9-06-1990 - Dharma Sangha News on Issan's death Thursday this date of AIDS. Born 1933.

Wind Bell article by Michael Wenger on Issan. Vol. 24-2. 1990. p.3

11-01-12 - Remembering Issan Dorsey By Adam Tebbe in Buddhadharma

10-05-19 - Ken Ireland made this record, or collection, of pieces relating to Issan - memories and a lecture by Issan Tommy Dorsey.

8-23-12 - The third installment of Rob Lee's Collaborating with Angels about Issan Dorsey (other chapters linked to below)

7-07-12 - Schneider, David. Street Zen: the Life and Work of Issan Dorsey. Marlowe and Company, (2nd Edition, June 2000) originally Shambhala, 1993.  Here's the Amazon.com link.

In a conversation the question of helping other people came up. Issan's answer had been immediate, firm, "What else is there to do?"

Amen. - dc

6-06-12 - Collaborating With Angels, Rob Lee's memoir about Issan Tommy Dorsey and Maitri Hospice is being serialized in an online magazine -  www.subtopian.com.  The first installment is now up.  Rob writes to DC:

To say it's been a long time coming is a ridiculous understatement, but I don't regret it as the topic has such weight that time and contemplation have been helpful.  It begins with Issan but he died pretty quickly and the project took on a life of its own.  It's an attempt at something beautiful and true and helpful.  Not so easy. In editing this book I'm revisiting all kinds of fond memories, and with the hospice, complicated memories. Speaking of which, I hope you enjoyed seeing the look on Issan's face reading your card shortly before he died. He didn't have many good times in those months and that was as happy as I saw him that summer.

Rob Lee's photo of Issan with David Sensuri looking at DC's card.

Thanks Eric Kaljo Roos for sending this photo of Issan at the Hartford Street zendo at 57 Hartford Street.

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Ulysses Lowry and Issan at a ceremony at Tassajara. Date unknown to me but 70s I guess. - dc

Issan with James Chidester (thanks Ken Ireland)

James was a Zen student for a while, was kicked out of Tassajara, something which Ed Brown feels bad about, Issan got AIDS from him. He was also a lover of Dianne, my first wife, which upset some people because he'd been rough with a prior woman lover at ZC. I said Dianne can have any lover she wants. She can handle herself James died on the street like his brother. There was a photo of him in the Chronicle dead on the sidewalk. - dc

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