In this special episode of the Transactional Analysis Podcast, hosts John Fleming and Matt Taylor are joined by Aya Konoike, an organisational development and DEI consultant based in Kamakura, Japan, and a Shugendo practitioner of over thirteen years – to introduce Contemplative TA: a somatic, experiential integration of Shugendo, Zen and transactional analysis.

Built from Aya’s own practice, Contemplative TA sets out to reconnect what modern, individualist life tends to split apart, mind from body, self from other, people from the natural world. It’s learned somatically rather than cognitively, through movement and ritual as much as reflection, and grounded in a distinctly Japanese understanding of presence, nature and connection.

It’s a warm, wide-ranging and often moving conversation about what transactional analysis still offers a fast, commodifying world.

You’ll hear them explore:

• Aya’s own journey into discovering TA
• An exploration of Contemplative TA: a somatic, experiential integration of Shugendo, Zen and TA, built around the integrating Adult and “negative capability”
• Presence as connection to your resources, and the Japanese idea of “ba”
• Shugendo, and Aya’s own training and experience
• Why “contemplative” needn’t mean “still,” and what that opens up
• How Aya’s view of nature parts ways with eco-TA: not using nature to grow ourselves, but remembering we already belong to it
• “Worldly” versus “global” (after Henry Mintzberg)
• TA as a “catalyst” between a capitalist world and ancient wisdom

Thank You To Our Partners

This podcast is brought to you in partnership with the United Kingdom Association for Transactional Analysis. We’re proud to have the UK Association for Transactional Analysis (UKATA) as our Patronage Partner. UKATA is a vibrant professional body committed to supporting the growth and ethical practice of Transactional Analysis in the UK and beyond. They support practitioners, trainees, and the public through professional standards, events, and access to TA education. Learn more: www.uka4ta.co.uk

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