Masterclass I: 17 April to 20 April 2020
Masterclass II: 3 July to 6 July 2020
Masterclass III: 25 September to 28 September 2020
Masterclass IV: 4 December to 7 December 2020
Masterclass V: 19 February 22 February 2012

Ana Rhodes, Jaap Westerbos, Zia Ali, Ade Adeniji, Bernd Leygraf

Ana Rhodes
Ana Rhodes Castro has been living and working in the Findhorn Foundation since 1994. During this time she has worked in a variety of areas within the organisation. She has been a member of the Central Management team over the last nine years, six of those spent being responsible for the area of Spiritual and Personal Development. This consisted of internal trainings, conflict facilitation, supervision and other internal structures that support the Findhorn Foundation to function gracefully and efficiently at an individual and collective level. In February 2009 she stepped into the role of Chair of Management/Focaliser of the Findhorn Foundation.

One of Ana’s greatest passion is maximising the inherent potential of individuals, groups and organisations in a way that is supportive and enhances the natural leadership that lives in people.

Ana is fluent in both Spanish and English and regularly runs trainings and offers consultancy in Spain, the UK and South America.

Ana is an organisational consultant, trainer and supervisor, working with individuals, teams and systems of up to 400 people.

She is the founder of a center dedicated to the Transformation of Human Conflict in Madrid (CTCH www.transformaciondelconflicto.es) in Spain, which runs long term trainings in conflict facilitation, leadership and escalated violence.

Jaap Westerbos
Jaap specializes in group dynamics and collective wisdom as expressed in his book World Wide We (2004). He trains counsellors, supervisors, executive coaches and leaders both in the UK and abroad. He also counsels individuals and couples in the UK. He is a COSRT accredited psychosexual and relationship therapist, an NCP accredited therapist and an experienced organisation consultant and executive coach. He consulted to many organisations.

Jaap lived for many years in Amsterdam where he received his primary training through an internship with Thale Bout, one of the first successful personal development trainers in the Netherlands. He also published a cookbook to ‘awaken’ the stomach (The Tao of Mashed Potatoes, 1999).  He has a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology and in Religious Studies and is also an accredited Interfaith Minister. In an earlier incarnation he was part of the artist duo Tempi & Wolf, with many international exhibitions and installations to their name.

Jaap is one of the founders and director of NAOS Institute, a successful London based organisation.

His approach to counselling and training is first to create a place of safety. Safety is the condition that enables us to explore conscious and unconscious issues together. He supports personal enquiries at ever increasing depth so that healing and continuous growth through the relationship can take place.

Zia Ali
Zia is a global trainer in the fields of conflict resolution and educational development. He has integrated his professional skills as a live artist and researcher to develop methodologies of transforming cultural and political stories within organisations.

He has coached leaders across the Middle East and trained younger professionals into leadership roles in countries such as Afghanistan, Jordan and Argentina. Zia is an Alumni of world-renowned performing arts conservatoire,The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, where he devised new practices of participatory theatre that disrupted traditional fables as a way of giving people self-advocacy.

For five years he mentored with the Queens Award accredited charity A Band of Brothers, which supports justice-involved young men to break the cycle of criminal behaviour. Zia has consulted with Akram Khan Dance Company on their Olivier-Award winning production of ‘Xenos’ which re-imagined the myth of Prometheus in the context of World War One. He has also trained the London Metropolitan Police on applying ‘rites of passage’ awareness as an intervention practice for London’s gang violence issue.

In 2020, Zia launched a live arts and education consultancy called The Live School of Myth and Fable and is expected to begin his doctoral research at UCL’s Institute of Education. His love of the performing arts is equalled by his passion for writing fiction and he is currently writing a younger adult fiction series. Every so often, Zia wanders into the mountains (both literally and imaginatively) and is most at home in the desert lands of his ancestors.

Zia’s favourite quote: “You have nothing. You possess nothing. You own nothing. You are free. All you have is what you are, and what you give.” (Ursula Le Guin, The Dispossessed)

Adé Adeniji
Adé Adeniji is a certified Coach, Group Facilitator, Consultant and Mediator. He is also a Certified Daring Way™ and Dare to Lead™️ Facilitator, programmes based on the research of Dr Brené Brown which explore topics such as vulnerability, courage, shame, and worthiness.

