Saturn Return: A Canadian’s year-long journey of self-discovery in Asia

This is a story about what you can find when you leave it all behind. Approaching his twenty-seventh birthday, Mark Halpert had a stable home, a successful career, and a long-term relationship, but something wasn’t right. He needed a reset. Mark quit his job, moved out, and traveled to Nepal on a one-way ticket. From the rarified air of the Himalayas to the sweltering swamps of South India, Mark encountered thieves and enchantresses, gurus and yogis. He studied tabla at the Ganges where the rhythms of Indian percussion served as his first exposure to meditation. On Goa’s beaches, Mark discovered the healing power of yoga just when he needed it most.

A spiritual skeptic, Mark found inspiration in the timeless teachings of swamis and lamas, while also discovering meaning in the rock music playlist of his own life. Through one year and five countries, Mark learned to shed the burdens that were preventing him from living with purpose, loving with an open heart, and appreciating the beauty of the present moment.

Aron Ralston, author of the international bestseller, Between a Rock and a Hard Place, and subject of the Academy Award nominated film, 127 Hours, comments on Saturn Return:

Mark’s openness, vulnerability, and astonishing self-awareness shine on every page in this simultaneously noble and humble travel memoir.

One dollar from each book sold goes toward the Seva Foundation’s mission to eliminate preventable blindness.