Gary Gach

Gary Gregory Gach (born November 30, 1947) is an American author, translator, editor, teacher and poet living on Russian Hill, San Francisco. He has published six books. His work has been translated into several languages (Arabic, Chinese, Czech, French, Greek, Italian, and Russian). In 2004, he was appointed to serve on the International Advisory Panel of the Buddhist Channel, a Malaysian Buddhist news website. A member of the Order of Interbeing, he teaches mindfulness in the tradition of Ven. Thich Nhat Hanh, at the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples. He currently hosts Haiku Corner for Tricycle: The Buddhist Review.

Life

Gach was born to a Jewish family in Hollywood, Los Angeles in 1947. He was student body president of John Burroughs Junior High School. He claims to have had a mystic vision at the age of 6. At 11, he read The Way of Zen by Alan Watts, beginning a lifelong interest in Buddhism.

He was formally introduced to meditation by Paul Reps and later studied Hasidic Judaism and Kabbalah, and was introduced to shikantaza by Dainin Katagiri Roshi.

He has worked as an actor, stevedore, typographer, legal secretary, editor-in-chief, webmaster, and teacher (most frequently of late, Stanford Continuing Studies). Besides Buddhism, he teaches haiku.

Published works

Books

• Preparing the Ground : Poems 1960-1970 (Heirs, International; San Francisco)
• The Pocket Guide to the Internet (Pocket Books; New York) ISBN 0-671-56850-7
• Writers.net: Every Writer's Essential Guide to Online Resources and Opportunities (Prima Publishing; Rocklin, New York) ISBN 0-7615-0641-1
• Editor, What Book!? : Buddha Poems from Beat to Hiphop, introduction by Peter Coyote (Parallax Press; Albany, California) ISBN 0-938077-92-9 (American Book Award)
• Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Buddhism (Alpha Books, New York) ISBN 0028641701
• Co-translator, Ten Thousand Lives by Ko Un, introduction by Robert Hass, (Green Integer: Los Angeles) ISBN 1-933382-06-6
• Co-translator, Flowers of a Moment, 185 brief poems by Ko Un; (Rochester, New York) ISBN 1-929918-88-7 (Northern California Book Award, Translation)
• Co-translator, Songs for Tomorrow: A Collection of Poems 1960-2001 by Ko Un (Green Integer; Los Angeles) ISBN 1-933382-70-8

Anthologies

Gach's work has appeared in more than 25 anthologies, including

• 09/11 8:48 am: Documenting America's Greatest Tragedy
• Chicken Soup for the American Soul
• Exiled in the Word: Poems and Other Visions of the Jews from Tribal Times to the Present
• Language for a New Century: Contemporary Poetry from the Middle East, Asia, and Beyond
• Literatures of Asia, Africa, and Latin America
• Technicians of the Sacred: A Range of Poetries from Africa, America, Asia, Europe and Oceania
• Veterans of War, Veterans of Peace
• Visions
• Words Upon the Waters: a benefit for survivors of Katrina
• World Poetry

Periodicals, reviews and articles

Over 175 appearances, including

• The American Poetry Review
• AsianArt.Com
• Crazyhorse
• Good Times
• Harvard Divinity Bulletin
• Manoa (journal)
• The Nation
• New American Writing
• The New Yorker
• San Francisco Review of Books
• Yoga Journal

Awards

Gach is a recipient of an American Book Award in 1999 for What Book!?. He is recipient of a Northern California Book Award in translation (2007) for his work on Flowers of a Moment and shortlisted by them (2006) for Ten Thousand Lives, both by Ko Un. He is an honorary member of The Academy of American Poets. He is recipient of translation grants from the Korea Literary Translation Institute and the Lannan Foundation. Poets & Writers, Inc. has supported his readings through their funding initiative.

External links

• Teachings of the Buddha – interview by Marjorie Chiew, The Star (Malaysia), (December 12, 2010)
• Interview with Gach at Writers Write (August 1997)
• Gach's RedRoom.com author page
• Gach's personal home page
• Presentation of "Complete Idiot's Guide to Buddhism (Video)