Following the terrorist attack in New York on September 11, Deepak Chopra addresses the feelings it caused in all of us: fear, the meaning of death and how to find your "higher self" under catastrophic circumstances. The sort of questions he asks are: is there a deep wound at the heart of humanity? Will revenge salve this wound or aggravate it? He also comments "if you and I are having a single thought of violence or hatred against anyone in the world at this moment, we are contributing to the wounding of the world."

Although this book has grown out of a tragedy that has affected us all, its spiritual message is also of general application in situations where one might be feeling extremely vulnerable, frighteningly angry, deeply sad and trying to make sense of a terrible situation.