The Rothschild grandson who chose obscurity and watched his fortune fade
From Old Money Dynasties · 20:53
Show by OBOMEDIA ENTERTAINMENT
A Rothschild heir lies in a San Francisco hospital and says God told him to lead the hippies - how do you fall from that high?The Rothschild grandson who chose obscurity and watched his fortune fadeIn this episode, we follow Samuel L. Lewis from his privileged birth into the Levi Strauss-Rothschild orbit to his five-decade devotion to Sufism, Zen, and other spiritual traditions. We trace the concrete choices he made to refuse inheritance and public acclaim, and ask what it means to be decades ahead of the world that ultimately needed him.Person: Samuel L. LewisDate of birth: October 18, 1896Family: Grandson of a Rothschild; son of Jacob Lewis (vice president of Levi Strauss and Company) and Harriett RosenthalLocations: San Francisco; Fairfax, California; travels to India, Pakistan, Japan, EgyptEvent: Co-founded the first Zen meditation hall in San Francisco (1926)- At 22, Samuel entered a Sufi community in Fairfax and began a lifelong study with Murshida Rabia Martin and Hazrat Inayat Khan’s lineage.- In 1920 he began Zen study with Nyogen Senzaki, and in 1926 he and Senzaki founded San Francisco’s first zendo without leveraging his family name.- Over decades he studied with masters across India, promoted organic agriculture and seed exchange, and trained in practices like General Semantics.- For forty-eight years he deliberately avoided public visibility and the family’s business world, building institutions and practices outside mainstream notice.- In 1967, recovering from a heart attack in San Francisco, he reported that God told him to lead the hippies - a turning point that brought thousands to his walking meditations and dances.Tired of ads? Listen to this podcast and 200+ more ad-free on OBOMEDIA.Try it free for 7 days, cancel anytime: https://obomedia.com/en/gratis?ref=desc-7317502© 2026 Created by an independent creator of the OBOMEDIA Network. All rights reserved.This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the property of their respective creator, who is solely responsible for them, and are distributed by the OBOMEDIA Network on platforms such as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and Pocket Casts. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without the creator's prior written permission is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].
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