Posted on by Phil

My Learnings from The Book of Joy

This past summer a good friend of mine bought me a copy of “The Book of Joy.”  In the last year I’d been getting into meditation/spirituality, and his wife had loved it.

While the book isn’t very long, it did take me a long time to read it for the simple reason that there is SO MUCH wisdom sprinkled throughout.   For those that don’t know, this book is basically a summary of a week of conversation between the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu.  It outlines many of their core philosophies.

There are a ton of great tidbits in this book for anyone with an open mind, and I highly suggest you go buy it if you’re at all curious.

I knew it’d be a worthwhile exercise for my own self to codify some (I can’t stress ‘some’ enough – this book is full of interesting and useful wisdom) of the key lessons that I took away, and thought “why not write them up on that blog I never post to!”

So, here are a few of the lessons I took away:

  • “The purpose of life is to find happiness” – The Dalai Lama says this in the opening part of the week, and I completely agree.  Of course, finding and pursuing happiness are quite different and will lead to divergent outcomes.  As is mentioned later in the book, happiness is a byproduct of generosity, compassion, self love, and a host of other worthy pursuits.  Pursuing it directly usually ends in distraction and a focus on things like fast cars or big boats.
  • Compassion = Happiness – Do you ever have one of those days where you strike up a genuine conversation with a stranger, or get to help out someone in need?  As the book says “If you develop a strong sense of concern for the well-being of others, this will make you happy in the morning, even before coffee.”  This is very true, and you can lean test it by smiling and saying hello to each person you meet with today – I guarantee you’ll notice the change in yourself.  Of course, you can supercharge your effort through generosity.
  • A grateful mind breeds happiness – Having a bad day?  Think of something you’re truly grateful for and focus on it.  Maybe it’s as trivial as how warm your coffee is, or maybe it’s something as important as your health.  Focusing on things we’re grateful for is transformative, and a worthwhile daily practice.
  • We’re all people – This is very related to the compassion point, but I wanted to write down a key consideration made throughout the book around the negative side of personal interactions.  Ever have a boss that is horrible, or have a run in with a bully?  Realistically, these people are critical because they see the world as critical, or aggressive because they are fragile.  Forgiveness and empathy, even to people who “don’t deserve it” leads to happiness.  Side note: I’ll admit it, I can hold grudges…but letting them go feels so much better than ruminating (with the exception of when I’m trying to beat a 3 mile time and need some extra adrenaline for that final push).
  • Stress and hardship are just a part of life – According to the book, stress is actually key to our development in utero (disclaimer:  I’m no doctor).  We can all agree that it’d be crazy not to recognize the amazing role that hardship and failure play in the evolution of us as individuals.  So, try to see the bright side of your next challenge, and realize that every human on earth has to go through something similar in their lives (easier said that done!).  Apparently, the first noble truth of Buddhism is that life is full of suffering.  If you need some extra inspiration here, I highly recommend Viktor Frankel’s Man’s Search for Meaning.
  • It ain’t all fluff  – A lot of the above sounds like something a non analytical thinker would believe in, or what you may simply learn at Kindergarten (and what’s wrong with that???).  However, nothing could be further from the truth.  Following the teachings laid out in this book will actually make you happier, allow you to think clearer, and live a more “productive” life.  Beyond my own experience,  you can see that these teachings align with how humans came to be through the evolution of our species.  For example, building meaningful relationships with others is a sure fire way to be happy, which makes sense as that’s how we used to (and still do) get stuff done in society.  In fact, the book is sprinkled with actual scientific studies that detail things like lowered hypertension in people who gave away money…just in case you’re a skeptic and need some data along with the wise words 🙂

One fun thought experiment is to think about the various things future generations will know as truth that we can’t see right now.  For example, we now look back at history and think “how could they not know smoking was bad for them?” or “how could anyone not see the CDO market was a house of cards that posed a major systemic risk to the economy?”  Meditation is a great way to think more clearly about the question of what we just aren’t understanding now…and, perhaps its future adoption will be another answer to this thought experiment.

8,699 Replies to “My Learnings from The Book of Joy”

  2. Somebody essentially lend a hand to make significantly articles I
    might state. That is the first time I frequented your web page and up to now?
    I surprised with the research you made to create
    this actual put up incredible. Fantastic task!

  3. I really love your site.. Very nice colors & theme. Did you make this amazing
    site yourself? Please reply back as I’m planning to create my very own site and would
    love to find out where you got this from or what the theme is called.

    Thanks!

  5. Link exchange is nothing else except it is simply placing the other person’s weblog link on your page at suitable place and other person will also do same in support of you.

  7. Wow, marvelous blog layout! How long have you
    been blogging for? you make blogging look easy. The overall
    look of your website is great, as well as the content!

  8. What’s up it’s me, I am also visiting this website
    on a regular basis, this web page is actually good and the people are truly sharing good
    thoughts.

  9. After checking out a number of the blog articles on your web page,
    I seriously appreciate your way of blogging. I book marked it to my
    bookmark webpage list and will be checking
    back in the near future. Please check out my web site as well
    and tell me what you think.

  15. A motivating discussion is worth comment. I do think that you should write more about this subject matter, it may not be a taboo
    subject but typically people don’t talk about such subjects.
    To the next! Best wishes!!

