The Collected Letters of Alan Watts

FRIDAY, MAY 25
7 pm to  9 pm

THE COLLECTED

LETTERS

OF ALAN WATTS


AN EVENING WITH EDITORS
JOAN WATTS  AND ANNE WATTS

INTERVIEWED BY BEN SEN DAN FOLEY

Registration not required; $15 at the door
Contact: info@villagezendo.org

 

Alan Watts (January 6, 1915 – November 16, 1973) was a British-born American philosopher, writer, speaker, and counterculture hero, best known as an interpreter of Asian philosophies for a Western audience. He wrote over 25 books and numerous articles applying the teachings of Eastern and Western religion and philosophy to our everyday lives. Today, new generations are finding his writings and lectures online, while faithful followers worldwide continue to be enlightened by his teachings.

The Collected Letters of Alan Watts reveals the remarkable arc of Watts’s colorful and controversial life, from his school days in England to his priesthood in the Anglican Church as chaplain of Northwestern University to his alternative lifestyle and experimentation with LSD in the heyday of the late sixties. His engaging letters cover a vast range of subject matter, with recipients ranging from High Church clergy to high priests of psychedelics, government officials, publishers, critics, family, and fans. They include C. G. Jung, Henry Miller, Gary Snyder, Aldous Huxley, Reinhold Niebuhr, Timothy Leary, Joseph Campbell, and James Hillman.

Watts’s letters were curated by two of his daughters, Joan Watts and Anne Watts, who have added rich, behind-the-scenes biographical commentary.

Anne Watts’s philosophies were also strongly shaped by her experience as the daughter of Alan Watts. Anne is a certified hypnotherapist and an educator and counselor in the areas of human sexuality, sexual abuse, family stress, self-esteem, healing the inner child, and financial and aging issues. Since 1985, she has facilitated hundreds of workshops in the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, England, and Germany with the Human Awareness Institute, work she is deeply passionate about. Since 2008, she has also been a regular faculty member at Esalen Institute. Find her work online at www.annewatts.com. Joan Watts grew up in the United States and England, attending private schools, and then studied art at various institutions in the United States. She also studied sumi-e (Japanese ink painting) for two years in Japan. Her art has won awards in juried shows and hangs in many private collections. In addition to her art career, she spent 25 years as a successful fund-raiser in the nonprofit world. She retired in her fifties and moved to Montana, where for twenty years she was an occasional fishing guide and operated a bed-and-breakfast that catered to fly fishers from around the world. After retiring (again), she began, along with her sister Anne, editing her father’s letters for publication and resumed her painting. Most of her life decisions have been influenced in one way or another by her father, Alan Watts.

Ben Sen Dan Foley has performed poetry and theater in his own unique style throughout New York City for many years. He has created and starred in “An Evening With Dan Foley” at the St. Mark’s Church. Last year, he performed April Fools with Ben Sen at the Village Zendo. Ben Sen is a long time Zen practitioner who studied and practiced with Edo Shimano, the head of the Zen Studies Society, for over twenty years. He has been a member of the Village Zendo since 2007. Ben Sen has shared his charm and wit at many of our Village Zendo Poetry readings. His latest project is a non-fiction book entitled Growing Up Together.

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