Journey To Happiness R

JOURNEY TO HAPPINESS
“I teach one thing and one thing only:

Suffering and the end of suffering.”
-Lord Buddha
Mahendra Kumar Shakya

Ph.D. Candidate
Lumbini Buddhist University
Lumbini, Nepal
From: Chainpur, Sankhuwasabha
Currently: Nagarjun 2, Sanobharyang, Kathmandu, Nepal
Telephone: 977 1 4890483, Mobile: 9841471966
E-mail: [email protected]
Journey to Happiness
First Edi on : 1000 copies

July Fullmoon day, 2019
Writer : Mahendra Kumar Shakya

Chainpur, Sankhuwasabha
Currently: Nagarjun 2, Sanobharyang, Kathmandu
Telephone: 977 1 4890483, Mobile: 9841471966
E-mail: [email protected]
© : All rights reserved to the writer
Printed at : Dongol Printers

Kalanki, Kathmandu
Tel.: 4281682
This book is for free distribu on and not for sale.

Dedicated to
Late Venerable Dhammavamsa Mahasthavir
who had been the source of inspiration
to me in acquiring the refuge of the
Triple Gem, observing morality
and practicing meditation.
Foreword
It was a great opportunity to go through the book 'Journey to Happiness' authored by
devotee Mr. Mahendra Kumar Shakya. The way the writer has attempted to make the
Buddha's fundamental teachings into simple language for ordinary people is admirable.
Due to degenerating spiritual values human life is getting harder and unsecured. This
book makes greater sense today when human life even at the climax of material
development, is becoming more miserable. The senior citizens are being more
vulnerable and living a painful life. In this context, the writer's recommendation to
follow the path of Buddha as the last resort for everyone is highly relevant.
The writer is worried about the weakening condition of the social and economic status
of the country due to degradation in religious norms and values. Despite having a huge
potential of natural resources and economic development, our dependency on external
resources and aid is increasing day by day. The rampant corruption, anarchy and
increased irresponsibility are the main reason behind backwardness; therefore, he
opines to respect and practice the teachings of Lord Buddha particularly Sila, Samadhi
and Prajna in our lives. If we are conscious of Dharma, then it increases the number of
honest and responsible citizens and consequently helps in the holistic development of
the nation. The writer has warned those people who indulge in sinful activities like
corruption, commission, and cartel and not to misuse this invaluable human life.
Therefore, this book is very relevant to the current scenario of Nepal. He has also
presented his thought of what is and what is not Dharma in a simple way. I hope all the
readers will have a fair evaluation and get benefitted from this book.
Publication of this book with the purpose of Dharmadan for the liberation of departed
parents and relatives is a praiseworthy effort. I wish it will be the cause of their
liberation.
Ven. Bhikshu Nigrodha

Former Vice Chairman,
Lumbini Development Trust
25th June 2019
Lumbini Buddhist University
Lumbini, Nepal
About the book
Peace and happiness is the common agenda of

humankind today. The prac cal applica ons of
science and technology, in this 21st century, have
enabled mankind to live more comfortable lives
and experience wonderful things beyond the
imagina on (Ven. Dhammananda, 2002).
Despite the fact, human lives today, are more
miserable and disturbed than ever because of
the unhealthy compe on and the mindset that
accumula on of physical wealth and facili es is
the sole source of peace and happiness. Those enjoying the power and
affluence of physical wealth in the most developed countries are also
not happy. The madness of material affluence and misuse of deadly
weapons resulted in the death of hundreds of innocent people almost
every year in the dreamland, the USA. The terrorism emerged from the
seed of enmity and revenge has been a serious threat to human
civiliza on. The tac c of deliberate vehicle ramming used by terrorists
in recent years has made terrorism difficult to defend. No country on
the globe is safe and secured from terrorism today. This has proved
that peace and happiness are not possible without proper religious
guidance and spiritual development. In this situa on, the word of
Buddha that ‘hatred is never appeased by hatred in this world; it is
appeased only by loving-kindness (Na hi verena verani sammanƟdha
kudacanam averena ca sammanƟ esadhammo sanantano’*) has
greater relevance in the present world.
Today, due to globaliza on, heightened ambi ons and polariza on of
family, the elderly parents have become a family burden in the
Nepalese society. Influenced by western civiliza on and culture, and
declining spiritual values many elderly parents have suffered
misbehaviors from their descendants. Despite having capable children,
beau ful bungalows, material wealth, many elderly are helpless to live
a lonely and discarded life in elderly homes. They do not even have
someone around to provide a glass of water at the last moment. In
such a me, dhamma is the best refuge where we can take an
* Dhammapada, Verse 5
unwavering shelter. We can neither stop aging nor stop the separa on
from the loved ones; however, by adop ng and prac cing dhamma we
can spend our elderly life deligh ully. This can also help us relieve the
pain of separa on. What counts now is the strong moral ground and
well-prac ced medita on that determines easy and deligh ul aging.
There is no refuse be er than dhamma for our elderly life. One of the
objec ves of wri ng this book is also to help make aging easy and
beau ful.
In Nepal, every year a hundred thousand animals and birds are
slaughtered as a “spiritual prac ce”. In this 21st century, what can be
more unfortunate and shameful for humankind than animal sacrifice
at the name of religion? What can be the bigger illusion than killing
innocent animals for spiritual gain? Slaughtering innocent animals
cannot be righteous and spiritual. This is the messge we wish to deliver
to the readers. If this could help reduce the prac ce of animal sacrifice,
I and my wife Anjalee would think that our effort is successful.
According to the respected Vipassana teacher, Satya Narayan Goenka,
Dharma is the art of living that teaches us to live happily and peacefully
within and genera ng peace and harmony for the others. According to
him, dhamma should be developed as an easy, prac cal and an
indispensable part of our life. If this could be a means of sharing the
teachings of the Buddha par cularly Sila (morality), Samadhi
(Medita on) and Prajna (Wisdom ) among the general public, poli cal
leaders and bureaucrats could have a significant role in the prosperity
of our country.
We are rich in natural resources and have every poten al to have a
prosperous country; despite the fact, our dependency on external aid
is increasing year a er year. Because of the officials, decei ul to their
own mother organiza on, most of the projects owned by the na on
have not been prospered. Nepal is passing through a pathe c situa on
due to the rampant corrup on and lawlessness followed by a sharp
decline in ethics and moral values. If we could have warned in mass
and raised a sharp awareness about the inescapable consequences of
the evil deeds (karma), the corrup on and lawlessness would not have
flourished to this extent. One of the main objec ves of the book is to
warn those enjoying corrup on and commission with the message
that every corrupt and evil deed have painful and inescapable
consequences.
Needless to remark, children are the future stars of the country. It is
painful that in the birth country of Lord Buddha, the school curriculum
does not include even a couple of pages about him and his teaching.
Increasing the number of morally good ci zens, it is essen al to raise
spiritual awareness from schooling itself. We can expect good ci zens
from the children who have understood the religious fact that every
evil act has a painful and inescapable consequence. Therefore, it is
high me to include moral educa on and medita on prac ces from
primary schooling.
A man is said to be the master of own des ny; because only human life
has an opportunity of making efforts that lead to the divine realm.
Nobody has seen the future; however, who is honest and hardworking
will have a beau ful future. Nobody has seen heaven, hell and sublime
realms; however, it is logical to assume that one who is honest and
sincere to the people and the country, will certainly have a rebirth in a
good realm. This is an important message of this book.
Prince Siddhartha who was born in Lumbini and enlightened in
Buddhagaya con nued preaching the dhamma for 45 years mainly in
the southern plain of Nepal, Bihar and U ar Pradesh area of India.
Therefore, those areas during the me were des ned to have the
pres ge of ‘the land of the Buddha’. Despite the fact, we Nepalese
from his birth country never realized the importance of understanding
his message to the human world. We rather remained sa sfied calling
Nepal the birthplace. His teachings par cularly the morality, medita on
and wisdom if could guide and inspire general Nepalese, poli cal
leaders, bureaucrats, private sectors to be honest and virtuous could
have an invaluable contribu on in the mission of prosperous Nepal.
Emperor Ashoka visited Lumbini at the me when there were no
modern means of transporta on. He is also believed to have visited
Kathmandu and erected stupas. It might have taken him several
months or even a year. We must understand that the Emperor came to
Lumbini with the mission of love and compassion to our genera on.
The inten on behind erec ng pillars and stupas with the relics of the
Buddha was to inspire our genera on to explore and understand the
teachings of the Buddha, indeed. We should be inspired by the message
of the Emperor, carved in the stones and the monuments and should
be a en ve in prac cing Sila, Samadhi and Prajna.
May all living beings be happy!!!
About the English Edition
A er publishing the third revised edi on in vernacular Nepali language,

I am pleased to bring English version of my book, ‘Sukha rako Yatra’
(Journey to Happiness) again for the purpose of Dharma Dana. The
book has been wri en with the objec ves of bringing Buddha’s
teaching in access to more and more people. I hope, this edi on will
benefit those readers who are not comfortable reading in Nepali.
I would like to express my sincere gra tude to Mr. Binaya Chandra
Gurung and Mr. Amrit Tuladhar for their edi ng support. Likewise, I
would like to express my sincere apprecia on to my friends, Mr. Nay
Lin (Australia), Mr. Jinyu Tang (Australia), Dr. Gunaraj Subedi (USA), Mr.
Krishna Rai (England), Dr. Ghana Shyam Gurung, (WWF Nepal), Mr.
Tilak Bahadur Dhakal (Nuwakot), Mr. Subhash Jadodia (Thapathali),
my maternal uncle Mr. Hera Ratna Shakya (Lagankhel), my son Master
Anmol Shakya (New Zealand), daughter Miss Avan ka Shakya
(Australia), for their spiritual dona on. I would also like to thank Mr.
Mohan Hada for layout designing and Dongol Printers for prin ng the
book. Last but not least, I would like to thank my wife Anjalee Thakali
for her encouragement publishing this version of the book.
May they all living beings be happy!!!
Mahendra Kumar Shakya

21 June, 2019
Kathmandu.
Contents
Foreword
About the Book
About the English Edi on
A Happy Re red Life 1
Globaliza on and Nuclear family 2
Dhamma the best refuge 2
Divine Messenger 3
One heading to more darkness from the darkness 4
One heading to light from the darkness 5
One heading to darkness from light 5
One heading light from the light 5
The Secrets of Peace & Happiness 9
Mindfulness 11
Me a, (Goodwill) & Karuna (Compassion) 11
Mindful Ea ng 13
Chakraman (Walking Medita on) 13
Training the Mind 13
Taming the running mind 15
Buddhist Rituals During Gesta on 17
Development of the mind in the womb 17
Percep on of a baby in the Womb 18
Influence of the baby in the Womb on the mother 18
What is good to do during Pregnancy and what is not? 19
Rituals of Gesta on 19
Heedfulness 21
What is Appamada? 21
One Way Traffic 24
Spirituality (Dharma) 26
What is Spirituality? 26
Why Spirituality (Dharma)? 28
Spirituality and Science 29
Accountability 29
Animal Sacrifice, an Evil Tradi on 30
Spirituality and Rituals 31
The Divine Messengers 33
Human Diversity and th e Law of Karma 36
The Law of Karma 37
The Buddha alerted the law of karma as follows 40
Law of Mo on 43
Understanding the Differences in Teachings of the Buddha 44
Buddha’s nonacceptance of the existence of eternal power
in the Universe 44
Tradi ons of Blinds 44
Four Noble Truths 45
One is Responsible for One’s Own Purifica on and Emancipa on 46
Sigalovada su a 47
Accountable for one’s own karma 47
Rejec ng the No on of Everlas ng Soul 48
Universe envisioned with uncountable solar systems 50
No blind devo on 50
Middle Path 51
Spirituality (Dhamma) for Prosperity 52
Poli cal History 53
Lack of Ethics and Self-Respect: 54
Is Nepal Really Poor? 56
The Consequences of Corrup on 57
The Importance of Spirituality 58
Nepal as the Birth-Place of Lord Buddha: 60
How Vipassana Introduced in Public Sector in Burma? 61
The Impacts of Vipassana on the Prisoners in Indian jails 62
Recommenda ons 62
Reference 64
A Happy Retired Life
AƩa dipa aƩa sharana and dhamma dipa, dhamma sharana

(Live as islands unto yourself, being your own refuge, with no
one else as your refuge. Dhamma is the light, dhamma is the
island, the refuge) is one of the unique quali es and the secrets
of happiness in the teachings of the Buddha. For a Buddhist, one
is the source of light and oneself is the refuge, dhamma is the
source of light and dhamma is the refuge. The essence of a a
dipa, a a sharana and dhamma dipa dhamma sharana is to rely
on oneself and to rely on dhamma rather than the outside world,
family, friends, rites and rituals, etc. In Buddha’s teachings, we
are accountable for our own karma. We ourselves are responsible
for our own happiness and misery. We create our own heaven.
We create our own hell. We are the architects of our own fate
(Narad, 2006; P: 220). Understanding and cul va ng the
essence of , “Atta dipa a a sharana and dhamma dipa dhamma
sharana” discussed here as the secrets of a happy and peaceful
re red life.
Aging is definitely natural. It brings with it, the increasing frailty,
chronic illness and diseases of older age such as demen a,
diabetes and heart disease (Mowat and O’Neill, 2013). Our hair
turns grey, the face gets wrinkled, body bends and becomes
weaker and eyes get blurred. We start losing memory power.
The risk of falling and breaking the bones increases. Many
such aspects of aging can be hard to endure. Now, because
of modern medical facili es, our average life expectancy has
definitely increased. This has increased the length of our re red
life. However, spiritual prac ce can help us to age gracefully,
and prove that the last part of life is a frui ul me for spiritual
inquiry and prac ce (Richmond 2011). For many Siamese elders,
the experience of aging is an opportunity to reflect on their
own lives and to deepen their understanding of Lord Buddha’s
Dhamma (Teachings) through the prac ce of medita on plus
retreat and by the cul va on of good kamma (deeds) that will
Journey to Happiness 1
result in a more favorable life and future rebirth (Ratanakula, P.

