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INSTITUTE OF TRANSPERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

INTRODUCTION TO TRANSPERSONAL COUNSELING

2 Through the eyes of a transpersonal counselor

In this chapter, although it may seem like we are talking about human problems, what we are about to expose are episodes full of love and life, of lives that have been observed by and shared with a transpersonal counselor. A transpersonal counselor works from a kind of observatory that even though it isnt really like the ones that are situated on the top of some high mountain and that focus on the galaxies of the universe, is the kind of observatory that can be found within privileged interior spaces where, not only are unique stories full of humanity and magic told, but where experiences tinted with shadow, pain and of intensity are also shared. These experiences are what awaken compassion within the observer and a wish to accompany the person that is baring their soul. In any case, a transpersonal counselor is somewhat like an astronomer of Beings, and like the astronomers that contemplate the movements of celestial bodies, he observes the scenes of love and hatred of his patients, as well as the infinite intertwining of attraction and rejection that gives shape to the laws of life. As the reader advances through the following pages, he/she will be in the privileged place of travelling in the seat next to the transpersonal counselor, observing through eyes of intelligence and love, the journey to the inside of another being- from the counselors point of view. This is what we have called initiation tourism of the future, or tourism through the human soul. Really, the unexpected episodes that we witness in our sessions not only provide us with an enriching sense of diversity, they also quite often provide the counselor- who is an eternal scholar of life- with the acute sensation that what is happening to the person that is in front of them coincides with a similar episode of their own life. At the same time, the student will have the chance to observe how each of the patients (or perhaps we should call them caterpillars) conflicts are far from being negative or insignificant. These conflicts are really one of the most important driving forces of human growth. We will observe how pain appears during the process of growing; pain that drives us to search for, and acts as a detonator of, change. Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling

3 Change which we resist, and because we resist, suffer- uselessly trying to hold back the unstoppable process of opening our mind and our heart to the miraculous flow of Love and Awareness. The truth is that as the chrysalis (what was once a caterpillar) finally opens up and is filled with clarity, in that new born state, finally understands that what used to seem painful, or even hellish, was actually the origin of a new awakening which, in many cases, finally becomes a new life path that is going to be travelled with greater awareness.

Guidelines: An effective treatment includes: - A deep level of awareness - Great common sense - Love that stems from all of the above. The ability to offer our patient a comprehensive vision not only alleviates and provides clarity, it also is a chance to re-discover a Larger Path that gives meaning to their life. An intelligent and illuminated journey into the insides of another being. The pain of the caterpillar is what drives us to search for the butterfly that we are. Conflict and descent into hell are the doorways to renewal and presence.

The beauty and completeness of the shadow

As we wrote about the cases that appear all through this training course for future Transpersonal Counselors, we often thought about all the inquisitive students that learned not to flee from the type of strain that inevitably appears during an initiation voyage- perhaps because they somehow knew that the discomfort was not only transitory, but that it often brought along unexpected gifts.

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4 This training course is directed towards those people that are in love with the human race. Perhaps the counselor or companion that lies deep inside each one of us, inside our heart, has already fallen in love with the human race. We finally acknowledge our love and tenderness towards all of humanity, as well as the deep satisfaction we feel when we are able to penetrate through the superficial masks of personal images and finally reach the core of Being- even when that process takes us through many bittersweet experiences. Often during the chapters of this course, we will use the already familiar term shadow to refer to that space in the human mind where an individual has buried, out of shame or self reproach, and often without having previously digested or accepted, that which might provide them with a wonderful starting point from where to take a huge step towards their own personal evolution. However, what usually happens is that in an ordinary state of awareness we find ourselves trapped by the rules about what is supposedly good and bad. During our lives we have often been reproached and threatened for feeling and/or wanting many kinds of things that we were sure others would consider terrible. Often, we carry within us unmentionable experiences that have taken place during stages of our lives when we didnt have enough maturity or know-how in order to deal with them. We werent able to put away those unmentionable experiences in the experiences full of learning cabinet. Consequently, we live with the paralyzing fear of being judged and condemned that leads us to bury those experiences in a safe place- and forgetting often seems like the safest place for that. This is a type of amnesia that we have been forced to activate in order to continue living as best as we possibly could, in order to survive. Along the path that each human being walks towards self-realization, there needs to be a maturing process at each stage or step of the journey. If there are any unresolved issues left along the way, the universal evolutionary process will invariably confront us with those types of experiences that we need to live in order to check and resolve any patterns or attitudes that, no matter how much we have tried to cover up or ignore, end up manifesting themselves. They appear in the shapes of exaggerated behaviors, complexes, fears, insomnia, anxiety, undesirable tendencies, insecurity and low self esteem, as well as in a variety of (self) destructive emotions that we Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling

