How a high-flying Hong Kong lawyer turned wellness coach found her true path, helped by months of silent meditation in solitary Himalayan retreats
- ‘I call myself a common person, but I’m leading an uncommon path,’ says May Lim, who quit her job and moved to Nepal in search of the meaning of life
- Engaging in meditation and spiritual practice daily helped her finally feel that she was being true to herself and able to relieve the tension of others
Over 20 years ago, May Lim was living the high life. Having graduated from Cambridge University with first-class honours in commercial law, she was a respected lawyer who had worked at some of Hong Kong’s biggest companies.
Outside work, she was often seen at beauty salons and shopping centres, or driving around in her Mercedes-Benz convertible.
But eventually she quit her job, sold the car and left everything behind to move to Nepal, the birthplace of Buddha – in search of the meaning of life. Now, she has dedicated her life to the world of healing.
“I’ve always wanted to know the truth,” Lim says. “In my mind, there is more to life than what we understand life is … So from a very young age, I was already asking, what is the truth? Why am I here? What is life? Do I exist?”
The lawyer, who began her career at global law firm Linklaters, had always been Buddhist due to her family’s influence, but it was in 2000 that she felt an overwhelming need to search for something more beyond her life in Hong Kong. She had just experienced a difficult break-up, and was still reeling from the effects of her mother’s death in 1997.