Adé has over 20 years experience in human resources and personal development, spanning the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. He was Human Resources Director with Liberty Global Europe, a digital media company, with responsibility for the UK, Netherlands, Spain and Central Europe. Prior to that, he was Head of Human Resources with Guardian News and Media Ltd. He held other HR roles with ITV, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, Cabinet Office and the Government Legal Service. Previous clients include BBC, Economist, Philips, Wellcome Trust and Imperial College and BuzzFeed.

Ade has an academic background in law, with a specialism in employment law. He holds an MSc In Human Resources Consultancy and a Diploma in Group Facilitation, Counselling Skills and Conflict Resolution. He is also an ordained Interfaith Minister and Spiritual Counsellor. He is co-founder of ‘The Quest for Gay Men’, a UK-based social enterprise that delivers personal development programs aimed at transforming the relationships gay men have with themselves, others and the world they inhabit.

As a practitioner Adé adopts a holistic approach in all aspects of his work, this involves working with individuals, teams and organisations to give voice to unspoken words and behaviours, with a view to having conscious courageous conversations.

Adé is well versed in developing relationships and putting clients at ease, allowing them to enter a vulnerable space that facilitates deep understanding and transformation. He is passionate about exploring the individual’s inner landscape to see how that plays out in day-to-day interactions. He is also keen on helping clients cultivate the necessary habits for consistent emotional hygiene.

Bernd Leygraf
Bernd has been a psychotherapist and international trainer for over 3 decades. He initially trained at the Universities Tuebingen, Muenster and Wuppertal (Germany), the Pontificial College St Anselmo, Rome; ISEDET, Buenos Aires; The Gestalt Centre, London; Metanoia , Gestalt Institute of Cleveland, Ohio, One Spirit Interfaith Foundation (UK) Judith Hemming and A. Mindell.

Bernd developed and taught training courses in leadership, therapy and related fields from beginners to Masters level, both in a private capacity and through various universities in the UK and abroad. His training courses draw on students from over 40 countries. In his clinical practice he offers psychotherapy and psychosexual therapy to men, women and couples, training and supervision for counsellors and therapists, organisational development in the UK and abroad. He is joint course director of the London Diploma in Psychosexual and Relationship Therapy. He is founder of the Hungarian Gestalt Association, the London Men’s Forum, Standing Conference for Sexual Abuse of Men, CPPD Counselling School, the Whittington Hospital NHS Trust Psychotherapy Clinic, The Impact OD training programme in Greece, the Keshet Clinic in Belgium and, with Jaap Westerbos of the NAOS Institute. He is also Consultant Trainer at the Interfaith Seminary.

His most recent work involves training medical professionals in Nigeria and clergy formation in Europe, Africa and Asia.

In our premises surrounded by a garden, in Ealing London, W5 

1 module:  £650.00, payable in 3 instalments of £150.00 following a deposit of £200.00 (to reserve your place)

Fees for all 5 modules ; £2950.00 payable by one deposit of £200 (to reserve your place), plus 10 instalments of £275 a month.

For those paying in one lump sum upfront  We offer a 2.5 % reduction. A limited amount of bursaries is available

These are testimonials from an earlier training on Group Facilitation and Conflict Resolution

“This course demonstrates a solid foundation in the understanding of leadership, conflict resolution and community building skills.
I learnt more about why humans need connection to others and to question what kind of connections sustain or destroy building bridges between people. As a leader I learnt that no one leadership style fits all, that the ability to flexibly use a range of leadership styles is essential depending on the context. I also learnt the importance of being aware of oppression and of what I can do to heighten equality and mutuality. I learnt to look at my part in this in new ways.
Above all I was reminded of the value of hope and trust in the human potential for benevolence. I learnt new ways to build resilience and hope in the face of conflict.
I thoroughly enjoyed this course and would highly recommend this training to anyone seeking to gain insight into these complex subjects.” – Kate Llewellyn, student 2015/2016

“The conflict resolution course was life changing for me. I’m now planning life in my sixties, seventies and beyond where I can contribute to the world on my own terms,  backed by the weight of arguably the most empowering and inspiring course I’ve ever attended.”  – Sue McAlpine, student 2015/2016

