Welcome to the fifth episode of GENUINE, the podcast. It is now a month since January 6th, a day in America that will go down in history for many reasons. That was also a day when I had a profoundly sweet conversation with Sharon Salzberg, the renowned meditation teacher. As the creator of this podcast, I love all my episode babies, but I am particularly happy with this one, so please stay tuned!

Sharon Salzberg is a prominently regarded western meditation teacher and a New York Times bestselling author. She is also the co-founder of the Insight Meditation Society, one of the premier meditation communities in the western world. Sharon hosts a podcast called the Metta Hour, and she has written many books, including Real Love, the Art of Mindful Connection, and Real Change, Mindfulness to Heal Ourselves and the World. In today’s conversation, she shares a series of helpful insights and spends some time guiding us in meditation. I have been drawn to Sharon’s teachings for many years, and it was a deep honor and delight to share the space of an interview with her. I warmly invite you to join us today to hear our wonderfully enlightening conversation.

Show highlights:

• There is a lot of brokenness currently in people’s perspectives around the issue of “whiteness”. We invite you to reflect on how whiteness or other aspects of identity play out in your sphere of influence.
• I woke up to the awareness that I had always been hiding under a rug of shame.
• Sharon shares about what the journey of becoming who we are looks like.
• Sharon discusses what happens to us when we get stuck with our deeply held patterns, like shame.
• Shifting and opening to vulnerability in the way we navigate our relationships.
• Sharon shares something profound that she learned from Ram Das about vulnerability a few years ago.
• Sharon explains how we can settle into ourselves to embrace the process of change.
• Sharon guides us through a meditation practice.
• Sharon discusses what the word “genuine” means to her.
• We discuss you need to keep going when you’re going through a difficult time.

Links and resources:

GENUINE, the community

Sharon Salzberg’s website