Mary Farkas

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Mary Farkas
TitleDirector
Personal
Born1911
DiedJune 7, 1992 (aged 81)
Religion Zen Buddhism
Nationality American
School Rinzai
Senior posting
Teacher Sokei-an
Based in First Zen Institute of America
Website www.firstzen.org

Mary Farkas (1911 – June 7, 1992) was the director of the First Zen Institute of America (FZIA), running the center's administrative functions for many years following the death of her teacher (Sokei-an) in 1945. [1] Though she was not a teacher of Zen Buddhism in any traditional sense of the word, she did help to carry on the lineage of Sokei-an and also was editor of the FZIA's journal, Zen Notes, starting with Volume 1 in 1954. [2] Additionally, she also edited books about Sokei-an, i.e. "The Zen Eye" and "Zen Pivots." Through her transcriptions of his talks, the institute was able to continue on the lineage without having a formal teacher (Sokei-an left no Dharma heir). [3]

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Notes

  1. Tricycle
  2. Stirling 2006, pg. 57
  3. Skinner Keller, 638

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