The following folks have graciously agreed to be interviewed for
The Theme of Creation; An Exploration of Meher Baba's 'God Speaks'
Rick Chapman
While travelling on a Fullbright scholarship in India, Rick met Baba in 1965. He returned to the bay area and gave numerous talks on Baba, spear-heading interest throughout 1960's counterculture. He has written How to Choose a Guru and is the co-editor of Darshan Hours.
Allan Cohen
Harvard graduate Allen Cohen became interested in Meher Baba during the summer of 1964. He has given hundreds of talks on Baba's life and work, and in 1977 published The Mastery of Consciousness.
Kendra Crossen Burroughs
Kendra is a book editor specializing in religions of the East and West. She has compiled The Essential Ken Wilber and Entering the Tao: Master Ni's Guidance for Self-Cultivation. She currently works as an editor for Shambhala Books and lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Robert Dreyfuss
Harvard graduate Robert Dreyfuss met Meher Baba in 1965 and has given numerous public talks on Baba. He currently resides in Berkeley, California.
Charmian Duce Knowles
The daughter of Murshida Ivy Duce, Charmian spent a great deal of time with Meher Baba beginning in 1948. Via 16mm film, she beautifully documented Baba's 1956 trip to the United States. Her memoir, Spread My Love has recently been published.
Carl Ernst
A professor and chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Dr. Ernst is a specialist in Islamic mysticism. He has translated Ruzbihian Baqli's The Unveiling of Secrets: Diary of a Sufi Master and is the author of The Eternal Garden; Mysticism, History and Politics at a South Asian Sufi Center and the recent Following Muhammad: Rethinking Islam in the Contemporary World.
Bhau Kalchuri
"Bhau" V.S. Kalchuri joined Meher Baba's permanent resident mandali in 1953 at the age of 27. For years he served as Baba's night watchman and handled various correspondence, translation and writing projects. He is the author of The Nothing and the Everything, Avatar of the Age Avatar Meher Baba Manifesting, and the 20-volume biography, Lord Meher.
Pascal Kaplan
Professor Kaplan has taught university classes on Meher Baba's God Speaks, and is the author of Understanding Death. He currently resides in Walnut Creek, California.
Phyllis Ott
Travelling from Woodstock, New York, Phyllis first met Meher Baba in India in 1964. Baba received her with love and kindness, and invited her to return with her husband, Lyn. She is the artist in residence at the Meher Spiritual Center, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Tom Riley
Tom grew up in Woodstock, NY and began painting at age 16. He first heard of Meher Baba in 1954, which initiated a life-long preoccupation with him. In 1962, he had the opportunity to be with Baba in India at the East-West Gathering. Still painting, he currently lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Don Stevens
Born in 1919 in Nevada and raised in California, Don Stevens graduated with a degree in chemistry from Johns Hopkins University. He became employed in the petroleum industry, subsequently traveling throughout the world as a representative of a major American oil company. During his travels he met with Meher Baba in India and thereafter maintained a close relationship with him, working on various literary projects and with groups of young people interested in Baba. Mr. Stevens is co-editor of God Speaks and has written a variety of books on Meher Baba including Listen, Humanity, and the recent Meher Baba's Gift of Intuition.
Adele Wolkin
A staple of the Los Angeles Baba group, Ms. Wolkin first met Meher Baba in 1952. She has worked as a registered nurse, and assisted both Norina Matchibelli and Filis Frederick during the final years of their lives. She currently lives in Redondo Beach, California.