5 would rather avoid recognizing, feeling or expressing. What ends up happening is that we repeat over and over and over again precisely those issues/patterns that are related with the original unwanted or unaccepted experience. These cycles continue to repeat themselves until, at some point, we finally become Conscious of the entire situation and then, but only then, are able to bring it all out into the light. As we mature and move along the path that will eventually lead us to a sense of unified awareness that is part of the awakening of the supra-consciousness, our shadow strives to be illuminated with the light of consciousness. The expansion of consciousness is a progressive process that often isnt accepted, nor is it understood, at the human level- even when this process is charged with humanity and full of potential beauty waiting to be expressed. As transpersonal counselors, while we observe the life experiences that our patients share, we can see how those supposed inconveniences that each person has been gifted with to live, are precisely what end up becoming their advantages or strong points. They are like calluses that form on our feet: the hardest and most protected areas of our soles have developed precisely on the most vulnerable and punished spots of our feet. Something similar happens with those issues that at one time shamed or tortured us- with the passage of time, and once we have worked them out and become Aware of all the pieces of the puzzle, those once uncomfortable issues are transformed into our greatest virtues and talents.

Guidelines:

The Transpersonal Counselor accompanies his/her patient in the journey through their shadows and in the activation of that which resonates with the core of their Being.

Behind pain and loss awaits the treasure. Shadow wants to be illuminated by the light of consciousness.

Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling

Observing and accepting the shadow The human shadow were talking about, no matter how wretched it may seem, isnt really an enemy to fight and destroy- because this inevitably would be a lost battle. As we go through our life processes and mature, we need to understand that one, this isnt exactly a battle against some form of evil and two, that we will eventually reach the state of Benevolence without opposite. Not by going against the supposed evil, but in spite of evil. Please note that in this case we are referring to inattention, egoism and ignorance when we speak of evil. The transpersonal counselor realizes that instead of trying to imitate patterns of apparent goodness that dont really come from the inside, but come out of the somewhat inappropriate regions where fear and manipulation are engendered, it is much more desirable to stop fooling yourself and be authentic. Perhaps it would be more convenient for us to accept our limitations and learn from the experiences that we repeat over and over again, until we are able to convert our errors into lessons. As we walk along our life path, respect towards others and virtue as a way of life can only come forth spontaneously when we venture into the spiritual core of Being. The manifestations of love and clarity that we then express are a natural consequence of our personal development and are made without any kind of limiting idealization or repression. We are aware that the development and maturing process of a human being passes through an initial stage of confrontation with all that we dont like about ourselves- in other words- facing our shadows and repressed areas. The next stage consists in the acceptance and integration of those areas. Any shift in our evolution goes through an initial period when we recognize our shadows in order to later integrate them. The episodes of suffering and crisis that a human being goes through and that lead them to ask for counseling are the birth pains of a new self that is emerging, as well as a sign of the resistance they have towards accepting that what is. Without a doubt these episodes, that may seem negative, are really full of opportunities to grow, change and overcome what the universe offers us. Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling

Guidelines:

What some consider evil is only the result of inattention and ignorance. The spiritual core goes beyond religious doctrine or ideologies. The progressive acceptance of our shadow, followed by its integration, is what gives way to a new level of consciousness.

Growth as a way of overcoming suffering Growth cannot be held back; the Universe has been constantly expanding for more than fifteen thousand million years and there isn t a tree that doesnt continue to accumulate rings that testify its sustained growing process. Human beings are also affected by the uncontainable displays of the mysterious evolutionary impulse that unceasingly pushes us in a continuum of expansion until the moment we die. This psychological and spiritual growth takes place even when we are in our old age. This has been corroborated by recent discoveries in the field of neurophysiology. It has to do with a new concept called cerebral neuro-plasticity that, more or less, refutes the old belief that when a human being ages they lose neurons and become mentally decadent and limited. It has recently been discovered that our brain is constantly modifying itself according to the amounts of new information and experience it registers. This means that anyone who wishes to become an embodiment of wisdom shouldnt worry about adding on years to their lives; even if Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling

