Holding the Lotus to the Rock: The Autobiography of Sokei-An, America's First Zen Master - Hardcover

Sasaki, Shigetsu; Hotz, Michael

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 156858248X ISBN 13: 9781568582481

Synopsis

Edited by Michael Hotz The original Dharma Bum, Sokei-an (1182-1945) arrived in San Francisco in 1906 with the mission of bringing Zen to America. He wandered the country alone, leading a wild bohemian life in Greenwich Village in the Roaring Twenties and becoming the first Zen master to make his permanent home in America, not to mention the first to write, lecture and give interviews in English. Here, the fascinating details of his long and winding life are conveyed with charm, ironic humour, and a distinctive, intimate voice.

About this title

Synopsis

The first Zen master to make his permanent home America, and the first to write, lecture, and give Zen interviews (sanzen) entirely in English, Sokei-an Sasaki arrived in San Francisco in 1906 with the mission of bringing Zen to America. After his teacher returned to Japan, he wandered alone through the American West and lived a wild bohemian life in the Greenwich Village of the Roaring Twenties. Here, he tells of his childhood in Meiji Japan and his struggle to transform himself through Zen, his experiences teaching Zen to New Yorkers - which led to the founding of the First Zen Institute of America - and his run-in with the FBI and his internment on Ellis Island. Conveyed with charm and ironic humour, this rediscovered manuscript is here revealed to be that of an accomplished writer and Zen master with a distinctive and intimate voice.

Edition details

• Publication date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 156858248X
• ISBN 13: 9781568582481
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 236