A Call to the Inner Life: An Introduction to the Inayatiyya Inner School
Tuesdays, October 14th to November 18th, 2025 via Zoom
5:00 – 6:15 pm (Los Angeles) / 8:00 – 9:15 pm (New York)
Overview
As the rose opens by the influence of the sun, so the soul unfolds by the light of love. — Hazrat Inayat Khan
You are warmly invited to a six-week journey into the heart of the Inayatiyya, a living tradition of Sufism that honors the unity of all religious ideals and the unfolding of the divine within the human heart.
A Call to the Inner Life: An Introduction to the Inayatiyya Inner School is designed for those who feel sincerely drawn to the Inayatiyya path and are considering journeying deeper within the Inner School. Whether you’ve been inspired by the teachings of Hazrat Inayat Khan and Pir Zia Inayat Khan, moved by the music and poetry of the tradition, or simply touched by a mysterious inner call, this course is for you.
Each week, a senior teacher from the Inayatiyya will introduce a foundational element of the path, weaving together teachings, contemplative practices, and space for questions. Together, we will explore the following topics.
Dates & Themes
Class 1: Tuesday, Oct 14—The Path of the Heart | Jacob Dominicus
We begin by tracing the human quest for meaning and show how it naturally leads to the Sufi path, previewing each course element and why it matters.
Class 2: Tuesday, Oct 21—The Call | Yaqin Aubert
We explore the soul’s inner call, recognize the heart’s longing for a deeper life, and consider the first step of honoring that desire.
Class 3: Tuesday, Oct 28—On Taking Initiation | Amida Cary
We clarify the significance of the ashiq blessing and the murid initiation, what it means to be initiated as a murid, and how initiation formally connects the seeker to a living lineage of guidance.
Class 4: Tuesday, Nov 4—The Role of the Guide | LatifaNoor Anderson
We examine the sacred student-teacher bond, showing how guidance evolves into deep friendship and why heart-to-heart connection is essential on the inner path.
Class 5: Tuesday, Nov 11—The Inner Life | Naima Khabira Brown
We focus on cultivating meditation and sacred remembrance, fostering a personal relationship with the soul, practice, and guide.
Class 6: Tuesday, Nov 18—Awakening in Life | Azar Baksh Weiner
We look at awakening as the purpose of the spiritual journey and honor each person’s unique way of fulfilling their calling.
Whether you are ready to take the next step or simply wish to deepen your understanding, this course is an invitation to listen more closely to the call of your heart and clarify the path ahead.
Join us on this sacred journey.
Details
There are two tuition options: $72 ($12/class) or $48 ($8/class). If you miss a class, video will be made available a day or two after each session.
All sessions are from 5:00 – 6:15 pm Pacific Time/8:00 – 9:15 pm Eastern Time. For those in Oceania, sessions are on Wednesdays at 10:00 am in Eastern Australia and 12:00 pm in New Zealand.
If you have questions about the Inner School, or about this series, please email us at innerschool@inayatiyya.org. For registration questions, please email astana@inayatiyya.org.
Speakers
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Naima Khabira BrownNaima Khabira Brown teaches online Internationally offering Esoteric Classes and Retreats. She loves the beautiful, enriching practices of our path! She was initiated by Pir Vilayat and studies with Pir Zia. She served as Vice President of the Inner School. She is a founding mentor for Suluk Academy and has participated in many supportive roles since its inception in 2003. She is a member of the Esoteric Training Committee and a Center leader in the Boston area. She also serves as a Cheraga (Reverend) for the Universal Worship. She co- leads a center in the Boston area along with her husband Aqil and other wonderful leaders.
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Azar Baksh Don WeinerAzar Baksh Don Weiner is a senior teacher in the Inayatiyya and a retired Ph.D. psychologist. He has been teaching meditation to a variety of populations for over 50 years. He has written GPS for the Spiritual Journey and Upgrading the Operating System of the Soul: A Manual of Quantum Sufism (with a foreword by Pir Vilayat). He and his wife Ravani Rah Diane Weiner have written The Gabrielite Work – Broadband Spirituality for the 21st Century, Awakening as a Human*Divine Being, and Beyond the Wonderful- Transforming the World with the Light of Your Being. They have developed a synthesis of their work together over the years called the Gabrielite Work, which offers advanced spiritual methodology integrating contemporary scientific discoveries with the wisdom of ancient Sufi traditions, as well as the teachings of Hazrat Inayat Khan, Pir Vilayat, and Pir Zia. Video and audio recordings of classes they have offered are available on their YouTube channel – drdonwcc.
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Amida CaryAmida Cary is Director of the Inayatiyya’s Retreat Concentration in North America and its Retreat Guide Training Program, working in concert with an international network of experienced retreat guides and trainee mentors. Her primary focus is encouraging all involved to enter the transformative depths of the retreat process. Amida is an experienced retreat guide herself and has worked closely with Pir Vilayat, Aziza Scott, and Pir Zia. She is a founder of Suluk Academy and has served as Suluk faculty. Amida lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
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Jacob Miraj DominicusJacob Miraj Dominicus helps people deepen their meditative practice. Jacob has been a murid of the Inayatiyya since 1997, served on the Inayati Order Board of Trustees under Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan and Pir Zia Inayat Khan, and helped start Suluk Academy serving as its inaugural administrator. In 2007, he graduated from Suluk’s Kafur class. Since 2015 Jacob has co-led retreats with Gulrukh Patel at the Zenith Institute in Switzerland. He currently serves as the co-Madar-ul-Muham of Inayatiyya Inner School (Oceania and North America). Professionally, he consults with corporate teams and teaches meditation. Jacob holds a B.A. from NYU in Organizational Behavior, Narrative Theory, and Mysticism and has been a Visiting Scholar at NYU Tisch’s Interactive Communications Program (ITP). He lives in Los Angeles, where he studies the Chinese martial arts of Xingyi and Bagua and lives with his wife, daughter, and two cats.
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LatifaNoor AndersonLatifaNoor Elizabeth Anderson is a graduate of the Na Koja Abad Global Suluk Academy class, Vice President of the Music Activity for Oceania and the Americas, a Representative in the Inner School, Musical Representative, spiritual guide, retreat guide, and center leader for the Light of Harmony Center, Inayatiyya of Dobbs Ferry. She is also a cellist and vocalist; her Indian raga studies inspired the CD LatifaNoor, a synthesis of Raga and Western classical music for cello, voice, and tampura. As a cellist she has toured China, Japan, Mexico, Italy, England, Germany, Finland, Australia, Israel, India, and the US with the Meliora and Cassatt String Quartets and with the New York City Opera. She has recorded for Telarc, Nonesuch, and RCA and her next recordings will feature sacred vocal music for retreat.
When not traveling for concerts or leading alchemical singing retreats, LatifaNoor loves walking in nature with her basset hound Ruby, cooking for family and friends, and knitting socks. -
Yaqin AubertYaqin Joseph Aubert has been studying in Sufism for more than 40 years and is a senior teacher in the Inayatiyya Order, as well as past Vice President. He was first initiated by and studied with Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan and now studies with Pir Zia Inayat Khan. Yaqin is a Seraj (senior minister) in the Universal Worship and has been a teacher in the Suluk Academy, a school of contemplative study with students around the world. He is a founding member and former director of the Abode of the Message, a conference and retreat center in upstate New York. He guides seekers to unfold the fullness of their being. Yaqin is a storyteller, and leads individual and group retreats, and seminars in North America.