Book Bit -> The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World

How is it possible to feel joy when life is filled with so many struggles?

In The Book of Joy, two moral and spiritual warriors, the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Tutu, spend a week discussing what is joy, what threatens to steal joy, how every individual can have it, keep it, expand it and share it. What is so fulfilling is that these two spiritual leaders, each representing different values and traditions, harmonize so richly and expansively. Even rewarding are the (few) disagreements, because it is like seeing light from different facets of the same exquisite diamond.

Here’s my video-take, only two minutes-ish:

The Book of Joy captures the week’s conversation, wisdom and, yes, joy between two devoted friends who have spent two lifetimes of selfless activism against inequality, injustice, oppression and all the etceteras of hate. They have known physical pain and suffering and almost inconceivable heartache.

So when they talk about the power of joy and how you can maintain it and expand it everyday – no matter what happens in your life – we should listen and take notes.

Spoiler Alert – This not about naïve joy – or “hunky-doryness” as Archbishop Tutu would say. This is a handbook about how to be joyous because you are strengthened by the struggles in life. There are several chapters on what the obstacles to joy are, such as fear and stress, anger, grief, loneliness…there are more, but you get the idea.

Best Bit – The chapter on the Eight Pillars of Joy! It is kind of like saying, Joy is the beautiful crown of a building atop eight strong and mighty qualities: Four pillars are qualities of mind and four are qualities of the heart. You will relate to each of these pillars, but their significance may surprise you. Here’s just one, considered by both to be the most important, the ULTIMATE of all: Generosity.

Turns out, how the book begins is how it ends. Right upfront our moral guides describe the essence of joy: It is only when you serve others, when you do good for others without any expectation of return, that you feel the flood of joy in your entire soul. Joy = Selfless, Unconditional Love. So it is not surprising that the most important pillar – first pillar among equal pillars – is Generosity.

How the book led me to action – my Good Bit!

Any book full of rich ideas should take you somewhere, right? The Book of Joy encouraged me to be generous right away.

A couple of days after finishing the book, and still thinking about the ideas – more like humming with them – I thought about making a pie. Not just any pie, a French Galette, which has a special pie crust (I use a Pate Brisee) that is flat with a low-level filling (lower than a pie!) so that the crust can fold over the edges of the filling. A galette can be sweet or savory. I chose savory, filled with chard and mushrooms.

And then I almost talked myself out of it. “The galette will be huge…we won’t eat it all, it will be wasted…when will I make it?…how much time will it take?”…yada yada yada.

And then – again! The humming of the book’s ideas got louder and drowned out my objections: “I know! I will give some of it to our BFFs who live in our neighborhood!” Tell you what, the whole time I was making the galette, I was smiling. And, not lying, it was the best one I have made (so far). But even better was how thrilled my friends were in receiving it…bubbling even. I know I was!

The Dalai Lama and Archbishop Tutu are right. True joy fills your whole soul when you give to help someone else, selflessly and unconditionally.