“By taking part in the course my intention was never to be a therapist. I was hoping it would be an opportunity for self exploration and to learn about myself and my relationship with others and the world around me. How I could be more self reflective and learn to create spaces in my life to live a more fulfilled life and therefore connect better with others. Through some wonderful experiential learning and through the continuous sharing of the other participants I can honestly say that I have learnt more about myself on this course than ever before. Highly highly recommended.” – Shad Ali, student 2015/2016

“Life learning at NAOS is inspiring, abundant and creative. A place where teachers and students share their stories, make friends, learn together, find new ways of being and meeting each other in ‘the field’ of knowing.
NAOS courses are transformative, heart-expanding, loving, challenging and yes, often fun! :-).” – Vera Waters, student 2015/2016

 “I can whole heartedly recommend this diploma course. It has quite literally changed my view of life and has therefore changed me for the better. I am far more community minded. I feel a closer connection to our joint humanity. Through what I have learnt on the course I have achieved positive change for my community.” – Student 2014-2015

“The course challenged my ideas on forgiveness and justice. The course directors Bernd and Jaap hold space for the group with dedication and deep compassion. They are truly wonderful tutors who create a supportive and enjoyable learning environment. I am very grateful to them for this enlighten course. Long may it run!” – Susan Abimbola Aderin, student 2014/2015

 “This course not only adds much to your skills bank if your are or aspire to be a facilitator or work in conflict resolution. Anyone who works in a job requiring the ability to negotiate and develop solutions with complex and multi-cultural stakeholders will benefit enormously from participation. And, maybe more important than all that, you will leave this course as a more rounded person, understanding your own psyche a lot better and as a result interact more successfully on both the private and professional level.” – Christian Wisskirchen. Head of Policy, International Bar Council of England and Wales. Student 2014/2015

“I particularly wanted to thank you both for your levels of care and nurturing (symbolised by flowers, sweets and satsumas). Jaap, you were there throughout, and I really valued your gentle and calm approach; always allowing us to go at our own pace and ‘holding’ us while we did our individual and collective learning. Bernd, your energy and whacky, refreshing style was a perfect counter-balance! It was a fantastic group of people, and the experience has been hugely positive.” Yvonne Rose, student 2014/2015

“I got more than I signed up for! Knowledge, education, information, new skills – for starters. Then I got love, affection, care. I have never felt so much human warmth, human kindness and goodwill in all my life!!! This was all evoked by 2 Fantastic! facilitators Jaap and Bernd from my peers! all the course facilitators gave me something ” Terry Driscoll – student 2014/2015

Words for pub – ” A brilliant journey of self discovery through ragged oceans with skilled helmsmen & fully engaged crew.” Student 2014/2015

“I have really enjoyed the course in spite of it not being what I had initially hoped for. In fact it turned out to be much more than I had hoped for and has helped me significantly in my journey of self-discovery.” Chris, student 2014/2015

Testimonials earlier years

“Just wanted to say a huge thank you for what transpired to be an amazing opening to the diploma, Jaap & Bernd are 2 of the most incredible facilitators I have ever met and I can say my experience was one of an assortment of words including, openness, newness, differences and I could go on and on!” Tracey Ford, Founding Director JAGS Foundation

“One of the most rewarding experiences of my life. More challenging and fulfilling than you could imagine”. (Student 2011-12)

“The course offers a rare opportunity to learn about conflict resolution from a number of hand-picked, highly inspirational people. The support given throughout the course is excellent and the safe environment created at each session is truly exemplary.” (Student 2011-12)

“I am very impressed by the course so far and I can be very cynical and arrogant when it comes to training as my previous career was designing courses for years (for the legal profession which is different but I can tell a good course from a badly designed one). You definitely got the balance of practice versus theory right but also my God you all know so well what you are doing!!  You and Bernd are great, you really know how to communicate and push our boundaries but create a safe environment at the same time. Difficult balance to strike… If all your guest speakers are as good as you guys and him, we will have a great year.” Yeshim Harris, Director Engi

“I am absolutely loving the course!!”
Sue Dominey

“Overall, a potentially life-informing course.” London-2012

“Blew my socks off” The course tutors are utterly magical.” N.A. London-2012

“One of the most extraordinary years of my life.” R.H. London-2012

The Diploma has attracted a number of patrons supporting our work and us in securing funding for the course; this is particularly with our low income students in mind.

