Shinzen Young Biography

Dear Friends,

If you’re reading this you may know something about Shinzen Young, but few of us know his full story. My name is Paddy Kamen and I have interviewed Shinzen extensively over the past two decades, along with more than 60 of his family members, friends, colleagues, and students. I am now working with an impressive team to bring his captivating story to the public, and I need your help to bring it to fruition.

'Young' and handsome!

The Project

Not one minute of talking with Shinzen has been dull, and he hasn’t held back: from his intimate relationships to fringe-culture nightlife; from begging for food in Kyoto to a long connection to Native American teachers and rituals. He has shared openly about how he stumbled as an adult and how his mistakes transformed him as a teacher and as a human being.

As a young monk

Fifty years later

In this revealing account, we will take the journey with him, from his early days in Venice, California, where he was a difficult child in an emotionally frenzied home, to his actualized life as Co-Director of the Science Enhanced Mindful Awareness (SEMA) Lab at the University of Arizona. We’ll also learn about his recent brain sonication research with Dr. Jay Sanguinetti, which is yielding stunning results. Now nearly 80, Shinzen’s story keeps unfolding in truly dynamic ways. “God kept the best for last,” he quips.

Shinzen and Jay

Shinzen as a guinea pig

Shinzen will share his awakening experiences, and how his understanding of them has matured and surprised him over the many decades of his practice. We get intimate with what enlightenment has meant to him—practically and spiritually—and how it has informed his teaching. We'll explore his shadow side and personal experiences with psychological blind spots, and how his meditation practice eventually allowed him to defeat his high school nemesis: math.

I have already completed several chapters. Shinzen calls it, “A very cool book.” Michael W. Taft, former acquisitions editor for the publishing company Sounds True and editor of Shinzen’s The Science of Enlightenment: How Meditation Works, sees it as a “timeless classic in its niche".

Why Are We Fundraising?

Simply put, I need your help to pay these folks:

• David Ploskonka: A Shinzen student and senior product developer with McGraw-Hill Education, David has shepherded nearly 50 books from inception to publication. He will be organizing, cataloging, transcribing, and editing the content.

• Keith Martin-Smith: The author of an award-winning biography of Jun Po Denis Kelly Roshi, A Heart Blown Open, Keith is also an ordained Zen priest. He will serve as an advisor in shaping the manuscript.

Funding is also needed to cover other expenses such as the transcription of interviews, editing, proofreading, design services, legal services, and so on. The goal is to have Shinzen’s biography ready for publication by September 2024.

Shinzen fully supports this fundraising campaign; in fact, it was his idea. His organization—Vipassana Support International (VSI)—is sponsoring the campaign, with me as the beneficiary. Expenses will be paid out by me, however, I personally will not be receiving any compensation for my work on this book. Any extra funds raised through this campaign will be donated to the Shinzen Young Foundation (SYF).

Teaching in Tucson

The goal is $95,000 CAD ($70,000 USD), but every donation of any size is much appreciated and very helpful. (FYI, $100 CAD = approx. $75.05 USD.)

Please note: GoFundMe automatically applies a ‘tip’ of 15% to your donation unless you set it to 0. The tip goes to them. They are already paid by a percentage taken off your donation before I receive it. This is an aspect of their service that has taken a few donors by (unwelcome) surprise.

Anyone who donates can view the financials of the project when it is complete. Major donors can feel free to contact me for additional details.

My research will eventually be donated to the SYF, so your contribution will help to benefit Shinzen’s sangha and the global Dharma research community for years to come. This will contribute to the story of Buddhism’s introduction to the West over the last century.

I was amazed by Shinzen at my first retreat with him 20 years ago. It is the privilege of my life to write his biography. Your support of this campaign will help to create a meaningful book that both reveals and honours Shinzen Young.

Warmly,

Paddy Kamen