Anyway, I am interested in writing my own spiritual journey but am at a lost to do so. I prefer to write it as if the character/s were not me. Like you, I don’t want to sound pompous and preachy, and also I would be dealing with many institutions that might feel I’m attacking them (my old Catholic school, the neuro-psychiatric ward I was placed in, my former workplace,…).

I hope to have some insights or idea on how to write my own story.

http://voiceoftherainbow.blogspot.com

Yes, I agree tha autobiography has to be written by one self but I will rather like to see from the third party as said by Paulo.

You already know about your own self, wouldn’t it be interesting to read something about your own life or self by someone?

That would surely be very very interesting. !

:)

God bless you all !

It’s one thing to have someone say something about your life, but no one can really say what you felt, how you felt, why you did the things you did, how strong was your faith, or were you stripped of it, what you were looking for or weren’t for that matter, because of anger, disappointment, love, the list is endless….

xxoo

I am looking forward to reading your biography, dear Paulo Coelho, by Fernando Morais, although to look into your life with your eyes and sentiments would have been very interesting. To be .. transparent!
LOVE,
Thelma

“Spiritual autobiographies” (which have recently become a genre in their own right), I realize, must be rather tricky to write, as well. All too often they come off as rather pompous and preachy. I never even liked the classic, “Autobiography of a Yogi,” which so many people absolutely adore.

In your blog, you always avoid giving concrete examples of your spiritual experiences, noting that such examples set readers up to expect to have the exact same experience, and every journey is unique. Certainly, I agree with this. If you describe your spiritual journey in the form of concrete details, and people highly admire you, then they might read what you have described and think, “That never happened to me…so I must not be so spiritually “advanced” after all.” Or they might say to themselves, “Well, my experience of the Divine is very different from his, so there must be some sort of religious barrier between us.”

Still, I wonder if there is not some way that you could share your spiritual journey with your audience in the form of a book, that would work. Perhaps some experimental format, rather than a simple linear narrative. I don’t know what that would be, of course – only you could answer that – but the one phrase that comes to my mind is: FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION. In your mind there must be some imprint, some form of map that represents your experience of this journey, and that map or imprint may not be linear at all. Whatever format that imprint takes, that is the shape of the book.

Now isn’t this silly! Me, telling a writer how to write!!! I just remember reading, on several occasions, where the idea of your writing an autobiography was mentioned, and each time, you seemed highly resistant to the idea. I sense that same sort of resistance in your answer here – not simply a disinterest, but an actual active resistance to the concept. (And here I am again, being so bold as to preach to the guru, but…) Sometimes the things we are most resistant to in life are the very places we most need to go.

(Hope you won’t throw me off the blog for that last comment.)

Love and Best Wishes!

Sincerely,
Savita

:)

God bless you all !