For Byron Katie, the author of three self-help books, Loving What Is, I Need Your Love - Is That True? and A Thousand Names for Joy: Living in Harmony with the Way Things Are, even the most difficult challenges in life have a simple solution.
The Work, her popular self-help inquiry, is a set of four questions and a turnaround that involve focusing on oneself and on one's own mind, not on others.
Katie advocates taking control of fears and dealing with them, and she bases her teachings on what she describes as a 'background in pain' rather than formal studies in human psychology.
One morning in February of 1986, after struggling for years with depression, self-loathing and suicidal thoughts, Katie woke up to a simple realization: when she believed her thoughts, she suffered. When she didn't believe them, her suffering was alleviated.
She claims that the same is true for every human being, and that it this realization brings with a great sense of personal freedom.
"I've been to Israel before and to Gaza, but The Work is not religious or cultural," Katie says on a phone interview, just before another trip to Israel. "It has nothing to do with people's background or politics. It brings people from everywhere freedom and peace because it's an intelligent way of sorting out reality versus what we believe to be reality."
She caveats that it takes an open mind and lots of courage to do The Work despite being simple enough even for children.
In the weekend seminar, thousands of people congregate on the Tel Aviv University campus despite the sultry summer heat to watch and participate as The Work unfolds on a stage that Katie glibly refers to as 'her parlor.'
Seeing it in action does makeThe Work easier to understand, but putting it into practice may be another matter altogether.
"For those of you who are new to it, The Work is a way to identify the thoughts that cause all the suffering and pain in the world," says Katie in a voice as soft and smooth as chocolate. "It is a way to identify and question those thoughts. It's an end of the war the mind holds against itself."
It sounds great, but how does it work?
The first volunteer, a young woman, bravely takes the stage to find out.
"I am angry with Y because she is a liar and a cheater," she reads from the worksheet the participants had been given called 'Judge Your Neighbor.'
"Is it true?" asks Katie softly beneath the glare of spotlights and cameras and microphones.
"No," says the young woman sheepishly.
"Interesting," Katie says. "Where did this thought come from? How did you find it if in your heart you know Y is not a cheater? Has she ever cheated you?" asks Katie.
"Yes," she replies.
"So the answer could be yes or no. So can you absolutely know she's a cheater?" prods Katie gently.
"No," says the young woman, alternating glances between Katie and the white page in front of her.
"So how do you react when you believe that she is a cheater?" Katie asks.
"I want to break something. I think the world is a terrible place. All I see in front of me all day is masks, and I'm tired."
A long pause ensues before Katie asks the young woman to close her eyes and imagine a life without that thought. The young woman says that she would be happy, and without that thought, she would love Y.
"OK, now let's turn that thought around," Katie instructs.
"I am a cheater," she says hesitantly, following Katie's instructions.
When Katie asks for an example, the young woman explains that she cheated Y of knowing the truth when she pretended that things were ok with her when they were not. Of course, the other way to turn it around is for the young woman to say 'Y is not a cheater,' which she does next. "Y is honest because she says what she wants, and it's not fun for me because she doesn't always want what I want. For me, this is aggravating."
Katie nods, pausing for a moment before explaining that once we as humans begin to look at what we believe to be reality as the cause of our suffering, it empowers us to get rid of the thoughts that create our pain.
"Sweetheart, we don't have a choice about what other people think," says Katie gently. "The only thing standing between you and being a beautiful woman is yourself."
The idea that you cannot change others, only yourself, is not an innovate one. Nor is it an earth-shattering new psychological breakthrough. But actually putting it into practice through four, simple, guided questions can change your life.
"Life is kinder when we question what we believe," says Katie. "It's almost like being blind and deaf and dead and suddenly beginning to dance. It's the oddest miracle."
For more information, visit www.thework.com or check out the interview with Bryon Katie in our video page http://www.eolife.org/videos.php