, 27 December 2012, “Reflec ons in Aging in Buddhist Siam”).
Today, influenced by western civiliza on, culture and polariza on
of family, the elderly parents are becoming a family burden
in the Nepalese society. Many elderly parents have suffered
misbehaviors from their descendants. Due to the spiritual
decline, the elders have become a ma er of serious concern in
the family. There is a growing number of offsprings who pay all
a en on to their kids while ignoring the elderly figures. There
is a growing tendency that offsprings are tempted to grab the
parents’ property and ignore the obliga ons towards them. This
is what worries the Buddhist society most in the days to come.
Globaliza on and Nuclear family

Almost all Nepalese parents wish their kids to study in developed
countries and get se led there permanently. They celebrate
with zeal and enthusiasm when their kids are granted the U. S.
Green Card or Permanent Resident Status in these countries.
In consequence, many parents are forced to live in elderly
care homes despite having capable children. Despite owning
bungalows, vehicles and huge proper es, many elderly are
helpless to live a lonely and discarded life. Such a scary situa on
is being developed in the society at present that the death of
elderly living alone is unno ced for days together. They do not
even have someone around to provide a glass of water at the last
moment. Most successful and prosperous people also have the
same fate. Life in hospitals remains even harder, having to face
all sorts of hazards.
Dhamma the best refuge

In such a me when you are alone, dharma is the best refuge.
There is no kin be er than dharma. What counts now is your
moral ground and how well-prac ced is your medita on. If you
are accustomed to medita on and have a strong moral ground,
you are des ned to bear a simple and peaceful elderly life. This
requires to develop a good moral ground and put medita on to
sound prac ce well in advance.
2 Journey to Happiness
It is said that there is “separa on a er union and union a er

separa on.” It is quite true that for every union, there is
separa on; however, it is not essen al that every separa on
ends with the union. This is one of the bi er reali es of our
lives indeed. The wife and husband who started life with a
strong nup al knot of marriage will not be together always.
They too have to experience the pain of separa on so hard
and unexpected. At the me when an elderly pair is struggling
with life suppor ng each other, one has to depart. Because of
the nuclear and globalized family, this is emerging as one of the
most painful reali es that most of us have in the event to pass
through.
The Buddha has said that o en a beloved is the source of suffering.
Separa on with the loved ones and union with the hated ones
is the salient reasons for suffering. Despite our unwillingness,
we cannot avoid separa on from our loved ones. Therefore, it is
wise to think and prepare for the part of our life when no dearer
one is around. Our breath remains with us throughout our life;
therefore, it is wise to be accustomed to living with it. Likewise,
the sensa ons in our body keep rising and passing throughout our
life. Therefore, we should establish a friendship with our breath
and the body sensa ons so that we do not have to be alone
during our re red life. This is our duty for sure. Anapana is that
art of medita on that teaches us to enjoy with our own incoming
and outgoing breaths and Vipassana is the art of reaching the
ul mate reality of life by observing impermanent nature of the
body sensa ons equanimously.
Divine Messenger
Enlightened people consider grey hair as a sign of divine message
because it gives a clear indica on of the bi er reality of our life
that the departure me is close at hand. Time to surrender all
the proper es and wealth is approaching. Time is advancing
towards some hardship. So it is me to start a spiritual life. It is
me to evaluate, make correc ons, rec fy lacunas and prepare
for a more meaningful life.
It is believed that human life is a transit point between the divine

and lower realm. Only human life has an opportunity of making
efforts that lead to the divine realm. Humankind can make
efforts to Nibbana, the salva on by laying the moral founda on,
prac cing medita on and gaining the insight. This is why human
life is said to be precious. Human life is the land of cul va ng
good Karma and prac cing Dharma. It is a valuable opportunity
gaining permit of the divine realm. The cul va on of Sila, Samadhi
and Prajna (morality, medita on and wisdom) is possible only
in the human realm. Lower and divine realms are respec vely
the realm of punishment and the realm of reward, and they do
not have the opportunity of developing any morality, prac cing
medita on and gaining insight. Therefore, it is wise to u lize
the human life to the maximum extent by cul va ng righteous
deeds, preven ng heinous acts and purifying the mind. At the
me of death, nothing will come with us except the good and
bad Karma that we have commi ed.
According to the Buddha (AnguƩar Nikaya, the book of four
Su a 85) there are four categories of life in this world: The one
heading towards darkness to darkness, the one heading from
darkness to light, the one heading to darkness from light and the
one heading to light from light (Bhikkhu Bodhi, 2012, P 467 to
468). They are as follows:
One heading to more darkness from the darkness

In this category, a person is born in a low family --- one that
is poor with li le food and drinks, subsists with inevitable
difficulty and he is ugly, unsightly, dwarfish, with much illness,
--- blind, crippled, lame or paralyzed. He cannot obtain normal
foods, drinks, clothing and not ge ng vehicles, garlands, scents
and unguents, bedding, housing and lights. He is engaged in
misconduct of body, speech and mind. In consequence, with
the breakup of the body a er death, a person who leads such
a miserable life is reborn in the plane of more misery, in a bad
des na on, in the lower world, in hell. It is in this way a person
is heading towards more darkness.
One heading to light from the darkness

In this category, a person is born in a low family --- one that
is poor with li le food and drinks, and subsists on inevitable
difficulty, and is ugly, unsightly, and dwarfish, with much illness
being blind, crippled, lame or even paralyzed. He does not
obtain foods, drinks, clothing and vehicles, garlands, scents and
unguents, bedding, housing, and ligh ngs; however, is engaged
in good conduct of body, speech and mind. In consequence, with
the breakup of the body a er death, the person is reborn in a
good des na on, in the heavenly world. It is in this way a person
is heading towards the light.
One heading to darkness from light

A person is fortunate enough to have been born in a high and an
affluent family with great wealth and property, with abundant
gold and silver, with abundant treasures and belongings; and
he is handsome, a rac ve, graceful, possessing the beauty
of complexion. He obtains food, drinks, clothing and vehicles,
garlands, scents and unguents, bedding, housing and ligh ngs;
however, is engaged in misconduct of body, speech and mind. In
consequence, with the breakup of the body a er death, a person
who leads such a life is reborn in the plane of misery, in a bad
des na on, in the lower world, in hell. It is in this way a person
is heading towards the darkness from light.
One heading light from the light

A person who has this type of life is fortunate enough to have
been born in an affluent family with great wealth and property,
with abundant gold and silver, with abundant treasures and
belongings and he is handsome, a rac ve, graceful, possessing
the beauty of complexion. He obtains foods, drinks, clothing and
vehicles, garlands, scents and unguents, bedding, housing and
ligh ngs. He is engaged in good conduct by body, speech and
mind. In consequence, with the breakup of the body a er death,
the person is reborn in a good des na on, in the heavenly world.
It is in this way a person is heading to light from light (Bhikkhu
Bodhi, 2012, P 467 to 468).
Now, the me has come to decide where to go: towards light

or darkness? If we have been doing misconducts by body,
speech and mind, this is the me to stop it and if we have been
doing good conduct, this is the me to promote and con nue
it. Where we are and what is our current posi on? Wherever
and whichever posi on we are in, we should decide our journey
towards the light. This opportunity of self-evalua on and making
efforts engaging in good conducts of body, speech and mind is
available only in the human realm. Therefore, we should not give
up this opportunity, because the misuse of human life is to be
punished in hell, the empire of misery for thousands of years.
The human life is a blessing to the wiser and curse to the fools
indeed.
As men oned by the centenarian Mr. Satya Mohan Joshi1,
we should take our re red life as a blessing. An opportunity
to correct the mistakes and be er lead the next life towards
the heavenly world. The no on of ‘aƩa dipa aƩa sharana’
has invaluable poten als of making our re red life bright and
beau ful. The Buddha has said that the a achment is the reason
behind suffering. We feel sad when our expecta ons with our
nearest and dearest are not met. This is one of the main reasons
for the sufferings of aging. Therefore, we should not make any
expecta ons. Instead, we have to keep ourselves busy in spiritual
prac ces, safeguarding our body, speech and mind. This is in fact
to realize the essence of aƩa dipa aƩa sharana, dhamma dipa
dhamma sharana, ananna sharana.
In the elderly days, it is be er to have well-cooked food with be er
chewing; however, due to weak and falling teeth, proper chewing
of food is not possible. This may bring a problem in diges ng
food. The Buddha has many a me appreciated Jaulo (rice boiled
so ly with green gram). Jaulo, because it has a lot of water and
is also also easy to digest, can show up as the best op on of
healthy food during old age.
1 A Nepali writer and Scholar. Government of Nepal honored him with the
‘Li erateur of the Century’ tle on August 23, 2017.
Prac cing ‘aƩa dipa aƩa sharana’ is about leaving the darkness
and aiming for the light. All behaviors arise from the mind. When
the mind strives to be compassionate, then the light is set before
your eyes. When the mind is evil, you will fall into darkness
naturally. The teachings of the Buddha is all about training the
mind and now it is high me for us all to train our mind.
Let’s begin our day in the morning and pack up in the evening
with at least 5 to 10 minute’s Anapana medita on focusing
the mind on the incoming and outgoing breaths so that by the
me we get older let the medita on be developed as a habit
or a refuge. One should cul vate the basic moral precepts like
abstaining from taking life, taking what is not given, abstaining
from sexual misconduct, false speech, taking toxicants and
develop the moral ground for medita on. This is called abiding
by the “Pancha-Sheel.” The dura on of medita on should be
increased slowly and steadily and gain control over one’s own
mind. In the Dhammapada, it is said AƩa nawa sudantena
natham labhaƟ dullabham. (With oneself fully controlled, one
gains a mastery that is hard to gain) (Buddha Net).
It is said that an idle mind is dangerous. Some even allege that an
idle mind is a devil’s workshop; therefore, we have to engage our
mind in something good. Loving-kindness (MeƩa), Compassion
(Karuna), Empathe c Joy (Mudita) and Equanimity (Upekkha)
are the four sublime states of mind as taught by the Buddha also
known as Brahmavihara. Prac cing the four superb states of
mind is the best way to engage our mind during the old age. This
will lead to our rebirth into one of the twenty authen c realms.
Cul va ng the mind with either Anapana or Vipassana is also
a good way of spending me in the old age. Concentra ng the
mind by coun ng bids as in the mountain region of Nepal is also
good during the aging period.
According to the respected Vipassana teacher Reverend Satya
Narayan Goenka, Vipassana is an art of living in the present.
It is the art of unveiling the ul mate truth by observing the
sensa ons that are con nuously raising and passing in the
body, equanimously. Currently, Vipassana medita on centers
are running a 10 day’s medita on session in different ci es

throughout the world with free boarding and food facili es.
Likewise, SaƟpaƩhana medita on sessions are also being
organized. Because the enlightened one developed medita on
en rely to mankind, human life will definitely be incomplete if
we do not experience medita on in one of the centers at least
once in our life.
The spiritual development requires to have a strong moral
founda on. Spiritual prac ces will not last long at all without
a strong moral founda on. Therefore, let us be moral, lead a
simple life and experience immense pleasure of moral purity.
Let’s make our old age happy and peaceful as proclaimed by the
centenarian, Mr. Satya Mohan Joshi. AƩa dipa aƩa sharana. Be
your own light and be your own refuge. That’s the best policy for
sure.
The Dhammapada verse 155 states
He who neither prac ces the life of purity nor has acquired any
wealth, at old age, is like a white heron, watching an empty pond.
Let’s us not waste our me and repent like the white heron in
the empty pool without a fish.
The Secrets of Peace & Happiness
“If a man speaks or acts from the uprightness of mind, happiness

follows him, close like his never-depar ng shadow.”
-The Dhammapada
Peace and happiness is the common agenda of humankind today.
Different people follow different approaches to achieve peace
and happiness. Usually, people tend to seek happiness within
the affluence of material wealth and facili es and put all moral
and immoral efforts in accumula ng wealth. In contrast, wise
people take pleasure in dona ng than in accumula ng. The origin
of peace and happiness for them is the blameless ac on of
body, speech and thinking. I experience great happiness while
returning money overpaid by shop-keepers. Those who are
honest in their job, with the family and the country, should also
possess a sense of sa sfac on and joy.
The hec c lifestyle of the people in the most developed countries
proved that people can’t be happy merely by accumula ng
material wealth and resources. This can be realized by close
observa on of the people living in a well-decorated building
with the apparent affluence of material wealth. It is said that all
that gli ers is not gold. Likewise, what is seen is not necessary
to be the ul mate truth. The incidences of suicide commi ed by
those who are most successful in their life proved that physical
wealth and dignity is not everything that is required for peace
and happiness. In an ar cle wri en by Mr. Rameshwor Khanal,
the former Secretary of the Ministry of Finance men oned that
the mere accumula on of wealth without honesty does not bring
happiness. Analyzing an account of a bureaucrat with the corrupt
mindset, Mr. Khanal illustrated the fact that one can’t be happy
even with the wealthy and luxurious life in a foreign country. The
wealth earned dishonestly is the source of worry and distress.
Thus one needs to contemplate deeply towards sane a tudes.
Different spiritual teachers have suggested different approaches

to peace and happiness. The Dhammapada, the gist collec on of
Buddhist teachings, pointed out the fact that everything first begins
in the mind and therefore, a healthy mind is the origin of peace and
happiness. It says all mental and physical phenomena have minds as
their fore-runners; they have minds as their chiefs; they are mind-
made. Therefore, if one speaks or acts with a pure mind, happiness
follows him close like the shadow that never leaves him.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama in his book ‘The Power of Compassion’
men oned that if our mind is healthy, full of love and compassion,
it is natural that we succeed in gaining peace and happiness
simultaneously. This law of nature is equally applicable to all
humankind regardless of the religious sect, race, caste, creed,
color, gender and the country of origin. The respected Vipassana
teacher Satya Narayan Goenka says that the vibra on of a healthy
mind full of love and compassion not only generates peace and
happiness; it however also makes the en re surroundings calm,
peaceful and blessed with the essen al tranquility.
It is said that our facial appearance is the reflec on of our mind.
We can easily no ce the people stuck in some problem from
their melancholy appearance. The angry mind can be detected
with the red and black look. On the other hand, a happy and
peaceful mind can be perceived with a bright and a rac ve
appearance. Therefore, maintaining a peaceful and healthy
mind also proves to be an ardent necessity to have a bright and
a rac ve look.
‘Healthy Mind in Healthy Body’. We have been hearing this dictum
from the schooling, which gives top priority to maintaining physical
health. Does a healthy body really have any co-rela ons with a healthy
mind? Is it ra onal to say that all the people with good physique
are free of greed, anger and jealousy? No, it is not reasonable to
allege that all having a healthy body should also have a healthy and
intelligent mind. They are also involved in unnecessary vanity and
pride as well. On the contrary, Medical Sciences have found that
angry, jealous and agitated minds will spark nega ve impacts on our
body systems. Ci zens losing temper more o en are likely to have

the problem of high blood pressure. Residents with a jealous mind
are more likely to have gastric and depression. Therefore, it is not
a healthy body at all; we must thus, value the essence of a healthy
mind to own a body perfectly fit and healthy.
We are obliged to give importance to our hair-style. We change
and decorate it with various colors; however, we never think about
caring the mind inside (Basnet, Babita; 2018). We go for a morning
walk. Our morning stroll is mostly concerned with physical health
rather than mental health. We take a balanced diet to maintain our
physical health. With the growing age, we regulate and forbid oily
and sugary foods to maintain our health. Since maintaining mental
health is crucial in sustaining physical health, caring the mind is more
essen al. Guarding the sense organs and preven ng the entries of
outside contaminants like passions is most essen al.
Mindfulness
Usually, our mind keeps wondering like wild animals. Most of
the me we are absent-minded. Anapana medita on brings
our wandering mind back into our body and makes us mindful.
Mindfulness can be prac ced in all our daily ac vi es like walking,
ea ng, traveling, which are beneficial to maintain both mental as
well as physical health.
Me a, (Goodwill) & Karuna (Compassion)

MeƩa (Loving Kindness) is one of the good quali es of a healthy
mind. The mind is said to be luminous by nature but is defiled
by adven ous pollutants that have entered through the sense
organs. Brahmavihar2 is the prac ce of providing a healthy diet
of loving-kindness (MeƩa), compassion (Karuna), empathe c joy
and equanimity to the mind polluted with greed, jealousy and
anger. MeƩa is formally defined as the wish for the welfare and
2 The brahmavihāras (sublime a tudes, lit. “abodes of Brahma”) are
a series of four Buddhist virtues and the medita on prac ces made
to cul vate them. The Brahma-viharas are: 1. loving-kindness or
benevolence (meƩa) 2. compassion (Karuna) 3. empathe c joy (mudita)4.
equanimity (upekkha)
happiness of all beings.

