My spiritual path began early — at 7 years old, in the 1970s, my family and I became sannyasins (initiated disciples) and joined the Rajneesh movement, which was based in Poona, India at the time. My mother and father, travelling back and forth to Poona, operated a Rajneesh Meditation Centre in my home town of London, Ontario, Canada. In the 1980s, at about the age of 12, I left home and moved to Oregon, to join many others who had flocked there after Rajneesh had left Poona and relocated to the USA. After Rajneeshpuram, or 'The Ranch,' closed down, I relocated to Vancouver, British Columbia. This period of my life was volatile, rich and even a little exhausting. There were extreme highs, with many strong physical and spiritual experiences, and there were extreme lows — but very little of the simple guidance of an ordinary life. In fact, by that point, I would have welcomed mediocrity.

In the early 1990s, then in my 20s, my time with Rajneesh was over. I was looking for a new path and joined an Indonesian spiritual movement called Subud and started practising the Subud latihan. Around that same time, my path brought me into contact with a spiritual teacher who had also been a student of Rajneesh, albeit from a much older generation. His name was Michael Barnett. He had formed a spiritual organisation called The Wild Goose Company, and later OneLife. After forming a regular correspondence with him, and flying to visit him in northern Italy, I was very attracted to his spiritual teaching, and Michael also became a very strong father figure for me. It was clear to me that my path was with him, and so in the mid-1990s I moved to France, became Michael's student, and lived in his spiritual commune in southwestern France.

Following that, and after having lived in different European countries, I settled in Austria and helped operate a meditation centre where my fellow students and I shared Michael Barnett's spiritual work. This was around the turn of the millennium. A few years previously, whilst living in Switzerland with Michael, I had discovered Hameed Ali's work after Michael read aloud a chapter from The Elements of the Real in Man, entitled 'The Student's Relationship to the Teaching.' Something in it touched me profoundly. I heard my own truth spoken aloud as my teacher read from Hameed's work. It was then, in the early 2000s, that I joined my first Diamond Approach group — the beginning of the Ridhwan® path and work for me.

Alongside this inner work, I had become keenly interested in Shaolin Chan and started my training in Shaolin Meditation, Kung Fu, Tai Chi and Qi Gong. I had a Shifu in Vienna and opened a branch of my temple there. My relationship to Kung Fu deepened, and in 2013 I travelled to China to further develop my knowledge of Shaolin Kung Fu. After joining the Shaolin Kultur Zentrum Austria, I completed two Shaolin Kung Fu teacher trainings and a Shaolin Tai Chi (Rou Quan) teacher training, between 2016 and 2020.

Returning to the Diamond Approach thread: in 2006 I joined my ongoing group Diamond Approach Italy (DAI), led by Janel Ensler. Around that same time, whilst living in Vienna, I enrolled in and completed a Religious Studies degree programme at Laurentian University. My calling to the Ridhwan® work deepened when, in 2011, I applied to join the European Ridhwan Seminary for a New Generation (EURISNG). Beginning in 2012, the training continued for twelve years. In 2021, I was ordained as a Ridhwan® Teacher. The EURISNG training officially concluded in May 2024. It is also worth noting that my active studentship with Michael Barnett continued until 2014, running in parallel with the Ridhwan work. Michael passed away in 2019, bringing that chapter of my life to a final and poignant close.

Currently, I am living and teaching in Vienna, Austria. I teach private students and am open to welcoming new students. I assist on some newly forming ongoing groups, lead various Ridhwan® events and sessions in Vienna, and am forming the Diamond Approach Austria ongoing group together with colleagues, which is scheduled to begin in 2027.

If something in my story resonates with you, or if you are curious about the Diamond Approach or private work, I would be very glad to hear from you. Please feel free to reach out by email.