Soul without Shame

The superego, inner critic or judge, shapes and limits our daily life. A psychic entity that praises, cajoles, accuses, intimidates, promises, and threatens, it sits on our shoulder and watches to see if we measure up. In addition to invading our relationships and undermining our self-esteem, self-judgment interferes with our personal spiritual work. It warns that asking deep questions and expanding awareness create trouble. It attacks us for not changing and makes us anxious when we do change.

This workshop is an introduction to the Diamond Approach, a spiritual teaching that directly addresses the superego to create space for inner work. 

Through embodied awareness (to support presence) and openended inquiry (to bring about understanding), we will recognize and confront the assumptions and principles that keep self-judgment in place. We will cultivate aspects of our True Nature that are antidotes to self-judgment: compassion, will, and strength. Most important, we will practice disengaging from the judgment process through understanding and deliberate action.

Throughout our five days together, we will develop a felt sense of the contrast between being under the judgment spell and directly experiencing the joy and freedom that arise in its absence. The sessions will include meditation, lecture, discussion, exercises, and small group process.

Recommended reading: Soul without Shame, by Byron Brown, Shambhala Publications, and any books by A. H. Almaas.