Sharing the purity and merits gained through virtuous acts like
charity, moral precepts, medita on and retreat wishing peace
and happiness to all beings is an inseparable part of the Buddhist
tradi on. MeƩa medita on can be prac ced by radia ng love
and kindness over the loved ones and the en re world.
The Nalaka SuƩa in SuƩa Nipat says “As I am, so are these. As are
these, so am I. Drawing the parallel to yourself, neither kill nor get
the others to kill.” (Ven. Thanissaro, 1998). Similarly, the MeƩa
suƩa suggests that one prac cing Brahmavihara should render
peace and happiness to all living beings including those strong or
weak, small, medium and giant in size, those seen and unseen,
located close by or far away, those born and to be born, should
remain radia ng boundless love over the en re globe, all the
direc ons upwards to the sky, downwards to the depth, free from
hatred and ill-will, day and night all the me whether standing
or walking, sea ng or lying un l in an awakening state. (Sangha,
Amarava ; 2004)
Karuna (Compassion) is defined as empathy with those afflicted
by suffering. These days, hundreds of people are dying almost
every day due to war and natural disasters. In some of the
countries in the Middle East, the people are plagued by a tragic
life that they do not even have me to lament. In our country too,
incidences of road mishaps are resul ng in a number of casual es
almost every day. Karuna medita on is to radiate empathy to those
sen ent beings having a miserable life. Engaging mind in radia ng
compassion to the afflicted people and the en re world is be er
than se ng the mind free to be ruined with passion, anger and
greed. Once we wake up in the bed, we can radiate compassion to
those grieved by suffering un l we leave the bed. Similarly, we can
prac ce radia ng compassion to the people and the en re world
once we lay in bed un l conscious and not in sleep.
Me a and Karuna medita ons are easy to prac ce; they turn
out to be effec ve too when one can feel posi ve changes
immediately. It is believed that those prac cing MeƩa and
Karuna medita ons garner a bright and a rac ve appearance

and they are loved by the dei es and ghosts. They do not have
a terrible dream nor a nightmare and will be blessed with sound
sleep. They die consciously and are reborn in the divine realm as
if awakening from a deep sleep. MeƩa and Karuna medita ons
are believed to be effec vely libera ng the mind from such
oppressive states as ill will, anger and aversion.
Mindful Ea ng
Usually, we are absent-minded while ea ng. Many a me we are
not even conscious of what we are chewing. Ea ng slowly and
mindfully with proper chewing enhances be er diges on of the
foods, absorp on of the nutrients and makes our look radiant
and healthy. As such, a vegetarian meal is much sugges ve
throughout our life period. A vegetarian diet signifies long life,
a healthy life.
Chakramana (Walking Medita on)

The Buddha in his teaching has men oned the utmost importance
of mindfulness during all of the four postures of our body like
standing, si ng, walking and sleeping. His followers regularly
prac ced mindfulness while walking called Chakramana (walking
medita on). Chakramana was inseparable in Buddha’s daily
life. Chakramana is the art that we can engage our mind in the
morning as well as in the evening walk. We can be er prac ce
and realize the preciousness of Chakramana while in a long
walk through quiet forests and lonely places. Mindful walking
not only protects us from accidents; however, also gives us
immense pleasure. This art is quite simple and can be learned
from monks and laymen who are accustomed to it. It is said that
the mindfulness in Chakramana lasts longer.
Training the Mind

Dr. Ambedkar cited that “the cul va on of mind should be the
ul mate aim of Human Existence.” Buddhism lays a lot of importance
in cul va ng the mind. In fact, Buddhism is all about training and
purifying the mind. In AnguƩar Nikaya, the Buddha says:
“No other thing do I know, O monks that brings so much

happiness as a developed and cul vated mind. A developed
and cul vated mind truly brings top happiness.”
“No other thing do I know, O monks, that brings so much
harm as a mind that is untamed, unguarded, unprotected and
uncontrolled. Such a mind truly brings much harm. No other
thing do I know, O monks that brings so much benefit as a
mind that is tamed, guarded, protected and controlled. Such
a mind truly brings great benefits. (Nyanaponika Thera and
Bhikkhu Bodhi, 2010, P: 6)”
The respected Vipassana teacher, Mr. Goenka says the
untrained mind is harmful and destructive like wild beasts.
The wild elephant while entering into a local community,
destroys houses, tramples crops and also attacks people. But a
person tactful, skilled and wise with his skills, techniques and
wisdom train the elephant, make it domesticated and have
its service as he wishes. The human mind is a thousand times
powerful than a wild elephant. According to the enlightened
people, there is no other power in the universe super-fast and
energetic than the human mind. Therefore, in the universe,
there exists nothing more beneficial and cheerful than taming
and controlling own mind. However, this is not as easy as
by word of mouth. Just like a wild elephant, training and
domesticating the mind requires proper patience, techniques
and wisdom. It consumes a considerable amount of time and
it has to be done by oneself.
Venerable Dhammananda in his Dhamma talk ‘The Power of
the Mind’ men oned that one is held responsible to train and
purify one’s own mind. We are the sole owners of our minds and
we with our own efforts should control and train our minds. No
divine powers, including Lord Buddha himself, can purify the
other’s mind. Medita on is the solid art of training the mind.
Breathing medita on (Anapana) is usually prac ced controlling
the running mind. In Vishuddhimarga, (the path of Purifica on,
translated by Bhikkhu Nanamoli) it is said:
Taming the running mind

For the mind that has long been dissipated among visible data,
etc. , as its object, and it does not want to mount the object of
concentra on through-mindfulness-of-breathing; it runs off
the track like a chariot harnessed to a wild ox. Now, suppose a
cowherd wanted to tame a wild calf that had been reared on a
wild cow’s milk, he would take it away from the cow and e it
up apart with a rope to a stout post dug into the ground; then
the calf might dash to and fro, but being unable to get away, it
would eventually sit down or lie down by the post. So too, when
a person wants to tame his own mind which has long been spoilt
by being reared on visible data, etc., as an object for its food and
drink, he should take it away from visible data, etc. , as object
and bring it into the forest or to the root of a tree or to an empty
place and e it up there to the post of in-breaths and out-breaths
with the rope of mindfulness. And so his mind may then dash to
and fro when it no longer gets the objects it was formerly used
to, but being unable to break the rope of mindfulness and get
away, it sits down, lies down, by that object under the influence
of access and absorp on.
Morality is considered as the founda on of the spiritual path to
enlightenment. Buddha has encouraged his layman followers
to regularly prac ce medita on. Medita on and wisdom are
complementary to each other ul mately leading to purifica on
and emancipa on. One must have a good moral founda on
before realizing the pleasure of medita on. For his layman
followers, Buddha suggested five moral precepts in everyday
life. These precepts include abstaining from killing, stealing,
sexual misconduct, lying and taking drugs and liquors. Buddha
encouraged his followers to look a er parents and kids with the
earnings of honesty. Stay far away from any pollu on. As such,
smoking must be completely alleviated to protect our tracheas
and evil and corrupt prac ces. Drinking and gambling must too be
avoided by all means. Alcohol will damage lever whilst gambling
will ruin our minds. Observing these moral precepts requires
one to possess mental quali es like compassion, honesty, and
dedica on in one hand and on the other through prac cing
these precepts one ini ates cul va ng these quali es in mind.

Spiritual teachers have pointed out the fact that those with good
morals and a posi ve mind remain calm and fearless even at
the me of death. Those with boundless love and compassion
remain free of all the worries. In the famous book Vishuddhi
Marg, it has been wri en that those prac cing love, compassion
and friendship have sound sleep. They will have easy death with
full consciousness as if sleeping and will appear in heaven as if
awakened from the sleep.
Buddhist Rituals During Gestation
“JaƟpi dukkha”, according to the Buddha, birth is suffering,

concep on is suffering. It is said that life in the womb is hard
and miserable. This must be the reason the Buddha said birth
is suffering. The cycle of rebirth that is bringing sen ent beings
into the womb, again and again, is suffering. Religious leaders
say that infants inside the womb remain with both palms held
together is an indica on that the life inside the womb is hard
and miserable. At the me of the Buddha, Sivali suffer a long
gesta on complained about his ill fate with Venerable Sariputra.
Sivali compared the womb with Lohakumbhi hell. Lohakumbhi is
a narrow iron cell, the beings born there are believed to suffer
excessive heat. Modern science denies the specula on that the
baby can have a feeling in the womb because of the brain not
developed well.
Development of the mind in the womb

If so in what stage does consciousness develop in a baby in the
womb? When does it start to have sense? Giving the reference
of the Buddha, Late Venerable K Sri Dhammananda (2002) in
his dhamma talk ‘Power of the mind’ says that development
of a baby starts from the mind. A mind is the nucleus of life.
According to him, the great Scien st, Einstein too has accepted
the argument sta ng that mind must come first. If the mind is
the origin of life, then the specula on in the scriptures that life
in the womb is miserable is logical.
In the story of Mahabharata, it is said that Abhimanyu, the son
of Arjuna learned the art of breaking into the Chakravyuha, a
military forma on while inside his mother, Subhadra’s womb
when Arjuna was narra ng the art to Subhadra. But Subhadra
fell asleep when narra ng the art of returning from the
Chakravyuha; consequently, Abhimanyu could learn only half of
the art and he was killed trapped inside the Chakravyuha because
Buddhist Rituals during Gestation
of his incomplete knowledge on the technique (Wikipedia). The

story of Abhimanyu jus fies the arguments that consciousness
develops from the gesta on me.
Percep on of a baby in the Womb

If the baby is truly conscious inside the womb, how should it
experience? We all had been in the womb; despite the fact,
answering this ques on is not easy. While having a Sauna bath,
in a room heated with hot steam, what happens if somebody
locked the door from outside? I o en have the frightening and
restless experience while in a sauna bath and think that one can
have similar experience inside the womb too.
How many of us have experience of being trapped inside a li ?
How many of us have experience of being locked inside the
narrow toilet without a window? If you are alone in the house
and the house is in an isolated place where one can’t expect
external support. Imagine how you experience when trapped
inside a narrow, warm, poorly aerated room in such a helpless
situa on. Maybe a baby should also have a similar experience in
the womb.
Influence of the baby in the womb on the mother

The dream of a pregnant mother has significant importance in our
society. The dream is thought to forecast the future of the baby
in the womb. Bodhisa va Siddhartha was said to have entered
the womb of the queen, Mahamaya Devi in the form of a white
elephant on the full moon day of July. The queen was scared of
the dream explained all to the king the next morning. The King
soon gathered the Brahmans reputed at interpre ng the dream
and made queries. The Brahmans foretold that a son will be born
to the queen, who will be dis nguished and great, and become
Buddha, enlightened and fully awakened. The King was so happy
with the predic on made by the Brahmin fortune-tellers and
announced for the celebra on throughout the country.
Similarly, the Buddhist literature suggests that the nature of the
baby in the womb also will have some influence on the behavior
of the mother. When prince Ajatsatru was in the womb, his

mother, the queen felt a strong desire for drinking fresh blood
from the arm of the King, Bimbisara. When the King knew about
the desire of the queen, he asked the fortune-tellers the secret
about the desire. The fortune-tellers told that the baby in the
womb will kill the father for the throne. Likewise, in Besantar
Jataka story, when the queen, Fusa Devi was pregnant she felt a
strong desire to establish six charity sta ons one each in the four
corners of the city, one at the center and another in Royal palace
and offer charity. Upon consulta on the fortune-tellers the King
became so happy by knowing that there is a generous baby in
the queen’s womb who would never be sa sfied with dona ng.
The King established six charity sta ons in four corners, one in
the center and one in the palace and made the queen donate
food, drinks, clothes, and ornaments. These stories tell about
how the nature of the baby in the womb influence the nature of
the mother.
What is good to do during Pregnancy and what is not?

What is the right age to start Vipassana? Answering this
ques on, the respected Vipassana teacher, SN Goenka said,
Vipassana should be started as early as possible. According to
him the baby from the mother prac cing Vipassana medita on
during pregnancy will also have posi ve impacts of Vipassana.
According to health educa on, the mother, at the me of
pregnancy should take enough green vegetables and nutri ous
food. She should be free from tension as that will have
nega ve effects on the baby. Medical doctors have suggested
the pregnant mothers not to drink liquor and be away from
smokers. It is believed that if the pregnant mother makes fun
of disables the baby will also be disabled; therefore, she should
not make a caricature of any disability in pregnancy. Mocking
disables is not at all a good task.
Rituals of Gesta on
According to the Buddhist tradi ons, the gesta on ritual is done
in the third month of the gesta on. The pregnant mother a er
having a bath, observes five moral precepts with the refuge of

Triple Gem, Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha and listens to Paritran
sutra from the monks. This is believed to be beneficial to both the
baby and the mother. During this period, ac vi es like offering
charity, prac cing moral precepts and medita on regularly
will certainly have posi ve impacts on the baby. In Buddhist
countries, the mother daily listens and memorizes Ratan sutra
and Angulimala Sutra. This is believed to be beneficial to both
the mother and the baby.
In the teachings of the Buddha, prac cing love, compassion,
empathe c joy and equanimity are known as four sublimes i. e.
Brahmavihara. According to the respected Vipassana Teacher,
Satya Narayana Goenka, love, compassion, empathe c joy
and equanimity are symbolic to the four head of the Brahma,
the creator of Hindu mythology. If the mother prac ces
Brahmavihara, the posi ve vibes produced will certainly benefit
the baby. It is equally important to behave ra onally with all in
daily contacts. During pregnancy, the family members including
the mother should not involve in killing any living beings.
Heedfulness
“Vaya Dhamma Shankara Appamadena Sampadetha” (All the

component parts are subject to decay, work out your salva on
with diligence). This is the tremendous par ng expression of
the Buddha to the humankind at the last moment in the Mallas’
Sal grove in Kushinara. “Be heedful to gain your own salva on”.
Addressing the monks, Buddha concluded his en re message to
the whole world. Why did the Buddha place such importance to
the word Heedfulness in his par ng message at his last moment?
His final word has provided intellectual nourishment that is
crucial to the en re mankind. We should understand the gravity
of the message and prac ce Dhamma very a en vely.
What is Appamada (Heedfulness)?

