『Gracefully, Courageously』, a new book by Ken Wilber, founder of integral theory, has been published by Kim Young-sa. The book chronicles the years from the time his wife, Treya, was diagnosed with cancer until her death. It is both an account of her illness and a record of the spiritual practice the couple undertook as they faced it together. It is also the basis for the 2021 film 〈Grace and Grit〉. To mark the Korean release, the online book-club platform Gmeum will host a four-week read-along with readers beginning Sept. 7.
An exceptional book by Ken Wilber — an essay, not a theory text
Most of the Ken Wilber books available in Korea, including 『No Boundary』, 『Big Holiness』 and 『Integral Meditation』, are theoretical works addressing integral psychology, meditation and spirituality. His books are also known for being difficult. This one is different. It is an essay in which the author opens up about his own life.
Ken and Treya met in their 30s and married soon afterward. Their married life of treatment and caregiving began almost as soon as they started their life together, when Treya was diagnosed with advanced cancer. The book follows those five years. It captures not only the time they spent trusting and relying on each other, but also the moments when they grew irritated with one another.
A structure alternating between Ken’s writing and Treya’s journals
The format is distinctive, too. Ken Wilber’s account alternates with journals, letters and interviews Treya left behind. It was the author’s choice, intended to let his wife’s voice come through as it was.
The day of Treya’s cancer diagnosis is preserved in both voices. Treya wrote that her body seemed to freeze when she was told the tumor was malignant, and that she could not even cry. Ken recorded the moment he went into an empty room and locked the door because he did not want his wife to see him crying. He wrote that he feared he would completely collapse if he started.
The book also recounts what cancer patients need, which words can cause pain and what difficulties caregivers face. It includes anecdotes from the couple’s interactions with intellectuals, religious figures, scientists and healers of the time.
A perspective that distinguishes between “disease” and “illness”
The book consists of 22 chapters, including “Disease, Illness and the Meanings Imposed Upon Them,” “The Problem of Balance,” “The Inner Universe,” “Letting Go of Body and Mind,” “Who Am I?,” “Psychotherapy and Spirituality” and “What Is Genuine Help?”
Wilber distinguishes here between disease and illness and challenges the meanings society imposes on the suffering patients experience. The book also reveals his views on religion. He explains that surface religion, which says people must take myths literally to be saved, and depth religion, which is mystical and experiential, occupy different levels.
Tibetan Buddhist tonglen practice also receives significant attention. Wilber explains that the practice of giving oneself over and accepting the suffering of others weakens the duality between subject and object. Once a person reaches the point of taking on suffering, he says, the distinction between self and other also collapses. Another feature of the book is the way his theory of spirituality unfolds in conversational prose.
“A deep and harrowing gaze at life and death”
The book also drew praise. M. Scott Peck, author of 『The Road Less Traveled』, described it as a meditation on life and death, love and the new birth of the soul. Publishers Weekly, a U.S. publishing trade magazine, said Wilber presents cancer as an opportunity to confront himself and grow — a “healing crisis.”
Joan Borysenko, who founded the Mind-Body Medicine Clinic at Harvard Medical School, said Treya’s journals blend precisely with Ken’s writing and convey her candor and vitality intact. Tricycle, a Buddhist publication, named it a must-read for cancer patients and those who stand by them.
Ken Wilber, founder of integral theory
Ken Wilber is a leading thinker in transpersonal and integral psychology. While studying medicine and biochemistry, he read Laozi’s 『Tao Te Ching』 and shifted his focus toward Eastern and Western thought on psychology, religion and spirituality. His first book, 『The Spectrum of Consciousness』, which he wrote at 23, is regarded as a work that changed the paradigm for studying human consciousness.
He later developed an integral theory of the development and evolution of human consciousness in roughly 25 books. He is also a longtime practitioner of Zen and Tibetan Buddhist disciplines, the founder of the Integral Institute and a co-founder of Integral Life.
A four-week read-along led by the editor in charge
Gmeum’s “read together” program will run for four weeks, from Sept. 7 through Oct. 4. The reading is divided by week: Chapters 1-5 in Week 1, Chapters 6-10 in Week 2, Chapters 11-15 in Week 3 and Chapters 16-22 in Week 4.
The group host will post questions and discussion topics two or three times a week, and participants will share memorable passages and their reactions. The editor in charge of producing 『Gracefully, Courageously』 will serve as host and answer questions about how the book was made. Participants who remain engaged throughout will receive a certificate of completion from Gmeum.
Books will be given away by lottery to 10 applicants, and people can still join the group even if they are not selected. Those who do not receive a book can participate, as can people who join after the program begins.
Registration: https://www.gmeum.com/gather/detail/3880
▶Apply for a giveaway book (10 winners selected by lottery)
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdwhtNIUaI2Q_EGhCYxf8PPLAmgCW8NxDg6kXKJC5pIv_FI7g/viewform?usp=publish-editor
▶More book information
https://product.kyobobook.co.kr/detail/S000221047870