Tami Simon speaks with Coleman Barks, a leading scholar and translator of the 13th century Persian mystic, Jelaluddin Rumi. Coleman’s work was the subject of an hour-long segment in Bill Moyers’ Language of Life series with PBS. He has published numerous Rumi translations, including with Sounds True the audio programs I Want Burning, Rumi: Voice of Longing, and his new three-CD collaboration with cellist David Darling called Just Being Here: Rumi and Human Friendship. In this episode, Tami speaks with Coleman about the extraordinary friendship between Rumi and his teacher Shams Tabriz, and how translating Rumi requires entering a trance state. Coleman offers insights on grace as he and Tami listen to selections from Just Being Here. (63 minutes)
Coleman Barks is a leading scholar and translator of the 13th-century Persian mystic Jelaluddin Rumi. In addition to publishing two books of his own poetry (The Juice and Gourd Seed), Barks has published 12 volumes of translations from Rumi and others, and contributed to over 20 anthologies. The next edition of the Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces will include selections of his Rumi translations. He is currently a member of the English Department at the University of Georgia.
Subscribe to Insights at the Edge to hear all of Tami’s interviews (transcripts available too!), featuring Eckhart Tolle, Caroline Myss, Tara Brach, Jack Kornfield, Adyashanti, and many more.
Founded Sounds True in 1985 as a multimedia publishing house with a mission to disseminate spiritual wisdom. She hosts a popular weekly podcast called Insights at the Edge, where she has interviewed many of today's leading teachers. Tami lives with her wife, Julie M. Kramer, and their two spoodles, Rasberry and Bula, in Boulder, Colorado.
Tami Simon speaks with Coleman Barks, a leading scholar and translator of the 13th-century Persian mystic Jelaluddin Rumi. Coleman’s work was the subject of an hour-long segment in Bill Moyers’s The Language of Life series on PBS. He has published numerous Rumi translations, including with Sounds True the audio programs I Want Burning: The Ecstatic World of Rumi, Hafiz, and Lalla; Rumi: Voice of Longing; and his three-part collaboration with cellist David Darling called Just Being Here: Rumi and Human Friendship. In this episode, Tami speaks with Coleman about the extraordinary friendship between Rumi and his teacher Shams Tabrizi, and how translating Rumi requires entering a trance state. Coleman offers insights on grace as he and Tami listen to selections from Just Being Here.
Click here to listen to Holiday Without Limits by Coleman Barks
Tami Simon speaks with Coleman Barks, a leading scholar and translator of the 13th century Persian mystic, Jelaluddin Rumi. Coleman’s work was the subject of an hour-long segment in Bill Moyers’ Language of Life series with PBS. He has published numerous Rumi translations, including with Sounds True the audio programs I Want Burning, Rumi: Voice of Longing, and his new three-CD collaboration with cellist David Darling called Just Being Here: Rumi and Human Friendship. In this episode, Tami speaks with Coleman about the extraordinary friendship between Rumi and his teacher Shams Tabriz, and how translating Rumi requires entering a trance state. Coleman offers insights on grace as he and Tami listen to selections from Just Being Here. (63 minutes)
“This is sometimes what love looks like. People want to love you—let people love you.”
It’s a phrase death doula Darnell Lamont Walker has spoken countless times at bedsides, to those who feel ashamed of being seen in their vulnerability, those who don’t want to be a burden, those who have spent a lifetime giving but struggle to receive. What he’s discovered is that the end of life has a way of revealing what love actually is—and it often looks nothing like we expected.
An Emmy-nominated children’s television writer, documentary filmmaker, and death doula, Darnell has accompanied people through life’s final transition since he was a teenager. In this deeply moving conversation, he shares the profound lessons about love and connection he’s gathered from decades of this sacred work.
Join Tami and Darnell as they explore:
Why letting ourselves be loved—especially when we feel most vulnerable—is one of life’s hardest and most important lessons
“Grief is the sequel to love”—reframing loss as a testament to how deeply we’ve connected
The stories people most need to tell before they die, and how sharing them becomes an act of love
How spirits and ancestors return for the dying—and what this reveals about love’s continuity
The surprising joy that emerges from death work
What it means to “die empty” and leave nothing unloved or unexpressed
Whether you’ve supported someone through dying or are simply longing to love and be loved more fully, Darnell offers wisdom that will stay with you long after the conversation ends.
This conversation offers genuine transmission—not just concepts about awakening, but the palpable presence of realized teachers exploring the growing edge of spiritual understanding together. Originally aired on Sounds True One.
How do we move beyond fear and separation to experience our true divine nature—especially in times of collective upheaval and uncertainty?
This week, Tami Simon welcomes Paul Selig, a channeler, author, and teacher who has brought through 13 extraordinary books from non-physical guides he describes as teaching from “the upper room.” Born an atheist and trained at Yale, Paul experienced a spontaneous kundalini awakening in 1987 that left him clairvoyant and fundamentally changed his understanding of reality. Since then, he has served as what he calls a “spoken stenographer” for teachings on consciousness, awakening, and our capacity to align with the divine.
Join Tami and Paul to explore:
Paul’s dramatic awakening experience and emergence as a channel
What it feels like to receive and transmit channeled wisdom
The “upper room”—a vibrational state beyond fear and separation
How to recognize when we’re acting from fear versus divine knowing
The clearing process that accompanies spiritual awakening
Why this particular time calls for radical transformation of old structures
The powerful attunement: “I am in God, I am of God, I am with God”
How to maintain trust and openness when part of us still holds back
Practical ways to realign with source amidst chaos and uncertainty
If you’re navigating this time of collective change and seeking a deeper connection to your divine nature, this conversation offers both inspiration and practical guidance for claiming the upper room—that aspect of consciousness where we already dwell in union with all that is.
This conversation offers genuine transmission—not just concepts about awakening, but the palpable presence of realized teachers exploring the growing edge of spiritual understanding together. Originally aired on Sounds True One.
What if the ability to channel wisdom and connect with higher guidance isn’t reserved for a select few, but accessible to anyone willing to open their heart?
This week, Tami Simon welcomes Lee Harris, a globally acclaimed energy intuitive, musician, and channeler of a group of intelligences called the Zs. Lee reaches over 1 million people monthly through his vibrant online community, The Portal, and is the author of The Future Human (with Regina Meredith) and the Conversations with the Zs series. In this profound exchange, Lee shares his journey from hearing his guides for the first time on a London subway at age 23 to becoming one of the most trusted voices in contemporary channeling.
Join Tami and Lee to explore:
How channeling works and why it’s becoming more accessible to everyday seekers
Practical techniques for connecting with your own guides through automatic writing and intuitive practice
The distinction between thinking and knowing—and why heart intelligence surpasses mental intelligence
Why the “flexible heart” is essential for healing trauma and moving through life’s challenges
How to ask for help from angels and guides in simple, powerful ways
The role of love as currency in humanity’s next evolutionary phase
Why we often fear the very love we claim to seek
How to serve love in daily life and contribute to raising Earth’s frequency midpoint
Plus: A direct channeling from the Zs with guidance for navigating these transformative times
If you’re ready to deepen your connection to intuitive wisdom, open your heart more fully, and understand your role in humanity’s shift toward love-based consciousness, this conversation offers both inspiration and practical pathways forward.
Listen now to discover how heart intelligence and channeled wisdom can transform your life and our world.
This conversation offers genuine transmission—not just concepts about awakening, but the palpable presence of realized teachers exploring the growing edge of spiritual understanding together. Originally aired on Sounds True One.
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