Realizing that “Nepal never left me, even though I left Nepal” (p. 152), is the voice of a soul which cries for its motherland. This memoir encompasses the author’s birthplace and upbringing, then study at Tribhuvan University, and the University of Hull London, culminating with a PhD then a highly regarded Doctor of Civil Law, both from Oxford University, then his work for the cause of human rights, including as an academic, administrator, policymaker, diplomat, lawyer – being the first Nepali to be appointed a Queen’s Counsel (now King’s Counsel), and the UN Rapporteur for Human Rights in Cambodia.

The book has nine chapters aligned with the symbolic Navami, the ninth day of Vijayadashami, reflecting the deep-rooted spirituality of the author’s belief in the heart sources of human rights. His life was guided by high morals and ethical values and he was motivated to practice yoga, meditation, and prayers for the wellbeing of humanity from the “age of seven” (p. 5). Reciting verses from the Bhagvad Gita and Shrimad Bhagavata every morning, he learnt respect for humanity, especially the vulnerable, from his society’s culture, and his teachers and parents were worshipped both metaphorically and literally (p. 5).

His legal studies began when he left his village Lamjung Khudi in the Annapurna Himalayan Range for a two-day trek on foot in order to catch a bus to Kathmandu. The author then faced imprisonment for his political activism in favour of democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. He subsequently embarked on his demanding and stellar career in international law, highlights of which include: working in the international law division of the Ministry of Law and Justice of Nepal, and the Royal Service, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Nepal; being a visiting distinguished academic at tertiary institutions in at least eighty-six countries (p. 35); establishing new academic and other forms of international organizations, both in the UK and abroad; and the establishment of academic prizes named in his honour: by Oxford University and the Wilberforce Institute for the Study of Slavery and Emancipation of the University of Hull.

Subedi regrets that,

Although this memoir has a novel-like narrative, the author seems to be talking with academicians, students, publishers, diplomates, politicians, administrators, and, above all, with those people suffering from human rights abuses all over the world. He envisions new dimensions for human rights in a changing world scenario. As human rights were conceived in a receding bipolar world, the same policies cannot be suitable for the current globalizing world. The dreams narrated are an eye opener as a review of one’s own past, and the unfulfilled desires in one’s mind: this is the best part of the memoir, the sincere description of a “longing for love and search for knowledge and unbearable pity for the sufferings of mankind – this resonates strongly with me, and my passion for ‘fairness and justice’ – has guided both my life choices and my work engagements” (p. 147).