My good friend Paul brought me to see David in the fall of 2008. Paul and I got to know one another while studying with another great master who had passed away years earlier. At first I was a little hesitant when Paul described David's teaching as strictly transmission/darshan, as I knew how easy the shakti can become just another drug you hunger for while the teacher keeps you enthralled. I had been studying with a teacher who focused on just being present. This was healthy for me, as I didn't want to get caught up in another shakti-drug trip like I'd gone through with a previous teacher. But when meeting David for the first time, he really felt like family -- that's really the best way I can put it. I felt so comfortable with him, as if I'd known him for years. And I loved his honesty and directness. He openly and freely criticized anyone or any teaching that reeked of bullshit. It was really refreshing to meet a teacher like that.

As for the shakti, yes, it's wonderful, of course! But it's almost more important for me to be with a teacher I can trust, who'll never bullshit me or string me along. And it's clear to me, beyond any doubt, that David is a very deeply realized master, who can help me untie all my inner knots so I can be truly free.