This string of 108 tales is further divided into three sections about Italy, India and Indonesia-the three countries I visited during this year of self-inquiry.

Being as this whole book is about my efforts to find balance, I have decided to structure it like a japa mala, dividing my story into 108 tales, or beads. And three, of course, is the number representing supreme balance, as anyone who has ever studied either the Holy Trinity or a simple barstool can plainly see. Amid the more esoteric circles of Eastern philosophers, the number 108 is held to be most auspicious, a perfect three-digit multiple of three, its components adding up to nine, which is three threes. The traditional japa mala is strung with 108 beads. When the medieval Crusaders drove East for the holy wars, they witnessed worshippers praying with these japa malas, admired the technique, and brought the idea home to Europe as rosary. The necklace is held in one hand and fingered in a circle-one bead touched for every repetition of mantra. They have been used in India for centuries to assist devout Hindus and Buddhists in staying focused during prayerful meditation. These strings of beads are called japa malas. You also see a lot of old photographs of naked, skinny and intimidating Yogis (or sometimes even plump, kindly and radiant Yogis) wearing beads, too. W hen youвЂ™re traveling in India-especially through holy sites and Ashrams-you see a lot of people wearing beads around their necks. Your support of the authorвЂ™s rights is appreciated. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrightable materials. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book. Set in Italian Garamond with Tagliente Display LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING IN PUBLICATION DATAД®at, pray, love: one womanвЂ™s search for everything across Italy, India and Indonesia / Elizabeth Gilbert p. Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, EnglandДЇirst published in 2006 by Viking Penguin, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa Penguin Group (NZ), Cnr Airborne and Rosedale Roads, Albany, Auckland 1310, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd) Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi вЂ“ 110 017, India

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