The Mysterion School Year 2: Living Presence

9-month interactive online study of Living Presence: The Sufi Path to Mindfulness & the Essential Self with Kabir Helminski

Beginning in March 2024 we will begin a study of the seminal work, Living Presence, The Sufi Path to Mindfulness and the Essential Self. The course consists of 9 live online sessions, including suggested spiritual practices, and 18 discussion sessions led by senior “dervishes” of the Threshold Society. Living Presence is a classic work translated into at least 7 languages. This is the book that first brought many people to the Threshold Society and has been the foundation of a unique approach to spiritual development.

The Mysterion School is an opportunity to experience the living tradition of Sufism, to refine our knowledge, and to discover a structure to support our spiritual practice.

  • The Mysterion School is the realization of a longstanding dream to join with spiritual seekers and systematically explore the nature of our souls and the lifelong journey we’re on -- to join the practical with the metaphysical, to train our attention to remember what is truly essential, to awaken the essential self which is spontaneously in communion with the Divine.

  • The path to this Reality is through the discipline of Tassawuf, or Mysticism, defined in our glossary as “a faculty peculiar to the human being, that is neither obvious to the intellect nor to the senses, but depends on the refinement and receptivity of faculties within the supra-conscious mind.”

  • Those of us who participated in the first year, exploring The Mysterion, discovered a panoramic view of human possibilities. Living Presence, on the other hand, takes us back to first principles, but with a concentrated, crystalline language that reflects the subtleties of the soul’s experience.

Living Presence

The Sufi Path to Mindfulness & the Essential Self


With unique clarity, this book describes how presence can be developed to vastly improve our lives. Drawing on the work of the beloved Sufi poet, Rumi, as well as traditional material and personal experience, this book integrates the ancient wisdom of Sufism with the needs of contemporary life. Completely revised and updated for its 25th anniversary, this edition of Living Presence offers a wisdom that is both universal and practical. See more about the book here.

Nine Themes from Living Presence

An invitation from Shaikh Kabir

Living Presence was first published in 1992, and significantly revised and updated in the 25th Anniversary Edition of 2017. It contains teachings we received from the extraordinary spiritual companions, elders, and murshids that we were blessed to know and from experiences we had during our own spiritual training. Living Presence is based mostly in our lived experience, a practical body of knowledge, not from ideas taken from books. Of course, I also refer to the primary sources of our Sufi tradition -- for instance, Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi and other Sufis, select Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad, may he be blessed, and the Qur’an -- interpreted from an esoteric perspective that has been preserved in a living tradition. It is a joy to be able to share this knowledge and experience with a community of sincere seekers. I invite you to take this journey with us.

We will focus deeply on these nine themes:

Creative Energies and Human Capacities
The Power of Being
Meditation: The Refinement of Our Attention
Conscience
Mysteries of The Body
Emancipation from Fear
What We Love We Will Become
Worship: Contact with The Infinite
The Religion of Love

Course Summary

  • March to November Monthly 90-Minute Class Sessions with Kabir Helminski

    A unique opportunity to be mentored by pre-eminent author and Mevlevi Shaikh Kabir Helminski— from the comfort of your own home. Class sessions are usually on the third Sunday of each month at 10am Pacific Time. See class schedule below.

  • March to November Monthly 90-Minute Interactive Group Sessions

    A more intimate group moderated by trusted senior dervishes. This will be an opportunity to interact, share, and raise questions to help you further integrate each month’s themes. These smaller group sessions allow additional time for you to connect with a community of seekers. These will be held over different times across the month to facilitate multiple time zones. See group session schedule below.

  • Video Recordings of Class Sessions

    After each class, the video will be available for you to watch anytime and anywhere at your convenience.

  • Audio Recordings of Class Sessions

    After each class, the audio will be available for you to listen anytime and anywhere at your convenience.

  • Chat Forum
    Share progress and reflections with other participants.

Pricing Options

This 9-month interactive course is offered on a sliding-scale basis to cater to a range of budgets. No matter how much you pay, you will receive full access to all areas of the course. We also have a small number of scholarships available. To apply please email us at [email protected]

While we use the PayPal platform to take payments, you do not need to have a PayPal account to register for this course. Once you click through to checkout, select the 'Pay with PayPal' button, and you will then be given an option to pay using a credit/debit card instead of using a PayPal account.

The Mysterion School Year 1: Testimonials

  • I greatly enjoyed and benefitted from Shaikh Kabir's thoughtful presentation of the concepts contained in The Mysterion; his presence and patience during the course sessions; the follow-up emails that provoked more honest inner observation and deepening of practice. The sessions, while quite full of information, never seemed rushed, and I appreciated our teacher's generosity with his time, staying seemingly until the last question or comment was addressed.

  • My gratitude to Kabir Dede and the team. The course has changed, and continues to change, the way I am in the world. Understanding continues to deepen and, I suspect, will continue to do so as long as one gives one's attention to Being and employs the mind as a tool for enquiry. The book contains such wisdom that is revealed as and when one is ready to hear it, as one's inner being continues in the process of transformation and refinement through daily worship and implementation of the principles in one's daily life.

