This film chronicles a summer of work on the Ashrama by the members of the Assembly of Man. One of the most productive periods in the construction of this structure, work over the summer included: transport of supplies to the construction site using donkeys; digging a ditch to divert water from the south fork of Tuttle Creek; dynamite blasting to level the ground for a foundation; the laying of the foundation and altar; and, the “random masonry” used in erecting granite rock walls from the blast debris. A fire to the north started by the owner of the Hoar Ranch caused the group to evacuate, but Wolff elsewhere notes that he was “able to persuade them to come back.” The film ends with scenes of that summer’s Convention of the Assembly Man, which was held in early August on the construction site. Wolff narrates parts of this video in the film “Ashrama Man Outtake 6” below. (17:11)

This film was taken by Gertrude on a trip that she and Franklin took to northern California and the redwoods in 1960. (3:37)

This film was shot by Gertrude during a 1960 auto trip to Whitney Portal. (1:56)

This film was taken by Gertrude in 1960. It records the last hike that Franklin Wolff made to the Ashrama. (4:43)

This travelogue was filmed by Gertrude in 1966; it chronicles part of the Wolffs’ trip home from Ohio, where Gertrude was visiting family. The film starts along the Eagle River in Colorado. (27:26)

This is the raw footage of the film used by John Flinn to produce “Travels with Yogi”; here is his description of their trip:

We left the Ranch around 9 o’clock in the morning. As we drove under the overhanging trees by the house, Yogi said “Many is the time that Gertrude and I passed through this gate to begin our trips.”

We headed North on 395 through Bishop and stopped for a packed lunch of fried chicken and boiled eggs at the overlook above Mono Lake before continuing on to Coleville, where we spent the night at the Meadowcliff Lodge. Yogi and Gertrude had stayed here several times in years past. After checking in around 3 in the afternoon, Yogi laid down for a nap while I went for a walk with my sketchbook. Returning to our room, he told me about his experience of the “inverse wink” in which he had seen a vision of Gertrude upon awakening from his brief sleep. The sunrise through the trees and sequence of him packing suitcases in the movie was filmed here, the next morning before and after breakfast.

Leaving Coleville, we drove up 395 a short ways and then on Westward via 89, then South on the 4 through Ebbetts Pass down toward Gold Rush Country, stopping at Big Trees for my first experience with the Sequoias. I walked the trail for a bit and sat down at the foot of a Redwood and had my own short nap while Yogi waited in the car, wondering why I was gone so long.

Down in the Central Valley, we turned South off the 4 and cut across country via E18 to Columbia for a brief visit to the old mining town, where I walked around while Yogi stood watch in the Mercedes. Then back to the 49 and South through Sonora to catch the 108 and head East back over the mountains, spending the night in Mi-Wuk Village. The next morning, we continued on the 108. In the film, the sequence of rushing creek waters was shot along this stretch of road, and the lake views are of Donnell Reservoir from the overlook area. Onward and East, we crossed Sonora Pass to rejoin the 395 and continue South through Bridgeport, skirting Mono Lake for a lunch at Lee Vining before the final leg of our trip and eventually finding ourselves home again in Lone Pine.

(35:56)

This film was sponsored by Bob Tyhurst of Samadhi Tank Co. (a flotation tank manufacturer that was started in 1972 by John Lilly); it was produced by Faustin Bray and Brian Wallace during the August 1980 Convention of the Assembly of Man/Friends of the Wisdom Religion at Wolff’s Lone Pine ranch (Mill Valley, Calif.: Sound Photosynthesis, 1980). Dr. Lilly and his wife Toni visited Wolff just after production of the film was complete.

The film announces that its purpose is “to save the Ashram[a],” a granite structure that Wolff and the Assembly of Man built in a location that is now part of a United States Forest Service “Wilderness Area,” which prohibits manmade structures. The film relates the story of the construction of this building in Tuttle Creek Canyon; footage includes excerpts from an interview with Wolff, a 1940 film of the Assembly of Man’s work on the Ashrama (referenced in the film as “1938”), and other film shot just for this production (including a video record of Wolff's office). Generally speaking, this is a valuable archival item in which Wolff gives a succinct overview of his lifework. (14:37)

This lengthy and wide-ranging interview was conducted during the production of “The Philosopher’s Stone.” The first eight-and-one-half minutes of the interview, including a sentence at the beginning that is missing here, is available on the producer’s YouTube channel. (1:39:09)

