David Deida
Encyclopedia
David Deida is an American author who writes about the sexual and spiritual relationship between men and women. His ten books have been published in 25 languages. He conducts spiritual growth and intimacy workshops and is one of the many founding associates at the Integral Institute
. He has conducted research and taught classes at the University of California at Santa Cruz, Lexington Institute
in Boston, San Jose State University
and Ecole Polytechnique
in Paris. He is the author of numerous essays, articles, and books on human spirituality including The Way of the Superior Man, Finding God Through Sex and Blue Truth and the autobiographical novel Wild Nights.
and later changed his named to Deida. After receiving the 1974 National Writing Award, Deida was admitted to the Florida Scholars Program at the University of Florida
. While there, Deida founded the Plexus Interdisciplinary Center, researching medicine and consciousness in affiliation with the teaching hospital Shands at the University of Florida
.
In 1982, he graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Florida with a bachelor’s degree in Theoretical Psychobiology. That same year, Deida was granted a fellowship at the Laboratory for Theoretical Neuroscience at the University of California, San Diego
Medical School. As a graduate student at the University of California
at Santa Cruz, he conducted research in the ontogeny
of self/non-self boundaries and the evolution of the nervous system and its relationship to space-time dimensionality and was awarded a Masters degree in biology from the University of California in 1989.
. From 1976 to 1989, Deida engaged in research with the neuroscientist Francisco Varela
and he conducted research with Varela at the Pasteur Institute
and Ecole Polytechnique
. From 1983 to 2000, he collaborated with yoga teacher Sofia Diaz to develop yoga techniques for intimate relationships. In the mid-1990s, Deida began publishing non-academic books on spiritual practice, sociocultural evolution, and non-dual sexuality.
From 1986 to 1988, Deida studied with the American spiritual teacher Adi Da
Samraj]] and 1988 Deida was awarded the Chateaubriand Fellowship by the French government, for his Ph.D. thesis. Deida began writing non-academic books for publication and departed the university before completing his doctoral thesis. Deida published several papers from 1985 to 1991 including, “The Form of Duality: Objectification as Implicate Time (1985)”, “Some Fundamental Aspects of the Indicational Calculus and the Eigenbehavior of Extended Forms (1985)”, “The Indicational Calculus and Trialectics (1985)”, “An Approach to a Mathematics of Phenomena: Canonical Aspects of Reentrant Form Eigenbehavior in the Extended Calculus of Indications (1988)”, and “Multiplicity and Indeterminacy in the Dynamics of Formal Indicational Automata (1991).”
Deida published the book Intimate Communion in 1995 and It’s a Guy Thing in 1997 outlining his ideas on psycho-sexual development and universal masculine and feminine identities. In 1997 he published The Way of the Superior Man and in 2001 a series of personal essays called Waiting to Love: Rude Essays on Life After Spirituality. His book Finding God Through Sex was released in 2002 and outlined practices for dissolving fear and self-boundaries during intercourse. Deida’s semi-autobiographical novel Wild Nights: Conversations with Mykonos about Passionate Love, Extraordinary Sex, and How to Open to God was published in 2005 and tells the story of developing friends, sexual intimacy, and God awareness through the guidance of a spiritual teacher. Deida published his book The Enlightened Sex Manual: Sexual Skills for the Superior Lover in 2004 and he discusses the topics of love and expanded awareness in his 2007 book Instant Enlightenment.
with mystical nondualism
. Other criticism questions Deida’s political stance, alleging an element of misogyny in one of his books.
Integral Institute
The Integral Institute is a think-tank founded in 1998 by American author Ken Wilber. The purpose of the Institute is to gather and attempt to integrate the various viewpoints found in a number of major fields of knowledge...
. He has conducted research and taught classes at the University of California at Santa Cruz, Lexington Institute
Lexington Institute
The Lexington Institute is a non-profit public-policy think tank headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, that focuses on national security, education reform, postal service management, space policy, and U.S...
in Boston, San Jose State University
San José State University
San Jose State University is a public university located in San Jose, California, United States...
and Ecole Polytechnique
École Polytechnique
The École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
in Paris. He is the author of numerous essays, articles, and books on human spirituality including The Way of the Superior Man, Finding God Through Sex and Blue Truth and the autobiographical novel Wild Nights.
Early life and education
Deida was born David Greenberg in Cleveland, OhioCleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
and later changed his named to Deida. After receiving the 1974 National Writing Award, Deida was admitted to the Florida Scholars Program at the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
. While there, Deida founded the Plexus Interdisciplinary Center, researching medicine and consciousness in affiliation with the teaching hospital Shands at the University of Florida
Shands at the University of Florida
Shands at the University of Florida is a teaching hospital at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida and Jacksonville, Florida and is two of many hospitals in the Shands HealthCare system.-History:...
.
In 1982, he graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Florida with a bachelor’s degree in Theoretical Psychobiology. That same year, Deida was granted a fellowship at the Laboratory for Theoretical Neuroscience at the University of California, San Diego
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego, commonly known as UCSD or UC San Diego, is a public research university located in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States...