Literally, the meaning of Appamad is to be a en ve, vigilant, and
careful. Appamada is to be industrious in the pursuit of self-
purifica on and gaining one’s own salva on. On the contrary,
was ng me recklessly addicted to sensual pleasure and being
reluctant in the cul va on of morality, medita on and wisdom
are Pamada or heedlessness. Pamada or heedlessness is to
delay in prac cing Dhamma with the mindsets that I am red
now, I am feeling sleepy, I don’t have me now, so I will prac ce
it tomorrow. According to Buddha, heedlessness is the most
serious obstacle in the path of Nibbana (salva on). It is like
was ng me in bringing a person pierced by a poisonous arrow,
severely injured and bleeding, to a doctor.
On the other hand, Appamada (heedfulness) is to be energe c,
to be mindful in prac cing dhamma, the pursuit of self-
purifica on and gaining one’s own salva on at the very moment
without was ng a single minute, carefully and a en vely. In short,
life is momentary and uncertain. Death can come to us at any
moment without prior no ce. Considering these uncertain es,
to be a en ve in offering dona ons, observing moral precepts,
Heedfulness
prac cing medita on and abstaining from sensual pleasure, now

from the very moment is Appamada.
In AnguƩar Nikaya, the Buddha says, “among the internal
factors, I do not see even a single factor, O monks! that brings so
much benefit as heedfulness. Heedfulness, O monks, leads to a
great benefit. It triggers un-arisen wholesome states to arise and
arisen unwholesome states to disappear right away”.
Avoiding misconducts in terms of body, speech and mind diligently
and mindfully and secure the goal of Nibbana through achieving
at least the state of Sotapaƫ (stream winner) is “Appamadena
Sampadetha.” It is believed that for the stream winners the entry
to hell and other lower realms is closed forever. He/She within a
maximum of 7 lives in either the human realm or above achieves
libera on (Nibbana). No power in the universe is believed to have
the capacity to avoid it. Dhammapada Verse 178, says about the
stream winners,
Pathabya ekarajjena saggassa gamanena va
sabbalokadhipaccena sotapaƫphalam varam.
(Far be er than sovereignty over the earth, or far be er than
going to the abodes of the Devas, or far be er than ruling
supreme over the en re universe, is the a ainment of Sotapaƫ
FruiƟon).
In Buddhism, it is believed that having human life is excep onally
rare. Likewise, it is hard to have the opportunity to be exposed
to the dhamma, the teachings of the Buddha. Cul va on of
dhamma and con nuing it is further difficult. There are only a
few who really prac ce Dhamma while the majority misuses
the precious human life. We love sleeping and do not want to
leave the bed. It is very difficult for us to wake up and prac ce
medita on. We spend weeks, months, years and our en re life by
sleeping in the bed, absolutely unaware about the preciousness
of life. Heedlessness is so harmful that makes us ruin our en re
life by indulging in the sensual pleasure. In his par ng message,
the Buddha alerted us not to waste the precious human life.
Heedfulness
In this material world, we are was ng our me in such a way that

we don’t really find me to listen and prac ce the dhamma, the
rich tenets of the Buddha. Usually, when somebody approaches
us with a proposal for prac cing medita on, most of us instantly
avoid pretending that we are too busy and don’t have the
me. On the contrary, we can manage me to watch the movie
con nuously for two hours and more. If we hear a loud voice
of arguing in our neighborhood, we come out in the verandah
leaving half-finished meal even without cleaning hands. However,
this is quite regre able that most of us cannot manage me to
listen and prac ce the dhamma and understand the reality of life.
Some mes, I feel like comparing our busy life with that of broiler
chicken inside the cage in the butcher’s shop. The meat vendor
as per the demand of the customer drags the chicken out of the
cage, cut its throat and put it in the pot filled with boiled water
for dressing. A er dressing, the butcher cuts the chicken into
small pieces all in front of other chickens. The chickens inside the
cage are watching all these, do not feel scared and try to escape
from the cage. This is not surprising with the chicken; however,
for human beings with such a well-developed mind, this cannot
be acceptable. We quite o en observe death. We have observed
the demise of our grandparents, our parents and we ourselves
are no excep on to death; however, we never think about death.
We never think about escaping from the trap of death. If not
it could have brought huge changes over the way we live. We
would not be that corrupt in accumula ng the wealth that we
have to leave on our death.
Respected Vipassana Master Satya Narayan Goenka in his book
‘Dhamma, the Art of Living’ says that we are liable to be deeply
influenced by the spiritual beliefs and values of the society where
we were grown up. The spiritual belief we inherit from our na ve
community will have tremendous impacts on us that we consider
them as the final truth and we deny all religious faiths and beliefs
that are contradic ng with them. This makes our spiritual belief
like one-way traffic and prevents us from using common sense.
The belief keeps us away from the truth and reality and there is
Heedfulness
a risk that we are likely to con nue with the same spiritual belief
life a er life. This is the biggest risk a er all.
One Way Traffic

Once we are accustomed to a par cular religious belief, it is so
difficult to come out of it; therefore, the spiritual belief is also
compared with opium. The addic on to opium remains only for
some me; however, that of a religious belief can last throughout
life. Therefore, the addic on to religion is more dangerous than
that of opium. This is like a vicious cycle difficult to escape.
Therefore, examina on and re-examina on are required before
adop ng any spiritual belief. Good judgment and common sense
are highly essen al before accep ng any religious faith.
Lord Buddha was so caring that he always encouraged his
faithful disciples to con nue their efforts in figh ng with fe ers
and purifying the mind. A er his Mahaparinirvana, many
thousands a ended Nibbana, the ul mate goal following the
path heedfully as guided by the Buddha. Two centuries a er his
Mahaparinirvana, the great Mauryan Emperor, Ashok adopted
the teachings of the Buddha and renounced all the violence
forever. The Emperor was so impressed with his teachings that he
erected 84 thousand monuments with the relics of the Buddha. In
the 20th year of his corona on, he came to Nepal with Venerable
Upagupta, erected the pillar in Lumbini to mark the birth-place
of the Buddha, and exempted all the taxes to the local people
around. He is also believed to have visited Kathmandu and made
stupas in the valley which can s ll be seen. The pilgrimage of
such a busy emperor, all the way from India, at the me when
there were no modern means of transporta on, erec ng the
stone pillar to mark the birth-place of the Buddha and making
stupas with the pious relics of the Buddha should be the source
of inspira on to our genera on indeed. His respect for the
Buddha and his cosmic concepts should be food for thought and
a source of inspira on to our genera on to explore deep into the
teachings of the Buddha.
In the Bamiyan province in Central Afghanistan, two enormous
Heedfulness
figures of the Buddha 175 feet and 120 feet high were created
in the 4th and 5th centuries respec vely. The statues were carved
from the living rock and were finished with fine plaster and paints
also reported to be decorated with gold and jewelry. We should
understand that the people in Afghanistan did not erect the
statues in the rock without any mission. In fact with the statue,
they wanted to pass the message to our genera ons about
the preciousness of the Buddha and his teachings. We should
understand their message and take it as the source of inspira on
to explore and prac ce the teachings of the Buddha par cularly
the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eigh old Path heedfully.
In simple words, heedfulness to our genera on is to observe
five moral precepts and prac ce medita on regularly every day.
In addi on, our source of livelihoods should also be good and
respectable. Changing our habit of killing small insects as and
when seen around is also essen al and beneficial.
Spirituality (Dharma)
Since ancient mes people have been following spiritual

prac ces inherited from their family, their ancestral community
and tradi ons. It is quite usual that the religious belief inherited
from their na ve community will have such an impact that every
individual considers the belief as superior and the final truth.
Some people take a dip into the holy Ganga and believe to
have been sanc fied from all the misconducts and evil deeds.
Some people light candle-s cks or bu er-fed lamps in pious
places as a spiritual gesture and prac ce. In Kathmandu, we
have seen people walking day and night on a specific occasion
to visit all the stupas, chaityas, chhortens, shrines and religious
monuments in the Valley with the belief that each step in the
walk conjures up as sacred as dona ng a few grams of pure gold.
Similarly, fas ng has become an inseparable part of our spiritual
life wishing a good and long life to the beloved ones. We have
observed people lashing un l bleeding one’s own naked body
with belts and chains. We have also observed people piercing
their own palm with an iron nail as a spiritual prac ce. One
Indian na onal who thought of having a son with the blessing
of Goddess, GadhiMai, slaughtered 108 male buffalos in the
temple in Bara district of Nepal. In the name of spirituality,
every year thousands of animals and birds are sacrificed there.
The incidence of beheading a boy to please God in Nawalparasi
district a few years before is sheer evidence that how wild one
could behave in the name of spirituality. This is totally stupid and
against any norm and civiliza on.
What is Spirituality?
Defini ons and understandings about spirituality vary among
various religious teachers. For me spirituality basically is
humanity. Spirituality is a conscien ous thought and conduct. All
living beings want to be happy as the way we do. They fear death
and punishments like us. All want to live, enjoy and be secure
totally free from any penal es. ‘As I am, so are the others. As are
these, so am I.’ Drawing the parallel to oneself, neither to involve
in killing nor get others to be killed in the name of spirituality.
The animals do not have a well-developed mind and their life is
believed to be inferior and difficult than ours; despite the fact,
they too do not wish to die. They too do not like to be insecure.
Having this conscience, behaving with love and compassion is
spirituality. As suggested by Confucius of China, trea ng the
others as one would like others to treat oneself is spirituality.
In the Dhammapada, Lord Buddha in his simple words has
defined dharma (spirituality) as not to commit any evil and
cul vate what is good and moral and purify one’s own mind. This
is the basic doctrine of the Buddha.
Sabba papassa akaranan Kusalassa upsampada
SaciƩa pariyodapanan Etan Buddanu sasanan
The great Hindu Sage, Veda Vyas in the essence of the
eighteen Puranas (Sacred Wri ngs) affirmed that helping
the others is meritorious, and hur ng the others is a vice
(Paropakaram Punyaya Papaya Parapeedanam).
According to the respected Vipassana teacher Satya Narayan
Goenka, Dharma is the art of living that teaches us to live happily
and peacefully within and genera ng peace and harmony for the
others. Dr. Ambedkar emphasized that the purpose of religion is
to guide man how he should behave with the other men rather
than pleasing the unseen divine power so that all men may
possess a happy and peaceful life (Verma, 2010. P: 59).
Spirituality not only teaches leading a happy life; but also
teaches to accept death in a normal way. In AnguƩar Nikaya it
is said “Brahmin, there is a person who has not done anything
evil, cruel or wicked, but has done what is good and wholesome,
who has made a shelter for himself. When a grave illness befalls
him, these thoughts come to him ‘I have not done anything evil,
cruel or wicked, but have done what is good and wholesome, I
have made a plain shelter for myself. I shall go herea er to the

des ny of those who do such deeds.’ Hence he does not grieve
… nor does he become deranged or overcome with fear. This
mortal too is one who does not remain scared of death, who
is not afraid of demise that is.” (NyanaponikaThera and Bhikkhu
Bodhi, 2010. P: 64). Therefore, spirituality is also an art of having
a peaceful and fearless death.
Why Spirituality (Dharma)?

According to Dr. Radha Krishnan, Dharma is that force which
shapes and sustains human life. It is the only path that leads
to everlas ng peace, prosperity and joy in this world. All our
present-day problems are a direct result of disregarding ‘Dharma’,
under the influence of materialis c philosophy, in the belief that
it alone can help in happiness and secure the welfare of the
people. Dharma alone is the solu on to all the social, economic
and poli cal problems the world is facing today (Gupta, 2015).
Venerable Dhammananda (2002) in his dharma talk, ‘the power of
the mind’ men oned that only humankind have religion because
they have an extraordinary thinking mind. According to him, no
beings in the en re universe other than the human race possess
any proper religion. Human beings by thinking, analyzing and using
the sense of reasoning can achieve anything in the world. The
human mind can be developed to the extent to destroy the whole
world at once and on the other hand, enlightened religious teachers
have developed their minds to such an extent to guide the en re
humanity to the right path. Science is blind without spirituality.
Without a religious influence, the human mind can be the cause
of u er destruc on. Therefore, spirituality is essen al to protect
human civiliza on and guide it to long-las ng peace and prosperity.
Today because of the deteriora ng religious values, people are
so self-centered that they do not respect their own principles,
commitments and ideals. Due to the erosion of their ethical
and moral values widespread from top to bo om, the people,
especially those on the bo om rungs of the society, are suffering
hardships. If we could raise awareness of the law of karma that
every evil ac on has an inescapable consequence, the system in

Nepal, would not be so corrupted and polluted to this extent as
at present. Sane ideologies could help eliminate all corrup ons
and pollu ons incurred in the society unnecessarily.
Spirituality and Science

Some people say spirituality is faith and some say it is blind faith.
According to S. N. Goenka (2013, P: 37), Dharma, the teachings of
the Buddha is a pure technique of mind and ma er, the science
of mind and ma er and the interac on of mind and ma er. As
an essen al requirement men oned by Dr. Ambedkar, spirituality
(Dharma) must be in accord with science. According to him,
Buddhism is based on reasoning. It follows the law of nature;
therefore, it can also be compared with science. In nature, the
cul va on of bi er gourd produces bi er fruits while grape
seeds produce sweet fruits no ma er whoever (a Buddhist,
a Hindu,a Chris an or a Muslim) sows the seed. In the same
manner, moral and ethical acts produce deligh ul fruits whereas
the acts of butchering, stealing, fornica ng have lamen ng and
tearful endings. The rough and aggressive speech ends in hos lity
whereas a polite speech is pleasing. If our mind is full of love and
compassion, it is usual that we will have peace and happiness.
On the other hand, if our mind is full of evil thoughts, we are
bound to suffer. No ma er which spiritual belief we follow.
Accountability
In the teachings of the Buddha, every human being is individually
accountable for the good and bad acts commi ed by oneself. In
the Dhammapada, it is said, “if one speaks or acts with an evil
mind, suffering follows him close as the wheel follows the hoof
of the beast that draws the cart.” Therefore, it is not well to do
a deed which brings regrets, the fruit whereof is received with
tears and lamenta ons. (Dr. Ambedkar, 1957).
We are all accountable and can’t escape the results of good and
evil acts we have commi ed. We see people tearful with pain
in hospitals. How nice would it be if the kin could share part of
the pain, However, sharing pain is not possible. This is because

everybody is individually accountable for one’s own acts and
the fruits whereof can’t be shared. No rituals, faiths or blessings
can help to escape from the miserable consequences of our
heinous acts. Just as the fire burns, whoever catches it, the evil
act also punishes, whoever cul vates it. The Law of Karma is self-
regulated that any external power has nothing to do with it. A er
death, only our “Karma” remains with us.
Animal Sacrifice, an Evil Tradi on

