Toward an Interior Sun

Excerpt of review in GLOW International:

Max Reif in this book of stories and essays, in large part autobiographical, has woven his troubled journey from boyhood to a place of love, devotion and joy. His well-worded stories take the reader — nay, the seeker — to attainable spiritual insights… Toward an Interior Sun is a door that opens in degrees to those who find themselves willing to “walk on fire” as did Max. He’s honest in his narration of experiences that span a lifetime. The stories and essays in this book reflect a life lived beyond just words.”

Martin is a young man with no conscious spiritual yearning and a dim sense of something mistaken deep inside. He almost destroys himself by the point he is twenty-two, but then has the good fortune to be awakened by Meher Baba, a renowned spiritual figure.

After a honeymoon of feeling divine love, it gradually begins to dawn on Martin that the Master wants not only love, but obedience. The spiritual path is “no game for the weak and fainthearted.” Martin has a difficult go of it, blundering several times over the next decades, suffering precipitous falls–but at all times, one way or the other, being given another chance. He comes to realize the journey is a long one.

In this collection of short stories, Max Reif digs deep to offer an entertaining and insightful account of this arduous spiritual trek. The tales lead the reader from epiphanies of youth, to the life of a spiritual seeker, to a deepening awareness of the maturity required for true discipleship. These stories take the reader on a bumpy ride from the dark depths of shock therapy to the soaring heights of seeing God manifest on the earth, illuminating the hope we all have for redemption and rebirth.

This is a book not just for Baba lovers but for all who want spiritual growth and need to learn through the challenges of a personal story about the spiritual journey.