Wisdom coaching by Paul Trouerbach
Studio Qaf is an open space for the exploration of all manner of questions concerning the meaning of life and death, human potentiality, and self-realisation.
The quest
Do you need support in working through existential questions?
Do you feel locked into a framework of interpretation that no longer works for you? Do you want to orient yourself in the bewildering world of modern spirituality? Do you lack a coherent and effective vision of life that supports your growth and evolution?
At Studio Qãf I offer an open space for the exploration of all manner of questions concerning the meaning of life and death, human potentiality, and self-actualisation.
What is the meaning of existence? What is the value of life? What is the true potential of the human being? And what are the factors that inhibit or catalyse the full actualisation of our potential?
How must I relate to death, to impermanence, and to the fact of my own mortality? How can I cope with the reality of pain and dissatisfaction? Is there any possibility for a human being to experience enduring fulfilment?
What is my true nature? Am I a purely material being or a spiritual essence? Is there a possible self- understanding that transcends this age-old dichotomy? How can I answer this question for myself, independent of pre-given solutions?
How do I become a source of joy to myself and others? How do I contribute to fundamental systemic change? How do I engage with global challenges according to an ethics that is effective and powerful?
If you resonate with questions such as these you are ready to join me in the ancient adventure of the philosophical quest.
Wisdom coaching
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Philosophy as a way of life means dedicating oneself to existential transformation through self-inquiry. This process translates into the cultivation of wisdom. Properly understood, wisdom is a mode of being characterised by a lived sense of integral wholeness that scales across the individual, collective, and transcendental levels of being. Through philosophical exercise we discover we can govern our mode of being and thereby transcend inner and outer states of division.
In the face of the growing set of existential challenges that we are now facing us as humanity, it is becoming more necessary than ever that each of us individually, and all of us together, start to take responsibility for the state of the world. To respond to this call, however, more is required than simply changing a few bad habits. To respond to the call means that we muster the courage to turn inward and reflect on ourselves and our own participation in the problematics that define the present. Only through self-awareness and a dedication to individual change do we become able to advance the movement toward unity and foster positive systemic change at large.
The ethical prerequisite for contributing to the healing of the state of the world is the heal oneself from one’s inner fragmentation. We therefore don’t do the philosophical work of self-cultivation merely for our personal benefit, but for the benefit of all, and for the future of humanity that now depends on us. The gift of philosophy, wisdom, means coming to see that one is able to act as either an agent of division and as an agent of unity. To be effectively capable of the choice, that is, to acquire the power of self-governance, this is the purpose of philosophy as a practice.
The advantages
Experience the advantages of wisdom coaching:
Learn to articulate fundamental questions about life in a precise and conducive manner.
Learn to employ critical intelligence in engaging with these questions.
Learn to look for experimental resolutions instead of final answers.
Learn to be comfortable with uncertainty where certainty remains in abeyance.
Come to recognise the space of possibility where you find your true freedom as well your real responsibilities.
Learn how to exercise your sense making abilities under the fragmentation of the information ecology.
Become acquainted with the inner and outer mechanisms of misery, and transcend them.
Become master over your own mind and life by liberating yourself from disempowering systems of normativity.
Become skilled in dealing with negativity, while transcending the morality of resentment.
Adopt a life-affirming attitude that is empowering and contagious.
Start building communities based not on shared identities, but on a common participation in Being.
Paul Trouerbach
As a life-long student of philosophy and systems of advanced spirituality I have over 20 years of experience practicing techniques for personal transformation and spiritual evolution. I have trained as a Buddhist monk in the Tibetan tradition and hold an MA degree (cum laude) in the history of Western philosophy at the VU University, Amsterdam.
My core motivation lies in articulating and actualising innovative, integral approaches to self-realisation. In this I draw on a variety of historical traditions and seek to make them existentially relevant to contemporary humanity. True to the legacy of ancient wisdom traditions, yet open to the singular needs of modern men and women, I aim to support individuals who are seeking pathways to authentic self-transformation, exuberant living and existential joy.
Dialogos
Dialogos sessions
In Dialogos sessions you provide the subject matter for one or more conversations. Any personal questions of philosophical or existential nature can be brought to the table. I act as your private philosophical interlocutor, which means I challenge you to articulate your question in clear terms and identify the assumptions that underlie the issue; we can then engage in mutual exchange of views in order to open new perspectives and avenues of thought. In this way I encourage you bring clarity to the problematic at hand and articulate an experimental engagement with possible resolutions.
Deep Dive
Deep Dive sessions
In Deep Dive sessions you provide a research topic of your choice to be explored in depth. If you wish, for example, to know more about a thinker like Spinoza or Nietzsche, if you are interested in the implications of the latest philosophy of mind, or if you want to familiarise yourself with Buddhist thought and practice; we create a personal study programme based on selected primary texts and/or relevant introductory literature, which we read and discuss together. If the topic lies within my knowledge base I can provide you with conceptual and historical context for your personal research. More importantly, I provide you with hermeneutical tools that allow you to unpack the meaning of philosophical ideas and concepts and make them applicable to your life situation.
Self-realisation series
Self-discovery series
5 sessions
The beginning of all philosophy is to respond to the call to ‘know thyself.’ To respond to this call means, first of all, that we accept our initial situation of not knowing exactly who, or what, we are. This basic premise of not-knowing allows us to suspend our grasping to convenient fictions regarding ourselves and commence a genuine process of self-inquiry.
Self-transformation series
5 sessions
In the self-transformation phase we learn to turn our acquired self-understanding into to active self-governance. The dynamic nature of the self means that we need not be stuck in sub-optimal modes of being. By understanding the dynamics of the self we learn to govern our mode of being and to give direction to the process of our becomings.
Self-transcendence series
5 sessions
Transcendence is the properly spiritual potential at the very heart of the human being. While our capacity for self-transformation lies in the mastery of the dynamics of the conditional dimension of the self, the potential for self-transcendence flows from our intimacy with the unconditioned within us. All great schools of advanced spirituality have taught means for us to transcend our conditioning and enter the openness of the unconditioned. It is well worth for us to reassess our current self-understanding in this light and to reclaim our innate potential for transcendence.
Sign up for personal guidance in a process of self-discovery and access your innate capacity for living with wisdom and grace.
Book a session with Paul.
I offer three types of coaching sessions. All meetings can be conducted in Dutch or in English.