“Religion is nothing but institutionalized mysticism. The catch is, mysticism does not lend itself to institutionalization. The moment we attempt to organize mysticism, we destroy its essence. Religion, then, is mysticism in which the mystical has been killed. Or, at least diminished.”

American novelist

Tom Robbins was an American novelist. He is known for his playful, comic fiction, especially his “seriocomedies.” Among his best-known books is Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, published in 1976 and later adapted into a 1993 film by Gus Van Sant. His final work, Tibetan Peach Pie, appeared in 2014 and he described it as an “un-memoir.” From 1970, he lived in La Conner, Washington, where he wrote nine of his books.