{"id":63731,"date":"2026-10-26T16:31:23","date_gmt":"2026-10-26T11:01:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/26\/dalai-lama-writes-foreword-to-ias-officer-shubhra-saxenas-book-exploring-lifes-deeper-questions\/"},"modified":"2026-10-26T16:31:23","modified_gmt":"2026-10-26T11:01:23","slug":"dalai-lama-writes-foreword-to-ias-officer-shubhra-saxenas-book-exploring-lifes-deeper-questions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/26\/dalai-lama-writes-foreword-to-ias-officer-shubhra-saxenas-book-exploring-lifes-deeper-questions\/","title":{"rendered":"Dalai Lama Writes Foreword to IAS Officer Shubhra Saxena\u2019s Book Exploring Life\u2019s Deeper Questions"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>New Delhi [India], October 26: <\/strong>What shapes the person we become, and how much of our lives is determined by the choices we make consciously? These questions lie at the heart of \u2018It Matters A Lot\u2019, the debut book by IAS officer and author Shubhra Saxena, published by Rupa Publications. Featuring a foreword by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the book examines the experiences, influences and turning points that shape an individual\u2019s understanding of life.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In his foreword, His Holiness the Dalai Lama writes, \u201cI congratulate her on writing on what I believe readers will find a useful and stimulating guide towards a meaningful life of compassion and respect to others\u201d. He further emphasised the importance of compassion and cooperation, writing, \u201cThese values matter because they form the foundation of both a meaningful individual life and a functioning community. Human survival has long secured not by strength or intelligence alone, but by cooperation and a willingness to care about lives beyond our own.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Tracing the journey of human life from childhood to old age, Saxena explores how family, education, social expectations, ambition, relationships and personal setbacks influence identity and decision-making. The narrative moves through questions of achievement and fulfilment, love and loss, ageing, acceptance and the search for meaning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A key feature of the book is its emphasis on self-reflection. Each chapter concludes with questions that encourage readers to examine their beliefs, motivations and choices. Drawing on psychology, philosophy, neuroscience and lived experience, the book connects self-awareness with conscious living, highlighting how understanding one\u2019s thoughts and responses can influence relationships and everyday decisions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Commenting on the book, Shubhra Saxena, said, \u201cThrough \u2018It Matters A Lot\u2019, I hope to encourage readers to pause and reflect on the experiences, beliefs and choices that shape their lives. A meaningful life is not defined by achievement alone, but also by how well we understand ourselves, how we treat others and the values that guide our decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Saxena secured the first rank in the 2008 Civil Services Examination. With \u2018It Matters A Lot\u2019, she turns her attention beyond conventional measures of success to the questions that influence individual well-being, human relationships and a sense of purpose.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Published by Rupa Publications, the book presents self-reflection as an ongoing process, inviting readers to reconsider who they have become and how they wish to live.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>If you object to the content of this press release, please notify us at pr.error.rectification@gmail.com. We will respond and rectify the situation within 24 hours.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>New Delhi [India], October 26: What shapes the person we become, and how much of our lives is determined by the choices we make consciously? These questions lie at the heart of \u2018It Matters A Lot\u2019, the debut book by IAS officer and author Shubhra Saxena, published by Rupa Publications. Featuring a foreword by His&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":63732,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[641],"class_list":["post-63731","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","tag-lifestyle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63731","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63731"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63731\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63732"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63731"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63731"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pinkcitynow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63731"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}