The process of Subud reconnects us and keeps this special awareness alive and active. Subud was founded by an Indonesian, Muhammad Subuh Sumohadiwidjojo. He is usually referred to by Subud members as 'Bapak', which is an Indonesian word for a respected older man. The experience, the spiritual exercise, which we call by the Indonesia word for training - 'latihan', came to him as a revelation, suddenly. To practice the latihan is to stand relaxed in a group of people, men and women separately, and allow the process to take place.
Many people feel a vibration, most soon feel an impulse to move, to utter sounds or to sing.
The impulse is spontaneous, not suggested or controlled by thought, but during this time a member is fully alert, with mind and desires passive, reacting to their need at the time. The latihan continues for about thirty minutes and is repeated twice a week. The experience varies, indeed it is different for each person. For some the development is gradual and changes are noticed in the outer life before there is much movement in the actual latihan. The process is one of cleansing, purification, which reaches more and more deeply into every part of one's being.