THE FABLED HISTORY OF STILL MOUNTAIN RETREAT and HOW WE CRASH LANDED HERE: Our struggle to transform a ruined abandoned property into a sacred sanctuary

The story of how this property was built to be a community center in 1906, then transformed into a church, the church’s spectacular end and how we crash landed here after a heartbreaking loss

Written and published by Chinmayan in loving appreciation of all life!

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This is our WEEKEND EDITION of THE DAWNING LIGHT Magazine # 1318

Our PREMIUM version of our “Daily Journal of Transformational Writing”

STILL MOUNTAIN CHRONICLES SECTION # 185 Stories by Chinmayan about our life in pursuit of simple living, our own spiritual path and our service to the world in a small meditation center in the mountains

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All images in this issue courtesy of Pixabay

OUR PROPERTY WAS BUILT TO BE A COMMUNITY CENTER IN 1906

Our Still Mountain Meditation Center building is in one of the oldest buildings in this high mountain valley. 

It was built by a cooperative of farmers, ranchers, homesteaders and townsfolk back in 1906 to be their community center, where all kinds of events, from dances to weddings to meetings and big dinners, concerts and any other celebration was held.

At the time, its construction was a true labor of love, as everyone either helped build it, contributed money or building materials and worked together selflessly to realize their dream of a big, beautiful place for the community to gather. Raising the building was like the old fashioned barn raisings where 40 or 50 folks spent the weekends working on it, while each family brought lots of homegrown food to share picnic style and children played. It was a very happy and harmonious time for everyone involved,

It was built with old growth redwood and tight grain fir and had a huge hall with high ceilings and a big stage. 

It had a large kitchen and a big dining room, with clear water pumped in from a deep hand dug brick lined well. 

It was one of the first buildings to be electrified when electrical service came to this area, using the original “knob and wire” system. 

It was built on land donated by the ranch that still surrounds this acre of land on a busy intersection of country roads.

It was well loved, and often used and held a special place of pride in the community for many years.

 It was the precursor to the local Grange, which after it was formed, decided to buy a much bigger facility and campus of an elementary school located in town that had been closed when the city built a new one.

Years later, when we first were here, many times old folks in their 80’s and 90’s would stop by to share their fond memories of attending events here when they were just young boys or girls long ago. They thanked me with tears in their eyes for being the person brave enough to take on the daunting task of saving their precious “Punkin Center”, as they called it.

THE BUILDING WAS TRANSFORMED INTO A CHURCH

They sold our building to folks who wanted to start their own Baptist Church in the 1960’s. 

Again, the folks who carried the vision for the new church worked together cooperatively to remodel and upgrade the old building. 

They added modern bathrooms, a nursery for young children, sank a new well, walled off the stage and built a new sanctum in front of it, with a long prayer rail, created a pastor’s office and a safe area for children to play out back. 

They brought in the best solid oak pews, installed the finest carpet in the sanctuary and a big new organ for worship services.  They invested a lot of love and caring into the building which became the spiritual center of their lives.

It was a true country church that  grew and thrived here for over thirty years…until the original pastor retired and a new young pastor was hired to lead the church. 

Unfortunately, the older members of the congregation, who loved and followed their original pastor for so long,  strenuously objected to some of the new ideas and new ways of preaching that the new young pastor brought forth. 

The younger members of the congregation loved his new approach and brought many of their friends to join the church. 

THE SCHISM THAT DESTROYED THE CHURCH

A schism developed between the old and young members which simmered for months until one Sunday morning it broke out into the open while the young preacher was giving a sermon. 

It got so heated that the two sides were yelling at each other louder and louder until fistfights broke out that grew into a terrible brawl. 

The preacher couldn’t stop it as it escalated into a full scale battle and fled out the door with his family to safety, followed soon by all the members from both factions.  The young preacher soon resigned and left town to pastor somewhere where his new ideas were welcomed and wanted.

The disagreements over doctrine were so strong that the two sides would not talk to each other, and all attempts at saving the church were rebuffed.

All the members abandoned the church and never went back.  The church association that owned it was too far away to do anything to care for it, and couldn’t send a new pastor after the congregation had gone in different directions.

