Andrew Cohen. An Obituary. A Spiritual Teacher. Born 23 October 1955 in New York. Died 25 March 2025 in Tiruvannamalai, India
He leaves behind a number of publications, including the books My Master is Myself; Enlightenment is a Secret and An Unconditional Relationship to Life. In his most recent book, When Shadows Meet the Bodhisattva, he shares his experiences as a guru.
Andrew exhibited formidable presence in the world of spirituality, non-duality, meditation and community. He started giving teachings in 1986 through until the present. An embodiment of controversy, clarity and dark shadows, he offered precious insights into ultimate truth alongside self-centred tendencies that led to a gradual and then dramatic fall from grace.
A beautiful community evolved into a submissive cult of Andrew until the cult liberated itself from his ongoing controlling behaviour. In a way, the rebellion paid a compliment to Andrew’s forthright teachings about getting rid of the ego.
Several times, Andrew made sincere apologies for his aggression and violence as he realised the full implications of the harm and trauma he inflicted on his vulnerable followers. He had a lot to face up to and live with in the years after his downfall.
His Legacy and Meeting Andrew
Outside of Andrew’s unresolved personality issues, I loved his passion, dedication and commitment to the Dharma of enlightenment. It is a loss for spiritual seekers that his state of mind regularly kept getting in the way of transmission.
Born into a wealthy Jewish family in New York City, Andrew originally intended to become a musician. By the time he reached his early 20s, he made his priority a spiritual quest, prompted by a profound experience at the age of 16.
Andrew leaves behind a substantial legacy, books, YouTube video talks, documentaries on his rise and fall, available on YouTube, audio recordings, and a wealth of teachings on spiritual issues. For nearly three decades, Andrew promoted his teachings named Evolutionary Enlightenment, inspired to some degree by the American spiritual writer, Ken Wilbur.
A key priority for Andrew was to cultivate and develop a global Sangha for those willing to commit to his teachings and him as an enlightened master. Andrew founded EnlightenmentNext, a beautifully produced magazine, which ran until 2011 with a wealth of insights, interviews and firsthand accounts of spiritual experiences. A mountain of debt, the rise of social, spiritual websites and online teachings outdated the publication.
I recall meeting Andrew around 1982 when he joined one of my annual 9-day retreats at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, USA. He revealed himself to be deeply committed to the process of meditation having received encouragement from Ram Das, a prominent American guru figure and former Harvard University professor of psychology.
I witnessed Andrew demonstrate a profound commitment, sincerity, and determination to advance his spiritual practices. I observed him regularly on my retreats for the next four years, including Gaia House Buddhist retreat centre, 15 kilometres from my home in Totnes, Devon, England. He flew to Germany to sit retreats with me at the Waldhaus Retreat Zentrum, near Andernach and to centres near San Francisco, as well as Bodh Gaya, India.
A Transformation for Andrew
His financial resources, derived from a significant inheritance, enabled him to support his spiritual life full-time. A transformative change in Andrew, aged 31, occurred in early 1986 with H.W.L. Poonja-ji, a guru in the Non-Dual (Advaita) tradition, residing in Lucknow, nine hours by train from Bodh Gaya.
He took the train directly there after he attended my 20-day retreat at the Royal Thai Monastery in January 1986.
In late 1985, I exchanged correspondence with beloved Murray from Canada with a wealth of experience in the Dharma. He referred highly to Poonja-ji. Issues with walking at that time hindered Poonja’s mobility to come to give a talk to our Bodh Gaya retreatants. Poonja suggested I encourage a few people from the retreat to come to attend satsang in Lucknow held in his home. I wrote to Poonja letting him know I am sending the ‘cream of the milk.’ and included Andrew among the six meditators.
Andrew stayed in Lucknow for several weeks under the guidance of Poonja with Andrew experiencing ecstatic discoveries and realisations. Poonja referred to Andrew as the “one I have been waiting for my whole life.” These words had a significant impact on Andrew. He was unaware that Poonja used such flowery language on a regular basis, including myself and others. Claims of enlightenment and claims of unenlightenment obscure enlightenment.
