What makes this program different? 

Our faculty and guest teachers are amongst the most skilled non-dual teachers living today. It is unparalleled to have them come together in this manner to uplift a cohort of meditation teachers-in-training. Expect pointing-out-instructions from those deeply qualified to offer them.

Community is key!

AFFINITY GROUPS - Opportunities for participants to form affinity groups to deepen relationships and co-explore different fields of interest will be made available. 

ALUMNI - Alumni opportunities to network with subsequent cohorts and continue to network with each other will be made available. For some participants, we imagine that life-long friendships and working relationships will be born as a result of participation in this training.

IN PERSON - We are considering holding an optional in-person meditation retreat with John Prendergast and Jonathan Gustin at Mt Madonna in California.

What is a non-dual meditation teacher? 

A non-dual meditation teacher is a person who has become skillful in supporting others to co-explore the essence/truth at the center of their being. You will become certified to teach the trans-lineage non-dual understanding and myriad forms of nondual meditation. 

What was the motivation for creating this training? 

In many places, it can be quite challenging to find a local non-dual meditation teacher. We’d like to see non-dual meditation “taken to the streets” — to be made more accessible, without watering it down.

• In many places, meditation has become synonymous with mindfulness. While mindfulness is a beautiful spiritual expression, there is more to meditation than mindfulness as it is conventionally understood and practiced.

• Though mindfulness has been adopted for general health (eg. stress reduction programs), the essence of meditation is often obscured or lost.  

• Meditation has become associated with technique and protocols. It is more than that.

• Meditation can become self-centered rather than Self-centered.

• Meditation and engagement with the world can feel like opposite poles. They are not.

SMALL GROUP QUESTIONS

When will the small “mentoring groups” be formed?

During the first week of the training we will send out a form for you to select a small group time that works for your schedule. Wherever you are in the world, there will be a time that works for you. We will have weekdays and weekends, morning, afternoon and evening small groups.

Who are the small group mentors?

Each small group mentor is a well trained meditation teacher with decades of meditation experience under their belt. Rest assured, you will experience capable mentoring from any of our mentors. 

Are the small “mentoring groups” recorded?

No. Being mentored, of course, requires being present at the meetings. Though missing the occasional small group meeting is permissible in an emergency, the expectation is that every member of the small group commits to regular attendance. Throughout the program, your mentor will:  

• Facilitate monthly group calls with your “small group” of up to 10 students.

• Guide you to develop the ability to co-explore your people’s meditation practice.

• Mirror your skills as you move through the program.

• Support you in your own meditation journey and help to develop your acumen as a teacher.

PROGRAM LOGISTICAL QUESTIONS

What if I cannot attend the large group meetings LIVE?

If you cannot make the large group calls LIVE, you can watch the recordings at your leisure.  We want to make this training available for those living in inconvenient time zones, such as India or Australia. That said, we recommend attending as many of the LIVE large group gatherings as possible. 

How often do guest faculty teach?

As this is the pilot offering of this program, we are in the midst of working this out.  Many of the teachers will teach multiple times.

Is this training focused on “meditation for mental health”?

Though meditation can support a healthier and more equanimous ego, that is not the main aim of the program. The aim of non-dual meditation is first about transcending the apparent self as the center of identity, and second, about embodying this understanding in the world.

Can I use my experience with a retreat from a different orientation for the prerequisite?

No. We appreciate that your retreats with a different meditation system, such as a multi day mindfulness meditation retreat, was a valuable experience on your spiritual journey.  That said, we want the entire cohort to experience a deep immersion in an explicitly nondual style of meditation. You have until the end of 2026 to complete this requirement…you need not delay your application until the retreat is complete.  Doing a non-dual meditation retreat LIVE online is permissible.

What materials can I take with me for my own teaching work?

Throughout the 2-year training program you will receive numerous assets for your teaching work, including guided meditation recordings, handouts, worksheets, etc to use in your teaching.

What are the program tuition, payment plans and financial support available?

Tuition - The 2-year tuition is $8500 through Oct 31, 2025, if paid in full at the time of admission. 

Payment Plans - Payment plans include a 12-month ($9000)  and a 24-month plan ($9500).  

Scholarships - There are a very limited number of small partial scholarships.  You may apply for one after being accepted to the program, not before.  Please do not apply for a partial scholarship unless you really need to, to allow for those who are in great financial need to be awarded the handful of available scholarships.

Why are payments made upon acceptance?  Our funding comes from student tuition.  The amount of students we accept into the program directly leads to the number of staff, faculty and mentors we hire.  Therefore, we require that students who are accepted into the program automatically make their full tuition payment, or, if they choose a payment plan, to automatically make their first tuition installment.

Cancellations - The $50 application fee is nonrefundable.