Contrary to the belief that all living creatures are descendants
of the almighty God, animals are sacrificed as a spiritual
prac ce. In this 21st century, what can be more unfortunate and
shameful than animal sacrifice? Where is our human sense?
Animal sacrifice wishing for good health and prosperity is just
nonsense. It is like wishing to harvest ambrosia by plan ng
poison. One can’t harvest mango by plan ng a neem tree. One
who wishes to enjoy a delicious mango should plant gra ed
mango sapling and care with water and manure every day. In its
due me, it bears fruit that will be delicious. With sinful acts,
one cannot expect to be blessed with prosperity, good fortune
or happiness (BhaƩarai, 2016).
At the me of the Buddha, a Brahmin, Uggatasarira was preparing

to sacrifice 25 hundred animals including 5 hundred bulls, 5
hundred male calves, 5 hundred heifers, 5 hundred goats, and
5 hundred sheep, approached the Buddha to know his views.
The Buddha alerted that those who prepare for animal sacrifice
mentally declare that I will slaughter these many ca le, these
many rams and these many calves and goats. This way they
make harmful karma for themselves even before they set up
the sacrificial post, ignite the sacred fire and give instruc ons
for the animals to be slaughtered. In this way the act of animal
sacrifice which is believed to be spiritual, in reality, is harmful
and evil, having tearful and miserable consequences. Contrary to
their expecta ons the act, in reality, leads them to a difficult and
miserable life in hell.
It is not necessary that all those advoca ng for spirituality are also
spiritual in reality. It is not necessary that all tradi ons inherited
as part of spirituality are spiritual in reality too. Today, many
Spiritual Leaders are not loyal to their own belief. Therefore, a
living society should use common sense and discard all such
corrupt tradi ons, rites and rituals. In Kalama sutra, the Buddha
suggests Kalamas in using common sense as follows:
When Kalamas a er thorough observa on and inves ga on you
find anything that agrees with the reasoning and is conducive
to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and shape
your life in accordance with it (Please see page no 50 to 51 for
detail).
Buddhists believe that due to endless cycles of rebirth, it is
hard to find living beings having no kin rela ons. Therefore, the
enlightened one has taught to see all living beings with
brotherhood and prac ce Brahmavihara. Brahmavihara is the
four sublime states of mind as taught by the Buddha that includes
loving-kindness (MeƩa), Compassion (Karuna), Empathe c joy
(Mudita) and Equanimity (Upekkha).
Spirituality and Rituals

In Buddhism, parents are extremely respectable. In AnguƩar
Nikaya, it is said, those families, O monks, dwell with Brahmā
where at home the parents are respected by their children. Those
families dwell with the ancient teachers where at home the
parents are respected by their children. Those families dwell with
the ancient dei es where at home the parents are respected by
the children. Those families dwell with those worthy of worship
where at home the parents are respected by their children.
“Brahmā” monks, is a term for father and mother. “The early
teachers” is a term for father and mother. “The early dei es” is a
term for father and mother. “Those worthy of worship” is a term
for father and mother. And why? The parents are of great help
to their children, they bring them up, feed them and show them
the world with wi y guidelines (NyanaponikaThera and Bhikkhu
Bodhi, 2010, P: 54).
Parents bring up their kids with the utmost care; therefore, it is natural
for the parents to expect their kids to be loyal to them. However, how
many youngsters realize that they too have been brought up by their
parents in the same manner? How many could really support their
parents at the me of their aging? Wise people consider that the act
of raising kids is analogous to the investment on the kids and the act
of caring for the elderly parents is analogous to the repayment of the
investment. Contrary to the fact that most of the people ignore to
return the investment of their parents on them, they expect a full
return on their investment from their kids. Misunderstanding the gap
between the investments and the expecta ons is the root cause of
the crisis with the aging communi es in South Asian countries. Thus
the children should be obliged in learning to reciprocate the generous
favors their parents have earlier performed in their life me.
Nepal has been one of the countries with the fastest-growing
Chris an popula on in the world. Today, one group of Chris ans
are fully engaged in tagging their label to more and more Nepalese.
The monetary en cement is the principal pulling factor than any
pure belief. Widespread poverty has made a huge sec on of the
popula on in rural Nepal vulnerable to sectarian conversion. The
caste discrimina on prevailing in Hinduism has further accelerated
the conversion. The rapid conversion in the label without
understanding the religious values could be a serious threat to social
harmony. Respected Vipassana teacher, Satya Narayan Goenka
denied the no on of conversion from one organized religion to
another religion. According to him, the conversion should be
from misery to happiness, cruelty to compassion and bondage to
libera on. Conversion should be in the mindset and not in the label.
Lastly, spirituality is humanity and not cruelty. It is the truth
but not an absurdity. It should be simple and easy and not
manipula ve. Let’s use our moral sense and improve our
conducts rather than just tagging the label. Let’s be ra onal with
all in our daily contacts rather than pleasing the unseen divine
power. Let’s cul vate the mind and not waste me in spiritual
gossiping. Let’s prac ce moral precepts, medita on, and develop
insight. Let’s be happy and let the others be happy too.
The Divine Messengers
In Buddhist socie es, an old man, a sick man and a corpse are
considered as the divine messengers. Because they give us the
divine message that one day we too are liable to be old, be sick
and die. The AnguƩar Nikaya (Numerical discourse), speaks about
these divine messengers as follows (Translated from the Pali by
Nyanaponika Thera and Bhikkhu Bodhi):
There are three divine messengers, O monks. There is a person of
bad conduct in body, speech and mind who perishes soon. There
the warders of Yamalok seize him by both arms and take him before
Yama, the Lord of Death, saying: “This man, your majesty, had no
respect for the paternal and maternal parents, nor for asce cs and
Brahmins, nor did he honor the elders of his family. He remained
corrupt and dishonest to the country and the countrymen. May
your majesty inflict due punishment on him!” Then, monks, King
Yama ques ons that man, examines and addresses him concerning
the first divine messenger:
“Didn’t you ever see, my good man, the first divine messenger
appearing among humankind?”
And he replies: “No, Lord, I did not see him.”
Then King Yama says to him: “But, my good man, didn’t you ever
see a woman or a man aged eighty, ninety or a hundred years, frail,
bent like a roof bracket, crooked, leaning on a s ck, shakily going
along, ailing, youth and vigor gone, with broken teeth, with grey and
scanty hair or none, wrinkled, with blotched limbs?”
And the man replies: “Yes, Lord, I have seen this.”
Then King Yama says to him: “My good man, didn’t it ever occur to
you, an intelligent and mature person, Ì too am subject to old age
and cannot escape it. Let me now do noble deeds by body, speech
and mind’?”
“No, Lord, I could not do it. I was negligent rather.”

Then King Yama says: “Through negligence, my good man, you
have failed to render noble deeds by body, speech and mind.
Well, you will be treated as befits your ignorance. That evil ac on
of yours was not done by mother or father, brothers, sisters,
friends or companions, nor by rela ves. But you alone have done
that evil deed and you will have to suffer the consequences.”
When, monks, King Yama has ques oned, examined and
addressed him thus concerning the first divine messenger, he
again ques ons, examines and addresses the man about the
second messenger. A sick man is considered as the second
messenger and finally king Yama interrogates about the third
divine messenger saying.
Didn’t you ever see, my good man, the third divine messenger
appearing among humankind?”
“No, Lord, I did not see him.”
“But, my good man, didn’t you ever see a woman or a man dead
for days and the corpse swollen, discolored and festering?”
“Yes, Lord, I have seen this.”
“Then, my good man didn’t it ever occur to you, an intelligent
and mature person, Ì too am subject to death and cannot escape
it. Let me now do noble deeds by body, speech, and mind’?”
“No, Lord, I could not do it. I was negligent.”
“Through negligence, my good man, you have failed to do noble
deeds by body, speech, and mind. Well, you will be treated as
befits your negligence. That evil ac on of yours was not done by
mother or father, brothers, sisters, friends, or companions, nor
by rela ves. But you alone have done that evil deed, and you will
have to pay the price.”
Then, having ques oned, examined, and addressed the man
concerning the third divine messenger, King Yama becomes silent.
Thereupon the warders of hell inflict many kinds of torments on

him on account of which he suffers grievous, severe, sharp, and
bi er pain. Yet he does not die so long as his evil kamma is not
exhausted.
The wardens of hell torture him. They drive a red-hot iron stake
through one hand and another red-hot iron stake through the
other hand; they drive a red-hot iron rod through one foot and
another red-hot iron rod through the other foot; they drive a
red-hot iron stake through the middle of his chest. There he feels
severe pain racking and piercing, yet he does not die so long as
that bad kamma is not exhausted. “The wardens of hell throw
him down and pare him with axes. There he feels severe pain
racking, piercing, yet he does not die so long as his bad kamma
is not exhausted. The wardens of hell harness him to a chariot
and drive him back and forth across the ground that is burning,
blazing, and glowing. They make him climb up and down a great
mound of coals that are burning, blazing and glowing bright.
They turn him upside down and plunge him into a red-hot copper
cauldron that is burning blazing and glowing bright. He is cooked
there in a swirl of foam. And as he is being cooked there in a swirl
of foam, he is swept now up, now down and now across. There
he feels painful, racking, piercing feelings, yet he does not perish
so long as the bad kamma is not exhausted (Angutlar Nikaya, the
book of three su a 36, Page: 233-36).
Human Diversity and
the Law of Karma
It is not well to do a deed which, done, brings regrets, the fruit

whereof is received with tears and lamenta ons.
-The Dhammapada
Despite the fact that all human beings belong to the same
species, Homo sapiens, we can’t find such enormous diversity
in other living beings as in humankind. A huge varia on ranging
from the Buddha to Deva Du a is not found in other living beings.
Bill Gates, Xi Jin Ping are also human and Albert Einstein and Dr.
Ambedkar were also human.
According to the Ayacana Su a, when the Blessed One was
newly Self-awakened, he was staying at Uruvela on the bank
of the Neranjara River, under a Banyan tree, reflec ng that the
Dharma he has a ained is deep, hard to realize, peaceful, refined,
beyond the scope of conjecture, subtle, to-be-experienced by
the wise and for a genera on deligh ng in a achment, excited
by a achment, enjoying a achment, it is difficult to know
and perceive. As such, “if I were to teach the Dharma and if
others would not understand me that would be resome and
troublesome for me.” Just then Sahampa Brahma, having known
of this with his own awareness appeared before the Buddha and
knelt down before him, saluted him sincerely with his palms held
together before his heart. He pleaded, let the Blessed One teach
the Dharma, let the One-Well-Gone teach the Dharma! There are
beings with li le dust in their eyes who are falling away because
they do not hear the Dharma. There will be those who will
understand the Dharma (Thanissaro Bhikkhu, 1997).
The Buddha then surveyed the world with compassion and
perceived the enormous diversity of human beings. He saw
Human Diversity and the Law of Karma
beings with keen as well as dull faculty, beings easy to teach

and hard and the Blessed One gave his consent to the Brahma,
to teach the Dharma. He ini ated preaching Dharma to five
Brahmins known as Panch Vargiya Bhikkhus. Then con nued
teaching and preaching the Dharma for forty-five consecu ve
years day and night, sleeping for only 2 hours a day.
It is usual that the people born and grown up in different
countries, in different environments differ in color, physique
and nature. However, those born and grown up in the same
geography, the same environment and even from the same
pair of parents also differ. The capacity and ideals of the twins
developed from the same embryo are also not similar. Some are
wise, some are talented, some are stupid, some are religious
and some are criminal minded, some are generous and some
are mean like Adinnapubbaka3. Some are having a huge family
with many rela ons whereas some are without any family. Some
are nice looking whereas some are ugly. Some are having a long
life while some are short-lived. Some are economically good and
some are deprived.
The Law of Karma

What is the reason behind such a huge diversity among human
beings? What is its source? It cannot happen without any
reason. In the teachings of the Buddha, everybody is individually
accountable for one’s own karma and diversity is seen linked
with that individual’s past karma. Our present mental, moral,
intellectual and temperamental differences are mostly due
to our own ac ons and tendencies, both past and present
(TsemRinpoche. com). In the Dhammapada, it is said that just
as every object is accompanied by a shadow, even so, every
voli onal ac vity inevitably accompanied by its due effect,
the Karma Vipaka (Ven. Sayadaw).
3 A greedy Brahmin at the me of the Buddha, despite

possessing an enormous wealth his only son, Ma akundali
died, without having any treatments.
Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda Mahathera in his Dharma talk ‘Power

of the Mind’ men oned that all living beings are born as per their
past karma. Their past karma is also held responsible for their
present status, talents and thoughts. Consequently, all of the 7
billion people in this world have different status, looks, talents
and thoughts. In Buddhism, karma explains the inequali es that
exist among mankind. These inequali es are not only due to
heredity, environment and nature but mostly due to the karma
or the results of our own ac ons. Indeed the karma is one of the
factors which are responsible for the ul mate success and the
failure of our lives.
According to him, karma is an invisible power that we cannot see
it working with our physical eyes. The theory of karma is self-
regulated and guided. To understand how karma works, we can
compare it to seeds: the results of karma are stored in the sub-
conscious mind in the same way as the leaves, flowers, fruits and
trunks of a tree are stored in its seed. Under favorable condi ons,
the fruits of karma will be produced just as with moisture and
light, the leaves and trunk of a tree will sprout from its ny
seed. “As you sow, so shall you reap.” Those who do good karma
reap a harvest that is deligh ul and those doing evil karma reap
the painful and tearful harvest. We can sell the farm products
if we did not like it; on the contrary, we are bound to suffer the
consequences of the karma. We can’t sell or give the produce of
karma to the others. The Dhammapada (verse 127) warns about
the inescapable consequences of evil karma as follows.
Not in the sky, nor in the middle of the ocean, nor in the cave of
a mountain, nor anywhere else, is there a place, where one may
escape from the consequences of an evil deed.
Moggallana was the second of the Buddha’s two chief male
disciples. He is considered the foremost among the monks who
possessed magical facul es. One can imagine how terrific could
be the karmavipaka, the frui on of evil karma from the story of
how the monk had to die. Following the consequences of the
past karma, it is said that he suddenly lost the psychic powers
he has long exercised and had to be sha ered into pieces by the
brigands. Even Moggallana, such a powerful monk, could not
escape the consequences of his past karma at all.
All living beings are said to be the descendants of the Almighty
God. If so, all beings could be equally competent, equally
prosperous; they should not be different in wealth, looks and
talents. If the Almighty is the creator and the parents of all living
beings, he would have ensured that his descendants are smart,
capable, talented and not lame, ugly, idio c and criminal minded.
Despite all these, why some are billionaires by birth without any
efforts and some had to suffer abject poverty? Why are some
born as the prince and some as a slave? Similarly, it is said that all
living beings are part of the Almighty God. If this is so, as a part
of the Almighty God, living beings would not have to suffer the
hardship. As a part of the Almighty God, people would not have
commi ed crimes. If all sen ent beings were the descendants of
eternal, everlas ng Brahma, they would not have suffered from
aging, disease and death.
As Buddhists, we believed in the ac on of karma: what we sowed
in our past we reaped in the present and what we will sow now
we will reap in the next rebirth. As a human being, we all are born
equal; however, the longevity of our life, health, beauty, power,
riches, high birth, wisdom may differ because of the ac on of our
past karma. Thus the Buddha said: “Each person reaps his own
fruits.” (MeƩa and Paw)
We harvest and enjoy the crop cul vated in the previous season;
in the same way, the status, wealth, family, prosperity that we
are having now is mostly the result of our past karma. Despite
the fact, it is not true that our present is completely guided or
controlled by our past. Some religious teachers believe that
whatever thing that is happening in the world are all pre-planned.
They are guided by the Almighty God, as in a play and we do
not have any independent role in it. The Buddha has denied
this no on. If every individual’s role is predetermined by the
Almighty as in a drama, then our talents and wisdom would have
no role and we did not have to a empt and work hard. We would
not have to follow moral obliga ons and prac ce medita on. We
would keep ac ng our role like a machine un l we die and so we
would not be responsible for the wholesome and un-wholesome
acts we commit. If a criminal is born to commit a crime as per the
plan of Almighty God, then it is the Almighty who should count
responsible for the crime.
The Buddha alerted the law of karma as follows

