NAMU DAI BOSA: TRANSMISSION OF ZEN BUDDHISM TO AMERICA Limited Edition, Numbered, SIGNED with a CALLIGRAPHY Inscriptio
NAMU DAI BOSA: A TRANSMISSION OF ZEN BUDDHISM TO AMERICA, by Nyogen Senzaki, Soen Nakagawa, and Eido Shimano.
Zen Studies Society's Bhaiajaguru Series published by Theatre Arts Books, New York, 1976.
SPECIAL LIMITED, NUMBERED and SIGNED EDITION. This is copy number 512 of only 1000 copies and has a sweeping CALLIGRAPHY SIGNATURE-INSCRIPTION by EIDO SHIMANO on the rear endpapers.
From the Colophon page: "This book was designed by Stephen Harvard and printed at The Stinehour Press in Lunenburg, Vermont...An edition of 1000 signed and numbered copies has been printed..."
Hardcovers, cloth covered spine and paper covered boards, spine titled in gilt, 6x9 inches. Pagination: xxix, 262 pages. Comes in a paper covered, heavy cardboard slipcase.
Condition: VERY GOOD book, the rear cover has a few small black smudges, clearly a result of the bold black calligraphic inscription on the rear endpapers, perhaps the calligrapher's brush or inky fingers lightly touched the rear cover at a couple spots, anyway adds a few nice "touches" to the inscription; otherwise the book is sharp cornered, tight, bright, clean, clear and unmarked. In a FAIR slipcase that is solid and doing its job well, but has staining to the spine, a couple scrapes, ghost of a removed sticker, and some soiling.
About NYOGEN SENZAKI (from Wikipedia):
******Nyogen Senzaki, b.1876 d.1958, was a Rinzai Zen monk who was one of the 20th century's leading proponents of Zen Buddhism in the United States.******
About SOEN NAKAGAWA (from Wikipedia):
******Soen Nakagawa, b.1907 d.1984, was a Taiwanese born Japanese roshi and Zen Buddhist master in the Rinzai tradition. An enigmatic figure, Nakagawa had a major impact on Zen as it was practiced in the 20th century, both in Japan and abroad.******
About EIDO SHIMANO (from Wikipedia):
******Eido Tai Shimano (Shimano Eido), b.1932 d.2018, was a Rinzai Zen Buddhist priest. He was the founding abbot of the New York Zendo Shobo-Ji in Manhattan and Dai Bosatsu Zendo Kongo-Ji monastery in the Catskill mountains of New York; he was forced to resign from that position of 40 years after revelations of a series of sexual relationships with and alleged sexual harassment of female students.****** (Not very Zen!)