Paul E Nelson presenting at Cascadia Poetry Festival 8, photo by Leszek Chudzinski
“Paul formally received the Mahayana precepts of Zen Buddhism in 2023, becoming a lay practitioner within the tradition, but I believe he had long lived in accord with them. His poetry, in its sensitivity, its humility, and its deep listening, embodies practice-realization — the understanding that practice and awakening are not separate. His writing was his zazen. This collection, FLEXIBLE MIND, is more than a book. It is a continuation of that practice. A testament to a man who lives by attention, who bows to language but does not cling to it, who seeks what lays beyond words by walking straight into them.”– Kosho Itagaki, Soto Zen Priest
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521. Composed in Solidarity
Since 2004, I've had a little soft spot in my heart for Muslims given that my spiritual practice (the Latihan Kejiwaan of Subud) was created (discovered?/invented?) by a Muslim. (I was initiated...
Greg Bem Reviews American Sentences
I get nervous sending out review copies of my new books. Fortunately, I took Sam Hamill's advice from a few years ago to heart and am not in a rush to publish. At least I don't think I am. But my...
Vancouver/Victoria Make It True Readings
2016 marks Year Four in a twenty year cultural exploration of the Cascadia bioregion. The methodology is poetry and several projects are coming to fruition. Here are some key events in that effort:...
The interview I conducted with Sam O’Hana, a Ph.D. student at CUNY, is immensely critical and immensely validating for the work we do at the Cascadia Poetics Lab. At its core, the discussion is about whether writing is for people of means, or if it can be people who have skill and something to say. It means the literary gatekeepers have failed us and have a role in perpetuating neoliberalism in North America which has paved the way for authoritarianism. The interview is available as a podcast here and as a YouTube video here. Below, I have pasted in the transcript and here is my introduction to Sam O’Hana and his topic.