Book Review of The Way of the Fearless Writer by Beth Kempton (Piatkus 2022)) Reviewer: Rebecca Otowa （Beth Kempton is a writer and mentor who spent a year in Kyoto in the nineties, and has travelled back and forth frequently since then. Her books may be found on amazon.com.） Now that the New Year’s season has passed …Read More
Tag: Buddhism
By Nicholas Teele Two of my favorite places in Kyoto are Yoshimine-dera and Sanko-ji. The temples are located partway up Shakadake, one of the mountains on the western side of Kyoto referred to as nishiyama (western mountains, 西山). Yoshimine-dera is famous for its beautiful ancient pine, its many blossoming trees, beautiful flowers, and autumn leaves. …Read More
by Rebecca Otowa Like many of you, living in Japan has meant I have a special relationship with the Hannya Shingyo (“Heart Sutra”), that one-page piece of writing that is said to summarize the teachings of Buddhism as taught in many sects, including Zen. In my student days, while studying Japanese Buddhism at Otani University …Read More
Review by Preston Keido Houser Kerr, Alex. Finding the Heart Sutra: Guided by a Magician, an Art Collector and Buddhist Sages from Tibet to Japan. Dublin: Allen Lane, 2020. 297pp. Ebook and paperback. I’ve been exposed to the Heart Sutra for several decades now (I hesitate to use the word study since the sutra seems …Read More
Kyoto Writing Competition
WiK Anthologies
The Nature of Kyoto (2023)
Eds. Lisa Twaronite Sone & Robert Weis
Foreword by Pico Iyer
Structures of Kyoto (2021)
Eds: Rebecca Otowa & Karen Lee Tawarayama
Foreword by Judith Clancy
Encounters with Kyoto (2019)
Eds: Jann Williams & Ian Josh Yates
Foreword by Juliet Winters Carpenter
Echoes (2017)
Eds: John Dougill, Amy Chavez, & Mark Richardson
Preface by Alex Kerr
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