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| comment | | "parent_author":"",<br>"parent_permlink":"review",<br>"author":"oryans.belt",<br>"permlink":"book-review-the-book-of-joy",<br>"title":"Book Review: The Book of Joy",<br>"body":"![UP3482.jpg (https:\/\/cdn.steemitimages.com\/DQmXu4LfTTCWw7wnfNhpekJ9KRWSmJJLF5oPaFJcvxxJsW5\/UP3482.jpg)\n\nIn The Book of Joy,<br> Douglas Abrams documents a week long series of discussions between His Holiness the Dalai Lama,<br> and the Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Two men who probably don\u2019t need much introduction,<br> the former became the leader of Tibet at a young age,<br> but was exiled from his country due to Chinese occupation in 1959. Since then,<br> the Dalai Lama has become a huge advocate for peace,<br> co-operation and learning. Making several appearances worldwide and also promoting dialogues between religious figures and scientists with the Mind Life Institute. The latter,<br> an important political figure during Apartheid in South Africa,<br> the Archbishop Desmond Tutu fought along side many others for justice and equality in South Africa. \n\nThe series of talks looked to take the two religious and political figure\u2019s understanding of joy,<br> how they overcame their respective obstacles and their prescription to others. Outside of the talks,<br> the interactions are also documented throughout the book,<br> demonstrating the playful,<br> mischievous friendship between the two,<br> something evident even in the formal discussions. \n\nAbrams separated the days into three chapters in the book; the first day was dedicated to understanding the nature of joy. The second to third days looked at the obstacles to joy. While the fourth and final days looked to explain the eight pillars of joy for practical application. I will look to areas of interest within in the book as a whole and some of the key areas of importance,<br> paying attention to common threads,<br> ideas and sentiments. \n\nAdmittedly,<br> I did not feel all too excited picking up a book that didn\u2019t seem to offer the kind of philosophical,<br> religious or scientific inquiry and topics that I usually look for. Nor did I feel,<br> with all due respect,<br> that the two main characters in the book were going to be able to speak about the topic in a particularly familiar and critical manner. I am glad to say that I was completely wrong,<br> and what I received was a wonderful read filled with the invaluable insights of two men who truly have amounted some interesting life experiences. What more,<br> Douglas Abrams added a invaluable third dimension to the conversations,<br> bringing a healthy skepticism to some of the things said,<br> and adding scientific clout to the claims as a whole,<br> while also wonderfully capturing the tone,<br> landscape and joy of the overall experience. \n\nThe first day focused on the concept itself,<br> and the two seemed to agree that joy was both part and whole of the virtues of positivity and overall well being,<br> much the same way that Plato described justice as being a part and the entire diamond regarding his cardinal virtues. Joy was not seen as happiness,<br> but something that flowed through all feeling of goodness,<br> from happiness to satisfaction,<br> contentment to physical pleasure. The other area of agreement was the role suffering had to play in cultivating the necessary mental dispositions. Applying this not only in the form of theodicies,<br> but also in many areas of everyday life,<br> from the biological level to the pursuit of our goals and dreams. Strife\/evil and suffering give opportunities for development,<br> courage and compassion. Finally,<br> the two spoke on practical strategies to find and spread joy,<br> referring constantly to seeing the world through others eyes,<br> seeing the various angles and complexities of the human experience and simply lessening our self-centered tendencies in a piecemeal fashion. \n\n![joy-Miranda-Credit-2-520x293.jpg (https:\/\/cdn.steemitimages.com\/DQmX3Qg8Ba57AADNbJ4X5BS2GGFXAEDzicHo6oYUGDbXYsp\/joy-Miranda-Credit-2-520x293.jpg)\n\nThe areas I felt really spoke to me were the following:\n\n1) The spirit of inclusivity: Both the Dalai Lama and the Archbishop have so much confidence in who they are that that have a great love,<br> admiration and appreciation for each others faith traditions and other worldviews. The Dalai Lama stressed the importance of speaking to a world that also consisted