An Unconventional Pursuit

Once a student of an Indian Guru, I recount my life-enriching experiences while practicing the teachings of an Eastern philosophy in a Western world.  I highlight the pitfalls and struggles, as well as the profoundly moving moments of connectedness with a higher consciousness.  It is written from the perspective of one who has left a spiritual path that once cradled her life, but that lives on in her heart and manifests in her life despite the separation.


The memoir begins with my spiritual quest as a teenager searching to fill an inner void.  I am pushed toward spirituality as I realize the emptiness of the material world.  Upon discovering the spiritual teacher, Sri Chinmoy, I describe the ensuing mental battle over accepting a Guru as my guide, turning to Yogananda’s book, Autobiography of a Yogi, for clarity.


I then recount the many inner experiences that unravel before me as I learn to meditate and discipline both mind and body.  I grapple with celibacy, being vegetarian, and transcending physical achievements as I strive for perfection on every level of my being.  The famous, like Carl Lewis and Carlos Santana, both students of Sri Chinmoy at the time, play a role in my life, as does a false teacher, from whose presence I learn how to discern who is fake and who is real.