MYSTIC NOMAD

A woman reflects on her rocky path to spiritual enlightenment and healing as she comes to terms with the trauma of her past.

After enduring an emotionally stilted childhood in Germany, Knopp was ready to settle down with a man she didn’t love to find some semblance of safety and stability. But her discovery of yoga and tai chi—and specifically the spiritual essences of these practices—set her off on a different path that led her to travel the world in search of meaning, spiritual wholeness, and escape from her bouts of depression and suicidal ideation. The author’s journey took her everywhere from India to Japan, where she first experienced a sense of spiritual oneness: “I could no longer find…myself…at the center of it all.” Her spiritual journey was not without its tragedies; she grappled with the aftermath of being sexually assaulted by a trusted spiritual adviser during a Munich yogic retreat. Through it all, Knopp remained committed to raw honesty while reforming entrenched habits and ideas—including opening herself up to healthier familial relationships with her husband and his son. The author’s history takes sharp detours that make for a fascinating narrative—her wild nights in Tokyo, for example, contrast sharply with her later period of inner transformations (such as connecting with her spiritual jaguar after ingesting ayahuasca). While some of her experiences may feel a bit over-the-top for some readers (such as the aforementioned spiritual jaguar conference), Knopp never holds back when discussing her flaws, traumas, and triumphs. Each stage of her life is conveyed clearly, delicately, and, at times, even poetically: “Equipped with that potent mix of grandiosity and naiveté which perhaps only teenagers can conjure, I believed by gulping down life in heaps and chunks I could avert the dread of impermanence.” Her journey is one that is sure to resonate with readers of every spiritual persuasion.

An eloquent examination of the timeless search for meaning amid the inevitable pains and joys of life.