The most counter-intuitive and yet brilliantly simple gem emerged in the form of the realization that what’s inside my mind is what manifests in my life outside.

Thus, if my mind is filled with impurities, defilements, worries, anxieties, enmities, fears, superstitions, insecurities, foreboding, that is precisely how my external environment organizes itself and provide me validation for these mentations through my lived experiences. And on the contrary, if my mind is filled with peace, harmony, joy, friendly vibes, equanimity, compassion, empathy, I am gifted in turn with these conditions in the real world.

The heart is filled with joy and celebration, cradled in the tranquility of equanimity. Nothing is too intense, nor even too happy. The sweetness calms our hearts and lets respect, gratitude and beauty blossom, a beauty straight from the heart of the Dhamma.

Each gate, each building, each stone reminds us that Dhamma has prevailed here for many hundreds of years, and that hearts remember it.

This is the heart of Myanmar, the heart of Dhamma, the heart of the Buddha that beats in each of us.