Dancing in the Dharma: The Life and Teachings of Ruth Denison [Hardcover]

Sandy Boucher's (author of "Turning the Wheel") biography of her long-time meditation teacher Ruth Denison who initiated women-only Buddhist retreats in America. She presents much background material/context for understanding Denison's roots-especially early life in Germany & later in America with her difficult husband Henry. She provides both the ups & downs including Denison's association with Watts, Govinda, Ram Dass, Trungpa et al & involvement in founding the Insight Meditation Society (IMS). This highlights Denison's experiential, feminine approach vs. her husband's intellectual seeking. Thus, she emphasized Charlotte Selver's "sensory awareness"; bodywork, walking meditation, as well as her teacher U Ba Khin's Burmese Theravada Vipassana (mindfulness) meditation. [Note: "vipassana" differs in meaning in other Buddhist traditions]. As an eclectic innovator true to her "outrageous eccentric personality, she recognized Buddhism's need to adapt to the West but therefore experienced intolerance from the more traditional IMS students & from her teacher's successor (who excommunicated all of his Western heirs). "This woman who we had chosen as our teacher was always inviting us to leave our categories behind, to sink into a wider identification with all that lived" (p. 187). Boucher presents a comprehensive view of her esteemed teacher whose lectures put Boucher to sleep, though, p. 170, "insight might be buried in the river of her words." Further, Denison's micromanagement made, p. 192, "working for Ruth is like being a servant on a feudal estate, where you are entirely at the mercy of the mistress." She remonstrated with Denison on, p. 196, "Ruth's harsh treatment of people" such as her relating positive experiences with Hitler Youth to Jewish students & XMAS decorations at her Dhamma Dena retreat site. Immersed in minute details of her retreats, Denison was oblivious of others' feelings/sensitivities & closed to their ideas [strange for an innovator]. Boucher also describes Henry Denison's spiritual promiscuity & lack of sensitivity to others. She provides a personal, sensitive presentation of Denison's life experiences including highly traumatic ones: multiple rapes following WWII, Henry's disloyalty, dementia & death, & the mental breakdown. It is interesting to note that, p. 156, Ayya Khema (well-known Theravada teacher/author) "thought Henry was off" & that Denison frequently helps the mentally ill. This book could be the basis for a case study by Jeffrey Rubin or another writer (Suler, Katz, or Safran) on "Psychotherapy & Buddhism" where meditation-Buddhist practice, while healthful, is no panacea for mental-emotional problems. Buddhism, IHMO, improves the spiritual immune system as a whole while psychotherapy treats more specific problems. Overall, Boucher's presentation is well-done & balanced (despite her liberal, feminist, lesbian orientation) though she sometimes jumps to conclusions such as: p. 156: saying that Henry was "no doubt grateful." I must agree with her that, p. 186, "a teacher is also a human being with flaws & blind spots" & that professed non-feminist, p. 172, "Ruth Denison's impact on American Buddhism has been wide-ranging." This book is a valuable contribution to many fields of enquiry.

How do storm chasers capture a tornado? They don't. They get as close to it as they think is safe, they pause, they make observations, then they turn and run.

Being a storm chaser implies intent. It implies conviction, purpose, and desire. When confronted by such a force of nature the depth of one's convictions becomes apparent and what appears can range from a vision of hell to transcendent bliss.

Buddhist practitioners are storm chasers. The natural force they pursue is inside them. It is the very intent, conviction, purpose and desire, which cause them to chase in the first place. As they get close to this internal force it may or may not feel safe, they may pause or they may not, they may make observations, they will turn and run. The intrepid come back and begin again.

Dancing in the Dharma, by Sandy Boucher is the story of one Buddhist teacher, Ruth Denison. She is a force of nature. You know this, you don't sense it, you know it, when you meet her. Somewhere between the first ten seconds and ten minutes of being with Ruth you are pushed outside your comfort zone. You are pushed outside your envelope. You are pushed outside the box the envelope came in. You want to turn and run. The intrepid stay.

Learning meditation from Ruth is not sitting quietly cross-legged on the floor, although there is time for that. It is experiencing the Dharma, the Buddha's teaching. It is experiencing the force, the force as manifest in a small wiry German woman born in 1922.

Sandy Boucher is intrepid, she stayed for more than two decades. She is also a wonderful chronicler of this very dynamic and enigmatic woman, Ruth Denison. To practice with Ruth is not only experiencing the Dharma, but also learning, in bits and pieces, Ruth's life story. Ms. Boucher paused and observed. It is good for us she did.

This is a biography of a contemporary Buddhist teacher, not an historical figure or a pop star. This is the story of a survivor who went beyond mere survival. This is the story of a woman with an incredibly strong personality and a stronger faith and experience in spirituality.

Sandy Boucher has beautifully contained this force of nature (the good, the bad, and the neutral) between the covers of a book. For those who have not met Ruth in person, this is a safe distance. It will tell you a marvelous, awe-inspiring story of one woman who found her spiritual calling. Those who have been with Ruth will find threads dangled before them tied together, but they will also know the feeling of being with this force, pausing, observing, then turning to face the force within.

I recommend this book to all. And to spiritual storm chasers I suggest a pilgrimage to sage tussled Copper Mountain Mesa, in the Mojave Desert. You may turn and run, but you'll have gained for the effort.

I just finished Dancing in the Dharma and loved it. It is such a complete account of such a complicated person. My favorite chapter was "A Teaching," where the author and Ruth Denison talk in depth about the dharma and its practical applications.

The material about Ruth's life in Nazi Germany and thereafter was riveting.

Thanks for writing this book, Sandy. It's a wonderful tribute to your teacher and a great resource for us all.

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