There's this way when we actually spend time with, speak to, visit with friends from other communities,

actually live in community with people that are different than us, that we start to be able to

see things from their perspective. And, you know, that can be helped by I see people now trying to

take in different media, trying to pay attention to

different voices, and that's helpful. But it's actually those intimate relationships, and you start

to hear the experiences and witness how we're treated differently, how it might feel to be

different. So that intimacy really reveals a lot for us.

I'm Jocelyn K. Gly, and this is Hurry Slowly, a podcast about pacing yourself,

where I explore how you can find more calm, comfort, and clarity through the simple act

of slowing down.

My guest today is Sabine Salasi, a meditation teacher, a writer, and friend, who has studied

Buddhism for over 30 years.

Her new book, You Belong, due out on August 25th, explores spirituality and humanity through the lens of

belonging, making the case that accepting our own interconnectedness is the surest route to accepting

ourselves. In this rich and wide-ranging conversation, we discuss the delusion of separation, which lies at the

core of all feelings of not belonging. The Pali concept of Papancha, or the mental chatter that

keeps us from connecting to ourselves, how the thoughts of the dominant culture seep into our brains

and dominate our thoughts.

And how embodied awareness can help us manage physical and social pain better.

This conversation originally unfolded live on Zoom and has been lightly edited for presentation in this podcast episode.

All right. without further ado,

let's dive in. Your new book, You Belong, is about so many things. It's about the delusion

...