"The Zen Predator of the Upper East Side"

Tomorrow -- or perhaps within seven days from then -- Mark Oppenheimer's book about Eido Tai Shimano and his 50 years of malfeasance will be published as an ebook by Atlantic Monthly Press (hope I got that right) and be available at Amazon: "The Zen Predator of the Upper East Side."

 Mark Oppenheimer                               Eido Tai Shimano      

I have not read the book, but I understand that Oppenheimer, a New York Times writer, has managed to get corroboration for the fact that Shimano, as a 'Zen teacher,' had a string of much-veiled affairs over the years. Some of his paramours were deeply wounded.

The Zen Studies Society, under whose corporate umbrella Shimano operated and whose functions Shimano manipulated, was frequently complicit in denying or obscuring or flat-out lying about not just the affairs, but also the financial maneuvers Shimano made to his own benefit. "The Fuck Follies," as they were sometimes called, wrought havoc in the Zen community, but there was nothing droll about that havoc with its funny name.

What else Oppenheimer may have learned in his investigative travels I have no clue. Shimano's anointed malfeasance is hardly unique and it is hard not to wonder to what extent the wider Zen community might honestly acknowledge (as distinct from mealy-mouthed remonstrations and 'healing' ceremonies) any systemic difficulty.

I guess I'll have to read the book in order to find out.