Beings are owners of karma, heirs of karma, karma is the source
of wealth and prosperity, karma is their kin, karma is a refuge,
an island. Whatever karma one does, good or evil, oneself is
accountable to its consequences. Our good karma is the source
of wealth, our rela ons, refuge and inheritance in reality.
With Bimbisara, the king of Magadha, Buddha says, “Great king!
at the me of death, all the accumulated wealth is le at home,
friends and families follow up to the crema on ground and
bid farewell; but the karma, good or bad follows the deceased
closely like the never-depar ng shadow.”
Buddhists believe that a man will reap what he has sown. As a
sapling, karma also takes some fixed me bearing fruits. We cannot
expect water passing through a long pipe to come out from the
next end, instantly. Likewise, both good and evil karma also takes
me to ripen. If a tree fails to bear fruit for a long me, we doubt
that the tree is sterile. In the same manner, if someone is having
a hard and miserable life despite having a moral and generous
lifestyle, it is usual for him/her to think that ‘Good Punished, Evil
Rewarded’ is the ul mate truth in this world. When farmers have
nothing le in the bin to cook and the crop is yet not ready to
harvest, they have to console themselves by observing the crop
growing luxuriantly in the field. In the same way, if one is having
a hard and miserable life in spite of doing enough moral and
generous deeds, one should admire the moral and virtuous deeds
he has been doing and console himself. In the cold and long night
in winter, those suffering from insomnia may be upset with the
night so long and never-ending. But, how long may be the night,
daylight is inevitable; in the same way, it is certain that the good

deeds will also ripen and bear fruits in its due course of me.
The Dhammapada Verse 120 says as follows: A person may do
good things. But those good things may at first seem evil. But
when the good matures, then the good will be seen to be actually
good (BuddhaNet. net).
Bhadropi passaƟpapam
yava bhadram na paccaƟ
yada ca paccaƟ bhadram
atha bhadro bhadrani passaƟ.
In Majhima Nikaya (the Middle Length discourse),
Culakammavibhanga Sutra4, the Buddha explains how karma
accounts for the fortune and misfortune of beings. According
to him, those persons who are the killers of living beings,
murderous, bloody-handed, merciless to all living beings, having
performed and completed such karmas, on the dissolu on of the
body, a er death, they reappear in a state of depriva on, in an
unhappy des na on, in perdi on, in hell. If on the dissolu on
of the body, a er death, instead of reappearing in a state of
depriva on, in an unhappy des na on, in perdi on, in hell, they
come to the human state, they are short-lived wherever they are
reborn. However, if some woman or man, having abandoned
the killing of living beings, abstains from killing living beings,
lays aside the rod and lays aside the knife, is considerate and
merciful and dwells compassionate for the welfare of all living
beings. Due to having performed and completed such karmas,
on the dissolu on of the body, a er death, he/she reappears in a
happy des na on, in the heavenly world. If on the dissolu on of
the body, a er death, instead of his/her reappearing in a happy
des na on, in the heavenly world, he/she comes to the human
state, he/she is long-lived wherever reborn.
Those envious if reborn as a human, they are weak and powerless
and those not envious are influen al wherever they are reborn.
4 (Burrowed from Me a, A. and Paw, M. , n. d. ; Culakammavibhanga sutra)
Angry People are ugly wherever they are reborn and those calm
and cool are beau ful and nice looking. Generous people are rich
wherever they are reborn and those not giver of food, drinks,
clothes, medicines, and shelter to monks and Brahmins are poor.
Those who do not admire while offering food, drinks, clothes,
medicines, and shelter to monks and Brahmins, are reborn
rich; however, they can’t u lize the wealth. Despite possessing
enormous wealth, they can’t enjoy a luxurious life. They even
can’t have good food and clothing. Therefore, it is important to
ensure that things are offered with due respect and reverence.
In AnguƩar Nikaya, the Numerical Discourses, the Buddha
explains to Queen Mallika, the wife of King Pasenadi, the karmic
causes through which women can achieve beauty, wealth and
influence5.
“Here, Mallika, some woman is prone to anger and easily
infuriated. Even if she is cri cized slightly, she loses her temper
and becomes irritated, hos le and stubborn; she displays anger,
hatred and bi erness. She does not give things to the asce cs
or Brahmins: foods and drinks; clothing; garlands, scents and
unguents; beddings, dwellings and ligh ngs. And she is jealous;
one who envies and begrudges the gain, honor, respect, esteem,
homage and worship given to the others. When she passes away
from that state, if she comes back to this world, wherever she
is reborn, she shall look ugly, ill-formed and unsightly; poor,
des tute and indigent; and lacking in influence.”
“Another woman is prone to anger and easily infuriated. But
she gives things to the asce cs or Brahmins. And she is without
jealousy, one who does not envy, resent or begrudge gain, honor,
respect, esteem, homage and worship given to the others. When
she passes away from that state, if she comes back to this world,
wherever she is reborn, she shall look ugly, ill-formed and unsightly;
but she is rich, with great wealth and property, and influen al.”
“And s ll another woman is not prone to anger or o en
5 (Burrowed from Bhikkhu Bodhi, 2012. P: 578-579)
infuriated. And she gives things to asce cs or Brahmins. . . . And

she is without envy. When she passes away from that state, if
she comes back to this world, wherever she is reborn, she is
beau ful, a rac ve, and graceful, possessing the supreme
beauty of complexion; rich, with great wealth and property; and
influen al”(Bhikkhu Bodhi, 2012. P: 578-579).
Law of Mo on
Sir Isaac Newton, the great scien st in his Law of Mo on stated
that the ac on and reac on are always equal; on the contrary, in
the law of karma, the reac on is always greater than the ac on.
A single seed sown in a fer le land can produce millions of
iden cal seeds. Likewise, small misconduct once ripen can bring
huge penal es. In Mukhapakkha Jatak story, the Bodhisa va
was said to be punished for 80 thousand years in hell for ruling
20 years as a king. Similarly, in MatakabhaƩa Jataka story, as a
consequence of sacrificing one goat, the Brahmin priest had to
be reborn as goat and beheaded 500 mes. The Dhammapada
says one should not treat the evil lightly, saying, “It will not come
to me.” Drop by drop is the water pot filled. By li le added to
li le evil accumulates. The accumula on of evil is painful. On
the contrary, one should not think casually of the good, saying,
“It will not come to me.” Drop by drop is the water pot filled. By
li le added to li le does good grow. The accumula on of good
is deligh ul (Dr. Ambedkar, 1957). Therefore, by understanding
the law of karma, one should be cau ous, refrain from all evil;
cul vate the good; cleanse own thoughts; this is the teaching of
the Buddha.
So let’s use common sense and have a self-evalua on. If we
find ourselves doing misconducts, let’s stop and overcome evil
by good instead. If we find ourselves doing good conducts, let’s
repeat it. If the evil behavior of an individual gets replaced by his
good behavior, he will illuminate the en re world.
Understanding the Differences in
Teachings of the Buddha
Buddha’s nonacceptance of the existence of eternal

power in the Universe
Only humankind has religion because they have a thinking mind
(Venerable K Sri Dhamma Nanda; 2002). Spiritual teachers have
discovered religions to guide humanity to peace and prosperity;
however, in history, there have been wars for the religion that
killed thousands of innocent people. Even now, there are disputes
for the religious label at the cost of human casual es.
Despite the fact that varied religious teachings were discovered
and propagated by different spiritual leaders throughout history it
is interes ng to see that many similari es in terms of their origin,
the final goal and the path leading to it. The goal of these religious
teachings is to ascend to heaven or achieve libera on. Despite the
differences in names and founders, most of these teachings have
accepted the existence of a pervasive permanent superpower in
the Universe as the sole source of crea on and emancipa on. They
believe that the pervasive superpower is eternal and the center of
origin. Union with power is the ul mate goal of these religions.
One of the first fundamental differences that dis nguish
Buddhism from other religious teachings is that Buddha has
denied the existence of almighty power in the Universe. Unlike in
other religions, in Buddhism, it is not a union; however, libera on
from all the bondage is the ul mate goal, the Nibbana.
Tradi ons of Blinds
Buddha rejected the idea of a supreme god as this is just a
tradi onal illusion (Dhamma Wiki, a Buddhist Encyclopedia). He
has o en employed an analogy of blind men clinging one to other
to deny such percep ons that the first one does not see, the
Understanding the Differences in Teachings of the Buddha
middle one does not see and neither does the last (Sacrityayan
and Ven. Rakshit, 1964, P: 419). According to Buddha, the belief of
almighty God is a tradi on of blinds that have been con nuously
passed down from genera on to genera on.
Buddha says that it is not possible for any such power to maintain
their supremacy eternally. He has frequently used the word,
Mara, to reveal the evil power that disturbs those trying to do
well for the libera on of mankind. It is said that he himself had
to defeat the mighty army of Mara before being enlightened.
However, such power according to the Buddha is also not
permanent and could be replaced by others a er an interval of
several thousand years.
Four Noble Truths
In contrast, Buddha discovered the truth of suffering that every
living being experiences in real life. He iden fied tempta on as
the origin behind all the sufferings. He put forward the vision that
one can be completely liberated from the sufferings and he is the
guide to show the path to emancipa on. The truth of suffering,
the truth of the origin of suffering, the truth of the cessa on of
suffering and the path leading to the cessa on of suffering are
the ‘Four Noble Truths’ discovered by Buddha and nobody can
be liberated without understanding the tenet.
In this way, while the majority of the religious teachers were
advoca ng the existence of eternal power, Buddha rejected
it. Instead of was ng me and energy in such idle gossip he
explained the truth and origin of suffering that every living being
is passing through in life and that we could be guided towards a
path leading to complete cessa on of suffering.
Once the origins of the sufferings are uprooted one can be
completely emancipated. Buddha taught about the ‘Noble
Eigh old Path’ as the only excep onal way (ekaeno ayan maggo)
to emancipa on. He refused both the approaches of indulging
in worldly pleasure and self-mor fica on as two extremes to be
avoided and suggested to follow the middle path as the only way
leading to libera on.
One is Responsible for One’s Own Purifica on and

Emancipa on
Many religious communi es have accepted the existence of
pervasive eternal power in the universe as the sole source of
crea on and emancipa on. The religious prac ces espoused
by those religions focus on rituals that are directed towards
pleasing that power. The religious teachers ask their followers to
pray, worship, believe, take bath in a holy river, fast, worship fire,
chant, etc as the path of purifica on and emancipa on. They also
believe that the mere belief in such an almighty power is enough
to destroy all the sins or evil acts and leads to purifica on and
emancipa on. Buddha’s view is quite different. Buddha teaches
that every individual is responsible for his or her own purifica on
and emancipa on. There is no room for such views like purifica on
through the bath in Holy River, visi ng holy places, holy gods and
temples (Ven. Dharma Rakshit; 1956, P: 11). In Buddha’s teaching,
no one can purify others (Ven. Dhammananda, 2002). Buddha is
only the guide and cannot provide purifica on and emancipa on
simply through his blessings. For the purifica on and emancipa on,
one has to be morally good, prac ce medita on and develop
wisdom. This is the second fundamental difference that declares
Buddhism as a separate faith from others.
Buddha narrated followings to the Venerable Ananda, his
personal secretary;
Ananda! AƩa deepa biharatha aƩa sarana!
Tumehi kichchang atappam akkhataro tathagata !!
(Ananda! be light of yourself, be the refuge of yourself, Buddha
can only guide but it is you who has to walk the way to the
des na on.) Mahaparinirvan Su a, Digha Nikaya.
In Dhammapada, it is said
AƩa hi aƩano natho
ko hi natho parosiya
aƩanawo sudantena
natham labhaƟ dullabham.
Verse 160: One indeed is one’s own refuge; how can others be a
refuge to one? With oneself thoroughly tamed, one can a ain a
refuge (i. e., Araha a Phala), which is so difficult to a ain.
Sigalovada su a
Instead of pleasing the unseen almighty power, Buddha taught
about behaving those in everyday contacts with love and
goodwill. He taught the doctrine of love and goodwill among the
humankind and other living beings.
In Sigalovada suƩa, the Buddha told a young householder named
Sigala, who had been salu ng the six cardinal direc ons every
morning as his father’s last wish, that the mother and father are
the East direc ons, the teachers are the South, wife and children
are the West, the friends and associates are the North, servants
and employees are the Nadir, the asce cs and brahmins are the
Zenith; and trea ng them with love and respect is actually to
salute the six direc ons as per the discipline of the noble ones
(Ven. Amritananda; 2015, P: 42) .
Accountable for one’s own karma6
Different religious teachers lure followers by providing easy
solu ons to their evil acts. They believe that the mere act of
believing or pleasing in their mighty power is enough to release
the followers from all the evil ac ons they have commi ed.
However, in Buddhism one is accountable for one’s own acts
(karma or kamma). In the teachings of Buddha, every living being
is individually accountable for the good and bad acts commi ed
by oneself. In Angu ara Nikaya, Panchaka Nipata, Nivarana
Vagga, the Buddha asked the monks to be aware and perceive
the following:
Kamassa kommi, kamma dayado, kamma bandu, kamma
paƟsharane, em kammam karissami kalyanang wa papakang
tassa dayado bhawissami.
6 Wholesome and unwholesome acts commi ed by a person is called as

karma in Sanskrit and kamma in Pali
(Beings are accountable for own acts, kamma is the source of

wellbeing and worth, kamma is the brotherhood, kamma is the
refuge; whatever kamma one does good or bad is accountable to
bear the fruit or result of that).
Ven. Dhammananda (2002) men oned that the past kamma is
responsible for an individual’s births, talents, status and thinking.
As directed by past kamma, children even from the same pair
of parents differ significantly in the thoughts, status, looks and
talents. Some are talented, some are idio c, some are nice
looking some are not, some are wealthy and some are poor,
some are religious minded and some are of a criminal minded.
This is the reason the 7 billion people on earth think and behave
differently. If people were created by some god or Brahma or the
creator, surely they all would be equally competent, capable and
nice looking.
Rejec ng the No on of Everlas ng Soul

