„Jak pozbędziesz się traumy, znajdziesz miejsce na coś nowego”. Tomasz Karolak o byciu samym ze sobą

"I believe in spirituality, in energy, and there are scientific foundations for this, such as quantum physics and the theory of entangled particles. The human self is beyond the field, beyond the body," says Tomasz Karolak in the second part of Beata Biały's conversation on the podcast "A Man is a Man." It's a story about what happens after you leave the stage. When the applause fades, and you're left alone with yourself—without a role, without a mask, without an audience. The actor talks about love as an everyday choice, about trauma that takes up space for new life, and about spirituality, which no longer has to be a shameful addition to the rational world. When the applause ends "I like it, they applaud, it ends, and you're still alone. Alone with yourself," says Tomasz Karolak. This sentence sounds like a brutal summary of life in the spotlight. Because applause is like a shot in the arm: it lifts you up, strengthens you, adds meaning. But it's short-lived. And then you go home and no one applauds. In this conversation, Karolak talks about addiction to recognition. About the need to be seen. And how easy it is to confuse applause with intimacy. The audience loves you—but doesn't know you. Your partner knows you—but doesn't always applaud. And that's when the real work begins. Love is a decision, not rapture "Love is a choice every morning," says Karolak. Not a romantic impulse, not a sudden epiphany, but a decision: I stay. I talk. I don't run away. Even when things are difficult, boring, or ordinary. This is love stripped of the Instagram filter. Love as practice. Because—as the actor adds—"unexpressed love doesn't exist." You can feel it, you can think about it, you can declare it. But if there's no gesture, no word, no presence—it disappears. In a world that celebrates intensity, Karolak talks about consistency. About being there every day. About a phone call made despite fatigue. About a conversation you don't have the strength for, but you find the time. Giving Up with Love One of the most important references in the actor's life is Meister Eckhart. "If you give up something with love, it will be rewarded with royal generosity," Karolak recalls. Giving up, in this perspective, isn't a failure. It's a space. A place that becomes empty so that it can be filled with something new. The problem is, he notes, that most of us give up with anger. With a sense of loss. With regret. And then nothing is rewarded. Trauma Takes Up Space "When you let go of trauma, there's room for something new," Karolak says. This sentence is like an instruction manual for emotional maturity. Because trauma doesn't disappear on its own. It sits. It takes up space. And it doesn't allow for anything new. Until we see it, name it, process it, there's nowhere for love to fit in. Neither peace. Nor a relationship that won't be a repeat of an old script. Karolak speaks about this without therapeutic jargon. Rather, as someone who has personally experienced that the past doesn't go away—it only changes form. And that sometimes the greatest act of courage is to say: I need help. Spirituality Without Irony At a certain point, the conversation veers into a direction that might have been considered risky just a few years ago. "I believe in spirituality, in energy, and there are scientific foundations for this, such as quantum physics and the theory of entangled particles. The human self is beyond the field, beyond the body," says Karolak. It's a declaration that no longer attempts to explain itself. Or rationalize. Rather, it connects: science with experience, matter with experience. The actor doesn't position himself as a guru. He speaks rather of intuition. Of a feeling that a person doesn't end with their skin. And that perhaps that's precisely why they need others so much. Closeness Begins with Conversation "I try to be close to people and talk to them," he says at the end. Simply. Without metaphysics. Because spirituality, if it makes sense, begins here: at the table. In the kitchen. In the phone call answered despite everything. The second part of Beata Biały's conversation with Tomasz Karolak is a story about life after applause. About love that doesn't come alone. About trauma that must give way. And about how even when the applause fades, conversation can continue. And sometimes it's that which saves the most.