Intimate, raw, and reflective…
Structured as a lyrical, often nonlinear exploration of self, Russell’s compelling work moves between poetry, philosophical musing, confessional narrative, and spiritual reflection. Divided into three parts, the book blends journal, mantra, and confession, charting one man’s long reckoning with ego, illusion, and the trappings of performative spirituality. Russell’s subject is himself, specifically the self caught in the exhausting loop of self-improvement. In pieces like “cultured” and “accumulation of spiritual materials,” he skewers his own past posturing: the curated identity, the moral superiority, the hunger for purity. “veil of tears” captures the somber, almost apocalyptic stillness that often accompanies deep emotional reckoning. In “sweat lodge,” Russell turns to ritual and earth-based tradition as a metaphor for resurrection after spiritual collapse. “walk in truth” offers a grounded reminder of inner safety and the futility of chasing solace outside ourselves. Russell occasionally slips into vague mysticism (“trust the synchronicity”), and yet even at its most self-serious, the work retains an undercurrent of humility. In the end, the book doesn’t aim to resolve. It’s not a manual, but a mirror: one held up with enough clarity and self-compassion to remind us that no one’s really got it figured out.
A soulful journey through spiritual unraveling and renewal.
Pub date March 28, 2025
ISBN 979-8315914723
Price $19.99 (USD) Hardcover, $9.99 Paperback, $2.99 Kindle edition, $0.00 Kindle Unlimited
