For more information on Ancient Dragon Zen Gate, please visit our website at www.ancientdragon.org. Our teachings are offered to the community through the generosity of our supporters. To make a donation online, please visit our website. Welcome everyone online and on the ground here. And this is a sad moment in our world to lose Ellen Sanoke. the Abbott at Berkeley Zen Center, and also time to be grateful that such a being actually existed in our world. And even luckier still that he was a great friend of Taigen who drew him to the dragon lair.

[01:06]

So Taigen will kind of lead us in some memories, and I think Jordan has a tune to play at your signal. And Without further ado, Taiken, take it away. Thank you. Thank you, Nogatsu. Thank you. Welcome, everyone. Great to see you all. Great to see some good old friends online. Welcome. So I want to just share some personal memories of Alan, of St. Alan's Walking at the Birthday Zen Center. passed away yesterday afternoon. We go way back. I'm also going to talk about some of these many other activities. But Alan and I go back to Columbia University in spring 1968. We were both among 700 people arrested after a week-long occupation of buildings protesting the Vietnam War, which the Columbia University was involved in.

[02:09]

military research, war, and racism. And Colby was involved in racist expansion into Harlem nearby. So this started a couple of weeks after Dr. King was killed. Later, Alan became a great scholar of Dr. King's actual teachings and talked about his work a lot. So Alan and I first met in the context of the war activity later on. So I'm going to jump around a little. Later on in 2003, Alan and I were arrested together. Again, this time a smaller group, but we were both sent priest by then. This was at the San Francisco Federal Building protesting the invasion of Iraq in 2003. And it's notable that there had been A few hundred thousand protesters in San Francisco each month before the invasion, and also all around the world, many, many protesters.

[03:17]

I don't think there's ever been a protest against a war before it even started. But the invasion was launched, and so Alec and I were both arrested there. Anyway, and we had war activists there. activities together, but I got to know Alan better in 1968 in the fall, the fall after the building occupation. Alan was in a band that rehearsed in the apartment that I shared with four other Columbia students. It overlooked Harlem. So we hung out a lot, listened to good music, and also that was before we had Zaza, so we did a fair amount of hallucinations together also. Anyway, that was a wonderful time and a terrible time in 1968, as this is a wonderful time and a terrible time, so we're still fighting against wars and racism.

[04:18]

Alan and that band that were used in my apartment moved up to Woodstock, New York in 1969. I visited them a few times. Alan, amongst other things, being a great daughter teacher and an activist, was also a great musician. He continued his music until his last years. He performed solo, but also with a number of bluegrass groups. He put out two CDs, Everything is Broken, the title song by Dylan, and The Wooden Man, which refers to the Jewel Mare Samadhi, The Wooden Man starts to dance. Still no one gets up to dance, and The Wooden Man begins to sing, our vice versa, anyway. So he had a large musical connection. I didn't see Alan, I guess, after 69 or 70. Until 1985, I had been at Tassajara for a few, few years.

[05:26]

Tassajara Monastery, which is a, a monastery. South in, uh, He's the big sir. I was, at that point, that summer, I was at Doha, and I saw amongst them, and I helped with the guest students who were coming, and I saw the name Alex Naki. Nonetheless, a guest student was coming in. Of course, there couldn't be so many of them. So we reconnected. He had been practicing at Berkeley's M Center while I was at Tulsa Park. Later, we collaborated and consulted about Buddhist teachings together in the Bay Area and activism. Before the pandemic, we started collaborating on a book about early Buddhist social engagements. So we did a lot of research, did a lot of that. So Buddhist social engagement did not begin with Thich Nhat Hanh and Ait Kinroshi, but goes all the way back.

[06:34]

So we will, the book will have, hopefully I'll be able to use our emails to publish it for both of us. And it includes primary texts from India, China, Japan, Korea, about social engagement in ancient times, in old times. Okay, so Alan spoke at Ancient Dragon Zen Gate 14 times. from 2009 to 2023. If you go to the Ancient Dragon's Entgate website, go to the podcast and write his name in in the blank and then hit the chart button, you'll see you can see those talks he gave here. That was most actually here in this room once, I believe that, but also back in when we were at Irving Park Road. I think he performed musically at least one of those times.