8 their bodies dont walk up the stairs as well or if their eyes need lenses to see with, their brain, the neuro-physiological base where their experiences are registered, is constantly being updated. Ageing is the pathway towards Awakening of Universal Knowledge that has been called by different names: Spirit, Light, Love, Infinity, Fullness...and which the fourth wave of Psychology has named Transpersonal State. The word transpersonal is another way to refer to that which has do to with spiritual, but is clearly separated from religious beliefs, credos or the following of supposedly illuminated personalities. Spiritual, in this context, refers to the level of love and expanding of consciousness towards the Oneness that a human being has reached during his/her life. From this perspective, evolution can be considered on three levels : it is born from a state of pre-consciousness, moves towards consciousness and ends in supra-consciousness or consciousness of Oneness. This is easier to understand when using the linguistic version that incorporates the concept of personal: the child is in a pre-personal state, the adult is fundamentally in a personal state and the sage or illuminated elder is in a transpersonal state.

Guidelines: A mysterious evolutionary impulse pushes Human Beings towards continuous learning and expansion.

According to the principle of cerebral neuroplasticity, we can continue to grow in wisdom until the moment we die. Spiritual refers to the level of love and the expansion of consciousness that we express during our lives. Our pathway flows from pre-consciousness to consciousness and from consciousness to supra-consciousness.

Love as medicine Sometimes we stop and ask ourselves: what is it that opens up the pathways of light in the darkness and re-activates the basic joy that Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling

9 we have temporarily lost? Could technology have the answer? Or is it in academic knowledge? Or in a miraculous pill? Perhaps all these elements are important to some degree and depending upon the moment. However, after many years of working with human beings, the Spanish Institute of Transpersonal Development has come to the humble conclusion that what really cures the human being is love. The infinite rainbow of love that goes all the way from what we call small love to what we call big love. Small love is the kind of love we feel towards the people that are important to us. This is a conditional love: conditioned by the object towards which it is directed and from which it gets its reason for being. This means is that when we say that we love a person, what we really love is the satisfaction we obtain from a series of behaviors that have a specific identity and contain a little bit of soul. In fact, when the object of our small love begins to behave in a way that doesnt satisfy us, our interest begins to fade and eventually we may even reject them and/or feel hatred towards them. Maybe we should begin to consider that what we often call love really has more to do with our psychological contracts. Big love, or transpersonal love, is the opposite of small love. It is Conscious Love; love that isnt conditioned by behavior because it is a love that is not directed towards an object. We could call this love a love-attribute: it sprouts from the deep essence of Being, simply because it IS. It is Universal Love that makes no distinctions, that flows from the universal being that we Are. When we know at a fundamental level that we are a part of the Whole, any sense of separateness between the Self and the you is an illusion. From this perspective we can recognize love as a form of conscious energy. This conscious energy acts in presence and is infinite in its reach because it goes beyond the limits of linear time that the thinking mind creates. Thus, Love is truly miraculous in all its manifestations. As the wise man said: If you dont believe in miracles, you arent realistic.

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Guidelines: Love is what really cures human beings. Love is a state of consciousness. Everything is possible: someone that doesnt believe in miracles isnt realistic.

Compassion is an intelligent form of love This initial contact with the transpersonal counselors way of seeing also goes for those students who, in some way, feel they resonate with the focus of this course. Perhaps they already show a natural tendency to offer their help to others that are going through hard times; perhaps they are the good of heart beings that have a calling to assist those that ask for their help by listening to them attentively, intelligently and compassionately. These are the people that investigate and search for efficient ways to alleviate the suffering of those that surround them, without necessarily needing to have previously great academic preparation in order to do so. This is the main reason why the content of this Transpersonal Counselor training course isnt directed exclusively towards erudite professionals that already posses a number of degrees, but is directed towards students that arent necessarily experts, towards students that have observed their own conflicts and recognized their own different states of crisis as well as having acknowledged their many shadows and that have the will to bring them out into the light. The case reports that are presented within this training course are intended to expose the most vital parts of the human soul- those parts that appear when a new butterfly emerges from out of a crisis and spreads its wings.