If your application is accepted, you will be automatically enrolled in the program and your credit card will be charged the amount of the first payment of the payment plan you selected minus the application fee. If you are accepted and enrolled in the program and you later wish to cancel for any reason, you must notify the Associate Director, Marlene Shams at  jonathan@purposeguides.org in writing by October 31, 2025, for a 90% refund of tuition paid to date.

After October 31 2025, cancellation requests and refund requests will not be accepted except in cases of medical necessity or emergency, with proper documentation. There will be at least a 20% cancellation fee.

Is a non-dual teacher the same as an Advaita or Zen teacher? 

This program does not qualify you to represent yourself as an Advaita or Zen Meditation teacher. This is an overtly trans-lineage training. We use the term non-dual in the general sense of “not-two” that we find in several contemplative traditions, both East and West. Advaita (not-two) or Dhyanna/Ch’an/Zen (absorption) are the subjects of this training. That said, it would be misleading to represent yourself as a Zen or Advaita teacher upon certification. In this training, we honor and acknowledge the Chinese, Japanese, Tibetan, and Vedantic teachings without assuming that we can claim these traditions as our own, unless we have been directly authorized to teach by a master in one of these lineages.

Is this program conflating meditation teacher with spiritual teacher?

Minimally, this program trains one to be a non-dual meditation teacher — who is capable of teaching various forms of meditation and meditative inquiry that have a nondual orientation as their basis.  

Beyond that, we may aspire to eventually transcend protocols and techniques with the ability to share presence both verbally and nonverbally, through talks, guided meditation, conversations and silence. 

Strictly speaking, these roles are different. That said, the aim of the non-dual meditation teacher is to be open to the possibility of being able to share presence — to share their understanding with the so-called student, knowing that the roles of teacher and student are provisional and temporary.  While respected teachers such as Ramana Maharshi and Nisargadatta Maharaj both deemphasized formal meditation, they simultaneously advised many students to meditate regularly.

If I haven’t experienced awakening to True Nature, not even a glimpse, either in the past nor during the course of the 2-year program, can I begin teaching upon certification or should I wait? 

Wait. A taste of the experience you want to introduce to others is key. If you desire to share meditation, but sense that you haven’t yet had one or more tastes of awakening, we ask that you not yet advertise yourself as a non-dual meditation teacher. Stay close to your actual experience and understanding and trust in the natural unfolding of your depths. Above all, be authentic.

Will I be certified to offer transmission via pointing-out-instructions? 

No. There is a difference between a non-dual meditation teacher — one who has at least temporarily seen through the illusion of the separate self — and an awakened  non-dual teacher. The former is what you become certified in. The latter is not something that occurs through a certified training. To authentically point out the true nature of another, one must first be able to recognize this truth within oneself. 

When, if ever, will I know that I am ready to point out true nature to others? 

This clarity arises spontaneously, neither asserting nor denying itself.

Is this program equivalent to Dharma Transmission?

No. The teachers Jonathan trained with —  Jean Klein, Adyashanti, John Prendergast, Rupert Spira, Roshi Haller, etc were asked to teach by their own teachers after many decades of one-to-one mentorship. Dharma Transmission is something that gets passed down from awakened teacher to student, a blessing and confirmation of a student to teach at the highest level, based on many years of tracking/sensing their readiness.

What issues should I be wary of when using the phrase “non-dual meditation teacher”?

Every term is potentially problematic: 

Non-dual - This term points to the highest truth — that, despite our obvious and unique differences as individuals, on the deepest level there is no self and other, no perceiver and perceived, no subject and object. Reality is ultimately seamless and undivided. The word “non-dual” uses the dualistic mind and language to point to something that is prior to it. Don’t be attached to the word. That which is being pointed to has many names, some of which are better than others, none of which can ever be fully adequate.

Meditation - Meditation commonly refers to how someone directs their attention in a particular way towards something (to the breath or a mantra, for example), and seems to suggest that by doing this well enough and for long enough, some desirable inner state will be attained. This conventional understanding tends to reinforce the sense that there is a separate someone who must seek something that is lacking. 

Teacher - Taking oneself as a spiritual teacher creates separation — an unwholesome version of hierarchy, and a swollen ego. In truth, there are no teachers, just good students of life who have a gift for sharing this understanding.

Keeping all of these caveats and cautions in mind, we will use the term non-dual meditation teacher, and hold it lightly.

Does a meditative practice contradict a non-dual understanding?

Correctly understood, it does not. Meditation is often prescribed before and sometimes even after an initial awakening. Our program will explore this apparent paradox exemplified by these seemingly contradictory teachings by the 20th century Sage, Ramana Maharshi. (See picture quote above.)

IS THE CONSCIOUSNESS-FIRST vs MATTER-FIRST DEBATE ANOTHER DUALITY?

Some of us view Mother Earth as our deepest ground, others see God (or Unbounded Consciousness)  as the underlying reality.  Either way,  there is nothing separate or ‘outside’ — we are but a modulation of the sacred, and it is One.

Whether the ‘sacred substance’ is consciousness (theism) or matter (animism), non-duality is the view that “You are That.”  

