Interview with Jean-Claude Koven, author of Going Deeper: How to make sense of your life when your life makes no sense ~ Spirituality ~ Prism House Press
Conducted by Tracy-Jane Newton (Editor of Alternative-read.com) Otherwise known as Sassy Brit.
TJN: Could you please supply our readers with an outline of your book?
JCK: Although my name appears on the cover of Going Deeper, I have to admit that I was not its author in the classical meaning of the word. After committing to writing the book, I jotted down some notes covering the topics I thought the book would cover. It was a perfect example of the saying, "When man makes plans, God laughs." After a few days of doing it my way, another force took over and the real message of the book kicked into high gear.
I now realize the process that took command is called a "download." It is very similar to channelling except the channel (in this case, me) does not perceive himself (or herself) to be separate from the source. I was in active dialogue with a higher intelligence that turned out to be a part of me. I have since discovered that all people have access to their own higher source of information once they learn how to make contact with it. Much of the material in the book subtly deals with this process.
In essence, Going Deeper is a real time journal of my own experiences. Although it is written as an adventure taken by a fictional character, somewhere along the way the two of us became inextricably intertwined. His questions were, in fact, my questions and his epiphanies and explosions of awareness were mine as well.
The book takes the reader on an unpredictable journey into the infinite. I’ve read it seven times to date and I still find new and different information with each reading. For me it’s like sitting on the bank of a river knowing it can never be the same. It’s been explained that Going Deeper contains a series of keys to unlock certain knowing and memories with each reader. Each key can only activate in proper sequence; a process which requires increasing levels of awareness. I suspect that it will take a few more times through the material before I get a better grasp of some of the more elusive concepts.
TJN: Larry is indeed a very humorous fictional character and his journey of spiritual awakening is both entertaining and enlightening, but this book carries a serious underlying message, too. Did something happen in your life to prompt you to share your metaphysical knowledge with others?
JCK: That’s like asking what inspired a pregnant woman to give birth. The book was growing and growing inside of me until I could no longer contain it and still remain relatively sane. Looking back, I can now see that my entire life was geared to getting me ready to share the insights that are offered in Going Deeper. In my case, it would appear that I was a bit of a slow learner and gestation took a little more than sixty years before the process was complete. For the first time in my life I feel deeply committed and passionate about what I’m doing. And I now know this is what I came to Earth to contribute.
TJN: In your book you talk about seventy million 'Wanderers' who are here to assist with the impending shift in planetary consciousness. Please can you explain a little more about these 'Wanderers'?
JCK: Wanderers – also called Lightworkers, Starseeds, Planetary Servers, and, I suspect a host of other names – are beings that lovingly incarnated on this planet to help midwife the shift into the next paradigm. Most of us feel alienated as if we know deep inside of us that Earth is not our real home. We tend to be strangers in a strange land and often suffer from allergies and other mismatch symptoms. Most of us feel far more comfortable with children, plants, and animals than we do with most adults. Wanderers find much of what most people do with their own lives and to each other somewhat baffling. That said, there is almost no way to know with absolute certainty that you are a Wanderer. On the other hand, you would be absolutely sure if you weren’t one. I suspect that if you even wonder about it, there a very good chance you are one of the beings who came to serve.
TJN: I hear that as a child, you were tutored by 'Winkers.' What is a 'Winker' and how did they help you in life?
JCK: A winker is a playful term that I learned as a youngster from a science-fiction short story entitled, "When Two Soothsayers Pass, They Invariably Wink." I especially liked the story because it acknowledged that we live in an illusory game which everyone is unconsciously playing – except the winkers. These are the exceptional ones who have woken up to the fact that this is all a goof — and the more seriously and piously we take ourselves in the game, the goofier it gets.
Every so often a fellow winker would come into my life — like a trail marker — to let me know I was still travelling in the right direction. I’ve met quite a few venerated teachers who didn’t wink at me and I instantly knew they weren’t meant for me.
TJN: I love the way you talk about the 'Veil of Forgetting'. How do you suggest people awaken from the trance of Forgetting?
