At the age of 19, I set off to learn the art of inner and outer peace from the Vietnamese Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh in France. For the first time, I experienced what it feels like when a person lives and teaches from presence. His message hit me right in the heart: "To suffer is not enough. A good practitioner must know how to handle the pain in her - and she is capable of generating joy at any moment of the day to nourish and to heal herself. That is the art of happiness." Zen meditation and the practice of mindfulness in everyday life have been with me for all those years and have become my daily anchor.

After studying Political Science (Geneva, Paris and Zurich) and Peace Studies (Bradford, UK), I spent a decade in the Middle East working for international humanitarian and political organizations, including in Lebanon, Palestine and Egypt. I was inspired by the idea of devoting my life‘s work to ending suffering and making peace. In 2005, together with local professionals, I founded the NGO DROPS in Lebanon and ran it on a voluntary basis for 10 years. My years in the Middle East were turbulent and characterized by intense emotions of all kinds. Only in retrospect did I realize how much I had hollowed myself out with my good intentions.

Back in Switzerland, the time had come to shift the focus of my attention from the political structures of the world to the dynamics of my inner life. I was able to work through difficult life experiences and post-traumatic stress, deepen my meditation practice and get to the bottom of my personality structure. I am especially grateful for the teachers who accompanied me during this phase: Mayssa Dimechkie, Brigit Lang, Ananta Steuder, Henry Shukman (Sanbô Kyôdan), Sylvia Wetzel and Tara Brach.

At some point, I realized that I was hearing the same message from all these different sources, time and time again: This lifetime is an invitation to be a wakeful and friendly companion to myself and my own vulnerability. I carry my inner fire into the world with the smallest possible steps - for the benefit of all beings. In other words: There is no path on the outside except the one we also take on the inside.

We need a clear and solid inner ground to take effective action in this world. My own life journey has powerfully taught me this lesson. Our personal power stands and falls with our presence. Caught in reactive patterns, we may be very busy with important issues - but we lack clarity, insight, compassion and creativity. These qualities are of paramount importance to humanity today.

From the Co-Active Institute, and from Jim Dethmer, Diana Chapman, Deb Katz and the Conscious Leadership Group , I have received wonderful tools for a wakeful and courageous daily life - as well as certifications as a leadership coach. Breathwork has also become an integral part of my daily life as a tool for consciously moving stuck energy in my body.

For ten years, I accompanied people in their personal transformation processes as a coach in my studio THE LOOP in Bern using these tools. I was able to experience how we can shift from reactive patterns into our embodied presence and thus shape our unique paths through life by walking them.

During a particularly turbulent phase of my life, I was no longer able to meditate - despite many years of practice. The carousel of thoughts and the emotional whirlwinds were unbearable in silence. In a conversation with my meditation teacher Sylvia Wetzel, I mentioned that I was currently unable to meditate and that I could only bear myself while singing. Her reply came immediately and in an indignant voice: "Sibylle, singing is meditation!". Unconsciously, I had assumed that meditation primarily requires a lot of discipline to sit still and that it has to be hard and strenuous for it to work. 

During this time, body-oriented voice work with An Chen and the Centre Artistique Roy Hart unexpectedly opened up new worlds to the voice as the deepest expression of my being. Mantra chanting became my spiritual home, and in 2019 I founded Kirtan Bern together with Balts Nill and Dominic Senn.

Mantra chanting is a practice that reliably brings me into presence. Singing grounds and inspires me - and fills my heart with exuberant joy. It was not part of my life plan and yet it has become an important part of my life's mission to share the power and joy of singing with other people.

I live in a patchwork family with my partner and three teenagers in Bern and the Engadin.

Our dog Kahlo is a young, playful Labrador. He often likes to test our limits. He joins us at outdoor events and, with his instinctive contributions, helps to make the simple and essential recognizable for us humans too.