Dr Dosti Regmi Blog

Satipathana Sutta : The basis of the Mindfulness Meditation, Vipassanna, Introspection and Cognitive Therapy.    -Dosti Regmi Human beings are deep wired for chaos, complexity, chase, and  dissatisfaction because of the dichotomy between the impulsive limbic brain and the reasoning of the neo-cortex. Human being is the only species of animal that regrets the past, is fearful of the future, and is dissatisfied with the present. Our emotional excitements often lead us to dissatisfaction in life which is called suffering (dukkha). Our thinking traps and cognitive distortions make us think in unhelpful ways. Buddha’s teaching is to live intentionally, choosing our own emotions and thoughts wisely. All mental phenomena have mind as their forerunner; they have mind as their chief; they are mind-made. If one speaks or acts with an evil mind, ‘dukkha’ follows him just as the wheel follows the hoof print of the ox that draws the cart. All mental phenomena have mind as their ...

The Heart Sutra is very popular among Buddhists both for its brevity and depth of meaning. With  14    Sanskrit  verses ( slokas), it is  the most highly abbreviated version of the Perfection of Wisdom (prajna-paramita) texts. Here is its Sanskrit text and the English translation by Edward Conze. Sunyata is often misunderstood. Someone came to Bodhidharma and said he knows Buddhism. Bodhidharma asks, so what is it. "Sunyata" he answers. Bodhidharma gives him a punch in his face. Then he cries in pain. "If it is all sunyata then why are you crying?" Our self and senses and opinions are real but they are not really real. We are not a soul or stardust. We are a river. A flux. No true essence. Just a composite of many things and interrelated with many things. Who we are and what we think and feel is determined by a thousand other things and we think that it is our original true thought. Buddhism is like the deconstruction of the soul concept of the Advaita Vedanta. ...

The ambiguous and subtle dharma in the epic of the Mahabharata.   - Dosti Regmi Gurcharan Das was the CEO of a company.  He took an early retirement, learned Sanskrit, and delved into the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata for the answers of morality and dharma. Just like reality, morality and dharma are also ambiguous and subtle. The concept of dharma is not static and can be adapted to the myriad challenges of life. Dharma has many meanings. It can mean law, duty, and doing the right thing. And it is not written in the stone. There are no commandments or references to turn to. You are left to your own devices for that. The answers we have to search for ourselves. Das highlighted that good moral reasoning leads to good moral action, rather than an absolute path. So the burden of good reasoning is on the reader. I do believe the best books do not give you gimmicks, quick fixes, and promises. Neither does this book and I love this book for the same reason. It did no...

  Meeting the spiritual luminaries. -Dosti Regmi        In Memphis, autumn gracefully gives way to fall. The trees, once adorned in lush greens, now transform into crimson, amber, and gold. A cool, crisp breeze dances through the air, hinting at the colder days ahead. The golden leaves on the ground are evidence of the night-long romances of the winds and trees. I am on my balcony in the company of profound spiritual luminaries—J. Krishnamurti, Nisargadatta Maharaj, and Ramana Maharshi. Our dialogue unfolds amid this picturesque background of the setting sun across the Mississippi river.   J. Krishnamurti is sitting on the chair in an introspective mood and graceful aura. I look at the people walking on the trail and ask J. Krishnamurti,” What is the path to truth?” Krishnamurti looks at the birds flying in the pathless sky and says, "There is no path to truth; truth must be discovered, but it cannot be pointed out. It lies within you. Don't fo...

  “The You you don’t know: Covert influences on your behavior” by Webster Riggs, Jr., MD Today I saw this young lady in my radiology suite. She looked beautiful, calm and resilient. Yet it juxtaposed with the fact that she was there for Barium swallow study for strictures she had in her esophagus due to ingestion of lye in an attempt to suicide. She had a tattoo itched in her skin in her arm reading "perfectly imperfect". It was a poignant reminder that even the most seemingly resilient individuals could be battling inner turmoil. I started musing on the paradox of her tattoo. What determines perfect and imperfect? What determines what we think and do? Are we really in control of what we think and feel and do or are there covert influences that we are not even aware of. Keats wrote, “Beauty is truth, truth beauty,-that is all”. Hindus have this satyam-shivam-sundaram , which means truth is beautiful and beneficial. We accept this because it’s pleasant or have we really ...

