"Frankly, I had never thought of listening as an important subject by itself . But now that I am aware of it, I think that perhaps 80% of my work depends on my listening to someone, or on someone else listening to me." Those were the words of a Chicago area manufacturing executive published in [...]

It's one of the world's oldest pieces of advice, if you can call it that: know thyself. Yet despite its longevity and embrace by virtually every philosophical and spiritual heavyweight of the past 2,500 years, few of us across time and place have made it a focus in our efforts to improve our lives, reduce [...]

Self-inquiry is a mainstay of many Eastern philosophical and spiritual traditions that places an emphasis on the student's persistent investigation into who, exactly, he or she is. In a sense, it is the ultimate self-inventory. As with meditation, the practice of self-inquiry is considered an important and effective approach to quieting the mind and allowing [...]

Over the course of a given day, you likely will experience tens of thousands of thoughts. It should go without saying that it is these thoughts that make up your sense of reality and your role in it. But here's the thing: the vast majority of your thoughts are not only repetitious, they're negative. We're [...]

Ask the typical individual to describe meditation and they may picture Lululemon-clad influencers gazing off into the distance seated next to their infinity pool. Or perhaps robed monks seated lotus-style bathed in incense smoke. If your understanding of meditation is limited to such stereotypes we urge you to think again. Consider, for example, that the [...]

Genuine, lasting happiness is an internal state of being. Finding it outside oneself is a fool's errand (and, unfortunately, what a majority of humans practice). This was the verdict of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, whose observations of people's struggles during and after World War II led him to a lifelong study of what, exactly, happiness is [...]

Of all the practices we recommend, this is the one that matters most. In fact, your quest for the truth about yourself may begin - and end - with this meditation. The reason: meditation alone creates the space between these anxious, hyperactive minds of ours and the innate wisdom that lies deep within us [...]

Everywhere you turn, it seems, psychological sufferers - including a growing number of therapists and physicians treating them - are turning to psychedelics or, more specifically, 'psychedelic-assisted therapy,' to cure suffering. At the risk of harshing a lot of people's buzzes, it's unlikely that MDMA, psilocybin, ketamine, LSD, ayahuasca and a host of other mind-bending [...]

Today a few words on the mysterious, spiritual guidance we receive when we most need it are actually open to it. Carl Jung labeled this phenomenon synchronicity, and though there is no scientific evidence for it, countless numbers of us from around the world swear by such moments. Call it woman's intuition, a gut instinct, [...]

Would you be willing to immerse yourself in a manmade cave without light for a day, a week, or longer, with the hope of accessing some mysterious and potentially life-changing aspect of your self? That's the idea behind 'dark retreats,' a modern approach to an ancient and advanced Buddhist practice during which participants spend extended [...]