“Aslan” is the name of the lion in the C.S. Lewis Narnia Series. Aslan is the symbol of Christ or Buddha consciousness – a state of consciousness to which we all aspire by doing the work of awareness and integration through our chosen spiritual mind/body practices.

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I think that the best psychotherapy happens when two people have the same goals and the same understanding of how to achieve them. I believe that life is to be enjoyed in the full experience of knowing of your own intrinsic worth as an expression of all that is good, loving, and powerful. I believe that the purpose of life is to fully realize this state of consciousness in your own lived experience, not to merely believe it as a nice idea.

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In order to reach this state of consciousness, it is necessary to first become aware of everything that is not this, and that includes every unconscious aspect of your personality that is rooted in fear, shame, and need that developed during the socialization process. Recognizing what happened in your childhood does not mean blaming - it means seeing, naming, and understanding so that you can take responsibility and change yourself.

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Very often people believe that their suffering is caused by something external to themselves and mistakenly embark on a lifetime of trying to change other people and the world, which is as effective as banging your head against a brick wall.

It takes humility to recognize that, not only do you not cause other adults' feelings and reactions, but that you cannot change other peoples' feelings and reactions. Nor do other people cause your feelings and beliefs. Other people merely activate or trigger what is already alive in you. The only thing that you have power to change is yourself. No matter what the world offers you, no matter how other people treat you, the focus must be on your own inner response and your own choices of how to respond.

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Psychotherapy is the process of introspection into your own belief system which is intrinsically bound up in your own feeling states and needs that lead to your own choices of behavior. It is the process of learning to accept what you discover about yourself without judgment and without fighting, but with grace, humility, and good humor. This can be an exciting journey of self discovery and freedom from suffering.

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I see the roles of Aslan’s providers as being that of a companion on a part of the way. Your life is your responsibility – a precious gift to be used to reach your fullest potential as fully divine in human form.

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To allow one of us to walk a part of that journey and be a witness to the miracle of becoming is the greatest privilege that anyone can bestow on us. May you all be blessed with the courage and integrity it takes to look inside, search for options internally, and see new ways of living life fully and richly. In so doing you become a blessing to the world.

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Lyndall Johnson

President and Founder of Aslan Institute