JCK: The easiest way to pierce the Veil is to develop a "watcher." That’s an outside point from which we view, that simply observes us as we go through the day. The most important piece of advice I can offer is that the watcher must simply observe. The second the watcher judges (either good or bad), attempts to direct the action, or change the direction of one’s life, then that viewpoint collapses back into the illusion.
The process is actually fairly simple. As you read these words, simply become aware of a part of you that is aware of the physical you reading. Once that process is mastered, you begin to realize that what you see depends solely on where you’re looking from. This insight is no small thing. In time (using several of the exercises suggested in Going Deeper) you will connect with the part of yourself that has always been on the other side of the Veil. Then, the game really gets interesting.
TJN: You have travelled the world and met several friends and teachers along the way. Who did you learn the most from, and why?
JCK: That’s not an easy question to answer. It’s a little like asking a chess player which of the moves was the most important when, in truth, none of them would have been possible had the others not preceded it. That said, I have an extensive debt of gratitude to pay to many wonderful and willing masters that patiently shared wisdom with me on six continents. The Acknowledgement section in Going Deeper follows much of that journey and is available on the book’s web site at: http://prismhouse.com/acknowl.php?ID=prismhouse&IN=N
TJN: The book cover is fantastic. Can you tell me more about this, and what it means to you?
JCK: When it became apparent that the story in Going Deeper would be unfolding in Joshua Tree National Park, I began researching in earnest. Although I had visited the park several times over the years, I knew little about its history and geology. While surfing the Internet for notes to download, I came across the stunning photograph of a juniper tree and a white tank monzogranite boulder catching the last rays of a setting sun that now graces the book’s cover.
Two hours later, I visited an art show held in my hometown, Rancho Mirage, California. I was stunned to see the very same photo hanging on display. And I met Ellie Tyler, the gifted, sensitive photographer who had captured the magic of the moment. She had spent days trying to get the positioning and the light exactly right, to no avail. Then, on a whim, she crossed a few yards to view the rock and tree from the opposite direction.
The perfect photo instantly revealed itself. It had been there all the time, waiting for her to shift the point from which she was viewing.
I didn’t know when I first saw it that the two objects in the photograph would become central characters in the book or that Ellie’s process of discovery would be its major metaphor.
TJN: As a writer I am always interested in the process of writing. When you wrote Going Deeper did you have a writing schedule or a certain time of the day you felt more like writing?
JCK: For me the writing process required absolute discipline. My life’s other responsibilities are like demanding children that constantly vie for my attention. The story of how it all happened is quite remarkable.
Jack Barnard, a world-renowned trainer of actors and speakers, came out to the desert to spend a weekend with me. At breakfast, he asked about the book. Apparently he knew it was ready to be birthed even before I did. After I rattled off about twenty topics the book might cover, he asked about the number of days each week and hours each day was I ready to commit to the project. By the time the conversation was over, I had signed the bottom of the napkin on which he wrote the contract: starting the very next day, I would write from 7:30 – 9:00 each morning, Monday through Saturday. I never missed a single day, although I confess that the process was such a joy, I crammed in many more hours than I promised.
TJN: Do you have a room where you can shut the outside world out and write? If so, what view can you see through the window?
JCK: Here, some pictures are worth at least a thousand words. I still am involved in a few business ventures and spend countless hours corresponding with people all over the world in addition to writing articles, working on a new book, and research so having the ideal work environment is critical for me.
I have a large desk that faces a lovely atrium around which our house is built. Zeus is my constant companion. That’s him sitting on the right hand corner of my desk...
TJN: Who would you say are your literary heroes and which novels would you say are the most inspiring for you?
JCK: My favourite authors (in no particular order) are Theodore Sturgeon, John Fowles, John le Carre, and some 16th century genius that came from your part of the woods, William Shakespeare. The two novels that I most regret having read (so I can no longer read them for the first time) are The Magus (John Fowles) and The Day of the Jackal (Frederick Forsyth). If you haven’t read these, then I genuinely envy you; you’re in for the treat of a lifetime.
TJN: Please suggest three story ‘prompts’.
JCK: What if all the 10,500 religions and their various denominations had it all wrong?
What if you actually did all the “naughty” things you don’t ever dare do in a parallel universe?
What if you suddenly woke up only to discover that your entire life was nothing but a dream?
TJN: Do you have a favourite quote you would like to share with us?
