Tara Brach

Tara Brach

Tara Brach, Ph.D is an internationally known meditation teacher and author of bestselling Radical Acceptance and True Refuge. Tara shares a weekly guided meditation and talk that blend Western psychology and Eastern spiritual practices. The podcast addresses the value of mindfulness meditation and self-compassion in relieving emotional suffering, serving spiritual awakening and bringing healing to our world.

  1. 1h ago

    Your Future Self Turning Towards Your Awakened Heart-Mind

    In this talk, Tara Brach explores how we can awaken to our deepest potential by connecting with our future self—the wise, loving, and compassionate awareness that is already within us. While our habitual patterns of fear, judgment, and self-protection can keep us feeling separate or limited, there is also a natural longing to live more fully, with an open heart and a sense of inner freedom. Through stories, reflections, and the practice of RAIN, Tara illuminates how mindfulness and self-compassion help us recognize the protective patterns that obscure our true nature. She guides us in a meditation of calling on our future self, inviting us to listen to the wisdom of our awakened heart and meet our vulnerabilities with tenderness rather than judgment. As we learn to trust this loving presence, we discover the possibility of responding to life's challenges with greater clarity, kindness, and connection—and living more fully from the love that is already here. Some of the key themes include: ✨ Our evolutionary potential – How we can move beyond habitual reactions and reconnect with the wisdom and love of our awakened heart. ✨ The protective patterns that keep us stuck – Recognizing the fear, defensiveness, and self-judgment that obscure our true nature. ✨ RAIN and the healing power of compassion – Bringing mindful awareness and tenderness to the vulnerable places within us. ✨ Calling on our future self – A guided reflection for accessing our wisest, most loving perspective and bringing that presence into everyday life. ✨ Living from our awakened heart – Learning to trust our inner wisdom, deepen connection, and recognize the goodness in ourselves and others. Our introduction music is from "Opening" by Adrienne Torf, © 2025 ABT Music

    Your Future Self Turning Towards Your Awakened Heart-Mind
  2. Oct 29

    Meditation: Arriving in Open Presence (18:24 min)

    In this guided meditation, Tara Brach invites us to settle into the stillness of the present moment and rediscover the open, awake awareness that is always here. Through gentle attention to the breath, body, and heart, we begin to soften, release tension, and experience a deeper sense of ease and belonging. Our minds naturally wander into thoughts about the past or future, often carrying us away from the aliveness of this moment. Rather than struggling to quiet the mind, this mindfulness practice encourages us to return with kindness and curiosity, allowing sounds, sensations, and feelings to arise and pass within the spaciousness of awareness. Tara guides us through a gentle body scan, mindful breathing, and an expanding awareness that includes the whole body and the world around us. The meditation closes with a loving-kindness practice, extending compassion and wishes for peace to ourselves and all beings. As we learn to arrive again and again with gentleness, we discover a quiet inner stillness—a loving presence that can become a trusted refuge amid the changing experiences of life. Our introduction music is from "Opening" by Adrienne Torf, © 2025 ABT Music ******************** Support Tara's Work: If you find value in these talks and wish to support their continuation, please consider making a donation. Your generosity helps us keep these teachings available to all. Visit: https://www.tarabrach.com/donation/ Stay connected to Tara: ▪️Website: tarabrach.com  ▪️YouTube: /@tarabrach ▪️Facebook: /tarabrach ▪️Instagram: @tarabrach ▪️Threads: @tarabrach

    Meditation: Arriving in Open Presence (18:24 min)
  3. Oct 23

    Cultivating a Courageous Heart - Part 2

    How do we keep our hearts open when our world is filled with fear, anger, uncertainty and division? Tara continues our exploration of how mindfulness and compassion can help us meet difficult times without becoming imprisoned by reactivity. Courage, at its deepest, is a greatness of heart—the willingness to stay present with vulnerability and respond to life from wisdom and love.  When we encounter violence, suffering or injustice, anger and fear are natural. Yet the pathway toward genuine compassion is not to bypass these feelings or force ourselves to forgive. It begins by courageously turning toward what is underneath our reactivity—the fear, hurt and vulnerability asking for our attention. We'll look at the powerful practice of cultivating a "strong back and soft front": grounding ourselves in belonging, strength and presence while remaining open to the tenderness of our own hearts. When we can stay with vulnerability rather than defend against it, it becomes a doorway to compassion and a wiser response to our lives and our world. In this talk: • Cultivating courage in uncertain and challenging times • Working mindfully with fear, anger and reactivity • Discovering the vulnerability beneath anger and blame • Practicing a "strong back and soft front" • Transforming vulnerability into compassion, wisdom and love Our world needs hearts that are both strong and tender. The invitation is to discover how meeting what is difficult with courageous presence can become a pathway to healing.

    Cultivating a Courageous Heart - Part 2
  4. Oct 15

    Cultivating a Courageous Heart – Part 1

    How do we keep our hearts open when our world is filled with fear, anger, uncertainty and division? In Part 1 of Cultivating a Courageous Heart, we explore how mindfulness and compassion can help us meet difficult times without becoming imprisoned by reactivity. Courage, at its deepest, is a greatness of heart—the willingness to stay present with vulnerability and respond to life from wisdom and love. When we encounter violence, suffering or injustice, anger and fear are natural. Yet the pathway toward genuine compassion is not to bypass these feelings or force ourselves to forgive. It begins by courageously turning toward what is underneath our reactivity—the fear, hurt and vulnerability asking for our attention. We'll look at the powerful practice of cultivating a "strong back and soft front": grounding ourselves in belonging, strength and presence while remaining open to the tenderness of our own hearts. When we can stay with vulnerability rather than defend against it, it becomes a doorway to compassion and a wiser response to our lives and our world. In this talk: • Cultivating courage in uncertain and challenging times • Working mindfully with fear, anger and reactivity • Discovering the vulnerability beneath anger and blame • Practicing a "strong back and soft front" • Transforming vulnerability into compassion, wisdom and love Our world needs hearts that are both strong and tender. The invitation is to discover how meeting what is difficult with courageous presence can become a pathway to healing.   Our introduction music is from "Opening" by Adrienne Torf, © 2025 ABT Music

    Cultivating a Courageous Heart – Part 1

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About

Tara Brach, Ph.D is an internationally known meditation teacher and author of bestselling Radical Acceptance and True Refuge. Tara shares a weekly guided meditation and talk that blend Western psychology and Eastern spiritual practices. The podcast addresses the value of mindfulness meditation and self-compassion in relieving emotional suffering, serving spiritual awakening and bringing healing to our world.

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