Guide to the Christopher Hills papers M2705

Gurudarshan Khalsa
Department of Special Collections and University Archives
2021
Green Library
557 Escondido Mall
Stanford 94305-6064
specialcollections@stanford.edu


Language of Material: English
Contributing Institution: Department of Special Collections and University Archives
Title: Christopher Hills papers
Creator: Hills, Christopher B.
source: Hills, Penny Slinger
Identifier/Call Number: M2705
Physical Description: 3 Linear Feet (7 manuscript storage boxes and 1 half manuscript storage box)
Date (inclusive): 1936-1997
Abstract: Christopher Hills, known as 'The Father of Spirulina', was an author, business person, alternative educator, and founder of alternative communities. He wrote over thirty books about yoga, spirituality, microalgae, and other topics.

Content Description

The contents of this collection document the work of author and business person Christopher Hills. The materials include correspondence, marketing materials, manuscripts and other writings, pamphlets, flyers, brochures, booklets, newsletters, publications, catalogs, World Yoga Society membership applications, questionnaires, meeting notes, photographs, newspaper clippings, biographies, receipts, audio and video cassettes, and other materials.
Topics dealt with include Hills' organization and leadership of the World Conference on Scientific Yoga (1970); Centre House, London; The University of the Trees (Boulder Creek, CA); aquaculture and microalgae research (including spirulina), microalgae marketing and distributing and a variety of additional spiritual, educational and philanthropic initiatives.
The materials include correspondence with Hiroshi Nakamura, Surendra Mohan Ghose. Dhirendra Brahmachari, Janardan Swami, Ramesh Khandelwal, Jal K. Wadia, B.K.S. Iyengar, Swami Rama, Swami Satchidananda, Amrit Desai, Shri Kumar-swami, Swami Dhirendra Brahmachari, Dr B.I. Atreya, Andrija Puharich, Irma Paule, Carl Schleicher, Aubrey Westlake, Jyoti Swaroop, Rudolph Schaeffer, and Alexander Poniatoff, among others.

Conditions Governing Access

Open for research. Note that material must be requested at least 36 hours in advance of intended use. Audiovisual & born-digital materials are not available in original format, and must be reformatted to a digital use copy.

Conditions Governing Use

While Special Collections is the owner of the physical items, permission to examine collection materials is not an authorization to publish. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study. Any transmission or reproduction beyond that allowed by fair use requires permission from the owners of rights, heir(s) or assigns.

