Description
What Readers are saying about Journey to the West:
Journey to the West reveals the troubles and joyful moments that Devanath Thenabadu experienced in his search for enlightenment and self-awareness. Devanath’s journey takes him to different cities and countries, including London, Sri Lanka, Vancouver, Montreal, Paris, and Japan. Through his relationships and discussions with different women, meditation and bodywork practices, and an exploration of philosophy and psychology, Devanath discovers he must heal some unresolved issues from his childhood. The book explores the profound thoughts of Buddha, Chogyam Trungpa, George Ivanovic Gurdjieff, René Guénon, and other deep thinkers. Read Journey to the West to find out what he discovered after losing and finding himself in his search for meaning and his experience of loss, heartbreak, love, anxiety, friendship, and more life challenges and blessings.
Before you purchase another self-help or philosophical book, read this! Devanath Thenabadu’s raw, honest, and surprisingly relatable story reveals that one doesn’t have to achieve perfection or have all the answers to live a meaningful life. Hodophiles and xenophiles will appreciate the captivating details about the author’s day-to-day experiences of different cultures and peoples. Some hilarious scenes are unforgettable, like when he met a woman named Mrs. Death during a flight. Besides the humor element, the book’s hints at future developments contribute to its addictive nature. Filled with deep insights from the author’s practice and discovery of different philosophical, and psychological ideas, Journey to the West inspires the reader to never stop learning or striving to be the best version of themselves. As I connected to Journey to the West on a deep spiritual level, I recommend it to fans of yoga and meditation and all seekers of knowledge out there
– Foluso Falaye, Readers’ Favorite
Diane Helentjaris –
In Journey to the West: One man’s odyssey into his own mind, author Devanath Thenabadu shares the path his life took after leaving his Sri Lankan home at twenty-one. A prodigious traveler, pilgrim, and ex-pat he makes his way to Montreal, Quebec then travels on like Odysseus, across the globe. Sometimes he stays for years, other stops are for a few days. Driven to achieve personal equilibrium, he seeks answers in various schools of meditations, religious activities, and philosophies as well as philosophers. He is clearly a deep thinker, but one with emotional trials that at times threaten his ability to function independently and to have satisfactory relationships. He accurately summarizes the core themes of his book as a quest for meaning, waking up in everyday life, and emotional healing.
Like Thenabadu I too have lived as an immigrant in Montreal and so, enjoyed reading about the places, people, and activities of that beautiful, European-esque city. For me, I found this book to be a reminder of how overwhelming (and exciting) all the choices faced by young people can be — the multiple means to achieve true adulthood and independence. Who do we spend time with? What work do we do? Where do we live? It is a compelling description of the complex and numerous ways to live a life of spirituality and to satisfy the drive for equilibrium.
Journey to the West includes list-like descriptions of cities and countries and neighborhoods and meals which might bog down some readers. The timelines are a bit sketchy, but this does not take away from the main thrust of this memoire.
Overall, I believe it is a worthy book to open up the reader’s mind to the uniqueness of one man’s experience while reminding us of our shared challenges.
Odette Guimond –
What an initiatory journey! How many displacements, how many adventures in the external space (mirror of his internal space) does the author experience to find the anchorage in himself! Fascinating and strange for me, a French-speaking Montrealer, to follow him in France and in Quebec while perceiving the world differently, in English, with other references and another sensitivity! His pilgrim seems to be the same everywhere in the world, in search of the essential. His journey highlights, for me, that a spiritual quest (often nourished by existential anguish) requires the awareness of the body felt in movement, in close relationship with its environment. This original travel diary leads me to dream that this will become more and more evident for all the travellers that we are on this earth.