• His Holiness the Dalai Lama (India)
• Andrew Harvey (US)
• Arch-Abbot Jeremias Schroeder OSB (Germany)
• Abbot Primate Notker OSB (Italy)
• Lord Patten of Barnes (former governor of Hong Kong, UK)
• Lisette Schuitemaker, Netherlands. (Chair of Trustees, Findhorn Foundation, Scotland)
• Dr William Bloom, UK
• Dame Andrea Savage OSB (Abbess of Stanbrook, UK)
• Anselm Grün OSB, Germany
• Cardinal Murphy O’Connor, Archbishop Emeritus of Westminster, UK
• Rt Rev Vincent Nichols, Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, UK

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Justin Welby writes:
‘I would like to offer my prayerful support for this new venture at Ealing Abbey.  Given the richly diverse society in which we live, the skills that participants will learn on this course have never been more urgently needed.  I commend this programme to anyone who is looking to develop their skills in this challenging field of conflict resolution and am pleased to see a wider recognition of the immense value that religious communities and community living can bring.’

The Bishop of Gloucester, Rachel Treweek, writes
“It is very good to hear of this exciting initiative at Ealing Abbey. Our world is much in need of learning how to live with difference and within that to navigate places of conflict in a way which values relationship and respects the identity of others . This innovative training programme will provide an amazing opportunity for individuals to grow in experience  and increase their skills in this area. It is my hope and prayer  that this will enable participants to be catalysts for change within their own contexts in the future.”

Entry requirements
Ability to work at higher education level. Capacity to/experience in working with people. Personal resilience: the course is demanding on a personal level.

Course Methodology
Our methodology includes Gestalt, Process Work (Mindell), conflict resolution methods to include forgiveness, personal and collective trauma, systemic work and non-dualistic teachings. Lectures, story-telling, movement, meditation, tutorials and experiential teaching, skills training in small groups, observation of large group processes, case studies and guided reading.

Course Material
All course participants will be provided with a course handbook containing codes of ethics, assessment forms, guidance of submitting a written research project, reading list, handouts and more. During each Masterclass you will receive more relevant and up to date material.

Application process
Applicants are required to complete the application form (click here). Please indicate your professional background and motivation for undertaking this training at this time.

This will be followed by a short telephone interview. If offered a place, a course contract will have to be completed and an initial deposit of £200 to secure a place for a Masterclass or the full training. The remainder may be paid in one lump sum (£2680.00) or in 10 equal instalments of £275.00.

Accreditation
You will receive a certificate of Attendance for each session, weighted at 24 CPD credits.

All 5 modules taken in their entirety will result in a Diploma in Change Management assessed through attendance and a written project of 5000 words. The diploma is issued by the NAOS-Institute and the National Council for Psychotherapy

Venue
Ealing, West London

Ana Rhodes – Working with Groups Masterclass I
From Conflict to Development and Transformation
17 April – 21 April 2020 , London

A 4-day intensive dedicated to a ProcessWork approach to understanding groups, teams, organisations, communities and change management.

This Masterclass with Ana Rhodes brings together many disciplines in an inter-active, experiential way.

Ana will support you in finding a philosophy and framework rooted in experience rather than theoretical orthodoxy..

You will review ‘roles’ and ‘ghost roles’, work with edges, ranking, double signals, essence, dreamland and consensus reality. Ana will contribute her own distinctive style of working with individuals, couples, small groups, large organisations and the world at large.

She will explore the following together with you:

• How to introduce leadership skills and evolutionary approaches in organisations and corporate systems
• How to support group facilitators in helping groups to embraces diversity and conflict and build sustainable relationships
• How to explore the dynamics of Social Ecology in organisations and the cultural diversity in teams
• How to address Climate Change not only related to our external environment but also in relation to the organisational environment
• How to introduce and use the methodology of ProcessWork in corporate organisations and in systems whose primary identity is different from the Process Oriented Facilitation Style
• How to direct and facilitate transformation in the ecosystems in which we operate
• How to adopt leadership models that value all voices and experiences, including those that disturb us
• How to sit in the “Fire of Transformation” when working with groups without getting burned by the external and internal intensity
• How to use your deep talents, magical abilities and your mystical being to transform your relationship with groups, communities and organisations

For those who worked with Ana before it will lead to a deepening of understanding of Mindell’s ProcessWork approach coupled with more recent developments in the field.

