Last night, Kirsan Nikolaevich called kirsan.today’s editorial office and asked if any of us had read The Dalai Lama's Cat by David Michie. It’s about the wonderful salvation and the amazing fate of a street kitten from the slums. We admitted that no one had read it.He said: "This book contains spiritual lessons for us on how to find happiness and the true meaning of life in our materialistic world. Exciting discoveries of an extraordinary cat depicted in this wonderful book will lift your spirits and warm your heart."
I thought it sounded interesting. And I just love cats. I began to read. The book reads easily and is written surprisingly simply. It’s a positive and kind novel. On the one hand, it is the story of a cat, told by himself, and small parables on the foundations of Buddhism on the other. In fact, the whole book is a story parable. One can consider it as a story of easy-going and amusing adventures of a cat with the covenants of the most peaceful religion. The book’s characters are kind and open.
The writing style is modern and the narrative reminded me, oddly enough, of Wild Animals I Have Known by Seton-Thompson. But it perfectly expresses the Dalai Lama's thoughts. Everyone who read books on Buddhism or listened to the Dalai Lama's lectures will understand me: the form of a small story, a parable, and a paradox makes one think.
In general, I read it with pleasure. I think The Dalai Lama's Cat will be of interest to all who like to reflect on the true meaning of life. And, of course, it will make you smile, believe in good and love cats.
A few words about the book. Author: Michie David. Translator: T.Novikova. Publisher: Bombora, 2018.
Title: "The Dalai Lama’s Cat. Miraculous rescue and amazing fate of a street cat from the New Delhi slums" (According to the Russian translation, -Ed.)
Margarita Sumarokova
