The 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 destruction of the very planet that birthed and sustains us. However, a sense of belonging is the natural state of our being. To know and feel our belonging asks us to have courage, vulnerability, and a willingness to feel how life conspires to let us know our interbeing. When we bodily know our belonging, we engage in the world feeling supported and with greater ease and grounding as we face life’s challenges and joys.

This will be a whole-organism, experiential inquiry into what belonging might be for each of us. Although not a linear path, we’ll explore:

• The intrapersonal — our belonging to self

• The interpersonal — our belonging to others: individual relationships and in community

• The transpersonal — our belonging to the “other than” — perhaps greater than — human world to which we are connected in webs of communities

The group will be introduced to 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 awareness movement practices; and direct experience of the natural world. Special attention will be given to “what walks with us” into 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.

For more information, visit https://www.esalen.org/residential-study. To apply for the program, click Add to Cart.