
The Fruitful Darkness
A Journey Through Buddhist Practice and Tribal Wisdom
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $19.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Judith West
About this listen
In this masterwork of an authentic spirit person (Thomas Berry), Buddhist teacher and anthropologist Joan Halifax Roshi delves into the fruitful darkness - the shadow side of being, found in the root truths of Native religions, the fecundity of nature, and the stillness of meditation. In this highly personal and insightful odyssey of the heart and mind, she encounters Tibetan Buddhist meditators, Mexican shamans, and Native American elders, among others. In rapt prose, she recounts her explorations from Japanese Zen meditation to hallucinogenic plants, from the Dogon people of Mali to the Mayan rain forest, all the while creating "an adventure of the spirit and a feast of wisdom old and new" (Peter Matthiessen). Halifax believes that deep ecology (which attempts to fuse environmental awareness with spiritual values) works in tandem with Buddhism and shamanism to discover the interconnectedness of all life", and to regain life's sacredness.
Grove Press is proud to reissue this important work by one of Buddhism's leading contemporary teachers.
©1993 Joan Halifax. Recorded by arrangement with Grove Atlantic, Inc. (P)2014 Audible Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Being with Dying
- Contemplative Practices and Teachings
- By: Joan Halifax
- Narrated by: Joan Halifax
- Length: 7 hrs and 27 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On his deathbed Plato was asked to summarize his life's work. He replied, "Practice dying." In the 2,000 years since Plato offered this wise admonition, we have developed many practices associated with living. But what of the practices associated with dying? Being with Dying is a response to this question: an approach to death that is kind, open, and dignified and that allows us to explore the meaning of death in the experience of our own lives and through the lives of others.
-
-
a must for hospice workers
- By Niall W. Paterson on 05-10-17
By: Joan Halifax
-
How We Live Is How We Die
- By: Pema Chödrön
- Narrated by: Olivia Darnley
- Length: 6 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As much as we might try to resist, endings happen in every moment—the end of a breath, the end of a day, the end of a relationship, and ultimately the end of life. And accompanying each ending is a beginning, though it may be unclear what the beginning holds. In How We Live Is How We Die, Pema Chödrön shares her wisdom for working with this flow of life—learning to live with ease, joy, and compassion through uncertainty, embracing new beginnings, and ultimately preparing for death with curiosity and openness rather than fear.
-
-
Dealing with disappointment!
- By Sabine Blanchard on 10-19-22
By: Pema Chödrön
-
Standing at the Edge
- Finding Freedom Where Fear and Courage Meet
- By: Joan Halifax
- Narrated by: Joan Halifax
- Length: 10 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Joan Halifax has enriched thousands of lives around the world through her work as a humanitarian, a social activist, and an anthropologist and as a Buddhist teacher. Over many decades, she has also collaborated with neuroscientists, clinicians, and psychologists to understand how contemplative practice can be a vehicle for social transformation. Through her unusual background, she developed an understanding of how our greatest challenges can become the most valuable source of our wisdom.
-
-
A treasure
- By MMore on 10-14-18
By: Joan Halifax
-
Looking Deeply
- Mindfulness and Meditation
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Length: 2 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Looking Deeply (Digitally Remastered) is a selection of talks by Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh offered during meditation retreats throughout North America. In these lectures, Thay, as his followers call him, talks about mindfulness within the context of the social and political issues of our time. Although these talks were recorded in 1987, the messages they bring us are still highly relevant today.
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Truly Seeing
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Length: 1 hr and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Drawing on the story of a Zen student asking his teacher for his most advanced teaching, Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh shares his own experiences on how to take care of sadness, anger, loss, injustice, and how to transform the seeds of suffering we have inherited from past generations. Using examples and often humorous stories, this classic talk offers concrete practices and contains the teachings found in his best-selling books Transformation and Healing, Anger, and Interbeing.
