On Being Named to Publisher's Weekly Top 10

We just heard that Publisher's Weekly named our book one of their Top 10 in religion and spirituality. This is a big deal for us, of course. Surprising, lovely. Also satisfying, delightful, and all the rest.

At the same time, I have to admit a kind emotional hesitancy about the whole thing.

Not to say I'm not grateful. I am grateful. It's sweet when things go well. It's just that things going well is not what this is about. Or, put another way, I don't want to suffer down the road.

Our teacher Mingyur Rinpoche often says that life is like the stock market. Sometimes it goes up, and then next it inevitably goes down. If you're attached to your stocks, then when they go up, you'll be happy, and when they crash you'll be a hot mess.

Or in this case, when the book has a little success, we could get elated. But then when things don't pan out next week, when we start getting our bad reviews (as most books do), or people write us critical emails (as they already have), we'll have to deal with our frustration and disappointment.

And, in my view, the extent to which we attach to our success will determine how much we suffer in times of failure.

So if it's not about success, then what is it about?

I think it's about cultivating a life filled with love, inspiration, connection, service, and, yes, equanimity.

For me, that means coming back to my values again and again, which means coming back to all the things we wrote about in the book, like not harming, giving when I can, saying what's true, making sex good (even if it means celibacy for a while), and staying clear.

It's also about sitting many hours of meditation in order to know the nature of my own mind. And then sharing the traditions and practices that lead to that recognition so that others can find the same deep well-being.

So, yes, we're happy about the way the book seems to be taking off. And we're even happier when people tell us it's been useful (or fun, or inspiring) for them.

It's just that I think there is a deeper joy to be had. A lasting joy. A stable delight in the simple miracle of being alive, on this planet, in this breathing, sensing body, for this nanosecond of time . . . and I don't want the winds of success and failure to blow me off track from that simple, continual, moment-to-moment recognition of the miracle.

Still, if you want to check out PW's Big 10, you can click here. If you'd like to look at a preview of the book, you could click here. And if you want to order the book, it's available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Indie Bound, and your happy local bookstore.

All the best,
Craig

P.S. The survey results from last time (click here to read that blog) were overwhelmingly in favor of me continuing in this “dear diary” vein, but I will also try to include some material on bringing mindfulness into daily life and the ongoing dialogue between psychology and buddhism, since those were tied for second place.