Explore the Great Cycle of Birth, Death, and Everything in Between

What if the moments that feel like the end of everything are really passages in a much larger cycle? In this free online spiritual workshop, pioneering consciousness researcher Stanislav Grof, MD, PhD, explores what he calls the Great Cycle: a recurring pattern of dissolution, struggle, surrender, and emergence that appears to shape not only birth, but also deep psychological change and the process of dying.

Grof has spent more than six decades investigating non-ordinary states of consciousness and their potential for psychological and spiritual transformation. Drawing on decades of clinical research into holotropic states, he observed that profound transformation often follows a consistent sequence. When the familiar falls away, whether in birth, a major life transition, or death, we may be moving through the same underlying process.

Held online on a Friday in October, this gathering is open to seekers anywhere in the world. If you are facing an ending, sitting with a transition, or simply curious about how consciousness moves through upheaval, it offers a different frame for understanding life's hardest and most generative thresholds.

What to Expect

The session centers on Grof's discovery of the Great Cycle and what it can mean for the way we meet change. Rather than treating upheaval as chaos or loss alone, the conversation looks at it as part of a larger pattern: dissolution of what is familiar, the struggle that follows, surrender, and finally emergence.

- An exploration of the Great Cycle as it appears in birth, deep psychological change, and dying
- Grounding in decades of clinical research into holotropic states of consciousness
- A reflective, contemplative atmosphere suited to personal questions about transition and endings
- A new way of seeing life's upheavals as passages rather than only endings

The event also brings together speakers with direct experience of this work. You can expect to leave with a clearer framework for understanding transformation, and perhaps a gentler way of relating to what is changing in your own life.

About Stanislav Grof

Stanislav Grof, MD, PhD, is a pioneering consciousness researcher who has spent over six decades studying non-ordinary states of consciousness and their potential for psychological and spiritual transformation. His clinical research into holotropic states of consciousness led him to identify the Great Cycle, the pattern of dissolution, struggle, surrender, and emergence at the heart of this event. His work offers a lens for understanding birth, personal transformation, and the process of dying as expressions of one underlying process.

Venue & Logistics

This is an online, virtual event, so you can take part from wherever you are. The event is free to attend. Find a quiet, comfortable space where you can listen without interruption, and consider keeping a journal nearby for any reflections that arise. Further details about the platform and access will be shared through the event page.