Robin's Review

The Recovering Materialist: From a Nordic Hardcore Punk to a Hindu Monk in California 

“How much are you willing to sacrifice for your dreams?”

At 25, Tuomas comes up with his answer: everything. Stuffing his life into a single orange suitcase, he moves across the globe to a Hindu monastery deep in the redwood forests of Northern California. He expects to finally find the tranquility, truth, and harmony he has always yearned for, but instead comes face-to-face with his darkest shadows.

As it turns out, ashrams are a lot less “Kumbaya” and a lot more like rehab centers. The greatest battle of Tuomas’ life begins, and there’s no knowing whether he will land on his feet or his ass.

“The Recovering Materialist” offers a candid, raw, and at times sidesplitting portrait of the hardships and victories of a life dedicated to spiritual enlightenment. In lean and inventive prose, Mäkinen takes the reader on a rollercoaster from his alienated years of hardcore punk and societal underperformance, through his relationship dysfunctions and family drama, to crying alone in a dark yurt and barely averting a fist fight with a fellow monastic, all the way to tentative contentment through building a temple.

There is no middle ground in this memoir. The story is in constant movement between the depths of darkest despair and the heights of spiritual ecstasy.

Robin’s Review

Insightful

Tomas Mäkinen embarked on a remarkable journey of self-discovery at the age of 18, sparked by a book gifted to him by a monk from the Helsinki Krishna temple. This transformative experience led him to leave behind his home and girlfriend, ultimately joining a monastery in California. Along the way, he encountered obstacles, including a mishap that endangered a cow and the task of constructing a temple.

“The Recovering Materialist” is a compelling memoir that vividly portrays idyllic landscapes, infused with humor, similes, and eloquent prose. It explores a diverse range of topics, from rebellious punk culture and the challenges of adolescence to military training, education, religious exploration (particularly Hinduism), dating, family dynamics, the beauty of nature, the scourge of bullying, and the allure of recreational drugs.

This book captivates readers with its addictive narrative and serves as an inspirational resource for those seeking liberation from societal expectations.

5 Key Ideas of the book

1. ALIENATION

The catalyst for my personal search for purpose was the crushing alienation and detachment I felt as a teenager. According to recent statistics showing the growth of depression, loneliness, and meaninglessness among the young, mine was hardly an isolated incident. One of the main premises of my book is that people in the West-and the youth in particular-suffer the consequences of a materialistic, over-individualistic society, but there are alternatives. 

2.  THE SEARCH FOR PURPOSE

 A meaningful life shouldn’t onlv be pondered about -it should be lived. One of the biggest takeaways of my book is that we should fight our internal lethargy by acting on our dreams. 

3. MENTAL RESILIENCE

 Acting on our dreams will amount to nothing if we can’t push through the inevitable difficulties that arise from going against the grain. There’s a Finnish word for this kind of perseverance toward life: Sis When I moved into the monastery, my material attchments drove me to indescribable desperation and angst. I would never have persevered without Siste. 

4.  BELONGING

 We can’t go it alone. Once we have gotten clear on what we want and acted on the understanding, it’s crucial to mind likeminded people. In a post-industrial world where nationality and local community have lost much ot their sway, micro-communities crop up everywhere to facilitate the age-old need for a tribe in the modern context.

5.  EXPERIENTIAL SPIRITUALITY

I have never identified with the socio-religious forms of spiritualitv that are more about being a pious person in the world of the mind and senses rather than attempting to transcend that world altogether. This book is a love-letter to the spiritual traditions and people who keen the spirit of experienced spirituality alive and don’t settle for doctrines and customs alone. In my view, spirituality is about a profound change of heart, not a bunch of mindless rules and regulations