We regret that these programs are not being offered at this time. We got old.

Personal Guidance

"There is no general rule or method applicable to all who aspire to realize God. Every man must work out his own salvation and must choose his own method, although his choice is mostly determined by the total effect of the mind impressions (sanskaras) acquired in previous lives. He should be guided by the creed of his conscience, and follow the method that best suits his spiritual tendency, his physical aptitude and his external circumstances. Truth is One, but the approach to it is essentially individual. The Sufis say, "There are as many ways to God as there are souls of men."

Meher Baba, God Speaks, Supplement 2, Walnut Creek, CA: Sufism Reoriented, 2nd rev. ed., 1973, third printing 1997, p. 193

If all that is needed is within everyone, as perennial wisdom holds, then why is guidance necessary? Many who have attempted the quest entirely on their own have discovered that it is easy to miss what is subtle and often difficult to distinguish between the important and trivial. Without good guidance, the spiritual quest can become a labyrinth in which it is very easy to lose one's way. More than a few seekers have been fooled by the glitter of false teachers who mislead or the glamor of psychic experiences that distract. Many others get discouraged with the apparent complexity of the process and give up in frustration.

The sure way is to follow in the footsteps of those who have gone before and left directions in the form of perennial wisdom. However, not everyone is in a position to undertake a close study of perennial wisdom. Those who have made this their life's work can offer valuable guidance that can assist others in both saving time and also avoiding mistakes and pitfalls.

In addition, there are obstacles in the form of mental, emotional, and energetic blockages that need to be removed or attenuated. This is the work of psychospirituality as a preparatory discipline.

According to Rig Veda, those who seek directions ask of those who know the way. Even if one were spiritually astute enough to find what one is seeking on one's own, having good guidance could greatly facilitate the process. Even the most insightful and energetic seekers are at a disadvantage going it entirely on their own, trying to reinvent the wheel, and they inevitably waste time and energy if they don't actually get sidetracked. Anyone not yet perfected can gain ground by building on the knowledge and experience of those who have preceded them. This is the value of perennial wisdom as the distilled wisdom of those who have gone before.

Perennial wisdom teaches that none can raise others higher than they are themselves. Moreover, the final stroke of knowledge imparting realization of Truth must be given by one who is perfected.

Yet, it is also a fact of experience that we learn from those who know more than we do in a particular area, even though they may not yet have mastered the subject. This is the advantage of putting oneself in an environment that encourages learning and sharing.

Moreover, some traditions, Taoism in particular, teach that there is nothing from which we cannot learn something or value and that negative teachers are as important as positive ones if they help us avoid their mistakes. As Augustine observed, "By whomsoever truth is said, it is said through His teaching Who is The Truth."

These days, many if not most parents never become elders and as a result, their children grow up without being introduced to the pursuit of wisdom. Moreover, the value-free education of secular societies also often means that what one should be learned in school is never mentioned. As a result, informal education in the form of personal guidance and mentoring is especially necessary for our contemporary culture to provide what formal education does not. Most people have never been exposed to these important factors for living a full life, and they have some catching up to do.

Integral Transformation was developed by the Core Spirituality Institute on the basis of perennial wisdom, and it is is grounded in life-long holistic education. Personal guidance based on the principles and practice of Integral Transformation is available through the associates of the Institute. Programs for learning to apply the key fundamentals of Integral Transformation in guidance and mentoring are also available.

In addition to personal guidance, the Core Spirituality Institute provides initial training for those wishing to become spiritual directors, transpersonal mentors, psychospiritual counselors, and transformational coaches, as well as on-going training for those who are already qualified. Although not everyone who receives guidance considers the possibility of providing guidance themselves at some point, going through the process oneself provides an excellent foundation for guiding others on a similar journey of self-discovery, and many find that after completing the process and appreciating its benefits, they want to share what they have gained with others as an act of service.

Transformational mentoring, psychospiritual counseling, and transformational coaching share the overall purpose of is assisting seekers to discover their own unique spiritual path and to become established on it, albeit from the different angles described.

The Core Spirituality Institute also provides training and certification in Integral Transformation to clergy, pastoral counselors and those qualified in a particular path work in terms of a wisdom tradition for use in spiritual direction and counseling, to those providing guidance in universal path work emphasizing core spirituality for use in transpersonal mentoring, and to health care professionals, therapists, and other qualified individuals for use in psychospiritual counseling, as well as to graduates of the Institute's programs in core spirituality for use in transformational coaching.

Spiritual direction is part of the seminary program.

