The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World

by Desmond Tutu, Dalai Lama XIV, Douglas Carlton Abrams, et al.

Book Overview

An instant New York Times bestseller. Over 1 million copies sold

Two spiritual giants. Five days. One timeless question.

Nobel Peace Prize Laureates His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have survived more than fifty years of exile and the soul-crushing violence of oppression. Despite their hardships--or, as they would say, because of them--they are two of the most joyful people on the planet.

In April 2015, Archbishop Tutu traveled to the Dalai Lama's home in Dharamsala, India, to celebrate His Holiness's eightieth birthday and to create what they hoped would be a gift for others. They looked back on their long lives to answer a single burning question: How do we find joy in the face of life's inevitable suffering?

They traded intimate stories, teased each other continually, and shared their spiritual practices. By the end of a week filled with laughter and punctuated with tears, these two global heroes had stared into the abyss and despair of our time and revealed how to live a life brimming with joy.

This book offers us a rare opportunity to experience their astonishing and unprecedented week together, from the first embrace to the final good-bye.

We get to listen as they explore the Nature of True Joy and confront each of the Obstacles of Joy--from fear, stress, and anger to grief, illness, and death. They then offer us the Eight Pillars of Joy, which provide the foundation for lasting happiness. Throughout, they include stories, wisdom, and science. Finally, they share their daily Joy Practices that anchor their own emotional and spiritual lives.

The Archbishop has never claimed sainthood, and the Dalai Lama considers himself a simple monk. In this unique collaboration, they offer us the reflection of real lives filled with pain and turmoil in the midst of which they have been able to discover a level of peace, of courage, and of joy to which we can all aspire in our own lives.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0399185046
• ISBN13: 9780399185045
• Release Date: September 2016
• Publisher: Avery Publishing Group
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 1.13 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.5" x 5.5" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

A Wonderful Guide To Manifesting Joy

This book a a treasure trove of how to live joyfully! The book is a transcript with narrative from a meeting between the Archbishop and Dalai Lama to discuss joy. They each tell amusing stories and give deeply insightful thoughts on what joy is, things that block joy, and how they have learned to live joyfully. It's a rich, heartwarming book that is so worth reading, or even better, listening to! (I highly recommend getting the audio version)

Wish I had Read this 40 years ago

Powerful, informative. One of the Bible's of our time about how to live well. Took forever to read ad had to think but worth every minute.