Alex Mezulari mingles teachings from various religions, philosophers, and spiritual mentors in this brief guide to mental wholeness.
By age 26, Mezulari had “hit rock bottom” with “legal problems due to addiction, dysfunction, and negative self-image.” He states that “when all hope was gone, I was given the greatest gift of all: the gift of desperation.”
Mezulari embarked on a journey to find inner peace and meaning. He studied religions and listened to countless hours of motivational speakers. Now, 18 years later, he’s compiled what he learned into this guide to becoming mentally whole and discovering your life’s purpose. The book is drawn, he writes, from “the teachings of the world’s foremost self-realization authorities.”
Positivity is a central theme to this work. Upbeat and encouraging, Mezulari’s writing emanates an infectious, motivating energy. His “11 Proven Mindsets” focus on faith, your inner dialogue, forgiveness, and more. Although his chapters (and the book) are short, Mezulari packs them full of wisdom from a wide array of teachings, including those from the Bible, Buddha, Joel Osteen and Deepak Chopra.
Some may find this smorgasbord system of belief confusing, but Mezulari believes that “choosing your own higher power…is a more natural approach [than] accepting religious traditions that are simply dogma.” Ultimately, the author encourages readers to choose the ideas that resonate with them, leave out what doesn’t, and believe that God or the Universe is working to help them realize their dreams.
Unfortunately, by book’s end, this blending of beliefs becomes chaotic, leaving readers feeling that there’s no real truth except “love as the only reality.” This will likely frustrate those looking for more guidance and a way to anchor their beliefs. Consistent typographical errors, misspelled words and missing references for direct quotes further add to the chaotic feel of this work.
Those looking for a more concrete path to wholeness will want to look elsewhere. Readers open to experimentation, however, may appreciate Mezulari’s DIY patchwork quilt religion.
