Free Downloads Radical Self-Acceptance
In the same tradition as such bestselling authors as Jack Kornfield and Sharon Salzberg, Insight Meditation teacher Tara Brach has cultivated one of the largest and most active Buddhist meditation communities in the eastern United States. With Radical Self-Acceptance, this gifted guide brings her enthusiasm and depth of experience to a wide new arena of listeners for the first time. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.
Audible Audio Edition
Listening Length: 3 hours and 16 minutes
Program Type: Audiobook
Version: Unabridged
Publisher: Sounds True
Audible.com Release Date: December 3, 2008
Language: English
ASIN: B001N0OZUW
Best Sellers Rank: #44 in Books > Audible Audiobooks > Religion & Spirituality > Buddhism & Eastern Religions #49 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Philosophy > Eastern > Buddhism > Rituals & Practice #162 in Books > Audible Audiobooks > Religion & Spirituality > New Age & Occult
It's always a joy to hear Tara Brach's voice, and it comes through sweet and clear in her book. Buddhism and its literature can seem harsh sometimes, like running over jagged ice, as Philip Kapleau once put it. But the I.M.S. way, which Tara represents, is more like floating down a crystal clear stream. You'll only get bruised if you don't stay attentive, and even that's not a problem.Tara has always (for the past 17 years, anyway) espoused a gentler Buddhism than I imagined possible. In "Radical Self-Acceptance" she brings together all the threads of her deep commitment to that path. Doing this, she models the acceptance she advocates by showing us who she is, and how her own struggles have been "grist for the mill". Modeling Self-Acceptance as a radical, or root, process, Tara points us toward the realization that the Self we accept isn't our paltry ego but the life we share with all beings. Thanks, Tara, for the love you have brought to this project, and to all of us.
This is a lovely set of two tapes including guided meditations, which guide the listener into a space of deep relaxation and self-acceptance. The relief of past and even current pain is palpable and the feeling, at least for me, is one of gratitude and peace. I particularly liked side 2 of the first tape. In any case, after listening to all sides, I felt that if one could just practice this simple process of self-acceptance, one would likely not only draw deeply close to one's own core, but one would have a sound basis for open, loving relationships as well. Listen and enjoy. Thank you Tara!
I almost hesitate to write this review, it seems weird to write a mostly negative review about anything Dharma related because there's always something good to take from the dharma, especially when I know that this author is well-meaning. But I have to write honestly, even though most other reviews here are glowing. I didn't care for this at all. I'm really glad I downloaded it (from Sounds True) at a low sale price otherwise I would be even more disappointed. There's several reasons why I don't like it, so I'll just go through them: First of all, I had great trouble getting past her narration. Another reviewer said her voice is irritating; it's not so much her actual voice for me but but her speaking style. She seems to be focusing SO much on sounding calm and centered that it doesn't sound genuine, it sounds fabricated, too deliberately subdued. It's hard to describe. I am familiar with her work in the Buddhist community and I by no means want to imply that she as a person or teacher is not genuine, but her narration tone in this is just very "fakey-new-agey" sounding. I feel bad even saying it, and I assume she as a person is very sincere, it was just extremely distracting for me.For me personally at least, there was not a single new thing here. Very, very run of the mill concepts. When encountering difficult emotions, ask yourself what you're feeling at that moment, stop and observe the moment and why you might be thinking it, etc. Perhaps for some people this will be ground breaking, there's certainly nothing wrong with the suggestions she makes, it's just that I've heard all this stuff a million times. To me the material was extremely basic and common knowledge, at least common in the new age/self help sort of world. Nothing radical about it to me, it's baffling that "radical" would be used in the title at all.Another thing I didn't care for was trying to squeeze in "meditations" in this. I put meditations in quotes because she suggests you sit and meditate (with her, as if it will be guided) and then she rings a gong and literally a few seconds later continues to talk and move on. There's no time at all to meditate on the various things she suggests. No real preparation for meditations either for those who might need it, she sort of spontaneously rings the gong without guidance on sitting, getting comfortable, etc. I suppose you can write the topics down and meditate on them later, but I certainly wouldn't call it 'guided'. The description on Audible.com it says she "...guides you through a full program of meditations and skills you need..." I would not consider this audio a 'program' or having real guided meditations.The majority of the time seemed to be filled with her telling anecdotal stories, anything from poetry quotes to Buddhist parables or jokes to feel-good stories like children helping each other win in the special Olympics. All the stories were nice, although I happened to have heard every single one of them as it turned out, so that was unfortunate. Still, the stories were probably the most interesting part of the content to be honest. Otherwise I found her talk to be very redundant, suggesting almost the same generic advice for various negative emotions: "Stop, ask yourself what you're feeling, what do you really need that's behind your anger?", etc.I listen to tons of audiobooks and especially tons of dharma talks, read and own many Buddhist books, etc., so it could be simply that it's a wonderful book and I've just happened to cover this topic too many times in my years of reading. It could very well be that actually based on the other reviewers who seem to love it. Buddhism is not really emphasized in the material by the way, but more casually referenced, just an observation. Someone very new to self help/self-analyzing type stuff might find this to be very helpful. But for me it was just very mainstream and too basic and not what I was hoping it would be.
This CD and her book changed my life. I was harboring lots of anger and fear after I lost my entire family and my life partner. This allows and teaches one acceptance, release, and calmness. Anyone who has had any problems in their life will find joy in her voice, the meditations and stories.
When I got this CD I was a little put off by it at first... not by what the author was saying but by her pronunciation and tone (raather like Kathryn Hepburn) that at times seemed overly self-involved. I decided that I was going to ignore this and instead be open to all the good she had to offer. I am SO GLAD that I kept listening. These recordings contain a wealth of wisdom that will surely boost your personal growth and understanding. Just about everyone needs to love themselves more, and honestly, most people are clueless about how to do it. These lectures give you concrete ways to be more in touch with yourself and more understanding, which is the essence of love. I've listened to the whole series a few times, and gifted it to a couple of friends.
This book gets at the roots of my issues. It has opened my eyes to my problems and how I can overcome them. I have a tendency to live in the future rather than the moment. I'm really excited about putting this lifestyle into practice.
The audiotape was a rare experience: the author's words and voice just cutting immediately to the core. Her thoughts, guidance and examples had a strong ring of truth. The tape seems enormously sincere and I have found it helpful and healing each time I heard it. A tape to play more than once.The examples from Buddhism and the guidance through meditative practices are very helpful and well chose, but the gentle urging in words to accept ones self was most powerful.Tim SiegelFriends Wilderness Retreat Center[...]
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