Who is MSI?

The life of every person is sacred. The revelation of that sacredness is often revealed by a person’s contribution to humanity. In many cases, that contribution is only revealed after death. Maharishi Sadashiva Isham (MSI) was such an individual. MSI’s life was punctuated by the desire to know. His search was not for knowledge but for Truth. Truth was most important to him and he shared that Truth in total commitment to healing the world.

Born April 13, 1949 in Seattle, Washington, MSI’s early life was marked by a desire to find meaning in a seemingly lonely and cruel world. His frustration from feeling different and alone was blanketed by a firm hope that one day he would discover the purpose of life.

After graduating Phi Beta Kappa, Cum Laude in English from the University of Washington, MSI met his teacher, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, founder of Transcendental Meditation (TM.) MSI entered into a formal teacher/student relationship with Maharishi and became a TM teacher shortly thereafter.

He eventually found himself in Fairfield, Iowa, home of the TM University with a wife and two children. Content in his experience of expanding consciousness, he settled into a quiet lifestyle of writing books and designing and building houses.

His life was thoroughly shattered in 1988 when, in a matter of months, he lost his business, his money, his house and his family through divorce. Considering his loss an omen, and disenchanted with the rules surrounding TM, he began a new quest for the meaning and purpose of life.

During a journey to the Himalayas, MSI found the Ishayas, an ancient order of monks founded by the Apostle John. From them, MSI learned the techniques collectively known as the Ishayas’ Ascension that he would later bring to the world. His first book, First Thunder, is a fictionalized account of his journey. After 18 months, the Ishayas’ instructed him to return to the outside world to share his story with the rest of humanity.

When he returned to the West, MSI knew he had the tools to change the world, yet virtually no one world listen to him. Finally, after four years of traveling the US, and authoring five books, he saw the seed of his commitment begin to sprout.

He founded the Society for Ascension, a non-profit educational organization based in western North Carolina and dedicated to spreading the Ishayas’ teachings. In less than two years, the first group of three teachers grew to more than one hundred. Ascension is spreading to many foreign countries, with centers opening around North America and the world.

MSI lived to see the message of Ascension firmly rooted in fertile soil and spreading throughout the world. He passed from this world on August 12, 1997. The message of his life —that perfection on Earth is not only possible but imminent— is gathering momentum and manifesting in the rapid growth of consciousness seen in all who practice the simple techniques of the Ishayas’ Ascension.