The Spirit of the Muse is an illuminating series of intimate conversations with some of the greatest contemporary classical performers, artists and writers. Presented in this unique collection are rare insights into the creative process and responses to questions such as: Does great personal suffering help produce great art? What are the internal processes that precede the surrender to the moment(s) of creativity? How does one balance the imperatives of structure with spontaneity? What is the role of an audience for an artist? How does he or she respond to critics and criticism? Is it useful to be a "good" human being to be a "good" artist? Does the creation of an enduring work of art compensate for a fear of mortality? Ranged in the book are musicians such as Pandit Ravi Shankar and Yehudi Menuhin together, Zubin Mehta and L. Subramaniam; painters Satish Gujral and Anjolie Ela Menon; sculptors Amarnath Sehgal and K. S. Radhakrishnan; dancers Leela Samson and Mrinalini Sarabhai; filmmakers Adoor Gopalakrishnan and Mrinal Sen; playwright Habib Tanvir; poet Gulzar; and writers Mahasweta Devi and Indira Goswami.