---
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title: "Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time"
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---

# Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time

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The astonishing, uplifting story of a real-life Indiana Jones and his humanitarian campaign to use education to combat terrorism in the Taliban’s backyard Anyone who despairs of the individual’s power to change lives has to read the story of Greg Mortenson, a homeless mountaineer who, following a 1993 climb of Pakistan’s treacherous K2, was inspired by a chance encounter with impoverished mountain villagers and promised to build them a school. Over the next decade he built fifty-five schools—especially for girls—that offer a balanced education in one of the most isolated and dangerous regions on earth. As it chronicles Mortenson’s quest, which has brought him into conflict with both enraged Islamists and uncomprehending Americans, Three Cups of Tea combines adventure with a celebration of the humanitarian spirit.

Review: Lessons in the art of drinking tea... - A remarkable book that should be read by all Americans. Some of the criticism and quibbles concerning the book and Mortenson are justified, and you sense that the authors would agree with some, yet they are dwarfed by only a few of the "take-aways." Here is a man whose passion was mountain-climbing, and he tackled one of the very hardest in the world, K-2. Serendipity, coupled with exhaustion, lead him into an unlikely village, where the warmest care and hospitality was given to this stranger. Suddenly his eyes were opened to more than mountain peaks; he saw what had always been around him--the lives of those who did the grunt work that got so many mountaineers to the top. He decided to repay the hospitality with more than words, by giving the village of Korphe something desperately wanted and needed--a school for its children. It was a $12,000 promise that he kept. To fulfill that promise he had to master a learning curve in business and social relations as steep as many of the mountains he climbed. He quotes from Helena Norberg-Hodge's "Ancient Futures": "but that industrialized countries had lessons to learn from people like Ladakhis about building suitable societies." Yes, learning is a two way street when cultures meet, in contrast to a prevailing attitude of all too many Americans abroad that "you'll become a better person if you become more like me." Sometimes that takes the form of: "We're just here to help you by bringing you Democracy... as long as you vote the right way." In the chapter appropriately entitled "Haji Ali's Lesson" Mortenson internalizes Norberg-Hodge's dictum after Haji Ali's rebuke: "Doctor Greg, you must make time to share three cups of tea. We may be uneducated. But we are not stupid. We have lived and survived here for a long time." Hence the book's title, and I think Relin did a brilliant and understated juxtaposition of this outlook with that of the insufferable Rumsfeld, who would not even offer Mortenson a seat during their brief meeting in his office. Mortenson also had the insight to convey the image of the hoard of earnest young men in the Pentagon, clutching their laptops, avoiding eye-contact, as they scurried from one office to the next. No doubt the numbers on those laptops were as fanciful as that other hoard on Wall Street who were, until very recently, trading collateralized debt obligations (CDO's). The portrait of Syed Abbas, a conservative, bearded Shia cleric, in the "Red Velvet Box" chapter was quite valuable. I have a sense of unease when I see a beard on a Muslim, and the wilder looking it is, the deeper the unease, knowing that it is a reflection of their "fundamentalism." Abbas was conservative, yes, but in a good sense of the word, and deeply cared for the well-being of the people in his area, and was not so rigid about non-believers that he could not see the good that Mortenson was doing. There are many Abbas's in the Islamic world. One of Mortenson's greatest achievements was appealing to Islamic courts, not once, but twice, concerning fatwas that had been issued against him, and in both cases the courts upheld him. A rule of law that we could learn some lessons from. I liked the choice of chapter epigraphs, particularly the two, back to back, for chapters 19 and 20. One was graffiti spray-painted on the courtyard of the Korphe school: "The time of arithmetic and poetry is past. Nowadays, my brothers, take our lessons from the Kalashnikov and the rocket-propelled grenade." The second was from a bumper sticker seen in his hometown of Bozeman, Montana: "Nuke `em All--Let Allah Sort Them Out." The intolerance, and mindless combativeness of each side. I read all the 1 and 2 star reviews. What were these people's complaints? There were the factual errors of the reviewers, for example, the claim that he spent a million dollars to build one school. Several thought that Relin's rhetorical flourishes were overdone. Occasionally they were, but these reviewers would have been giving James Joyce and Marcel Proust minus 5 stars. Some thought Mortenson was "anti-American"! But what sentient American patriot would not be critical of so much of American domestic and foreign policy over the last 8 years? Others saw the flaw, as did Haji Ali, that Mortenson was a micro-manager who could not delegate. It was one that he saw himself, leading to adjustments with a Board and even a Bozeman staff. Others complained about the editing - true enough - but that seems to be SOP for the big publishing houses - there is a spelling mistake that "Spell Check" would have caught on page 272. But by using these quibbles to trash the entire book, well, I thought