John Daido Loori

Andy Anderson – a former resident at Zen Mountain Monastery – told me that John Daido Loori “was the most interesting teacher I’ve ever met by far. And I’ve met a lot. He didn’t ever come across as, ‘I’m a Zen priest. I’m a Zen Master.’ Totally the opposite. You know, he could play that role. And when he did it, he did it. But I’m an ex-football coach. I like strong masculine energy. So I was attracted to his energy and the way he did things. Old Navy man. Straight to the point. No bullshit. I liked that. Tough as nails, yet incredibly compassionate.”

“If you were having a beer with friends and telling stories, what story would you tell about Daido?”

“I think one of the funniest ones was, I was taking the compost out. And there was about two and a half feet of snow. And the compost is full, so I have a big garbage can, and I’m struggling along. Daido pulls up in his jeep and just looks at me from a distance. He watches me struggle for fifteen minutes. Finally get it all done. I’m walking back towards him, and I’m thinking, he’s going to say, ‘Wow! Andy, that’s hard work, isn’t it?’ Or, ‘Good job.’ So I come up to the jeep, and he says, ‘Jesus Christ, Andy! Where the Hell did you learn to empty compost? You’re doin’ it all wrong!’ Classic Daido.

“And then the other one I’ll never forget is I had face-to-face with him once, and we were talking about some pretty intense stuff. And towards the end, he goes deep into thought, and I think he’s going to say something profound. Finally he goes, ‘Jesus, Andy! Can’t they get you a robe that fits?’”

Cypress Trees in the Garden: 65, 224-25, 228, 232, 239, 251-269, 274, 280, 418-19, 47

The Story of Zen: 271, 272, 307-08, 336, 353, 355, 356, 357, 358, 378, 379