“Thank You for Your Divine Presence!” – In Celebration of the Life and Work of Light Devoy Edwin Harris

Light Devoy Edwin Harris in a San Francisco Opera production of Aida (circa 1980s).

On 12/22/14 at 11:13 p.m., at the age of 81, Light Devoy Edwin Harris passed on from the physical plane. Light was a great alchemist (in the technical sense of that term) as well as a great maestro and scholar of African-American spirituals. Over the decades of his friendship and support for the Theosophical Society San Francisco Lodge, Light delivered many erudite lectures on the occult sciences and led many amazing performances by his choir, the Jubilee Singers. Light was a dear friend and ally of Joe and Guin Miller, and after their passing he was a dear friend and ally of those of us who kept that circle of light alive.

His home on Gough Street became known as “the University of Light.” There, he taught alchemy on weeknights and African-American spirituals on weekends. In the course of casual conversation, Light would inevitably weave in some profound mystical teaching and then turn to you and say, with utter sincerity, “You taught me that.” In greeting you or bidding you goodbye, he would typically say, with deep conviction, “Thank you for your divine presence.” For Light, all of creation was vibration. He taught it and he lived it. He would open his talks and performances with a signature song: “Everything I see is me. Everything I see is me. Everything I see is me. Everything I hear is me. Everything I hear is me. Everything I hear is me. L.I.G.H.T. Light! S.O.U.N.D. Sound! Light and sound! Sound and light! Light and sound! Sound and light! L.I.G.H.T. Light! S.O.U.N.D. Sound!”

Light’s presence was powerful and joyful, and one would invariably leave deeply touched.

A celebration of Light’s life and work will be held at the SFTS Lodge in early 2015.