Celebrating Nishijima Roshi's Calligraphy

[Eishuu]

Beautiful!

Gassho
Lucy
Sat today

[Jundo]

A good time too to post this Zazen visit with Nishijima Roshi ... It was in the little apartment where he lived alone, working on his translations. He was about 88 at the time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d0veI7rtUU

A talk about the Kesa (also called Kashaya) robes ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1hAVEhYTAo

Gassho, J

SatToday

[Mp]

A good time too to post this Zazen visit with Nishijima Roshi ... It was in the little apartment where he lived alone, working on his translations. He was about 88 at the time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d0veI7rtUU

Gassho, J

SatToday

A wonderful classic! =)

Gassho
Shingen

s@today

[Kyosei]

I would love to have a T-shirt with this calligraphy. Who knows.

Very beautiful.

[Shugen]

Thank you Jundo.

Gassho,

Shugen

Sattoday


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[voylinux]

Thank you for sharing, Jundo.
This is really beautiful.

#satToday

[Kaishin]

Wow, I don't recall ever seeing the Nishijima Roshi videos with you. Thank you for sharing.

-satToday

[Risho]

This is really, really cool! Thank you for sharing; this tradition is just so special, amazing how this sangha is from across the world yet all practicing here, together!

Gassho

Risho
-sattoday

[Jakuden]

This is so beautiful, and the videos too, would it be fair to call Nishijima Roshi our Dharma grandfather?? As we here at Treeleaf are continuing


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[Jakuden]

Oops hit post too soon! Anyway thank you, it is wonderful to feel this connection with our honored ancestor.
Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday


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[Amelia]

Jundo, I saw you for a moment in a video that I think Brad Warner posted called (I think) The Life of Nishijima Roshi.

Gassho, sat today

[Shokai]

Jundo, thank you so much for sharing these inspiring videos and the calligraphy is awesome. I remember seeing the Kasaya talk before but not the other. Our dharma forebear was such a delightful fellow. I wish I had connected when I lived in Kawaguchi (1993-4) oH WELL, SHOULDA, WOULDA, COULDA, eh!!

gassho

sat today

[Jundo]

Hi All,

Well, here is a video of Nishijima Roshi undertaking Calligraphy, in this case some documents for a Jukai, starting from mixing the ink with dried ink on the ink stone (which can take some time to be done well) and ending with stamps affixed

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNL7Dut9Xzc

Looking for it, I came across this email exchange with Roshi on Calligraphy and Rakusu sewing ...

JUNDO to GUDO

Hi Roshi,

...

Roshi, I still have question ... can calligraphy etc. be done in a way that is not balanced state of body and mind? For example, if someone is doing calligraphy with their hand, but at the same time, their mind is thinking about politics or their job (and not focusing on calligraphy), is that still the balanced state of body and mind? Gassho, Jundo

GUDO to JUNDO

Dear Ven. Jundo Cohen,

Sewing Rakusu, or writing calligraphy, if you do them thinking something, or perceiving something, those jobs can never be done well.

Many people can write calligraphy thinking something, or perceiving something, and so their works are not always good.

If someone is doing calligraphy thinking about politics or not focusing on calligraphy, he can never keep himself into the balanced state, and
so it is impossible for him to accomplish a good calligraphy.

With best wishes Gudo Wafu Nishijima

Nine Bows, Roshi.

Jundo

SatToday

[Jundo]

Jundo, I saw you for a moment in a video that I think Brad Warner posted called (I think) The Life of Nishijima Roshi.

Gassho, sat today

Hi Geika,

Well, this is becoming a little Nishijima Roshi Film Festival! Lovely.

There is a wonderful documentary about Nishijima Roshi made several years ago (I believe in 2002-03). Brad and I have each tried to contact the filmmaker, a young fellow from Portugal who since has vanished from the earth and film world! However, it is available for immediate viewing on Amazon for $2 to rent. Please rent it. I post the below merely for those who may have trouble doing so (Nishijima Roshi gave Brad and me permission years ago).

http://www.amazon.com/Buddhist-Life-Luis-Carapeto/dp/B0058DCL3I/ref=sr_1_1?s=instant-video&ie=UTF8&qid=1422497810&sr=1-1&keywords=%22buddhist+life%22

Yes, I have a cameo or two in the movie. I am the bearded fellow (considerably more hair and less grey) seen about 7:30 of 'Part II' carrying a blackboard saying "REALITY/REALISM" with my other Dharma Brother Peter Rocca. That was during a retreat at our root temple in Japan, the Tokei-in (more on the Tokei-in here ... lovely photos) ...

http://www.treeleaf.org/about-tokei-in/tokei-in-1.html

Brad wrote about the film ...

The synopsis on that Dutch film festival's website says:

"I live my Buddhist life from day to day, from moment to moment sometimes in my office, sometimes in my home, sometimes in a temple. In every situation there was just my Buddhist life." Gudo Wafu Nishijima was born in Yokohama, Japan. With a new and fresh approach to the Buddhist view of reality and the sense of balance to the philosophical and scientific investigations from last decades, Master Nishijima gives us the coordinates to start to understand Buddhism with our own method of thinking. He wants to pass the teachings of Buddhism to people all over the world who are searching for "Truth". "We have to say that we live in a succession of moments rather like the frames of a film." In these frames, from the present moment, the documentary is about Master Nishijima´s daily life that is all ready a Buddhist life.

... Watching it again I'd forgotten how good it was. It gives you a very honest look at who Nishijima Roshi was when the film was made. It shows him leading one of his annual retreats in Shizuoka for foreigners. It shows him in Europe giving talks and running a sesshin. It shows him talking to students of his from Israel and Ireland. There's also a wonderful scene of him dragging his suitcase through Tokyo Station. He always insisted on carrying his own stuff when he went on retreats. If you wanted to help him out with his bags you'd have to kind of trick him by grabbing them before he noticed. But he was always very quick.

... The opening scenes were shot one morning at Nishijima's dojo in Chiba prefecture. ...

PART I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2G0Pdq1ESf0

PART II

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_W-dmbE3po

PART III

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vy9ll4d_JLo

Gassho, J

SatToday

[Tai Shi]

So very beautiful.
Gassho
std
Tai Shi