Caf Passion

Penelope Wilson is not disturbed when her husband, Dolmen, does not return from a trip to the East. Instead, she has a feeling of inevitability. A few weeks later, a mysterious man brings her a box. With her family gathered around, Penelope opens the box and learns that the EBK Travel Agency––which sent Dolmen on his trip––has an assignment for her and her children. They are to become keepers of six stories known as the Tales of EBKILGFN. The tales serve as a reminder of not just the forces at work in their lives but also those at work in the lives of all of humanity. The reading of the final tale will leave an indelible impact on the family. The Tales of EBKILFGN, a sequel to the author’s unforgettable book The Dreams of EBKILGFN, serves as a continuation of the allegorical story designed to lead a new audience to the spiritual aspects of author Steven R. Tonsager’s “whisperology.” He wrote the book to stir not just the intellect but also the imagination of readers, infusing a sense of wonder about the deeper levels of reality and their connection to readers’ lives and the world around them.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1858.

What do the scriptures of Theravada Buddhism have to say about the most basic psychological processes through which alternatives are assessed, purposes are developed, and goal-oriented acts are initiated? How can Theravada make volitional endeavour central to Buddhist practice, while denying the existence of a self who wills? How can the text emphasize ethical striving, and yet uphold the principle that all physical and mental acts arise through causes and conditions? This book adds another perspective to Theravada scholarship by exploring various subtle Pali terms that seek to display the nuances of human motivation. Cetana is shown to be the purposive impetus that links ethically good and bad attitudes of mind with corresponding acts of body, speech, and mind. The argument is made that Theravada does not posit a controlling will, but seek to establish the possibility of changing attitudes, purposes, and acts through holistic methods of training. Theravada maintains that changes in attitude are possible because the mind has the capacity to observe its own processes of conditioning, and is able to greatly diversify its responses to its own concepts and to factors in its environment.

In the tone of a much-loved college chaplain, Duffy takes readers through a personal theological journey, exploring what it means to discern and live out a thoughtful, informed, and responsible faith.