About the Author: Engin Ozertugrul
Dr. Engin Ozertugrul is a full-time Research Compliance Specialist in pre-clinical research. Ozertugrul received his Bachelor of Science in biology from Aegean University, Izmir, Turkey, in 1987; his Master of Education in instructional technology from American Intercontinental University, Illinois, in 2004; and his doctorate in health psychology from Walden University, Minnesota, in 2015. Areas of personal interests include poetry, meditations, consciousness research, health psychology, counseling, and psychotherapy (obsessive-compulsive disorder).
In Nothing and Everything, a new poetry collection by Dr. Engin Ozertugrul, the reader is invited into a deeply personal exploration of human existence, where paradox and transcendence coexist. Known for his previous work Interview with OCD, Dr. Ozertugrul turns his attention toward poetic expression as a channel for unpacking the intricate relationship between consciousness, emotion, and divinity.
Rather than writing with structured rhyme or literary perfection, Dr. Ozertugrul uses repetition, simplicity, and second-person narration to communicate a universal truth: we are all connected, we are all uncertain, and that’s where the beauty lies. “Poetry is the universal mathematics without numbers; it measures the depth of the spirit and heart,” says Ozertugrul.
Nothing and Everything avoids common poetic tropes—this is not a book about romance or singular religious views. Instead, it is a collection rooted in the raw human experience: fear, sadness, anger, and hope. Each poem wrestles with the limitations of what we can truly understand, while never descending into nihilism. The author leads readers instead to a place of meditative peace, born of acceptance and awareness.
Dr. Ozertugrul’s inspiration is wide-ranging and spiritual without adhering to a single tradition. He credits the influence of Transcendental Meditation (TM), which has guided his understanding of consciousness and personal transformation. “I am grateful for Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s TM. It has had a profound impact on my experience of an amazing thing called consciousness,” he writes.
The poems reflect this practice and the insights gained from other thinkers who shaped his worldview—Rumi, Spinoza, Carl Jung, Kant, Emerson, and William Blake among them. Their philosophical echoes are present but reinterpreted through a deeply contemporary and individual lens.
“This book is about being human,” Ozertugrul says. “It’s about our challenges, disappointments. It’s about our fears, anger, and hate—but it is also about joy and peace.”
Written with what the author calls “a better use of his OCD mind,” the poems layer repetition to create a kind of spiritual hypnosis. Readers familiar with mindfulness, meditation, and even existential philosophy will find something resonant in its lines.
This book is likely to appeal strongly to adults with an interest in meditation, mindfulness, and nontraditional spirituality. Communities associated with TM and organizations like the David Lynch Foundation will find much to contemplate in its pages.
Though this is not a self-help book, Nothing and Everything does offer comfort. Not by giving answers, but by giving readers space to sit with their questions