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Touching Peace
- Practising the Art of Mindful Living
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Gireesh Nair
- Length: 3 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Thich Nhat Hanh illuminates the path to peace through practices of gratitude and daily affirmations, including a "peace treaty" and the "diet for a mindful society". Practical and highly accessible, Touching Peace: Practising the Art of Mindful Living is an essential guide for mindful living in today’s world.
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Being with Dying
- Contemplative Practices and Teachings
- By: Joan Halifax
- Narrated by: Joan Halifax
- Length: 7 hrs and 27 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On his deathbed Plato was asked to summarize his life's work. He replied, "Practice dying." In the 2,000 years since Plato offered this wise admonition, we have developed many practices associated with living. But what of the practices associated with dying? Being with Dying is a response to this question: an approach to death that is kind, open, and dignified and that allows us to explore the meaning of death in the experience of our own lives and through the lives of others.
-
-
a must for hospice workers
- By Niall W. Paterson on 05-10-17
By: Joan Halifax
-
How We Live Is How We Die
- By: Pema Chödrön
- Narrated by: Olivia Darnley
- Length: 6 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As much as we might try to resist, endings happen in every moment—the end of a breath, the end of a day, the end of a relationship, and ultimately the end of life. And accompanying each ending is a beginning, though it may be unclear what the beginning holds. In How We Live Is How We Die, Pema Chödrön shares her wisdom for working with this flow of life—learning to live with ease, joy, and compassion through uncertainty, embracing new beginnings, and ultimately preparing for death with curiosity and openness rather than fear.
-
-
Dealing with disappointment!
- By Sabine Blanchard on 10-19-22
By: Pema Chödrön
-
Standing at the Edge
- Finding Freedom Where Fear and Courage Meet
- By: Joan Halifax
- Narrated by: Joan Halifax
- Length: 10 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Joan Halifax has enriched thousands of lives around the world through her work as a humanitarian, a social activist, and an anthropologist and as a Buddhist teacher. Over many decades, she has also collaborated with neuroscientists, clinicians, and psychologists to understand how contemplative practice can be a vehicle for social transformation. Through her unusual background, she developed an understanding of how our greatest challenges can become the most valuable source of our wisdom.
-
-
A treasure
- By MMore on 10-14-18
By: Joan Halifax
-
Looking Deeply
- Mindfulness and Meditation
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Length: 2 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Looking Deeply (Digitally Remastered) is a selection of talks by Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh offered during meditation retreats throughout North America. In these lectures, Thay, as his followers call him, talks about mindfulness within the context of the social and political issues of our time. Although these talks were recorded in 1987, the messages they bring us are still highly relevant today.
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Truly Seeing
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Length: 1 hr and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Drawing on the story of a Zen student asking his teacher for his most advanced teaching, Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh shares his own experiences on how to take care of sadness, anger, loss, injustice, and how to transform the seeds of suffering we have inherited from past generations. Using examples and often humorous stories, this classic talk offers concrete practices and contains the teachings found in his best-selling books Transformation and Healing, Anger, and Interbeing.
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Touching Peace
- Practising the Art of Mindful Living
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Gireesh Nair
- Length: 3 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Thich Nhat Hanh illuminates the path to peace through practices of gratitude and daily affirmations, including a "peace treaty" and the "diet for a mindful society". Practical and highly accessible, Touching Peace: Practising the Art of Mindful Living is an essential guide for mindful living in today’s world.
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Being Peace
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Length: 1 hr and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Developing upon teachings on the art of mindful living begun in Being Peace, Thich Nhat Hanh shows the connection between inner peace and peace on Earth. Recorded live in New York in 1991, he teaches us how mindful breathing and awareness is refreshing and healing, and how it can be used as the basis for examining the roots of war and social problems. His vision for rebuilding society through strengthening families and communities coalesces the ultimate reach of each act in our daily lives.
-
-
The absolute best
- By Anonymous User on 11-15-22
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Silence
- The Power of Quiet in a World Full of Noise
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Dan Woren
- Length: 3 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Zen master and one of the world's most beloved teachers returns with a concise, practical guide to understanding and developing our most powerful inner resource - silence - to help us find happiness, purpose, and peace.