  17. Magnificent goods from you, man. I have take note your stuff prior to and you’re just
    too fantastic. I actually like what you have got right here, really like what you’re saying and the way in which you say it.
    You are making it entertaining and you continue to take care of to stay it smart.
    I cant wait to learn much more from you. This is actually a tremendous website.

  18. Nice post. I was checking constantly this blog and I am impressed!
    Extremely helpful info particularly the last part 🙂 I care for such info
    much. I was looking for this particular info for a long time.
    Thank you and good luck.

  19. Link exchange is nothing else except it is simply placing
    the other person’s blog link on your page at proper place and
    other person will also do same in favor of you.

  23. Hi everybody, here every person is sharing these kinds of
    know-how, therefore it’s good to read this webpage, and
    I used to visit this website all the time.

  25. If you would like to improve your knowledge only keep visiting this website and be updated with the
    most recent news posted here.

  26. First off I would like to say excellent blog! I had a quick question in which I’d like to ask if you
    do not mind. I was curious to know how you center
    yourself and clear your mind before writing. I have had a tough time clearing my thoughts
    in getting my thoughts out. I truly do take pleasure in writing however it just seems like the first 10 to 15 minutes
    are usually lost simply just trying to figure out how to
    begin. Any recommendations or hints? Thanks!

  29. It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d certainly donate to this excellent blog!
    I guess for now i’ll settle for book-marking and adding your RSS feed
    to my Google account. I look forward to brand new updates and will talk about this website with
    my Facebook group. Talk soon!

  30. of course like your web-site however you need to check the spelling on several of your
    posts. Several of them are rife with spelling problems and I to find it very troublesome to inform the reality however I will surely come back again.

  32. What i don’t understood is in reality how you’re now not actually a lot more neatly-preferred than you may be right now.
    You are so intelligent. You know thus considerably in the
    case of this matter, made me in my view consider it from a lot of
    varied angles. Its like women and men are not fascinated
    until it is one thing to accomplish with Girl gaga! Your
    individual stuffs great. At all times take care of it up!

  33. I am really enjoying the theme/design of your website.
    Do you ever run into any web browser compatibility problems?
    A couple of my blog visitors have complained about my website not working correctly in Explorer
    but looks great in Safari. Do you have any advice to
    help fix this issue?

  34. Wow, incredible blog format! How long have
    you ever been running a blog for? you made running a blog glance easy.
    The whole look of your web site is fantastic, let
    alone the content material!

  35. Today, I went to the beach with my children. I found a sea shell and gave it to my 4 year old daughter and
    said “You can hear the ocean if you put this to your ear.” She put the shell to her ear and
    screamed. There was a hermit crab inside and it pinched
    her ear. She never wants to go back! LoL I know this is totally off
    topic but I had to tell someone!

  36. Heya i’m for the first time here. I found this board and I
    find It truly useful & it helped me out much. I hope to
    give something back and aid others like you helped me.

  37. Wow! This blog looks just like my old one! It’s on a entirely
    different subject but it has pretty much the same page layout and design. Excellent choice of colors!

  39. We absolutely love your blog and find almost all of your post’s
    to be exactly I’m looking for. Do you offer guest writers to write content to suit your needs?
    I wouldn’t mind publishing a post or elaborating on a number of
    the subjects you write concerning here. Again, awesome website!

  40. Howdy! I know this is kinda off topic nevertheless I’d figured
    I’d ask. Would you be interested in exchanging links or maybe guest authoring a blog article or vice-versa?
    My blog addresses a lot of the same topics as yours and I feel we could greatly benefit from
    each other. If you happen to be interested feel free to shoot me an email.
    I look forward to hearing from you! Great blog by the way!

  41. Great post. I was checking continuously this weblog and I am impressed!
    Very helpful info specially the final phase 🙂 I deal
    with such info much. I used to be seeking this certain information for a long
    time. Thanks and best of luck.

  42. Hey would you mind sharing which blog platform
    you’re working with? I’m planning to start my own blog in the
    near future but I’m having a hard time selecting between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and
    Drupal. The reason I ask is because your layout seems different then most
    blogs and I’m looking for something unique.
    P.S Sorry for getting off-topic but I had to ask!

  44. I am curious to find out what blog system you happen to be working with?

    I’m experiencing some minor security problems
    with my latest site and I would like to find something more safeguarded.
    Do you have any suggestions?

  45. Hey there! I’m at work surfing around your blog from my new iphone!

    Just wanted to say I love reading your blog and look forward to all your posts!
    Carry on the superb work!

  46. My brother recommended I may like this blog. He was entirely right.
    This submit actually made my day. You cann’t imagine just how much time I had
    spent for this information! Thanks!

  48. Heya are using WordPress for your site platform? I’m
    new to the blog world but I’m trying to get started and set up my own. Do
    you require any coding knowledge to make your own blog?
    Any help would be greatly appreciated!

  49. Hi there! I know this is somewhat off topic but I
    was wondering which blog platform are you using for this site?
    I’m getting tired of WordPress because I’ve had issues with hackers and I’m
    looking at alternatives for another platform. I
    would be fantastic if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.

  50. I have been surfing online more than 3 hours
    today, yet I never found any interesting article like yours.
    It is pretty worth enough for me. In my view, if all website owners and bloggers made good content as you did, the
    internet will be a lot more useful than ever before.

Comments are closed.