None But Curious - A Podcast for Nones and Agnostics

What makes a spiritual tradition meaningful? Does it have to be ancient, or can something we create ourselves become sacred?

In this episode of None But Curious, we explore modern paganism, Wicca, and the story behind the Wheel of the Year. Along the way, we look at what’s ancient, what’s relatively new, and why the distinction matters.

In this episode, we explore:

The origins of the Wheel of the Year and its eight seasonal festivals

How modern Wicca blends historical influences with new traditions

The history behind familiar symbols like the Triple Goddess

The uncomfortable questions around racism, cultural appropriation, and exclusion in pagan communities

Why a ritual doesn't have to be ancient to hold meaning

You don't have to accept every tradition as it's handed down, and you don't have to reject spirituality just because you're unsure what you believe.

We invite you to create one small ritual of your own, something that helps you pay attention to what matters.

Because maybe meaning isn't something we have to inherit. Maybe it's something we can build, thoughtfully and with care.

A Jain monk walks with a soft broom, gently clearing the path ahead so he doesn't accidentally harm even the smallest living thing.

It’s an extraordinary image. But what if we aren't meant to imitate the monk? What if we're simply meant to notice what he's doing?

In this episode, we explore:

You don't have to eliminate all harm. You don't have to become perfectly ethical.

Maybe the practice is simply to notice what's in front of you, make the next choice with a little more care, and keep going.

Because sometimes the whole path isn't ours to figure out.

We just need to clear the ground for the next step.

@nonebutcurious

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--Hey! check out roomforcuriosity.org -- the space for agnostics, nones, spiritual atheists, spiritually curious and in-betweens to gather locally (and even virtually this winter). It's time we get out of our headspace and talk out loud together --

What if the most productive thing you did today was nothing?

Not giving up. Not avoiding responsibility. Not turning three hours of scrolling into “self-care.” Just choosing not to force something that doesn't need to be forced.

In this episode of None But Curious, we explore wu-wei, the Taoist idea often translated as “non-action” or “effortless action.” But wu-wei isn't about laziness or doing nothing. It's about learning the difference between effort and forcing, and noticing when trying harder may not actually be helping.

Through stories and images from Taoist tradition, we explore:

Along the way, we consider a question that can be surprisingly difficult to ask:

What if the problem isn't that you aren't trying hard enough, but that you're pushing in the wrong direction?

Wu-wei doesn't promise an effortless life. Some things genuinely require persistence, discomfort, and hard work. Instead, it invites us to notice the difference between necessary effort and unnecessary struggle.

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What does it actually mean to let go?

“Empty your cup” sounds peaceful until you start wondering what you're supposed to let go of. Your expectations? Your relationships? Your hopes? Your desire for things to work out?

In this episode of None But Curious, we take a closer look at the Buddhist idea of non-attachment and why it isn't the same thing as not caring.

We explore:

At the heart of it is a deceptively difficult question:

How do you care completely without trying to control how things turn out?

This isn't an episode about becoming detached, emotionless, or impossible to hurt. It's about learning to hold things with enough care that they don't have to become possessions.

You can love something without owning it.

Come explore what non-attachment might look like in an ordinary life.

Before psychology had a name for it, the Greeks had Ares. Before "impulse control" was a phrase anyone used, they had Aphrodite rearranging someone's entire week over a pretty face. Before self-help books told us to "find balance," they had Apollo and Dionysus locked in permanent tension.

This episode kicks off Season 5 of None But Curious with a simple reframe: Greek mythology isn't a set of morality tales about becoming a better person. It's a map of the very human, very contradictory forces that take turns running the show inside all of us.

We talk through Athena bursting fully formed from Zeus's head as a metaphor for sudden insight, why Icarus's story has a second warning almost nobody remembers, and how Demeter's grief over Persephone became a yearly season instead of something she was expected to just get over. None of it resolves into a tidy lesson. That's kind of the point.

If you've ever felt like a different version of yourself shows up depending on the day, this one's for you.

Topics covered:

New to the show? None But Curious is a podcast for agnostics, the religiously unaffiliated, and anyone curious about meaning, ritual, and identity outside of traditional belief systems. New episodes drop biweekly.

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We all wait.

And most of us hate it.

