Header photo credit: Ali Kaukas

Sah D’Simone, author of Spiritually Sassy will be dancing into Everett this Thursday night. The event will be held virtually by the Everett Public Library. 

Okay. It’s an author talk with meditation. So... technically, the event has nothing to do with dancing. After becoming more acquainted with D’Simone, I can not imagine dancing not being involved, though.

D’Simone, a self-described queer, brown, flamboyant, immigrant spiritual seeker radiates dance party energy. With a spiritual twist. Which only scratches the surface of D’Simone’s paradoxical magic. 

I caught up with D’Simone recently to learn more about the new book, Spiritually Sassy: 8 Radical Steps to Activate Your Innate Super Powers. The book comes out today.

“Oh my goodness it feels FUC*ING CRAZY,” D’Simone shared with excitement when I asked how it felt for the new book to be dropping. “It’s good to see it’s reaching people, that people are excited about the message, but it’s been a lot of work, honey!” D’Simone shared with a laugh.

I was surprised to learn D’Simone had not necessarily been interested in becoming an author. The publisher approached him about the deal, which is a testament to the power of D’Simone’s message and contagious energy.

“So what is the message... How did Spiritually Sassy manifest and what’s it all about?” I asked D’Simone.

“Spiritually Sassy is a home base for people who have been told they’re ‘too anything’. For me, it’s you’re too brown, you’re too black, you’re too queer, you’re too flamboyant, you’re too this or you’re too that.”

Even in monasteries far out in remote areas of the Himalayas, D’Simone found the majority of spiritual teachers to be “old straight white guys” teaching from their own paradigm. 

He recalled a memory while in Nepal with a group of 250 people, “I just remember looking around I could count on one hand the number of black, brown, or queerly expressed people in the space. So I was like, why do I not feel comfortable here? It was because I am not represented here at all. That was a spark. There was a beginning there.”

“Many teachers have missed the plots. That it is about being inclusive. That is about diversity. That it is about equality, playfulness, and laughter and fun on the path towards healing.” 

D’Simone recalled on the other side of that going through a period of starting to lose the best parts of his personality, his charisma, his laughter, his sensuality, connection to beauty. 

“It’s very fitting for the queer body, the queer trauma to mold to survive. Like let me do what they tell me to do because that’s the majority… it was just kind of fitting for the queer trauma for me to do that in the healing space, you follow? It’s so crazy to think about it like that.”

D’Simone started meeting with teachers and asking what’s the role of play? What’s the role of dance? For the majority of teachers, it seemed to be missing.

“I believe we're coming to a different place in healing in our time, that joy and authenticity are the path to freedom. You know? We need playfulness. I say the depth of your spiritual work is how playful can you be? How much time are you spending laughing and connecting, and truly being authentic to yourself? Not living someone else's dream. Not trying to fit in but creating your own sense of self because you’re developing your best qualities and you’re getting rid of your bullsh!t.”

Speaking of the power of authenticity, D’Simone’s Instagram videos have helped his message shine.

“I was putting out these dance videos in my underwear talking about suicide, mental health, all this stuff, and then Deepak Chopra’s team reached out to me about coming on a retreat. 

And we couldn't be more opposite as teachers. I tell people all the time you never know the more radically authentic you are and if you're authentically trying to help other people, you’re not doing it to be ostentatious or because you have a superiority complex, you're doing it because your freedom relies on you being truly you. You never know who's going to see it and be like, girl come in here let's do some sh!t!”

“Next thing I know Deepak’s posting a video of us dancing on stage like we're dancing our way to enlightenment, and I’m like what the fu*k, you can’t make this sh!t up!” 

“And who can get the most from the upcoming event?” I asked.

“Everybody, you know? The book is targeted toward marginalized and oppressed communities, but I think everybody can use laughter, play. Everybody can recognize the purpose of the spiritual path is to become more playful, more flexible, less overly identifying, letting go of these labels.”

“I think anybody wanting a glimpse of transformation, a way that honors this lineage of thousands of years for the Buddhist path, but in a way that's digestible in a modern way. It’s essentially paying homage to the family of these radical saints, and then I eat that soup and then I’m telling about what that soup did for me, and hopefully, it will do similar stuff for you. It’s very much rooted in like a long-standing family recipe that's proven results and produced a lot of awakened people. I’m far from awake. I’m far from enlightenment, but I’m actively working towards it.”

“That’s the journey, right?” I asked.

“Exactly. As long as we're dancing together, we're laughing together while we're thinking about the well-being of others, we’re good.”

Come enjoy the laughter with Sah D’Simone and dance over to the virtual event this Thursday night from 7-8:30 p.m. You can learn more about the event and register here.

Don’t forget your sass.

Copies of “Spiritually Sassy” are available for loan from the Everett Public Library or for sale from Third Place Books.

Garret is the co-founder + CEO of Live in Everett. He’s also journeying toward wholeness at GarretHunt.com.