of many secular,<br> non-theistic individuals,<br> that were just as worthy of compassion,<br> love and respect. The Archbishop echoed this throughout,<br> giving an interpretation of God as a being wholly inclusive. A real standout for me was the visit to the Dalai Lama\u2019s home in Dharamshala,<br> India. Where he kept Buddhist art,<br> pictures and statues,<br> but the symbols of other religions were visible too. After a guided meditation,<br> the Archbishop invited everyone to have communion,<br> something unheard of in the Christian faith regarding letting non-believers,<br> other religions and even other domination take part in the ritual,<br> but this showed an inclusivity and desire to remove barriers we constantly put up ourselves. This kind of kind hearted respect and admiration for different beliefs and worldviews was a nice change from the hostile,<br> disrespectful debates I often watched between theists and atheists. \n\n2)\tThe Archbishops preference of hope over optimism: I often think that the optimistic are those who are greatly separated from the devastatingly horrid problems of the world,<br> and more times than not live in a comfortable bubble,<br> me being one of those at one point. The Archbishop seemed to prefer the hope over optimism,<br> as optimism is something he believed could fail in certain circumstances,<br> but something enduring informed the concept of hope. I felt this distinction was well stated within past contexts and the present. \n\n3)\tHumor and Humility: I found it very interesting that the words humor and humility come from the same Latin word,<br> humilis,<br> meaning \u2018from the earth\u2019,<br> or as we would understand it,<br> being down to earth. This is something I don\u2019t think I would have ever spotted unless reading this book. But the two figures stressed the importance of good humor and laughing at ourselves and with each other to establish common ground and respect in equal standing. The two seemed to speak a lot about not always being interested in too many formalities and appearances of any special status. I found this quite inspiring. \n\nI have never enjoyed stories of people claiming miracles or strange occurrences happening to them after reading a text or attending a church service,<br> and yet,<br> there were some interesting events that happened to me while reading this book,<br> which served as very nice co-incidences. Upon reading the section on engaging with our fellow human beings more,<br> the Dalai Lama pointed to the difficulty of doing something as simple as saying hello to someone in the elevator or on the train. Something naturally explained by a feeling of self-preservation. But wouldn\u2019t you know it,<br> after reading this section while waiting in a hospital,<br> a man just came up to me to have a small conversation in Chinese. I was surprised,<br> but very happy that he had the courage to do this and bring joy to my day as a whole. \n\nThis is one of maybe two coincidences that occurred while reading this book,<br> but let me progress to final thoughts. The Book of Joy is a well-constructed book that really succeeds in capturing the voices of the two speakers and the overall beauty of their friendship and infectious personalities. Abrams is skilled in painting a wonderful picture of the surrounding environments and adding a third voice to proceedings,<br> an essential neutral and common voice that represents us all. While I would say this this is the kind of book that speaks to the truth of our current condition,<br> most will no doubt forget it in a moment and go back to the vicious work environments and exclusivist modes that we have accustomed ourselves too. But this does not take away form the truth of what we are capable of as humans and the potential we have to make each other and ourselves better. The Dalai Lama and the Archbishop Desmond Tutu are inspirational figures who I hope will impart a bit of joy to anyone who chooses to engage with them through this book. As usual,<br> happy reading \u263a.",<br>"json_metadata":" \"tags\":[\"review\",<br>\"book\",<br>\"read\",<br>\"blog\",<br>\"steemit\" ,<br>\"image\":[\"https:\/\/cdn.steemitimages.com\/DQmXu4LfTTCWw7wnfNhpekJ9KRWSmJJLF5oPaFJcvxxJsW5\/UP3482.jpg\",<br>\"https:\/\/cdn.steemitimages.com\/DQmX3Qg8Ba57AADNbJ4X5BS2GGFXAEDzicHo6oYUGDbXYsp\/joy-Miranda-Credit-2-520x293.jpg\" ,<br>\"app\":\"steemit\/0.1\",<br>\"format\":\"markdown\" " |
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