How Deeply We Listen

Several years ago, while on retreat in another state, we joined a sound bath offering. It felt like such a gift to receive as students, and to offer our support to another yoga community.

When we arrived, there was a guitar, a gong, and a chair in the center of the room. Nothing else.

We couldn’t help but wonder, where are all the bowls? The chimes? The rainsticks, flutes, rattles, and drums?

We lay down, opened our hearts, and waited for the sound meditation to begin.  What unfolded was one of the most profound and inward journeys we have ever experienced.

We still talk about it today, because this simple guitar-and-gong meditation reminds us how the true essence of yoga, at its heart, is a practice of simplification.  It also helps us to recognize how easy it is to get swept into the “more is better” mentality.

Yes, we too get pulled into that current of bigger, better, more.

At its essence, Nāda Yoga (the yoga of sound) is a path of attuning to subtle energy. It is never about how many instruments fill a space, but about how deeply we listen. The simplicity of one guitar and one gong revealed this truth with such clarity.

This teaching reaches far beyond sound; it speaks to life itself. How often do we believe, “If only I had this, then I would be happier”?

When you listen deeply, the whole universe is singing. ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

We are grateful to be walking this path alongside you…seeking, simplifying, remembering, and returning to love, together.

With love and devotion,

Lisa & Kevin McCormack

Co-Owners of Black Cat Yoga

Black Cat Yoga began with a simple idea: to bring people together through yoga, music, and community. Though the way we gather has changed, the heart of the practice remains the same. Through Kirtan and Bhakti, we continue creating spaces of connection, sharing song, devotion, and the joy of walking this path together.