I Had a Good Teacher

Longtime Zen abbott relays wisdom of his teacher who brought Zen to the West and wrote the classic Zen Mind Beginner's Mind

Les Kaye studied with Suzuki Roshi in the 1960s, and is now abbot emeritus of Kannon Do Zendo in Mountain View, California (where Norman Fischer is acting abbot). Born and raised in Manhattan, Les moved to California in his twenties to work for IBM. He became Suzuki Roshi’s disciple while working in the corporate world, at the same time leading the practice at Kannon Do.

This is Kaye’s memoir, in the form of dharma talks that reveal many subtle integrations of Zen practice into a life involving work and family, fascinating memories of Suzuki Roshi, and short writings about events including the time Steve Jobs visited Les for guidance integrating work and spiritual practice, and about the founding of the iconic Haiku Zendo in Silicon Valley.

I Had a Good Teacher provides an introduction to Zen in daily life, a warm portrait of a great Zen guru, and a credible reminder to all meditators to return to basics, keep their meditation real, and continue the practice of awareness all day long.