July 17 Interfaith Spiritual Travelers Circle
[We're starting a new series called Interfaith Spiritual Travelers Circle: Spiritual travelers from all backgrounds and traditions, sharing experience -- seeking wisdom.  Our first guest this Sunday, July 17, is Kamyar Houbakht and friends, speaking with us from Turkey. Kamyar will be joined other members of his Simorgh Wisdom School of Not-Knowing who will be sharing some of their practices -- so be prepared for music, poetry, and whatever else they may be bringing to share with us!]

Rumi, Soul Centered Living, and the Wisdom of Not Knowing

Kamyar Houbakht was born in Iran and grew up in Dubai, where he attended graduate school, received his business degree, and started a high tech company. He now now lives with his wife Seda in Turkey.  In 2008 Kamyar attended a seminar in the U.S. with business and organizational guru Peter Senge, which changed the direction of his life. In a private conversation between the two of them, Senge asked Kamyar, "What do you truly want to do with your life?" As Kamyar reflected more and more deeply on this question, he was led to the decision to leave the business world in the autumn of 2008 in search of his soul.

Since then he has come across people who share the passion for exploring and creating new ways of living that serve the well-being of the planet in the long run. In community, they have been co-learning and co-creating learning journeys that re-align our living patterns with the deeper patterns of life; patterns of the soul. His journey has been highly inspired by his great grand mother's way of living, Sufi wisdom (mostly Rumi's poetry and Eshraq philosophy), Jungian psychology, Axladitsa Avatakia learning ecology, and many friends who dare facing the challenges of the collective journey of wholeness.

Simorgh Wisdom School is a collective journey of seeking wisdom. It is an exploration around the HOW of meeting our Inner / Collective wisdom, while responding to the challenges of our time at personal, community and global levels. In the Sufi literature, Simorgh represents the eternal source of healing, inspiration and wisdom. It also refers to a group of birds who travel through challenges of finding wisdom, letting go of limiting beliefs and assumptions that keep them away from acknowledging and expressing their inner Truth. As they surrender their attitude of knowing, embracing their collective capacity to sit with not-knowing, they begin to meet their Inner / Collective wisdom.

The journey is highly inspired by Rumi’s poetry, and the ancient silk thread that bridges east and west, beginning from Aegean, through Anatolia and Persia. It is also inspired by the root-wisdom of each traveler no matter where on earth they belong to.

To join us for the Interfaith Spiritual Travelers Circle -- on July 17 at 9AM-10:30AM PST (7PM-8:30PM Istanbul) -- simply RSVP below and we'll send you the details.