Jungian psychology, Sufism & the Feminine
These are the three pillars that have shaped my life and work, and continue to do so. How these three interact, intersect, and interrelate to to give birth to something new is what my life’s work is devoted to. They expand and contract like living threads, weaving through my research and practice, embedded within a complexity of ecologies in what Sufi mystic Ibn Arabi called the Unity of Being.
Born and formed in Iran, we left my beloved homeland in 1994. Ever since, I have lived in The Netherlands, growing my roots back into the soul of my motherland while extending my branches into my work in the West. Raised in a Zoroastrian-Muslim family, I spent joyful (and often playful) time between the Zoroastrian temple and the mosque, coming to know intuitively that God was not singular in name or worship. This rich interfaith upbringing granted me freedom and curiosity about the diversity of culture and faith. That curiosity deepened as we spent several years in refugee camps, immersed in a diversity of cultures, faiths, foods, fragrances and skin tones. These formative experiences deeply shaped my worldview and now my work. They left lasting imprints, opening me to the emerging global consciousness of Oneness that my inner journey and path would lead me to later in life.
But how did I arrive at Jung’s door? The answer is simple: through my dreams.
Dreams have always held deep significance in my life. As a young adult, I often found myself lost in their symbolic language, sensing that they carried important messages but unable to grasp their meaning. It wasn’t until I encountered the work of Carl Jung that I began to unlock their mysteries. This marked the real beginning of my inner journey—a journey into the depths of the unconscious, where I found a teacher in Jung and a practice in psychoanalysis.
I first studied International and European law, and founded a company during my time at university. This became so successful that I let go of my career in international law and for nearly a decade, lived the yang-driven life of an entrepreneur, managing teams and navigating the world of business. However, a sudden and intense mystical awakening led me to a different calling. I entered Jungian analysis and later trained in Jungian psychology at the Jung Academie in Amsterdam. Currently, I am a Candidate at the C.G. Jung Institute in Zürich, continuing with a second training in analytical psychology for my IAAP certification. My academic background also includes a Research Master's from the University of Amsterdam, where I focused on Islamic, Persian, and Western esotericism, exploring the intersection of laboratory alchemy and Jungian psychology in my thesis.
s y n t h e s i s
It was during my first analytical training that I met my Sufi teacher [sheikh] in whose presence deeper parts within me opened that I had no access to before. While being held in the container of both Jungian analysis and a living mystical tradition, I could let go into a transfiguration of myself and the way I knew life. This synthesis between Sufi mysticism and the chthonic—cosmic feminine soul has since then, formed the fabric of my life and work.
In my private practice, I work with individuals through Jungian therapy, Sandplay, and myth- and dreamwork. My approach is rooted in the psychoanalytical tradition, as well as the creative therapies, using myths, fairytales, and symbolic imagery to engage the psyche on multiple levels. This work is about weaving the threads of Soul, connecting the deep, unseen layers of our being with the larger story of the world around us. It is through this interplay of feminine and masculine, Eros and Logos, that we come into deeper alignment with our true nature.
While my practice is grounded in the psychoanalytical methodology, my rooting in mysticism allows me to acknowledge and hold space for this aspect of psyche. The mystical and religious motifs, symbols, myths and spiritual depths of psyche are often misunderstood— if not completely ignored—in the modern post-secular therapy room. I am deeply influenced by Donald Kalsched’s work on the psycho-spiritual approach to trauma and the archetypal defenses of the self and have found it particularly valuable for those drawn to the deeper layers of the psyche.
