Rainn Wilson

Rainn Wilson is an Emmy® nominated and SAG award-winning actor, writer, and producer best known for playing the role of “Dwight Schrute” on NBC's The Office, which garnered him three Emmy Award nominations.

Wilson's upcoming book, Soul Boom: Why We Need a Spiritual Revolution, will release on April 25. In this book, he explores the benefits spirituality gives us in creating solutions for an increasingly challenging world.

He can soon be seen in Rainn Wilson and The Geography of Bliss, a six-part travel docuseries in which he travels around the world to discover the happiest places on Earth. The docuseries is based on Eric Weiner’s book The Geography of Bliss: One Grump’s Search for the Happiest Places in the World. The series will debut on Peacock on May 18.

Other movie and television credits include WEIRD: The Al Yankovic StoryJerry & Marge Go LargeDark WindsAn Idiot’s Guide to Climate ChangeStar Trek: DiscoverySuperThe MegSix Feet Under, and many others.

Wilson cofounded SoulPancake, a digital media company designed to celebrate humanity and champion creativity. He is the author of The Bassoon King and the New York Times bestselling SoulPancake: Chew on Life’s Big Questions.

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Rainn Wilson: Standing for a Spiritual Revolution

How do we reimagine society and build it anew upon a foundation of love, unity, and compassion? This is the central question Rainn Wilson explores in his new book, Soul Boom: Why We Need a Spiritual Revolution. In this podcast, Tami Simon sits down with the actor and comedian to learn, in Rainn’s words, “Why the hell is the actor who played Dwight in The Office writing a book about spirituality?”

Enjoy this inspiring conversation that is at once funny, clever, and sincere, as Tami and Rainn discuss the cultural critique of people on a spiritual path; connecting with others from both our brokenness and wholeness; God, higher powers, and belief in a great mystery; the radiant word “devotion”; finding your authentic voice; the need for a spiritual revolution in our times; creating a new mythology; the potential pitfall in being “spiritual but not religious”; the Latin word “religio”—to bind together; the Baha’i faith; Rainn’s advice to don’t just protest—build something; the maturation of humanity; keeping hope alive and fighting for joy; and more.

Note: This episode originally aired on Sounds True One, where these special episodes of Insights at the Edge are available to watch live on video and with exclusive access to Q&As with our guests. Learn more at join.soundstrue.com

Rainn Wilson: Chewing on Life’s Big Questions

Rainn Wilson is a multitalented actor, comedian, producer, and activist who is best known for his role as Dwight Schrute on the American version of The Office, but is also renowned for roles in cult favorites such as Juno, Super, and Galaxy Quest. He has cofounded the digital media company SoulPancake and the nonprofit organization Lidé. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon speaks with Rainn about the Baha’i faith that he was raised in and eventually returned to as an adult, as well as the reasons why he once again opened to that spiritual path. They talk about the founder of the Baha’i faith, Baha’u’llah, and the persecution both he and his followers faced as Baha’i evolved into what it is today. Rainn also discusses the search for God as the greatest mystery and what it means to seek the unknowable. Finally, Tami and Rainn converse on art as an expression of faith and how that expression can be used in service of the betterment of humanity. (67 minutes)

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Rainn Wilson: Standing for a Spiritual Revolution

How do we reimagine society and build it anew upon a foundation of love, unity, and compassion? This is the central question Rainn Wilson explores in his new book, Soul Boom: Why We Need a Spiritual Revolution. In this podcast, Tami Simon sits down with the actor and comedian to learn, in Rainn’s words, “Why the hell is the actor who played Dwight in The Office writing a book about spirituality?”

Enjoy this inspiring conversation that is at once funny, clever, and sincere, as Tami and Rainn discuss the cultural critique of people on a spiritual path; connecting with others from both our brokenness and wholeness; God, higher powers, and belief in a great mystery; the radiant word “devotion”; finding your authentic voice; the need for a spiritual revolution in our times; creating a new mythology; the potential pitfall in being “spiritual but not religious”; the Latin word “religio”—to bind together; the Baha’i faith; Rainn’s advice to don’t just protest—build something; the maturation of humanity; keeping hope alive and fighting for joy; and more.

Note: This episode originally aired on Sounds True One, where these special episodes of Insights at the Edge are available to watch live on video and with exclusive access to Q&As with our guests. Learn more at join.soundstrue.com

Mark Nepo: The Half-Life of Angels

How do we know our own authenticity? How can we return to our hearts when we find we’ve left them? As we evolve and change along our journey, how do we relate to the “former selves” in our past? In this podcast, Tami Simon and poet-philosopher Mark Nepo address these questions and more, as they discuss his creative process; his new book, The Half-Life of Angels; and how we can each touch the ever-present and wholly miraculous “spark of becoming” waiting to guide our lives. 

Tune in as Tami and Mark talk about the introspective nature of the creative process; the metaphor of the soul as an inlet; congruency; how the heart shatters but inevitably heals; becoming a student to the mystery of life; the meaning of the word “admit,” and the practice of return; seeing through the lens of the miraculous; the intersection of meditation and creativity; the art of re-visioning; how a commitment to truthfulness grows in concentric circles; living from the deep versus diving and coming back up; the shift from being driven to being drawn; impermanence and perseverance; how the life of expression is one of discovery, relationship, and inquiry; why “there’s always a teacher next to you”; “becoming the poem”; and more.

Note: This episode originally aired on Sounds True One, where these special episodes of Insights at the Edge are available to watch live on video and with exclusive access to Q&As with our guests. Learn more at join.soundstrue.com.

Lorna Byrne: Knowing Yourself as a Spiritual Being

There is a material world we can touch with our hands and see with our eyes. And as Lorna Byrne assures us, there is also a spiritual world that is just as real—one that most of us have forgotten how to see. How might your life change if you were to reclaim your own “spiritual sight”? What would happen if you lived with a direct knowing of yourself as both a physical and a spiritual being? 

In this podcast, join Tami Simon for a fascinating conversation with the bestselling author of Angels in My Hair: The True Story of a Modern-Day Irish Mystic, as Tami and Lorna talk about realizing your connection to your own soul—and embracing the “intertwining” of your human and divine aspects; the universal question, What happens when we die?; guardian angels; self-love and accepting yourself as you are; working with fear and doubt; learning not just to look but to see; the cost of denying the existence of the spiritual realm; the gift of life; ceasing judgment and freeing the love within us; prayer, asking for help, and taking action; our childlike, innocent nature; seeing through the eyes of your soul; questions, answers, and all that is beyond comprehension; envisioning a positive future; and more.

Note: This episode originally aired on Sounds True One, where these special episodes of Insights at the Edge are available to watch live on video and with exclusive access to Q&As with our guests. Learn more at join.soundstrue.com.

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