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The Decadence of Our Souls
The Decadence of Our Souls
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Today, humanity struggles with socio-economic limitations due to a lack of awareness regarding the distinction between ‘the pleasure of living’ and ‘the joy of living in harmony with the laws of Nature.’ As a thinking being, Man's role becomes increasingly significant—serving as a vessel in which the conscious reflection of Creation takes shape, ultimately allowing, at a certain level of spiritual development, the perception of the Creator. This profound transformation that humankind is undergoing is at the heart of The Decadence of Our Souls. The novel explores the expansion of consciousness and the awakening of the soul among the inhabitants of two vastly different worlds. More than just a story, the book serves as a manifesto—an invitation to actively engage in preparing for the transition into a higher, spiritual dimension.
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Reviewed in Canada on July 3, 2018
A very imaginative and "decadent" world in which Claudiu explores the consequences of becoming addicted to earthly desires and pleasures and provides an alternate way to live through Rakash, the main character. Rakash was taken from his home in jungle where he coexisted and communicated peacefully with his elephant teachers. To see his innocence try to change this new world he finds himself in is uplifting and watching this same corruptness get to him is intriguing... A must read!
Reviewed in Canada on June 28, 2018
Reading "The Decadence of Our Souls” was a pleasant surprise. The start it’s a little bit slow for my taste, but the plot expand nicely and keeps the reader hooked as there is no hint of what could happen next. The relationship between the children and the elephants displays the balance that we all yearn for in our lives, while staying away from the craziness of Laeta and Korobat, the cities struck by mundane and menial activities. The spiritual side of the story brings freshness to a millennium-old idea of reaching the ’state of bliss’ in order to connect to a Higher Being, our Creator. It’s a Fantasy novel well balanced with science and fantastical elements kept me interested until the very end.
It’s a recommend read.
Reviewed in Canada on July 22, 2019
"The decadence of our souls" is a revelatory and transformative book which unveils the ultimate destination of our life journey as temporary inhabitants on planet Earth along with other conscient beings, the elephants. In a powerful manner, the author mirrors the antagonism between a highly developed materialistic society and a sacred community where evolved children are being birth in an unconventional way, having kind and wise mentors in order to fulfill their divine mission. Adorned with spiritual insights, vivid metaphors and a profound introspection of the main character's soul, page by page triggers in our consciousness a forgotten feeling of bondness with all creation and an imperious need to reach a state of bliss through meditation and self-realization. All my gratitude to the author for his unique, innovative and unprecedented way through fiction in inspiring and motivating me as a human being to be on a spiritual path and changing my life.
His first novel The Decadence of Our Souls, has solidified Claudiu Murgan as an engaging and important Canadian writer. It stands alone as a unique cross between science fiction, fantasy and spirituality, telling the story of a young boy Rakash who is stolen from his enlightened jungle home. Here children are mentored by elephant teachers and everyone lives in harmony with nature. Children are born or birthed through a special ceremony and emerge from pods in trees, each with a unique destiny to serve their community. They are assigned wise, benevolent elephant teachers who assist in attaining greater levels of enlightenment. When Rakash is kidnapped from his idyllic setting and placed under the care of Bart, a scholar, it never occurs to him to try to escape. Instead, he believes he can serve as a bridge between his spiritual community and the corrupt and pleasure-seeking cities of Laeta where he first lives, and then the more affluent technologically-advanced Korobat. The leaders of Korobat believe enlightenment is a commodity they can harness from Rakash and download to the masses. They fail to understand that all spiritual gifts must be earned, over lifetimes of meditation and service, and can never be reduced to quick fixes and one-night frolics. This brilliant first novel by Murgan stayed with me for weeks after I finished reading it—always the mark of great piece of fiction. The greedy cities of Laeta and Korobat are a clever mirror of our own dysfunctional world disconnected from their core, soul, Source, or The One Who Created All. Bereft of the wisdom, peace and joy that springs from this connection, much of the world tries desperately to fill the void through the pleasures of sex, drugs and alcohol or spirits. All pale in comparison to the real thing. The novel reminds us that enlightenment can only be earned through spiritual not material currency and attempts to buy our way into heaven are always disastrous. Examining the personality of Rakash in captivity is equally intriguing. If he had been left in his native jungle, under the wise tutelage of the elephants, in time he would have reached enlightenment. But even a student of great promise and potential over time becomes corrupted by their environment and begins to think and act like the world around them. Rather than returning to a pure environment uncontaminated by the masses, he does the unthinkable. Like his captors, he believes he can only advance and help humanity by kidnapping his sacred elephant teacher Otan and bringing him back to Korobat. Like a deadly virus, his thoughts have been completely infected by his environment, and he is totally unaware of his fall from grace. When his ego or pseudo-soul convinces him that he can help humanity by committing the crime of kidnapping a gentle soul, we know he has been consumed by the darkness surrounding him. Aren’t we all like Rakash? Each of us is born with great potential, and rather than isolating ourselves in meditation we constantly seek new and better ways of stimulation. Rather than choosing the nurturing and sustaining natural environments of the jungle, forests, rivers, mountains, or oceans, or the wisdom and guidance of a spiritual teacher, ashram, monastery, temple, or church whenever possible, we immerse ourselves in the physicality of dysfunction and wonder why we are depressed and unfulfilled. If this brilliant piece of fiction is Murgan’s first novel, I will eagerly await the gems of wisdom he distills in future works.
