The IPAL Institute and the IPAL Method

The IPAL Institute was founded in 1993 with the aim of facilitating, fostering and eventually integrating a range of forms of working on oneself in depth so as to improve the quality of life, as well as man’s psycho-spiritual-bodily well-being and prosperity. Setting and attaining one’s realistic goals in life goes hand in hand with the process of working on oneself in depth under the professional guidance and supervision of IPAL tutors.

The in-depth working on oneself in a holistic way and perspective of the IPAL Method entails taking care of the psyche (the psychic cogito), the personal spirit (the intuitive cogito), the physical body (the bodily cogito), along with one’s own individually developing and perpetually transforming thinking perspective on oneself, important others, the world, as well as the image of god (the thinking cogito). A new relationship of the emerging, self-developing individual with the collective comes about gradually and naturally as a result of progress with the four-dimensional working on oneself in depth in a contained group setting as part of the IPAL Method.

The existence of (post)modern man and woman is denoted by a certain shallowness of life, signified by consumerism and superficial forms of spirituality, or even the non-existence of anything spiritual. The thinking perspective on life usually dominates. In such a norm of a collectively conditioned life, (post)modern man and woman are typically lacking in both some psychic depth and spiritual breadth. Characteristic symptoms include depression, anxiety, together with a general loss of meaning and faith in life. This means the development of the personal spirit is hindered, and the physical actions and deeds of a given individual do not serve their holistic development. With a view to provide a framework for ensuring the wholesome and comprehensible development of man, i.e., of the psyche, personal spirit, bodily actions, as well as a potentially transformed personal mindset, the IPAL Method was gradually developed as a specific combination of techniques for working upon oneself in depth in order to embrace all four dimensions needed for man’s holistic well-being and continuous development. These are the basic preconditions for forming and maintaining the sacred space in which the process of individuation can take place most qualitatively and effectively.

The IPAL Method thus consists of several techniques. First, active imagination; second, working with symbolic cosmology (based on traditional astrological symbolism); third, psychoanalytic techniques; and fourth, dream analysis. The initiation into via active imagination facilitates the turn inwards and serves as the entry point leading into the in-depth psychic personal dimension. Symbolic cosmology is also employed so as to understand the psychic material in terms of archetypes of the individuation process, as revealed by the personal cosmogram (the birth chart) of an individuum. Psychoanalytic techniques are then used to interpret the connections of this material with everyday life, to facilitate the work on one’s practical problems and life goals, and in turn to enhance one’s quality of life. Dream analysis is used interchangeably with the active imagination where appropriate and necessary. This sequence of techniques is applied so as to facilitate the relationship of an individual as a functional whole with his or her own being. In this way, a new perspective on life, one’s symptoms and other problems can gradually emerge in the process of working on oneself in depth with the IPAL Method as a precursor to the continuous development and improvement of life.

In the 2023/2024 academic year, the IPAL Institute launched an international online classroom featuring online seminars in English open to the participants from all countries, views and religions. Alongside this, some local groups are organised in selected countries where introductory training in the IPAL Method on one hand, coupled with 3-year in-depth certificate training, and a further 2-year academic, diploma IPAL training are becoming available in the national languages, on the other.

The founder of The IPAL Institute is Matjaž Regovec.