[07:37]

So he was a good friend of Ancient Dragon. And he was part of many, many communities. He had many musical friends and colleagues. He also traveled widely, sharing the Dharma. And I'm reminded that he also did chaplet training and hospice training at Upaya Zen Center in Santa Fe. And a couple of people, we had numbers of chaplains at our sangha, and a couple of people here studied within there. So he did just a phenomenal amount of teaching and traveling that he did. He traveled around the world. He spent a lot of time in Burma early on. helping Buddhists who were protesting or had protested the military dictatorship.

[08:39]

Later, he also worked with Rohingya Muslims who were being persecuted by the Burmese government and also by Burmese Buddhists. Alan also traveled in Sri Lanka and Thailand. Also in India, he helped teach Buddhism to Dalit Buddhists. So the Dalits, formerly known as Untouchables, were as a movement of Buddhism in modern India. It was inspired by a man named Ambedkar, who was a Dalit and had a chance to be educated in London. in New York, actually, and was inspired of mass conversion of Dalits in India. So there's a whole Dalit community. Alan and also his wife, Lori, sometimes went and gave teachings about Buddhism to Dalit Buddhists in India.

[09:44]

He worked with engaged Buddhist groups all around the world. He shared Dharma widely, traveled throughout the States, but also he had Dharma successors in Germany, where he also traveled, as well as in California. So he just did an amazing amount of traveling and teaching and sharing the Dharma. And I should mention his books... One of the recent ones is called Turning Words. Wonderful, wonderful book. I highly recommend it. There's an article on the Ancient Dragon website in which I talked about that book. It has excerpts of teachings that Alan heard from many different great modern teachers. So Turning Words. He also did a book on the Forty-Southless Embrace. And he did a book called Heirs to Abedkar.

[10:46]

So in addition to studying the teachings of Dr. King, he studied Abedkar and his teachings. So we were blessed to have him as a supporter of Ancient Dragon and as a teacher of of the Dharma in America, and of dharmic activism and social engagement, as well as Reiki and Buddhist teachings. So, again, he was also a fine musician. And so I want to have time if anyone else has comments or memories you want to share. But I'll close my part of this with one of Alan's songs. This is from his CD, Everything is Broken, and it's called... There it falls. We're back. They are falling all around me They are falling all around me

[11:56]

The strongest of beings on my train. Every letter brings a new sign. Every letter brings a new sign. Every letter brings a new sign. The teachers of my life are moving on Death comes and rests so heavy Death comes and rests so heavy Death comes and rests so heavy Your face I'll never see no more. But you're not really going to leave me.

[13:18]

You're not really going to leave me. You're not really going to leave me. It is your path I walk. It is your song I sing. It is your Lord I take on. It is your air I breathe. It's the record you set that makes me go on. It's your strength that helps me stand. I will try to sing my song right I will try to sing my song right I will try to sing my song right Be sure to let me hear from you

[14:24]

Thank you, Jordan. Thank you, Tiger, for offering such sweet words and a sweet song. I'm wondering if anyone in the Sangha, including people online, would like to share anything about your experience of Lausanne. And, you know, Jordan, I guess you'll help with that. Maybe I'll give people a minute to think about their experience. I'll just say a little about mine. I think I first became kind of aware of Alan as a person who was on somewhere in the 90s when he was heading the Buddhist Peace Fellowship. which really is a wonderful organization. And I was a peacenik at the time.

[15:32]

And there's something about, you know, I don't think Tyga mentioned a lot about this, but, you know, Alan and his wife and family, his two children, lived at Berkeley Sun Center for decades, I guess. And Berkeley Zen Center is not so unlike Ancient Dragon in the sense that there are really devoted people there who live in the world and care about the world and about social justice, about religion. living in a way that isn't just, you know, the monk facing the wall, but it's us going into the world and expressing our dharma through our care for the world. Berkeley Zen Center has always been a very welcoming, friendly place to me. You know, Alan's like, anytime you want, just stay with us. And it was like with us, with that community.

[16:35]

And I think a lot of that community spirit was because he and Laurie and their family were there caring for the temple and supporting Sojin Mel Weitzman, who was the abbot prior to Alan. But I just want to, you know, express the warm feeling spirit of that Sangha and of Alan and Lori and their children. Sylvie, their daughter, lives in Chicago and sat with us. Lori has actually been here and they've stayed here. So it was a very kind, sweet, gentle, and clear presence that Hozon had, but one that welcoming and, you know, being an advocate for so many causes for justice and peace, there was still this gentleness about him, not this harshness, you know.

