To those who associate Siddhartha's enlightenment with 'magical' happenings, "Light of the Himalayas" is an answer. The novel traces the gradual development of Siddhartha from an inquisitive child to a serious explorer--on a trajectory of science and objectivity - until his discovery of the elixir of life, the eight - fold path and the four golden rules. The book de-centers many myths and misconceptions about the life of the Buddha and invites readers to engage in scientific discourse about the religion.

Light of the Himalayas, Kavitaram Shrestha, Xilibris AU, Paperback,
372 pages, $24.95

Kavitaram Shrestha is a researcher and a novelist. He has received many awards and felicitations, including Esteemed Award for "Mahabhinishkramanka Aswikrit Paaila" (the Nepali version of this book) from Philosophical Society of Buddhism (Sidney 2012). Similarly, he won the Innovation Award from Nepalese Cultural Center (London), Sajha Award for Children's Literature (Nepal 2001), The Youth of the Year ( Youth Forum 1994), Asia-Africa Solidarity Award for the story of the film "Mukti Sangharsha" at Pyongyang International Festival in Pyongyang North Korea (1994), The Best Feature Film Storywriter of the Year by Nepal Video Film Association for video film "Mukti Sangharsha" (1991), and The Best Children's Book Writer for the International Children's Year 1982-83 by UNICEF. The honors he has received include a felicitation by Pravasi Sahaitya Parishad (UK, 2008) and a felicitation conferred by International Nepalese Literature Society, DC (US, 2008). Mr. Shrestha is the pioneer of Aswikrit Bichar Sahityik Abhiyan, a campaign for the literature of the other.