Attn.  Mr. Bhandari !

Thanks for going through my writing despite having some disagreements.

    In response to your inquisitiveness, I would like to clarify myself. By commenting on some specific leaders of the Sadbhavana Party I don't think I have expressed dislike towards the Terai people or their respected leaders. That is a misinterpretation. I have full respect and affection for the people living in that region which is an integral part of our kingdom. The contribution of that region to our national integrity, sovereignty and independence has always remained outstanding. That I realise from the core of my heart.

      But when it comes to 'accomplishing our true unification' we should never be soft towards the elements that are prone to selling our national sovereignty for their petty interests, whether they are from the Terai or the Hills. Against such backdrops the position of the three Sadbhavana leaders (whose name I have mentioned in my commentary) on some crucial issues - Kalapani, Mechi border encroachment, treaty of 1950 and so on - is, I think, more than enough to justify my argument.

Sincerely,
Ramesh Sharma

A few awkward moments ……

A few thoughts apropos of your 2nd Impression article "A few awkward moments in your life" dated November 24, 1999.

My sympathy to Mr. Upadhyaya for having suffered awkward moments in his life. Perhaps, he will find comfort in company if I relate a similar incident. Many years ago I was asked by a group of friends to explain Buddhism’s Mahayana and Hinayana tenet.  I found myself ill at ease because of my ignorance.  Instead of trying to make up an answer, I simply admitted my ignorance.  But the incident encouraged me to read on Buddhism and broaden my knowledge.

Some incidents remain memorable even after so many years.  I remember one: When attending a Buddhist meeting I raised my hand and asked a Buddhist monk to explain Nirvana only to be met with an amused silence all around me.  I didn’t know then the meaning of the silent treatment, but I do know now.

Sometimes we encounter freighted questions answerable only by scholars and professionals.  I wouldn’t lose sleep over not being able to answer such questions.  Sometimes we come across questions that seem so innocuous but baffling nevertheless, like the meaning of the ringing of the temple bell.

Speaking of bells, I remember an instance when I had to explain why priests and monks alike sound their hand-held bells intermittently during prayer services.  I was prepared this time, for I had read the various

interpretations of this ritual in several books.  I was able to explain the twin purposes of bell ringing:  the sudden peal, to wake us up from this worldly torpor and draw us into our spirituality; the fading resonance, to remind us of the ephemerality of the world.

Obviously, it’s better to be prepared for than preempted by questions that seem so, as Mr. Upadhyaya puts it, "simple but quite unexpected."  Soon I plan to work on: why priests fan deities with peacock-feathered fans, why devotees circumambulate from left to right; why male deities are never offered animal sacrifice; which deity has most hands, which deity demands the most devotion; where … .

Sincerely,
Uday K. Lama
7322 Rolling Oak Lane
Springfield, VA  22153