The Dharma of Loneliness

4. If Loneliness Reminds Us of Who We Are, Then What?

Rev Syd introduces longtime friend blake nemec—community health worker, somatic coach, writer, artist, and Buddhist/mindfulness practitioner—for a conversation about loneliness as a reminder of who we are and what follows from that. Anchored by a passage from Ethan Tapper’s 2024 book How to Love a Forest [https://www.broadleafbooks.com/store/productgroup/3552/How-to-Love-a-Forest], the conversation explores loneliness as an elusive, non-fixed experience connected to spaciousness, pause, and observation. blake links loneliness to having basic needs met,  to accessing sensations beneath our cognitive knowing, and moving through nervous-system states. They discuss trust as embodied knowing, family conflict, anxiety, shame, and loneliness as a conduit to wisdom and clearer “yeses” and “nos,” * Defining Loneliness as Space * Loneliness, Fatigue and Rest * Separation and Reconnection * Embodied Trust  * Spaciousness and Time A context note from blake: Parts of the discussion (around time code 21:00) are about “spaciousness.” Emotional states can be understood within a Polyvagal Theory. This theory understands emotional responses connected to the body’s largest nerve, the Vagus nerve. Different emotional responses to stimuli, including trauma, are commonly known as “fight or flight” (Sympathetic) or “freeze” (Dorsal Vagal). This theory includes Ventral Vagal responses, which relates to connection, safety, or being able to orient to the environment. The discussion asked, ‘could understanding the state of loneliness (without reacting to it or fighting against it) be experienced within a Ventral Vagal state as the body is safe enough to acknowledge it? About blake:  blake nemec [https://findatherapist.theembodylab.com/ViewProfile.aspx?therapistid=1593] (he/they) is a somatic coach with over two decades in harm reduction, mutual aid and street medic community work. As a transgender and queer practitioner negotiating immunodysregulation and ADHD, his practices seek out hidden dignities, emergent safeties, and elements of belonging within an ongoing apocalypse. And, as the world is on fire, he is an accomplice to outrage, upset, and civil disobedience for all unprotected bodies. Writing, meditation, and wild-crafting herbalism have held him through trauma recovery; in turn, he offers guided meditation, generative writing exercises, and small-batch medicinal tinctures to clients. Learn more about and connect with blake [https://findatherapist.theembodylab.com/ViewProfile.aspx?therapistid=1593] Connect with Syd: Book a free spiritual care discovery call [https://schedulewithbluejaguar.as.me/] with Rev Syd Email: syd@bluejaguarhealingarts.com Website: www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com [http://www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com] Subscribe to Syd’s Substack - Being in a Body: revsydyang.substack.com [http://revsydyang.substack.com] Instagram: @bodyliberationchaplain [https://www.instagram.com/bodyliberationchaplain/?hl=en] Buy Syd A Boba Tea: Venmo @bluejaguarlove Produced by Wowow Podcasts [https://www.wowowpodcasts.com/] Music by Lee Frisari [https://leefrisari.com/musician-composer] Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2558769/fan_mail/new]

3. If Loneliness is a Teacher, then what?

Rev. Syd Yang welcomes Sandra Kim onto the show to speak about loneliness as a spiritual and dharma practice, rooted in their early-pandemic care-team connection and the creation of the Asian Mystics sangha. They discuss loneliness as a workable teacher that guides people back into right-relationship, belonging, and care, including the necessity of giving and receiving. Sandra shares their history of learning aloneness, becoming “the rock” for others, and a healing journey of staying with herself, releasing repression, and opening to intimate human care alongside spiritual support. In this episode, Rev Syd shares excerpts from the poem, A Teacher Looking for His Disciple [https://www.parallax.org/mindfulnessbell/article/poem-a-teacher-looking-for-his-disciple/] by Thich Nhat Hanh.  * Loneliness as Connection * Care, Consent and Belonging * Leaving Groups for Alignment * Following Spiritual Callings * Trusting Loneliness  About Sandra:  Sandra Kim (she/they) is a mystic for the (r)evolution — with Spirit working with her and through her as a movement chaplain, spiritual midwife, and shamanic healer. Sandra guides people from the intersection between personal healing and collective liberation and between the human realm and the spirit realm. She believes that social liberation and spiritual liberation are interdependent and need one another to fully exist. Drawing on 20 years of spiritual and healing practices in multiple lineages from Zen Buddhism, Korean shamanism, and energy work, Sandra supports people committed to social justice and collective liberation in healing from internalized oppression and reconnecting with Spirit and their soul's calling. She is the Founder of Re-Becoming Human [https://www.sandrakim.com/]. For more than 25 years, she has been supporting people impacted by trauma and oppression in finding their truth and living from it — so they can show up for themselves, their communities, and their movement work with greater wholeness, joy, and sustainability. Book a free spiritual care discovery call here [https://schedulewithbluejaguar.as.me/] Connect with Syd: Email: bluejaguarlove@gmail.com Website: www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com [http://www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com] Read Syd’s Substack - Being in a Body: revsydyang.substack.com [http://revsydyang.substack.com] Instagram: @bodyliberationchaplain [https://www.instagram.com/bodyliberationchaplain/?hl=en] Buy Me A Boba Tea: Venmo @bluejaguarlove Produced by Wowow Podcasts [https://www.wowowpodcasts.com/] Music by Lee Frisari [https://leefrisari.com/musician-composer] Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2558769/fan_mail/new]