of a paraphrase from a Paul Simon song: "... and their bookmarks measured what they lost." Based on the financial information posted on the Central Asia Institute's website, for the latest fiscal year, ending in Sept. '07, they had income of only three and a half million dollars. He has done a remarkable job with an amount that would be a rounding error on a new Pentagon weapon's system. If he was given three additional zeros, yes, three billion dollars, would he be able to handle it? Probably not, but I might give him a 40% chance that he could. Consider that the American taxpayer (and their children's children) have given one US Bank - Citicorp, at least 50 billion dollars, and what do they have to show for it? Schools are not the sole answer to conflict resolution - the ultimate proof is the departing President, "educated," or at least graduated from, two of the finest educational institutions in the United States, including the very coveted Harvard MBA. But schools are much more a step in the right direction than yet more weapons systems. Clean water, sufficient food, and a lack of bombs falling on one's head also helps, something that Mortenson clearly recognizes. There are many other valuable insights and lessons in this wonderful book that should be read for years to come.
Review: hard to beleive, amzing real time story of achievement - Following the Munich Massacre Jean-Paul Sartre said: terrorism is terrible weapon, but oppressed poor have no others... Greg Mortenson discovered one 21 years later called Education. Some suggested that one day he will receive Nobel Prize. I believe he will be better off without one. Rather to be in the company of Mahatma Gandhi, who was ignored by the organizers of this prestigious forum or follow the path of Le Duc Tho, the Vietnamese leader who declined to receive one, because there was no peace in his country than to lump him together with the controversial recipients like Henry Kissinger, Anwar Sadaat, Menachem Begin, Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin. When my daughter recommended three cups of tea to me, I was skeptic. I told her he is another American humanitarian who wants to be famous and make some money with this book. I was totally wrong and now I feel ashamed to have rushed to the judgment before reading the book. Greg was sincere in his promise he made to the forgotten people of the mountains. After finishing reading the book I feel as if I was awoken from a dream I wanted it to last forever. But it was not a dream it was real, what Greg continues to do is amazing. He is not a specialist in any fields or any authority what so ever. He is just an achiever. This book is a must read. Everyone who truly believes in peace and eradication of ignorance and poverty with the weapon of education cannot ignore reading this book and supporting his mission. He has a long way to go, he has built fifty schools so far in ten years, which is a drop in the ocean, but as Mother Teresa once said: What we are trying to do may be just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop. When he returned to village of Korphe after raising money in USA for the school he had a shock of his life when the elders of the village told him: we do not want school for children we want the bridge over the river, so the kids from other side of the river could cross to the school. Similarly, in another village the school funds were diverted to dig a well to provide clean water to the village, on the advice of the religious leader of the region, so the children could live longer to be able to attend the school. On another occasion you will encounter elders of two villages competing over the funds to start school in their own village. When a greedy mullah of one the neighboring villages passed a fatwa against an infidel building a school for girls, Greg was fully supported by the Supreme Council of Qom, Iran by overruling the fatwa of ignorant and greedy local mullah in these words: Dear compassionate of the poor, our holy Quran tells us all children should receive education, including our daughters and sisters. Your noble work follows the highest principles of Islam, to tend to the poor and sick...... We direct all clerics in Pakistan to not interfere with your noble intentions. You have our permission, blessings, and prayers." At the time of 9/11 he was in the mountains getting ready to inaugurate another school. At the ceremony the religious leader of the region addressed the gathering: Today is the day that you children will remember forever and tell your children and grandchildren. Today, from the darkness of illiteracy, the light of education shines bright. We share in the sorrow as people weep and suffer in America today, as we inaugurate this school. Those who have committed this evil act against the innocent, the women and children, to create thousands of widows and orphans do not do so in the name of Islam. By the grace of Allah the Almighty, may justice be served upon them. For this tragedy, I humbly ask Mr. George and Dr. Greg for their forgiveness.... My brothers: protect and embrace these two American brothers in our midst... these two Christian men have come halfway around the world to show our Muslim children the light of education... I request America to look into our hearts and see great majority is not terrorist, but good and simple people. Our land is stricken with poverty because we are without education. But today, another candle of knowledge has lit..." I am sure this book will change the misconception of many about Islam and the Muslims, and I firmly believe that if the government follows the advice of Philadelphia Enquirer, who had suggested the book for the policy makers, would not have to spend billions of dollars in weapons and ammunition to fight the terrorists.

