Stillness Speaks Book Previews

Gift Of Unconditioned Listening? Ease Of Being: Jean Klein

by Sanjiv Manifest | Apr 9, 2025

“… unconditioned listening is our real nature, we come to know ourselves in listening … In unconditioned listening, which is silence, freedom from all agitation and concept, the situation is seen in its entirety” ~ Jean Klein

Indeed! …

As usual Jean Klein says it in simple words … but conveys profound wisdom …

And Papaji underscores Jean’s words in his own way: ” … Your nature is silence and it is not attainable, it always is …” (~ from This) …

So then what is unconditioned listening? … be worth exploring as it seems to reveal the “gem of gems” :-)…

We’ll delve into this topic through one of the “… books that {should} never leave our hands, because we {can} keep returning to them to fill ourselves with the bliss of a profound understanding that changes our life forever …” … and Klein’s The Ease of Being is such a book as claimed by Shakti Catalina Maggi … in her Foreword …

In this book (which is a collection of Q&As from Jean’s gatherings from 1980, ’81, ’82, and ’85 in London, New Mexico, Paris, California, and Switzerland), Jean uses one of his key “teachings” – “Let life unfold the answer to you” – as a foundation for his answers … again and again … thereby reminding participants what matters most in the self discovery journey …

Catalina underscores this fact in the continuation of her Foreword : ” … “Let life unfold the answer to you” is the highest teaching, showing how life itself is the Sat Guru. They are words of utter and unbreakable trust in the wisdom of life. Life is our teacher and, as embodiment of our own Consciousness, points us to where we are still lost …”

No wonder it is summarized as “… Consistently one of the most popular books by Dr.Klein … a collection of dialogues with seekers in both Europe and the United States. The focus of the dialogues is one’s identity with the ultimate subject …” …

We have been reviewing many such gatherings to explore Jean’s answers to similar questions – that are practical everyday concerns. The transcripts of these gatherings are available as a series of his books … all of which we are previewing – via chapter excerpts with our preambles – on an ongoing basis:

… starting with his classic Book of Listening … in a 5-part series … and

… then Living Truth which is ongoing with 2-parts so far … and

… then Who Am I … which is also ongoing with 2-parts so far …

… then Beyond Knowledge … which is ongoing with 1-part so far …

… and, more recently Be Who You Are … which is also ongoing with 1-part so far …

So, today, we start another multi-part series on The Ease of Being …where part 1 covers some of the most common questions related with unconditioned listening :

… Could you tell us more about what you mean by unconditioned listening?

… What is the place of the intellect in unconditioned listening?

… and more …

All italicized text (except noted otherwise) below is from The Ease of Being by Jean Klein and is published here with the publisher New Sarum Press ‘ generous permission. Scroll to the bottom for a free downloadable Table of Contents. You can purchase the book at Amazon.

unconditioned listening: “… awareness, which is listening, is the background of every appearance …”

Unconditioned Listening…

Q. Could you tell us more about what you mean by unconditioned listening?

A. Whenever listening is intentional, tension arises because a result is anticipated, and this result is a product, a projection of memory. Unconditioned listening has no end in mind and in this openness all the senses are receptive. Hearing is no longer confined to the ears, instead the whole body listens with an ever-expanding sensitivity until you feel yourself in listening itself. Another way to say this is that you no longer listen because you are listening.

Awareness of stillness, of silence, may first arise in the absence of objects, as often happens in sitting meditation. But later, it is sustained in both their presence and absence. This awareness, which is listening, is the background of every appearance, so that even while engaged in activity you are aware of both the activity and being.

Awareness of being is not a perception for being can never be objectified. We can’t be aware of two objects at the same time; we can’t have two thoughts simultaneously. But we can be simultaneously aware of both our phenomenal existence and our presence, being. This non-state spontaneously appears the instant producing and projecting cease.

Any attempt to produce this non-state actually immerses us deeper in the subject-object relationship. There are times when attaining silence may be of momentary benefit, since a temporary absence of thought produces a relaxed state. But remaining in this subject-object relationship, which is all the absence of thought is, bars you from a more profound silence. The presence of the blank state can even be an obstacle; being energy in movement it cannot be continuously sustained. True silence is neither movement nor energy, but stillness.

[…]

Q. What is the place of the intellect in unconditioned listening?

A. The intellect is a defense against something you reject or accept. Once you have, out of totality, seen the truth of something, there is no escaping it. You live with it. With this complete understanding the mind cannot avoid changing and transformation occurs. When the intellect is absent there is total attention; listening and talking may spontaneously happen but they spring from reality. There is no longer any producing by the mind. In silent attention the mind is completely empty, so what is heard penetrates deeply. In a state of either rejection or acceptance there is merely a playing with words, with memory, with the intellect. But in a state of silent listening, there’s no place for right or wrong, compensation or conclusion. They have, through intuitive understanding, either become knowledge or they have not.

Become aware of the processes of your mind and body and you will begin to understand yourself. There’s no difference between this and understanding the whole universe. Your perception completely opens itself to reality in its fullness.

Thus it may be seen that any search, if it is to be fruitful, always requires the same fundamental attitude of deep, humble, choice-free listening. To return to the path of realization: having once known the experience, established as we are in the solitude of our absolute and non-dual nature, we can never again be subject to delusion. With the death of desire comes the vanishing of pain, since pain is nothing but a lack or a limitation.

And … turns out there is another benefit of unconditioned listening …

Q. You often say that right action is not a question of morality but springs naturally from spontaneity. How can I come to this spontaneity?

A. Spontaneity comes through listening and results in understanding. In unconditioned listening, which is silence, freedom from all agitation and concept, the situation is seen in its entirety and it is from this whole seeing that appropriate spontaneous action springs.

It is obvious that an action which proceeds from conscious thought cannot be spontaneous. It is equally true, but less obvious, that actions springing from habit, inclination or instinct cannot be spontaneous either. For habit and instinct are conditioned, automatic and mechanical, and actions which come from inclination are motivated by justification, rationalization and conflict. They are all ruled by unconscious thought. In fact, we can call only that which springs from spontaneity, action. Everything else is not free from interference and is therefore reaction.

To uncover spontaneity, conscious and unconscious thought must come to an end. All the projections of the intellect must stop if creative spontaneity is to operate. Intellectual effort and the cultivation of willpower are useless in integrating spontaneity. The mind must become humble and sensitive, free from violence, pride and greed. Then real intelligence can function.

When the intellect becomes silent through observation, through listening, the basic nature of the mind undergoes a transformation. This transformation reaches to the most obscure urges and movements of our animal life. The intellect becomes clear-thinking in the light of all-integrating intelligence and a beautiful human being is born.

Life is living spontaneity, untouched by time.

Stay tuned for more … Jean Klein’s teachings from The Ease of Being …

All italicized text (except noted otherwise) above is from The Ease of Being by Jean Klein and is published here with the publisher New Sarum Press ‘ generous permission. Scroll to the bottom for a free downloadable Table of Contents. You can purchase the book at Amazon.

And click here for a FREE downloadable copy of the Table of Contents, graciously and generously made available by the publisher New Sarum Press.