  Introvert’s world: Restorative bliss in a solitary niche. Dr Dosti Regmi Earlier, when I had visited a swimming pool in my neighborhood for a couple of times, I had observed people swimming, sunbathing and playing music and toasting beer for their health. But today’s visit was a bit different. Since winter had arrived, the swimming pool was deserted. No human could be seen there. Yet I found myself so much in peace. I laid in the sun, meditated on the ripple in the water and breezes in the trees. I felt at home, just like you feel at home, or say at your own home when the unwelcomed guests have left. It was brimming with a peaceful energy, the same peace that used to be abducted by the crowd during summer. I have always been choosy with friends since my childhood. I really enjoyed the comfort of a best friend at a point of my life. I was not outgoing but always found my peace in books. Most of the time I was comfortable with what I was, but I must admit that there were time...

After a lengthy late shift at the hospital, I was waiting for my Uber ride back home. As I stepped out into the warm Tennessee air, I noticed a black sedan pull up to the emergency entrance. The driver, an elderly African American woman with a warm and welcoming smile, greeted me with a twinkle in her eye. "Hello there, honey," she said, her voice filled with a deep, comforting South American drawl. "You've got yourself a mighty fine smile. It's good to see a smiling face." I couldn't help but return the compliment, telling her how her cheerful presence was exactly what I needed after a tough time in the hospital. As she was looking at the GPS for navigation, I asked her, “How was your day?” “I have been humming this beautiful song all my day. I must be happy.” I wanted to ask what she was happy about. Her looks as well as her reference to happiness and song reminded me of what Maya Angelou once said – A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sin...

We are taught to seek and not to savor. We are taught to chase and not to cherish. I stay still. The wind whispers at my ears, Sunshine kisses my face. But it is at my disposal to accept it but not to ask for more. It is at my disposal to welcome it but not to captivate it to stay for long. I am glad that it exists. I cannot guarantee that it persists.

Beyond the tumultous emotions, there is a profound peace. Deep to the transient waves, there is a timeless sea.  

Male loneliness: Dostoevsky, Kafka and  Bukowski -Dosti Regmi "Crime and Punishment" is one of Dostoevsky's best literary works. Raskolnikov is the male protagonist of this novel. Out of his rationalism that if the end is good, the means doesn't matter and he kills a pawnbroker. Maybe he dreamt of being a hero like Napoleon who also was a common man before his rise. But then follows a deep psychological dilemma and turmoil. He is isolated and only after a tender love from another unfortunate but religious-minded Soniya he confesses and gets relieved of his turmoil. Dostoevsky's male character is isolated but finds solace in love. Franz Kafka was a prophet of Nihilism and doom. Gregor is the main character of Kafka's story - "The Metamorphosis". He works as a traveling salesman to provide money for his family. He wakes up one morning finding himself transformed into an insect. After the metamorphosis, Gregor becomes unable to work and is confined to...

खुसी हुन के नै चाहिँदो रहेछ र ? म हरेक बिहान, नयाँ दिन जिउन पाएँ भनेर खुसी हुन्छु। हरेक रात, आजको दिन काटेँ भनेर खुसी हुन्छु।

Thought comes... Make sure it does not linger... If it lingers, What can you do? Don't fight it… You are not a fighter... That also shall pass... That will pass. Just wait and witness! The thought that comes shall go. Nature never loves things to eternity. Only eternity lives till eternity. Change is an everyday affair. In fact every moment´s affair. Your mind is just like your body. People practicing Vipassana know it, Just like sensations in your body that comes and goes... Sensations come and sensations go... You have a numb leg while meditating, don't walk it away... It will go away, all by itself. A sensation here and a sensation there. All just passes... Thoughts shall also pass. Wait and witness!!! Don´t fight it. Whatever you resist, persists! If someone complains about something today, Mark my word; He will complain the same thing till his deathbed! But the question is, will it survive his death.

मेरी प्रियसी, मेरो वास्तविक जिन्दगीमै आइदिएपछि, म बडो असमञ्जश्यमा परेको छु। मैले उसको बारेमा त्यति कल्पनै गर्न पाएको छैन। बस् उ निदाएको बेला म उसकै बारेमा कल्पिरहेको हुन्छु। दोस्ती रेग्मी। Painting:  Flaming June  by  Frederic Leighton .

सांसारका आठ अर्ब मान्छेका, आठ अर्ब सन्सार हुन्छ भन्छन्। मेरो पनि आफ्नै सन्सार छ। हरेक दिन म बिउझिँदा, मेरो सन्सार ध्यानमा बिउँझिन्छ। हरेक साँझ, त्यो रक्सीको प्यालामा निदाउँँछ। बिपनीको पनि आफ्नै सन्सार हुन्छ। निदरीको पनि आफ्नै सन्सार हुन्छ। बिपनी मैयाँको सन्झिने रोग छ। सपनी मैयाँको बिर्सिने रोग छ। दोस्ती रेग्मी।