I’m Palak.
I'm here to embody the power of alchemy.
My story is a woven tapestry of wild circumstances, ironic humor and moments of self-realization.
I was born into this life with powerful ability to see, feel, sense and know what was beyond everyone else’s perception. Through many awful circumstances and intense trauma, I became disconnected from this ability and fell into a dark void of suffering. Nothing or no one would be able to pull me out until I became ready to do it myself.
My healing journey was one painful lesson after another. I kept seeking answers in other people, I wanted someone to tell me what to do, to heal me, but that was never going to happen. It was through guiding myself to feel everything — mentally, emotionally, physically, I was able to transform the suffering. And it is only with this process I was able to connect to my personal medicine of alchemy. I am a person who chose this life to live it fully and by moving through the entire spectrum of the human experience, I’ve gained immense wisdom. I value my lived experience and personal knowledge over any intellectual information given to me by an external source.
It took many years to find the courage to face my pain. Ironically, my intense focus and high achieving nature kept me trapped in a cycle of suffering. The more I accomplished in life, the further I got from myself. Everything on the outside became a way to fill the growing void inside of me. To cope with the pressure to fit in and feel normal, I chose to self-medicate with alcohol and drugs. Maintaining relationships was extremely difficult and those who were close to me had no idea how badly I was suffering – I created an outward image of success and managed to hide all of my “bad parts” away. Graduating from NYU with honors and navigating the demanding career of consulting continued to deepen this fragmentation of myself. The more I was “doing well” – the more the traumatized and disassociated parts of myself remained suppressed within my shadow.
All of my moments of success were marked with a feeling of emptiness and unhappiness. There were mental breakdowns, emotional crises and other signs that I needed help but the depth and intensity of shame created so much resistance in opening up what I had worked so hard to bury deep inside of me to survive. My decision to heal would come at the expense of the identity, life and everything I had built to avoid the pain. Triggered by the complex grief from losing my mother and exhausted by burnout from work, I could no longer ignore my mental, emotional and physical health. I began taking small steps and eventually bigger leaps into my healing journey.
I navigated both the Western medical system and Eastern medicine while diving deep into the spiritual practices of yoga, meditation and breathwork. There was no easy or quick fix and often my symptoms felt worse before I experienced any relief. All the while finding more darkness in spaces that I was trying to heal, build community and reconnect to my light. I witnessed and personally experienced the harm caused by the power dynamics created between teachers & students and
I transform the spaces I travel through as a mystic, shaman, teacher, consultant, coach, facilitator, and artist. Palak Patel Ventures was birthed through dharma — my personal, sacred purpose in this lifetime. I create offerings from my spirit which allows freedom for them to evolve as I am guided deeper on my journey of self-realization.
In a practical sense, I’ve completed extensive education, training and certifications across many disciplines of work. I am trained in the traditions of Ashtanga & Hatha yoga and initiated into Sri Vidya and Kaula tantra lineages. I am a certified yoga teacher and trauma informed breathwork facilitator. I have received Reiki attunement and initiated into working with Kalavana energy medicine. I have over a decade of experience in management consulting, organizational development work and leadership coaching & team facilitation. I have completed formal coaching programs, studied various methodologies and dedicated hours of professional development. I have completed intense studies in depth psychology and psycho-spiritual approaches to mental health.
While all of these efforts have provided a valuable experience (and built a great resume!) they do not dictate how I facilitate my work. My dharma is rooted in direct experience of self-knowledge. All that is needed to fulfill my life’s purpose is within me – I teach this by embodying this. Through experiences of self-realization, I have accessed skills mastered from past lives and ancestral knowledge that predates any books, traditions or practices found today. The source of my wisdom comes from remembering.
True to my nature as a Scorpio rising and a lover of Kāli, I am able to channel power that comes from experiencing death, transformation and rebirth. It is through this process I discovered my personal magic and medicine of alchemy — the ability to transform what is rooted in fear and ignorance through the light of consciousness and loving awareness. In my current role as a multidisciplinary entrepreneur, I infuse alchemy into my offerings to facilitate healing, organizational transformation and immersive experiences. I have mastered the art of navigating duality through my previous careers by playing with opposing energies and bringing them into harmony through a beautiful dance. I balance my intuitive knowing with research & analysis, blend spiritual and psychological aspects of well-being and ground intelligence into the felt, somatic experience. I intentionally choose to work in ways that disrupt the status-quo and catalyze change in environments that are rooted in external & hierarchical authority structures and disconnect people from their self-knowledge. My inner child has the energy of a trickster and l love unveiling the beauty of spirit in unexpected and surprising ways.
I believe that spirituality — a direct connection to one’s inner experience is a universal right and my life’s work is to make this accessible to anyone who wants to venture on the sacred journey to self-realization.
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I am currently based in La Ventana, Baja Sur California. I have spent most of my life in New York City and consider it a spiritual and ancestral home. My ancestral lineage comes from India while my soul’s history spans thousands of years across different cultures and places. My spirit feels at home in the desert, inside the ocean and under the sun. I am a lifelong athlete with a passion for running, biking, skiing and most recently swimming & free diving. I enjoy spending time in silence as much as I do traveling and going on adventures. I choose to move through the world as an energetically sovereign and free being — knowing that every place I live in is a gracious home provided by Mother Earth.