Transpersonal Mentoring

Transpersonal mentoring is concerned with the integration of the physical, energetic, psychological and spiritual dimensions of life through illuminating shadow issues and removing blocks, in addition to providing growth work in the areas that assessment of spiritual constitution and present state indicate. It is provided by those certified as educators in Integral Transformation as developed by the Core Spirituality Institute. This certification involves extensive background in assessment and growth work.

Transformational mentoring is provided by Thomas James Hickey, Ph.D. and Neale Lundgren, Ph.D., the developers of Integral Transformation, as well as Valerie Galante, Ph. D., director of Finding Your Way, and Jack Graham, M.Div., Th.M., LPC

Psychospiritual Counseling

Psychospiritual counseling is concerned with resolving personality issues which involve coping, such as recovery from addictions, along with guidance in growth. Hence, psychospiritual counseling generally requires special qualifications, such as advanced academic degrees or professional certification or licensing, in addition to certification in Integral Transformation. Psychospiritual counseling may be provided in its own right or be used as an adjunct by psychotherapists and other health care professionals who have been trained in Integral Transformation.

Psychospiritual counseling based on perennial wisdom and Integral Transformation is provided by:

JACK GRAHAM, M.Div.,Th.M., LPC, practices psychotherapy on the Jungian model of conscious self-disclosure together with his wife Helen in Atlanta, Georgia. For further information or a personal consultation, please contact him by clicking here.

NEALE LUNDGREN, Ph.D. Neale practices psychotherapy in Atlanta, Georgia, where he specializes in recovery. For further information or a personal consultation, please contact him by clicking

Transformational Coaching

Transformational coaching is concerned with giving assistance in the "birthing" process which occurs continually on the spiritual quest. On this spiritual quest, one both passes through dark forests and is also "born again" into ever new levels of awareness and experience as one's inherent potential unfolds. The companionship, validation and insight provided by a coach who has experience with transformational work is invaluable to catalyze the process and to make in a smoother experience. It is provided by those who have been qualified to give guidance in terms of Integral Transformation as coaches, in particular on the basis of their experience with The Way of the Higher Self and Total Living Program. Graduates of The Way of the Higher Self and Total Living Program are eligible to apply for training preparatory to certification for providing transformational coaching.

Transformational coaching is provided in the light of The Way of the Higher Self and Total Living Program by:

THOMAS J. HICKEY, Ph.D., developer of The Way of the Higher Self and Total Living Program. Coaching is provided at a distance though telephone or email. Those who successfully complete the program may apply to become leaders of The Way of the Higher Self and Total Living Program themselves.

Graduates of The Way of the Higher Self and Total Living Program are presently in training as transformational coaches. Those already certified include Rev. Dr. Valerie Galante, PhD., Jack Graham, M.Div., Th.M., LPC, Dr. Neale Lundgren, Ph.D., and William Hickey, MS.

Integral Transformation

The purpose of Integral Transformation is to assist in unfolding inherent potential, both an individual’s unique capacity for self-expression and also the potential of human nature we all share, which perennial wisdom holds to be infinite spiritually. In this endeavor Integral Transformation draws on all relevant resources, seeking to integrate ancient wisdom and modern knowledge in order to promote individual growth and foster societal change, especially ethically and spiritually.

Integral Transformation is a bridge discipline which connects timeless wisdom with contemporary knowledge and skills. As such, it draws from the well of core spirituality, as well as from the arts, sciences and humanities. The entire range of experience and reflection, including the preconscious, conscious and superconscious dimensions is considered relevant to lifelong learning in the broadest and deepest sense of unfolding one’s full potential in an integrated way.

Initially, key fundamentals are identified and used to articulate a model of human transformation. Then, on the basis of this model a comprehensive set of modalities is developed for applying key fundamentals to holistic self-management, on the basis of individual assessment.

Spiritual Direction

Spiritual direction is generally considered to be a function of the clergy, although it is properly the function of those who are spiritually advanced regardless of formal qualification. The spiritually advanced are as shining lights who naturally attract others to them (but all that glitters in not gold).

There is a limited role for others to play in spiritual direction, provided they recognize their limitations and take care not to exceed them. Through personal experience and study they can assist others to appreciate the teachings of perennial wisdom and apply them to their lives. The safest way to do this is to be guided oneself by the mystics, masters, saints, sages, seers, and prophets, whose lives and words constitute perennial wisdom.

Spiritual direction in this latter sense is a subject of study in the seminary program of Circle School. It involves study of perennial wisdom and knowledge of counseling procedure in addition to personal experience of spirituality.