Tara Brach

Listening is more than a communications skill, it is a capacity that awakens our awareness. And given our current times, this capacity is essential if we are to navigate the great divides that separate us from our inner life and others. As we learn to listen inwardly, we begin to understand and care for the fears and vulnerability that ask for our attention. And as we listen to others, that same intimacy emerges. In this two-part series we examine the blocks to listening and the practices that cultivate this essential domain of human potential. Our focus is both on the transformational power of listening in our personal lives, and also the necessity for deep listening if we are to bring healing to our wider society.
 
Our introduction music is from "Opening" by Adrienne Torf, © 2025 ABT Music

This guided meditation helps us cultivate a friendly relationship with our experience. Using the image of a smile, we bring a gentle presence alive in our bodies, and then open to the heartspace that includes all facets of life.
 
Our introduction music is from "Opening" by Adrienne Torf, © 2025 ABT Music

What becomes possible when we truly listen—to ourselves, to one another and to the life around us?
In part 1 of this two-part series, we'll explore listening as a profound spiritual practice and a pathway to intimacy, compassion and healing. When we feel genuinely heard, our defenses can soften, our hearts can open and something that has been blocked begins to flow again.
Together, we'll look at what gets in the way of deep listening, along with practices for cultivating a more receptive presence: setting an intention for understanding and connection, listening inwardly to our own experience, and learning to listen to others with what Saint Benedict called the "ears of the heart."
Especially in a time of distraction and division, deep listening can become a radical expression of care. As we learn to quiet ourselves and listen beneath the words, we create the conditions for greater understanding, connection and healing—in our relationships and in our world.
In this talk, you will:
✨ Discover how deep listening can create greater intimacy, understanding, and connection
✨ Recognize the habits—distraction, fear, reactivity, and hidden agendas—that keep us from truly hearing one another
✨ Learn to listen inwardly with mindfulness and self-compassion so we can be more present with others
✨ Explore how listening with an open, undefended heart can bring healing to our relationships
✨ Practice cultivating a receptive presence that helps us listen more deeply to ourselves, each other, and our world
Our introduction music is from "Opening" by Adrienne Torf, © 2025 ABT Music

In this guided meditation, we turn attention inward and come into intimate presence with the life that is here. Beginning with the body, breath and sensations, we gradually open into the spacious awareness that holds all experience.
As we soften habitual tension and allow thoughts, emotions and sensations to arise and pass, we discover the tender wakefulness that is always here. Like waves held by the ocean, our changing experiences belong to awareness but do not define who we are.
As we close, we are invited to rest in that open, loving presence—and to remember that beneath the changing forms of our lives, awake awareness is our true home.
This meditation is especially supportive for:
✨ Relaxing physical and emotional tension
✨ Cultivating embodied mindfulness and presence
✨ Meeting difficult emotions with tenderness
✨ Resting in open awareness
✨ Remembering our shared belonging and essential nature
 
Our introduction music is from "Opening" by Adrienne Torf, © 2025 ABT Music

What does it truly mean to say Namaste?
In this talk, we'll look at the deeper invitation behind this ancient greeting—not merely as a gesture, but as a living practice of recognizing the sacred essence within ourselves and one another. When we learn to look beyond fear, judgment, and the stories we carry about ourselves and others, we begin to remember our shared basic goodness. When we pause long enough to truly see one another, we nourish the possibility of compassion—not only in our relationships, but in the collective heart of humanity.

Together, we'll explore:
-The deeper meaning of Namaste
-Seeing beyond the "small self" and conditioned identity
-Awakening to our shared basic goodness
-Transforming judgment through mindful awareness
-Bringing compassion into difficult relationships
-Living with greater reverence, belonging, and love
 
Our introduction music is from "Opening" by Adrienne Torf, © 2025 ABT Music