True Refuge

Finding Peace and Freedom in Your Own Awakened Heart

De: Tara Brach

Narrado por: Cassandra Campbell

How do you cope when facing life-threatening illness, family conflict, faltering relationships, old trauma, obsessive thinking, overwhelming emotion, or inevitable loss? If you're like most people, chances are you react with fear and confusion, falling back on timeworn strategies: anger, self-judgment, and addictive behaviors. Though these old, conditioned attempts to control our life may offer fleeting relief, ultimately they leave us feeling isolated and mired in pain. There is another way.

Beneath the turbulence of our thoughts and emotions exists a profound stillness, a silent awareness capable of limitless love. Tara Brach, author of the award-winning Radical Acceptance, calls this awareness our true refuge, because it is available to every one of us, at any moment, no exceptions. In this book, Brach offers a practical guide to finding our inner sanctuary of peace and wisdom in the midst of difficulty. Based on a fresh interpretation of the three classic Buddhist gateways to freedom - truth, love, and awareness - True Refuge shows us the way not just to heal our suffering, but also to cultivate our capacity for genuine happiness. Through spiritual teachings, guided meditations, and inspirational stories of people who discovered loving presence during times of great struggle, Brach invites us to connect more deeply with our own inner life, one another, and the world around us.

True Refuge is essential listening for anyone encountering hardship or crisis; anyone dedicated to a path of spiritual awakening. The book reminds us of our own innate intelligence and goodness, making possible an enduring trust in ourselves and our lives. We realize that what we seek is within us, and regardless of circumstances, "there is always a way to take refuge in a healing and liberating presence".

©2013 Tara Brach (P)2013 Tantor

Amazing book- different narrator needed

Tara Brach it’s always so incredibly insightful and that goes without saying on this book as well. It took me at least six months to get through this book as I like to think about what she says and then come back to it.

I really had a hard time with Cassandra Campbell‘s narration as she seemed pretentious to me and not coming from the heart so it’s ironic that she read a book about this subject. Though I have loved her interpretations in fiction I don’t think she is suited towards non-fiction.

Good to know that Shelly Long is still working....

Would you listen to True Refuge again? Why?

I couldn't listen to this. The narrator must be a graduate of the Diane Chambers School of Drama. I'd rather listen to Cliff tell stories about delivering the mail.

What didn’t you like about Cassandra Campbell’s performance?

All of it.

Tara's Guidance Provides Instruction to Self Love

What did you love best about True Refuge?

Tara's experience and guidance has provided me with a willingness, more accepting, and openness to caring about myself and others

Sublime

Tara Brach’s beautiful and wise writing never fails to move me to tears of joy, sorrow or some other strong emotion that needs to be recognized and allowed. I find myself reading and re-reading True Refuge over the past few months, it stirs deep reflection, contemplation and presence. I am left wanting more.

touching

Instructions on being human, very well put. Buddhism based but approachable for all.
Highly recommended.

Beautiful guidance.

This is one of those books I will listen to over and over. It's a compassionate road map for life.

Excellent book therapists

Thos book was very helpful for not only self-reflection and increasing mindfulness in my everyday life, but also for teaching mindfulness to my clients. The meditations are extremely beneficial for use in sessions.

Great book annoying narration

Tara's words as always are excellent but the narration leaves a lot to be desired. I can forgive multiple mispronunciations but the droning "therapist" voice was grating at times and this as a therapist. I don't mean to judge just to judge but to highlight because these wise words can benefit many and I can see many people not finishing the book because of the narration. That makes me sad and would be a huge loss to us all. If you're thinking about pulling the trigger just do it and try to be forgiving of the narrator. Namaste.

loved it

loved it! This book has been a great teacher :-) I was recommended it by a wise friend and will continue to recommend this to my friends and patients.

pretty good, not as good as "radical acceptance"

i bought this book for two reasons, after finishing tara brach's other book, "radical acceptance": 1. i loved cassandra campbell's performance of tara brach's first book, and wanted to hear more, and 2. i loved all the heroic stories of personal triumphs, and wanted to hear more. both were satisfying again, but not as much as the first one///////////////////// first, cassandra campbell, while amazing most of the time, sort of phoned it in with some of the male characters. she nailed a few, so she can definitely do it, but i felt she interpreted less emotionality and vulnerability in some characters than was clearly in the text. poor jim with his sexual dysfunction drew the shortest straw, played by campbell as sort of awkward, even when he seemed textually to have true moments of opening up. it must also be said that the production this time was horrendous. the first instance of ms. campbell starting a sentence, stopping, and continuing was confusing. the second time was funny. the third time just made it all seem incompetent. i think there were only three times, but considering i've been reading audiobooks for four and a half years and that's the first time i've seen that, let alone three in one, that's a bit much. it should be noted that even with subpar editing, cassandra campbell was mostly great besides what i mentioned, so she is still in my favorites///////////////////// as for the stories, i loved what i heard for the most part again. unfortunately, they seemed by my rough estimate of the book to be fewer than in "radical acceptance". they don't start until chapter six, and end two or three chapters before the book, unless you count dr. brach's personal stories. i find the stories beautiful and inspiring, true stories of triumph, but the rest of the book is hit or miss///////////////////// i may not be the best person to recommend this book for its intended purpose (explaining a broad adaptation of buddhist's refuge taking, and applying the psychological RAIN mindfulness technique). i don't really have the problems that the book (or "radical acceptance") is designed to address. what i will say though is that the type of treatment and guidance dr. brach describes is incredibly subjective. i like to hear stories about them for the same reason that i question their practical utility as therapy: literally all of what the patients achieve is up to them. they bring everything into the treatment that they get out of it. dr. brach seems to just nudge them onto the way, although very artfully, and, if dr. brach's own report of patient responses is to be believed, very helpfully. i wouldn't knock what she does, and i wouldn't say it's entirely restricted to the traditionally religious, but the less spiritual you already are, the more open minded you have to be to even get in the door with this counseling. for my part, i'm a strict naturalist, but with a little spiritual side, and i could appreciate what i read most of the time, although "radical acceptance" was more helpful outside the stories///////////////////// overall, i enjoyed this book, may read it again (unless i simply only ever choose to reread "radical acceptance"), and cautiously recommend it to spiritual or open minded people dealing with hardship