You Belong: A Call for Connection

Description

"A POWERFUL WORK OF SPIRITUALITY AND ANTI-RACISM"-Publishers Weekly "IF YOU READ ONE BOOK IN 2020, MAKE IT THIS ONE."-Tricycle From much-admired meditation expert Sebene Selassie, You Belong is a call to action, exploring our tangled relationship with belonging, connection, and each other You are not separate. You never were. You never will be. We are not separate from each other. But we don't always believe it, and we certainly don't always practice it. In fact, we often practice the opposite-disconnection and domination. From unconscious bias to "cancel culture," denial of our inherent interconnection limits our own freedom. In You Belong, much-admired meditation expert Sebene Selassie reveals that accepting our belonging is the key to facing the many challenges currently impacting our world. Using ancient philosophy, multidisciplinary research, exquisite storytelling, and razor-sharp wit, Selassie leads us in an exploration of all the ways we separate (and thus suffer) and offers a map back to belonging. To belong is to experience joy in any moment: to feel pleasure, dance in public, accept death, forgive what seems unforgivable, and extend kindness to yourself and others. To belong is also to acknowledge injustice, reckon with history, and face our own shadows. Full of practical advice and profound revelations, You Belong makes a winning case for resisting the forces that demand separation and reclaiming the connection-and belonging-that have been ours all along.

SEBENE SELASSIE has studied Buddhism for over 25 years and received a BA from McGill University and an MA from the New School where she focused on Buddhism, Hinduism, cultural studies, and race. Sebene is a graduate of the Community Dharma Leaders Program at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, CA and of the Professional Coaching Course training program at New Ventures West. She was the Executive Director of New York Insight Meditation Center where she is currently a teacher and on the board of the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies. For over 20 years Sebene has worked with children, youth, and families nationally and internationally for small and large not for profits. Her work has taken hereverywhere from the Tenderloin in San Francisco to refugee camps in Guinea, West Africa. She is a meditation teacher on the 10% Happier app.

"If you read one book in 2020, make it this one." - Tricycle "With grace, intelligence, and palpable compassion, Selassie weaves discussions of implicit bias, intergenerational trauma, and white supremacy throughout her coverage of more traditional spiritual topics, such as ego and conscious awareness. . . . This is a powerful work of spirituality and anti-racism." - Publishers Weekly "Sebene Selassie is one of the most highly respected and beloved newer voices in the mindfulness world. Her vision of belonging is one where we all find a home somewhere...in this body, this mind, with one another, on this planet. With depth and understanding (plus flashes of really funny humor) in this book Sebene skillfully traces a path we would all do well to follow." - Sharon Salzberg, Bestselling author of Real Change "This powerful and timely book shines a clear light on the root of our personal and societal suffering, the misperception that we don't belong. Sebene is a wise, brave and trustworthy spiritual guide-the teachings, stories and reflections in You Belong reveal the shared field of awareness and love that is our true home." - Tara Brach, Author of Radical Compassion "In You Belong, Sebene Selassie guides us in exploring all the ways we feel we don't belong. The good news is we do belong - to everyone and everything. That may be the bad news too. We belong to the feelings of loneliness, anxiety, and separation as much as to the love and connection. We belong to each other (even those we don't like or agree with), and our joy and freedom depend on recognizing this truth. With wisdom and humor, this book shows us that belonging has always been possible and it's the only way through our challenging times." - Iyanla Vanzant, Bestselling author of Acts of Faith