I know this is a best-seller. I know it has rave reviews. I know it has changed lives.And yet, I cannot but feel that it is an oversimplification of a not-so-easy task that Life sets for us. I think it was deliberately designed for a quick read. a kind of "do-it-yourself-and-feel-good" guide. like I mentioned in the title: spirituality made simple.
I don’t deny that it’s a great story. with great cinematic appeal and interesting characters. But there are no moments of illumination, no revelations, no searchlights that point you to the dark areas within your own soul, lighting up, in the process, a path for you to follow.
It may not be a fair comparison but humor me for a moment; let’s compare this with, say, The Autobiography of a Yogi by Yogananda or The Life Divine by Aurobindo. One can hardly shy away from the fact that Robin Sharma’s book lacks the depth and intellectual provocation that the other two books have.
Having said that, I reiterate: it is indeed a good book. I would even conjecture that the writer’s intent was, perhaps, to avoid "heavy writing". Maybe it’s innate simplicity accounts for the mass appeal it has all over the world.
Its core ideas about the power of thoughts, the need to watch our thoughts, the need to weed out negative thinking patterns and the power of the Mind as a rejuvenation device. all these are valid - and borne out by numerous other books that have preceded this one in the genre. Thus, the book - in its own way - is useful and should rightfully find a place on your bookshelf.
To conclude, I think a fair share of the popularity of this book emanates from the fact that many of us see ourselves in Julian’s character, don’t we?