John Tarrant

John Tarrant (born 1949) is a Western Zen teacher, currently director of the Pacific Zen Institute in Santa Rosa, California.

Biographical Portrait

Tarrant was raised in rural Tasmania, Australia. This was for all practical purposes a nineteenth century upbringing, without the use of wired electricity or indoor plumbing. His earliest influences included the Catholic Church and particularly the Latin Mass, Australian Aboriginal culture, and a passion for English literature, especially poetry. Tarrant was awarded a scholarship to attend the Australian National University, the premier Australian institution of higher learning, where he earned a dual degree in Human Sciences and English Literature.

Before and after his college experience, Tarrant worked at many jobs, ranging from working as a laborer in an open-pit mine, to commercial fishing the Great Barrier Reef. Eventually he also worked as a lobbyist for the Aboriginal land rights movement.

He was introduced to Buddhism in the Tibetan tradition but quickly found his spiritual home in Zen Buddhism. Tarrant moved to Hawaii to study Zen with the renowned social justice activist and Zen master,Robert Baker Aitken. He eventually became Aitken Roshi's first Dharma successor. At about this time he moved to California to complete his PhD in Psychology from the Saybrook Institute and where he established the California Diamond Sangha, which would eventually become the [http://www.pacificzen.org/ Pacific Zen Institute] .

Dharma Career

John Tarrant's reputation as a writer and poet grew with contributions to several publications, including among various journals the books "Beneath a Single Moon: Buddhism in Contemporary American Poetry" and "What Book? Buddha Poems From Beat to Hiphop".

Tarrant's own books include his controversial book "The Light Inside the Dark" [cite book| last =Tarrant| first =John| authorlink =John Tarrant| coauthors =| title =The light inside the dark : Zen, soul and the spiritual life| publisher =New York : HarperCollins Publishers| year = 1998| location =| pages =194| url =http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/38948253| doi =| id = | isbn = 9780060172190] and the widely received "Bring Me the Rhinoceros" [Updated edition:cite book| last =Tarrant| first =John| authorlink =John Tarrant| coauthors =| title =Bring me the rhinoceros: and other Zen koans that will save your life| publisher =Shambala Publications Inc.| year = 2008| location =| pages =194| url =http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/226037714| doi =| id = | isbn = 978-1-59030-618-5] .

He has become one of the most interesting and creative of North American koan masters, through his many [http://www.pacificzen.org/pages/WritingsAndTalks.htm talks] and essays published in periodicals and around the web, as well as through his book "Bring Me the Rhinoceros: and Other Zen Koans To Bring You Joy".

Dharma Lineage and Heirs

Tarrent's Zen lineage comes through the Harada-Yastuni lineage [ [http://www.ciolek.com/WWWVLPages/ZenPages/HaradaYasutani.html Harada-Yasutani School of Zen Buddhism] ] of Zen whose root organization is called Sanbo Kyodan:

Daiun Sogaku Harada (13 Oct 1871-12 Dec 1961)

Hakuun Ryoko Yasutani (5 Jan 1885-28 Mar 1973)

Kyozo Koun Zenshin Yamada (Mar 1907-13 Sep 1989)

Robert Chotan Gyoun Aitken (19 Jun 1917-)

John Nanryu Ji'un-ken Tarrant (14 Aug 1949-)

Among Tarrant's Dharma heirs are:

David Weinstein located at PZI's Oakland Zendo branch site;

Joan Sutherland, head of the [http://www.joansutherland.net/ Open Source Network] ;

James Ishmael Ford, founder and senior teacher of the [http://www.boundlesswayzen.org/home.html Boundless Way Zen] network;

Daniel Terragno, of [http://www.rocksandclouds.org/index.php Rocks and Clouds Zendo] .

Dharma Teaching

One popular quotation, which signifies Tarrant's contribution to Western Zen is:

"What is the mind like if it’s not occupied with plans and schemes, and fears that the plans and schemes will fail? What if your unexamined beliefs were to fall away and you were to live without them, and also to live without the thought that you had given anything up?"

References