Medical School. As a graduate student at the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
at Santa Cruz, he conducted research in the ontogeny
Ontogeny
Ontogeny is the origin and the development of an organism – for example: from the fertilized egg to mature form. It covers in essence, the study of an organism's lifespan...
of self/non-self boundaries and the evolution of the nervous system and its relationship to space-time dimensionality and was awarded a Masters degree in biology from the University of California in 1989.
Career
Deida taught psychobiology, neurophysiology, evolutionary psychology and conducted research on human sleep and dream states and was awarded the Regents Fellowship at the University of California, Santa Cruz in 1983. Deida was an instructor in Artificial Intelligence at California State University, San Jose and was elected as a Fellow of the Lexington InstituteLexington Institute
The Lexington Institute is a non-profit public-policy think tank headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, that focuses on national security, education reform, postal service management, space policy, and U.S...
. From 1976 to 1989, Deida engaged in research with the neuroscientist Francisco Varela
Francisco Varela
Francisco Javier Varela García , was a Chilean biologist, philosopher and neuroscientist who, together with his teacher Humberto Maturana, is best known for introducing the concept of autopoiesis to biology.-Biography:...
and he conducted research with Varela at the Pasteur Institute
Pasteur Institute
The Pasteur Institute is a French non-profit private foundation dedicated to the study of biology, micro-organisms, diseases, and vaccines. It is named after Louis Pasteur, who made some of the greatest breakthroughs in modern medicine at the time, including pasteurization and vaccines for anthrax...
and Ecole Polytechnique
École Polytechnique
The École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
. From 1983 to 2000, he collaborated with yoga teacher Sofia Diaz to develop yoga techniques for intimate relationships. In the mid-1990s, Deida began publishing non-academic books on spiritual practice, sociocultural evolution, and non-dual sexuality.
From 1986 to 1988, Deida studied with the American spiritual teacher Adi Da
Adi Da
Adi Da Samraj , born Franklin Albert Jones in Queens, New York, was a spiritual teacher, writer and artist, and the founder of a new religious movement known as Adidam...
Samraj]] and 1988 Deida was awarded the Chateaubriand Fellowship by the French government, for his Ph.D. thesis. Deida began writing non-academic books for publication and departed the university before completing his doctoral thesis. Deida published several papers from 1985 to 1991 including, “The Form of Duality: Objectification as Implicate Time (1985)”, “Some Fundamental Aspects of the Indicational Calculus and the Eigenbehavior of Extended Forms (1985)”, “The Indicational Calculus and Trialectics (1985)”, “An Approach to a Mathematics of Phenomena: Canonical Aspects of Reentrant Form Eigenbehavior in the Extended Calculus of Indications (1988)”, and “Multiplicity and Indeterminacy in the Dynamics of Formal Indicational Automata (1991).”
Deida published the book Intimate Communion in 1995 and It’s a Guy Thing in 1997 outlining his ideas on psycho-sexual development and universal masculine and feminine identities. In 1997 he published The Way of the Superior Man and in 2001 a series of personal essays called Waiting to Love: Rude Essays on Life After Spirituality. His book Finding God Through Sex was released in 2002 and outlined practices for dissolving fear and self-boundaries during intercourse. Deida’s semi-autobiographical novel Wild Nights: Conversations with Mykonos about Passionate Love, Extraordinary Sex, and How to Open to God was published in 2005 and tells the story of developing friends, sexual intimacy, and God awareness through the guidance of a spiritual teacher. Deida published his book The Enlightened Sex Manual: Sexual Skills for the Superior Lover in 2004 and he discusses the topics of love and expanded awareness in his 2007 book Instant Enlightenment.
Reception
Deida’s ecumenical approach has caused some to question his discrimination for audiences but Deida characterizes his recent work as “spiritual theater” rather than “religious teaching”. This orientation has led one critic to suspect Deida’s spiritual depth and integrity, specifically questioning whether his approach has conflated post-modern nihilismNihilism
Nihilism is the philosophical doctrine suggesting the negation of one or more putatively meaningful aspects of life. Most commonly, nihilism is presented in the form of existential nihilism which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value...
with mystical nondualism
Nondualism
Nondualism is a term used to denote affinity, or unity, rather than duality or separateness or multiplicity. In reference to the universe it may be used to denote the idea that things appear distinct while not being separate. The term "nondual" can refer to a belief, condition, theory, practice,...
. Other criticism questions Deida’s political stance, alleging an element of misogyny in one of his books.
Books
- Intimate Communion (1995) ISBN 978-1558743748
- It's A Guy Thing: An Owner's Manual for Women (1997) ISBN 978-1558744646
- The Way Of The Superior Man: A Spiritual Guide to Mastering the Challenges of Woman, Work, and Sexual Desire (1997, Plexus, ISBN 1889762105; 2004, Sounds TrueSounds TrueSounds True is a multimedia publishing company based near Boulder, Colorado. It was created in 1985 by Tami Simon. The company has published approximately 1,000 titles, including spoken-word audio recordings, books, music, filmed events, multimedia packages and online educational programs from...
