The Sound of the Earth: A Man's Mid-Life Passage and Spiritual Awakening

by Hart Sprager

“A man’s book — earthy, raw, passionate…not for the timid” When you ask Hart Sprager what his book, The Sound of the Earth, is about his response is, “On one level it's a story about the climax of my mid-life crisis, my pilgrimage to India, and a confrontation with harsh reality. On a more profound level, it's about giving up attachment to the inner child and honoring the inner adult.” At age fifty, Hart appeared to be a man who had achieved the American Dream, a fortunate being who had slipped into the elusive fast lane that runs between the extremes of solid security and exhilarating adventure. He had a loving wife, a daughter, a son, a dog, two cars, and a house in suburbia with all the trimmings. He had achieved initial success in multiple careers — in the film world, the Foreign Service, and academia. He had traveled and lived in parts of the world others only dream of visiting. But for Hart the American Dream became a nightmare when he woke up and realized that he had been consumed by conspicuous consumption, possessed by possessions, deceived by ambition, and was still craving for more — more of everything. Profoundly shaken by that paradoxical realization, he jumped off the edge of his life, went to India, encountered teachers in the form of great spiritual masters and simple peasants, passed through the dark night of the soul, and came face to face with himself. The Sound of the Earth is an account of his adventure. It is the account of his outer journey from heights of the Himalayas, to the squalid slums of Bombay, to the sacred shrines of Bodhgaya. It is the story of his inner journey from the head to the heart, his passage from mid-life to manhood, his initiation into life.

297 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1995

Reviews

[Fran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hart Sprager graduated from the school where I was an administrator for many years. This book, though not widely known, is a moving journey through an extremely successful man's mid-life and spiritual awakening. He lives in India now.