by Nicole Yurcaba
Sometimes readers discover a book that’s brief, concise, and, surprisingly, everything they need. While The Billionaire and the Monk: An Inspirational Story about Finding Extraordinary Happiness at first seems like another self-help book, it is not. What readers discover in Vibhor Kumar Singh’s first book is the unique story of two men from vastly different walks of life who have one common pursuit–that of happiness. Not only does The Billionaire and The Monk remind readers that sometimes the smallest packages carry the gift, it also challenges modern-day thinking about what humans truly require to be happy.
One of the most honest messages The Billionaire and The Monk conveys is that regarding minimalism. While the modern world advocates consumerism, branding, and materialism as the ultimate way to happiness and the sincerest form of self-expression, the novel takes a different, refreshing approach. The Monk tells The Billionaire, “‘Our fear and insecurity are the most significant reasons we are reluctant to embrace minimalism.’” The Monk reiterates to The Billionaire that many fear rejecting minimalism because they “feel society will look down on us, our social standing will get dented, and our ambition and dreams will die.” What might surprise readers is how practical and easily applicable The Monk’s insightful, philosophical advice truly is. The Monk reminds readers that minimalism is not a “total renunciation” and that it applies to “both…physical and emotional baggage.” The Monk also encourages the idea that “Minimalism is gentle on the planet. Practicing minimalism is our way of contributing.” These gentle nudges remind readers that their actions do affect not only others, but also the environments around them.
Another positive element the book incorporates is that of goal-setting. “‘Define your goals’” becomes a key element in the book. Again, it’s The Monk educating The Billionaire and readers about the “essential step toward happiness” that requires bringing “focus to your thoughts.” The Monk provides an outline that helps readers narrow their focus. It’s a practice that ideally ties in well with The Monk’s discussion of minimalism, and it incorporates the importance of list-making and journaling in order to reach not only self-awareness, but also using one’s focus to determine their pathway.
As The Monk helps The Billionaire discover his pathway, The Monk and The Billionaire helps readers understand the importance of self-determination in a society that frequently demands conformity. This conversation fully opens in The Monk and The Billionaire’s discussion about meditation. It begins with the statement, “Harmony is a passive vocabulary word and rarely used as a part of one’s active vocabulary.” The Billionaire states, “‘For some people, yoga is meditation, whereas for some, even a walk in the garden is meditation. For some, chanting is meditation, whereas for some, listening to Kishore Kumar’s melodies is also meditation.’” However, it’s a smaller tidbit that prompts readers to remember that their path is ultimately their own, and how they arrive there and travel on it is theirs too: “‘Don’t bother how anyone else wants you to meditate; you alone know what works for you.’” The message is twofold, however: not only is it important to maintain identity and individuality in the face of conformity, but it is also imperative to find that one peaceful activity that allows one to recenter during a day’s hectic rotation.
The Billionaire and The Monk is filled with a plethora of wise, quotable insights. Along with its ideas about meditation, re-centering, and finding one’s own pathway to happiness, it harbors other brief moments of reflection. One of the most memorable reminds readers that a life devoid of screens and noise bombardment is a life of tranquility: “Happiness and beauty are sometimes best enjoyed in lonely silence.” This idea parallels the novel’s earlier conversations about minimalism and meditation, and it again reminds readers of the value of those few, desperately needed quiet moments that seem intangible at times. More importantly, The Monk and The Billionaire let readers know that it’s not impossible to make these moments a significant part of their day.
The book concludes with another unique element–a letter from the author. In this letter, Singh writes, “Somewhere on this journey, I realized that the beauty of life lies in the contradictions it offers. Often the right decisions yield the wrong consequences and vice versa.” It’s an insight worth remembering, one worth copying down and taping to one’s desk. However, that’s part of The Billionaire and The Monk’s charm–it’s a work that readers will find themselves keeping close at hand, on a nightstand or on their desks, for those days when clock’s hands move too swiftly and the screens glare too brightly.
Nicole Yurcaba (Ukrainian: Нікола Юрцаба) is a Ukrainian-American poet and essayist. Her poems and essays have appeared in The Atlanta Review, The Lindenwood Review, Whiskey Island, Raven Chronicles, Appalachian Heritage, North of Oxford, and many other online and print journals. Nicole holds an MFA in Writing from Lindenwood University, is the recipient of a July 2020 Writing Residency at Gullkistan, Creative Center for the Arts in Iceland, and is a Tupelo Press June 2020 30 for 30 featured poet. Her poetry collection Triskaidekaphobia is forthcoming Black Spring Group in 2022. She teaches poetry workshops for Southern New Hampshire University and works as a career counselor for Blue Ridge Community College.