Biographical / Historical

Christopher Hills was born in Grimsby, United Kingdom on April 9, 1926.
During World War II Hills joined a nautical cadet training school and served in the British Merchant Marine. He served on oil tankers in the Caribbean, Mediterranean, northern Russia, Africa, and the U.S.A. At the end of the war, 1945, he became a commodities trader in Caracas, Venezuela, Curaçao, and Aruba. Soon afterwards he moved to Kingston, Jamaica and continued trading in commodities as well as being an arts and antiques dealer, insurance broker and running a credit bureau.
Christopher Hills married Norah Bremner, who was the deputy headmistress of Wolmer's School in Kingston, in 1950. The couple became influential in Jamaican business, art, politics and culture. Christopher Hills started the Hills Galleries Ltd. He befriended Norman Manley, head of the People's National Party and Alexander Bustamante, head of the Jamaica Labour Party. Hills also co-founded the Jamaica Agricultural and Industrial Party as a center party and to represent rural interests.
In 1957 Hills sold most of his business ventures in Jamaica to focus on writing works on philosophy and other topics. In 1961 Hills went on a two year tour to Europe, the Middle East and India. While in India he was a guest of G.D. Birla and met Jawaharlal Nehru among others. Hills also studied yoga and meditation with Swami Shantanand Saraswati, head of the Jyotir Math. Hills founded the Commission for Research into Creative Faculties of Man in 1962.
After meeting with Hiroshi Nakamura, Christoper Hills become interested in the nutritional benefits of microalgae. He was elected President of the Chlorella International Union in 1965 and also partnered with Hiroshi Nakamura to form the Microalgae International Union to promote and sell microalgae. Christopher Hills and Hiroshi Nakamura are credited as the co-discoverers of the cyanobacteria Spirulina. Among other projects the two pursued a large microalgae project in India, which ultimately did not come to fruition.
In 1967 Hills started the Nuclear Evolution Community, Christ-Yoga Centre for Spiritual Awareness, and the Centre House Community in London.
In 1970, with his son John Hills, he helped organized the World Conference on Scientific Yoga in New Delhi, India. The conference brought together yogis and scientists. After the Conference he briefly served as President of the World Yoga Society.
In 1972 Christopher and Norah Hills left Centre House and traveled through the United States giving talks and lectures on consciousness, spirituality and meditation. The couple eventually settled in Boulder Creek, California and founded the University of the Trees Press in 1976. In 1977 the University of the Trees, a non-profit school emphasizing research in consciousness, was accredited with the state of California. The University also served as a communal living space. The University of the Trees was in operation until 1994 when it closed due to lack of finances.
Christopher Hills continued his interest in microalgae and started Aquaculture Nutrition Products Company and Light Force Spirulina Company, a multi level direct marketing Spirulina distributor. He also formed a number of other microalgae ventures, including Dr. Hills Manufacturing Co., Dr. Hills Internatioal, Ltd., Microalgae International Purchasing Corp., Dr. Hills Symbiotic Systems, Inc., Microalgae Aquaculture Research and Development Corp., and Professional Metabolics Company.
Hills' organizations donated spirulina to various conflict and refugee areas, including Afghanistan, Vietnam, Ethiopia and Sri Lanka. At the time some health and nutrition experts criticized these donations. In 1982 Microalgae International settled a claim with the California Department of Health Services regarding false advertising of the benefits of spirulina. There were also claims that Light Force workers were mistreated and underpaid.
After Norah Hills' death in 1995, Christopher Hills married Penny Slinger, an artist, producer and author, in 1996.
In 1996 while in Vietnam investigating a possible business venture he contracted a virus and died on January 31, 1997 in Boulder Creek, California.
The Christopher Hills Foundation continues to promote the works of Christopher Hills. Throughout his life Christopher Hills founded a wide range and number of businesses and non-profit organizations. He authored over 30 books on philosophy, spirituality, conflict resolution, communal living, nutrition and other topics. He also met with a wide variety of individuals including scientists, politicians, business people, philosophers, authors, artists, yogis, and others.

Preferred Citation

[identification of item], Christopher Hills papers (M2705). Department of Special Collections and University Archives, Stanford Libraries, Stanford, California.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

New age movement
Spirulina
Algae as food
Direct selling
Multilevel marketing
Authors
Meditations
Communal living
Yoga
Occultism
Spirituality
Hills, Penny Slinger

Box 1, Folder 1

Correspondence 1963-1973

Box 1, Folder 2

Correspondence 1969-1970

Box 1, Folder 3

Centre House (1 of 2) 1965-1973

Box 1, Folder 4

Centre House (2 of 2) 1965-1973

Box 1, Folder 5

World Conference on Scientific Yoga (1 of 3) 1970-1971

Box 2, Folder 1

World Conference on Scientific Yoga (2 of 3) 1970-1971

Box 2, Folder 2

World Conference on Scientific Yoga (3 of 3) 1970-1971

Box 2, Folder 3

World Conference on Scientific Yoga - receipts 1970

Box 2, Folder 4

World Yoga Society 1970-1974

Box 2, Folder 5

World Yoga University 1972

Box 2, Folder 6

Chlorella International, Inc. 1965-1968

Box 2, Folder 7

Microalgae International Union

Scope and Contents

Also includes information about Professional Metabolics, Agriculture Research Company, Aquaculture Nutrition Products Company, and the Journal of Nutritional Biology.
Box 2, Folder 8

