The Journey Home: Autobiography of an American Swami

This is one of the most amazing books I have ever read. And to think that it’s a true story! A young Richard Slavin, destined to one day become a great spiritual leader named Radhanath Swami, decides to hitchhike from Europe to India. Barely having any money, he does the unthinkable, surviving near death-experiences along the way. The journey to India is just the initial part of the book. From there you get an inside look at the many spiritual traditions of that land, all through the eyes of the young Richard, who is a genuine seeker of the truth. In some parts of the world you only get the two options: follow what your church or religious organization says or turn to atheism. In India there is more of an intellectual component. The many factions each define who the individual is and what the individual’s relationship is to a higher power, if there is believed to be one. More importantly, spirit is stressed over matter, as the body does not represent the individual. In this book you’ll hear of how Richard had association with practically all of the camps, and how he finally came upon the one he would accept for the rest of his life. The adventures in this book are really amazing. I found myself in disbelief quite often. There is an incredible amount of detail as well. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys adventures and is open to hearing about different philosophies that have existed since the dawn of time. My favorite part of the book is the description of Richard’s time in the land of Vrindavana, which is infused with the devotional spirit. I found myself transported to that wonderful area and not wanting to leave. Immense thanks to the author for releasing this book, and hopefully he has many more stories to tell us in the future.

This is what I would call a modern version of Autobiography of a yogi, BUT better. I loved this book from it's first page till the end. Radhanath Swami grabs you and pulls you in for the ride of your life from the very first page. If you want to know what it is like to go on a spiritual quest to find the meaning of life and God then this is the book for you. Radhanath Swami takes you on this amazing adventure while he goes on a search of self discovery. This book is packed with, adventure,love, excitement, compassion, devotion, open-mindedness, and courage. This is one of the best books I have ever read. This book is heart felt and is packed with meaningful lessons on life. Buy this book! You will not be disappointed. God Bless Swami for sharing his love and devotion with us in the heart felt book.

What a glorious book. Joy. Suffering. God. Love. I cried; I laughed. I jumped for joy. Yet, herein lies a profound teaching of humility, and humanity. Thank Radhanath Swami. Thank you sacred universe.

Upon searching for God within myself, I came upon this book and was totally amazed how much his journey of searching for God, had answered a lot of my own quest for the same. I also have a love of India and not having the chance to visit India, he had shown me just how Spiritual and wonderful the people are of India. This book is outstanding and I could not put it down. I found him to be my friend traveling for God, and his travels made them my travels....His way and expertise in his writings, just put you right there with him throughout all of his adventures in his life of searching. I highly recommend this book to you and especially one who searches for God, to read this wonderful Journey Home! You will want to finish it, but will be sad when you do. But, his story will remain in your own heart forever, for sure! Many wonderful Blessings given to you.

This book is deeply charismatic and ingenuously personal. Radhanath Swami (aka Richard Slavin) takes you into his heart and invites you along to find your true self, even as he has done. His traditional spiritual initiation takes place during an arduous (and joyful) pilgrimage throughout India. The needs of his human body are many, but he learns to transcend them all, one by one, in a most dramatic and mind-bending fashion. The journey lasts about two years and is filled with descriptions of countless tests of personal self-mastery, most all involving life-threatening dangers of some sort, such as homelessness, sickness, near-starvation, violence, extreme weather, rabid and venomous animals, quicksand, dysentery, lack of sanitary services, etc -- all borne with supreme self-effacement and deep humility. For each extreme trial or test, there is also a blessing in the form of instant connection with Source. The love he expresses for himself and his fellow man is clearly what sustains his body and heart. Gradually his inner will to commit to lifelong service as a devotee of Krishna becomes stronger until he is able to surrender totally to his Path and ultimate Guru, Sri Pradhupad, the founder of the modern Hare Krishna sect. It is the story of a man who leaves his family and friends behind and sets off on an unplanned and arduous international search to find God in imitation of countless saints of the past. It is richly told, a magnetic tale with special appeal that only comes from a genuine spiritual intention to reveal one's truest self. It is a gift to the heart. I was deeply touched by this book.

