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Sebene Selassie On: Resiliency, Rewriting Your Patterns and Finding a Teacher Who Speaks to You

October 5, 2025

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  • Sebene Selassie's serious meditation practice deepened significantly after being diagnosed with stage three breast cancer at age 34, which she has lived with as stage four cancer for 15 years. 
  • The path to freedom or awakening is highly personal, and while suffering often reveals clinging patterns, freedom itself looks distinctive and unique to each individual. 
  • Sebene Selassie's current teaching style emphasizes speaking from her own experience and impact of the teachings rather than didactic authority, reflecting a realization that she cannot know the one right way for everyone. 

Segments

Introduction and Teacher of the Month
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(00:00:04)
  • Key Takeaway: Sebene Selassie is featured as the October Teacher of the Month, providing guided meditations to operationalize podcast wisdom.
  • Summary: The episode introduces Sebene Selassie as the Teacher of the Month for October, offering guided meditations accompanying full episodes for paid subscribers. These bespoke meditations aim to embed the conversation’s wisdom into the listener’s neurons to counteract forgetting. Sebene will also lead weekly live guided meditation and Q&A sessions for subscribers on Tuesdays at 4 Eastern.
Sponsor Messages and Break
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(00:03:08)
  • Key Takeaway: Airbnb hosting offers a way to offset travel costs by welcoming guests into your home.
  • Summary: Staying in a house on vacation fosters a feeling of being part of the scene rather than just a tourist. Hosting your home on Airbnb while traveling can offset trip costs or provide extra income for splurges or home improvements. Listeners can find out their home’s potential value at airbnb.com/host.
Sponsor: Liquid IV
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(00:04:30)
  • Key Takeaway: Liquid IV’s sugar-free Energy Multiplier supports energy, hydration, focus, mood, and social stamina.
  • Summary: The new sugar-free Energy Multiplier from Liquid IV is formulated to combat post-summer sluggishness and support physical energy and focus. It hydrates better than water alone, powered by live hydroscience and an optimized ratio of electrolytes and essential vitamins. Listeners can use code ‘happier’ for 20% off their first order at liquidiv.com.
Sebene’s Journey to Teaching
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(00:06:05)
  • Key Takeaway: Sebene Selassie’s initial interest in meditation began in high school through her older brother’s involvement with Hare Krishna.
  • Summary: Sebene first taught a meditation class in 11th grade and later majored in comparative religious studies, focusing on Hinduism and Buddhism in college. Her serious practice deepened after her stage three breast cancer diagnosis at 34, leading her to delve into leading sitting groups. She initially resisted the teacher path, intending to join the Community Dharma Leader program only to become a better administrator.
Update on Health Status
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(00:09:35)
  • Key Takeaway: Sebene is currently managing significant bone pain stemming from cancer manifestations and prior treatments, but remains grateful for defying medical odds.
  • Summary: Sebene reports that today is a good day regarding pain, which stems from cancer in her bones and related tissue problems from radiation. She considers herself a miracle to her doctors due to her unique history of illness, having defied many odds since her diagnosis 15 years ago.
Teaching Style and Humility
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(00:11:27)
  • Key Takeaway: The best teachers transmute their suffering, become comfortable in their skin, and teach from their unique, specific perspective.
  • Summary: Sebene enjoys sharing teachings because she receives positive feedback, despite having past issues with public speaking which Dan Harris helped her overcome. Her teaching focuses on her own experience to avoid sounding didactic, recognizing that she cannot know the objective reality or one way that works for everyone. The specificity of a teacher’s unique experience is often what helps listeners connect.
Suffering and Freedom Correlation
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(00:18:03)
  • Key Takeaway: Suffering looks similar across people, but freedom is highly distinctive, suggesting that the door to freedom is open regardless of the drama of one’s suffering story.
  • Summary: Matthew Brenselver argues that while suffering (anxiety, fear) manifests similarly, freedom is distinctive and unique to each person. Sebene notes that her suffering has been a crucible for seeing where she clings, but acknowledges that others achieve realization through ease. The opportunity within suffering is to be with the hardest reality without adding diminishing contention.
October Meditation Themes
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(00:23:32)
  • Key Takeaway: The custom meditations for October include creative explorations on balancing stability/ambition and non-thinking problem-solving techniques.
  • Summary: Sebene created contemplative meditations that go beyond basic body awareness, exploring tensions like the desire for stability versus ambition for meaning. One unique meditation involves physically getting up during the session to explore difficult problems without relying solely on thinking. DJ Cashmere admits his initial skepticism about matching meditations to varied episodes is being challenged by the quality of Sebene’s work.
Closing Announcements and Credits
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(00:26:15)
  • Key Takeaway: The next live Q&A session with Sebene Selassie is Tuesday, October 7th at 4 Eastern, and the Meditation Party retreat is October 24th-26th.
  • Summary: Listeners are reminded to sign up at danharris.com for custom guided meditations and weekly live video Q&A sessions. The in-person Meditation Party retreat with Sebene Selassie, Dan Harris, Jeff Warren, and Ofosu Jones-Quartey is scheduled for the weekend of October 24th through the 26th. The segment concludes by thanking the production team, including Executive Producer DJ Cashmere.