Seven Thousand Ways to Listen - by Mark Nepo (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author, "a consummate storyteller with a rare gift for making the invisible visible" (Publishers Weekly), this beautifully written spiritual memoir explores the endless ways we can listen for life's deepest messages.

Mark Nepo moved and inspired millions of people with his #1 New York Times bestseller The Book of Awakening, a spiritual day book. Now, in this new exploration of the human journey, Nepo inquires into the endless ways life asks us to listen. Having experienced hearing loss, Nepo affirms that listening is one of the most mysterious, luminous, and challenging art forms: "Whatever difficulty you face, there are time-tried ways you can listen your way through. Because listening is the doorway to everything that matters." Weaving together memoir and meditation exercises, Nepo offers many ways to listen to life and live more fully. A moving exploration of self, our relationship to others, and the world around us, this remarkable guide unpacks the many ways we are called to redefine ourselves and to name what is meaningful as we face life's challenges.

Review Quotes

"A consummate master of telling stories and parables about people's hopes, dreams, yearnings, fears, sorrows and triumphs... Nepo has written a masterwork on the spiritual practice of listening."--Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality & Practice,

"Mark Nepo has become one of my favorite spiritual teachers. His bestseller, The Book of Awakening, came to me by chance as a birthday present. I kept it by my bedside table for two years, dipping into it many, many times. More recently, Nepo's book Seven Thousand Ways to Listen: Staying Close to What is Sacred (Atria) has given me the opportunity to expand how I take in people, words, the world. I've loved being introduced, through Nepo's spiritual memoir, to the idea of really hearing, in ways I never have before."--Oprah Winfrey, The Oprah Magazine, November 2013, p. 98

"Mark Nepo is a Great Soul. His resonant heart--his frank and astonishing voice--befriend us mightily on this mysterious trail."--Naomi Shihab Nye, author of You and Yours, 19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle

"Mark Nepo is one of the finest spiritual guides of our time."--Parker J. Palmer, author of A Hidden Wholeness and The Courage to Teach

"Mark Nepo is... an insightful religious thinker and a decidedly credible voice of contemporary spirituality... an eloquent spiritual teacher."--Herbert Mason, Professor of History and Religious Thought, Boston University, translator of Gilgamesh, A Verse Narrative

"Oprah Winfrey has said that the writing of Mark Nepo takes her breath away. She's not alone: His Book of Awakening and Finding Inner Courage have been word-of-mouth bestsellers in our bookstores and online. Seven Thousands Way to Listen, his latest effort, displays the deep synergy of his poetry and thought. His attentiveness to the natural lyricism of life is conveyed in language that is both memorable and profound. Both autobiographical and philosophical, this marvelous work teaches us to respond to the physical and spiritual challenges of life."-- "Barnes & Noble"

"This masterpiece on listening comes at a vital time when divisions in American run rampant around politics, race, and religion."--Debra Moffitt, BeliefNet, author of Awake in the World

"Thought-provoking exploration of the art of listening. Nepo's background as a poet shines through in his writing, which can be truly beautiful."-- "Booklist"

"A meditative approach to silencing the world's noise.... Readers receive tools necessary to slow down and learn to listen in a deep, meaningful way.... Nepo provides through methods for reaching deeper into the inner self."-- "Kirkus"

""Listening is the doorway to everything that matters," claims Mark Nepo. In a world where we try to make ourselves known by making noise, that's a revolutionary claim. Revolutionary but true. Read this beautiful book and learn to listen anew--to those closest to you, to strangers, to nature, to your own heart, and to the great silence. Everything that matters is found on the other side of the noise, and this book, written by a master listener, can help us find our way to it."--Parker J. Palmer, author of Healing the Heart of Democracy, Let Your Life Speak, and A Hidden Wholeness

"If you live the questions, life will move you into the answers. Mark Nepo offers you a map to explore the sacred in your own being."--Deepak Chopra, author of Spiritual Solutions

"Mark Nepo is a master of listening deeply to life's experiences where essential messages for the soul can be found. In Seven Thousand Ways to Listen he shares his wisdom with us. Mark gives us hope that we can live more vital lives through our own careful listening to our depths. Pain excavates those depths where life is trying to awaken our authentic self. Visiting the pain in our lives is made more meaningful when we can do so with a spiritual master like Mark Nepo. I find myself wanting to keep this book near me for frequent consultation and meditation."--Rev. Ed Bacon, author, 8 Habits of Love; rector, All Saints Episcopal Church, Pasadena, CA

"Nepo has mastered a unique way of inviting the reader into a meditative state while reading his sublime wisdom about everyday life. I found his work a comfort--and that's a rare find these days."--Caroline Myss, author of Entering the Castle and Defy Gravity

"Ninety percent of writing is listening. To receive the world and to receive ourselves. In this book Nepo has generously taught us how to listen. Do the reflective exercises he suggests to lead you deeply down the path."--Natalie Goldberg, author of Old Friend From Far Away and Writing Down the Bones

"This profound and lyrical book teaches us the lost art of listening. And as we learn to listen, we open to the myriad voices of life and the silent mysteries of the soul and begin to sense the truth of being alive. Mark Nepo's words are always like choice wine for the soul, to be sipped slowly, allowing their flavor into all the secret places of our being. Beneath and between his words we can hear this greatest wonder we call life. This is the real gift of this wonderful book."--Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Sufi teacher and author, Prayer of the Heart

About the Author

Mark Nepo is a poet, philosopher, and spiritual adviser who has taught in the fields of poetry and spirituality for more than 30 years. He is the author of 12 books, including the New York Times bestseller, The Book of Awakening. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.