For Life on Purpose Episode #51, my guest is

bestselling novelist and "striving yogi" KaranBajaj. Born and raised in the Indian Himalayas,Karan now lives in Brooklyn, New York. Via hiswebsite and thriving online community, he shares his attempts tolive a Yogic life in the heart of the material world.

Karan joined me for a great conversation about

his new book The Yoga of Max's Discontent, which waspublished by Random House on May 3rd 2016. The book, called "Thegreatest adventure of our Generation" by The Daily Telegraph wasinspired by his one year sabbatical traveling from Europe to Indiaby road and learning yoga and meditation in the Himalayas.

"Growing up in the Indian Himalayas, I saw a steady stream

of professionals — doctors, engineers, lawyers — leave their

careers and live in ashrams and caves near my village. I never

fully understood their motives. But 20 years later, I had the same

strong urge to spend an extended time in silence and find a deep

center of stillness within me after my mother’s untimely death from

cancer."

About: Karan Bajaj is a bestselling novelist

and striving yogi. Born and raised in India, he has trained as aHatha Yoga teacher in the Sivananda ashram in South India andlearned meditation in the Himalayas. He is the author of the novelsJohnny Gone Down and Keep off the Grass, both of which were No. 1bestsellers in India.

His first worldwide novel, The Yoga of Max's

Discontent, was published by Random House on May 3rd 2016. Thebook, called "The greatest adventure of our Generation" by TheDaily Telegraph was inspired by his one year sabbatical travelingfrom Europe to India by road and learning yoga and meditation inthe Himalayas.

He's has also worked in senior executive roles at companies like

Procter & Gamble and the Boston Consulting Group and was namedamong Ad Age's "Top 40 Under 40 executives" in the US.

About The Yoga of Max's Discontent: A violent

encounter on the streets of Manhattan forces Wall Street bankerMaximus Pzoras to confront questions about suffering and mortalitythat have dogged him since his mother’s death. His search for amentor takes him to the farthest reaches of India, where heencounters a mysterious night market, almost freezes to death on ahike up the Himalayas and finally, finds himself in an ashram in asmall drought stricken village in South India where strange thingsbegin to happen to him.

But are Yogis who walk on water, do impossible poses, and live

agelessly for 200 years the stuff of fiction or fact? Can a fleshand blood man ever truly achieve nirvana? Max struggles to overcomehis rational skepticism and the pull of family tugging him backhome. In a final bid for answers, he embarks on dangerous solitarymeditation in a freezing Himalayan cave. Will Max penetrate thetruth of human suffering, or is enlightenment just a new ageillusion?

To learn more about Karan and his work, visit: