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John Broomfield may not be a household name, but his influence is undeniable. He came up with the protest slogan "Vietnam: Time's Up" that bolstered a nation demanding an end to the war in Vietnam and nurtured many bright, young minds of students at the University of Michigan in South Asian history and politics. This book gives a detailed account of how he transformed from an eager history scholar to a sober spiritual seeker.
As a successful academic, Broomfield has enjoyed friendships with many intelligent and influential people in the U.S. and abroad. He also candidly describes his roles as a husband, father, adopting a child, carrying on love affairs with fascinating women, and transforming into a student of shamanism. Transcending the personal, this memoir gives intelligent political commentary from the perspective of someone born and raised in New Zealand but working as an academic in the States.
In the early stages of the war, many had low opinions of the bearded professor who thought he knew how to settle the conflict in Vietnam. But these sentiments did not deter Broomfield from teaching his students to think critically about American audacity in South Asia. As Broomfield witnessed the war drag on, he personally experienced the progressive shift of popular opinion from support for the American presence in Vietnam to opposition to it.
Broomfield's area of study is the modern political history of India, so he also shares insights about conflicts between India and Pakistan. He became friends with many unorthodox thinkers and activists in Ann Arbor, Bengal, and San Francisco in the 1960s and 1970s. From participating in the first teach-In in 1965 to leading experimental projects at CIIS in San Francisco, Broomfield's experiences inspire readers to broaden their thoughts on political, psychological, and spiritual issues today.