Jaap Westerbos – Working with Groups Masterclass II:
Working with Presence
3 July – 6 July 2020, London

An exploration of a Meta Perspective on Group Facilitation, including a 5 realm model.

 For many years I have been involved in training psychotherapists, executive coaches, organisational consultants and group facilitators. What I did learn from this is that knowing myself is the best enabler to working with others.

My overarching philosophy is that, whichever profession in which you may wish to express yourself, it is necessary to draw on the awareness, the inner life, the readiness of the facilitator, the self-support of the therapist. I emphasize presence over techniques. And the ability to relate is much more important than theoretical orthodoxy.

Presence can be described as being centred, open and highly alert for all data, both directional and open focus, including subtle information in the field. It also requires a stance of radical acceptance. We cannot implement change before we fully accept what is and suspend any form of judgement or criticism.

Full presence enables you to work directly from the heart and to listen to others in a profound new way

The outcome of this masterclass will enable you to centre yourself in every situation and connect from this centre with awareness to outgoing circles of complexity without getting lost, always finding your anchor point in a part that is more reliable and secure than your ego, integrating new insights and skills. Ultimately it leads to a strong sense of self at the core of your being.

To this end I aim to support you identify and include your own unresolved inner conflicts and traumas, your subtle energies and to extend your awareness into realms that are identified with depth work. We will explore how a group can mirror your own inner states and the best way to work with that.

We shall draw on:

• Judith Hemming’s Five Realm model
• Malcolm Parletts’s Future Sense
• Otto Scharmer’s Presencing
• Thomas Hübl’s Global Witnessing

We will also explore together the concept of collective intelligence (sometimes called co-intelligence, MWE, or whole intelligence) and how to use this as a resource for working with groups.

The masterclass will be augmented with constellation work, selective reading from philosophical traditions, poetry, combining theoretical discussion with group process, drawing, movement, music and periods of deep reflective silence.

Zia Ali – Working with Groups Masterclass III:
Working with Storytelling: timeless tools for building the new archetypes
25 September– 28 September 2020, London

‘It matters what stories we tell to tell other stories with… It matters what stories make worlds, and what worlds make stories.’ (Donna J. Haraway,‘Staying with the Trouble: Making Kin in the Chthulucene’)

For the last 3-4 decades, the paradigm of ‘storytelling’ in leadership and change-making has been dominated by heroic and/or Promethean tropes, stories of individual valour characterised by reckless daring, sacrifice, or the opposite, stories that foreshadow a destructive hubris for humankind. Our daily news media is likewise dominated by these kinds of stories, to the extent that reality now seems stranger than fiction. In this masterclass we will directly challenge the assumption that these kinds of stories portray the inevitable nature and fate of who we are as humans – and we will attempt to find tools for making a new paradigm together.

This 4-day intensive engages on the philosophical, social and psycho-physical levels to explore practices of making the myths and stories that we need for these current times. To re-think the stories that we have invested in, is the opposite of narcissism or grandiosity; it is in fact to admit defeat, allow our vulnerability and to start all over again. Embracing this truth together offers rich learning and resources for change.

In these seminars, we will participate in, and even at times co-create, a new mythology. In all mythologies, a constellation of characters (known as ‘archetypes’) play out. These both mirror and inform our behaviours in real-time, and so it will be the task of this masterclass to explore an array of theories and practices that both examine and potentially re-fashion the traditional concepts of archetypes and archetypal storytelling.

Each of the 4 days will mark thresholds of exploration, in which we ‘test out’ the emerging archetypes within us that activate awareness and behaviours that will give us new ways of:

• Thinking (Inventing)
• Learning (Training)
• Connecting (Collaborating)
• Visioning (Voicing)

Themes and topics will include:

• Metaphor, embodiment and cognition: a theory-informed session with experiential learning, on how ‘magical’ images, symbols and narratives relate to our own embodied experience and our patterns of thought and reason
• What’ kind of story are you telling, and believing?: an examination of the different forms of story (fable, parable, myth, fairy-tale, epic), and how and why we gravitate towards investing in certain types of stories at certain life moments
• ‘Archetypes’ – Do we make them, or do they make us? – Discourse on archetypes has become sharply politicised and polarised in the last five years. We will explore the subject of ‘archetypes’ as a group, devising our shared mythology by exploring any emerging archetypes from the spaces ‘in-between’ or ‘beyond’ the traditionally constructed ones.