-
-
Nothing new, impractical
- By Mark on 09-11-16
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Old Path White Clouds
- Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 16 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Old Path White Clouds presents the life and teachings of Gautama Buddha. Drawn directly from 24 Pali, Sanskrit, and Chinese sources, and retold by Thich Nhat Hanh in his inimitably beautiful style, this book traces the Buddha's life slowly and gently over the course of 80 years, partly through the eyes of Svasti, the buffalo boy, and partly through the eyes of the Buddha himself. Old Path White Clouds is destined to become a classic of religious literature.
-
-
Breathtaking accomplishment!
- By Karamelfun on 05-14-16
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Cultivating the Courage to Love
- By: Ram Dass, Joan Halifax, Duncan Trussel
- Narrated by: Ram Dass, Joan Halifax, Duncan Trussel
- Length: 6 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
If you missed the Love Serve Remember Retreat last spring with Ram Dass and friends in Hawaii, this is your opportunity to listen to the almost eight hours of dharma talks from the wonderful event. BetterListen! is quite proud to offer the complete set of these recordings. The BetterListen! version has been digitally edited and remastered - for your listening pleasure!
-
-
Ram Das, Joan Halifax, Duncan Trussel
- By dallas on 08-13-21
By: Ram Dass, and others
-
Living Buddha, Living Christ
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Ben Kingsley
- Length: 2 hrs and 16 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
World-renowned thinker and scholar Thich Nhat Hanh, considered by many to be a "Living Buddah," explores the spiritual crossroads where the traditions of Christianity and Buddhism meet. Living Buddha, Living Christ reawakens our understanding of both religions and the connections between them.
-
-
Beautiful
- By Jennifer Weatherbee on 04-18-15
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
The Art of Communicating
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Dan Woren
- Length: 3 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Zen master Thick Nhat Hanh, best-selling author of Peace is Every Step and one of the most respected and celebrated religious leaders in the world, delivers a powerful path to happiness through mastering life's most important skill: How do we say what we mean in a way that the other person can really hear? How can we listen with compassion and understanding? Communication fuels the ties that bind, whether in relationships, business, or everyday interactions.
-
-
Decent short-ish listen for connecting with others
- By DaemonZeiro on 07-02-15
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Being with Dying
- Cultivating Compassion and Fearlessness in the Presence of Death
- By: Joan Halifax, Ira Byock MD - foreword
- Narrated by: Claire Slemmer
- Length: 8 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Buddhist approach to death can be of great benefit to people of all backgrounds - as has been demonstrated time and again in Joan Halifax's decades of work with the dying and their caregivers. Inspired by traditional Buddhist teachings, her work is a source of wisdom for all those who are charged with a dying person's care, facing their own death, or wishing to explore and contemplate the transformative power of the dying process.
-
-
Tender and honest perspective
- By D. Chin on 09-15-16
By: Joan Halifax, and others
-
The Heart of Understanding
- Commentaries on the Prajñaparamita Heart Sutra
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Length: 1 hr and 55 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this recording, Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh lectures on the Heart of the Prajñaparamita Sutra, which is regarded as the essence of Buddhist teachings. To this day, the Heart Sutra is recited daily in Mahayana temples and practice centers throughout the world.
-
-
Peaceful
- By Anonymous User on 12-29-23
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
The Art of Power
- By: Thích Nhất Hạnh
- Narrated by: Lloyd James
- Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Power is one of the central issues in our lives. From work to personal relationships, the struggle for power plays a pivotal role and, more often than not, prevents us from attaining freedom and happiness. The bottom-line mentality in our culture seeps unnoticed into every other part of our lives. Thich Nhat Hanh illustrates how our current understanding of power leads us on a never-ending search for external markers like job title or salary.
-
-
The Distilled Wisdom of a Happy Being
- By John on 01-09-08
By: Thích Nhất Hạnh
-
Classic Dharma Talks
- By: Thích Nhất Hạnh
- Narrated by: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Thich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk whose lifelong efforts to generate peace and reconciliation moved Martin Luther King, Jr. to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967. Thay (pronounced Tie), as his followers call him, has written numerous books, travels extensively to offer teachings on the art of mindful living, and has been instrumental in introducing Buddhist concepts to the west.