Poonja wrote to me that he was happy my “students were in the hands of an enlightened Master.” Just to add – he wrote this before we had ever met in person. He told a New Zealander, an experienced Dharma wallah, he was the new Bodhidharma, (a great Buddhist sage) of the Pacific. Others, like ourselves, giggled at such overblown spiritual compliments.
Andrew believed the words of the Master without question. Not surprisingly, the first book Andrew published was called My Master is Myself – a series of love letters between Andrew and Poonja. The book title is a statement of non-duality, an expression of spiritual enlightenment. We learn in the book both had gone beyond the identity of guru-disciple to realise their non-duality.
From Lucknow to Europe and back to Bodh Gaya
Andrew then flew to Europe, giving teachings in Amsterdam, Rome, and at the invitation of Murray and Shanti, he came to Totnes. He offered evening sessions most days of the week, welcoming those interested in spiritual enlightenment. I attended two or three sessions and appreciated his passion, clarity and insights including responses to questions or sharing of experiences. Stephen Batchelor, a much-respected Buddhist teacher, who lived in our community in Sharpham House, told me he found the satsang ‘tedious’ on the one evening he went.
A growing number of people in Totnes became enthusiastic regarding Andrew as an enlightened Master. I had the feeling of listening to people in Totnes coffee shops, who have undergone a conversion experience. Conversations focussed on “Andrew says…” and ” Andrew says …”
A number of his new followers moved to the USA to help expand the vision of Andrew and set up a community. These included Steve, Chris, Stephen, Mike, Shanti, Murray and others, who left for America having been connected with Gaia House and myself. People asked me if I felt hurt or disappointed. I said “No, not at all.” I meant it. I had no interest in developing a spiritual empire, gathering disciples, followers or students around me. People can come and go as they wish. I had no wish to live in a prison of practitioners and become the centre of attention. Our friendship with those I knew who went to the USA has stayed. Several kindly came to my 80th birthday last year.
A few years later, Andrews’ disciples organised a satsang in the tourist bungalow, a government run hotel in the grounds next to the Thai monastery. His arrival started just before my retreat. Andrew had started in modest ways focusing his attention on his students, pointing out their ego, ways they were clinging on and their vulnerable places within. For some individuals, this approach proved beneficial. Some of his students felt rejected, humiliated and doubted their self-worth.
I had a meeting with Andrew in a nearby park in Bodh Gaya during each of his three visits to teach. I extended an invitation to Andrew to come to speak at our retreat in the Thai monastery, where we could have a dialogue on any area of spirituality. Andrew declined. I suggested he invite me to his satsang in the hotel to explore together a theme. He declined.
Andrew’s Disillusionment with Poonja-ji
Andrew and I had a one-to-one meeting the following year. He had an issue he wanted to talk about – one teacher to another teacher. He said he had been in a coffee shop in Amsterdam a couple of months previously. One of his followers mentioned that Poonja, his guru, had developed a relationship with a young woman from Belgium in Rishikesh in 1968.
“Did you know about this?” Andrew asked.
I confirmed knowledge of this. Andrew said he was shocked and disillusioned with Poonja, a respectable married Indian gentleman with two adult children. Andrew looked genuinely upset and agitated.
He then posed the question to me, “How could an enlightened Master, aged 58, get involved with a young, beautiful Belgium woman aged 19?”
I responded, “Numbers are not relevant here. He fell in love. If love is authentic, it will prevail. Love is resilient.”
I did online research this week on Poonja-ji and Ganga Mira, later now known as Mira. Both shared a deep love for each other, decade after decade. Poonja and Mira did not keep their love a secret. They travelled together with Poonja offering satsang in Europe and elsewhere, plus time with members of their respective families in India and Belgium. Of course, they had their challlenges, which most partners face. Their deep mutual friendship and respect stayed true including the years when Poonja lived in Lucknow until his death in 1997 and Mira lived in Portugal.