We will work across different learning styles, switching between reflective and personal spaces of learning to active group-sessions.

Participants will explore the enquiry through a rich array of media, including ritualised theatre, creative writing, movement and bodywork, tools of dramatherapy, art, and a more ‘embodied’ analytical practice of cultural artefacts, such as text, visual art, cinema and symbols. The purpose of this seminar is to re-examine the ways in which we can engage with stories and myths, not just as individual leaders but as active community-makers, endeavouring to rediscover our humanity – not alone but together.

Ade Adeniji – Working with Groups Masterclass IV:
Wholehearted Leadership – Transforming the way you lead and live
4 December – 7 December 2020, London

“If we want people to fully show up, to bring their whole selves including their unarmoured, whole hearts—so that we can innovate, solve problems, and serve people—we have to be vigilant about creating a culture in which people feel safe, seen, heard, and respected.” – Brené Brown, Dare to Lead

This interactive and experiential masterclass focuses on bringing our whole self to how we lead and live – head (our mind), heart (our emotions), hands (our actions) and spirit (our essence). The exploration delves into what gets in the way – personally and collectively, and creates a space to assist with the cultivation of habits to navigate the challenges that arise.

The masterclass  includes discussions in pairs/triads, small and large groups, storytelling, psycho-exploration and education, guided meditation and mindfulness practices, phototherapy, creativity and expressive writing, along with self-reflection and inquiry.

Our sessions, will be informed by

• Dr Brené Brown – https://brenebrown.com
• Kristen Neff & Chris Germer – https://centerformsc.org
• Parker Palmer – http://www.couragerenewal.org/parker/
• Mark Nepo – http://marknepo.com
• Malcolm Gladwell – https://www.gladwellbooks.com
• David Whythe – https://www.davidwhyte.com
• Simon Sinek – https://simonsinek.com
• Michael Singer – https://untetheredsoul.com/michael-singer
• Alice Walker – https://alicewalkersgarden.com
• Susan David – https://www.susandavid.com

And many more….

Themes and topics include:

• Mapping and navigating our Inner landscape – Its important to be conscious of the inner world that we bring to our external reality. What does your landscape look and feel like? What territories are you familiar with and which terrains would you like to know more? Which areas need more light, what needs to be rediscovered?
• Vulnerability – Challenge old definitions and dispel the myths surrounding the concept of vulnerability. Examine the challenges associated with feeling vulnerable or with engaging in behaviours that lead to uncertainty, risk, and emotional exposure.
• Shame – Exploring shame from a personal and collective perspective and learn to recognise the physiological sensations that accompany experiences of shame. Recognising how shame, scarcity, and comparison show up in the leadership and how they affect engagement, trust, and connection.
• Ideal and unwanted identities – Unpacking how you would like to be perceived and how you don’t, and what happens when you are perceived either way.
• Empathy – Understand the components of empathy and recognise common barriers that interfere with meaningful connection. Exploring the relationship between empathy and trust.
• Self-Compassion – Identify and explore the three attributes of Dr Kristin Neff’s model of self-compassion.
• Values – Explore how values operate in our personal and professional lives and the role they play in integrity and wholehearted leadership.
• Resilience – Exploring how leaders get back up when they miss the mark or ‘fail’ to be wholehearted. Learn the critical role that curiosity and recognition of emotion play in developing resilience skills.
• Belonging – Exploring what Belonging looks and feels like, along with identifying the barriers to belonging. How does our need for belonging show up in leadership? What can leaders do to ensure a culture of belonging?
• Trust and Psychological safety – Understand what these look like and the role leaders play in co-creating spaces that embody them.

The intention of the sessions is to create a space where participants can fully show up and bring their whole selves including their unarmored, whole hearts, and cultivate the insights and practices to take forward into their lives.

