I'm once again booked up with workawayers, who I prefer as they stick around much longer, and come more with an attitude of wanting to help out.
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Teaching perfection in yarn mandala weaving. Talking to people about Avatar of the Age, Meher Baba. Learning to live in my new home, Teotitlán Del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico. Studying Spanish. Getting back to some writing projects. assorted art projects.

ABOUT ME

80 year old free spirit, artist, 50+ years follower of Avatar Meher Baba as my long time spiritual guide. Twice traveled to India for 6 months at a time, both to stay at Meherabad, but also to share my skills and passion for weaving yarn mandalas, based on Native American as well as Tibetan mandalas. I was an early hippie, but renounced drugs decades ago to see more clearly into the true spiritual values. I am not at all evangelistic about my beliefs however, and am accepting of all sorts of lifestyles and paths. I'm thrice divorced, and may be hopeless with romance, however my first marriage produced four wonderful boys, now all grown, healthy and independent. I'm generally a very quiet sort, but get me started on my favorite topics, and I can carry on for a long time. I love all things India, and almost feel more at home there than I do back in the USA where I was born. Mostly I've lived in different parts of California, but also spent a total of 10 years in South and North Carolina, and now have been living the last six+ years in Oaxaca, Mexico.

As well as the usual few days couchsurfer visit, I'm interested in hosting long term stays .... and I'm open to renting my spare bedroom by the month.

PHILOSOPHY
Finding God within, mainly through service to the God within everyone. Learning not to judge others, but to see only the positive as much as possible. Finding happiness through creative efforts, music, art of all sorts.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Mostly I provide a safe haven for traveling young women. I also take in others, and like to guide people to the special spots of interest I know around Oaxaca.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I've hosted more than 100 couchsurfers, from 40+ countries. Also, on one 12 hour stay in London on way to India, a couchsurfer host met me and helped me with sightseeing tips. I stayed with wonderful hosts in Carlsbad New Mexico and shared my mandala weaving skills.

Interests

All manner of artwork and music, meeting creative and interesting people, good books and movies, sharing my weaving techniques and talents, the beauties of nature, the lives of saints and mystics, exploring the customs, festivals, and lifestyles of people everywhere, hiking and exploring, traveling by trains and buses, ecology, sustainable lifestyles, simple foods, and much time quietly weaving my mandalas or writing fiction, or blogging my experiences. I've also become something of an anti-psychedelics crusader, as current crazes among young people I meet towards ayahuasca especially, strike me as very dangerous territory to venture into. It all reminds me of the strong belief in the 1960's in LSD, which turned out to be a big mistake for many.

• arts
• writing
• books
• festivals
• yoga
• crafts
• movies
• traveling
• blogging
• music
• hiking
• camping
• ecology
• sightseeing
• mountains
• spirituality
• dance
• india
• current events
• silence
• world cultures
• quakers
• facebook
• indigenous peoples
• meher baba

Music, Movies, and Books

So many, where to start? The discourses of Avatar Meher Baba! International music, both folk and classical, from just about everywhere. The old time folk music of the Appalachian Mountains, where I lived before moving to Mexico. Movies: Gandhi, The Mask, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind ..... check my facebook page for long list!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Entering an exhibit in 1965 sent by the Dalai Lama of Tibet, and having my mind go totally clear, and also discovering yarn and stick talismans exactly like I had seen earlier in Mexico. Hiking to the top of Yosemite Falls in the early Spring, with lots of snow, and huge icicles that formed in the night breaking off and thundering down to the valley floor. Discovering Meher Baba as Avatar of the Age, and my personal spiritual guide for life. Camping for all summer in high meadows near the tree line on Mt. Shasta, California. Discovering Joshua Tree California, which would later become my home for 20+ years. Hitching hiking back roads all over California and much of the rest of Western USA in the 1960's.

Teach, Learn, Share

Get me started on who is Meher Baba, and I can go on and on. Usually I'm a quiet person, but again, get me started on my artwork, woven yarn mandalas, and a flood may come out. Currently the two things I really enjoy is weaving my mandalas, and teaching others to weave them. To see lots of examples of my work, Google search my name, Jay Mohler, and hit the "images" option.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Teaching the weaving of Ojos de Dios yarn mandalas. Stories of being a 1960's hippie in San Francisco, 1964-8. Sharing experience of spending a total of 1 yr. in India. Close to 50 years experience in following Meher Baba as Avatar of the Age.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, England, India, Mexico, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

India, Mexico, United States