JCK: Albert Einstein: No problem can ever be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.
TJN: Are you working on any other projects at the moment?
JCK: I’m through the first few chapters of a book tentatively entitled, Heart to Heart Relationships. It picks up Larry, the main character of Going Deeper, a short time after his major adventures in Joshua Tree. His next task is to overcome his fear of commitment and intimacy in a relationship. It’s about his transformation into the complete male archetype that has the strength to hold sufficient space for a woman to allow the tree of her full Aphrodite goddess essence to emerge. It also requires that he masters the ability to shower her with sufficient adoration to have that tree bear fruit.
TJN: Where can we buy your book Going Deeper: How to make sense of your life when your life makes no sense?
JCK: I’m happy to say that since the book has been twice selected as the best metaphysical novel of the year (Allbooks Reviews and USA Booknews), it is enjoying widespread distribution throughout the English speaking world.
Going Deeper is available at most metaphysical bookstores, the major chain booksellers, as well as on the Internet through amazon.com, bn.com, and others. It’s also available on the publisher’s web site: www.prismhouse.com and, if ordered from there, I would be honoured to personally inscribe it. The first two chapters of the book along with a good number of my articles are also available on the web site.
TJN: And finally, I've been meaning to talk to you about your dog, Zeus. Would it be rude for me to ask why you felt compelled to stuff him?!
JCK: Much as I’d love a real dog to share my life, my current travel schedule would make it a cruel arrangement for both of us. A good friend brought me Zeus (already stuffed with cotton wool by some highly skilled hands) as a consolation prize. Here’s a close up. He certainly does seem quite happy with the arrangement. Maybe some day, he’ll come to life like Pygmalion?
TJN: Phew! That's a relief. I really thought you'd had him stuffed! Thanks for clearing that up, I'll be able to sleep much easier tonight. In fact, you kindly sent a picture of him, and here is the adorable little hound…
TJN: Well, this has been a very inspirational chat. Thanks for agreeing to participate in our interview, Jean-Claude. Good luck with Heart to Heart Relationships -- although, I'm sure you won't need it!
Read Jean-Claude's Full Bio here!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
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Conducted by Tracy-Jane Newton (Editor of Alternative-read.com) Otherwise known as Sassy Brit.
TJN: Could you please supply our readers with an outline of your book?
JCK: Although my name appears on the cover of Going Deeper, I have to admit that I was not its author in the classical meaning of the word. After committing to writing the book, I jotted down some notes covering the topics I thought the book would cover. It was a perfect example of the saying, "When man makes plans, God laughs." After a few days of doing it my way, another force took over and the real message of the book kicked into high gear.
I now realize the process that took command is called a "download." It is very similar to channelling except the channel (in this case, me) does not perceive himself (or herself) to be separate from the source. I was in active dialogue with a higher intelligence that turned out to be a part of me. I have since discovered that all people have access to their own higher source of information once they learn how to make contact with it. Much of the material in the book subtly deals with this process.
In essence, Going Deeper is a real time journal of my own experiences. Although it is written as an adventure taken by a fictional character, somewhere along the way the two of us became inextricably intertwined. His questions were, in fact, my questions and his epiphanies and explosions of awareness were mine as well.
The book takes the reader on an unpredictable journey into the infinite. I’ve read it seven times to date and I still find new and different information with each reading. For me it’s like sitting on the bank of a river knowing it can never be the same. It’s been explained that Going Deeper contains a series of keys to unlock certain knowing and memories with each reader. Each key can only activate in proper sequence; a process which requires increasing levels of awareness. I suspect that it will take a few more times through the material before I get a better grasp of some of the more elusive concepts.
TJN: Larry is indeed a very humorous fictional character and his journey of spiritual awakening is both entertaining and enlightening, but this book carries a serious underlying message, too. Did something happen in your life to prompt you to share your metaphysical knowledge with others?
JCK: That’s like asking what inspired a pregnant woman to give birth. The book was growing and growing inside of me until I could no longer contain it and still remain relatively sane. Looking back, I can now see that my entire life was geared to getting me ready to share the insights that are offered in Going Deeper. In my case, it would appear that I was a bit of a slow learner and gestation took a little more than sixty years before the process was complete. For the first time in my life I feel deeply committed and passionate about what I’m doing. And I now know this is what I came to Earth to contribute.