  • What I enjoyed most has been meeting many other Lovers of God from across the world. Sometimes the walk with God is difficult as we clean out all that separates us from fully living in our true Divine Nature. Hearing the difficulties shared by many students helped me to understand some of my own inner processes.

Class & Group Discussion Schedule

The main class is with Kabir Helminski.

The group discussion is held one week later and moderated by senior dervishes.

CLASS
GROUP
GROUP
Mar 17 @ 10am
Mar 24 @ 4am PT
Mar 24 @ 10am PT
Apr 21 @ 10am
Apr 28 @ 4am PT
Apr 28 @ 10am PT
May 19 @ 10am
May 26 @ 4am PT
May 26 @ 10am PT
Jun 16 @ 10am
Jun 23 @ 4am PT
Jun 23 @ 10am PT
Jul 21 @ 10am
Jul 28 @ 4am PT
Jul 28 @ 10am PT
Aug 18 @ 10am
Aug 25 @ 4am PT
Aug 25 @ 10am PT
Sep 15 @ 10am
Sep 22 @ 4am PT
Sep 22 @ 10am PT
Oct 20 @ 10am
Oct 27 @ 4am PT
Oct 27 @ 10am PT
Nov 17 @ 10am
Nov 24 @ 4am PT
Nov 24 @ 10am PT

All times are in Pacific Time
Summer time changes:
Sun 10 Mar - PST to PDT
Sun 31 Mar - GMT to BST
Sun 27 Oct - BST to GMT
Sun 3 Nov - PDT to PST

Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi

Rumi invites us to the joy of being in relationship with the ultimate Beloved, the Source of our being – a relationship that can be profoundly transformative if we welcome it. In the Islamic world he has been held in the highest esteem not only as a poet but as a saint whose personal example inspired the founding of the Mevlevi Order, and as a mystic whose elaboration of this cosmic sense of Love has had a significant cultural impact. Rumi's influence has been felt by Chaucer, Goethe, and Emerson, to name a few, and via translation he is now one of the most widely read poets in the English language. He lived in the thirteenth century and spent most of his life in Konya, a city in modern-day Turkey. His resting place is visited every year by thousands of people from all around the world, from all backgrounds and traditions.

Kabir Helminski

Kabir is the co-director of The Threshold Society, a non-profit educational foundation rooted within the traditions of Sufism and inspired by the life and work of Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi. He is an author, a translator of the works of Rumi and others, and a shaikh of the Mevlevi Order which traces back to Rumi. His books on spirituality, Living Presence and The Knowing Heart, have been published in at least twelve languages. His most recent books are In the House of Remembering and The Mysterion. Kabir is especially interested in finding a contemporary, creative approach to Sufism without compromising the authenticity of tradition. He has toured as shaikh with the Whirling Dervishes of Turkey bringing Sufi culture to more than 100,000 people. He speaks widely on Sufism, often in an inter-spiritual context, and teaches globally through retreats and online conferences.

Living Presence Reviews

Living Presence was literally the book that knocked my students out of their pious but generally superficial contemplative “lifestyle” orientation and placed them on an authentic spiritual path… Living Presence was a total game-changer for my students, opening their eyes to the inner dimension that must keep pace with the outer in order for transformation to press deep into one's being.

~Rev. Cynthia Bourgeault, modern-day mystic, author of eight books, honored by Watkins Review in 2021 as one of the 100 most spiritually influential living people.

   
An incredible insight into Sufism and an intelligent way for rational people to know God.

~Russell Brand, social critic, actor.

   
A heartfelt, modern illumination of the Sufi path, filled with the fragrance of the ancients.
~Jack Kornfield, world-renowned teacher of mindfulness.
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Frequently Asked Questions

  • How long do I have to complete the course?

    The course will run for 9 months, starting in March and finishing in November. You will have unlimited access to the material on this platform.

  • When will the live Zoom calls be held?

    The 90-minute class sessions will be held on the 3rd Sunday of every month (unless otherwise stated) at 10am Pacific Time. Check the class schedule above.

    The 90-minute group discussion sessions will be held at two different times. See the group discussion schedule above.

  • Do I need prior knowledge of Rumi or Sufism to do this course?

    You do not need any particular knowledge to participate in, and benefit from, this course. Just an interest in Rumi and the spiritual path, along with an open heart!

  • Do I need to have a PayPal account to pay for this course?

    No. While we use the PayPal platform to take payments, you do not need to have a PayPal account. Once you click through to checkout, apply coupon codes (if relevant) and select the 'Pay with PayPal' button: you will then be given an option to pay using a credit/debit card instead of using a PayPal account.

    If you do not have access to PayPal in your country, or you cannot see the alternative payment method at the bottom of the PayPal page then please contact us at [email protected] to arrange an alternative payment method.

  • Another question?

    Contact us at [email protected]