Hello all
There is a lovely article at Tricycle magazine about Tomoe Katagiri who has taught sewing in the Nyoho-e tradition at Minnesota Zen Center for several decades. It is written by friend of Treeleaf, Ben Connolly, and is especially good for those currently sewing a kesa or rakusu.
I think it might only be available to subscribers of Tricycle currently but maybe we could ask Ben for an original copy if Tricycle don't have copyright?
This is a lovely small extract:
"In a plain basement, by the light of a few old lamps, Susan Hagler neared the final stitch of the robe for her ordination as a Soto Zen priest. She had visited this room for months, sewing meticulously in meditative silence. Countless hours of difficult handwork were coming to an end. Her sewing teacher, Tomoe Katagiri, had been at her side through many challenges, helping her to remove and resew hours’ worth of stitches that were made to faulty measurements. With her needle poised above the black fabric, she broke the silence to ask Tomoe a question: “Is there anything to be said for the final stitch?” Tomoe replied, “The last stitch is the same as the first,” and returned to her needle and thread."
This is an interview with Tomoe and you can download her wonderful sewing guide here for a suggested $10 donation.
Deep bows to everyone currently sewing
Kokuu
#sattoday
There is a lovely article at Tricycle magazine about Tomoe Katagiri who has taught sewing in the Nyoho-e tradition at Minnesota Zen Center for several decades. It is written by friend of Treeleaf, Ben Connolly, and is especially good for those currently sewing a kesa or rakusu.
I think it might only be available to subscribers of Tricycle currently but maybe we could ask Ben for an original copy if Tricycle don't have copyright?
This is a lovely small extract:
"In a plain basement, by the light of a few old lamps, Susan Hagler neared the final stitch of the robe for her ordination as a Soto Zen priest. She had visited this room for months, sewing meticulously in meditative silence. Countless hours of difficult handwork were coming to an end. Her sewing teacher, Tomoe Katagiri, had been at her side through many challenges, helping her to remove and resew hours’ worth of stitches that were made to faulty measurements. With her needle poised above the black fabric, she broke the silence to ask Tomoe a question: “Is there anything to be said for the final stitch?” Tomoe replied, “The last stitch is the same as the first,” and returned to her needle and thread."
This is an interview with Tomoe and you can download her wonderful sewing guide here for a suggested $10 donation.
Deep bows to everyone currently sewing
Kokuu
#sattoday
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