Their story conveys an echo of the romantic stories of spiritual India, such as Siva and Parvati, Rama and Sita and Krishna and Radha.
If love is not deep, it will fall at the first hurdle. Resilient love expresses the heart of the spiritual/religious life regardless of the disapproving, judgemental minds of others.
Locals in Rishikesh gave her the name Mira in 1968 because she waited for eights months for Poonja to return after attending a satsang, not knowing if he would come back. He left without leaving any contact information. Mira reminded locals of Mira, the 16th century Indian princess and her love and devotion for Krishna.
Poonja and Mira had a daughter, Mukti, in 1972. Her name means Liberation. Mira’s mother and brother became devotees of Poonja-ji. Poonja gave the name Durga to Mira’s mother and Satish to Mira’s brother. In 1998, Poonja’s students invited Mira to offer satsang, which continues. Poonja said years later he went from a wordly marriage to a spiritual marriage.
I assume Andrew knew nothing about this ongoing love and evolution of Poonja and Mira. He thought it was another wretched ‘guru-seduces-disciple’ story. If he had known of their evolution, he might have had a change of heart about his guru. Instead, the events amplified an old pattern. Andrew could have shared his happiness and love of his teacher with his students rather than inflicting his hurt, faultfinding and desire to have control over them.
Karma.
I then posed the following questions to Andrew, “Can an unenlightened master enlighten another person?
He replied, “No.”
Can an enlightened person become unenlightened?
“No.”
“Is Poonja-ji enlightened?”
He remained quiet for several seconds. If he said Poonja was unenlightened, then Andrew was also unenlightened. Andrew replied in the affirmative. He meant it. It showed in the authority of his voice.
I replied. “Since he’s enlightened, then what’s the problem?” Andrew stayed quiet. I had nothing more to ask or add.
Our conversation encapsulated the idealism, perfectionism and pressures in Andrew’s mind that an enlightened life should be a state of perfection.
Andrew’s disillusionment with Poonja did not go away giving rebirth to a painful duality of seperation between him and Poonja, despite both teaching non-duality. It seems that Andrew expected the same level of unconditional dedication from his students as he had shown to Poonja, until the disillusionment set in. The statements of LOVE, LOVE, LOVE in capital letters found in the book from Andrew to Poonja did not seem to get past the hurdle.
At the end of the conversation, I commented that if this disillusionment persisted, the title of his next book might need to be “My Master is Not Myself.” I said this with a smile, but, understandably, Andrew did not see the humour.
Late Years of the 1990s and into the Millennium
In the years that followed, it would be ungracious to see only the shadows in the Cohen community due to their submission to an authoritarian figure. Some students appreciated their time in the Cohen community. They stayed, they learnt and they had the wisdom to leave when the time was ripe.
Others shared their experience.
In 2003, André van der Braak’s wrote Enlightenment Blues: My Years with an American Guru. He referred to Andrew’s demands for large sums of money from his devotees and their total obedience.
In 2009, William Yenner wrote a book called American Guru: A Story of Love, Betrayal and Healing, sharing his experiences of Andrew’s anger and abusive treatment in the community. Other former students also contributed to the book.
Andrew’s mother, Luna Tarlo wrote a book she titled ‘Mother of God,’ a book of numerous grievances in the way Andrew treated her. She characterises Andrew as ‘arrogant, power-hungry and dangerous.’ It seems Andrew had become so identified with his role, he insisted his mother submit to him as disciple, not as a mother. He needed her to love him and care for him, not to launch a public attack on him.
William (Yenner) interviewed Luna and asked her about her trip to India. This is what she said about her retreat in Bodh Gaya in January 1986.
WY. What are your memories of the time in India before Andrew met Poonja?