TJN: In your book you talk about seventy million 'Wanderers' who are here to assist with the impending shift in planetary consciousness. Please can you explain a little more about these 'Wanderers'?
JCK: Wanderers – also called Lightworkers, Starseeds, Planetary Servers, and, I suspect a host of other names – are beings that lovingly incarnated on this planet to help midwife the shift into the next paradigm. Most of us feel alienated as if we know deep inside of us that Earth is not our real home. We tend to be strangers in a strange land and often suffer from allergies and other mismatch symptoms. Most of us feel far more comfortable with children, plants, and animals than we do with most adults. Wanderers find much of what most people do with their own lives and to each other somewhat baffling. That said, there is almost no way to know with absolute certainty that you are a Wanderer. On the other hand, you would be absolutely sure if you weren’t one. I suspect that if you even wonder about it, there a very good chance you are one of the beings who came to serve.
TJN: I hear that as a child, you were tutored by 'Winkers.' What is a 'Winker' and how did they help you in life?
JCK: A winker is a playful term that I learned as a youngster from a science-fiction short story entitled, "When Two Soothsayers Pass, They Invariably Wink." I especially liked the story because it acknowledged that we live in an illusory game which everyone is unconsciously playing – except the winkers. These are the exceptional ones who have woken up to the fact that this is all a goof — and the more seriously and piously we take ourselves in the game, the goofier it gets.
Every so often a fellow winker would come into my life — like a trail marker — to let me know I was still travelling in the right direction. I’ve met quite a few venerated teachers who didn’t wink at me and I instantly knew they weren’t meant for me.
TJN: I love the way you talk about the 'Veil of Forgetting'. How do you suggest people awaken from the trance of Forgetting?
JCK: The easiest way to pierce the Veil is to develop a "watcher." That’s an outside point from which we view, that simply observes us as we go through the day. The most important piece of advice I can offer is that the watcher must simply observe. The second the watcher judges (either good or bad), attempts to direct the action, or change the direction of one’s life, then that viewpoint collapses back into the illusion.
The process is actually fairly simple. As you read these words, simply become aware of a part of you that is aware of the physical you reading. Once that process is mastered, you begin to realize that what you see depends solely on where you’re looking from. This insight is no small thing. In time (using several of the exercises suggested in Going Deeper) you will connect with the part of yourself that has always been on the other side of the Veil. Then, the game really gets interesting.
TJN: You have travelled the world and met several friends and teachers along the way. Who did you learn the most from, and why?
JCK: That’s not an easy question to answer. It’s a little like asking a chess player which of the moves was the most important when, in truth, none of them would have been possible had the others not preceded it. That said, I have an extensive debt of gratitude to pay to many wonderful and willing masters that patiently shared wisdom with me on six continents. The Acknowledgement section in Going Deeper follows much of that journey and is available on the book’s web site at: http://prismhouse.com/acknowl.php?ID=prismhouse&IN=N
TJN: The book cover is fantastic. Can you tell me more about this, and what it means to you?
JCK: When it became apparent that the story in Going Deeper would be unfolding in Joshua Tree National Park, I began researching in earnest. Although I had visited the park several times over the years, I knew little about its history and geology. While surfing the Internet for notes to download, I came across the stunning photograph of a juniper tree and a white tank monzogranite boulder catching the last rays of a setting sun that now graces the book’s cover.
Two hours later, I visited an art show held in my hometown, Rancho Mirage, California. I was stunned to see the very same photo hanging on display. And I met Ellie Tyler, the gifted, sensitive photographer who had captured the magic of the moment. She had spent days trying to get the positioning and the light exactly right, to no avail. Then, on a whim, she crossed a few yards to view the rock and tree from the opposite direction.
The perfect photo instantly revealed itself. It had been there all the time, waiting for her to shift the point from which she was viewing.
I didn’t know when I first saw it that the two objects in the photograph would become central characters in the book or that Ellie’s process of discovery would be its major metaphor.
TJN: As a writer I am always interested in the process of writing. When you wrote Going Deeper did you have a writing schedule or a certain time of the day you felt more like writing?