[17:44]

but this just availability. And I think because in many ways he was pretty unassuming as a person, he didn't have a lot of pretense or Zen pretense, the stink of Zen, you know, around him, that he just shone bright and may his radiance continue eternally in our lives. So that's what I have to say about Hozon. Thank you, Hogetsu, and Just to add a little bit to what you said, Alan was executive director of the National Buddhist Peace Fellowship for a while. He was also national executive director or whatever of the Buddhist Association for a while. And his family is remarkable. His wife, Laurie Smolke, is also a Zen priest and teacher, karma teacher. I actually knew her before Alan did because she was Tenzo at Hasegawa when I first showed up. And his children, Sylvie lives in Chicago, recently got married.

[18:48]

Alex is what spent some time in Japan and is a Renaissance monk. So Alan was, you know, had a wide range of different contacts and connections and communities that he was part of. Anyway, other people who anybody who has something more to add. online you know your sex life oh brisha i love brisha oh gosh um i'd say alan was uh one of the few people who just reflecting on his passing i can say he lived by what he preached and um I met him when I was at UPIA's chaplaincy program.

[19:52]

And he was just such an incredible teacher and advocate during a very difficult time. And one of my favorite teachings from him that I will never forget is I'm someone who communicates what I feel needs to be said in the moment. And one thing Sensei Allen told me about the precept around right speech is that it's important that someone be in a place to receive what I'm saying in order for it to be considered right speech. And there were times when I would speak what I perceived to be the truth and he may have agreed with it, but it may not have been, the person may not have been in the place to receive it. And that has been a piece of wisdom that has informed all of my relationships and the work that I've done moving forward.

[20:58]

And, you know, it just, breaks my heart. And at the same time, I feel fortunate to have met and loved someone deeply enough to experience this heartbreak. And yeah, it's just a beautiful person. So that's it. Thank you. I don't have in-depth memory of Alan's teaching, but I do remember him visiting the Zen gate a couple of times, and I remember he seemed so completely down-to-earth to me that it was warming, it warmed my heart, because sometimes Zen does feel a little aloof to me, and he was not that at all.

[21:58]

And He sang, and it was a folk song, and it was very inclusive. And it, I don't know, he did something that evening, I think, pulled us all together. So I just remember that about him, that he had the power to do that. I mean, I have similar sort of relationship to Ella, which is not a deep one. I don't really have much. I don't really have a didn't have a personal relationship with him. Just times he came and gave a talk here. but the relationship I have is sort of this like oh he's like one of the legends as like someone who's a young practitioner it's like oh he's one of the big ones out there and they're scary and you know they're like they're so enlightened and awakened that I'm not even coming to work close right and especially I think the first time I encountered Alan I sort of had more of that assumption about teachers and the big names in the Zen world and

[23:18]

I just remember having that delusion just like really shattered. I was like, oh, this guy's just down to earth. Yeah, he's just like one of us. One of us bozos down here. And I, you know, back when I was in college, I was in divinity school and I was doing the master divinity program. One of the things that stuck out to me that my program director at that time would often say was, well, it doesn't really matter. It doesn't really matter what you remember me saying. Like, what did you feel? Yeah. Alan didn't say that, but I still remember, and I don't even remember at all what Alan said. I have a distinct bodily feeling and memory of how Alan made me feel, and it was extremely warm and extremely welcoming. It was remarkable. There was something just illuminating and bright about him. And it was just remarkable because I've only met the guy in person like two times.

[24:22]

And I didn't even chat with him afterwards. I was like, oh, you don't want to talk to him. He wouldn't talk to me. Yeah, sure. We've had a great conversation. And again, for anyone who's interested in hearing some of the Dharma talks he gave here at Ancient Dragon, just go to ancientdragon.com, go to the podcast, and write in his name, and it's so much fun. David, what you said, how it triggered in me. Many memories, like Risha, I was partly by a chaplaincy program only for a year, but Alan was kind of like a glue. Everybody was trying to do the work and trying to, you know, Get this done and Alan would sing a song and help us relax and ground us. And he was just a presence. And it wasn't so much what he said, but like you said, how he made you feel.

