Zen Blog

Bill Porter, the renowned translator of Chinese poetry and Buddhist texts who goes by the pen name Red Pine, is the subject of a new anthology and documentary, both titled Dancing with the Dead and set to come out in the spring of 2023. The projects come from nonprofit publisher Copper Canyon Press and production company Woody Creek Pictures respectively, two organizations that have teamed up on a Kickstarter campaign to ensure their work stays on schedule. The campaign aims to raise $80,000 by June 1 to fund costs associated with publishing the anthology, as well as research and post-production costs for the film. 

Porter is the author and translator of over twenty books and a beloved figure in the American Buddhist landscape. As Ward Serrill, director of Dancing with the Dead, points out, Porter’s biography also makes him a great subject for a documentary. His father was a bank robber, he flunked out of three different colleges, he lived in a Buddhist monastery for years, he was a popular radio host in Hong Kong, and he discovered hermits in the China’s Zhongnan Mountains after officials told him that there were no hermits to be found there. Using interviews, animation, archival footage of Beat poets, and footage from Chinese television productions on Porter, the film will tell the story of the translator’s life and contribution to his field. The anthology, meanwhile, will collect his poetry translations in the final volume of a series of books called “Essential Poems”—a series that includes writers like W.S. Merwin, June Jordan, Jim Harrison, and Ruth Stone.

Depending on the level of support, contributors to the campaign could receive an advance copy of the anthology,  a digital download of the documentary,  a collector’s edition movie poster, their name in the credits of the anthology and film, and even a dinner and private reading with Porter.

When novelist Marie Myung-Ok Lee began writing her latest book, The Evening Hero, she didn’t expect the research process to take her to North Korea. The novel follows the story of a middle-aged Korean American, Yungman Kwak, grappling with memories of war in a rapidly changing world, and Lee has been working on it for 18 years. “I’m the kind of writer where once I get an idea, I have to be all in,” she shared with Tricycle editor-in-chief James Shaheen on a recent episode of Tricycle Talks. “I feel like I can’t write unless I can be embodied in what’s happening.” In order to accurately depict the daily life of an obstetrician, Lee ended up shadowing a cohort of medical students on their OB/GYN rotation, sneaking into medical conferences, and eventually helping a midwife deliver a baby. But her research didn’t stop there—at some point she realized that she had to travel to North Korea. Through a combination of luck and perseverance, she and her mother were able to enter North Korea in 2008.

For Lee, writing—and all the research it entails—is one way of honoring her ancestors, and her practice of showing up at her writing desk every day is fundamentally connected to her Buddhist practice. In a recent episode of Tricycle Talks, Tricycle editor-in-chief James Shaheen sat down with Lee to discuss her new novel, her experience raising a child with severe intellectual disabilities, and her own journey through diverse spiritual traditions. Read excerpts from their conversation below, and listen to the full episode here.

On her practice of writing every day

On Wednesday, May 16, the White House held its second-ever Vesak ceremony, celebrating the day that commemorates the Buddha’s birth, death, and enlightenment. Last year marked a historic first when representatives from the three major Buddhist traditions gathered for prayers and candle lighting. This year carried on the momentum in an important moment for Buddhists everywhere.

Once again, Wangmo Dixey, President of the The International Buddhist Association of America, organized the event, and Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff presided over the ceremony, attended by leaders of all three Buddhist traditions. Ajahn Thanat Inthisan of Washington D.C.’s Wat Thai represented the Theravada tradition. Venerable Dr. Jinwol Lee of Gosung Monastery in Livermore, California and Venerable Wol of the Bub Hwa Buddhist Temple in Annandale, Virginia represented the Mahayana school. Venerable Khenpo Tsultrim Tenzin of the Tibetan Meditation Center in Frederick, Maryland represented the Vajrayana tradition. Venerable Wol was the first Bhikkhuni to take part in this ceremony.

On Twitter and Instagram, Emhoff shared photos from the occasion and acknowledged the role of faith in difficult times.