Most religious teachers have accepted the no on about the
permanent soul. They believe that all living beings are mortal;
but, the soul is eternal. As the snakes change their skin, so too
does the soul keep changing the body. Buddha has not accepted
this argument about the existence of an eternal soul. His view
is known as the ‘Theory of no eternal soul’ (Anatmabad).
Anatmabad is another fundamental difference that makes
Buddhism unique.
To understand Buddha’s theory of Anatma, one has to
understand about impermanence (AnaƩa). Understanding
the impermanence as discovered by Buddha requires thinking
minutely and analy cally. The zygote made with a fusion of
sperm with egg con nues to change un l it becomes a baby,
child, youth, adult, old aged before finally dying. Usually, we
do not realize or no ce that nature is con nuously changing in
every micro-second or nano-second. The fact of con nuous and
con nual change in every creature in the universe is called by
Buddha to be the law of impermanence.
To elaborate on the law of impermanence, Buddha has illustrated

an analogy about a burning candle and running water in a river.
Generally, laymen realize impermanence only when the flame is
ex nct; however, if we wisely and minutely think we can realize
that the crea on and ex nc on of the flame are con nuously
taking place. The flame lit at the beginning flickers and ignites
another flame immediately a er. In this way, the flames keep
crea ng and ex nguishing and new flames keep replacing the
old ones con nuously. This process of ex nc on and crea on of
flame takes place in such a speed that our ordinary eye can’t
capture it; consequently, we think that the ini al flame itself is
the final flame; however, billions of flames lit and ex nguished in
the process in fact.
According to Buddha, the whole universe is also passing through
the process of crea on and destruc on and the new universe is
con nuously replacing the old one. According to Ven. Piyadassi
Thera (1956, P: 7) “The whole universe is constantly changing,
not remaining the same for two consecu ve moments”. This
phenomenon of change or the nature of crea on and destruc on,
with the new one con nuously replacing the old, is the law of
impermanence as discovered by Buddha. If the en re universe is
constantly changing through the phenomenon of crea on and
ex nc on, with the old con nuously replaced by the new one,
how then can one advocate about the existence of everlas ng
and never changing soul?
According to Buddha, the soul is just a concept, which acts
as a founda on to the feelings of self. This does not have any
strong base. When the eye comes into contact with any visual
object, it develops a feeling of pleasure or displeasure. With the
development of these feelings, it also undergoes the mental
processes like percep on, mental forma ons, consciousness and
one develops feelings like “I saw” as if there is some different
en ty inside to see.
Therefore, it is not wise to consider that the ‘me and my feelings’
produced through contact of the ‘sense organs’ with their
respec ve objects is related to the eternal soul and the role of a

mighty supernatural power (Du a and Wajpeyi, 1956, P: 156-57).
This is nothing more than an illusion. If every living creature has
a soul that forms part or comes from a mighty superpower, then
they would not have to pass through the sufferings. If everything
that is happening in the universe is as per the planning of the
mighty superpower, then it is not the criminal to be accountable
for whatever crime he\she commits.
Universe envisioned with uncountable solar systems

Many religious teachers have limited the periphery of the universe
within the single solar system. They describe the universe as
three realms viz. heaven, earth and hell, which is limited to
the boundary of a single solar system. Buddha differs from the
majority of the religious teachers because according to him, the
universe goes far beyond the periphery of a single solar system.
Buddha teaches that there are 31 planes of existence in a single
solar system and there are innumerable solar systems in the
universe (Ven. Nanamoli and Ven. Bodhi, 2009, P: 46 ). Buddha is
believed to have the capacity of controlling and influencing ten
thousand solar systems. It is believed that the Nibbana, the final
des na on of Buddhism is beyond the 31 planes.
No blind devo on
Usually, religions are based on faith. Some teachers say that
religion is nothing but believing. When spiritual teachers fail to
convince followers with logic, they ask the followers to believe
and discourage them from ques oning or making any argument
about their teachings. In contrast, Buddha has asked his
followers not to accept any teachings without proper tes ng and
reasoning. He has asked the community of Kalamas as follows
(Ven. AnandaKausalyayan; 1957, P: 65, P 191-197):
Come on Kalamas!
• Don’t believe anything just because it is heard and preached
for years.
• Don’t believe anything just because they are tradi onal and
coming from genera ons.

• Don’t believe anything because it is spoken and rumored by many.
• Don’t believe anything just because it is as per your religious
books.
• Don’t believe anything just because they are as per your beliefs
• Don’t believe anything just because the teacher has an
a rac ve personality.
• Don’t believe anything just because the teacher is honorable
to your family.
When Kalamas a er thorough observa on and inves ga on you
find anything that agrees with the reasoning and is conducive to
the good and benefit of one and all then accept it and shape your
life in accordance with it.
Middle Path
The middle path is also one of the peculiar features of Buddha’s
teaching. He refused both the approaches of indulging in worldly
pleasure and self-mor fica on as two extremes to be avoided
and suggested to follow the middle path as the only way leading
to libera on.
Spirituality (Dhamma)
for Prosperity
The word, Nepal is believed to be derived from two Nepalese

terms like Niyam and Pal that Niyampal literally means the country
that respects and follow rules and regula ons very well. In history,
Nepal was famous for jus ce. However, today Nepal, the birth-
place of Lord Buddha and the Land of Mount Everest, Niyampal is
passing through the situa on of sheer lawlessness. In the Hindu
Epic, the Mahabharat, only one Shakuni7 made Pandavas and
Kauravas, fight the devasta ng war of Mahabharata; whereas
Nepal has Shakunis not only in poli cs but also in bureaucracy,
prepared to commit all sorts of evils for personal gains. Due to
their dirty poli cal games, Nepal has been passing through the
most frustra ng situa on in the history of modern Nepal. Many
hundred thousand non-Nepalese said to have obtained Nepalese
ci zenship. Don’t know how expensive they will be for the
country in the days to come.
In the past two and half decades, Nepal went through enormous
poli cal upheavals including one decade-long Maoist Insurgency.
Many parents lost their children and many children lost their
parents; however, the poli cal change, achieved at the cost of
thousands of innocent lives benefi ed only the poli cians and
their supporters but to great despair, the condi on of the general
public remained pathe c. People in the remote parts of the
country are dying without even having basic medicines like ORS8;
whereas the poli cal leaders have become almost immortal with
the treatments in the expensive hospitals overseas. Poor people
have to sell their proper es for their treatment; whereas the
leaders and their family are having high-class treatment without
7 A cunning man, main villains in the Hindu Epic Mahabharat, brother of

queen Gandhari and maternal uncle of Duryodhana
8 Oral Rehydra on Solu on
Spirituality (Dhamma) for Prosperity
spending a single penny from their pocket. Because of the

privilege of having treatment from the government expenditure,
leaders are going overseas even for a simple sickness that can
be cured within the country. Otherwise, the sum spent on the
treatment of leaders in expensive foreign hospitals could be used
to make new health posts in remote areas and upgrade hospitals
in the ci es.
Poli cal History

Nepal was under the ac ve monarchial system from 1960 to
1990. The system was above the cons tu on and indicated to be
the main obstacle for development. The people’s movement in
1990, restored the mul party democracy that was thought to be
vital for development. The democra cally elected government
of Nepali Congress was thought to bring change; however, it not
only failed to meet people’s expecta ons but also introduced
a number of irregulari es and prac ces of abusing power. The
na onal industries that were producing the basic needs of the
people and providing employment to thousands of youths were
all sold in the name of priva za on. Health and educa on, which
are the basic right of the people were commercialized (Misra,
2018) for the self-interest of the elite few in Power. Nepal had
to face poli cal instability for two and a half decades and had to
face Maoist insurgency that cost 17 thousand lives.
Despite the fact that the country had to bear the anomalies and
instability for two and half decades following the restora on of
mul -party democracy, the leaders in the cons tu on assembly
introduced such a poli cal system where the probability for a
party having a clear majority was almost impossible. The system
was lucra ve to the leaders but expensive to the grassroots
and the whole country. The propor onate electoral system has
been a good source of income for the leaders and also means
of bringing family members in the parliament. The number of
ministries is determined by the poli cal bhagbanda (‘party
quota system’) for sustaining the coali on. It is very unfortunate
that the glu onous leaders are not serious about the financial
burden and consequences of breaking and increasing the number
of ministries. Contrary to the experts’ sugges on limi ng the

number of ministries in the center not exceeding 15, the number
has been increased to 22.
Poli cal bhagbanda is prevalent in all academic, judicial,
diploma c and cons tu onal appointments. These events led to
the decline of confidence in those honest and sincere civil servants
and discouraged them from performing their ins tu onal du es
(Dahal, 2015). There is a widespread percep on of the public that
these appointments are o en associated with a huge amount of
payment. This has also been disclosed by the former Police Chief,
Mr. Achyut Krishna Kharel (2018) in his autobiography. These
modes of bribery in the corridors of power are fairly understood
by using the telecom terminology of “prepaid” and “post-paid”
payment (Ghimire, 2011).
Lack of Ethics and Self-Respect:

Thapa (2017), in his book ‘Rajgaj’, has uncovered a frightening
picture of corrup on, in Nepal. Despite the fact, only a few are
brought into the exposure of which most are given clean chit
in the judicial process. There are several examples that the
concerned authority misuses the power in taking revenge rather
than punishing the culprit (Thapa, 2017). Nepal is the country
where honest and du ful are targeted because those in power
prefer the illegal path (Karki, Sushila; 2018).
The rampant corrup on and lawlessness resulted from the
poli cal instability followed by a sharp decline in ethics and
moral values have made the life of the ordinary people pathe c.
Their condi on has become like that of a wooden log at the edge
of a sharp saw that whatever direc on the saw makes a move,
forward or backward technically, the log had to be torn apart.
For the people having no connec on, the academic cer ficates
are no more than a piece of paper. There are growing frustra on
and disappointment that the average ci zen is unable to receive
a public service without paying a bribe. Those people who
garnered hope to see a prosperous and democra c New Nepal
are now experiencing rising frustra ons due to a sharp decline in
the moral, ethical values and the creden als of public servants
(Shakya, Umesh; 2009). Youths, who are a pre-requisite for the
prosperity have all le the country and Nepal is turning into a
country without youths. The remi ance has become one of the
main sources of the Nepalese economy.
Mishra (2017) accused poli cians lacking self-respect, dignity and
integrity are responsible for the increased foreign interven ons
and manipula ons in Nepal. The Nepalese have to be demoralized
among the interna onal communi es because of the poverty
demonstrated by the leaders and bureaucrats (Sigdel, Shailendra;
2015). It is catastrophic that our leaders give more priority to
foreign interests than the country’s own interests.
At the me when the trade deficit is growing rapidly and the
country’s economy is passing through a vola le situa on, the
tempta on of the bureaucrats on foreign trips has not only
revealed their poor mentality; however also their irresponsibility.
In the fiscal year 2017/18 despite the regula ons of the Prime
Minister’s Office, 5 thousand bureaucrats had foreign trips that
put a burden of 2 billion rupees to the country (Pandit, 2018,
Annapurna Post). Furthermore, it is sad to no ce that even
the “people’s representa ves” who are expected to solve the
people’s problem are tempted to have foreign tours out of the
tax payer’s money. The foreign trips have become a means for
the bureaucrats and the leaders ra fying the illegal earnings
while having amusement in the government expenditure (Thapa,
2017). Millions of rupees are spent from the state coffers every
year on their foreign visits. However, it does not seem so far
that the na on has benefited out of these trips. Their priority
seems to be visi ng foreign countries rather than focusing on the
issues concerning the general public (Rai, BirendraBangdel, “The
Himalaya Times”, 26 Oct 2017).
It is pathe c that public service ethics are eroding with an
increase in the incidences of unethical prac ces and a lack
of accountability (Shakya, Umesh; 2009). Many found to be
decei ul to their own mother organiza on. We quite o en have
news like NTC staff leaking informa on in favor of NCELL and

the staff of Nepal Airlines Corpora on being loyal to the private
airways. Civic sense is missing in almost everywhere. Even
“innocent” farmers are feeding their customers with pes cide-
laden fruits and vegetables (Aryal, 2017). The incidence of
rape and murder is quite common these days. The role of the
ins tu on that is responsible to bring the criminal into jus ce
has not been sa sfactory. In the incidence of rape and murder
of innocent Nirmala Pant in Kanchanpur, the police have been
accused of destroying all the evidence in favor of the criminal.
This is a grave offense of the cops indeed.
Mr. Lok Mani Rai, a senior journalist from “Kan pur Daily”
exposed the mysterious role of the staffs of the electricity
corpora on in delaying the hydropower projects. What can be
more painful and immoral than the personnel who are responsible
to develop the hydro-power and make the country self-sufficient
while they are involved in delaying the technical projects?
When do we realize the truth that we can have a pres gious life
only when our country is prosperous? Being a poor ci zen of a
prosperous country is be er and pres gious than being a rich
and corrupt resident of a poor and deprived country. We have
already suffered the hardship of the trade embargo imposed by
our neighbor three mes in the past. We have a huge poten al
for developing the hydro-power; however, we lack a sense of
dignity and self-respect. If not, we would have accelerated the
hydro-power projects and provided alterna ve op ons for the
cooking gas and fuel by now.
Is Nepal Really Poor?

