About Malika Bouhdili

I am so glad you’re here: welcome!

I work as a spiritual counselor, inter-spiritual and interfaith chaplain, meditation instructor, and writer. Although I personally practice within the Kagyü and Nyingma lineages of Tibetan Buddhism, and am ordained as a ngakma in that tradition, I adapt my spiritual counseling to whatever conceptual framework is most meaningful to you. I have experience doing precisely that as both a hospital and hospice chaplain: serving a diverse array of individuals in the spiritual love language they find most potent. I truly believe you come to this work complete, whole, and intrinsically wise. My intention is not to impart any worldview, but rather - to help you discover what is true for you in the deepest sense. We all go through moments where we need companionship in the work of uncovering our innate wisdom.

Prior to working as a chaplain, I served low-income individuals and families as a legal aid attorney (a public interest litigator dedicated to civil legal justice). In this capacity, I represented and advocated for survivors of domestic violence, foster care youth, unhoused individuals, and those on the edge of poverty as they grappled with layered legal and social issues. My spiritual posture seeks to include, not bypass, the very real ways in which worldly systems can generate confusion, harm, inequities, and violence. I counsel others by going deep into the mess of this very human life, not by circumventing it.

I hold a Master of Divinity and Master of Arts in Social Transformation from the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California. I also hold a Juris Doctor from American University in Washington, D.C., and a certificate in Jungian Studies from the Carl Jung Institute of Los Angeles. I have been studying Carl’s Jung’s work, depth psychology, and existential psychology for close to 10 years on my own, paying particular attention to dream work; mythopoetic symbolism; and transpersonal dimensions of experience. I have loved all these studies, and yet the main well-spring of my inspiration and insight is my humble, 15-year meditation practice, which is ever-developing with the patient and compassionate guidance of my teachers and close spiritual friends.

I currently live just north of the San Francisco Bay Area in Sonoma County. In my free time, I write essays and poetry; study multiple forms psychology (Jungian, Buddhist, existential, to name a few!); and enjoy hiking, laughing, reading, and spending time on solitary retreat or with family and friends. I speak French fluently and come from a mixed-race, multi-religious, and culturally-diverse home.

Who we work with on our journey is important, and I know connection must be intuited and trust must be earned. To further explore if I’m the right person to travel with you on this next part of your path, I welcome you to book time with me. Thank you for your interest, and no matter what: I wish you all the best in the deepest sense.