Tara Brach - Meditation: The Pathway of Deep Listening (21:16 min)

Episode Date: March 18, 2026

Listening is an ideal template for awareness itself - it is naturally receptive, open and awake. This meditation invites a deep listening to and feeling our lives, and opens us to the realization of the flow of changing experience and the background awareness that is the source of our Being.   Our introduction music is from "Opening" by Adrienne Torf, © 2025 ABT Music

Welcome, friends, to the Tara Brock podcast. I'm so glad you're here. Each week, I share teachings and guided meditations to help us awaken our hearts and bring healing to our world. You can learn more or support this offering by visiting tarabrock.com, where you can also join our email list. Now, let's explore together the many ways we can live from the love and presence that's our deepest essence. Namaste. Letting your senses be wide awake, listening,

aware of the play of sounds that are close in, the disappearing, the appearing, the disappearing, the spaces between sounds, listening not just with your ears, but with your whole awareness, listening to the space in the room, and listening to the more distant sounds with listening.

There's nothing to do. Sounds are known spontaneously. Sensing the space that all sounds are appearing in. Completely receptive, open listening is the most direct template for awareness itself. It's just open wakefulness with the same receptivity of listening to sound. Now listening to and feeling the life inside the body, sensing the region of the eyes and just listening to and feeling the sensations arising, passing in that area, not opposing or interfering, just purely receiving with interest, listening to and feeling the aliveness inside the mouth,

the play of sensation in the tongue, gums, teeth, lips. It might relax the shoulders back and down and feeling the shoulders from the inside out, listening to, receiving the play of energy there. Still aware of the sounds around you. Open and receptive. You might soften the hands. And then listen to and feel

the sensations moving inside the hands, an intimate, receptive presence. Let there be an openness to the chest and feeling the heart from the inside out. In the same way, a receptivity, a listening to and feeling the life that's there. Just letting everything happen to you. Letting life be just as it is. Feeling the belly, the abdominal region from the inside, out so that you're listening to receiving the sensations in life that's there. Sensitive, open, present and bringing that same receptive presence to the pelvic region, relaxed open presence, receiving the life that's here, bringing the awareness inside the feet, feeling the feet from the inside out. So again, you're listening.

to and receiving the aliveness there. Now widening the lens to include this whole field of bodily sensations, listening to and feeling this life that's right here, letting this whole life live through you, not controlling anything, not opposing, just allowing this life to be just as it is, this whole dance of sensation, listening to and feeling the life that's living through you, widening out again to include sounds, sounds, sensations, feelings, letting it all live through you, letting it float, move, appear, disappear in this open, receptive presence, this resting in this wakeful openness, awareness, listening to and feeling, the changing dance,

And for some, if it helps to stabilize your attention in this open presence, you might listen to and feel the particular sensations of the breath, the inflow, the outflow, wherever it's most predominant, not controlling, receiving with a soft, open, clear attention. When you notice the mind has drifted into many, mental commentary, the future, the past. You'll also discover that the senses have closed down, that you're no longer listening to and feeling the life that's here.

So the practice is to reopen to what's here. Relax open the attention so that you're listening again to the actual sounds that are coming and going instead of the sounds of the thoughts. And just as you listen to sounds, you can listen to and feel again the life of the body. Listen to and feel the inflow and outflow of the breath. Noticing if there's a trance of thinking, something between you and this open, awake, receptive awareness. It's relaxing open, relaxing back so that you're listening to the same. sounds right here in the foreground, the changing play of sounds and sensations, feelings.

And also being aware in the background, this alert, inner stillness, that which is listening, the silence that's listening, just relax back and be that silence, resting as awareness and letting this life live through you.