I want to bring attention to a book that might fall through the cracks, not noticed by most Zen folks. In fact, I feel that it is not for everyone, not "must reading" for all Zen practitioners. It is just the story of one person's life in Zen. On the other hand, some Soto Zen people will cherish this book. Personally, because of my interests, it is among the best Zen books I have ever read.
It is a memoire, of a little boy raised as the son of a priest in a Soto Zen temple in wartime, coming of age amid the ashes of post-war Japan ... and the ashes of the temple, burned to the ground by American bombs ... who went on to monastic training at Eiheiji to inherit that temple upon the death of his father, supported by several other Japanese Soto priests in his life, each as human and imperfect as they were caring, dedicated and wise.
He went to America: It is the story of this young Japanese priest, barely speaking English, with little money, living and serving in San Francisco in the 1950s at the Soto Zen temple there, staying for decades, becoming a humble friend to Alan Watts, Shunryu Suzuki and many other Zen pioneers at the very start of Zen's taking root in the west ... staying in America but growing his hair, marrying, becoming a college professor much more than temple priest, yet remaining in both worlds as one, and ... most of all, through all of this ... remaining a true student of Master Dogen, of Shobogenzo, through every change in life.
The wonder of this book is that, through this simple yet amazing life story, Master Dogen's wisdom is expressed and explained and reflected through Rev./Prof. Kato's life story. This man who knew war and recovery, culture east and west, truly understood the heart of Dogen and formed his life around the wisdom and compassion he found in the Treasury of the True Dharma Eye.
Perhaps you will not find this book life changing or indispensable, but you will find it beautiful, tragic, encouraging and unforgettable. If you are someone who might be interested in what life and training is like for "an average" Soto Zen priest in Japan, meant to serve as resident of a local parish temple, then this book conveys a sense of that life path. If you are interested in the early roots of Zen in the west, then there is much here (some of the stories about Shunryu Suzuki, when first come to America, are simply wonderful and "real deal" inspiring!)
My one quibble is the part of the book, really only a page or so, where Kato describes Dogen as mostly focused on monastic practice, dedicated almost exclusively to the highly regulated discipline of monks, doubtful about lay practice ... because the rest of Kato's book disproves Kato's own theory: Kato is someone who lived his life inspired and guided throughout by Master Dogen, even though only a small portion of that life was during Kato's own monastic training.
Really, this is a great book. Maybe one of the best Soto Zen books I have ever read (granted, I am interested in the topics I listed above). At 460 pages, I found it too short. A lovely book, not to be forgotten or overlooked in the Zen world, let's not let it fall through the cracks.
Now in his 90s, here is a little interview with Rev. Kato about his years at Zenshuji Soto Zen Mission in San Francisco (the temple which gave early root to the San Francisco Zen Center) ...
Gassho, J
STLah
aprapti
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