Sounds True: Insights at the Edge

An encore presentation in honor of Coleman Barks, who passed away on February 23, 2026. Tami Simon speaks with Coleman, a leading scholar and translator of the 13th-century Persian mystic, Jelaluddin Rumi. Coleman’s work was the subject of an hour-long segment in Bill Moyers’ Language of Life series with PBS. He has published numerous Rumi translations, including with Sounds True the audio program...

“Let people love you.” Death doula Darnell Lamont Walker finds himself saying this phrase again and again at bedsides —to those afraid of being “seen” in their final days, to those who’ve built walls around receiving care. In this moving conversation with Tami Simon, the Emmy-nominated writer shares what decades of accompanying the dying have taught him about love, grief, and letting ourselves be...

What if every moment of self-compassion is actually a moment of waking up? In this very special episode of Insights at the Edge , Tami sits down with pioneering self-compassion researcher Kristin Neff and meditation teacher Caverly Morgan—two friends and compelling authors whose collaboration reveals how treating ourselves with kindness can become a lifeboat for our deepest nature. This conversati...

Tami Simon speaks with poet-philosopher Mark Nepo about his latest book that explores aging as a transformative passage. They delve into the flexible heart, entering time rather than moving through it, breaking through to joy amid loss, and the idea that—like meteors burning brighter as they fall—maybe we too can become more luminous as our outer casing falls away. This conversation offers genuine...

Tami Simon speaks with renowned literary channeler Paul Selig about his extraordinary journey from skeptical atheist to one of the foremost contributors to channeled literature. They explore the “upper room”—a state of consciousness beyond fear and separation—and how we can access divine union while still in human form, even amidst the challenges of our time. This conversation offers genuine trans...

Tami speaks with the creator of the viral hit podcast The Telepathy Tapes —Ky Dickens—about her journey from skeptical documentary filmmaker to consciousness researcher. They explore telepathic communication in nonspeaking individuals, the groundbreaking phenomenon of “mindsight,” and what emerging science reveals about energy healing, consciousness as fundamental, and human capacities we’re only...

Tami Simon speaks with renowned energy intuitive and channeler Lee Harris about connecting with higher guidance, cultivating heart intelligence, and preparing for humanity’s next evolutionary leap. Lee shares practical wisdom on accessing intuition, understanding interdimensional communication, and why love—not fear—is the frequency that will shape our collective future. This conversation offers g...

Tami Simon revisits her powerful conversation with Sister Joan Chittister at Mount St. Benedict’s Monastery—exploring enlightenment in Christian tradition, the sacrament of the present moment, and what it means to see the world through God’s eyes. This is a conversation about what a lifetime of monastic practice reveals, the electricity of divine presence, and how struggle itself becomes the cruci...

Tami Simon speaks with bestselling author Michael Singer about his transformative book Living Untethered . They explore the seat of awareness, the three-ring circus of consciousness, and how blocked energy patterns ( samskaras ) keep us trapped in suffering. Michael offers practical guidance on witnessing consciousness, transmuting emotions, and piercing through to the spiritual heart—where uncond...

Tami Simon speaks with Richard Rudd—mystic, poet, and founder of the Gene Keys—about his profound awakening at 29, the transformative system he developed, and the evolutionary shift humanity is experiencing. They explore shadow patterns, the art of contemplation, gentle transformation, and why the next few years may mark a critical turning point in human consciousness. This conversation offers gen...

Tami Simon speaks with celebrated New York Times columnist David Brooks about his transformative journey from cerebral detachment to emotional awakening. They explore how a mystical subway experience forever altered his vision, the difference between diminishers and illuminators, and why perceiving souls—not just molecules—is essential to truly knowing another person. This conversation offers genu...

Two questions live in our hearts as we face death: Am I loved? And have I loved well? Frank Ostaseski—a pioneer in compassionate end-of-life care and author of The Five Invitations —shares his insights and experiences with Tami in this episode, informed by decades at the bedside of dying people, exploring emotional flexibility, the practice of allowing, and discovering indestructible love through...

In this special episode, Tami Simon brings together two visionary teachers for a rare conversation exploring awakening’s multiple dimensions. Join Tami and her guests A.H. Almaas—founder of the Diamond Approach—and Zen teacher Henry Shukman for an extraordinary exploration of awakening’s multiple dimensions. Discover why spiritual realization isn’t one destination but an ongoing revelation of real...

