Ground of Belonging: An Embodied Inquiry into Courage, Connection and Community

The hunger to belong is at the heart of our nature.

~ John O’Donohue

Many of us have the experience of not belonging — to ourselves, family, community, workplace, this earth. This disconnect expresses itself in a divided self, dysfunctional relationships and communities, and the destruction of the very planet that birthed and sustains us.

However, a sense of belonging and deep connection is the natural state of our being. To know and feel our belonging asks us to have courage, curiosity, and compassion. A deep longing calls us to risk intimacy, vulnerability, and a willingness to feel how life conspires to let us know our interbeing.

When we somatically know our belonging — experience it in our bodies — we engage in the world feeling supported and with greater ease and grounding as we face life’s challenges, joys, and inherently ever-changing nature. This monthlong workshop will be a whole-organism, experiential inquiry into what belonging might be for each of us individually and collectively.

Although not a linear path, we’ll explore:

• The intrapersonal — our belonging to self.
• The interpersonal — our belonging to others through individual relationships and in community.
• The transpersonal — our belonging to the “other than,” which is perhaps even greater than the human world with webs of communities.

The group will discover and practice contemporary and time-honored wisdom traditions that cultivate belongingness, including:

• Contemporary psychology and neuroscience
• Gestalt Practice in the Esalen tradition
• Meditation and mindfulness practices
• Aikido and Gestalt Awareness Movement
• Direct experience of the natural world

Special attention will be given to “what walks with us” in our daily lives as we weave together an eclectic and holistic experience. When we embody the birthright of our interbeing and the ground of belonging, life lives through us.