## Features

- Condition: New

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #119,244 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #8 in Non-Governmental Organization Policy #12 in Pakistan History #26 in Historical India & South Asia Biographies |
| Customer Reviews | 4.4 out of 5 stars 4,259 Reviews |

## Images

![Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81FTg0d32xL.jpg)

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## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Lessons in the art of drinking tea...
*by J***I on January 16, 2009*

A remarkable book that should be read by all Americans. Some of the criticism and quibbles concerning the book and Mortenson are justified, and you sense that the authors would agree with some, yet they are dwarfed by only a few of the "take-aways." Here is a man whose passion was mountain-climbing, and he tackled one of the very hardest in the world, K-2. Serendipity, coupled with exhaustion, lead him into an unlikely village, where the warmest care and hospitality was given to this stranger. Suddenly his eyes were opened to more than mountain peaks; he saw what had always been around him--the lives of those who did the grunt work that got so many mountaineers to the top. He decided to repay the hospitality with more than words, by giving the village of Korphe something desperately wanted and needed--a school for its children. It was a $12,000 promise that he kept. To fulfill that promise he had to master a learning curve in business and social relations as steep as many of the mountains he climbed. He quotes from Helena Norberg-Hodge's "Ancient Futures": "but that industrialized countries had lessons to learn from people like Ladakhis about building suitable societies." Yes, learning is a two way street when cultures meet, in contrast to a prevailing attitude of all too many Americans abroad that "you'll become a better person if you become more like me." Sometimes that takes the form of: "We're just here to help you by bringing you Democracy... as long as you vote the right way." In the chapter appropriately entitled "Haji Ali's Lesson" Mortenson internalizes Norberg-Hodge's dictum after Haji Ali's rebuke: "Doctor Greg, you must make time to share three cups of tea. We may be uneducated. But we are not stupid. We have lived and survived here for a long time." Hence the book's title, and I think Relin did a brilliant and understated juxtaposition of this outlook with that of the insufferable Rumsfeld, who would not even offer Mortenson a seat during their brief meeting in his office. Mortenson also had the insight to convey the image of the hoard of earnest young men in the Pentagon, clutching their laptops, avoiding eye-contact, as they scurried from one office to the next. No doubt the numbers on those laptops were as fanciful as that other hoard on Wall Street who were, until very recently, trading collateralized debt obligations (CDO's). The portrait of Syed Abbas, a conservative, bearded Shia cleric, in the "Red Velvet Box" chapter was quite valuable. I have a sense of unease when I see a beard on a Muslim, and the wilder looking it is, the deeper the unease, knowing that it is a reflection of their "fundamentalism." Abbas was conservative, yes, but in a good sense of the word, and deeply cared for the well-being of the people in his area, and was not so rigid about non-believers that he could not see the good that Mortenson was doing. There are many Abbas's in the Islamic world. One of Mortenson's greatest achievements was appealing to Islamic courts, not once, but twice, concerning fatwas that had been issued against him, and in both cases the courts upheld him. A rule of law that we could learn some lessons from. I liked the choice of chapter epigraphs, particularly the two, back to back, for chapters 19 and 20. One was graffiti spray-painted on the courtyard of the Korphe school: "The time of arithmetic and poetry is past. Nowadays, my brothers, take our lessons from the Kalashnikov and the rocket-propelled grenade." The second was from a bumper sticker seen in his hometown of Bozeman, Montana: "Nuke `em All--Let Allah Sort Them Out." The intolerance, and mindless combativeness of each side. I read all the 1 and 2 star reviews. What were these people's complaints? There were the factual errors of the reviewers, for example, the claim that he spent a million dollars to build one school. Several thought that Relin's rhetorical flourishes were overdone. Occasionally they were, but these reviewers would have been giving James Joyce and Marcel Proust minus 5 stars. Some thought Mortenson was "anti-American"! But what sentient American patriot would not be critical of so much of American domestic and foreign policy over the last 8 years? Others saw the flaw, as did Haji Ali, that Mortenson was a micro-manager who could not delegate. It was one that he saw himself, leading to adjustments with a Board and even a Bozeman staff. Others complained about the editing - true enough - but that seems to be SOP for the big publishing houses - there is a spelling mistake that "Spell Check" would have caught on page 272. But by using these quibbles to trash the entire book, well, I thought of a paraphrase from a Paul Simon song: "... and their bookmarks measured what they lost." Based on the financial information posted on the Central Asia Institute's website, for the latest fiscal year, ending in Sept. '07, they had income of only three and a half million dollars. He has done a remarkable job with an amount that would be a rounding error on a new Pentagon weapon's system. If he was given three additional zeros, yes, three billion dollars, would he be able to handle it? Probably not, but I might give him a 40% chance that he could. Consider that the American taxpayer (and their children's children) have given one US Bank - Citicorp, at least 50 billion dollars, and what do they have to show for it? Schools are not the sole answer to conflict resolution - the ultimate proof is the departing President, "educated," or at least graduated from, two of the finest educational institutions in the United States, including the very coveted Harvard MBA. But schools are much more a step in the right direction than yet more weapons systems. Clean water, sufficient food, and a lack of bombs falling on one's head also helps, something that Mortenson clearly recognizes. There are many other valuable insights and lessons in this wonderful book that should be read for years to come.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ hard to beleive, amzing real time story of achievement
*by N***P on January 7, 2008*

