The Haptic Werewolf strikes again!!

[DKeys]

Everything about your work is bright, vibrant and fun--thank you for all you sent me something is on its way to you and hopefully it gets there before the full moon!!

[De Villo Sloan]

I'm sure some new piece of mail-art will suggest another path into "Tales of Beatnik Glory." We have barely scratched the surface.

[De Villo Sloan]

Yip, I'm ordering this book, a treasure for sure. Love that intro. by Kenneth Rexroth. This has been great Erni. I think it was definitely worth reviewing this chapter in Beat history. Rexroth's line that The Trungpa "did more harm to Buddhism in the US that any man living" strikes at the core of what this is all about. What shall we revisit next?

[De Villo Sloan]

Lord Erni, I had forgotten The Great Naropa Poetry Wars ever existed. Thanks again

[De Villo Sloan]

Erni, this is tremendous! I can't figure out who wrote it, though. Allen Ginsberg AUTHORIZED the investigation? This is hysterical! Sanders had just written a bestseller about the Manson Family. How could the results have been positive? This fills in many questions I've had. I notice Tom Clark - whom we've come across before - was in Boulder and writing about those events too. Thanks. This is priceless. I love it.

[De Villo Sloan]

Thank you for the particulars. I do not currently have the book either. I agree the core of it was the Merwin incident and what one could reasonably be expected to do as a disciple. One thing I have pondered: WS Merwin is very much an "establishment" poet. He and Dana Naone would have been very much out of place and uncomfortable with the usual cast of characters who assembled at Naropa. This included Timothy Leary, Burroughs, and Gary Snyder. I understand and respect Merwin's longtime devotion to Buddhism. Did Merwin know what he was getting into when he made the pilgrimage to Boulder, Colorado? I've often wondered. And - recall - Allen Ginsberg was very relaxed about nudity.Others are not.

[De Villo Sloan]

Erni, I need to dig back into the whole thing myself. That Trungpa book is a good suggestion. Yes, the bizarre behavior has passed into urban legend. But how many people in the US had encountered a real Tibetan monk? I think there were vast cultural differences. It was easy to say Trungpa was just another cult leader but perhaps very inaccurate. I'm sure Sanders alleged the CIA connection. Of course the US government was going to provide aid to Tibet. Trungpa and Naropa have passed into the legends of "Tales of Beatnik Glory" (figuratively). People to this day who know the history are going to have mixed feelings or strong opinions about Buddhism and the Beats as a result.

[De Villo Sloan]

I should throw into the mix William Burroughs' obsession with scientology. He embraced it and then denounced it.

[De Villo Sloan]

Yes Erni, this is the incident exactly - especially the involvement of WS Merwin. It was not my intention to goad you into taking a position on Trungpa Rinpoche. People who admired Allen Ginsberg, there are probably millions, in later days had to accept the Trungpa as part of the package. If you went to Naropa, you were going to study Buddhism, even if your intent was different. With the presence of iconoclasts like Ed Sanders, there was going to be a questioning of authority. 

 

I also note the difficult balance of religion, art, and politics here. The true "bad press" for Ginsberg was the suggestion that Naropa and the Jack Kerouac School for disembodied poetics was funded (in part) by the CIA. Given the political situation of Tibet, was it not inevitable that someone like Rinpoche would have to deal with politics?

 

Naropa and Rinpoche have done much good too. Sanders' investigation raises many issues. Thanks for the background. This incident was indeed known and discussed for a very long time.

[De Villo Sloan]

Erni, I would think you would be a bit mixed on investigative poetry. Wasn't one of Sanders' main subjects at the Naropa Institute Trungpa Rinpoche himself? Didn't Sanders claim The Trungpa was funded by the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency)? That was crazy stuff, but it's all in print somewhere. I would have to go back and look. I think it caused quite a stir indeed.

[De Villo Sloan]

here's one sanders link to the woodstock journal

http://www.woodstockjournal.com/