All of us at Shambhala Publications were deeply saddened to hear that David Reich Chadwick, the author and chronicler of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi and Zen in America, passed away on February 23rd. David was a storyteller to his bones, and his stories were a constant stream—always full of delight.
David’s books are beloved: Crooked Cucumber: The Life and Zen Teaching of Shunryu Suzuki; Zen is Right Here: Teaching Stories and Anecdotes of Shunryu Suzuki; Zen is Right Now: More Teaching Stories and Anecdotes of Shunryu Suzuki; Thank You and OK! An American Zen Failure in Japan; and his trilogy of Tassajara Stories, the third volume of which will be released this September.
And there is cuke.com—an archival site on the life and world of Shunryu Suzuki and those who knew him. It is home to the Cuke Archives and other projects from David, which he began gathering and compiling in 1998. It is an incredibly rich record. It is an incredible world to get lost in, with categories such as “Audio of DC [David] that should probably be erased.”
His podcast, the Cuke Audio Podcast, in which he interviews a who’s who of Zen figures, is an incredible legacy. I wrote David yesterday morning, before I heard the news, to say how much I loved listening to the most recent episode with Richard Jaffe. His rollicking style comes through in each and every episode. Last night, after I heard the news, I listened to a conversation he had with my friend Amber Hoadley about growing up in the world of San Francisco Zen Center and Green Gulch. Hearing David’s vibrant voice really brought home how great a loss is upon us with his departure.
What struck me about David was his curiosity. Here at Shambhala Publications, we sometimes invite an author to do a Zoom meeting with our whole staff. The idea is we pepper the author with questions so the team here gets a feeling for them, hears how to practice in their tradition, etc. But David took it off the rails, batting away the questions to him and taking the opportunity to point to one of the person-filled zoom squares on his screen and ask, “Who are YOU?” “What do YOU do at Shambhala?” “What are you all about?” He had a ball, and so did we.
In an interview with us, he said, “Suzuki made a great effort minute after minute, and that’s what I see in countless people who pass through his zendos and read some of what he said. We’re encouraged to keep making an effort to wake up. We believe it’s possible. Each has their own way. Each is also encouraging others. And in the middle of this effort is his playful spirit saying ‘don’t be too serious.’”
David clearly continued this as a true lineage holder of the Crooked Cucumber in his approach.
David had written me last month about his cancer and how he was dealing with it. He wrote, “I walk a little and swim at nearby Kolonial House a lot and don’t obsess on or worry about it. It’s just what’s happening.”
It is just what is happening. He was a Zen Man through and through, to the last.
Our hearts go out to his sons, Kelly and Clay; his wife, Katrinka; and David’s thousands of friends and fans.
We thank David for everything he did, how he did it, and who he was. A deep bow.
Nikko Odiseos
Shambhala Publications
An excerpt from David’s memoir, Thank You and OK.
The Books of David Chadwick