Following the Munich Massacre Jean-Paul Sartre said: terrorism is terrible weapon, but oppressed poor have no others... Greg Mortenson discovered one 21 years later called Education. Some suggested that one day he will receive Nobel Prize. I believe he will be better off without one. Rather to be in the company of Mahatma Gandhi, who was ignored by the organizers of this prestigious forum or follow the path of Le Duc Tho, the Vietnamese leader who declined to receive one, because there was no peace in his country than to lump him together with the controversial recipients like Henry Kissinger, Anwar Sadaat, Menachem Begin, Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin. When my daughter recommended three cups of tea to me, I was skeptic. I told her he is another American humanitarian who wants to be famous and make some money with this book. I was totally wrong and now I feel ashamed to have rushed to the judgment before reading the book. Greg was sincere in his promise he made to the forgotten people of the mountains. After finishing reading the book I feel as if I was awoken from a dream I wanted it to last forever. But it was not a dream it was real, what Greg continues to do is amazing. He is not a specialist in any fields or any authority what so ever. He is just an achiever. This book is a must read. Everyone who truly believes in peace and eradication of ignorance and poverty with the weapon of education cannot ignore reading this book and supporting his mission. He has a long way to go, he has built fifty schools so far in ten years, which is a drop in the ocean, but as Mother Teresa once said: What we are trying to do may be just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop. When he returned to village of Korphe after raising money in USA for the school he had a shock of his life when the elders of the village told him: we do not want school for children we want the bridge over the river, so the kids from other side of the river could cross to the school. Similarly, in another village the school funds were diverted to dig a well to provide clean water to the village, on the advice of the religious leader of the region, so the children could live longer to be able to attend the school. On another occasion you will encounter elders of two villages competing over the funds to start school in their own village. When a greedy mullah of one the neighboring villages passed a fatwa against an infidel building a school for girls, Greg was fully supported by the Supreme Council of Qom, Iran by overruling the fatwa of ignorant and greedy local mullah in these words: Dear compassionate of the poor, our holy Quran tells us all children should receive education, including our daughters and sisters. Your noble work follows the highest principles of Islam, to tend to the poor and sick...... We direct all clerics in Pakistan to not interfere with your noble intentions. You have our permission, blessings, and prayers." At the time of 9/11 he was in the mountains getting ready to inaugurate another school. At the ceremony the religious leader of the region addressed the gathering: Today is the day that you children will remember forever and tell your children and grandchildren. Today, from the darkness of illiteracy, the light of education shines bright. We share in the sorrow as people weep and suffer in America today, as we inaugurate this school. Those who have committed this evil act against the innocent, the women and children, to create thousands of widows and orphans do not do so in the name of Islam. By the grace of Allah the Almighty, may justice be served upon them. For this tragedy, I humbly ask Mr. George and Dr. Greg for their forgiveness.... My brothers: protect and embrace these two American brothers in our midst... these two Christian men have come halfway around the world to show our Muslim children the light of education... I request America to look into our hearts and see great majority is not terrorist, but good and simple people. Our land is stricken with poverty because we are without education. But today, another candle of knowledge has lit..." I am sure this book will change the misconception of many about Islam and the Muslims, and I firmly believe that if the government follows the advice of Philadelphia Enquirer, who had suggested the book for the policy makers, would not have to spend billions of dollars in weapons and ammunition to fight the terrorists.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ A Cup of Kindness
*by K***H on February 24, 2008*

