Interdisciplinary Healing & Practice

w/ Lily Mackay Appel

Lily’s work is rooted in sharing the universal threads of nondual inner alchemy that weave through Buddhist meditation, Yoga, Daoism, Hermeticism, Kabbalah, Gnosticism, and Sufi mysticism. At the heart of these traditions is a shared truth: that we are all interconnected, that the illusion of separateness is the root of suffering, and that love and compassion are the sun and water that nourish the blossoming of liberation.

“Transcendence”

1:1 Interdisciplinary Spiritual Guidance & Healing Sessions

Transcendence is a one-on-one healing program designed for those seeking relief from everyday suffering, deeper spiritual insight, and a grounded sense of purpose and connection. These sessions offer a highly personalized blend of energy healing, contemplative practice, and intuitive spiritual guidance. They are especially supportive for those navigating transitions, grief, spiritual awakening, emotional overwhelm, or longing for deeper meaning in life.

What to Expect:

For the newcomer, sessions often begin by cultivating foundational nervous system regulation through breathwork, healing practices, dialogue, gentle somatic awareness, and guided meditation. From there, we may explore advanced meditative states, mysticism (the “personal, heart-level connection” with the beyond), divination (Tarot or I Ching), spiritual dialogue, or personalized education around nondual awareness, animism, and sacred feminine theology. The process moves from grounding → strengthening → transcendence, helping you become a beacon of compassion and clarity in your own life and community.

Ideal For:

Spiritual seekers, empaths, trauma survivors, LGBTQ+ clients, and anyone longing for a deeper relationship with the sacred, the intuitive, and the Self as a mirror of the Universe. An excellent supplement to DBT (Dialectical Behavioral Therapy) or other mental health supportive work. Beginners are welcome, as are those who have walked the path for some time and are looking to reignite their spark of curiosity or move to the next phase of their journeys.

60 or 120 minutes
Sliding scale / Pay-What-You-Can model (Suggested $40-$80)

“Sangha”

Small Groups & Support Circles

In traditional Buddhism, the Sangha, or Community of practitioners, is one of the treasures we discover on the path to enlightenment. In that spirit, the Sangha program offers small groups designed to foster spiritual connection, emotional resilience, and peer-based support. Groups are open to all experience levels and prioritize creating a safe, inclusive, and gently guided space for exploration and reflection.

Available Groups:

  • Teen Mindfulness Support Circle – Gentle support and tools for teens navigating anxiety, identity, stress, relationships, and spiritual development. Weekly group. Pre-registration preferred. Long term participants are available as mentors to newcomers. To begin, please schedule an initial 1:1 appointment by clicking “Book a Session” and choosing “Transcendence- Initial”
  • LGBTQ+ Spiritual Community Group – A sacred space for LGBTQ+ folks to reflect, heal, and reconnect with their intuition and belonging. Biweekly group. Walk-ins welcome.
  • Open Meditation & Discussion – Weekly group for drop-in meditation, Buddhist-inspired teaching, and shared insight. Biweekly group. Walk-ins welcome.

What to Expect:

Each group typically begins with a sitting meditation practice, followed by themed discussion or teaching, gentle moving meditation, and open space for shared dialogue. All groups are trauma-informed, non-dogmatic/non-sectarian, and welcoming to all identities and belief systems.

120 minutes
Sliding scale / Pay-What-You-Can model (Suggested $20-$40)

Booking notes: Drop-in for LGBTQ and Open groups, pre-registration preferred for teen group.

“Dynamic Monasticism”

Workshops & Retreats

“Dynamic Monasticism” invites participants into deep immersive experiences of spiritual practice and personal insight—outside of traditional religious institutions. Whether through an afternoon mini-retreat or an intensive weekend program, these offerings center presence, self-trust, and collective transformation that can occur when we step away from the grind and seek shelter in contemplation as monastics have for thousands of years.

Available Experiences:

  • Biweekly Saturday Mini-Retreats – 2 hour retreats primarily informed by Vajrayana Buddhism with rotating topics and themes like grief and grace, inner alchemy, myth & healing, nature connection, and spiritual empowerment.
  • Educational Workshops – Themed educational programs on topics including Buddhism, Western esotericism, meditation training for mental health clinicians, mindful leadership, emotional intuition, identity, and nervous system regulation. Custom small group/private group events available upon request.
  • Weekend Retreats – Deeper dives into the world of traditional meditation and the healing potential of longer periods of retreat.

What to Expect:

Retreats and workshops include guided meditation, educational components & storytelling, discussion, light movement, and ritual elements when appropriate.

2–4 hours (retreats), 2-3 hours (workshops), flexible for private programs
Sliding scale / Pay-What-You-Can (Suggested $25-$50)

“Walking the Path”

Meditation Training & Reiki Education

For those seeking formal, “old school” spiritual mentorship and meditation training or in Reiki healing arts, Walking the Path offers in-depth study and transmission of lineage-based practices. These include Vajrayana Buddhist practice and contemporary Reiki education from a spiritually integrated and trauma-aware perspective.

