This is a book that I’ve been meaning to check out for a
while. It was published in 2001, so it’s a little bit dated, but the messages
inside still hold. Essentially it is a collection of stories from young
Buddhists about their experiences with and relating to Buddhism.
What makes this book great is that Buddhism is so often seen
as part of the “older” generation of hippies, something that is no longer
relevant to life. But stories of young Buddhists like these show how Buddhism
continues to be relevant and to some people essential in this day and age.
One story that I liked was one person discussing how at an
early age he was pronounced to be a reincarnation of a Tibetan monk, and how
that affected his life. As a monk born into a Western family, he didn’t know
how to merge the two aspects of his life into a cohesive whole that he was
happy with. It’s such a great example of the challenges Buddhism faces in a
world where you can get immediate gratification and worldly success relatively
easily. In the face of all this, who wants to meditate?
Then there are other stories about how much Buddhism and
mindfulness have helped other people, who may have been suffering from drugs or
stress. It just continues to show that you can have everything that you ever
wanted, but still be unhappy. For some, the solution to that is inwards, and
rests on finding inner peace.
This book isn’t so much an introduction to Buddhism as a
discussion about its effects on life. Which makes it an interesting read, but
one that you may need some prior knowledge for. However if you are a young
adult of teen interested in Buddhism, then this may be the perfect intro to it!
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