"The Spirit Lives" recounts the author's struggle with the death of his young son and his subsequent journeying in search of stability and meaning. During his encounters with Christian monasticism, Balinese Hinduism, a variety of traditions in north India, Japanese Zen Buddhism, and Native Canadian religion, he experiences firsthand what Aboriginal people in Australia had been trying to teach him for more than a generation: The spirit lives. It sustains us. It moves us to our finest moments.