Shundo David Haye – Zen Priest

‘As in the year before a number of psychiatrists, psychologists, philosophy teachers and writers came to share the practice and to experience the Zen teachings at work. One man came to do research on a book he was writing on prison, mental institutions and monasteries. He came back a few weeks later and stayed for over a month as a guest-student, taking part in the student schedule and sitting in the zendo. In general there was a marked increase in interest in zazen and in Buddhism among the guests compared to previous guest seasons. There seemed to be more guests at Tassajara who had come to share the atmosphere of the practicing community, either directly, by taking part in the zendo schedule and often joining the students in the day’s work as well, or indirectly, simply by spending their time quietly, walking, enjoying the hot baths, and relating sincerely to the students and their practice. Many guests attended zazen for the first time, and then came regularly to the zendo to sit and participate in the services. Lecture nights always found the aisles filled with guests, almost all sitting on the floor as comfortably as they could, making an effort to follow the students’ example of stillness and attentiveness. 

Still, the attractions which have brought guests to Tassajara for the past hundred years remain strong. One man has been coming to take the sulphur baths since 1919, and recalls the days when a stagecoach traveled the road from Salinas bi-weekly, bringing visitors from all over the country to the famous. spa. Others have long been attracted by the chance to leave the coastal fog for the warm dry sunlight of Tassajara Canyon; to walk through the green woods and appreciate the beautiful views from the mountain trails; to enjoy the deep swimming hole at the Narrows and the bamboo-hedged pool near the cabins; a.nd to partake of the unusual and simple food in the dining room. Over a thousand loaves of Tassajara breads have been sold to hikers and guests, many to be taken home as gifts to friends.’ (from Wind Bell)

Over the end of the year, I was reading some of the old Wind Bells for a bit of research, and came across this description of the guest season at Tassajara in 1969, a couple of years after Zen Center took it over.