Spiritual Tourist, The

On a pilgrimage to see the Dalai Lama in the foothills of the Himalayas; blissed out in Germany with a beautiful Indian girl, believed to be 'the Divine Mother'; witnessing miracles in the ashram of Sai Baba, and searching for the Messiah in the back streets of London - the spiritual tourist is the Candide of the age, on a voyage of inner search and illumination. In his vivid, interrogative and entertaining book, Mick Brown joins the holy, the lost, the wise and the foolish on the highways and backroads of spiritual tourism. In India he encounters the miracle-working Sai Baba, and discusses reincarnation with the world's most revered spiritual figure, the Dalai Lama. In Germany he joins the pilgrims who kneel at the feet of the young Indian woman, Mother Meera, believing she is divine. In a tiny backwoods church in Tennessee he examines the 'Crosses of Light' that are held as evidence of Christ's imminent return to earth. Whether confronting the mystical, the miraculous or the frankly unbelievable, the book is an 'adventure of the spirit' for Mick Brown himself, a writer who researches with a passionate engagement, and reports with candour, wit and clarity.