-
-
Spiritual Truth
- By Publicagent on 05-17-15
By: Thích Nhất Hạnh
-
True Love
- A Practice for Awakening the Heart
- By: Thích Nhất Hạnh
- Narrated by: James Gimian
- Length: 1 hr and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Love might not be what we think it is. We all seek the happiness that comes from loving and being loved, yet we often find ourselves dissatisfied in our relationships and unable to grasp the cause. Thich Nhat Hanh here shows the way to overcome our recurrent obstacles to love - by learning to be mindful, open, and present with ourselves and others. As he explains, "training is needed in order to love properly; and to be able to give happiness and joy, you must practice deep looking directed toward the person you love."
-
-
Practical compassion
- By Marquel S. on 05-22-18
By: Thích Nhất Hạnh
-
The End of Your World
- Uncensored Straight Talk on the Nature of Enlightenment
- By: Adyashanti
- Narrated by: Adyashanti
- Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Caution Spiritual Seekers: You Might Just Find What You're Looking For! Underneath the turmoil of thought, emotion, and personal will, there is a flow. If you're reading these words, you've probably felt it - the natural movement of life, the truth that beckons below the surface of things. What would happen if you were to stop avoiding this universal energy, and instead completely embrace it?
-
-
quietly blasting through the usual zen-fare
- By rebecca purcell on 06-15-13
By: Adyashanti
What listeners say about The Fruitful Darkness
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 05-22-20
Excellent Book, Okay Reader
The content in this book is transformative, but the reader has a tendency to over-pronounce (especially in the cases of names in other languages than English), and this proves distracting. Over all, an excellent read, but I’d recommend picking up the print version instead.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Lindsay Dusenberry
- 01-14-23
great book. horrible narration
The narrator sounds like she's constantly asking a run-on question that never ends... Her inflections don't at all match the tone or voice of the book. It's entirely distracting, and I couldn't get through the first chapter. Read the book. The book itself is excellent.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- John
- 09-06-15
Another bore
What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?
I keep buying books with interesting titles. Unfortunately too many of them have little to no content. Just endless ramblings about life that are completely personal and of no value to the listener and absent of any wisdom or even objective reality. This seems to be a pattern by middle aged white/western writers who think themselves so fascinating they must share every thought with us rather than some actual insight. Reggie Ray, Robert Thurman, Shenzhen young are a few others I've purchased recently who have the same long winded rambling and incredibly dull lacking in depth, self glorifying style. I never have this come up when I listen to thich nhat Hahn or jack kornfield.
What do you think your next listen will be?
I have TNH ULTIMATE DEMENSION next.
Would you be willing to try another one of Judith West’s performances?
No. She made the content even less appealing although I think her voice captured the writers grandiosity.
If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Fruitful Darkness?
When a writer uses the word "I" over and over it becomes clear what the book is about. Has nothing to do with the reader. Narcissism gone wild. Very common these days. Amazing how many enlightened people have no awareness of how self absorbed they really are. The opposite of enlightened.
Any additional comments?
A book should teach the reader. Otherwise it is just another fiction.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
14 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- 1Ralph
- 12-22-24
Couldn’t listen to narrator
I was very excited about this book, but I should have heeded others’ comments about the narrator. She would probably be excellent on stage in theater, but i couldn’t follow the content of the book with her dramatized speech. I just got the paperback and it’s EXCELLENT, so if the book appeals please don’t use Audible for this one, skip to the hard copy.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Juan Otalvaro
- 09-22-23
I expected it to be more like the other books of the autor. Instead it’s an ego like self biography
I expected it to be more like the other books of the autor. Instead it’s an ego like self biography
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- wolf cloud
- 08-07-22
AWFUL READER!!! Just read it!
The voice is awful and ruins the text. Just read it. It is so disappointing. I couldn’t make it through due to the reader.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful