A Soulful Life: Free Talk

In this free talk and Q&A, Bonny will discuss what it means to live a life that honours and responds to one’s inner calling. 

This was a brilliantly thought-provoking talk. In an hour and a half, Bonny somehow seemed to sketch the core paradoxes and challenges of human existence without sacrificing any of the nuance of these inquiries. This is beautiful work for anyone asking the big questions of life: why are we here? What do we yearn for? How do we free ourselves and heal the division inside- and what is at stake if we don’t? The lens she brings as a psychosynthesis coach is fascinating and allowed her to guide us gracefully through the concepts of spirit, soul, ego, and awareness in a way that felt both intellectual and deeply spiritual. Highly recommend! - Lauren Katalinich

According to psycho-spiritual philosophy, what characterises the human condition is that we are ‘citizens of two realms’, or ‘starry beings in bone houses’ - ie, as Alan Watts famously said, ‘we’re spiritual beings having a human experience’.

What does that mean? Well, that we are indeed animal, mortal and fallible and at the same time connected to an infinite energy source beyond our bodies. 

We can think of spirit as the single indivisible field of light/ consciousness that upholds and animates all of existence. The path towards spirit is the path of transcendence - moving away from the manifest towards ever-more-subtle energies.

In contrast, the soul path is a path of descent; it is about deepening into ourselves and understanding how we are a unique expression of life force. Each soul is thought to contain special gifts, and the soul requires us to venture to our depths in order to discover the treasurer inside us. 

The shadow of the path of the transcendence is that it can (and often does) lead to ‘bypassing’. Spiritual bypassing is when spiritual practises are used as a kind of anaesthetic in an attempt to escape from difficulty and emotional pain… its the kind of mentality that touts that our problems aren’t real and we can just transcend them.

From the perspective of soul work, all of our difficulties are very real and serve as initiations into our humanity. The soul’s core desire is meaning, and somehow suffering and meaning are intertwined in life… we suffer into meaning. 

We are indeed ‘spiritual beings having a human experience’, and fully participating in that human experience means allowing ourselves to feel deeply. The capacity to experience and express emotion is at the root of what it means to be human and is also why there’s also such a close relationship between soulfulness and creativity. 

As the cultural landscape appears to be ever-more volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous, one of the best things we can do is gain an internal clarity on who we are and what we're here to do. 

Opening with a meditation and closing with a discussion, this evening will be a great chance to connect with the underlying principles of soul work, get a taste of Bonny's practise and ask her questions in advance of her upcoming online group coaching journey Soul Path. A recording will be sent to everyone who registers and can't make the session live.

Structure:

• 7:30 - Meditation & Reflection
• 7:50 - Talk
• 8:30 - Q&A

About your Speaker

Bonny is a psychosynthesis coach and multidimensional creative. Her work draws on her extensive studies of the creative process and the patterns of human development, including her MA research into the relationship between play and personal transformation. She is passionate about self-enquiry and artistic expression and strives to create soul stirring experiences through her creative and therapeutic practises. 

Relevant education, training & experience:

• MA - Psychosynthesis Psychology (in progress)
• PG Dip - Psychosynthesis Leadership Coaching
• MA - Applied Imagination in the Creative Industries - Central St Martins
• BA Hons - History of Art & Visual Cultures - Goldsmiths
• 12 Years practise Vedic meditation and study of Vedic philosophy

For more information check out: bonnytydeman.com and soul-beam.com.

Testimonials:

“Bonny is an incredibly smart and intuitive coach with a multilayered approach, dancing between the worlds of classic psychology, mythic poetic symbology, and somatic experience with expert flair that results in a coaching that feels both grounded and mystical.” - Gaia Harvey Jackson

“The work we have done together has been life changing. Bonny’s playful and enlightening techniques of dealing with the different layers of my personality meant that even the dark, ugly traits became more approachable and I was able to understand and honour them. I now feel as though now I can deal with life and the many curve balls that it likes to throws with a calm, clear grounded sensibility.” - Zoe Wellman

“I've been coached by many people over the last twenty years and Bonny really stood out as a clear, warm and heartfelt guide to discovering my own truth. She has an amazing ability to hear the deeper current behind what is being said and a range of techniques for bringing a sense of clarity and purpose to what initially felt like a random jumble of sporadic impulses.” - Amir Giles

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