Reviewed in Canada on July 3, 2018
A very imaginative and "decadent" world in which Claudiu explores the consequences of becoming addicted to earthly desires and pleasures and provides an alternate way to live through Rakash, the main character. Rakash was taken from his home in jungle where he coexisted and communicated peacefully with his elephant teachers. To see his innocence try to change this new world he finds himself in is uplifting and watching this same corruptness get to him is intriguing... A must read!
Reviewed in Canada on June 28, 2018
Reading "The Decadence of Our Souls” was a pleasant surprise. The start it’s a little bit slow for my taste, but the plot expand nicely and keeps the reader hooked as there is no hint of what could happen next. The relationship between the children and the elephants displays the balance that we all yearn for in our lives, while staying away from the craziness of Laeta and Korobat, the cities struck by mundane and menial activities. The spiritual side of the story brings freshness to a millennium-old idea of reaching the ’state of bliss’ in order to connect to a Higher Being, our Creator. It’s a Fantasy novel well balanced with science and fantastical elements kept me interested until the very end.
It’s a recommend read.
Reviewed in Canada on July 22, 2019
"The decadence of our souls" is a revelatory and transformative book which unveils the ultimate destination of our life journey as temporary inhabitants on planet Earth along with other conscient beings, the elephants. In a powerful manner, the author mirrors the antagonism between a highly developed materialistic society and a sacred community where evolved children are being birth in an unconventional way, having kind and wise mentors in order to fulfill their divine mission. Adorned with spiritual insights, vivid metaphors and a profound introspection of the main character's soul, page by page triggers in our consciousness a forgotten feeling of bondness with all creation and an imperious need to reach a state of bliss through meditation and self-realization. All my gratitude to the author for his unique, innovative and unprecedented way through fiction in inspiring and motivating me as a human being to be on a spiritual path and changing my life.
His first novel The Decadence of Our Souls, has solidified Claudiu Murgan as an engaging and important Canadian writer. It stands alone as a unique cross between science fiction, fantasy and spirituality, telling the story of a young boy Rakash who is stolen from his enlightened jungle home. Here children are mentored by elephant teachers and everyone lives in harmony with nature. Children are born or birthed through a special ceremony and emerge from pods in trees, each with a unique destiny to serve their community. They are assigned wise, benevolent elephant teachers who assist in attaining greater levels of enlightenment. When Rakash is kidnapped from his idyllic setting and placed under the care of Bart, a scholar, it never occurs to him to try to escape. Instead, he believes he can serve as a bridge between his spiritual community and the corrupt and pleasure-seeking cities of Laeta where he first lives, and then the more affluent technologically-advanced Korobat. The leaders of Korobat believe enlightenment is a commodity they can harness from Rakash and download to the masses. They fail to understand that all spiritual gifts must be earned, over lifetimes of meditation and service, and can never be reduced to quick fixes and one-night frolics. This brilliant first novel by Murgan stayed with me for weeks after I finished reading it—always the mark of great piece of fiction. The greedy cities of Laeta and Korobat are a clever mirror of our own dysfunctional world disconnected from their core, soul, Source, or The One Who Created All. Bereft of the wisdom, peace and joy that springs from this connection, much of the world tries desperately to fill the void through the pleasures of sex, drugs and alcohol or spirits. All pale in comparison to the real thing. The novel reminds us that enlightenment can only be earned through spiritual not material currency and attempts to buy our way into heaven are always disastrous. Examining the personality of Rakash in captivity is equally intriguing. If he had been left in his native jungle, under the wise tutelage of the elephants, in time he would have reached enlightenment. But even a student of great promise and potential over time becomes corrupted by their environment and begins to think and act like the world around them. Rather than returning to a pure environment uncontaminated by the masses, he does the unthinkable. Like his captors, he believes he can only advance and help humanity by kidnapping his sacred elephant teacher Otan and bringing him back to Korobat. Like a deadly virus, his thoughts have been completely infected by his environment, and he is totally unaware of his fall from grace. When his ego or pseudo-soul convinces him that he can help humanity by committing the crime of kidnapping a gentle soul, we know he has been consumed by the darkness surrounding him. Aren’t we all like Rakash? Each of us is born with great potential, and rather than isolating ourselves in meditation we constantly seek new and better ways of stimulation. Rather than choosing the nurturing and sustaining natural environments of the jungle, forests, rivers, mountains, or oceans, or the wisdom and guidance of a spiritual teacher, ashram, monastery, temple, or church whenever possible, we immerse ourselves in the physicality of dysfunction and wonder why we are depressed and unfulfilled. If this brilliant piece of fiction is Murgan’s first novel, I will eagerly await the gems of wisdom he distills in future works.