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The privilege of being a psychotherapist As transpersonal counselors ourselves, we wish to explain that at some time during our own lives we made the decision to accompany others along their own particular search for that something more that each one of us has already, at some time of our life, searched to discover. During the course of this therapeutic cycle we have had the privilege of sharing thousands of personal interviews- we sincerely hope that it is clear to the students that read them that we have tried to share our patients problems with the utmost sensibility and with great respect. We humbly acknowledge that in the name of our patients pain we have evoked all our own past pains. We have recognized in the name of their conflicts all of our own updated conflicts. We have recognized in the name of confusion, of doubt, of mental blockage and insanity, all of our own innermost records in which we have at some time or another seen ourselves reflected. We have also seen how patients that supposedly come to us in search of solutions and understanding, are not really looking for a new mental model (even if the search is partially unconscious) but are searching for an awakening to a Greater Life Path that will give deep meaning to their future. From this perspective we have always considered that the person that gets up after a fall is more courageous than the person that has never fallen. We admit that the painful episodes and crisis that we go through along our life paths force us to look for answers in places that otherwise we would never have looked. We open up our mind and heart and fully receive what we intuit has something to do with kindness, truth and beauty. Those are the moments when, even though we may be wallowing in pain,

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12 the Extraordinary makes a swift appearance in our life; those are God filled moments. Thus, we can affirm that the supposed illness or crisis that we experience, along with its corresponding agitation, fear and blockage, is really an opportunity that life offers us to make changes that, more or less, confirm the veracity of the following aphorism: The Universe writes straight with twisted lines.

Guidelines:

In the name of our patients pain we recognize our own pain. Within illnesses and crisis we can find our great opportunities.

The supreme joy of feeling useful Following along the same lines as in the previous paragraphs, and before we delve into the depths of clinical cases, we would like to share the time when a good friend of ours, Carlos NN., interviewed Jos Mara Doria, the director of our Institute, on the radio. One of the things Carlos asked Jos Mara was: What is the life of a transpersonal counselor like? Without a seconds doubt, Jos Mara answered: Fascinating. Carlos insisted on knowing the reason why. Jos Mara answered: There are four good reasons. And we have decided that it would be a good idea to share, word for word, what Jos Mara explained: The first reason is that one has the chance to connect with the deepest and most intimate parts of the human being. Without a doubt, a counselor opens up to the gift of sharing internal landscapes that speak of the diverse and intense humanity that we are and which, at the same time, enriches the quality and consciousness of living.

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13 The second reason is because, due to the nature of the professional Agreement incurred, one does not spend time exploring superficial topics, but right from the start of a session, focuses the attention on that which can bring about liberation and growth, that which comes out of real and intense communication. Otherwise, the session would be a waste of our time, interest and money. The third reason is: precisely because I have chosen to practice the kind of counseling I have explained above, it enables me to feel a connection to the real meaning of life and to the very purpose of our existence. I must say that the process of helping to alleviate suffering and setting some guidelines regarding what is essential, is a gift for me. It is a gift that awakens my own consciousness and consciousness. In this consumer society that constantly bombards us with promises of reaching happiness through material things, no matter how hard we try to cultivate our total attention and presence, we live with the threat of amnesia. We also tend to forget the values that truly provide peace and happiness in life. We could say that the current socioeconomic model is trying hard to sell us the idea that acquiring things or having huge bank accounts will provide us with the happiness we all yearn for. And even though this socioeconomic model is losing credibility fast, the global hypnosis is so extended that if it werent for the constant opportunities to remember that my patients and students give me, I would soon fall prey again to the amnesia. Sometimes I have asked myself: Am I only doing this job in order to be able to stay on the track of what is Essential? I also feel that during the sessions that I have with my patients (patients that have come to me looking for a way to wake up from the nightmare that they are living in under the guise of everyday conflicts) life is offering me a new opportunity to go a few meters deeper into myself. Some time ago I realized that agitation and conflict belong to a superficial layer of the human mind. This is simply another way to refer to the dream we live trapped in, even when we arent fully aware of it. The immersion into the depths of myself is healing- it resembles what happens to a swimmer that, frightened of the threatening waves around them, ends up going underwater and discovers with marvel that, when experienced from underneath, Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling

14 those once threatening waves pass over their heads without hardly any agitation. The same thing happens in the realm of emotions: when we manage to live in connection with the deepest parts of ourselves, and from there connect to the intrinsic peace and love that is our essence, we will no longer have to put up with the agitation that suffering causes because we will know that they are only superficial experiences. Thus, I have come to acknowledge that the person that comes to my practice is really acting as a wakeup call for both of us. And getting back to my reasonsthe fourth one is that I experience what could be called the supreme joy of being useful. Actually, the most profound reason for my life, that is, what motivates me the most to get up with enthusiasm every morning, is nothing less than a wish to contribute in some way to lighten the burden of human suffering and, in many cases, lessen the underlying ignorance in our current human condition. The deep joy comes out of the honor that it is for me to be able to share efficient tools and resources that help in overcoming conflict, and from attending with awe the emergence of a life in which a person has learned to learn. Is there any better experience than that of watching a film in which suffering and blindness progressively dissipate? Could there be a better profession than that which allows one to aid in the evolution that a caterpillar undergoes on its path towards becoming a butterfly? Even when the process entails a certain degree of pain and confusion? I must insist that as a transpersonal counselor I dont intend to cure anyone- only one can cure oneself. But what I can say that I do do, is to offer a space where communication and consciousness can thrive, where this simple obstetrician attends the birth of the new self of a patient, the birth of a higher and deeper level of consciousness that has been waiting for the moment to be born.

