Think Like a Monk is a book written by Jay Shetty, who was a former monk, and is currently an author, podcaster, and speaker. In this book, he has shared his experience as a monk, his spiritual and personal practice, and shared his knowledge of the ancient philosophy of Vedanta. The book shows the differences between the monk mind (peaceful ancient mind) and the monkey mind (distracting modern mind) and says that most of us have a monkey mind, while everyone should have a monk mind for more productivity and wisdom. These days people have shifted priority over short-term entertainment and technology attachment rather than spending quality time with family. Through this book, the writer has explained the importance of using the methods of mindfulness and meditation for more positivity in everyday life. Moreover, he has focused on the importance of self-awareness and self-reflection to create a happy and fulfilling life. The book is divided into three parts “Let Go”, “Grow” and “Give”. In the first part, Jay shares his own experience as a monk. He talks about the importance of letting go of attachments that are temporary and fake to curate self-values. He exemplifies the process people could get to reduce negativity, fear, and wrong intention. To understand self, he suggests to reflect own day and emotions and exploring different surroundings. In this part, Jay has shown the importance of meditation and has taught powerful breathing techniques to calm and relax, to be focused and energetic, and breathwork for sleep.
In the second part, Jay teaches the reader to know their purpose and discover a “Dharma”. He elaborates on “Dharma” as the mixture of passion, expertise, and usefulness. When a person finds a passion and skill that can be further used for service and charity, one’s Dharma is created. When a person has a particular passion and is also skillful in the same thing, such personality is known as Vedic personality. The author then talks about 4 Varnas of humans, Guide, Leader, Creator, and Maker, depending on the personality and skill of an individual. This book has also provided tools for Vedic personality tests so that readers could apply them. For the meaningful beginning, Jay suggests readers to wake up an hour earlier (with the best alarm time that makes them happy) than the current time. For a better understanding, the writer has provided real examples of successful business people who wake up early to have a high impact. Rather than using digital devices after waking up, he suggests expressing gratitude, gaining insights, meditating, and exercising. In the evening, the time should be spent reading and journaling. Before sleeping, a person should pitch darkness with no devices nearby so that one would not program to wake up with bad energy. Moreover, he suggests using a positive affirmation to program a mind while sleeping.
Jay also suggests the readers know the awareness of every moment, whether it is our environment or mind, it is important to be in the present and focused without any distractions. As we know a particular place is for a particular thing such as a kitchen to cook, a bed to sleep in, and a study table to study, he makes sure that the reader does not confuse the energy by eating on a bed and sleeping in a dining table. The simple lesson is that energy is vital and there should be a specific place for specific activities. Time and space have a huge connection with our daily routines. Doing something at the same time every day becomes easier and more natural with consistency and discipline. When the tech is not around, single-tasking becomes easier. Only the monkey mind tries to multi-task which brings no effective result whereas, when a person does the same task with consistent energy, he/she could be creative rather than boring and frustrating. For that, a person must build a routine like a monk.
In this part of the book, Jay Shetty refers monkey mind as a child and the monk mind as an adult “parent” who guides a child. He also suggests about the power of investing in the conscious mind and staying in the present. He has highlighted the knowledge and advice of the Bhagavad Gita to clarify for the readers on gaining liberation. In this part, he has signified ego as a mask that portrays lies, false hierarchies, judgment, and challenges to grow. Therefore, he teaches the readers to build self-esteem and detach from the ego. Moreover, the author practically educates about the visualization technique to heal the past and get ready for the future.
In part three, this book implicates the importance of gratitude, relationships, and service for positive changes. The author refers to gratitude as a network to create better mental health, sleep, a sense of fulfillment, and self-awareness and develop a better relationship. The feeling of gratitude should be expressed either through language or service such as visualizations, volunteering, or writing a letter. A lack of gratitude makes a person feel unloved. When we give love and kindness to someone, it comes back in some way or another. In this book, Jay has portrayed trust as an important aspect to build relationships. He advises the readers to choose connection over attraction, and quality over quantity. The only purpose of the individual’s living should be “to serve” and to have a mindset of serving (giving). This would positively protect the mind, body, and soul. To serve someone, a person does not need to be rich rather, they should have a pure intention, which he refers to as “Dharma”. Demonstrating an example of the importance of positive affirmations, Jay teaches his readers a technique to chant mantras.
Overall, this book can be categorized as an influencing and helpful read. For the reader’s positive change, the author has given many assignments to do (including a personality test) for the realistic experiment and practical engagement. The book has so many meaningful messages provided however, it depends on the reader’s mindset to imply according to their priority and ambitions.