2. If Loneliness is a Welcome Guest, then what?

In their first guest episode, Rev. Syd Yang welcomes Alli Simon—founder of Black Being in Inglewood, CA and a meditation, mindfulness, and yoga teacher—to discuss how loneliness can be approached as a place of wonder and a “returning home.” Inspired by Rumi’s poem “The Guest House,” they explore welcoming loneliness and other difficult emotions through spiritual practice. Alli shares how loneliness has been a companion to her while navigating major transitions, including a recent breakup and redefining home, all while being held by community at Black Being. They connect loneliness to disconnection and suffering, emphasize collective breath and witnessing with others, and consider loneliness as a mirror that can open joy, pleasure, and deeper connection. * Loneliness as place of Wonder * Loneliness through the lens of Attention, Wonder and Equanimity * Disconnection and Systems of Harm, Disengagement As Conditioning * Lessons from unlikely places (a cockroach) Connect with Alli Simon and Black Being [https://blackbeingla.org/] About Alli:  Allison “Alli” Simon (she/her) is from South LA and the Executive Director and Co-Founder of Black Being, a community-rooted wellbeing studio in Inglewood. With over 20 years in the nonprofit sector, her work centers on expanding access to meditation, movement, and collective care for Black communities. Since 2009, meditation has been a grounding force in Alli’s life, supporting her through personal challenges and shaping her commitment to healing-centered work. She is a certified yoga instructor and meditation facilitator, and her approach is rooted in lived experience, cultural awareness, and community practice. Through Black Being, Alli leads programs that support mental, physical, and emotional wellbeing, with a focus on creating accessible, culturally relevant spaces for rest, reflection, and connection. She also contributes to broader healing justice efforts through workshops and partnerships that support caregivers and social impact leaders. Book a free spiritual care discovery call here [https://schedulewithbluejaguar.as.me/] Connect with Syd: Email: bluejaguarlove@gmail.com Website: www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com [http://www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com] Read Syd’s Substack - Being in a Body: revsydyang.substack.com [http://revsydyang.substack.com] Instagram: @bodyliberationchaplain [https://www.instagram.com/bodyliberationchaplain/?hl=en] Buy Me A Boba Tea: Venmo @bluejaguarlove Produced by Wowow Podcasts [https://www.wowowpodcasts.com/] Music by Lee Frisari [https://leefrisari.com/musician-composer] Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2558769/fan_mail/new]

1. If Loneliness is the Dharma, then what?

In this inaugural podcast episode, Rev. Syd Yang introduces the podcast and invites the listener into possibility. They delve deep into the topic of loneliness, exploring its complexities through personal experiences and contemplative practices that touch into both Buddhist and other theological perspectives. Syd emphasizes the multifaceted nature of loneliness encompassing biological, psychological, social, and spiritual dimensions. The discussion proposes loneliness is not as a problem to be fixed but rather, an integral part of the human experience capable of fostering deeper self-understanding and connections with others. Themes such as liberation, ecological connection, and the impact of societal disconnection are explored, encouraging listeners to view loneliness as a pathway to empathy, love, and collective healing. * Personal Reflections on Loneliness * Defining Loneliness * Spiritual and Embodied Connections * Engaged Inquiry and Buddhist Practice * The Role of Loneliness in Liberation Practice * Personal Writings on Loneliness * Exploring Different Types of Loneliness * Conclusion: The Path Forward Book a free spiritual care discovery call here [https://schedulewithbluejaguar.as.me/] Connect with Syd: Email: bluejaguarlove@gmail.com Website: www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com [http://www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com] Join Substack: revsydyang.substack.com [http://revsydyang.substack.com] Instagram: @bodyliberationchaplain [https://www.instagram.com/bodyliberationchaplain/?hl=en] Buy Me A Boba Tea: Venmo @bluejaguarlove Produced by Wowow Podcasts [https://www.wowowpodcasts.com/] Music by Lee Frisari Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2558769/fan_mail/new]

Dharma of Loneliness - Trailer

If loneliness isn’t a wound to heal, then what? The Dharma of Loneliness is a contemplative, heart-forward podcast hosted by spiritual counselor and Buddhist chaplain, Rev Syd Yang. Each episode invites listeners into a softer, more spacious relationship with one of our most challenging human experiences: loneliness.  Instead of treating loneliness as a problem to solve, this podcast explores it as a wise teacher, a companion, a practice of liberation and an unexpected form of love—one that can reveal our deepest longings, sharpen our intuition, and help us grow in ways connection alone cannot.  Through both intimate and playful conversations with other spiritual leaders, healing practitioners and artists, Rev Syd offers a sanctuary for anyone who has ever felt the ache of being alone and sensed there might be something sacred inside it. Together, we ask: What if loneliness is a form of love that helps us remember who we are? What if it is calling us back to ourselves, to each other, and into a radical possibility of inter-being? Whether you're navigating a personal transition, longing for community, or simply curious about the spiritual texture of being human, The Dharma of Loneliness offers companionship on the path—and a reminder that even in solitude, we are not alone. Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2558769/fan_mail/new]