Nepal is on the front line in the list of poor countries; however, is
it Nepal or the Nepalese mentality really poor? We are blessed
with natural resources. We have such a beau ful country with
mountain ranges, lakes, rivers, forests, unmatched biodiversity
and spiritually important sites carrying tremendous poten al
for tourism. Despite the fact, our dependency on external
support is increasing year a er year. The mission of most of the
educated people is also limited to a well-paid job and family
rather than u lizing the resources for the prosperity of the

country. Consequently, with the growing number of Ph. D.’s
from interna onally renowned universi es, the dependency
on foreign aid is increasing. We even can’t clean our lakes and
manage natural resources without foreign aid. As an agricultural
country, we have not even been able to supply quality seeds to
the peasants.
This is not so sad that we can’t compete with the world in
modern technology; however, why can’t we produce vegetables
like onion, tomato, potato, chilly without foreign aid? We have
established agricultural offices in different districts and started
an agricultural extension and development program over the
past three decades; despite the fact, we are impor ng over 50
trucks of vegetables almost every day. Why are our “efforts”
taking us deeper and deeper under the surface like a helpless
animal trying to come out of the quagmire? We were expor ng
rice un l the 1980s; however, now we are impor ng a huge
quan ty of rice every year and the quan ty is increasing rapidly.
At least this should not be the outcome that we expected from
our investment in the agricultural sectors. In such a situa on,
how can the officials feel comfortable a ending seminars
overseas?
The Consequences of Corrup on

Everybody should understand that one can’t be happy with the
wealth accumulated by dishonesty and corrup on. How can
humankind be immoral and disgraceful to the extent to ruin our
own ins tu on that has provided shelter, pres ge and fund for
the educa on of the kids? How can an official supposed to be
loyal to the people and the na on be happy with the earnings
of dishonesty and bribery? The Buddha says “Bad deeds, and
deeds hur ul to ourselves, are easy to do; what is beneficial
and good, that is very difficult to do.” Wise people understand
by seeing the others, while the fools commit evil again and
again.
According to the enlightened one, human life is very short and
the happiness that we sense here conjures up just as a frac on.

In this context, for the happiness that is insignificant, it is not
wise to commit any misconduct that has an enormous painful
consequence.
The law of karma is self-regulated and can’t be manipulated.
One should be aware that corrup on and bribery are evil acts
and have inescapable consequences. They are like an alluring
bait in the fish-hook with a painful ending.
Mishra (2014) in the collec on of his poems “PAPA, (The Evil)”
writes that the fruit of the evil can come in the form of agony
at the me of aging. It can come in the form of life soiled in the
slurry of own urine and stool. Sin can come in old age in the form
of the corpse of children and grandchildren. Misconducts may
delay bearing consequences but does not let anybody escape
it. The version of the scripture that the corrupt are put in the
pot full of heated oil upside down, they have to be reborn in a
latrine pit and have to suffer the hardship in the hell, is just not
a tale terrifying the children. The Dhammapada Verse 119 says
“Even an evil person may s ll find happiness so long as his evil
deed does not bear fruit, but when evil begins to mature, the
evil-doer will understand evil to be evil.”
The Importance of Spirituality

Spiritual emp ness and erosion in religious belief are among
the various factors held responsible for promo ng corrup on
(Hanta , 2015)9. If we could have warned in mass and raised a
sharp awareness about the inescapable consequences of the evil
deeds (karma), the corrup on and lawlessness would not have
flourished to this extent. The basic cause of the degenera on
of the external world is a result of not ac ng in accordance
with the Dhamma (Ven. Buddhadash). The Hindu epic of
Mahabharata also says that spirituality is the unfailing solu on
to all social, economic and poli cal problems. Therefore, the
9 Workshop Report (2015), The Role of Religion and Islamic Values in the
Fight against Corrup on and Bribery, Center for the Study of Islam and
Democracy
measures in comba ng corrup on will not be effec ve and

sustainable without restoring spiritual and ethical values (Philip,
2011), par cularly when those responsible for restoring law and
order themselves are in the illegal track.
In Adhammik Su a, the Buddha highlighted the significance
of the ruler alone to be just and good. In the Su a, the
Buddha illustrates, ‘When the ruler of a country is just and
good, the ministers become just and good as well; when the
ministers are just and good, the higher officials become just
and good as well; when the higher officials are just and good,
the rank and file become just and good as well; when the rank
and file become just and good, the people become just and
good as well.’ (Weediyage; 2016). As a result, all seasonal
circles run smoothly and the outcome of the environment
shall be nourishing. So, the people of the country will become
healthy. Spirituality is the founda on for the prosperity and
well-being of the people.
Recently the country observed the tremendous impact of ethics
and will-power of a couple of limelight persons in the energy
sector that resulted in the unbelievable achievement of ending
the load shedding completely from Kathmandu, the capital city,
which was earlier suffering from a deliberate ‘no light’ situa on
up to 18 hours a day. This display of ethics exhibited by these
two important people led to a chain of posi ve impacts that
resulted in the economy of the country to grow by 6. 94 percent
for the first me in 23 years (The Kathmandu Post, 25thApril
2017).
The Buddha while explaining the reason behind the prosperity of
the Vajji Republic highlighted the seven unbeatable dhammas,
(the Sapta Aparihaniyadhamma)10 and commended that
10 Hold regular mee ngs to discuss ma ers pertaining to the day-to-day
administra on, meet, work and disperse as a team, strictly follow the
law of the country, be submissive to the elders, respect the women-folk
and condemn the oppression of women, follow the religious customs and
protect them, respect the clergy and hold them in venera on (Weediyage,
2016).
the Vajji Republic con nue to be flourishing as long as

they s ck to these dhammas. In a sheer query of the
ministers of King Ajatsa u, Lord Buddha admonished that
Vajjis were undefeatable so long as they adhere to these
seven dhammas. The story behind the prosperity of Vajjis
reveals the importance of respec ng and protec ng the ethical
and spiritual values rendered for the prosperity of a country.
Emperor, Ashok the Great (304-232 B. C. E. ) ul mately went
through a spiritual transforma on. He not only adopted the
teachings of the Buddha; however, applied the Buddhist
principles to the way he ruled his vast empire. He administered
the Vipassana medita on as a fundamental instrument of
reforming the governance of his gigan c kingdom within
South Asia; consequently, the system of administra on in his
me appeared so efficient, humane and responsive that it
remained unparalleled in the human history (Singh, 1997).
Nepal as the Birth-Place of Lord Buddha:

Nepal is the birth-place of the Buddha and for the Nepalese, it is a
ma er of top pride and admira on. Many interna onal devotees
s ll have a misguided belief that India is the birth-place and this
hurts all of us regardless of religious beliefs, castes or race. Many
a me we have united to oppose this baseless claim. The recent
one is the “Buddha was born in Nepal” campaign organized by
the Nepalese youths in Kathmandu. Despite the fact, we never
realized the importance of understanding his teachings. The
teachings of the Buddha par cularly the morality, medita on and
wisdom could have profound impacts in producing good ci zens,
good bureaucrats and leaders, and thereby building prosperous
Nepal. It is unfortunate that we could not value the teachings of
the Buddha. Even those who claim themselves to be Buddhist
have not been benefi ed from his sublime tenets.
It is painful that in the birthplace of Lord Buddha, the school
curriculum does not include even a couple of pages that the
children could have exposure to his preaching. We can expect
good ci zens from the children who have understood the fact
that every evil act has a painful and inescapable consequence.

Therefore, it is high me to include moral educa on and
medita on prac ces from the primary level. Needless to remark
that the children are the future stars of Nepal. The ancient
vernacular of PALI must be ini ated in the secondary and higher
level Syllabus by all means. It has been sixty-eight consecu ve
years that the first democracy dawned in Nepal, yet we have not
been able to witness the instruc on of PALI even in Buddhist high
schools. How ridiculous it is indeed! It was Lumbini that finally
put Nepal on the World Map as a “Zone Of Peace.”
While we claim our country as the birth-place of the Buddha,
we should not forget that the best way of inheri ng the legacy
of the Buddha is to treasure and prac ce his teachings. Because
we have not been able to cherish the value of the Buddha and
his teachings, Nepal is facing severe consequences of sectarian
conversion in the past couple of decades. There have been
several a empts a acking our spiritual values and tradi ons
established since ancient mes. The disturbances due to the
spiritual encroachment have resulted in a tremendous increase
in corrup on and disorders. The lack of moral educa on in the
curriculum has made youths less responsive to their parents and
community.
How Vipassana Introduced in Public Sector in Burma?

According to Shakya, Rantasundar (2009), U Ba Khin was
appointed as the first Accountant General of independent
Burma a er its independence in 1948. He, with the permission
of U Nu, the then Prime Minister of Burma, introduced 10 days
of Vipassana medita on to all senior and junior staffs from his
office. Earlier, the office of the Accountant General was defamed
as the center of corrup on and it was virtually impossible to have
any work done without paying bribes. In such an office with such
a polluted environment, U Ba Khin not only maintained strict
regula ons but also provided its staff with the opportunity of
experiencing the esteem of Vipassana medita on and realizing
the Dhamma. Consequently, within a period of 3 to 4 years, the
majority of the department turned out to be free of the taint of
bribery and were seen as respectable. Despite the governmental

rule of re ring a er the age of 55, the Government of Burma
retained U Ba Khin in work un l he was 67 for his outstanding
performance.
The Impacts of Vipassana on the Prisoners in Indian jails
The Indian Government has introduced Vipassana to the prisoners
in its jails. According to Vyas (2005), the camp had significant
impacts on the prisoners. Almost all realized a reduc on in
mental tension and experienced peace and happiness. This
also had posi ve changes in their behavior. Prison authori es
also recorded significant reduc ons in violence and criminal
behaviors inside the jail. Further, many long- me smokers also
gave up smoking habits spontaneously.
Recommenda ons
Being the birthplace of the Buddha, Nepal should be immensely
benefi ed from his teachings. In the context when corrup on is
paralyzing the development efforts in the country, the teachings
of the Buddha, par cularly morality and medita on, aspects
could bring a las ng solu on.
In Nepal, Vipassana medita on sessions of 10 day’s dura on
are being run in eight centers throughout the country Viz.
Budhanilakantha, Kir pur, Itahari, Chitwan, Pokhara, Birgunj,
Lumbini and Surkhet with free board and food provided in the
facili es.
The introduc on of Vipassana medita on as a way to share with
our poli cians, par cularly the members of the parliament and
those in bureaucracy, the teachings of the Buddha, par cularly
the Sila (morality), Samadhi (Medita on) and Prajna (Wisdom)
could help restore ethics and make them accountable to the
people. The Government of Nepal introduced Vipassana for
its new Officers, Doctors and Police Officers in 2015. The newly
recruited Police Officers, Doctors and Sec on Officers were made
to a end 10 days of Vipassana medita on in Dhamma Shringa
Vipassana Center, Budhanilakantha, Kathmandu. This could
have had significant posi ve impacts on the civil services and

bureaucracy of Nepal if given further con nua on; unfortunately,
it was not con nued for unspecified reasons. The Government
of Nepal should resume this ini a ve started in 2015. It should
introduce Vipassana medita on as a cost-effec ve and prac cal
means of figh ng corrup on by nourishing and developing the
nascent ethics of its civil servants, parliamentarians, judiciary,
and civic leaders. As part of official training, it should con nue
sending its civil servants who are in everyday contact with the
public to the Vipassana medita on.
Now, Nepal with the government in the center, province and
local level has enormously increased the expenditure. This is high
me for our leaders, bureaucrats to be sensible in minimizing the
expenses. They must put an instant stop on richening themselves
at the cost of others. Government squandering the state money
is a colossal crime indeed. This is the me we decide the number
of our ministries to an op mum level. This is the me to minimize
foreign trips. This is the me to curtail the health expenditures
in distant lands when we do own many capable hospitals back at
home. Reuse and recycle the resources we have. If we s ck the
number of the ministries as per the sugges on of the experts,
we s ll can manage our expenditure without increasing the tax.
Now, we only need to use our conscience and avoid tempta ons
for a new vehicle when we have to import even a ny needle.
A single day’s life of an honest and patrio c person is nobler
than a hundred years of life of an evil and corrupt.
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Human life is believe to be a transit point between the
divine and lower realm. Only human life has an opportunity
of making efforts that lead to the divine realm. Humankind
can make efforts to Nibbana, the salvation by laying the
moral foundation, practicing meditation and gaining the
ritual insight. This is why human life is considered to be
precious. Human life is the land of cultivating
good Karma and the land of practicing Dharma. It is a
valuable opportunity gaining permit of the divine realm.
The cultivation of Sila, Samadhi and Prajna (morality,
meditation and wisdom) is possible only in the human
realm. Lower and divine realms are respectively the realm
of punishment and the realm of reward, and they do not
have the opportunity of developing any morality, practicing
meditation and gaining insight. Therefore, it is wise to
utilize the human life to the maximum extent by cultivating
righteous things, preventing heinous acts and purifying the
mind. At the time of death, nothing will go with us except
the good and bad Karma that we in event commi ed.

Journey To Happiness R

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JOURNEY TO HAPPINESS

“I teach one thing and one thing only:

Mahendra Kumar Shakya

First Edi on : 1000 copies

Writer : Mahendra Kumar Shakya

© : All rights reserved to the writer

Printed at : Dongol Printers

This book is for free distribu on and not for sale.

Ven. Bhikshu Nigrodha

Peace and happiness is the common agenda of

A er publishing the third revised edi on in vernacular Nepali language,

Mahendra Kumar Shakya

AƩa dipa aƩa sharana and dhamma dipa, dhamma sharana

result in a more favorable life and future rebirth (Ratanakula, P.

Globaliza on and Nuclear family

Dhamma the best refuge

It is said that there is “separa on a er union and union a er

It is believed that human life is a transit point between the divine

One heading to more darkness from the darkness

One heading to light from the darkness

One heading to darkness from light

One heading light from the light

Now, the me has come to decide where to go: towards light

are running a 10 day’s medita on session in diﬀerent ci es

“If a man speaks or acts from the uprightness of mind, happiness

Diﬀerent spiritual teachers have suggested diﬀerent approaches

body systems. Ci zens losing temper more o en are likely to have

Me a, (Goodwill) & Karuna (Compassion)

happiness of all beings.

Karuna medita ons garner a bright and a rac ve appearance

Chakramana (Walking Medita on)

Training the Mind

“No other thing do I know, O monks that brings so much

Taming the running mind

these precepts one ini ates cul va ng these quali es in mind.

“JaƟpi dukkha”, according to the Buddha, birth is suﬀering,

Development of the mind in the womb

of his incomplete knowledge on the technique (Wikipedia). The

Percep on of a baby in the Womb

Influence of the baby in the womb on the mother

of the mother. When prince Ajatsatru was in the womb, his

What is good to do during Pregnancy and what is not?

having a bath, observes five moral precepts with the refuge of

“Vaya Dhamma Shankara Appamadena Sampadetha” (All the

What is Appamada (Heedfulness)?

prac cing medita on and abstaining from sensual pleasure, now

In this material world, we are was ng our me in such a way that

One Way Traﬃc

Since ancient mes people have been following spiritual

have made a plain shelter for myself. I shall go herea er to the

Why Spirituality (Dharma)?

every evil ac on has an inescapable consequence, the system in

Spirituality and Science

the pain, However, sharing pain is not possible. This is because

Animal Sacrifice, an Evil Tradi on

At the me of the Buddha, a Brahmin, Uggatasarira was preparing

Spirituality and Rituals

“No, Lord, I could not do it. I was negligent rather.”

Thereupon the warders of hell inflict many kinds of torments on

It is not well to do a deed which, done, brings regrets, the fruit

beings with keen as well as dull faculty, beings easy to teach

The Law of Karma

3 A greedy Brahmin at the me of the Buddha, despite