, ISBN 978-1591792574) - Waiting to Love: Rude Essays on Life after Spirituality (Pre-publication edition, out of print) (2001)
- Naked Buddhism: 39 ways to free your heart and awaken to now (2002) ISBN 1-889762-19-9 (published in 2005 as Blue Truth)
- Finding God Through Sex: Awakening The One Of Spirit Through The Two Of Flesh (2002, 2005) ISBN 978-1591792734
- Dear Lover: A Woman's Guide To Men, Sex, And Love's Deepest Bliss (2002, 2005) ISBN 978-1591792604
- Blue Truth: A Spiritual Guide to Life & Death and Love & Sex (2002, 2005) ISBN 978-1591792598
- The Enlightened Sex Manual: Sexual Skills for the Superior Lover (2004) ISBN 978-1591795858
- Wild Nights (2005) ISBN 978-1591792338
- Instant Enlightenment: Fast, Deep and Sexy (2007) ISBN 978-1591795605
Audio CDs and MP3s
- The Way of the Superior Man: The Teaching Sessions (Audio CD), Sounds TrueSounds TrueSounds True is a multimedia publishing company based near Boulder, Colorado. It was created in 1985 by Tami Simon. The company has published approximately 1,000 titles, including spoken-word audio recordings, books, music, filmed events, multimedia packages and online educational programs from...
, ISBN 978-1591793434 - Enlightened Sex: Finding Freedom & Fullness Through Sexual Union (Audio CD) ISBN 978-1591790839
- David Deida: The Complete Recordings, Volumes 1-3 (Audio CD) (1998–2002), Volume 4 (2009)
- Rhythms of Revelation: Jazz, Jesus and James Bond, MP3 (2009)
- Enlightenment, Marriage and the Dark Side, MP3 (2009)
- Finding Love and Sex Among Vikings, Boys Toys and Superior Women, MP3 (2009)
- Bondage, Boundaries and the Rolling Stones: Spiritual Happiness vs. Sexual Healing, MP3 (2009)
- Emotional Chaos and Authentic Love: How to Help Your Man Navigate Your Heart, MP3 (2009)
- The Third Stage: Making Love Beyond Sharing Needs, MP3 (2009)
- Buddhism, Blowjobs and Chocolate: Spiritual Access to Passion's Portals, MP3 (2009)
- Aligning with Love: Sex, Wealth and Worship, MP3 (2009)
- Craving Nothingness, Wanting Fullness, Celebrating Nowness, MP3 (2009)
DVDs
- Function, Flow, & Glow (DVD) ASIN B000CEX3JE
- Spirit, Sex, Love: David Deida in Australia (DVD) (out of print)
Published manuscripts
- 1985 Deida, D., and White, C.A. “The Form of Duality: Objectification as Implicate Time.” Proc. 1985 Intl. Conf. of Soc. for General Systems Research, I, 156-162, Seaside, California: Intersystems
- 1985 Deida, D., White, C.A., and Berkowitz, G.C. “Some Fundamental Aspects of the Indication Calculus and the Eigenbehavior of Extended Forms” Proc. First Annual Conference/ Workshop on Sign and Space, edited by G.C. Berkowitz, 54-96.
- 1985 Deida, D., and Horn, R.E. “The Indicational Calculus and Trialectics” Lexington Institute Monograph Series
- 1986 Deida, D. “Before There Is Perception, What is There? Biological Cosmology and the Limits of Knowledge” Laughing Man Journal, 12:34-49
- 1988 Berkowitz, G.C., Deida, D., and White, C.A. “An approach to a Mathematics of Phenomena: Canonical Aspects of Reentrant Form Eigenbehavior in the Extended Calculus of Indications. Cybernetics and Systems 19:123-167
- 1991 Berkowitz, G.C., Deida, D., and White, C.A. “Multiplicity and Indeterminacy in the Dynamics of Formal Indicational Automata” Cybernetics and Systems 22:237-263
See also
- Richard RohrRichard RohrRichard Rohr, O.F.M. is a Franciscan friar ordained to the priesthood in the Roman Catholic Church in 1970. He is an internationally known inspirational speaker and has published numerous recorded talks and books....
: Wild Man's Journey: Reflections on Male Spirituality (ISBN 0-86716-279-1) - Samael Aun WeorSamael Aun WeorSamael Aun Weor , born Víctor Manuel Gómez Rodríguez, Colombian citizen and later Mexican, was an author, lecturer and founder of the 'Universal Christian Gnostic Movement' with his teaching of 'The Doctrine of Synthesis' of all religions in both their esoteric and exoteric aspects...
: The Perfect Matrimony (ISBN 978-0974275505) - Dion FortuneDion FortuneViolet Mary Firth Evans , better known as Dion Fortune, was a British occultist and author. Her pseudonym was inspired by her family motto "Deo, non fortuna" , originally the ancient motto of the Barons & Earls Digby.-Early life:She was born in Bryn-y-Bia in Llandudno, Wales, and grew up in a...
: The Esoteric Philosophy of Love & Marriage (ISBN 978-1578631582) - The Lexington InstituteLexington InstituteThe Lexington Institute is a non-profit public-policy think tank headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, that focuses on national security, education reform, postal service management, space policy, and U.S...
of Arlington, VA is not related to Deida's Boston based Lexington Institute.