Lila’s Dance follows a young Carthusian monk whose discovery of a secret letter leads him to question Church doctrine and, after being sent to St. Kitts, develop a transformative relationship with a woman shaped by religious persecution and Indian philosophy. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

The inspiration came from three distinct sources. First, as a life-long meditator, I have wanted to share my inner path experiences with others. But I am not a Guru, and a non-fiction “this is how you do it” book didn’t seem right. The idea was to weave it with some kind of fictional narrative that would be fun as well as informative.

Second, I was inspired by the documentary movie Into Great Silence (cited in the Afterword) about monks living in silence at the Grand Chartreuse Monastery in the French Alps. What is the inner experience and how does it compare to my own? These were questions worth exploring.

Third, while on our annual holiday on the Caribbean island of Nevis, I came across a set of books written by a British ex-pat who had lived on the island in which he recorded the history of Nevis and its sister island, St. Kitts. One short paragraph briefly described an incident where a St. Kitts’ priest who was asked to convert the French governor’s Huguenot daughter to Catholicism instead eloped with her to Protestant Nevis and married her. This was certainly a story that had to be told.

What attracted you to Lila as a character, particularly her background as the daughter of a Huguenot mother and a Catholic scholar interested in Indian philosophy?

When writing Lila, I wanted to maintain a balance between the masculine and feminine perspectives. Having grown up with four sisters, I have always enjoyed appreciated the company of strong women. It was important to me that I fully develop Lila’s character and that it be a strong one.

As noted in the Introduction, “lila” in Sanskrit means “play” as in the “play of consciousness.” Early on, I saw Lila as the “Krishna” to Sebastian’s “Rama” in the Bhagavad Gita. Being an historical novel, Lila required adherence to a specific timeline and actual events that occurred during that timeline. I also needed a vehicle for showing how the principles of eastern mysticism apply to all seekers on the inner path regardless of cultural or religious background. While researching the history of France and the Huguenot movement at the end of the 17th century, I found Pondicherry which fit perfectly in the timeline and provided the connection to eastern mysticism. From there, Lila’s character began to write itself. I didn’t write the last chapter, “Eternal Dance,” until the final draft because I felt I needed to emphasize the importance of Lila’s inner journey as well as that of Sebastian.

How did you balance the novel’s philosophical and metaphysical ideas with its historical-adventure elements?

It has become increasingly apparent to me that the difference between the inner world and the outer, physical world, is an illusion created by our concept of separateness. We are all searching, in one way or another, for the divine. The mystic will tell us to reach our goal we must lose the idea that we are separate from the divine. To do this we must become detached from our ego, not lose our self-identity, but not be driven by it. And we must come to understand how we create our world through the power of our consciousness.

Sebastian learns of these goals through his inner journey, but he seems to make the most progress toward achieving them while on his outer journey. In Lila, I was not concerned with balancing mystical philosophy with historical adventure, but instead was focused on blending them together and losing the distinction between them. “Nothing exists that is not Shiva” sounds abstract and incomprehensible, but it is a simple and practical mantra. There is nothing that is not spiritual, that simply living your life is as spiritual as spending it in silence in an Alpine monastery. It is a plain truth you cannot avoid.

What do you hope readers will continue thinking about after they finish Lila’s Dance?

The world at the end of the 17th century was as messed up as it is today. Love, devotion, and righteousness were how we survived it then and how we will survive it today.

The metaphysical principles are universal – detach from self-identity, accept your oneness with the divine, and understand the power of consciousness.

Though the inner journey may be a most useful and wondrous path, the outer journey is no less important and wonderful in our quest for the divine.

Putting all the metaphysical philosophy aside, Lila’s Dance is simply a fun read.

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