Four conversations on self, society, spirituality and Sri Lanka.
The island is also within us.
How do we understand ourselves through the world around us? The stories of an island live in its language, culture, histories and the ways we learn to belong. They also live in our bodies, our relationships and the questions we carry.
I’m welcoming Ruuh to Salasbananas for The Island Within & Without: four conversations that move between our inner lives and the world we share. Through self-inquiry and conversation, we explore sensuality, gender, identity and spirituality, with Sri Lanka as a place to begin.
Start with our conversation in the video above, then follow the inquiry that speaks to you.
Meet your facilitator · Ruuh & Ruuhted Lanka
Meet Ruuh
“I create space for people to understand the world within us through observing the world around us.”
Ruuh creates space for inquiry through history, culture, language and creativity. Her work invites us to notice how the world around us shapes the worlds we carry within: the stories we inherit, the ways we understand ourselves and the possibilities we allow ourselves to imagine.
In The Island Within & Without, she brings this inquiry into four conversations at Salasbananas, exploring our relationship with the body, the roles we learn, the many parts of our identity and the meeting of spirituality with everyday life.
Meet her work, bring your curiosity and join the conversation.
Explore Ruuh’s WorkshopsThe Island Within & Without · with Ruuh
Four invitations to look again.
Join a conversation or explore the whole series. Each gathering offers space to bring your questions, listen to different perspectives and meet your own experience with curiosity.
Tuesdays · 4–6 PM · Salasbananas, Talpe
LKR 4,000 per workshop · Snack and herbal tea included
Browse the booking page for current dates and availability.
Explore All Four Workshops
Conversation 1 · First Tuesday of the month
Sensuality vs Sexuality
When did feeling become something to feel ashamed of? The warmth of sunlight, the taste of fruit, fabric against skin: our senses connect us to being alive. With Ruuh, we explore the boundaries between sensuality and sexuality, how culture has shaped our relationship with the body, and what it means to inhabit and own it.
Book This Workshop
Conversation 2 · Second Tuesday of the month
Patriarchal vs Matriarchal Society
Be soft. Be quiet. Stay in line. Whose expectations are these? An inquiry into gender, power, women’s strength and femininity, and the ways inherited roles shape how we live, relate and understand ourselves. Together, we make room for perspectives beyond the roles we have been taught to accept.
Book This Workshop
Conversation 3 · Third Tuesday of the month
I Am This & That
Can two seemingly contradictory things about you both be true? We can long for belonging and need solitude, feel deeply rooted and still be changing. Inspired by the ocean, its waves, the moon and the light meeting the shore, this conversation invites us to embrace our many parts and explore who we become beyond one fixed definition.
Book This Workshop
Conversation 4 · Fourth Tuesday of the month
Spirituality & Integration
Can we be spiritual and still want more from life? More love, possibility, comfort and creative expression. Explore how spiritual and material life meet, and what releasing attachment can mean within our relationships, work and everyday choices. Bring your questions, your contradictions and your lived experience.
Book This WorkshopCome as you are. Come curious.
Bring a journal or sketchbook, your questions and all that you are. Share what feels comfortable; listening is welcome too. Queer people and allies are warmly welcome.
For the full events calendar, gathering details and what else is unfolding at Salasbananas, visit our Gatherings page.
View All Workshops & BookExplore GatheringsFrom the Instagram series
Swipe through the original artwork for The Island Within & Without, or use Previous and Next. Some designs show the launch dates or earlier prices. Workshops are now LKR 4,000 each. See upcoming dates and book.
01 / 11
The Island Within & Without
The series cover invites us to explore the relationship between our inner lives and the island around us through four conversations with Ruuh.
02 / 11
Four Tuesdays, Four Conversations
A snapshot of the November launch, bringing together sensuality, society, identity and spirituality. See the booking page for upcoming dates.
03 / 11
Meet Ruuh
Ruuh draws on history, culture, language and creativity to help us notice how the world around us shapes the worlds we carry within.
04 / 11
Who is this for?
An invitation to curious locals and travellers, queer people and allies. Bring your questions and take part at your own pace.
05 / 11
Sensuality vs Sexuality
What do we learn about our senses, bodies and desire from the culture around us? This conversation makes space to examine those lessons together.
06 / 11
Patriarchal vs Matriarchal Society
An inquiry into gender, power and inherited roles. What possibilities open when we question the expectations that shape how we relate?
07 / 11
I Am This & That
An invitation to hold the many parts of ourselves, even when they seem to contradict each other. The original artwork shows earlier pricing. The current price is LKR 4,000 per workshop.
08 / 11
Spirituality & Integration
How do spiritual inquiry, everyday desires and the choices we make meet? The original artwork shows earlier pricing. The current price is LKR 4,000 per workshop.
09 / 11
There is a place for you here
The original series invitation. You can explore all four conversations on the booking page. Current workshops are LKR 4,000 each.
10 / 11
Sensuality vs Sexuality · monochrome edition
An alternate version of the opening workshop poster, asking where sensuality and sexuality meet and how we came to understand the difference.
11 / 11
The Island Within & Without · launch edition
The dated cover from the November launch. Use the booking page for the next available dates.
