Leonard Price [info icon]
(Nyanasobhano Bhikkhu)
Bhikkhu Tissa Dispels Some Doubts, by Leonard Price (2005; 15pp./46KB)
In this delightful fictional dialogue, an earnest but perplexed newcomer to Buddhism brings his basic questions to the wise and patient monk Tissa. A good read for the newcomer or for the veteran meditator who wants a light-hearted back-to-basics pick-me-up.
Nothing Higher to Live For: A Buddhist View of Romantic Love, by Bhikkhu Nyanasobhano (Leonard Price) (2005; 7pp./22KB) [PDF icon]
Romantic love, by its very nature, is inevitably entangled in unskillful states of mind. To whatever degree it springs from attachment, passion, or a hunger to fill one's own inner emptiness — to that degree will it heap suffering upon all involved. This short essay explores how the Dhamma can teach us what it might mean to truly love, free of attachment and fear.
Radical Buddhism, by Leonard Price (1995; 10pp./29KB)
Four brief but penetrating reflections on Buddhist practice, by one particularly lively writer. A taste: "The fundamental teachings must not be neglected, lest we take to wearing our religion like warm slippers and doze into mediocrity."
To the Cemetery and Back, by Leonard Price (1994; 8pp./25KB)
Two short essays: the first describes an imagined stroll through the cemetery, calling on us to reflect deeply on the nature of our lives, and on the urgency of Dhamma practice; the second reminds us that there is no point in waiting for an "ideal" time to start Dhamma practice, for aging, illness, and death are upon us now.
Two Dialogues on Dhamma, by Bhikkhu Nyanasobhano (2005; 31pp./93KB) [PDF icon]
Two more enjoyable dialogues between the fictional monk Tissa and newcomers to Buddhism. In the first story, Tissa helps a well-to-do carefree young man discover that there is, in fact, much more to life than chasing after short-lived pleasures. In the second, Tissa helps a couple sort out a thorny ethical dilemma concerning their livelihood.