Tami Simon speaks with life coach and author Andrea Owen about her audio immersion workshop with Sounds True, Live Like You Give a Damn . Together, they explore what it means to trust yourself deeply, rush the net even when you’re afraid, and show up with “big prize energy.” Andrea shares hard-won wisdom about self-abandonment, resilience, and learning to parent yourself when life hands you a “sh*...

How do you stay committed to staying sober when life brings its inevitable challenges? Tami Simon speaks with Steven Washington—a former professional Broadway dancer and author of Recovering You: Soul Care and Mindful Movement for Overcoming Addiction —about transforming addiction through embodied practice, moving through shame with self-compassion, and discovering that sensitivity can be a superp...

Tami Simon speaks with Leah Lamb, founder of the School for Sacred Storytelling, about how storytelling serves as guidance through crisis and transformation. They explore the original role of storytellers as healers and guides, the power of language to shape reality, and how stories can help us navigate grief, heartbreak, and collective challenges with courage and hope. Learn Sacred Storytelling w...

Aviv Shahar explores why we’re living through an Epochal Moment—a rare transition between ages where one epoch dies as another emerges. He maps the five-thousand-year journey that brought us here, reveals the “bugs” in our collective evolution that require remedying, and describes the emerging capacities of the universal human we’re becoming as we navigate this bewildering, transformative threshol...

**SPECIAL ENCORE PRESENTATION** Richard “Dick” Schwartz earned his PhD in marriage and family therapy from Purdue University. He coauthored the most widely used family therapy text in the United States,  Family Therapy: Concepts and Methods , and is the creator of the Internal Family Systems Model, which he developed in response to clients’ descriptions of various “parts” within themselves. With S...

Lorena Saavedra Smith shares how ancestral Pacha philosophy transforms the immigration experience into spiritual reclamation. Through the metaphor of the jaguar, she reveals a four-step method for calling back fragmented soul parts and reconnecting with nature’s wisdom. Discover how replanting yourself in new soil doesn’t require abandoning your roots—and why the matriarchs are calling us home. No...

**SPECIAL ENCORE PRESENTATION** Current statistics tell us that 20% of the US population has some form of chronic pain, defined as severe discomfort that has continued for six months or more. That’s more than 50 million people. Jon Kabat-Zinn has received international acclaim for his leading work in bringing the life-changing practices of meditation and mindfulness into the mainstream of medicine...

What if the voice telling you to be practical is actually blocking you from your greatest life? Tami Simon speaks with Tama Kieves, who walked away from Harvard Law School success to follow an inner calling she couldn’t ignore. Together they explore why self-doubt can fuel spiritual seeking, how kindness unlocks genius, and what happened when Tama chose to be “the one who loves” with her difficult...

**SPECIAL ENCORE PRESENTATION IN SUPPORT OF WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY** Anne Lamott is the celebrated author of many books of fiction, essays, and memoirs. Her works include  Bird by Bird ,  Hallelujah Anyway , and  Crooked Little Heart . In this special edition of  Insights at the Edge  originally recorded for  The Self-Acceptance Summit , Tami Simon speaks with Anne about acts of “radical self-car...

Tami Simon and renowned spiritual teacher Shai Tubali explore the intriguing concept of the flexible heart and delve into how emotional flexibility can be pivotal for trauma healing and personal evolution in today’s changing and challenging world. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Listeners of Insights At The Edge get 10% off their first month at www.betterhelp.com/soundstrue . Note: This i...

Join Tami Simon and renowned meditation teacher and clinical psychologist Tara Brach for this special episode of Insights At The Edge as they explore the intersection of spirituality and therapeutic practices and thank the many therapists of the world who accompany us on these deeply meaningful journeys within. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Listeners of Insights At The Edge get 10% off...

Learn how to move beyond trivial, distracting goals and tap into your hidden (and most fulfilling) motivations and latent “genius gifts,” with clinical psychologist Diana Hill’s research-backed “Wise Effort Method.” Have you ever felt on a gut level that you’ve been distracting yourself with “surface-level” goals—rather than being passionately pulled toward what truly fulfills you? In this episode...