The human condition is like that of flocks trotting in the dust, driven to the abattoir at the sound of the flute, by interchangeable shepherds. (Henri de Monfreid)

So when you are listening to somebody, completely, attentively, then you are listening not only to the words, but also to the feeling of what is conveyed, to the whole of it, not part of it.
Jiddhu Krishnamurti