Where did you grow up?
I was born in New York City and grew up in Queens.
What drew you to the Chopra Center?
Shortly after 9/11 I attended the Seduction of Spirit meditation retreat in Oxford, England. When it ended, I headed off to India on a journey of self-discovery. Two years later, on Bastille Day – July 14 – I found myself attending Journey into Healing, the Chopra Center’s signature mind-body workshop. Having completed the two prerequisites for becoming a certified meditation teacher, attending the teacher training was the logical next step.
After Journey into Healing ended, I never left the Center. I volunteered for a while and ultimately found my sweet spot here helping to translate the visions of Drs. Simon and Chopra into the daily workings of our organization.
What do you love about working here?
I’ve been teaching meditation every week to guests at Perfect Health, Seduction of Spirit, and SynchroDestiny for the past four years. It has connected me to thousands of people around the world and is the greatest gift I’ve received.
My job in the Chopra Center universe satisfies my three requirements for any work I do. First, I have to like and approve of the work being done and the values being promoted. I completely support the vision Drs. Simon and Chopra have created for the Center and find my bliss in helping to translate that vision into the daily workings of our organization.
Like most people, I also want to work with individuals I like and care about. I cherish my family here at the Chopra Center and commit myself each day to helping them fulfill their dharma. Finally, I respect and love the individuals who touch our world – who come to the Center in search of greater health or a richer, more fulfilling life. I get to see the tangible results of people moving from states of pain to deep healing. What could be better than that?! On top of all of these rewards, every day in this world is a new day. There’s nothing routine about working here, and every day offers infinite potential for creativity and growth.
What’s your dosha?
My prakruti is Pitta. Focus, intention, and passion.
What’s your favorite food?
Any 70 percent (or higher!) cacao dark chocolate . . . and blueberries – both are Pitta pacifying.
How do you keep your doshas in balance?
I learned how to balance my doshas when I attended the Perfect Health program. My daily routine has become a sweet ritual. It includes a regular meditation practice; a self-abhy massage every morning, and I often surround myself with Pitta- and Vata-balancing colors – soothing blues, greens, and earth tones.
I adhere to a Pitta-balancing diet (except when I’m eating spicy Thai, Chinese, or Indian food) and I visit the ocean at least once a week. I also share an office with someone who absorbs my excess Pitta and gives me some sweet grounding Kapha in exchange!
What’s your favorite quotation?
“If you’re going through hell, keep going” – by Winston Churchill. It reminds me to breathe deep, stay centered, be self referred, and move forward when it seems dark out there. There’s always light at the end of the tunnel and most likely it’s streaming out of your own soul. I also have been known to say, “Deepak Chopra swirls the heavens and David Simon brings heaven to earth.”
What are your archetypes?
I have a bunch – the more the merrier. Infinite possibilities, right? My short list starts with Lord Rama, who for me represents integrity of word, thought and deed. I’m also guided by the remover of obstacles - Ganesha, the little boy with an elephant’s head, who liberates me on a daily basis. And each day I get to work with two of the most brilliant, insightful, and compassionate healers on the planet. They are my greatest teachers.
What’s your funniest meditation story?
I’ve been teaching meditation every week to guests at Perfect Health, Seduction of Spirit, and SynchroDestiny for the past four years. Teaching has connected me to thousands of people around the world and is the greatest gift I’ve received. One week, after teaching 15 people in a row their Primordial Sound mantra, I was feeling pretty blissed out. During the ritual of teaching the mantra, instructors ask the new meditator to repeat his or her Primordial Sound silently for a few moments while we join them in silence with our eyes closed. On this occasion, when I opened my eyes I realized a half hour had passed! I’d gone so deeply into meditation that time had stopped for me. My student was sitting there looking quietly bewildered. Then we both started laughing hysterically. Neither of us have ever forgotten that moment . . . er . . . half hour. Teaching others present moment awareness remains the greatest gift I could ever receive.
Are there any causes that you support?
Speaking on my own behalf rather than for the Center, I believe we have an obligation to protect and nurture all the sentient beings on the planet. Humanity has been given dominion over the animals in the world, and it’s our duty to offer them our compassion and care. I support the Humane Society and groups that protect animals from cruelty and needless suffering. There are hundreds of thousands of pets in shelters and pounds around the world who are looking for a home and could use your love. Just in Florida alone, about 50,000 animals have to be euthanized every week because there’s no one to take care of them. I believe we also have an obligation to treat the animals that provide us with sustenance with as much dignity and care as we can. This means working to end the inhumane practices of factory farming and animal experimentation.
Do you have any pets?
Yes, two amazing dogs. A 7-pound, 10-year-old silver toy poodle named Pearl. We rescued her from a Nashville, Tennessee animal shelter. And recently, I adopted Peaches – the Buddha Princess from a shelter up in L.A. She’s a 2-year old maltese yorkie mix. There are hundreds of thousands of pets in shelters and pounds around the world who are looking for a home and could use your love. We have an obligation to protect and nurture all the sentient beings on the planet.
What was your most transcendent moment?
I was traveling in Jaipur, India, wandering along the streets, when an Indian man came up to me, hugged me and said, “Mr. David, I’m so glad you’ve come here. We’ve been waiting for you.” I’d never met this man in my life. I suddenly felt timeless and I merged into everything . . . the sky, the clouds, the earth, the man, my soul. It was indescribably profound and lasted for what seemed like eternity. Every time I meditate I drift into some form of that experience and it occasionally weaves itself back into my waking state consciousness.
What are your favorite books?
I’m a voracious reader. But I would say some of my favorites are Dominion, by Matthew Sculley; Awakening the Buddha Within, by Lama Surya Das; Absolute Tao, by Osho; The Ten Commitments, by David Simon;The Spontaneous Fulfillment of Desire, by Deepak Chopra; and The Razor’s Edge, by Somerset Maugham. I also love the irreverence of Vonnegut, Sartre, Molière, and Bukowski.
What’s your favorite Chopra Center product?
David Simon’s newest book – his 13th – Free to Love, Free to Heal.
What’s your favorite city?
In addition to New York – the center of the universe; and Carlsbad – the sweet spot of the universe, my favorite place would be Boracay in the Philippines. It’s a powder-white-sand island filled with loving people. It has great diving and a temperature of 98 degrees, 365 days a year.
Who would you most like to invite to a dinner party?
It would be a big list but I would definitely invite His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Oprah, Martha Stewart, my Dad, Andy Warhol, Gwen Stefani, Jimmy Page, Osho, James Hetfield, Henry David Thoreau, Bill O’Reilly, Grace Kelly, Bill Clinton, Moses, Ammachi, Karl Marx, Emmylou Harris, Richard Branson, Patti Smith, King Tutankhamun, Jimi Hendrix, and Thomas Edison. I’d also want to make sure that the loving staff of the Chopra Center would be there to shine their magnificent light.
Any closing words?
Thanks. Peace . . . and keep meditating.