Light Force Spirulina Company 1981-1991

Box 2, Folder 9

Dr. Hills Technologies

Box 3, Folder 1

University of the Trees - Big Basin Ranch 1970-1974

Box 3, Folder 2

University of the Trees 1975-1991

Box 3, Folder 3

University of the Trees Press

Box 3, Folder 4

Articles about and by Christopher Hills 1964-1997

Box 3, Folder 5

Articles and clippings (not about Christopher Hills) 1964-1993

Box 3, Folder 6

Lecture brochures

Box 3, Folder 7

Brochures and catalogs (not by Christopher Hills)

Box 3, Folder 8

Evolution of United Nations into a world government...Now! by Christopher Hills

Box 3, Folder 9

Spiritual United Nations

Box 3, Folder 10

The new education by Christopher Hills

Box 4, Folder 1

Christopher Hills biography - chapter 1

Box 4, Folder 2

The Anchorite by Christopher Hills

Box 4, Folder 3

Meditations on pure consciousness by Christopher Hills

Box 4, Folder 4

Scientific method and its effect on radeasthesia - a talk given by Christopher Hills to British Medical Society

Box 4, Folder 5

French translation of part of Nuclear Evolution

Box 4, Folder 6

Yoga in Genesis - multipart series of lectures on meditation by Christopher Hills

Box 4, Folder 7

Miscellaneous writings

Box 4, Folder 8

Obituaries, resumes, etc. 1968-1997

Box 4, Folder 9

Business papers from Jamaica 1965

Box 4, Folder 10

Astrology

Box 4, Folder 11

Tantra designs

Box 4, Folder 12

Norah Hills papers 1971-1994

Scope and Contents

Includes drafts of Christopher Hills biography, Christopher Hills writings, correspondence, and other materials.
Box 4, Folder 13

John Hills papers

Box 4, Folder 14

Meditation for children by John Hills

Box 4, Folder 15

Bernard Bremner papers 1936-1976

Scope and Contents

Primarily sermons.
Box 5, Folder 1

Notes and meditation instructions

Box 5, Folder 2

Centre House - photographs

Box 5, Folder 3

Centre House - photographs

Box 5, Folder 4

Photographs [labeled bio or reserve]

Box 5, Folder 5

Photographs

Box 5, Folder 6

Photographs [labeled bio or archive]

Box 5, Folder 7

Photographs - Christopher Hills portraits

Box 5, Folder 8

Photographs [labeled 'most likely bio']

Box 5, Folder 9

Photographs [labeled 'possible bio']

Box 5, Folder 10

Photographs

Box 5, Folder 11

Photographs - Japan

Box 5, Folder 12

Slides

Box 6, Folder 1

Into Meditation Now: Introduction and Section Zero. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 2

Into Meditation Now: Section Two. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 3

Into Meditation Now: Section Three. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 4

Into Meditation Now: Section Four. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 5

Into Meditation Now: Section Five. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 6

Into Meditation Now: Section Six. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 7

Into Meditation Now: Section Seven. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 8

Into Meditation Now: Section Eight. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 9

Into Meditation Now: Section Nine. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 10

Into Meditation Now: Section Eleven. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 11

Into Meditation Now: Section Twelve. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 12

Into Meditation Now: Section Thirteen. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 13

Into Meditation Now: Section Fourteen. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 14

Into Meditation Now: Section Fifteen. University of the Trees

Box 6, Folder 15

Into Meditation Now: Section Sixteen. University of the Trees

Box 7, Folder 1

Into Meditation Now: Section Seventeen. University of the Trees

Box 7, Folder 2

Into Meditation Now: Section Eighteen. University of the Trees

Box 7, Folder 3

Catalogs and newsletters

Box 7, Folder 4

Quantum Biogenics 1986

Box 7, Folder 5

The Dr. Hills Brain Recharging System (booklet and audio cassette) 1984

Box 7, Folder 6

Becoming Great (audiocassette)

Box 7, Folder 7

Light Force presents the New Paradigm: Understanding the Power (VHS) 1993

Box 7, Folder 8

Light Force presents the New Paradigm: Sharing the Power (VHS) 1993

Box 8, Folder 1

Light Force presents Real Power for a Small Planet (VHS) 1993

Box 8, Folder 2

Lightworks Audio and Video presents The Whole Life Video Series: The New Spiritual Magic (VHS) 1992