The Soul Of A Butterfly

Description

In this poignant, deeply moving book, Muhammad Ali shares the beliefs he has come to live by and which he has passed on to his children. Some of the wisdom is his own; some comes from the teachings of true Islam, from his spiritual studies, and from people he has met in the course of his extraordinary life. Here, as he recalls his relatively impoverished early days as a young warrior in Louisville, Kentucky, and his meteoric rise to fame as Heavyweight Champion of the World, a title he won three times, he tells of the many battles he won and lost, both inside and outside the ring, his conversion to Islam in the 1960s and the many life lessons he learned along the way. Now, working tirelessly as a worldwide ambassador for peace, he talks of the damage caused when religion is used to tear people apart, the essential need for unity in this troubled world, and how his faith sustains him on this, the most important journey of his life - the journey to forgiveness and peace. Together with his daughter Hana, in this timely spiritual memoir (which includes a selection of exclusive photographs) All draws upon his rich reserve of notes, tapes and journals, and writes with compassion, warmth and, of course, humour on how we can liberate mind, body and spirit when we pursue and embrace the one essential truth - love. As he says, 'It is after I retired from boxing that my true work began. I have embarked on a journey to love.'

Muhammad Ali is the former three-time world heavyweight boxing champion.He and his wife, Lonnie, have established the Ali Center in Louisville, Kentucky, to preserve and share the legacy and ideals of Muhammad Ali.Hana Yasmeen Ali is the author of More Than a Hero.She lives in Michigan, near her father and stepmother.

It's not a book you meet every day... [It's] all about love. I was there in Atlanta when he lit the Olympic flame, and I felt the oceans of love washing towards him from America and the world... I have been at prize-fights where the very name Ali gets a bigger cheer than either contestant. Ali: the world's most beloved sportsman; perhaps the world's most beloved human... In his conversations with his daughter, he emerges as a person of almost Christlike nature: sweet, gently proud, remorseful. His apology to his greatest opponent, Joe Frazier, for past insults, is truly touching -- Simon Barnes * The Times * Besides Ali's love, readers will be struck by his remarkable faith... It's hard not to be moved by Ali's spirit * Publishers Weekly * The emphasis is not on Ali the warrior. His triumphs are touched on, but it is a softer side of the man that shows through... This book affirms the essential decency we always saw in the man * Library Journal * The noted boxer offers words of inspiration and reflection on his long career... There are insights here from Ali on his obstacles and heartbreaks, as well as his well-noted victories * Ebony * This is a motivational book in which Ali uses his life story to illustrate the importance of humanity, self-belief and love. It possesses humour and at times is also moving. Ali maintains an honesty, speaking for example about his regrets for turning his back on his friend Malcolm X in the 1960s, as well as his over-the-top verbal badgering of Joe Frazier * Sunday Times (South Africa) *