MNPC’s Summer Retreat: The Quest for True Belonging
Rita Devi Mitra: ‘Belonging to Ourselves’ ‘True Belonging doesn’t require you to change who you are; It requires you to BE who you are’ (Brene Brown)
Namaste. I was recently invited to participate in the Summer Retreat 22 hosted by the Mindfulness Network for People of Colour (MNPC) and to lead a small group in a mindfulness practice.
For some time, I have been exploring what true Belonging really means for me as I have rarely felt that I belonged anywhere. I have come to realise now, however, that it’s about belonging to myself first and being who I truly am.
Through this meditation practice, I wanted to share my insights within this community of colour — people who, like me, often feel we do not belong. Get comfortable. Join me.
At the end of the meditation, I share a poem by Rumi with the hope that you find your way:
I Belong to the Beloved
Not Christian or Jew or Muslim,
not Hindu, Buddhist, Sufi, or Zen.
Not any religion or cultural system.
I am not from the East or the West,
not out of the ocean or up from the ground,
not natural or ethereal,
not composed of elements at all.
I do not exist, am not an entity
in this world or the next,
did not descend from Adam
or Eve or any origin story.
My place is placeless,
a trace of the traceless.
Neither body nor soul.
I belong to the beloved,
have seen the two worlds as one
and that one call to know,
first, last, outer, inner,
only that breath breathing human being.
RELATED LINKS & INFORMATION:
Being Brave, Speaking Truth, and Finding Me — Brene Brown Podcast with Viola Davis
It’s such a divine gift that Rita has to guide us to our own sense of belonging. Her skillful means coupled with a deep spiritual presence radiate through out this offering. I am so Grateful for her true calling to be of service to love. Great gratitudes for Rita’s expression of truth and healing.