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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What disease did Archbishop Tutu have to go to a special hospital to be treated for when he was a child?

2. Which part of the brain do some researchers think gratitude stimulates?

3. On what date did the Dalai Lama remember that spontaneous protests began in Tibet in the 2000s?

4. Which of the following pillars of joy is a quality of the mind?

5. What position did Nelson Mandela hold when he was imprisoned on Robben Island?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Part III, what does the Dalai Lama say true arrogance is really an indication of?

2. In Part IV, what does Abrams identify as the Dalai Lama's and Archbishop Tutu's default approach to any subject, no matter how painful?

3. In Part III, what does the Dalai Lama say about his feelings about his own safety and security in Dharamsala?

4. In Part III, what does Abrams identify as two of the greatest sources of suffering in our lives?

5. In Part IV, what does Brother David Steindl-Rast say about the relationship between gratitude and happiness?

6. What decision regarding Archbishop Tutu's children created some tension and anguish between Tutu and his wife, Leah?

7. In Part III, what does Abrams's own father say after his terrible experience of traumatic brain injury?

8. In Part III, in what way does the Dalai Lama say he considers himself a student at 80 years old?

9. In Part IV, what does Abrams identify as the so-called first pillar of the heart, and why is it so important?

10. In Part IV, who is the person in Archbishop Tutu's life that has caused him some of the deepest personal pain and why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why do you think Abrams repeatedly compares animal behaviors to human behaviors when he explains some of the principles and teachings of both the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Tutu? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay analyzing Archbishop Tutu's feelings about his own relationship with his father. How does Tutu deal with his regret over his missed opportunity to speak with his father just before his father's death?

Essay Topic 3

How does analytical meditation, as the Dalai Lama explains it, differ from meditation in general? Write an essay explaining your answer, citing specific references to the text to support your conclusions.

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