Tara Brach

2013-09-18 - Part 1 - Entering the Wilderness - On all spiritual paths, we journey into the inner wilderness to discover the nature of nature - the truth of who we are.  The entry is through bringing a kind and full presence to the life of our bodies. These two talks explore the conditioning that leads us to dissociation, and the blessings of full aliveness, open heartedness and wisdom that arise...

2013-09-18 Guided Meditation: Embodied Presence

2013-09-11 - Peace Work - The hope for inner and world peace lies in our evolutionary capacity to shift from Fight-Flight-Freeze reactivity to responding to aggravation with Attend-Befriend. This talk explores the three elements on this path of awakening that support us in this transformation:  Remembering our true aspiration; taking full responsibility (for whatever arises in our experience) and...

2013-09-11 - Guided Meditation: Breath and Awareness

2013-09-04 - From Egoic to Unconditioned Loving - When we are caught in the sense of separation and unmet needs, our love is marbled with fear and attachment.  This talk describes the chain of conditioning that perpetuates the constrictions of egoic love and explores several courageous activities--sharing our vulnerability, expressing love, extending and receiving love-- that awaken us to the vast...

2013-09-04 - Guided Meditation - Letting Life Be As It Is

2013-08-28 - Part 2: Relating to the Fearsome Deities - Whenever Mara--the shadow side--appeared during the Buddha's life, his response was simple and liberating: "I see you Mara," and,"Please, come…let's have tea." In that spirit, this talk explores three approaches to relating to fear with a mindful and compassionate presence. The flute meditation at the end of the talk is given by Akal Dev. Ple...

2013-08-28 - Guided Meditation: Rest As Presence

2013-08-21 - Part 1: Relating to the Fearsome Deities - Our relationship to fear shapes our life experience. If we are unconscious, and reflexively try to manage fear, our identity takes the shape of the body of fear. If instead we learn to attend and befriend fear, we discover the freedom of our awakened heart. Please support this podcast by donating at www.tarabrach.com or www.imcw.org. Your don...

2013-08-21 - Guided Meditation: Resting As Awareness

2007-09-26 - The Gift of Silence - Through all spiritual traditions, there is a valuing of silence and stillness. When the mind has quieted, it becomes possible to see into the truth of what we are. Yet quieting can turn into a battle with the process of the thinking mind. This talk explores practices that allow us to settle in a natural way, the presence which is silence itself, and the wisdom an...

2007-09-26 - Guided Meditation: Into the Stillness

2013-08-07 - True Belonging - We all have a longing to belong. When pursued at the egoic level--often through our good-personhood projects--there may be temporary satisfaction but our sense of separation is ultimately reinforced.  In contrast, bringing mindfulness and compassion to whatever is arising dissolves the sense of separation and reveals the basic goodness of our own loving presence. Plea...

2013-08-07 - Guided Meditation - The Aliveness and Space of Presence

2009-09-09 - From Story to Presence - A fundamental skill cultivated through meditation is awakening from our stories and arriving back in the aliveness of the moment. If we investigate, we find that a large portion of our stories create physical and emotional stress, separate us from others, and obscure the truth of who we are. In this talk you are invited to identify several of your "top ten hit...

2009-09-09 - Relaxing the Heart

2013-07-24 - Three Gestures of Love - If we inquire "what is between me and presence" we usually find we've been caught inside a limiting story of self, contracted by wants and fears. This talk explores a simple yet powerful way of arousing loving presence and dissolving the narrow identification that keeps us from inhabiting our awakened heartmind.

2013-07-24 - Guided Meditation: A Listening, Receptive Presence

2010-10-13 - Introducción a la Meditación Parte 1: El Arte y Ciencia de la Meditación La primera sesión define la meditación y describe las enseñanzas budistas que le dan contexto al camino de la practica. Exploramos las dos formas básicas de meditación - concentración y conciencia plena - y luego nos enfocamos en el entrenamiento de conciencia plena: trayendo atención de conciencia plena a la res...

2013-07-17 - Absolute Cooperation with the Inevitable - This talk addresses common misunderstandings about acceptance (allowing, "letting be") and explores the challenges and blessings of opening to the raw emotions that we habitually avoid. Please support this podcast by donating at www.tarabrach.com or www.imcw.org. Your donations allow us to continue to freely offer the teachings!

2013-07-17 - Guided Meditation: Letting Life Be, Just As It Is

2013-07-10 - Skeleton Woman: Embracing This Living and Dying World - Based on a wonderful myth told by Clarissa Estes, this talk looks at the way we run from "lady death" and the blessings of opening our arms and heart. It is a repeat from 2009-10-07 and fits in well with Tara's topic for next week. If we can embrace the whole of our nature with unconditional presence - including the inevitability...

2012-09-19 Guided Meditation: Embodied Spirit

2013-07-03 - Part 2: Hope and the Spiritual Path - In this talk we further define the nature of mature or spiritual hope as part of a trinity that includes trust and love, and explore what blocks its unfolding.  We then review how different people have "hit bottom" and found their way to the energy, receptivity and openness of hope.

2013-07-04 - Guided Meditation: Beingness and Aliveness