This film was produced in June 1983 (Wolff was ninety-six years old at the time). The video begins with Joel hiking to the “Ashrama,” a structure that Wolff and his students built in California’s eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains. Dianne Harrison sits with Joel and Franklin during the interview. (58:00)

This film was aired by Mammoth Cable TV in 1984, who produced it in January of that year (Mammoth, Calif.: Mammoth Cable TV, 3rd Video Series, 1984). Like “The Philosopher’s Stone,” this work focuses on the Ashrama built by Wolff and his students. (12:35)

This clip starts with a view of the eastern side of the California Sierras from the road below Wolff’s Lone Pine ranch; the remainder of the film is a record of the interior of Wolff’s office. (8:09)

This half-hour interview with Wolff takes place in his office at the commencement of the production of the film, “Ashrama Man.” He is asked to describe the basis of his philosophy, at which point he sketches a history of Buddhism. The interview progresses with Wolff expounding on various topics:

• The influence of Sankara in his life.
• That a “Breakthrough” is the basis of his philosophy.
• His office.
• The key to his good health.
• That Sankara’s philosophical worldview is the one with which he had the most sympathetic rapport.
• The modern religious field, in which he acknowledges the importance of Buddha, Sankara, and Christ.
• Why he settled his lifework in the Lone Pine area and the role of the Ashrama in this work.
• That (at the age of ninety-six) he is presently concerned with the processes connected with “transition,” and he refers to the Tibetan Book of the Dead and its teaching.
• That he accepts reincarnation with its periodic appearances on this world.
• That his work in this incarnation is complete, and that he has “said what I had to say.”
• He discusses his use of audio-recorded essays after many years of public appearances.
• That he would like to be remembered “through his philosophy . . . for those who might find it helpful.”
• That the Ahrama no longer has a role in his work.
• He notes that his first wife, Sherifa, was “difficult to live with,” given that her royal personality did not seek to understand, but instead, demanded.
• That his early work with Sherifa was a joint work, as it was with Gertrude, his second wife.
• That his audio-recorded output is larger than his written.
• That he was born in Pasadenda and has always been a California resident; that he has traveled over Canada and United States.
• That he has not selected anyone to take over his work or to take over as a teacher: “No, I can hardly say that.” He continues: “I am leaving it up to what we call the ‘Law’ to bring about any continuation there may be. Someone may be called to it. I hope so.”

(29:32)

This clip features a recording of Franklin Wolff reading “The Rising Sun,” a poem that was first published in The Bulletin of the Assembly of Man 1 (June 1960); it also includes a statement of grace that Wolff said before meals. (6:38)

This short clip features Wolff and Joel Morwood standing outside looking in the direction of the Ashrama, the construction of which is a topic of their discussion. The producer (Adam) is filming the clip and asking questions off-camera. (4:09)

This clip records views of the Ashrama and then features Andrea Pucci leading Adam and a companion on a tour of the structure. A fire is lit in the fireplace in front of which the group enjoys talk and a meal. The hike out of the canyon is also recorded. (20:04)

In this roll, Wolff narrates a viewing of clips from the 1940 film taken by Fay Orr of the summer work on the Ashrama and the August Convention of the Assembly of Man. There is also a viewing of the 1960 film taken by Gertrude of a hike to (almost) the Ashrama. (8:54)

In this outtake, six of Franklin Wolff’s students sit for an interview: Murray Gregg, Harry Murphy, Joel Morwood, Dorene Pratt, Andrea Pucci, and Ellen Vogel. Topics covered include their first contact with Wolff and the personal meaning of his philosophy. (20:23)

In this clip, Wolff sits with the producer (Adam) as they are interviewed just after production is complete. (5:04)

This a video (unfortunately, of poor quality) of the last official Convention of the Assembly of Man/Friends of the Wisdom Religion (the 55th Convention). Franklin F. Wolff passed away approximately two months after this gathering, which found him in fine form (and still smoking) at the age of ninety-eight. Highlights include his opening address, his humor throughout, his closing remarks, and a brief interview after the formal gathering with Dianne Harrison.  Richard Moss was the event's featured speaker. (38:11)

The year after the death of Franklin Wolff in 1985, his family held a “Convention” at the Lone Pine ranch that Wolff called home for a quarter of a century; those members of the family who now own this property continue this tradition. This video, which was produced by George Heaton and Harry Murphy, records the gathering in 1988 (the fifty-eighth anniversary of the commencement of Franklin and Sherifa Merrell-Wolff holding their own “Conventions”). This year’s participants included some longtime students of Wolff, all of whom shared stories and memories of Franklin F. Wolff. (1:04:40)