Work on a new single-author book with a working title of “Garment of Destiny” will be started. The title is derived from Martin Luther King: “It really boils down to this: that all life is interrelated. We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
The book is based largely on encounters with many remarkable people; experiences and observations in many countries; interviews; and original research related to one of the major underlying themes of the book: that understanding “other” cultures, traditions, persuasions and religions will enrich our lives and make us better global citizens. It will document important and largely unknown connections and intersections among traditions and philosophies. It will reflect on Athol Fugard’s comment that “The only safe place is inside a story.” It will argue that we can have no empathy, no full human life if we don’t learn to listen to other people’s stories, and let them touch us. It will also try to illustrate one of Herodotus’ major findings: “The past does not exist. There are only infinite renderings of it.”
