Brach is anEngaged Buddhist, specializing in the application of Buddhist teachings andmindfulness meditation to emotional healing.[4] She has authored severalbooks on these subjects, includingRadical Acceptance,True Refuge, andRadical Compassion.
She attendedClark University, earning bachelor's degrees in psychology and political science.[3] After graduation, she joined3HO, an organization characterizing itself as practicingSikh Dharma, and moved into anashram outsideBoston. 3HO's leader,Yogi Bhajan, arranged her first marriage with a man she barely knew. After realizing that meditation communities were deeply affected by sexism andpatriarchal norms, having spent ten years at the ashram, she left with her husband and gave birth to a son soon after. The couple divorced five years later.[5][8]
Brach became a Buddhistlay priest in 1988. She taught meditation classes[5] and was awarded a doctorate inclinical psychology from theFielding Institute, based on her dissertation analyzing the effectiveness of meditation in the healing of eating disorders. She then began apsychotherapy practice.[8]
In 1995, Brach, who had already been teaching meditation for over 15 years, began aVipassana meditation group inBethesda. By 2002, 200 people were attending the sessions.[9] In 1998, she founded the Insight Meditation Community of Washington, D.C.[1]
In her first book,Radical Acceptance (2003), Brach shares how Buddhist practices helped her overcome self-hatred, addiction, and chronic illness, leading her to a place of inner peace and freedom.[10] In 2010, she launched hereponymous podcast,[11] which by 2021 was being downloaded by 2.5 million people each month.[5] Her second book,True Refuge, debuted onThe Washington Post best-seller list the week it was released, in February 2013.[6]
As of 2024, Brach had trained over 7,000 people to be meditation teachers.[12] Her own meditation teachers includedJoseph Goldstein andJack Kornfield.[13]
Brach, Tara (2012). "Mindful Presence: A Foundation for Compassion and Wisdom", inWisdom and Compassion in Psychotherapy: Deepening Mindfulness in Clinical Practice edited by Christopher K. Germer and Ronald D. Siegel.Guilford PressISBN978-1462518869
Brach, Tara (2014). "Healing Traumatic Fear: The Wings of Mindfulness and Love", inMindfulness-Oriented Interventions for Trauma: Integrating Contemplative Practices edited by Follette, Briere, Rozelle, Hopper and Rome.Guilford PressISBN978-1462518586
Brach, Tara (2019).Radical Compassion: Learning to Love Yourself and Your World with the Practice of RAIN. Viking.ISBN978-0525522812.
Brach, Tara (2021).Trusting the Gold: Uncovering Your Natural Goodness. Sounds True.ISBN978-1-68364-713-3.
