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In 1968,
when the famous Trappist monk Thomas Merton journeyed to the
Far East on the trip from which he never returned, he took
along a book by Arnaud Desjardins called The Message of
the Tibetans. Merton quoted from that book frequently
throughout his last book, Asian Journals.
Arnaud
Desjardins, born in 1925 in Paris, began his career as
filmmaker for French television. His highly acclaimed
documentaries led him to Japan and India where he recorded
the lives and teachings of great men and women sages. His
visit to Afghanistan, just prior to the Russian takeover,
allowed him to film special ceremonies and initiatory
rituals which were soon outlawed in that country. (All of
the Sufis filmed in his piece were later executed by the
Russian army.)
In 1965
Desjardins met a previously unknown Hindu swami whom he
accepted as his teacher and worked with until the teacher's
death in 1974. Since then, Arnaud Desjardins has been
serving as a guide and teacher for thousands of men and
women from all walks of life--in both France and other
European countries. He is a highly respected figure,
regarded as a sage by a large public as well as by Eastern
masters and spiritual authorities such as the Dalai Lama.
Desjardins is the author of dozens of books, all dealing
with a simple, straightforward approach to life. Drawing
heavily from his own personal experience and years of study
in both Eastern and Western spiritual/religious traditions,
Desjardins presents a synthesis which is soundly based in
psychology, but goes way beyond the limitations of that
discipline to include the pristine essence of the human
spirit.
Arnaud
Desjardins is a much desired guest in the French media,
although he still spends most of his time at his work
residence in the south of France. His previous books are all
in French and other European languages. Hohm Press is proud
to be the publisher of his first two English-language books:
Toward The Fullness of Life : The Fullness of Love,
and The Jump Into Life: Moving Beyond Fear. |