Guidelines: In the depths of consciousness can be found the relief for superficial conflicts.

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Our patients are the wake up calls of our own initiation path The transpersonal counselor is the obstetrician of the patients new identity. The supreme joy of being useful in the evolution of our patient.

The simplicity and neutrality of the counselor

We often explain to the students of the Spanish Institute of Transpersonal Counseling that in order to help a human being in crisis you dont have to have special answers, nor do you need a great deal of knowledge regarding academic psychology. What you really need is: good common sense, a loving heart and knowing how to make just the right questions so that the person can look where we feel its worth it for them to look, so they can gain consciousness and also be able to put what they observe into words.

In cases where the type of crisis that a person is going through should require the intervention of specialized technical or chemical means, the best thing to do is to refer the patient to the corresponding therapist or therapy using what we call criteria. Well before Sigmund Freud was born, and well before the advent of the endless number of scientists that have given birth to the human mind, there already were people in whose company one felt that his/her soul recovered its lost serenity. Like I have already mentioned, these people didnt necessarily have numerous degrees, nor were they Honor Student candidates, that memorized a whole encyclopedia of pathologies. They probably were only simple human beings that were a little more aware and awake than others and had taken the time to observe their own internal conflicts. They probably were willing to perceive through loving and intelligent listening all the subtle, and not so subtle, dimensions that their visitors seemed to need to express. In reality, the word therapist means companion. A psychotherapist is a companion of souls. That is, they are the boatmen that accompany those beings during their journeys towards the other shore of life. A psychotherapist is also a subtle igniter of Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling

16 expanded and deeper levels of consciousness. This may bring to mind the image of a scuba diver doing immersions into the worlds of causes as they accompany a person that is in search of themselves, in search of their lost serenity. This process usually goes through phases of consciousness expansion, vision expansion and a greater knowledge of oneself. All this which happens through the ability to sustain ones full attention and be aware.

Guidelines: What is needed in order to help a human being is great common sense, a loving heart and the ability to focus on powerful questions when it is most convenient. The maturity of the counselor can be seen in the degree of professional criteria that he/she manifests.

Growth as a tool for healing In the heart of the space where a session between counselor and patient takes place, one soon realizes that the real cause of human suffering is ignorance. Not the type of ignorance that comes from a lack of information or lack of technical details, but the kind of ignorance that derives from the apparent stagnation in the comprehensive growth of a person. We are referring to the type of growth that, once it is re-activated, favors the appearance of natural resources needed to update any potential that the patient possesses, as well as it aids them in the ability to successfully surf the existential waves. Sometimes we say that when an acorn feels that it can never turn into the oak tree that it is, it must feel pretty bad. Albert Einstein pronounced these words that best describe the above idea:
No problem can be resolved on the same level of consciousness that it was created.

We realize that life spreads out along a sort of hierarchy or staircase of levels of development. A couple of examples are, the relation between the primitive Cro-Magnon and the superior level of the current Homo Sapiens, or on a different scale, the relation between the level of the reptilian brain that evolved to the level of the actual Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling

17 neocortical brain. Life spreads out in successive waves of development that integrate and expand the previous level. An example of this can be seen in the levels of particles that, once regrouped and integrated amongst themselves, become what we call an atom. Which, once regrouped and integrated amongst other atoms become a cell and which continuing up the scale and integrating among themselves, become an organism. And if we go on with this standard of reflection we will come to the conclusion that a new level of development releases the previous level from its problems, although in the future they will probably have to face problems that correspond with this new level and dimension. Carrying on with this example of the ladder of levels, if those people that suffer from emotional dependency patterns in their love relationships and that have to deal with problems related to control issues, attachments, jealousy, manipulation, fear of abandonment and anticipatory pathologies that are a consequence of their addictive need for their partners, they can either choose to fight against this dependency ( a lost battle in most cases) or they can place their bet on personal growth and cultivation that will give them access to a higher level of consciousness: independence. Most of the time its not necessary to stir up, over and over again, conflicts from the childhood in order to resolve many of the problems or painful experiences of the past that haunt most human beings. Often all that is needed is to put the focus on finding a way to reinterpret past happenings and developing a more positive and lucid mental model.