This is not a comparative religion program, where you will experience a survey of various traditions. This training gets to the heart of non-duality — even the apparent duality between theism, eastern mysticism, and nature-based mysticism. 

“Everything is catenated in its mystery, caught in its oneness . . . The entire chain is One. Down to the last link, everything is linked with everything else, so divine essence is below as well as above, in heaven and earth. There is nothing else.”

 - Zohar (Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai)

“I am other than name, form and action. My nature is ever free! I am Self, the supreme unconditioned Brahman. I am pure Awareness, always non-dual.” 

- Adi Shankaracharya

“Nondual animism is a perspective where the natural world is seen as a unified, interconnected whole, imbued with life and sentience, with humans considered embedded within and inseparable from it, rejecting the separation of the spiritual and physical realms.”

- a synthesis by Chat GPT

“Interbeing is the understanding that nothing exists separately from anything else.”

 -Thich Nhat Hanh

What is the lead teacher's background?

The lead teacher, Jonathan Gustin, is uniquely positioned to lead this training. His yearning for spiritual awakening and embodied service is a thread that has moved through his entire life. A few highlights:

• Jonathan was drawn to spirituality at a young age —  becoming impassioned for enlightenment at age 12. He made a vow in Jr. High School to wake up in service to all life.

• He discovered the teachings of Ramana Maharshi, his root teacher, at age 16.  

• Jonathan shared his first teachings and guided meditation at 16 yrs of age to high school students.

• In his late teens, he journeyed to China to find a living Lao Tzu and to India to find a living Ramana Marhashi. He ended up studying Advaita Vedanta with Swami Gokulananda for a month in New Delhi and then by mail upon his return to Canada.

• He majored in Comparative Religion in university, writing a senior thesis titled, “Mysticism and the Concept of the Self.”

• At 20, he had a vision of his soul-level purpose as being “Whole Person Midwifery”. That summer, he published and edited a spiritual magazine - Perspectives On Life. 

• He attended dozens of meditation retreats over his lifetime, including a 30-day meditation retreat in the Tibetan tradition at age 21.

• At 21 years of age, he met the Lubavitcher Rebbe, which initiated a period of study of Jewish Mysticism.

• He trained as a psychotherapist in graduate school (from California Institute of Integral Studies) in an integral spirituality context.

• He trained with Roshi Paul Haller for several years in San Francisco. He took lay ordination (Jukai) in the Soto Zen lineage with Abbot Sojun Mel Weitsman, direct student and dharma heir of Suzuki Roshi.

• He discovered indigenous non-dual arts in his 20’s, which led him to multiple Vision Quest ceremonies and land-based practices.

• He practiced as a transpersonal/integral psychotherapist for over 30 years. 

• He opened The Advaita Free Clinic, at a Californian Homeless Shelter, offering free mental health care for residents.

• He founded Green Sangha — a spiritually engaged environmental activist organization in 2000.

• He studied with European Sage Jean Klein, and with Byron Katie. 

• He studied intensively with John Prendergast since 1995, Adyashanti since 1999 and Rupert Spira since 2013.

• He founded Purpose Guides Institute (formerly Integral Awakening Center) in 2004, with over 1000+ students going through the flagship program and training over a 100 Purpose Guides.

Jonathan brings over 40 years of diverse trans-lineage practice and study to the craft of meditation. While honoring his Advaita Vedanta and Zen background, Jonathan’s fidelity is to the human lineage of nondual wisdom. 

Our understanding of meditation can and does shift over the centuries. As humans change and evolve, so do the non-dual spiritual arts. We favor an approach that is steeped in the best of the past, while being open and innovative in meeting the conditions and needs of an audience in the 21st century. This is not a smorgasbord course where we sample various bits of numerous traditions. This will be a single unique offering that journeys to the core of non-duality. 

Praise for Jonathan

“There are few things I appreciate more than good teaching, and so I enthusiastically recommend Jonathan’s work with people. Jonathan is a person of great integrity, from whom I am ever learning.” -Joanna Macy, environmental activist & author

“Jonathan Gustin is doing important work in raising consciousness on both the inner and outer levels of reality. He shares deep teachings on non-duality and how to apply them to the pressing issues of our time that make up the Metacrisis. It is a pleasure to know his work is reaching many hearts as well as to share the teaching seat with him.” - James Baraz, a founding teacher of Spirit Rock Meditation Center

“Jonathan Gustin is a very rare example of a seasoned meditation teacher who understands the spiritual necessity of the descent to soul and sacred darkness — as well as the ascent to the light and the One. He guides his students in both directions, down as well as up. I have had the pleasure of witnessing Jonathan teach — he is delightfully personable and humble and is exceptionally clear, thorough, penetrating, engaging, and inspiring. Don’t miss the opportunity.”  -Bill Plotkin, eco-depth psychologist, founder of Animas Valley Institute