[Japanese Internment]

Gassho. All Units Forum. Poston, Ariz. Unit 1. Sept. 4, 1943 [cover title]

Poston, Az. Young Buddhists Asociation, 1943. [16] leaves. Original printed wrappers, stapled. Printed on one or both sides of the leaf, apparently indiscriminately. Light edge wear and minor tanning to wraps. Scattered light offsetting and toning internally. In English and translisterated Japanese. Very good. Item #6301

This scarce booklet is the program for the first Young Buddhists Association event in Poston in September 1943, that drew attendees from all three units of the camp together. The units were set apart from each other in the Arizona desert, and evidently it was an unusual experience to mingle socially with so many internees from other units. The title, Gassho," is a Buddhist gesture in which the palms of the hands are placed together, often performed while reciting the Shoshinge verse, and can also serve as a gesture of respect. The booklet contains messages from YBA leaders in the three units and from the organizers of the event, a schedule of the forum's events, transliterations of two Japanese poems, and even a good-natured gossip column, "Lena Pry Snoops." In his message, the Rev. Noburu Tsunoda writes, "Our experience in the relocation centers has shown more clearly that religion does not consist of beautiful churches and a host of clergymen, neither does it consist of dogma as set down by the ecclesiastical authorities; the fundamental basis of religion is in the strength of our faith and the earnestness and zeal of each and every one of us who believe in the Love, light, and mercy of Lord Buddha. A fascinating glimpse of religious life inside the Japanese internment camps of World War II, and scarce -- OCLC locates only two copies, at UC Davis and Williams.

Price: $1,250.00