Available Trainings:

  • Buddhist Meditation Mentorship – Rooted in Vajrayana and nonsectarian nondual perspectives, focused on cultivating awareness, compassion, and liberation in daily life. From the first steps in Morality, Karmic work, and Samatha/Vipassana meditation through the middle path of Cittamatra and Madyamaka practices and finally into the lifelong journey of Atiyoga and Mahamudra, this is the complete path.
  • Reiki Training & Attunement – One-on-one or small group Reiki certification (Levels I, II, and Master/Teacher) with spiritual mentorship and integrative support.

What to Expect:

Training sessions include both experiential learning and direct instruction, with time for practice, integration, and spiritual Q&A. These programs are ideal for therapists, spiritual seekers, caregivers, aspiring healers, or those who have walked the path for some time and are seeking the next stages of practice.

60–120 minutes (ongoing mentorship and occasional full-day trainings)
Sliding scale / Pay-What-You-Can model

“Mirror of the Spirit”

Tarot & I Ching Divination Sessions

Divination offers a sacred mirror through which to glimpse the deeper movements of psyche, soul, and cosmos. These intuitive sessions invite clients into a contemplative and symbolic dialogue with the unseen—drawing from the rich lineages of Western esoteric Tarot and ancient Chinese Yijing (I Ching, the Classic Book of Changes), read traditionally with hand-sorted yarrow stalks as a form of random number generation.

Whether seeking clarity, affirmation, spiritual counsel, or archetypal insight, this service supports those navigating life transitions, inner crossroads, or soul inquiry. Each 60-minute session creates a ceremonial space for deep reflection, beginning with grounding and intention-setting, followed by a reading and collaborative interpretation.

What to Expect:

We begin with a brief dialogue, and then select a modality and complete the traditional process. Tarot readings explore archetypal images from the Western mystery tradition to illuminate unconscious dynamics and spiritual themes, while I Ching readings reflect Daoist cosmology—offering guidance from a living oracle rooted in nature’s rhythm and the interplay of yin and yang. Yarrow stick casting, an ancient meditative method, adds a reverent and slow ritual quality to the process. Want to learn Tarot or I Ching? That is also an option!

Clients often leave with a renewed sense of orientation, empowerment, and resonance—feeling seen not just by the cards or lines of the hexagram, but by life itself. These sessions are especially helpful for artists, spiritual seekers, and those drawn to symbolic language or animistic worldview.

60 minutes
Pay-what-you-can model (suggested $75–125)

Pricing & Access

All offerings are grounded in a pay-what-you-can model, aligned with the Buddhist principle of dana (generosity) and in resistance to capitalist norms around healing. No one is turned away for lack of funds. Sessions are typically 1 to 2 hours but may be longer for group work, trainings, and retreats.

All of Lily’s spaces and offerings are not only LGBTQ+ affirming but intentionally created to empower the safety and belonging of LGBTQ+ individuals.

Joe Williams Sound Healing

About Lily

Lily Mackay Appel is a healer, spiritual practitioner, and educator devoted to a path of contemplative service, sacred embodiment, and transformative care. Living as an “unconventional monastic,” she brings the discipline and insight of an intentional spiritual life into accessible community practice—offering guidance grounded in both lived experience and extensive professional training.

With a past career in mental health counseling—including leading and facilitating adolescent IOP programs—Lily now offers spiritually-centered services that support personal healing, community connection, and mystical insight. She holds a BA in Psychology from Temple University and a Master’s in Applied Meditation Studies from the Won Institute of Graduate Studies. Her work blends nervous system regulation with spiritual development, guiding others through a progression of emotional grounding, inner strength-building, and ultimately, the transcendence of day-to-day suffering.

Contact Lily:
Email: lilymackayappel@gmail.com
Phone: (215) 518-8113

...more about Lily
Lily’s teaching is rooted in the universal threads of nondual inner alchemy that weave through Buddhist meditation, Yoga, Daoism, Hermeticism, Kabbalah, Gnosticism, and Sufi mysticism. At the heart of these traditions is a shared truth: that we are all interconnected, that the illusion of separateness is the root of suffering, and that love and compassion are the sun and water that nourish the blossoming of liberation.

A lifelong student, practitioner, and historian of mysticism, Lily also brings academic depth and practical experience in the Western esoteric and occult traditions and their complex intertwined histories. She is also a Reiki Master and teacher since 2008, a divination practitioner offering Tarot and I Ching readings, and an advocate of animistic spirituality—living in reverent relationship with nature, spirit, and ancestral presence.
At the center of Lily’s work is a radical trust in the power of introspection and sacred self-knowing. To know the self directly is to know the universe—and from that realization, to become a source of healing, clarity, and compassion in the world.

All of Lily’s spaces and offerings are not only LGBTQ+ affirming but intentionally created to empower the safety and belonging of LGBTQ+ individuals.

Learn more about Lily Mackay Appel’s philosophy and teaching style through this reading of her essay “Stewardship in the Forest of Karma

Relieve Everyday Suffering