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 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. 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

Connect with Syd:

Email: bluejaguarlove@gmail.com

Website: www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com

Read Syd’s Substack - Being in a Body: revsydyang.substack.com

Instagram: @bodyliberationchaplain

Buy Me A Boba Tea: Venmo @bluejaguarlove

Produced by Wowow Podcasts

Music by Lee Frisari

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

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

Connect with Syd:

Email: bluejaguarlove@gmail.com

Website: www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com

Read Syd’s Substack - Being in a Body: revsydyang.substack.com

Instagram: @bodyliberationchaplain

Buy Me A Boba Tea: Venmo @bluejaguarlove

Produced by Wowow Podcasts

Music by Lee Frisari

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

Connect with Syd:

Email: bluejaguarlove@gmail.com

Website: www.bluejaguarhealingarts.com

Join Substack: revsydyang.substack.com

Instagram: @bodyliberationchaplain

Buy Me A Boba Tea: Venmo @bluejaguarlove

Produced by Wowow Podcasts

Music by Lee Frisari