This episode explores why waiting feels so uncomfortable — and how those very moments may be some of the most powerful opportunities for building patience, emotional regulation, and self-awareness.

You’ll learn:

Waiting turns out not to be wasted time.

This episode reframes delays, traffic jams, slow lines, and unanswered messages as opportunities to strengthen patience, calm anxiety, and learn how to relate to life when you can’t speed it up.

Because control isn’t about making life move faster.

What if feeling like you’re going downward isn’t failure… but part of a pattern humans have recognized for thousands of years?

In this episode of None But Curious, we explore why so many ancient stories begin with loss, disorientation, and darkness before renewal.

Across cultures and centuries, myths tell the same surprising truth:

You’ll journey through:

Together, these stories offer a wider frame for experiences like:

This episode doesn’t try to solve those seasons.

You’ll hear reflections on:

If you’ve ever felt like you were moving backward instead of forward, this conversation will remind you: you are in very old company.

@nonebutcurious

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Nothing is technically wrong… but something just feels off.

In this special bonus episode, we continue to sit with that strange in-between space—the one where you’re not falling apart, but you’re not quite yourself either.

What these in-between seasons can feel like from the inside

What it looks like to keep showing up anyway

A personal story about lifting, confidence, and finding your footing again

The Bench Mark Program and how steady support can change everything

This episode is part of Podcasthon, a global podcast event focused on supporting meaningful causes.

It highlights Bench Mark, a program that’s making a real difference in young people's lives, and shares how steady support and small, consistent effort can help you find your way forward.

@nonebutcurious

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Ever feel like something is off… even when nothing is technically wrong?

In this contemplative episode of the None But Curious Podcast, we explore the strange and familiar experience of existential restlessness—that subtle sense that life feels slightly misaligned even when everything looks fine on paper.

Instead of rushing to fix the feeling, we ask a different question:

Drawing from philosophy, psychology, and reflective writing, this episode explores how periods of dissatisfaction may actually be transitional spaces where growth begins.

You’ll hear insights inspired by:

Philosopher Alain de Botton and The Consolations of Philosophy

Reflections on life transitions and identity shifts

The idea of liminality—the space between who you were and who you are becoming

A thoughtful perspective from Tiny Buddha’s “Feeling Off—It’s Okay”

Together, we consider how to sit with uncertainty rather than immediately trying to solve it.

Because sometimes the feeling that something is off isn't failure.

Why dissatisfaction can appear even when life seems fine

The difference between depression and existential restlessness

Why we feel pressure to “fix” every emotion

What philosophy says about the human search for meaning

How to navigate life’s in-between seasons

Share the episode with someone who might be in their own season of transition.

Subscribe for more reflective conversations about curiosity, meaning, and living with unanswered questions.

Website: nonebutcurious.org

February surrounds us with reminders of romance — heart decorations, flowers at checkout lines, and the quiet suggestion that love belongs mainly to couples.

Yet across cultures and wisdom traditions, love has never been limited to romance.

Again and again, friendship appears as one of the most life-shaping forms of love — the kind that walks beside us, tells the truth with kindness, and helps us grow into ourselves.

In this episode, Candy explores friendship as a path in its own right.

Buddhist teachings remind us that spiritual friendship is not an extra part of the journey but part of its foundation. The idea of kalyāṇa-mitta, or “noble friend,” points to companions who help us realign when we drift and encourage wisdom, compassion, and shared effort.

Sufi wisdom teaches that the company we keep shapes the condition of the heart. True companions soften what has hardened, awaken sincerity, and reflect us back to ourselves with honesty and care.

Confucian philosophy views friendship as a relationship that strengthens integrity and responsibility. Good companions encourage reflection, help us correct mistakes, and make honesty feel safe rather than shaming.

Celtic spirituality offers the image of the anam cara, or “soul friend,” someone who welcomes doubt, hope, and uncertainty without judgment. In their presence, nothing essential needs to be hidden, and honesty becomes possible.

Throughout the episode, Candy reflects on the quiet ways friendship sustains us — someone who listens without rushing to fix, remembers what matters to us, or stays present when life feels uncertain.

Because the friendships that shape us most are rarely dramatic.

And in a culture that moves quickly, this kind of companionship reminds us:

we are not meant to grow alone.

Drop Candy a line at nonebutcurious.org or find her on social media @nonebutcurious