[25:23]

That you just felt relaxed and relaxed. good to be in his presence, that you were comforted by him. And that was his care for other people reflected in all his activism. He was caring for people all over the world. In fact, the first time I heard his name, you were going to Washington with him for some peace conference to the White House. That's right. We went to the White House together. Yeah. And so he was always this active person. You knew that. And just to Like you say, it just made you feel at ease. And I remember my dope was on with him, you know, but wasn't real harsh. And, you know, I was like, come on, you know, you could do this, you know, kind of gentle, gentle support and gentle gentleness and compassion. And that's what I think of when I think of Alan's, that compassion that he had.

[26:26]

Thank you, David. David Ray. Well, again, in 2020, after I had started coming around Ancient Dragon, it probably goes to mind. I don't know if you know his name, Larry Rothfield, who was actually retiring. He said to me, so how's your life these days? And I said, well, I'd become a Zen Buddhist. And he said, oh, do you know, do you happen to know the name of Alan Sanaki? And I was like, why would I know the name of Alan Sanaki? And I don't think I ever will. But then, of course, you know, he turned out to be a friend of yours and he came here and he was great. sitting where Ugetsu was sitting. Not only did he sing, but he made us sing. He made us sing that song where the chorus is, I would never despise you. At the end of the chorus is, you'll be a Buddha someday. It's such a wonderful song. It's from the Lotus Sutra. Oh, yeah, it's from the Lotus Sutra, exactly. So his music, his music is, his music is dharma.

[27:33]

Yeah, I really appreciate it. I can say this to you now, on this particular day. I would never have said this to you ever before, but both my PhD advisor and my Dharma teacher are scholars of Bob Dylan. I like Alan Sanaki's music a lot better than Bob Dylan. Even in his renditions of Bob Dylan? Absolutely. He's the kind of better voice. He's also a great musician. He's a good musician. A mutual friend of ours spent three hours with Alan a couple of Wednesdays ago. And And talking, and Al was pretty clear and coherent and lucid mentally till the very end, or almost the end. I think he couldn't speak the last couple of days, but... And Hilton asked him what music he wanted to hear. And Alan said, The Dust Bowl Balance by William Guthrie.

[28:41]

And that's so perfect. As we enter another Dust Bowl, perhaps, and just William Guthrie singing, anything like that. So both Alan Snock and Bob Dilton were inspired by William Guthrie. Alan could sing. Yes. Yeah. I recommend those two CDs. I guess you can find them online. Yeah, they're actually on Spotify, and you can Google them, and they're on YouTube, you know, so. Everything is broken. Everything is available. Everything is available. Thanks to the cloud. The dragons can whirl in the clouds. So any other comments, anyone, before we... Yeah, I got one last, a second comment, because you're talking, the other thing that bubbles up for me is that Alan was serious, but he never took himself seriously.

[29:48]

And at least from my vantage point of seeing him. And I think that's what he tried to convey to us as students. You know, this is important stuff, but don't get hooked on it. You know, be real and you'll get it. But don't, you know, don't try too hard. Don't be attached to being not attached, you know, that kind of feeling. He said, just be yourself and let it come. And he was so supportive in that way, you know, without, you know, imposing something on you, just letting you be and supporting you as you found your way. And that's what I truly appreciated with him when I was at Upaia, truly. You know, also, David, I think he was good friends with Albert Cudgen. Yeah, he was. Very good friends. Very good friends with Albert. Yeah. So we have these interesting connections to Alan and Berkeley Sunsetter and this world that we try to care for despite the odds.

[30:53]

Yeah, Berkeley Zen Center was a very early important satellite of San Francisco Zen Center. Many, many fine Zen people have been at Berkeley Zen Center. After his teacher said, you know, my son passed out, I took that on. Any other comments, anybody online? It's great to see you all. Well, I want to thank everyone for coming out on this still almost dark solstice-like night. And, you know, there will probably be many or at least a major funeral service for him at Berkeley Sun Center, more formal work. a celebration, so you can look on Berklee's website.

[31:56]

I don't know if they're going to do one at San Francisco Zen Center. Are they going to do a funeral? I don't know. That would be my guess. But we can remember him at our own personal altars for the next rest of our lives. And every once in a while, I'll give him a little nod and sing a tune for Ellen. I think he'd like that. We're so fortunate to have this great ancestor.

[32:22]

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