LT. I (Luna) once said to Andrew, before he met Poonja, “When you go to India, I would love to come and visit for a few weeks, if it’s OK with you.” This was a turning point. He suddenly got very hard, very aggressive forcing me to go to Christopher Titmuss’s retreat in Bodh Gaya. He gave me no choice. I felt intimidated by him for the first time in my life, very uneasy at the change in our relationship. This retreat was for four out of the six weeks I was to be in India. He wanted me to spend a month with Christopher Titmuss, a narcissistic meditation teacher, I disliked. But Andrew admired Christopher enormously. He wanted to be like him: Titmuss was his ideal. Of course, this was before he met Poonja.”
Andrew’s world crashed in 2013. Friends told me he returned from a European tour to his $7,000,000 centre in Vermont and home for the community. A rebellion among his followers took place in his time away ending with the eviction of Andrew.
In 2013 and 2014, I corresponded with a Dharma friend, who maintained contact with Andrew. I extend an invitation to Andrew to come and stay with me here in Totnes. America is an unforgiving place for perceived losers. Tall poppies have to be cut down and stamped on. I did not hear from Andrew.
He took a sabbatical.
In 2016, more than 200 former disciples of Andrew, mostly in America, signed an online petition titled “Stop Andrew Cohen Teaching Again.” The petition included reasons for it.
With the support of angry ex followers, the American media, written, broadcast and social media, crucified Andrew rather than understand his psychology. A few years later, he and Alka (his Indian wife and dedicated pillar) left America and moved to Tiruvannamalai, near the ashram of the beloved Ramana Maharshi, the sage of Advaita. The couple met on my retreat in India in 1985.
|I believe Andrew had two weak links. He did not understand the power of metta (simple and deep acts of love and kindness) for his community. He replaced it with he called ‘tough love’ – a rationale for his behaviour. He was also unaware of the implications of karma leading to consequences in his life. Enlightenment and endless references to the language of transcendence alienated him from those around him, rather than bringing him closer. It seemed enlightenment, enlightenment, enlightenment put him out of touch with many who stayed with him.
I felt his deep wish for the integration of enlightenment with evolutionary life never occurred fully for Andrew, though he certainly had real glimpses and was on the right track.
A liberated way of life includes freedom to practise, freedom to expand our development. As spiritual teachers, we need the honest feedback from those who listen to us so we can evolve enabling the integration of evolution and enlightenment. If you don’t know the weak links of your teacher, you don’t know your teacher.
Is there resilience in your love when your teacher’s weak link(s) becomes obvious, regardless of whether you stay or leave? There is only one loss that matters – and that is the loss of love in your heart.
Announcement to the Sangha
Here is an extract from the statement today by Daniela Bomatter, originally from Switzerland, a spiritual teacher with the guidance of Andrew.
With broken hearts and open souls, we share that our beloved Guru, Andrew Cohen, passed away after a massive heart attack on March 25th, 2025.
In a profound and mysterious symmetry, Andrew left this world exactly 39 years to the day he met his own Guru, Sri H.W.L. Poonja—Papaji— the day we call in our community “Freedom Has No History” day.
It was the day his life was changed forever, the beginning of a spiritual transmission that would ripple out to touch thousands.
Andrew gave his life to that sacred fire. His teaching, Evolutionary Enlightenment, invited us to awaken not only beyond the ego, but into the very heart of the evolutionary process itself—to meet the world not with detachment, but with sacred responsibility and care.
We grieve the loss of his presence……
Andrew is in his home in Tiruvannamalai for anybody who would like to say goodbye to him. The funeral ceremony will take place tomorrow, Thursday 27 March, at 10am, at his house at Gia Mantra Global Village in Tiruvannamalai.
Final Word
With the sad death of Andrew, there is the potential for his resurrection. Seekers can put aside, once and for all, his virtues and dedication, failings and flaws.
I would encourage those who lived in his community to meet to explore ways to squeeze the honey (to use the Buddha’s metaphor) out of Andrew’s teachings. That does not mean to create a death cult around him with altars, incense, photographs, guru-worship and such signs of trivia.
His explicit teachings will finally get the total priority they deserve.
Thank you, Andrew. I love you.