The direct path is open to the possibility of spontaneous awakening in the moment.

The emphasis is on a shift in identity, recognition of the inseparability of form and the absolute.

Human development requires both psychological growth and spiritual growth. The two work hand in hand.

Trauma can be a hindrance on the spiritual path, but it can also be a gift.

This is part two of a two-part series.

Stephan Bodian is a gifted spiritual teacher whose work has brought wisdom to countless contemporary seekers in an accessible and deeply transformative way. Founder of the School for Awakening and author of several influential books—including Meditation for Dummies (with more than half a million copies sold), Wake Up Now, and Beyond Mindfulness—Bodian is widely respected for his rare ability to bridge timeless spiritual insight with modern psychological understanding. Trained as a psychotherapist, Bodian has pioneered a uniquely skillful approach that integrates self-inquiry, non-dual realization, and practical psychological insight. We recently spoke from his home in the Canary Islands about his newest book, Infinite Awakening: A Guide to Nondual Wisdom and the Pathless Path, which offers a comprehensive guide to the “pathless path” of spiritual awakening.

This is the second installment of a two-part conversation.

Mark Matousek: The renowned spiritual teacher, Jean Klein, whom you were lucky to spend time with, was one of the great arbiters of the direct path. How does the so-called direct path differ from other paths?

Stephan Bodian: Most traditional spiritual paths are progressive. You have to keep monitoring the changes. Am I getting better now? Am I getting more aware now? There are markers along the path, and you're monitoring your progress. The direct approach is more about dismantling the one who is trying to improve, seeing into the unreality, the ephemerality, the emptiness of the one we take ourselves to be. It teaches us to open to the possibility, the very real possibility, that in this moment, you can wake up spontaneously through a pointer, through a question, through a meditation.

MM: There are no stages of awakening on the direct path?

SB: There are stages of awakening but they occur spontaneously. We’re not........

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