Holistic Listening
Are you following your inner guidance or second-guessing its whispers?
We hear all the time that all the answers are inside, that everything we need to know is right here and right now, and yet we are continually seduced outside of ourselves to find the ‘answers.’ What I have discovered is that we look outside because that’s where we think our value is… it’s where our ‘good enough’ might be hiding, or our ‘lovability’ is disguised, or even our ‘success’ could be lurking—just around the corner. If we can just get a new or better relationship, a more in-depth education, or a stack of money… then we’ll be OK.
Right?!
Nope.
So, how do you find your own solutions, what you uniquely need, your own unique medicine? The term I use for this exploration is Holistic Listening, which involves ‘listening’ with all the senses, including the 6th!
Before we explore how we can use some of the senses in a new way, I want to share a story about a piece of art I ‘met’ in an art gallery one summer day about five years ago in Roberts Creek, BC. My Mum was visiting from the UK, and we were staying at a friend of mine's house while they were away. We were exploring the coast one day when we came across a small art gallery advertised at the side of the road, so we popped in. We walked into the gallery and started to look at the different pieces of work placed around the walls, and then I landed my eyes on one particular painting. As I opened to its colors, shapes, and essence, I was suddenly moved to tears by the feeling that arose in me. I am not someone who explores a lot of art—like wine, I couldn’t describe the difference between a Shiraz or a Zinfandel, or a Leonardo da Vinci or Van Gogh—but this particular painting rocked my soul. Within seconds, I had this sense of the person I was growing into, and the experience felt powerful and otherworldly.
I told myself that I couldn’t afford the picture at the time and promised myself (and my Mum, who was offering to lend me money) that I would take a picture on my phone (which became my screensaver), and if I still wanted it in a year and if the piece was still available, I would buy it. A year went by, and it still called me. I went back to the gallery, and there it was. It now lives above my fireplace in my living room, and it ‘feeds’ me every day.
I share this because this was a very big example of a ‘whisper’ (or a shout!), and even with my body full of sensation and tears falling, I still doubted it! As it turned out, I was destined to receive this painting, but it inspires thought about how many times each day we are given hunches, sensations, direct messages, or whispers and how we respond to them.
What are the ways you hear the ‘whispers’? Some ways to identify your inner wisdom/guidance:
Sight – Are you looking, or are you seeing?
We can look at something, e.g., a table, a landscape, or our partner, and take for granted what we are looking at. We view what is in front of us through a lens that has already made up its mind about what is there. It is more surface-level, brief, and of little substance. Before we are even aware of it, we have made up our mind and decided to place it in a ‘knowing file.’
When we see, we look from a present perspective. There is an opening in us that is curious and connected to that which is arising in us as we focus on what is in front of us. There is awareness. We are relating to what is happening now.
Imagine looking / seeing a tree:
Looking: You notice its height, color, or shape—a purely physical observation and take a picture of an old blueprint.
Seeing: You perceive or experience its energy, the way it connects to the earth and sky, its role in the ecosystem, and perhaps feel gratitude or an energetic connection to its existence. In essence, looking is with the eyes, while seeing is with your energetics/soul/spirit/heart.
Auditory – Are you Hearing, or are you Listening?
When we hear, it is a passive, biological process. Sound vibrations enter the ears and are processed by the brain, often without our conscious awareness. It’s surface-level and unintentional—background noise, a conversation nearby, or the hum of traffic may register without us engaging with them. When we are listening, on the other hand, it is an intentional act. It invites conscious focus, inner presence, and a willingness to connect with the sound or message. To truly listen, we must be present—not just physically but emotionally and energetically. Listening creates space for deeper understanding, empathy, and connection, whether it’s to another person, nature, or the whispers of our own intuition.
Imagine hearing / listening to a bird’s song:
Hearing: You notice the sound of chirping, acknowledge it briefly, and move on.
Listening: It is active and alive; it tunes into vibrations, meaning, and energy. In essence, hearing is passive and external, while listening is active, intentional, and rooted in a deeper awareness.
I could go on, but I’m guessing you get the gist… It’s the same with taste, touch, and even smell. The answer… open, open, open. We can look at life through our old and unconscious lens of what we know (our conditioning), or we can open, be present, and consciously moment-to-moment relate to something real and magnificent. It’s hard to open because of previous experiences that taught us it wasn’t safe—it was far too vulnerable or dangerous. So we closed and decided, judged, and made our minds up about, well, everything!
To find the wise answers inside, that is what we need to do—bravely open to the endless possibilities that are unfolding in our reality at every turn. Practice this enough, and you will have found the answers you are seeking. This is also your 6th sense. By being present, by being aware, and by holistic listening… you get to be YOU!
When we do this, there is a veil that can lift for us… that which, one day, was mundane and boring can shift into a new and exciting opportunity. And lastly - I often get asked the question - when there are conflicting voices and sensations inside, how do you choose or follow what is ‘right’ for you?
In the video above, I share the short story of the Cherokee Elder telling his Grandson about the Two Wolves.
Click the image at the top of this page to Watch the Video
* Originally published in Liv Unearthed | January 2025