JCK: For me the writing process required absolute discipline. My life’s other responsibilities are like demanding children that constantly vie for my attention. The story of how it all happened is quite remarkable.
Jack Barnard, a world-renowned trainer of actors and speakers, came out to the desert to spend a weekend with me. At breakfast, he asked about the book. Apparently he knew it was ready to be birthed even before I did. After I rattled off about twenty topics the book might cover, he asked about the number of days each week and hours each day was I ready to commit to the project. By the time the conversation was over, I had signed the bottom of the napkin on which he wrote the contract: starting the very next day, I would write from 7:30 – 9:00 each morning, Monday through Saturday. I never missed a single day, although I confess that the process was such a joy, I crammed in many more hours than I promised.
TJN: Do you have a room where you can shut the outside world out and write? If so, what view can you see through the window?
JCK: Here, some pictures are worth at least a thousand words. I still am involved in a few business ventures and spend countless hours corresponding with people all over the world in addition to writing articles, working on a new book, and research so having the ideal work environment is critical for me.
I have a large desk that faces a lovely atrium around which our house is built. Zeus is my constant companion. That’s him sitting on the right hand corner of my desk...
TJN: Who would you say are your literary heroes and which novels would you say are the most inspiring for you?
JCK: My favourite authors (in no particular order) are Theodore Sturgeon, John Fowles, John le Carre, and some 16th century genius that came from your part of the woods, William Shakespeare. The two novels that I most regret having read (so I can no longer read them for the first time) are The Magus (John Fowles) and The Day of the Jackal (Frederick Forsyth). If you haven’t read these, then I genuinely envy you; you’re in for the treat of a lifetime.
TJN: Please suggest three story ‘prompts’.
JCK: What if all the 10,500 religions and their various denominations had it all wrong?
What if you actually did all the “naughty” things you don’t ever dare do in a parallel universe?
What if you suddenly woke up only to discover that your entire life was nothing but a dream?
TJN: Do you have a favourite quote you would like to share with us?
JCK: Albert Einstein: No problem can ever be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.
TJN: Are you working on any other projects at the moment?
JCK: I’m through the first few chapters of a book tentatively entitled, Heart to Heart Relationships. It picks up Larry, the main character of Going Deeper, a short time after his major adventures in Joshua Tree. His next task is to overcome his fear of commitment and intimacy in a relationship. It’s about his transformation into the complete male archetype that has the strength to hold sufficient space for a woman to allow the tree of her full Aphrodite goddess essence to emerge. It also requires that he masters the ability to shower her with sufficient adoration to have that tree bear fruit.
TJN: Where can we buy your book Going Deeper: How to make sense of your life when your life makes no sense?
JCK: I’m happy to say that since the book has been twice selected as the best metaphysical novel of the year (Allbooks Reviews and USA Booknews), it is enjoying widespread distribution throughout the English speaking world.
Going Deeper is available at most metaphysical bookstores, the major chain booksellers, as well as on the Internet through amazon.com, bn.com, and others. It’s also available on the publisher’s web site: www.prismhouse.com and, if ordered from there, I would be honoured to personally inscribe it. The first two chapters of the book along with a good number of my articles are also available on the web site.
TJN: And finally, I've been meaning to talk to you about your dog, Zeus. Would it be rude for me to ask why you felt compelled to stuff him?!
JCK: Much as I’d love a real dog to share my life, my current travel schedule would make it a cruel arrangement for both of us. A good friend brought me Zeus (already stuffed with cotton wool by some highly skilled hands) as a consolation prize. Here’s a close up. He certainly does seem quite happy with the arrangement. Maybe some day, he’ll come to life like Pygmalion?
TJN: Phew! That's a relief. I really thought you'd had him stuffed! Thanks for clearing that up, I'll be able to sleep much easier tonight. In fact, you kindly sent a picture of him, and here is the adorable little hound…
TJN: Well, this has been a very inspirational chat. Thanks for agreeing to participate in our interview, Jean-Claude. Good luck with Heart to Heart Relationships -- although, I'm sure you won't need it!
Read Jean-Claude's Full Bio here!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
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249. Alternative INTERVIEW: Jean-Claude Koven ~ Author of 'Going Deeper'
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