Tara Brach Love-Based Activism: A Conversation with Tara Brach and Mohsen Mahdawi - Part I
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Mar 19, 2026 Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palestinian refugee, Buddhist practitioner, and activist who grew up in a West Bank camp, shares his journey. He describes childhood trauma, healing through Buddhist practice, and how inner work led to public advocacy. He talks about organizing for Palestinian dignity, grounding activism in love and humanity, and navigating anger, dehumanization, and coalition-building in polarized times.
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Childhood Inside A West Bank Refugee Camp
- Mohsen Mahdawi describes growing up in a densely packed West Bank refugee camp with water delivered weekly and houses sharing walls.
- He grew up amid concrete housing on about 63 acres with roughly 10,000 people, calling it a concrete jungle that disconnected him from nature.
Early Trauma That Fueled Empathy And Justice
- Mohsen recounts traumatic childhood violence including witnessing his best friend being shot and losing close relatives.
- He describes collecting body parts after a strike and burying his brother, formative losses that shaped his empathy and yearning for justice.
Education Journey From Palestine To Columbia
- Mohsen left Palestine for the U.S. in 2014 after marrying an American he met while studying computer engineering.
- He studied at Lehigh, transferred to Columbia, completed a nontraditional undergraduate degree in philosophy, and later pursued a master's in international affairs.