THE PROPERTY IS ABANDONED, ABUSED AND NEGLECTED

With no one to care for the property or the building, it was broken into by vandals, used for drunken teenage hangouts and neglected for years.  The roof deteriorated in the sun and storms until it leaked profusely, which caused half of the floors to collapse.  The exterior paint was cracking and the acre of land was a jungle of overgrown blackberries, bushes and dead grass.

It sat for years on this corner as a forlorn building falling into ruin.  The church association put it up for sale, but no one came forward to buy it because it was in such bad condition.

WE LOST THE ORIGINAL STILL MOUNTAIN RETREAT

Meanwhile, I had invested nearly 20 years of my life in building a beautiful meditation retreat center on 22 acres of virgin land in the mountains outside our little town. 

It was the original Still Mountain Retreat, and during the years I was there, I built miles of trails, a large spring fed lake, a beautiful temple, a 2 story cabin, a bath house and sauna complex, a large wood shop, a 2 bedroom main house and good roads. 

We drilled a miracle well that I was led to locating through prayer that produced 50 gallons of water a minute, even though the well drillers said getting water at that site was impossible.

The land was an ideal sanctuary for spiritual growth, including a creek with spectacular 150 foot waterfalls and many sacred power spots. 

Even though I was so dedicated to building it and making it the focus of my dharma work for the rest of my life, I made some serious mistakes during a time of travail and misfortune which culminated in being forced to sell the property.

It was a devastating blow with a set deadline for us having to leave it and all we had created there behind.  I had very little time and very little money to find a suitable place to move to, and as the days counted down to the day we had to leave, my search became more desperate.

HOW WE CRASH LANDED HERE AFTER LOSING THE ORIGINAL STILL MOUNTAIN

I remember very well the day I discovered this property as I was driving around the Valley.  It had a battered and faded for sale sign by the road with a realtors phone number.

I parked my old truck in the weeds in front and got out to check it out.  At that point, we had just a week left before the deadline. 

The place was in terrible condition.  The doors had been broken open and when I went inside, I saw the collapsed floor, sagging roof, and trash everywhere.  Fortunately, the north half of the building where the church sanctuary, bathrooms and stage room were was still intact.  I remember thinking “this place is almost too far gone to save.”

I called the realtor who basically said he’d tried to sell it, but failed and was about to give up the listing.   He told me honestly about the buildings many issues, which, if I hadn’t been desperate, would have dissuaded me from even being interested.

When I told him about our situation, he said he would call the owners to see what could be worked out.

When he called back, he said the owners had no interest in the place and would accept any offer and terms that I could make if I would just take it off their hands.

Over the years, I have often thought that I was crazy for buying it because of the huge effort and expense of saving it from utter ruin. 

When the owners of this place accepted my offer of just $30,000, with no money down and no payments for a year it was a “any port in a storm” situation. 

This property, even in its terrible condition, did give us a refuge and a fresh beginning. It was either jump here to the safety of this property or become homeless.

WE TRANSFORMED IT INTO A BEAUTIFUL SANCTUARY

Now, 28 years later, we have transformed this acre and huge building into our sanctuary and the home of Inner Resource Institute and Still Mountain Meditation Center with thousands of hours of blood, sweat and tears, repairing, remodeling and upgrading it very gradually whenever we have had money for the work.

I am grateful everyday for what we have created here over all those years.   There will probably always be more work to do, but it now has a new roof, new electrical system, a remodeled sanctuary and bathrooms…and so much more. 

We have turned a place that was a near ruin into an ideal place for meditation, spiritual practice and our service to the world. 

We may someday move to the “ideal” property further into the country, that is quiet, has a large lake and the other qualities we may dream about as our future Still Mountain Meditation Retreat Center, with cabins and all the other facilities we would love to have to “better serve the world”…

But this acre has become so sacred from all the prayer and practice that has been and is being done here, and so beautiful in its gardens and grounds, so welcoming and loving in its energy that, whenever we leave here to go do errands or other things, I can’t wait to return. 

I am always very happy to arrive here, open the big main gates and come in because Still Mountain truly is our sanctuary where so much good has happened…and there is nearly unlimited potential for so much more to unfold.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

Calligraphy by Chinmayan

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