Eat Pray Love revisited

I've had a closer read of the travel / yoga book Eat Pray Love and now I quite like it. It gives a breezy and humorous treatment to Gilbert's year long journey of self-discovery in Italy, India and Bali (Indonesia makes it three 'i's').

Gilbert is having a post-divorce identity crisis and goes on a sensual / spiritual year of renewal to try and come to terms with her experience. I can really identify with the urge to escape a tired world-view. Gilbert first renews her senses in Italy, then brushes up her spirituality in India, then finds love in Bali.

I like that she takes pleasure so seriously that good pasta becomes an almost mystical experience. Then I identify with her struggles with meditation, where her lost loves come to the fore. Isn't it always a struggle to get over a love? For me it is a struggle, and seeing Gilbert wrestle with this was cathartic for me. She actually ends up climbing a high tower and doing a letting-go ritual complete with mystical communication with her ex, which finally frees her to move ahead with her life.

In Bali she befriends a charming ancient healer called Ketut and basically hangs with him. He teaches her a few things - one that I like is smiling meditation. No need to twist yourself into pretzle like yogic poses Ketut informs Gilbert. You just sit and you smile. That's it. Smile at your whole body, including your liver. Makes you beautiful! Well, if meditation is going to make me beautiful, what better reason to do it? I am trying this meditation technique out!