Subud and the latihan kejiwaan

Record summary

Subud originated with Muhammad Subuh Sumohadiwidjojo in Indonesia and expanded internationally after the Second World War. Its central practice, latihan kejiwaan, is described by adherents as a spontaneous spiritual exercise involving surrender to divine guidance, while observers have compared it with mystical, psychosomatic, or mediumistic practices. The movement is useful for comparing postwar transmission of Asian esoteric practice into Europe and North America. Questions remain about early documentation, changing terminology, and how far later institutional accounts reshape the founder’s teachings.