Hermenuetics

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Our company, Spirit Quest Tours, takes people on spiritual journeys, including an Eat Pray Love tour that's received tremendous press. Our guests (mostly, but not exclusively, women) are all seeking something, even if they don't know it until they get their. We help them figure out what that is - on our EPL tour in May, we had people experiencing these huge shifts during just one week - and we've seen it happen over and over again. Many people need to get away from their lives - to see them at the 60K foot level, to get perspective and to reconnect with themselves and their dreams. Or they need to heal and move on with some part of their lives. Often this is impossible to do at home. Whether someone takes a week or a year to do so on the road is often a matter of economics and intent. The important thing to me is to live your dreams. Perhaps it costs nothing for you to do so, but whether you buy some EPL prayer beads from World Market or a $400 pasta maker from HSN, or you spend $2K traveling with us, what's important is that you connect in some way that brings you closer to your inner self - that's what it's all about.

Posted By: Halle Eavelyn | August 17, 2010 9:34 AM

I have not read the book, nor seen the movie——and don't know that I will——so I cannot address your first question.
But about the second and third: were her year-long travels selfish, and what makes a spiritual quest selfish, I may have an opinion.

The story is not too unlike one of my own: Back in 1989 I was divorced, and after a few months went to India, compelled by a strong meditative experience in the presence of a guru I'd met here. I wanted to find out more of what that was about. I stayed for four months the first time, remarried, and journeyed there again five years later for six months. I almost changed my mind about going the second time, (actually having my luggage pulled from the conveyer belt at the airport) but my husband seemed to want me to go, so I did depart the following week. My intention was to have stayed only a month or two to attend a gathering and visit my husband's relatives, though my stay was extended to six months. Experiences were both good and, while I won't call them "bad," were those that I could very well have lived without. Yet, I learned something from those situations also.

I was certainly changed in some ways, though it is hard to put it into words. I think anytime we pass poverty of such grand scale, we cannot help but be altered a bit inside. (That may be true for not only material poverty, but poverty-of-spirit as well.)

A spiritual quest always has to do with the self. But whether or not a spiritual quest is "selfish" in a negative way, depends on the intentions one goes with, and what one does after one returns.

I could have stayed home and tried harder to reenter the workforce, or have gone for a master's degree instead of trying to locate and learn from any spiritual "masters," and now know that if people look hard enough they can find them right here in the western hemisphere, in the United States of America, and in many different faiths.

I saw dozens of swamis, and learned from some of them, however, if I have to give myself a religious label, I still say "Christian." Christianity is my culture.

Besides the divorce similarity of the story, I also had a nephew that I wrote to from an ashram.

Gee, maybe I should have written a novel...but I had no plot, let any point!

Nobody needs to envy that Ms. Gilbert took a year after her divorce and traveled. That sort of choice comes with a price.

You do learn, but spiritual knowledge cannot be exploited.

Switching to green tea may be all you need.

God bless.

Charmaine

P.S. I also had my picture taken with an elephant.

Posted By: Charmaine French-Allaka | August 19, 2010 6:58 PM

I have not read the book, nor seen the movie——and don't know that I will——so I cannot address your first question.
But about the second and third: were her year-long travels selfish, and what makes a spiritual quest selfish, I may have an opinion.

The story is not too unlike one of my own: Back in 1989 I was divorced, and after a few months went to India, compelled by a strong meditative experience in the presence of a guru I'd met here. I wanted to find out more of what that was about. I stayed for four months the first time, remarried, and journeyed there again five years later for six months. I almost changed my mind about going the second time, (actually having my luggage pulled from the conveyer belt at the airport) but my husband seemed to want me to go, so I did depart the following week. My intention was to have stayed only a month or two to attend a gathering and visit my husband's relatives, though my stay was extended to six months. Experiences were both good and, while I won't call them "bad," were those that I could very well have lived without. Yet, I learned something from those situations also.

I was certainly changed in some ways, though it is hard to put it into words. I think anytime we pass poverty of such grand scale, we cannot help but be altered a bit inside. (That may be true for not only material poverty, but poverty-of-spirit as well.)

A spiritual quest always has to do with the self. But whether or not a spiritual quest is "selfish" in a negative way, depends on the intentions one goes with, and what one does after one returns.

I could have stayed home and tried harder to reenter the workforce, or have gone for a master's degree instead of trying to locate and learn from any spiritual "masters," and now know that if people look hard enough they can find them right here in the western hemisphere, in the United States of America, and in many different faiths.

I saw dozens of swamis, and learned from some of them, however, if I have to give myself a religious label, I still say "Christian." Christianity is my culture.

Besides the divorce similarity of the story, I also had a nephew that I wrote to from an ashram.

Gee, maybe I should have written a novel...but I had no plot, let any point!

Nobody needs to envy that Ms. Gilbert took a year after her divorce and traveled. That sort of choice comes with a price.

You do learn, but spiritual knowledge cannot be exploited.

Switching to green tea may be all you need.

God bless.

Charmaine

P.S. I also had my picture taken with an elephant.

Another afterthought: if one has children at home they should put their children's needs first, and certainly not run off for any length of time without them. If a person is married, decisions to dart off and learn about "the dharma" should be mutually agreed upon. You cannot pull away and expect to find God if you have broken The Golden Rule in the process. Any encounters with the Almighty in that case might merely be His Mighty Hand swatting your backside to scoot you home where you belong.

Of course, this is just my opinion.

Posted By: Charmaine French-Allaka | August 19, 2010 11:05 PM

Just a question: Why would you post anything in favor of this book on a Christian website/magazine? This book/movie is against God. The main character in this book/movie was looking for God but in all the wrong places, in false gods & idols. Also, Julia Roberts is now a Hindu. By favoring this book/movie to all your readers, you will be saying that it is okay to search God in all the wrong places. God DOES say in His word that if we seek Him with all our hearts, we will find Him...so those truly seeking for God in other places WILL EVENTUALLY come to Him, but why go to all those places when you can go straight to Jesus? Romans 12:2. Community cannot restore unless it is fellowship of God. Only God can restore our hearts, minds, bodies & spirits. Any other "community" apart from a Christ-centered one is fake & temporary. God will not give His glory to another. He is the Lord of Lords & King of Kings. God bless you...I pray that this will change your heart & not offend you or harden your heart.

Posted By: Maggie | August 23, 2010 7:29 AM

Maggie, I would like to respectfully disagree that this blog is an endorsement of the movie to all Christianity Today readers. This is not a movie review with a letter grade, this is a blog. I think in our fast paced world these nuances can be overlooked. A blog is intended to be of opinion, and a shared experience. The blog does not advocate for spirituality opposite of Jesus Christ, in fact, quite the opposite if you fully read the text. If you go back and read the other book discussion blog posts, this is part 5, the very topic of discussion is that Elizabeth Gilbert has created a cherry-picked mash up of faith that is not Christian.

The reason for this discussion is to look at this cultural phenomenon with a critical eye. Perhaps if you are not able to critically expound on a non-Christian book, this blog post is not for you.

Posted By: SJ | August 24, 2010 3:20 PM