"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.
This vital work offers practical wisdom and profound insights on:
- Radical Self-Love: Learn to move beyond self-criticism and embrace every part of who you are—your history, your joy, your shadows, and your pain.
- Embodied Awareness: Discover practical exercises, including mindfulness and meditation, to ground yourself in the present moment and reconnect with your body’s wisdom.
- An Anti-Racism Framework: Explore how the "delusion of separation" fuels systems of domination and find the courage to confront injustice, from unconscious bias to structural inequality.
- Healing from Trauma: With razor-sharp wit and vulnerability, Sebene Selassie shares her own story of surviving cancer and facing dislocation to offer a path toward healing.
- True Interconnection: Uncover the profound truth that you are not separate—you never were and you never will be—and reclaim the freedom that comes with knowing you belong.