of with what they have received through the pioneering of Bapak.