Well, I am not a devotee of Hare Krishna, though I do enjoy their free Sunday feasts. I think they are good people, and their idea of God is actually not as simple as you might think from a cursory glance at their materials. If you get down to it, they will tell you that "everything is God" and that we simply are using Krishna as a bidirectional focal point for universal love. A major theme in this book is "Is God ultimately personal or impersonal?" And Swami Radhanath ultimately concludes, as Prabhupad explains, that God is both personal and impersonal, just as we are, and it all depends on the mind of the observer, but the question is not worthwhile, basically. It sounds like a good answer, and this is the exact question I have been struggling with. In my own mystical experiences (which have occurred via ayahuasca but also just regular meditation on the breath), I have experienced "God" or some kind of infinite love/bliss reality as impersonal, though on rare occasion, this God energy has been somewhat personalized. The trouble with the impersonal divine reality is that it's a bit more difficult to imagine than the personal God being, since we tend to think of ourselves as persons and not impersonal processes. So I started thinking that I wanted to get closer to this God being. Around that time, I met a girl who was having mystical, very personal God experiences with great frequency. When I was with her, crazy things would happen that did not seem at all likely to be by chance. Since then, my own life has become more magical and less probable. I've come to the conclusion that miracles are simply events which lie outside your understanding of reality. And reality is nothing but Mind itself, so ultimately it is desire which forges reality, though in consensus reality, desire is often constricted by the opposing desires of other mini mind fields. Anyway, so I was on this path of trying to personalize God, and it seemed to be really working for me to some extent. But then I got into Buddhism, and that confused me, because Buddha said that you cannot become enlightened as long as you cling to concepts, including the concept of a personal God. And I read J. Krishnamurti's story, about how he was seeing the Divine Mother all the time, and he thought he was enlightened, but then a sadhu on the street told him he must give up his visions of the Divine Mother if he wished to progress further in understanding. With great remorse, he gave her up, and found his spiritual growth accelerated after that. So then I started thinking, maybe all of these God worshipers are holding themselves back! Maybe the idea that all loving religions point to the same thing is not true at all. But then I encountered Bernadette Roberts, a Carmelite nun who, through quiet and deep submission to her personal Christ/God, eventually lost all sense of herself as an individual, and then realized that God too was merely a concept which no longer makes sense when there is no Self to relate as separate from God. Ms. Roberts believes that the best path to enlightenment, therefore, is the submission to a personal God like Christ. People who have gone to her workshops attest that she definitely seems to be enlightened--it's not just some show she is putting on. Another example of the God path to enlightenment can be had by reading Peace Pilgrim's book, although her God was not quite as personalized. So, it seems that Buddha was not entirely right when he said that God worship is a hindrance to enlightenment. I believe God worship *can* be a hindrance to enlightenment, but only if it is done with a closed mind. If you are sure that God is a being separate from yourself and you will never allow that understanding to change, then perhaps you will never be enlightened. But if you are open-minded and realize that you do not know what "you" even are, then I think worshiping the God of Love may work quite well in waking you up. Just don't try to convert anyone from their faith to yours except by being an example of the power of Love. If you are a very scientific-minded/materialist type who is nonetheless in search of something more meaningful to life, I suggest you read Experience and Philosophy, by the late Dr. Franklin Merrell-Wolff. May your mind and heart open to no end! Much love, my brothers and sisters! :)

Truly fascinating story of a God realized soul (Jivanmukta). The message conveyed by Swamiji is simple but profound. Swamiji wants us to truly love God selflessly and with no expectations. This book shows you the way thru his amazing journey. I strongly recommend it to all seekers of God. One of the best books I have read. Thank you Swamiji!,

This is a remarkable autobiography of a spiritually awakened soul. I’m finally beginning to understand why I love practicing yoga. “Yoga means union with our spiritual essence and religion is to bring us back to that same essence. Bhakti Yoga is the science of transforming material into spiritual. By harmonizing our relationships, talents, and property in devotion to the Lord, our spiritual love awakens. In this way the physical body and the spirit soul are united in purpose, and the love we share in this world reaches the eternal spiritual plane. The Bhagavad Gita reveals this mystery to be the perfection of Yoga and the fulfillment of life.”