You are warmly invited to study and practice a way of living, which we developed and named: Lifefulness.
It is grounded in the ancient wisdom of Kabbalah and in the movements developed at the Shakio Institute, inspired by the developmental phenomenology of Professor Eugene Gendlin.
What do we mean by Lifefulness?
We naturally flee from sorrow and discomfort. We seek well-being.
Often, without even noticing, instead of listening to the process of life, we divide ourselves. Part of the time we participate in life-enhancing practices searching for well being, while the rest of the time we find ourselves holding our breath,and continuing to live our life in a regular way, maintaining the sorrow and discomfort.
Is there an alternative?
Is the alternative again another practice?! Another method of healing?!
Or Maybe it asks for another way of living, or a different way of being in the world?
Could the Kabbalistic Tree of Life offer it? inviting us into a fundamentally different way of being? Into the formation of a different kind of human being?
In this course, we will explore the Kabbalistic Tree of Life not as another practice, but as a path to allow the process of life itself to carry forward life.
It is a way that refuses to narrow life to techniques that engineer our experience while cutting away the very roots from which life grows.
During the course, we will learn the Kabbalistic Tree of the Sefirot – not to acquire knowledge about it, but as a way to allow life to be carried forward instead of being conditioned by self-centered ways of thinking.
This is a way that enables life to open in every situation, in joy and in sorrow alike, and allows life itself to continue unfolding.
To learn the secret is to learn a process, not a content or knowledge.
Insights are not something I possess; they shape me as a living process, not as content.
course details:
8 weekly sessions on Sundays starting September 6th
Dates:
September: 6
October: 4,11,18,25
November: 1,8,15
time: New York, USA 9:00-10:15; London, United Kingdom 14:00-15:15
Hamburg, Germany 15:00-16:15; Dublin, Ireland 14:00-15:15
Vancouver, Canada 6:00-7:15
Price:
Reduced price – $120
Regular price – $160
Support price – $190
Recordings of the sessions will be available for viewing only, for up to three months from the end of the course
Please write to us if in need of financial assistance to info@shakio.org.
For more information:
ABOUT US
Shakio is a space for collaborative exploration founded by Dana Ganihar, an experienced Focusing instructor and a teacher of the philosophy of Eugene Gendlin, and Baruch Brenner a multidisciplinary artist, rabbi and certified Focusing instructor who investigates and teaches performance art and Jewish mysticism.
Baruch Brenner: An interdisciplinary artist and an ordained Orthodox Rabbi. Baruch has been a leading innovator in integrating Jewish and spiritual practices with experiential work in Art. Over the course of thirty years, he has dedicated himself to researching the world of the body as a vehicle, the realm of consciousness, the language of imagination, and transformational practices through working with ancient songs. Brenner is the author of ‘A Diary of a Worshiper’ (Idra Publishing, 2022) – a book based on a personal initiation journey into the world of Kabbalah and the mystery of prayer. He is also a co-author of ‘The Art of Prayer’ (2025).
Dana Ganihar is a pioneer of the Focusing movement in Israel. She studied directly with the father of Focusing, Eugene Gendlin, A close friend and colleague of Rab Zalman. Dana served on the global board of the International Focusing Institute and is dedicated to advancing Gendlin’s teachings. Dana has initiated cooperative research exploring the potential impact of Focusing practices on diverse fields such as biology, architecture, creative writing and religion. She is a co-author of ‘The Art of Prayer’ (2025).
testimonials
"I find that the practices we explore in the Art of Prayer support the deepest yearnings of my soul. These practices have begun to open to my awareness a sense of life force – Living Presence – bubbling up in me and calling me forward to participate in the unfolding of Creation." Rabbi Nahum Ward-Lev
"Since learning with Dana and Baruch, I can mark the time when my heart began opening itself, and pointing the way towards the depths of my soul. As I find more of myself through the Art of Prayer, my relationships are softening and growing. And those closest to me are beginning to find their own softening, growing and soul-deepening." Lynn Rosen
"Standing in front of the gateways of prayer, taking time to breath, observe, listen. Doing this together, even if within zoom-frames, in conversation and silence, with the lucid guidance of Dana and Baruch..this is a gathering with new and known depths, personal and universal, temporal and infinite – we've been blessed to have this opportunity" Prof. Sara Sviri, Writer – The Sufi Anthology
"Working with Baruch and Dana has been a very important and deeply stabilizing experience. Especially when the Corona measurements hit us and fear and insecurity spread I felt I was coming home when entering our shared space. I am so unspeakably grateful for being part of this group where failure does not exist and trials are welcome. Where being human gains a whole new depth." Judith Weisz
"The Art of Prayer opened for me gateways of love towards fellow humans, the world, the future..to the understanding of our communal becoming, and a participation in the processes of creation. Many thanks." Sigal Golan, Psychotherapist
"Touching upon the inner language of authentic prayer, the mystery of communication between human beings and the infinite and connecting with the depth of human experience – this course has provided me with great inspiration. The experience, knowledge and originality of Baruch and Dana transported me from the conceptual to the actual tools of spiritual work". Yair Harel, Founder – the Piyut Website
Google