David Oliver Relin's "Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace...One School at a Time," embodies the universal message of `Peace on Earth' in a gripping, true story as big and rugged, as splendid and awe-inspiring as the Karakoram mountains of North Western Pakistan, where much of the action takes place. Raised in Tanzania, the son of missionaries and teachers who "inspired the humanitarian adventure that shaped [his] life," American Greg Mortenson in l993 decided to honor his deceased sister's memory by climbing to the summit of Pakistan's K2 - the second highest mountain in the world. An experienced mountaineer and trained nurse, he uncharacteristically lost his way, and stumbled into the village of Korphe where he was nursed back to health by the caring and hospitable peoples of Pakistan's Balti region. When he later discovers a circle of Korphe children sitting in the cold , "scratching at their lessons in the dirt with sticks," he realizes he can honor his sister's memory in a more meaningful way, and repay the villagers' kindness at the same time, by building them a school. That promise and commitment sets him on a `path with heart' that would dramatically alter his life, and forever benefit thousands of families from the other side of the world. Mission Impossible? As Relin tells it, the arduous and daring exploits following that decision sound at times like the preposterous script of a movie super-hero - from Mortenson's 8 terrifying days in a Taliban prison to his desperate attempts to raise money (580 letters to stars like Oprah Winfrey) while working in a San Francisco Medical Center and living in his car. Yet his experiences more than justify the description. Until he builds a bridge in Korphe, for example, Mortenson clutches a steel cable connected to a box of scrap lumber to pull his large frame across a death-defying gorge above the Baldu River. He sleeps on rooftops, on sacks of rice, and in filthy, rat-infested corners. He suffers long absences from his wife and children, fights fatwas in foreign courts and despite years of extreme deprivation and seemingly hopeless fund-raising efforts, feels "strangely content." He consistently eats, drinks, smells, and wears things that would fell most of us within a few days (just the aroma of Paiyu cha tea "is stinkier than the most frightening cheese the French ever invented.") He masters Balti, Urdu, Pashto and other languages in order to communicate with his new friends. And he manages to bring together Sunnis, Shiites, Pashtuns, Taliban and traditional rival factions in the common cause of educating their children. For over 10 years now, Mortenson and his Montana-based Central Asia Institute have been building schools (currently 58) in the most remote and impoverished regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. They are educating 24,000 children, and believe that in doing so, they are literally laying the foundations for peace. You change a culture by educating the girls who stay home and become leaders in their communities, Mortenson believes, and also by providing schools as alternatives to the Saudi-funded terrorist-breeding madrassas. Mortenson passionately asserts that he builds schools first and foremost because he sees his own children in the eyes of children everywhere. But, he also argues, "We need to understand that [the war on terror] is a war that will ultimately be won with books, not with bombs." Oliver David Relin's chronicle is spreading Mortenson's message, and helping readers to understand both the man and his humanitarian mission. Relin is, for the most part, an engaging narrator, often beautifully poetic. However, a little judicious editing would have spared me the avalanche of names, places, historical facts and details that at times threaten to bury the story. Raising a Cup of Kindness "Three Cups of Tea" is a deeply affectionate portrayal of misunderstood tribal peoples remote from us in geography, but bound by a common humanity. In reading it, the promise of Peace on Earth seems as inevitable as the 3 cups of tea the Pakistanis and Afghanis drink to do business: "the first you are a stranger, the second you become a friend, and the third, you join our family, and for our family we are prepared to do anything - even die." According to Haji Ali, Korphe Village Chief. Revered in Central Asia and now in America as well, Greg Mortenson is replenishing the coffers of `Good Will Toward All' that this season celebrates, and on which the future of our world depends.

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