Guidelines: The real cause of human suffering is ignorance. Often it isnt necessary to stir up childhood conflicts but to learn how to reinterpret past happenings and integrate a more positive and lucid mental model. To become aware transforms the observer and the observed, a conflictive process that is steadily witnessed is its resolution.

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Consciousness as a medicine Transpersonal counseling puts special emphasis on the transformational power of something as simple and yet so powerful as can be becoming aware. It is well known that consciousness has an enormous potential to transform, a type of transformation that takes place not only in the observer but also in the observed. Not only have mystics of all times postulated this, now the scientific community attests this postulate with its progressive investigations in the field of quantum physics. We think that by solving the problems we will reach peace, When in reality it is when we embrace peace that the problems dissolve.

On the psychological level, the mere act of witnessing or becoming aware of something, like for example, a certain type of behavior pattern that tends to produce undesired actions, will open up the mind to new possibilities and at the same time it will modify those automatized elements and reactions entailed in the previous mental structure. What happens is that there are many people who still associate the concept of consciousness with something ambiguous, related to ethics and morality and that has to with good and bad actions. Really, once you have become consciousness of something you have simply become aware of it. This kind of consciousness is without a doubt a neutral experience that goes beyond mental processes that correspond to judgments and opinions. So, in all our internal processes of conflict and pain there is certain degree of unconsciousness or automatization- either due to having buried the original cause or because they are consequence of processes that we ignored at the time in which the corresponding Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling

19 pattern was developed. These are patterns that, in order to be modified, must be illuminated with consciousness along the differing levels of deepness and discernment, depending on just how set in and profound they are.

Guidelines: The counselor that observes his/her own conflicts develops a better understanding towards his/her patient. The counselor is a companion of souls as well as a diving partner.

The absolute confidentiality of a counselor Finally, we would like to stress that the name, sex, profession and circumstances of the protagonists of the therapy study cases that are included in this course have been totally modified to preserve the real identity of the person on which the study case has been based. Confidentiality is one of the most unbreakable requirements that a psychotherapist must comply with. Not only out of respect for their patients privacy, but because when this kind of information becomes gossip material, the neutrality of the case gets intoxicated and its emotional health may be damaged. Discretion and a well placed lock on the files containing all the patients personal information (information that isnt directly related to the therapy in itself), is an ethical and professional must for every counselor. This also provides the needed rest for the counselors ego which, after having shared emotions and experiences, must go back to that impartial and quiet position from where respect, comprehension and silence are born.

Guidelines: Rule Number 1:

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Strict confidentiality and respect for the private life of the patient, without exceptions.

A final word This isnt a technical chapter that presents study cases of patients so that the student in the classroom can begin a scientific investigation regarding therapeutic processes. We have purposely avoided all that which has to do with the labels and diagnosis that some of our patients carry on their shoulders. It isnt because we consider them to be unimportant, its because as transpersonal counselors we try to avert our patients attention, and our own, when they say to us that they are neurotic or suffer from bi-polar syndrome or any other diagnostic label... We look at the person with a wide angle lens and with a type of gaze that goes beyond the person level and reaches their essential identity. We feel that within the framework of the session, support, self-knowing, love and consciousness should progressively appear. Like the Chinese proverb says, perhaps referring to that which in the West we call subconscious: The doctor puts the bandage on the wounds, but it is God who heals them. If you feel that the energy that we have shared with you has updated the deep vocation you have to practice transpersonal counseling and you feel capable of undoing the myth that one usually creates regarding how wonderful counselors and psychotherapists must be... and how chaotic and unprepared one feels about practicing as suchthen continue ahead with the training to become a transpersonal counselor with the Spanish School of Transpersonal Counseling and we will talk extensively about all those myths. Maybe one day you will be surprised to see how your dream becomes reality. Nothing happens that wasnt first a dream.

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Reflections for the counselor: 1. What parts of this text have resonated in a special way with your vocation to serve others? 2. Name the basic pillars that, according to you, are the foundations of transpersonal counseling. 3. Imagine your a day mind. in the Try to future when the you are a

transpersonal counselor and visualize that new path with creative recreate emotional atmosphere and the joyful sensations that are evoked in you as you greet, attend and say good bye to your patient.

Introduction to Transpersonal Counseling