{"product_id":"sarasvatis-gift-isbn-9781611808155","title":"Sarasvati's Gift","description":"\u003cb\u003eThe inspiring life story of pioneering feminist artist, activist, and Buddhist teacher Mayumi Oda told through her own words and original thangka paintings.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSitting in meditation in front of a statue of Goddess Sarasvati, Mayumi Oda heard her say in a loud voice, \"Stop the plutonium shipment!\" After taking a stunned breath, Mayumi replied, \"I can't do that. I'm only an artist,\" and Sarasvati answered, \"Help will be provided.\" This book is the culmination of a life devoted to responding to Sarasvati's call to cultivate a path of peace, justice, and compassion.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eKnown as the \"Matisse of Japan,\" Mayumi Oda is a painter, environmental activist, and Buddhist practitioner whose life reflects both the brilliance and shadows of modernity. \u003ci\u003eSarasvati's Gift\u003c\/i\u003e explores her upbringing in Japan, her tumultuous marriage and the death of her son, her immigration to the country responsible for the destruction of her home, her inspiration for both her Buddhist practice and her art, and ultimately her commitment to the planet that gives her life both hope and meaning. This raw, heartfelt, and powerful memoir shares Mayumi's story of finding her place and her mission to transform the world.“\u003ci\u003eSarasvati’s Gift\u003c\/i\u003e is a revelation of the glory of Mayumi’s determined artistry, filled with all the kindness, beauty, and power that flows from the indomitable feminine, divine as nature, of nature, in nature, gentle and nurturing and ferocious in the defense of life.”—Robert A. F. Thurman, Jey Tsongkhapa Professor of Buddhology, Columbia University\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“An extraordinary book by an extraordinary woman. This remarkable work is a plunge into courage and beauty.”—Joan Halifax, author of \u003ci\u003eBeing with Dying \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eStanding at the Edge\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Mayumi’s vivid, original images of women as goddesses show us a new way to think about Zen Buddhism and, actually, about life. This book tells her marvelous journey from childhood in Japan during the Second World War into her life as a notable artist and activist. A book of great simplicity, sweetness, and beauty.”—John Tarrant, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Light Inside the Dark \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eBring Me the Rhinoceros\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Attempting to endorse \u003ci\u003eSarasvati’s Gift\u003c\/i\u003e is akin to praising the moon and the stars. This is a book of extraordinary resonance, love, and beauty. Mayumi’s heart surpasses all measures of courage in her devotion to the earth.”—Paul Hawken, author of \u003ci\u003eBlessed Unrest: How the Largest Social Movement in History Is Restoring Grace, Justice, and Beauty to the World\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e “Mayumi Oda’s action for life on Earth, whether it’s praying, sobbing, organizing, protesting, or farming, is as transformative and captivating as her magnificent creation of eclectic, bold, and enchanting celestial\/terrestrial femininity.”—Kazuaki Tanahashi, author of \u003ci\u003ePainting Peace: Art in a Time of Global Crisis\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “\u003ci\u003eSarasvati’s Gift\u003c\/i\u003e soars on the wings of Mayumi Oda’s pure, persevering, and fiercely loving heart and hands. It models ways to walk in beauty and with grace for everyone who feels called by the emergence of the feminine in this time when restoring balance and equilibrium to the human-nature experiment is so urgent and timely.”—Nina Simons, cofounder and Chief Relational Strategist, Bioneers \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e“Readers interested in Buddhist art or feminism will find this straightforward, impassioned memoir rewarding.”—\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The color reproductions of [Mayumi Oda’s] paintings serve as a welcome complement to her life story, a sensitively told account of the formation of her artistic vocation and antinuclear activism. Oda’s memoir is, at its core, an urgent appeal to the younger generation to salvage our world before it is too late.”—\u003ci\u003eBuddhadharma\u003c\/i\u003eMAYUMI ODA is a groundbreaking Buddhist teacher, painter, and activist who doesn't separate her art, activism, and Buddhist practice. Born in Tokyo in 1941, she went on to study painting and printmaking and to exhibit her work around the world. Since the early 1990s, while continuing to work as an artist, she has also devoted much of her time to activist causes such as women's rights, the antinuclear movement, and opposition to GMOs. She founded and lives at Gingerhill Farm, an active farm and educational center on the Big Island of Hawai'i.","brand":"Shambhala","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46300194242789,"sku":"NP9781611808155","price":22.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781611808155.jpg?v=1767736117","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/sarasvatis-gift-isbn-9781611808155","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}