Cohort 002 · Class of October ’26

You’ve been told this is all there is. It isn’t.

Ālaya: a club of practitioners restoring depth to a world that went flat.

Apply →

Applications close October 22, earlier if we reach capacity.
Cohort 002 starts Monday, October 26.

How It Works

Ālaya connects you to three things.

YourselfStop “working” on yourself. Find out what it feels like to be yourself, beneath the stories.
Something biggerNotice how much of life was never yours to control, and how good it feels to put that down.
OthersThe people beside you are part of the practice. Some weeks they carry you, some weeks you carry them, and both change you.
What Sets Ālaya Apart

You have a team.

Ālaya is a club of practitioners. You start the journey with a small crew and walk the path together, each at your own pace.

Each Sunday at 8am PT (11am ET), we connect over Zoom to catch up, reflect on practice, and support one another. Throughout the week we stay in touch over Instant Messenger, so you’re never going the path alone.

Is Ālaya right for me?

It’s not for everyone.

It’s for those who have sensed their whole lives that there’s something more. They’ve looked for it in books, retreats and late-night conversations, and haven’t found it yet.

If that’s you, you’re in good company.

This is for you if
  • You’ve always felt life was bigger than advertised.
  • Instead of collecting insights you’re ready to practice them.
  • You can give it forty minutes, five days a week.
  • You’ve experienced something bigger and want to find your way back to it.
  • You’ll show up on Sundays for your team, even when you don’t feel like it.
Probably not yet if
  • You’d rather chase the next spiritual trend than stay with one practice.
  • You’re hoping for a quick fix.
  • You’d like the world to change before you do.
  • You’d rather optimize your life than experience it.
  • You’re not ready to look at your patterns yet.
  • You’re looking for another app.
Apply →
The Ālaya Experience

Ordinary days, seen again.

Every reading and meditation is narrated, so you can practice with your eyes closed.

×NOW PLAYING
Morning meditation · Recognizing the Editor0:00 / 0:30
“Sit in a way that allows you to be alert and at ease.”

Poke around and experience it for yourself.

Try a day →
Where It Comes From

Research, the mystics, and the Twelve Steps.

The practice draws on the contemplative lineages of the world’s religions and on the Twelve Steps, read alongside neuroscience and modern philosophy.

Sources
  1. Neuroscience and modern philosophyWilliam James, Andy Clark, Elizabeth Loftus, and Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann.
  2. The mystics of every traditionTeresa of Ávila, Ibn al-ʿArabī, the Upaniṣads, Laozi and Zhuangzi, and the Quakers.
  3. Tibetan BuddhismVimalamitra, Longchen Rabjam, Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, Jamgön Kongtrul and Chagdud Tulku.
  4. Research that takes the impossible seriouslyJeffrey Kripal, Lisa Miller, Michael Levin, and Dean Radin of the Institute of Noetic Sciences.
  5. The Twelve StepsWe borrow the best of what AA has learned in ninety years: surrender to a power greater than ourselves, and service to the next person who walks in.

The research and teachings are synthesized by Joel Gruber, who has spent much of his life studying and practicing these traditions: in Tibetan refugee communities in India, at Naropa University, and through a PhD in Tibetan Buddhism from UC Santa Barbara. He first taught this material in university classrooms, and for the past five years he has taught it through Ālaya and its earlier versions, refining the program with each group that comes through.

27:18 The talkManufacturing the ImpossibleJoel Gruber on the method, at Rice University’s Archives of the Impossible conference, 2023.Watch on YouTube ↗

Membership

Ālaya is priced to encourage making a commitment to yourself and practice. Membership is $65 a month when you commit to six months. If you’d like to just dip your toes, try a month for $80 with no commitment, and commit whenever you like.

Founding Members

Founding members choose to pay $100 a month. It helps fund future research and improvements that everyone benefits from, a way of paying it forward if you’re able.

Six Months
$65 / month

Six months of practice, billed monthly. It’s a commitment to your practice, and it’s also our best rate.

Try a Month
$80 / month

Try it for a month, no commitment, and you can commit to six months whenever you’d like.

Founding Member
$100 / month

Month to month, by choice. You help fund future research and improvements that everyone benefits from, a way of paying it forward if you’re able. You also get the founding badge next to your name.

Nothing is charged until you’re approved.

Apply

The Class of October ’26 begins Monday, October 26. Applications close October 22, earlier if we reach capacity, and are reviewed as they come in. You’ll be notified by email no later than the 23rd. Nothing is charged until you are selected and have access to the platform.

  1. ApplyYour name, your email and one question.
  2. Save a cardOn Stripe’s secure page. Nothing is charged today.
  3. Hear backBy October 23. If you’re accepted, your first month is charged October 26.

What brought you to Ālaya? What would you like to get out of it? (3–4 thoughtful sentences)

Next, you’ll save a card on Stripe. Nothing is charged today, and you’re only charged if you’re accepted.

Thank you. It has been received.

You will hear from us by email as the October class forms.

In the meantime, the Dream Portal is open every night.

Applications close October 22, earlier if we reach capacity.Cohort 002