Mediocre Monk
A Stumbling Search for Answers in a Forest Monastery
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Narrated by:
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Jon-Barett Ingels
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By:
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Grant Lindsley
About this listen
"I loved—and to a slightly uncomfortable degree related to—this book."
Charles Bethea, staff writer at The New Yorker
Funny, perceptive, and deeply personal, Mediocre Monk follows Grant Lindsley’s rocky journey toward spiritual growth—one that ultimately leads him to places he never imagined.
After the sudden death of a friend, Grant Lindsley abandons his corporate job to train as a monk in one of the strictest Buddhist traditions on earth. Lost and bereft, he believes he can find answers in the mountains of Thailand. He shaves his head and eyebrows, eats one bowl of food a day, and lives in a cave, his solitude punctuated by brushes with snakes, scorpions, and drug smugglers.
But Lindsley can’t transform himself into the profound guru he envisions—he’s hungry, restless, and lacking in the humility that monkhood requires. Eventually, he exhausts himself into moments of genuine growth, but not in the way he expects. Rather than transcending grief and becoming entirely self-reliant, he is surprised to find solace in allowing pain and reopening himself to community.
For anyone who has nurtured a fantasy of dropping out in search of answers, Mediocre Monk suggests a reality that is far more complicated—and rewarding.
©2023 Grant Lindsley (P)2023 Girl Friday BooksListeners also enjoyed...
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My Favorite Audiobook
- By Knucks on 01-06-10
By: Dan Millman
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Guesthouse for Ganesha
- A Novel
- By: Judith Teitelman
- Narrated by: Fajer Al-Kaisi, Soneela Nankani
- Length: 11 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1923, 17-year-old Esther arrives in Köln "with a hardened heart as her sole luggage.” Thus begins a 22-year journey, woven against the European Holocaust and the Hindu Kali Yuga (the “Age of Darkness” when human civilization degenerates spiritually), in search of a place of sanctuary. Throughout her travails, using cunning and shrewdness, Esther relies on her masterful tailoring skills to help mask her Jewish heritage, navigate war-torn Europe, and emigrate to India. Esther’s traveling companion and the novel’s narrator is Ganesha, the elephant-headed Hindu God....
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A captivating and thought-provoking journey
- By Victor @ theAudiobookBlog dot com on 03-16-21
By: Judith Teitelman
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Wide-Open World
- How Volunteering Around the Globe Changed One Family's Lives Forever
- By: John Marshall
- Narrated by: John Marshall
- Length: 12 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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John Marshall had read about the growth of voluntourism, and frankly, it was the only kind of extended trip he could afford. He'd heard that some peoples' lives were changed by a week of overseas service - what might half a year accomplish for his family? His wife, Traca, was all in favor of it; his kids, especially his 14-year-old daughter, were strongly opposed. Wide-Open World is the totally engaging, bluntly honest story of the Marshall family's life-changing adventure.
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I enjoyed every minute
- By Chris on 05-15-15
By: John Marshall
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My Midsummer Morning
- Rediscovering a Life of Adventure
- By: Alastair Humphreys
- Narrated by: Alastair Humphreys
- Length: 6 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1935 a young Englishman named Laurie Lee arrived in Spain. He had never been overseas. His idea was to walk through the country, earning money for food by playing his violin in bars and plazas. Nearly a century later, the book Laurie Lee wrote - As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning - inspired Alastair Humphreys. It made him fall in love with Spain - the landscapes and the spirit - and with Laurie's style of travel. Alastair dreamed of retracing Laurie Lee’s footsteps but could never get past the hurdle of being distinctly unmusical. This year, he decided to go anyway.
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Beautiful book, listen NOW! And get outside!
- By Rosalind Burns on 02-16-20
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Buddhaland Brooklyn
- A Novel
- By: Richard C. Morais
- Narrated by: Feodor Chin
- Length: 9 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Growing up in a quaint mountainside village in Japan, Seido Oda spent his boyhood fishing in clear mountainside streams and helping his parents run their small inn. At the age of 11, Oda is sent to study with the monks at a nearby Buddhist temple. This peaceful, quiet refuge in the remote mountains of Japan becomes home for the introverted monk - until he approaches his 40th birthday and is ordered by his superior to cross the ocean and open a temple in Brooklyn. Ripped from the isolated, serene life of his homeland temple, Oda receives a shock to his system in New York - a motley crew of American Buddhists with misguided practices.
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engaging listen
- By connie on 07-25-12
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The Art of Solitude
- By: Stephen Batchelor
- Narrated by: Stephen Batchelor
- Length: 5 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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When world renowned Buddhist writer Stephen Batchelor turned 60, he took a sabbatical from his teaching and turned his attention to solitude, a practice integral to the meditative traditions he has long studied and taught. He aimed to venture more deeply into solitude, discovering its full extent and depth. This beautiful literary collage documents his multifaceted explorations. In a hyperconnected world that is at the same time plagued by social isolation, this book shows how to enjoy the inescapable solitude that is at the heart of human life.
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Great idea, mediocre execution.
- By Darwin8u on 05-31-20
What listeners say about Mediocre Monk
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Anonymous User
- 04-15-24
Incredible Story
The book is an incredibly insightful narrative, truly an astonishing story told in the least pretentious way possible. The narration is also top notch and perfectly matches the author’s tone.
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