Cherif Chalakani, of Egyptian origin, educated in France and adopted by Mexico, is a child of exile nourished by multiple cultures. His academic journey reflects both his curiosity and his ability to move fluidly between the academic world and alternative spheres. After graduating in mathematics and statistics in Paris, he went on to obtain a master’s degree in counselling and human development in Mexico.

From the 1980s onwards, he trained in body-oriented psychotherapy at the Wilhelm Reich Institute in Mexico and developed a practice of sensory awareness and active presence. This approach integrates a meditative attitude in movement and in a group setting.

In 1978, he met Claudio Naranjo and, over the years, became first his student and later his collaborator. He took part in the various modules of the SAT Programme in Spain from its very beginnings in Babia in 1987, as well as in France and Germany in more recent years.

Between 1982 and 1985, in Mexico, within the framework of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Cherif supported the social reintegration of former political prisoners from Central America who had been tortured and later granted amnesty.

His therapeutic approach is structured around two complementary approaches:

• The first approach, biographical in nature, focuses on toxic relationships within the family of origin. In this context, he developed El árbol que canta in Mexico and, for over fifteen years, has co-facilitated the Hoffman Process in France.
• The second approach explores the experience of birth. For over forty years, alongside his own personal journey, he has created and refined a methodology he calls Espacios Nacientes.

This work, which brings delicate attention to the body and its inner landscapes—sensorial and emotional—addresses the experience of birth in its physical, existential and metaphorical dimensions.

“I was born in order to be born,” a quote by Pablo Neruda, perfectly illustrates the essence of this approach. Every step towards maturity is a birth—sometimes even a true metamorphosis. Cherif offers a ritual of passage, of death and renewal, to welcome change with awareness and trust, in order to fully participate in the movements and fluctuations of life!”

Cherif Chalakani defines himself as a “spiritual midwife”, exploring spaces of possibility beyond the limiting structures of the ego.

He is the author of Renacer al Ser (La Llave Publishers), also available in English under the title Birthing the Self.