Bernd Leygraf – Working with Groups Masterclass V:
Third Eye Seeing
19 February– 22 February 2021, London

“I see you”

This training module is on a radical formation process rooted in the Hindu philosophy of Advaita-Vedanta, as expounded by Ramakrishna. Its unavoidable implication is that the world of division in which we live is ultimately an illusion of the mind.

By dispelling that illusion, we discover that we have never been separated from the divine. From this perspective we neither come from somewhere nor go towards something but already are one with God.

This perspective is often referred to as Third Eye Seeing, or luminous seeing – the way in which the Mystics see.

That is not to say that the first eye (the senses) is disregarded or that the second eye (knowledge) is unimportant. It mainly means that we go further and can experience that our heart, mind and our bodily senses are simultaneously open and non-resistant and we are fully ‘present’. A moment of deep connection in which we are brother and sister to all things, heralds the arrival in an undefended now, sometimes profoundly joyful, sometimes deeply sad, but always here.

Richard of Saint Victor (1123-1173) wrote that humanity was given three different sets of eyes, each building on the previous one. The first eye was the eye of the flesh (thought orsight), the second was the eye of reason (meditation orreflection), and the third eye was the eye of true understanding (contemplation).

In the Orthodox traditions we talk about putting the mind in the heart. The use of Zen koans in Zen-Buddhism also aims to prepare practitioners, through the use of paradox, to a different way of seeing, as does A course in Miracles.

Tibetan Buddhist recognise the seeing of the third eye as ‘objectless awareness’.

Neurologically speaking we can perceive reality based on a new way of organising the perceptual field. We do not aim to change the object of our perception but focus on the mechanics of perception. Rather than seeing through differentiation (“you are separate to me”) we begin to perceive through holographic resonance, a capacity to sense the whole pattern as a single unified field.

We see from oneness and are no longer separate from it.

We believe that the loss of Richard of Saint Victor’s three necessary eyes is the basis of much of the short-sight-edness and religious crises of the Western world.

Lacking such wisdom, it is very difficult for churches, governments, and leaders to move beyond the desire for control and public posturing or simpler said: beyond the ego. Everything divides into oppositions such as liberal versus conservative or me versus the other, with vested interests pulling against one another. Truth is no longer possible at this level of conversation.

We believe that spiritual and political leaders can only genuinely lead by developing mystical seeing and action. It is hardly an exaggeration to say that “us-and-them” seeing, and the dualistic thinking that results, is the foundation of almost all discontent and violence in the world.  It allows religious leaders to avoid their own founding principles, their own national ideals, and their own better instincts.

The third-eye person has always been the saint, the seer, the poet, the metaphysician, or the authentic mystic who grasped the whole picture. There is more to the mystical gaze, however, than having “ecstatic visions.” If people have ignored the first and the second eyes, their hold on the third eye is often temporary, shallow, and incapable of being shared with anybody else. Here we talk about spiritual bypassing and that Third eye seeing must always be relational.

We train true modern day mystics who see with all three sets of eyes, not eccentrics, fanatics, or rebels.  The true mystic is always both humble and compassionate and in relationship for she knows that she does not know. After ecstasy, we still have to do the laundry.

Practical
Each day will include an interactive inspirational talk followed by exercises and skills training in pairs, triads or small groups intended to deepen and gradually increase participants awareness of Third Eye Seeing.

We shall gently and appreciatively enquire into our individual and collective perceptual field facilitated by deep meditation, guided imagery, breath work, movement and ritual.

By the end of this training course participants will have

• Acquired a deeper understanding of the concept of Third Eye Seeing, its history and current developments
• Increased their sensitivity to changes in the perceptual field and how to respond to those
• Developed their own philosophy of living and working with Third Eye Seeing
• Investigate the application of Third Eye Seeing to facilitating individuals and groups
• Integrate this work of working with their spiritual worldview

Application process
Applicants are required to complete the application form (click here). Please indicate your professional background and motivation for undertaking this training at this time.

This will be followed by a short telephone interview. If offered a place, a course contract will have to be completed and an initial deposit of £200 to secure a place for a Masterclass or the full training. The remainder may be paid in one lump sum (£2680.00) or in 10 equal instalments of £275.00.